DIY Shabby Shimmer Glazed Frame

This would be my 3rd glazing project... ever.

But also my third glazing project in 2 months time.

I think I might be hooked.

I happened to come across the perfect picture for above my cabinet (click the link to check the cabinet out... It's my first glazing project and I am so IN LOVE with it. I have so enjoyed the ease of crafting, scrap-booking, sewing, and preschooling that this thing provides me.)

The picture had the right colors. It evoked feelings of peace and sanctuary (this is very important in my home ha!). It was marked 50% off of $40.00 (this is also very important. My budget is SMALL). Only problem: at 16x20 above a massive cabinet, it wasn't quite big enough. My solution: a wide, chunky frame.

Can I afford to pay for custom framing? That would be a big, fat NEGATIVE.

So...

I hit the thrift stores once again and found this for $4. (Swoop!)

The frame came with a sweet hummingbird picture... that I knocked out of there. Sorry Hummingbird. I liked that the frame was thick, it was made of wood, and, most importantly, it was made for a 16x20 picture.

I knew I wanted to to something subtle but still wonderful to the frame. So, I thought I would play around with glazing again. This time I wanted to try out a shimmer effect... mostly because, well,  I am a girl, and I like all things that shimmer and shine. What can I say?

I started out by masking off my frame. Blue tape is great for projects where you need a clean paintline. Do use your fingernail to seal the tape to the frame so there is no bleeding.

I mixed burnt umber (a deep brown) with a little black just to darken it. A little black goes a long way so do add a little at a time. I used a spongebrush to put on the base coat because it is faster than a bristled brush.

For my second coat, I mixed Folk Art's Champagne Metallic Paint with Deep Base. Deep Base is what paint stores use to make dark colors as it has no color of it's own to lighten the colorant. It looks milky when wet but dries clear (if you aren't using Behr brand do double check at your paint store that your brand's deep base dries clear... I imagine that they all do, but I am not positive). Because Deep Base dries clear, it can be added to paint to make it more translucent. This will allow some of the base-coat color to come through. I did a 1:1 ratio for paint to deep base and then added water till I was able to hold my stir stick up and paint come off in a steady flow (not runny, but not clumpy... smooth flow).

I used a small angled brush to apply the glaze. (Glaze is just a fancy term for paint that has been made more translucent).

As I applied the glaze, I took my chip brush and brushed it against the wet paint to remove some of the glaze and give it a "brushed" look. For a small project, like this frame, extender is not needed, but if you were glazing a large surface you would need extender. Extender is a product that you can purchase at a paint supply store to keep your paint from drying as fast so you have time to apply the glaze (like in this case, brushing it on and then brushing some of it off).

By the way, free-bie kitchen tip: these bad boys make excellent basting or pastry brushes . I discovered this in my mother-in-law's kitchen (she is an AMAZING cook). I opened one of her drawers and found a couple chip brushes lying in there; I was disturbed thinking that my husband and father-in-law had placed their used  paintbrushes in her kitchen. Nope, only ever used for very strict and official kitchen business. (By the way: they are around $1... way cheaper than the brushes labeled "basting" or "pastry" brush in the kitchen area of your department store).

For my 3rd coat, I used my angled brush to apply black paint that I had thinned with water into the grooves of the frame. As I applied the black paint I went back over it with my chip brush. I made some long, sweeping brush strokes on the frame in random places with my chip brush. I did this with very little black paint on the brush.

Notice the way the brush is angled in the picture above. I did this to get black streaks almost like scuff marks.

For the fourth coat, I used the brown-black I had made up earlier. I thinned it a little with water. I put a light amount on my chip brush and made big sweeping brush strokes all over the frame (I followed the direction of the wood grain). I applied a lot more of this than I did the black. I wanted places where my frame was brown, places where there was just a little bit of shine coming through, and places where the shine hadn't been covered at all. It gave it a "shabby" chic look.

For still more interest, I added a fifth coat: just a tiny amount of the blue glaze I used on my cabinet. I applied it the same way as the 4th coat... only lighter. This was a great idea. The frame by no means looks blue. You'd have to look up close and very carefully to see the blue streaks, but, sitting above my cabinet, the frame seems to pick up on the colors of the cabinet and the cabinet picks up on the frame. They look like they were meant for each other.

By the way, the paint must be dry to the touch before adding another coat. If your project is small like this one and you don't care to take any breaks from your work, keep a blow dryer handy.

I decided to further freshen up the frame by painting the matte and gold trim. I made a 1/2 white and 1/2 antique white color. (I think I may be a bit color picky... but the white was too bright and the antique white was too dark...) I also made up my own "gold" color. I hated the orange-y gold on the existing frame, but the champagne shimmer I had was too light. So, once again I mixed my own gold color. I used champagne, antique gold, yellow and like a drop of black to dull it (all by Folk Art).

I know I am picky but check out the difference in gold colors:

Who likes the top one? I do! I do! (Okay, just make me feel better and agree with me. Ha! I actually like the original gold color, but it didn't match the brass pieces I have on the cabinet.)

I had to take my angle brush and go back over some spaces on the matte where the gold paint bled through. Did I stress the importance of running your fingernail over the edge of the tape?! Learn from my mistakes!

To finish up my project, I installed the picture hanging hardware. (Just picked this up at Lowe's)

This was seriously my favorite part. I totally enjoyed playing with paint colors and glazes... but not as much as I like playing with a drill! Power Tools! :) (I am not ashamed to admit that upon marriage, I had no clue how to get the drill bit into the drill. I kept looking for a button. Ha!) 

The finished project:

Cost:
$20- Picture
$4- Frame
$4- Champagne Metallic and Umber Acryllic paint
$5- Chip brush and small angle brush
$2-Picture Hanging Hardware
Already had other paint colors, deep base, and foam brush

Total: $35  

That's less than a 16x20 matte picture at regular price... without the frame! Yes! I win!

I love the way it turned out. It is subtly wonderful. And since it resides above an obviously wonderful cabinet (if you read about the cabinet project, you know I earned the right to refer to it in such a boastful manner haha), it's wonderfulness really should be subtle. It doesn't take away from the cabinet or the picture. I think it adds to it. Once again: I Win!

Side note: It's kind of fun to say: "I Win!" Try it.

I hope I inspired you to try your hand at glazing... though I warn you, it is slightly addictive ;)
xo



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Bitter Herbs

I have this thing about symbolism. I love it when something that is super accessible and tangible represents a deep idea. Could be the teacher in me. Or maybe it's the years and years of studying literature... and liking it.

Oh yes, I like it. :)

The Passover Seder fascinates me. Everything... Everything!... symbolizes something.

Reading about it in Exodus and then comparing it with Jesus' final days... I am pretty sure it's like a heaping buffet table and a hungry stomach for a literature lover. It is reeking with symbolism: layers upon layers of God-designed, intricately woven traditions to match the profound spiritual truths and made accessible to simple people like me. Oh my goodness, I love it!

Yesterday, I typed some thoughts about "chametz."

Today, I want to look at just one element from the Seder table: the bitter herbs.

The bitter herbs are called "Maror," which is traditionally horseradish, and the "Chazeret," which is traditionally romaine leaf or some other bitter green. They represent the bitter life of slavery. Since horseradish is powerful enough to cause some tears to roll, it goes so far as to represent the tears that were cried and the painful life the Israelites lived while in Egypt.

The Israelites' redemption from the bonds of slavery can be compared to a being set free from sin and the law of sin and death. So as a Christian, those bitter herbs are a reminder of my former slavery. God actually wants me to look back on occasion and remember the bitter taste of the life I lived prior to my salvation... not to live in shame and condemnation, but to remember how great my freedom is.

 

My Bitter Herbs:

I have this silly little memory of being around 6 and having an adorable, chipmunked-cheeked, bright-eyed little brother who played a game with my mom: "I love you more. No, I love you more"... They played all the way up to infinity times one thousand. It was their special bedtime routine, and I was jealous. I also remember my brother constantly got in trouble for lying. So, one day overcome by some unknown but super carnal need to get my brother in trouble, I took a vase and smashed it on the floor. I told my mom that my brother did it. He swore he didn't do it till he was in tears. But my mom believed me. I felt good, but rotten and terrible and wondering why I would do such a thing and what my mom would think if she knew the truth.

I remember being ten and having my mom pull the homework assignments out of the trashcan that I had wadded tightly and hid at the bottom. They were not done. I didn't feel like doing them. I remember the shame of being lazy, rebellious even. I remember the horrifying feeling of being caught; of having the sin you tried so hard to hide being pulled out of the dark pile of trash, examined, being deemed guilty, and then punished.

I remember the striving to be right, to be good, to impress, to be somebody and the constant disappointment at not measuring up, always getting it wrong, always feeling overlooked, and never quite enough...

I remember being the quiet, shy girl who at 12 was sat down in front of my teacher, was told how disappointed she was, and how she was even considering suspending me. My very first boyfriend had been taken from me by the largest girl in the class, the one who constantly fished for compliments in the girl's bathroom, "I am fat, aren't I?" to which everyone always assured her she wasn't. I let the hurt eat away my quiet, 12-year-old heart until I blurted out one day, "You're right. You're just a fat cow!" The hurt. The shame. The knowing I had never done anything worth being noticed except this one horrifyingly mean act. The knowing that even though I had cried, "Fat!," someone could have yelled at me, "Wiry, skinny, boob-less nobody!"

I remember the seeking out approval from young men, the flirtatiousness, the pleasure at attention... and the bitter taste of a broken heart, the lack of fulfillment because one person's attention was never enough...

the emptiness... the constant wondering if I was enough... trying so hard to not be a nobody, to be noticed, but always that sinking feeling in the back of my mind no matter how much attention I could receive that I was, in fact, a nobody.

I remember the fear... of life, of failure, of never again feeling okay...

I remember the sewing needle, the box cutter, the kitchen knife against my skin... the infliction of pain to somehow release the pain I felt inside... the thoughts of taking my own life... even planning it...



Oh those bitter herbs. The maror producing salty tears on my face.



But I am glad. Thankful. Deeply grateful. I have been set free. And though I am like the complaining Israelites, when life gets hard I sometimes want to go back, pick up my old ways and thoughts... but when I  remember the bitter taste... I can't. I know how great a salvation I have been given.

The Seder doesn't end with bitter herbs. There is the spotless lamb on that table. The bread without leaven that is broken. The wine that is poured out into 4 glasses each representing a promise of God: "I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you from their slavery, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm, and with great judgments. And I will take you to me for a people"

Christ, the spotless lamb whose sinless body was broken and blood poured out so that I could be set free and be called a Child of God. 

I am free. I am not the same. I am forgiven. In Him, I am enough. I have joy. I have peace. I can love, and I am loved. I am a Child of God.

The bitter herbs washed down with Communion.



Wishing you and yours a wonderful Easter.
xo


Oh and by the way, I fact checked and found some additional information about the Seder for this post by reading Exodus 13 and looking here.

Holy Week: "Searching Our Hearts"...For Kids!

Today for our preschool time, Addy and I talked about searching our hearts for things that we need to get rid of. See the previous post.

Since we are on the letter "E," an egg can be used to represent our heart (spiritually), and egg hunts are just downright fun, I made some things that I thought Addy could understand and recognize as things that we need to get out of our hearts and put them in the eggs.

That's the "Preschool Wall" in my Cabinet of Awesome. Click if you want to check out the whole cabinet. I love it!

I just wrote on a super official piece of white paper using an even more official purple crayon, and, of course, that purple crayon was in the hand of a master drawer.  You like my angry face? Ha! Since she's 3, I just came up with 4 things.

I cut them out, folded them up and place one in each egg.

I added an extra egg into our hunt. I wanted one egg to represent having Jesus in your heart. Since having Jesus in your heart is pretty sweet and candy is sweet, I put a candy in one egg.

I hid the eggs.

Addy went out and found them.

Then we gathered them up and talked about our findings.

Sometimes we get bad stuff in our hearts. We need help to not be mean, jealous... We need Jesus to come in and empty our hearts of the bad stuff. Jesus will live in our heart if we ask Him to.

We prayed and asked for help. Mommy prayed for help too.

Simple.

I love teaching Addy about Jesus.

Holy Week: "Spring Cleaning"

It's Holy Week...

I know, no shocking news there.

But it always makes me think of the obvious things: the Triumphal Entry, the Last Supper, the Cross, and the Resurrection...

but especially the Last Supper.

The Passover Meal.

The first Passover marked the deliverance of the Israelites from slavery, from Egypt. They were instructed to pack their bags and eat with their shoes on their feet. They placed the blood of a spotless lamb over their doorposts and ate the lamb. Then the angel of death passed over them and wiped out the first born sons in Egypt.

After that first Passover, the Israelites were instructed to observe the Passover every year as a memorial of what God had done for them. They were instructed in the days leading up to the Passover to rid their homes of "chametz" (leaven). They were to search their home from top to bottom and get rid of anything that could potentially have the presence of leaven. For seven days the Israelites were commanded to not have leaven... no where with in their borders. Then they were to partake in a special meal called the Seder, each bit of the meal reminding them of some part of their time in Egypt. They were to retell the story of the first Passover. They were told to remember. They were told to celebrate. I was curious as to what this looked like today in the Jewish community. If you are curious too, here is a link to an article I read.

Leaven represents sin. Just as the smallest bit of leaven can cause an entire batch of dough to rise, the tiniest bit of impurity can skew the way we think, the way we talk, and the way we live. "Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough? Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened" (1 Corithians 5: 6-7, NASB). 

In reading up on the Jewish customs for getting rid of "chametz" in preparation for the Passover, I was struck by the thoroughness of the search. Homes are to be "spot-free" from leaven. Not a trace. Do I even have a measure of that fervency in seeking out sin in my life? I realize Jesus gives me Grace that is sufficient to cover my sins and shortcomings. But doesn't He call me to a life of Holiness? (1 Pet. 1:16) I think of John 3:16 and Ephesians 3:18-19 and know that I am loved by God with such a great fervency...especially in the light of the approaching Good Friday. I need to take time to be fervent.

Since it is Spring (spring cleaning) and Holy week this week, I am doing some cleaning in my own heart.

It is long past time to clean out my heart. I need to find the unforgiveness I might hold against another that creeps out when I feel overcome by the urge to share with someone who has no business knowing what kind of wrong was done to me (gossip). I need to find the selfishness that causes a volcano of yelling and snappy words to erupt when people (namely my kids and my husband) don't do what I want them to. I need to find the pride that causes me to think I deserve more... Hmmm... I think I could go on a while... Spring cleaning in this temple is definitely past due!

My Prayers this week:

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
And see if there be any hurtful way in me,
And lead me in the everlasting way. 

                                 -Psalm 139:23-24, NASB

Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness;
According to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity
And cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my transgressions,
And my sin is ever before me.
Against You, You only, I have sinned
And done what is evil in Your sight,
So that You are justified when You speak
And blameless when You judge.
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
And in sin my mother conceived me.
Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being,
And in the hidden part You will make me know wisdom.
Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Make me to hear joy and gladness,
Let the bones which You have broken rejoice.
Hide Your face from my sins
And blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Your presence
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation
And sustain me with a willing spirit.
Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners will be converted to You.
Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation; Then my tongue will joyfully sing of Your righteousness.
O Lord, open my lips,
That my mouth may declare Your praise.
For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it;
You are not pleased with burnt offering.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise. 
                              -Psalm 51:1-17, NASB

By the way, I have some other stuff on my heart to share this Holy Week. So do look forward to more tomorrow.
xo 

Hey Mom!

I thought I would give you a photoclip from our weekend... mostly for laughs.

Clearly Addy got into my makeup. I guess girlfriend thought the mascara wand could work just like lip gloss. TOO Funny!

Also notice the masking tape memo on her shirt. She is loving her preschool class at church. Her immediate response when I asked her the question was: "In my HEAhT!!!" (because she still can't say her "r's" So precious!)

Mike is now officially on spring break! Yes! He's still working hard, but at least he is home in the evenings all this week and home for Easter weekend.
:)

And since I put up a picture of Addy... here's one of Jed.

I so tried! Haha!

Happy Easter Week Friends!
xo



As a reminder... the pictures on this site are my pictures. You may NOT use them. Unless of course you ask first and I grant you permission. Thanks for your respect!

DIY EASY Headband and Bubble Skirt

I get easily distracted sometimes.

For example, I set out to make my pillows one morning.  Kids were still asleep. I had a good 2 hours before they would wake.

I can and I shall be a woman who conquers great things!

I shall sew my pillows!

I started with the green pillow seen here...

I got it done quickly. I had time enough for at least one more before the kids would wake from their slumber. Then, overcome by the feeling of accomplishment on making the first pillow... I Conquered the pillow case!... I immediately begin thinking of all the ways I could use the left over green knit fabric. Skirt! Headband!

Inspiration... or maybe procrastination... (Apparently I didn't much feel like making pillows anymore) led me to create a super easy skirt and headband...

wait for it...

PATTERN FREE!

Creating without a pattern can be so liberating. Kind of like walking around the house without your bra on.

{Don't worry, a picture of that WILL NOT be inserted here! Ha!}

Or like riding a swing on your tummy :)

Before I proceed any further though, I do need to give credit to deliacreates. I had seen the headband during her nesting series. I put a snapshot in the back of my mind for a future auntie/if-I-ever-have-another-baby-girl project. I loved how easy they looked. Loved that they only required scrap fabric. Loved the way they can be cute and girlie without having to use pink, purple, zebra print or any other very used girl fabric (not that I am against these. I love them. Have drawers of them. Just nice to have a change of hair accessory that looks completely original). I love the way they could be super soft and gentle on a baby's precious head and custom cut to fit perfectly snug without leaving those terrible elastic indentations.

I also kept seeing on deliacreates these baby girl skirt projects out of old adult tshirts. They look comfortable. They look easy. They look unique. Also, unlike shopping at the over-priced fabric store where the price for creating your own stuff costs more than it would to just buy it, you are just reusing old shirts. Price: zero! Love when my hard work actually saves me money! (Got baby brain? Do check out the above links to check out the deliacreates nesting series. She had some seriously great projects and most were super simple.)

I had these projects in the back of my mind for baby girl projects...

But now I had a whole lot of leftover green knit fabric...

I think these projects can be made to work for my not-so-baby-anymore Addy!

I totally did this spur of the moment.

Which means...

I have no pictures of the making process.

But...

They are SUPER EASY.

I may not be able to wonderfully and visually explain the "how-to" but it's easy!

And fortunately, Deliacreates does a good job of explaining how to do the headband. She takes beautiful pictures and she did a bunch of different headbands. A great place to get some inspiration. It's so easy that I seriously looked through the pictures, thought how easy it looked, and never even needed to look back to reread instructions when 2 weeks later I decided to make one for Addy.

The headband literally took less than 10 minutes to put together plus a little extra to hand stitch the heart. I want to make more! I need someone to make me an auntie (wink wink brother and sister...get busy! Ha!)

They are Cute and Comfy. I have a hard time getting Addy to wear anything in her hair. She hates the discomfort of headbands and the pulling of hair-ties. This she can do.

Only... This is how she would rather wear it....

That's okay, though. Free spirit soar :) You are cute no matter how you wear that head band (or if you wear it) and even cuter when you wear it your way. Love that girl!!! She makes life so much more fun. 

Now,

For the skirt:

1. Measure your kid. You will need her waist measurement and skirt length. I got a little conservative and made the skirt longer than I wanted but at least this way it'll last a growth spurt or two.

2. You will need to cut three pieces of fabric for the skirt. (For all of your pieces the "stretchiness" of the knit should be the "waist" measurements--the longest length.)
First piece: the main skirt. Cut out piece of fabric that is double your waist measurement by your skirt length measurement plus 3 1/2 inches (1/2 for seam allowance, 3 inches for bubble).
Second piece: the underside of skirt. Cut out piece of fabric that is 1 1/2 your waist measurement by your skirt length minus 3 inches.
Third piece: The waist band. Cut piece of fabric that is slightly less than waist measurement (this will depend on the stretchiness of your fabric. You want the fabric to fit snug so it will stay up without being uncomfortable. Best way to figure this out is to try it out on your muse--child. Don't forget to allow for the seam.) by 5 inches.

3. Baste first piece 1/4" from edge that corresponds to the waist measurement. Pull thread at either end to gather until it is the same length as the second piece of fabric. Pin first and second pieces of fabric wrong side out and then sew.

4. Sew the waistband (put the 2 shorter sides together and sew wrong side out).

5. Take large piece (that is now the first and second pieces sewn together). Baste either end (the ends that correspond to waist measurement) 1/4" from edge. Pull thread at either end to gather fabric until it is the same length at the waistband.

6. Take the two sides of the large piece of fabric (the main skirt) that correspond to the length and sew together wrong side out.

7. Fold the waistband in half, right side out. Fold your skirt piece in half right side out. Take the raw edges of waistband, match this up with the seams you made in step 4&6, and pin them to the basted edges of skirt. (Make sure it is pinned so that after it is sewn raw edges won't be seen on out side of skirt and so that the side of the skirt that has no visible seams will be seen). Sew together.

8. Embellish however you please... or not at all. It's done!

This may sound really complicated, especially without the pictures. But do know, common sense and a very moderate sewing skill level got me this skirt without even glancing at a pattern. Most likely, if you have done any sewing, you can do this without any instructions!

 I hope just seeing it inside out gives you an idea of how to make it.

This project took around an hour with the time it took to add the embroidery on the heart and tack it on.

I think that hand-stitched heart is just the sweetest. So easy. So simple. And something you simply cannot buy in the stores... Kind of like the love I gots for my kiddos... awe!

The pillowcase procrastination and the hour of work were so worth it when I got to see how happy it made Addy to have something handmade by momma. I could tell she was feeling the love :)

We <heart3 you!


Some tips:
1. Scrap fabric! Keep fleece scraps. Fleece is awesome because the edges don't fray. Great for adding cuteness to little-girl outfits!
2. I don't have any embroidery thread. I didn't want to go to the store to buy any either. So, I just took a vibrant colored all-purpose sewing thread. I cut 2 lengths of it. I pulled the 2 pieces through the eye and then tied the ends together so that my thread was now 4x's thicker. Then I stitched it. Could have been thicker still, but pink still stands out and I didn't have to go to store. Win!
3. I made the waistband too loose so I had to go back and fix it. But, then I realized knit stretches out as it is worn throughout the day. Poor Addy had a saggy skirt by the end of the day. I have to fix it again. So keep in mind, SNUG. Not uncomfortable. But SNUG. My mom suggested inserting elastic into the waistband. That would probably work better (but then I would have to use a seam ripper and re-sew... something this girl LOATHES. Plus I like the idea of how comfortable it is without it... Nevertheless I will suggest it for you. I may try it if there is a next time.)



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A Pink Sock Covered in Cheerios

Two days ago, my day looked something like this:

My husband returns home from work. I hear the jingle of keys, a familiar deep voice calling down to someone from the stoop, the turn of the dead bolt, and then the sound of tromping boots... man has entered the abode.

"Hey, Amanda, do you mind if Martin uses our bathroom to change before we go study?"

"Um... sure... lemme just, uh, grab some stuff out of it." And by stuff I mean, picking up a pile of clothes complete with bra and underwear, shoving all things on the counter into the drawers in one mad sweep, and throwing a fresh roll of t.p. onto the back of the toilet just in case the current one runs out. I glance at the pile of bath toys and the baby bath I haven't used in months but haven't had the time (or memory is more like it) to put in storage. I choose to let them stay put. It's not ideal, but I only have so much time before Martin makes it up the stairs.

I exit the bathroom, my eyes peeking over the top of laundry pile in my hands to see not just Mike's classmate but his cute, young wife as well. My eyelids expand to take in the extra bit of reality while my nostrils widen to breathe in that same reality and let it back out.

My house is a disaster.

I have two doe-eyed newlyweds standing in my disaster.

I walk back into the room and try my little heart out to be warm, welcoming, conversational, but it's almost as though my brain turns into a camera seeking out messes in autozoom:

I see the baby's snack tray on his jumper crusted in browned avocado slime from the day's lunch.

I see the car seat that for some reason is in the middle of the living room and upside down.

I see the pink Disney princess blanket haphazardly lying over couch and floor.

I see every single one of my pillows I just made to make my seating "warm and welcoming" warming random places on the carpet.

I see every toy from Elmo to the play broom scattered on top of the office desk, on the recliner, on the dining table and sprinkled across the carpet.

And then, I look down and see, in all of it's glory, one pink little Addy-sock covered in gooey Jed-cheerios lying in the middle of the room... right below the black leather boots of my new acquaintance.

Don't look at the mess. Don't clean it up. Stop apologizing for the mess it just draws attention to it. Stop feeling uncomfortable you'll make them uncomfortable. Focus on your  mess  guests. Focus on your guests. Focus on your guests. I know. These are the first rules of being a good hostess with surprise guests. I couldn't help it. I cleaned. In my own defense I was cleaning when they arrived. I had been out of town the day prior and out of town a few days before that. I had only gotten my daughter's room picked up, organized, wiped down and vacuumed... if only we could have hung out in there. I see the vacuum cleaner that is out in the living room and waiting for order to be restored to the great room so it can be used. Maybe they will know that I am in the middle of cleaning. My mind continues. I am really not a messy person, well, not this messy anyways. Can I tell them that I have been out of town? Maybe they won't notice. Stop thinking your the center of everyone's mind, they probably aren't thinking of you or what kind of housekeeper you are... right?

And the deep underlying thoughts: They won't think I am a bad mom/housekeeper/wife, will they?They will know that I am enough, right?

I sometimes wish I had seen a few more cheerio-socks in other women's houses before I had kids. I have these dang expectations that somehow I have to be able to do it all because the hundreds of women's houses who I grew up going to, scrambled to shove their short-comings into their "mess space" (you know, the room, the drawer, the closet, the under-the-bed... everyone has their last minute cram space). I know some people are immaculate housekeepers and some are the polar opposite, and, as I get older and wiser, I am finding that most people are somewhere in between. Living happens in their living spaces.

So, here's the honest, hard, cold truth of it. That pink sock might want to speak to me and tell me that I am not enough. Why can't you love on your kids and your husband, cook dinner, do laundry, keep the house clean, make time for God, friends and yourself, keep up your writing, do the little projects, wear the make-up, do your hair, never wear pajamas past 9 am, and return from out of town without missing a beat? And how in the world does one end up with a hot pink sock covered in Cheerios in the middle of the flow of traffic in their living area... and on the one day they have surprise company?! But...Everyone lives in their living spaces. Cheerio-crusted pink socks are just the beautiful evidence that God blessed me with a little girl who is free-spirited and comfortable enough to run through our house barefoot, and the evidence of a healthy little 9 month old boy who has gotten the finger-thumb-to-mouth down and is crawling and cruising all over the place...and taking his Cheerios with him. That pink sock covered in cheerios is a monument (albeit one I will quickly clean up) of God's blessings on my life.

I have two small kids. They are healthy. They are active. They make messes. I am blessed.

I am blessed and I am enough.

I can't do it all. But I am enough.

I am enough whether my new friend, Mrs. Martin, thinks I should win housekeeper of the year... or not. I am enough even if she visited and made a mental list of the things she "will never do" when she has kids. I like to think that one day Mrs. Martin will have small mess-making machines for children (I am convinced most kids just come that way), and she will remember that pink sock in my great room and know sometimes messes are reality. She is still blessed and not any less of a woman/housekeeper/mom/wife for having them.

Your welcome Mrs. Martin! I am linked up at

DIY Cabinet of Awesome

As a warning, I have this love/hate relationship with Pinterest. I love being inspired. I love having a place to store my ideas.

But...

I hate when I research how to do something, invest money to make it happen, spend hours of work on it, have to improvise because nothing is ever as simple as one picture makes it look, and then someone says, "Oh, you got that from Pinterest" as though I saw one picture, clicked it, and it magically appeared. No I did not get it from Pinterest. I got it from blood, sweat, and tears. And not that I think I am so wonderfully intelligent and unique that no one else can think up the same idea on their own or that I am spontaneously inspired without any originating ideas, but lots of my ideas formed in my own mind. My projects belong to inspiration, research, creativity and hard work. Pinterest can share ideas, Pinterest can inspire, but please don't give it all the credit. Okay, rant over. Apparently I felt the need to be raw and human and a little prideful. Please, tell me I am not the only one that feels this way.

So, you have been warned, don't look at this DIY and comment with a "Wow, you got this from Pinterest." I may just "rawr" at you. Ha!

That said, the idea for this project started from need. I needed somewhere to store my scrapbooking stuff, I had it spilling out from under my bed. I needed somewhere to put all my sewing and crafting stuff. What started out as 2 neat drawers in a plastic storage unit in the corner of my room, taking up a mere 2ish square feet, became piles of fabric, ribbon, craft stuff stuffed into paper bags and the now-crammed drawers and spilling out into my room... multiplying square footage of messiness exponentially. Michael, now in a schooling program full-time, needed to use our front closet for his uniforms... the closet where I placed all of Addy's games and preschool stuff. The place where I had hung our preschool cork boards was not my brightest moment.  It has push pins, and it is well within reach of a toddler's grasp. (I found this out at a preschool meet up at my house when 3 of my friends had toddlers and immediately 3 sets of chubby little baby hands were drawn to the cork boards and their push pins... a small nightmare. Sorry friends! But thanks for making me all the wiser.)

It needed to be large enough to house all of my stuff. Pretty enough to be located in my dining area. Functional enough to somehow hide preschool learning time and easily pull it back out. Also, it needed to be inexpensive. Could one piece of furniture really meet all these needs?!

Need made me begin to search the internet and, yes, Pinterest, in search of solutions.

Armed with an arsenal of ideas, I hit the thrift stores in search of the perfect cabinet unit.

I found this piece. (Sorry, I once again forgot to take a good "before" picture. I remembered after I had taken it apart.) I wasn't drawn to this piece because I thought it was pretty. I was drawn to it because it met my need of function. I knew I could add the pretty later.

It's a mission-style, dresser cabinet. It has a couple pieces of pressed wood, but the bulk of it is solid wood. It is well-made, though well-worn. Drawers and doors were sturdy built. My favorite part: the cabinet doors closing mechanism is a magnet grip that makes it hard to open... my kids are not going to be able to open this thing for a few years!

I started this project by cleaning the cabinet with a mild degreaser. I took out the drawer pulls. Since I knew I wanted knobs, I filled in the drawers that had 2 holes with wood filler.

I patch up the major dings with wood filler. I let the wood filler dry over night and then sanded it till it was smooth with wood surface. I scuffed up the cabinet with a sanding pad, but later found out the primer I purchased was good enough to not need to sand first (Look for Zinzer 1 2 3 Primer if you want to not have to sand too).

I primed the cabinet. It took two coats.

I enrolled my father-in-law to help me with the glazing. I wanted it to be a blue color that picked up the light and dark blue in my curtain fabric. It took more samples than I think I could count to get it right. The paint I picked out was the wrong color. I had in my head that my curtains had turquoise in them. Definitely not. It was a dulled blue. I think my dad spent 4 days and 4 hours each day trying to get the color right for me. Thank you Dad for being so patient with me!

I applied the glaze using a positive application (meaning I added some glaze and then used my brush to hit against the paint to move the glaze over the piece. I went back and lightly brushed it so there was subtle brush strokes in one direction. This took a little practice and some extender so the glaze didn't start to dry before I was done with a surface). I messed up the entire cabinet once because I didn't thin my glaze enough. It ended up clumpy looking and way darker than I wanted. I messed up my cabinet doors and had to repaint them when the glaze dried before I was done applying it to door and I ended up with lots of patches of heavy and light glazing. I definitely got to that point where I felt like, "I am just SO over this."

I made a very translucent glaze out of my green/gold paint that I used on this project. I applied it where I thought the sun might have faded the cabinet.

It was so worth it to try out glazing. I love the depth this cabinet has. This cabinet is not just a color like it would have been had I just picked one paint color I liked and slapped it on. It ended up being a work of art marked with my own signature brush strokes. The lighter color comes through. The darker color is subtle. The very faint patches of green/gold are barely visible but add the appearance of a sun-aged piece of furniture. The brush strokes are suggestive of wood grain.

Glazing was frustrating, but it was also fun. I felt like a painter and the cabinet was my canvas. I got to be creative and even daring without having to be a talented artist that can actually paint murals or even just a 8 by 10 canvas. I am so not that person. But glazing kind of let me be. I enjoyed that.

Glazing will require some research and some practice. (Check youtube for how to videos on making your own glaze, glazing application techniques and antiquing furniture... I didn't do this but my dad did and he said he found good information that reminded him how to do it... it had been a couple years for him.) It may even require that you re-prime and start over. But seriously, it is so doable. And I think... worth it.

Thank you SO much DAD! You were such a help! He helped me mask it off (one of the hardest parts of painting something is just prepping it to be painted... especially if you are painting it in your home.) He helped me make the new holes for the hardware. He spent a lot of hours fixing my bad paint color choice. Best of all, he gave me the gift of learning how to glaze. He did the first mix. After that I felt comfortable enough to make the green/gold and the antiquing glaze for my bench project. He made it accessible and let me try my own hand at it. Thank you Dad! I know you could have done this and it would have been seriously beautiful and intricately worked by a master technician, but you let me do it. And now I can take pride in my own handiwork and have a new skill under my belt. Time together and skill learned...priceless gift. 

I picked up some beautiful knobs from World Market. They have a great selection of quirky, antique, and unique knobs. I decided to do 2 different ones, mostly because I couldn't decide which one I like better, but also because it added to the aged-effect and uniqueness of the piece.

I think dressing up the cabinet was my favorite part. I got to shop!

I made one side of the cabinet my preschool side. I hot-glued corkboard squares down the middle of the door. I added ribbon detail to make it look more finished and to divide my board into sections.

It was as simple as cutting and folding ribbon over to keep edges from fraying and hot-glueing it on.

I made the other side of the cabinet my scrap-booking side. By the way I haven't finished putting all my stuff in. I promise it will fill up the entire of this cabinet. Ha! I made this side my chalkboard side for Addy to practice writing her letters, but mostly just for fun. Chalk is awesome... Why? Because it doesn't mark walls or stain clothes, and it is easy on mom and Addy. Having the chalkboard housed in a cabinet door keeps the potential chalk dust mess from being available for Addy to make whenever she wants. There is a "lip" on the cabinet door that catches most of the dust to keep it from getting everywhere. Major Win!

By the way...I went to purchase chalkboard paint from Lowes and it was $15 bucks and only came in quart size. So, I checked Walmart and found it in the acryllic paints section in a small bottle for $5. It would be cheaper to cover a large surface with Lowe's paint, but with such a small section, Walmart wins!

Can you tell I love my cabinet? Ha!

I love it. LOVE it!

My new peaceful view (well, when the house is clean anyways, ha!) from my kitchen sink.

Cost:
$109- cabinet
$45- Paint: 1 qt of Zinzer 1 2 3 Primer in base color, 1 qt of Behr Eggshell in a dulled dark blue color, 1 qt of Behr Eggshell deep base (for glazing)
$15-drawer knobs @2.99 a piece
$10-door knobs @4.99 a piece
$5-chalkboard paint
$1-chalk
Free-Wood filler, Roller, Brushes, extender, masking paper and tape were all on hand from my father-in-law. Cork board and ribbon I already owned (but cork board squares were super cheap at Walmart when I originally bought them... like $3 for 4 pack??). I counted the cost of the green/gold paint I used in glaze in cost of bench I made.
$185-Total

I don't think I could even buy something similar for twice as much if I wanted to. I saved a ton of money doing it myself. Perhaps, the style is a taste all my own, but this girl LOVES the way it turned out. I can't express the pride I have (you know, the good kind) from the hard work and creativity put into this thing. The function of it is AWESOME. I have been able to do preschool time so easy. If Addy is bored, I open up the chalkboard side and let her imagination go for at least a good 15 minutes. My sewing, scrap-booking, and craft stuff is conveniently located right next to the table I do all that stuff on, making set up and clean up much faster. I LOVE it!

Sorry if I appear to brag (and to be honest I so am bragging), but I suppose after 5 weeks of a tore up house and hard work, one should be allowed to gush a little. Thanks for letting me.

Bragging rights earned!

I hope I inspired you to go earn yours!

And promise I won't say "Oh, you got that from Pinterest." Ha!
xo


I am linked up at 

Searching for Spring

Today, armed with a camera, magnifying glass and sunglasses, Me and the kiddos headed to the park in search of spring.

Addy and I had a nice little discussion earlier in the morning over Google images about seasons. We talked about some signs that would indicate spring was here.

Let's go find spring!

 We found it in little tiny white flowers sprinkled across the grass...

In pink daisies...

 In red and purple lilies...

 In sun-kissed periwinkle...

And fully opened tulips. (Mom loves bulb flowers! Who wants to visit Daffodil Hill with me?!)

We found spring in snowy blossoms--the dead of winter unable to keep new life from springing forth.

Spring is in freshly dressed willow trees wearing the bright greens of this season.

Spring is reflected on the canvas of water. I stand in awe of God because creating the world and breathing new life into it every spring simply wasn't creative enough for God, He also decided to leave paintings of beauty on the water's reflection. And we dub Claude Monet the Father of Impressionist Art??

 We discovered the culprit to the "rat-ta-tat" sound in the trees.

We were hoping to see some baby wildlife, but we still saw evidence that love is in the air.

 Spring is in the shimmering gold-haired little girl beside the glistening waters,

In wildflowers amongst the not-yet-awakened vineyards,

And in the the intoxicating aroma of mustard-flowered fields (ah-choo! Just kidding...).

Spring is the beautiful days that require the windows rolled down and I discover how natural it is to stretch out hands in worship to the Lord... to delight in each day... "This is the day that the Lord has made...

...I will rejoice...

...and be glad in it!"

 I will take off my socks and let my toes feel the sunshine...

I will take my Claritin and forget that it's allergy season, forget that I have a million things to do, forget that yesterday I kept getting frustrated and yelling at a child who refused to listen, forget that I got a grand total of 4 and a 1/2 hours of sleep because a baby's gums were swollen with moving teeth... I will rejoice in the day! I will be child-like and my hair will be wind-blown! I will discover new life and new days!

Happy Spring to you!
Do take a day off to enjoy it!
xo

Appropriate Worship

Have you ever had something that someone said just stick in your head. It replays over and over again. It lingers in the space of your mind waiting for the opportunity to be applied to your life. It's like your kid's jacket that you keep finding on the floor, and it just needs you to find it a hook to hang it on.

Last week, one of those things got spoken, and, after one week, I finally found the hook to stick it on.


Jesus shows up for the inappropriate.
                                               -My Pastor

I don't know if you are like me. I could be one of a few. I have a feeling I am one of many.

I care about what people think.

Deeply.

I know that there is a serious down side to this quality of mine, but I know that sometimes our greatest weakness is our greatness strength as well. I am attentive. I can sense others' discomfort. I like to think it makes me a good hostess--always aware of drink refills, who is not engaged and could use some introducing, and when to serve the next course. This "gift" has been useful and helps me be all about others. On the other hand though, it can inhibit me because I worry what people will think of me. My mind is constantly thinking through how what I am doing will be perceived. I feel like I am getting better everyday. I am becoming more okay with who I am. The more I like who I am, the less I require other people to like who I am.

Still...

I have found this issue popping up in worship and church and the way I respond to God.

There is a hunger and a desire inside this girl for God. I want to know Him. I want His touch. I even feel desperate. But something seems to stand in my way:

The fear of what others will think.

I want to be proper. I don't really care to be judged. I definitely don't want to be seem weird. I find myself conflicted as I try to operate inside some kind of set guidelines.

But...

The Bible is full of inappropriate people, people who were in the wrong place, at the wrong time, doing the wrong thing.

The woman with the issue of blood: She should not have been in that crowd of people. She was marked unclean. She shouldn't have touched anyone, least of all a teacher. But she was desperate. She knew Jesus was her answer. She knew if she could just touch Jesus's clothes her problem would cease. She would be healed, changed, better. Her desperation was greater than her desire to be "appropriate."

The woman who washed Jesus's feet: She should not have been at that dinner with religious leaders. She was a prostitute. She shouldn't have bought a gift from her pro money for the Son of God. But she was desperate. She wanted to express her love. She poured out her tears and her costly perfume on the feet of Jesus. She used her hair (a woman's mark of beauty especially at that time) to clean his feet (the dirtiest part of a person's body at that time. Think: heat, dirt and sandals...ew!). She was inappropriate. She was offensive (to the Pharisees). She knew that if she could just express her love for Jesus everything would be alright. He could heal her heart. Her desperation was greater than her desire to be "appropriate."

The short-statured, ruthless tax collector. He should not have been in a tree. He should not have been amongst people whom he had cheated. The people hated him. But he was desperate. Something in him said that if he could just see this man called Jesus, maybe something would change. Jesus should not have picked him out of the crowd. He should not have gone to his house. Zacchaeus was a lying cheater who had become rich on the backs of the already down and out. But Zacchaeus had a desire for something different... a desire to see if he too could be changed. His desperation was greater than his desire to be "appropriate."

The men who lowered their sick friend through a roof. They should not have cut a hole into someone else's roof. They should have waited in line... waited outside... waited for a different opportunity. They cut a hole into a roof! Of someone else's house! But their friend needed a touch from Jesus. They knew if they could just somehow get him to Jesus, he would be healed. They were desperate, and they used desperate measures. Jesus didn't condemn them for ruining the house. He healed their friend and saved him from his sins. The desperation of these men was greater than their need to be "appropriate."

These people were inappropriate. The stood outside of what was acceptable. But Jesus saw their hearts. He looked at them, and He saw the desperation of their need and the desperation of their desire to have that need met, and He went to them. He met their need. He forgave their sins.

Sometimes I feel inhibited by what's expected of me. It could be the first-born child in me, but sometimes I feel I live under this weight of expectation. I try so hard to get it all right. I worry what my behavior should look like when I am at church, and not really in a way that I always recognize. It's subtle. Sometimes it's really simple things like not going to the altar to pray because people on either side of me are already in prayer, and I would risk interrupting their God-moment (that would be rude, right? Isn't "thou shalt not interrupt the ones in deep prayer" somewhere in the Bible?). Or not wanting to kneel because even though God is dealing with me, I worry that I will draw attention to myself (That would be making a show, right? Aren't we supposed to not do that?). I worry I might offend someone who is a "non-believer" (Is that not the greatest offense of all? Shouldn't we be "seeker friendly?"). I know. I think way too much. I worry way too much. And you know, not only can worrying what other people think be unhealthy, not only is it a form of pride, it can also be a form of idolatry! It is setting the thoughts and opinions of man ABOVE God. It is setting religion and appearances as more important than what God is doing in the heart. It is limiting God. Ouch!

I was thinking on this, and it reminded me of a particular time in my life. I was a teenager. I was naive. I began a relationship with a super hot, super popular guy. Only problem, he already had a girlfriend. Oh, he led me to believe that we had this deep and great connection. I don't really care to go into the story because it's really not the point. I bring it up because I remember what it felt like when I would see this guy in halls and he'd wink at me... when no one else was looking. He'd call me or talk to me... when no one else was around. He'd take me to a party... that only the adherers to the sacred "bro-code" were at. What I thought was a great friendship that was leading to a great relationship, was a sham. I was the notorious "girl on the side." I was a thing best kept hidden. I wasn't worth being the real deal. It was painful, hurtful.

I think, perhaps, this is a glimpse of what God feels when we hold back out of fear of what others will think, when we hold back because of what the "church norm" is or out of fear of being "inappropriate." God doesn't want to be our "god on the side." He doesn't want to take the back seat to appearances or what is "the right thing to do." He wants to be claimed. Recognized. Pointed to and pointed out like in my relationship with my handsome prince for a husband who, in stark contrast to my secret high school affair, loves and cherishes me. He makes an effort to say in all kinds of different ways, "This right here is my woman. She is a priceless treasure. And I love her."

God honored the inappropriate not because they were inappropriate. He honored them because He saw their hearts. He saw their need. He saw their desperation. He was deeply moved by their willingness to look ridiculous just to get his attention. I think of the movie Ten Things I Hate About You when Heath Ledger's character plays the song, "I need you baby, and if it's quite alright, I need you baby for all the lonely nights..." over the loud speakers as he dances in the bleachers for the one he loves. It's ridiculous. But it's moving because he made himself so vulnerable.

God isn't looking for weird for weird's sake. He is looking for hearts that are fully towards Him. He is looking for actions that match the desperation of the need and the belief that He is the only Way, Truth and Life. He is looking for demonstrations that match a heart of love for Him. "This right here is my God. He is a priceless treasure. And I love Him."

God doesn't want to take a back seat to religion.

So what is the proper way to worship or express one's love of and need for God. I don't know. And I think that's the point. The Bible does talk about crying out, musical instruments, singing, raised hands and falling to one's knees... but I don't think a set of rules can be made for it. In following hard after Christ, there isn't really room for religion and rules. "It was for freedom that Christ set you free" (Gal 5:1). "Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom" (2 Cor 3:17).

The Way doesn't make sense to the wise, only to the foolish (1 Cor 1:20-21). It is offensive (Matt 10:34-37). The Way looks strange--not of this world (John 15:19).

Jesus was improper. He was judged. He was considered weird. He definitely operated outside of the religious guidelines that were in place. He offended many, but He came to save the world. He brought life and life abundant. He left behind his Spirit to guide us into truth and to allow us to operate in the same power that He walked in. Jesus even warned his disciples to not be surprised when the world thinks you are strange and when it hates you (John 15:18-20). And I can't be so naive as to think that "the world" doesn't live in the church, that Pharisee's aren't present in the church, and that I myself don't struggle with the same spirit that was on the religious leaders that Jesus spoke out against (Matt 23).

Ouch!

But oh God! How I long for you! How I long to see you move. How I long to see the needs of the desperate met by the power of God working through his people. How I long for miracles. How I long to worship you in spirit and in truth.

I am desperate. I am a housewife in need of my Savior. I am in desperate need of a touch from God... of the patience, perseverance, faith and love that comes from walking in the Spirit... following hard after God and His Ways. I long for freedom. I long to cut loose

I can't help but think of David in all this. I want to be like David when people scoff at my response to God. "Yes, and I will come even more undignified than this..." (2 Sam 6:22).

"Letting go of every mistake
Throwing off the chains of restraint
All that will remain
A passion for Your name
Running as we run this race"
                     -Hillsong United "Running"

Watch out world, this girl is throwing off the chains of restraint and running after Jesus. It might just get all undignified up in here. Haha!

DIY Repurposed Toy Storage Bench

Anyone ever feel as though their entire life has been reduced to cleaning up toys? Some days it feels as though that's all I do.  In an attempt to make life and toy clean-up duty a little easier, I decided to organize my home and start with the living/dining area first because that's where most of the living happens in our little piece of the world.

Honest moment: Having a designated place to put things is great, but I find just having a space that I like to be in motivates me to keep it clean and tidy. Decorating is Organization Motivation... ha!

I set out to find a piece of furniture that could serve as toy storage and a bench. I could use an extra seat in my house when I have company.

I have a VERY limited budget so I hit the thrift stores (with a bestie and without both kids... a winning combination for a productive and fun day). I found a piece of end table ugliness that was the right size for storage and the right height for sitting on. It was a mere $20

I forgot to take a good "before" picture. BUT I found a picture of my cute kiddos with the table in the background before I fixed it up.

Ugly end table is in the upper right corner of the picture. You like? Ha!

I really didn't need to sand it. I did scuff it up a little with a sanding pad. I used Zinzer 1 2 3 primer available at Home Depot. A good primer keeps there from being a need to sand. If you hate sanding, ask around for a good primer to use that will stick to any surface.

I painted the cabinet the color of one of the leaves in my curtain fabric.

My curtain fabric was the inspiration for the whole room. Not quite sure why but I love this print. It has such an organic, easy feel to it. It feels modern, but it's a little bit quirky. I love the colors in it too. I think it might be me in a curtain!

After painting the cabinet, I thought I'd try scuffing it up a bit to antique it. I wasn't too crazy with the way it was turning out, so I stopped. I didn't hate it enough to go back and paint over it though. (Can you tell I got tired of projects and just wanted it to be done?!)

I made a really translucent black/brown glaze that I put over the cabinet to make it looked aged. I used a negative application, meaning I put in on and then wiped it off. I had fun with it... letting it stay heavier in the cracks and on places I thought would be more worn. Glazing was easy and a lot of fun. (However, I seriously feel under-qualified to explain it well. I don't think I could do the entire process justice. Plus, a lot of it is just based on preferences. Don't let it scare you though! Anyone can do it with a couple youtube/blog tutorials under their belt...or as in my case a very well-informed, ex-faux finisher and cabinet glazer for a father-in-law. It essentially involves making a more "clear" paint so that the underneath will still come through.)

I also replaced the hardware.

It is really deep so it fits a lot of toys. Also, my daughter loves to pull out all the toys and use it for a fort/hide-and-seek space.

I made some pillows to make the bench look inviting. I happened to have all of this fabric on hand from past projects. The white pillow was made from an old shirt and scrap fabric. You can see more about it here. For the pillow behind it, I made my own pleating down the middle for some texture, added homemade piping on either side, and then used my curtain fabric for the rest.

 

For the cushion I purchased a piece of high-density foam. I measured it onto some left over denim fabric I had. 

My mom gave me her left over upholstery cording from a project she did a while back and I made the casing for it out of my curtain fabric. If you want to add a professional touch to a pillow or a cushion, upholstery cording is a really easy way to do this.

Cut cording the length of all your sides and add a couple inches just to be safe. (If you do it like my cushion you will need 2 sets... one for around the top and one for around the bottom.)

Cut a 1 1/2 inch strip of desired fabric. It will need to be as long as cording. (Doesn't have to be one continuous strip of fabric. It is really easy to add length.)

No need for pins for this. (SWEET!) Get out your zipper foot, fold fabric over casing (right side out), and position so your needle hits as close to cording as possible.

The trick to a tight casing is to feed the cased cording at an angle so that the cording touches the tip of the zipper foot and remains as snug against the entire foot as possible... this is achieved by feeding it at at angle. (My mom showed me this... and it changed my life. Okay maybe not my life, but it sure was helpful! Thanks Mommy!)

 To add length, simply fold over end of another strip of another piece of fabric.

Place it over where the fabric leaves off on cording and keep right on going.

Making all that upholstery cording was SUPER easy!

Add it by placing it around the perimeter of your fabric. It can just be sewed as you are sewing the top and bottom of your cushion to the sides (sorry I forgot to take pictures of the rest of the project.) Remember to feed it at an angle so that your seam ends up tight against cording, lest you have floppy cording. Also, I pinned everything together on the foam itself so I knew it would fit nice and snug. Making the cording was easy, but I fear adding it is not. It's not really complicated, it just requires some sewing muscles. I broke 3 needles and managed to sew my finger (ouch!). It is just a bit difficult to sew through a couple layers of fabric and get the cording to cooperate around the corners. Anyone with moderate sewing abilities can do this; it just takes a little determination and muscle.

Now that the bench, cushion and its pillows are done... I say that cording was totally worth it! It looks legit. I can't imagine it looking "finished" if I had used the denim by itself.

Anyone else feel like plopping down on that bench, knees pulled up, coffee in hand, and contemplating life? The bench looks so cozy next to the fireplace!

I am considering adding velcro to the cushion and bench so the cushion stays put but decided to live with it for a while to see if it's even necessary. I forgot to mention I just added a zipper to one side so the cushion case can be washed.

Cabinet: $20
Hardware: $7
Paint: $15 (I am adding my primer cost and glaze cost to large cabinet project cost, because that was what I originally bought the stuff for, leftovers were used for bench)
Foam for cushion: $16
Zippers for cushion and pillow: $4
Everything else I had on hand: Score!
Total: $62

Not bad for a cabinet that houses my kids toys, provides an extra seat in my living room, and adds style and warmth to my home.

Hope I inspired you to go conquer your house projects. You can do it!
xo

Quiet Revery in Pictures and Kids

I needed some pictures to stick in some wondrously gaudy (no that doesn't have to be an oxymoron. Sometimes gaudy can be wonderful. At least I think so...) frames I bought for the top of my new cabinet in my dining room. I wanted some sepia toned prints. So I took the kids to the park...

But there was kids playing at the park, so Addy was not at all interest in taking pictures when there were friends to be made. Jed, well, he just wouldn't cooperate.

Still determined, I took the kids to the back balcony of our apartment and decided to try taking some candid shots there. I tried shooting in manual. I have been trying it since my friend posted this tutorial on pinterest. I never really understood what ISO and shutter speed meant. This blog helped me. Thank you friend (also for your inspiration... you have been taking such gorgeous pictures!) and thank you blog! Still have so much to learn, but kind of fun learning all that my little digital camera is capable of doing.

I love looking at pictures that so encapsulate my kids personalities. They make me happy, no even deeper than that... they make me joyful. They remind me what a blessed momma I am.

They remind me what it's like to be child-like. The world is full and beautiful and unexplored. God gives good gifts.

Like Addy's smile. Like her daring little person that welcomes people with open arms.

The slightly serious little brother whose smiles must be won, but, oh, are they worth it!

 Good gifts like neck squeezes by little arms that can't quite make it around your shoulders.

 Like off-key, mis-worded singing by a three-year old: "Yeah, JesUS loves ME..."

Like scrunchy nose baby smiles that look as though joy cannot be contained in just the mouth's smile but must also be let out of one's nose.

Like dancing eyes that truly say what even an 8 month old is thinking.

This one ended up being my favorite. Doesn't it seem to need a "Hey Mom"caption? Something like "Hey mom. You know that quiet time of awesome revelry before God. Yeah, you should do that." Either that or "Hey Mom. See those boogers up there. Stop picking at them." ha ha!! Am I the only one that catches herself constantly picking at her kids cruddy faces and misplaced hairs much to their annoyance?!

Like the sound of quiet in the rare moment the kids are sleeping at the same time and I can pause and take God's beauty in.

Life is so good.

Why do I always forget to pause and reflect on God's goodness?

I need to do that.

Way more often!

By the way, I have been reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp. That book totally inspired this post's gratitude for beauty. It's a really REALLY good read.

xo

DIY Chic Shirt Pillow

I am not this amazing sewer. I enjoy it *sometimes.

But I like creating. I like looking at my home and saying "I made that." I like saving money. It makes me feel like the invaluable Proverbs 31 woman when the work of my own two hands adds to our home.

I wanted some pillows to warm up my space and tie everything together... but mostly just to "cute-ify" it. Pillows aren't all that practical, at least not when your couch all ready has a cushioned back, but oh, the cute girly-ness they can bring to a room. I NEED some pillows.

I got the idea for this pillow here. I saw her pillow made from an unworn shirt and thought, "That looks easy. I could so do that."

It was SO easy. And I SO did it. (In an hour... that includes the time it took to make the liner and the flowers)

I used to be a 5th/6th grade teacher at a school that required teachers to wear uniforms as well as the students, so I have an abundance of white button down shirts I will most likely never wear again. This particular shirt is white, extra-long, and subtly polka-dotted... a perfect combination to making a busty girl appear larger than she is.

Fat-shirt... it is time to destroy you! Mwah-ha-ha! 

This pillow was originally a red microfiber pillow from when I first got married and I was digging the reds and browns. My shirt fabric was too thin to hide the red so I found some white scrap fabric from some curtains and lampshade project I covered my pillow with it. I just sewed three sides together on the wrong side and then turned it right side out, stuffed my pillow in and sewed the pillow shut on the remaining side.

The last seam didn't turn out perfect... But will anyone notice it on my pillow when it done? No. So do I care? No.

I made my cuts on my shirt (mind you... only 2 cuts! Whoo-hoo for easy!)

I sewed the sides together (mind you...only 2 sides! Yep, this was REALLY EASY!)

The best part about using a button down shirt... The company who sewed the buttons and button holes on my shirt also made them for my pillow. I DIDN'T HAVE TO! Whoo-hoo! I can now take off the pillow cover to easily launder it. This is important when your pillow is white and your children are young (okay forget my kids, I make messes wherever I go!).

I added some flower embellishments. I just used some scrap felt cut into 1/2 inch strips and made them into jelly-roll type flowers and used a combination of thread and hot glue to keep them together. I free hand cut the leaves and then doubled-up my thread and stitched the vein down the middle. I used a combination of hot glue and hand-tacking to get it all to stay on the pillow case.

I love the pop of purple in my room with blues, greens and browns. I love the shabby chic-ness of the raised white polka dots. This pillow is cute, super easy, and makes me smile.

Alright, so there you have it. Super Easy DIY Pillow case. Cost: NOTHING. I had everything on hand.

So dig out your scraps, your out-dated pillows, and crucify some fat shirts!

All in the name of a warm and welcoming home, of course ;)
xo

"... As Yourself"

I am still alive!

I have been working on a bunch of projects for the last 2 weeks. I made 4 pillow covers, one bench cushion, finished my bench/toy storage, and completed my beautiful-enough-to-sit-in-my-dining-area-but-full-of-all-my-crafting-sewing-and-preschool-stuff-and-best-thing-I-have-done-since-birthing-my-kids cabinet (um, I have no idea what to call it. Cabinet all by itself just doesn't say enough... and after 5 weeks of hard work and a wrecked house, cabinet all by itself might just offend me. Ha! It's awesome!). I have also been studying 2 topics that I need God to speak to me about. I can't wait to share all this stuff with you!

Today, though... I just wanted to share a simple thought.

I had a rough week and a half. I think I shall share main reason why another time, but also because my husband's schooling is in full-swing and I am tired. Exhausted. I have gotten the hang of the routine, the ironing, the extra laundry from his extra uniforms, the rushed dinners during the week, the "I am really tired from the week and need easy dinners" during the weekend. In spite of the adjusting, I suppose some weeks are just simply going to be harder than others. This is a harder one.

Last night, I went to a women's Bible study. It was led by a pastor's wife of another church in town. I adore her. I got to work with her for a couple of years doing community vacation bible schools and I fell in love with her and her husband's passion for the church, for unity, and their "life of action." They don't just talk about it... they do it.

She had a fairly simple point that was simply something I really needed to hear. Christian has become a ugly word with negative connotations. It has become synonymous with the words hypocrite, bigot, and occasionally self-entitled jerk. I sometimes hesitate to call myself one. Not because I am ashamed of Christ. I will gladly claim Him... it's just all the people walking around pretending to follow Him that I don't want to claim. I could probably trail off here, but I shall attempt to stay on topic and share the simple point.

The Bible sums up what we are to do in 2 simple commandments: Love God. Love others as yourself.

As yourself.
Love others as yourself.

Perhaps it is, and as my friend pointed out last night, that many Christians simply don't love themselves enough. For how can you love others well, if you don't at all love yourself?

When you don't love yourself, your reaction to someone's good news looks more like jealousy than true rejoicing and your response to someone's talent looks more like competition than appreciation of diversity. We become the notorious middle-child in the family, acting out because we are completely unsure of our role in the family and our parents love for us.

As a reminder, God loves you. All of you! You are his creation. You are beautiful. You need to take care of you. You are worth it. You are worth the agonizing death of His son so you could know Him. You don't have to wonder if He loves you... HE DOES! You don't have to wonder if you have a reason for being on this planet... YOU DO!

Perhaps it sometimes takes great faith to see that you are beautiful and that God loves you. Perhaps it sometimes takes great faith to know that God could use a flawed person and to know that those flaws are perfect for what He has in mind.

Pray for an increase in faith. And dang it, woman, love yourself.

This world, your family, your husband, NEEDS you to!

Confidence is attractive, confidence draws people, a confident person can offer the best kind of love because a confident person isn't worried about being replaced. They can show the love of the Father to others--without holding back--because they know how much the Father loves them. They are secure in His Love.

Love others... AS YOURSELF

Start by loving yourself better.

That's my pep talk for the day. (If you need a little more pepping up on this matter, see this peptalk from a few months ago. I know I am the one that wrote it, but I totally pull it out every now and again because it totally boosts my confidence.) And after this demanding week, this girl is in need of some love. I think I shall do my make-up. Ha!

Picky Preschooler Approved: Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

I have a picky daughter. Some days I can stick healthy vegetables in a sandwich or on her plate and she'll just eat it. Most of the time, it is war to get her to eat "the good stuff." For both our sanities, I enforce a one bite rule. She must try one bite of everything no matter how green and strange looking it is. If she is unwilling, she gets a five minute time out on her bed, enforced immediately. I've only had to give her a time out twice. And since enforcing the one bite rule, I have discovered that there are foods she truly can't stand the taste of and foods that she would prefer not to eat (but will eat). I haven't quite figured out if it's a control thing, like she wants to decide what she will eat, or if it's a "I like the taste of processed food better so I don't feel like eating healthy." I am thinking it's a little of both. After seeing the results from the one-bite-rule, I know which vegetables are worth battling over and which ones will cause a serious fight because she seriously can't stand them.

Sometimes, one doesn't want to have to fight over food. Food fights are not fun.

Well, not like this anyway.

So, one night I decided to try hiding vegetables in Addy's food. I needed something that was mild in flavor, similar in color to what I was hiding it in... Macaroni and Cheese with Butternut Squash.

Addy loved it.

She even helped me make it, so there was no secret about the squash throughout the dish.

Butternut squash when pureed and spread through pasta looks a lot like yellow cheese. It has a mild, sweet and nutty flavor that doesn't take mac and cheese in a strange direction. I use chicken apple sausage to compliment it's sweetness (and tell Addy it's chicken or hot dog, whichever one happens to work on a given evening to get her to eat it). I keep the cheese and the butter as low as possible (well, I probably could have gone a little lower on the butter... I guess I could only sacrifice so much butter ha!)... I was not going for decadent comfort food in this recipe. It does taste warm and comforting, but not heavy. It's good enough to make it on our dinner menu 2 times a month in the winter. It has the makings for a sophisticated flavor profile, but it stops a little short so my daughter's 3-year-old palate will not find a reason to dislike it.

Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

 This recipe uses half of a butternut squash. I either save the other half for another meal later on in the week (wrap it up and it will totally keep for a few days in the fridge) or cook both halves and use all the extra pureed squash for baby food for my son. (Freeze in ice cube trays for easy storage).
Cutting this bad boy will require muscle and an good knife. Butternut squash is not the easiest thing to cut through. Scoop out the seeds and slimy stuff. Stick in a 400 degree oven for 30-40 minutes (until it is tender) or place on plate, cover with saran wrap, and microwave on high for about 6 minutes. Allow to cool (or at least its a good idea lest you burn yourself. Been there. Done that.)
(If you maintain a preschool-age-free or more sophisticated household, you could also cube and saute butternut squash, rather than puree it)
When squash is done, preheat oven to 350.

 When squash is almost done in oven or while squash is cooking in the oven, put on water for pasta on a burner and bring it to a boil. Slice 4 sausages lengthwise in fours and then cut into cubes. I usually use Aidell's chicken apple sausage. It wins my taste-test. I have also used mild Italian sausage (1 lb) and ground beef (1 lb). I like the chicken apple sausage the best, though the Italian sausage is a close second. Ground beef was bland but had potential with more seasonings added to it.

Chop 1 cup of onions. (chop more finely for the especially picky child. They are less likely to notice their presence). Spray a pan that's been heated on medium heat with canola oil. Throw onions and sausage into pan and saute. (Aidell's sausage is already cooked so if you are using this, your meat/onion mixture is done when the onion's tender and browned). 

Place 2 cups of pasta into boiling water. When grocery shopping, I pull out a couple different styles of pasta shapes that will work and let my daughter pick which ones she likes. If she feels like she picked it out, she is that much more likely to eat it. (Some shapes that work: small shells, elbow, ziti, cork screw, or we have even found ones that looked like flowers... can't remember the official name, but my girly-girl loved them.)
The key to cooking pasta that will go into the oven is AL DENTE. Over cook your pasta and you will assuredly have mush after it spends time in the oven. So, read the bag/box of pasta for al dente cook time, stand by that boiling pasta, turn on a timer... do whatever you have to do to not overcook it.

 Peel skin off of squash, cut it into chunks and place in food processor.

Puree.
(If you have a baby, take out a baby sized portion, add water until its baby food consistency and feed him fresh baby food. I love doing this. I realize it isn't much different than the jar and this really is almost effortless, but it still makes me feel like THE WOMAN. I like feeling that way.)

 Place 1/4 cup of melted butter, 1/4 cup of milk, pasta, meat mixture in casserole dish. Add a "ch-ch-ch" of nutmeg (a "ch-ch-ch" is a little more than a dash and can be described as the seasoning bottle, while open to the sprinkle setting, rising and falling 3 times and each time the cook makes the sound effect "ch"... Okay I know I am weird. If you don't speak in sound effect measurements go with a dash or 1/8 a tsp. I totally make sound effects while cooking.) Also add a 1/4 tsp of cracked pepper and 1/2 tsp of garlic powder. Add 1 cup of cheese (I usually end up with an assortment based on whatever is in my fridge... Monterrey Jack, Cheddar, Romano, American, Parmesean. I find it smart to make sure some kind of yellow cheese like cheddar or American ends up in your mix just for the simple fact that it will hide the yellow squash better as well as about a 1/4 cup of a saltier cheese like parmesean or romano. Last night, I used all five of the aforementioned cheeses simply because I had all of them in my fridge). Add in your butternut squash. Stir. Remember cheese will have a chance to completely melt in oven. Sprinkle top with a little cheese for prettiness sake.
Place in 350 oven for 15-20 minutes.

 This is deliciousness your preschooler or toddler can appreciate. (And will hopefully save you the food drama for one night anyways). I know my preschooler loves it. And so does mom and dad! Disclaimer: My daughter likes this. She's the only preschooler I've tested this on. And while she is definitely picky and definitely likes it, it is not a sure thing that your child will like it as well. Please do not blame me if your child refuses to eat this. I wish I could guarantee that a handful of nutritious recipes could solve dinner time drama for good, but, alas, as each child is different and prone to being fickle, I fear that is not the case.

1/2 lb of Italian sausage and 2 chicken apple sausages mac and cheese combo pictured above. A very delicious combo too.


Without pictures and wordy explanations:
Butternut Squash Macaroni and Cheese

1/2 butternut squash
2 cups of dry pasta (small shells or elbow)
1 cup of chopped onion
4 chicken apple sausages, cubed
1 cup of shredded cheese, plus a little extra for topping (Suggested: About 3/4 cup of American, cheddar, and/or jack and 1/4 cup of Parmesan or Romano)
1/4 cup of milk
1/4 cup (1/2 cube) of unsalted butter, melted
Dash of nutmeg
1/4 tsp of cracked pepper
1/2 tsp of garlic powder

1. Bake butternut squash in 400 degree oven until tender (30-40 minutes) or microwave for 6 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350
3. Saute onions and sausage in pan until onions are tender and just browned. 
4. Bring water to a boil in a large saucepan. Place dry pasta in water. Cook until al dente and drain.
5. Peel skin off of butternut squash and puree it in a food processor.
6. Place melted butter, milk, pasta, 1 cup of cheese, sausage/onion mixture, butternut squash, and seasonings into casserole dish and stir until ingredients are evenly distributed. Top with a cheese and place in oven for 15-20 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Serves 4 large adult portions or 2 adults and 1 preschooler dinner, plus enough leftovers for all 3 at lunch.

Handsome Your Name Is Jed: Just Some Little Updates

Some Updates:

I'll try* to let the pictures do most of the talking...

*I know, I am often wordy... and rarely let anything else talk for me... at least when writing. Ha!

 We spent last Sunday OUTSIDE. I love winter... well, warm California winters anyways. Jed is 7 1/2 months. He's sitting great, loves to play and bang toys together, loves to talk baby, can roll well, can do a full 360 degree rotation on his tummy, shows no interest in trying to crawl, LOVES to stand, often gives me silent stiff legged-refusals to sit, and is already trying to pull himself up... I worry I will have an early walker who may just skip the crawling.

This is Gertie. She's my parent's dog. I finally introduced her and Jed. She is perhaps one of the dumbest dogs ever. She has had surgery 2 times to remove rocks from her stomach...that SHE ATE. But... I cried and pleaded with my parents to pay for the surgery. And you know, they didn't really need any convincing. I love this dog. They love this dog. My kids love this dog. Gertie doesn't just tolerate my active 3 year old, she loves her back. She may be may not be the sharpest dog out there, but she's loyal, loving and playful. She's an irreplaceable part of our family. And at almost 6 years old, she still has just as much energy as Addy. That's saying a lot!

 Enjoying the Sunshine!

 Sister, I love you. I adore you. But you really are silly sometimes.

Handsome your name is JED! I just want to cover that serious face in kisses and zerbils. Especially on that crinkled forehead right next to that beautiful cowlick. I am so thankful that God decided to part his hair for me :)

 

Silly Girl is inventing new ways to drive a car. 

We found a Little Tikes slide at a thrift store for super cheap. Major win!

Happy Boy's new favorite spot in the house.

The current state my house is in... and has been in for 2 weeks. My excitement for this project has turned into... I AM SO READY TO GET THIS DONE ALREADY!

We love you THIS BIG!

Temple Tending

Mornings have been rough. Addy is waking up earlier than I like. Um, sweetheart, didn't you get the memo that mommy wakes up early so she can have time with just her and Jesus? Please go back to bed. (Ha! As if that works!) Jed is staying up too late and waking up in the night... still! I am tired and SO wanting prayer time... ALONE.

This morning did not go as planned. But that's okay. I determined in this heart of mine I WILL read my Bible and I WILL pray even if I have to go into my daughter's room to do it.

This morning, I read Haggai. I thought I would share a little bit of what God spoke to me.

First of all, it's important to note the history. The Jews had been taken into Babylonian exile for 70 years and then some were allowed to return to their homeland to rebuild the temple. The Jews were excited. They had God's favor. They began building the temple. Then, the people in the area surrounding Jerusalem did not like their presence, and they persecuted the Jews and their efforts. And after laying the foundation, spending 2 years laboring over the temple, the work stopped. The unfinished temple sat there for 16 years.

Then the word of the Lord was spoken through the prophets Haggai and Zechariah. What God says through Zechariah is AMAZING. It's got to be one of my favorite books of the Bible. But today, I read Haggai. 2 little chapters. And God spoke to me. I love when that happens.

God tells the people:  "Take a good, hard look at your life. Think it over. You have spent a lot of money, but you haven't much to show for it. You keep filling your plates, but you never get filled up. You keep drinking and drinking and drinking, but you're always thirsty. You put on layer after layer of clothes, but you can't get warm. And the people who work for you, what are they getting out of it? Not much— a leaky, rusted-out bucket, that's what" (1:5-6, The Message).

I think sometimes I feel that way. I work hard. I try to keep a clean house. I try to nurture my kids. I try to do fun activities with them. I try to keep this blog going. I try to keep my family fed. I try to carve out time for me and my husband, time as a family, and time for just me. I try to keep myself feeling pretty. I try to keep this house feeling warm and welcoming with my little projects. I try to record our memories in scrapbooks. I try to maintain friendships. I try to do what I can to love others. I try. I try. I toil. I toil. And sometimes it feels as though I get nothing done really. My efforts seem to get me nowhere. I clean the house only to have to turn around and reclean it. I work hard and realize I've neglected friendships and my children. Sometimes it seems like the harder I try, the less I accomplish.

Ever feel like that?

Here's what God says in Haggai: "'You look for much, but behold, it comes to little; when you bring it home, I blow it away. Why?' declares the Lord of Hosts, 'Because of my House which lies desolate, while each of you runs to his own house'" (1:9, NASB). In the Message: "Because while you've run around, caught up with taking care of your own houses, my Home is in ruins. That's why. Because of your stinginess."

It's a house matter. God saw that the people were tending to their own houses and completely neglecting His. They were content to leave the Temple half-built and a mockery to all who saw it, while they went about putting decorative finishes on their new homes.

I too worry about my home. I am in the midst of decorating and reorganizing, attempting to make this a cozier and easier place to live. I am bogged down in paint samples and faux finishes for a fabulous cabinet that will hold all of my preschool, sewing and scrap-booking stuff. I think that if I could somehow get it done, peace would come back to my home. But I have neglected the most important home...God's home.

When Jesus died on the cross, he rent the temple curtain. God's presence left the building. God's temple is now in the hearts of those who believe in Him (1 Corinthians 3:16). My heart is God's home.

I hate to just say it like this for all to read, but God isn't first.

My temple needs tending.

I toil. I work hard. I keep my family, my marriage, my friendships, my time, and my home before God. I think that somehow if I could just get all those things right, time with God would be easier.

Wrong!

If I could just spend time with God, all those other things would be right.

God first.

Principle of the axe again. Spend time with God getting sharp and you will cut through the many things you need to work at with great ease. You will accomplish much with little effort.

God first.

I don't know about anyone else. But I am tired. I am hungry. There is this ache deep inside me that longs for more of God in my life. I want to be undone. Filled up. And somehow I know that the rest will fall into place. We've been singing it at church. My pastor's wife blogged about it. It keeps going through my head.

Come away with me
Come away with me
It's never too late
It's not too late It's not too late


I have a plan for you
I have a plan for you
It's going to be wild
It's going to be great It's going to be full of Me


Open up your heart and let me in


(youtube link to song here)

He is jealous for my affections. He is jealous for your affections. He may be patient and gentle, but he is like the young lover who gets deeply hurt when he discovers his dear one has other lovers. He wants you. He has a plan that is wild, great and full of Him... just for You. He won't take any place but first place. So stop neglecting His House, His Temple... Your Spirit (wo)man.

God! I want You!

And Most Importantly, It's Caffeinated...

I am a bit of a "foo-foo" coffee drinker. Or maybe a coffee snob. Or maybe I am just picky.

I find instant coffee will not do. Folger's definitely won't. And anything out of the Mr. Coffee, um, pass.

It just doesn't taste good. And I want to start my day out with something that I enjoy.

I found Pioneers Woman's method of making iced coffee, and it has changed my life.

Truly.

Thank you PW! You have no idea how much some of your posts have changed my life. Berry-buttered, lemon-zested, egg-yolk only and half and half  french toast... all amazing revelations to how good french toast can be (my special occasion brunch go-to recipe) and one on the menu this week: crash hot potatoes, thanks to my friend Janet's recommendation. I can't wait to try em. Though PW I want to know how it is that your site is so full of drool-worthy deliciousness but you are so slender?! Do you eat your food?!

Okay, enough PW praises, back to the coffee: It's cold. It tastes good. I don't have to own an espresso machine or know how to operate fancy machinery. And most importantly, it's caffeinated.

That really is the most important part!

I found the Pioneer Woman's directions to be a bit overwhelming since I don't own large items that allow me to cook for an army (or a family with teenage boys, so not there yet) and cheesecloth is a huge pain in the rear end. So I made some improvisations to make it work for me and thought I would share because truly this has revolutionized my morning. I look forward to waking up, because it means I get to enjoy my coffee. Bible reading and prayer time you are mine because I want to wake up early, and this caffeinated beverage wakes me up enough to not mumble through my prayers.

It may sound silly, and I may be alone on this. But this coffee has changed my life.

I love you coffee!

Here's what I do:

1 cup of ground espresso beans...exact measurement not important. (The espresso is important! And if you are grinding them yourself, do grind them to a fine espresso ground quality.) I've used Cafe Bustello like PW recommends. It's cheap, and it's good. A friend blessed me with some Starbucks espresso beans...their Christmas blend. Thank you friend! That's what I am currently using. (I am going to be honest. I enjoy my Cafe Bustello just as much as my Starbucks ground. The Starbucks tastes slightly better and decidely fresher but not enough to persuade me to spend the extra money. I will say though, that beans are now my thing. I LOVE the smell of fresh ground coffee! Yum!)

Dump into a half gallon pitcher.

Fill with cold water (just the cold setting on your faucet will do.)

Stir to make all them coffee granules wet.

Set in fridge 8-10 hours (overnight)

Line a wire mesh strainer with thin, non-fuzzy, flat, cotton dishtowel. I fold mine over so it's doubled. (About the towel: I picked my dish towel up at the dollar store years ago. I love these towels. I never use these kind for dishes or hands. They are great for rolling dough out on or for covering a bowl with rising bread dough in it. They also make a great cheesecloth substitute. Espresso grounds don't sneak through it like I found with the cheesecloth and I don't have to cut anything up or wonder whether its worth the effort to reuse it. I just dump the espresso ground into trash and run water through it and throw it in the dirty towel bin. I launder it with my towels. Easy! But do know that it will stain your towel a lovely coffee-washed tan. And by the way, so you can benefit from my experiences, paper coffee filters take FOREVER for the liquid to get through and catch far too much of the silt that espresso ground leaves behind so you have to constantly change out the paper mid-pour because it stops letting liquid through. Also, the metal reusable filters do not catch enough of the silt so they are also not ideal.)

Put a funnel onto your coffee container. (Mine is less than a half gallon... that's okay. I just end up with a little extra left over. I move funnel to my cup and pour directly into my glass. Can't waste the stuff, right?!) Pour the delicious life-empowering liquid into the towel-lined strainer into the container.

Enjoy coffee! See below*

Clean up. (Notice this comes after enjoying the coffee. This is important. Clean up happens much more happily when caffeinated.)

This lasts me 10-14 days. A little bit of work one day for almost 2 weeks of delicious, inexpensive caffeinated beverage enjoyment. Definitely worth it! Also, my budget agrees with me now that I rarely drive thru 5bucks, er, uh, I mean, Starbucks anymore (not knocking the Bucks though. I love me a delicious coffee treat every now and again, I just can't afford it daily.)

*To enjoy my coffee... I place a mere 3 ice cubes into a 12 oz. glass. (Only 3 because I want some to keep it cold but I don't want to take up too much space in my glass. That space is precious and must be offered to the coffee liquid! Ha!). I put 3 pumps of chocolate syrup for coffee into my glass. I fill glass just past halfway with coffee. I then fill my glass to the top with milk. I stir and enjoy. (Equal parts coffee to milk ratio.) If you want to be low to no fat, use low fat or skim milk. If you are feeling naughty, use whole milk or half and half. The PW suggests condensed milk as well for the especially naughty.

By the way, about the chocolate for all my fellow die-hard mocha lovers: I buy mine at Smart and Final in the large coffee-shop size. I like it like this because 1. You get a pump. Easy to use. Easy to measure just the right amount every time. 2. It is SOOOO much cheaper. Like 4-6 times cheaper than buying a small bottle at grocery store. Only suggestion: store in the fridge unless you actually run a coffee shop. Mine lasts me about 2-3 months, like 30 times as long as it does at a coffee shop and definitely enough time for it to go bad if left out. (Chocolate syrup can mold... gross, right?!)

Other tasty suggestions: Try a heaping spoonful of brown sugar or raw sugar for my sweet-loving coffee friends. The molasses attached to the sugar granules make this WAY richer, fuller and carmelly tasting than just plain ol' granulated sugar. You could also use a flavored creamer (Not at all how I am able to enjoy this beverage, but, hey, to each their own).

Wishing you many great mornings!

Simplified Instructions:

Need:
1 cup of ground espresso beans.
2 half gallon pitchers
mesh strainer
Flat cotton cloth
funnel

1. Place about one cup of espresso grounds into half gallon pitcher. Fill with cold water to top. Stir to get all the grounds wet.
2. Place in fridge overnight or 8-10 hours.
3. Place funnel over empty half gallon pitcher. Line mesh strainer with cloth. Pour liquid into strainer and into pitcher.
4. Enjoy however you please :)

Week of Love: Friday's Love Poem

I slept in today! Till 9 am. It was glorious.

Forget love. Let's post an ode to sleep.

Ha. Just kidding.

But seriously, I think it deserves one. Sometimes I think sleep is seriously underrated. Sleep makes patience, self-control, LOVE so much easier. We may have a list of to-do's and a dream in our heart, but these bodies are human and DO need their sleep. Getting 6-8 hours in, or recognizing burn out and sleeping in accordingly when able does not make one lazy. I think it makes one smart. Seriously, I make way better decisions well-rested than when I am not. Kind of like the principle of the axe. You want to chop down trees? Don't get right into hacking them down. Take time to sharpen your axe and you will work more efficiently with less effort. Okay that's it. I think sometime housewives get a bad rep as though we sleep in all the time and really do nothing.

Um, yeah.

Right.

So now for the love poem. It's not exactly a poem. But it is the perfect picture of Love.

1 Corinthians 13

If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love.

   Love never gives up.
   Love cares more for others than for self.
   Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
   Love doesn't strut,
   Doesn't have a swelled head,
   Doesn't force itself on others,
   Isn't always "me first,"
   Doesn't fly off the handle,
   Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
   Doesn't revel when others grovel,
   Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
   Puts up with anything,
   Trusts God always,
   Always looks for the best,
   Never looks back,
   But keeps going to the end.
Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete. But when the Complete arrives, our incompletes will be canceled.

When I was an infant at my mother's breast, I gurgled and cooed like any infant. When I grew up, I left those infant ways for good.

We don't yet see things clearly. We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won't be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We'll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!

But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love. 

I love this! I especially love it in the Message translation. In a day, the list can be a mile long of important things to accomplish: dishes, laundry, job, project, breakfast, lunch, and dinner, grocery shopping, gift, meeting, dusting, teaching... As much pressure as I may feel to accomplish these, none of them are the IMPORTANT thing... the MAIN thing. "Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly."

I like that: Love extravagantly. 

Extravagant: Going beyond what is deserved or justifiable. Exceeding the bounds of reason. Of an extremely high price.

Think on that...
 

And now I must go and love my family. The dishes, snot-noses, diapers, and laundry are demanding my attention. But more important than that. My kids are. And in thinking of God's extravagant love for me; I think I may try to love my family with some extravagance today. And, hey, I got extra sleep, so it might just come a little easier today!

xo

Week of Love: Thursday's Love Poem

For Thursday I have a bit of a naughty poem. (But please be kind to me... I didn't get much sleep. I have sick babies. A lack of sleep for me means a few things: I could make no sense, I could be quite strange and find things extremely funny that the common sense of humor does not, and, finally, I make a lot of typos and my vocabulary is reduced to thingamabobs, whatchamacallits and youknowthatthings.)
 
To His Coy Mistress

Had we but world enough, and time,
This coyness, lady, were no crime.
We would sit down and think which way
To walk, and pass our long love's day;
Thou by the Indian Ganges' side
Shouldst rubies find; I by the tide
Of Humber would complain. I would
Love you ten years before the Flood;
And you should, if you please, refuse
Till the conversion of the Jews.
My vegetable love should grow
Vaster than empires, and more slow.
An hundred years should go to praise
Thine eyes, and on thy forehead gaze;
Two hundred to adore each breast,
But thirty thousand to the rest;
An age at least to every part,
And the last age should show your heart.
For, lady, you deserve this state,
Nor would I love at lower rate.

        But at my back I always hear
Time's winged chariot hurrying near;
And yonder all before us lie
Deserts of vast eternity.
Thy beauty shall no more be found,
Nor, in thy marble vault, shall sound
My echoing song; then worms shall try
That long preserv'd virginity,
And your quaint honour turn to dust,
And into ashes all my lust.
The grave's a fine and private place,
But none I think do there embrace.

        Now therefore, while the youthful hue
Sits on thy skin like morning dew,
And while thy willing soul transpires
At every pore with instant fires,
Now let us sport us while we may;
And now, like am'rous birds of prey,
Rather at once our time devour,
Than languish in his slow-chapp'd power.
Let us roll all our strength, and all
Our sweetness, up into one ball;
And tear our pleasures with rough strife
Thorough the iron gates of life.
Thus, though we cannot make our sun
Stand still, yet we will make him run.

                              -Andrew Marvell

This poem makes me laugh because it makes me think of just how easy to predict how a man's mind works. This poem is essentially one man's argument to get into a woman's pants... now rather than later. The argument starts out as a praise of her beauty and how much he would like to spend eternity just caught up in it, "A hundred years should go to praise Thine eyes, and on thy forehead gaze; Two hundred to adore each breast. But thirty thousand to the rest." Read the poem a little further and you find the reason for his adoration. He is trying to talk a woman into sleeping with him. Life is too short. Death sneaks up us and we grow old. Nothing lasts. And now the point of his love poem: let's make the most of time and and get to down to business. Carpe Diem. Seize the Day.

I laugh because men have not changed their tactics much in the almost 350 years since this poem was written. I also think that it reminds me how simple my husband is. I have rough days, clean up baby poo, wipe baby food off my clothes, try to convince a 3 year old to wear something that matches and isn't made out of tulle, and at the end of the day I feel as though I need a massage therapist, a facial, a bubble bath and a team of hairdressers and make-up up artists to feel even remotely attractive. But my husband, save but for very rare and stressful occassions, can look at me washing dishes or wiping snot and just like that want to seize a moment and enjoy... well... um... me.

hmm... Awkward conversation..
.
But do let your husband seize some moments. He really is that simple.

Hope that wasn't too weird. I did warn you about what tired does to me. Ha!