the chronic fluffer

do you girls ever get yourself into a bigger project than you bargained for? 

yesterday, i had the goal of rearranging a few things around here, simplifying a bit, i guess. 

fluffing, if you will.

i always start with such great aspirations, but when the project rolls into the afternoon and your family is starving for lunch at 2:00pm, it's time to take a break.  (note: i don't like stopping in the middle of things)

so that's what we're doing here.  taking a break.  don't we look so happy?  :)

yah.  i had an off day, and i forget a lot that the spirit in my home depends mostly on my attitude.  yikes!

i can only dust, vacuum, rearrange, repeat for so many hours.

don't get me wrong, i love doing it, but sometimes what should be a blessing turns into sort of a burden.

like all of these 'extras' that i've been collecting for years are SO fun, but they overwhelm me, too.

i'm really trying to simplify and sell a lot.

i've toyed with the idea of an etsy shop, but i'm not sure i could handle that at this point.

why don't you all come over and go through my treasures?  i'd LOVE to share with you. :)

as you can see, nathan had the day off yesterday, and instead of being able to relax, he had a list a mile long to do.

we woke up super late and me, sort of on the wrong side of the bed.

i get these ideas in my head of what i want the day to look like, and when it doesn't happen, i get cranky.

and sometimes, it overtakes my attitude for the whole day and i am just one big selfish hot mess.

we made it through though, and my amazing husband 'almost' finished the ramp to the chicken coop{they're coming thursday!).

he used the old boards from our falling down deck to save money, but as many of you know, 

repurposing boards takes a lot more work than buying new.

you gotta do what you gotta do. 

while he was outside slaving away, the girls were picking wild blackberries and sharing them with me.  :)

they were sooo yummy.  :)

i started my fluffing in the kitchen because my countertops end up being the collection spot for mail, junk, food, etc.

i'm sure that happens to you, too.

the lighting in my home is pretty bad, so pardon the dark pics. 

just envision them crystal clear, mkay?

this is by my back door.

as you can tell, i love ironstone, old flour and feed sacks and worn wood. 

utilitarian pieces are my fave, too.

i love the patina(honey, that's for you) of old wooden spoons and well used kitchen accessories.

yellow, crackly ironstone is my fave.

can you find what doesn't belong in this picture?
remember that song?
"one of these things is not like the other?"  lalala
yes, the beaming orange countertops.
i'm pretty sure that God gave me these for a reason and is teaching me some major patience with them.
i am pretty OCD and i like things a certain way.
like a pretty-in-my-mind sorta way.
although i get compliments on them all the time, butcher block or soapstone, even cement, is calling my name.
however, they are clean and in very good shape, so i am thankful for that.
they have really grown on me, but i still fight against them a lot.  :)

moving on to my entry way.
i just added a few summery things to make it fresh and happy.
they look a little different even now, because as the day went on, i kept adding and subtracting.
OCD.  don't ever wish for it, peeps.

well hello kitcat!

wouldn't you agree i need this or this to hang above my toilet?  ;)  so cute!

 and this is in my dining room that also serves as our school room.

and that's a little tour of my escapades from yesterday.
do you like to fluff your home, too?
i should mention that i am so truly thankful for all that God has blessed me with.
i not only have a wonderful home and family, but He has allowed me to enjoy pretty things, too.
i know that they aren't truly important, but just an added bonus and blessing.

i'm checking the bad attitudes at the door and claiming(and giving) grace today.
because boy, do i need it!
have a lovely day, sweet ones.

xo,
mary

i'm joining alicia's party today!

love that girl!

NBT recap and hello monday!

hello, monday!

i am so glad that you are here.

you offer me a fresh, new week and the opportunity to start new projects, rest a little bit, and enjoy the calm'er' days.

hello, goodbye Neighborhood Bible Time.

it was a wonderful week last week with lots of great preaching, worshipping, and learning about Jesus.

the gospel was preached, decisions for Christ were made(YAH!), and God was glorified!  praise HIM!

it didn't come without some crabbies(me), but the blessings outweighed the stress, for sure.

so until next year, NBT.

we will miss your fun, but not the hustle and bustle of early suppers, late nights, and running like crazay people.

hello, mr. primary evangelist.  can we have your autograph?

hello, junior award winners.
you all worked so hard last week.
miss maddie won first place in her class and memorized 40 Bible verses.
thank you, Jesus.

it's all about the ribbons! :)   well, not really.

hello, preacher man.  

we are blessed to have you as our shepherd.

your unwavering faith and stand for God inspire us.

closing night gospel message being preached here.

we have several children that come to NBT that never come to church, and their parents usually come this night for the awards.

many of them have never heard what Jesus has done for us or accepted His free gift.

we pray that the seeds that are planted grow into their salvation.

hello, my adorable preschool/kindergarteners.
you kept me busy, but i loved it, and your smiles and trust just melt my heart.
GOOOOO  BOOOSTERS!!!!

hello, happy henry.
you were so shocked to win first in your class and you haven't put that Bible down since.
look at that grin!

hello, teenagers.
i may be in denial that one of these TEENS is mine.
mama loves you.

hello, teen award winners.

the first place winner memorized 80 verses last week and you, my precious teen, came in second with 34. praise the Lord for His Word hidden in our hearts.

mama couldn't be more proud!

hello, stressed mama.
you need to learn to chill out and go with the flow more often, i think.

hello, bestie and partner in teaching our crazy class this week.

i love you.

hello, grocery store cart that brought so many giggles.

i forgive your store for not having the gluten free pizza crust that i drove the extra 30 minutes for.

hello, public restroom that gives me the willies.

your hand washing station makes me happy.

hello, drive in.

thank you for allowing us to check off something from our summer fun list.

hello, deep fried oreos.

you are not a part of my raw food diet.

hello, fair food that sucked me in with your greasy, fried, tasty self.   #IAmSoWeak

i am paying for you today, in more ways than one.

hello, detox.  :)

how was your weekend lovelies?

what have you been saying hello to?

i'm excited for a new week with lazy days and without crazy stress.  please, Lord?  :)

i hope your week is FULL of blessings and goodness from Above.

see you soon...the girls had a blast at the fair and i can't wait to show you how they did!

xo,

mary

linking up with lisa and carissa today!

sweet summatime

hello, girlies.

today i'm here with a little summer fun!

i wish i could say that i was being fun today, but my attitude needs a little adjusting, 

so we'll just talk about the fun things that we want to do!

we got a little headstart on some things(SHOCKING!), but that's okay... it just leaves more time for more fun!

here is a list of things that we have already done,  and hope to maybe keep doing...

and here is a list of things that we want to do...

what are your plans for the summer?
i really don't want to be too structured around here, but at the same time, mama needs her sanity!
like today, for instance...ahem...but we shall not go there.
this list is supposed to be happy!  :)
hopefully we will find that balance between lazy summer days and
some type of schedule and organization.

i'm takin' my list over alicia's to see what everyone else is going to be doing.
come on over!

happy summer!

xo,
mary


p.s.  dear super smart mamas...how do you really spell garage saling anyway?
saling???
saleing???
either way i was too lazy to figure it out...it IS summer after all. :)

what did i sign up for?

nathan and i were sitting in the third pew back.

i looked at him and said, "i'm not going to be a teacher!"

he smiled and said, "what if that's what God wants you to do?"

*enter snotty glare*

when i raised my hand to volunteer to be a helper in the preschool and kindergarten class for Neighborhood Bible Time, i had no idea what i was in for.

i teach that age every week for sunday school, and it's where i feel most comfortable, 

but Bible school was in a whole different category in my mind.

kids...some familiar, some unchurched, wild and crazy, drizzling their sweaty bodies all over you.

constant bathroom requests, random outbursts, ants in the pants, constant repetition.

"i want more juuuuuuuuice!"

i never knew how wonderful it could be.

these precious kiddos look to me and smile, beaming from ear to ear,

"teacher, teacher!!!  i want to hold your hand!  can i sit on your lap?  your necklace is awesome!  you are so sweet, teacher."

i was almost knocked to the ground last night by a little hispanic boy.

he ran to me with all fierceness and hugged my leg...hardly letting go.

these kiddos trust me, and it is my privilege to be able to share the gospel with them.

to kiss their sweaty brow and comfort them out of their tantrum.

to hug them and tell that i love them.

better yet, to tell them that

Jesus loves them.

hearing them quote their scripture verses, 

belt out their little lungs to Jesus, 

and listen intently as i fumble through my story...

...just think of the joy i would have missed out on had i not been willing.

it's been a great week...90 degrees and all.

i'm super excited for tonight!

can't wait to sweat it out with 18 plus little ones and sing our hearts out to the One Who 

gives us everything!

i pray that God can use me in their lives, even if i only see them for this one fleeting week.

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTT'SSSS  

BIBLETIME!!!!

xo,

mary

it's all a blur

the weekend, that is.
with all the swirl of NBT(Neighborhood Bible Time) starting, Father's Day, and the general busyness of life, the weekend seems to have come and gone so quickly, leaving only the messes behind that there wasn't time to clean up.

i wanted to do a father's day post yesterday, but of course, i woke up late and got home late, too.

i am so very grateful for the fathers that God has placed in my life.
my husband and i both had the privilege of being raised in Christian homes.
although not perfect by any means, the Godly heritage of those who have come before us has made a huge impact on who we are today.
by the grace of God alone.

i am thankful for my father, who taught me not to ever forget 'who you are, and what you are',
and drilled psalm 19:14 into my brain at family devotion time every morning before school.
of course, i thought it was lame then, but years later i remember and i am changed because of it.
not having the freedoms that all the other kids had growing up protected me from so many potentially disastrous situations.
not that there haven't been any, because there have, but the effects were lessened because i knew right from wrong.
God's Holy Spirit was living within me, thanks to my dad leading me to the Lord at a young age.

my husband's father became a Christian early enough in his life to raise children in a good solid Bible believing church, teach them hard work, honesty, respect and integrity.
it has shaped who my man is today.
were it not for the pleading of nathan's parents to PLEASE go to Bible college for ONE year, and then consider the military, he may never had accepted Christ as his personal Savior and given his life to the Lord.
we may have never met!

it's humbling to think of the impact we have on our children and future generations.
what we do today, doesn't just affect today.

that leads me to the father of my children.
he is a man of prayer.  deep, intense, prayer, full of faith and believing.
he is a man of study.
he studies God's word and teaches it to our children.
he is a man full of grace, compassion and mercy.
just like our Heavenly Father lovingly chastens us, and likes to give us good things,
my husband does the same for our children.
he is a picture of a Godly father.
is he perfect?
definitely not, but he claims God's Word as Truth and clings to it with his whole being.
he and i didn't always follow the straight and narrow, no siree!, but by God's grace and Him ALONE,
we seek to serve the Lord together, and raise our kids to love and know Him, too.

i am a big planner.
i love to give gifts.
i do believe that gift giving is my main love language!  :)

we wanted to make father's day special for nathan, and so we started planning early.
the kids all made cards, and we created some fun stuff throughout the week.
i ordered some special gifts.  things that i thought would mean something to him.
he specifically asked for NO PRESENTS, but come on now!?
that wasn't happening!

i got this crazy idea to make a vintage tie banner.  

we bought 42 ties(for $5.00) and hung them on rope.

the lady at the thrift looked at me like i was nuts when i checked out.  :)

it was super cool that he actually wore one of them yesterday.

 homemade cards from adoring children.

i bought mine, because i ran out of time.

i wanted this flower arrangement to look sort of like it was in a trophy(#1 DAD!), so i dug out an old treasure i had.  

it is simply ferns, hosta leaves and weeds with some red dogwood and curly willow branches.  

i knew nathan would appreciate one thing about it...it was all free!

speaking of free...so was the banner we made out of vintage book pages, foam stamps, a hole punch and twine.

i love making these!

we made halvah, one of nathan's favorite 'healthy' desserts that i make.

my whole family goes gaga for this raw treat!

HALVAH

*********

1 cup almond meal

1/2 cup tahini

3 T honey

1 tsp vanilla

shape into balls and roll in unsweetened coconut

VOILA! 

hello healthy, delicious treat.

i cannot even tell you how much these kiddos love this man.

i custom ordered a leather Bible cover for his Bible that is falling apart.

it even has his name on it! 

it is beautiful and the man that made it does amazing work.   

you can find him, here. 

i highly recommend him.

i'm so thankful for this guy.

and today starts a new week.  

i can feel it in my bones that it's gonna be a blur, too.
want proof?  i left the conditioner in my hair in the shower today because i was in a hurry.
did i go and wash it out?  noooooo.

can you all say a prayer for me?

Neighborhood Bible Time(VBS) is this week and i am teaching the pre-schoolers and kindergarteners.

it is quite the ride, i tell ya!  

16 kids last night, and there will be more tonight.

pray that i can say mephibosheth a million times without getting tongue tied.

#kindness #kindness #kindness is the lesson i am teaching and i need a lot of it myself.

and patience.  

a LOT of patience.

hope you have a great week lovelies.

xo,

mary