Circle Paper Garland added to the Shop

I sold my first item in my ETSY shop last week.  Such a special story behind the banner.  It was a joy for me to make it for a family who is holding out HOPE in celebrating their soon to be one year old little boy!  He is 4 months in to his cancer treatment.  It was an honor and a joy for me to make this treasure.  Praying this family and little boy get years and years of use out of something that came from the shop.

Today I have added a few paper garland items to the shop.  You will find: white, black, natural, and lavender paper garland.  I hope to add a few more colors by the end of the week.  I would love for you to visit the shop and if you love the circle garland and can not find a color that works best for you....contact me.

{Click Here to Visit the Shop} 

Neutral

White

Black

Lavender

Paper Garland looks great strung across a mirror

Wrapped around a solid candle 

Hung along side of another garland on your mantel

Or stretched across open shelving

Compassion Blog Month {Week 3}

My 2 year old needs new shoes. He has outgrown his tennis shoes.  The weather is turning crisp, rapidly diminishing his summer shoe days.  My to do list includes taking him to buy 2 new pairs of shoes this week.

The Compassion writing assignment for this last week was to select 1 of 4 pictures given and write.  Write whatever is impressed upon your heart through one of the four pictures provided.

I selected this photo.....

It resonates with me because I have a child in need of new shoes.  It resonates with me because I have witnessed first hand shoes like these in several countries around the world.  It resonates with me because I sponsor a child in Kenya and often wonder about his shoes.  It resonates with me because of what God taught me 11 years ago.

I don't know if these are boy feet or girl feet.  It doesn't really matter.  What I do know is they need shoes that fit.  Shoes that have laces.  Shoes that have less wear.  Shoes that keep his/her soles separate from the soil on which they walk.

I wonder where these shoes have been.  I am sure they have seen sights my eyes will never see.  I am sure they have trampled through stench that is beyond wretched.  I wonder how many owner's have slipped their feet into these shoes.  I wonder if these shoes were a gift, a found treasure, a hand me down, or even stolen.

I wonder if the feet that inhabit these shoes are filled with light.  I wonder if light has come to the soul whose tiny feet inhabit these shoes.  I wonder if these are the shoes of our sponsor child.

Isaiah 52:7 "How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news of peace and salvation, the new that the God of Israel reigns".

I look at these shoes and think back over the nine years we have supported a child in Kenya through Compassion International.  I look at these shoes and think about my children and where their feet will take them.  I look at these shoes and I remember the following journal entry from my summer spent in South East Asia.....

"I am asking that as water fills the sea, that this land would be filled with an awareness of the Glory of Daddy (Habakkuk 2:14).  This week my feet have trampled many new roads, paved and unpaved alike.  I have stepped through dirt, water, mud, food, open sewer and much much more, but the thing that I have come to rejoice in is the fact that BEAUTIFUL are the feet that bring good news.  I encourage you to go beyond your boundaries this week.  Reach out into the wretched smelling places.  Allow the Father to take you down paths that are not comfortable and alleys that you never dreamed of.  I am confident that with each new street we venture down LIGHT is flooded even to the smallest places that are filled with darkness."

Even though our children's shoes may never look this worn.....we support a child who may wear shoes this worn.  Even though our children's shoes may never look this worn.....we desire they serve a world whose shoes may be this worn.

The child we support through Compassion International is just one way that we as a family serve a world much different from our own.  The child we support through Compassion International is just one way that we as a family shed LIGHT to the darkest corners of the world.

We pray that our children's feet would venture down streets and flood them with LIGHT.  We pray that our sponsored child's feet would venture down streets and flood them with LIGHT.  Their shoes may be very different but our prayers for them are the same.

You have an opportunity to support and pray for shoes that trample down roads you will probably never physically see in your lifetime.  Please visit the link below to find out more on how you can become involved with Compassion International and support a child whose shoes may look much different from yours.

http://www.compassion.com/sponsor_a_child/default.htm?referer=133453

And as always....if you have any questions.....shoot me an email.  I'd be more than happy to answer.



Compassion Blog Month Week 1 // What I would say to my childhood self
Compassion Blog Month Week 2 // Wrestle
  

::BOO Wreath:: ETSY SHOP

Several years ago I made a "BOO" wreath for Halloween.  I had it on this blog for a long time and then I reconstructed the blog and deleted the page.  But what I keep finding is that this wreath keeps getting "pinned" on Pinterest using my old page link.  It has been pinned over 265 times!  Crazy.  I don't have a Pinterest account but maybe I should.....

{Here is the Original "Boo" Wreath}

So this last weekend, I decided to recreate the "BOO" Wreath.  I had some time last week to shop for supplies with only 2 kiddos in tote!  So here is the finished project.  I really do love this wreath!  My friend Stefanie has encouraged me for many years to take a leap and put some of my stuff out there in a shop.....


SO.........
 

This particular "Boo" Wreath is now for sale, here. 

 It's such a cute addition to a "Happy Halloween Door"!

Wrestle

wres·tle

  "To struggle with a difficulty or problem. Take part in a fight, either as a sport or earnest, that involves grappling with one's opponent and trying to throw or force them to the ground."

We all wrestle with something(s).

We wrestle in the physical, the spiritual, and emotional realms.

We wrestle because we are unsettled.

No matter what continent's soil you sink your feet into.....

we all wrestle.  

We may wrestle different issues.

But we wrestle.

Nine years ago, my husband's spirit wrestled.

He came face to face with a sponsor packet through Compassion International.

Something wrestled within him as he held a picture in his hand that would lead to a life long friendship with John in Kenya.

God stirred his spirit for that 5 year old little boy a million miles away.

And 9 years later, God continues to wrestle our family's heart as we think about John, pray for John and learn more about the world where John lives.  We wrestle to teach our children about a world outside of their own.  A world that does not afford them all of the luxuries of the modern world.

A world where people wrestle with issues such as: water, food, illness, and death.

There are days that I wrestle personally as a mom.

I wrestle thoughts of insecurities and not being able to manage it all.

I wrestle with thoughts of my children's future and the world they are growing up in.

I think about John's mom a lot and I know she wrestles.

My heart is somehow settled when I take the time to remember her.

When I take the time to shift my focus off my "wrestle" and pray for her "wrestle".

My feet walk down the hard wood floors of my home.

Her feet walk on dirt floors.

My water comes out of a faucet: clean and cold.

Her water, she gathers and carries: not always clean and rarely ever cold.

My table often has food left over for many to eat.

At her table every morsel is devoured.

My hands open His Word each day begging Him to breath more of Himself into me as I wrestle with all that I have and yet a heart that at times is unsettled.

Her hands open His Word each day begging Him to breath more of Himself into her as she wrestles with all that she has and yet a heart that at times is unsettled. 

We've never met this little boy we support.

But we know him through his written word on paper for the last nine years.

We've never met his family.

But we can picture them through his description of them.

Our hearts wrestle as we long to meet.

To place a face with a name.

To embrace, through hug, a little boy who reminds us daily that the wrestle could always be greater.

Wrestle.

 God may our hearts be forever unsettled against poverty.

Wrestle.

 God may we teach our children about worlds whose wrestles are greater than their own.

Wrestle.

 God stir our hearts to the point of wrestle. Where each day we long for more of you.  Where we realize our shortcomings and beg for your blessing upon our lives.

"This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until down.  When the man saw that he couldn't win the match, he struck Jacob's hip and knocked it out of join at the socket.  Then the man said, "let me go, for it is dawn."  But Jacob panted, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."  "What is your name"? the man asked.

He replied, "Jacob."

"Your name will no longer be Jacob," the man told him.  "It is now Israel, because you have struggled with both God and men and have won."  "What is your name?" Jacob asked him.  "Why do you ask?" the man replied.  Then he blessed Jacob there.

Jacob named the place Peniel - "face of God" - for he said, "I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared."

Settle.

Settle our wrestle.....

Through the return of your Son!

To learn more about how you can sponsor a child through Compassion International please click on the link below.  In 9 years of sponsorship we have given $4,104.00 to support John in Kenya.  There is not a day that goes by that we think, wish we had that $4100.00 for ___________.  There is no price you can put on wrestling out something as great as child poverty.

http://www.compassion.com/sponsor_a_child/default.htm?referer=133453

Do me a favor......just click on the link.

And if you need more reason to believe visit Ann Voskamp's link below.

The numbers are staggering and the statistics are amazing

http://www.aholyexperience.com/2013/06/the-research-that-proves-you-can-change-the-world/

And always....

Questions?

Email me!

DIY Open Shelving

A few months ago we added some open shelving to a couple of areas in our home.  One being our office.  I needed an area in our office where I could store office supplies out of reach for little people.  I admire people who have placed open shelving in their kitchens.  I am not that brave.  I like to be able to stash "stuff" behind closed cabinet doors at any moment.

I braved open shelving in our office using these items:

Ikea Brackets
Home Depot primed 8ft boards {they cut them in half at the store}
Anchors {I chose the one that hold up to 70lbs...just incase a little person got any ideas}
1/2 inch or 3/4 inch screws to secure brackets to boards
Drill

Here is how the finished project turned out.  I really do love it!  Our little people have not attempted to climb them.  Purchasing the primed boards from Home Depot saved me time from painting each board. The total project for 3 shelves cost ~$50.00.  In my book....you can't beat that!

The Weekend Project {Kid's Clothing/Shoe Organization}

The last 2 weekends have left me cleaning out, organizing, and purchasing new clothes and shoes for my daughter.  Last weekend we took advantage of a great sale at Osh Kosh and got her some fun things.  I love Osh Kosh clothes.  They are durable and cute {for both boys and girls}.

We got her a few new kicks during Nordstrom's Shoe Sale.  I love Nordstrom,

too.  They always have free shipping on online purchases as well as orders placed in the store.  Nordstrom always impresses me with their organized and well laid out stores, their women's bathrooms {complete with a nursing mom area}, and the impeccable customer service.

Here are all of her shoes from the summer.  I was sad to put away the white sandals {we are after labor day now}.  I also cleared out a few sneakers that no longer fit since she surprised me with a whole size larger foot from the beginning of summer!  Most of her summer shoes came from some jackpots I scored at local garage sales.  Hoping to find some great deals this fall as well.

I covered the boxes her new shoes came in with fun paper and organized her bathroom drawer a little bit better.  The paper came from the dollar section at Target.   I love to reuse boxes.  See what I did for Valentine's Day last year with cereal boxes.

And finally, I cleaned out our hall closet.  I packed away all of the swimming pool gear.  And reorganized the door closet organizer.  It looks so clean and organized....I give it a week before it is back in shambles.  {One can dream}

Next up for clothes and shoes....#2.      

What I Would Say to My Childhood Self {Compassion Blog Month}

I am joining up with Compassion International for Blog Month.  The hope is to raise awareness of childhood poverty and for 3160 children to be sponsored through Compassion International.  You can click on the button on my side bar to learn more.

I will post more this month on the child we have sponsored for nine years, John in Kenya.  I have a dream that one day we will see him face to face and laugh and cry and rejoice!  I have a dream that one day we will go to his village as a family and meet his family.

This week Compassion has asked bloggers to write on the topic "What I Would Say to My Childhood Self". How appropriate that this would be the topic as I celebrate my 33rd birthday today.  I think a lot lately about my childhood, because I am in the thick of my children's childhood.

To my childhood self I would say......

It's okay that you are always youngest in your class, one day age won't matter.

Keep esteeming others as better than yourself and you will always be reminded of the grace that was lavished upon you.

It's okay that you are in the slowest reading group and your best friends are in the highest, 

you will one day love to read for pleasure.

One day you and your sister will no longer fight and she will become your best friend.

Let the boy go who broke your heart, God has better for you.

Keep saying "Yes" to Jesus, whatever He asks you to do.

Your mom and dad love you and they have sacrificed more for you than you know right now, but someday when you raise your own babies....you will know.

When you feel the nudging in your soul to do something good, DO IT!

If you think you can YOU CAN.

If you think you can't you can't.

There will always be someone better than you and there will always be someone worse than you,

so stop comparing yourself and get to work on you.

Be an initiator.

Be diligent in ALL THINGS.

Spend time with Jesus daily.

Work hard.

Pray for your Husband.

Pray for your children.

 Serve others.

Be proud of your country and the freedoms you have.

Never take your health for granted, remember the ONE who created you.

Start how you want to finish.

Be content with what God has given you.

REST.

DREAM. 

LOVE.

GIVE.

LIVE.

To learn more about Compassion International and how you can help click here.  I have personally been a Compassion Sponsor for 9 years.  I would love to answer any questions you may have.  Please email me {email address located on side bar}.

School Lunch and a Hair "Do"

It has been a super busy week around here.  We had a long holiday weekend and I feel like I can't recover.  Lots of fun things are happening this week in our home.  One being, our daughter started preschool!

She was so excited to jump out of the car and go to her new class.  But, when I picked her up I had to pry things out of her.... when I asked her how her day was she said "good".  "Good" that's it?  Yep!  That is all I got.  Well, that and "I want skittles".  Seriously?  Her teacher rewarded good behavior with skittles?  My sugar loving girl could not handle just one skittle.  I would much rather her teacher reward with stickers, a coloring page, being the line leader..... Hopefully this is just a "week one, at a new school" kinda thing.

I found myself at the kitchen counter this week preparing my baby girl's lunch.  It is the first lunch I have prepared for her and put in a lunch box that she did not eat with me.  Usually when I pack her lunch it is for the park.  Weird for me to think about her eating lunch outside of our home without me.

I took a trip down memory lane, as I cut out a star shaped turkey and cheese sandwich and I remembered my dad.  My dad standing at the kitchen counter every morning before school making my and my sister's lunches.  Yep!  He had an assembly line going.  That man could whip out some lunches in no time.  I am thankful for my dad and for the way that he stepped in to make lunches and ease some of the load off of my mom. I was blessed and I am blessed with a dad who took/takes an active role in my life, even if sometimes the sandwich had a little too much mustard for my liking.

I then remembered my mom waking up to "do" my hair and my sister's hair before we walked out the door.  Why did she not make lunches?  Oh, she had been up several times during the night nursing a baby.  Or stayed up way late doing "mom  things".  I never understood this until I had my own children......You work all day, sun up to sun down.  You get them into bed and then there are all of the things that you were supposed to get done during the day that are staring you in the face.  All you want to do is sit down and chill but you know you need to knock out at least one thing, or it will be staring you in the face again tomorrow.  And then you crash into your bed, with lights on and when the baby wakes at midnight to eat....you wonder: how long have I been asleep, who turned out the lights, who covered me up and you are thankful for that sweet man laying in the bed next to you who fills in the gaps when you can not go one step further!

What I witnessed in my parents was teamwork.  They didn't parent alone.  They worked together for us.  I am truly thankful for the example that was set before me.  I'm so thankful for those lunches and hair "do's" that got my sister and me off to a great start.  And I am so thankful for a husband who fills in the gaps that I miss with our children.  A man who parents with me.  I am blessed beyond measure by his service to our family.  He loves us well!