NJHS

The other night we went to the very first induction at Alyssa's school for the
National Junior Honor Society!

We feel so blessed and honored to be a part of this new program at her school and are so VERY proud of Alyssa for such achievements! Way to go Alyssa!!!

I've been scrapping away busily but I cannot show any of that stuff right now! Stuff for American Crafts blog, stuff for the blog crawl.. Loads of stuff! Be on the lookout for that soon!

On to other things...
We have finished the hallway and even did our laundry room too! That means that every room in the house is painted and we couldn't be more happier! You never realize how stark your white walls are until you start painting, that's for sure! We moved things around as well and made things look new! We're aren't sure yet how we'll decorate the laundry room, but its so much nicer and cheerier in there!

I stumbled on this quote the other day and really like it:

“Remember success is a journey, not a destination.”
–Ben Sweetland

We're on count down and we're at 18 days!!! So very excited. It is a hottest topic in our house!
We have our FL residency tickets. Got our airport Disney ticket thingys, and we've got our complimentary maps ready to go! We're even watching the weather and so far it's not looking so hot!! LOL. But.. That isn't going to stop us from going! And just this AM we each got new sneakers! Cause you know how I am about traveling and having to have new sneakers. Man those things are expensive! At least A's were on sale!!!

Grateful this week for:

1. Alyssa hugs.
2. God not ever never leaving me.
3. Tears.
4. Memories of those that we truly love.
5. Creativity.
6. My lasagna because honestly it rocks!
7. Words of encouragement from friends.
8. Our Disney tickets coming in the mail, along with our maps, and airline luggage tickets! We are hardly believe we are actually going! This has been years in the planning!
9. Being able to see. I am thankful for my sight.
10. Taking photographs.

Happy weekend everyone!

Just some things.

Hello dear sweet friends..
Does that have a nice ring to it?

Today is a new day! One filled with the promises of the Lord!

Just a few things I wanted to share.

The house is finally finished and looks beautifully! Our next big endeavor is wood flooring in the den and the hallway. Luckily there are places like Lowe's and Home Depot to do those things for you! We have already picked out the flooring. It's called Hawthorne Hickory. Doesn't that sound yummy! That won't happen until May sometime though. Disney and then Alyssa's braces! But it's fun to look forward to that!

Dayv's deployment. He didn't go this past winter so that meant he was going this summer right? We were ready for it, as ready as one can be and wrapping our heads around it even though the end of April was a ways off. He came home this week and told me he has good news and bad news, which is always how he's done it. Gave me the bad news first which wasn't really because we just prayed about it. Then the good news. There was word that he wasn't going to deploy this summer. I just stood there.. Part of me wanting to jump for joy, but part of me knowing the military and how it works. So I smiled and told him that would be awesome! Then I set to praying and of course I might just share with you that I felt all along he wasn't going to go at all, anymore. He text me yesterday with the official word. He isn't deploying this summer! A huge round of praises and happiness in our house!!

Please if you would pray for Alyssa. There are some things going on at school that need prayers over. There are a group of not so nice girls and although Alyssa is handling it beautifully, we just would like prayers for the other girls and for the entire situation along with Alyssa continuing to stand up to the mess with firm feet. Thanks for that!

I just wanted to share this video. We really like Britt Nicole in our house!

I was touched.

On Sunday we decided to go to the later service so that we could run some errands prior to church.
I was so glad that we did, the service rocked. Well it had me sobbing. On top of the great music, the even better sermon I was sitting down praying. I noticed this thing at my feet.
I moved my feet around to try to get it away when I realized it might just be a feather.
And sure enough it was. I picked up the tiny feather, turned to Dayv and didn't have to say a word. He took the feather and showed Alyssa and by this time I was gut-wrenching sobbing.
I mean gut-wrenching. I couldn't hold it in. I was so blessed to of seen that feather and completely and utterly feel my mom. You know the story about that right?
I prayed when my mom finally left this earth to of always been shown some presence of her. Now there are differing views on this one, but I am not God and in the end He is sovereign. That is what I prayed and He has answered it ten-fold. My mom has shown herself with these feathers since her passing. I see them in the most oddest of places where feathers aren't normally for any reason.
Oh.. I should tell you if you don't know. My mom had these feather pillows she always loved them. The feathers were all over our house and I remembered being annoyed by them. But she told me that they were angels kisses and suddenly they weren't so annoying. I found comfort in it. And when she passed away, along with my prayer each of us have found feathers in places, like I said. I find it so comforting. It lets me know there is a piece of my mom still there and present, to me anyway.
So they are playing a beautiful song, and here I am gut-wrenching sobbing. I mean seriously it is hard to be quiet with that kind of cry. There was such a mix of emotions flowing through me. I needed my mom near. I still very much miss her deeply. But today I needed to know she loved me. Through all of the junk that I have endured in my lifetime and growing up, I needed that today. And there was this feather. My mom may have felt a certain way about me, couldn't relate to me, or even begin to understand me but I choose to believe even though she said some very hurtful things to me, that she loved me. Dayv leaned over in that moment and said "you see, your mom does love you." And at that I lost it all over again. But I felt comforted. Loved. Like even though she didn't express that well to me and we butt heads a lot, in my mom's own way she loved me. And today I felt her and that love.
I think I was emotional as well because we are doing so much in our home. It is such a blessing and I do not take it for granted. The size, the location, the anything in our home. This house was blessed by the Lord. But as I was painting the other day I got very sad thinking my mom never got to see it. Heck we didn't even know we were going to be buying a home much less building it! That is how the Lord works though. Things aligned up, and here we are almost a year later. There are times where I wished she could see it. I know that she would be proud of Dayv and I and where we've come from. I know that she'd love to splurge and buy us things for the house and want to be a part of the changes we are making too. And it saddened me that she wasn't here.

I don't often talk of her much anymore on my blog. But it doesn't mean I don't think of her. I still reach for the phone to call her about stuff and want to share. And honestly I am completely thankful of the small ways in which the Lord sees fit to show me that my mom is waiting... I love my mom so very much. I cannot say I was always the best daughter to her, but I truly loved her and I still miss her very much.

I am thankful of the way in which she always is near especially when I need her the most.

On a side note this morning...
I wanted to talk about this woman as well as my mom.

This is Mrs. Peters. She is my mom's best friend. They have been friends for over 30 years.
And today she is loosing her battle here on this earth. I am so very saddened for Mrs. Peters and for her family. Even though I know Mrs. Peters loved Jesus and is going to be with him and my mom, the hurt, pain, and tears are all too real. So today I am praying for Mr. Peters, Billy and Sydney, Curtis, Tracie and their children. I am so very sorry and deeply it is with a heavy heart I will be praying.
Mrs. Peters thank you for being a very special person in my family's life. You were always like a second mom and your gentle, graceful spirit will be a reminder for me in my days of life. I will miss you.

You're invited!!!!

You're cordially invited!!!!

That's right, you read that right! All 3 companies are having a HUGE blog crawl!!

WHO?
Bella Blvd.
JilliBean Soup
Nikki Sivils

WHERE?
The Company Blogs + Design Team member blogs

WHEN?
Friday, March 5th - Sunday, March 7th, 2010
All winners announced Monday, March 8th

WHY?
It’s going to be a blast! These companies are standing together to support one another through this fun!! Also it includes a ton of free giveaways!

HOW!

Well, on March 5th you'll come to Nikki's blog and you'll see a gift that Jillibean Soup is giving away, along with a handmade gift from Nikki and a list of the design team girls that will be giving handmade gifts away using Nikki's products, you'll leave a comment at each blog & then move on through the list. Then you'll head over to Bella Blvd and see the gift that Nikki Sivils, Scrapbooker will be giving away over there, along with a list of Bella Blvd's design team ladies and you'll do the same thing. Next you'll head over to Jillibean Soup and see the gift that Bella Blvd is giving away, along with all of Jillibean Soups DT gals, leave a comment then go to the next. There are over 50 handmade gifts and product giveaways!! Don't panic because you'll have the entire weekend of March 5th to visit all the blogs and leave a comment for a gift... it's an entire weekend of blogging and giveaways!

I am giving away a prize from both Nikki Sivils and Bella Blvd!!! So don't forget to leave a comment here on my blog too and I'll pick a winner!

Join us for a ton of fun!!!! It's going to be a blast! Hope to see you hoppin' through it all!

Transformation

I am grateful...

1. For being so organized.
2. That our friends are going to house sit for us while we're at Disney so we don't have to stick the dogs in a kennel and have them be tortured {not cause they treat them badly but because Jake can't handle the change.}
3. Praying for friends who are going through so much. I am able to do that for them because I don't know what else to do. But I know the Lord will hear them.
4. Alyssa being inducted into the very first NJHS at her school! Way to go A!
5. How our bible study spoke to D&I this week.
6. For the gorgeous day we had on Friday, it was so nice out!
7. Friends who make my day by calling me!
8. The long talk we had with A's attitude and how she is working hard to change it.
9. How funny Alyssa is!
10. Chapstick.

Okay here are some photos of the new transformation!
It was decent enough light if I opened up the front door!
These photos make the room seem smaller to me, its a rather large room.
But you get the idea.
And I did take down almost 10 signs! LOL. Even though there are still some on the walls,
I did purge!

As you can see here we haven't gone down the hallway with color yet. We
were pretty much over painting for a bit!

We really like the contrast up in our alcove a lot!

The curtains are growing on me more and more daily. Dayv and Alyssa love the curtains so
we're going to keep them for now. Can you see a peek of the chair! I LOVE this chair so much!

Its rather darker into our kitchen area, so the lighting wasn't that great but I wanted to show that area too! We painted in there the same colors!

I know this is grainy but I wanted to show you the pillows we made!
Well there you have it! :) We like it and feel like it is really cozy now!

Just a few other things:

* I need a haircut really badly. I had to cancel mine to take A to the orthodontics. I go in March to cut and color right before our trip!
* We are now 25 days away from going to the happiest place on earth!
* Lady Grey is my all time favorite tea, I finally found it decaffeinated!
* Dogs riding in vehicles make me smile!
* I hate coffee, you know that... But.. Starbucks is coming out with a new drink and I had it the other day right? It's yummy!!!! It's dark cherry/mocha. Tastes just like a chocolate covered cherry, it is THAT good! Comes out March 9th!

American Crafts loveliness!

I know I say it a lot, but I
love American Crafts!!

They are my all time favorite company and they have always been!
I know you guys know I'm on the team, but I just wanted to share how much
that truly means to me!
It isn't the free products, although that's totally cool.
And it isn't that my name is among some pretty talented woman, cause that's cool too!
It's simply the company.
Yep. It's that simple and easy.
The company is classy. They do things well and do them right. They make a great product and keep making great stuff too! They are organized which is
number 1 in my book and they treat me like I am a part of something SO wonderful and great!
And I'm not pimpin' them here, I am just stating facts about how great this company really is!

I got a box in the mail the other day, it was HUGE! And it was 3 new lines that they have just come out with. With all the goodies that go with them! I just smiled when I got the box, tore it open and started to look through everything over and over again. Layouts and projects raced through my mind as I looked through everything.. I couldn't wait to create! I thought about taking a photo of it all, but I was too anxious to start playing! And I did! I made 3 layouts that one night even though our house was a wreck, my desk was not dry, and I had to work from the dining table! It didn't matter. That box was exactly what I needed to create something other than using a paint brush!

Although none of those layouts I can show you right now, but they make me smile.
The entire company does each and every time I see their papers, interact with someone on the team, or go to their site. I just love American Crafts!

I can show you something I created for this month though! I used the new *I Heart You* collection and let me just tell you, I was over the moon at this collection because they manage to sneak in some yellow with all those lovely pinks and reds!!! My three favorite colors! I LOVED working with this line a lot!

This altered paint can was actually a birthday present for a gal I know in my Monday bible study. She is a fellow card marker {and a great one too!} and as soon as I started making it I knew I had to give this to her! The coolest part about it is that, even though it's for her birthday she was re-use it!

What I mean by that is that I created all of these Valentine's cards for her to use to give to others! There are 10 in all and each are different from one another!

And so I thought what a cool birthday gift because not only does she create cards like me, but her birthday is in February!!! I thought that was pretty crafty! LOL.

She got it last Monday and LOVED it!! I got the nicest email from her telling me so and it warmed my heart!

You know how much I love Dayv right? I cannot say it enough... I create this layout in mind because of how much I truly do love him! He is such a wonderful man!

And there you have it! American Crafts are my favorite!!!! Note the pink ribbon! It's a lovely ribbon, I like it a lot!

Who's your favorite company? Share with me why you like them so much!!!

Card-a-holic!

Bet ya never thought I'd say that huh?
Well that's what it felt like the end of last month when I was a creating card making fool!
I created all of these for Treasured Scrapbooking using their February main kit and the January card kit!





Aren't they all fun? The bigger pink ribbon wasn't in the kit though I got that at Michael's and had to use it!!!

What a great day of rest for us yesterday! We did nothing. Stayed in our pj's, watched the old series of Robin Hood {my mom's DVD, so cheesy its cool kinda thing}, hung out together, and just was. It was nice and a nice way to relax and take time off from decorating the house.

Today I went to Polka dotted pottery with a friend! It was so much fun! I made us some new coasters {since ours are cheesy 70's cork board one's} and Nicole made an egg plate with chicks on it, totally cute! Then we went to Olive Garden and had soup, salad, and bread sticks! What a fun day today was!

Now it's back to reality tomorrow! Hope your week is great, joyful, and smooth goin' too!

Consumed.

Okay...

Today's mission.. Finding curtains. Who the heck would of thought finding them would be stressful, frustrating, and irritating all in one sitting? We went to every store we thought and then some to find the perfect color, style, and options. Nothing. That's right.. While our day was fun being together, looking for the perfect curtains were not. Finally at the end of the afternoon we headed to Joann's to find fabric to make them ourselves. We walked and walked the isles. We found tons of fabric we both liked, but none that would go in our newly painted and decorated LR. So finally Dayv asks for help, bless him! The woman was very nice and gave us some suggestions and options too. So we spent more time searching. By this time, I've got a massive headache, I needed some water, and was starving. Dayv then says to me, lets buy dye. Let's dye our current curtains and we'll see how they look. If they look horrible then we can always come back and find fabric. It sounded like a wonderful and smart plan! So that's what we did... We also bought some other fabric to make a few more pillows and headed home. {Debbie I know we both said we needed new curtains but it wasn't happening!}. They are dyed and hung and are the best option we've had since we started out today! Pillows are done. Room is completed. The end result? We love it! So it made up for the search that was a pain!

Next up?

Painting the hallway, the laundry room, a few things in our bathroom, and cleaning out a couple of closets. Then for a while I am done with the whole house beautification! It's been a journey and adventure to say the least!!!

I've learned a few things...

-It doesn't matter if I was patient or not, I wouldn't of found any curtains I liked.
-They say buying neutral furniture is key so that then you can bring in color. Not doing it the other way around, like me. Although I don't regret it, next time we'll do just that because it makes decorating a lot easier!
-There is such a thing as too many patterns.
-You have to go with what you like, even if others don't like it.
-Change is hard, but good.
-Buying prints/paintings for your home is hard. Especially when you've had old signs for years on your walls.
-Don't always think you'll get the best deals online. Cause you might walk into a store and it is actually cheaper there.
-Don't put polyurethane on your desk after you've painted it. It is sticky and won't get un-sticky.
-My 101 list doesn't have to be completed in a day or a month. That's why its called 101 in 1001 days. I am not a failure because I didn't complete some things or haven't since starting the list.

I did manage to play around last weekend, I just finally took photos of them!! Here is some of the projects I did using the new Willow Bee line by Nikki Sivils.


This is a fun line to play with!!! Hopefully I can get into my space soon {after the paint dries on my desk} and play a little bit more!!!

Grateful list:

1. The honesty shared in our home group.
2. Working together as a unit in my family and making things happen.
3. New furniture, pillows, walls, a total room!
4. A new friend!
5. Memories of my mom.
6. Texting.
7. My health.
8. Peacefulness.
9. Praying to God.
10. That I don't have to have it all together because I am not perfect.

The rest of the weekend {we all have off Monday} is spent being. Just being together. After church, we're just going to come home and relax! I hope that you relax too!

New friends and color!

I met a new friend today!

Don't we look fab!!! This is Debbie and she's a fabulous decorator and now new friend!
So instantly we dug right into all of her color swatches.
Let me tell ya that woman knows color! I kept trying to match
up the one color we both really liked and it was WAY off, but she
knew what she was doing and gently guided me elsewhere! LOL.
We finally after about an hour or two found the two colors for our LR walls!
Summerdale Gold and Hawthorne Yellow by Benjamin Moore! D&I
bought the paint last night! We are going to get busy this weekend
and be painting up a storm since there is A LOT to paint!!

I just wanted to say thank you Debbie for your help and direction! I truly
feel like you were such a huge help along with knowing that I have a wonderful
friend in you!!! It was fun hanging out with you, and I pray that the Lord will allow many more opportunities for that soon!

Alyssa had a dental appointment yesterday after school. They confirmed
what we already knew, a trip to orthodontics. That was today.
Alyssa of course was VERY excited at the possibility of braces!
D&I? The cost....
We had our appointment today in probably one of the happiest places
on earth aside from Disney!! LOL. Everyone was SO friendly and nice.
They took a lot of photos of A's mouth. The dentist came in and sure enough,
she is needing braces! But first we have to pull 3 baby teeth that are being
really stubborn and won't move which is causing overcrowding in her mouth.
Then in May we will start the 18 month process and journey of braces!
Boy it sure has changed since D&I were younger {neither of us had braces but
we had friends that had them} and it seems a lot nicer now.
Alyssa is over the moon and I am sure right now telling all of her friends that
she's getting braces! I for one, and surprised at how much crowding she actually
has in her mouth. But the biggest thing for me {and yes its vain} is her eye tooth
that isn't moving or going anywhere. I really don't like that tooth at all and it
didn't seem to be doing much except hanging there. Well the pictures showed
that because its only hanging there and crooked, that the other back teeth
are just as crooked if not worse because of it! Interesting stuff to say the least.
We found out the cost isn't too bad. I actually expected it to be a lot more, and
honestly the cost in the end is worth every penny!
You better believe I am taking photos of this entire journey!!!!
And I go in on the 18th to finally get my permanent crown. Lots of teeth stuff in our household
lately!

Well here is to hump Wednesday! I hope your week goes by super uber fast so
you can enjoy the weekend! I'll be painting but hey, it's still cool!

So far...

So far..

My 101 are going really well!

I've read 2 books already!
One was called "All Things Hidden" by Judy Candis. I picked up this book at
Barnes & Noble for only 4 bucks. I wasn't too sure about it, but I knew it
had crime and God in it! I was surprised at how well it was written
and how much I really liked it. The only thing was I wanted to know
how the outcome came for the main character. I hate it when books stop
like that. Leaves your mind wondering what the heck happened. It was worth
the read. The second book I read was "How Starbucks Saved My life" by
Michael Gates Gill. I read this one because my general manager suggested
that I read it. And aside from the colorful language it had, the book was
a great read about being satisfied with life and where you are. It also made
me want to learn coffee more with working at Starbucks. You know I don't
drink it and my attitude has been I don't really care about it{whole bean}.
But after reading this book, it made me want to learn all there is about
coffee. So I talked to my boss on Sunday and he suggested I call the
district manager. So I am going to do that. There are classes I
believe for learning about coffee.

I've also got 2 things in the works as well. Making an Americana quilt
and drum lessons! I am excited about both!!!! I've wanted a quilt for
our bed for a long time and the lessons will only aid in my becoming a
better percussionist! On another 101 note..

I've decided not to make my own invitations for our wedding. I would
be a stress of a mess making them so I went on the internet and looked. Found
them straight away! Isn't that cool? Here is an example of them:

Getting them through here. They are the exact colors going through my mind!
I am excited about them and Dayv loves them! Perfect. I think a lot about our
wedding and am really getting very excited! I love the thoughts in my head
and how I realized I can do whatever I want, how I want because its our wedding!

Okay so...

I wished I had the patience of Job. However I do not. So this past weekend
D&I made the pillows for our new couches! I am in LOVE with them! The
room is looking more cozier and cozier! I loved how we worked together on them
as well! I sewed 4 pillows, he sewed 2 and he also whip stitched them closed.
We decided already against the green we had picked out, its too dark. Maybe
a little shade, like olive or something. But honestly green isn't our favorites.
I am hoping that Debbie has some great color schemes! I cannot wait!! I will
take photos when the LR is finished completely!

Also this past weekend when the sun peeked out I made D let me take
some photos of him and his trumpet.
That's right! He's taking trumpet lessons! He just decided one
day to take lessons and he's actually pretty good!!
{Yep that's our new plaid chair!!!! Notice the stark white walls,
I am SO over them!!!}





And just because she is a cutie and I love taking photos of her...

This is Kira, which I am sure you all know about! She is a such a wonderful dog!

My aunt and her husband are coming to see us!!! She came last year to take my
mom back to FL and was able to see our house on base, and now is going to see
our new house too!!! I am so excited to be able to have them come. They will be
here pretty much right after we arrive home from Disney! It works out really
well cause D&I took leave until the 27th. So we'll have days to spend with them!

Well that about raps it up for me today! Debbie will be here soon and I am pretty
darn excited about that too! I hope that you are just as excited as I am in your
today as I am in mine! Happy day!!!!

Finally!!!

I've had several things sitting in my space just awaiting some things to finish them and now that I am finally finished I can share them with you all!!! I do still have those others one's waiting for photos so I am hoping to get on that this weekend!

First up are these lovelies!
I was dying to show you these!
They were made using the cute February kit from TS!
Here is a sneaky! You can check them out on the 15th in full!

Aren't the colors just adorable?
I had the best fun creating all of these!

And I finally was able to create with my January kit and the Home Collection from Studio Calico!!



I am stretching this kit out, plus the Home Collection because its my favorite!!! And I love Studio Calico SO much I just ordered their Anthology!! I cannot wait to get it in my hot little hands!

I've got about 7 other projects sitting here awaiting photos and one project I am awaiting to get a frame for it! So be on the lookout for those as well!

Grateful list:

1. For people who get me without making me jump through hoops.
2. A's girlie bible study, because her knowledge of the bible and what we're going through simply amazes me!
3. Doing great so far on my 101 thingys!
4. God using me to speak to others, even if they aren't ready to hear what He's got to say.
5. Lists that I can check off.
6. Subway. Because it is the healthier choice.
7. Laying in bed with my family laughing, singing, and just being.
8. Friends who listen to me vent when I need to vent stuff.
9. Buying our Disney tickets! We are REALLY going!
10. A drama free work environment.

I am SO excited! I bought fabric to make some pillows for our new couch and love seat. The one's that came with it were icky. Ugly. And I had something else in mind! But along with that came a change in my wall color!! LOL. I decided I wanted to accent in yellows so now my walls are going to have to take on another color! That is where Debbie comes in! She is going to come over and help me figure it all out! The odd thing to me is I can see a scrapbooking page a mile away, but my house? I am going nuts with not knowing where to start, what to do, and what colors work best with each other! LOL. Isn't that kind of ironic? Oh well. I am totally stoked that Debbie will be coming over on Tuesday next week! Not only will I get the chance to become friends with her, she'll have all the magic and we'll work together as a great team!!!! Yeah!

Well I sure hope your going to have a great weekend! I know that I plan on trying to have one myself! Be on the lookout for a photography lesson soon!!

TS hoppity bloggity fun!!!

Welcome to the Treasured Scrapbooking blog hop!!!
Thanks for stopping by!
You should have come from Ginger's blog.
There is SO much fun going on!!!

Check out the awesome February kit, because it rocks!
Here's a peeky!






You also can win a prize from Erin
by posting a comment on my blog and also all the
DT's blogs while you hop as well!
To double your chances at winning a prize,
post this on your blog for another entry!!

When you check out everything you'll find challenges to do!
Every challenge you complete before the end of the week
you can earn a entry into a RAK drawing!
Make sure to play along and post your challenges in our gallery!

I'll leave you with 2 of the projects I created using this rockin' kit!
You can check out all projects and challenges here!
So come and play along!!
Now that you have hopped and have seen me,
go hop along to Lisa's blog!!
















































You can see the blog hop in order here:

Julie
Ginger
Elizabeth
Lisa
Jenni
Morag
Eva

Have a great day hoppin'! Thanks for stopping by!