Taking A Break from Blogging

Hopefully it won't be a long break. I just feel like the Lord needs to direct me through a few things, and I am trying to take away any distractions that my clutter my mind from "hearing" him and his Word to me.

Thanks for understanding!

Wordless Wednesday~ Playing in the Rain

To see what other's are showing in Wordless Wednesday, please visit five minutes for mom

Show and Tell Friday~Our Doggie Fritz

This is our puppy "Fritz". A while back I posted a quick picture post about him, but never "told" how we came to get him.

There is a little story behind him. Actually an adventure. ;-)

After Keyotte died, we were feeling a bit empty in the house. Before Keyotte even died though, I had started to research about different dog breeds. I was planning on getting a dog sometime after Tiny Boy turned three. I figured that was a good age to puppy train a puppy, since Tiny Boy hopefully wouldn't need so much attention by then

My dog breed list had very certain criteria that needed to be stuck to:
1. Good with children!!!
2. Small dog breed
3. Doesn't Shed
4. Has very few genetic problems
5. Travels well

So that was my list, and I came across the miniature schnauzer breed. I checked into a breeder here. $800! WOW! That was something that we would defiantly have to save up for.

Then Keyotte died. The house was Quiet, and Sweetie was kind of depressed. So I started on the lookout for a dog.

I checked into Petfinder; but couldn't find a puppy schnauzer. They were all adult dogs, and the people putting them up for adoption were very adamant about not putting them in homes with small children.

So I sort of gave up. Then one day about seven days after Keyotte died, I decided to just look for "puppy" in petfinder. Perhaps I was being too picky about a specific breed?

One of the first pages to pop up there were *two* schnauzer puppies!!!

So I called up the human society that were offering them up. One was female and the other was male.

The lady told me that the female had been inquired about eight times. The male had no inquires.

There was one catch to getting the puppy. It was a first come first serve basis, and they either went through Petco, or a local flea market to adopt them out.

Fritz was at the flea market, which wasn't local for me. About a three hour drive.

So on a Friday night, I loaded up my van with the girls, and left Tiny Boy at home with Daddy. I went to stay overnight at my mom's, as the city was only an hour and a half away from her. She and our good friend also accompanied us to this city.

We got there *just* as they were unloading the dogs, and I grabbed up my little Fritzy and told them that I wanted him.

He was only $250, including new puppy shots, neutering, and a micro chip implanted into him.

Fritz has been the best little dog for our family. He has fit right in. He is good with the kids, he is affectionate, and also warns us of *every* *little* *noise* that is out of place, LOL!

I believe the Lord allowed us to have this doggie. The Lord knew *how much* I wanted a schnauzer puppy. He also knew that we couldn't afford to buy one full price. And he just happened to give me the idea to look for "puppy" instead of schnauzer on petfinder.com. Jesus hand picked out Fritz for us; I believe. Fritz has grown on all of our hearts. :)

Faith

And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us
pass over unto the other side.
And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him
even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little
ships.
And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves
beat into the ship, so that it was now full.
And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow:
and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, cares thou not that we
perish?
And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be
still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.
And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that
ye have no faith?
And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of
man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him? Mark 4:35-41

This passage of scripture really hit me in the heart when I read it on Sunday. The reason it hit me so hard, is because it is something that I have struggled with. And it is faith.

Faith, used to be some "strange mysterious thing" to me. It seemed some had boatloads of it, and others, like me, really struggled with having "enough".

Preachers (at least in my circles) also don't help it out. I have heard this story preached so many times in the past. It was put on the shelf of "those dumb disciples" kind of thing. Like they should know better! They didn't have "enough" faith

Well, the Holy Spirit taught me something totally different; causing faith and confidence to arise in my heart towards Jesus.

Jesus said to them, "Why are you so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?"
He asked them why they had "no" faith. Not "enough" faith.

So that caused me to go back and read the context:

vs 35 And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side.

Jesus said, that they were going to go to the other side. He said it. But they didn't believe him, which is why they had "no faith".

They didn't believe him for good reasons, truly. A huge storm had come upon them, they were taking in water, and Jesus was asleep on the boat. If Jesus had not been the Son of God, and any other sinful human being, they were dead.

But Jesus was not a sinful human being, and he was the son of God, and he told them that they they were going to the other side. And they did not believe him.

That is why they asked him "carest thou not that we perish?" I don't think they were asking him because they were mad at him for not performing a miracle. They were kind of amazed that he was sleeping through this storm I think. How could anyone sleep through that type of storm in a ship?!?

So when Jesus arose, he stopped the storm, and that is why he asked them why they had no faith. He had been performing all sorts of miracles, and he had *TOLD* them that they were going to the other side.

They didn't believe his "word". His word, being, They were going to pass over to the other side. Jesus didn't mince his words. What he said was truth. They were going to the other side, no matter what. Even a huge storm, that by all appearances, looked like it was going to kill them. But this was God in the flesh speaking. He said they were going over to the other side.

So what did this teach me? Despite my circumstances in life. If my "storms" look exactly opposite of what God said in his Word, don't believe the "storm" believe the Word of God.

Faith isn't blind. Jesus gave the disciples "something to hold to". His Word. He said they were going to pass over to the other side. That is why he chided them for having no faith. It wasn't up to their faith to get them to the other side. They got to the other side despite their lack of faith.

Why? Because Jesus said they were going to pass over to the other side. Jesus doesn't go back on his word. If they had had faith, it would of made the journey less stressful during the storm. Maybe even adventuristic. Or perhaps fun? But Jesus kept his Word even though they didn't have faith.

And I believe he stopped the storm to show the disciples that their faith wasn't in Jesus. It wasn't that they didn't have *enough* faith. They just plain old didn't believe Jesus at all. Otherwise, they would of not been upset with him for sleeping in the boat.

So this teaches me. I can believe Jesus, and what the Bible says, "NO MATTER WHAT" is going on in my life. If my feelings, or my circumstance are going completely against what Jesus said, I am not going to believe it. Even if it seems God is asleep, I am going to believe what Jesus said is true, because Jesus doesn't lie. Jesus has proven he has not lied at all in his Word. So in my own life he won't lie either.

That is why this story built faith in me. It showed me that faith isn't a mystical thing that we have or don't have. It is a decision to believe what Jesus says is true despite what is happening around us, that looks like it proves his Word as wrong. If he is God, (and he is) then what he says will happen, no matter what!

That is what I believe the point of this passage is. Not that the disciples were "dumb" but that they chose to look at the circumstances going on, instead of holding fast to what Jesus had said. And even though they had no faith, Jesus still kept his word. He didn't lie. :) So that too shows me he is trustworthy.

Faith isn't some hard thing to grasp hold of. It is just choosing to believe God no matter what. :)

Olympic Dream

Wordless Wednesday~Eating Split Pea Soup

For More Wordless Wednesdays visit Five Minutes For Mom

Tackle It Tuesday~Cleaning Freenzy

Today I tackled alot of stuff. In preparation for homeschooling, I am trying to get all of the "little" stuff out of the way that will bug me, but I know I won't have time while I am homeschooling. Today I took a few before and after pictures of my tackles to share with you. :)

First I cleaned out the refrigerator. I didn't take a before picture of that, but I am telling the truth, it needed to be cleaned. ;-)

Then I cleaned Behind the Refrigerator:

Before

After:

I even had a "BIG" helper

Then I cleaned Behind the stove:

Before

After

Then I reorganized the pantry:

Before

After

You really can't tell much in the after of the pantry. It is just so small, it is hard to look orderly. But I threw away out of date items, and regrouped things to where they belong. I also mopped up sticky stuff.

There are no before and after pictures of my girls room; but I kind of did a "spring" cleaning of it. I washed the walls, and baseboards. Washed Bedding, and cleaned up some puppy spots. I have alot more to do tomorrow too. :)

Check out more Tackle It Tuesday posts at Five Minutes For Mom.

The Lord Answers Prayers In *HIS* Own Good and Perfect Way

This post is a little break from my normal kind of blog posts.... The Child's Paper, prompted me to write about my best friend. :)

There is a saying that goes along the lines that a true friend is very hard to find. I believe that this is a very true statement, or ditty, or saying, or whatever you want to call it.

My personality is kind of shy. As I near my 30's (yikes, I can't believe I actually wrote that!) it is getting better. I don't know why I am so quiet and shy. But I always tend to believe my personality is a "deep thinker" so it makes it hard for me to connect with other ladies around my age. For some reason, it just seems it is *all* "light" talk, and nothing meaningful, or thought provoking.

I love deep discussions on many subjects, and I don't really like "The weather is horrible today!" kind of talk. I mean, there is a time and place for that kind of talk. But when it comes to actually getting to know a person better, I don't like to talk about weather, lol! So as a result, I always tended to make friends with older women who are experienced in life, marriage, and children. And we have good heart to heart talks. :)

But still, I always kind of felt lonely... So I began to pray. To pray for a "true" friend who would understand my strange ways, and I would understand her strange ways, lol! I prayed for a long time. I prayed for YEARS in fact.

But stupid, dummy me, didn't see, that the Lord had answered my prayer, almost within a few months! I just didn't notice, because he didn't answer my prayer the way *I* thought he was going to. It always seems to work that way, does it not? ;-)

Around the time that I began to pray for a true, kindred spirit friend, I found an online Christian Woman's Forum. It was called the MOMSboard. Owned by Steve and Terri Maxwell. It was a Christian discussion board, and a *very* safe place to chit chat with other Christian moms.

One day, I posted something, and in my post, it caught the eye of another young mom. She emailed me because of my post, and we never stopped emailing each other. :)

We shared our struggles, victories, and slowly got to know one another. She had a little girl, the same age as Sweetie. We both got married the same year. We both are so MUCH the same in so many ways, yet that perfect blend of differences that make us individually unique to give variety to our friendship.

Still dummy me, I kept praying for a "true" friend. See, I was expecting a friend to be in the flesh. Not someone I wrote to in an email, and occasionally sent a few pictures a year to. But... nevertheless this sweet young lady possessed all the same qualities that I heard that a true friend would have.

Esther, lived about 1,000 miles away from me. And I had SOOOOO many times wanted to come visit her. But it just seemed to never work out. We each had two more pregnancies and in one of her pregnancies she had twins.

Then one day, she told me something shocking.... She told me that her husband was thinking about moving to our state... that he was seeking a job position. And it was only about 2 1/2 hours from where I lived!! He got the position.

After five years of correspondence we were going to finally meet!!! And when we met, we connected as true friends do. I often find myself AMAZED at how unique the Lord is and how he does things. I was such a dummy! The Lord answered my prayer almost right away, and I just didn't see it.

Esther and I can share things with each other, that most people would be afraid of offending someone else over. Esther and I are very different; coming from different backgrounds, and different perspectives. But we are also so much the same in many things it is uncanny.

I really don't know where to begin to describe Esther.

She has a beautiful, spirit. She is compassionate, and understanding. She is a very good momma, and works so hard to make her home a haven for her husband and children. She has a very romantic view point on life, and I love hearing her talk about her ideas, and philosophies on important issues. It is almost like she is poetic. ;-)

She enjoys being a woman, and she enjoys being a mother. Her children adore her, and they should! :)

Esther has a good sense of humor, can take a joke, and we can laugh and laugh over our silly "mommy brains" that are too tired to think, and then we do, or say something dumb because of it.

Esther has also taught me so much about so many things. It is impossible to list all of them. She introduced me to the virtues of Charlotte Mason, (The method of homeschooling we will be using) she showed me selflessness when she took her own birthday money and spent it on things for her children to enjoy. She has shown me what it means to be determined, and dedicated, and to take joy in the simple pleasures of life. The colors in a painting...the expressions on peoples faces...the way children interact with one another...the pleasant smell of newly dried laundry. Esther is a special and unique lady who loves Jesus, and is a REAL GENUINE person who bares her heart and love to me and to others. There is just sooooo much *depth* to this special lady's soul, that I have only begun to scratch the surface. But God answered my prayer:

God is good. He gave me one of the best ladies out there to be my "true" friend, and I almost missed her. :(

PS. Esther also has a blog called Ancient Paths School House. It is a blog dedicated to her philosophy in education, and MANY Charlotte Mason resources to browse through. :)

Feminine Friday~My Favorite Shoes

I am going to try and participate in a new meme, hosted by The Barefoot Mama, called Feminine Friday. This is what Kelly says it is all about:

An outfit that you own (or a photo of a favorite look) that exhibits your femininity (does not have to be a dress...be yourself!)
A hairstyle, accessory or piece of jewelry that is special and makes you feel beautiful
Something in your home - can be non wearable, of course - that represents your femininity (it can be anything!!)
An inspiring or thought-provoking article, book review or quotation on any topic related to femininity
Feminine Friday is not about being a cookie-cutter. Share what femininity means to you and how you define modesty, beauty and being a Daughter of the King. I look forward so much to seeing what everyone shares!



So today, I am going to share with you my favorite pair of shoes


I found these shoes at no other than Payless Shoe Source. I needed some black "dressy" shoes for my husband's work's Christmas party. I had only white dressy sandals. I went to Kohl's, and couldn't find a pair of shoes that I liked for a price that I liked as well. :)




Payless was just a couple of stores down, so I checked in there, and these are what I found for $14. Gotta love Payless!

The reason these are my favorite shoes:

1. They make me feel feminine and pretty

2. They remind me of the Regency Fashion Period, which was known for it's beautiful gowns, and fashion for the ladies

An Antique Edwardian/Regency Era Shoe

A Classic Reproduction of a Edwardian/Regency Era Shoe

3. They don't hurt! LOL!

4. They are versatile. They can be worn for something really fancy, or just to church on Sunday morning.


Since these shoes remind me of the Regency Fashion period, they always turn my thoughts to my favorite all time Movie, The A&E version of Pride and Prejudice, and my favorite one of my favorite Author's Jane Austen.

Miss Austen

I love the British Regency Time period for it's Fashions and the customs of its day. Where ladies were ladies, and men were gentlemen. Here is what Wikipedia Says about the Regency Time Period:

The Regency period in the United Kingdom is the period between 1811 and 1820, when King George III was deemed unfit to rule and his son, later George IV, was instated to be his proxy as Prince Regent. The term is often expanded to apply to the years between 1795 and 1837, a time characterised by distinctive fashions, politics and culture. In this sense, it can be considered to be a transitional period between "Georgian" and "Victorian" eras. The era was distinctive for its architecture, literature, fashions, politics, and snuffboxes. It was a period of excess for the aristocracy: for example, it was during this time that the Prince Regent built the Brighton Pavilion. However, it was also an era of uncertainty caused by, among other things, the Napoleonic wars, periodic riots, and the concern — threat to some, hope to others — that the British people might imitate the upheavals of the French Revolution.
The term is sometimes used in various ways to include years surrounding the decade of the formal regency. If "Regency" is considered to be transitional between "Georgian" and "Victorian" then it would refer to the entire period from approximately 1811 until the accession of Queen Victoria, encompassing the actual period of Regency, along with George IV's reign in his own right and that of his brother William IV. If "Regency" is contrasted with "Eighteenth century", then it could include the whole period of the Napoleonic wars.

Thanks for visiting! Please be sure to visit The Barefoot Mama for more feminine ladies. :)

The Ladies Room

A friend sent this to me, and I just had to share with the rest of y'all. It is hilarious!

You may need to stop at the women's restroom . . . be prepared!When you have to visit a public bathroom, you usually find a line of women, so you smile politely and take your place. Once it's your turn, you check for feet under the stall doors. Every stall is occupied. Finally, a door opens and you dash in, nearly knocking down the woman leaving the stall.

You get in to find the door won't latch. It doesn't matter, the wait has been so long you are about to wet your pants! The dispenser for the modern "seat covers" (invented by someones Mom, no doubt) is handy, but empty. You would hang your purse on the door hook, if there was one, but there isn't - so you carefully, but quickly drape it around your neck, (Mom would turn over in her grave if you put it on the FLOOR!),yank down your pants, and assume " The Stance." In this position your aging, toneless thigh muscles begin to shake. You'd love to sit down, but you certainly hadn't taken time to wipe the seat or lay toilet paper on it, so you hold "The Stance."

To take your mind off your trembling thighs, you reach for what you discover to be the empty toilet paper dispenser. In your mind, you can hear your mother's voice saying, "Honey, if you had tried to clean the seat, you would have KNOWN there was no toilet paper!" Your thighs shake more. You remember the tiny tissue that you blew your nose on yesterday - the one that's still in your purse. (Oh yeah, the purse around your neck, that now, you have to hold up trying not to strangle yourself at the same time). That would have to do. You crumple it in the puffiest way possible. It's still smaller than your thumbnail .

Someone pushes your door open because the latch doesn't work. The door hits your purse, which is hanging around your neck in front of your chest, and you and your purse topple backward against the tank of the toilet. "Occupied!" you scream, as you reach for the door, dropping your precious, tiny, crumpled tissue in a puddle on the floor, lose your footing altogether, and slide down directly onto the TOILET SEAT. It is wet of course. You bolt up, knowing all too well that it's too late. Your bare bottom has made contact with every imaginable germ and life form on the uncovered seat because YOU never laid down toilet paper - not that there was any, even if you had taken time to try. You know that your mother would be utterly appalled if she knew, because, you're certain her bare bottom never touched a public toilet seat because, frankly, dear, "You just don't KNOW what kind of diseases you could get."

By this time, the automatic sensor on the back of the toilet is so confused that it flushes, propelling a stream of water like a fire hose against the inside of the bowl that sprays a fine mist of water that covers your butt and runs down your legs and into your shoes. The flush somehow sucks everything down with such force that you grab onto the empty toilet paper dispenser for fear of being dragged in, too.

At this point, you give up. You're soaked by the spewing water and the wet toilet seat. You're exhausted. You try to wipe with a gum wrapper you found in your pocket and then slink out inconspicuously to the sinks. You can't figure out how to operate the faucets with the automatic sensors, so you wipe your hands with spit and a dry paper towel and walk past the line of women still waiting. You are no longer able to smile politely to them. A kind soul at the very end of the line points out a piece of toilet paper trailing from your shoe. (Where was that when you NEEDED it??) You yank the paper from your shoe, plunk it in the woman's hand and tell her warmly, "Here, you just might need this."

As you exit, you spot your hubby, who has long since entered, used, and left the men's restroom. Annoyed, he asks, "What took you so long, and why is your purse hanging around your neck?"

This is dedicated to women everywhere who deal with a public restrooms (rest??? you've GOT to be kidding!!). It finally explains to the men what really does take us so long. It also answers their other commonly asked questions about why women go to the restroom in pairs. It's so the other gal can hold the door, hang onto your purse and hand you Kleenex under the door!

Random FYI Meme

I was tagged by A Cup Of Joy

Rules Once Tagged:
1) Link to the person who tagged you.

2) Post the rules on your blog (copy and paste 1-6).

3) Write 6 random things about yourself (see below).

4) Tag 6 people at the end of your post and link to them.

5) Let each person know they have been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.

6) Let the tagger (who tagged you) know when your post is up.

Random FYI:

1. I was home schooled and am now going to home school my own children

2. I was a horse crazy girl (still am) and owned four horses (not at one time), and miss riding them. :(

3. I am 4 feet eleven and half inches tall

4. I met my best friend, on the Internet through a Christian homemaker's forum. After emailing each other back and forth for almost five years, she moved to my state, and we have finally met, and now see each other about four times a year. :)

5. I have a sister in law with the same first name and last name as mine

6. I have nightmares about loosing my teeth. Not *very* often, but often enough to freak me out several times a year. ;-)

Those I am Tagging:

1. A Day in the Life of the Brown Family

2. Being Mrs. Momma

3. A Romantic Porch

4. Buffaloes and Butterfly Wings

5. Elephant Dreams

6. The Scroggs Family

Wordless Wednesday~Just Like Daddy

To see more Wordless Wednesday Pictures, visit Five Minutes For Mom. :)

Celebrations

Well today is my birthday. So if you love me, please just say "Happy birthday!" in the comments section ;-) I know, I know. I am a selfish person to actually go and ask people to wish me a happy birthday, LOL! But it is just a clever, and guilt trip way to get you to comment on my blog. ;-) You see, to us bloggers; getting a comment on your blog is better than getting a card in the mail. Because you know that people are actually reading this stuff.

Speaking of my birthday, my girls are PARTY GIRLS!!!

Every day, there is some occasion, reason or excuse for them to have a party. Whether it is my birthday, the dogs birthday, or whatever. Every day, is a day to celebrate with my girls.

Usually I down play it and say, "Not today dearies" or, "We'll see, maybe another time". You know; Being the mean mommy who always says no.

So when my mom wanted to come over for the day last week, I said,

"Girls, Nana is coming over, so we can have a tea party" Such joyous rapture erupted, you would of thought that they won a shopping spree to Toy's R Us. Or something that significant!

So the plans began. Sweetie began making paper party hats. Designing and coloring each one carefully. Sweetie and Bean both helped clean the house without the usual, "I'm tired" or "My tummy hurts"

Then, Sweetie declares, "Let's make a cake"

Ugggg... I roll my eyes (when they weren't looking of course) and I gotta agree to it, as I did tell them that we were going to have a party. And what party would be complete without a cake?

So the morning before Nana, came we made a cake. But not just *any* cake. A Heart shaped cake, mind you. And a tiered heart cake to be exact!

Nana arrived just as the cake was finished cooling, and I set it before all the children to "decorate". They were pretty quiet for the next 20 minutes. I took a couple of pictures of their hard, diligent and beautiful work.

They are all working so hard... Well it just looks like Sweetie is. But the others are helping by keeping the icing from dripping of off the knife. That's important too; you wouldn't want to waste the icing, Right? Right!They all look a little too wide eyed and chipper in my book

A Master piece. It actually was very tasty. And my hips are thinking so too. :) What a party! I think it is the best I have ever been to! :)

The Gentle Art of Learning

Homeschooling has been on my mind lately. We begin officially in a couple of weeks. I have been worried if I will be able to really teach Sweetie how to read. I know I have pottied trained her, taught her colors, numbers and other things. But reading? That is a different story all together.

While I have been reading about the Charlotte Mason philosophy, the concept of not pushing a child; but allowing their natural curiosity to guide me into teaching them is brought up over and over again.

The idea sounded good, but was it true? While most kids Sweetie's age are already going into first grade, Sweetie who is now six, will be officially entering Kindergarten. I just played around with "school" last year, to see what direction I wanted to go with the "official" year.

I attempted to teach her to read. While she was grasping the concepts quite easily, she quickly would become bored and frustrated. After Christmas, I stopped pushing it. I had other things I needed to do.

Recently, Sweetie has been blossoming with her reading, on her own. She has taken an interest in words, and how they are "spelled" and sounding them out all on her own. Occasionally, she comes to me for help. And I help her with it.

Two nights ago, I spelled a word for my husband. It was the word Twix. I wanted him to get me a Twix candy bar, but I didn't want the children to know what it was. Sweetie asks, "What's a T-W-I-X? I told her to sound it out. So we went to her little chalk board, and I wrote Twix down, and she sounded it out, and read it!

She then asks, "What's a twix?" So I wrote the word "candy" on the board, and she sounded it out! By this time, she was quite taken with being able to read "hard" words, that she forgot all about the candy, and wanted me to write more words for her to figure out.

When Nana came to visit the other day, we showed Nana her abilities. Sweetie was quite proud and excited with herself.

While Nana and I were busy with something. The house grew quiet. When I walked out into the living room, I saw that Sweetie had written down many words on her white board. On her own, without *any* help from me. Without any formal curriculum. It was all just play in her mind. But she was learning! It was the Gentle Art of Learning. I took a picture of her white board:

I am so glad that I didn't push her more, and cause her to be frustrated with reading. Because now, it is fun for her, and she is enjoying it. Now, she wants to learn to read. And seeing this progress form her, has encouraged me *very* much. It is going to be a joy to teach her to "cipher" her letters, instead of a battle. :)

Speaking of the Gentle Art of Learning... My best friend has put together a Charlotte Mason Blog FULL of a tremendous amount of resources. Check it out.. It is Ancient Paths Schoolhouse She has done *alot* of work in order for other people to know where to begin with exploring the Charlotte Mason philosophy.

Also, I am working on building our home school blog. I am not sure how I am going to use it yet; I am still formulating it. But I'll let you know when it is ready to read.

Have a beautiful weekend!

Show And Tell Friday~My Bedroom Got A Face Lift

I am just so tickled and EXCITED about today's Show and Tell!!! For you see, after seven years of marriage, I finally have a beautiful and romantic bedroom!!!

About a week ago, I decided that I had had enough of just a "functional" room, and decided enough was enough, and painted the bedroom.

But before we get into the "telling" part, I want to show you a couple of "before" pictures of my bedroom.

As you can see, my bedroom needed *ALOT* of help! :) Sadly, I have to say that we sort of lived this way for a couple of months. It has been cleaner at times, but still not beautiful and Romantic, LOL!

Before I go on to show you the after pictures, I must say that a very sweet friend from church came over one day and helped me to paint the room. It was a good time of fellowship, and we got to know one another better. (And ate too many brownies in the process) And It just so happens that she also has a blog, so go check it out when you get a chance. :)

I also want to say that I believe the Lord gave me this opportunity to re-decorate. Because I had *not* planned on doing this at all! I was "just going to run a few errands" that needed some running for! After I was finished getting ready to go, I turned around to shut the light off, looked at my sad bedroom and said, "Maybe One Day my bedroom will be pretty"

So while at T*rget, I was" just browsing" the comforters. All of the sudden I saw a WHOLE Bed set in a bag for only $42, and it was *exactly* what I had in mind for several months. Maybe even since last year. I have had my eyes peeled for something like it, but never could find what I liked.

It had a bed skirt, shames, pillow cases, sheets, and comforter in the exact colors I wanted for only $42!!! What a deal!! And there was only one size left that would fit my bed. The other size was a twin.

So after I bought that, I headed over to our local home improvement store, and picked out the paint.

OK, now, I will show you the After pictures. Drum roll please!

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So there you have it! I hope you like it as much as I do. I can't help sounding braggy! I am *not* very talented in this area, of home interior design, but I think it is Gorgeous, If I do say so myself!!!

Be sure to visit other blogs and see what others are showing and telling by visiting There's No Place Like Home. Just click on the Show and Tell Button on the top of this Post. Thanks for visiting! :)

Summer Fun Photo Contest

Over at Five Minutes For Mom, Skinny Cow Ice Cream is hosting a Summer Photo Contest. This is the photo that I have entered:

Please be sure and enter your own photo by visiting Five Minutes For Mom!

Wordless Wednesday~Camouflaged Explorer

For More Wordless Wednesday Posts visit Five Minutes For Mom

In a Decorating Mood...

Last week, I redecorated my bedroom. It is BEAUTIFUL!!! If I do say so myself. ;-) Now that it is the most beautiful room in the house, the rest of the place is looking a bit shabby.

Well ,I came across a contest to win this beautiful Chandelier:

And it has given me some inspiration to decorate my bathroom next. :) If I blogged about the contest on my blog they would give me two extra entries.

So, here I am, I am blogging about this beautiful Chandler that you can also try winning by going to Our Cozy Nest and reading the rules to participate. Happy playing! :)

PS. I will be blogging about my Bedroom Makeover on Friday, so be sure to come back and see beautiful transformation!

Homemade Laundry Soap

So what is this mysterious pink stuff? Both guesses, while quite good ones, were WRONG! ;-)

To save some money I tried my hand at making Homemade Laundry Soap. The Pink stuff is a Laundry soap bar found at Wal-M*art in the laundry section. It is called ZOTE. It is a huge bar of pink soap. I took it and grated it with a cheese grater and it looked like this:

The night that I grated it; the little chilren' were soundly asleep in bed. It just so happened that we had Taco Rice that night. When Bean woke up the next morning she came bursting into my room and said,

"MOMMY, MOMMY! You left the cheese out last night, and didn't put it back in the refrigerator and it turned PINK!!! You shouldn't of left it out!!!"

I explained to the girls what it was. Then Tiny Boy obviously thought it was something good to eat; otherwise he wouldn't snatched some and stuck it in his mouth. You should of seen his face as he discovered that it wasn't pink candy, LOL!

A few days later, I cooked up a batch of the Soap. If you would like to try your hand at making the soap here is the recipe that I used:

1 Bar of ZOTE soap grated

1/2 Cup of Borax

1 Cup of Arm and Hammer *WASHING* Soda (not baking soda, but *WASHING SODA* I found a box of it at Pub*lix in the laundry section. Wal-M*art didn't have it. Shocker huh?

Boil 4 Cups of water on the stove, and add in the grated ZOTE. Do a little at a time; otherwise it will clump together in one big wad. You may have to add a little more water as you cook it. It took me about 30 minutes to cook it down.

Dump the melted watery soap in a five gallon bucket. Put in Washing Soda and Borax. Stir around. Then add Five Gallons of Hot Tap Water. Stir really well. Cover with a lid, and let it set for 24 hours.

And Wallah! You have Laundry Soap!! The consistency is *not* like normal liquid laundry soap; but it works really well! I like it better than the cheap stuff that I normally buy. It is estimated that it costs $0.01 a load to wash with this soap.

Here is a picture of what it looked like when I opened it up.

And here are the little people stirring the brew. :)

I have washed about five loads of laundry with this stuff. It comes out clean, and smelling really nice. Not bad for trying to save some $$$ huh? You use 1 Cup per load of laundry.

Now for the winner. Miss Bean drew Persuaded out of the hat! Congratulations!!! I'll be contacting you for your mailing address. :)

Thanks for playing ladies! That was fun. :)