Friday, April 10, 2015

"Relief" ~ Five Minute Friday 4/10/15


Joining with Kate's tribe of #fmf writers over at Heading Home...
Just focus on "relief," set a timer for five and.....go!



Good grief, RELIEF is anything but what I feel right now......

Because decluttering, disposing of, donating, organizing   for six hours yesterday yielded so little "thinning out" as I look around. REALLY? Come on. Seven hefty bags of stuff vacating the house doesn't make a difference? But I've come to recognize...... houses are  bought and lived in. Homes need to be made.  With our hearts and gentle touches...after the purging of all that extraneous of course. And so I keep at it. I will. Right after I hit publish. I mean it.

Because that quick visit to the dentist to have a thirty year old <small >  and crumbling filling refilled yielded news that the tooth next door needs a root canal....REALLY?? And how does that happen to someone who brushes after <most> meals and flosses twice a day?     And here's what I'm never doing again: Listening to the dentist when she says, "Hey this is a super small cavity. You don't even need to be numbed for this." Ok.  Why not. How bad can it be?  Here's how it went: Marathon Man, anyone?  You know what I mean, right? Please tell me you know what I mean. Never again... and judging by friends' reactions when I shared on FB, most are with me! 

Because I cannot look past the blood money that is exchanging hands within the walls of my  parish church and though our pastor  has become part of the fabric of our lives for the almost nineteen years that we have been parishioners, I need to go beyond and to a "higher" level to seek cessation for the parish support of an American institution that is irrefutably linked to the abortion industry and it pains me. I like to be anonymous. I like not to make waves or cause tension. But this, I can't watch any longer. Something needs to be done and I'm counting on the Bishop...and if not him, then the Pope, to be the  change that needs to be.

Because algebra. And homeschool paperwork. And history. And literature. And  knowing that time is short and there's much to learn and how do you fit it all in? hmmmmm.

Because life and balance and covering bases and not dropping the ball
 and laundry   and  recovering peace during waves of strife. Because strife does come, does it not, into every family at one point or another?

Because Him.  "I can do all things in him that strengthen me" and because this I need to remember. <Phil 4:13>


And my time's up...that was SO not relevant to relief was it?
Come join us for others'  #fmf posts over at Kate's
as well as Holley's Coffee for your Heart!

Friends, as always,  
thank you for stopping over and 
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Until next time,

~Chris



Friday, April 3, 2015

Peep Wreath for Easter and Spring: Artful Friday

             Well, it's been quite some time...two weeks in fact...since I've last blogged...and  all about fun with  Easter basket goodies! We've been busy living life;  time carved out to write just hasn't been abundant enough. I've missed you all, my friends! I hope the closing of your Lenten season and your Easter preparations are progressing as well as you would like! 
            I've lots to chronicle; a daybook's in the works for all of it. In the meantime, I wanted to pop in quickly to wish all my friends a Happy Easter and to share some fun that we've had here, creating an adorable decoration! Perhaps after Veneration of the Cross and egg dyeing, this is something you might like to tackle with the family this weekend?

I found this craft  initially at the lovely, Southern Blue Celebrations!
Sheila, at Southern Blue featured a  lovely wreath such as this that she found
 here at Tried and True.
I'm so grateful for Sheila's feature in a spring craft round up! 
Thank you Southern Blue and Tried and True!

Here's one of our finished products, ready to be hung on the front door:
Cute, right?!



And here are needed supplies...
peeps
wreaths
toothpicks
And to hang the wreaths, ribbon and/or suction cups ...the latter is not shown.


It's likely you have some peeps handy, though perhaps not enough peeps for the project.....
And  the wreaths, I picked up  at our local dollar store.
Now, since most of us aren't fans of braving  the lines at Walmart or our local supermarket   for more Easter candy on Good Friday or Holy Saturday, 
there's always amazon prime, right? We can  easily secure a variety pack of peeps here

There are a variety of ways to design/attach the peeps, of course.
My son created a color pattern, as such:






My wreath essentially looks the same as his, but I laid out the peeps a bit differently:

 Sort of  in a 12,3,6,9 "clock pattern."

Any way you'd like to arrange the peeps, you'll get a lovely, colorful decoration!

      



For another super easy and gorgeous craft, here's my  kids' crucifixion paintings
(Links to the original idea are within the post. )
They created these beautiful crosses on Good Friday, 2013

For my previous "Artful Friday" posts, 
you might like to click below.....
They're all here if you'd like to dust off something from the archives:
 ( knitting, winter crafts, the theater and piano)






Thank you for spending some of your precious time today
here at my home on the web! 

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In this way, I will receive a small commission on the purchase.....
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THANK YOU!

Until next time,

~Chris