Some Randomness

I made black bean burritos for dinner and I love roasting sweet potatoes to put on them. When I opened the oven to check on them, I thought it looked so cool so I took a pic. Am I wierd?

I also got some fun boots at a yard sale last year for 50 cents. What a deal! I wear them to work out in the yard and to take after the chicks.

Speaking of chicks.....

They are turning out to be quite pretty young ladies. At least I hope they are ladies ;)

Garden update

Here are some pics of our growing garden. We have had some issues with a few tomatoes and peppers getting some brown spots on the bottom but it doesn't seem to be spreading too much.

This pepper plant is new for me. They are purple peppers. I can't wait to try them out.

The yellow squash with the green tip is supposed to be acorn squash. We'll see!

I am so thankful for all this food and praying I get enough tomatoes to can this year. If not, that's what the farmer's market is for ;).

This is an Amish paste tomato. They make the best tomato sauce....yum!

Do you have a garden this year? How is it going?

Honesty

The more I walk with Christ and the more I fall in love with Him, the more the truth of God's word makes sense. I see the compassion and care Jesus has for me. For a long time I viewed God's word as a bunch of rules that I had to live by in order to be close to God. **sigh** Thank God I no longer have this at the forefront of my thinking and living. Trust me, I still struggle with it at times, but God is graciously showing me when I do so that I can give it to Him. What a freeing thing!
A very powerful truth in scripture is being honest. Not only being honest with others but being honest with ourselves. I truly believe that when we honestly look at ourselves, our need for grace and love from Christ, we can accept our faults and move on. God's grace becomes more beautiful to us. When we accept our faults and know that they are covered by Precious Blood, honesty becomes a lifestyle (among other things). Our defenses come down, our pride washes away, and we are more willing to face the truth of who we are and how we relate to others. We even look at others in a totally different way. Being offended becomes less and less and insults do not overwhelm our thinking. I used to feel that I had to be perfect in order for God to know that I loved Him. I would have so many excuses for my sin instead of owning up to it. Silly right? In writing it looks that way, but I think it's such a common mindset in so many believers. After I grasped that there is nothing I can do or can't do that earns the right to be God's child and walk in His grace, I don't feel the "need" to offer excuses to make myself feel and look better. Excuses can be forms of lying. God detests lying lips. He is glorified in honesty. What if more believers knew they were safe in God's grace and began to open up more and share struggles, fears, sins, temptations, as well as victories, answered prayers, and hope. I think American churches would change for the better. I think people that have questions about who God is or even people turned off to God would see Christianity differently. There would be more healing and less judgement.
My challenge to you: share yourself with people. Be open and honest the way God wants you to. Let God permeate your thoughts and let Him help you become the honest person He wants you to be.

Things that make you go.....eeeek!

This is what I stumbled on last night after Jubal got out of the tub. I ain't gonna lie, it made me squeal. I love having a boy ;).

Life

Life is a big journey. I love that. I love that there are times that are so hard that I just don't think that I can make it one more second. I love that those are the times that draw me closer to Jesus. I love that in those times, I rely fully on the grace of Jesus. I love knowing that Jesus is shaping me more into a vessel that He can use to share His glory.

I love the beautiful, happy filled times. The times that don't seem like they can get any better. Times where I just feel like running through a flower-covered field and raise my hands as high as they will go, and joyfully yell at the top of my lungs. A place where I can tirelessly dance like there is no tomorrow.

Life is full of those times. I am so thankful for them. I am so thankful for my Jesus who loves me no matter if I am going through a very difficult time or a very exuberant time. He loves me. He has paid an incredible price for me. There is nothing beyond that. There is no next level. I don't have to prove myself to Him. I don't have to be perfect. I don't have to wallow in my guilt of sin. I don't have to be judgemental. I can freely be myself, freely love, and freely forgive. I can share my struggles, I can freely admit when I am wrong and know that God loves me no less. I can walk in the present. I can freely share what Jesus has so sacrificially shared with me. There is so much more to life than wasting my time thinking I am better than someone else; pointing my finger at actions of people that make me uncomfortable. I can freely love them the way God wants me to. After all, I am no different than they. I was made by the same Creator and I need His grace. The same Jesus died for me and forgave me. His love is a gift. A gift that I receive with open arms. This gift has been so graciously given and for that I am so thankful.

Reusable Snack Bags

I found a great tutorial from We Wilsons Blog. It is super easy and takes only minutes to make. If you are looking for ways to cut out plastic and trash, this is a great way to do it. You can use a cotton/cotton combo or you can use PUL/cotton fabric combo to make the bags waterproof. I don't have any PUL in my stash so I just used cotton. These will be great for pretzels, chips, crackers, dried fruit, etc. I couldn't believe how easy they were!

Here are step by step directions in case you want to try one or many.

1)Cut out 2 rectangles of desired fabric and desired size. A sandwich bag has a good basic measurement.

2) Put right sides together and sew short ends together.

3) Turn right side out. Iron

4) Measure velcro the same width as the top and bottom of rectangle. Sew each strip on side of fabric that you want on the inside.

5) Fold rectangle in half inside out. Sew sides together. Trim excess.

6) Fold right side out and you are done! Easy peasy.

**Note: I do not recommend using the sticky velcro. It's not good for sewing machine needles.

A homemade rainforest

Jubal has a project in school that he has been working on for the past couple of weeks. He had to pick out an animal, write about it, and make a visual for it. He will presenting it in his class this week. He has been so excited about it and we have had so much fun preparing it. He picked the sloth and we made a miniature rain forest habitat. He had to research the habitat, foods, a description of how it looks, why or why it wouldn't be a good pet, and an interesting fact. Simple and fun. Here is a picture of how the little project turned out.

If you are looking for something fun and educational to do this summer, this is a great idea.