Trash to Treasure

Recently, a friend introduced me to a new blog called http://thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com/ . I am hooked! The girl who writes this blog is so creative! She shops at Good Will looking for things that have potential to be beautiful objects in her home. So, my friend and I have been inspired.

Yesterday we went to Good Will to hunt for our own treasures. I came home with 12 or 13 items for $25. Today I began my restoration process. Armed with my trusty spray paint and craft paints I began, and within MOMENTS I had brand new treasures. Here are a few of today's projects.

Hallelujah for this stuff!

Check this out! This cheap looking plastic tray cost me 99 cents.

Now look at my snazzy black tray.

I posted these in B&W because my candles and stones don't match...they were all I had in my craft box, but you get the idea.

This one is my favorite. I forgot to take a before picture because I was so excited to get started. It was very plain/boring wood. I painted it a metallic-blackish/brown and then painted "mailbox" on the top. Fun, huh?

I saw this statue and thought, "yuck!" But then tried to open my mind and thought it might look good in a different color. For less than two dollars I figured it wasn't much of a risk.

I painted it the same color that I painted the mailbox. What do you think?

So, this next project wasn't really from the Good Will store, but I thought it was fun. I picked this stuff up at the craft store the other day and whipped this baby out in about 10 minutes while I was making dinner. I have since improved it and have greater plans for future hanging-candle-lantern thingies.

I couldn't help but be reminded about how God restores us when the world has thrown us to the trash pile. 1 Peter 5:10 says, "And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast."

I like to think I'm "restoring" these objects to be something beautiful and more useful than before, but the difference in my attempts at restoration and the restoration that takes place when God works on us (besides spray paint) is that God makes us COMPLETELY NEW. He makes us beautiful and gives us the most important purpose in the universe--to reflect His beauty.

One more thought. If I receive so much joy and pleasure from restoring these little odds and ends, how much more joy and pleasure does our Lord have as he works on you and me? I get so anxious and excited as I wait for one coat of paint to dry before I put on another one or to paint words on. I wonder how excited he gets in between "coats". One thing is for sure. He promised He'd finish the job.

"Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus,"

Philippians 1:6

Future Career Options for Josie?

Well, I have a thought and all I have to say is...

Beth Moore, you better hold on to your hair!

I have no idea where she gets this preaching style. Our pastor isn't like that by any stretch of the imagination.

But if you notice, she's a genius at starting off gently and working her way to bringin' down the spirit on anyone with a dog named "Snickers". If you do, I feel sorry for you! I also love the very good use of demonstrative body language.

I'm tellin' ya, there's a new preacher in town!

Fun With Auntie Bekah

Last week my Aggie roommate came in town for a few days. We had soooooo much fun. It was such a refreshing time. We did so many things and my children absolutely ADORE her.

As you can see she spent a lot of time with them. Bekah is a wonderful teacher (She teaches middle school history/geography). The whole time we were going through the museum Bekah would tell Josie things and she soaked it all in. Jo has since given Wesley a full explanation of the origination of the phrase, "It's raining cats and dogs."

She left one day during their naps. When each of them woke up an realized she wasn't there, I thought we were going to have two meltdowns, but instead of all out bawling they stuck out their bottom lips and pouted for the rest of the afternoon. But Caleb was the worst. He would walk by the play room where we had blown up a mattress for her and he would look longingly, point and say, "Buh-e". He was heartbroken.

Swimming at Julie's

On one of Wesley's days off we went to a friend Julie's house to swim. We had a super-duper time!

We think Josie has found her way to pay for college: a diving scholarship.

Okay, maybe not so much. But hey, I'm not brave enough to do that! Ouch!

Our little fam.

Risking Storms

I just wanted to share two things with you. These two points are things I DO NOT have licked by any stretch of the imagination. These are simply ideas that have convicted, encouraged, challenged, and spurred me on this week to brace myself, put my head down, and move forward no matter what happens.

(Whenever a huge storm or something intimidating hits my life--because according to John 16:33 it's promised--please remind me I said this! I might want to chicken out.)

First please watch this:

Just some quick background on the video. He was not talking about our salvation. We CANNOT EARN our salvation. It is given to us by grace through faith (Eph 2:8). Francis was talking about our SANCTIFICATION--the process by which God works all the junk out of us--the process by which he makes us perfect that will be complete only on the day we stand before him (Phil 1:6).

Now if you have time, please click here and read the post called "Ready to Squall" from the youth minister at our church: http://hesednow.blogspot.com/2009/07/r.html

I hope you were encouraged like I was. Thank goodness for the other promise of John 16:33!

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33

Kitchen Makeover

This week Wesley is off for vacation, but it has turned into more of a "stay-cation". We decided this would be as good a time as any to try to knock out a project I have wanted to do for at least 2 years now.

I have never been a fan of our kitchen cabinets and have always wanted paint and glaze/antique them. With the advice and encouragement of a couple of girls at church and Wesley's willingness to play full-time dad for a few days, we have finished.

This is before:

This is after:

There were many things I enjoyed about this project. I was able to work with my hands. I love doing things like this, but don't get to often. I was able to listen to a few of my favorite pastors teach through podcast. And I was able to "watch" (listen to) some movies I don't normally get to watch because they aren't exactly appealing to my husband (musicals).

But even though I enjoyed so much of it, we are finished and I am glad. We were getting tired of the family picnics in the living room, and I was missing my family. I have been a little jealous when I see them load in the van to go swimming or to the museum.

I do have more projects in mind, but I think they'll have to wait a while.

Josie's Prayer Life

This was the exchange Josie and I had just moments ago. It was too funny not to post.

(I'm painting our kitchen cabinets.)

Josie: "Mommy, can I help you paint?"

Me: "No thank you, baby."

She runs away and hides in her tent where I can hear her muttering.

Thirty seconds later Josie comes back with hands on her hips: "Mommy, I prayed to Jesus that you would be nice and share, but you're still a mean mommy!"

She then dramatically exits through the back door.

I seriously hope this doesn't negatively affect her prayer life.

Random Fun-ness

We've been having so much fun lately. These are some totally random, fun moments around our house.

Playing "ring around the rosies" in the new "baby" pool in the backyard...

This is what we got Wesley for Father's Day. My talented and creative friend Amanda (one of the girls I led in Bible Study at our church) has started her own business creating custom pieces like the one below. She went around Baylor's campus and took pictures of objects that look like letters and spelled out "Baylor". I've already talked to her about making one that says our last name and one that says "Aggies". She's so creative! (If you'd like to contact her you can email me!)

Another one of my sweet girls came to our house this week and took Josie on a "date" to an ice cream shop. We dressed Josie in her sundress and flip flops just like Whitney was wearing. They were a hoot. They could totally be sisters! (I've seen pictures of Whitney at 3 and the similarities are scary!)

"I'm Batman!" The moms at our church have organized summer activities on Wednesdays where we all go somewhere together, play, and eat lunch. On this day we went to a local gymnastics center for free play and then to Sonic for lunch. I turned around to find Caleb in the Batmobile. I thought this was hilarious! Wesley always calls Caleb "Batman", especially with his floaties in the pool. Even though he has no idea who or what Batman really is, he found the Batmobile by himself and was driving it making car noises. He's such a boy!

Josie loves to look at our blog and watch the videos over and over. This is one evening after dinner when I had the computer in the kitchen. She loves Fiddler on the Roof almost as much as me. Could we have a future Broadway star on our hands?

One more video. Wesley and I were cracking up about this one. I hope you laugh as hard as we did.