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A Glimpse of Namibia

This church {Christuskerk: Afrikaans for Christ Church} in Windhoek is such a landmark and memory for me.  In the foreground is the Tin Tin Palace, or as we fondly referred to is, the ‘fishy park”. 

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My sisters and I celebrated many a birthday in these gardens. 

My fondest memories, however, are picking up little, orange “lucky” beans for our family collection, and scooping out strings of frogs eggs from the {disgusting} fountains and smuggling them home in drinking cups.

We loved “growing” our very own tadpoles and frogs!

Below right is the very {colorful} old man who always sits outside the Kalahari Sands {the very fancy restaurant each of my sisters and I were taken when “aunt flow arrived” {if you catch my drift} as a celebration of our ‘womanhood’.

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Above is one very real Herero woman, with one very fake {stuffed} Herero woman in the background.  I thought it was funny.  On the right {above} is one of the many markets selling Serpentine or Soap Stone sculpture.

Below is the playground of the church we grew up a part of. 

In my enthusiasm to be back in my old stomping ground…I broke the steering wheel off.  Sorry All Nations Christian Church.

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Here’s my babe who {miraculously} managed to get our miniscule rental car {a Taz} up and over a hill we failed to see marked with “All Terrain Vehicles Only” sign. 

It was quite possibly the scariest ride I’ve ever been on/in {and keep in mind…I had bungee jumped just 2 weeks earlier}.  Yeah, about that.

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Daan Viljoen, where we spent countless family holidays.

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We packed ice-cream…and forgot spoons.  Doh.

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The beautiful dunes of Swakopmund, another family favorite made famous by the highly-publicized birth of one of Brangelina’s {many} babies.

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A {massive} termite mound.  Hubs was enthralled.  I was back home.  Once you’ve seen one gigantic termite mount, you’ve seen them all. 

Not really.  They’re pretty impressive, actually.

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The exquisite {unseasonably rainy} drive back from Swakop to Windhoek.

We loved our time together in Namibia.  God did an awesome thing in my life and I will never be the same again…but that’s another post for another day.

And just look at these two…they have no clue their lives were about to change forever.  Baby #1 was brewing.

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{Gosh, my husband looks funny with hair.  Or at least, some}

This is what he looks like now:

Day one Howie and Debbie 276

Related posts:

  1. 3/4 of the {Sister} Crew
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Travels

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Simply Bloom exists to empower women to embrace their stories, live out their passion with purpose, and leave a legacy of love.
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Hello there! I'm Joy. Speaker, designer, author & coach, and creator of the #weROARproject. Welcome to Simply Bloom Co., where passion & purpose collide.

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Worship and lament were never meant to cancel each Worship and lament were never meant to cancel each other out.
They can — and often do — live side by side.
And the kind of worship that rises in the midst of pain
is a costly, sacred offering God treasures.

#WorshipInTheWaiting #OhGoodGriefPodcast
Praise isn’t pretending everything is fine, it’s r Praise isn’t pretending everything is fine,
it’s remembering who God is, even when it isn’t.
It rarely changes our circumstances,
but it always changes our perspective.

What could shift in you
if you praised God for even one thing
you’ve been tempted to complain about?

#OhGoodGriefPodcast #WonderOfWorship
Sometimes praise is the most rebellious act of hop Sometimes praise is the most rebellious act of hope we have left.

🎙️ Episode 3 of Oh, Good Grief | The Podcast is live.

In this week’s episode, The Sound of Surrender, we’re talking about what happens when we worship through the wilderness, and the way gratitude reshapes our view of God, of ourselves, and of the desert we’re walking through.

🎧 Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

#OhGoodGrief #FaithInTheFire #WondersOfTheWilderness #PraiseThroughPain #FormationOverFame
God is never careless with the pruning knife. If H God is never careless with the pruning knife.
If He allows something to fall away, we can trust His heart,
that it is ultimately for our good,
and for His glory.

#AllisGrace #OhGoodGriefPodcast
Sometimes God prunes what is still alive. Not beca Sometimes God prunes what is still alive.
Not because He is cruel, but because He is kind.

It’s unbelievably hard to walk away from something that was once deeply fruitful. But when a season ends and God lifts His grace from that role, relationship, or project, lingering often hurts far more than leaving.

Trust His heart for you in the pruning. 🌱
He cuts with purpose, and always with love.

#OhGoodGriefPodcast #SimplyBloomCo
I stumbled across the word I chose and lettered fo I stumbled across the word I chose and lettered for 2023. Held. I thought it might reopen old ache. Instead, it reminded me of the deeper song beneath our hardest seasons: even in the unraveling, we were held.

And as a new year unfolds, that truth feels like a steadying hand.

Here’s to beginnings that hum with mercy...
sunrises, blankets of white snow,
seasons turning quietly toward hope. 

Dream bravely.
Plan loosely.
Take the next small step.
Try again.

Be tender with yourself.
Honor the slow work of becoming.
And step into this year knowing—
you are held.
As we stand on the edge of a new year, remember th As we stand on the edge of a new year, remember this:
God doesn’t prune to prove a point;
He prunes to produce fruit.

Trust the precision and the heart
of the Master Gardener.

What felt like loss this past year
may have been His clearing away of the old
to make room for the new.

#OhGoodGriefPodcast #SimplyBloomCo
For the person who doesn’t love journaling but doe For the person who doesn’t love journaling but does love growth…the R•EVOLVE Journal was created to make the practice simple, sustainable, and meaningful.

Five lines a day - small enough to fit into real life, yet rich enough to capture the joys, struggles, prayers, answered prayers, and all the quiet in-between spaces.

Some seasons change us so subtly we miss the beauty of what’s unfolding. This little rhythm helps you notice it, and hold it.

All seven cover designs are available on Amazon or in the Simply Bloom Co. shop
📚 simplybloomshop.org/product-page/r-evolve-journals

If you live in Central Michigan, I'm happy to connect with you and get one into your hands so you can start journaling sooner.
Sometimes God prunes what’s still alive. Not becau Sometimes God prunes what’s still alive.
Not because He’s cruel — because He’s kind.

🍃 Episode 003 of OGG is live: Making the Cut | When Love Looks Like Loss.

We’re talking about the difference between punishment and pruning, and how the wilderness can be proof of love.

🎧 Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

#OhGoodGriefPodcast #SimplyBloomCo
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