I got a fabulous surprise yesterday morning in my inbox! Jenny Swanson replied to my request for an interview. Jenny and I met almost a year ago at my church. I found out that Jenny sewed (I sew), homeschooled (me too), is a foodie (ditto), and burned to create (amen, sister)! Jenny also has a heart for Jesus and a lovely family which me and mine fell in love with. That is why it was so hard to let them move back to California! Anyways, I am so happy to share this dear-artsy-foodie-homey-kindred spirit with you!
Jenny how long have you been blogging and what inspired you to start?
I started blogging just after having our fourth baby. I wanted to have a place to record things that were happening in our family, not only so I could remember, but also to share with friends and family. We were about to embark on a very major move, so a blog seemed a good way to share pictures and work through the process/ share with others. (You can read my very first blog post here if you like.)
Jenny tell us about your current season of life?
We just moved back to California from Minnesota. Not something we expected to do. We uprooted our family a little less than a year ago for a job that didn't work out. We were only there six months and now we're back in our home territory. We're still catching up financially. Most of our belongings are still in a storage unit in MN. But we moved into our own place here after staying with my sister's family for the first two months. We have a beautiful home with a gorgeous yard, at the end of a court with parks nearby. It is a blessing. We just finished another year of homeschooling. Our kids are 11, 9, 3 and 1.
I just started an internship with an artist, so I get to get out of the house every Monday and ride BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit.... sort of like a local subway, only it's above ground in some areas.) into San Francisco and work and play with the talented and oh-so-nice-to-hang-out-with Mati Rose.
My husband is a tattoo artist in San Francisco most days, but also works one day a week at a tattoo shop in our hometown. He also just took on a second job two nights a week doing security at a big hotel in SF.
At church, we are facilitating a finance class called Financial Peace University by Dave Ramsey. I can't say enough good things about this course. We're going to do the kids version with our children ASAP.
Life feels a little crazy sometimes but God is so good. I'm trying to savor the moments and days, noticing and enjoying the details before they slip away. Our three year old is going through a trying time right now, where everything is a challenge most days. That I'd rather be done with... but there are some sweet moments in there too. And our one year old just started walking. He's the cutest little mellow guy. I'd love to freeze this time with him. Then the older two.. our daughter just finished her last year as an elementary student. Where has time gone? And our nine year old is turning into a young gentleman right before our eyes.
So that's a long answer to your question... this is a trying season for us, as it is for many. But there are little moments, unexpected joys happening everyday that make it all worth while.
The last year has held a lot of changes for you, especially the moving across country twice thing...how did God surprise you the most during this process?
The biggest surprise for me was the new connections we made while in Minnesota. I expected to go and have good alone times with God. I didn't really expect (or want) to make any real friendships. I knew I'd be friendly and make a few friends, but when we started attending the Waters church in Sartell, we instantly connected with so many amazing people. God was so sweet to me. He knew how hard it was to leave my friends and family, and He showed me that He cared about that too. I did have some sweet alone times with God, but it was a beautiful surprise to connect with new friends so quickly. (It also made it really hard to leave, and I still truly miss all of our new family there.)
There is a bit more to the interview, but I will be saving that for tomorrow and I’ll let you in on a little secret…there will be a giveaway! So check back tomorrow for more information on that. In the meantime, you can follow Jenny at Glimpses and Ponderings.
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