Brad and I escaped a few weekends ago to Asheville NC. It was a wonderful little getaway! We ended up staying downtown and having a yummy dinner at a local Italian resturaunt which was super tasty. I was hesitant to go to Biltmore as we have been in the past but I did really want to walk through the gardens there. We ended up buying tickets, as that is what one has to do even if they just want to see the gardens, so after a speed round trip through the house we hit the gardens and spent a large part of the day walking around and seeing many beautiful things. It was really wonderful to just be with Brad and to be unhurried. We both love taking pictures so we spent a lot of time doing just that throughout the garden. I love that we both enjoy pictures and I love that we both see things so differently. Looking through his pictures I gained a new appreciation for some things that I might of passed by as I was able to see them through his eyes. I am much more of a zoom in, close up kind of picture taker and Brad is a whole picture kind of guy which is actually how we are in real life as we deal with things. He is great at seeing the picture as a whole. He can take in the whole story of what is taking place. I however tend to get really intense with the little tiny details of the story. I love that God chose to put us together and I love getting to walk through life approaching things differently and learning from each other.

We got to celebrate brother this weekend and although I do not have any pictures of his finished quilt (he is all cozy with it in dreamland right now) I do have some pictures from his firetruck party! It was a fun little party with friends, sun, fun and cupcakes. It is hard to believe that the little man is another year older. I feel like time is flying by. A few of our friends have wee little ones and just to flash back to that time is amazing. It is overwhelming to ponder going back to night time feedings, bottles and burpings. I loved it when I was there but I love these stages as well. I think that every stage will be my favorite. Each stage is hard with new adventures to conquer but I love learning to be present where I am and where they are. I want to be where they are. I am not great at it but I am learning. My time with these little ones is passing faster than I ever imagined possible. I want to drink deep, I want to teach, I want to love well. I know, I have had this conversation and these thoughts before but it is true! I want to be and remain fully present for each year of life! I am thankful for the princesses and firetrucks that we have celebrated this month. A year will make a huge difference who knows how we will celebrate next year but that does not matter yet. . .what matters is here, today and this moment! So hard! So fun!

This was my second shirt of the day. Yes, it looks bad but the first one looked equally as bad although it had no blood on it! The first shirt spent the morning in the garden and then got caught in a rain storm in the middle of mowing. The second shirt baked cupcakes, helped clean blood off of brother’s mouth after he fell lips first into the hard cement floor of an office supply store (he is okay but has a swollen lip to show for it) and last but not least helped install our new rain barrels (more on that in a later post). Hubby always says that I am rough on my clothes. . .not sure where he gets that idea from!

With sister’s quilt done it is time to move onto brother’s quilt for his birthday. I was a little burned out after sister’s birthday quilt and I had fabric that I loved for brothers quilt that I did not want to cut up so his will be pretty simple but super heavy on the quilting.

I am quilting along each side of the roads, yes, I am crazy but I really like the look of it. There will be a million tiny strings to cut when I am done as well, maybe hubby and I can have a sting clipping party one night (what do you think hubby???). I found this fabric (Michael Miller Merryville and Street Stripe) well before Christmas and knew that it would be perfect for brother so I added it to my wish list and was super excited when I unwrapped it. I am pretty sure that brother will be excited about all the trucks, airplanes and people. It will definitely be a fun surprise! Well, I am off to sew more roads!

This past week I got the incredible privilege of attending a luncheon with some friends where the guest speakers were Ron Hall and Denver Moore who are the authors of the book, Same Kind of Different As Me. Many wonderful people in our lives worked to make this possible as my mom offered the table at the luncheon, Brad’s mom kept brother and Brad picked up sister from school. It was a lot of juggling but all totally worth it! Thank you to everyone who made it possible plus a HUGE thank you to hubby for taking your lunch to pick up sis!!! I am starting to sound like I won an award! It felt like it being able to meet Ron and Denver. If you have not read the book it really is a great read. It is a true story of one woman’s obedience to God and how she changed many lives and still continues to change lives to this day. It is also the story of Ron and Denver as they interact with this woman which just happens to be Ron’s wife. It is a story of lives transformed! Ron is a great speaker as he pretty much retold the story of the of his wife’s obedience. Denver is an amazing man and he shared two songs with us and spoke a little as well. Denver is a man who uses his words wisely and powerfully. He tells it how it is and does not mess around. It was incredible to hear these men speak, and to actually meet them and speak with them in person! Incredible! If you have not read the book I do highly recommend it (as if you could not tell)!!!

Yes, odd title for a post but it speaks of the day! The sunshine greeted us this morning which was wonderful everyone needed another break from the rain that we continue to have. After rest time (I was gone this morning but I will post on that in a little bit) we headed outside to soak in the sun and paint! We really enjoy painting outside because you can be messy and it is okay. . .lots of inspiration when painting outside and lots of freedom to be messy. It was fun watching the kids enjoy mixing the colors and dipping the paint brushes way to many times in the water. It was fun to watch them giggle and enjoy each other even on the same piece of paper (wonders never cease). While outside the grass reiterated to me that it really needed to be mowed. With all the rain and our crazy weekend it was very shaggy. I did get a chance to mow tonight so restoration has taken place. Whew! It was really really shaggy. Poor hubby has a doctors excuse currently to not mow as his allergies are horrible. I actually enjoy mowing the grass so it works out well for us. We are hopeful for another sunny day tomorrow. . .the garden needs weeding and I am sure that the kiddos would love to paint some more.

Welcome back blue sky! We have missed you!!! Please stay for awhile!

I jumped on the computer to put together and embroidery design for end of the year teacher gifts but you know how you get on the computer and get distracted and then time flies and you never accomplish what you set out to do. . .well, this will be one of those times.

Every now and then I enjoy reading the Living Proof Ministry blog (by Beth Moore and her daughters) and today her youngest daughter posted regarding a question she had been asked. . .
“What do you think your Mom has done right in raising you up in the Lord?”
Her Answer:
“. . . But, I think today I realized that it has to be her example of serving the Lord without hesitation. For not allowing her fear of failure to dictate her decisions. . .”

I have had to read that several times to really drink it all in and to really grasp the words. I don’t want my fear of failure to dictate my decisions! Do I struggle with this? YES! Remember the quilt? I want to serve Him and others without hesitation but yet I do hesitate so often because I am so focused on me! I am s-l-o-w-l-y learning what it looks like to live out what He has invited me to. It is hard to step out in faith and walk being obediant to Him. Can you imagine fleshing out those words before your children? Wow! There is such a bigger picture that I so often miss because I am so focused on me and my fears. I don’t want my fear of failure to dictate who I am!

A little something to ponder this mother’s day weekend!

We celebrated Sister this past weekend with a royal party! She invited a few prince and princesses over and while we were hoping to play in the backyard the rain had other plans for us. The royal party was held indoors but the princesses and princes did not seem to mind. It was so fun to see all the kiddos dressed up and playing together. It was a wonderful time and sister really enjoyed it which was fun to watch.
I used this tutorial for the crowns and we filled the gift bags with paint to decorate their crowns with. Super fun and easy!

The work of Mushroom Meadows on the gift tags. She actually made a few things for the party including the incredible invitations! Thanks again to her! If you have not seen her work check out her Etsy shop! I am a huge fan!

Every year for the kiddos birthday’s they get a quilt. I started this when sister was turning one and decided that it would be a fun tradition. The quilt usually has something that they like in it. This year for sister I made her a blue jay quilt as they are very special to her. I took a pattern that I love and messed with it a good deal adding the blue jay head and changing the fabric arrangement up a bit. We wanted the quilt to match sister’s room and we purchased enough fabric to make (yet to be made) curtains as well. Hubby (yep, he helped pick out the fabrics) and I ended up picking Feathered Friends by Wendy Slotboom. I did finish the quilt the afternoon before the party (just in time) and I am now happy with how it turned out. There was a large struggle within me about it though as I started realizing that I am often afraid to like the things that I make for other people. I am fearful of liking them or even loving them because what if the recipient does not like it. What if I pour myself out into this gift and no one likes it. God really taught me a lot in making this quilt. He taught me that it is not about who does or does not like it. I do feel that He called me to make the quilt and by being obediant to Him, well, that is all that matters. I have learned that if someone does not like what I make it is not that I poured out extravagance for nothing because I poured it out for Him. Doing what He called me to do for His glory. . .not mine or the recipient or anyone else but for His glory. This was a huge thing for my heart to grasp and I am still trying to grasp it all and take it in but I am excited about this new found freedom. The freedom to use the gift of creativity which God has given me and to not be fearful in wondering will it be liked. Jesus poured out His life extravagantly and a lot of people did not and do not like Him. Just trying to grasp all that and continuing to learn.

Front of the quilt.

Back of the quilt.