Summer Goals: Pinterest Themed Project #2

So this took a while to post BUT I decided to give it to my wonderful momma, and I didn't want to risk her seeing it here first! One of my favorite things to use in my crafting is old barn wood. I definitely tend to like the "rustic flare" more than anything.

Sometimes the beauty in an object comes in a chipped corner, weathered wood, and uneven pieces. I love that there is beauty in the broken things, in the imperfections, hidden in the things that most people would just discard as junk and throw away.

So I took this sad piece of wood, slapped on some white paint, used dark grey for the lettering, an old glass jar wrapped in burlap and jute. A hook on the back so she can hang it up....And yes, those are very fake flowers but it's for the pic only, mom gets to put real flowers of her choice in there!

All in all, this turned out pretty cute! I might have to make some more. This is the first one of these I have made believe it or not... I always see them but always end up doing other things, so CHECK it off my list!!! Fun Pinterest themed project for me. If you're looking for something fun and super easy to do...I highly recommend one of these.  

happy momma...the best part! 

Summer Goals: My Pinterest Challenge #1

Okay so I've decided I need some motivation in the "get stuff done and be more creative" parts of my brain. In order to do this I have decided to do something totally fun and inspiring.

      I am a little bit of a Pinterest junkie and of course I have pinned TONS of amazing things, like ya do, to my "someday i really think i'm going to do this stuff" boards...right? But when I peruse all the amazing stuff on my boards, i realize that those are only dreams and i have done very few things from my Pinterest page.

       SO..... that's about to change! I am challenging myself to a weekly Pinterest Challenge where i do ATLEAST ONE thing off of my Pinterest Page. :) It can be anything, from nifty household tricks, designs, gardening, food, craft projects....of course they probably won't be an exact replica cuz i like to be different BUT it will most definitely be Pinterest Inspired!

I'm excited because I think this will be super fun and oh the feeling of accomplishment i will get...I LOVE that feeling!  And feel free my fellow PINTERESTERS>>>>> to join in the challenge! you are more than welcome to let me know how you are doing if you choose to participate and feel free to post your own pinterest projects in the comments! I'd love to see what you are accomplishing too! :)

So for WEEK #1 : Behold my boring bread box...transformed into country cuteness! Totally keeping this baby. Super fun! well one down....500 thousand (a little exaggeration) more to go! wish me luck!!

Once upon a time....What's YOUR Story?

      So...what's your story? The amazing thing about being alive is the fact that we each have our own story. I think that is awesome. Different experiences, different people, different perspectives, different chances, different trials, different victories, and the list goes on.... Sometimes we get so focused on just parts of our stories don't we? Sometimes we focus too much on our pasts, the hurts that we've been through, the good times we used to share with the people we love, people that have come in and out of our lives that we wish were still present. Sometimes we focus too much on the future...what we will become, life goals, work goals, finally reaching our dreams. If you're like me, I often get caught up focusing on the present day, what is happening now and I don't reflect as much on the past or the future as I maybe should. All of these past, present, and future...tell our story. All are equally important in knowing who we are, how far we have come, and where we are going.

    Life is huge. So many possibilities and directions one can choose to go. No wonder life gets overwhelming at times. Our choices shape our lives and that's a pretty big deal. If we all took that fact a little bit more seriously, we'd probably all make some different choices wouldn't we. Live and learn I guess. Too bad we're not born wise right? If I could go back...there would definitely be some things I would do differently... Like I wouldn't have watched the movie JAWS because to this day... i still jump at shadows in my pool. I wouldn't have bought into the perfect body image garbage when I was a teenager which led to an eating disorder in my early 20's. I would have treated a few people more tenderly than I did. I would have been bolder with a few people as well. Annnd I would definitely started using face moisturizer WAY before now. These are just a few of the things that I would love to go back and change. But I can't. And that's okay too... because I am a better person now than I was then. Stronger. Wiser. Kinder. Bolder. And I love that about life too... we have a chance to BECOME BETTER than we were yesterday.

   My source of strength to face life head on since I was very young has always come from my Savior. Who I am, I am because of Jesus. Life happened and is happening and will happen.... but He is what makes my life beautiful. The mistakes, the pain, the hurtful life circumstances... he's turned the ashes into beauty. All the good things in me...the things I have been able to experience, the good things I have been able to do, the lives I have been able to impact for good...have all come from Him working in my life.
     One thing I have realized so far about life... my story is just a story... just one little person's life experience in this big huge world. But only God can take my little life story...and make it something completely amazing and meaningful. Some people might disagree with me on this, that you need God to make your life meaningful. But it's true. Without God... you live, you die, and some people might remember you for a while..but then they die and no one is really impacted by your life. BUT with God as the center of your life...you share Him with the people around you. His Truth never returns void. People might not remember my name but for every person that I share Jesus and His Truth with... that will go on and on and on... that legacy never dies.

   Your story needs to be shared. No matter what it contains. Your story is Powerful. So many times, Christians believe they don't have a testimony to share because they have never really done anything terrible so they don't feel as though they can relate to people who need to hear about Jesus. The Truth is... people don't really NEED YOUR story... they need JESUS. Give them TRUTH. You do not have to walk a mile in someone's shoes in order to introduce them to Jesus who CAN set them free from whatever it is that binds them. Your story is powerful...BECAUSE JESUS IS IN IT. So don't be afraid to share what you know about living for Jesus. Your story IS enough to share the truth locked inside of it.

    Another fun nugget of Truth... God meets us wherever we are, He is constantly ready to bring us closer to Him and who He's called us to be. Even as I write this blog, I've been reflecting on some things on my past and dreams for my future, I have been given some revelations about God's grace in
my life and as a few tears have fallen just now... I am growing right here, in this moment. How amazing is that? I love life with Jesus... no one may ever know all the details of my story...but I can tell you, thanks to Jesus...it really is beautiful.

Love your story sweet friends.... Let Jesus hold the pen.
                                  Bless ya! -darby

     

Ohhhh.....The Glory of LOVE....

Tis the season of chocolates and flowers, of mushy cards and stuffed animals, of fancy date nights with candle light dinners...

And I've been home sick all week with all things not yummy while sporting my zombie look.

This has not been fun and yet I have been so blessed.

My sweet husband who has also been sick this week, in fact, is also the one who gave me this germ bug, has not only been working hard all week         (i really can't believe the strength of this man... we are sick with the same thing and I literally sat in the chair all day with one shoe on, my mouth hanging open, and my eyes half closed...but he manages to go to work...amazing.) but He came home every night and took care of me, did extra chores around the house and didn't complain about the things that I clearly wasn't taking care of. I have felt very honored and blessed to have a husband that has loved me, definitely in my ugly times this week. 

And despite our plans to "go out for a fancy dinner on Valentine's Day", he walks in today with steaks that He bought because He knows that neither of us are probably going to want to go out this week. Good call. 

It's been nice this week, although feeling completely miserable, just being together with my husband and taking care of each other. Watching movies together, even though the funny movies would cause us to laugh which was painful and funny since neither of us have had voices much of this week, and laughing would lead to coughing so i'm sure we were quite a sad but funny sight to see. (thankfully no one could ;) ) 

I also am feeling so incredibly loved by the simple fact that even though I am an adult (for quite a while now...) and even though I am completely capable of doing life on my own, I am so incredibly blessed to have parents that are still very present in my life. My momma who has always been the voice of common sense in my life, the one who I always want the reassurance from that I'm doing the right thing, has made sure to make contact with me everyday to make sure i'm not dead from this cold. And I LOVE that. She still tells me how much water I need to be drinking and what cold medicine to take. I love my momma and everything that she STILL does for this grown up daughter of hers. 

And my Dad, who stopped by and dropped off oranges and chicken noodle soup just because He knew I was sick. It's that kind of stuff that makes a girl feel loved by her family. The little things, oranges and chicken noodle soup. I could see the look in my dad's face as he was looking at this pitiful sad zombie knowing that there wasn't anything that he could do to make me feel better and I could tell as his little girl, that he very much wanted to make me better. And he did. Oranges and Chicken noodle soup. What a blessing to have parents that love me so much!

And my Sister...what a blessing this woman is in my life. I love the fact that we have really always had the opportunity to "do life" together. I LOVE that I have a sister who is literally ALWAYS there for me. I cannot think of ONE time that she hasn't been. I need to be more like my sister in this form of sacrificial love and dependability. I LOVE the fact that we do ministry together and when I am sick, I can always count on her to carry on. I am so blessed and so thankful that I have such a close and sweet friendship with my sister. 

So even though it's the month of mushy cards and romantic sentiments...I am basking in the simple fact that I am LOVED. I encourage you sweet friends to not ever take for granted the people in your life that God has placed there just for you. It is no mistake, the people who step into our lives, maybe for a moment, maybe for a lifetime...love them. Sacrifice for them. Take care of them. Be there for them. Without love we are nothing, we have nothing. Love them Well. 

.....now, this zombie, is taking some more cold medicine and going to bed!