Carrie Talbott Carrie Talbott

Jesus Follower | Word Stringer | Avocado Eater

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  • About
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  • Books,  Easter,  Gifts,  Music,  Reading,  Recommendations,  Writing

    New Media to Buy for Yourself and Give Away: 4 Books and 2 Songs by My Talented Author Friends

    March 17, 2023 / No Comments

    The following is a short list of friends who put in the hard work and did what it took to launch their words into the world.  Besides ordering these treats for yourself, they make great gifts for Mother’s Day, graduation, Father’s Day, birthdays, etc.  Each image below is a link. In alphabetical order, so no one gets their feelers hurt…. Nicole O’Meara When Morning Dawns: The Hope of God’s Presence in Your Storm Nicole’s life changed the day her lungs started bleeding and she could barely breathe. If you or anyone you know battles chronic illness, this is a fantastic resource poised to encourage young and old alike.  Nicole and…

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    Carrie Talbott

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    If You Give a Woman a Kiss: Chocolate and Laura Numeroff to the Rescue

    February 13, 2016

    Spring Decluttering with an Organizing Pro: 20 Items You Can Quickly Donate or Toss This Weekend

    May 13, 2022

    Father’s Day Gift Guide for the Young & Old: Cool, Trendy, & Fun Ideas Your Dads & Grandpas Will Love

    May 20, 2023
  • Courage,  Honesty,  Stress,  Thanksgiving

    Baby Steps, Bob: How to Replace the Overwhelming Thing with the Next Thing

    September 23, 2022 / 16 Comments

    If you’ve seen one of my favorite movies, What About Bob, you know taking baby steps (literally) is what got Bob Wiley out of his own head.  Repeating the words “baby steps” also got him on a bus, through a sliding door, and on a boat… all things that previously terrified him. Similarly, if you’ve read Bob Goff’s books or listened to his podcast, you know he loves the word ambition. Always challenging people, he does a great job of encouraging his audience to figure out what they want and go for it.  Sounds effortless coming from a man who already possesses ambition… and a bank account to back up…

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    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    Mexican Manna: Do You Know What You Need?

    April 11, 2020

    When You Stand to Teach & Sit Back Down Taught: Unexpected Lessons in the Trees

    April 1, 2022

    Corner Office Syndrome as a Boss: When it’s Always Lonely at the Top of the Business or Ministry

    January 10, 2021
  • Courage,  Faith,  Humility

    Two Cops & a Black Eye: Our Up Close & Personal Encounter with Physical Abuse

    February 4, 2022 / 18 Comments

    Living in Mexico brought a ton of unusual, funny, memorable experiences. Even the hard times sound like a picnic compared to the night the cops dropped off an unexpected guest. Our large property consisted of five double-wide mobile homes, a fire pit, trash and tool hut, huge water tank, fig and pomegranate trees, laundry lines, small patch of grass, and enough parking for about 25 cars. Some locals knew exactly why we were there, and others had no clue. Like all the other nights, I stood in our double-wide, all jammied up and cozy, brushing my teeth in peace. Between spits I saw lights flashing through our small bathroom window,…

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    Carrie Talbott

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    When it’s Finally Time to Launch Your Business Idea. Small Starts are Better Than No Starts, Right?

    February 27, 2021

    When You Stand to Teach & Sit Back Down Taught: Unexpected Lessons in the Trees

    April 1, 2022

    Mexican Manna: Do You Know What You Need?

    April 11, 2020
  • Entertainment,  Humility,  Music

    Yellow Lights, Red Flags: Warning Signs That Help Keep Our Noisy Lives in Check

    August 20, 2021 / 12 Comments

    I ran a big fat yellow light this week. Actually, if you must know, it looked a tad orange. How a human brain can go back and forth that many times in a matter of 1.8 seconds is beyond me, but there I was: Slow down. Punch it.  I’m good. This isn’t good.  Cops? No cops.  I got this. I don’t got this.  Gahhh! Don’t judge. I’m guessing you’ve been in an orange light situation at some point, yes?  Those split-second decisions don’t exactly give me time to wrangle my best drawl, sing Jesus Take the Wheel and then wait for Him to move. Most of the time I’m relying…

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    Carrie Talbott

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    Family-friendly Movies flicks films

    15 Favorite Family-Friendly Flicks to Watch at Home With the Kids This Weekend

    May 28, 2021

    All I Want for Christmas This Year is a Book. And Star Wars Baby Yoda.

    December 12, 2020

    Simple Family Thanksgiving Ideas: Goodies & Gifts to Keep it Basic This Year

    November 14, 2020
  • Courage,  Faith,  Humility

    When it’s Finally Time to Launch Your Business Idea. Small Starts are Better Than No Starts, Right?

    February 27, 2021 / 22 Comments

    Well? Are they? If you answered with a resounding, “Heck yeah! Go for it!” then you might not deal with issues of insecurity, perfectionism or strong aversions to failure. I always looked in awe at our neighbors in Baja who thought up an idea for a business, gathered a few supplies, and opened the following month. Or week! It made no sense to my cautious brain how you could be prepared that fast with a game plan toward success and a plan B to pivot if needed. But that’s coming from someone who cringes at the thought of failure, or being completely wrong, or launching something that isn’t ready. And…

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    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    Mexican Manna: Do You Know What You Need?

    April 11, 2020

    When You Stand to Teach & Sit Back Down Taught: Unexpected Lessons in the Trees

    April 1, 2022
    Perfect Piano Practice Perfection

    When Daily Practice Doesn’t Make Perfect

    March 19, 2021
  • Trailer Life Baja Mexico Missionary
    Faith,  Missionary Shenanigans

    Home Sweet Trailer in Baja: Abraham’s Forever Faith in My Face

    February 6, 2021 / 12 Comments

    I am no longer a journaler.  Journaler? That’s a weird word. I engaged my pens decades ago, especially when the subject matter revolved around boys, but then I tapered.  Since then I’ve started and stopped more than start-stop technology in city traffic, but I just can’t get into it. So now I use them as notebooks, and I’m totally fine with that. No more guilt. For years I couldn’t figure out why I didn’t want to journal anymore until I realized the list involved reasons I didn’t want to admit. Mix together slight perfectionism and the constant inner critic of an Enneagram one, with a full schedule and a woman…

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    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    Two Cops & a Black Eye: Our Up Close & Personal Encounter with Physical Abuse

    February 4, 2022

    Easter Fail

    March 26, 2016

    Carols In The Closet

    February 20, 2016
  • Humility,  Missionary Shenanigans,  Patience,  Stress

    Kicked Out of the Bank: When Rejection Suddenly Strikes You and Your Family

    October 24, 2020 / 10 Comments

    A few years into Baja living, my husband learned to roll with the inconvenient punches, knew exactly how to pay all the bills in person, and understood the cultural norms.  But of all the places we visited in the city, going to a Mexican bank never felt fun.  Between 230 cars jockeying for 13 parking spaces, sketchy holes in the sidewalks and a general feeling of being a tad nervous carrying too much cash, I preferred to stay in the car. Or at home. At least their banks had real police officers packin’ heat at the front door. None of this rent-a-cop packin’ snacks nonsense you find in the States. …

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    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    When You Stand to Teach & Sit Back Down Taught: Unexpected Lessons in the Trees

    April 1, 2022

    Yellow Lights, Red Flags: Warning Signs That Help Keep Our Noisy Lives in Check

    August 20, 2021

    Dumbing Down Our Kids: 11 Rules of Life to Challenge the Teens in Your Life

    September 21, 2019
  • Courage,  Faith,  Gratitude,  Stress

    Mexican Manna: Do You Know What You Need?

    April 11, 2020 / 6 Comments

    In case you’re considering launching a cross-cultural ministry, organic enterprise or local venture, here are two things I wish someone would have told me before our family took off for the great unknown.  Buckle up—they’re both extremely complex and ridiculously basic: On some level, I already knew about these two things because, well… life. But wow. I had no idea how scary true they would prove to be.  From the beginning, through the middle, and after the end, my husband and I felt the effects of every emotion that came from human disappointment. Friend/family, old/young, poor/rich… didn’t matter.  But right on the heels of every one of our bugged eyes…

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    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    In the Eye of the Swarm: Learning Patience While Waiting for Everything to Change

    October 15, 2016

    Two Cops & a Black Eye: Our Up Close & Personal Encounter with Physical Abuse

    February 4, 2022

    When You Stand to Teach & Sit Back Down Taught: Unexpected Lessons in the Trees

    April 1, 2022
  • Courage,  Faith,  Honesty,  Humility,  Judging

    Boring Testimonies: No Drama Necessary

    March 7, 2020 / 14 Comments

    My second boyfriend acted like a goody-two-shoes, but mostly wasn’t. My third boyfriend had a long scar on his face. I never asked why. My fifth boyfriend lived in a group home and wasn’t that into… talking.  My sixth got kicked out of school, but I don’t remember why. My husband tells stories of his past that make you wonder how and why he’s still alive.  He sold pot in middle school, went to church hungover, and almost blew up his high school gym, but eventually, he grew up and started a nonprofit ministry. He also got stuck on the back of a motorcycle while the driver flew through the…

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    Carrie Talbott

    You May Also Like

    Carols In The Closet

    February 20, 2016
    Perfect Piano Practice Perfection

    When Daily Practice Doesn’t Make Perfect

    March 19, 2021

    When it’s Finally Time to Launch Your Business Idea. Small Starts are Better Than No Starts, Right?

    February 27, 2021
  • Attitude,  Faith,  Humility,  Judging

    What the What? Didn’t See THAT Comin’

    March 30, 2019 / 24 Comments

    I cooked in my kitchen when the house phone rang. “Sharri has cancer.” I sat in his Jeep when he told me we were done. “I’m loving you more than I’m loving Jesus.” I stood on my college campus when I read, “You have not been selected for the position.”  I walked through a Costco parking lot when he called. “Carrie? He’s gone.” I soaked in a jacuzzi when I realized I was the only one not invited to a party. I rode in a van when her voice shook through my cell. “She’s probably not going to make it through the evening.” You didn’t see life comin’ either? It’s…

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    Carrie Talbott

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    Lord of the Flaws

    October 6, 2018

    8 Things I’m Teaching My American Pre-Adults in Mexico

    November 12, 2016

    Dealing with Disappointment: 5 Things I Learned from a Rough Family Vacation Last Week

    August 5, 2022
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Welcome!

You’re here! And I’m Carrie. From full-time camp kid to unconventional missionary for 12 años in a 3rd-world country, I’m now a profesh organizer and writer who loves plants and guac. Life is short, so I’m smiling while I have all my teeth, but I still have issues. Always remember… when life hands you lemons, give them back. You deserve avocados.

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