Dear Photograph is an amazing community-driven art blog. “Take a picture of a picture from the past in the present.” I love nostalgia, and there are many photographs I’d love to do this with if I ever make it down to Tampa again one day.

Speaking of nostalgia, Young Me / Now Me is another community-driven art blog where people recreate old photos. Some of them are just okay, but there are some that are REALLY good. I’m trying to talk my brother into recreating this one with me…

If you have nice clothes that the kiddos have outgrown, you can trade them on ThredUp. And if you’re in need of some almost new kids clothes, ThredUp is a great place to purchase them. I bought some back-to-school clothes for my oldest this week, and it came out to be cheaper per piece than the thrift store. Score!

Paperback Swap is a great place to swap books. I’m a library geek myself, but there’s a few things I want to read that my library doesn’t have on their shelves. For those books, I use Paperback Swap. I’ve got a few swaps under my belt, and the books work out to around $2.41 each which is less inexpensive than a 1 cent book on Amazon when you factor in the shipping costs.

If you like to read, GoodReads is incredible. I keep track of my reading list there, as well as connect with authors that I really like.

I started reading Her.meneutics a while ago, and it’s now my favorite way to gain a Christian woman’s perspective on topics being considered and discussed in modern culture. The recent article on Bert and Ernie is a great example of what you’ll find here.

I’ve been reading more style blogs lately, and Girl With Curves is one of my favorites. The name says it all!

And Pinterest, oh Pinterest. I signed up a while back and didn’t use it much, but I’ve been on a real Pinterest kick lately. I love cataloging the items I find on the internet and discovering others’ picks as well, like this farmhouse table that Spence has promised to make for me soon, or this iced coffee recipe that is better than Starbucks (seriously!), or this free Amy Butler bag pattern, or this inspiring graffiti, or… the list goes on and on.

What are your favorite online things?

Yesterday, my manager Sydney and I attended the 2011 Chick-fil-a Leadercast at the beautiful Port City Community Church here in Wilmington. I had originally heard about Leadercast from Kelly Cain’s amazing blog and when I heard Seth Godin, John Maxwell, Sir Ken Robinson and Dave Ramsey were all lined up to speak, I knew I had to attend. I told my manager about the event, and we decided to go together. It was an incredible experience, worth much more than the up-front investment. What I learned yesterday will certainly change my life.

There were so many takeaways that I couldn’t quite possibly cover them all here. The most profound idea from yesterday that resonated throughout many of the presentations was the idea of living authentically, finding your purpose and living it. I’ve titled my blog “A Life of Purpose” and I strive to live an authentic life but I’m still in the midst of finding my one true purpose, the thing that gets me out of bed in the morning and drives me to do the things I feel I could never possibly do simply because I know they have to be done to fulfill a higher purpose.

That’s a lot to consider, isn’t it? Dave Ramsey used Truett Cathy as an example. Chicken is not just his business, but the vehicle he uses to live his purpose.

Dave Ramsey said that a higher calling matters because you’ll play harder when you play for someone bigger than you. Muhtar Kent said that you must have humility, not arrogance. Suzy Welch said to stop being reactive in your decision making and focus instead on your values. Mack Brown said to stop focusing on your past and instead plan for great things in your future.

Live an authentic life. Fulfill your purpose.

Since my notes from the event look a lot like chicken scratch, I thought I’d share these beautiful handwritten notes from Mike Rohde. Take the time to go through them. You just might pick up an idea or two that sparks something in you, too.

Baby bunnies!

The morning started at 6:30am with squeals of delight as the boys found their Easter baskets, then we read the Easter Story together as a family. What a wonderful way to start the day, remembering the sacrifice made for us so many years ago.

Happy Easter!

I put this song on a mix CD for my hubby way before we ever stepped foot into a church. When I heard it on the radio yesterday, it made me think of that moment. I had made him a CD full of songs of hope because we were in a place of desperation. We were broke, broken, hopeless and on the verge of disaster. I wanted to make him a CD that would cheer him up. I had no idea how God would change our lives after that moment… couldn’t even comprehend it.

When we recorded that first podcast, we never knew that we could reach so many people with our story. We couldn’t imagine that people would actually come to us for advice with money. It was insane to think that so many people would listen to us, week after week, and actually come back for more. We certainly never imagined that we would be a Top 50 podcast in iTunes or even be nominated for a 2010 Podcast Award.

Even better than that, we never thought that we would receive personal emails from listeners across the globe telling us how they got their financial lives in order, started working a money plan, went to church, found Jesus, or started tithing simply because they listened to our podcast. I’ve corresponded with people facing foreclosure and feeling scared in the same way I was scared five years ago. I’ve corresponded with people that have lost everything, only to call in to Dave Ramsey and scream that they’re debt-free today. Every single person that listens is a life we’ve been blessed to be a part of. How amazing is that?

And yet, as amazing as it all has been, I am at a pivotal point in my life where I feel the need to focus on my physical and emotional health and put the podcast aside for now. So this week, I said goodbye indefinitely to something I love dearly. It was one of the hardest and most freeing things I’ve done.

I’m so proud of what Spence and I have accomplished, so grateful for what God has done in our lives. I am a better person because of this experience, and I will be a better person because of my decision to let go.

In April of last year, our local newspaper interviewed Spence and I about Rebound and they took this photo of us, next to our mic at our kitchen table.

To me, this sums up exactly what the podcast was: just us, at our kitchen table, sharing our story and experiences with the world. I’m so thankful to have been a part of it.

I love this song. It’s the story of my life this past year and a half.