Recent Cards

I've been caught up in the undertow. The waves of everyday have swept me back out to the constant sea of DOING. Doing this, doing that. And every once in a while the thought "I miss blogging" slides through. :) I do.

But at least all that doing means I have things to tell of here.

Let's see...well..I've made cards (stop! I really truly have!). Here are two general ones:

{This one I made for my Dad. I have this memory of a night I stayed with him in New York City when I was young, and I thought this was too fun not to make.}

{This one I made for a Hope You Can Cling To challenge over at Splitcoast. My friend Cindy asked me to make a sample for her.

Side note: can I just tell ya I LOVE UNIT STAMPS.

..Ok, I'm better now.}

Also I've made a few Christmas cards. Here are two I've taken pictures of:

{The Car image is by Hero Arts.}

{This "Peas on Earth" stamp is one of my absolute favorite Christmas stamps out there. It's by Penny Black.}

I'm woefully behind in Christmas card making, but I get to play catch up this weekend at a family stamping retreat!

YESSSSS!

..Only 40-50 still to make. Don't judge.

:) I'll come back to update on my non-cardmaking front.

HUGS,

Write It On Your Heart

"Write it on your heart that every day is the best day of the year"

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Not yesterday. Not tomorrow! Claim His very best TODAY! Each day.

A mid-week hug!

Through His Eyes

I went to Chicago this past week.

It's about 3 hours away from me and my sister was there on a business trip, so I scooped my babies up and we went to the big city for a couple of days. I hadn't been to that big of a city since I was little.

When I came home, I found that it had left me a little breathless. Let me explain.

One day a few years ago I was listening to a song on the radio that talked about seeing people through God's eyes. It so inspired me, I prayed that God would help me to do just that. Since then, at random moments in my days, I take in the site of one of my children, a family member, or even a young man in a grocery store and get a little misty. I see the person, and look past their faults...He shows me how beautiful they are. Their hair: each color spun from His hands. Their eyes: sparkling depths He painted. Their face: each bone, each dimple, each wrinkle molded by Him. That one prayer has made my heart so full with love for humanity. When you see it..you can't help but LOVE. You can't stop yourself from helping them in some way..to give from yourself.

While driving through Chicago this week, I experienced rivers and OCEANS of people walking here and there...streaming to stores, work, restaurants, home...and everywhere that I drove it was this experience of seeing people through His eyes. Masses seen through His glorious details. Her curly red hair. His broad shoulders. The baby's glowing dark skin. {Yes, I saw the seemingly endless traffic too...but in between THAT :) He kept showing me these details.}

In the midst of being overwhelmed at the grand scale of masses this questioned struck me:

How could God possibly love everyone of these? And how could everyone of these believe it?

The answer lies in my testimony: Because I know He loves me. He's shown me that again and again. Though I'm a wretched person at times and though I hurt others and though I am thoughtless...He forgives, He heals, He is faithful in loving me. He renews me. Me. One little person. No greater than you. No greater than her. Or him. And mostly even lesser. You see, if He does it for ME...

He does it for ALL.

So.many.masterpieces.walking.about.

Right there, in the middle of another hour of traffic, I was mesmerized by his artwork and I had to praise Him. A small whisper, cause I was weepy and overcome. But I did.

Thank you, Father, for creating...for showing me your love for these beautiful people.

He amazes me.

Sometimes He shows me these things for me to do something for others (help physically, with an encouraging word, or with prayer). Sometimes it's so that I can look past the troubles they are throwing out into the world (especially when they are generated at me), so that I can act like He would.

Seeing others through Him changes how we treat others.

We gather others closer.

We make more friends.

We widen our nets to more acceptance.

We LOVE truly. It can't be stopped.

His love for humanity springs up in me.

I was supposed to buy myself something pretty while I was in Chicago (I have a dear dear husband who gave me those very instructions), but I couldn't. My mind wandered towards Tiffany Co...

"Something shiny in a blue box. My favorite shade of blue! Meant to be, I say."

But I couldn't bring myself to do it.

Lord, out of all of my trips..why are you showing me these people through your eyes so much? What are you leading me to? What do you want me to do?

My heart knew. I couldn't buy something that would be just for me...

I drove right past Tifffany's...and drove home to sponsor one of His littles, through World Vision.

This is Rose. Isn't she amazing? Do you see how perfectly her eyes are formed? Doesn't the shade of her skin just knock you out with it's beauty? Rose and I share a birthday and we both love reading. I can't wait to start writing her.

I encourage you to open your eyes a little wider to see His work in those around you. I promise you, it changes your world...

And then theirs.

Love,

Don't Give Up

Happy Tuesday, friends!

I delayed yesterday's post to celebrate the 4th with family. ;)

Did you get to celebrate the Red White and Blue?

This week I've been thinking about the mental shift God has brought me through this year. With any big change in life...our hearts and minds have to change too.

Oh sure, we can reject change and stay where we are, but it will only hurt us if we choose to keep our minds small to the big possibilities of God's strength in our lives.

When we start out we don't see a way out. We are covered in our own small thinking.

How could there be a way out of this? Am I even meant for more?

"..being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." -Philippians 1:6

When we finally take the leap to believe that He really does have a plan, we have to decide how committed to this we are. Are we going to give ourselves fully to his design for our future?

Does this God who knitted me together, really love me enough to take care of my every.detail?

"Casting all your care on him; for he cares for you" -1 Peter 5:7

It's remarkable, and beautiful, and...overwhelming..but it's the truth: God.loves.me. And He loves YOU. And if you give it all to Him to handle, He won't let you down. He is faithful in every circumstance. Cast all of your cares onto Him. If He's taking you somewhere He won't leave you for a second. He holds on TIGHT.

"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." -Deut. 31:6

Until one day you find that you've crossed over into that change and you are NEW once more. Your mind is new and your heart is fresh and your testimony has one more long chapter added in His FAITHFULNESS. You have to let it out and hope that it helps just one more to know that His changes are worth it.

The changes are for us to share..to comfort those we touch.

"Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loves is born of God, and knows God." -1 John 4:7

I don't know if any of you are facing some changes. I know that it's painful..and it's slow..and you can't see how it will turn out. I know the crying out, and the rawness of spirit. I know the one day slipping into the next and the fog of hopelessness. Then right there, in a blink, He shows you your worth, so that you can lift up your head and see His promise is here. Right in front of you!

Don't give up.

In Where I 'Splain Myself

Hello again, friends.

This is the blog post I've been putting off. The one where I account for all this time gone by.

The trouble with putting things off is that while you're busy putting, more time trickles by. More seconds tick tock away, the weather changes..

.. the seasons breeze in and roar right through. And there you are...with more time on that scale to account for.

I can't help but wonder in a little part of me if my time has been well spent.

Did I do something worthy of telling?

Ten months. Ten.whole.fat.months.

The last post I wrote in August of last year told you about this change we'd been handed (military to civilian

life..jobless and moving with family)

That was a change that forced growth. It pushed us right out of comfort and right into this place of in between. We were in an "in between" place for about 4 of our months, without a job..and in one room to live in..all 6 of us. We are very very thankful for that one room. That room saw our family through the roughest times we've been through.

This would be where I think of what almost happened..the things God spared us from..the homelessness or foodlessness or the ultimate side effects of my husbands medications (we were medically released)..the dark places that God shone through and walked us through.

His footsteps are sometimes not where we want them to go..they seem too big and empty, so we have to keep our eyes on where they are leading us.

He is faithful to lead us to our promises.

If you know my husband and I personally, you know that my husband is a One Thousand% do-it-yourselfer. His dream has always been to be a farmer and live in the country. Wouldn't that be fun? 9 or so years ago, I was not on board with this sort of thinking...I wanted to live in the city and live a life of "normalcy". One day it dawned on me just

how very different Michael and I were and I said a prayer that I'll never forget: "God, this man is not going to change..and the life I would have without him is not a life I want

at all..so God..CHANGE ME. Help me to like the outdoors. Help me to live next to him one long and beautiful life." Every year God changed me...little by little...decision by decision..my wants in life were remolded.

So last year, five total months of downpour finally brought us to a new job. A new job brought us to a new place to live. And the new place brought us animals...to which my husband is now head farmer. In the country I am a livin'!

"We enjoy warmth because we have been cold. We appreciate light because we have been in darkness. By the same token, we can experience joy because we have known sadness. " -David Weatherford

What have I created these past ten months, that is worthy of telling?

I've been building up little hearts.

Cooking up real and good nourishment.

Canceling out a voice that said I wasn't good enough.

Believing in this love of ours.

Dancing in the sunshine.

Embracing our home creamery.

Tending our flock.

Finding beauty in each sadness.

Knowing that in all of this, it's not me: He is enough.

He's been recreating this part of me that once was satisfied sitting by and dreaming..rebuilding some thinking and declaring me worthy of more.

And it's time to start fresh here with you, my dear 'ol blog.

I don't know that you'll be seeing a whole lot of paper or ink on here for a while. I know you'll be OK with this. I know you'll want to hear what I have to say..what more is fresh and gleaming with newness.. next Monday.

Hugs dearies!

P.S. Let's take note I entered not one smiley face in that post. kthanksbye

Change

Hi there!

I would like to first apologize that it's been a month since I've blogged. Sometimes life gets in the way...and often that's a good thing! :)

In the past couple of months my husband has separated from the Air Force, we've moved from Washington to Wisconsin, and we're living closer to family than we ever have before.

It's been a bumpy ride... I'm putting that nicely...but more than that it's been a time of holding on to God's hand as he walks us through some storms. What holds us together is God's promise that He will complete this work that He has begun. In Him we place our hope.

Anywho...I just wanted to leave a little note here to let you know what is up. I'm not sure when I will have some free time to make something beautiful, but believe it or not, when I started this blog..I started it to write for me. Not for flaunting cards and projects. :)

It's true! Ha!

I'll leave you with a pic of my hubby and 3 of my babies on his last day of military life.

"Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD."

-Psalm 31:24

Love,

Better Get Better!

Hi peeps!

It's Monday again!

I would like to take this moment to inform Saturday and Sunday that they can just slow down for cryin' out loud. There is NO NEED for them to just zip right on by me that way! It's just rude is all. Rude. Rude. Rude. Who's with me?!? :D

Anywho..

A sweet lady from my church just had carpal tunnel surgery this week, and I thought I should make her a get well. She's always so dear to us. *love* :)

Check it out:

This sweet little image is from My Favorite Things' "Pure Innocence" line: "Better Get Better".

Those little girl images are sweet-as-pie and way fun to color in.

Aaaaaaaaaaah! There is nothing like watercoloring in an image like this...makes you feel super artsy, and it's so relaxing.

I could watercolor ALL.DAY.LONG. *happy*

Wishing you health & sunshine,