~Ruffle Totes on Sale!~

Today only, snap these up for $10 (previously $12). For details, click the link below the picture.


Gingham Ruffle Tote


Floral and Gingham Ruffle Tote


(sold)

~Precious~

Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. (Psalm 116:5)

A week ago Sunday, my precious grandmother, my mom's mother, slipped from us and entered into Heaven.

I have so many beautiful memories of her. In fact, the night after she passed away, I was laying in bed thinking about all my memories, and it dawned on me: I do not have any negative memories of my grandma. Wow...I'm pretty sure that people can't say that about me! My grandma was so kind, so loving and thoughtful. She had a true servant's heart and a deep love for the Lord.

My grandma taught me how to sew. When I first started, I broke machine needles every time I was there! She had a ready supply of sewing machine needles though, and I just had to replace the needle I broke. One sewing lesson I broke two needles, and another lesson the needle went through my finger--straight down through my nail! She clipped the thread and pulled the needle out! We went over weekly for "sewing lessons". One of the things Grandma taught me was to read the instructions for myself. I remember from the first lesson on, she always had me read the instructions and try to follow them. If I needed help, or couldn't understand the instructions, she would help me. But I always had to start out by reading the instructions. Grandma was encouraging. She wanted sewing to be enjoyable for me. If I made a mistake and had to rip out a seam, she would hand me the seamripper. But sometimes if the mistake was big and it involved a lot of work with the seamripper, she would pick out my stitches for me, so that it wouldn't be discouraging for me.

Oh...I could go on and on. I'll miss my grandma so much! I know I'll see her again, and I know that she is free from pain and in the presence of the Lord Whom she served so faithfully! It's sad to think of her not being here on earth with us, but my heart rejoices so much to know she's in Heaven!

~Laundry Soap~

Well, the day finally came! I ran out of laundry detergent! Right around the time our daughter was born (19 months ago!) we hit on some really good sales on the detergent we used, so we stocked up.

After learning about natural cleaners last April, I really wanted to make my own detergent. But I still had plenty to use up, so I determined that when I ran out, then I would make my own! =)

You'll need water and these three ingredients:


The soap looked so pretty all grated and ready to go:


I used this recipe here. For soap, I used Dr. Bronner's bar soap. It would have been cheaper to use Fels Naptha, but (according to the class I took last April) Dr. Bronner's is more natural.

This soap is quick and easy to make! I really can't believe how easy it is to make! I will be making my laundry detergent from now on. Next time I'll probably make a double batch since I have a 5-gallon bucket.

I broke the costs down and for one batch (64 loads) it cost me $1.97. That's a mere $.03 per load! The soap I used did raise the price a little, I'm pretty sure Fels Naptha is less expensive. Also, I've heard that Ivory or other natural soap bars work just as well as Fels Naptha.

~Fabric Acorns~

A few weeks back, I followed this little tutorial on Everything Etsy, to make these fabric acorns:


Halfway through the process, I realized that the slashes in the circle (see tutorial) really weren't necessary. I could have folded the circles and sewn without the slashes.

After making my first acorn I realized that they needed some weight in the bottom in order to keep them from doing this:


Yes, they all flop over, so they lose their cuteness, since all you can see is the bottoms. While I was making them I thought perhaps some rice in the bottom would keep them upright. But I was too lazy didn't feel like getting up to try it.

We were on a walk the other day and Kevin spotted some acorns. He asked me if I wanted the acorns to make more fabric acorns and I said, "no, I wasted enough time making the ones I have." =P It was a fun little project though, just not a super productive project. They would probably be cute if they were glued onto a wreath or something. Hmmmm.

~8 Questions Meme~

Melody tagged me for a meme. I thought, "why not?" It's been a while since I've participated in a meme! :-) The way it works is she answered 8 questions asked by someone else, then wrote 8 questions and tagged 8 people to answer.

1. What is your favorite hot beverage? Coffee? Tea? Hot chocolate? Something else?
This really depends on my mood and the time of year! I love coffee and drink it every morning. There's just something about starting my day with a cup of coffee! In the fall and winter, in addition to my coffee, I drink quite a bit of herbal tea.

2. What is your favorite season of the year?
I would have to say spring. Everything starting to bloom, the snow melting, the sun shining again...so much to look forward to!

3. How old were you when you accepted Christ?
I was almost 4 years old. I remember praying with my mom. It was right before bedtime, and instead of my normal prayer, I prayed and asked Jesus to save me. :-)

4. If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would it be?
If finances weren't an issue, I'd love to go to Europe.

5. Are you a morning person or a night owl?
Night owl, unfortunately. My daughter does not take after me so this sometimes makes for hard mornings!

6. Do you have a life verse, or one that is really special to you?
Through my life different verses have been near and dear to my heart, but my life verse is Proverbs 3:5,6: "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."

7. If you had a couple hours to do anything you wanted, what would you do?
Clean my house! I know that several years ago I'd probably have said something like knitting or sewing, but having a little one underfoot changes my perspective! As my daughter is getting older it is getting easier to clean but even yesterday I was making applesauce and she was laying on the floor right by my feet! LOL So yeah, cleaning for a few hours straight sounds great! :-)

8. Do you have someone in your life who has been a Spiritual mentor for you?
In the true sense of the word, not really. There have been people though who have greatly helped me in my Spiritual walk, at various times in my life.

Now it's my turn! :) I had the hardest time coming up with these, for some odd reason!

Here are my 8 questions:
1. Do you like to journal (on paper)?
2. What is your favorite fall activity?
3. What is your favorite time of day?
4. Do you enjoy exercising?
5. Did you play sports in school?
6. What Bible verse is special to you right now?
7. What is your favorite food item during the holidays? (Thanksgiving/Christmas)
8. If you drink coffee (or tea), how many cups do you drink per day?

Now the thing is, most of the people I would have tagged have already been tagged! So if you'd like to play along, please grab the questions and go for it! =D Be sure to leave a comment if you participated!