Diaper Cake

Remember a few weeks ago when I promised to post a pic of the diaper cake I made Mike help me make?  Well, here it is.  I loved making this and the mom to be felt super special...as all recipients of any cake should!

Scrapbook for Betty

I made this scrapbook for Betty a few months back...I still need to get photos in there, but at least the book is made right?  It was from a kit I picked up at Archivers.  Super fast, fun, and easy!  I'm not sure how I feel about all the formatting of the layouts, but it's a great example if I want to do future board books.  Plus, it has rings and ribbon ties which I adore!

Small Scrapbooks

I've been craving a spot to post some of my recent projects. For weeks I've been storing up photos of creations hoping to have a free second to post them. Not working means I should have more time for these things, but unfortunately something always takes precedence to getting my projects posted. Life at work. Here are a few of my proudly COMPLETED projects!

To the left is a little picture book. I've pretty much been obsessed with making these since my friend had twins almost a year ago. I made her 2, one for each and now I'm addicted. They are super cute and super fun for shower gifts.



The pages on the right and below are from a small scrapbook with pages varying in size. It came out so cute. I haven't seen the mommy of the little girl this book is for in a while and haven't presented it, so I can't show the cover yet. But, I had a ton of fun making this and using my Cricut to get some different pages done.

Latest You Tube Love

I would like to be friends with these guys. My absolute favorite is that the Taco Bell guy repeats the order and totally wows them. I wonder if the little Eminem look alike at our Taco Bell would enjoy something like this.

Anyone know if they are the milk and cereal guys? Or what happened to them?

Chazown

Sorry for my absence in blogging. I've been exhausted! I've been flooded with opportunities to learn and grow in the last months, which has left me little time to write something I feel useful for the public to read. But, this morning, as I drink my coffee I hear the words of my dear friend Jason, "When you stop to learn, you must also stop to teach." I wish I could tell you more about Jason, but I wont because I don't have his permission and writing more could jeopardize the beautiful mission God called him to. Just know, that there is more wisdom and drive in what his quote about learning and teaching than I will ever fully grasp.
Calling is a beautiful thing. I've been studying Chazown by Craig Groeschel with my gal pals. Chazown is the Hebrew word for dream, revelation, vision. Everyone was born with Chazown, but it can easily be ignored. As I've been stretched to learn and grow in the last few months, I am eagerly studying what is my calling and Chazown.
In the meantime, I stop my busy morning to share with you this video clip I remembered this morning. It has so much to say in such a little bit of time. Enjoy and keep focused, it moves pretty quickly.

As an FYI, most of this info was already outdated by the time the video was published. So, do not expect accuracy, but that fact alone I believe adds that much more to the purpose of the video.

Don't Think Twice

I'm going to see Brett Dennen tonight! Many thanks to Evangeline for hooking me up as a birthday gift. I can't wait. For those of you reading who do not know the wonder of Brett, I've posted my favorite song ever being sung by him. Note, this is a cover of a Bob Dylan song. But, it rocks and I had to share it.

God in my home space

My professor, Dr. Drane (a genius when it comes to interpreting culture and applying it to theology...read his stuff, it's amazing) asked me to write on the topic of our home and it's influence on our spirituality. Interestingly enough, I have recently had a series of conversations about this, so I decided to share.

I grew up in the country so the idea of being near cornfields brings me a lot of joy. I grew up where nature is every where and you can hear nothing at night but the stars twinkling. Outside may have been quiet, but inside was the opposite. My childhood home resembles some kind of cross between a funky coffee shop and a thrifty antique store. My mother is a starving artist deep in her soul, so there were always eclectic “projects” lying around. My father, a starving musician deep in his soul, so someone was always playing the guitar, the piano, or CDs (which is what we used before iTunes ). My brothers were rough and tumble, dirty country boys that neighborhood children feared and envied in the same heartbeat. Our home was never dull, never clean, never closed to passersby, and there was always an abundance of caffeine and conversation.

Now, I’m single, 20 something and living alone in a 2 bedroom townhouse and hundreds of miles from “home”. I’m getting used to the idea of not living with clutter (both literally and figuratively), but it’s tough. The home my parents built for my brothers and I had an openness towards community. It’s something I haven’t seen much of in Illinois. Friends were treated no different than family. I don’t always see that kind of community in my peer group. I’ve been blessed recently by the open doors of friends, but I still haven’t found that same balance of intrinsic and extroversion I had growing up.

So, because I long for that community, I’m torn. Do I stay somewhere that lacks the community that tugs so desperately on my heartstrings? Or do I leave the place where my roots have sprouted and gifts and opportunity abound? Community inevitably affects our spirituality. Everything we do in community is linked to the author of relationship, the graphic designer of community. When we experience a deficit in community, we are not experiencing what God has designed for us from the beginning. He creates Adam, gives him land in abundance and the fulfillment of work. Then, he looks and says, “It is not good for man to be alone.” From the very beginning God was drafting neighborhood block parties.