One Thousand Gifts and the Joy Dare

Gratitude is something my mother ingrained in me at an early age.  Even when things are bad, I try my best to remember that for the most part, my glass is not just half full, but overflowing.

I read about a book by Ann Voskamp titled One Thousand Gifts.  Described as a celebration of grace and a recognition of the power of gratitude.  I can't wait to read it (you can read about it along with the first chapter here on her site). 

Ann is also asking her readers to take the Joy Dare.  A joy dare to give God all the glory for his graciousness.  Each day list three things that you are grateful for or bring you joy.  You can journal it, jot on a special note sheet she supplies to print, tweet it, or download the app for your smart phone!!!  It's all on the One Thousand Gifts website and A Holy Experience blog.  I'm a few days late in beginning, but look forward to doing this.  Check it out!!   

This might be the year for something like this.  With everything we face right now with our servicemen deployed, job losses, a horrible economy, and so much more; finding daily joy, "living fully right where we are", as Ann describes her book.

Other things have pointed me in that direction.  I have a friend who began a blog he entitled The Gratitude Project (yes, a man is doing this).  A craft blog I read encouraged people to create a large (almost poster size) manifesto for 2012 and print it to keep it in view as a reminder.  I am normally an overachiever, but this time I went for the 81/2 x 11 printed manifesto.  Listing things like Pray More, Rest More, Worry Less, Walk in Faith, and just the words ~ Integrity, Gratitude and Humility!

So let's a find some joy in the journey as we press on to the goal!  

BIG Vintage Pearl Giveaway!

I love, love, love The Vintage Pearl.  They are giving away 5 $100 gift certificates today for last minute Christmas fun!  I even sell as an independent contractor for Initial Outfitters, but still purchase from TVP.  Check it out here!  Hope you and I both win one!!!!!

GREAT Giveway!

There are blogs I read on a daily basis and one of my favorite is Centsational Girl.  She is a creative DIY'er and beautiful decorator.  Also been featured in Better Homes and Gardens Christmas Idea magazine this year, and more.  

She's got a great giveaway going on at her site from The Vintage Pearl ~ another one of my favorites!

Go HERE and enter to win!  If you win, you have to share.

HA HA 

Earthquake!

We had a 2.7 magnitude earthquake today and it was FrEaKy.  I work at a college and the epicenter was about 1 mile from us.  There was a very loud boom and then a shake.  Very short, but shook all of us up!  We all thought a car ran into our building.   Thankfully there was no damage and no one hurt, just woke us all up. Fun times! 

I immediately began singing the old Carole King song. . .
I feel the earth move under my feet
I feel the sky tumbling down
I feel my heart start to trembling . . .

One of the websites that reports and records earthquakes is actually quite intersting.  http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/dyfi/
I've always been told there is constant seismic activity, but this site shows how often and where.  Check it out! 

Pinterest Challenge Post #2

This Pinterest challenge has been SO MUCH FUN!  I've found things to do later, did some today, and bookmarked all kinds of things.  Also been blog-stalking!  Needless to say, my house is still a mess, but I am a more creative creature for it!!!!

The sharing/copying is the best part.  Found this post's inspiration from Corrie at http://housemadeblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/diy-typography-art.html.  Here are links to my versions of some of the things!

ABC art!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1M0WGFbKUFy4tOq2s31E-UW1GqDt0hqp4p3oMFX957x0/edit

Last name fun!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xCW5OUndpDgFUHL9d8cwPMIQrwLPR-gYFpHLWj6ryCA/edit

The party is on at Young House Love,  Bower Power, Ana White and House of Earnest. 

Pinterest Challenge!!

I always love a challenge and don't know that I will get all of this correct, but here goes ~ 

There's a party going on, hosted by Young House Love,  Bower Power, Ana White and House of Earnest.  Challenging us to actually complete something we've fallen for on Pnterest.  I found a WONDERFUL tulle wreath on My 3 Monsters blog that she found on Something to Do.   I absolutely LOVE the SHARING!

So I decided to do my own version and here it is!  Mine is for Halloween, but it has such possibilites.  Red and White for Christmas, School colors.  I can also picture a sweet light pink or blue with baby items for a nursery.

I used a roll of black tulle and a wire wreath form.  Cut my 6 inch wide tulle into approximately 6 to 8 inch lengths and started tying!

   

View from the back, I tyed tulle on the first two wires, then the second and third, then the third and fourth.  Repeating that pattern all the way around. 

You can make it as tight as you want.  The solid black is hard to see in a picture.  I did try mixing some silver tulle in, but it looked too white.

Add a ribbon, flower, picture, be creative and have fun! 

Sorry the pictures aren't better, but maybe you can get the idea!



IAMS donating 100 Meals!!!

When You Show Your Support by Joining the Iams Blogging 4 Bowls Blog Hop Iams will Donate 100 Meals!

I am supporting IAMS Dog Food efforts to provide 100 bowls of food for every blog post!! Just wish I'd seen it earlier to share a little longer!!






Here's all you need to do to show your support for the Iams Home 4 the Holidays Blogging for Bowls Blog Hop:

•Link up your blog name and URL using the Linky Tool ~ and since I don't know how to link the Linky Tool here ~ click HERE and add yourself to Mimi's Linky!!!!

Additional ways to show your support of the Iams Home 4 the Holidays kickoff:

•Grab the code and write a post on your blog to show your added support for the Blogging for Bowls Blog Hop.

•Stop by the blog hop co-hosts,The Tiniest Tiger, Fidose of Reality, Pets News and Views, Pets Weekly, Dogtipper, and Preston Speaks , to say hello.

•Visit other blogs that are supporting the Blogging 4 Bowls Blog Hop. Make new friends and/or reconnect with old friends.

Mary Engelbreit!

I LOVE Mary Engelbreit's art and fun products.  I have collected her books for many years and especially love her illustrated children's books.  She has opened a new online shop and a cool contest ~ you could win these three original drawings, framed!

Check it out here:  

http://maryengelbreit.com/m/echadwick

Ceiling Art

Have you heard of it?  Ceiling Art, it's in dentist's and doctor's offices to gaze at as you are lying there.  WELL ~ we got us some ceiling art on Monday!  Lovely, don't you thing? 

Pinterest!

Pinterest and blogs may be the best and worst thing I've ever discovered!!!  Got up on this Labor Day and decided to labor little bit.  I have a big event at church on Sat. and we leave for the beach on Sunday.  I have lots to do.  Not to mention my house is a wreck!!!  

So I decide to sit down with my coffee and check e-mail first.  BIG MISTAKE :)  There it is, the This week on Pinterest e-mail.  Here I sit on the computer almost 3 hours later and the dogs aren't even fed.  

Just found that earning your Ph.D. was not as difficult as some may think.  I do VERY WELL with Projects Half Done!   Have a great "labor" day :)  

WOW, it's been since Dec. 2010 since I've posted.  Think it's time to get back on the wagon???  I use Google Reader to check on blogs and enjoy reading them.  I leave comments occasionally and it links back to my blog.  I was a little embarassed when I realized it's been so long.

So when I signed in to my blog I began reading.  I began this thing in 2007 and it is amazing what I've put on the internet!!!!!  I will admit that Facebook, Whirly Words, Words with Friends and over committing myself has interferred with my blogging.  Not to mention that I don't have some wild, exciting life to share ~  and I like it that way!!!  

So I will try to get back to sharing books I've read, crafts, bible study, and family.  We still have two dachshunds that could be the subject of their own blog.  Molly the crack dog and Sassy the Princess.

Blesssings,

Altered Tins and Merry Christmas

Made these for goodies at my family get-together.  Filled them with candy and kids $1 puzzle from Walmart!  Also gave our daughter a Georgia Bulldogs Red and Black tree.  I made the ornaments for that. 

MERRY CHRISTMAS

A post with no title

I have the crud now ~ just before Christmas no less.  A touch of bronchitis and sinus infection, fever.  Got a shot, antibiotics, nasal steroid, and was told to begin using a Neti Pot.  I'd heard of it and have used saline in my nose, but this thing is a trip!  Works, but it's weird!!!!  Check it out. 

I've also lost my voice ~ hubby thought about posting something on Facebook about a peaceful "silent night" ~ but to his credit, rethought that!!

Here's to the crazy few days before Christmas, long lines, traffic, counting packages to make sure everyone gets the same number, last minute stocking stuffers, fretting about the gift that did not arrive in time, that string of lights that went out on the tree, cooking, polishing silver (does anyone do that anymore), deep cleaning the house so everyone can walk through the door and mess it up in less than 3.2 minutes, making sure the cookies are ready for Santa, and the famous last words ~ I planned on getting this done earlier this year! 

It's all worth it as long as we remember why we celebrate this season.  It is the birthday of our Lord, Jesus Christ.  No other gift matters.

Joy in the midst of it all,

 

Christmas is almost here

Really, I've not posted since September?  That was just a week or so ago, right?????  WOW, how this year has flown.  It's been a busy, exciting, life changing, and sad one for me in many ways.  Always blessed though.  As things happen and progress in life, whether good or bad, I always try to hang on to an attitude of gratitude.   God is always faithful and takes care of me and my family through all the crazy times.  If I don't post again before Christmas, I hope you have a peaceful, loving one.  

Joy in the midst of it all,   

Convertible!

I've always wanted a convertible Volkswagen bug.  This weekend one of my best friends came to visit from Nashville and drove her new convertible bug!  It was a glorious weather weekend and we rode with the top down most all day Sat.  FUN!!! 

HOPE

HOPE

Holding on Praying Expectantly.

This is a beautiful post and piece of jewelry from The Vintage Pearl.  Check out her other things, but be sure and order one of these!!!! 

Voting

DISCLAIMER:  I am NOT a women's libber, bra burner, protestor ~ just a women who has a passion for equality in all forms.  

Just off the heels of our Independence Day celebrations, let us not forget some of the reasons we are able to have freedoms and rights in our country.  We began early voting here in our county for the July 20th primary vote. I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE you, especially women, to vote.

August 26th marks the 90th year celebration of women's legal right to vote in the US.  The women that fought for our rights went through some AWFUL times. Women were beaten and left for dead, jailed, husbands divorced them, cussed at, etc.

AND

Wars have raged for years, many of those fought to protect our freedoms.  Our servicemen and women continue to sacrifice their lives, leave their families, and try to make the world a better place all in the name of protecting the rights and freedoms we enjoy, and many times take for granted. 

Materials about the Women's Suffrage Movement are available on the internet, in our library, etc.

http://nwhp.org/

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/awhhtml/aw01e/aw01e.html

are a couple of good sites.

Okay, off my soapbox!

VOTE EARLY ~ VOTE OFTEN!

Random stuff

I hope everyone has enjoyed their 4th of July as much as we have.  We did absolutely NOTHING that was not necessary!  We've had a whirlwind few months and chose to just veg this weekend.  We'll cookout with the our kids and grandkids tomorrow. 

I've spent an inordinate time on my laptop.  Catching up on blogs, cleaning out e-mails, etc. 

Wanted to share my great-niece's blog with you.  She and her husband had a baby boy almost a year ago now.  Logan is PRECIOUS.  She made a video for her husband on his first Father's Day, then she and her brother and sister made one for their dad (my nephew).  Both of these videos are priceless and truly show what kind of family they are.  The only down side to it is that we live about 8 hours apart and do not get to see each other often enough ~ this kind of thing just makes me miss them more.   

One of my dear friends, Jenn at Delightfully.cliche. posted a photo meme and a love post on Friday.  I'd done the photo meme a couple of posts back ~ HERE ~ if you want to check it out.  She shared some of her favorite blogs and I've been reading them this weekend and added several to my google reader to keep up with their posts.  Check her posts out and see her favorite bloggers.

While looking at blogs, I discovered several dedicated to dachshunds.  We have two right now and have had two others in the past.  They are a pain in the tail, stubborn as everything, high maintenance, and spoiled rotten (born that way, we did not do it, LOL).  Vet bills, constant carpet cleaning (did I mention they were stubborn?), dog food to buy, etc.  They bark at nothing, are jealous of each other,  want to be beside one of us AT ALL TIMES, sleep in out bed, and pretty much run the house.

But we would not take a million dollars for them (actually if you offer. . . ).   The current two still surprise us with their personalities and discoveries.  My daughter-in-law lovingly named Molly, our 16 month old, "crack dog" because her energy is over the top.  Our 4 year old Sassy, (we just inherited her in April), is the most docile dachshund I've ever seen.  Polar opposites!

I might mention at this very moment the random fireworks going off in our neighborhood ARE NOT something these two enjoy.  

Last but not least, it is the 4th of July and thinking about the men and women that have fought and are still fighting to make this the best country in the world to live in, moves me to tears.  Thank you cannot BEGIN to express how much you and your families sacrifice mean to me.

Muffins and Mayhem!!!

Just finished reading Muffins and Mayhem: Recipes for a Happy (if Disorderly) Life by Suzanne Beecher (creator of *DearReader.com) and I highly recommend it.  Part memoir, part cookbook, Suzanne shares some of her life experiences and lessons learned in this delightful book.  Suzanne speaks to the reader candidly about life and it's ups and downs in a way we can all relate to.  With a few tears and lots of laughs, this book is a joy to read!  Check out the Muffins and Mayhem website for more information.

*DearReader.com is a site you need to check out.  I may have blogged about it before ~ it's great.  You can choose different "book clubs" and receive a daily excerpt of the featured book that week.  Everyday Suzanne posts something on the e-mail as well.  Might be a new recipe, a thought, reader mail, etc.  I LOVE getting daily book excerpts and finding out about new authors, etc.  Suzanne also has a feature known as AuthorBuzz that introduces you to 4-6 authors not featured on the daily read.  I cannot tell you how much I enjoy it.  Some weeks I don't look at any of the books, but most times I do.  I've discovered authors that have become my favorite to read on AuthorBuzz.   One of the best parts of the site though ~ you might be lucky enough to be the winner of a batch of Suzanne's famous Chocolate Chip Cookies!!!!!

It's very simple.  Nothing to buy, no requirements to fulfill, no surveys, etc.  Just great information.  Check it out!

Happy Reading,

WOW

If you read my last post, I introduced you to an author ~ Denise Hildreth Jones.  Just about 15 minutes after I posted about her, I received another authors newsletter on my e-mail.  The first entry on her newsletter read. . . "join me tomorrow night at The Book Exchange in Marietta, GA along with Maryann McFadden and Denise Hildreth. . . "   Here in the south, we call that a God Thang!!! 

I did a quick search to find out where the bookstore was and decided I could get there in about an hour.  So after work today I took off for Marietta!  Met a dear friend there who loves books as much as I do.  

The Book Exchange folks were great hostesses and the authors were delightful.  If you live in the Atlanta area I highly recommend you visit The Book Exchange.  

I came home with signed copies of the authors newest books, and felt like I made lots of new friends, too.

I told you about Denise Hildreth in my previous post.  Her newest book is Hurricanes in Paradise.   Nichole Seitz's new book is Saving Cicadas.  This is her fourth novel and she does all her own beautiful artwork for the covers.  Maryann McFadden's newest is So Happy Together, set in Cape Cod.  Her first novel, The Richest Season is set in Pawleys Island, SC.  All three authors were informative, honest and a delight to talk with and listen to.  Their writing comes from their hearts and is a gift to us.  Check them out by clicking on their names and also check out The Book Exchange.

Happy Reading!