Not Afraid of the Snow

Goals: Week of May 20th

2013-05-20T21:11:00.000-04:00

I am definitely a list person. I enjoyed thinking through the things that I needed to do last week and to work on them.

Plus, sometimes the things I put on here are things that I have been putting off. Putting them on here gives me a little more motivation.

What do you do when you need a little more motivation to finish a project?

Last weeks goals:

Exercise- 5 days of crunches, push ups, and squats. 3 walks.- I got all my walks in, one while subbing! Only 3 days of crunches...
~~Organize spices~~- Done! Definitely blessed from wedding showers
~~Set up a facebook page for the farmer's market~~- Done!
~~Blog book review on~~ ~~A Place to Belong~~- You can see that here. Great book!
~~Clean porch~~- Cobwebs are gone!
Clean windows- Downstairs are done. I managed to pull out a sash. Searched YouTube and got it back. My father would be proud! I have this bad habit of having sashes come out when I clean windows. Doesn't give me motivation :)
~~Iron clothes~~- I did iron! Improvement!

This weeks goals:

Exercise- 3 days of crunches, push ups, and squats
I have this pile of clothes to someday repurpose. I need to do something with them this week or I need to get rid of them.
Put our Panama pics on a jump drive
Fill out paperwork to renew my teaching license
Organize DVDs
Design a pattern
Spend some time with mom's class on their last few days of school

Thanks for providing me motivation!

A Place to Belong by Lauraine Snelling {Book Review}

2013-05-15T16:50:00.001-04:00

Cassie Lockwood is on the search for independence. When Cassie's parents died, she found out that she owned part of a ranch. She is living with the other owners of the ranch, but she wants to be able to support herself. However, she has no idea about ranch life.

I love the determination and desire of Cassie to learn new things. I need a little ore of her spunk! Nothing was outside of her range to try. Plus she was going to be successful at what she set out to do.

Sometimes, I feel like I haven't quite found my exact place in life. Cassie was there, and determined to find her place. I need to be determined to keep trying until I do find my place in life.

Thanks to Bethany House for allowing me to read this great book.

Linked up to Reading List.

Goals: Week of May 13th

2013-05-13T17:12:00.002-04:00

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I was blessed recently by a comment left on the blog. I am amazed that someone can be such an encouragement from half way across the world. Pascaline said

"I really like how you plan your goals every week.. I started read your blog few month ago (from france, i'm french) and you inspire me to start planning the important things i want to do or create, as i usually finish to do nothing.

Hope you will start to blog again soon."

My husband and I recently went to Panama on a missions trip, and I have just not made the time for blogging since I have gotten back. I have found though that not coming up with goals, I have just kinda floated on what I would like to do. I need to get back to doing some things a little more on purpose.

I am back to posting my goals for the week.

Exercise- 5 days of crunches, push ups, and squats. 3 walks.
Organize spices
Set up a facebook page for the farmer's market
Blog book review on A Place to Belong
Clean porch
Clean windows
Iron clothes- I need some more lessons from my husband on this one :)

Pascaline, I would love to hear what your goals are for this week.

Icecutter's Daughter by Tracie Peterson {Book Review}

2013-04-18T20:47:00.000-04:00

Thinking back to lit classes in high school and college, I think about how I was taught discern a book by how characters who did right and wrong were portrayed. The characters in this book who did right were rewarded. Those who did wrong, were not rewarded. Although they were graciously given a second chance.

Rurik was determined that he was not going to get married simply because others wanted him to. He did not want to treat his wife without the proper love. What a great example of putting someone before yourself. Rurik's patience and determination paid off in the end when he got exactly what God had in store for him.

Thanks to Bethany House for allowing me to read this book. I would highly recommend others to read this book

Firefly Island by Lisa Wingate {Book Review}

2013-03-30T19:05:00.005-04:00

A book that includes people who are not perfect. Everyone in this book had their fair share of struggles that they chose to work through. Realistic? Yes!

The setting of this book was very current. Almost like it was written by the young adult that the book is about. I felt like I was sitting down with a peer and hearing about their experiences. Adventure was laced throughout the book and I felt like I was right there with the adventure.

God also knows exactly what we need when. I needed to remember that I am not perfect, and that I needed to plug along and do my best. I think that I will need to be reminded of that a few more times over the years :)

I am thankful to Bethany House for allowing me to read this great book!

Learning to Love by Heidi & Rolland Baker {Book Review}

2013-03-20T09:23:00.000-04:00

I was excited about getting into reading this book, but all I felt like the author focused on was that she was charismatic. Most of the things that were shared were things that only charismatic people would believe God would be actively doing today.

Every person that they came into contact with who were blind or deaf were healed. Do I believe that God won't do those things? No. But I don't think that every person will be healed.

Maybe you disagree with me. This area is something that I have been questioning. Am I limiting God by saying that He can't do these things? Or are these people using these stories just as a means to make some money?

I would love to hear Biblical proof for why you believe what you do on God's healing and how He is involved in healing today.

Thanks to Chosen Books for allowing me to read this book.

Miracle for Jen by Linda Barrick {Book Review}

2013-03-19T14:43:00.000-04:00

Apprehension was what I first thought when I picked up this book, but as I read through, I thoroughly enjoyed the book.

Prayers were answered constantly throughout this book. Oh wait, God promises that He will answer our prayers doesn't He?

"And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it." (John 14:13-14)

The Barricks were praying that their Daughter would be able to function completely like she had before she had her accident, but God had other plans. He did not answer their prayers as they were hoping, but He did answer their prayers in great ways.

"Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us," Eph 3:20

I am amazed how much Jen, the daughter, was dedicated to using her life to glorify God. She didn't care that her life wasn't back to perfect because she was able to use her life now to the fullest for God.

Bethany house has been great in providing books for me. If you are interested in signing up and have a blog, go here to fill out the form.

Goals: Week of March 18th

2013-03-18T18:49:00.001-04:00

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Confession time. I am totally putting off that chair back. It is to a point that it won't be to bad, but I am still putting it off. I think that I am afraid of the final look. I just need to do it :)

How did you do last week at getting your projects worked on? I need to quit using weather as an excuse from getting out and running!

Last weeks goals:

~~Push ups and crunches 5 days~~. Run 2 days
~~Hem pants~~
Sew chair back
Taxes- Close to being done. Just need to finish up and submit
~~Visit Grandma- she had surgery today~~
~~Clean up branches- I want to roast hot dogs and marshmallows over an open fire!~~
~~Sell vanilla on my facebook page- you will have to come check it out on Friday night.~~

This weeks goals:

Push ups and crunches 5 days. Run 2 days
Fix pictures on blog. I deleted all previous ones. Ugh. Never go through and delete a picasa album that is attached to your blog. Lesson learned.
Read Learning to Love
Finish crocheting headband
Register my car
Chair back
Giveaway- I am giving these 2 great skeins of yarn away on my facebook page.

Taxes, oh the joy!

2013-03-14T18:21:00.001-04:00

One of my goals for this week is to get our taxes mostly done. We believe that we will be filing with TurboTax this year.

I have used them in the past, filed free federally. Then I filled out the state forms, but didn't pay. I figured out how much I should get back and headed to my state's website to file for free. I just matched up what I thought I should be getting.

I need to get on filling this out so that if this is not how we decide to go, we still have some time.

Have you filed your taxes yet this year? How did you decide to file them?

A big thank you!

2013-03-14T17:54:00.001-04:00

Thank you so much to all of you who voted for my infinity scarf. I didn't get first place, but did get second place and some pretty sweet prizes.

These headbands were both given to me by Brown Sugar Toast. Christa was actually a fellow ed major at college. Small world?

Designed Decor sent me this great mosaic. I like it better in person! Can't wait to it to catch some rays in my window!

I also was given my choice of 5 patterns from Sew Can Do. Any guesses which 5 patterns that I picked out at The Green Hedgehog?

Thanks to Totally Green Crafts for hosting this competition.

Goals: Week of March 11th

2013-03-11T18:56:00.001-04:00

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I have been subbing for a teacher who is on vacation. You would think that with my procrastination that this would help with my getting things done. Unfortunately, this hasn't been true.

House hunting and seeing has been a time consumer as well. One of these days, we will find the perfect house for us!

Last weeks goals:

~~Push ups and crunches 5 days.~~ Run twice- I only ran once
~~Research loans~~
Recover the chair back- got it cut out. Just need to get sewing
~~Find a spring for the glider~~- I know where to get it, but don't want to make a special trip to get it.
Fix pants- one pair fixed. Second pair just needs sewed.
~~List~~ ebay- I have some stuff listed for a friend, you will have to check out what I have for sale.
~~Have the family over to eat~~

This weeks goals:

Push ups and crunches 5 days. Run 2 days
Hem pants
Sew chair back
Taxes
Visit Grandma- she had surgery today
Clean up branches- I want to roast hot dogs and marshmallows over an open fire!
Sell vanilla on my facebook page- you will have to come check it out on Friday night.

Children's Book Easter Grass

2013-03-06T09:49:00.003-05:00

I have this big candle holder from our wedding. It needed something in it since I took out my winter decorations. My friend Cindy recommended cutting up a children's book for Easter grass. I just cut the pages to about 1 inch by 3 inches. I did crumple them a little to give them more height.

I also about bought some plastic eggs from a thrift store. I made sure to clean them with bleach before using. They cost me 75 cents. Cheap project!

Valvoline Rebate! Cheap Oil

2013-03-05T12:27:00.000-05:00

Valvoline has a rebate available for oil. Go here to print it.

We did a deal like this last year. Great way to get cheap oil for those of you who change your own. Thankful that my husband changes mine!

Here is what you must buy.

Five quarts (including 5-qt, 5 , or 5.1 jug) of Valvoline's NextGen Conventional Motor and receive a rebate for $7.
OR
Five quarts (including 5-qt, 5 , or 5.1 jug) of Valvoline's MaxLife NextGen High Mileage Motor Oil and receive a rebate for $10.

Shaving Cream Easter Egg Garland

2013-03-05T10:46:00.001-05:00

My nieces and nephew came over a few weeks ago, and I convinced them that they needed to paint with me. Something about digging out shaving cream and using it to paint means that I need little ones around to help.

I like to decorate my house, but I don't like to spend a ton of money to do accomplish the task. So this was my solution!

You may be wondering how do you paint with shaving cream? Yes, I was an elementary ed major and I did get to do this in a class at college. Sometimes I totally understand why I majored in el ed, because it was fun!

How to shaving cream paint:

Spray a decent amount of shaving cream on a paper plate.
Drip different colors of food coloring in the shaving cream.
Use a fork to twirl around the shaving cream.
Lay your paper (I used card stock) on the top of the shaving cream and mash it gently into the shaving cream.
Use your fork to scrape off the excess and let it dry.

There you have it! Not too bad, huh? I then printed off an egg template and traced it on the back of the paper. To create the garland, I cut them out, punched holes in the top, strung jute through the holes, and hung them up.

I love the feeling of the shaving cream on the paper!

I like using things that I have on hand to make fun art! And fun memories with my nieces and nephew.

I have to admit, my husband and nephew had more fun making the shaving cream brown at the end than the painting aspect. Boys will be boys!

I like the little bit of festivity that this bring to my house. Come back tomorrow as I will be sharing my other easy and cheap Easter decoration.

How are you decorating your house for Easter?

Linking to Romance on a Dime

Goals: Week of March 4th

2013-03-04T14:37:00.002-05:00

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I am having a hard time believing that it is really March already. Last week, I did well with getting my goals done. This week, not so much! I feel like I am going to almost just copy the list over. The sad thing is that I didn't even get started on most of the things.

Last weeks goals:

Push ups and crunches 5 days. Run twice- I did push ups 4 times and ran 1 time. Not too bad.
~~Come up with a March blog schedule.~~
Recover the chair back
Finish Outrageous Courage
~~Redo frame~~- pictures of this will be coming later in March
Find a spring for the glider
Research loans

This weeks goals:

Push ups and crunches 5 days. Run twice
Research loans
Recover the chair back
Find a spring for the glider
Fix pants
List ebay
Have the family over to eat

What is something that you would like to get done this week?

Outrageous Courage by Kris Vallotton {Book Review}

2013-03-03T16:38:00.000-05:00

Tracy Evans' life has made such an impact on the author's life that he wanted to get her story in print. Tracy tells about the things that she has experienced in life. She has followed God in obedience that has brought her to and through some extreme situations.

After reading this book, I was challenged to think, what am I holding back because I am afraid of what will happen to me because of my obedience. Tracy challenges us to give up the worries of the world in order to have an impact for Christ. I need to be giving more of myself.

You may call me leery, but Tracy also dealt a some with the supernatural aspects of life. I always wonder a little bit about the truth of the supernatural. I know God is completely able, but at the same time there are a lot of people that make up things just to make money. Makes me be a little suspicious. And maybe that is wrong of me.

I am thankful that Chosen Books has allowed me to read this book.

Linking to Reading List.

DIY Boy's Argyle Shirt

2013-03-01T17:10:00.001-05:00

I have thought about making some shirts, but didn't want to spend much money on brand new shirts. I found a good deal at Gabriel Brother's where a shirt was less than $1. I decided to see what I could come up with. I searched through pinterest and this became my inspiration. An argyle shirt. Super easy and fun!

I started by printing out a diamond from google docs (microsoft word for most of you). I then held it up to the shirt. I had to print the diamond again and make mine smaller.
Then I cut out 6 diamonds from fabric. I used cotton and did 3 diamonds from each material
I also cut out 6 pieces from fusible interfacing.
I ironed the interfacing on the wrong side following the instructions on the package. Apparently, I didn't cut them all straight :)
I then chose the pattern that I wanted them in and pinned them on. Make sure that the points on all sides are touching.
Next, I sewed around the edges of each diamond individually.
Then I sewed between the diamonds. I picked a side and started at the bottom of the diamond, all the out to the middle point. I would sew through the middle of the diamond and up to the top in the white area, like in the picture on the right. I did this until I had completed the pattern. The picture on the left might help you figure this out better.

How are you going to incorporate this idea into your sewing? Also, I have a few more of these shirts and would love to know what you would put on them.

Linking to Bower Power, The Pin Junkie

Ocean Spray Coupons

2013-02-28T19:39:00.001-05:00

My favorite coupon I have gotten in the mail for a while. Ocean Spray sent me a coupon for a free juice (up to 64 oz). They have some yummy 100% juices out there.

Contact Ocean Spray about getting coupons.

What is your favorite flavor of juice?

Goals: Week of February 25th

2013-02-25T18:55:00.001-05:00

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In exactly ten months from today....Christmas!! One month from today...my birthday!

Here is what I am planning on getting done this week. My glider is getting closer to being recovered. Maybe after this week, I will feel the light at the end of the tunnel!

Last weeks goals:

~~Push ups and crunches 5 days~~. Run twice.- I only ran once
Paint the trim in the kitchen and bathroom
Redo a frame
~~Make wine jelly~~
~~Recover the glider seat. Dreading this~~
~~Crochet a dishcloth using a pattern~~
~~Make bread~~

This weeks goals:

Push ups and crunches 5 days. Run twice.
Come up with a March blog schedule.
Recover the chair back
Finish Outrageous Courage
Redo frame
Find a spring for the glider
Research loans

Vote for my Infinity Sweater Scarf!!

2013-02-22T09:15:00.001-05:00

Remember my infinity sweater scarf that I created and shared about here.

I decided to enter my scarf in a contest, Thinking that nothing would come from it. But I made the top 14...and now have made the top 6! Never would have guessed that!

Now, I feel like I am in a popularity contest! Vote for me!! There are $75 worth of gift cards on the stake. And guess what, they are so close that I want to do everything possible to win them!

Voting closes on Monday, so you will have to act fast! Go here to vote. You might be able to vote once per computer, but not sure on this one.

Help make this girl happy! Right now I am behind!!

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

Alternative to Verizon Cell Phones {Page Plus}

2013-02-21T10:33:00.000-05:00

When I thought of cell phones, I knew I wanted the service of Verizon. In our area, that really is the only thing that has decent service. My husband did some research and finally convinced me that Verizon is not the only way to go. He is sharing with you today what he shared with me.

When my wife and I first started “talking” with each other, communication was (and still is) very important to our relationship. Initially our communication was kept to Facebook messages, but as time went on, and as our relationship grew, we desired to stay in contact more. Little notes being left for one another, a text message here and there, and phone calls were our primary means of communication.

My wife had been a long time customer of the cellular giant, Verizon, but I have always hated contracts. Call it a commitment issue (I call it being cheap), but I like to keep MY money in MY pocket. I had Verizon back in the day, but hated paying almost $50 a month for a single phone. Long story short, I paid out of the contract. I have used several prepaid cellular companies (Tracfone, Net10, and Virgin Mobile) since that time and have had ok service with them, but the one downside has always been coverage. Living in a rural area, where the nearest tower is 3 miles away, service is shoddy at best, unless you choose to pay $50+ a month for Verizon.

After my wife and I were married, we had the opportunity to go back into the Verizon network, but at a discounted group rate through a business plan. We decided to try it. After a month being on the plan, we were told that we would have to be on our own plan as the business needed the extra lines. My wife and I calculated the costs. Wow! $100-120 for two of us to have BASIC phones would not cut it! We had no land line phone and needed good coverage with good service. My wife and I refused to pay big bucks, but I knew I would NEVER convince a long time Verizon customer that it was ok to cut the cord. (You are probably thinking the same thing right now.) As a previous prepaid consumer, I knew there had to be an option out there that was just as reliable as Verizon, but at a cheaper cost. I only had to convince my wife of this, however. No easy task!

The search began. My criteria included: good service/coverage in our rural area, cheap, no contracts, and able to keep the same phone number. Almost all of the prepaid providers are good inside of larger towns, but migrate away from those areas and you have nothing more than a paperweight. The ONLY company that matched all of my criteria was PagePlus Cellular. This is a company I had never heard of before, but decided to do more investigating. After weeks of researching and comparing, deliberating whether or not it was wise to consider going away from Verizon, we bought a cheap, previously owned, Verizon phone and tested it out. (Any phone that has been used on Verizon, or that is equipped to work on Verizon’s network, will work on PagePlus.)

The result...it operated on the Verizon network!!!!! I could not believe it. There had to be a catch! There had to be a loophole that Verizon does not know about or something. The catch is this...the company, PagePlus, had signed an agreement that they will not use Verizon’s name in any dealings with their customers, and that they will not “knowingly allow the use of iPhone or Blackberry devices” on their network. That’s it! The NAME of the giant is not allowed. To me, that little catch is not a hindrance at all! The one little agreement with Verizon about the use of an iPhone or Blackberry is what scares off a few people; however, these phones will still work on their network, and data speeds (3G only) are equally comparable to Verizon because it is Verizon’s network.

So what are our thoughts on being customers of PagePlus? I personally could not be happier. We are using the same phones that we used while on Verizon, and whenever we want to change/upgrade our phones, all we need to do is go to eBay, or another PagePlus dealer, and buy a good quality used Verizon phone. I have an iPhone 4 and I love it. The same great Verizon service at a fraction of the cost. Great service, great price, and no contract! Who could argue with that!?

The Pros!
1) The coverage...as discussed earlier, it is the same as Verizon. See for yourself if you do not believe me. Page Plus Coverage vs Verizon Wireless Coverage. It’s the same map!

2) The cost...with Verizon for 2 basic phones on their Share Everything plan is $110 per month ($30 for each phone x 2 phones + $50/month for Shareable data). If one person has a smart phone, that cost increases to $120/month. So, on their basic plan, with their cheapest phones you are looking at the following equation ($110/month x 24 month contract = $2640). Note: that cost does not include their “hidden fees and surcharges”. And guess what, their prepaid plans are the same cost! Whoa! Who wants to pay that?! You may be saying, “we have no choice!” But wait...with PagePlus there are other options. You can have monthly renewable plans starting at $12/month (The 12) or up to $69.95/month for unlimited talk/text and 5gb of data! But the options are not limited to monthly use. What if you are only in need of a phone for emergencies? (i.e. senior citizens, little children staying at a friends house, etc.) PagePlus has you covered yet. Just buy a PIN! For $10, you can have available 100 minutes of talk time for 120 days of service. Texting can still be done on the PINs but half a minute is deducted for each text sent/received.

PagePlus offers many different options for plans. My wife and I like the Talk-n-Text 1200 plan. We get 1200 minutes of talk, 3000 text messages, and 250mb of data for $29.95/month. I know I know, many people feel that they NEED Unlimited Everything, but the truth is, many cell phone users do not hit 1200 minutes of talk, or 3000 text messages per month. (And, 250mb of data is not much, but you learn to control accessing the internet, and find time for more constructive things, like actually talking to people!) For data, I mostly am on my cell phone inside of WiFi networks, so I rarely even touch the data portion of my plan. So, what will PagePlus cost us? Minus the initial cost of the cell phones... $29.95/month for each phone x 2 phones x 24 months = $1437.60. And yes, that is the biggest reason we switched to this company! A savings of >$1200 per 2 year contract. No hidden fees or surcharges! We signed up for an automatic payment plan through PagePlus which raises the cost per month to $31.97 per line. That is still a whopping savings! PagePlus does offer a plan that is unlimited talk and text with 2gb of data for $55/month, which would put you right at the same cost of the Verizon basic plan (without additional hidden fees), but unless you need unlimited everything, there is no reason to pay for more than what you need.

3) No contract! Not much to say about this other than I am grateful we will not need to pay out of contracts any time soon!

The cons?
1) In my opinion, there are two small cons. The first is no Visual Voicemail (iPhone exclusive), however voicemail still works without a hitch. My solution, either use Google Voice as my voicemail (great service and free), or just call my voicemail everytime I have a missed call. No big deal. The other con (once again can be dealt with) is when you first sign up with PagePlus, an automated voice announces your current minutes before you make a phone call. This can be annoying, but if you do not need the reminder, or find it frustrating, you can call PagePlus and have it removed. This can be a help or hindrance, depending on how you look at it.

2) One item that my wife has missed is that of “My Verizon”. This is the service that provides a back-up in the “cloud” of all of your numbers, account information, etc. Instead of using this service (that you really pay for in the long run) there are free apps available that allow you to manage this (like Google Voice). The only other item that I wish PagePlus would improve is their customer service. PagePlus is located in Toledo, Ohio, and their customer service is based there, but if you plan on getting in touch with someone, be prepared to wait for an hour on hold. Communication is done best through email, I have found, or contact a PagePlus dealer.

Ok, I know you are wondering, “is he done rambling yet?” The conclusion is finally here!

Overall, my wife and I have enjoyed the benefits of the Verizon network, but we did not want to pay the exorbitant fees included with being a customer of theirs. Cost, coverage and service are fantastic with PagePlus and as long as they are providing cell phone service under Verizon, at a fraction of the cost, we will remain loyal customers to them.

~ Mr. NotAfraidOfTheSnow

Jif Coupons

2013-02-20T09:09:00.000-05:00

My daddy raised me to believe that Jif is the best peanut butter. I do really like their natural version. One of these days, I may try to make my own. Until then, I will enjoy getting peanut butter with coupons.

I contacted Jif on their website and Smuckers sent out 2 save 55 cents of any Jif product. I love the fact that this doubles at my Kroger.

See what other coupons companies will mail you.

Goals: Week of February 18th

2013-02-18T19:07:00.000-05:00

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I have to pace myself with the glider recover. And I have to push myself! I have one of the three parts done. And probably the easiest part. I just want to get it done, but that only means one thing. I must get to work!!

Last weeks goals:

~~Keep up with my crunches and push ups and then run twice. Just trying to get myself out the door in this cold!~~ It felt so good to get out and run. Although, breathing in the cold wasn't too much fun :)
~~Fix the nail holes in the kitchen so that I can paint the trim sometime in the near future.~~ Painting is coming this week!
~~Find out about auction houses and when I can drop off stuff.~~ Ready to take next Monday
~~Finish all the doll party plans~~- Looking forward to having this event!
~~Recover the ottoman part of my glide~~r- sweet relief!!
~~Clean out my closet~~
~~Focus on making healthy meals for the week~~

This weeks goals:

Push ups and crunches 5 days. Run twice.
Paint the trim in the kitchen and bathroom
Redo a frame
Make wine jelly
Recover the glider seat. Dreading this
Crochet a dishcloth using a pattern
Make bread

My infinity scarf has been voted in the top 14 projects of t-shirt and sweater redos. I would love if you could go over here and vote for my scarf. You would make my day :) Mine is currently in second place!

Also, don't forget to enter my giveaway! Chance to win some amazing homespun yarn!

Man, do I feel like a teacher who is giving you everything that you need to do for the evening!

Happy President's Day!

Friday Finds Under Five: Old Quilts

2013-02-15T11:24:00.001-05:00

My grandmother in law was given lots of fabric scraps. She passed the ones that she did not want on to me. They are taking over my closet, but I am having so much fun in using the free fabric to make other things!

Among all of those scraps were some quilt tops. Nothing too elaborate or extremely well done, but I still could not part with them.

I have been hanging on to them for a few months with no great idea of what to do. Ok, I have some ideas, but nothing that made me want to cut them up to do.

On my dining room table, I had a winter bowl full of pine cones, burlap, and pine branches. I had to get rid of my pine branches on the table, because the branches were very dried out. I couldn't leave my table bare, but wasn't sure what to do.

And then I remembered about those quilts. I took one of the strips and put it on my table as a table runner.

I also took the bowl that had the pine branches in and put in apples. Of course I washed it first :) Makes me think of fall.

I could probably sew the edges and make it look more professional, but I like the look that it presents. Reminds me of what we can do for free if we just look around.

I would love to hear your ideas for my other quilt tops. I have individual squares all the way to whole quilt tops.

Stop over and see what So the Cook Said has done for under $5 this week.

Book Review: To Honor and Trust by Peterson and Miller

2013-02-14T17:48:00.001-05:00

You always hear, don't judge a book by it's cover. I have never been so influenced by the cover of a book. I made it to the last fifty pages and was still having a hard time getting past that I didn't like the cover...or maybe it was the title...or maybe a little of both. Have you ever been so judgmental of a book by it's cover?

Needless to say, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Callie was born into a rich family. Her family gave up everything to go the the mission field in Africa. Callie was left to work and be a nanny for three children in order to survive.

Callie struggles with finding exactly what God wants her to do with her life. I could relate to this aspect of her life.

The family she works for vacations at a resort during the winter. Robberies on the island add a little adventure to the book. Always a plus in my book!

By the end of the book, Callie has figured out the plan that God has for her life. If it were always that easy!

I would recommend this book, just don't judge it by the cover!

Thanks, Bethany House for allowing me to read this book.