Grandma Style

     I have been told on more than one occasion that I have a grandmaish style. Meaning that often the patterns and items I am drawn too are supposedly something a grandma would pick out. This has been brought up this summer as I am redoing my kitchen cabinets. I decided to line my freshly painted cabinets and drawers with some lovely contact paper that I found. The bright pops of color against the white just make me happy and I figured it would keep things from scuffing up as fast. When my brother stopped by the other day he commented on the grandma-ishness of the pattern. Then someone else pointed out to me that contact paper in and of itself is a rather grandmay thing. And I'm ok with this, in fact I've decided to just fully embrace it.

     Last weekend I came home from the store with a roll of that grippy mat stuff because Buirlen's booster seat kept sliding around on the chair and I thought it might solve the problem(it did). As I was getting a piece cut out and put under the seat Luke commented that that is also something that grandma's are known to have. And I decided then and there that, you know what, grandmas know what's up. They've been running their household's a lot longer than me and seem to have discovered secrets like "contact paper and grippy mats are useful things," so I'm just going to tap into that wisdom and rock my grandma style.
   Speaking of Grandma's, my Grandma and Grandpa Shearer just celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary. They are awesome and  I am so very blessed to have their wonderful example in my life.

Grandpa Charlie and Grandma Frances 65 years ago. 

This week my sunflowers finally passed me up, at least this one did. Non of them have bloomed yet, but I'm sure looking forward to when they do!

Yesterday, my friend Emily, her kids, Buirlen, and I drove south a few hours to meet up with my dear friend Katy and her kids for a quick visit. We visited a lovely public garden that gave me serious joy and garden inspiration. So many colors and types of flowers that I had never seen before....The few pictures I got do not do it justice! 

(Photo credits on these 2 go to Katy)

Buirlen and Brody. Cute little buddies!

A storm just rolled in and the rain sounds lovely as it comes down with rolls of thunder. May your evening be delightful and filled with the peace of The One who designed each and every flower, created marriages that last 65 plus years, and brings the rain. Good night!

"Where flowers bloom, so does hope." ~Lady Bird Johnson

"Love is not an affectionate feeling, but a steady wish for the loved person's ultimate good as far as it can be obtained." ~C.S. Lewis

Color Contest

The Lovely Keren Ruth and I created a game back when Luke and I were first married called "Color Contest." The rules were quite simple, see who could get the most color into one outfit. We came up with some glorious combinations. Well, it has been a couple years since we did one and last week we decided to dust off the tradition. This time our kiddos joined the competition. 

We switched babies for this picture...And Ephraim didn't feel like being in it.

My spiffy little dude. 

Ready to go.

Friendship is the best!

Spring 2011...Not actually a color contest, just good outfits built around new mud boots...Those mud boots were a very exciting purchase. 

First official Color Contest....August 2011

Rematch....August 2011

Other colorful adventures. 

"Color in a painting is like enthusiasm in life." ~Vincent Van Gogh

"Friends, they know how crazy you are and still choose to be seen with you in public." ~Unknown

The Rest of Beach Week

     So, this past week at school was Beach Week. And really, that puts me in my element. I mean come on, a weird and wonderful theme every day. I wore my wacky Wednesday outfit to church Wednesday night and a friend mentioned that I didn't look all that different from my norm. Success!

Crazy Hair Tuesday, Wacky Wednesday, and Stripe Friday. (Thursday was sports day. A theme that I actually don't have much to go on. I wore a shirt with a football on it.)

May your Saturday be filled with beautiful moments, peace in your souls, and joy in your hearts. And perhaps a touch of Wacky.

"Sometimes I pretend to be normal. But it gets boring, so I go back to being me." ~Unknown

Those Days We End Up In the Ditch

     It is once again bitterly cold outside. But the sun is so very bright and the snow is so very white. I was driving home this morning and was thinking about how the vast white backdrop brings out the intensity of the other colors. The blue of the sky, the yellows, greens, and reds of the road signs, the green of the pines, and the deep red of the barn. Colors that are brought to the forefront and put on display against the white backdrop of wintery glory.
      It was while I was thinking these thoughts that I turned the last curve on the road before reaching home and promptly slid right into the ditch. I like to think I did it gracefully. So, there I was stuck in the snow a 1/4 of a mile from home. I was about to call Luke when a pick up pulled up and stopped. He asked if someone was coming and I said that I was going to call my husband but that he was at work. So, without skipping a beat he started digging around in his truck for a strap and chain. While he was doing this, I called Luke and explained where I was and what was going on. When I hung up the guy looked at me and asked if I was Luke's wife(I hadn't mentioned Luke's name). Turns out he was a contractor Luke often works with and he actually is building a home on our road. In no time at all he had me pulled out and I was back on my way. The whole situation put a smile on my face. The kindness of a stranger to stop and help and the coincidence of him not really being a stranger.
     We are known by the One who puts the colors in the world. Did you know that. When we find ourselves sliding into the ditches that are the problems and worries of this life, The Creator of life comes along, pulls us out, and calls us by name. He knows us and He knows the cry of our hearts. And even if you don't know Him, He knows you and He loves you.
     So that's my story and I'm sticking with it. Also, I like to believe that my Heavenly Father knew I was going to end up in that ditch this morning and sent a friend at the very right moment. God's cool like that.
      And then there is this little guy, Mr. Ephraim.

I went to visit this afternoon, it was lovely.

“Wherever there is a human in need, there is an opportunity for kindness and to make a difference.” ~Kevin Heath

The Colors

Today as I was standing in my room with the great debate of "What shall I wear today" playing through my head, I was overtaken with an urge to don as many colors as possible. My personal motto for life is that there should be no place untouched by color. I simply cannot imagine a black and white world. And so with this in mind, I proceeded to select a winner of an outfit. Starting, with pink leggings and a teal skirt. Moving up to a lime green and orange top. Yellow earrings and a string of multicolored beads add the right amount of flair, and to finish it off, what could be better than red and yellow high tops. Now tell me this, how can anyone have a bad day when it starts off with this much color and fun. And it was this that made me start to think. How often do I wake up and put on shades of grey for the day? It's not the clothes I choose to put on, but the color of my attitude, my thoughts, or my dreams. It is all to easy to allow grey into our hearts. To loose the joy of the little things all around us. To allow worries or fears to dull the true colors of the love of the One who has given us life and hope. When we allow cares, worries and burdens to have a part in us, we begin to mix grey into our hearts and the brilliant colors begin to dull. And oh, how sad a state this is. For that is not how life was meant to be lived. The One who breathed life into us is the one who gave us the colors. He created reds to be deep and purples to be rich. Blues to take our breath away and greens to sparkle. So today, whether your wearing a navy blue sweater and khakis, or all the colors of the rainbow, let the colors of your heart shine out and know the love of the One who gave them to you.

"Colors are the smiles of nature." --Leigh Hunt

Crayons

I love crayons, they are fun, colorful, and they remind you to be a kid sometimes. And you know what else is fun about crayons? They come in all sorts of colors. If you open a box of 100 crayons, you will find 100 different colors. Sure, some may be very similar shades, but they are all different. This is kind of like people. In the crayon box of life, you will find no two alike. Sure, we sometimes resemble our parents or have an uncanny resemblance to some famous movie star, but no matter how similar we look, we are all unique. Sometimes I find myself thinking, "I sure wish I was more talented, or looked like her, or had a better voice, or had curly hair, or was just plain different." But then, I wouldn't be me. If all the colors in the box were the same, the drawing would be rather boring. If we were all one color, we would cease to be interesting. Just like with the crayons, the world needs the browns, reds, pinks, greens, yellows, blues, etc. We are beautiful because we are different. The quirks that make you who you are, are like your gifts to the world. Don't hide them, let them shine. Be your own color, and make the world interesting.

"Be yourself, because everyone else is already taken." --Oscar Wilde