This is the second post in an on-going series I’m doing called With Passion & Purpose. I decided to start doing this when I discovered this summer that I am much more of a “dream encourager” than an actual dreamer.

It makes me happy to tell you about fun finds and it makes me even happier when I get to know the creator of a fun find. This inspires me to find out her story. And once I know her story and why she has found her passion in creating, it makes me love the creation even more!

Last week, I mentioned an adorable mug and spoon set from NS Pottery and Jessica N Designs. Today, I’m going to tell you a little about the story of Natalie from NS Pottery and where her passion for pottery originated.

 

key to my heart necklace

I have fallen head over heels for Natalie’s products. I now have a few of her jewelry pieces on my wish list. And a few more coffee and latte mugs in my Etsy cart.

cup of love latte mug

But what I love most about Natalie is that she loves what she does. I can always tell someone who absolutely loves her jobs because it just shines through. I follow Natalie on Instagram and through her blog, and she is so lovely and creative and such fun to follow.

 

I asked Natalie to tell you all a little bit about how she found her passion in pottery.

In Natalie’s own words…

I first fell in love with the art of making pottery when I was a junior in high school. I was going through a really difficult time in my life and I loved the peace that came with working with my hands. Once I graduated from high school, I went on to take classes at a local pottery studio and 1 1/2 years later, I opened up my own home studio.

Owning my own business and being my own boss is a dream come true. I’m an introvert by nature, so spending the day alone in my studio with the radio, at the kitchen table assembling jewelry, or in my office at the computer recharges me. I love thinking up new designs and playing around with the clay to see how it will respond. Pottery making is a long process that can take several months from start to finish, but once that finished piece is in my hands and the design works well, it’s a little bit like Christmas morning in my heart.

I treasure the connections that I’ve made through having a blog and online business. I’ve met so many precious people who inspire me every day and have helped my business get to where it is today. It’s an incredible feeling to know that my pieces are proudly displayed in homes, share a special part in family meals, and are worn by fun, beautiful women all around the globe.

Visit Natalie’s Etsy shop to find out more and to see the rest of her beautiful creations! And be sure to “like” her on Facebook.

 

Last night, I went to the first gathering of a new, summertime, 6-week Bible study. My sweet friend, Ellen, put together a great little hodge podge of friends and asked us to come to her house once a week to discuss a book and study God’s word. And, of course, hopefully get in some amazing fellowship in the mean time.

When I looked at the first list of people who would be participating, I thought I only knew a couple of the other women. And when I arrived last night, I realized that through some way or another (church, Bible study, preschool, word of mouth about a fabulous hair stylist) I knew almost everyone else in the room.

We each went around the room to introduce ourselves, and most of our stories didn’t revolve around our children or our daily activities, but they were stories that focused on what brought us all to Columbia, South Carolina.

How did we all end up in this big small town? (I say big small town because Columbia really isn’t small. If you include all of the little neighboring suburbs, Columbia is pretty dang big. But it’s also a really old, really Southern town, where everyone still seems to know everyone.)

I don’t believe in coincidences and I fully believe that God is in the details.

I ended up in Columbia, South Carolina because when I finished college at Louisiana Tech, I needed somewhere to go next. My parents had moved to Columbia a little over a year before I finished college, so I decided to move to Columbia to be close to them and to attend graduate school at the University of South Carolina.

I finished graduate school, took a job in Columbia because I still wanted to be near my family, and then about 10 months later, my parents moved to Dallas. (They have since moved to Indiana, where we moved in 1995, and they lived there for 8 years before moving to Columbia. They move around quite a bit, so it’s really no big deal to us.)

At my first job, I met Todd. He worked there, too. I’ve told that story before, so I won’t tell it all again.

So, you see? It was no coincidence that I moved here, stayed here to work instead of going away to a larger, more glamorous city. I was supposed to meet my husband. God had perfectly laid out this plan. His plan.

I’m one of those people that has moved around a whole lot in my life. And, yet, I’ve lived in Columbia, South Carolina longer than I’ve ever lived in any one place. And I didn’t move here until I was 21 years old.

It still makes me so sad that we are 12 hours away from my parents. (But it’s better than being 17 hours away from them when they lived in Dallas.) Trying to work out visits always stresses me out and I feel like I just can’t get there enough to see them. I wish so much that it was easier.

But I love this big small town.

What do I love about it?

I love the big parts. We have almost anything you could want when it comes to shopping. It’s not New York City, and it’s not even Charlotte. But we have a Trader Joe’s and a Whole Foods now. That’s a big deal to us!

I love the small parts. I can go almost anywhere in town and see at least one person that I know. I know a lot of that comes from living somewhere for nine years. But I just love how small things seem. We always seem to be running into the same people at football games, Starbucks, preschool, church, the park, Publix, and anywhere we go. I just love that! Community is so important to me.

I love our church. We attend Shandon Baptist Church and have loved investing in the church with time and service. The people there have become like family in so many ways, and we are just so blessed to have them here.

I love the South. South Carolina is deep south, y’all. There’s so much history here. Things here are very old. Historic homes, historic landmarks. The history is everywhere.

I love the surroundings. We’re an hour and a half from everywhere. We can get to Charlotte in 90 minutes for great shopping. We can get to Charleston in 90 minutes for the beach and general Charleston bliss. We can get to Greenville in 90 minutes to visit Todd’s alma mater, Furman University, and because we just love Greenville. (Not to steer the topic away from Columbia, but we really really love Greenville. You should visit if you haven’t before.)

I love the fun. We have zoos, parks, rivers, great/fantastic/amazing local restaurants, great shopping museums. We have plenty to do and plenty to keep our kiddos entertained and relatively cultured.

I love the people. I miss my family terribly, but we are so blessed to have Todd’s family here. And the amazing friends we have made through church, through Junior League, through our kids’ preschool, and just through mutual friends, like last night at Ellen’s house. I’m so so very thankful for the people.

Columbia is fantastic.

But I truly believe that God has put us where we are for a reason. No matter where he puts us, there is a purpose. There are people to be loved, churches to invest in, and fun new things to explore.

When I moved here nine years ago, I never ever imagined that the day would come when I wouldn’t be kicking and screaming about not getting to move to something bigger and better. But I truly love it here. With all of my heart.

While I do wish it was closer to my family, I love that we have put down roots here and that our children will grow up somewhere that they have roots, too.

So, how about you? How did you end up in the town or city where you live? Are you like me and have found yourself pleasantly surprised by how much you love where you live?

*I’m linking up with the Influence Network to share about where we live and why we love where we live.