I'm a Grandma!

I became a grandmother in September of last year, and my grandson Brody has entered into the world… I am woman who is still young as far as the age of a typical grandma is and am not of the retirement age. That makes it hard to be available… My heart aches to be able to be around him more, and at the same time my heart leaps with joy as I watch in amazement the incredible parents my daughter Kellie Ann and her husband Chase are!

I truly do stand in awe at the beauty of it all. I am blessed and I know it. I am soon to become a grandparent again with our daughter Tabby and her husband Gerald, they have been on quite a journey, they have been ready to be parents for many years, and God has then on the path of adoption! They have just been approved by the adoption agency, by going through all of the classes, home inspections and all of the many things they must do before they can become parents!

SO… it’s just a matter of time before we meet our next beautiful member of the family! With this adoption, Gerald and Tabby have left the gender, the race(s) the placement decision all up to God and we are excited to see who God chooses for them! I can hardly wait!! So fun!! Join us in prayers for this new child, join us in prayers for the birthmother as well, we know she must be frightened and we also know she will be choosing the parents and none of this will be easy for her either.

I pray that God reaches down into her heart and grants her His love and His peace as she makes her decision. I pray that the rest of her life she will feel the closeness of God… I will keep you posted on this as we progress and meet our newest grandchild!

SACRED LISTENING WOMAN

I painted my "SACRED LISTENING WOMAN" and I don't know if you can see it in this photo or not but I also painted two muted trees "underneath" her face symbolizing New Life and Growth. Her eyelashes are sacred wings...

This is my very first painting using acrylics and I must confess that I didn't feel "ready" to paint on my precious canvas, still needing to learn the way the paint brushes feel, how much to use... etc... so I used my big water color tablet :) Felt safer to start that way for me. In the end I took my Iridescent Gold and washed the entire painting with it. I might have muted the painting too much in doing so. I didn't realize how it would mute it, I thought it would make it more sparkely and shiny. But here it is! :)

ROOTED & FREE

MY VERY first watercolor painting ever.
It's elementary... but I love it... I like the trunk of the tree... Like the colors... I was at peace in the painting of it... thinking of my friend since 4th grade, Karen's sister Debbie who just passed on to be with God. Thoughts for her as I painted... she's with our God now... I felt like I painted her Spirit in the painting as I painted with the blues...

"SPIRITCLOUD"

God had prompted me to do a study of all the Scriptures regarding CLOUDS and it is truly amazing how God shows up in the clouds! He is amazing! He was a Pillar of Cloud during the day and a Pillar of Fire by night, at the baptism of Jesus out of a cloud came the voice of God announcing to all those who where there "This is my son, whom I'm well pleased, LISTEN to Him" [emphasis mine], and that the clouds are the dust beneath His feet... The list of the majesty of the clouds goes on and on... This is my painting depicting the sky, the waters, the light and the clouds are filled with His awesome presence.

GOD IS LOVE

This painting is my 2nd one to do ever I call it "GOD IS LOVE" from 1 John 4:8,16.

SPIRITWALKING

This is one of my first paintings, and I have given it the title "SPIRITWALKING" from my life verse "If we live by the Spirit, let us walk by the Spirit." Galatians 5:25

Allowing for Creativity to be welcomed into my life... enjoy... bringing peace and bliss and movement and peace and....

WOMEN OF PASSIONATE PURPOSE (WOPP) - Hosting a Christian Women's Writers' Retreat in Mt. Bethel, Pennsylvania - September 21st- 23rd, 2009

I am really excited to share with you our upcoming "WOMEN OF PASSIONATE PURPOSE" Christian Women's Writing Retreat! Marykay Moore and myself are hosting it in beautiful Mt. Bethel, Pennsylvania, which is approximately 20 minutes away from the breath taking Pocono Mountains! It will be held September 21st-25th, 2009.

It is absolutely beautiful there, and will be especially gorgeous at the beginning of the fall season.

This writers retreat is designed even for the journaler, and those who dabble in poems, song writing, devotional writers, the novice, as well as to the published author. It is our passion and our purpose to nudge even the most hesitant journal keeper to the most devout daily writer. Come and explore your God-given inner thoughts with your outer experiences and bring them to life! Put them all on paper for the greater good of God's kingdom.

We are here to inspire you to soak in the tub of beautiful and lovely words, allowing them to bubble up and out of you... Imagine yourself soaking in this wonderful tub, relaxed, smelling the aroma of fall all around you, lit with the candlelight of inspiration from the Holy Spirit...

You will find your writers voice, you will enjoy other voices of other women having your Spirit stirred and become amazingly encouraged, inspired to write what is within you and what God longs to be released!

Come if you feel called to do so...

Invite others you might know who would be blessed to be there.

To register for the Writers' Retreat go to our website:

http://www.womenofpassionatepurpose.com/ and you will also find the beautiful photos of the Manor House in which we will reside.

Writing and Worshipping,

Kathryn

Kathryn Bonner- Founder

Women Of Passionate Purpose

http://www.womenofpassionatepurpose.com/

http://www.awakeningslifecoaching.com/

http://www.kathrynbonner.com/

ALL THINGS Q!! - Quote For The Day

QUOTE FOR THE DAY...

"Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened."

Dr. Seuss

I love Dr. Seuss!! I think most people love Dr. Seuss too.

What are some of the things you might be missing out on? Where can you be smiling when you haven't been? Let us always take the opportunity when we can and where warranted to "smile because it happened."

I remember at my very first "conversational" book signing at Barnes and Noble Bookstore I was reflecting at the end of it, critiquing myself. I was not completely satisfied with the way I did everything, I didn't speak loud enough, I forgot to talk on something that was indeed part of my heart and wanted the audience to hear and know.

My husband (my wonderful husband) reminded me of how amazing it is to even be a published author, and how astounding it is to even have a book signing! He reminded me to take the time to relish in the moment, to stand in awe of it, to love it, and to give thanks to God for it, because after all, it isn't about me, it's about God! He gave this gift to me. Therefore, I was able to take the mistakes I'd made, learn from them and do things differently the next time. All the while rejoicing in it and "smiling because it even happened!" It is miraculous that I am blessed to be able to do this at all! Had my husband not pointed that out to me I would have missed the amazement of it all, the joy that comes from meeting all of the different people that come to the book signings, and how much each of them enjoyed it, how people were truly touched, it was evident through the tears that were seen streaming down their faces, the laughter shared, the similarities that many of us shared in our life experiences, the beautiful in depth conversations we have! The smiles we all share together. Sharing Christ, the most beautiful part!

So... Let's all make a deal-- let's not be overly critical of ourselves, because when that's the case we miss the grandness of God and His majesty that He blesses us with each day! :) SMILE! SOAK IT IN, BATHE IN IT! :)

Let's embrace the God-given moments in our lives more and more each day. Remember that we "stand in the place of choice" and make the choice to enjoy this INCREDIBLE life!!

So let's take the advice of Dr. Seuss... Smile when you can... I am!!

With Joy,
Kathryn

http://www.kathrynbonner.com/

http://www.awakeningslifecoaching.com/

ALL THINGS Q - The Beginning of Q!!

I am going to begin posting on my blog on a regular basis the different topics of "All Things Q!" Originally I thought that I would post something Monday through Friday each day. But I began to think about my life and the reality of that, and Quite honestly that doesn't seem like something I would be able to completely commit to. However, I would like to commit to more blogging more often, which is something I am totally able to commit to. SO... Here's to All Things Q! I'm sure that by now you are wondering "What is "All things Q?"

"All things Q" really does pertain to my life, many aspects of it, and each topic that I will cover will have something to do with the five things Q. I will explain...

The five topics around Q that I will be writing on are the following... (drum roll please:)

1. QUOUGHTS = POWERFUL QUESTIONS THAT PROVOKE THOUGHT. As most of you know I am a Certified Life Purpose Coach, (http://www.kathrynbonner.com/) so, as a Coach I am always asking my clients some powerful questions in order to get them thinking, to get them to know who they are, what they really want out of their lives, to discover what their purpose is. To AWAKEN those God-given dreams that have been lying dormant within them. Many times when they ask me a question, I respond with a question in order for them to find the answers to their passion, and truth. So there will be days that my posts will cover QUOUGHTS! Be on the look out for "QUOUGHTS FOR THE DAY" you might like to begin pondering. It will be fun and inspirational!
2. QUESTS = The dictionary defines QUEST as The act or an instance of seeking or pursuing something; a search. An expedition undertaken in medieval romance by a knight in order to perform a prescribed feat: the quest for the Holy Grail. I personally love the adventure of any give QUEST given to us by our LORD - Because it takes FAITH to pursue, it takes strength of character, perseverance, hope and dedication. As a Life Purpose Coach, I myself and most of those that I coach are usually on a QUEST of some sort. Pursuing after the the things ahead of us, with an excitement, and sometimes with fear, but always with anticipation and expectation. Are you on a QUEST to write a book, to become a leader in your field of interest, to begin leading a study group, to begin your own business? The Quests are many when you multiply our lives! What is your QUEST? Let's begin our QUEST of discovery together, you never know what we will discover on the journey of the QUEST!! I look forward to the adventurous journey we will go on together!
3. QUERIES = As you know I am an author of the new book "Confessions of a Pastor's Wife; He Speaks Can You Hear Him?" Queries are what we authors send out to publishing houses in hopes of receiving a book contract in the mail. A Query is the QUESTION and the HOPE of every writer of becoming an author. So, I will QUERY some things from time to time on the blog. I hope that you authors, or those of you who HOPE to be an author find some joy and hope in this part of your journey.
4. QUOTES = They are inspirational and motivational remarks that you read, hear speakers say that cause us to make positive change in our lives. So I will be quoting various folks who had something wonderful to say that we simply should not miss out on. Be looking for THE QUOTE OF THE DAY...
5. QUESTIONS ASKED MY ME, COACH KATHRYN= I will pose some powerful questions to you as I would a client. Questions that hopefully will spur more thoughts, cause you to look deeply within yourself, cause you to draw closer to God, make change in your life where needed. I know that you will deeply enjoy the "QUESTION OF THE DAY" when it comes up! Here's to the questions marks of your life :)
6. QUESTIONS ASKED BY JESUS = All through out the Gospels Jesus is asking questions. Over the last few years I have been reading through the questions He asked and have been highlighting them in my Bible with a blue highlighter. I will begin the process of writing out the questions Jesus asked and answer them for myself. I LOVE the questions He has asked through out the pages of the WORD. Here are a couple to get you thinking... ** "What are you looking for?" ** "What do you want me to do for you?" ** "What is your opinion about the Messiah? ** "Do you want to be well?" ** "What are you thinking in your hearts?" Remember that I am no theologian, and my intention is not to get too "heady" - that's not my purpose of writing out the Questions that Jesus asked. This is more for you and I to come to a thoughtful, spiritual, meditative place. A place that I Quite frankly need more of. Thoughts that come from our own place of introspection, from our hearts, and the Holy Spirit that lives within each of us, to draw us closer to our Lord, commune with Him, soak in His Word.

I am looking forward to this section of "All things Q" more than any of them. The Questions of Christ will certainly be my most favorite area of "ALL THINGS Q!"

I know that you will enjoy this "Quest of Q" with me... :)

Oh yes... I almost forgot to say it... Happy Leap Year To You!!

Blessings to you,

Kathryn

Absolutely Addorable! Happy New Year!

Is this not one of the most wonderful photos ever?!

Emily Dickinson once wrote "Hope is a thing with feathers." I am sure that is exactly how this addorable baby macaque sees this dove!

In many cultures and in the Bible the dove is a symbol of peace, hope and God's love. I see all of this depicted in the above photo. Our Lord shows us beautiful and pure love here. This photo brings me that place of peace, joy, and love. I pray that you experience the same as you gaze upon the photo. :)

The article reads:
An abandoned baby macaque was taken in by an animal hospital in Goangdong Province, China. But he was lonely until he made friends with a white dove - pigeon. The two are now inseperable. And make a cute photo.

The article goes on to say:

They're an odd couple in every sense but a monkey and a dove, pigeon have become inseparable at an animal sanctuary in China.

The 12-week-old macaque - who was abandoned by his mother - and was so close to death when it was rescued on Neilingding Island, in Goangdong Province.

After being taken to an animal hospital his health began to improve but he seemed spiritless - that is until he developed an amazing and wonderful friendship with a white dove. The blossoming relationship pivitol as it helped to revive the macaque who has developed a new lease of life, say staff at the sanctuary.

Now the unlikely yet precious duo are never far from each other's side, and they aren't the only ones to strike up an unusual friendship.

Earlier this year a pig adopted a tiger cub and raised him along with her piglets because his mother couldn't feed him.

And in 2005 a baby deer named Mi-Lu befriended lurcher Geoffrey at the Knowsley Animal Park in Merseyside after she was rejected by her mother.

The Door is Open!

Add your comments, thoughts about this photo and any message you might see here for us as Christian brothers and sisters. I'd love to hear your insights and what you glean from it.

Praying God's blessing upon you in the New Year!
Kathryn

More wonderful friends!

Tim & Melanie Barosh are on the left and Bruce (my wonderful husband) and I are on the right. Tim & Mel live in the Houston area. We've been friends since 1999. They came in town this weekend, and we are having lunch outside at the Cheesecake Factory. Mel & I love the Cheesecake Factory! It was wonderful hanging out with them. When we lived in Houston I hung out with Mel all the time. We used to work together, she's a stay home mom now with two little girls and is pregnant now with their son! They are working on three different names for the baby, Noah, Emerson and Cash. Tim has always been a Johnny Cash fan, and he thinks that would be a nice strong name for him. Bruce and I like it too! Mel's still not quite sure about it. Tim is the worship pastor at Crossbridge in Sugar Land. Check out Mel's blog and vote yes or no for the name. They are taking a poll... her blog is http://popsiclesontheporch.blogspot.com/
Bruce, my husband thinks that "Bruce" would sound nice... Bruce Barosh... hmmm... what do you think :)

This is my sweet girlfriend Jennifer! She is such a precious friend to me. I just love the way she loves God! She radiates her love for Him, and He just shines out of her. This is Jen and I eating outside at Kirby Lane. We love going to Kirby Lane, it's SO Austin! We are out on the patio, the weather was perfect! Jen is pregnant is this picture with her 3rd child. He's now born and precious! His name is Jude Echo Stone Frost! I love that name! Jude means "praise", and with Echo, it is "Repeated Praise!" They are praising the Lord for this sweet addition! Check out Jennifer's blog at: http://www.frostbrother.blogspot.com/ for the updates on her boys... God is good! I love it that he gave us girlfriends!

Be blessed,

Kathryn

Friends are such a lovely Gift from God!

My dear friend Bev! I have known her since my sophomore year in high school, where we were best friends! We went to MacArthur in San Antonio. She is such an incredible gal, a great mom and an amazing artist, married to a wonderful man. I love the way she has such a joy about her. She has always been an inspiration to me, always makes me laugh, and I can talk to her about anything. She knows me well, and loves me in spite of myself... that's a true gift from God, the gift of Bev!

Jeanette is on the left, I'm in the center, and Bev is on the right... I've always been really short, and they are obviously really tall... so it makes it rather comical (at least Bev and I have always thought so :)) Anyway both Jeanette and Bev are incredibly talented. Bev has been making glass beads and jewelry for some time now. Jeanette (whom I've now known for a little over 2 years) received a gift from her husband for Christmas last year. It was a kit with all the supplies necessary for making glass beads! Jeannette wanted to learn how to do it, and I thought... "Wow! I actually know someone who does this!" So... we took a trip to San Antonio a few months back and Bev taught Jeannette how to make glass beads. It was fascinating to watch how quickly she learned and how beautiful to connect friends! They are both so creative! God is the ultimate in creativity!

This is my Wednesday morning reunion, prayer, accountability group! We come together early each Wednesday morning at the What-a-burger! We share with each other our prayer needs, the things that our Lord has called us to do, our moments closest to Christ that week. I'm in the front in the pink baseball cap (with absolutely NO makeup!) and Jan is behind me. Fran is in the bright tye-dye shirt, and Nancy is behind her. I love these girls! What a blessing they are to me!

These are some of my favorite people on the planet! I have the honor and the privilege to have been working with this group of gals for the last several years! They are such wonderful friends! Each of them brings something of such beauty and value to my life! We are here celebrating Kati's birthday. Kati is in the black shirt, she's such a sweetie, and that's her little boy Kolton (who is truly a miracle baby!). Then in the red shirt is Suzi Q, she's such a great gal with a real depth! Then there is Tammie who is such a joy and absolutely cracks me up! Of course that's me on the far right. Life is wonderful with with all the beautiful friends in our lives!

I tried to post more pictures of other friends but it wouldn't let me :( that just means that this is to be continued... I give thanks to God for wonderful friends recognizing the gift from God that they are.

Kathryn

Trick or Treat!!?? I look pretty scary!!

Halloween has always been fun for me! Here I am looking pretty scary! I'm all hunched over like the hunch back, and wearing my beautiful smile with my big ol' rotten BillyBob Teeth!! Very Very Scary!!!!!!!!!!!!

The last few years though it just hasn't been the same since Bruce and I have become empty nester's. It seems like over the last four years or so there haven't been very many trick or treater's coming around either. I know that a lot of that is because of the fact that you "can't trust" people like you used to be able to. However, last night we had tons of kiddos coming out! It was so much fun!

Each year we loved getting our two daughters all dressed up for Halloween! They loved it too! It really is some of the best memories we hold onto! I would always get dressed up with them. Many times there would be several events to go to during that week. At the girls school, at the church and then trick or treating in the neighborhood. So the girls would switch into each other's costumes on the different days for the different events! Even though they were 2 years and 8 months apart, they were close to the same size, which made it easy for them to share clothing.

They would dress up as a witch, a princess, a rabbit coming out of a hat, Sheera Princess of power, a ghost, and angel, a moo cow with utters, oh, the list goes on and on! I would dress up as Marge Simpson with the big blue hair, a unicorn, mini-mouse, a flapper girl...

Last night was funny! My picture above tells it all! I was a "House Wife Gone Bad, VERY bad!" I took it on in full character too, I slumped my body over like the hunch back, and had my hair in rollers, and Bruce (my wonderful husband) got me some of those hideous BillyBob teeth to wear and WA LA! I was transformed in the this beauty you see here!

Anyway, the kiddos that came loved it, some of the little bitty ones didn't love it, and their parents just Hee Hawed with laughter! It was fun, but still not the same without our daughters. Oh how I love you Tabby and Kellie!

Once a mom, ALWAYS a mom! Missin' my girlies.
This post is in honor of you two! :)
Love you,
Mom

At the Publishing House Recording My Book on CD! Having such fun!!

I flew into Oklahoma on Tuesday to go to the Publishing House to record my new book on CD! It was such a great time for me. I praise God for all that He is and is doing in my life. He is allowing me to proclaim His goodness and majesty, and I stand in awe of Him and give thanks unto Him for allowing me this wonderful privilege. I pray that I honor Him in all of it.

The first photo is the cover of my book. It's a five book series entitled "Confessions of a Pastor's Wife" and the first book in this series is "He Speaks, Can You Hear Him?" It now has an official release date of December 18th, 2007! However you can order it now from me by going to my website www.KathrynBonner.com and click on the picture of the book to get your copy early, before it's released publicly! I would be blessed should you choose to do that, and I do believe that you will be blessed as well.

The second photo is a picture in the lobby of the publishing house. The had a welcome sign out for me at the front desk! They also had a reserved parking space for me in the very first parking space! I took a picture of it also for my scrap book! Pretty cool!

The third picture is me (on the left) Janey Hays (in the center) and Stacy Baker (on the right). They took me out to lunch at a really sweet tea room. They are both in Acquisitions at the publishing house. Janey is my acquisitions person. She is so cute, at the restaurant she was telling the wait staff that I was one of their authors and that she is the one who "discovered" me. It was fun! I was laughing and saying yep, you discovered me, but no one really knows me! We laughed and she said, "Not YET, but they will!" I just giggled, we all did

God is good!

Blessings to you,
Kathryn

My Visual DNA!! (Well sort of...)

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

Things That Make Me Smile

Our sweet daughter Kellie Ann is in town visiting. Take a look at this gorgeous girl here! We are planning her wedding and it's such fun. What a blessing to know that she has such a wonderful future husband who loves her so much. Our oldest daughter also has a wonderful husband. As a parent of girls, their dad and I have always prayed each day for the girls and their future husbands. We feel so blessed with both of our daughters choices in their husbands. Kellie Ann and Chase have been dating for five years and have been engaged for two years. The big day is September 22nd!

Her dad and I are enjoying her SO much over this weekend. We went to the movie Shrek III last night and it was absolutely halarious and really cute! We all found ourselves laughing all the way through it. I love the way Kellie Ann laughs. She is such a beauty!

Kellie Ann and I are about to head out the door to get her registered (at least register for the things that don't require her fiance to be there :) We are going to shop for bridesmaid gifts, table top decorations, and other wonderful things that make her wedding day special.

Thank you God for our little girls! They are especially wonderful as little ladies. What a true blessing they are in my life. Thank you God that they love You so. It just doesn't get much better than this....