Trust me!

It's no secret that I'm a planner...I plan a monthly menu so I know what we're having for dinner each night, I plan my grocery list, I usually plan what I'm wearing the night before, and I plan my weekend plans ahead of time.  But most importantly I plan when I'm going to pay each bill so that it gets paid each month.  Sometimes this comes down to a science....you know what I'm talking about??  It's like this...if pay this bill now will I have enough for the rest of the week?  Can I pay a few bills ahead of time so that it doesn't seem so "tight" the rest of the month?  Some months are better than others but why oh why does it seem like we can never have any left over?  I do plan *see I'm a planner* to eat out once a week which our family gets pizza (sometimes wings,) which allots for about $20 a week, but for the most part this is all we eat out.

Money is always tight the week that rent is due and this week is no different.  I had it all planned out. My car registration and inspection were due by the end of the month.  I paid for the registration on Friday and I was getting it inspected today.  I was doing good...I had everything planned out for the rest of the month.  All the bills were paid but my phone bill which is due on the 31st.  Then we got some snow, now I had 2 two-hour delays which means I had to pay my friend  for watching my kiddos both mornings.  Ok Lord, you know I had this all planned out.  Why does it always happen the weeks that you don't have extra money; things unexpectedly pop up??

Okay so I go in to get my car inspected and Jason was pretty sure it wasn't going to need anything.  I was praying that was so.  I go in and hand them my coupon...see I PLANNED ahead and had a coupon!!  They inspect my jeep and tell me it failed because I need a new tire.... a TIRE!  WHAT?!?!??!?  Where the heck is THAT money going to come from?  For real?  Can you put the full-size spare on and pass it then?  NOPE....no such luck, that one failed too.  ARE YOU KIDDING ME LORD!?!?!

I'm faithful to you, I'm frugal with my money (sometimes the hubs says too much) I only use credit cards for emergencies, I AM A PLANNER!!!!!

But then He gently reminds me that He is the ultimate planner and that He's got this.  He knew that my tire wasn't going to pass inspection and He PLANNED it that way.  GASP....WHAT?!?!  Yes, He planned it that way.

Sometimes we go through the motions of this crazy busy life just doing what we have to do to get by and forget to stop and say Thank You to Him for all we have.  I think He uses these situations to show us that He is ultimately in control and that we're not.  I needed to take a step back today and say Lord, okay, I'm giving this to you.  I need to put my planning aside and TRUST that He has it all figured out.  I was so busy planning everything for myself that I forgot to see what HE has planned for me.  After all He does tell us in Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."

Talk about a smack in the face....Hello!!! Could it be any more clear??  God doesn't want to harm me, not that I'm never going to get hurt, but He doesn't want that for me.  So here's to me giving my plans to God.  I'm still going to plan stuff, who am I kidding??  BUT I'm going to completely trust Him.  Thanks for the reminder Lord...I was getting a bit "off track"

Gettin my crafty on!

I decided that I need to be more crafty!  I love doing crafts, don't get me wrong, but I barely ever take the time to actually sit down and do them.  I've had stuff to make some things for Reagan's room for years....YEARS!! That's pretty pathetic...by the time I actually get around to finishing them it will be time to change her décor.  I have all these cute bedroom ideas pinned on Pinterest for her, but that's all the further I got. I mean For Pete's sake....how many kids' bedrooms really look like the ones on Pinterest??  I know my kids' rooms look more like a bio-hazard area or like a bomb went off than the picture perfect magazine room!  But I still want it to look nice even if it is for my own satisfaction.  So that being said, I made a wreath for Reagan's wall using burlap and fabric flowers.  I was really happy how it turned out and it was easy to make....once I actually sat down to do it. 


I had bought the things MONTHS ago to make this wreath and all in all it cost me less that $7 to make.  I bought a Styrofoam wreath form at Joanne's fabrics as well as 3 fat quarters of fabric.  If you don't know what fat quarters are they are about 1/4 yard of fabric that they sell for pretty cheap.  These are perfect for making fabric flowers and they were marked 50% off.....SCORE!!!!  I bought 3 coordinating colors and patterns of fabric.  I also needed burlap which I was able to buy at the Flower and Home Marketplace. I had to buy a yard and when I asked the guy if I could buy just a half yard (because I figured that was all that was needed) he said that since there was some writing/markings on the burlap he would give it to me half price since it was somewhat damaged!  So I got it for the price of 1/2 a yard which was like $1.99.  Now I was really happy...AND depending on what I use the leftover burlap for, it will add a touch of character to it!  I could have danced a happy jig right there in the aisle.  I hope I didn't sound too excited when I told him that I would take it. 

3 Fat Quarters

*Side note this is also the day I found the white sticks to stick in my flower pots outside for $1 a piece.  It was a great day!!*

Okay...back on topic....so I took the burlap and cut it into strips.  I did about an inch wide, but honestly I just cut and didn't measure at all.  Then I took my hot glue gun and glued one end of the burlap to the Styrofoam form.  I then started just wrapping the burlap around it.  I covered the white of the form, but there's no need to use more glue until the end of each strip because I wrapped it tight enough.  When I finished the strip I glued it on and then started with another piece until I had covered all around the wreath.  Simple, right?!?!?!  Then I took the fabric and cut that into strips.  Actually I cut a tiny slit in the fabric and then ripped it off....this frayed the fabric, but it adds to the look of the flowers.  For this I made the strips about 1/2 inch thick...here again no need to measure just cut!!  Okay....you still following??!?!?

Strips of burlap

Now comes the harder part....not hard, just harder that wrapping the burlap!  Tie a knot into the one end of the fabric and twist the fabric around to start making the flower.  Dab hot glue every so often to hold the flower in place.  This is something I found that comes easier the more you make.  And honestly they pretty much all look a little different and that's okay....there really is no right or wrong way to do this. If you want to make a bigger flower just add more fabric where the flower ends, until you get the size you want.  I made 10 flowers of different sizes. 3 of the green, 3 of the reddish/pink one and 4 of the pink.  Then I just glued them on the burlap where I wanted them.  You could use more or less flowers depending on what you want the wreath to look like.  That's what is so great about these wreaths...they can all look different depending on how you organize the flowers and how many you use.  I could have stopped at 3 and it still would have looked great!


Voila! That's it......there ya have it....now you're finished.....that wasn't so bad was it??  You can use any color burlap or ribbon to do this and any kind of fabric flowers....the possibilities are endless!!  Now make one, hang it up, stand back and enjoy your craftiness!!

Declutter!!

So....I was bit by the decluttering bug today!  It kind of came out of left field, but I'm glad it bit me.  See I like to have things organized...sometimes I refer to it as Anally Organized, however, with two kids and a hubs around I'm not as organized at home as I would like to be.  At work I'm super organized but at home its easier to get lazy and wait for "another day."  Well.....today was that day!!

Do you have a junk drawer??  Me too....we actually we have 2 possibly 3.  But lets talk about the 2 that are in my kitchen.  Why oh why does everything seem to accumulate there?  I even have a drawer organizer and it still was a disaster.  The kids use the pencils from this drawer for homework, the scissors are located in this drawer, extra envelopes, tape, paper clips, and pretty much all our desk supplies.  However, also found in this drawer were bobby pins, a tape measure, a socket, curtain rod finnials, pictures, junk mail and some bubbles.  Where does all this Crap come from??

Ahhhhhhhhh my clean drawer! 

I usually just shove stuff in this drawer when people are coming over.  It's in the corner of my kitchen and at the perfect spot to throw everything into...out of sight out of mind right?!??!  But when it gets to the point of having to shove papers down to close the drawer we have a problem.

This is how our lives can get if we don't stop to clean up our lives and decrapify all the junk. *Gasp* did I just say that??  Yes! We go through the motions day after day and barely stop to breathe sometimes.  We run from thing to thing and finally collapse into bed at night.  We've all got crap...I know that I would rather look past stuff than to get rid of it or face the junk.  Am I being a good friend?  Am I being a good wife and mother?  Am I being attentive to those around me?  Am I showing Christ to those around me? Or the other "stuff"...how am I going to pay all the bills this month? Why can't I just lose the weight?  Why does life have to be so hard??  And too much else to name.

When we give our lives to Christ he promises to share our burdens and take our load upon Him.  He promises to take all our junk and help to decrapify our lives.  He doesn't promise it will be easy but He does promise to be there along the way.  It might be hard to bring everything to the surface and it might cause pain, but it can also be so freeing to finally release all the Garbage we've been holding onto to Christ.

Starting out this new year is a good time to get rid of the clutter in your lives as well as the clutter in our homes.  I'm glad that I was able to clean out my drawers and organize them again.  In fact, I think its a great time to get rid of the junk I've been carrying around for way too long as well.

This girl!

Hope this finds ya'll staying warm...its a sunny gorgeous day outside. Too bad its only 18 degrees and supposed to feel like 7!!  I'm staying inside in my pajamas today...Course I'm sick with a stomach ache so that's easy to do!

Here are some views from around my house today.....enjoy!!  Never a dull moment here friends!

This girl came downstairs dressed to the nines!!  She loves her dress up clothes and dancing around my house!  She also has enough lotion on for everyone on this block to share!!  Gag!! When you're sick that is the worst smell ever!!  Course when Jason came home from the hardware store he said the same thing!! LOL....must not just be me!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 






She also loves Posing for pictures!!  5 minutes ago she was dancing, lost her balance in those shoes, and slammed into my Fireplace mantel behind her...knocking off half the stuff.  Should have named here Grace!!  Reagan, Go dance in your room!!
















Here's the hubs working on G's Pinewood Derby Car.
They are having father/son time in the basement!


 

How about you friends??  What are you up too on this blustery day??  I was able to do 2 loads of laundry, vacuum the entire house and pay some bills.  I have such exciting Saturdays!!!  We were going to have Life groups here tonight...but had to cancel since I'm sick....boo!!! Spring come quickly!!

Ask me One more Time!!

Soooooo we got Garrett these "I Survived" Books for Christmas...ever heard of them??  He came home from school talking about these books months ago and began asking me questions about Pearl Harbor!  What?!?! I have no idea how to answer these questions!!



Garrett  with his Collector's
Toolbox

So I began looking into these books and apparently they are historical fiction books for kids that are about boys that survived major events in history.   SUPER!  Since he was constantly talking about these books the Hubs and I decided to get him an "I Survived Collector's Toolbox."  It contained 10 books ranging in events from The San Francisco Earthquake in 1906 to the most current The 2011 Japanese Tsunami.  Let me tell you....I am learning more about these events than I ever thought.  At first Jason and I were unsure if we really wanted him learning about some of the tragedies that were happening in these books, but the more we looked at them we realized that they WERE history and did we really want to discourage him from reading books that were written for his age about these events??

OK.....I might have been sorry I asked!!  So this morning, Garrett is getting ready to get in the shower and he starts peppering me with questions about the Titanic!  Now I, like most of you have watched "Titanic" with Kate Winslet and Leonardo Dicaprio  (Okay, I might have watched it multiple times) but I'm not a history professor here: I don't know much about the Titanic!  I tried to answer his questions as best as I could, but I was floundering big time!  I told him that it hit an iceberg and that it sank!  Wow...score one for me...come on even he knew that much.  The ship was going too fast, it couldn't slow down...blah blah blah.  Whew....I dodged that bullet.

Of course though, when he came home from school, he had to read for 15 minutes.  Guess which book he continued reading??!!??  Here came the questions....I think I lost count how many times I told him to EAT at dinner because he kept asking questions.  For the Love.....seriously....what have we gotten ourselves into???  I even went as far as pulling up Youtube so he could watch videos about how the Titanic sank!  He was asking MORE questions the entire time we watched the 500 5 videos...just shut it and watch!! I really wish there was a movie about it that he could watch to learn more about it....but I am NOT going there....Jack might have been drawing Rose as "art";  he's only 8 for crying out loud.  So.....all that to say, if you know of any movies or videos appropriate for an 8 year old that would let him shut up about it learn more about the Titanic send them my way .

Looking forward to what questions I'm asked tomorrow about this book...or the other 8!! -8 he hasn't completed. I'm finished school a long time ago...why should I have to still learn about history?!?  Just kidding....I'm glad he is loving these books, but maybe next time I'll just stick to "Diary of a Wimpy Kid!"

Reading his book Today!

 

Winter Decorating

        The time has come to take down my Christmas decorations....I'm a little sad. Why, you ask?? Because now my house is empty.  But yet, I'm kinda happy with the less clutter.  I left my front porch decorated (for now).  Check out these cool branches I got a few weeks ago!  They were $1.00 a piece and I couldn't pass them up!  I'm loving the way they bring some "winter" to my front and back porch  arrangements.



Close up view of Lantern

On Saturday I made this treescape with a lantern I won at a white elephant gift exchange. Thanks Roseanne!!  I added some fake snow and some trees I had bought a few years ago from the Dollar Tree.  I thought it turned out really cute!  We'll see how long the "snow" lasts....says I can add water to refresh it. I'll keep ya posted.

 

I also left my favorite snowman up since its still winter. He makes his home on my mantle with some pip berries and a barn star.









I even left this tree up because I thought it looked cute for winter as well. 






So that's my house!  Even though Christmas decorations are done for this year I still leave some winter things up through January.

On another note my weather app said that it feels like 9 degrees outside.  Yippee.. *insert sarcasm here*...and 1-3 inches of snow  are predicted for tomorrow... 73 more days til Spring....can't come fast enough!
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Do I Ever Really Just LISTEN?!?!?

First Sunday of the new year! I was up and ready to go to church for Worship Team practice.  First Sunday of a fresh new start, you would think I was ready... 

Let me begin by saying that I was tired this morning.  Not necessarily physically tired like one would think by having to be at church by 7AM.  I was tired of the mouthing back, the not listening and the overall entitlement attitudes my kids were giving me.  These last 2 days have been torture.  Ugh...these kids NEED to go back to school.  I'm so glad that school starts back Tomorrow....PRAISE JESUS!

Ever feel like no matter what you are saying to your kids that nothing seems to be sinking in??  Yesterday, I was trying to put away all my Christmas decorations and my kids were just underfoot driving me nuts.  Why can't they just go play? They are 6 and 8 for crying out loud!! Plus we just had Christmas, go play with your new toys.  Everything was a struggle, they were fighting, they were bored, they wanted to watch TV...which by the way, they had already watched enough of.  I finally told them if they ask to watch TV again that its gone for the rest of the day.  Of course Garrett asked me again....really... do they not get it?  Now I was done...they were grounded from the TV for the rest of the day.  I looked at the clock, it was like 11:30 am. GREAT!   Now the sassiness began.  I cannot stand the way they feel so entitled...that's not how I thought we were raising them.  I was asked how come daddy gets to watch TV but they can't?  Their attitudes were awful and I'm sure I eventually sent them to their rooms because I couldn't stand them talking to me anymore.

So as I headed out to worship team this morning, I prayed for God to speak to me.   It was  rainy outside, cold and 6:45 am.  I'm not sure I had the best attitude as I went in but was willing to give it a shot.  We sang  One Thing Remains which talks about how Christ's love for us never fails and never gives up on us.  I love the line where is says "It overwhelms and satisfies my soul."  I want to feel Christ's love satisfying me everyday and in everything I do. That flowed into a new song  Never Once: at this point I completely lost it and felt like I was smacked upside the head.  The chorus goes "Never once did we ever walk alone. Never once did You leave us on our own.  You are faithful, God You are Faithful."

God has never left my side!!  Of course I knew that...BUT  how many times do I REALLY feel that way?!?!  His love never runs out on me, He is faithful no matter what happens AND He has never left me walking alone??  Whoa, talk about eye opening. 

Suddenly yesterday popped into my head.  What about MY attitude??  How many times do we just go through the motions of our crazy busy schedules just trying to make it til bedtime?  I know I've been there.  How many times do I really think about the fact that GOD is walking with us each step of the way and that He has never left my side??  How many times have I yelled at God or given Him a bad attitude because something wasn't "fair" or because the struggle was just too much??  I was no better at listening than my kids were! 

Pastor Joel spoke this morning about God's faithfulness and he said "When we see God's faithfulness in the past, it gives us courage and hope for the future."  Yes!!  I have seen His faithfulness time and time again.  He has been by my side every step of the way, so why do I still find it so  hard to listen to His voice and hear Him??   One of my 15 for 15 was that I wanted to listen for His voice in my life.  Meanwhile, I have been praying that God would show me a word that would be my "word of the year." All along I thought I knew what that word was going to be, but today hearing Listening over and over again I realized that "LISTEN" is my word.  Pastor Joel also said that "Every step in our spiritual transformation begins with listening."  So that being said....I am stepping out in courage and trusting in His faithfulness as I begin this journey of listening for His voice!

New Year's Resolutions!

Ok....so I'm really not great at keeping New Year's resolutions and I'll be the first to admit it.  I'm not sure why I can't stick to them, but as hard as I might try I just can't do it.  So this year I decided not to even try.  I guess that's a really crappy attitude to have, but why try if I know its not going to happen?!?!  Right?!?!?  So I might not be making a New Year's resolution, BUT there are some things that have been rolling around in my head the past few weeks. So instead I'm going to make a list of 15 things that I would like to DO in 2015 that are actually attainable or things that I am already planning on doing this year.

1. Continue Loving on People...anyone need some lovin'??
2. Dig more into His word and Listen for His voice...do I ever just listen?
3. Plan a Monthly Menu for dinner each month...this is something I already do, but sometimes struggle in the summer and over the holidays. 
4. Go on more Dates with my Hubby...Nuff said!
5. Be a better Wife and Mother....just leave me pee in peace and I'll be fine.
6. Be a better Friend...who's up for a coffee date??
7. Go away for the night/weekend for our Anniversary...has this EVER happened?
8. Go to the Beach with my family...summer can't come soon enough!
9. Get a new Couch!...ours is gross and old!
10. Paint the Downstairs bathroom...mustard yellow
11. Decorate more in the kids' bedrooms...does it really matter?!?!
12. Make more traditions with my family...love me some traditions
13. Be better at cleaning my house...anyone else sooo over the clutter?!?!
14. Not spend money on things I do not need...come on what's one more purse?!?!
15. Be more purposeful in my YES...what's one more thing added to my plate??

Alright folks, I will plan to come back at the end of the year and let you know how it went.  If you see me please feel free to ask me how my 15 for 15 is going!

How about YOU???  Did you make any New Year's Resolutions??  Have you thought about some things you would like to do in 2015??  Let me know....I'll be anxious to see what you come up with.

New Year New Adventure?!?!?

I've been thinking of doing a blog for awhile now.  However, not sure what I would blog about, I never took the leap and tried it. This morning as I was sitting here spending some time with God I felt him telling me to start this new adventure as we begin the New Year. I'm not exactly sure what I will blog about, but I can tell you it will probably be a little of everything!  Now lets get to the good stuff... 

For those who do not know me; I am married to an amazing man who is doing life with me while we raise two awesome kids. (AAAKK)  Actually we are the everyday family just trying to make it through this crazy chaotic thing we call life.   Singing is my PASSION....I have been singing since I was a little girl and am blessed to be able to help lead worship on Worship Team at our church.  (I'm the one who can't stand still and doesn't mind being the center of attention!)

 

I love being with people, but also enjoy spending time with MY people with quiet evenings at home!  (Who am I kidding I have 2 kids...REALLY!!!)  I also love to cook and try new recipes...so you will probably see some food ideas on here.  Crafting and decorating are something I can't get enough of and can never wait to change my décor when a new season/month starts.  Yes, I sometimes decorate monthly...my poor hubs, but at least he doesn't seem to care. Last, but most importantly, I love Jesus with all my heart and hope that people can see Him through me.  I pray this year He can use me in new ways, and it can be the best one yet.

 

Thanks for coming along on this adventure with me and hope to see ya'll soon!