Sharing What's on My Heart Today

This past weekend was so powerful for me... Actually, any time I get to spend with my ultra-wise cousins leaves an impression, but this weekend touched me beyond comprehension, and I am still processing, really.

The subject of our Grandpa & family history came up, and where I don't want to over-share (hehe, I know, that line is often blurred here!! HAHA), I will say, God's hand on our family's lives is so evident. Where tragedy and desperation could've been the outcome, God changed our lives forever, literally, eternally...by a girl inviting my Aunt to church after she met Jesus...it has changed the course of our history.

I am so in awe right now. I love Him. I do.

Yesterday at church, I couldn't keep it in. Every song that we sang in worship time, just affirmed the fact to me, just made the Truth that much sweeter, and I shared, as condensed, yet as clearly as I could, like someone who was ready to explode!! LOL

During our "meet & greet" time I shared with my Share Group Sister, and she said, "You have to share that today. I'm serious!" I wasn't convinced, but couldn't shake it, either. After I butted in (haha), another worship singer said, "That is answer to prayer, I just prayed for a testimony to happen," it was like God saying to my heart, "Girl, you did good." LOL :) Refreshing to my soul :) The whole weekend.

And, even as I'm home, back to the "real world" of "real life" I am being constantly reminded that He's in control, that I don't have to be, and that I have an awesome God, Father, Friend to run to, to come to my rescue, in the most real sense of the word superhero.

Speaking of real life, mine is calling, now :) hehe Talk to you all later :)

Top 10

I have fallen in love with crafting/mommy blogs, and they've inspired me & helped me realize that it is possible to craft even with little ones around & curious as to what Mommy's doing :).

Here is a list of the top 10 things I've been inspired to tackle... Almost like you've taken an art class and can't wait to get home to use what you've learned on projects of your own.

1. Teal. Turquoise. Aqua. Whatever you call it. IT. IS. AWESOME.

2. It started with Design Dazzle and the pom-pom tutorial. I am still diggin the pom-pom & will have pics of the next place they'll show up :) (hint: there's a baby shower this weekend...okay, that was pretty much a give-away).

3. Re-purposing. Recycling made cool. I can't wait to tackle some of my furniture deemed otherwise useless... And, I am so dreaming of a belt sander...and a nail gun...

4. Photography. I LOVE pretty pictures, and would love to take pics of my kiddos like that, without paying through the nose to get em. Not that I don't appreciate the value of a great photographer, it's just not in our budget to pay for a great photographer. I would love to take a class or two & learn about using an SLR camera (or whatever the step down from an SLR would be).

5. I have FINALLY tackled the metal "barn" star that I bought for Eli's wall, um, before he was born... Infarrently Creative inspired me, and I decided to just do it for heaven's sake. I used antiquing medium by Plaid, after I painted it, um, teal...same paint as the necklaces... Anyways, I thought it was too dark after I used the antiquing stuff, so I went back over the middles with more paint, and wiped it off, so it brightened it up without looking painted in the lines. It's now moved from the kitchen table to Eli's room :) I guess that would've made a better picture than the one sporting leftover birthday party fish & Lysol wipes...



6. I'm not gonna lie... The thought of sewing makes me break out into a cold sweat. I have nightmares of the home ec project I labored through... I had to make a skirt. Long story short, bobbins are my enemy. Anyways, I did eventually finish the skirt...and a couple Christmases ago, I got this for Christmas, mainly for scrapbooking, where straight lines look weird and crazy stitches are cool. But, I digress... Remember the tulle? I am going to try & attempt to SEW something... If it goes well, I'm thinking curtains, next... But let's see how the tulle goes...

7. I want to use Teal Rit. Yes, they make AQUA Rit, and Julie from Joy's Hope Handmade rocks the Rit... and everything teal, really :) Check THIS and THIS out...

8. I want to cover everything with pretty paper :) I. Mean. Everything. I almost put paper on the star, but I didn't like it, and liked the distressed blue better... But I will cover something up with that paper. Maybe make some kind of wall art or something...

9. Do more crafting with my kiddos. Make & Takes has great ideas, and they pride themselves on keeping the cost low...HELLO, yes, please!! Abbey LOVES to craft, so it's great for us to do together, and she's not drawing on my walls...

10. I'm seriously thinking about opening an Etsy shop... but just thinking. I would love to be able to turn my crafts into something that would help pay off some bills. Or take us on vacation. Again, we'll see...

Wait, did I mention teal? Haha :)

So, there's my top ten things of what I'm loving, and what I'm being inspired to do!! I know not all of you are crafters, per se, but surely something or someone has inspired you lately in some area of your life, and I'd love to know about it!! :)

Not Me Monday

MckMama is on a trip to Kenya, and she is showing some really awesome photos & some heartbreaking & yet hopeful tidbits from their journey. And, I believe she has put a hold on Not Me Monday, so I will post this, then when she resumes NMM, I will link back to this post :). I'm just excited to join in...I've never been a part of a blog carnival :)

I certainly did not set my almost completely dead cell phone on the couch Tuesday, only to never see it again... I have not been looking for it ever since. And, when I searched under the couch & found TOYS, CRUMBS, AND WHO-KNOWS-WHAT-ELSE, I most certainly did not look at those things with a blind eye & return the cushions right back where they were... Cause we all know I would never do that!!

What have YOU not been doing? hehehehe

Alright, I'm IN!!

I found Living with Lindsey's blog yesterday through Googiemomma's blog...I know, I'm like a blog junkie now...

ANYWAYS, I thought I would give it a shot. You can check out the rules here if you'd like to jump in, too. The deadline is March 25th (to be linked up at her blog).

Basically (and this is my interpretation of the rules, not the official rules), you have $5 (excluding tax) to spend at the dollar store (examples: Dollar Tree, Deals, Everything's a $1, etc...). Then you re-make it into something fabulous for Spring. You are allowed to use already-owned items (WHEW!! I can maybe break out those stamps I bought yesterday?!?!), take a pic of your completely fabulous re-make, blog about it, then link up with McLinky @ Lindsey's site.

There will be preliminary judging, then the Top 5 will be up for the Reader Vote. And, yes, there is a prize...but she hasn't shared, yet...just that it's fabulous!!

So, are you in?

JoAnn Fabrics ROCKS!! :)

Steve called me today around 11ish asking, "Are you dressed yet?"

I was slightly offended curious, so I said..."Yes, and my make-up's on..." Quesion mark implied.

"Well, how would you like to take me to lunch today?" he says in his cheeky way.

"OK, what's the occasion?" I ask, still waiting for the punch line...and it came!!

"Well, it seems I've locked myself out of my car!"

So, racing to get the kiddos dressed & ready {even though they really both needed baths...}, we took Steve to lunch...sort of. He had to be at a meeting at 1p.m., so he ordered, paid, and had to leave...

And we ate, then went to the library where Abbey played on the computer (she asked for help to get on the computer while Eli & I went to the restroom...), Eli kinda whined the whole time {read: sleepy}.

But, did I end our day-trip out at the Library? OH NO!! :) We walked down to JoAnn Fabrics, and WOW, am I ever glad we did!! :) Look what I got out of there with!! :)

I will be doing something with this tulle...and, the hearts are just on a tablecloth underneath the tulle...it's still Valentine's Day here ;) What I do with the tulle will remain a mystery until I get my project done...no use getting your hopes up in case it turns out awful!! hehehe



This is a WHOLE little chipboard album kit that was cLeArEnCeD for 2.97!!



I know, blurry picture, but SUPER CUTE embellishments :) $0.97!!

A nice-sized sticker booklet, again, $0.97!!



And, these are my FAVORITES!! :) Clear stamps, REGULAR SIZED {meaning these aren't mini's} for $2.97 each!! I was so excited!! :)

Eli was a trooper at first, but then he started the pitiful whining that just annoys everyone, so I finally said, "OK, we're DONE." and paid & left...probably missing the sigh of relief that I'm sure followed our exit!! hehe

Little guy was asleep in his car seat before we left the parking lot...so naturally I had to swing through Sonic for a Rt. 44 Diet Vanilla Coke during Happy Hour, right?

Ahhhhh....Love me some Diet Vanilla :)

So, while I sip on my diet coke, I will leave you with a question or 2... What would you do with the goodies I stole was blessed to find? And, are the strikeouts annoying, or funny? LOL :) Don't answer that if it's annoying!! :)

Invisible Mother......

I know I don't normally post twice in a day, but this goes along with what
I've been thinking on lately.  So, I had to share!!  And, if you've read my
"Diet" blog lately, pay attention to the VERY LAST SENTENCE!! :)

*********************************************************

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the
way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and
ask to be taken to the store.

Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?'

Obviously, not.

No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor,
or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at
all.

I'm invisible. The invisible Mom . Some days I am only a pair of hands,
nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a
clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What
number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30,
please.'

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the
eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated sum a cum laude -
but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen
again. She's going; she's going; she is gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a
friend from England ..

Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on
and on about the hotel she stayed in.

I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so
well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself.

I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a
beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.'

It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe ..

I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her
inscription:

'To My Dear Friend, with admiration for the greatness of what you are
building when no one sees.'

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would
discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after
which I could pattern my work:

No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of
their names.

These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see
finished.

They made great sacrifices and expected no credit.

The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of
God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the
cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny
bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are
you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be
covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.' And the workman replied,
'Because God sees'

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place.

It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you. I see the
sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act
of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've
baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a
great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.'

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a
disease that is erasing my life.

It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the
antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.

I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As
one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see
finished, to work on something that their name will never be on.

The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could
ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to
sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend
he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4
in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a
turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That
would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him
to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his
friend, to add, 'you're going to love it there.'

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're
doing it right.

And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at
what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world
by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Great Job, MOM!
Hope this encourages you when the going gets tough as it sometimes
does..

We never know what our finished products will turn out to be because of
our perseverance.

Meet My Inner Brat...Holly.

I was musing this morning while brushing my teeth (you know you do it, too...I usually do it in the shower, but I haven't gotten that far, yet...). I was doing my Flylady Swish n' Swipe & got to thinking about my perfectionism. I have recently "met" or "acknowledged" my inner brat, Holly. (To get to know/name your inner brat, go here.) Holly is the little girl inside me who whines & talks me out of doing what I *usually* know I should do. I was thinking today that she not only affects my home's cleanliness, she affects EVERYTHING about me.

The thing is, Pam Young from "The Brat Factor" (among other things :)) is ABSOLUTELY right. I won't do it if it isn't fun. That's her motto. Once we acknowledge our inner brat, that's when the work begins. Because we have to reason with them. Sometimes out loud.

I realize that most of you who read my blog are BO (no, not body odor, Born Organized!! LOL). I know this because I've read your blogs & have even been to your house, so I know!! LOL I am not. Hence the whole Flylady thing...and making it fun!! :)

It's not about being lazy, necessarily... it's about preferring to do *ahem* crafting of some sort over emptying the dishwasher...or mop the floors...or de-cluttering my dresser drawers... Not that I would do that!! Hehehe, those would all be a good for MckMama's "Not Me! Mondays." More to follow with that, most definitely!! LOL :)

So, I'm in the process of LEARNING how to get along with my inner brat {Holly}, and to stand up to her!! LOL The whole premise behind "finding your inner brat" is laughing at ourselves & gaining perspective. In a very fun & unique way!! LOL

And, yes, there are more links in this one post than there is on my sidebar...j/k...only half :) LOL