I Heart You More

I love Valentine's Day!

Here a few fun little Valentines.

I love you more than........

Pinterest, Starbucks, Sonic, Chocolate, and Target!
{and that's a whole lot!}

Monday Morning Question of the Day

{sorry there isn't a question mark- I have lots of letters, no punctuation marks!}

How WILL you?   I'd love to hear!

Faith is not......

Max Lucado is a wise, wise man indeed!

Friday Morning Randomness

This week has been super busy and a tad crazy! 

1. I had a most unfortunate and embarrassing  mortifying moment on Monday. 

I won't go into ugly details but it involved me running to 

the restroom VERY quickly before picking up a group of second graders,

some toilet paper that was not in the correct place,

and one of the cutest 2nd graders ever asking

"It is mouse day? Do you have a tail?"

I seriously almost died. 

And as I told my friend Betty the story while she was on the elliptical at the gym 

she laughed so hard I thought she was going to either a. fall off or b. pee in her pants. 

I am ridiculous sometimes. 

Seriously ridiculous.

2. We had a crazy storm on Tuesday morning complete with a tornado warning.  

While most {sane} people were inside seeking shelter, I was outside with

 three other crazies friends getting kids out of cars and safely in the building.  

It was one of the craziest things I've ever experienced. 

 I've seen lots of storms from inside,  but standing outside in one 

with 40-50mph winds and tree limbs flying around was something else!

 By the time it was over there was not a single dry spot on me- 

down to my bra and panties- and over 2 inches of water standing in my boots

 so I had to go home and shower and get ready all over again. 

{Post storm pic....sorry for the creepy smile!}

My sweet principal was out of town and 

rewarded me with a Sonic card yesterday. 

How sweet was that? 

3. Yesterday Tony brought something in from the mailbox 

that made me super 

happy! 

Not a check.

Not a package.

Not a card. 

Not a wedding invitation.

Nope. 

It was....................

a jury summons! 

I was so happy! 

After being on a jury last year for a capital murder trial for over a week

and being sequestered unexpectedly for a weekend, 

I so did not expect to get called again for a very long time. 

It made my day! 

4. I took out this recipe the other night to make cookies for a project Madison had. 

Seeing it- in my mother's handwriting- made me tear up, as it always does. 

I love seeing things she wrote- to me they are so precious-

as are the ones I have written by my grandmother. 

I started thinking about how I'd like to use some of these 

in my kitchen but I can't quite figure out how. 

I thought about framing some in small frames

or about blowing them up large and framing them

or about hanging a bunch from wire inside an empty frame

or even about enlarging some and having them put on canvas

but I just can't decide. 

Any ideas oh creative friends of mine? 

{Seriously I'd love to hear them!}

It also reminded me that in this technology saturated world

we need to be sure to continue to hand write things. 

I want to leave recipes, cards, letters, and

 notes for my sweet daughter. 

5. I've posted a bunch of printables over on my other blog. 

Great reminders for us all! 

                     

          

6. My oh so sweet and very wise friend Donna has a habit of cleaning her house on Thursday night so that she can enjoy the weekend without having those chores to do. 

While I love this idea in theory, putting in into practice is difficult. 

I'm usually so tired by Thursday night that the last thing 

I want to do is clean house....and so I don't. 

But last night I soldiered on and did it and I'm so happy! 

I'm going to go grocery shopping this afternoon and enjoy the weekend! 

Happy Friday friends! 

God Never Hurries

Those who know me know that I usually move at a pretty high rate of speed.

I've been described as energizer bunny-ish.

{Sometimes I think I'm more tazmanian devilish!}

I know that when people say it, they mean it as a compliment, 
however I don't really think of it as a positive trait. 

It seems the older I get, the more of a hurry I seem to be in each day.

Always thinking of the task ahead of me and the task beyond that.

Of the next item on my very long list and the one after that. 

Sadly I've realized that by doing that, 
by working and moving so quickly and always multi-tasking, 

I often miss the joy of the moment.

I miss the the joy of actually being where I am, 

with the people I am with- 
focused completely on them.

And so I am constantly and continually working on that. 

Trying hard to be in the moment. 

To enjoy where I am and what I am doing instead of thinking ahead. 

Slowing down and reveling in the task and people before me. 

I recently came across this quote by A.W. Tozer that 

reminded me that God....He never hurries. 

     

     

God Never Hurries

Wednesday Night Randomness

Reading: 

If you are looking for a great book to read the book my book club read for January was fabulous!

My Year with Eleanor: A Memoir

Here's the description of the story from Amazon: 

After losing her high-octane job as an entertainment blogger, Noelle Hancock was lost. About to turn twenty-nine, she'd spent her career writing about celebrities' lives and had forgotten how to live her own. Unemployed and full of self-doubt, she had no idea what she wanted out of life. She feared change—in fact, she feared almost everything. Once confident and ambitious, she had become crippled by anxiety, lacking the courage required even to attend a dinner party—until inspiration struck one day in the form of a quote on a chalkboard in a coffee shop:

"Do one thing every day that scares you." ~Eleanor Roosevelt

Painfully timid as a child, Eleanor Roosevelt dedicated herself to facing her fears, a commitment that shaped the rest of her life. With Eleanor as her guide, Noelle spends the months leading up to her thirtieth birthday pursuing a "Year of Fear." From shark diving to fighter pilot lessons, from tap dancing and stand-up comedy to confronting old boyfriends, her hilarious and harrowing adventures teach her about who she is, and what she can become—lessons she makes vital for all of us.

It was such a great beginning of the year story! 

It truly made me think about the things in my life that scares me. 

Such good food for thought! 

Playing: 

My friend Liz told me about the coolest game to play on my iPad 

and now I am TOTALLY addicted to it! 

It's called W.E.L.D.E.R.

If you like word games like Scrabble and Words with Friends you will love it! 

Listening to:  

My kids say the craziest things............and so do I! 

This past week alone I've heard or said the following in my classroom:

-We do not do the chicken dance in GT! 

{Yep. Said by me.}

-I ate my way through the holidays! 

{Said by one of the funniest 6 year olds ever.}

-My mom likes to toot.....a lot. And everyone laughs.....except my dad. 

{Said by one of my 3rd grade boys. 

I am sure his mom would LOVE knowing he was telling that to people!}

Smelling:

I have found the best smelling candle EVER. 

Seriously. 

Super strong and super long lasting. 

My favorite is The Market. 

YUMMY!

What are you reading, playing, listening to, and/or smelling? 

God's Plans

Lou Giglio is a fabulous teacher and preacher whom I was blessed 

to get to hear while attending Baylor in the late 80's and early 90's.  

One of my favorites of his sermons is this one

A few weeks ago he tweeted the following quote and I absolutely loved it! 

         

Such a great reminder that the stuff of today that seems so big 

when you are in the midst of it,

 is truly minuscule in terms of God's plans for your life. 

I don't know about you but I often need that reminder! 

God's plans

Ponderings on a Saturday Morn

So this morning while spending a little lot ridiculous amount of time on Pinterest, 

I found several of my printables posted and linked to sites other than my own. 

I don't have time very often to check and see when people 

re-post my things but always love finding them.  

In the past when I've gone to a blog that re-posts one of my posters, 
I've always found a link back to one of my blogs- which I so appreciate. 
{FYI: you are always more than welcome to 
re-post my things with a link! In fact, I love it when you do!}

But recently I've found a few without a link.  

This morning I found a bunch that linked to a picture of one on a site

{and it was a blury bad pic} and so I left a comment. 

I didn't leave a comment to be rude-

 just to let them know that they could post a link to the original post 

so people could print the poster if they were interested.  

I immediately got a reply that wasn't exactly rude but wasn't very kind either. 

To be honest, it kind of hurt my feelings. 

And now I'm trying to figure out why. 

All of the things I make and post I do for free.  

I've had people ask me why I don't sell them on Etsy or even here on my site. 

My answer has always been that I love making them, 

love when I find free stuff, and love that people enjoy and use them- 

so I see no reason to.  

I don't watermark them because I kind 

of hate things that are watermarked.

But it does kind of hurt my feelings when people post them

 as if they were their own. 

So the questions I am pondering this morning are:

Is that wrong? 

Since I post them for free should I just not care? 

Am I just being overly sensitive or 

overly prideful this morning?

What do you think? 

You Can't Judge

Recently I was re-watching Facing the Giants 
{I LOVE that movie!} 

and a line from it really struck me. 

I jotted it down and this afternoon I made a quick little printable.

I don't know about you, but I often need this reminder! 

      

You Can't Judge Others

Dining Room Makeover

Our house was built in the late 90's where wallpaper was all the rage.  

Pretty much every bit of wall space had floral wallpaper. 

EVERY stinkin' bit!

Between the wallpaper and the gold fixtures-

 it was in need of a serious makeover! 

Here's what this room looked like last Tuesday night

Can you believe all that wallpaper? YIKES!

So for the past week our kitchen table and chairs have been in the garage, 

our china cabinet has been in our living room, 

our kitchen has been relatively unusable, 

and there has been a painter hanging out in our kitchen and dining room. 

For someone who likes things tidy and neat- 

it's been a  little lot crazy- 

but oh so worth it!  

A bunch of paint, some bead board, some new lights and 

here's how the same dining room looks tonight

{Sorry these pics aren't the best - I took them with my iPad. 

The walls are a light gray- but it's hard to tell in this pic.

I promise once we get everything done I'll post some more pics but I just had to share!}

Isn't that amazing? 

Now just wait till you see the kitchen cabinets!  

10 Minute, $10 Linen Cabinet Redo

I have a confession. 

Although I am pretty tidy in most places, 

my closets are usually not so tidy. 

Case in point- this WAS one of my linen cabinets earlier today:

Shameful isn't it?

Well with less than 10 minutes of my time 

and less than $10 it now looks like this:

I bought these little cubes from Walmart - 3 in a pack for less than $5. 

{couldn't find them online but similar to these}. 

Refolded everything neatly, got rid of three things,

 added some tags I had with ribbon from my LARGE ribbon stash and voila! 

And now I wonder why in the world did I take so long to do this 

and what other closets can I organize this way? 

WANTED: New Sign Ideas

Can you believe we are still on Christmas vacation? 

We don't go back until Jan. 9th !

{Isn't that FABULOUS!}

My kitchen is being renovated this week and I'm so stinkin' excited! 

{Bye bye 1990's wallpaper, hello new dark gray cabinets, white bead board, and light gray walls!}

I'm in the mood to make some new printable signs but instead of 

using my own list of ideas, I want to use yours! 

So if you have a quote or saying or Bible verse you'd like a sign of,

 leave a comment and I'll make it! 

And if you have a color combo idea too- let me know! 

Living Intentionally in 2012

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the beginning of a new year!

 It's like a blank slate stretched out before me. 

A brand new box of crayons, freshly sharpened.

New beginnings and a fresh start filled with so many possibilities! 

Here are some of my goals for the coming year:

My verse{s} for this year are Philippians 3:12-16 {The Message}

I'm not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don't get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I've got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I'm off and running, and I'm not turning back. So let's keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us. If any of you have something else in mind, something less than total commitment, God will clear your blurred vision—you'll see it yet! Now that we're on the right track, let's stay on it.

What about you? 

What do you hope to do, achieve, become this coming year?

Do you have a verse to focus on this year?

If so, I'd love to hear it! 

Happy New Year!