Bright!

Daniel 12: 3
" Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever. "


I have to be honest with you, I'm not as familiar with this portion of Daniel as I am others.  In this chapter of Daniel, he is describing visions and prophecy of the end of time. Some pretty heavy stuff.  However, there is some hope here. Having wisdom and leading others to righteousness, seems to be the way to go.  Lord, help me to shine bright for others, to lead the way for them to find you. Amen.

The weather was beautiful here yesterday, and even though we may have a couple of days of rain ahead of us, the weekend seems to be shaping up to be pretty fabulous.  It'll be perfect weather to brighten things up. I can't wait!  A couple of years ago, I found the perfect pair of capri length, colored jeans at Ross. They are a neon yellow. They are the perfect companion to anything navy.  Yesterday, I paired them with a white tee and a great tassel necklace. Even my 11 year old liked my outfit.  Neon is definitely in style this spring and summer.  If neon is not your thing, try a few touches of it here and there.  A bright scarf, jewelry or even nail polish is all you need to follow this trend.

I just love this necklace, it's reversible (pink on this side,white on the other).  I bought it at my favorite local store-
 The Pink Silhouette.

After story time at the library, I needed a pick-me-up.  I tried a new frappuccino flavor at Starbuck's called S'Mores it is FABULOUS!

Shine bright for someone today!

Knock it off!

1 Corinthians 4: 16
" Therefore I urge you to imitate me. "


Paul urges the Christians in Corinth to imitate him a couple of times in this letter.  Not only that,  he sent Timothy to be with the people in Corinth to remind them of Paul's ways...Does Paul have a superiority complex? Not at all, because Paul is imitating Christ.  Paul's ways are in Christ.  In that way we are encouraged in the Bible to come together in worship and in prayer, praise and fellowship. Not only to encourage one another, but to help each other with the example to be more Christ-like.  Do I want you or anyone else to be like me? No Way!!  Do I want you to be more like the parts of me that seek to love and learn more about our Lord? Absolutely! Only follow me, when I follow Him (otherwise you'll get desperately lost, Lol).

Today, I'm thinking about imitation because I just acquired a "new to me" purse yesterday.  It looks like a Brighton purse. So cute. It's not, it's a knock-off.  I am currently using a purse that looks like a Tory Burch handbag.  It definitely is not. I can't afford to even look at them. But, I can't even tell you the number of compliments that I get when I carry this purse. There's nothing wrong with carrying a knock-off.  What's more important is that you like what you carry and that it helps you feel happy and confident.  Why spend more if you can look great and feel great spending less?

Here are my knock-offs...

Got this cutie from my mom yesterday!

Here's the bag I've been carrying. So many compliments!

I pray you have a wonderful day.  If you imitate Christ, you won't go wrong!

Baltimore

Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8

" There is a time for everything,
And a season for every activity under the heavens:

a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace. "


My prayer for you, Baltimore, is a time of healing, a time of building, a time of laughter and dancing, a time to embrace, a time to mend, a time to love and a time for peace.  It's time, Baltimore.

(Image of Baltimore - Google Search)

I finished!

 James 1: 4
" Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. "


That James really knew his stuff.  What great advice; certainly words to live by.  I guess growing up with our Lord and Savior gives you a certain amount of wisdom.  And that's the beauty of the Bible. God gave us these words to help us through our trials and struggles. Every word, chosen for us.  While my trials my be different from your trials; and our trials different from other Christian's trials around the world. They are certainly real, and knowing that I am being perfected by God gives me hope to persevere through them.

Speaking of perseverance.  I did it! I finished my 5k on Saturday.  I haven't run an official 5k since 2010.  A few things have changed since then. The biggest change was the birth of our youngest child in 2012.  While I have continued to run, there's something about finishing an actual race that's satisfying. There were witnesses, time keepers, and a crowd to cheer me on. I don't usually get that on a normal Saturday morning run. The best part of the race was not finishing, though.  It was knowing that I was supporting others who are going through the trial of ALS.  I was blessed to see some of those people participate in the 2 mile walk.  That's perseverance!

Here's some pics from the race.

Pre-race with my BIL and SIL.  My 8 year old walked the 2 miler with them, and my 11 year old ran the 5k with me.

Me and racing girls!

My BIL crossing the finish line!  Last year he needed a cane. Last fall he walked 10 miles ( See 10 Mile Miracle).
 Last weekend he sailed through the 2 miles with ease! He gives all of the glory to God.  God is Great!!

I'm going to run to you

Mark 9: 15
" As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to greet him. "


Have you ever seen anybody run with their hands in the air in praise and worship?  Come to my neighborhood sometime.  It's me!  Do I always run like that?  No (you don't get good time running that way.lol).  But sometimes when I'm running, it's the only quiet time I get during the day.  Sometimes I imagine
God reaching down to touch my hands. Sometimes I imagine I'm running right into His arms.  Can you imagine being so overwhelmed with wonder that you would run straight to Jesus?  I hope you do.

I've got running on the brain.  Sorry.  I run in my first 5k since I can't even remember, tomorrow.  I really just want to finish.  Fortunately, I'm running in a nice flat area, and all of my running around my house is very hilly. Really, if I get a number and a T-shirt, I'll consider it a great success!  Pray for me.

Here are some great inspirational tees I wish I thought of...
 (all images were found on Pinterest- click on links to find out how to purchase)

This is my favorite. Isaiah 40: 31

I'm not very tall, so...She is Fierce

Love everything about this- Starbucks Parody

I pray your weekend is a good one!

Point Counterpoint

1 Thessalonians 5:11
" Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing "


I just heard from a friend yesterday that asked about my kitchen countertops (see this post Dream Home?).
I haven't updated you on our ongoing renovation.  What makes these countertops a bit unique is that my husband is making them with concrete.  I feel like I live in an episode of Fixer Upper!  I wish I could tell you they are done....they are not.  But, we definitely have made progress. Here are a couple of pics.

Here's a pic with the forms and mesh before we poured the concrete

Here they are after the concrete was poured.  The forms are still on.

We have taken off the forms and are filling in any imperfections with something called a "slurry".

So far, so good.  We still have to grind the counters until they are smooth and then my husband will stain them.  I chose a dark stain. It will be a charcoal grey or black depending on how dark we decide to go with the stain.  We're almost there. Great job, Honey! (see how I'm building him up, like the Bible verse above says?).  I'm blessed to have such a gifted guy that can tackle all of these projects.

Well, that's my update.  If you're curious about any other posts that I haven't updated you on, please comment below and let me know.  I'd love to hear from you.  Hopefully, I'll be able to update you again soon with more kitchen accomplishments.

Have a beautiful day, building up one another as often as you can. We could all use encouragement.

Earth Day

Hebrews 1: 10
" He also says, ' In the beginning , Lord, you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands' "


It all belongs to you, Lord, the heavens and the earth. Happy Earth Day!  God wants us to be good stewards of all that he gives us, and that includes our beautiful blue planet.  So, in our house we recycle a little, turn lights off a lot, and try to pick up after ourselves inside and outside.  It sounds so simple, and it really is. Today is a good day to start if you haven't thought about it before. Thank you, Lord for the earth. Thank you for giving me dominion over my part of it; help me to take care of it. Amen.

The weather is changing again: warm sunny weekend last weekend, a cool (maybe even frosty) weekend this weekend.  That's spring in Maryland.  I have a lot of running around to do lately, my girls are in flag football, 2 days/ week.  And now that it's 4th quarter at school, we'll soon have spring concerts, field trips, field days, and even talent shows to attend.  I am literally running, too. I'm going to run in my first 5k this weekend. And I try to run a couple of days/ week anyway.  How does a busy mom of 7 keep up? I spend my mornings in prayer for one. But with the sporting activities, at least, I wear activewear. Not the old sweatsuits of yesteryear. You can get a lot of cute sporty outfits almost anywhere. Here are a few things I'd like to add to my wardrobe to get me through the next couple of months and beyond...

Here are 2 cute pieces from Kohls- Tek Gear.  They have coordinating shorts and jackets and a wide variety of colors. I've been partial to this shade of green lately...

Love these capri length yoga pants!

Target carries a line of activewear from Champion that has great color and style, too. Even Walmart has activewear from Danskin, called Danskin Now. You can spend more on cute activewear, but with my big family, I like to know that I have options at a great price and that's conservation, too! 

Enjoy your Earth Day!