It feels odd, honestly, to be typing in this space again. Though it's only been just over a week since I last blogged, it feels like an eternity ago. But I don't regret taking this time off -- on the contrary, it was just the thing I needed.

Among other things, one of the reasons for my break was to reevaluate who I am and how I want to be defined as a blogger. I'd reached a point where I needed to step back and sort everything out, and for that I needed time. It was as though I'd rammed straight into a brick wall, not able to go forward with what I'd been doing before, but having to go left or right with something different. Over the past few weeks, my posts seemed to all be the same -- give or take a few words, they'd morphed into variations of their successors. These posts could be summed up in three words: summer, farmer's markets, and weather, also known as the standard of every blogger. But I didn't want my blog to fit a standard mold. It was time for a change.

So pastor's girl's ponderings is growing, breaking out of its chrysalis and stretching its new wings, colorful and exciting and different. More photographs, stories, and recipes, less standard "life is lovely". While I'm not denying the fact that life is lovely, because it is, there are ugly, raw sides too. Life deserves a more descriptive, meaningful adjective than lovely. I'm tired of the saccharine flowers-and-sweetness approach; I aim to portray life more realistically. I've vowed to take more photographs, to write with passion, to capture this sliver of life at the moment the best I can.

While blogging, it's easy to get caught up in numbers. Watching the number of comments, followers, and stats quickly becomes an obsession until posts are dictated by the uncontrollable need to see the numbers rise. But that's not what blogging is about. Part of this rediscovery period I'm going through involves having good content I'm proud of, not just blogging to see the page views increase.

It's going to be hard. It's going to feel odd at first, until I settle into my own little niche. I'm going to want to give up. But it'll be worth it. It'll be oh, so worth it.

But now, after a few days off, I'm remembering just why I fell in love with blogging. Sculpting something beautiful using sentences and text makes me smile. And because pastor's girl's ponderings is reinvented, it makes me even happier and excited.

Little sister got glasses.

It's good to be back.

Happy Saturday, friends!

-carlotta

p.s. interested in sponsoring pastor's girl's ponderings? I'm now accepting for september! feel free to email me for details :)

I'm taking a little break from blogging for a few days -- I have a lot on my mind and a lot to figure out. My project 365 blog (which I've recently gotten back on track with) will still be updated, but pastor's girl's ponderings will be rather quiet. I'm going to miss you lovelies, but I hope I'll be back rejuvenated, refreshed, and with a clearer mind.

And just because I can't go without posting a few photos...

new bowls from anthropologie (I'm starting a collection ;)) // vintage globes are my favorite // lilly's new glasses.

xoxo

Food fascinates me -- from fresh-from-the-garden vegetables to creamy raw milk, I'm a self proclaimed foodie. The making of what we eat has always interested me; I remember being seven and gazing up at a sign on how we get our milk in our local grocery store. But then there are other aspects of food -- like products that come from factories. Processed, altered, and injected until the list of ingredients no long resembles anything remotely edible, they still claim it's food. In actuality, it's just chemicals.

The food industry is rapidly declining -- it's changed more in the last fifty years than it has in the past ten thousand. Companies are willing to sacrifice quality and nutrition for quick and cheap. Animals are injected with hormones to quicken their growth and, in most cases, never see the light of day. They spend their life in their own waste, crammed together in pens, their only purpose in being alive to be slaughtered. Because of their diet and lack of exercise, the animals are weak and unhealthy. How the owners of these places can get past animal cruelty laws, I don't know, because this is downright inhumane. Corn is mass produced to sweeten just about everything through high fructose corn syrup, which is even worse for you than sugar. Vegetables are bland, colorless, and lacking nutrition. No wonder the cancer, obesity, and other the rate of other diet related health problems have soared.

The owners of huge food corporations have managed to pass laws that make it illegal to take pictures of their production line -- they're scared that what's really going into what we eat will be found out. I love the documentary Food, Inc, which delves into what exactly these factory owners don't want us to know.

So why are we buying our food from huge supermarkets? Because it's faster. Easier. Cheaper. But don't you think it'd be nice to know personally the local farmers that sell you your food? To know exactly where your vegetables come from? That's (one of the reasons) why I love the farmer's market. Healthier, often cheaper, and you know where your food is from -- that sounds good to me.

When we lived in St. Louis, my mother began researching and reinventing the way our family ate. We stopped buying ready made foods and went back to the basics. Butter -- lots of it -- was and is the key to all things good. (seriously, it's a superfood) We began drinking raw milk (we have the cutest little dairy that we go to; their milk and cheese are amazing) and were fortunate enough to have friends that sold us eggs from their chickens. My mother now grinds all her wheat for her bread, started a garden, and recently purchased half of an all natural, grass fed cow from a local farmer. The result? Healthier, more energized, more satisfied versions of ourselves. Yes, it may be more work in the beginning, but once a rhythm is established, it's easier and so worth it.

So say goodbye to processed, factory food and say hello to fresh, delicious, natural food -- because the journey to ending this forgery begins with us.

What are your thoughts on this matter? I'd so love to hear!

-carlotta

Patchwork quilt? Check. Shady maple tree? Check. Labrador running about? Check. Mumford & Sons? Check. Laptop, camera, and a cool breeze blowing? Check, check, and check.

Sometimes a change of environment is just what's needed to get the creativity flowing -- hence my current setup in the backyard. I'm lying on my back, computer balanced on my legs, and the reflection of my red and white striped shirt is casting a bit of a Where's Waldo effect on my screen. Above me, the leafy tree juts out against the azure sky, the combination of vivid green and blue more beautiful than anything man made. This is the kind of summer I love, simple, sweet moments I will remember when unfolding memories like a comforting blanket.

Fridays are my favorite day of the week. They're sort of like the horns that are blown when a king enters the building -- the excitement and relief and anticipation that all come with heralding in the weekend.
Thursday night was an outdoor concert (country music is my favorite and old couples dancing the two step makes me die from cuteness overload) and Friday morning was some early morning gardening.
Or more like, my mother gardened and I photographed. The garden, while rather overgrown and unruly (why is that weeds are the only thing that grow in heat?), has yielded herbs and salad for much of the summer. I must confess I'm not the most patient person and, while it sounds lovely in theory, tending to plants it's not exactly my area of expertise. Which is why I'm thankful for a mother that has patience where I lack it. Now that it's cooled down, my fingers are crossed for some ruby red tomatoes -- from plant to mouth in two seconds, there's nothing more delicious. But for now, I'll settle for leafy green basil and sage.

Friday (and part of today) in photos: 

a little sneak peek of a (very) exciting project I'm working on :)

Golden light, picnicing, frozen bananas (a must try), stripes, laughter, working on a super exciting project (which I'll reveal in a few weeks -- any guesses in the meantime?), beautiful weather...sounds good to me. And this morning, I slipped out of the house at the early hour of seven am and went down to the river for a shoot with a super sweet couple. There was a soft breeze and gorgeous light and I was in heaven; and because I'm a sentimental sap, I had to draw a heart on the beach. I know.

Eat an extra piece of chocolate, do a little shopping, take some pictures, treat yourself. Because if life is short, why not take advantage of these precious days? Happy weekend, y'all. 

-carlotta

p.s. giveaway winners: the winner of any anklet from emily is ellyn. 

the winner of the photos from olivia is mary ann.

congratulations, winners! please email me to claim your prize. note: if winners does not respond within forty eight hours, a new winner will be chosen.