Monday's 10 Things

Here's what I'm most thankful for, right now!

1. A long weekend that included lots of time with my favorite people.

2. The privilege to just stay home with my little girl on a Monday and let her (and I) recover from a long weekend.

3. My brother and all the other military people stationed in Hawaii (and throughout the world too!) who are working to preserve and protect our freedom.

4. Seven years ago this past weekend, Eric proposed to me!

5. The songs Eric makes up and sings to Claire when she's having a hard time falling asleep.

6. Hearing Claire counting and reciting the alphabet. I'm so proud of that girl, she amazes me every day.

7. A new-found craft that I'm really excited about.

8. To-do lists. They're the only way I accomplish anything.

9. Blogging.

10. Etsy.

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What are you most thankful for today?

Fresh Start Sunday

It is Well with My Soul

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When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,

when sorrows like sea billows roll;

whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say,

It is well, it is well with my soul.

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It is well with my soul,

it is well,

it is well with my soul.

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Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,

let this blest assurance control,

that Christ has regarded my helpless estate,

and hath shed his own blood for my soul.

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It is well with my soul,

it is well,

it is well with my soul.

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My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!

My sin, not in part but the whole,

is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,

praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

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It is well with my soul,

it is well,

it is well with my soul.

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And, Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,

the clouds be rolled back as a scroll;

the trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,

even so, it is well with my soul.

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It is well with my soul,

it is well,

it is well with my soul.

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(Take a minute to read the story that led Horatio G. Spafford to write this song, it's worth knowing.)

Picture of the Week

Celebrating the Fourth of July with Elvis.

I know...completely random, but so much fun!

Happy 4th of July!

Happy Fourth of July!

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Enjoy spending the day with your friends and family,

and feeling gratitude for living in such a

great, free country!

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(And of course, watch out for those sparklers,

those things are scary!)

White Jello

So if you're heading to a Fourth of July picnic and still aren't sure what to bring, I've got just the dish for you....White Jello!

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This is something my mom has been making for as long as I can remember. My family has always classified White Jello as a salad, although I'm not so convinced it should be. It's chock full of cool whip, so it kind of sounds like a dessert to me! Let's just put it this way....if you need to bring a salad to pass, bring White Jello. If you need to bring a dessert to pass, bring White Jello. Either way you're covered!

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Here's the recipe:

1 envelope Knox gelatin
1/4 cup cold water
1 cup boiling water
2/3 cup sugar
8 oz. cool whip
16 oz. sour cream
little bit of vanilla

1. Dissolve the gelatin in the cold water.
2. Add the remaining ingredients in the order listed above, stirring throughout.
3. Pour into a 9x9 baking dish.
4. Place in the refrigerator to set.
5. Top with your favorite berries. Mine is done in blueberries and strawberries special for the Fourth (just like mom does!)

Note: If you need a larger quantity, the recipe can be doubled and poured into a 9x13 baking dish like the picture above.

Enjoy!

Pinwheels

For today's getting patriotic project, I made red, white and blue pinwheels! What a fun (and SUPER easy) project this was. I'm totally going to remember pinwheels for future parties, either as part of the favors I give out, or as centerpieces. (Wow, did I really just say I'm totally...???")

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Anyway.

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The tutorial for making the pinwheels can be found here.
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For my pinwheels I:

*found some great two-sided paper at my extremely large and well-stocked but slightly overpriced scrapbook store nearby. The blue and white polka dot paper is my favorite (what's with me and polka dots lately?!?)

*cut my squares to 6 inches x 6 inches and used scrapbooking scissors to give the edges a little pizazz.

*used American flag pencils rather than dowels as the directions suggested. (These pencils along with all sorts of other red, white and blue goodies are currently in the dollar bins at Target, get yours fast!)

*used some of my red, white and blue sewing pins as opposed to the tacks shown in the tutorial. The pins stuck out the opposite side of the pencil eraser, so I just used a wire cutters to cut them off.

Cute!

Fashionably Patriotic

Happy July!

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We're busy getting ready for the holiday weekend, starting with a little fashion for the Fourth!

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I've been looking for a (free) pillowcase dress pattern for a while now without a whole lot of luck. Most of the patterns I found were just too simple and basic, and I wanted something a little bit nicer. Finally this week though I found this pattern on the blog Just Add Glitter.

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I like this pattern for a couple of reasons...the first being that it uses a second fabric around the bottom for a little extra detail, and the second being that it actually includes finishing all of the edges of the dress. So many patterns that I've found have raw edges, and even though they are on the inside, I still think they should be finished properly.

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So, without further ado...here is my little patriotic 4th of July model!

Aren't polka dots just the best?!?

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Claire recently discovered candy, and I just today discovered that candy works as a fabulous bribe to get a crabby-not-wanting-to-be-wearing-the-dress-at-this-particular-moment-girl to pose for a picture!