Howdy Howdy!

Stopped by my mother in law's last night and snapped some pretty pictures of her flowers.

Can you see the big fuzzy bumble bee? He looked kind of friendly and believe you me, I don't normally say that type of thing about bugs.

And then there was this plant, there were at least half a dozen sunflowers on one plant. Incredible! To think that God created these beauties for us. To say that He is awesome is an understatement. Try and remember that when you see something beautiful. God knows what your day will be like and where you are going. He knows where you have been and He can see the bright and beautiful future ahead of you. He wants you to succeed and live a happy, loved life.
If He can use the little bumble bees to make the world a prettier place, can you imagine what He can do with YOUR life?

Click over here for a little pinspiration! Like my new term?:)
Have a great day!

Ps- I see that there are several of you out there reading my blog! I can't tell you how happy that makes me! I hope that you stick with me and see what's to come.

Please take a moment and comment, let me know you're really out there!

Thanks again for readin! :)

My hubby, My best friend

Tonight, the hubs and I went for ice cream. We go to this little place in Mammoth Springs, AR. It's called the Spring Dipper because it's right off of the Spring River. My hubby, always looking for a laugh, calls it the Skinny Dipper. And if I say "Hey! Let's go to the Spring Dipper for some ice cream..." He says "Where? I don't know what you're talking about, never heard of it......" until I too say "Skinny Dipper". Does your husband do this ? Silly boys.

The terrible thing about the Spring Dipper is their ice cream is homemade, with love I may add. And all of it is totally FAT FREE! (Ok, I made that up!) So their ice cream is memorable, as in I think about it WAY more than I should.

I had really big hopes of taking pics of us while there, even brought the camera along. But it never made it out of the truck. And once we were in the ice cream shop, we were really distracted by a large family in there ordering ice cream. We are definitely people watchers. I can't help it, it runs deep in my blood. I come from a long line of people watchers. Anywho......they also make their own waffle cones, right there in front of you. Which brought me back to my days of slinging ice cream at Ben and Jerry's. What a job!

I sometimes think to myself that we never go on date nights or have planned things we go to, like a movie or out to a special dinner. But then tonight reminded me of how awesome it is to connect over little trips to get ice cream or just sitting around the house dreaming and talking or cooking together.

I'm really thankful that I have a hubby who is my best friend. He is my number one fan and supports everything I do. He encourages me and loves me no matter what. I would choose to spend a day with him over just about anyone else, unless of course Meg from whatever wanted to hang out and get coffee. It's ok, he would understand.

So since I lamed out on taking pics of the impromptu ice cream date, I'm going to share a pic from our honeymoon number two. (I will tell you that story some other time) The pic behind us was on the front of the cabin we stayed at in Eureka Springs, AR. A fabulous place! The sign says "Congrats Edward and Rachel"! How sweet :)

Happy Monday!

 

Dreaming

While at work or near a computer or even just at home doing the dishes we are usually listening to the Christian Radio Station  K Love.
During their broadcasts they often have people share inspiring stories. Yesterday in between songs a gentleman from the Dave Ramsey staff (which you can find  here) was sharing his story about finding a job he loved. He talked about how so often people are stuck in a job or situation that they don't really want to be in. He said that "Dreaming is an act of recovery." Sit back and let that soak in a little. "Dreaming is an act of Recovery".......
Think about what you loved doing as a kid. Did you like reading or dancing or cooking or making things with your hands? What made you stop loving that or doing that? Did someone tell you that you couldn't? Sadly a lot of times are families hold us back from doing things, even though they mean well. For example, the Dave Ramsey gentleman said he knew a girl that used to love to dance and wanted to pursue this for a living. When a parent got wind of this idea they told her that dancing wasn't a real job and there was no future in this. Heartbreaking, but this happens all the time. The parent wasn't trying to crush her dream, just setting her up for what was reality in their eyes.
He now writes for the Dave Ramsey team and absolutely loves his job. Then I think of my girl Gussy who quit her day job and sews for a living and is tickled pink about it, everyday.

It doesn't just have to be about your job, maybe you have a great job and love the people you work with, but you are looking for a hobby or something to bring joy into your life. Dig deep and remember what it is you love to do. Make it happen. Recovery those things that you once loved.
If you aren't doing something you truly love, everyday will lack meaning.
"For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance to do." Ephesians 2:10
God wants our hearts to be happy and he wants to fill our desires. If you have thought of opening up a small business, go for it! Taking that new Zumba class at the gym- you got it! Trying a new recipe. Joining a bible study with a group from church. Just do it! (Thanks Nike!)
Don't wait for the right moment or the ideal situation, just go for it. You can, God will help you with whatever it is. He has planned this for you from the start.

Have a great day!

Do You Worry Too?

I worry sometimes. I used to worry a LOT. But then it became ridiculous. I would worry about worrying and then some. It got to the point where I didn't feel right if I wasn't worrying, how crazy is that?
Do you think about how you're going to make it thru all the tasks of the day? How the dishes are going to get done, or how to get rid of the mouse under the sink (did I just say that?)? And how are you going to move on to new things when you feel like old stuff is holding you back?
Then I started doing something easier said than done- giving it ALL to God.

1st Peter 5:7: “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.” (NLT)

He is like the ultimate Father in every sense of the word. Even if you have never had a father or a good relationship with your father, you can still feel God's fatherly presence in your life. Right now.
He is BIG enough to give you the courage to get up and go. He can make you feel rested after a night of bad sleep. He can show you the way when your GPS is on the fritz. He can give you the words to say to that co-worker you don't quite get a long with. HE can do it ALL!
I recently started getting daily devotionals emailed to me from Proverbs 31 ministries. Do you know about this? It's awesome! It's a quick reminder of how we're all in this life together.

I also want to encourage you to pray at least daily. Start in the morning as a wake up conversation with God, talk to Him all thru the day. Give Him your concerns and thank Him for the blessings, even if they are small. Then at the end of the night close your prayer. It's like a daily conversation/email/text with a best friend. A best friend that has your best interest in mind 24/7. Sounding good?

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7, NLT)

I was inspired to share this message from yesterdays devotion at Proverbs 31 ministries. If you want to sign up you can do so here http://www.proverbs31.org/ .
 You won't be dissapointed. I promise.

Juicy

I picked several tomatoes from the garden tonight and added them to the already full bowl of tomatoes waiting to be eaten.
You see back in February when we ordered seeds and planned our garden, we were a little greedy. We planted enough tomatos to choke a horse. Maybe.
Because what else is there to think about in the cold months of winter but the delicious bounty that will be something come summer?
We nurtured these seeds in the kitchen, watered them regulary (ok sometimes I forgot!), then planted them in the new raised beds my hubby built for me.
And now, fast forward many months- I am eating the fruits of our labor, literally. A juicy tomato accompanied with salt and mayo on whole wheat. It was wonderful!
When I was little my grandma would eat tomatoes straight out of the garden like apples. It was her summer routine. At least that's how I remember it. I think I inherited my love of tomatos from her.

Isn't it incredible that God created all the food in the world for us? He named the fruits and veggies, he created the knowledge of taking care of them and therefore we can enjoy them today.
Thank you God for my tomatoes.

Blogs I LOVE

Do you read blogs? Some everyday?
There are days where I wish I could sit somewhere, with a never ending mug of coffee,possibly a piece or two of my husband's famous red velvet cake and read blogs. All. Day. And if somehow I could get paid to do so, even better.
Which blog I look at first varies, but there are a few that I look at everyday.

We will start with one of my favorites by Megan Duerksen-  http://megduerksen.typepad.com/


This blog is a never ending source of inspiration to me. She has a love for color and design and finds beauty in just about everything. She takes great pictures, loves coffee and has a dog named Waffle! I even read archived entries of this blog and laugh and laugh and laugh. Her sense of humor is fabulous!
Dear Meg- I heart you and wish we could share a piece of your rainbow cake and a big mug of coffee someday! And PS. I'm saving my pennies for the next craft weekend!

The next blog I go to is by Maggie Whitley at http://www.gussysews.com/. She rocks! I have written about her before, but I can't really tell you how much I love her blog. See previous posts to get the idea.

The next blog is a little different from the other two. It's by Jenna Woginrich at http://coldantlerfarm.blogspot.com/.

It's about a 20 something girl living in upstate New York who has a farm. By herself. Can you grasp that? I fell in love with her story when I purchased her book Made From Scratch on Amazon. I devoured it in about 2.5 days. Seriously. I couldn't put it down. She also loves coffee (notice a trend here?), bakes her own bread, sews, writes books, gardens, makes her own jam and the list goes on and on. There isn't much she can't do. And the most magnificent part of it all is that she took life by the handles and told it what she was going to accomplish. And she LOVES it!

If you don't read blogs, I urge you to do so. There is something for everyone in the blogging world. A passion a dream an inspiration. It's all there for the taking. There is a huge community out there of bloggers just waiting to be read. Something I really like doing is writing to the authors of the blogs I adore. They enjoy hearing that you like their blog and getting a word of encouragement.

If you need an idea of some more blogs to read, start with this list above and below. Have a great weekend!
http://www.incourage.me/
http://blog.lproof.org/
http://theinspiredroom.net/
http://thepleatedpoppy.com/blog/
http://thepioneerwoman.com/
http://www.lifemadelovely-blog.com/

A Is For Apron

That is the name of one of the sewing books I recently got. You see, I acquired a FREE used sewing machine. The kind that pops out of a desk.
In the desk that came with it were several patterns that will be great practice.
I don't know if I can sew, I have never done it before, but I'm hoping that this sewing machine will be a good outlet for me. A hobby to do during the week and maybe even make some extra income for my family.

If you are looking for inspiration about sewing or maybe want to buffer your skills, I reccomend youtube for how to videos and also a blog called http://www.gussysews.com/ . You will LOVE IT! Gussy's real name is Maggie and she has such a passion for sewing and creating. Her style is fresh and lovely. I'm hooked. The best part about Gussy though, is that she loves Jesus. She incorporates that in her everday life and especially her work. She isn't afraid to share inspiration and how she got to where she's going. She wants everyone to be successful at something the love. And that is awesome!
I don't know Gussy personally, but I sure hope to someday. The beautiful thing about the blog world is that people can connect. And on a deep level too because hearts and thoughts can be shared over emails or pictures.
My husband encouraged me to start a blog, and while it's just in the starter phase, I can't wait to see what's to come. Love you hunny bunny!