Life is messy . . . .

I have had a tough year (hence the lack in posting).  .

I have shared that I have Fibromyalgia before.  It isn't an easy thing to deal with a chronic condition.  My heart goes out to those reading this that are struggling with one.  Especially when it is a hidden struggle.  I have found some great support recently.  Along with the support of my "Jack"pot of a hubby and family I believe I am on the right path.  I will be sharing some of that information at a later time.

With all that life has brought our family over the last year I can say I have found strength in His word, have felt comfort in His plans and found rest in Him.  Being a person who likes control I struggle with trying to find order in the chaos.  This past year I have become more comfortable that I am not at peace with the chaos.

Maybe it is not that we should focus on putting our lives together.  Rather maybe we should be praying for God to rock our world to its very core?  Maybe we need to pray that God would breakdown all those false foundations reducing our lives to stand upon Him?  I don't pray this lightly nor do I eagerly want my world to be shaken or reduced but what I want and need are two different things now aren't they?

Labels

Looking back on the last month I realized that I can sum it up in one word; Label. I had a birthday so now I am 39. My kids thought I was 67! Oh yeah so not ready for that label.

Mom and Wife are my two most favorite labels.

Christian, a label that carries so much weight but yet so free at the same time!

My kids have had some labels put on them recently. ADD. I know there are so many out there with this label, I know that it is overused; I know that it is stigmatized. We all want our kids to inherit so many traits, like “oh she has your face, your husband’s eyes, nose, or personality”. I don’t think ADD is hereditary. I do however think it has something to do with how your brain is “wired” which absolutely can be hereditary.

Restrictive Eating Disorder, a large label for such a small person. Such a large obstacle for someone that is only 5. We are dealing with that label too. OCD. I know I have had this label put on me. I agree and again would not have chosen to pass this on to my child let alone one that already has a large label on him. Apparently some labels go together. Like OCD and restrictive eating disorder.

What I do know is that the label that should mean so much to me is Jesus. For that is the only label that God sees. He doesn’t see wife, mom, anorexic, hyper, perfectionist. He doesn’t see cold, stubborn, grumpy, depressed, deformed or passive aggressive. Right now I am so thankful for this. So thankful that when He looks at my children he sees what I see. Thankful that when he looks at me he sees past my sins and sees me through "Jesus colored glasses". Please don’t let the label you put on yourself or others color how you act towards them. We all have labels that either we wear proudly or try to hide. We can start each day by casting away our labels and wearing the one God has given us.
You are His Child, and the people you meet today are His children too!

Isiah 43:1 "But now, this is what the LORD says--he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine."

Sunday Thoughts on Monday

John 14:1-4
"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know."

I have posted before that the church we have been attending is one in transition. There are good and bad points to this situation. We have found having a different pastor each Sunday very refreshing. So far they each have had a very different preaching style but every message has been delivered with heart.

This past Sunday was no different. I found the reminder of trusting in God very helpful. What he had to say about trust though was very insightful, at least to me. He made the comment that sometimes our search/hunger for clarity can cloud or even replace the trust we need to place in Jesus.

Wow, yes! I so want clarity. I feel restless, I want direction, I want to understand completely. Not understanding makes me restless. Yet another reminder that I shouldn't have clarity, I should feel restless. For He will be calling me by my name, Vickie. Call me home, and have a place prepared for me. For me alone and for each of you he has a place which will no doubt have a sense of peace and clarity to it.

John 14:19 "A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also."

I wish for each of you that His grace shines so brightly you abandon a sense of clarity and instead follow and trust the path he has lit for you! I will sincerely be praying this for myself this week and all of us.

Blessings, a little late but needed on a Monday!

Girl Scout Craft hijacked by the Flu!

My Brownie troop had the opportunity to attend a Festival of States. We chose the State of Virginia to research. We were to make a booth around information about Virginia along with a small craft to sell. I had researched the Popsicle bracelets and decided these adorned with a paper dogwood flower would be inexpensive and great for the girls to make.

Little did I know that both myself and my son would get the flu! Well I have about 50 beautiful bracelets and a wonderful Virginia poster if anyone is interested. Oh well, the girls worked so hard but life sometimes hands out disappointments. Which I guess is just as much a lesson to learn as discovering things you didn't know about a neighboring state.

I had put together instructions for each brownie to put together their Popsicle bracelet and a bookmark. Let me just say that getting these Popsicle sticks to curve is no small task AND it takes a lot of patience, AND be prepared to break a lot! Thankfully these are very inexpensive.

I would make the bracelets again, just on a much smaller scale. I also found adding the ribbon was necessary to keep the bracelet secured to the wrist.

All Moms sew right?

February is our month for birthdays. It makes February fly by. I will share some of my ideas for their two parties in another post. We did a super hero training theme for my son who turned 5. For my daughter who turned 9 we did a sleepover.

In addition to celebrating birthdays we are in the midst of the flu! Although we all got flu shots, my 5 year old managed to get it. Poor thing, he had a 103 degree fever for three days. I think we are on the other side of this and he will probably be right as rain by Sunday.

As if two birthdays, the Flu, valentine's day were not enough my daughter had a sock hop at her school. I found out that many of the 3rd grade students rent '50s costumes. This stunned me! I can't imagine shelling out that kind of money for a 3rd grade dance that was held at school, during the day on a 1/2 day of school. Really?!?!?
Being able to sew has its advantages, I purchased some pink felt at 50% off and for $3.92 she had a poodle skirt!
Being able to sew has its disadvantages. I asked my daughter if all the girls wore skirts. She replied no. Then we had the below conversation:

Daughter: "Mom I don't know why their mom couldn't just sew one for them. I mean it isn't that hard, you do it all the time"
Me: "Well not every mom knows how to sew or has the time. It also isn't as easy as it looks"
Daughter: "I thought all Moms knew how to sew"
Me: "No they don't"
Daughter: "Well that is just silly"

I am wondering if she thinks there is some sort of Mom camp that we all attend. Funny how myopic your child's world can get. My Mom still sews and my Sister does too, so I think this just reinforced her thinking that all Moms sew.

Happy Bogging everyone!

The 4 rules

I heard these four rules for the first time this Sunday. You probably all heard them already but I really thought they were spot on and worth repeating!

Actually I think I need these stuck to my bathroom mirror!

Rule #1 God is God

Rule #2 I am NOT God

Rule #3 Admit you often get rule #2 and rule #1 mixed up

Rule #4 See rule #1

Hoping this brings you a sense of grace as much it did me!

Cheers!

Vickie

Wednesday refer a friend give away!

I really love making cards, they are fun to put together, and inexpensive and I can easily give them out. If I was Oprah rich I think I would be constantly buying gifts for everyone, I so enjoy giving them. I also enjoy getting mail! In my old home I could tell when the mailman's car was in our small street by the sound of his engine. This new home, the mailman comes it seems at a different time each day and I can never hear him.

So in the spirit of giving and receiving, I want to give away the set of cards below. They are made using the Fox and Friends stamp set from Stampin up. You and a friend will receive one of each for a total of 5 cards each, I will even throw in the envelopes! The winner will be selected next Wednesday by Noon.

To enter:

Get a friend to follow my blog

Leave a comment on who your friend is

Have your friend leave a comment

A winner will be chosen randomly on Wednesday noon central time.

Happy Blogging!

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Happily married female seeking unconditional love, and forgiveness. I also require someone to listen to me even when I complain and am at my worst. Someone to provide a set of rules for me to live by and grants me salvation if I believe in them. It would help if you could provide a reference for all promises you have kept as well as a way to cover all my sins. Additionally I require a sense of joy and grace that will come by following you. A bonus would be eternal life.

I thought about this when I went to a new church thisSunday. Unfortunately I thought of this because the sermon was disjointed and couldn’t hold my attention. But I did get to thinking if I was to put a want ad together that would seek to satisfy all the “holes” I feel when I am restless this is how it would go. Funny once I finished it I saw so clearly the voice of the Holy Spirit saying yes there is only ONE that can provide all that!

Although I am late in posting this I thought it might give a reminder what following Him can bring. I don’t feel all the items in the want ad all the time. Often I hear the voice of God screaming YES!!!! This dear Vickie is what I have been trying to tell you! Lately I have felt there is something that I need to look very seriously at as I truly believe He is calling me to do something. When/if I can articulate thisI will. For now I am just thankful that I can come to Him often and He NEVER fails to listen. Often he responds very promptly and clearly, Hallelujah!!

Blessings
Vickie

What has kept me busy!

I have a friend who is in the process of adopting a baby boy with special needs. She is raising money for this wonderful cause and I donated two items towards her auction. It won't raise enough on its own. Probably only enough to cover gas or paperwork but still it will get them just a little bit closer.

I started doing these prints for my nephews and nieces as well as my own kids. It is a fun project and I do enjoy coming up with different items for the letters. I use acrylic paint and add graphic markers for the accents. The middle is reserved for the recipients name.

Hope this post finds everyone crafting away!

Blessings!

Vickie

Sunday Thoughts

Part of moving to a new city brings also finding a new church. We were very lucky to find a great church in Richmond. It really did feel like a second home to our family, which made it very hard to leave.
We have however at the suggestion of a dear friend found another promising church here in Franklin TN. I don't want to mention the pastor or church. We are struggling a bit with it and are unsure if we should stick it out or try another. It is a church in transition, the pastor is retiring after 25 years. A hard thing for the church community that is for sure. Our children have enjoyed their time at Sunday School and we like the atmosphere and what the church is doing. It is a church in the same denomination as our last so we do understand the underlying theology. The pastor however is the utter definition of loquacious. That is why we are struggling. He seems to be taking his last few months to instruct the church on how they should proceed. I do get some things out of what he is saying but often times are very distracted as I have no recollection on how it was before.

I did despite the above have a profound (for me) thought. I constantly feel restless. Like I am not doing enough, being good enough, etc. Part of that is my personality. I like to please, always have and always will. I see that in my daughter too.
It came to me while sitting in church listening to Revelations 2:1-7 and the pastor preaching that it is okay to feel restless. Even better, I am supposed to feel this way. We live in a fallen world, a sinful world and I shouldn't feel totally settled. I should rejoice and look forward to the time I will be called into Heaven. I can use the restless feeling to HIS glory. I don't know if you ever feel that sense of not belonging, of not feeling settled. I believe this is the Holy Spirit calling us to come into a relationship with Him. He uses this restlessness as a call to come, listen, and understand why all hope is in HIM and Grace can be accepted fully and completely. There is a reason that when praying you feel peace and a sense of steadiness. There is a reason that living in a fallen unstable world the Bible has lasted and been stable for so long! He is calling to us, to hear his word and find peace during his presence.

Thank you for listening and I truly pray that it will bring some light into your life and draw you closer to Him.

Until next time.
Blessings to you!

New Years Resolutions

I always make resolutions each year. No I don't always fulfill them and I always mean to write them down but never do. Before our trip back "home" to Richmond VA I purchased a Scrapbook magazine to read while on the trip. I got inspired by the last photo in the magazine. Here is the project as pictured.

I am hoping that crafting my resolutions and publicly displaying them will hold me to them. So far so good!

My finished product consisted of the 7 Gypsies Receipt holder which I purchase from Three Peas in a bucket as well as some paper and findings. Below is my finished product. I really like it and it sits proudly on my bare mantle right now.

Here is the list of my resolutions, now they are out there in "blog land" so I have to hold true to them! :-)

Family: Family Game night weekly.
Physical: Yoga Three times a week.
Home: Finish Katherine's Room, Paint Emmett's room, Install Gallery Wall.
Spiritual: Prayer journal weekly, start a group bible study or one on my own.
Work: Weekly blog entries, formalize ideas for a business I have been thinking of for 5+ years.

Hope this post finds everyone fulfilling your resolutions! Remember we have a fresh start every day!

Until next time!

Folding card fanatic!

I post recently that I have discovered folded cards. There are a vast amount of tutorials as well as videos out there. Also I realize that folded cards have been done before but I just recently found the confidence to try them. They are addicting.

I discovered two that I really am in love with. The examples are below. As I perfect my techniques I am hoping to make some videos and post them. I find videos more helpful to me especially when trying to execute the folded cards. For these two cards I used my Cricut (Nate's ABCs, Walk in My Garden and From my Kitchen). On the card with the car I added some of my stampin up stamps. I love the mix of the Cricut bits with the stamp bits and plan on doing more of this.

Hope this post finds everyone snug and cozy and crafting at home! We finally had a burst of cold weather here in Nashville and it even snowed!! Okay only about 2", and maybe not even that but it finally feels like winter here. We had a near 60 day followed by a 26 degree day! For those with bodies that respond negatively to temperature changes I know you feel my pain!! :-)

Until the next post! Cheers!! :-) hehe

Belated but still Merry!

I discovered a folded card when I was working on my Christmas Cards. I am currently on a folded card craze! More about that in a future post.
Here are my Christmas cards from 2011! It feels very strange to say 2012.

I had a lot of fun using my Cricut this year. Especially using the Winter Woodland cartridge. I did manage to find a cute vintage postcard on Ebay which I used in the blue card. Traditionally I don't like to use "Xmas" however the style won me over. Hope this helps inspire some card making in you! :-)

Since you are more likely to act on something that you have written down I am hoping to post the project that will hold and display my new year's resolution in the next couple of weeks. Additionally my hubby found a very nice web cam in his vast collection so I am hoping to maybe post some video tutorials of the folded cards I have discovered.

Happy crafting everyone!!

Proof I have been up to crafty adventures!

Although I have been silent on my blog I have in fact been up to quite a few crafty adventures!

Proof can be found here at my sister's blog. I made a "Matilda Jane" inspired set of outfits for my two nieces Audrey (one year old) and Celia (Age 4). This was a project that pushed my envelope a little bit. I typically shy away from projects that I have to mix patterns on. Mixing patterns usually over whelms me but knowing the recipients wouldn't be judgemental helped tremendously!

I don't have any better pictures as our good camera was off with my husband. The first outfit is similar to the knot dress with the "bloomer" like pants that seem to be all the rage. The second coordinating outfit is a modified a-line jumper with matching "bloomers". I like the fact they aren't identical just share the same fabrics. I love the a-line jumper because as Audrey grows she can where it as a top. When I had my own business this was a customer favorite for that reason.

Hope this finds everyone sticking to their resolutions! I found and awesome project to show case mine and hope to share this in the future.

Cheers!

Never too late?

I am embarrassed at how long it has been since my last post. This is one of my new year’s resolutions. The local news around us has been abuzz with resolutions do and don'ts. One of the recommendations that seem to be repeated is to make your resolutions specific. So I am making resolutions that fall into 7 categories: Spiritual, Work, Home, Family, Physical, Mental, and Yard.
Since my work is mainly taking care of the kids I think this will grow to encompass my blog and other crafty ventures. One of my "work" goals is to post weekly on my blog. It may be just a few words or thoughts or a long post about what creative project I have launched into but it will be made weekly.

I had all intentions of posting the below thoughts before Christmas but well bronchitis got in the way! It hit me hard and landed me in bed for 3+ days.

While sitting in my Christmas Eve service at church I had a "light bulb" moment (sorry for the over used cliché).

It occurred to me that the birth of Jesus allowed some words to enter into our vocabulary that would not have the great meaning they have without this gift.

Given Jesus’s birth;
Sanctification, redemption, and sacrifice would not have the earth shattering meaning
We have a clear picture of what love, promises and forgiveness look like.
Joy has a separate and eternal meaning from happiness.

I plan on printing these truths and keeping them as a daily reminder. He truly is in the details as small as a word’s definition!

Happy New Year!