God Bless America

The Fourth of July brings to mind, for the hundredth time, how grateful I am for all of our service men and women but most especially for my husband. I have watched him selflessly sacrifice and serve our country for the past sixteen years. He is just one of the ways I think that God blessed America. 

To turn the "Color Me Happy" Stripes into a patriotic theme, I used my craft knife to cut off the red, white and blue striped section, and then flipped it over. A bit of the "Cashmere Dame" crepe and some doilies added the look of bunting. Of course, being a Navy Chief, I had to add the "Uncharted Waters" anchor stamp as a finishing touch.

Supplies:
Glitz Designs "Color Me Happy" papers: Stripe, Heart
Glitz Designs "Cashmere Dame" Paper Garland
Glitz Designs "Uncharted Waters" Rubber Stamps
Glitz Designs "Vintage Blue" trim
Glitz Designs "Cashmere Dame" washi tape - chevron
Glitz Designs "Cashmere Dame" Crepe Trim
Glitz Designs "Color Me Happy" Teeny Alpha - white
other: doilies, wood veneer stars (Studio Calico), chipboard alphabet (Basic Grey)

here today - gone tomorrow

"Fairy tales are more than true; not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten." — G.K. Chesterton

I've been missing for the past few weeks on my blog, filling it with the wild ride of the past few weeks. Stan was gone for about a month on Navy "business". He arrived home just in time to celebrate Easter, confirmation and First Holy Communion together as a family. What a blessing!

After just a week at home, it was time to say goodbye again. Saturday we sent Stan off for another deployment. Goodbyes don't quite get easier, just different, and God gives us the strength to take up our cross daily and follow Him.  So we press on.

Thank you for your prayers.

living in the silver lining

life throws you curve balls, sometimes at a breakneck pace. there are times when it feels like all you can do is keep your head above water, and still others where you might be sitting on the water's edge. and we don't always get to choose which one we're in at the moment. one thing i do get to choose is where we stay, at least in my own heart and head. i choose to live in hope and in faith and in love. they are the true silver linings of this crazy thing called life.

one of my favorite verses when it comes to trials is exodus 14:13-14

Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The [enemy] you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still

here's one for living in the silver lining of life... love. precious, childlike love.

and one in the memory of those Americans who lost their lives on September 11, 2001

and one for the serene moments of reflection in my own secret gardens of life.

and one for my precious children, who make my life exponentially more full and wonderful with every moment i am blessed to have with them.

and one for a hobby that reminds me everyday just how much i have to be thankful for. check out the full layout & kit over at my paper treehouse.

and enjoy a day living in the silver lining.

and now back to daily life...

still catching up on posting my 365 pics, we got home from vacation and merged right back into daily summer life here at home.

when we got home from vacation, i was looking around for inspiration and was inspired by a picture this site: flora bella this is my take on that inspiration.

 

before

after

my little torrey, heading soon into the 5th grade, decided to get a haircut to accompany her last year in elementary school. (i'm still not exactly sure how all of this time went by so quickly! why wasn't i listening more closely when people told me that???) i'm pretty sure this haircut grew her up a few years in a few minutes!

another shot of the cute new do. :)

one of my favorite things in the world is making my cute husband laugh, that and watching him topple over in a good belly laugh. it's one of the million and one reasons i love him so.

stan started giving emma some drum lessons the other day after weeks of constant tapping on the counter. it's so fun to watch those drum skills used as daddy/daughter bonding moments.

this summer the girls moved up to "big girl" bikes... i.e. bikes that are the same size as mom's bike. they've gotten so LONG this summer. their legs and arms and bodies are just stretching out like crazy! i remember them trying these bikes out last year, and they couldn't even touch the ground.

loved this little note emma left for her "sweat and loveing" dad the other morning by the coffee pot, so he'd find it when he woke up. :)

we also got a visit from stan's parents this summer. it's pretty obvious how much the girls adore their grandpappy. :)

i wish i had a little more reserve to write, but i'm a little emotionally tapped right now. so that's as good as it's gonna get today!

reveling in life's little blessings & walking by faith

{so thankful}

it's memorial day, and my thoughts of course, wander toward my husband who is overseas (but getting quite close to coming home). but more than that, memorial day is about all of those who made the ultimate sacrifice for this great country. those that didn't come home. i've been spending countless hours this week going through the pictures of military homecomings over at pioneer woman. the images are powerful, heart breaking and so much more. it has renewed my perspective and thankfulness for our previous five homecomings, and the one coming up in less than two weeks... they were the homecomings where we got to hug and hold stan at the end. not the kind where we were handed a flag by a graveside.

i am so so thankful for the men and women who give so much, and are willing to give everything for this great country. and today i'm praying especially for the families who have lost the ones they've loved along the way. may God fill your heart today.

God bless our troops & God bless America!

homecoming 2006

homecoming 2008

homecoming 2008

walking a moment in daddy's shoes

time seems to fly by at a snail-pace as we creep through the home stretch of deployment number six. how is it that on one hand, with the girls, time seems to vanishes at the speed of light, while the same time passing in view of a deployment seems to be at a stand still? time is funny like that.

when i was thinking the other day of all the things that have changed since stan's been gone... one of the things that's hit me has been the girls' understanding of the gravity of daddy's work. not just what he does, but some of the dangers that go hand in hand with his job. we've talked about the dads that don't make it home... and pray for the safety of all the fine men and women overseas. it's all a part of the growing up process. with age you understand more, feel more, experience more and see the world with a new set of eyes every day. new eyes that are ever more grateful for the daily sacrifices that make daily life possible, and eyes that have the grace to see them as blessings... daily.

this was a little snapshot from stan's last homecoming in 2008. pioneer women issued a challenge to post homecoming moments. i shared this one, which she shared here. the moments are touching, beautiful, painful, sad and gracious all at the same time. a special thank you to all who have given so much, to those who have given all and to those who have loved them.

{a little sneak peek}

i've just started working on a design team for a new kit club called my paper treehouse. and with stan getting closer to being home i'm shockingly ahead of schedule on my projects! so i figured i'd post a little sneak peek at the layouts for the club. take a peek at the fun going on & get a piece of the action here.

while my sister was on a little trip visiting my brother in colorado last weekend, i kept watch over my sweet nephew on sunday. aaron is on the autism spectrum. he is precious. he is amazing. he is sometimes a handful. he was perfect on sunday, and the girls had a fun time with him. he recently spent some time at a feeding clinic in california which was a huge success! he's gone from eating three foods in the entire world, to adding and actually eating new foods every couple of days. we stopped at a farmers market on sunday and picked up a few apples. it was so cool to watch aaron eat a whole apple (i.e. not sliced). for a typical kid, this really wouldn't be a milestone moment, but for aaron's journey... it was amazing to watch. way to go little buddy! there's a little more on aaron's recent journey here.

thanks for letting me share my little slice of life. it helps to keep my eyes focused on all that is truly important in the grand scheme of things!

don't forget to post your comments on the stella & dot post HERE for a chance to win that beautiful necklace!

something to look forward to

six months and eight days into deployment, and the end of deployment number six is in sight. with homecoming just a few weeks away i should be working like a crazy person to get ready. now don't get me wrong, we're preparing... we've started making signs, pulled out the zillions of flags, purchased dresses and shoes... you know, the important stuff. lol. but oh the cleaning... i'm procrastinating on that! sometimes it feels so overwhelming just to think of all that i'd like to get done, yet i manage to piddle away my time on other little things... and the cleaning gets pushed aside for another day.

now, i am married to the most amazing man on the planet, and i know he would be happy to come home without squeaky cleanliness around every corner... but then, expectation is never the reason i want to get every last little detail in place for his homecomings. it's partly that he's worked so hard, and served so well, i want home to shout how much all that he does means to us. and then there's stan's little o.c.d. side... as soon as he gets home he sees all of the little things to catch up on, and for those first few days, i just want to make home feel like a retreat... away from the zillion things you have to do. and then... there is this, it just makes him happy. my wonderful husband knows cleaning is not my strong point, (believe me, we've had many a laughs over this weakness.) and he appreciates every little thing that i (or several of my VERY gracious friends) can manage to get done. it makes him happy. that's reason enough for sure. 

so here's to hoping for excess motivation over the next couple of weeks to think of the hundreds of tiny details that will make my handsome man smile inside. not because i have to, but because i want to. even if i don't want to till the last minute! :)

beside the homecoming prep, i've been thinking about all of the things that have changed since stan left... all the things that he hasn't seen or been a part of. i guess it's just one of those trying to put myself in his shoes type of deals. the girls have grown a ton, and changed in the little ways that one never notices when they are around every day. our church moved into their new building. they're almost done building an amazing park down the road. friends have had new little ones added to their families. i partially redecorated our room. i'm sure there are a thousand other little things, i've forgotten all about. 

to all the men and women of the military that bravely leave their homes behind to watch out for the welfare of others, and especially for my dear husband: i only understand a little piece of the sacrifice you make... but i am forever grateful for you. thank you, and God bless you!