Home Decor: Living Room

When we moved here, a little over a year ago, we were able to get a new couch and love seat.  It was a much needed upgrade in our minds.  Our previous couch had a basketball size hole in it that our dog made about 5 years earlier.  We had a pillow stuffed in the hole to keep the rest of the stuffing from spilling out.  ha!  (Kind of wish I had a pic of that now.)  The couch also had a nice shimmery-green blob on one of the cushions from a bottle of nail polish that Colin broke.  Anyway.  We were SO grateful to be able to get rid of it and purchase this new set....

We love the set!  For us it's a good mix of casual and formal.  The rug I picked up on sale at Target shortly after.  I knew I wanted to add some other colors into the palate, but at the time I wasn't exactly sure what.  I ended up just sticking with some cream colored panels and sheer curtains to get something up.  The couches also came with a TON of pillows, so it's been in my head to recover some of them to help add color as well.  After a few months I knew I wanted to add some orange, but I haven't made a priority of making the adjustments I want.  Then, a few days ago though my friend posted this pic on her blog....

 

(Better Homes and Gardens)

Look at those drapes!  I LOVE!  I would call it tangerine orange.  It's the exact color I want!  I just can't seem to find it anywhere in stores around here.  Everything seems to be more of a burnt orange.  This color is soft and bright!  I love, I love, I love!

Oh, and I can't forget to mention how much I love that blanket!

I have so many "home improvement" projects on my list, but this picture makes me want to go searching for material for curtains and pillows tomorrow! 

Hmmm....maybe I will.

Dear Hubby...

Earlier today the boys and I were working on our letter of the week craft.  We had some paint markers, crayons, and glitter paint out.  Then my friend came over and while we were visiting the boys went out back to play.  After my friend left, I went out to the back to play with Ryan for a little bit.  That is when he PROUDLY showed me this.....

Sorry about your grill babe!  (I'll put the glitter and paint away next time.)  The boys love you so much!!!!!!!!

Although this was completely wrong I can't help but laugh at it!  It's so pretty!  hahahahaha!!!!

A Soldier's Wages

I read the following passage from Luke 3 last week.  It was when John the Baptist was preaching to the people around Jordan and preparing the way for Jesus.  He was encouraging the people to be baptised, to repent, and to live out their faith.  The people had some questions for John and the very last question with it's answer seemed to leap out of the pages at me.

“What should we do then?” the crowd asked. 

     John answered, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”

 

Even tax collectors came to be baptized. “Teacher,” they asked, “what should we do?”

     “Don’t collect any more than you are required to,” he told them.

 

Then some soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?”

     He replied, “Don’t extort money and don’t accuse people falsely—be content with your pay.”

Be content with your pay.

Ouch.  That's specific.

I can almost hear John saying it. 

Be content with your pay.

 

I am not the soldier, but I have complained about my soldier's pay.  (Even the overseas pay.) 

Then, three days ago this article was brought to my attention.  With the government having not budgeted correctly, there is a chance that we might not get paid on April 1st.  There is a bill being prepared in the House of Representatives that would allow the government to continue operating, but it is uncertain at this point. 

Is it not amazing how God brings specific scripture into our life at specific times?  The passage had already convicted my heart when reading it last week, but after reading the article it has even a new life.

At this point we are not concerned about the pay.  Our God has provided richly for us. 

So what are we to do?  I pray that we might reflect the attitude of Christ so that others may see His glory.  

With, or without pay.    

Romans 13: 1-10

"Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.  Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.  For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended.  For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.  Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.

This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing.  Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor."

Our country has not made the best financial decisions, but our leaders still deserve our respect.  My husband also joined the Military for reasons other than a paycheck.  With that, I am honored to have married a man who has a sense of duty to work for and defend our beloved nation!  

Practical Solution

This post is WAY overdue.  Back at the beginning of our MOPS year (in August 2010) I was presented with a problem.  A majority of the kids who came did not have their bags or cups labeled.  I myself...guilty as charged!  It made it difficult for the nursery workers who were trying to determine which bag/cup belonged to which child.  I even experienced the same problem a few weeks earlier on Sunday morning while in the nursery.  The only way we figured it out was by comparing the size/type of diaper the child was wearing to what was in each bag.  There's got to be an easier way though, right?

Of course there are these very cool monogrammed bags you can purchase.

(PotteryBarnKids.com)

But not when you have to have them in mass.

And these cup tags....

(inchbug.com)

Again....Super cute, but not in our budget to buy enough for every mom.  (Yet they are microwave/dishwasher/lots of other cool stuff safe.)

So here's what we came up with.  The diaper bag tags...

 These are just the ones I have for my boys.  I wish I would have gotten pics of all the ones the ladies made.  They all came out really cute.  We purchased the plastic ID covers from Wal-mart.  They come in a pack 12/$2.50.  (Sorry no pic.)  Then we used small rubber bands to loop through the ID cover and then around a strap on our bag.  It's pretty much like a luggage tag.  I've seen sturdier ones out there, but these worked great since we had to make them in mass on a small budget.  Plus they were personable!  If your child has any type of food/medicine allergies you could also write that on the tag somewhere.  I know not every mom likes their child's name/info being proclaimed to the world, so like I did with Blaine's...put the name on the side that faces the diaper bag and just a cute design on the other.  You could also tuck or attach the tag to the inside of your bag somewhere.

Now for the cups...

We simply bought a pack of 1/2" wide rubber bands.  They come in a pack of approximately 45/$2.00.  I couldn't find them at Office Max, but they did have them at Staples.  (Complete side note:  they smell kind of stinky when you have them in mass.)

(staples.com)

I was hoping we could decorate them and make them real cute, but nothing seemed to stay on.  I tried permanent markers and paint markers.  After a few hours of being handled it would rub off.  If anyone tries anything else with success let me know!!!  You can use a regular ball point pen or a permanent marker.  You just have to re-write it occasionally.  They work great!!!  {LOVE them.}  The nursery workers love them too!  They were so excited when I did the "trial run" on Colin's cup that first time.  They fit multiple size sippy cups, plus the bottles we use, and I can just slip them on and off when needed.

Dirt Bike!

One of the things I've been wanting to do with the boys is to have some special one-on-one time with them.  With Tim bringing in some "extra dough" right now I figured I could put a little aside to cover a babysitter so I could take them on a date.  I already had one with Ryan and I had my first one-on-one date with Colin last Friday!

The plan was to go to the park, the Yamaha store, Applebees for lunch, and maybe another store or something.  Well, it was a tad chilly for my preference at 9 AM, so we skipped the park.  I figured we could go to one of the other stores I had in mind or to Wazoo's (an indoor play place with nothing but those big inflatable jumping cages).  Come to find out...nothing is open at nine in the morning.  Ten o'clock seems to be when the world comes to life.  So we ended up at McD's (my favorite, *lots of sarcasm). 

Colin has always been a little hesitant to go in the play places at restaurants.  He's gotten much better, but I wasn't sure how he would do without Ryan to follow around.  He went in, then about one minute later came back out and was just kind of pacing back and forth looking at it.  I knew he was going to need a little extra encouragement.  So in I went.  Those things are dirty!  It's not my first time climbing in one of those but for some reason the thought of getting some Lysol wipes and cleaning it out occurred to me.  I wonder how often the inside gets cleaned??  Anyway.  I realized the reason he came back out earlier was due to a high "step" inside the play place that he couldn't get onto; hence, not being able to make it to the slide.  I went through a few times, but then decided to show him a different way to get up onto the step.  Mom can't last that long.

We hung around just till 10 then decided to head over to the Yamaha store.  I am supposed to be getting a helmet so I can ride with Tim when he gets home.  Colin LOVES all things bike, so I knew he would enjoy going to the store with me.  When we pulled up he started kicking his legs, and clapping, and shouting "yeah!!!".  He was very excited!  :-)

No luck finding a helmet worth purchasing at this point.  (Given the limited "nice, girl" designs I am working on the idea of buying a plain one and coming up with my own design.)  Still worth the trip though.  Colin tried on helmets with me.  He sat on 4 wheelers, motorcycles, mo-peds, and dirt bikes!  Needless to say...it was hard to leave.

After that we went and bought some flip-flops and a bouncy ball.  Then to Applebees for lunch! 
We even had a brownie and ice cream for dessert.  Colin gasped out of delight when he saw our waitress bring it out!  (He used to do this all the time when he was offered Cheeto Puffs! hehe) 

I think one of the best things about our date days is that we get to take Daddy's truck!  It's always a treat when we get to ride in Daddy's truck.

I was horrible and didn't get any pictures of my first date with Ryan; nor did I blog about it.  This time I at least got two/three pictures.  Striving to do better next time!

He's Rolling!!!!!!

Half-way at least.  Blaine woke up about 6:15 this morning upset about something.  I gave him some time to cry it out, but instead of going back to sleep, he got more upset and he had is mad cry going; which normally means he's hungry.  When I went to get him I found him on his back!  He did this three times right around his 2 month birthday, but haven't seen him do it since.  Well this afternoon he did it for real!!!!  Multiple times in a row!!!!  Granted it's tummy-to-back, but I'm confident back-to-tummy is coming soon!  (We've been practicing.)  I even captured his first "official" roll on video!  Then we called Daddy right away and he got to see him do it about 4 more times!

Man..he's so stinkin' cute!!!!

Book Review: Boxes for Katje

I try to take the boys to the library on a regular basis.  We're still trying to get back into the swing of it since we've added Blaine to the picture.  We used to go once a week.  Now it's like every 2-3 weeks.  We have a lot of books at home already, but it's nice having some variety.  The boys don't mind reading the same thing over and over and over again..but I start to dread story time. 

Normally when we go we try and pick out any books that have our letter of the week in the title.  I've tried having a list of books I want prior to going in, but 99.9% of the time our library doesn't have them.  I've tried using the inner library loan system, but last time I requested two books, it took about three weeks for them to come in.  That would require A.LOT. of prior planning that I'm just not ready for.  Anyway.  All that to say...selecting random books off the shelf gives me a 50/50 chance of getting a "good" book.  We've had some cute ones in the past, but one of the ones we picked out this last time would be one of the better ones we've gotten. 

                                                                                                    

(amazon.com)

Boxes for Katje by Candace Fleming is based on a true story about the physical needs of a family in Holland after WWII and a family in America who felt led to support that family.  (I know Ryan and Colin have no way of understanding the truth behind the story we read, but it almost had me in tears.)  I deeply want my boys to be compassionate toward others, to put other's needs first.  I want them to understand and be thankful for the bountiful supply of food and clothes that surround us.  I want them to have a heart for those less fortunate than us.  This book promotes those things.

Father God, I pray you would give Tim and I the wisdom to teach our boys about service.  Let us lead by example.  Give us opportunities to minister and open our eyes to see not only the physical needs of people but the spiritual needs as well.