Books and People

I was instantly attracted to the chapter titles of the new book I am reading called All I need Is Jesus and a Good Pair of Jeans by Susanna Foth Aughtmon. Here are just a few of them:

• I Am Oh So Tired
• I Am Not A Supermodel
• I Have Pride Issues
• I Worry About Things
• I Want Chocolate to Solve My Problems (my personal favorite!)
  
• I Have A Long Way To Go

Need I say more? Probably not, so let me just share this quote from the introduction:

"We need a whole lot of Jesus. Because there is this woman that we long to be and there is the woman that we actually are. Right here. Right now. The woman who struggles but longs to be more. The woman who is empty who longs to be full. The dissatisfied woman who longs to be content. The woman who longs to be overflowing with goodness and peace and have rher impulse spending under control. And the only thing that can bridge the gap between these two women is buckets of grace. Unending grace. And the only person who embodies this grace is Jesus." P. 15

This book arrived by bedside through a dear friend. I was just thinking to myself, "I need to find something new to read," and somehow she just knew. Don't you just love when that happens?

Oh Lord, give me more of You and less of me...and more friends like her to point that out to me!
Looking forward,
Stacey

Decorate for $0 or almost!

I am always changing things around at our house. My husband jokes with me, that every time he leaves on a business trip he never knows where the couch is going to be when he returns! I love to rework a space. I think I get this from my mom. I remember her changing her bedroom around almost every season. Even when you don't have a lot of money, if you move something to a new place, it feels new.

This summer, we did a major room swap for our girls because we are making space for baby #4. Since the major moving done I am now focusing on the smaller details. I told my daughter, "The cake is baked, it just isn't iced." I have their rooms in order - but will take time to add the part we all love - the icing! It is amazing how these spaces have been transformed. We really have not spent a lot of money. Our biggest expenditure was a bed for our 3 year old. We purchased it at Ikea for about $90. (Leirvik in the full size - we love it!) In addition to that we bought some closet organizers and sheets. Now, I would have loved to went out and bought brand new everything, but when you use what you have, you can really get a lovely result and save money in the process. I will try to post some pictures of these fun spaces soon.

Today I came across a new blog that I think you might like as well. It is called Room Remix and it focus on easy, inexpensive decor, and remixing what you have. PK, the blog designer has a fun contest going on right now. If you become a follower of her blog, you are automatically signed up to win a $30 gift card to some great stores like Home Goods and Pier 1. All entries need to be submitted before September 27. Here is the direct link to the giveaway:
http://roomremixblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/shopping-giveaway.html
I will also add her blog under my Blogs List sidebar.

Looking Forward,
Stacey

P.S. Also check out http://asoftplacetoland-kimba.blogspot.com/ and meet the lovely Kimba! Her whole focus is making her home a beautiful place for her family. I think she does an amazing job! Real ideas, great give away and really neat link ups!

Worth Mentioning

Something to think about this weekend:

"A mother’s prayers mark her family with faith and trust in God. Her overflow of mercy and grace is a reminder that Jesus is the ‘author and finisher’ of the family’s faith. The fruit from her prayers personify Christ’s character, and hell clamors at the calm requests from a mom who trusts God. They pray for their children to obey and worship the Lord, and for their husbands to fear God, hate sin and love people. A mom’s prayer matters."

Originally posted By Boyd Bailey, Wisdom Hunters – May 4, 2009

Looking Forward,
Stacey

Grateful

I saw this post at (In) Courage and I wanted to pass it on to you today. (In) Courage is sponsored by DaySpring and brings together women of faith who are currently designing and blogging about the heart and home. It is packed with fun products and super thoughtful words to (In) Courage you!

Check it out: http://www.incourage.me/2009/09/love-where-you-are.html


This post happens to be from one of my favorite bloggers - the Nester! You can find her here:
http://nestingplacenc.blogspot.com

Her tagline is "it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful!" That alone (In) Courages me!

Here is the basic comment I was (In) Spired to post after reading her words:

I am thankful for the quiet in the morning before the whole house is awake with excitement and energy. I am grateful for the 6 bare feet that bound down the stairs every morning and the 2 more that will arrive soon. I am grateful for my strong husband who works so hard to provide for our family. I am thankful for God's goodness every day and that when I am weak He is strong!

So, what are you grateful for today - right where you are?

Looking Forward,
Stacey

Blogs I Love

I found this amazing design blog recently and could spend countless hours looking and dreaming! Houzz is packed with amazing photos of inspiring rooms. They celebrate every style and have a neat way of showcasing designers that allows me to browse whether I have 5 minutes or 50! This recent post caught my eye:

http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/6913/list/When-Lots-of-Clutter-Works

As a mom of young children I am very excited to know that Lots-of-Clutter-Works! So grab a cup of coffee and have a look around! Oh, and the other cool thing about this site is that you can create an Ideabook. This is your "dream notebook" where you can cut and paste pictures of rooms or decorating ideas that you love! It is neat to see your own personal style evolving as you cut and paste pictures in your book. Brilliant!

Looking Forward,
Stacey

Worth Mentioning

I heard this tonight at Bible Study:

"Time is short and some of us have forgotten God's claim on our lives." - Kay Arthur

This is something I will be thinking about for days - maybe weeks. It was just what I needed to hear in this moment. Some days seem long - and others fly by. But in the end, it all goes pretty quick. Am I doing the things today that will last beyond me? Will the legacy I leave with my children last beyond them to future generations?

God has called me to a few things really. My hope and prayer is that I am found faithful in these things. Not all things - but the few things He has called me to.

Looking forward,
Stacey

Design Girl Wannabe In The Kitchen

I have been taking small steps to transform my kitchen into a place that brings me joy. Since I spend a vast majority of my day in it, I decided to start here on my Design Girl Wannabe adventure.

This spot is the place I start and end my day. I can't tell you how a few feet of counter space has quite simply brought me such happiness! First, let's start with the obvious. I love my red coffee pot. It is the second one we have purchased because we killed the first red coffee pot. When we went to look for a replacement, I just could not envision any other faithful friend sitting there...so we bought another. Red is a color that I love and it has to be in my kitchen!

Second, my stainless canisters are filled with sweetener & my favorite coffee, Komodo Dragon from Starbucks. Pricey? Yes, but oh so worth the splurge when you are talking 6AM!!! Love this coffee. Must have it. Enough said.

Next, I have to tell you about the "Coffee Light" as my husband calls it. I purchased this small light at Walmart last fall from the Better Homes & Garden line. I have moved it all around my home and finally found the perfect spot. It is gorgeous at night when I switch it on and turn off the overhead lights. The best part is that it only cost about $10!

The picture is an absolute favorite of me walking with my girls. My husband has a gift with photography so I am truly blessed. It is a visual reminder of Deuteronomy 6:6-7 that says to diligently teach your children all that you remember as you sit in your house and as you walk along the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up. (paraphrased). I put it here because I need to be reminded of this precious mission.

The paper towel holder is practical and honestly not the prettiest item. But, it was one of the first things I spray painted this summer. It had been white, and I decided to change it to black. This inspires me to see that little changes can make a huge impact.

I hope that I can encourage you to start small, gather a few things you love and begin an adventure of your own! Now, I have to go get the coffee ready for another day.

Looking forward,
Stacey

Blogs I Love

I love a good blog and I love to pass on what I find. So from time to time I will be sharing with you some of my favorites. Many of which you will find on my side bar.

I have mentioned before that I am a Design Girl Wannabe. You can also add to that Artistically Challenged. This would not be such a big deal if I did not have a highly artistic creative daughter who could draw, paint and create all day long. I am always looking for easy to teach art projects that don't require a lot of expensive materials or tons of skill on my part.

Recently I found a great blog called Art Projects For Kids. Every day, Kathy Barbro posts a new art project idea. Every Day! A NEW IDEA!!! I can't tell you how this site has blessed my life!

This year , I am experimenting with one of Kathy's ideas called an Art Journal. An Art Journal combines both art and words on the page. She posts Art Journal ideas on a regular basis. The reason I love this idea is that my highly creative artistic daughter also happens to loathe writing. So this is one way to help her work in her strength while also building up her writing skills!

Today we worked on the cutest self portraits ever! Now, this idea is not specifically an Art Journal page, but I converted it to fit in our journals. Here is the link for the how to: http://www.artprojectsforkids.org/2009/08/my-summer-self-portrait.html

And, you can see one of our portraits above! I think she turned out awesome! We made one small change by using words to describe ourselves instead of what we did on summer vacation. We also used watercolor pencils on the background and then went over that with a wet paintbrush. This just saves a ton of clean up time!

Looking Forward,
Stacey

P.S. If you look closely, you can see that she "loves Star Wars" and "Jesus". Too cute!