CRAFTS!

OK kids- Here's the reason I STILL have a blog, even though I rarely post anything worthwhile... I LOVE CRAFTS! I check my blogger dashboard probably a minimum of 5 times a day- sometimes 25. (i'm not exaggerating) I follow about 20 blogs, most of which are crafty blogs. I bookmark AND print out all the ones I like and think I might like to make someday. I have a huge binder I affectionately call my Inspiration Album. Most of these crafts are from said blogs. I thought I'd share them here. If you follow me on FB, I apologize for the redundancy. Below each picture is where I received the inspiration.

http://www.anke-art.de/home/?p=680&lang=en

multiple sites (these are all bookmarks)

 sorry it's sideways!

http://littlebirdiesecrets.blogspot.com/2009/12/stockings-with-style.html

made from pictures Mom & I took in Vegas this summer. This was her Christmas gift

http://www.prudentbaby.com/2010/04/diy-checkbook-cover-part-iii.html

http://www.prudentbaby.com/2010/12/felt-gift-bows.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+PrudentBaby+(Prudent+Baby)

made this up for my sister-in-law

made this up... didn't really turn out

http://www.prudentbaby.com/2010/09/fat-quarter-apron-tutorial.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+PrudentBaby+(Prudent+Baby)

http://calebdanielle.blogspot.com/2010/10/diy-yarn-wreath-with-felt-flowers.html

http://alisaburke.blogspot.com/2010/09/painted-puzzle-tutorial.html

http://www.allaboutyou.com/craft/sewing-cosy-home-applique-cushion/v1

Have any things you'd like me to make?? Be creative. I'll see what I can round up. :)

Taking Down Christmas

On my list of things to do today was "Take down Christmas." 
How sad. I LOVE to decorate for Christmas. I have done it for my mom for the past... probably 10 years. I blare my Mannheim Steamrollers music...


You should take a listen to one of my favorite songs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68j6Ceof8QQ


I bring up all the Christmas decorations at once and unwrap each of them in glee before I figure out where I'm going to put each piece. 


My personal favorite part is decorating the tree. Some people have decorating the tree as a family affair... my family doesn't do affairs, so I just do it in solitaire. I enjoy it just the same. Oh... and I put the angel on first. :)


 Here is this year's tree. Mom took it down the other week when I was away, which made me sad... but luckily after only removing a few items, she took a picture: 

Unfortunately for us, it's not a very good picture. It was much prettier and fancier with the lights on, I promise.

Anyway, so today- since it is now February 1st, I thought that was a good day to change up the decorations, especially since I was supposed to work today but didn't on account of the ice.

Now this is what our house looks like:

 

Isn't life so empty without Jesus??

involved

I often think of things I want to do when I "settle" down.- you know, stay in one place for longer than a year or 2. Things like eating unprocessed foods- mainly from my garden, making my own bread, recycling, joining a gym, you know... good things that I should do now but just isn't feasible... 

Well for various reasons and at various times throughout the day today- I kept thinking how I really want to be involved in my community (wherever that community may be!) Either in dental hygiene ways- like volunteering to give hygiene presentations to classrooms, or Sealant Saturday things. Or volunteering at a soup kitchen or thrift store. Or joining a local club sports team. Or being on local committees- like school boards, or church committees- like outreach, fellowship, and what not. 

I'm really looking forward to being involved... and eating all that healthy food!

one of these days i'll post a picture to go with my babbles but for now, this is what you get. sorry!

anointing

Hearing a sermon on Sunday that mentioned oil anointing reminded me of the last time I was anointed.... by none other than that awful basketball coach I mentioned before. She thought if we were anointed we would play better. I mean... maybe.... or maybe we just needed a coach.

ouch.


ok now I'm working on getting over this... pray for me! :)

Radical

I just started a new book- Radical by David Platt. I asked for it for Christmas because I read a quote once from it and I really liked the quote. It reminds me of the Bible Study my dad's friend/business partner just finished up called Crazy Love by Francis Chan.
 It talks about how we live our lives as American Christians. We have a distorted view of who God is because we shape him in our minds to fit our comforts and culture. 
 I have only finished the first 2 chapters but it's already a book that makes you think.... and hopefully will make me change. I hope and pray that I will learn to obey God completely- to take up my cross and follow him. Either that or I'm going to feel guilty afterwards because now it's been brought to my attention. eeek!
 I recommend the book- you can borrow it from me once I finish it. :)


Blessings
-b

Basketball Memories... eeek!

So first of all, I decided I do indeed want to blog more. Every time I blog I feel like I have to catch the blog up to what's happened in my life but now I decided I'm just going to blog whenever I feel like it about anything i feel like. I think that's the point of these things anyway. Well actually.... for me the point of blogging is simply to follow other people's blogs and use their crafty tutes. :) (tutorials)

Anyways.... do you ever have random thoughts or memories of how someone treated you poorly and relive those feelings? I was driving home today and I, for some reason, thought back to my freshman and sophomore year of high school playing basketball. I had a terrible coach. (I feel safe saying that because I'm sure she'll never read this.) She treated me and my teammates like we were the worst sinners in the world. She would say things like that too. I remember one away game we were warming up and I don't even know what we were doing- probably just laughing while shooting... anyways she SCREAMS at us to come over and YELLS at us for ALL to hear... saying things like we must not be Christians because of what we're doing.... honestly... we were so confused. And angry. Who wants to play for a coach after a stunt like that?!
Anyways that's not actually what I was thinking of while driving. No, this was MUCH less awful. Much more petty. and much more personal.
We had JV games and Varsity games. I was a starter for the varsity team. Now don't go thinking that I was a good bball player just because I'm tall. I was not very good at all - definitely not the 5th best player on the team. You probably wouldn't believe me if I stopped there because come on... I was a Varsity Starter! In normal schools I'd probably get a letter right??? WELL...... She started me on Varsity so therefore I was ineligible to play in the JV game... which was more my level. I started Varsity and played a whopping TWO minutes... if I was lucky. Then she would sub me out with someone much more skilled and I sat the bench the rest of the game. The reason why??? So that my teammate - who was very good- would be allowed to play in the JV game  and Varsity. Isn't that rotten? I still got mad about that when I thought of it, and that happened like 8 years ago!! I really need to get over it. ha!

Now back to making Christmas presents!

Ciao

Finally, what else I did...

My parents have been home for a number of weeks now, but I never finished my series on what I did when they were away... so here's the ending! :)

I ate the other half of the pack of steak and grilled me some tators! yum!

I made a hot chocolate milkshake, which was pretty much a vanilla malt. more yum!

Remember how I said I went to Ohio? Well, on the way home my friend and I stopped at the Steelers training camp.

Unfortunately it was the day before the first preseason game so there was no public practice. boo

I went shopping and got all kinds of goodies!!

I made an earring holder...

here it is! not the best picture since the background is the same color, but you get the idea.

I started cutting patches for my next project: a blanket! :)

And that's about it... I picked some flowers and welcomed them home. It's been fun....