Living overseas in our capacity presents some challenges. There’s plenty of delights, to be sure, but there’s also a number of unexpected… opportunities to grow, shall we say. I’ve always been a bit more on the right-brained side of things, and a little creative outlet goes a long way for my daily sanity. I’ve discovered, especially in the past few months, that if I take a bit of time to create and explore, I’m much more refreshed as a mom, as a language-learner, as a wife, and as a daughter of the King. Sounds weird, but it’s true, so there it is.

Well, life is also expensive here, and we’re in the middle of raising more support. We already have so many generous and cheerful givers on our team, yet we still need to find more that God is calling – and it’s really only because of the whacked-out economic state of both our country of service and of the U.S. dollar. Woo-hoo.

Anyhoo, Kabob and I had been praying, and we kinda came up with an idea – one that could possibly increase our income, and also provide the side benefit of giving me a creative outlet.

Thus, Chickpea Designs was born.

In a nutshell, this is a simple, work-at-home-mom business of me designing photocards, invitations, announcements, and the like. It’s gone well so far – a few orders are in the works, and I’ve been up in business for less than a week.

I’m starting off exclusively with Christmas photocards, and we’ll see how it goes from there. As I deal with the birth of our next little one (due in seven weeks!), regular wife and mom stuff, not to mention language and cultural learning, I’m not sure how much time I’ll have in a few months.

You can head to my etsy store to check it out and to read about how it works. To put it briefly, I design the photocard; the customer goes and prints their product. I charge one flat fee.

So yeah… There you have it! I’d love to hear any feedback, and if you don’t already have your Christmas cards planned, you know where to find me.

(Also, if you have need for something else, like a baby announcement or invitation, go ahead and ask – I just may have the time at that moment.)

posted: 07 November 10
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