For Real Friday 3.11.11

Hi Friends!

I'm trying out something new at my blog.  Don't know exactly what it's going to look like, but I'm super excited to reach outside my little box.  Now if you typically come here for paper and ink inspiration, don't run away just yet!!  I promise there will be some of that too.  I'll even put it near the beginning, so you can skip the rest if you want.  On For Real Friday, I'm going to be sharing some "For Real" life stuff about myself.  My random thoughts, highlights of my week, special family moments, those awful "mom" moments, just whatever I feel like chatting about.  At the end of the post you may be asking yourself, "Is this chick FOR REAL?!"  And the answer is yes, I am.  :)

My first "for real" random act is to convince the Jesus girls over at Proverbs 31 Ministry why I deserve to win one (of only two!) of the Cecil Murphy Scholarships for the upcoming She Speaks conference that Lysa TerKeurst is giving away on her blog.  She Speaks is a conference for women who want to "step out with the message God has placed on our hearts."  It is geared towards speakers, writers, and leaders of Women's Ministry.  I read about this conference a few years back and was completely intrigued by it.  I feel God is nudging me into some kind of speaking ministry.  Which is a HUGE faith leap for a former shy girl, who in 2nd grade never even played on the school playground.  For the entire year, I just watched from the sidelines as all the other children played.  I was just too afraid to go and talk to anyone.  Many years and tears later, God has worked a small miracle in my life and has taken away those fears.  If you can wear a wet suit in front of the entire congregation while giving an announcement for VBS, you've come a long way baby!!!  So the question of why I would like to win the scholarship really should be... why not?!!  If that's what God has planned for me, He's going to work it out.  If not this conference, maybe the next one.  And let's be "for real" for a moment.  I'm the wife of a full-time youth pastor slash part-time seminarian student.  There's no way I'm ever going to ANY conference except on a scholarship!  :)  Plus I think I have an extra special touch I can add to the whole Proverbs 31 Ministry.  They already have blogs called, She Speaks, She Reads, She Cooks, She Seeks.  What they really need is a blog called SHE CRAFTS!!!!  Can't you just see a roomful of Jesus girls getting together with their sewing and their quilts and their knitting and their scrapbooks and their STAMPS and encouraging and praying for each other?!  Seriously girls!  Think about it!  :) 

And speaking of stamps!!  I promised there would be stamping involved in this already long and no where near the end post.  This is for my newest Stampin' Up! team member, Syreeta.  It's a cute little chick I CASED from Stampin' Connection.  I hope you have a fabulous workshop.  You go girl!!!!

MILK CARTON DIE

PAPER:  So Saffron, Pumpkin Pie, Basic Black
ACCESSORIES:  Milk Carton Die, Scallop Circle Punch (wings), Cherry Blossom Embosslit (feet), Small Heart Punch (beak), Owl Punch (eyes), Pumpkin Pie Taffeta Ribbon


Some of you have asked to see my stamping space.  Well, there really is not much to see.  I stamp on the end of my kitchen counter.  It's about a 2' x 3' space.  I used to be embarassed by how messy it looks.  But everyone who really knows me, knows how much I love to stamp.  So I rarely clean it up.  Unless my MIL is expected.  Then you better believe it all gets put away!  It's the curse of being a Dutch girl.  We know our "clean" limits!

Looks like I need to file my scraps!  Yes, that is a little "contraband".  I can't live without my Scor-Pal or my ATG gun.  I beg Stampin' Up! every year to add them to the catalog.  But they haven't listened to me yet.  Here's hoping for July!!

A highlight of the week was our 14yo man-child (he's 6' 3" and 190 lbs!) got his name in the local newspaper.  His high school swim team took first place at their meet on Tuesday.  He didn't come in first in any individual events, but the 400 freestyle relay team he was on did take first. 

GO TUHS!!!

This is what a high school swim team looks like in between events:

OH MY!!

And here is a face only a mother could love:

This is what a 5yo looks like after he stops his fall off his bike with his nose... on the concrete!!  A little red scrape, a big green bruise, and two black eyes.  If he had green eyes and red hair, I think he would look just like a little leprechaun!!  Gotta love the leftover peanut butter around his mouth!!  This guy is allergic to all dairy products and everything made with red 40 food dye.  Which is pretty much every candy on the supermarket shelf.  Plus most medicines.  Food allergies are a major bummer!!  And we just recently found out that he is allergic to almost every tree, grass, weed, and mold known to man.  His allergist was real hopeful.  He said to expect it to get worse in two years.  Yikes!!  Here's hoping hubby gets a position at a church near a beach someday!!  :)


12yo DD is in the process of getting her braces on.  I wanted to do a "before the appointment" picture and an "after the appointment" picture, but she said NO!  Can you believe it?  Next Tuesday she gets the rest of the work done.  Maybe by then she will let me take a "brace face" pic.  She looks adorable.  I'm sure some turquoise rubber bands in her mouth will just add a little more flair to her already fashionable style.


Sunday morning I'm going to be a very anxious mom.  14yo man-child and 12yo DD are both playing in the worship band at church... at both services!  Aaahhhh!!  I've been nevous for days and they are both totally fine.  14yo man-child plays bass and 12yo DD plays the keyboard.  Of course I plan on toting my big fat camera along, so hopefully next Friday I will have a picture. 

I have the privledge of meeting with two dear friends on Wednesday afternoons for Bible study and another friend on Thursday evenings for another study.  Those are very precious moments for a crazy busy homeschool mom like myself.  On Wednesday's we are going through Max Lucado's workbook, Experiencing the Heart of Jesus.  Love it!!  Love his children's books too.  :) 
Here are some quotes from this week's lesson:

"God allows us to make our own choices."
"Because God gives us choices, we must realize that all choices have consequences, both good and bad."
"No matter how many bad choices we have made in the past, they are redeemed by one good choice-to follow Jesus."
"Jesus loves you enough to let you choose."


And here are some verses that touched my heart from my Thursday study:

"Anyone who comes to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him."  Hebrews 11:6

"Now your attitudes and thoughts must all be constantly changing for the better.  Yes, you must be a new and different person."  Ephesians 4:23 TLB

"Lead me; teach me; for you are the God who gives me salvation.  I have no hope except in you."  Psalm 25:5 TLB

And finally (yes finally!!!) I want to share a book I just recently finished reading that rocked my socks.  Becoming More Than A Good Bible Study Girl, by Lysa TerKeurst.  Besides stamping, my other passion is reading.  I'll read anything that has print on it, cereal boxes, road signs, you name it, I'll read it.  But I never read a book twice.  I always remember too much of it and it bores me the second time around.  Not this book!!  I can't wait to read it again with a big fat highlighter pen.  I want to soak up more of Lysa's inspirational message.  So many wonderful things to think about and ponder.  Here's one little tid-bit from the final chapter which is entitled: Forever.  "Becoming more than a good Bible study girl means that we desire God's revelations in our life more than we desire our own carefully constructed plans.  So easy to say, so hard to actually live out."  Amen sister!!


If you've made it this far, you are a trooper!!  Thanks for hanging out with me in this first "For Real" moment.  Like I said at the beginning, I have no idea where this whole idea is headed, but it should be a fun little ride.  Hope you'll visit again soon!!

Thanks for stopping by!