honesty

Hi. This is me. I'm Jenn. Nice to meet you.

Reading the responses to my last post (which, just to clarify, wasn't a test to see if you would actually read that particular post, but more to see if anyone else gravitates towards pictures rather than words when it comes to blogs) I was reminded of a few things that I have been meaning to talk about. 

Like the fact that even though I know 90% of my readers are here because of quilts, I don't consider myself to be a quilter. 

Throughout my life I have found a few hobbies that I have become interested in, briefly obsessed with, then tired of. Like knitting. Jewelry making. Etc. I read this post by Oh Joy! recently and found it summed up my feelings on the subject very neatly. Only in my case, I don't have a business that I found I was meant to do. (At least not yet. We'll see what happens later.)

For now, I am content with being a maker. I make pancakes. I make school portfolios. I make quilts and paintings and flower arrangements. I make smiles and scowls, soap and scrubs, silliness and seriousness. I didn't pick my blog name just because it sounded fun, I picked it because it's true about me. I doubt I will ever be focused enough on one single thing to master it, because there are just too many trades I'm interested in learning about, dabbling in, obsessing over. For me, it's part of the fun. When I get bored, I move on. Sometimes I come back after a nice long break. Sometimes I realize it was a phase and it's time to pass those knitting needles on to a fellow maker. 

But more importantly than what I make, I am a wife, a mother, a follower of Jesus. I realize that not everyone wants to see pictures of my kids. Or my gardening. According to some "blogging rules" I've read in the past, speaking about my love of God is strictly taboo if I want my readers to be happy. 

However, I can't just separate out my family from my crafting, my making from my faith. They are, for me, so tightly woven together that you can't get one without the other. Why would I quilt if not for family and friends and orphans to make quilts for? Why would I garden and paint if not to express the joy I feel at all the beauty that God has surrounded me with? To deny these relationships is to deny all that I am. I could keep this blog just about the crafty stuff, and keep my family blog for all that other stuff, but I shouldn't have to. 

I certainly don't wish to offend anyone, or to alienate those of you who read this, but in all honesty I'll probably post pictures of plants and chicken coops sometimes. I'll probably mention my family on occasion and even break taboo and talk about Jesus. Because that's my life. It's what I'm about. It's always awesome to hear from someone who enjoys what I write, or who likes what I've made. I know for certain it isn't always the case, and that a huge chunk of people will merely skim this post. That's okay. I love you anyway. :)