Having Your Cake and Eating It Too

You've heard it said,"You can't have your cake and eat it too."

But really, who intentionally gets cake and then doesn't eat it. Even you crazy healthies out there who have crazy will power to abstain from such evils, wouldn't go through the trouble of serving it up it in the first place if you weren't going to eat it.  

If you work for cake, you're going to eat that sucker. Am I right? (And you're going to make it german chocolate or coffee cake. Just me? Ok.) 

In a world where dreams are becoming more and more of people's realities, there are a lot of nay-say-ers that have shuffled their way to the top of the soap box. They might inform you your writing isn't up to par or your space just doesn't flow. They might get into the nitty gritty of what they assume you're saying instead of actually listening and reflecting. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for cohesive and pretty blogs/books/lives and grammatically correct pieces, but life is a little messier than that. Some of us are a couple steps behind and we need to be allowed the space to walk at our own pace. We need to be allowed the grace to figure our purpose, our calling, in the ever changing seasons of life. (Click to tweet that!)

That's what this blog has become. In a time of shifting roles and responsibilities, likes and dislikes, passions and questions, I want to be able to stand up and say, "Hey, the only thing all these little sectors have in common is me! And that's okay!"

These past two months have been a beautiful whirlwind of figuring out that yes, my life is shaping up to be a seemingly mismatched patchwork quilt, but it's oh so beautiful. 

I've been given the ingredients and recipe for the world's sweetest cake, and I'll be damned if I don't take a big ol' bite.  (Wanna tweet that too?) 

WHAT'S NEW

• Design, by myself, my husband, and Dunkin Donut Coffee
• Topic Organization, most everything I write here will be on one (or a blend) of the sidebar topics (motherhood, worship, faith, next generation)
• About & New Reader pages, some new fun and updated facts
• One Half Worship Coaching, a virtual mentoring program with women in (or who want to be in) worship
• The Free Box (coming next week), filled with downloads, music, printables, worksheets and the like. 

Original photo via

Pressing Pause to Shift Gears

Inevitable. The days change, the seasons change, the minutes change, the people change...Change surrounds us like the gravity ride at your local fair, spinning faster and faster with every passing second. (Man I hate those things.)

I write about change a lot. (See? See? See?) To me, change feels fickle and wishy washy, but I've come to terms with the fact that it is part of life. No, scratch that. It's a big huge ever present part of life.

But no matter how hard we fight to make it stop, it never will. So we embrace it, as it comes and as it goes.

Embracing change is what this next season of life is going to be for me and you. And by me + you, I mean our relationship. This space, this place we communicate, dream, and share stories of joy and fear and loss, it will change, little by little and I'm going to be honest, I'm having a really hard time with it.

There are friendships made because of this blog that would've never had a fighting chance otherwise. There are stories told in these pages that I would've never had enough bravery to share with you face to face.

I want it to stay the same. I want us to stay the same. Our relationship, our friendship, our weird jokes and shenanigans.

But it's time to do something I've put off for a little too long. It's time to shift gears and begin writing, exploring, and seeking answers in areas I may not be as at ease with.

Part of me hasn't changed this space for fear of losing a part of myself I've grown comfortable with. I love writing about things that come naturally or that I already do in my everyday life. Though some posts were written out of necessity or even with fear, for the most part I write what I love here.

That won't change, entirely, but the new direction of this space will be more discovery and require more studying and thoughtfulness on my part. Maybe yours too.

So what does that mean exactly Julianna? So glad you asked.

It means for the rest of May and June, I will be working to rebrand, refocus, and revive juliannamorlet.com. No new content will post until after that, but the old stuff will be here for old times sake. 

Get the Facts

Will you keep your same title? 

The Girl that Sings came from a very specific season in my life. I was at a large(r) church in my hometown and would get approached by people who didn't know my name, so they'd usually divert to some form of "Hey, you're the girl that sings." Yes! That's was me :) Though I will still be singing and women in worship will be a huge topic here, I thought it was time to move forward and dream a little bigger.

Will you write on the same topics?

I can't tell you fully yet, but juliannamorlet.com will address very specific parts and ask very controversial questions about the Christian Faith, Women in Worship, Motherhood, and Inspiring the Next Generation. These may seem broad, but I know my experience and expertise (or lack there of) will touch on distinct aspects of each of them. Stay tuned, it may not be what you're expecting.

Same look and feel? 

Who doesn't like to be fashionable and in style?

Will navigation be more user friendly?

It will be a lot simpler and easier to maneuver through posts. Right now, I have hundreds of posts with silly tags and topics that I will no longer write about in the future due to the new direction. There will be 4-6 distinct topics I'll focus on and all posts will fall under those categories.

How often will you post?

4-5 times a week.

Are you still singing? 

Absolutely. I lead worship with Ty at our home church plant, Antioch LA. Leading worship will always be a part of my life, unless they force me out. Ps. If you're ever in the Los Angeles area on a Sunday morning, please come say hi! Just email me :)

Also, we just finished our lullaby album (eek!), Oh Symphony, to be released on iTunes June 23! You can stay updated on that via Twitter, Instagram (@juliannamorlet) or FB.

Will you still be traveling to lead worship and speak?

Yes! I am taking a maternity break in June & July while we ready and get acquainted with Baby Girl Mo, but starting mid-August, I will be taking speaking inquiries through Spring 2014. (Got a women's event you need a speaker/worship leader for? Email me. Hear speaking & worship styles here.)

Are you going to become a Mom Blogger? 

In short yes. And no. I have decided that I love blogging because I want to meet people just like me and "me" is going through motherhood. I will blog about certain aspects and challenges and joys of motherhood however, I will not overwhelm this space with photos and videos and quotes from my children, because I know motherhood isn't a season every reader is going through (and I don't have a whole lot to say about it yet).

Mom posts will be reserved for once a week. Probably Thursdays. #ithink

Are you going to blog about when Baby Girl Mo arrives? 

Yes! Eventually :) To be one of the first to know about the little monkey, follow me on Twitter, Facebook and/or Instagram (@juliannamorlet).

Will you still collaborate with other peeps?

Mhmm! My favorite posts are the ones written by other people. haha. As topics and questions come up, if I know or hear of someone's expertise in that area, I will always ask them to write. Collaboration has proven to be quite powerful here.

Will old posts still be available? 

The ones that fit into the simpler categories will. All other foofy stuff will be deleted.

When will the new site be up? 

Sometime in July.

Will you let us know when it's up? 

Of course! I'll post it through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and the Subscribers list. So take your pick! (or take all :)

Got more questions? Tweet (@juliannamorlet) or Facebook them (facebook.com/juliannamorlet) and you betcha I'll answer as many as I can.

Until then, I hope the start to your Summer is as beautiful (or handsome) as you are.

Love,

Julianna

original photo via