Painting, Pinterest and Prayer: A Weekend Getaway for NACWE Sisters

What a glorious weekend with my sisters in Christ!  Last Friday, Saturday and Sunday I had the joy of connecting with 4 women from NACWE for a time of refreshment and fun at a gorgeous lake house outside of Austin, Texas.  We did not do any official or “scheduled” business training but we learned, we shared, we created, and we took frantic notes.  We even spent time watching an entrepreneur training video just because we love being “geeky” like that.

I loved getting the chance to meet 2 women for the first time Susan and Scarlett.  And it was so much fun to see Linda and Kathryn again.  We enjoyed fabulous food from an entrepreneurial chef who was not even in attendance, thank you Susan’s daughter JoAnna.   We floated in the river, we enjoyed the sunrise from the Adirondack-style chairs, we watched the moon, we saw turtles, snakes, and all kinds of birds.   A butterfly visited our sitting area and landed on each of us.  We laughed, we shared confidences, we ate too much.  We painted; we gave gifts, we journaled.  We celebrated a birthday and a wedding anniversary.  We had a “girl-style getaway” that each are us are HUNGRY for!

I asked each woman to share her experience with us:

“Incredible weekend to pray, read, reflect and be restored! Love spending time sharing ideas and connecting with amazing NACWE women! This was an inspired weekend together!!” Scarlett Von Gunten  www.ScarlettVonGunten.com

“When God brings women together, amazing things happen. That’s what happened over the weekend with my four NACWE sisters who were visiting me for the first time, but best friends in spirit and “Christian entrepreneurship” long before. We had some “powerful bursts of brainstorming” sprinkled in with a lot of rest, renewal and sharing from the heart. From laughing hysterically at life stories to crying when watching my daughter’s wedding video (twice!), from geeky discussions about apps and Pinterest to crowning Kathryn with a birthday tiara, the weekend could not have been better. Unless, of course, we’d had ALL of NACWE with us!” Susan Tolles, Founder Flourish Over 5o

“The weekend brought together a unique group of women sharing great business ideas and provided a safe platform for faith development.” Linda D. Neal, MBA www.numberscounts.com

“Susan Tolles had the great idea for us to gather together and she put the invite out for us to come. It was a small but ignited group of entrepreneurial women!

I was already friends with Susan & Diane, but had never met Scarlett or Linda except for on facebook! So we sort of all felt like we knew each other… We all shared pieces and parts of ourselves – things of our past, places where God has brought us, things we have overcome all through the grace of God (and girlfriends J). We shared information with each other on how to do things, shared resources for our businesses and I even got Diane invited to Pinterest! We celebrated my birthday and Scarlett’s anniversary; we had food prepared by an amazing Chef, who just happens to be Susan’s daughter! We laughed and giggled! We floated on the lake, we journaled with God; we listened to the cicadas underneath a dazzling full moon. We honored one another, we shared hats and shoes and we painted! I brought my paints, canvas and easels for painting! I’ve been painting for the last year or so now and it’s really amazing the way that God moves me when painting!  I shared with Diane and Susan how I first spray my canvas with water while praying over it to ask for the Spirit to move through me as I paint… spraying and praying!  So we set the easels up and Susan and Diane started painting!  God was moving and it was awesome!

Susan painted a beautiful tree!

Diane painted the heart full of love!

We had a wonderful time together and packed a lot in, in a very short amount of time! But that is what women do!

Kathryn Bonner – Founder of Women of Passionate Purpose

I cannot say enough how blessed I am to have these women and all of the women of NACWE in my life.  We are a true sisterhood, full of life, challenges, changes, and business building.  We will pray with you, laugh with you, and carry you, if needed.

Get away with your girlfriends this summer! Enjoy the moments.  Embrace the lack of schedule.  Turn off your brain so you can hear your heart.  Laugh with wild abandon until tears roll down your face.  Share secrets.  Support dreams.  Build each other up and send each other out!

A good weekend indeed.

 

[graybox]Diane Cunningham is the Founder and President of the National Association of Christian Women Entrepreneurs. She is a “business therapist”, plane crash survivor, author, consultant, speaker, marathon runner, and fun friend.

Find out more about NACWE and why 165 women joined in the first year at www.NACWE.org. Connect with Diane at www.facebook.com/DianeCunningham for fun updates, silly videos, and lively conversation.

[/graybox]