Social media often times get a bad rap.  Most say that who you see on the computer screen isn’t really the real person who is doing the typing. So…today’s question: is the real you and the online you the same?

Yes and no.  Only sometimes do I post pictures of me when I’m not wearing makeup and my hair is in a ponytail with my glasses on.  Truth be told – that is how I normally am.  However, I have gotten better and don’t wear yoga pants every day – that is more for my mister.

I usually don’t post ALL of my parenting failures – but I do post some.

I am sarcastic online – and I’m sarcastic in real life.  But, I’ve gotten less with both.  Because often times, sarcasm doesn’t give grace to the receiver.

Yes, that I do share what God is teaching me.  But, no that I don’t share everything.  I’ve gotten in trouble in the past for sharing too much on my blog – so I’ve definitely toned that down some.  So, if you really wanna know what is going on in my heart: then you have to be in a tight group of people, and we have to be talking in a non-public context (like face to face, phone text, email, private msg, etc.

I am more extroverted online – I’m definitely more of an introvert in person.

All in all – I really do think my online self and real life self (to my close community) is the same.

I’m not really one of those girls that has tons of purses and always has it with her.  I usually have one that I pick up on clearance or at Goodwill just to get me usually to church.  I have a bag that goes with me every morning to where I do my quiet times: books, sketch pad, Bible, psalter, notebooks, and plenty of pens and pencils.

I do carry my wallet: receipts, the normal stuff in your wallet, and a pen, and a small pack of notecards just in case I need one in a jiffy.  You never know when a note of encouragement might brighten someone’s day.  My wallet is a made just for me handheld by my sweet friend Leah.  I love it – gray and yellow!

Now, my current purse is one made by my cousin in Alabama.  Its cream and gorgeous.  It stands up on the bottom on its own.  I love the buttons.  I use it primarily when I’m going to church or another church function.

It holds my aforementioned wallet, tons of writing instruments (notice a theme), phone (even though its usually in my hand or pocket), keys (though they are usually attached to a belt loop), my journaling Bible, notebooks for sermon notes (I have one for each book of the Bible I’m currently studying), some receipts, change, and maybe a tube of lipstick.  I really don’t know why I have lipstick, because I almost never reapply it when I’m out somewhere.

Anyway, what’s in your purse – or do you think there is some great bag out there that I just have to have?

I’m hearing many great things from yall – how you are enjoying these random posts.  So thankful for BraveLoveBlog for putting it together – opening up community, helping us all get to know each other a little better.

So, here we go – these lists are fun and let’s you peak into my world a bit:

Reading… Deuteronomy and The Mark of a Man by E Elliot (for praying for my mister) 
Playing… “talls” with my little misters (mega blocks) and my new Canon 6D – gotta learn the new toy
Watching… NCIS Season 11 and 12 (to get ready for premiere).  Gotta catch my mister up.  And West Wing.
Trying… to get photo shoots lined up for the fall
Cooking… pumpkin muffins for a new member class tomorrow at church
Eating… Tonight will be a grapefruit and avocado salad (but I just split some nuggets and fries with my boys).
Drinking… Water and diet coke
Calling… I don’t like to talk on the phone, but I did just chat with a sweet NC friend who asked me to letter her wedding vows for her upcoming 2nd anniversary.  
Texting… with Bekah about using Heart Hope Justice to help her raise funds to buy a home to house women trying to leave abusive situations.
Pinning… Oh, I’m trying to revamp and relabel my Pinterest page.  Head on over there and give me some ideas of what you would like to see.
Tweeting… last night I was tweeting with my bestie about Friday nights, popcorn, and headshots
Going… to Publix this afternoon…again..they truly do make shopping a pleasure when I have littles.
Loving… lettering hymns – it helps me meditate on them in the morning
Hating… whining littles and my husband’s long hours and road trips (he doesn’t have them very much, but I’d rather have him at home than away)
Discovering… that I have an amazing husband who cleans up dead roaches and takes out the trash immediately after coming in the door from being gone for three days
Thinking… about all the places that I would love to travel to including NYC for Christmas next year – I can dream right?
Feeling…very weary
Hoping (for)… my mister to be able to get off work for a few days around new years so we can hit Jekyll with the boys..
Listening (to)… Come Weary Saints by Sov Grace
Celebrating… my older little mister’s three year birthday one week from today – a minion party at the park we love so much
Smelling… Pumpkin baking in my kitchen
Ordering… More diapers.  Potty training was going to start this week but I think I will postpone just a bit
Thanking… My bestie for listening to me much this week in all of my mommy-mess
Considering… how to make income with all my creative juices flowing
Starting… to love the early mornings – when most days I go to my nearest McDs to have some quiet time and drink some diet coke, especially now that it is getting hoodie weather.
Finishing…maybe cleaning off my desk – I stop and start, stop and start.  I know it would be a blessing to my mister!

How life has changed.  I remember in high school it was close to a sin to sit home on a Friday night.  Our high school (at the time) didn’t have football, but soccer was the big sport and then in the winter it was basketball – then in the spring it was baseball or the beach or a movie.  You just weren’t cool if you were at home.

Then in college, it was pretty much the same way, just with different activities.

Seminary, well, most people had dates or ministry events or were home with their families.

Now…I love love love to stay home on a Friday night.  Even when we didn’t have any children, I always thought after a long week without my husband, all I wanted to do was eat dinner at home (or bring in something) and sit and chill.  So, that’s normally what we did.

Now, our schedules are very different.  He doesn’t get a weekend, so Fridays are just a normal day. He usually works till about 9pm on Fridays.  I put the boys to bed and watch something, read, take a bath, bake cookies, and wait until he comes home.  We never go out on Friday nights (and that’s ok because ATL traffic on a Friday is awful and every place is packed that you would want to go.

Tonight is a little different.  My mister is coming back from being gone for a few days.  I’m going to put our younger boy to bed at his normal time (after Friday Friyay) and keep the older one awake.  We will have popcorn together and watch a movie – probably the Penguins of Madagascar or a Pooh movie or something and see if he makes it up to see his daddy tonight.  That will be a special treat for both him and his daddy.

I skipped yesterday, not because I was meaning to, but sometimes you just need to put down the computer, grab some chipotle, and watch an NCIS marathon with my mister.  That’s what I did last night instead of blogging.  I hope yall don’t mind.

So, today is Labor Day – but for the Blogtember Challenge the question is how’d you name your blog.

I’ve had several, because I’ve been blogging for ten years, I don’t always keep the same emphasis.  It is ever evolving

My Thoughts on the Word was just that.  It was my first blog – and really a blog, a personal journal on my thoughts from my quiet time.  That was about it.

Kims State of Food: that was my first food blog.  I started it to share recipes for the college girls I hung out with.

For the Love of NC was a blog dedicated to my travels around my lovely state of NC.

This Whole Life was the first time I attempted to connect all the blogs together.

Applesause and Grenadine was another food blog attempt.

Now, I’ve had kd316 since 2011.  I love it.  It has everything: my photography, my recipes, my health journey, my book reviews and resources, and my random every day thoughts.  I named it that because kd (my initials, and now that I’m married, my middle initial is still d, so it works.  Also, its my favorite verse: Colossians 3:16 “Let the Word of Christ dwell in your richly…”  I want the gospel to permeate every bit of my life – just not my “Bible” time.

kcreatives is the subtitle for the blog.  Intention: Creative.  Because life has a lot of mundane moments and I don’t want to live in the mundane.  I want to be creative with my time and talents and let that part of God’s character come out in me.

The prompt for today’s Blogtember Challenge is what am I passionate about?  Its a funny thing – passion.  Goodness, 20 years ago I would have been passionate about college football.  Yes, I still love college football and my Gators – but I’m not quite as passionate about it as I once was.  I hope the older I get, God will tweak my passions to be about things he is passionate about.

First thing is the Gospel.

 The gospel is the fact that I am a sinner, yet Jesus, in his perfection, came and died for me on the cross.  I love living that out to people (though I fail miserably at it at times), I love singing passionately and expressively about it, I love reading about it, I love applying it to my marriage and my parenting.  The last job before I got married was designing and writing Treasuring Christ Curriculum and that was such a wonderful experience writing every day about the gospel.  That endeavor helps me even today.

Second, is food.

Not just food – like I love bacon.  But, food – that God created it for us to enjoy, that it is gorgeous and can fuel our bodies in a healthy way, and that we can enjoy it with others, or by ourselves (like taking a spoon and a carton of Talenti’s gelato and watching a few episodes of NCIS).  My favorite phrase is “Everything important happens around the table.”

Third is community.

Community is not being friends, – though that is important.  It is more about doing life with each other.  And in my experience community is hard to come by, but once you have it – it is here to stay no matter how many miles.  I live life with some of my friends via text and emails and social media.  Community is found deepest with my mister and my little misters.  I could travel the world with them and be completely content.

The way these passions work out in my every day is: writing, cooking and feeding my family, photography, and being involved in people’s lives both close by and those far away.  The gospel hopefully permeates all of that.

I love writing challenges.  This month will be a challenge by Brave Love Blog who encourages us with daily writing prompts to build community and have our blog tell a story – and to share that with others.

I’m Kimberly and I live in the state of Georgia.  I live with my mister of almost 4 years (next month) and my two little misters (who will be 3 and 2 this Fall).

Florida holds my state of home-ness.  I had a license plate when I lived in North Carolina that said FL GIRL.  My parents still live in the house I grew up in.  My brother and his wife live in the state of Florida too.  I didn’t grow up going to beaches because we had a pool, but now I think that is the best place in the world to be.  I went to college at Flagler – in St. Augustine, which I think is one of the prettiest places in the world.  I got my official start working in ministry at Anastasia Baptist Church – working with the youth there.  Learned a lot about ministry and working with others and leadership.  Met my mentor in college.  I daily see her reflection in my life.  Our second son is named after her, so yeah, I think she is pretty important.

I then moved to North Carolina – which I honestly think is quite possibly the most perfect state in the union.  I went to Southeastern Seminary, made some amazing friends, learned a lot about life and relationships, and got my life more centered on the Gospel.  I started attending an amazing church and worked with college girls.  I love discipleship.  Community and relationships.

I also got my love of cooking in college and then worked for Williams-Sonoma after seminary – so anything I I can serve around the table to bless others and fill their bellies – the better.  And I loved the great employee discount.

I loved to Louisville KY after a short stop back at home in Florida with my parents.  I worked for Southern Seminary and one of the admins there who I greatly respect.  I met more amazing friends.  I heard some gospel-centered preaching that would change how I look at the Word of God.

Then, I got my dream job writing curriculum at a church in Raleigh.  It was amazing.  God so prepared me for this job by my time in Louisville.

Then I met my husband.  Blessed event.  Short engagement.  Crazy time since then.  We’ve had two babies, lived in two different states, and always cling to the gospel and each other because we don’t know what is going to come our way.

Now, I’m a wife, mom, creative (photographer, writer, handletterer, chef), and someone who loves relationships, community, health and fitness, and travel (though that’s so rare right now with two littles and a tight budget).  The gospel invades all of these things at their core.

I look forward to sharing more randomness for the month of September with yall.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask!