Happy Fall, Y'all!
Friday, October 24, 2008
Canyon Lake Sunrise
A few Saturdays ago, Brian and I had wanderlust. Well, let's just face it...we pretty much always do, but our budget tells us to stick close to home! Anyway, whenever we can, we map out a little day-trip adventure. Sure, it takes a little gas, but it's worth it for the emotional boost of exploring and discovering new parts of Texas. We headed out early in the morning because it was supposed to be cool in the morning and we thought we'd try to get to Canyon Lake in time for sunrise. We just made it. Here are some photos from our morning:
I took a ton of photos, fiddling with the settings on my camera, so the light varies quite a bit. The river photos are on a little branch of the Guadalupe, just below the dam. The river there had a strong sulfur odor. Interesting...and smelly! If you would like to see the collage photos larger, just click the collage above. To see more photos from the morning, click here.
What outdoor adventures have you been on this fall?
I took a ton of photos, fiddling with the settings on my camera, so the light varies quite a bit. The river photos are on a little branch of the Guadalupe, just below the dam. The river there had a strong sulfur odor. Interesting...and smelly! If you would like to see the collage photos larger, just click the collage above. To see more photos from the morning, click here.
What outdoor adventures have you been on this fall?
Welcome to my Pumpkin Party
Oh, I've been meaning to post on this for several weeks now, but life has kept me awfully busy! Several weeks ago, I invited my coworkers (several ladies) over to our house for a Pumpkin Party. We try to get together a couple of times a year for an outside-of-work gathering. Whenever possible, I like to make it craft-based because, well, I like crafts! So this time the plan was to make these glittered pumpkins. How hard could it be? Paint on the glue, shake on the glitter, right? Ahem. Let me just tell you that this glitter, while beautiful, has the consistency of cornstarch. As in, it coated everything in a 1/2 mile radius, except the pumpkins! Oh well, we had a good time anyway. Here's one of the few that I made: 
I wanted to make sure all the ladies went home with something they were happy with. So, on the off chance that the glittered pumpkins didn't work out, I came up with these little cuties.
These are so simple. Just make a largish yo-yo (mine were about 9"), stuff with fiberfill, add a twig and a leaf, then cinch up your yo-yo and tie off the thread. After that, you can create segments or grooves on your pumpkin by wrapping ribbon or yarn around it. So easy!
We ate a yummy supper of Chili and this White Chili from A Year of Crockpotting, plus cornbread, homemade applesauce (also from A Year of Crockpotting) and pumpkin bread. I made souvenier "napkins" by embroidering cheap washcloths (7 for $2) for each lady. In the end, everyone went home with a glittered pumpkin, a stuffed pumpkin, and a pumpkin "napkin":
I think a good time was had by all. And yeah, I'm still finding glitter all over my house! Sparkly.
What special Pumpkin activities have you been up to?
I wanted to make sure all the ladies went home with something they were happy with. So, on the off chance that the glittered pumpkins didn't work out, I came up with these little cuties.
These are so simple. Just make a largish yo-yo (mine were about 9"), stuff with fiberfill, add a twig and a leaf, then cinch up your yo-yo and tie off the thread. After that, you can create segments or grooves on your pumpkin by wrapping ribbon or yarn around it. So easy!
We ate a yummy supper of Chili and this White Chili from A Year of Crockpotting, plus cornbread, homemade applesauce (also from A Year of Crockpotting) and pumpkin bread. I made souvenier "napkins" by embroidering cheap washcloths (7 for $2) for each lady. In the end, everyone went home with a glittered pumpkin, a stuffed pumpkin, and a pumpkin "napkin":
I think a good time was had by all. And yeah, I'm still finding glitter all over my house! Sparkly.
What special Pumpkin activities have you been up to?
Monday, October 20, 2008
Contest for a Cause
I promise that at some point this week I will post about something besides other peoples' contests! But this one? It's for a very good cause! If you haven't visited Amy Beth at Ministry So Fabulous, you totally need to. And you need to do it now...go to this post and find out how you can help support a special ministry for young women at no cost to you! Oh, and Amy Beth is providing a little additional incentive...go check it out!
Friday, October 17, 2008
Harvest Goodies
I have some catching up to do! Several posts in the works...just need time to get them posted!
But here's a quick goodie for you. Sandy at 4 Reluctant Entertainers is having a contest right now, in honor of her 2-year blog anniversary. Stop by and wish her well, and enter the contest for this delightful harvest of goodies:
And if you win, be sure to share the apple butter with me, ok?
More posts to come this weekend, including some pumpkin-rific projects!
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Fireproof Your Marriage
We're a Netflix family. We rarely go to the theater to watch a movie, because we find it hard to fit into our budget. In light of our current financial situation, it's especially difficult to justify spending money on a movie at the theater. But God blessed us last week with a $20 gift card to HEB (our local grocery store) - a reward for giving blood twice in the summer. We used it for groceries, which freed up $20 cash from our grocery budget. Make sense? I tell you all of this so that you will know that it is worth your money and your time to go to the theater to see this movie.
We've been anticipating the release of Fireproof: the Movie for a few months. We really wanted to support this movie on its opening weekend, and were delighted when we had the financial opportunity to go see it. Let me tell you, we are so glad we did! Brian and I have a good - a blessed marriage. We are grateful for God's hand in our marriage. It is not without struggles, and it is hard work, but God had made our home happy, even in trying circumstances. Still, this movie was such an encouragement to me to continue to seek ways to bless my husband. We both laughed, and were both moved to tears (though Brian fought them and gave himself a headache!). And we were not alone. Men and women throughout the theater were both laughing and crying. Kirk Cameron stars in this movie, and he was spot on. His acting really elevated the quality of the movie.
Fireproof is the story of Caleb, a fireman, and his wife Catherine. Their marriage is struggling, and they are ready to give up. Caleb's father challenges him to a Love Dare - 40 days of acts of love toward his wife. Given the quality of their marriage, each day is quite a challenge, and Caleb is discouraged. But he sticks with the challenge, and ultimately learns a true, sacrificial love for his wife. I don't want to give too much away, because I want you to see this movie and to experience the blessing for yourself!
We spent the rest of the evening talking about how moved and blessed we were by the movie. We thanked God for our marriage and prayed for marriages of our loved ones.
This is an excellent date movie. There's plenty of manly-man testosterone fireman stuff, including some gut-busting humor. But girls, you'll find plenty to cry and sigh over. Please make plans now to go see it!
We've been anticipating the release of Fireproof: the Movie for a few months. We really wanted to support this movie on its opening weekend, and were delighted when we had the financial opportunity to go see it. Let me tell you, we are so glad we did! Brian and I have a good - a blessed marriage. We are grateful for God's hand in our marriage. It is not without struggles, and it is hard work, but God had made our home happy, even in trying circumstances. Still, this movie was such an encouragement to me to continue to seek ways to bless my husband. We both laughed, and were both moved to tears (though Brian fought them and gave himself a headache!). And we were not alone. Men and women throughout the theater were both laughing and crying. Kirk Cameron stars in this movie, and he was spot on. His acting really elevated the quality of the movie.
Fireproof is the story of Caleb, a fireman, and his wife Catherine. Their marriage is struggling, and they are ready to give up. Caleb's father challenges him to a Love Dare - 40 days of acts of love toward his wife. Given the quality of their marriage, each day is quite a challenge, and Caleb is discouraged. But he sticks with the challenge, and ultimately learns a true, sacrificial love for his wife. I don't want to give too much away, because I want you to see this movie and to experience the blessing for yourself!
We spent the rest of the evening talking about how moved and blessed we were by the movie. We thanked God for our marriage and prayed for marriages of our loved ones.
This is an excellent date movie. There's plenty of manly-man testosterone fireman stuff, including some gut-busting humor. But girls, you'll find plenty to cry and sigh over. Please make plans now to go see it!
Friday, September 12, 2008
Is Anybody Out There?
I don't know if anyone besides our family and a few close friends is reading this blog...but if you're out there reading, would you please pray to the Father on our behalf?
Brian was laid off today. His company has been losing business and has had to start layoffs. We know that God is not surprised by this. We believe and have faith that He has a plan for our good and for His glory. We trust that He will provide for all of our needs.
We are praying that He will help us to be faithful to seek Him and watch and listen to Him, and alert and aware as He directs our paths, so that we do not miss His direction. Would you pray that with us? We're hoping for a new opportunity that will make the most of Brian's skills and gifts.
In the meantime, we are grateful for the severance package he was given, and for the small savings we had. We weren't up to 6 months emergency savings, but we can last for 2 - 3 months, and we're really hoping it won't take that long!
And here's a testament to the goodness of God: Brian had the opportunity to point to God on the way out the door, and each conversation was well-received. May God receive all the glory!
Brian was laid off today. His company has been losing business and has had to start layoffs. We know that God is not surprised by this. We believe and have faith that He has a plan for our good and for His glory. We trust that He will provide for all of our needs.
We are praying that He will help us to be faithful to seek Him and watch and listen to Him, and alert and aware as He directs our paths, so that we do not miss His direction. Would you pray that with us? We're hoping for a new opportunity that will make the most of Brian's skills and gifts.
In the meantime, we are grateful for the severance package he was given, and for the small savings we had. We weren't up to 6 months emergency savings, but we can last for 2 - 3 months, and we're really hoping it won't take that long!
And here's a testament to the goodness of God: Brian had the opportunity to point to God on the way out the door, and each conversation was well-received. May God receive all the glory!
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