Making of a Dream

Having your son move thousands of miles away from you is bad enough; having him move to North Hollywood really makes you uncomfortable.  Then you pray and hear God saying to let him go and trust Him.  

Then He begins to move.  Money needed comes quickly.  A friend, who is a believer, calls to say he has just moved around the block from the dance school your son is trying to go to and wants to give him a place to stay.  Plane tickets are arranged & so is a ride to get there.  

Then he arrives.  He's chosen his first day at school to dance back up with a rising star.  He goes to  a good church.  He and his roommate begin writing music together and making tracks of ones already composed.  They pitch one to an agent, who pitches it to a producer. 

Then 3 weeks into a new home, new church, new classes, the producer says, "Let me hear more of your stuff, Tofer".  And just like that, just like only God can, your son is finding himself in the middle of a dream becoming reality.  Not just for himself but for the man of God who gave him a home, and even more, a friend to lean on. 

 Learning the board and the equipment of a major recording studio.

 Arranging harmonies.

 Laying down tracks.

 Finding favor with major players.

And loving the journey - keeping it real - letting God lead.
I'm still praying.  Still asking Abba to hold his heart, keep him safe, keep his focus centered, and bring him safely home.  ... I am still the Mama, after all.

Picture Me, Happy

    After months of looking, applying, interviewing (not to mention taking classes and obtaining new skills) yet not being hired I began to believe I was very unwanted.  While praying about it all, feeling the pressure of bills and knowing our living situation was coming to an end I was feeling rather stressed when a friend took me to coffee.  Jess said 3 simple words to me.  "What about photography?"  I have always wanted to try to make this pastime that I love into more than a hobby, but have never lept into the seeming abyss of owning a small business.  The nagging awareness that maybe I was supposed to be taking that leap was confirmed in Jess' question.  Every time I turned around after that a friend would say, "Why aren't you doing this full time?", or "Deea, you have a gift, use it to draw an income and not just pleasure."  So - after continued prayer, much trepidation, and ongoing encouragement from friends and family, I'd like to announce the launch of :

Life. Captured in it's natural light.  Right where you are.  

Lifestyle and Relationship Photography.

Come visit the new site, tell me what you think and call me to set up a session.

Thank you to all who have encouraged me along the way, and who continue to be in my corner.

http://www.deeapaulitan.com/

All Because of Relationship

As many of you who are long time blog readers know, Minda has had a dream of becoming an archaeologist since she was 5 or 6. Grama Linda bought her a palentology dig trip for her 13th birthday just to fuel her dream. Since we moved to Montana she has been dreaming of the hot, dry sands of Egypt even more.
Rewind again to when this dream first began.
We had just become a part of the budding 'internet world' and Yahoo Chat in particular. James being a musician and worship leader went to a Christian chat room and asked, "Anyone want to talk about worship?" A woman from Texas replied and they began a long conversation that covered a wide variety of topics. When they finished, James told her she reminded him of me in so many ways he'd love to get us together to chat too. The next night we did. Her name was Zanetta. Her husband, Randy, didn't believe I was real. :)
That was the beginning of our relationship. We hit it off immediately, and have stayed close over the past 11 years!

Now, back to the present. Just after Minda's graduation in May, Zanetta and Randy announced their intention to become full time missionaries in Israel. Through an offhanded comment on Facebook, about being able to get Minda awfully close to Egypt if she came with them to Israel, plans and dreams began to take on form and flesh. Questions started pouring out of her. How much would she need? How long would she be there? What would she be doing? Could she possibly go to school there? Visit Egypt? Would they really be willing to allow her to come?

She leaves in June! They will be living in the main port city of Haifa where they will be working with the poor, beginning an outreach to college students at the University of Haifa, and providing some 'home' contact for the naval forces that dock there.
BUT - her favorite part so far? No Snow! Warmth. Sun. Sea Breezes. Fresh Figs. And, Oh yeah! The possibility of gaining a student visa and remaining in Haifa to get her archaeology degree.
Who would have guessed an internet chat 11 years ago would have congealed into a lasting friendship that would be an avenue to a little girl's dream coming to pass?
All is falling into place, piece by piece. We are still working out details. Another thing you can all be praying about! We are just a bundle of prayer needs in this household!

Olympic Hopeful

Our son is and, honestly, always has been a performer. If any of you watched the hanging of the Christmas ornaments video, you know he likes the camera. More than that he has talent. He is gifted in so many arenas, in fact, that it's a little overwhelming.

At Joel and Courtney's wedding in October, Aunt Marilyn (a performer in her own right), gave him the name of an agent to contact if he ever wanted to seek representation and pursue acting, singing, songwriting, dancing, modeling as a career (or even just to earn $$ toward further education).
3 weeks ago he auditioned for that agent. He performed 2 songs, one accapella (they had no piano for him) & one on guitar (both original pieces. Music and lyrics by him), read a cold script, and presented a self-choreographed dance.
He walked away with all 10's.
The agency asked him to be a part of the USA team at the World Championship of Performing Arts (a team of about 300 kids from 8-19 years old in 25 categories of performance) & to come and begin training with some of the coaches. An "olympics" of performance talent.
He'll be training in voice, instrument, poise, acting, perfomance, exercise, +.  The next 6 months will be intense.
He is moving in March and I will see him little to none over the time he is training, and my heart is sad to have to let go a bit more, but blessed to see him happy and pursuing a dream.
This is not the road I would have chosen for him - but it isn't mine to choose. I'm learning to be a whole new kinda of mama.
I'm also learning to be a whole new kind of daughter of God.
Trust. So simple in theory, but when you have no way of controlling the circumstances around you, when there is nothing you can do if something goes wrong &, worse, it is flesh and blood dearer than your own that is on the line, trust becomes your only sustenance.
Ps. 37:5 is my mantra right now-
"Commit all to the Lord. Trust Him also."
(I go for simplicity)
I'll keep you posted as things progress. He is writing personal monolouges, giving notices for his departure, making arrangements to live and work there, and dealing with the general stresses of life (car troubles, paying bills, things not working right...).
Next week I'm taking his promo shots. Nice that my photography skills come in handy somewhere.
Pray for us.

Scenes of the Day

I haven't figured out this new format that blogger loads photos in, so the scenes aren't in order...

Dred-ed take 2!

I decided to try a different approach to loading photos.

We seperated her hair into even sections.

With the lock powder and comb we set to work, back combing and teasing.

This was one of the first days. Reid thought they were awesome! Couldn't take his eyes off her!

Then we waxed them, and rubbed them. I need to take some new shots, because they are locking up really nicely. We are a little over a week into this journey and she is still in love with them. She just put her first "bead" in yesterday. Its a rock she found on a beach years ago the the tide had worn a hole through. It's pretty awesome!
I have two favorite stories so far.

Minda went to visit our local Bible college. She and Cassia toured one afternoon just after we had finished her dreds. Minda loves to dress 'colorfully'. She wears her Korean bird whistle always, and this day she added beaded earrings by reJeneration, a tie-dyed wrap skirt in earthtones and embroidery, and a head scarf that she didn't wrap her dreds in but just used as a long, flowing headband. Cassia is describing her siblings to the lady who is giving them the tour. "Tofer is musically gifted, and is also really good at sports. I enjoy music too. and Malinda is our artsy one. She creates things and draws and paints..."

The whole time that Cassia is saying this about Min, the lady has turned to Minda and is slowly going head to toe and back again with her eyes and nodding her head. Then she says, "Yah. Yah. I can see that about you, you sorta ooooze creativity." :oD

Moments later they were continuing their tour and met the administrator and president of the college. The administrator was 1st. Seeing Malinda he said, "Wow! I like your hair." (it looked a lot like it did in the photo with Reid) Minda thanked him and they continued to talk until the president came up and introduced himself. As he shook hands with Minda he simply told her his name and she told him hers and his eyes were glued to 'the hair'... the administrator pipes in with, "Yah, but he doesn't like your hair." and the president, sputtering, says, "Hey! Hey now, yes I do! Stop teasing me..." and then proceeds to tell Minda how he heard when Bob Marley died they found a new species of insect in his dreds... :oD

What is so funny to me is that in every other arena of Bozeman she doesn't stick out at a bit.

At The Co-op the day after we did them, when they were stilla mass of fluff and looking like a rats nest, one of the guys commented that they were going to be amazing and they looked great! HA HA!

I'll post more photos as they baby dreds mature. They already look more at home on her head. She has washed them twice and we rub and palm roll them whenever we feel like it. By Joel's wedding in October she is going to have great lookin' Locks!

I'm Back

I would love to write a post about all that has happened since the last time I posted, but I think that would be way too long. So how about just some *highlights*?

In March we moved out of our home of 2 years on the Bridgers to a home God miraculously provided in Bear Canyon on the other side of the valley.

We didn't stay much longer than to unpack necessities before we drove over the mountains to Washington and into Mom & Dad's lives for the next month +.So as to not get behind on school, my mom gladly had us down to her place each morning. We left all our books there and just picked up each day where we had left off.

J. continued to seek God's plan for a new job and began filling out 20+ questionaires for Acts 29.

A29 is a church planting network that has had great success with the churches they have begun and pastors they have approved for lead planters. We had begun this process even before we moved from Washington, but put it on the back burner when we got the call to Bozeman.

In the meantime, Shaun, Anna, & Conner came up twice from Portland to be with us; Mom, Dad, J. and I went on a Rattlesnake Hills wine tour; Friends, Peter, Naomi and Kalen Moore (and Peter's brother, John) stopped in on their way through from Yakima; A day was whiled away in Leavenworth and Blackbird Island; We got together with oodles of friends at their homes & at Starbucks - (ahhhhh, Washington...); had meetings with elders to seek wisdom and find their hearts toward us one of love and excitement for our future; attended an MFI regional; and learned to knit!

At the end of April, J had finalized all the steps in A29 up to the assessment. Tyler (co-ordinater/director) called Wed. afternoon to tell us our appointment was set for Thurs. at 8 AM!! We packed quickly, made hotel reservations, and headed out!

J. and I hadn't had any time away (for anything other than a conference) for 3 years or more. We decided to do the assessment and then stay on San Juan for 2.5 days before driving back to Moses Lake.

It was beautiful. There is nothing, NOTHING like western Washington when the sun is happy and the wind is breathless.

We got the news on San Juan that we had been approved to be lead planters! Our next step would be to return to Bozeman and gather a core team of 40 adults. We already knew we had 4. One couple had approached us about this possibility, & another couple had come in on the prospect while we were in ML.

Sunday, our church family in ML prayed over us, layed hands on us, and commissioned us to be sent out to Bozeman.

God has done some miraculous things since we arrived home. Seeing Him working is truely amazing. We find ourselves at a loss for words often, but I never seem to be at a loss of tears. My heart is overwhelmed by His love.

This past Wednesday was the pay-off of the last 18 years of homeschooling. The kids officially graduated from Highschool!!! Onward into the big, wide world with hearts filled to the fullest with God! So blessed that their delight is in Him. I'll keep you posted on what happens next, but for now they are job hunting and getting drivers licenses, and want to be a part of this plant with their dad!

We had a big gathering at the house Friday to celebrate the Grads, Tofer turning 18, and our arrival home. 60+ people ended up coming out for hotdogs, bratwursts, ultimate frisbee, and fellowship. It was fabulous!

Across the valley, in a pool of water, surrounded by family, our dear friends had their baby while we were all partying. Lucia Mae (Lucy) Janssen arrived to be a little sister to Bella. I love you Sara (& Matt) - Can't wait to hold her and hear Bella chatter on about all her wonders! Hugs, sweet mama.

That about wraps it up. Please keep us in your prayers, hearts, & thoughts as we have a long road ahead and need God to be the One opening the doors and leading the way. I'll be updating a bit more regularly now - Promise!