Perspective on the holidays...

This post has nothing to do with crafting, nothing to do with thrifting, and nothing to do with home decor. This post has everything to do with perspective.

As Christmas approaches (it's only 39 days away!) I find myself overhearing a lot of griping and complaining. I'm used to negativity...it seems like everyone has something to complain about every minute of every day (I'm guilty as charged!) but negative thoughts about Christmas?! Of all the holidays to complain about, people choose Christmas? Why not Halloween?! That's a scary holiday anyways, if it can even be considered a holiday. I understand where these negative notions come from. Christmas has become less of a religious holiday and more of a retail holiday. Buy this, buy that, the kids want this, the kids want that...want want want buy buy buy....

Let's take a deep breath...

He is the reason for the season...

Christmas is not supposed to be stressful. It is not supposed to be about lists and shopping trips. It is supposed to be a celebration! Celebrate!

While we are all writing our letters to Santa Claus, it seems that we too often forget that we've already been given the best gift that anyone could ever imagine! It makes me so sad that this celebration has turned so secular. We put a jolly rosy cheeked man in a big fluffy red suit and for too many people, he takes the place of the baby lying in a manger...

God, forgive us.

I pray that we can all gain a little more perspective on this holiday and celebrate it for what it is. I wouldn't mind if they didn't play Christmas music on the radio, or put decorations up in the malls, as long as I could continue to call it a Christmas tree and not a "Holiday" tree. A Christmas tree. It's Christmas...not Xmas.

Now, don't get me wrong...I love Santa Claus just as much as the next girl, and I too find myself amongst those who have forgotten the reason for this glorious holiday. But this weekend, I had a moment that helped put it all back into perspective for me.

This may sound silly to most, but it meant the world to me. This weekend, my amazing mother bought me my first nativity scene. We stopped by a Christian supply store, and when I saw it I just couldn't take my eyes off of it! It was unlike any nativity scene that I've ever come across.

 

 It was the figurine of Mary and Jesus that really spoke to me. In all other nativity scenes that I've found, baby Jesus is in fact laying in a manger, and He looks like He's about 3 years old. But here, He is being held by His mother Mary, and it touches my soul to the core. I stood and stared at this figurine for about 7 minutes straight, trying to hold back tears (I know, I'm dramatic.) But just look at them!

Does that not touch your heart, even just a little? I tried explaining this to my husband, but bless his heart, he could care less. Trying to get emotion out of him is like trying to squeeze orange juice out of an apple...at least when it comes to something that I'm emotional about. Now, if the Portland Trail Blazers ever win the NBA Championships I know he'll be balling happy tears like a baby! But anyways, I know that there are others out there who can look at this and feel touched.

This one picture...this one image of Mary holding her baby sums up everything that Christmas should be about.

I just pray that everyone at some point during this holiday season can feel the amount of pure joy that I felt when I looked at Mary holding the baby Jesus...even if it's only for a split second. It turned my perspective around. And with the right perspective, this season will be more joyous and celebratory, and less stressful and chaotic. Just remember that :)

Faith.Hope.Love

So Much to Say!

I can't believe it's been so long since I've posted on here! I've definitely been neglecting blogland, and my excuse is because I've had a lack of home projects lately! BUT...all that will be changing this week :) I went on a home decor shopping spree with my mom on sunday, and she's coming over on thursday to help me get my house clean and decorated! I love my mother :) She is SUCH a blessing!
I have so many ideas floating through my head, but there will definitely be painting, and picture hanging, and furniture moving! I have some shelves that I'm thinking of re-doing, and some artwork that I'm thinking of creating, so I will definitely have more posts soon! I'm also hoping that after this thursday, I will be proud enough of my home to give you guys a little home tour! I don't know if you'd like that or not, but I'm going to do it anyways :) I'm sure you will have tons of good advice for all the stuff I can't figure out in my home! Well, until this weekend! See ya!
Faith.Hope.Love

Coupons...

Not many people know this about me, but I am frugal, I hate spending money, and when I find a REALLY good deal, it makes me giddy!  At this point in my life, spending any more than $10 on ANYTHING makes my stomach turn...I'm weird, I know. It's not just about saving money either...it makes me feel accomplished! I feel like I've "one-uped" someone in the world because I got an item for A LOT less than what they did! So I'm competitive...big deal :) Anyways! The point of this post is to share with you one of my FAVORITE blogs that helps me save money!!! If you haven't heard of The Krazy Coupon Lady, you MUST check out her blog now! Literally, RIGHT NOW! GO! ok...I guess you can finish reading this post first if you really want.
Here are a couple examples of some deals I got just by following the advice and directions of The Krazy Coupon Lady....

I got 3 tubes of toothpaste for free! Actually, the way it all worked out, I MADE $1.50 by purchasing these! Yup! Making money for shopping?!?! Yes please!

These athletic shorts from target were originally $7.99 each. I paid $.58 each :) 

These 4 items were $13.96...I ended up paying a total of $1.39!!!

This blog has definitely changed the way I look at grocery store shopping! It takes some research and dedication, but it's SO worth it! Go check it out and see what kinds of deals YOU can find!

Faith.Hope.Love

Coffee Filter Flowers...

I found this great tutorial on how to make coffee filter flowers over at Homework, today's assignment: be inspired . This was the PERFECT project to help use up all my old sized coffee filters that are useless to me now! I could have gone and bought silk flowers, but I really don't like spending money. I also could have gone and bought REAL flowers but again, I really don't like spending money...and they would die the first day, guaranteed! So, coffee filter flowers it is! I was surprised with how well they turned out actually. It helped bring a little life into my lifeless family room. Here's my own version of the tutorial!

1. Start with a stack of coffee filters...

2. I used anywhere from 6-10 coffee filters for one flower...I liked the difference in the fullness. So take your stack of filters and poke a hole in the middle. Over at Homework, she used wire. I didn't have any so I used the stems of old silk flowers that I don't and never will use again..

3. If you use something that isn't bendable, you have to fold the filters around the point and tape at the bottom. At this point it looks pretty tacky, but don't worry! It will eventually be beautiful! If you use a wire or pipe cleaner, just use enough wire to poke through, bend, then poke back through the filters again.

4. Start pulling apart the layers of the coffee filters...

 5. Once the layers are all pulled apart, start crinkling them up...not so much that it looks like a ball of garbage...but just enough so it doesn't look like a coffee filter. It's mostly about just trying stuff out and seeing what looks good to you.

6.Once done, it may or may not look like this...remember...it's your own craft so do it your way.

7. After you have all your flowers finished, arrange them in a pretty vase :) 

This project cost me $0 because I had all the supplies lying around. It took me about 30 minutes to complete. It was easy and fun, and I think it made a huge difference to the console table in my family room! Not to mention those awesome candle sticks that I got from Big Lots for $2.50 each :) 

Thanks for reading everyone! I hope you all enjoy the rest of your week! 

Faith.Hope.Love

I've linked up to

My First Big Project...

Alright folks...this post might be a long one, so be prepared! I would like to share with you what I did over my 3 day weekend. I built a bed. I posted last week about the bed from Pottery Barn that I absolutely LOVE! Here it is again..

And again...This bed costs about 1200. So, I found plans for this bed online here from a blog called Knock-Off Wood) AMAZING stuff, and I can't wait to build more of her furniture!), I enlisted the help of my dad, and off to Home Depot we went!

 I've shopped at Home Depot a lot but NEVER in the lumber department. This was a first for me. It was quite overwhelming and I'm SO thankful that I had my dad there to help me figure things out. I'm pretty confident that I could go back and figure things out on my own now. The next thing my dad helped me with was the cutting...

 There's my dad! Again, I would not have been able to figure that part out without him! THANKS DAD! So we got to cutting, and after about 2.5 hours, we had this...

 oh...and this!

 At this point, it was looking like I purchased something from Ikea that had "some assembly required". I've put together my fair share of bookshelves, so I knew it would be cake from here on out!

 My dad helped with one more thing...putting together the first of the three benches. This one was pretty easy with the 2 of us. The next 2 were all me, so it was a little bit more difficult (yes, my husband helped a little bit...but lets face it...I'm a perfectionist and control freak, so it didn't last very long haha)

 Looking good! I was pretty proud of myself at this point! At the end of day 1, everything was purchased, cut, and put together for the most part!

Day 2 involved trimming out all 3 of the benches. This part was actually pretty easy, but I am definitely investing in a nail gun for my next project!

 Here it is...trimmed out in all it's glory and ready to be patched up, sanded, and painted!

 At the end of day 2, my bed was a beautiful antique white, and was ready to be moved to the room...

 DONE! At the end of day 3 (after work) Eric and I moved all the benches upstairs, added the spacer to support the mattress (no picture of that...it was a little stressful) and now it's done! Isn't it awesome?!?! I'm SO proud!

So, just to recap...here's the bed I wanted.......

and here's the bed I now have...

:) The last step in this process will be to find baskets that fit in the cubby holes, but I'll save that for next month I think. I'm a little worn out for now! Thanks for taking the time to check out this project everyone! Until next time...

Faith.Hope.Love

Now that the honeymoon is over...

I am settling into the "nesting" stage of my life. I've been using every spare minute (except for the 2 hrs I used to watch Bachelor Pad) in the last week and a half to try and get our house up to livable conditions. After not living in my home for 3 weeks, it ended up getting pretty bad. We aren't the cleanliest of couples. Most of the time I'm just too lazy to actually clean, and Eric's idea of cleaning doesn't involve a vacuum, window cleaner, or all purpose anti-bacterial cleaner. We make a great team :) But I'm definitely ready to make a change in our home! I started with the downstairs bathroom, which I will post pictures of later, and got that all cleaned and decorated, and I LOVE it now! And my next project will be this....

I am SO in love with this bed from Pottery Barn! It would fit in perfectly with our master bedroom, and we could definitely use the extra storage! But this bed costs $1200 :( Money that I definitely don't have to spend right now, and even if I did have it, I still wouldn't want to pay that much for a bunch of wood nailed together and painted. So what am I going to do? I'm going to buy some wood, nail it together and paint it! Sounds crazy I know, but recently I have discovered the empowerment of using my own two hands to make something beautiful and functional, so I'm going to give my first real shot at carpentry work. The plans to make this beautiful bed can be found on my favorite blog that I've ever stumbled upon...

Ana White is one of my heroes, and I feel so inspired by her! Why spend thousands and thousands of dollars on furniture if you can just make it yourself? She draws up all the plans herself, and makes them available on her blog for anyone to use! She has plans for pretty much everything you could possibly think of. You can find the plans that I'll be using for this bed here. 

Seems easy enough, right? Well, we shall see! I will definitely be posting about how all this turns out! It could be a great success, or it could be a total failure, but I prefer to look on the bright side! Wish me luck!

ONE MORE THING! I have a question for my 7 followers ha. What are your opinions on painting all the baseboards and trim in my house white?  Right now they are all wood, and it makes everything seem so dark. Anyways, thanks!


Faith.Hope.Love

Time Flies When You're Having Fun...

I never really understood the meaning of this phrase until July 24th, 2010... my wedding day. I'm sure every bride says this, but I'm pretty positive that my wedding was the most beautiful wedding in the whole entire world! (I'm not normally so selfish, but hey, it was my day!...and Eric's) I honestly could not have asked for a more perfect, beautiful, amazing, wonderful day! Ready? Picture time!







We don't have all of our professional pictures back yet, but so far they are turning out perfectly! I can't wait to see the rest!

Like I said, the day turned out perfectly! It didn't all come together quite perfectly, and now I know why they always say that something WILL go wrong...if events had gone even a slightly different way, I may not have had flowers OR a cake!...but thanks to my wonderful amazing mother, she pulled it all off! I swear, if I end up having a tiny fraction of the talent that she possesses, I will be a very very lucky girl. You want to see her work?







That's my beautiful mother. She made the cake, the sugar flowers on the cake, the centerpieces, bouquets, and boutonnieres! Yes...she is VERY talented! It was probably the most stressful experience of her life, but knowing that I have a mom who is willing to go through that just so I can have a beautiful day, and a dad who is willing to deal with my mom in that state just so I can have a beautiful day, makes me a very very very lucky girl.

So here's how the day played out. I woke up at 6:30...went to Gene Juarez to get my hair and make-up done, which was SUCH a fun experience. Went back to the house, got ready, then rushed to the castle! (It wasn't really a castle...more like a really big mansion) Then it was picture time, then ceremony, then reception, then done! It literally all went by that fast! It was all gone in the blink of an eye! I knew it would be. This has been a LONG time coming. And at the end of the day, Eric and I were Mr. and Mrs. Rupert, and I ended up being the happiest girl in all the world! He has always been an amazing boyfriend and fiance, and now he has become on amazing husband! I am so excited about sharing our lives together forever! I love him with all my heart.

Here's a pic of us on our honeymoon in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico!



I can hear it now..."ooo kissing!"...whatever. We are married. We do what we want :)

Anyways, I will have to post about the honeymoon at another time, but all I can say now is that it was AH-MAH-ZING! I can't wait to go back for our anniversary!

So now that my wife switch has been flipped, I'm in a totally different mode. NESTING mode! We've been in our house for over a year now, but I've never wanted to decorate and cook and clean so badly until now! Not sure why, but oh well! Eric's loving it! I have a few projects that I've started working on that I will have to post about later, so for now, thanks for reading! I'm going to go day dream and re-live my wedding day :)

Faith.Hope.Love

Kind of Random...

I know I haven't posted in a very long while, and I promise that I will be doing a wedding update post soon, but I just HAVE to do this first. Kimba over at A Soft Place To Land is doing an AWESOME giveaway of a Silhouette Craft Cutter machine! This machine is amazing and can do SO much, and well, I want to win it. So I'm just doing a shout out so you all can jump over to her post and maybe YOU could be the winner! Thanks for reading!

Goodwill Finds!

I think it's safe to say that I am obsessed with Goodwill. Ever since my discovery of blogland, I've been on the search for anything and everything that I can use to decorate my new home! Well, not necessarily NEW...we've been there for a year almost, but it still looks barren! Anyways! I don't shop Goodwill just because I have no money (which is the case haha) but also because I LOVE the thrill of getting a GREAT deal! And if it's something that I can re-do and make my own, that's even better! So, without further ado (is that the right spelling of that phrase? haha), here are my latest and greatest goodwill finds/transformations!

I found these great scrapbook paper holders! Normally $10 each right across the street at the craft store, but I scored them for $4 total! With a little paint and my all time favorite technique, decoupage, they look amazing for my office that will eventually be done! haha
Before:
After:

I found this sturdy solid wood nightstand for only $16! It was 20% off furniture day so I couldn't resist! It helped Eric's side of the room go from this:

to this:

I plan to eventually re-stain it darker, and update the hardware on the drawers, but for now it is a HUGE improvement!

I have two more pieces that I will have to add to this blog later tonight, because I totally forgot to take pictures of them! So I will be updating later :)

Update! Here are two more of my Goodwill finds!

I found this side table for $13!!! It is Broyhill and in perfect shape! I will probably stain the top to match the rest of my wood furniture, but other than that it was perfect for my family room!


And finally, this desk I found for only $15! I was eyeing it for a while, but they were asking $40...too much for me. Then they went down to $35...still too much. When I saw it for $20 with 20% off, I had to get it! I love the detail on the front! It definitely needs some love, but I had to have it!


Those are my latest Goodwill finds! Since I'm addicted to the place, I will probably have some more to put up this week haha. Enjoy, and thanks for reading!

Live.Laugh.Love

I am linking this up to Southern Hospitality for her Thrifty Treasures Party!