count it all joy

I haven't done as well as I had hoped on the Joy Dare thus far. Definitely did not hit everyday. I am at roughly 46 gifts since January 1st...at least ones that I have taken time or remembered to record... at three a day I should be up to 63. So I am a bit behind in getting up to 1000 gifts in 2012.

Tomorrow starts February. I aim to do better. Here is a link to February's Joy Dare.

But for today here are my gifts from the dare and a couple extra I saw.

day 31...
a gift found on a paper, in a person, in a picture

• a gift on paper: prayers penned in my journal this morning
• a gift in a person: Hannah's complete and utter delight in her new Mp3 player
• a gift in a picture: Mama Jessie's blog. Her blog never ceases to make me smile. I was feeling a bit wonky and out of sorts. I stopped by to read it again. To bask in her beautiful pictures. One in particular of Miss Josie near the bottom in priceless.
• #41 Laughter around the dinner table. Mikayla was actually wiping away tears she was laughing so hard.
• #44 watching Hannah dance and spin to her music
• #45 the earth all sun shine~y and melt~y...it felt like spring :)
  

showers of blessing

About a year ago I met this girl. Her Name is Jessica. From the first moment I saw her God impressed on me that she was someone special and I began to pray for her and her little family.

I was delighted when a few days later her son, joined Hannah's preschool class. And then I began seeing her in church. I took strides to become her friend. She is such a treasure and I love her so much!

Yesterday I had the privilege of hosting my first shower...for Jessica and her baby boy...who incidentally is due ON MY BIRTHDAY! :) I had such fun coming up with owlie ideas, and making owlie cookies and cake pops. I am thankful for my wonderful friends and church who helped me make it spectacular!!

Here's a sneak peak at one of my gifts for baby Liam... don't want to give it all away until its done...

the blue

Lately the sky has captured me. Sunrises. Bright blue, sunny skies. Cloudy skies streaked with grays and whites. Clouds at twilight. The dimming light of dusk. Often while I am driving I find myself gazing at the sky, thanking God for its beauty. Wishing I had a camera to capture the moment.

Sunday night as I drove to church the sunset enthralled me. The bright, fiery pinks and oranges. I hoped it would hold until I made it to the church. Where I could snap a photo on my phone in the absence of my camera.

I have been enjoying this journey in joy. Looking for the gifts of God all around me. The little things that joy is made up of. The little things that so often get lost in the hustled pace of life.

A few gifts since I last wrote...

• the bright blue winter sky
• sunshine
• cooking supper with Ryan
• teaching Hannah how to play an old family fav..."Dutch Blitz"

• reading the blogs and list of gifts of fellow "Joy Dare" participants
  
• snuggling with Hannah on the couch, reading her a story

I know there are more, my heart is full, overflowing with thankfulness. I must get better about writing them down to recall and remember before they fade away...

3 gifts from God's Word

Joy Dare day 18...

Lamentations 3:22-24

Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed,

for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him.”

2 Chronicles 32:7-8

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged...... with us is the LORD our God to help us and to fight our battles.”

John 16:33

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Day 17 of finding JoY

Joy Dare: Count 1000 gifts in 2012: 3 Gifts a Day...
Thank you Lord for
...a gift that made you laugh: Hearing Hannah singing in her room as she woke up
... a gift that made you pray: the Knit Pray Love Challenge

CURE Knit Pray Love from CURE Video on Vimeo.

...a gift that made you quiet: listening to the wind gust and howl, knowing I am safe and cozy in our home. ♥

carry on

Today I cleaned off my sewing machine table. :) This makes me very happy. And it shall make sewing much more enjoyable. I missed a few days on the challenge, and this I am pretty sure isn't on it however. It was an eye sore and a source of stress and dissatisfaction for me. I need to get a new lamp shade, I finally pitched the one that was there. Storm fell into it a couple times when he was sleeping a top the sewing machine case. Pretty much did it in.

Tomorrow I will pick back up with the challenge...I still must conquer under the kitchen sink :( And then its on to the dresser drawers... but I love that sense of accomplishment when I finish one area. I love seeing the clean tidy surface and its enough to urge me to carry on. :D

today...

Some many gifts. Moments to be remembered. To be treasured.

I spent some time crafting.

I made this little hat for my soon to be nephew.

I just love crafting things. Feeling the materials in my fingers, watching something new come into being.

Here is a glimpse at my next work in progress. Also for the new lil nephew.




It's been far too long since I have sat at my sewing machine. It felt good to be there again.


A crafty winter evening just isn't complete without taking time to sip from a steaming mug.

Shortly before bedtime Hannah pulled me away from my sewing machine, cajoling me to play a game. I was tempted to say, "No." I was so engrossed in my project. And yet just this morning on KLove, I had listened to a story about how these little moments are what our children treasure the most.

She spread a quilt on the living room floor. We played a rousing game of "Go Fish" with Disney Princess playing cards.

Hannah took this one during homework time tonight. It made me chuckle.

Source: google.com via Amy on Pinterest

bread!

I love bread. This one has been on my list for a while. I am not good at planning a head. So usually by the time I think "oooh, bread would be great with dinner", I no longer have the 4 hours needed for the bread to raise. But today I finally got my act together. I made this bread for dinner tonight. Hands down it is the easiest, most delicious bread I have ever made! It has that chewy golden crust that I could never achieve baking at home. I found the recipe on the I {heart} my deep covered baker group on Facebook.

4 hour, no knead Bread

3 cups Bread flour, more for dusting

1 ½ teaspoon instant yeast granules

1 ½ Tablespoons sugar

1 ½ teaspoons salt (I prefer kosher salt, less sodium)

1 ½ cups warm tap water

1 ½ Tablespoons of olive oil or any combination of flavor infused oils

2 tablespoons of any dried seasonings, herbs or rubs (optional)

1. In a large 4 qt stainless steel mixing bowl or large batter bowl, combine flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Add 1 ½ cups warm water and oil mixture, stirring until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with lid. Let dough rest about 2 hours at most, at room temperature. (Dough will have almost doubled)

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Liberally flour a Pastry Mat (or parchment paper) using the Flour/Sugar Shaker, and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold dough over on itself 3 or4 times. Cover the bread and let it stand on the counter for 1 ½ - 2 hours to rise at most.

3. Preheat oven to 450^. Dump the floured dough into the Covered Baker, put the lid on and put back in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes then take the lid off.Bake for another 5 to 10 minutes if needed until the bread is golden brown on top. Cool on a rack. OK, go ahead and eat it.

This bread only costs about 50 cents to make and 4 minutes of your time!

I served it with The Pampered Chef's Spinach and Smoky Red Pepper dipping oil (Hannah LOVES this one) and Tastefully Simple's Balsamic and Basil Dipping oil (this one was a Christmas from Nate and Becca! Thanks guys!!l...So good!!

Today's JoY Dare :D

a gift that's sour, a gift that's sweet, a gift that's Just. Right.

• a gift that's sour: Sharing Pink Lemonade with Hannah at Lunch time. She "made" it herself. Mixing a flavor packet with a bottle of water ;) Again she was quite proud.
• a gift that's sweet: a preschooler's snuggles when she was feeling sad this morning.
• a gift that's Just. Right. The mister and I applied for our passports today for our Honeymoon cruise! :D
  

:~)

At Bible Study today we talked a bit about this dare...I decided it was time to go at it. To actually think about what my gifts are today. It really was not hard once I focused on it. There are so many things to be grateful for.

Today's Dare: a gift in your hand, a gift you walked by, a gift you sat with.
Thanks to God for:

... a gift in hand: a whole bunch of coupons from my Mom

...gift walked by: Ryan scooping muffin batter into the pans for me, listening to him and Hannah chat as he did. :)

...a gift sat with: fell asleep snuggling with Hannah on the couch, I know all to soon she will cease constantly asking me to just sit with her. I shall treasure it while I can.

I resolve

Here is my list of intentions...things I hope and plan to accomplish in 2012... I'll let you know how it goes ;)

1. start sewing clothes; specifically an Easter and Christmas Dress

2. complete the 21 day organization challenge

3. keep it up!!

4. read 52 books

5. finish my ripple blanket

6. get my PC website active again

7. make a new quilt for our bed

8. send birthday cards to my close friends and family

9. find 1000 gifts in 2012 :)

10. have at least one date night a month

Take the Dare

Just yesterday I decided my word this year was to be Gratitude.

This morning I decided to take the Joy Dare. I saw this post sometime yesterday I think but did not take the time to read it. This morning I decided to click on it... The 1 Habit Your New Year Can’t Do Without:

The first thing that struck me was that the music on the page is the very song Mikayla has been practicing for a few weeks now, the song she is playing for special music in Church tomorrow.

I had also decided sometime last year to work on recording gifts every day. I haven't done very well. :-( But this entry encouraged me to begin anew today. The author challenging everyone to take the Joy Dare and record 1000 gifts in 2012. There is even a calendar of prompts for January you can print out to help you out. This amounts to about three gifts a day.

So I am starting fresh today. Looking around seeing the gifts. They are there...there is always something to praise Him for...

Which brings me to my devo today. I am a week into the Jesus Calling devotional book. There hasn't been one day so far where it did not specifically speak to what I was dealing with that day. This morning when I opened it up it talked of praise, praising Him. That we can never praise Him too much!

This is one of the scriptures it referenced. This is my memory verse and my focus verse for this year.

Praise the LORD. Praise the LORD, O my soul.
I will praise the LORD all my life;
I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
Psalm 146:1-2

As I continued in my quiet time my eyes strayed to a portion in my devotional Bible I had underlined yesterday...

As long as you draw breath, your mark in this world is still being made. It doesn't become indelible until after you're gone. There is still time to be remembered as someone who sought God and did her best to do what was "good and right".
(NIV new Women's Devotional Bible, pp 535)

So, will you join me in this dare, this journey into Gratitude. Our Bible Study also began a group on facebook to share our gifts. It is open to anyone to join. Check it out-- Gifts of God

this & that

One of the things on Hannah's Christmas List was her own garden. As soon as she requested it I knew the perfect gift to fit the request. It was a little greenhouse kit I had looked at many, many time at Joann Fabrics, thinking how much Hannah would love it. This was just the occasion to finally give in and purchase it.



Today we finally took the time to plant it...




There were 4 different seed packets included in the kit, Thyme, Clover, Evening Star and Great Blue Lobelia


Freshly planted garden... the box boasts that it shall sprout in a week or so! :)


The great amaryllis race continues-- day 10



Also continuing on my 21 day challenge, I cleaned my Tupperware shelf yesterday, and my linen closet today...tomorrow is to be under the kitchen sink... yikes-- one of my least favorite places...

Before and After

I have way too many washcloths, Hannah is the only one who really uses them, a few I use for cleaning rags. Don't really use hand towels much either. And Hannah has recently decided that she is too big for the cute hooded towels (we have a ducky, butterfly and ladybug). She requested just to use "regular" ones. :( So those things may be purged soon, freeing up another shelf.

Not terribly exciting but making progress I guess. :)

Still working on my list of resolutions or intentions or goals for the New Year. I decided today that my focus for the year was to be Gratitude.

DAY 2

Today's challenge was the computer desk. Not nearly as daunting as the last time. We have done a pretty good job at keep the tower of mail to a minimum. ;)

Before:



After:



My devo this morning was right on. Yesterday I had a major case of the blahs! I was sad and cranky and frustrated. I berated myself for not being able to get a handle on my emotions...which only made my mood worse! ;P

This morning I awoke with a fresh outlook. I sat down to my devo time at the kitchen table and opened up my "Jesus Calling" devotional. It spoke of Jesus being with us and with in us and giving us all the strength we need.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33

I am working on the grumbling and complaining too. I get so tried of reading gripes sometimes...mainly on FB and listening to people who seem to complain ALL the time. Don't get me wrong I know we all have gripe sessions now and then...but....

Anyhow, another phase of my New Year intentions this year is to work on the complaining...especially aloud but even inside my head! To be intentional about looking for the good and the gifts in everyday. I realized today as I was trying to be conscious of it how much I really do whine. One of the "House Rules" posted on our Fridge is "No arguing or complaining", apparently I need to do a bit of work on that one as well. ;)

Do everything without complaining or arguing,
Philippians 2:16

junk drawer...done!

As I stated before New Year's I began the 21-day challenge again today from A Bowl full of Lemons.

This morning I tackled the junk drawer. :)

Before:


After:


A complete side-note:
Grandma gave the kids each an amaryllis for Christmas. The idea was to have a contest of sorts. So far Hannah is in the lead ;)

devotion

Devotional time is something that is pretty much a habit for me. I rarely miss my morning coffee time with the Lord. I treasure that time sitting at my kitchen table, coffee in hand, Bible and journal in front of me. Gazing out at the backyard. Thinking, praying, meditating on the Word.

At times though it becomes dutiful. Just something to cross off my list. That is not how I want it to be. I want it to be something I delight in. This morning as I opened my new devo book, Jesus Calling. That is precisely what it was about. Not rushing, not skimping but truly focusing, delving in. It referenced the story of Mary & Martha from Luke 10. This story has been surfacing a lot lately. I think someone is trying to tell me something. Even Hannah frequently chooses it for her bedtime story.

As the New Year approached I thought about what I was going to do this year for my quiet time. I am still finishing up reading through the whole Bible. This shall take me through February sometime. I am around 88% finished with the entire Bible. My current plan is the blended plan through youversion.com. I recommend the site if you are looking for a Bible Reading Plan for the New Year. They have dozens of different ones to choose from.

So here is my plan for the New Year.

1. Finish reading through the WHOLE Bible (this will be the 2nd time I have accomplished this in my life time.)
2. Read through the Jesus Calling devo book.
3. I am also reading the Power of a Praying Wife Devotional, trying to spend more time in prayer.
4. Take the time to hear what God is trying to speak to my heart today.

What is your plan for 2012?