Tuesday Tea Time!

Hello Tuesday Tea Time!

I'm here with many thanks today after a celebratory weekend filled with birthday shenanigans. Growing up birthdays were always made fun for a few reasons. One reason was it was always the start of summer & another was that it always meant good food shared with family & friends. Of course it's always fun to be gifted too. And there was always somebody else with a birthday within days of mine to celebrate too, such as my friends KPK, HG, & 3MD!

Over the years I've had some memorable birthdays. For years my birthday meant my Mammaw would make me whatever kind of pie I wanted. Generally I chose cherry. I was 'kidnapped' more than once by friends & surprised once in Hong Kong. The HK surprise was pulled off so well because I was actually returning to the states a few weeks before my actual birthday, but my friends wanted to celebrate with a cook-out in the park. My birthday has always been an excuse for adventure of new life pieces.

This year we went on a hike, enjoyed a Starbucks treat, took part in the monthly pancake breakfast at our apartment complex, saw Alice in Wonderland: through the looking glass in IMAX 3D (it was excellent), then had dinner at Patisserie Amie. That was all the day before my actual birthday! My actual birthday was filled with a wonderful Sunday morning at work, a quiet afternoon, & a graduation party in the evening. 

The biggest surprise this year was when my children's message got hijacked in the best way possible. My message was highlighting church camp & I had just mentioned camp fire songs when I was told they had a song for me. Before I knew how to respond, the entire congregation was singing 'Happy Birthday' to me. I was blown away in the best way possible. Not only did they sound good, they weren't even prompted to do such a thing & it is quite powerful being sung to by roughly 100+ people.

So today as I enjoy my Kombucha Tea (he picked up the right kind this year!), I am thankful for the fun & the memories & the many well wishes from around the world. This year is bound to be a little better & healthier than the last. Farewell to a beautiful Lusty Month of May!

Tuesday Tea Time!

Tuesday Tea Time!

Hello tea time friends. Have you ever had the experience of watching something on tv & then watching it come to life right in front of you? We all know the things we watch on tv are based from someone's (or perhaps many a someones) real life story (& the pieces of many stories). It's not often we actually believe our lives could become a piece of such story telling.

So much life has happened in the last year that not only have we joked about a movie or a book, but others have even suggested it. While we choose to acknowledge the hardships, celebrate the joys, & continue into the tomorrows, it's hard to imagine our crazy wonderful challenges as captivating for an actual media story. We've been friends since the Fall of 2009, a couple since the beginning of 2010, & JZ since Summer 2011. 2015 was a year of one scary life piece after another (ya know, mental health diagnosis, a few change of jobs, multiple moves, glamping & a trip to Japan) & then, just when we didn't think more excitement could be had in a year, we found out we were pregnant.

2016 is a new adventure with names to many of the wild life challenges, but yet much of the pieces leave us wondering. The wonderful pieces leave us to dream. And pieces of those dreams will become reality & we'll have new unnamed pieces that send us into further wonderings. The named pieces will give us the grounding we need to move forward one day at a time, piece by piece. And so we go with the courage to be (& simply be) & Life, Spirit, Sparkle as our guide.

For a glimpse of what we watched the night before Kaia was born & in our recovering days since, check out PBS/BBC Call The Midwife.

Tuesday Tea Time!

Hello Tuesday Tea Time!

In the last week I have been processing one significant life change. While it has nothing to do with baby Frieda, of course it makes me wonder about her future.

Last week Youth Encounter (YE) announced their closing. This was not a huge surprise, but just as a beloved spot such as camp is hard to let go of, so is an organization that provided those spots all over the world.

I grew up with YE ministries. I learned about church, love, friendship, adventure, missions, & following a Spirit led call through my experiences. I went to my first youth quake in the fifth grade & was hooked by the Spirit. I then attended my first Congress turned Construction Zone (aka Zone) as a 9th grader & when I went off to college I volunteered at all the events nearby that I could. It was only natural to apply for a year of volunteer ministry to follow my college graduation. And when you survived nearly a full year of living in intentional community, why not apply for a second year?!

And we can't forget being introduced to great opportunities such as Side by Side (SxS) Global Missions & Spoke Folk (SF). I signed up for SxS in September 2001. I told my parents I was going to Kenya in 2002 & that'd I'd be 18, so they couldn't tell me no. Possibly not the best approach, but it's what was done. So when I returned from a month of travels to & from Kenya, I blindly signed up for SF. It took one SF tour to have me hooked. I was always trying to recruit others to do SF with me. In fact some of my CAP fam couldn't believe when I said I hadn't toured in a year or more.

Now it's been 14yrs since SxS, 8yrs since SF, 8yrs since Mosaic, & 7yrs since New Dawn. After finishing my year with New Dawn in Fall '09 I started seminary & started a new phase of life. Time slipped by & I have volunteered & worked temp jobs for YE as I was offered & able. In fact I was working for YE right before my current call.

Saturday night I attended my last piece of a YE event. I saw friends I hadn't seen in years & trust the Spirit will bring us together again. I was hit by all these pieces of ministry that have helped get me to where I am today. Then I was hit by the fact that it was my first & last chance to share YE, in that way, with baby Frieda. Frieda will no doubt have her own story, but she will also have one of the largest extended families one could imagine. No matter where I go, there are connections of friends who pick up right where we are & I trust they will offer that same YE family welcome to baby Frieda as she builds her own adventure.

Thank you YE for being such a powerful presence for the church over the last 51 years. I'm beyond blessed to have known your ministry & to take it with me through the years to come.

Tuesday Tea Time!

Hiya Tuesday Tea Timers!

I'm back from all my really big adventures & now just onto another new big adventure or two.

A HUGE thank you to those who filled in while I was gone. If you haven't checked them out, do so! Timothy Siburg blogs weekly - on valuable topics such as stewardship, leadership, & vocation - Britta Gene is an active artist with a heart for poetry (this month's photo - look at todays photo - is her photography work), & Lacey is a doula with a passion for living fully.

I'm so thankful for these friends in my life that live literally from one side of the country to the next. My heart is full by their sharing of their stories & by the amazing things that I got to add to my story while having these friends fill in on Tuesday Tea Time.

I hope you all found it refreshing to have some different voices present!

Coming up on Tuesday Tea Times will be some sharing of my adventures - like the day we walked nearly 13 miles in one day - & I'm sure some new things too.

We saw & experienced some really wonderful things while traveling the world, but mostly it was a time to visit family & hang out & rest. The biggest piece for me was officially being offered a new call & accepting it. So we're in a time of moving yet again.

May you warm drink - because the days have been quite chilly - warm your hands & your soul & keep you breathing deep with me as we go one day at a time.

Tuesday Tea Time!

Greetings, and Happy Tuesday Tea Time!

I’m happy to be sharing this tea time with you, filling in for my friend Julia again. To reintroduce myself, I’m Timothy, and I most often blog here. Last week I introduced myself with a bit more detail to you and told you a little about my wife Allison's and my story. I also told you about how I love questions. 

This week in the spirit of Tuesday Tea Time, as a place to take a few moments to sit and reflect while sipping on your favorite tea or hot beverage of choice, here’s your question:

Where do you dream about traveling and visiting?

I love to travel. I also love to take some time to dream and imagine. Maybe there's no better time to do this than when taking a moment to be still and relax with your favorite hot beverage. 

In thinking about traveling, Allison and I have been married just over five years and have not yet gone on a honeymoon. That's probably what I have been dreaming and imagining most about lately, at least when it comes to travel. 

I imagine there would probably be a nice warm beach, lots of sunshine (something there's less and less around this time of year with the end of daylight saving's time and the shorter days of fall), and just a good chance for Allison and I to explore a new place, to experience some new culture and cuisine, and to be on a new and exciting adventure together. 

Where are you dreaming about today? 

Thanks again to Britta Gene's art for the beautiful picture, and to Julia for letting me fill in for her on the blog. 

Tuesday Tea Time!

Hiya! This week Tuesday Tea Time is brought to you by Britta Gene from Britta Gene Art!!!

hello tuesday tea time readers. let me introduce myself. i am britta gene e. glass. artist, mother to the cutest little pixie, chai tea junkie (i have a serous love for it), picture book collector, lover of anything that sparkles, and dreamer of becoming a picture book illustrator. i feel very blessed to have been asked to help out with tuesday tea time and partner up in bringing you tea related art.

i am hoping this will help get my bum in gear to start writing again for my own blog. so lets begin with one of my favorite topics to talk about... children's picture books!

every night with my little pixie, before bed, we read a few books.  among our vast picture book collection is one perfect tea cup shaped board book about tea time and bunnies.

"Bunnies for Tea" by kate stone tells a story of three bunnies who dress in fancy hats, pearls, and gloves for their tea time.
events start off as they should, pouring tea and adding sugar.  as one little bunny takes a sip out of her tea cup she topples in fancy hat and all. but all is well when her bunny friends bring out cookies and scones for everyone to snack on.

with her watercolor illustration and a little added sparkle, kate stone creates a perfect book to read with your little ones at bedtime or tea time!

thank you again for letting my into your tea time world. happy tea time!

Tuesday Tea Time!

Be sure to check out Britta Gene Art


Heya, it's Tuesday Tea Time!

It's Tuesday Tea Time!

Lately the weeks seem to be flying by at a slow pace & therefore all becomes a blur. Do you know what I mean?

This seems like more reason to stop & breath in Tuesday Tea Time if ya ask me. I finally got around this week to reading an article that I'd been saving in my inbox for several weeks.

Tea With Ninjas is a wonderfully written article with words that help the imagination go go go to a far away place. 

One of my favorite take-aways is the quote, "Tea is culturally significant in Japan - it marks a time of quiet contemplation, reflection, & rest." That is what I hope for Tuesday Tea Times too. That it is a means of breathing in your day & finding your center with where you are in the moment. Not that my words may do this, though that's cool if they do, but that stopping to remember to take tea time & actually taking tea time nurtures you in this way.

If you're not curious to know more about Tea With Ninjas, that's a shame because the article also talks about martial arts & tea drinking coming from the same philosophies. Seriously, check it out!

And before I forget, heaps of thanks & love to some up coming guest bloggers while I'm off having tea with ninjas (not really, but I'll be close!).

Tuesday Tea Time!

Hey! It's Tuesday! Let's have some Tea Time!

I'm uber excited this Tuesday Tea Time to bring you something new!

If you're an avid follower you've possibly seen these tea cups before. These aren't just any tea cups, but they are now the tea cups for the month of October. Not only that, they are the tea cups created by my sister BGeG at Britta Gene Art.

Britta & I have been friends since birth. We can blame our mothers who have the same story for this wonderful piece of our lives. I've shared with you on here how Britta's family used to have mother - daughter teas & how much fun we all had growing up with tea. The tea fun is still true to this day!

Just recently Britta called to tell me she had an idea for my blog & her artwork. While I had hit a bit of a lull in my blogging & her wanting some motivation to do one new piece a month - if not more - she thought up the idea that if she did a piece of Tuesday Tea Time art for me once a month, that could be my art for my entries that month. She told me to think about it, so I did & I fell in love with the idea. 

When you visit Britta Gene's website you'll see that she's a mum of her little ladybug Ella Scott. That's where her blogging adventure ended. Britta's art includes words, but not in the same way mine has always included them. She adds the color & I add the words & voila, we have a Tuesday Tea Time entry with a lot of character!

Britta doesn't have an Etsy shop just yet, but she does keep an active Instagram account & contact information is on her website, so if you're interested in more of her work she'd be glad to hear from you. She's got more tea cups & coffee cups & tutu girls & spoons & fish & & &. Her work adds a touch of whimsy into reality & always exudes her love for the imagination to soar freely.

This week enjoy your tea & check out Britta Gene Art!

Tuesday Tea Time!

Lately I've been saving up in my e-mail the wonderful entries from the Tea Box blog Still Steeping. Almost all entries seem of some dreamy far off land that I can only hope to visit some day.

I save these entries with hope that I take time to read them some day & lucky for me I found the energy to read just the right one for today's Tuesday Tea Time!

The entry God in the Tea Gardens caught my attention recently. And I'm currently waiting to return to read Tea with Ninjas. God in the Tea Gardens makes me smile. The God talked about in this entry is a presence. The Tea Gardens are a place so high & lofty that the writer couldn't help but acknowledge the closeness to God.

Where was the last place you were that you couldn't help but acknowledge God's presence?

While I look for God in the every day, I was immediately taken to my one & only trip - thus far - to a tea garden high in the hills of Malaysia. The scent, the scenery, the company, & the tea were all wonderful. Another moment that in remembering I can't help but smile.

May your Tuesday Tea Time be filled with a piece of being close to God & smile on your heart.

Tuesday Tea Time!

While people all over are loving their pumpkin spice because it's "Fall," I'm still loving my iced teas & fruit teas (hot or cold). The weather around here has been balmy!

One friend said she had her first pumpkin chai latte of the season & it was awful. This sent her on a bit of an adventure! She went from Starbucks #1 where she got the bad drink, then to Starbucks in a Meijer where the Starbucks was closed, then to a local diner where the line was a mile or two long, & finally landed at Dairy Queen. While it wasn't what she was going for, it satisfied her sweet tooth.

Isn't it crazy how life does this to us on all different levels time & time again? If you're like me, you often don't realize the expectations you've set - though we have them for every experience - & this makes it easier to ride with the rhythm or be jolted in your seat. One thing I count on is for good to happen on some level in each situation & I take it upon myself to find this good & make note of it one way or another.

Amidst the stories in the news of the last week - Kim Davis, Syrian Refugees, another hate crime or two resulting in death - it is imperative to count the good, big or small. Count the good, do the good, be the good.

And if you need to see a piece of good, watch this!

Tuesday Tea Time!

Hiya Tuesday Tea Timers!

You knew I couldn't stay away for long, right? I love to write, especially on Tuesdays with Tea! Creative writing is one small piece of self care that I can give myself. My 6th grade teacher should be so proud!

Lately the question that seems to popping up is "What is going on?!"

In the moment, which is where I need to be, I'm drinking tea, enjoying a slow morning after doing some chores & yoga. I'm sitting in a rather empty house & mentally prepping for the chores of cleaning & organizing that need done today so that we may play tomorrow.

All of that seems pretty common except for one piece. If you don't know we're moving or any of the reasons why, I'm guessing you're wondering why I'm sitting in a fairly empty house.

The skinny....our time in Chebooboo has come to a close. There are many pieces that brought this time together much quicker than we ever anticipated. The main reasons being that Z needed to seek further medical attention to care for his depression & PTSD. Naturally people have wondered where we are headed next & the answer is into a time of transition & limbo as we discern our future. We are being taken care of by a combination of family, friends, & colleagues.

"Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes." Matt 6:34 The Message

Right now, the Spirit has been present in my life through granting peace that surpasses my understanding. Peace has been granted that gives me level thinking & communicating to get things done & remember how to take care of myself & my family in the midst of fairly chaotic times. Right now God keeps showing up in #heartfinds everywhere I go, reminding me that I'm not alone.

Right now I'm enjoying my Wonderland Tea & the lovely photo of BgEG's hoosier honey!

Sunday Snippets: good, bad, & awesome!

GOOD: That I have loyal followers that read because they care & are okay when life has so many twists & turns I don't post until later in the day. This hoosier sunrise photo just omits the humidity of the day & the day had only just begun. Yes, a hoosier sunrise means a trip to my dear hoosierland. And a trip to hoosierland means pieces of self care with lunch, tea, & catch-up dates with long time friends. A trip to hoosierland also meant a meet & greet with new babies in the family! A trip to hoosierland also meant being woken up at the crack of dawn by an excited MG, always ready to greet the day & wake everybody else up. Thanks to MG's energy & an early morning walk I got this great no-filter used photo of the hoosier sun rising above the trees.

BAD: In the last week I have felt emotions that left me feeling numb, as if the wind had been knocked out of me, & plain dumbfounded. Mix a little bit of anger & hope in there & you have grief! Anybody else remember learning DABDA in health class way back when? This past week I was gifted a couple different things that I wanted eventually, but I didn't know how I wanted them. I do know I didn't want them to go down as they did. However, that's that & tomorrow is a new day. We each believe the pieces we choose to believe to get by & take care of ourselves & that's the best we can do.

AWESOME: The peace that passes all understanding & the way in envelopes one when you most need it. I have prayed for this peace for others on so many occasions & hope they have been overwhelmed with it as I have in the last week. Last week I was pleading with God for this peace at one point & by the end of the day there it was. I stood in the hallway wondering how I could be so calm & the only explanation was an answered prayer & a gift of the presence of the Spirit within me.

WORD: Today the Good News was that Jesus doesn't put us in boxes & he doesn't call us to be box monitors. Jesus pulls us out of our boxes & together we disassemble the boxes we put others in & therefore there is no need for box monitors. Jesus has it all in control folks!

coming up: One foot in front of the other with Life, Spirit, & Sparkle! Head Up. Heart Out. Move to the Beat!

Friday Favorites!

MG went to her first baseball games this week & as usual drew attention from people of all ages. She only arrived in the backpack - & as usual crawled out the window for her head - & went back in for the last few minutes we were there. Love me a good adventure with MG!

Friday Favorites!

Paul didn't speak to the Ephesians (Eph. 3:14-19) with doubt that they are rooted & grounded in love, but clearly stated that they are rooted & grounded in love because of a generous Spirit who dwells in our hearts.

This generous Spirit throughout the decades reminds us of our our roots & where we learned about love.

One of many favorites this week was the reminder of freedom that comes from dirty feet. Dirty feet are the signs of an adventure worth being part of & making that adventure a piece of life (filled with the Spirit & naturally a touch of Sparkle).

Friday Favorite!

It's my birthday!!! Call me narcissistic, vain, or whatever, but it's one of my favorite days of the year. 

It's always filled with lots of love & well wishes & a touch of adventure. Today's adventure is exploring more of Pure Michigan with my partner who never fails to lead an adventure or two while jumping in full energy to the adventures I provide.

Life together is beautifully crazily overflowing with Life, Spirit, & Sparkle thanks to Z & all of you!

A giant donut to help with the morning birthday shenanigans!

Friday Favorites!

Friday Favorites!

Hello Friday! While quite damp & Scotland like, you have been good today. Alright, most anything that reminds me of Scotland is good.

This week has been filled with little adventures. The photo of MG captures just that. God only knows what she had her nose in near this old building on our friend's property!

She was so incredibly smitten though to be out in the country running free with her friends. And that's what matters. Adventures of all sizes are good for the soul!

The funniest piece of our country adventures was not captured on film, but just imagine this fur baby bounding towards you across a field after losing sight of one another for a minute or two with complete joy to see you again.

Tuesday Tea Time!

Tea on Tuesday is always a good time! So take a minute to join this time with your tea (or other drink that is like a hug in a cup for you).

As the weather has gotten warmer so the desire for iced tea has grown stronger. We're really only 3 days into sandal weather - if you ask me anyway - so the chance to make sun tea has not been taken just yet.

That's because this week is off the charts cray cray!

Sunday I was simply supposed to assist in worship, instead I led both services & made up my sermon in about 5 minutes prior to the first service. I knew as long as I preached the GOOD NEWS all was good!

The day of course didn't end there for work or outside life. I was also set up to help create a brand new to this site fundraiser with the youth & families. SO I got a good 7 hour work day in to kick off the week!

And the really silly piece was while out running errands in the late afternoon or early evening, Z bumped the shopping cart into a display of Brookside Chocolates & down it went. First i sorta stopped as I caught it with my side, but it was too unstable. Fits of laughter ensued for hours on & off about this ridiculousness.

Then yesterday I set up an appointment... in FLORIDA! It wasn't till the very end of the conversation to set up the appointment that I asked for the address of the meeting location & laughed when they said FL. I shared with them that I am in fact in Michigan & would not be able to make it there by 2:30 that same day. Fits of laughter yet again!

So whaddya think it'll be today?

Friday Favorites!

Oh my goodness, it's Friday & I have lots of Favorites this week!

I narrowed it down to this one photo that captures a piece of this week's adventures.

This week Z & I enjoyed a bit of a staycation. Being so work oriented it was a challenge for us to take time to do the things that you always want to do, but end up doing some more work related things instead.

I'm really good at busying myself with cleaning projects as well. On today's list is a bit of financial awareness work. Fun, not so fun!

We didn't simply take the week to stay at home, but ventured out for just a 2 night stay a few hours away. And what a difference it makes in one's daily pattern to step out of the normal & away from the work & projects! We've been told time & time again that to make life happen living in a more rural part of the country, the best way to keep a piece of sanity, at times, is to go on adventures, big & small. No matter the size of the trip, count it as an adventure.

This week's piece of adventure was watching, listening, & taking in the sights, sounds, & smells of the cracking of the thin layers of ice coming into the bay in the morning. This was just a piece of life that is preparing the town for Summer visitors.

Happy adventures - big & small!

Tuesday Tea Time!

It's that time of year that I'm yearning for adventure! The snow is more or less melted, the days are hit or miss sunshine or gray & drizzly, & forward thinking is in full mode with planning next year's calendars for work & fun alike.

I find myself wishing I was having tea & macaroni pie at that quaint cafe somewhere in Scotland. I remember venturing in with Casey & Taransay - or at least that's where my memory takes me - it may have been Emma & Hannah or even Pip & Sara! None of us had ever been to this particular place before & we all enjoyed it. I remember being teased for the macaroni pie because it was "horribly American" of me to choose that with my tea. The thing is, while America has plenty of versions of mac-n-cheese, I have yet to come across anything quite like this treat.

And being that my memory is faint & the friendships with these ladies has grown distant due to time & space, the chances of finding this place again are slim. Which only means one thing, a challenge to find a new quaint place to make happy memories with tea & macaroni-pie. This also means challenge! The challenge of recreating macaroni pie at home, making friends with English gals my age, getting my English & Scottish Flatmates to visit, or taking a trip back to Scotland. SO many possibilities!

All this inspired by the photo taken in England at Epcot...