Life is Crazy Beautiful

31 Days of Progress

2011-10-02T22:41:00.003-05:00

Just thought I'd pop back over here to the "old place" and invite you to My New Place. I'm participating with over 600 ~~crazy~~ other bloggers for 31 days themes. Join us at lifeiscrazybeautiful.com, where we're working on 31 Days of Progress. The way to tackle those tasks, goals and dreams is one step at a time...the important thing is to keep moving forward!!

Today's post includes a GIVEAWAY and tomorrow's post will have a helpful kitchen tip and mini recipe.

Come one over and re-subscribe, I've missed you!

Okay, It's Official

2011-09-12T23:18:00.003-05:00

While there a still some minor things to work on, please consider this blog MOVED!!!

New Location is lifeiscrazybeautiful.com

I can't wait for you to come visit and hang out with me there!!

For various reasons, I will NOT be using Google Friend Connect on the new site, but you can still follow by RSS, Email or by joining my BlogFrog Community!

Thanks for being a part of my first web home {and I hope helping me "warm" my second one}. Have a Beautiful day, especially if it gets a little Crazy!

An Important Note About My Move!

2011-09-10T20:18:00.003-05:00

While I still have some "housework" to do concerning previous posts, I have reached the point in moving to my new domain & host where I need to redirect my feedburner feed, etc. I hope all of you will join me at my new place :). If you are following by rss and you don't see a new post from me early next week, you may need to resubscribe to the new blog(I hope not). I am providing my new button so you can find the new digs at lifeiscrazybeautiful.com (but try to wait a few days, there's still a little construction left). If you see a post in your reader or email telling you I'm all moved in - yippee/transfer successful! For strange reasons I needed to change the name of my feedburner feed, which means you will need to re-subscribe, sorry guys...come visit me. Please? :)

IMPORTANT: IF YOU FOLLOW THROUGH GOOGLE FRIEND CONNECT, I'm afraid I might not be able to passively take you with me. I followed suggested instructions for migrating the community, but it does not appear that it is working. So, if not, please come and reconnect with me next week!!

UPDATE: Well, it looks like I may have gone and lost GFC altogether (and can't even get a new widget to work on the new site). I hope you'll come and follow by rss or email!

Thanks for your incredible patience...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Moving In…Barely Moving…Moving Over

2011-09-08T14:49:00.002-05:00

Please forgive me for being very neglectful of my little bloggy…you will see later in this post it has been {partly, at least} for VERY good reasons!

Moving In

One of the VERY good reasons lately has been of the dwarf, four-legged variety. While we were on a mini-vacation to Branson we found out that a daughter-of-a-friend-of-a-family-member {whew!} was looking for a good home for her Pembroke Welsh Corgi. So, being Corgi Fanatics, we started looking into the possibility of giving our Riley a new buddy….and 2 weeks ago he moved in. Meet Duncan!

He {excuse me for the interruption, he just approached for hugs & kisses} is just the sweetest, lovey-doviest little 3 yr. old dude!! For various reasons he just wasn’t able to get the attention he deserved in his former home {hence, his loving previous owners sought new loving owners}, so he really is milking {oops, more pets & kisses} this “attention thang” to the hilt! We think he’s been reassured & comfortable enough it’s time to dial it down a notch. We don’t mind spoiling our dogs a bit, but we don’t want REALLY SPOILED dogs, ha ha!

Introducing an “intact” {i.e. non-neutered} adult male dog into a home with another intact adult male was not without it’s challenges, but since they are both HUGE sweethearts, we knew discipline an patience would pay off.

Here are the 2 brudders together on Duncan’s 2nd day… just before we let them off-leash in the house

There was definitely a whole lot of playing and panting, and dominance assertion and panting, and playing and panting…you get the picture!

Here’s someting else they both do a lot of, too, after so much fun play.

Barely Moving

We’ve hardly had the worst of it {praying for you Texas!}, but we HAVE had our hottest summer on record – 52 {or 53? I lost count} days of 100+ temps, and many of those 105+. All I have to say is I consider it HAWT once it gets over 85…and we are soooo behind on rain. Everything’s been dry and crunchy, and did I mention hot? A lot of the ways I had planned to relax and enjoy summer went right out the window with the scorching heat. But God is good, ALL the time! He is in control and I am SO thankful for cooler temps - upper 70s to mid 80s! Next week we will still be above average for this time of year, but at this point I’ll take mid-80s to low-90s.

Moving Over

One of the main reasons I have not been blogging is that I have been using my computer time for other things…I shut down 2 old blogs and started a new one for our church women. AND…. I am moving to WordPress!! Blogger is great, and I could have done more with it…but I was having trouble realizing my vision for blogging. So, this is exciting because it will be more organized and better-functioning for how I want to minister and encourage with my blog. Rather than completely migrating, I will be saving this domain for personal/family uses and the new blog is on a new domain. Not being a web guru, it has taken some time to design and set it up…I have already imported my Blogger posts, but just need to finish some formatting & re-categorizing and tagging issues. It’s almost ready to go!! I hope to switch over on Monday and will DEFINITELY let you know when it’s time. This will make me a much better {and happier} and consistent blogger. Yay!

So, anyway, I have truly missed you…and can’t wait to invite you over to the new place!

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Easy Peasy Refrigerator Pickles – By Request

2011-07-22T11:16:00.003-05:00

Raise your hand if you fear you could polish off an entire jar of bread and butter pickles in one sitting {insert pic of me raising my hand here}. Unfortunately, if you are allergic to allium (onion & garlic family), you can’t just run to the store and buy a jar of pickles. I’ve not jumped into the art of canning (yet)…but I did find some easy sweet pickle recipes I adapted for my household. I’ve had a couple of requests to share the recipe, so here it is!

Easy Peasy Refrigerator Pickles

Ingredients:

2 cups apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup sea salt (you could use regular iodized if you like, or pickling salt)

2 cups sugar (I used white, but have heard you can use brown)

1 teaspoon mustard seed

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

Cucumbers: in this case I used about 3 English cucumbers, sliced, for 2-1 qt. jars – just use the amount that will fill your container(s)

Directions:

In a saucepan, combine first 6 ingredients. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, let cook for 5 more minutes.

Meanwhile, slice cucumbers and pack (somewhat loosely) in 2 1-qt. canning jars. Pour hot liquid over the cucumbers in the jars. Twist on the lids and refrigerate. 24 hours later, voila…bread and butter pickles! Keep refrigerated {for as long as they’ll last – which in my house is not long!}

Notes: (1) If you are not allergic to onions and garlic, you could add some sliced onion & peeled garlic cloves to your cucumbers. (2) The cucumbers will shrink – resulting in what looks like a “half” jar of pickles. As an alternative you could try refrigerating for 24 hours in a covered container and transferring to a jar/jars later. (3) These are great! However, spicy mama that I am, I feel like they could be even better with a little ‘sumpin-sumpin’. I have been researching pickling spice and working on my own recipe for that. If I decide it’s better with it, I’ll post a revised recipe later :)

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Sleeping Like a Bear

2011-07-06T21:14:00.001-05:00

Image Source: Native American Indians
Child friendly site about Native Americans and members of the First Nations.

Well, not really sleeping…more like resting and regrouping. {When my daughter was younger and felt like she got a really good, restful night’s sleep she would say “I slept like a bear!”} A couple of weeks ago I came down with a virus that most people first experience in their childhood. Needless to say I was taken by surprise by the yucky and long-lasting symptoms. I’m all better now, but with the Holiday weekend, etc. I’ve fallen a bit behind with the household & such.

So, I’m going to continue my little break and get my ducks in a row…

…and return on July 18…. with my “day-cation” pics {finally!}, a couple of yummy recipes, maybe even a project or possibly even a how-to!

Hope you are getting some resting and duck-arranging done in your neck o’ the woods!

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Celebrate Freedom

2011-07-04T16:28:00.002-05:00

Happy Independence Day!

[source]

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Is Your Husband or Father a Rich Man?

2011-06-17T12:20:00.003-05:00

I
had the privilege of screening Courageous last week. This is the newest project to come from Sherwood Pictures, who also gave us Fireproof. Those I saw it with agreed it is their best yet! Enjoy this video clip from the movie...

In today's society it is such a tremendous blessing to have godly fathers and husbands...if you have either {or both} make sure you take the time this weekend to let them know how much you treasure their love and leadership!!

Courageous opens on September 30...mark your calendars now and plan to see this film! The fathers in this film are policemen, so the material would not be suitable for very young children. I pray this movie will start a powerful movement among men...but also women and families, to be all that God has called them to be!

*I'll post lots of pics from our Mini Adventure "Daycation" on Monday*

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful Fathers' Day Weekend {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Disclaimer: Community, church and ministry leaders are often given the opportunity to pre-screen "faith-based" movies at no cost so that they can help spread the word prior to the movie's release. I was able to screen Courageous for free...all opinions are completely my own.

Mini Adventure

2011-06-11T11:14:00.001-05:00

Remember way back when {like 9 days ago} when I posted these little summer goals? My dear husband cracked me up this morning when he called it my “Summer Bucket List”. Well, the two of us are going to accomplish part of one of them today. Darling daughter is still on her summer mission trip to South Dakota {coming home tomorrow – YIPPEE!!!!}, so her parentals decided on a little rural day trip.

Don’t know if we’ll see any bison or not, but we’re going to check out the Prairie Trail Scenic Byway and see what we can discover together.

I cringe every time I hear someone whine about how boring Kansas is scenically and otherwise. It’s part of the world God created…and when He was finished He said that it was good. That meant ALL of His creation!! Even when I am craving an ocean-side nap or a cool mountain breeze I still love this state of mine. {And just in case you’ve never visited, not all of it is flat!}

I know we’ll have fun…’cause I’ll be with my very best friend ♥. We’ll take pictures {maybe even video} and hopefully I’ll have a fun share post afterward.

Hope you are making something an adventure today!

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

What I {Hope I} Did This Summer

2011-06-02T00:01:00.002-05:00

{1} Sat on my front porch – a LOT!

{2} Drank lemonade and lots of iced tea {unsweetened for my health}

{3} Read at least 3 books I already owned, but hadn’t read yet

{4} Explored new territory with my husband and daughter {maybe even in our city/county, most likely in our state}

{5} Exercised 3-5 days a week

{6} Took a walk with my man at least once a week

{7} Read through the entire Bible & prayed daily

{8} Ate more fresh produce, whole grains & lean meat poultry & fish

{9} Ate less sugar, read meat & processed food

{10} Lost 20 pounds {see #2, #5, #6, #8 and #9 above}

{11} Made a new friend

{12} Walked along the Arkansas River in Downtown Wichita {haven’t done that since college, I think}

{13} Listened to lots of uplifting music

{14} Went the whole summer without a food allergy reaction

{15} Laughed until I cried

{16} Learned something new

{17} Kept my lawn & plants alive in the hot, dry Kansas summer

{18} Loved until I thought my heart would burst

{19} Cleaned out the basement

{20} Watched God do something amazing…then shared it with others!

Of course I know there will be a lot of other things I experience these next three months, maybe something wonderful I haven’t even imagined yet, but these are some good goals to work toward I think.

What are your summer plans?

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Beautiful – A Holiday Weekend!

2011-05-27T15:17:00.001-05:00

Unfortunately no travel, no beaches or beautiful change of scenery planned for this clan…but an extended weekend is always a blessing. One of the things I will be doing is transitioning my living area decor from spring to summer…nothing huge, just subtle rearranging & repurposing of accessories and a little color transition.

I believe I will also spend some time dreaming and planning for the summer ahead. One thing I will be working on is this little internet home (one of the reasons I’ve not been posting as much). I’ve been praying about what God would have me do with my little corner of the web for quite a long time. I thought I had the answers once or twice, but now feel a peace and level of confidence about where it should be heading. Not really major changes so much as expansion, and I’m kind of excited about it!

I pray that each of you has a relaxing, fun, safe summer kick-off weekend! Will you also join me in remembering all of those who have lost loved ones, homes & business in recent natural disasters? AND OF COURSE, we must remember how this weekend’s holiday originated…

Take some time this weekend to honor, remember & thank our God for the ones who sacrificed their very lives for our security and freedom (and the families who had to say goodbye to them)

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13 ESV

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful ~~day~~ Weekend {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

No Cost Too Great

2011-05-25T11:32:00.003-05:00

May is Digital Outreach Month. In light of this, 15 bloggers have been participating in a Group Blog Project. We are reading through and blogging about this book together - @stickyJesus: how to live out your faith online.

If you are a Christian, God has called you to ministry and evangelism wherever you are…and where most of us are, at least part of the time, is online! Tami Heim and Toni Birdsong have written this great book and created an online community where they collaborate with others and equip all of us to #LiveSticky.

“We're here to infuse biblical perspective and daily inspiration into your online time. We’ll help you grow your technical know-how so you can share the sticky love of Jesus Christ with others.”

You can read my guest post here about the cost of Christ following, online or face-to-face.

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Winner…That is All

2011-05-19T09:50:00.001-05:00

Was waiting to come up with a coherent post to attach the news to, but so much going on I haven’t accomplished that yet. So, I’ll just get on with it. Random.org picked the winner for the $20 DaySpring Gift Code and it was….

Congratulations Suzanne! I’ll be sending you an email today with the code so you can pick out something fabulous from DaySpring.

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

My Girl and DaySpring Giveaway Extended!!

2011-05-14T23:26:00.001-05:00

As you likely already know, Blogger was down for a couple of days this past week. While I don’t believe I lost any comments {because of using a 3rd party commenting system}, I know that some bloggers did…SO, I am extending the entry period for my $20 DaySpring Giveaway to 11:59pm Central Time US on Monday, May 16. The winner will be announced within a day or two after that.

Hope you all are having a tremendous weekend. I spent a good portion of mine hunting down and going through 18 1/2 years of photos. My darling daughter is graduating from high school this year and I needed pics for the church slide show. Childhood truly does last but a moment…how does the time fly so? Those of you with little ones, cherish each and every moment you possibly can!

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

A Beautiful Tray and a Giveaway!

2011-05-10T00:05:00.010-05:00

But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. – Joshua 24:15b

My house is a gift from God…as is everything good and useful in my life. One of the ways I give Him thanks is to try to make it a warm, welcoming and comfortable venue, not just for visitors, but for my family as well. This doesn’t require a lot of money, or a degree in interior design. What I think makes a home inviting is to see that it reflects the personality of it’s inhabitants and holds items of significance to them. If you can see and feel that its a place they love and long to be it can’t help but rub off on on friends and family.

I recently received this gorgeous Ornate Metal Collection - Cross Serving Tray from DaySpring.

I love items that are both decorative and useful…and trays definitely fit the bill! This piece is made of substantial metal and has a warm bronze-brown hand finish. The decorative cross is a beautiful reminder of the importance of my family’s faith. It looks great in a plate stand or carefully leaning on a shelf ready for you to grab at a moments notice to proudly serve beverages, desserts or appetizers {not food-safe, use a doily, napkin or dish underneath}.

Here it is on an ottoman providing a place for the remotes and hubby’s reading glasses. There’s plenty of space left to set a drink or two {I would probably use a coaster, just to protect the finish}.

What a beautiful place this would be to collect your keys and daily mail in the entry, or to corral small items on a dresser or vanity. This would make an incredible {and affordable} wedding gift…or for any occasion at all!

All of the pieces from the Ornate Metal Collection and several other great decor items are on sale this month…click on the banner below to see all of this month’s featured products.

DaySpring always has beautiful, encouraging and inspiring products that will help you brighten someone’s day {including your own}. Shop the DaySpring Online Store to check out what they have to offer.
Thanks to my friends at friends at DaySpring, I get to...

Give away a $20 gift certificate to the DaySpring Online Store!!

This would definitely be enough to purchase the Cross Serving Tray, or most of May’s other featured products, or many other DaySpring gifts, cards & accessories. {Gift code does not apply to shipping charges and will expire July 31, 2011.}

To Enter {Up to 3 Entries}:

{1} Leave a comment. Share what your favorite May featured product is.
{2} If you are a follower, leave a comment telling me so.
{3} Share a link to this post on Twitter or Facebook, then come back and leave a comment.

~~The entry period for this giveaway will end at 11:59pm CST (Central Time US) on Saturday, May 14. Winner will be chosen at random and be announced on Monday, May 16.~~
Update Sat, May 14: Due to this week's Blogger outage {and some bloggers losing comments} I am extending the entry period for this giveaway to 11:59pm Central Time US on Monday, May 16. Winner will be announced a day or two after!!

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Disclosure: DaySpring Inc. provided me with the Cross Serving Tray at no cost in exchange for my honest review, as well as a coupon code for one of my readers. All opinions expressed are my own. This post contains affiliate links.

For Mothers…But Especially for Others

2011-05-06T18:36:00.001-05:00

I pray that what I have to share today will provide encouragement to those who need it and understanding for those who may need to encourage someone you know and love some day.
With some comic relief at the end :)

Let me start by saying that I know this weekend’s holiday is a painful or bittersweet time for many. Some of you don’t have your mothers here with you on earth anymore. Others of you are grieving the loss of a child. If either {or both} is the case, I pray that you know the peace that passes all understanding and that your Heavenly Father is there to wrap you in His loving arms of comfort.

Maybe your relationship with your mother has been strained, or even broken. I can only imagine the hurt you are feeling, but my prayer is that hearts could soon be mended and relationships restored…Nothing, you see, is impossible with God. {Luke 1:37 MSG}.

Some of you are feeling left out this weekend. Lonely. Forgotten. Unloved. I have been the woman who wanted desperately to become Mom to someone, or several someones. I have prayed the heart-wrenching prayers…only for God to answer “Wait.” “Wait some more.” then finally “Yes, but not the way you planned.”. And some get the answer they never expected… “No.” Maybe you’re a woman whom God has called to be single, or not to “legally parent”…and you’ve always been okay with that. Or maybe not so much.

I want to encourage you if you fit into this last category. I know it is hard to see, or even imagine, when you are in the midst of the frustration and disappointment but God has an amazing, beautiful and wonderful plan for your life! Even, and maybe especially, if it’s not the plan you hoped for {notice my life verse & tagline for my blog – top of right side bar}. In my case, God did decide to eventually make me a Mama. That’s part of the way He chose to heal that particular wound, but it didn’t heal immediately. In fact it couldn’t heal until I did my part.

He showed me that reluctant acceptance of the road He chose for me was not enough. In order for healing to come I had to: 1} Believe that God loves me just as much as everyone else and that He really does want to give me the desires of my heart – even if His plan means He can’t; and 2} Surrender completely and joyfully to His good, acceptable and perfect will {Romans 12:2}…no matter what! Please take note that while He healed my wound…I will always have a scar. It is my reminder to have compassion for others who must travel difficult paths. It is an altar stone laid in remembrance of a period of refining, where God revealed to me a portion of Himself. My trust and surrender were my act of worship.

" I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out-plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I'll listen. When you come looking for me, you'll find me. I'll make sure you won't be disappointed."

Jeremiah 29:11-14a MSG

He's got this sister! Believe it. Trust it. Surrender. Be comforted. God created women to “mother” – to nurture – and almost 100% of us do it on a regular basis, whether it’s our legal responsibility or not. Be a spiritual mother, a mentor, a teacher, a listener, an encourager, a comforter…you were MADE for it!

Now check out Anita Renfroe {my personal hair model – a story for another time perhaps} in her latest hilarious video…and Happy Mothers AND Others Day!!

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

DIY Artwork – Canvas and Coffee Filters

2011-04-26T09:59:00.003-05:00

E very time someone tells me I am creative I think “no, not really…I just know something good when I see it and am brave enough to try to duplicate it.” My living room is mostly neutral with pops of accent colors (mainly, turquoise/teal, green, and cranberry). But recently I decided I wanted to de-emphasize the warm reddish tones for spring and summer and feature the blue and green colors more prominently. With that in mind I needed to replace a piece of artwork for 6 months of the year. I spotted something on line I thought would be perfect – and it was on sale for $89 {reg. $150} – not bad, but not in the budget. It was simple and a bit modern with 2 large white flowers and as I looked at it White Coffee Filters popped into my head as an easy way to create the flower petals…and they would add texture! So here is what I ended up with:

{going to paint this oak buffet some day soon :) }

I started with a primed blank canvas – had a 50% off Michael’s coupon and got one that was stapled in the back for $8. {You can get them even cheaper with staples on the side, and maybe cover with ribbon or something}.

I got out a dinner plate and chose a location for my 2 flowers {this would serve as a reference point for my first layer of petals} and then painted my turquoise centers. EASY, right?

Next is the part I forgot to photograph with the large white coffee filters, so I re-created here with my smaller unbleached filters. Fold the filter in half, then quarters. Cut out the center of the filter {no need to draw the line first}, then cut the 3 folds to yield 4 pieces.

Next I did a little pre-shaping by gathering the inner curved edge and pinching with my fingers. As I went along I realized I wanted a little shaping on the outer edge, too, so I started doing a little “pinching of the outer curve here and there.

Now, for the fun and messy part! Starting with the outer most part of the flower {using my dinner plate circles as a reference} I started puttin’ down the petals. I brushed some ModPodge on the canvas, placed my shaped pieces of coffee filter down, then brushed more ModPodge over the top. I repeated around the circle {overlapping the edges}, then started moving toward the center overlapping each subsequent circle slightly over the previous one.

After the ModPodge dried I realized that my pencil lines were showing through, so I decided to paint over my flower petals with 2 coats of white acrylic paint.And that’s where the photos stopped…after allowing the last coat of paint to dry overnight the next step needed to go quickly, so I couldn’t photograph it myself and just didn’t think to ask the hubby to do it for me. SO, I brushed the java-tinted glaze I had leftover from this project {equal parts mixing glaze and paint} over the blank areas of the canvas, including the sides, wiping excess off with a dry rag* and reapplying until I got the look I wanted {*if I did it again, I might used a damp rag to mute the brush strokes even more}. Then, using the same glaze I dry-brushed over the flowers {dip the tip of the brush in the glaze, then dab excess off onto a rag or paper towel before lightly brushing on the flowers}. The FINAL step was a quick spray of non-yellowing satin clear coat. Here are some “after” shots:

Voila…a 22 x 28 inch piece of spring/summer artwork for about 10 bucks! My family and I love it {and we’re the ones who have to look at it every day}.

I’m linking up with Layla over at the Lettered Cottage…so go check out some more fun How To’s!

{She’s got a great one herself today!!}

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

How to Read the Entire Bible in 400 Seconds

2011-04-25T14:48:00.001-05:00

Have you used YouVersion.com? It is an online Bible site that is pretty great…but, their iPhone app is my absolute favorite Bible app!! You can read the Bible in so many different versions with internet access, but they also have many available for download…so I have all my favorite versions with me on my phone 24/7 – the only way to “forget” to take my Bible somewhere is to forget my phone. They even recently added audio, so I have the option to listen, read or do both simultaneously!

Based on the online Bible, YouVersion.com, the Bible App is a free mobile Bible that can be installed on almost any phone. The Bible App allows users to read the Bible, share verses with their social networks, bookmark their favorite passages, and more - all in a format that keeps up with their increasingly mobile lifestyle.

Anyway{free commercial over, haha}…May 2, 2011 marks the 400th anniversary of the publication of the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible. To celebrate the occasion, the YouVersion community is going to read the Bible together — in just 400 seconds. (For those of us who struggle with math, that's 6 minutes and 40 seconds.)

Here's how it will work:

1. Volunteer (and sign up) to read a small section from the Bible out loud.

2. On Monday, May 2, starting at 12:00 PM Noon U.S. EDT, 11 AM CDT (GMT-5), we'll each read our portions out loud, simultaneously. Think of it like a global flash mob.

3. We'll all share what we're doing with our friends on Facebook and / or Twitter.

Click Here or Graphic Above for Details

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
~Hebrews 4:12~

My assignment is 1Chronicles 23 and I’ll be reading my KJV out loud…care to join me?

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Now I “Umber”stand – Mixing Custom Paint Colors

2011-04-21T17:41:00.001-05:00

Actually, I already knew this from waaaayyy back when I considered myself more of a “crafter”…but Burnt Umber is my new best friend! I LOVE color…and I always feel happy when I see bright bold colors, but when it comes to the ones I surround myself with on a daily basis I want them a little more muted. So, while working on recent projects and not finding the perfect colors the light bulb re-lit and I remembered I could mix my own. Eureka!!

Here’s an example from my current project:

I wanted a light-to-medium teal/turquoisey color. I had a small bottle of turquoise, but it is too dark and too bright. If I just mixed white with it, it would be lighter but still too bright. Enter a little Burnt Umber…and voila! Just what I was looking for. Here’s a close up to give you a better idea of the colors.

This mixture was 1 part Burnt Umber, 3 parts Turquoise, 6 parts White

And here’s a picture of my project-in-progress…can you tell what it’s going to say?

Enjoy a Blessed Cross-to-Empty-Tomb Weekend Everyone!!

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Get Inspired and Take a Leap

2011-04-19T12:21:00.003-05:00

If this is your idea of “living dangerously” then please, do it!! Life is too short not to take a risk every now and then. During our interview as a couple before husband was called to be Associate Pastor I think I made a statement similar to this: “If it’s not at least a little scary, it’s probably not worth doing”. This drew a chuckle and a raised eyebrow or two…but I believe it!

I can’t believe the last 12 days have passed so quickly {and without posting} but I’ve been finishing up some “risky” projects. There is so much around us to inspire – especially on the internet. Our dreams, relationships and circumstances can inspire us, too…but we need to take a leap, take a chance and make that inspiration into something.

A desire for less boring, padded chairs around my black kitchen table, tight budget, and finding 4 of these pathetic, rescued-from-a-fire-damaged-house arm chairs for $50 on Craigslist (ick)…
…and lots of encouraging tutorials & inspiration from DIY bloggers all over the place inspired these sassy little numbers:
A pretty piece of artwork I saw online and some white coffee filters inspired this {How-to post later}…
This 15-year old Birthday Girl niece…
…and this awesome tutorial from a fellow blogger {man, I want a Silhouette – I traced & cut my letters by hand} inspired this…
None of these projects came out perfect, and I didn’t go into any of them 100% sure I could adequately accomplish them, but stretching yourself is exciting and makes the outcome that much more satisfying. I love how my projects came out and it really doesn’t matter if anyone else does {except my niece, and I think she loved her gift}.

Maybe it seems a little silly to apply this concept to art & decorating projects…but when I hear someone say, “Oh, I could never {insert some skill, adventure or challenge here}” I am always tempted to remind them {and sometimes do"}, “Aren’t you really saying ‘God could never’? And you KNOW that’s not true!” I marvel every time someone stretches beyond their self-perceived abilities {even my own} because that is when God’s glory is revealed…and I think that is just as true in the small things as in the big ones!!

So think about where you can stretch, take a little risk {or a big one} and watch God shine!
Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

A Movie to Inspire Faith and Courage

2011-04-07T13:39:00.001-05:00

"SOUL SURFER is the inspiring true story of teen surfer Bethany Hamilton, who lost her arm in a shark attack and courageously overcame all odds to become a champion again, inspiring millions worldwide through the love of her family, her sheer determination, and her unwavering faith in Jesus Christ. The film features an all-star cast, including AnnaSophia Robb and Helen Hunt, with Carrie Underwood in her film debut, and Dennis Quaid."

Soul Surfer opens tomorrow all across the country! I had the opportunity to screen this movie and found it inspiring, encouraging and challenging. The family's faith is central in this dramatic true story, but don't expect it to be overtly central to the movie. It is definitely there, but not the focus of the film. Christians need to remember that we cannot expect "faith-based" films to do our job for us. They can open up a dialogue with those who don't share our faith...it's our job to get the conversation going!

Enjoy the trailer and plan an outing to see this movie {dramatic events that are the basis for this movie are too intense for little ones}. I'm glad I did!

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Last Night’s Light Show

2011-04-04T11:20:00.001-05:00

Thunderstorms. It’s Kansas. We’ve got ‘em. Yesterday was kind of a crazy day for early April. I think the temps approached 90 (F), pollen counts were sky high, and the wind b-l-e-w! Conditions were pretty good for firing up some thunderstorms. We got about 10 drops of rain in our neighborhood, but we had the opportunity to later witness what got going to our east.

My little 4-year-old point-and-shoot Sony still camera doesn’t quite do it justice…but it was AWESOME! {My wannabe storm chaser daughter was frustrated she couldn’t get still shots. I’ll have to help her learn that function on her camera.} The wind was still gusting away, and the lightning display was almost nonstop.

You could sense the power in that piece of sky. My mind wandered to just how powerful God is!! This storm was just a tiny momentary morsel of all that He created…a mere glimpse into the might of His hands. To me, this is what Fearing God is all about…realizing that NOTHING is too big, too difficult for Him to control – and that NOTHING is too small to matter.

Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens,
the earth with all that is in it. ~Deuteronomy 10:14 ESV

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Make Your Own Dishwasher Detergent

2011-03-31T16:00:00.003-05:00

About a year or so ago I started researching homemade cleaning products, mostly to save money…but also to use fewer chemicals. A web search will lead you to many different posts on the subject. I finally settled on a Dishwasher Detergent recipe that works for me, so I thought I would share it…along with my newest suggestion for making it work better. {Disclaimer: This recipe contains Borax – which you shouldn’t go eating, drinking, or inhaling as a rule – but is actually a “natural” product. The ultra-purists will want to tell me why it’s bad and if you are one of them I do respect your opinion, but humbly make this choice for myself and family}.

Here’s the one I started with…which worked really well, except for one issue I’ll mention in a minute:

1 cup borax – 3/4 c. baking soda – 3 Tbs. Citric Acid – 2 1/2 Tbs. ground castile bar soap.

It worked great {we have a 13 yr. old dishwasher & use a whole home water softener}…except that it would clump in the jar {maybe from the moisture in the soap???}. We tried it without the castile soap, but it still clumped, and didn’t work quite as well for us. So I came up with a solution that we are now loving! Same ingredients, I now just keep them in separate containers – No Clumping!

The Citric Acid was the trickiest ingredient for me {but I think necessary for sparkly clean dishes}. You want to use food grade citric acid. Because I had to pay shipping anyway, I ordered 5 lbs. from Mountain Rose Herbs…and when you see how much I use per load, you’ll know why it should last us for years!! Some say they have found it in the canning section of their grocery or discount stores – but not around here.

Castile Soap – I use Dr. Bronner’s because I can get it in 2 different stores without having to leave my suburb :). I actually prefer the Citrus Orange, but my local stores don’t carry it any more so I switched to peppermint {my daughter loves that}. I first grate one bar of the soap in my food processor, then I switch to the cutting blade to grind it up finer.

I used a tag image from a digital scrapbooking kit and a cute font & made these little labels, glued them to some thin cardboard I recycled from the back of a notepad, cut them with my exacto and tied them on to the jars with some polished hemp twine and voila…there they sit above my dishwasher ready to go!

My new per-load recipe is:
1 Tbs. Borax – 2 tsp. Baking Soda – 1/2 tsp. citric acid – 1/4 tsp. soap

NOTE: I also fill the rinse agent dispenser with distilled white vinegar & check it once a week – great for clean rinsing and cutting down on spots!!

I realize a few of you will be shaking your heads now because we actually have to scoop out of 4 separate containers, but this works for us splendidly…and I’ve had no complaints from my husband or daughter that it is “extra work”.

Hope this helps someone!

Thanks for visiting...have a Beautiful day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Now This is Crazy Beautiful!!

2011-03-30T17:26:00.001-05:00

What? You don’t agree? {sorry, small lo-res picture & I don’t remember where I got it}

I have something called my “Personal Calling Statement”. It’s seven years old now…but is still holding quite true for me {it came out of a church refocusing program}. One of the things you do in the personal aspect of the program is to pray about, discover and define your core values . Here is one of my top Core Values {straight out of my calling statement}:

Creativity & Individuality

Appreciating God’s creativity in every aspect of His unique creation is an adventure! He made each of us with strengths and weaknesses which bring glory and honor to Himself.

In a world where people are trying so desperately to be just like someone else {or many someones}…or, in trying too hard to be “unique”, do & say things that are just like many others…or driving themselves to fit a model or standard which is unattainable {and, frankly, determined by someone’s subjective opinion}…I get my socks rocked off by someone who just knows who they are both as a person, and as God’s beloved & created child!!

So, yes, that canine is some kinda crazy…but also uniquely beautiful!! Hey, when my grays overtake the “other shades” I would love to have them be that beautiful color, wouldn’t you?

He has made everything beautiful in its time. ~Ecclesiastes 3:11

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Yes and Amen!

2011-03-28T23:35:00.001-05:00

Do you ever come across one of the Scriptures and think “Oh, yeah…I LOVE that verse!” as in you loved it before, then sort of forgot about it? I had that very experience a couple of days ago in coming across 2 Corinthians 1:20.

I feel like I’ve been given a pep talk, complete with a “YES!” fist pump. All of the promises of God find their “Yes” in him {Christ}. The word in the Greek is “nai” – a primary particle of strong affirmation and means yea, verily, truly, assuredly, even so [1]. It’s as if Paul is reminding us – YES, He did it!! Jesus Christ fulfilled all of the promises that God has made to us.

The second part of the verse says that is why WE utter our Amen {another affirmation of truth}, proclaiming that God’s purpose has been established. Kind of like a holy ‘True Dat!’. Matthew Henry’s commentary puts it this way…

The apostle, having mentioned the stability of the divine promises, makes a digression to illustrate this great and sweet truth, that all the promises of God are yea and amen. For, 1. They are the promises of the God of truth (v. 20), of him that cannot lie, whose truth as well as mercy endureth for ever. 2. They are made in Christ Jesus (v. 20), the Amen, the true and faithful witness; he hath purchased and ratified the covenant of promises, and is the surety of the covenant, Heb. 7:22.

We utter our Amen to God’s glory, because the One in whom we believe IS the truth that cannot lie and is eternal. He kept His promises to us through Christ Jesus who IS the Amen! ‘Tis surely a “great and sweet truth”.

Seems to me I’ve got a lot more “Amen-ing” to do. How about you? {Now you’ve had your pep talk}

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

[1] Strong's G3483

Lemon Supreme Cupcakes

2011-03-25T00:13:00.006-05:00

Cupcakes! I’ve been a little obsessed with cupcakes lately. Cooking seems to be more “my thing” than the precise process of baking, but for some reason I’ve been obsessing about baking little cute & tasty things {maybe I’ve just watched too many episodes of Cupcake Wars}. I’ve thought about cute frosted cookies, but my kitchen’s a little short on rolling & cutting space. Soooo, for my husband’s Birthday Dinner I decided to whip up a cupcake inspired by our favorite pie at Village Inn…

Yup, that’s the one…Lemon Supreme. Cream cheese layer topped with a tangy lemon filling on a shortbread crust, ahhhh. I luh-uh-uhv lemon desserts {as long as there’s enough tartness to the lemon – I’m the girl who adds extra lemon to the lemonade}. I even converted the hubby years ago, and he was pretty much an order-whatever-has-chocolate-and/or-Oreos-in-it kind of guy! So, I decided on a lemon cupcake, with a little lemon curd filling {I bought a jar} and vanilla cream cheese frosting on top. These were a definite HIT…Brad says I nailed the taste of the pie!

Lemon Supreme Cupcakes

(Printable Recipe Here)
Baking Time: 17 minutes Servings: 24-30

Ingredients:

Lemon Cupcakes
3 cups all-purpose flour
4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons lemon zest, freshly grated
1 cup milk
2 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Filling
1-10 ounce jar lemon curd {or make your own!}

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1-16 ounce box confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract*
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste*
(*or use 2 tsp of one or the other)
pinch of salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (350 if using dark pans). Line 30** cupcake pan cups with paper liners.
Sift flour, baking powder & salt together in a bowl and set aside. In another bowl (or stand mixer) beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating until fully incorporated after each one. Mix in vanilla extract and lemon zest.
Alternately add flour mixture and liquid ingredients (milk & lemon juice) to butter mixture, beating on low just until combined.
Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full. Bake for 17 minutes, or until a toothpick/cake tester comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing to racks to finish cooling.
Use a paring knife to cut 1-inch "X's" in the middle of each cupcake. Fill each with approximately 1 tablespoon of lemon curd.
To make frosting, beat all ingredients with electric mixer until creamy. Frost filled cupcakes.

**My first batch made 26 cupcakes. This will vary based on how full you fill your liners. Also, I use aluminum-free baking powder, which tends to form bubbles in any batters containing acid (like lemon), which changes the volume of your batter.

Note on filling (I'm no expert): I used a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip to fill the cupcakes. You could also use a plastic squeeze bottle with a nozzle.

Refrigerate leftovers (due to frosting). Enjoy!!

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Quick Note with Some Lovely Links

2011-03-24T15:36:00.001-05:00

Daughter returned Monday evening from a front-end-of-spring-break 4-day mission trip to Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Here’s the whole group {missionary family are the 4 on the left, my girl is the one in the front wearing the “Red” shirt}. They knocked out some serious work and got to love on the kiddos on Sunday for church. She will return with a larger group in June that will run a kid’s camp. Proud of my grown-up booger :)

Busy with lots of things lately, like making Birthday supper for this guy – Hubby turned 47 yesterday!! {Picture with my niece, Julia). Things didn’t work for a family meal yesterday…but Pioneer Woman was nice enough to share this recipe for SPICY DR. PEPPER SHREDDED PORK yesterday. That kinda food is right up his alley!! I put it in the crock pot this morning with my onion allergy alterations {no onions or chipotles in adobo, which are made with onions…added chipotle powder, cumin, ancho chile powder & fire roasted tomatoes}. Mmmm…mmm! Gonna serve it up on multigrain torillas topped with Texas coleslaw . For dessert, I’m gonna try to duplicate the flavors of our favorite Village Inn pie in a cupcake. I’ll post more on that {and cupcakes in general} later!

Extreme Cuteness Alert!!: I started subscribing to WUSLU.COM several weeks back…cuz I love those home decor discount deals. Well, they decided to offer this today. I promptly purchased today’s deal and decided to check out the ETSY SHOP OF JANEJOSS. One of those ideas that just seems so simple, but adorable…a real “Why didn’t I think of that?” moment! I am particularly in love with the black & white prints for some reason. Check them out…stinkin’ cute!

That’s ‘bout it for now…gotta get back to cookin’ for my man!!

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

When Irish Eyes are Smiling

2011-03-17T22:13:00.005-05:00

Well okay, I'm a little Irish, I just don't know how much. I did something….get this…a little CRAZY today. Can you imagine what it was? I can hardly believe it myself…I……I…………I…wore GREEN EYESHADOW!!! Ha ha. I think I might be able to honestly say it was the first time in my entire 43 years of life I have done this. I’ve been feeling like my complexion is a little, well, blech lately so I’ve been a little more inventive and non-neutral with my eye colors.
Check me out trying to get pictures of it for you. First I tried with my phone in the sunlit window – but you won’t be seeing those (showed every bag, wrinkle, pore & mustache hair, yikes!) Then I went to the old teenage standby…the bathroom mirror.

I know…oh boy…it’s “just a hint”, but I am a middle-aged lady you know! Oh, and yes {gasp} I’m wearing blue eyeliner {such a risk-taker I am}. By the way, speaking of the song “When Irish Eyes are Smiling”, I was singing it in my head and realized it’s quite the happy little song. Take a listen if you like.

	The Irish Tenors - When Irish Eyes Are Smiling

	Found at When Irish Eyes Are Smiling on KOhit.net

Music by Ernest R. Ball
Lyrics by Chauncey Olcott and George Graff, Jr.

There's a tear in your eye,
and I'm wondering why,
For it never should be there at all.
With such power in your smile,
sure a stone you'd beguile,
So there's never a teardrop should fall.
When your sweet lilting laughter's like some fairy song,
And your eyes twinkle bright as can be,
You should laugh all the while and all other times smile,
And now smile a smile for me.

Chorus:
When Irish eyes are smiling,
Sure it's like a morning spring.
In the lilt of Irish laughter,
You can hear the angels sing.
When Irish hearts are happy,
All the world seems bright and gay.
And when Irish eyes are smiling,
Sure, they steal your heart away.

For your smile is a part
of the love in your heart
And it makes even sunshine more bright
Like the linnet’s sweet song, crooning all the day long
Comes your laughter so tender and light
For the spring-time of life is the sweetest of all
There is ne’er a real care or regret
And while spring-time is ours,
throughout all of youth’s hours
Let us smile each chance that we get.

Hope you had a Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Because I {We} Don’t Take Enough Photos

2011-03-15T12:30:00.001-05:00

This is the most recent picture taken of my little family…and it will be a year old before long! Sometimes family members will try to snap a shot on the rare occasions they can get the three of us to sit or stand still long enough, but those often don’t turn out for one reason or another. My sister and niece have become quite the photography enthusiasts (I think sis took the pic above). We REALLY need to schedule a photo shoot with them – desperately!!

During a recent blog party, one new visitor to my blog told me she had to go backward through several pages of posts to find a picture of my lovely daughter. Hmmm, that would be because this is what normally happens when I try to take a picture of her…

…and here’s a picture from immediately before or after prayer time before our family Christmas meal…note the darling one’s attitude evident in her face…

{Note: Something weird happened during the editing of the above photo, nephew Jared’s face isn’t normally that gray, ha ha}

Hubby grew up in a situation where family photos pretty much stopped after a certain point in time {yes, there’s an untold story there}. So taking photos of people doesn’t come naturally to him. Even when I make him the subject, he often looks uncomfortable {or bored}. Here’s one that’s actually not too bad {or silly, or sleepy, or bored} I think I took at the same family event. On our honeymoon, most of the pictures we took were of scenery…evidence that we both hate to pose for pics.

Here’s one of the two of us at our Students’ Sweetheart Banquet at the church last month {Hatfields & McCoys Theme}. Wonder if I could get him to start carrying my weight in his face?

Since entering blogdom, questions like “Where are you going with the camera?” or “Why are you taking a picture of THAT?” are steadily becoming less frequent. These are a few shots I have taken during projects & undertakings for coming posts.

I’m doing much better at remembering to take those…NEXT I am determined to get more PEOPLE shots of normal life {providing my people cooperate} :) I hope you are doing a much better job at capturing life where you are!!

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it gets a little Crazy}!

Been There…Getting Ready to Do That

2011-03-08T23:22:00.001-06:00

The Party People

Last week my sister had a Blog Party! It was only my second one, ever. I managed to visit every blogger that linked up with her party {as of earlier today}…that’s right, I visited over 200 blogs in the last week! I decided to do that for me – for fun. I’m a people-watcher. I just think God was marvelously creative in creating US! I love learning about people’s different talents and personalities. Here’s a brief summary of the chums who linked up with Lynnette:

They were YOUNG! It was amazing how many teen & pre-teen bloggers are out there ready to share with the world, thinking deep thoughts, learning & expressing themselves.
My sister’s chums are the Dr. Pepper & Coffee drinkingest, chocolate-cheese-and-carb eatingest, wanna-be-skydivingest, snake-scarediest ladies around!! Ha ha…it was fun reading answers to the party questions. These were some of the similarities I noticed.
The girls who read Lynnette’s blog {and those who read their blogs} are largely aspiring authoresses and photographers…makes sense {and I don’t exactly fit that mold}.
People {and specifically WOMEN, young and young-at-heart} are just AWESOME…The End.

Getting Organized – Again!

Feeling like a broken record {do people still say that in this digital music age?} with this one. I dealt with so many food allergy episodes and a mystery injury/weirdness in my shoulder this winter that maaaaannnnyyy things are cluttered and awry. So, I am starting to organize:

This blog. I will never be a “niche” blogger…too many varied passions & interests. I’ve even avoided tagging my posts lately because I need to decide just how I’m going to set it up…SOOO, I believe some tabbed pages are a-coming. It will be easier to find specific topics!
My closet. Doing my best to participate in Project:Simplify at simplemom.net {see button in my sidebar}. Words cannot express the need for this right now…
My health. I’ve proceeded with taking my vitamins {pronounce vitt-a-mins or mighty-vighties around here} again, have an appointment with ortho surgeon to look at this shoulder on Thursday so we can figure out how I can start exercising again & get in shape! I’m one of those weird people that likes to exercise {if I can get enough sleep & just get to it}
My life. I think a naturally organized person living in chaos gets even more stressed out. My mind is quieter when my life is uncluttered…even if it gets busy. I think spring is a good time to get this accomplished.

What are you organizing?

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

It’s Kind of Like This

2011-03-07T22:10:00.003-06:00

Monday came along {though now it’s almost gone}. I had planned a little light-hearted post. You see, I’ve spent some time the last week visiting over 200 blogs of wonderful girls & women who have participated in a blog party…and I was going to share some reflections. I didn’t get it done last night before bed, so I was going to do it this morning. Then I woke up and my heart has felt like this.

I woke up to the news that a friend had passed away suddenly overnight. She wasn’t a close friend…yet. But my heart had yearned to know hers better. We had so far formed what could probably be described more as a “friendly acquaintance”. I met her through her 2 incredible daughters, who have been very active in our youth group. We normally sat next to or near each other in worship on Sundays…when neither one of us was kept home by nagging chronic issues. So I’m mad that I let one of those annoying chronic health issues keep me from church yesterday. She wasn’t feeling well either, but she was there. I wish I had given her one more hug, seen her brilliant smile one more time, worked harder at getting to know her better. I’m sad that our last words with each other were by text – and too long ago, rather than face to face. I’m aching that her beautiful children are missing their mother…her husband his wife, etc.

The thing is, J’s passing has left me with some regrets {and needful of & thankful for God’s mercy and grace}. I took too long to love her better. I wanted to…I intended to…I tried to, but not often or hard enough. I know that she is receiving glorious perfect love now, and has been released from the hard things of this life. But I also know there has been a tremendous lesson in this for me. I’ve let “when I have time”, “when I feel better”, “when I get this problem solved” get in the way too often. I want to be able to pray for the strength to set those things aside more often…and just LOVE!

We, though, are going to love – love and be loved. First we were loved, now we love. He loved us first.
1 John 4:19 (The Message)

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

Happy Almost Spring – I’m Blog Partying!

2011-03-01T10:04:00.011-06:00

March is coming in like a lamb around here {the lion showed up Sunday, a little early}. I really do enjoy all of the seasons - Spring & Fall are probably close to a tie for my favorite, with Winter close behind. My sister is hosting a Blog Party this week, so I’m linking up!! It’s always fun to “click” around and check out some other bloggers you might not have come across before.

Lynnette has $500 worth of fabulous prizes to give away too…woo-to-the-hoo! Here are my answers to some of the many questions she posed to get us started {I limited myself to 10}.

I guess I should start with a little background: My name is Lisa {duh}, I'm married to an Associate Pastor, mom to an 18-year old daughter {what?} and we are hopelessly enamored with our Pembroke Welsh Corgi, Riley. We live in a suburb in a little house I like to call Buttercream Cottage....and thoroughly enjoy serving the Lord, DIY projects, college sports, playing games & otherwise hanging out together while & when we can.

How would people describe your personality? (If they could only use ONE word.) Are they right?

Sarcastic? Noooooooooooo! Actually, my mama calls me her “reserved” child…and maybe I am on the outside – but if you could see the party in my brain, ha ha!

Be brave – tell us something very random and weird about yourself.

I rode an ostrich – and then I ate one {no, not the same one}! Well, I didn’t eat a whole ostrich, just a little bit, along with goat & alligator tail during a visit to Kenya. {I think I may have used this answer before, hmm.}

Do you have a strong desire to do something you’ve never done? What is it?

I think I should have learned to play the cello!

Books: Fiction, Non-Fiction, Romance, Biographies, True Stories, Self-Help, Devotional/Study? What are your favorite types of reading material?

YES! I like it all. In fact, I just realized I have started waaaaayyyy too many books and need to start finishing them off before starting any other new ones.

Music: Funk, Rock, Country, Jazz, Classical, Film Score, Blues, Classic Rock, Crooner, Alternative, Heavy Metal, Techno? What are your favorite types?

Once more, YES! Although “Alternative” always cracks me up…isn’t every style/genre an “alternative” to the other ones? Screamo Rock & Rap would be my least faves.

If you could live anywhere at all (and take all your loved ones with you), where would you go?

A place where we could have mountains with beautiful fall leaves and lakes and lots of snow in the winter, beautiful flowers & gentle breezes in the spring, and a beach that gets nice and warm, but not too hot in the summer – is there such a place? {Oh, and when it’s not snowing, it has to rain at least 1-2 days per week}. Maybe my make-believe place is a cop-out. Really, I can adapt many places, but dry depresses me and hot oppresses me, ha!

What’s something you consider yourself to be good at? (Don’t worry, it’s not bragging, it’s acknowledging a God given gift).

Cooking – I don’t make up too many of my own recipes (except out of necessity because I’m allergic to onions & garlic), but I’m pretty good at knowing something is going to taste great by just reading the ingredients!

What is one of your favorite things to catch a whiff of?

Fresh citrus!! I close my eyes and take “a moment” every time I use it in my kitchen.

If money wasn’t a factor, what stores would you shop in?

I’m tall {& curvy}, so any clothing store where things would fit me!!!! Furniture & Design Stores, Cooking Stores, The Apple Store {as I type this on my PC}, Car Dealerships & Travel Agencies :)!

What are your favorite animals?

Dogs and…giraffes {except I saw 2 male giraffes fight recently on tv, it was shockingly brutal!}

There! Now I can go link up and check out sissy’s other blogging chums…come join in if you want, let’s party!!

Update @ 11:39 AM: Now I'm going to answer an 11th question...Confession about a weakness that I have??? Perfectionism! I expect excellence from myself {and fail so often}, and so I often expect way too much from others, also. Case in point: I have edited & reposted this post at least 5 times. I am a very visual person and it was visually boring me with no pictures. So, I changed it up a bit. {I shall not touch it again! - Okay, so I lied....I found some pictures finally :)}

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

Some Randomness & The Giveaway Winner Random.org Picked!

2011-02-25T12:38:00.001-06:00

Sleep is a wonderful {and very necessary thing}…and I didn’t experience nearly enough of it the past week, so my brain has kind of been a little “everywhere”. Hence, some “randomness” is very appropriate. :)

THE GOOD NEWS – Since we are a ministry family, our weekend is Friday-Saturday…and we had a mass sleep-in this morning. Even the dog enjoyed it. What a blessing that was!
CUPCAKES – I prefer cooking to baking, but I have had the urge to bake something both yummy and cute. Making a meal tomorrow for a family whose dad/husband is recovering from heart surgery, so I’m going to make these for the first time. {BTW, daughter wasn’t impressed until I told her I’d make some for us, too.}
BLOG PARTY - My sister is hosting a blog party next week! It’s a great way to discover and learn about bloggers you maybe haven’t “met” before…and she’s rounded up some awesome prize-ness :). I need to start working on my post. Join us!!
CURRENT DIY PROJECT – I’ve found another use {okay, so maybe several} for that leftover antiquing gel from our door/art. For a little sneak peek, it also involves this… {rawwrrrr!}
HOW ABOUT SOME GRACE? – The Grace Card opens TODAY! I’ve shared about it several times {you can click on the banner in my sidebar if you haven’t checked it out yet}. You need to see this movie, but bring tissues – when I saw the screening I heard {seriously} more sniffles per capita than any other movie I have seen! PLUS, if you see it this weekend, you will also see a trailer for Courageous, which is coming in September
LAST, BUT DEFINITELY NOT LEAST – CSN $25 GIVEAWAY WINNER!!!!

The Winner is Comment # 12!

Proverbs30one said...

Neat! I'd love one of those big shoulder bags with buckles.
20/2/11 1:47 AM

Congrats! Send me your email address {use the little grungey green envelope at the top of my sidebar} and I’ll send you your code!

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

Admit It, You Can Sooooo Relate!

2011-02-17T10:25:00.002-06:00

If you can't get a good laugh out of this...I will pray for you. I quite resemble this video - way too often! :)

This is my niece and nephew {with a cameo by the youngest neph}...and the idea was my sister's. I was going to shamelessly link you to all of their blogs, but instead I will just tell you if you enjoy the video to visit The Epic Cheese for more such ~~nonsense~~ FUN!

{OH - and just in case you missed it, yesterday's post has a GIVEAWAY!}

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

CSN Stores Giveaway – Yippee, My First!

2011-02-16T00:00:00.001-06:00

Can you believe it? My little bloggy has been offered the chance to give away a $25 gift code to CSN stores…woo hoo! CSN Stores has over 200 online stores where you can find anything you need whether it be swingsets, fitness equipment, or even cute cookware!
I’ve spent more than a few ~~hours~~ minutes browsing around and thinking about what I might apply $25 toward and will share a few of them below. They really do have almost everything (including flooring, tools, and the kitchen sink!)…and yes, even swingsets!

~~So to enter, just leave a comment and tell me what you might spend your loot on!~~

~~($25 promo code will not cover international fees).~~

~~Giveaway will close at 12:00am (Central Time) on February 23. Winner will be announced on February 25, 2011.~~

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2011. GOOD LUCK!

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

A Beautiful Movie – It Opens February 25!

2011-02-14T23:42:00.001-06:00

As promised {but delayed}…I told you I would give my honest review of The Grace Card after I saw it. I was not even aware the movie was coming out until a few months ago, because a member of our church “liked” the page on Facebook {you can see an exclusive scene there}. Turns out her sister has a small part in the movie {the lady in curlers – she’s awesome!}. Well, ever since I saw a private screening I’ve been “tweeting” and “sharing” it like crazy. :)

I could go on and on about the details and tell you about the plot of the movie…but you can view the trailer and exclusive Facebook scene yourself, and I’d rather just give you my overall impressions.

I think any movie that makes you leave wanting to be a better person is SO WORTH SEEING!! This one definitely fits the bill. It makes you want to be more loving, more forgiving, a better friend, spouse, parent, & child. It’s about letting go of hate and prejudices. One of the best things about The Grace Card is that it’s just as much about learning how to receive grace as it is how to give it. It’s a reminder how powerful forgiveness is {and that we need to offer it and seek it}.

It’s also REAL. Life is sometimes hard, crazy, confusing. People are flawed…and different. We make bad choices and bad choices have consequences. Because of this, the film does have some thematic material which would not be appropriate for young children, so it does have a PG-13 rating, but you don’t have to worry about the “usual” Hollywood inappropriateness.

I’m glad I saw this movie and think you should, too! It is important that movies with the right values do well on opening weekend…so that they will run longer in the theaters. So, grab a date or a friend, your teenager or your parents and see The Grace Card the weekend of February 25 {you’ll probably want to have tissues handy}.

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

Grace is Powerful!

2011-02-07T19:51:00.000-06:00

Promised you a review...coming tomorrow...

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

Isn’t She A-door-able?

2011-01-24T17:20:00.001-06:00

Her name is Viviana, which apparently means “Lovely” in Italian. But, don’t tell my husband I actually gave this project a name…because he’ll just shake his head in disbelief {he just doesn’t speak silly-mushy-girly}.

Here’ is how she came to live on my wall {and how you might be able to have her cousin come live at your house}:

Have a big empty wall {used to have a quilt hanging there before}. If it can be precariously perched over the stairs to the basement so much the better {making hanging anything interesting and not something you want to do often}.
Search Craig’s List for old shutters {because you’re thinking architectural – texture – aged}…find absolutely nothing.
While searching for bi-fold doors {as alternative to shutters}, find solid wood exterior door. {Actual Craig’s List pics} Hmmm, interesting texture in those panels. $60 – price is right.

Convince husband to go get uber-heavy solid wood door.
Wait until December to embark on project so that it snows & gets really cold and uber-heavy door has to be moved to basement for finishing.
Decide exterior side is the one you want to show because of interesting handle. Then scold hubby for not taking pictures before he primed that exterior side {it was forest green}. Spray paint handle oil-rubbed bronze.
Prime chosen side of door and paint with white satin latex.
Antique. There are different ways to do this. The way we did it was one part Java paint, 3 parts clear mixing glaze. We mixed 12 oz. glaze with 4 oz. paint and have enough left for the next 1-24 antiquing projects. Technique: Brush on {being careful to get it in all the nooks and crannies} and wipe off…quickly {have plenty of rags handy}!

Finish with satin polyurethane. Let dry. Attach newly painted handle.
Make a paper template to decide positioning in a non-hernia-inducing way. {Before removing stencil, use stud-finder to mark and then drill holes in studs}
Hang. First build crazy basement stair-hole cover {if you pick a prime location like ours}. Buy typical L-brackets, then cut one side of each to half-length to match width of door and paint them with oil-rubbed bronze spray paint. Bolt the long side of the L-brackets to previously marked and drilled studs…as many as makes you feel secure {in our case, 5 across the bottom & 3 across the top}. Have 2 female household members hold door steady while male drives screws.

Hang metal “scrolly” thing you purchased at Hobby ‘Lovey’ for 50% off above your new artwork, step back, admire & take pictures.

Name your new friend and write a really long blog post with lots of pictures :)

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

The Power of Grace

2011-01-21T13:03:00.001-06:00

Have you heard about The Grace Card coming to theaters February 25? I had heard about and seen the trailer months ago and have been looking forward to seeing it. Imagine my dismay when I checked the website a couple of weeks ago and still did not see a theater listed in the largest city in my state! Well, just about a week ago I found out there is a private screening for leaders in Wichita on Tuesday night. (If you are a church, ministry or community leader in the Wichita area who would like to attend the screening and spread the word about the movie afterward, contact me about an invitation).

The trailer gives me goosebumps...so I sure hope it lives up to my expectations! Check out more about The Grace Card here. I'll post an honest review after I've seen it.

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

My I-Love-Winter Mantle

2011-01-19T00:01:00.007-06:00

There was a time when I would have been sad about the empty feeling in the living areas of my home after all of the colorful Christmas decorations were put away. I leave mine up through the New Year…but I’m ready for them to come down by Jan. 2. In years past I built up a moderate snowman collection, and those cute little {and big} guys cheered me until it was time to decorate for Spring.

I’m not so much about decorating for individual holidays, but love the change of seasons and like to celebrate each one as it arrives {or is supposed to arrive according to the calendar}. Well, this winter I left the snowmen cozy in their boxes {and will likely take them to Goodwill to be adopted by others who can enjoy them}. I am a color- and contrast-lover by nature, but since neutralizing our walls and living room furniture this past fall I am embracing and enjoying the neutral tones of bare trees, earth and snow. I still get to enjoy the contrast of the darker neutrals, like barren trees against snow or a silvery-gray winter sky!

I mostly shopped my house, but here are a few of the bargains I added that excite me :)

<- Kent China Silver Pine Oval Vegetable Bowl (Replacements, Ltd. $33.99 – mine is from Goodwill $1.99). Flanked by frosty silver pinecone ornaments snagged at WalMart for 50 cents each after Christmas.

-> Here’s a close up of the pattern. I like this more muted older version better than the newer versions.

<- Faux mercury glass tree topper finial – Hobby Lobby – 50 % off after Christmas

-> “Gift Wrap Garland” (it’s wired!) – 75% off – WalMart. This stuff is cool!!

I hope that your post-holiday decorating and/or decluttering has been soothing and relaxing you as much as mine has done for me!

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

You Can Help Minister Mercy {and Get Something Awesome, Too!}

2011-01-17T08:37:00.004-06:00

Today is an important day for a cause that is dear to my heart. If you don’t know about Mercy House Kenya, please click on the link in my sidebar and read about this wonderful new ministry. God had prepared my heart so that when I first learned about it I knew I had to support Mercy House!

There is a silent auction today to benefit Mercy House. I checked out the preview, and there’s some pretty wonderful stuff being offered…and bidding is as easy as leaving a comment & current email address. So, if you feel led, read about Mercy House, check out the auction and offer up a prayer for this ministry.

I’d love for you to comment if you visit and tell me what you think…and PLEASE let me know if you bid on something – that would warm my heart tremendously :)

100% of the proceeds from the Mercy Benefit Day will go to the work of The Mercy House. The Mercy House exists to provide alternative options for pregnant girls living in the streets of Kenya. The Mercy House will aid them in nutrition, housing, prenatal care, counseling, Biblical teaching and job skills for sustainable living.

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

The Peaceful Path

2011-01-15T18:46:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year {finally}! I am so excited to get back to my little cyber home on a regular basis this year {starting Monday}…but some “housekeeping” needed to be done first. Among other things I have chosen to memorize scripture with the Siesta Scripture Memory Team on the Living Proof Ministries Blog. A measly little 8000 or so of us have committed to memorizing 2 verses or passages a month in 2011. We post our new scriptures on the 1st & 15th of each month, so today was the day for Verse #2…and here’s mine. It’s not too late to get started if you want to join in!

And the effect of righteousness will be peace,
and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever.

Isaiah 32:17 ESV

Righteousness – not man’s, but Christ’s, because only He could pay the price to achieve it. BONUS: ANYONE who chooses life in Him will get to share in that inheritance!
Peace, Quietness & Trust – knowing that no matter how harsh the environment {like a cold and cloudy winter’s day}…there can be peace and quietness of soul {like the hush of gently falling snow}, trusting that the Heavenly Father is in control and has a plan specifically for you, plans to give you hope and a future…
Forever – …and that future is guaranteed FOREVER. This earthly life we know now will be like the blink of an eye compared to an eternity of basking in the Glory of the Almighty!

Hide God’s word in your heart so you can recall it in any place at any time for blessed assurance…for peace, quietness and trust forever.

Have a Beautiful Day {especially if it's Crazy}!

The Gift of Prayer

2010-12-14T16:52:00.004-06:00

It's all about perspective, isn't it? I have had quite a long absence from my little bloggie home...but I'm not going to get into the why right now, because when I look at my issues that seem so trying with a little perspective I realize how much others are going through at this Christmas time. Some are battling life-threatening illness, some have lost children, spouses, friends or parents. Some have been out of work this year (or longer). Some are fighting for our freedom far from home...and some have never celebrated Christmas...or even heard the story of the little baby born in a stable, who grew to humble manhood, and chose to die so that you and I might live forever in paradise!!

Many of us love to give gifts any time of year...let's not forget to give a gift that you can give any time any place, it costs nothing (money-wise) except a little of your heart and time. Who can you pray for today? I'm sure you can think of someone, quite likely many "someones". If you don't mind, pop on over and read what a young couple is going through as they seek to share their love and home with a precious little boy & pray for Tucker...

If I'm not back before then...the most BLESSED of Beautiful Christmases to you!!

From Not-So-Much to Beautiful…Console Cabinet Redo

2010-10-05T12:37:00.002-05:00

Yes, I know what day it is…I told you this post was coming on Monday, but both my camera batteries were deader-than-a-doornail and I couldn’t upload the after pics!
Here is the “Not-So-Much” before. I’m not going to tell you how much I paid for it, because it should have been about $25. Those kind of bargains are hard to come by around here. Add my incredible impatience {after all, I had an empty foyer with this huge mirror hanging there over nothing!} and you get I-overpaid-for-it-even-after-talking-the-junky-furniture-place-down-by-$20. But it’s okay, because as my friend Mari always says, “Do you like it/love it? Did you pay more than you could afford to pay for it? No? Then, it’s okay!” I’d like to show you the piece of furniture that was there before, but I only have 2010 pics on my computer at the moment and if I take the time to find an older picture this post will be at least another day later!! {BTW, it got a makeover too, so I’ll show you that in another post}

See how it is dwarfed by the huge metal mirror? {And notice how my husband had already attacked it with sandpaper, terrified of painting that slick surface? I assured him that people in blog land do it all the time!}
So, here’s what we {he} did: He built a new base for it to make it about 5-6 inches taller. Rather than explain the process I’ll just add a couple of pictures {hardest part was the angles, thank goodness for compound miter saw!}

Next was a coat of primer, 2 coats of black satin paint & a couple of coats of satin polyurethane. {Note: He used a too big, too coarse brush, cuz that was what he had, so neither of us are completely satisfied with the finish, but it works just fine. Now that I have been bitten by the re-purposing bug we will definitely spray prime & paint such surfaces in the future. Should have listened to Centsational Girl! I think we’ll be in the market to purchase a decent sprayer in the pretty near future – to avoid cans whenever possible}

My favorite part is the doors. Hubby asked me if I wanted him to spray paint the door pulls…NO - I love the natural patina on the old brass! There were plumb/level/hinge issues with the doors so they sat unattached in my living room for about a week…

…aren’t they beautiful? I got the notion I would love to have a collage of interesting cabinet doors with pretty hardware hanging somewhere in my home…**sigh**…
Here’s the finished product, decked out for fall {sorry, not great pictures}. Pay no attention to the green walls {that clash with the green urn}. By mid November the walls in my entry, living room, kitchen & hallway will be painted “Coir” from the Eddie Bauer Home Lakeside Cottage collection {Valspar Signature Colors}…just thinking about it relaxes me :)

See, no longer dwarfed by the mirror!

AND…the closeup {I love that it provides storage, too}!

So, tell me…would you like to have a cabinet door collage, too?

Have a Beautiful Day {even if it's Crazy}!

Optimizing October

2010-10-01T11:55:00.002-05:00

I can’t even begin to tell you…no, really, if I start the floodgates will open and I’ll never be able to stop! So, let me just say there’s a whole lot going on and God is doin’ a work!! When life is abundant and full…and there’s a whole mess of stuff going on it can be very easy to lose your handle on the present. You blink and a day, week, month or more has passed. This final quarter of the calendar year is always the craziest, so I am making a concerted, prayerful effort to make the most of every day {good idea any time of year, no?}.

op·ti·mize [op-tuh-mahyz] -mized, -miz·ing.
–verb (used with object)
1. to make as effective, *perfect, or useful as possible.
2. to make the best of.

"optimize." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 01 Oct. 2010.
<Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/optimize>.

{*dangerous word, let's not go there}

Friday is the first day of our weekend {ministry life}, so I’m going to start by getting off the computer and teaming up with hubby & daughter to finish some messy projects. The plan is to start sharing some of the results of these many projects – beginning with what is just below the picture above, which I’ll share on Monday. :)

There are 7 bloggers sharing 31 days of pretty great stuff in the month of October. So, if you are looking for some inspiration & encouragement you should check them out. Below are the 4 of them that I follow, so I’ll give them some free advertising. I’ve already read today’s posts and look forward to what they have to share:

{31 Days of Autumn Bliss} - http://theinspiredroom.net

{31 Days to More with Less} - http://beautyandbedlam.com

{31 Days of Grace} - http://www.chattingatthesky

{31 Days to a Less Messy Nest} - http://www.thenester.com/

Have a beautiful weekend!

Miracle Mercy

2010-09-16T09:53:00.001-05:00

I know I said I wasn’t going to post again this week…but I wanted to share a little goodie that has been giving joy to my heart this week. It is very appropriate after the crazy night we had last night. We had a crazy storm come through with multiple small tornado touchdowns, wind & lots of hail (pretty large in some places). Some experienced a little property damage, but I believe we were spared major damage and injury. It just made for an exciting evening & missing Bible study at church! Anyway, this little excerpt from Psalm 107 in The Message is so cool, it’s repeated 3 times…

So thank GOD for his marvelous love,

for his miracle mercy to the children he loves,

…and I have to share the last verse with you…

If you are really wise, you’ll think this over --

it’s time you appreciated GOD’S deep love.

Have a beautiful weekend!

The Muddlement of My Mind

2010-09-14T11:11:00.001-05:00

One definition of muddle: verb -- to behave, proceed, or think in a confused or aimless fashion or with an air of improvisation.

Here’s the one I think I like better: verb -- Ceramics . to smooth (clay) by rubbing it on glass.

Summer seemed a bit crazy, but then September comes along and it’s like someone pressed the ZOOM button! I have one of those brains that likes to run in overdrive most of the time anyway. Even when my body is at rest, my mind prefers to multitask, dream, plan, organize, problem-solve. I don’t think I’ll every be able to re-program my brain (besides, God made it that way, He must have a purpose for it!) but I am working on how my attitude & body react to my hyperactive “noodle”. So here’s a few of the different directions it’s been headed lately…

A wonderful friend happened to mention she had some nice neutral furniture she needed to sell…which led to jumping into a redecorating project I have been longing for, but didn’t think would happen now! I’ll update on that (with pics of course) when it’s complete, and maybe a project or two in the interim.
I am leading a conference this weekend (it’s been 2 years since I’ve done that). My topic is based on the belief many people hold that people don’t really change. My argument is that the only one who doesn’t change is God (Malachi 3:6)…but because of our free will, our attitudes are always changing - for better or worse. I had originally planned a different topic, but just felt Spirit-led to this one. The crazy thing is I have spent many, many hours praying, reading, researching, learning and very few actually getting anything down on paper…and I haven’t been freaking out!! Hmmm…maybe His timing is not my timing (novel concept)? Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine in 2 days when I leave town with my conference in hand :)
What is your favorite mirror? None of the ones hanging on my walls, or in my purse, or on my car windshield have been very kind to me lately. But that’s okay, I’ve discovered that this one is my favorite…

This one tells me that I am marvelously made! It reminds me that God knows me inside and out and that He sculpted me from nothing into SOMETHING!! (Psalm 139:14-15 The Message)

My favorite mirror even tells me that I am God’s masterpiece…and I can do good things He planned for me long ago!!! (Ephesians 2:10 NLT)

Which mirror are you believing and listening to??

Have you ever heard that “no one can offend you without your permission”? Well, here’s a new one for you…I was tempted recently to let someone disappoint me. First of all, people disappoint…that’s a given (Romans 3:23). Secondly, I realized my opinion, or how I felt about the situation, really didn’t matter at all and I just needed to let it go! Just 2 days ago ministry colleague Ken Lupton tweeted this…

This, of course, only scratches the surface…but it has been actually a peaceful crazy time and I choose to think that it has been a time of “smoothing” my feet of clay.

Probably won’t be another post until next week…so Have a Beautiful Week (even if it’s Crazy)!

When We All Get Together

2010-09-08T23:55:00.001-05:00

My sisters often say our family reminds them of My Big Fat Greek Wedding…we’re loud, we’re a little crazy, and we love each other a lot! We recently got together to celebrate our family’s August birthdays. My nephew Jonas turned 7, Mom is 60 and Will is now 15! As I was watching the following video footage I was re-writing a hymn in my head with lyrics to fit the situation {because that’s kind of how I roll}…

…and here’s how my song went {to the tune of When We All Get to Heaven}…

When we all get together

What a house full of noisy that will be

When we sing Happy Birthday

We’ll sing and shout a lil’ off key!

Needless to say we had a wild and crazy time, which ended with a couple of rounds of the game 4 on the Couch. I hadn’t played in years…and BTW the Women won :)

My fabulous sister, Lynnette, made YUMMY homemade pizza {with the help of my equally fabulous niece Abigail}. She only has one oven ya know, so she could hardly keep ‘em coming fast enough for our hungry bunch.

What you see next to Assistant Chef Abigail would be a “bucket o’ cheese”.

Some of us like to “dress up” for a party. These are my nieces Adelynn & Julia.

Even yours truly can be a big ol’ goofball {and brave enough to show you}

So, if you don’t have a big, noisy, crazy family…you should go find one and hang out with them sometime…’cuz it’s pretty wonderful.

Have a beautiful day!

Looking for Fall

2010-09-04T20:00:00.014-05:00

Football has been on the tv today and the weather's been nicer. Don't know that I'm ready to get out the pumpkins, but we have planted some mums in the containers out front and changed the bucket on the front door.

I have starting taking a look at my "stash" to see what I want to use and what needs to be retired. So far one wreath has been stripped of it's re-usables and thrown out. Thinking a few more items may join it - the scarecrows were cute, but as dear hubby said when we got rid of the too-cutesy wreath, "It's time to look like grownups". Their smiling faces can find a new family at the Goodwill :)

I'm getting so excited for the cooler days and warmer colors!! (I have toyed with the idea of painting that styrofoam pumpkin above with oil-rubbed bronze spray paint - can't decide, what do you think?)

Oh, and tomorrow after church I'm going to look at a friend's neutral sofa, chair and ottoman...cuz they might want to come and live at my house. (Don't tell my too country plaid loveseat & striped settee). What are you doing to prepare for Fall???

Have a beautiful holiday weekend - and a beautiful Fall!

The New Season of Life is Crazy Beautiful

2010-09-01T00:01:00.005-05:00

Betcha thought I had quit blogging. No...it's just that the month-long break I had planned to take became 4 months! I won't give you a long and boring recap of "What I Did Over the Summer Break", but the synopsis is: A few awesome things, a lot of annoying stuff (like 1 ~~a few~~ about 20 too many food allergy reactions), and not nearly enough fun and relaxation. I plan to make up for that last part this Fall :)

One awesome thing - Youth Mission Trip to Manitoba in early July. Here's a post-thunderstorm picture I took...

I know, right? I often wonder why we don't see fashion and decorating influenced by "sunset colors" more often, but I guess we could never translate it as well as the Creator!

Another different-but-awesome thing is that the hubster's title has changed. He is still Associate Pastor, but his ministry focus has changed from "Youth & Christian Education" to "Discipling & Family Relations". The students had a fun little "Not Going Away Party" for him and "prayed him out" as they traditionally do with the graduated seniors their last year at camp. It's a little bittersweet, as we'll miss working directly with students...but we are both excited about God calling us in a different direction in ministry and all of the opportunities and challenges that await.

Speaking of changes, what do you think of the blog's "new do"? I really liked the clean look previously, but just needed a little more spunk and color for awhile. I've still got a little work to do, but I'm enjoying it so far.

It's good to be back...I'll not stay away so long again. Have a beautiful day!

Oh Yeah, These Are Good! - Cookie Recipe

2010-05-04T22:29:00.003-05:00

The last time I wanted to make Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies, I was lazy and didn't want to look up a recipe. So I thought I would just take my usual Chocolate Chip recipe and substitute oatmeal for some of the flour, and peanut butter for some of the butter. Well, they were okay...but they were dense, crumbly little boogers. When my daughter wanted me to make cookies today I suggested we try again (besides, adding oatmeal makes it health food, right? ha ha). This time I looked up some recipes and adapted them into this...

"Better This Time" Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 1/2 c. old-fashioned rolled oats
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 c. granulated sugar
1 c. firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 T. vanilla extract
3/4 c. peanut butter (I used natural - just peanuts & salt)
2 large eggs
3 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325°F.

Pulse 1 cup of the oats in a food processor (or blender) until as fine as you want (I like about the size of wheat germ). In a bowl stir together ground oats, remaining 1/2 cup whole oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt - set aside.

In another large bowl with an electric mixer beat together butter and sugars until light and fluffy; beat in vanilla and peanut butter. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition; gradually beat in flour mixture. Add chocolate chips and stir just until combined. (At this point you can chill the dough, but I didn't at first, just chilled it between oven batches).

I used a large scoop (about 3 Tbs.) to make the cookies (6 to a sheet). Flatten balls slightly with moistened fingers or bottom of glass.

Bake cookies for 15 minutes, or until just barely golden. Cool cookies on baking sheet 5 minutes; transfer to racks to cool completely.

This made 30 large (3-3 1/2-inch diameter) cookies.

Have a beautiful cookie (and a beautiful day)!

Cheezy, Imperfect, Fruity, Silly & Random

2010-04-29T22:48:00.003-05:00

I don't know what it's been like in "yer neck o' the woods" but it has been SO windy here lately!! It's blowing stuff off of things, and debris onto junk, and giving people with allergies major fits. We're all ready for some calm around here! Here's some random stuff - like it's been blown every-which-way...by the wind.

True story - while reading the blogs I follow about 2 weeks ago 4 separate and completely unrelated bloggers mentioned a penchant for Cheez-Its. Weird.

This is what happens when someone in my family brings a crazy hat to the party.

Which must explain why I have to have this cute sign I saw when Layla at The Lettered Cottage mentioned one of her sponsors.

I ♥ ♥ ♥ fresh pineapple!!!

I recently bought one and can't believe I haven't cut into it yet. Seriously, I've been known to consume so much fresh pineapple I give myself canker sores. (P.S. I've done the same with See's Candies Key Lime Truffles...oh my word, gotta get online and order some of those)

Oh, and speaking of ridiculous, I am quite fond of sniglets and purposely or accidentally made-up words. Tigger is my favorite Pooh character, so I actually use "recoginize" and "rememberize". I've also been known to let "exacatically" fly on occasion (Alice in Wonderland). My darling daughter use to like to visit the "Buffalup" at the zoo, and when we'd smell that smell out driving, she'd say "Ewww a Stunk!" We also like to add suffixes like -ify and -age to the ends of words, just for fun...like "Were you scarified?" or "Hey, stop the whinage". You should try it some time - but I warn you, its addictive!

Ah, but then there are the ones that happen accidentally (sometimes due to advancing years). Here's the one my dear husband let slip today that had Bailey and I almost snorting our lunches back up:

"pronounciating"

Well, this silly girl's going to head for bed. Have a beautiful day!

The post I started 48 hours ago!

2010-04-28T21:51:00.004-05:00

Psalms on Saturdays remind me of...

easy, breezy pre-teen weekends. colorado. bedroom on the upper floor. windows open, curtains fluttering...

I used to love to just hang out in my room, which I remember as clean (and during this particular period it probably was), listening to music - quite possibly with my headphones -

maybe reading Tiger Beat or National Geographic's World magazine. I'm not sure which records I was listening to, maybe a fuzzy-mulleted group from Scotland called the Bay City Rollers (S-A T-U-R D-A-Y night!).

I was in no hurry. I didn't have a cell phone or day planner. I didn't have any pressing responsibilities, or real worries. I could relax, look at the sunshine, feel the breeze, and enjoy just being...and isn't it funny how music helps us do that?

Three weeks into 2010 I decided to read through the Bible in a year again, only this time I chose to do it topically. Each day of the week you read from a different type of book. I started on a Thursday, so this meant that I would start reading from the Psalms on Saturdays.

I remember thinking, 'Oh, that will be good. The Psalms are easy to read - it won't take long to read 2 or 3 chapters on a Saturday morning, and that's the day that doesn't have a consistent routine (as if any day of my crazy life does)...so otherwise it might be easy to fall behind that day.'

What could be more appropriate for my Saturdays than the "music" of the Bible? The "Psalter" is for the most part a book of prayer and praise, and it's core is the conviction that Yahweh (the LORD) is the center of life, truth, hope, history & all of creation! It is a place that many, like me, turn time and time again to know that God has it all under control, to gain comfort & encouragement.

no hurry. no worries. relax. feel the breeze. enjoy just being

Maybe even after I've finished my current reading plan I'll always read the Psalms on Saturday.

Have a beautiful day!

Post-Migraine-I-Can't-Remember-What-I-Was-Going-to-Post What If? Wednesday!!

2010-04-21T16:03:00.004-05:00

Sad, but pretty true! I had all kinds of things I was going to post about today...and I have (at least temporarily) forgotten most of them. Oh well, I'm sure some of you wouldn't mind a shorter post any way, haha.

WHAT IF my Beautiful and COMPLETELY CRAZY sister decided to feature my little bloggy on her blog and encourage all her chums to stop by? Well, she DID and quite a few of them/you did and I have some great new followers! I have already visited many of your blogs (if you have them) and follow some, but am going to spend some time in the next week making sure I get everybody visited - we little bloggers can do that :)

WHAT IF Crystal Bowersox were not just FOAIA? (Full Of American Idol Awesomeness)??? Here is her performance from last night. Even though she seems tired to me and wasn't perfect technically...it's still many kinds of great. Lee is my other favorite - and there's just something deep down inside me that roots for Casey, but doesn't think he should win - weird.

WHAT IF I can get through this post without Internet Explorer encountering another error and needing to shut down? Sheesh!

WHAT IF coffee and chocolate were discovered to be the new miracle cure for all things allergy or migraine???

WHAT IF there were a new-ish nail polish that would be like all the coats in a professional manicure in one bottle??

Meet Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure! I either have to paint my nails or wear them completely cut off because I wash my hands alot throughout a day of just taking care of a household.

These are my actual nails in my Easter Week color of "I Pink I Can". I used to do the whole Base Coat, 2 coats of Color, Top Coat thing every Saturday night and it would take me 30-45 minutes with another 90 minutes or so to make sure it dried completely. This truly does all that in 2-3 coats from one bottle! I've cut my weekly manicure time in half.

I have several colors now, including the "Right Said Red" you see in the bottle, which is currently on my toes. It contains a nail strengthener, too, and my nails have really grown!! (In fact, I now have to file them so they don't get too long) My manicure lasts all week, too.

Girls just have to share the good Girl Stuff *wink*

Wow, how deep and meaningful this has been! (Shaking my head at myself) I think I might be able to post this before I have another computer glitch, so...
Have a beautiful day!

Well, it's because I've been doing this...

2010-04-20T12:52:00.006-05:00

I've been pretty quiet lately. It's been for many reasons (some of which I'll share below), but I think one of the main reasons is that I've been having way too much fun being inspired by others to spend any time sharing my little somethings that might inspire you! So here's a little random wrap-up of what's been going on:

♦ We backed up the computer over the weekend - just in case. This old dinosaur of a desktop is gonna go some day, and the way it's been acting lately it could be sooner rather than later. I am very fond of my technology and when it does happen I just hope and pray we'll be able to find some way to replace it. :(

♦ Remember this?

The custom sign I designed at DaySpring to enter The Nester's giveaway...and then I won!

Well I changed the design a little bit and it arrived Saturday!! It was packaged very nicely and wrapped in a pretty brown grosgrain ribbon with a congratulatory note inside.

Here it is in real life (sorry for the poor pics, I took them at night). Notice the memory included on the back so I will remember how I came to possess this little lovely :) BTW, the beautiful canvas below my new sign is also from DaySpring and was a Christmas gift from my mama.

♦ My baby got her driver's license on Friday!

Okay, so she's not a baby any more (she'll be 18 in November). She was in no huge hurry to learn how to drive and get her license...and her dear-old-dad and I had nooooo problem with that. She's not too fond of the pic, so I told her I'd keep it on the small side.

♦ I've been trying to take the time to enjoy this beautiful Spring! I have especially loved this view out my kitchen window (dandelions and all). You can't see the tippy-top of a pretty yellow forsythia right behind the valance tassel.

♦ I made this yummy Lemon Blueberry Dump Cake. I got the recipe from Sno White at Finding Joy in My Kitchen. It was made by her hubby, Frog Prince (don't ya just love the nicknames?) I recently discovered this blog -- she has tons of yummy recipes to share! Oh, and this week she's sharing an Ice Cream Maker Giveaway!

♦ Chances are you know someone who has experienced infertility and/or adoption...or may have yourself. If not, I'm sure some day you will. It is so difficult to express the many varying feelings one goes through. Well, Amy at Our Journey Together shared a poem recently that illustrates a tiny piece of it beautifully! This is a quick MUST READ!

♦ God is incredibly good! I've been taking some extra time to read more of His word, to learn more about how I can be a better Christ Follower, and doing some research & reading so I can encourage others to do the same. He's got some changes in store in the coming months in our ministry and I wait anxiously to see where He challenges us to go and who He challenges us to be!

If you've made it this far, thanks for following the randomness (and exclamation ! points). Have a beautiful day!

A Word Can Paint 1000 Pictures...

2010-04-13T00:01:00.007-05:00

[UPDATE Wed. April 14: I'm going to hold off on the What If? Wednesday post I had planned for today because (1) My sister featured LICB on her blog today and her BEAUTIFUL chums have been leaving comments (2) Check out today's Bible Verse - could it be more perfect? ---->]

Are you like me...do you love the written word? I love to read! For me, the words I read paint vivid pictures in my imagination. I love having inspirational words, or the truth of scripture sprinkled throughout my home and life as encouragement, comfort, or to spark an idea.

The Nester is hosting a DaySpring Book Crop giveaway. Hop on over and enter to win your favorite...here's one I designed with one of my favorite quotes on the DaySpring site:
[Woo hoo - I won the $50 gift cerificate!]

Here are a few of the words I have currently hanging out around my home to inspire me:

And here is my favorite place to go every day where God paints beautiful pictures for me of real events that happened long ago, pictures of His incredible love for me and presence in my life today, and wonderful pictures of hope for an eternal future with Him!:

Bonus: Read my friend Carissa's blog and discovered she is hosting a word-y giveaway.

Check it out!!

Have a beautiful day!

Back from a week off - What If? Wednesday

2010-03-31T11:58:00.006-05:00

Wasn't planning on taking an entire week off from posting...but (A) Mr. Migraine went away for a day, then came back again...and (B-Z) I started waaaaayyyyy too many projects a couple of weeks ago and I'm just now getting them finished!

WHAT IF I decided to paint all of the "hard" furniture in my house black or white? I ask this question ALOT! (we have done a couple of pieces - and, no, these are not mine)

WHAT IF my puppy-dog LOVED our new curtains in the living room that can open so he can see what's going on out front? He does! (look at that cute little fluffy-butt)

WHAT IF I had a Rachael Ray Easy Button? Any time I didn't feel like cooking I could press it and she would show up (with groceries of course) and whip us up something in 30 minutes - Yum-O! She would have to learn to cook without onions (I'm allergic), though, which would be a HUGE adjustment for her.

WHAT IF I could have all of the fabric-lined baskets I wanted, without going broke? Pretty-and-useful...my favorite combo!

WHAT IF my sweet little mama got a new car? She did! Look how cute she is (she deserves it)...

WHAT IF someone loves me so much that he DIED just for me - to pay for all of the selfish, prideful, thoughtless, reckless, hurtful things I have ever done (or, unfortunately, will do)? The GREAT NEWS is - Christ DID and then He rose 3 days later...and that means I get to live with Him forever!! I hope and pray you appreciate the true meaning of this Holiest of weeks...and that you CELEBRATE it all year long!

Have a beautiful day (and if you don't come back before then, a Beautiful, Blessed Easter)!

Cheesy Italian Goodness & What Happened to What If? Wednesday?

2010-03-24T13:33:00.001-05:00

I had read the weather forecast and knew a barometric pressure change was coming, so Mr. Migraine really didn't need to come visit me in the middle of the night to fill me in...but he did. So, no What If? Wednesday today, but I thought I would share a yummy recipe before I head back to my dark bedroom. (I'll post a Revolutions update tomorrow or Friday).

Sorry, I didn't take a picture last night before we devoured half of it for Brad's birthday dinner. Yes, this is a potentially decadent & fattening dish - but you can use the lowest-fat versions of the ingredients you like to cut down on the fat grams & calories (I used low-fat cheeses, light sour cream & skim milk).

3-Cheese Italian Pasta

8 ounces pasta
     (we used elbow macaroni, cuz that's what we had)
12 ounces ricotta cheese
8 ounces sour cream
2 1/2 - 3 cups mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
     (I recommend not from a can)
1 Tbs. Italian seasoning
     (just use your favorite - ours is store brand that has oregano,
      marjoram, thyme, rosemary & sage)
1/2 cup of milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta in boiling water until al dente (don't forget to salt your water - we actually salt & pepper it - this gives your pasta better flavor!).

While pasta is cooking...in a 13 x 9 inch baking dish, stir together the ricotta cheese, sour cream, 2 cups mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning. Drain your pasta and stir it into your cheese mixture.  Stir in 1/2 cup of milk. Even out the mixture and top with 1/2 to 1 cup additional mozzarella cheese. Bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes, or until all of the cheese is melted and bubbly! Serves 6 - 8 (depending on whether you eat it as a main dish or side dish).

Next time I make this I may add some veggies. I think red bell peppers, mushrooms, carrots & zucchini might be good!

Enjoy & have a beautiful day!

F-F-F-Friday!

2010-03-19T13:37:00.001-05:00

Flava

A new Spangles (it's a Kansas thing) restaurant opened here, so hubby went and picked up a 4-pack of Yoder cinnamon rolls for breakfast.

Four Dollars

That's how much I paid for the cute bird plate, and also what I paid for the pineapple (love) finial. The finial was originally $40 and gold, but I love me the Hobby Lobby clearance aisle & white matte spray paint!

Faux (not usually a Fave)

I don't love silk flowers & "faux"liage, but I thought these faux dogwood branches might look a little better with some real sticks thrown in.

Free!

I've had this little guy for years (in fact, until last night he had been sitting on my kitchen windowsill for several years - looking out, of course) but he used to be beige resin. He got a Spring makeover with the same matte white spray paint!

"Feathered" Friends

I found these 2 little darlin's at different stores. One is iron and the other is ceramic...and I think they were destined to hang out together, don't you?

Flecks

(I like "speckled" better, but it doesn't start with F) Aren't these just so cute and Spring-y? Hubby spotted them at Pier 1 and I just had to get them.

Fun

Darling Daughter and I just finished a game of dominoes. She is texting her cousin Abigail, who said we are the Game-Playingist people she knows...to which we replied she and her family are the Movie-Watchingist. (And if you look at the background of this pic it leads me to the last F)

Flames!!

I think that would be the most Fitting end to these curtains (which were oh-so-cute and clever when I bought them for our new house in 1997) How very country - and notice how "designerly" I was alternating the big hydrangea floral and the buffalo-check panels?? They are not long for this world...

It has been a fun and productive Spring Break week! Brad is outside building new wood shelves for my baker's rack (the wire ones have been giving me fits for a long time), which he will paint black to coordinate with our kitchen table. And, I can't wait to see how all my Spring organizing/decorating projects come out.

Have a beautiful weekend! (We have SNOW in our forecast!)

It's Spring Break! - What If? Wednesday

2010-03-17T13:03:00.003-05:00

Even though it doesn't quite look it outside yet, it IS Spring Break 'round these parts. Hubby is home for a week of stay-cation...and we have lots to do around here, plus we're having some fun, too. But, let's get to...

This week's entry's gonna have a lot of images, but I guess that's just the way I'm feeling it this week :)

WHAT IF a few high school students decide to start Spring Break 2010 with a get-together at the home of a couple of youth leaders? and...

WHAT IF that get-together turns into an impromptu sleepover? and...

WHAT IF those students (and leaders) have enough cash to purchase some toilet paper and plastic wrap?

I think they did an awesome job with the youth pastor's vehicle, don't you?

WHAT IF we could park our cars in our 2 car garage? Oh wait, as of this morning - thanks to a visit from the garage door repairman, we can! (we get around to fixing things after we've suffered for a few months, it builds character)

WHAT IF Didi and Casey (from American Idol) got married and had babies? I know, where does THAT come from? I just have thoughts sometimes :)

WHAT IF you were a love letter? You ARE...more in a later post (2 Corinthians 3:3 ESV)

And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the Living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

WHAT IF I could settle my idea-filled brain long enough to get some Spring cleaning, reorganizing & decorating done??? I am getting it done, slowly-but-surely, and hope to post more next week with an update on my revolutions...here are some things that have inspired me lately (click on the images to be taken to the sites where I got some inspiration)

WHAT IF the new show hubby & I have both become completely addicted to, but which hasn't been on since before Thanksgiving, was going to come back on tomorrow night? It is!!!...

FLASH FORWARD!!!

WHAT IF I just give you a break and stop right here?

Have a beautiful day!

A Great Night - Glimpses of Home

2010-03-12T06:48:00.005-06:00

Emily at Chatting at the Sky is hosting a new meme for a few weeks called Glimpses of Home. It's about capturing glimpses of the place we "do life". I decided to start with this picture I took on Christmas Eve. (It's supposed to be a "detail", but I came across this photo in the last week and wanted to share the homey memory).

The scene: We've had an early Christmas Dinner (which I enjoyed working on a good part of the day) --- we've been to our Candlelight Christmas Eve Service, which I love, to celebrate the Savior's birth (ours is at 6pm) --- we've come home, gotten "comfy" and had pumpkin pie with real whipped cream and coffee --- the Christmas tree, fireplace & candles are all aglow --- we've popped in our tradional Christmas Eve movie (if you can't read the television it says "You Are Now in Bedford Falls" - It's a Wonderful Life - l♥ve Jimmie Stewart and George & Mary Bailey!)

Have a beautiful weekend!

A Different What If? and a Meditation

2010-03-10T11:16:00.006-06:00

I am suffering from a terrible case of Glue Ear (which I have decided stands for Good Luck Unplugging (it) Ever!) so my creative juices have just not been themselves this week. So, What If I take a little detour this Wednesday to share a tiny bit about me & my peeps? (Especially since I have a couple of new readers to which I am not related, ha ha.)

First thing you should know is I am NOT photogenic...

Sometimes I think the photos that look the most "like me" are the goofy ones like this one my niece took at Thanksgiving

...so, I don't know how many pictures I'll post that have me in them.

Second, apparently my husband, daughter and I never stay still in the same place long enough for anyone to take pictures of us together (or if they do, either they don't turn out well or the family photogs don't share them with us, haha). So, here are pictures of us the same day, at the same cousin's wedding that hubby officiated...but just not taken together. Hubby (Brad) & Me...and Beautiful Bailey

And Third, Here's the one who is really in charge of our house. His name is Riley. He is a Pembroke Welsh Corgi (aka Clown Dog) and he lets us live with him and spoil him...

Lastly, here is a scripture and thought I have been meditating on today. I've been thinking maybe we love God with our hearts and souls, but forget to guard and love Him with our minds sometimes. What do you think?

Matthew 22:36-39 (New International Version)

36"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'

Praying for Ivey and her family today, will you join me?
Have a beautiful day!

It's Mid-March - How are you doing on your Revolutions?

2010-03-08T05:41:00.008-06:00

No, that is not a typo, I meant revolutions. The beginning of a new year, whether it's a calendar year, school year or fiscal year, represents a clean slate. Therefore, its natural for us to want to set new goals, to dream about what the future might hold for us. I don't think New Year's resolutions are necessarily a bad thing, but the problem is that resolutions are all about intent. We all know which road is paved with "good intentions", right? Sometimes you just have to be about doing the thing....

...so, I'm staging a few revolutions in my life and it begins today! I've had kind of a rough fall and winter (frankly, I've been in a bit of a funk for about the last year). Too many little illnesses & health problems, putting on too much weight, financial struggles - lots of small things can distract us, cloud our focus, dilute our effectiveness. Well, this girl has had enough! It's time to detox, declutter, define & design. Here are a few of the revolutions I'm starting today:

Health Revolution - That's right, I said "detox". Too much junk, too many Girl Scout Cookies, too many germs and my annoying food allergy have gotten the better of me. Today I'm starting a few days of a detox diet which I hope will leave me feeling less swollen, more energized and ready to get back to regular exercise and a healthier weight & immune system. I l♥ve to cook and need to get back to enjoying it, which will also benefit my family.
Closet Revolution - I actually clean out my closet at least a couple of times a year...but I've been putting it off lately because this time it's gonna be BRUTAL! One of the things I really need to do is to purge the polyester. For some reason my body is very prone to static cling, even when I keep a good humidity in my room/closet. Synthetic fabrics that "energize" easily completely drive me bonkers. I know they are less expensive and launder easier, etc. but I'm just going to have to sacrifice quantity for quality.
Creative Revolution - I love to be creative in decorating my home and creating a warm & cozy environment for my family. Whether its repurposing objects, creating vignettes & tablescapes, or celebrating the seasons indoors through decorating (I haven't done a thing since Christmas) - these activities are a creative outlet for me that I have severely neglected in the last year. For me it is both fulfilling and relaxing. I'll post some pictures when I do something brilliant, ha ha.

There are a few more, but you don't need all the details. I'd love to hear about other Revolutions going on out there, too, so feel free to comment & share!

P.S. My sister Lynnette is starting a Simplifying project with her blog chums today...one of my revolutions will fit right in. Go on over & read her post & join in if you have some simplifying to do!

Have a beautiful day!

Late for the Party (I mean Blog Parade)

2010-03-05T16:57:00.003-06:00

My sweet & fun niece, Abigail, is hosting a blog party this week...and I'm just now participating. There's still time to check out all the blogs, though, as it doesn't end until Monday! So I'm still in Blogging 001 (you know, the remedial class), ha ha. My answers to her interview questions are below (hard for me, because I don't like to play favorites)

1. What's your favorite time of the day, and why?
Honestly, don't think I really have one. I can be a bit of a night owl, but it's really not by choice...I'm sometimes very productive after 11pm. I do love when I am up early to see a sunrise, feel cool crisp air, hear the world waking up. I also love any time I can just relax with my family - doesn't happen often enough!

2. If health wasn't an issue, what food could you live off of?
I love SOOOO many different foods...but, if health were not an issue I would eat any of the numerous savory, spicy wonderful things I read on restaurant menus, but cannot eat because I am allergic to onions.

3. If you could have one wish granted (besides wishing for more wishes), what would it be?
To have all the bills paid - for good!

4. What's one thing that you get teased about a lot?
I've served on a leadership team where I've traveled and roomed alot with other women and I get teased about being the "Beauty Queen"...because I have lots of hair and like to wear makeup, so it takes me the longest to get ready.

5. If you could choose one movie, book, or TV show to spend your life in, which would you pick? What type of character would you be?
For some reason I have always identified with Elizabeth Bennett...so I'll have to go with Pride and Prejudice

6. If you could have one talent that you don't already have, what would it be?
That's easy - I'd be the incredible singer that I am in my imagination :)

7.If money were no object, where would you go on vacation?
Italy - probably specifically Tuscany - I could go with my mom, haha. Beautiful scenery, friendly people & ancient architecture, yeah take me now!!!!

8. If you were an awesome singer, which genre would you sing?
I would sing praises to my God & King, and I'd probably mix up the styles, jazz, country, rock...

9. If you could have a $10,000 shopping spree to one store, what would it be?
Right now? Appliance store (and it might not be enough). My house is 13 years old, and so are all my appliances (except my washer & dryer, which have held on for 17 years so far)

10. If you could live in any point in time, when would it be?
I'm going to have to go with now. I can choose to wear denim or silk...doll-up or go natural...I find technology very handy...a machine washes my clothing & dishes...yep, now is good :)

11. If every outfit in your wardrobe had to be one color, what would it be?
I won't cheat and say brown, black or gray with colored accessories. I'll have to go with the color I get the most compliments on - teal/turquoise

12. If you were one of the seven dwarves, which one would you be?
(Doc, Grumpy, Sneezy, Sleepy, Bashful, Happy, or Dopey)

ALL OF THEM - I'm complicated!

13. What's the last album you listened to?
Does anyone listen to whole albums anymore??? Probably Travis Cottrell's Ring the Bells (Christmas...that's how long it's been since I've listened to an album straight through)

14. What's something we'd be surprised to know about you?
I love to exercise (hard to tell looking at me)... love to do it, but lack the discipline & sleep habits to get it in regularly.

Visit Abigail's Blog and link up if you want! Have a beautiful weekend!

Love, Hate & Chocolate - What If? Wednesday

2010-03-03T08:39:00.008-06:00

It's time for another What If? Wednesday, so here we go...no order, rhyme or reason, I'm all over the place! :)

WHAT IF chocolate lowered your cholesterol???

WHAT IF you could no longer eat, drink or speak? Like movie critic Roger Ebert, amazing story! (You caught me, I watched Oprah for a few minutes last night)

WHAT IF we spent less time "hatin' on" celebrities & reality tv personalities?

WHAT IF we spent more time "lovin' on" people we actually know??

WHAT IF Olympic Snowboarder Shaun White (aka the Flying Tomato) was on Dancing with the Stars? He could put down an isane double McTwist 1260, it would be tight!...Huh?

WHAT IF you could actually convince a teenager they really will use algebra in real life?

WHAT IF you are over 30 and you could actually convince a teenager of anything?

WHAT IF we made a BIG deal out of God EVERY DAY??????????

WHAT IF every color made you look skinny? I'm just sayin...

WHAT IF we all really do have a "Hillbilly Bone" down deep inside? Can't get this catchy song out of my head!

Don't forget to allow yourself to ask "what if?"...Have a beautiful day!

God Sees Me

2010-02-26T14:02:00.003-06:00

Heading out on the road in a little while. I'll be listening to some great music, worshipping my Lord, and driving through some scenery that looks a little bit like this (except the winter version). I'll be meeting my sisters/friends/teammates and one of the things we will be doing is planning for our annual women's conference in September. Angela Thomas will be our featured speaker, and it's going to be wonderful (in fact, it's called "Wonderful Weekend for Women")!

Our theme for 2010 is Stand Out, with the tagline "God Sees Me". Our scripture inspiration is Psalm 139. What a fantastic reminder that God not only sees, but created and intimately knows every single inch of us - including the most important invisible parts...and LOVES us anyway! I'm praying for a safe, unified, inspired couple of days - feel free to join me in that :)

Have a beautiful weekend!

Note to Self & Welcome to What If? Wednesday!

2010-02-24T22:31:00.008-06:00

Note to Self: Please write your posts the day or evening beforehand to post the next morning. You know how your days can get, especially if you haven't had enough sleep the night before. Thank you.
Sincerely, Self

Now on to my fun little Wednesday theme...maybe someday it will be a meme (or MEme, whatever), who knows? I just needed a little prompt to get me started on my new-and-improved blogging life. So, in Lisa Land, Wednesdays will be for What If?s. You may have heard it said you can't base your life on "What If"s, but if someone didn't ask those questions somewhere along the line, nothing would have ever been invented, modernized, made faster, better, stronger, etc. Sometimes we have to ponder, wonder, dream. And sometimes, crazy things happen in life that make you ask "What If?"

Some will be serious, some will be silly, whimsical, maybe occasionally absurd...but I'll try my best to stay away from utterly ridiculous. I may often answer, partially answer or annotate my questions...and YOU feel free to answer them if you feel led. Subjects will vary greatly, I'm sure, but don't be surprised to see a theme of food, fashion, food, family, food, fashion, food, makeup-and-other-girly-stuff...did I mention food? ☺

So, here goes my first installment. This idea just came to me a few days ago, so there's not much in my What If Journal yet, but I'll have it handy at all times for when those questions pop up.

WHAT IF I hadn't dragged my tired body to Walgreen's on an errand tonight and discovered that Milky Way Simply Caramel candy bar?
WHAT IF a 7th Grade Math Teacher in Littleton, Colorado hadn't considered the safety of his students more important than his own? (I was a 7th Grader in Littleton many years ago) John 15:13
WHAT IF high heels made your feet look aaaaannnnnnddd feel good?
WHAT IF I hadn't caught myself the other day when I almost put Cumin in my oatmeal instead of Cinnamon???
WHAT IF our legislators had a clue what the American people think and value...and cared? No matter what your political leanings, you have to have asked yourself THAT one!
WHAT IF all of the natural and healthy food was easy to find and cheap, and all the junk food was hard to find and expensive? (I know, some of you would still buy the junk food, wouldn't you?)
WHAT IF I hadn't seized the opportunity to be a part of bagging & loading over 20,000 healthy meals for children in Haiti this evening? (It was great, more on that at the end)
WHAT IF I cut a bunch of my hair off?
WHAT IF major appliances were made to last more that 5-10 years?
WHAT IF there were a simple way to get in to heaven without being perfect (cuz you're not), or reciting the entire Bible from memory (cuz ya can't), or doing a lot of boring stuff you don't want to do (cuz ya don't)...and it was just because someone loves you more than you can imagine? There IS, I'd be happy to tell you about it any time :)

The theme will return next Wednesday, when I've had a whole week to ask more "What If" questions!

What I did tonight: There was a food packing event at the private school in Wichita one of the girls in our youth group attends. So we decided to "take it on the road" and took our youth to help with the project this evening. The event was sponsored by Numana (click the name to check them out). They work to fight hunger all over the world, but have a big focus on Haiti right now. It was great donning our little aprons, gloves and hairnets and making our assembly lines to package the food. Just a little over 3 hours of our time...and over 20,000 meals were packaged just while we were there. It's amazing what God's people can do when we listen and obey His call to help.

Have a beautiful night!

What Will She Finally Blog About???

2010-02-23T14:05:00.007-06:00

You're not gonna find out today, mwahahaha! I am determined to do this thing, and will be posting about 3 times a week to start. This is something I really want to do, for me, so I thought maybe coming up with a fun theme would help get me started...so, tomorrow's the day for my fun little theme...

You'll just have to wait until then to find out what my Wednesday theme will be. I hope those who read will participate with comments and feedback (and since about half of you are family right now, I dare ya not to...hehehe).

Until then, I am just enjoying the sunshine through my windows on this winter afternoon, letting my mind dream & create while my body accomplishes the every day tasks of laundry, dishes, & other housework.

Have a beautiful day!

Okay, So Life is TOO Crazy Lately!

2009-10-19T11:13:00.007-05:00

I love the "idea" of blogging, but I sure struggle with finding time to do it! I am reevaluating the purpose of this blog & our family blog. Then, I'll have to work out a schedule - which part of me likes, but part of me doesn't. I have a very organized, administrative, detail-oriented side and a wild, creative, free-spirited side that are often at odds :).

We're headed off tomorrow on a short vacation. I hope to come back refreshed and re-energized, ready to prioritize and slow things down a little!! So, bring on beautiful Branson!

Just Because I Promised...

2009-07-10T15:09:00.010-05:00

Waaaaayyyyy back I promised to post a picture of the group we took on our Youth Mission Trip to Texas in late May. So, here it is!

Our theme for the week was "It's a God Thing" and it really was! The purpose for our theme was to get the students to be aware of God's presence in their lives ALL THE TIME, and we have seen fruit since then that tells us that at least most of them really have been making that effort. What a blessing to watch people grow closer to their Lord!!

Right & Radiant!!

2009-06-30T13:15:00.015-05:00

I guess sometimes it pays to be running behind! I have been wanting to participate in the "Summer Siesta Bible Study" on Beth Moore's blog. She is facilitating Jennifer Rothschild's "Me Myself & Lies" on her blog every other Tuesday. I think it is going to be a great study. I have met Jennifer and have the book which inspired the study about the things we, as women, say to ourselves that end up in our "thought closets". Jennifer's premise is that when we live each day, we "clothe" ourselves with the thoughts from our thought closets, which contain too many things that are not-so-lovely.

Here's a picture of my beautiful daughter & beautiful mother "clothed" appropriately for my cousin's wedding. I always try to stress with Bailey that what we "put-on" does matter: not the cost or trendiness of what we choose to clothe ourselves with, but the neatness and care it demonstrates, the attention it draws to our countenance and the confidence it gives us to effectively interact with others.

Beth actually started the study last Tuesday (June 23), but I was neck-deep in Vacation Bible School, so I decided to jump in today (a week late). One of the first assignments was to read Psalm 19. What a treat that was for me today...just what I needed...God's timing is perfect, even though mine is not! I've been so bogged down with busyness lately and burdened with hard decisions to make (including some things to let go) that verses 7 & 8 from the NIV especially spoke to me...

"7 The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. 8 The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes."

In VBS last week the children learned (and the adults were reminded) that "It All Comes Back to Jesus". Jesus is the Living Word and these verses are a wonderful picture and reminder to me that it all really does come back to Him! What a joy that I don't have to count on my own wisdom & understanding to know which path to take!! My Mom posted a poem on her blog today about our thoughts, go check it out.

Blessings!

Time Flies (Like the Concord)!

2009-06-20T12:50:00.007-05:00

Puh, just a little "placeholder" post... My "regular" blogging schedule is being delayed by another week!! I've had so much going on and taken many pictures of many different things and events, but haven't had any time for downloading or typing - my computer misses me, I can tell!

Today, it's our Boomerang Express Vacation Bible School Kick-Off at 3pm. We woke up to pouring rain this morning, so we have been praying for it to finish so we can have the event outdoors. My husband, Brad, is really praying because we lined up a mini train and the company couldn't provide someone to drive it so he gets to play engineer for a couple of hours. I'll have to add pictures of that to my list of things to post. The sun just poked it's head out, so I think there's hope - yea God!

Before this it was VBS preparations & decorating; before that a wedding; before that recovering from a mission trip; before that a mission trip; before that graduation...and those were just the things in addition to "?normal?" life...

Yes, life is Crazy and Beautiful...but you probably already knew that! I will make picture downloading & editing, and blog posting part of my "for-me" down time during VBS this next week -- I'll probably need it!

Blessings!

3 Weddings & a "Figuring"

2009-06-13T10:09:00.008-05:00

Okay, so it's painfully obvious I have not found a "blogging flow", but I think I have figured out what will work for me...but more about that at the end...

We are in Alma, Nebraska for my cousin's wedding. My husband, Brad, is officiating. A great young couple who "graduated" from our youth group is also getting married today and had asked Brad to officiate, so I am especially thinking of them today, too. The 3rd wedding is not one we were invited to, but is the son of a friend...so knowing of 3 occurring today just begged for a theme. :)

We made the drive Thursday with my Mom & Dad (separate vehicles) and it was fun...including a brief stop in Cawker City, KS to see the "World's Largest Ball of Sisal Twine", how can you not stop for that? Here's a pic of Bailey in front of it...

Can you imagine the size of the CAT that would play with that???

It has been fun to visit with extended family we don't get to see very often. Simon, the cousin getting married, was about 3 when Brad and I got married and has a cameo appearance in our wedding video. How fast life goes by, and how sweet it can be to be around young people (did I really just 'say' that?) just starting out in life, so excited about the future! When you are in your 20's "the rest of your life" seems like it will last forever.

Now that I am almost twice their age, I realize how amazingly quickly "the rest of your life" flies by. I am also thankful that I can be excited about the future, because the best part of my future will be with my Savior in Heaven and it will last an eternity!!! None of this don't-blink-or-you-might-miss-it kinda life!

...well, gotta get on with the doings of the day. Back to the "blogging flow" thing...it's obvious I'm going to have to be either a late night or early morning poster, as the "when I can get to it" method is just not working for me, ha ha. I hope to be posting 2 to 3 times a week upon our return. But, for now, there's a new life to begin for a sweet young couple, and wedding cake for ME!

That's MY Girl!

2009-06-03T12:34:00.008-05:00

I spent last week with 23 students and 7 other adults from our church in the Beaumont, Texas area doing hurricane relief (both Rita & Ike) on our Summer Mission Trip. This is my daughter, Bailey, cheerfully bailing water from a hole surrounding a pipe that a man needed access to on their work site. Their team worked on a former nursing home in Vidor, Texas. Nehemiah's Vision wants to use the facility to host future work teams, like ours, who come in to help with the repairing & rebuilding efforts. You gotta love a 16-year-old girl who doesn't mind getting dirty, sweating and working hard to help out those who need it. Bailey's spiritual gift is service...and she often shows it in helping through our youth group, shoveling neighbors' snowy driveways, or just helping out when asked.

Another team from our group did some sheet rock, siding and repair work in an area home, and my team removed some flooring, did some repairs, and painted the outside of First Baptist Church in Rose City. First Baptist Church in Lumberton, Texas hosted us for the week and did a fantastic job showing us love and hospitality.

It was a great week of hard work, great fellowship (including a snipe hunt and an amusement park visit)...but most importantly, sharing Christ through our service. We are blessed with a super group of students and adult sponsors!! I'll post a pic of the whole gang tomorrow.

The Usual, Crazy Spring at the Youth Pastor's House!

2009-05-22T13:43:00.011-05:00

Part of the life of a Youth Pastor's family is an incredibly busy late Spring! We've survived all the end of the school year festivities, including the BIGGIE - High School Graduation. Plans are under way for Vacation Bible School (Brad is Associate Pastor for Youth & Christian Education, so he oversees that, too). School here got out for the Summer a couple of hours ago, AND we leave for our Youth Mission Trip tomorrow morning!

I wouldn't trade any of it...but it means we've been quite distracted around here and I haven't written any new blog posts! It also means I won't touch my computer for a week *sigh*...BUT, I am all set up to be able to post by email/MMS from my phone if I can find the time. I'll definitely be posting pictures & updates on the ~~Family Blog~~, but a post or two might make it here, as well. If you've happened on over and are reading this, please be in prayer for me, my family, our youth group and the Rita & Ike victims of the Beaumont, Texas area where we will be serving to help with rebuilding. Thanks, and have a Blessed & Safe Memorial Weekend!

A Lesson Remembered

2009-05-13T11:09:00.012-05:00

Ever have one of those moments when you tell yourself, "I knew that!". Well, here's my moment from this morning. I knew it, I even read it again in the manual for my new waffle iron (except the wording wasn't exactly clear – but I knew it!). This is what happens when you don't spray or grease the "non-stick" plates of your waffle iron before the first waffle. What makes me the saddest is the loss of the last of the healthy & not-inexpensive multigrain pancake & waffle mix – and I still had to come up with something else for breakfast and clean up the mess!

Don't we do this often, if not daily? 1 John 3:24 says, "Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us." How often we act like we don't know Christ lives in us and gives us the power to overcome any temptation. We "know that we know", but we pretend we don't know. I, for one, am thankful that our God abounds in grace. I can go to Him and say, "I knew it! And, I'm sorry, please forgive me and help me to remember in the future." Then I can unplug…let the situation cool down…and clean up the mess!!

Starting My New Blog After a Great Mother's Day!

2009-05-12T15:01:00.010-05:00

Got this, my personal blog, going today (yeah!) and just posted pictures from Mother's Day on the ~~Family Blog~~. It's been a good productive day topped with relaxing & watching American Idol & the Biggest Loser Finale (way-to-go Danny, Kris & Helen)! More to come...