Random- As Of Late

At our house, we are currently obsessed with this video. The more you watch it, the funnier it gets. Fact!

Read here for the best thing I've read in a month. My life now has a light that wasn't there before. I can't believe I've lived this long without knowing this information.

My favorite blog writer continues to inspire. Her words seem to fold under your skin and fill you with hope (and a lot of motivation).

Have I ever mentioned that I'm a genius? No? Well, I'm like, totally, way superbly smart. Wanna know how I know? I produced a child that did this:

She maneuvered a system to hook the Rip Rider to the wheelchair. And, it's all perfectly balanced. Totally genius. No way those smarts come from Todd.

Riley zipped by at the speed of light. I'm totally taking all the credit for this one.


This girl, this week: She asked me if I wanted to see a wrestling move. I, in turn, inquired how she even knew how to demonstrate one.

"Oh, I've been watching the WWE on YouTube."
"Seriously? You've been watching wrestling?"
"Yup, and it's TOTALLY AWESOME!"
"I hate to break it to you, but it's fake."
"No it's not! Don't even say that! It's very real when they slam the other guy into the ring and then fall on top of him."
"Uh huh."

To this day, I have yet to convince this child that wrestling is all made up. Oh, and she still wants to try a move on me. On top of that, she woke up in the middle of night on Easter to check out everyone's baskets. Before Addie was even out of bed, Kellie had given her the run down on what the Bunny left. She's truly a jewel.

A Ruffle Wreath

For those of you who need more ruffles in your life, this project is for you:

Cut your fabric into strips. I wanted larger ruffles, so I went with a wider width.
Stitch all of the strips together. I did this really fast, nothing fancy. And yes, this is my mother's sewing machine that she used when she was oh, so young.

I didn't count the number of strips, I just knew I needed a lot. You'll end up with one long strip.

Put your machine on the longest stitch possible and run your fabric through, down the center. Leave a good portion of thread at the beginning and at the end.

Now you ruffle. Lay it out flat on your floor. Starting at either end, grab on to ONE of the two threads. I used the bottom thread. Hold onto it and start to pull and ruffle.

This step takes the most time. You have to just inch away at it until you reach the end. You can make your ruffle really loose or very tight. I wanted mine somewhere in between.

I also like the look of frayed edges. As I ruffled the fabric, it frayed on it's own. If the worn look bothers you, you'll need to hem the edge before you start the ruffle process.

Start at the back of your wreath form and wrap. I hot glued the ruffle at various sections as I wrapped. Adjust the ruffle edges as you go. Trim up the long frayed edges once you're done.

Hang with ribbon.

Once it was up, I trimmed a few stray threads here and there. I also made sure that the wreath form wasn't showing anywhere by adjusting the ruffles.

Total time to complete-- 2 hours.
I got this wreath idea based on something I saw here.
Now it's your turn.

Find Grace

Today there are baskets and sugar and meals to share. There are wrappers and new dresses and enough eggs to fill the fridge. Easter simply wouldn't be a holiday without them.

But Easter also brings Grace. It's easy to miss because it's quiet and hard to see. But she's there, just waiting to be discovered. We simply have to look with eyes that See. We have to reach out and unwrap that Grace and hold it in our hands. For she is filled with Living Water. The life sustaining force that we can absorb into our skin and feel anew.

I hope that you can reach beyond your border today. To stretch out your fingertips and grab on to that Grace that was first offered from an empty tomb. Hold it and don't let go. Hold it and see what He sees.

Now that's the perfect holiday.

Happy Easter

What Makes It Good

Today is Good Friday. Here in the Bible Belt, that translates to an honorable state holiday. People here take their religion seriously. Just like their barbecue. I find it fantastically refreshing.

I've never understood the 'holiday' version of this day. I can't seem to see rejoicing within the infinite acts that the day represents. It's too solemn and sacred for that. So instead, I decided to take this day at face value. I looked for the Good folded into this ordinary Friday.

I spent half the day with teenagers. They served. Some called it a "project". But all I could see was the service. While their peers celebrated a day away from school and sleeping late, these young adults walked in the heat and got their hands dirty. Not because they primarily wanted to, but solely because of their dedication to their faith. That is Good from every vantage point. And inspiring.



Today, this man. Oh, how I thought about this man.

I stood this morning at the doorway and something caught my gaze. That's how it always begins, the moment where something in this life triggers something from long ago. A memory ignites and floods my mind. Every time, it carries my breath away. Every time. I have to force myself to look away and swallow the sorrow. Today was no exception.

But in this Friday that is Good, I focus on his gift instead of his absence. And from that viewpoint, I can see the he is just like those teenagers. He is serving. Just not where I can see him. And because he's there, it makes it the place I long to be. The place where I will offer my everything to get to. And that is so very, very Good.

I hope you can see the Good you've been given. Savor it this day.

Hold Your Breath

I'm about to give you the most precious nugget of information. It's taken from the May 2011 issue of Real Simple. I'm giving it to you straight. No comment is even needed:

69
"The most children ever born to one mother, according to Guinness World Records. Between 1725 and 1765, a woman in Russia (her name was never recorded) gave birth to--deep breath--16 pairs of twins, 7 sets of triplets, and 4 sets of quadruplets."

A Memory On A Sunday

I am looking at this photo today. A time that feels long ago. And while I look, they seem so sweet, so young, and somehow I can't remember the naughty as much. It's edges are softened. I know it was there, I haven't forgotten it. It's just that it feels not as hard as it does in the present.

These 3 drove me to the edge of insanity today. The. Very. Edge. I even felt myself look over that edge and truly wonder which side of sane was the best place to be. I still haven't decided.

So, for now, I'll remember them at a different time when life felt simpler. I'm sure it really wasn't, I'm just choosing to believe it was. And that little memory just might keep me on the right side of sanity. At least until tomorrow.

Today She Sings And Teaches Me Along The Way

Sometimes life runs in reverse. Well, not just sometimes, but a lot of times. Today my child taught me much about life. To her, she was merely standing on a stage singing a rehearsed song. But to me, she caught the world and placed it in my heart:

"Will you teach me how to fly,
to sail the skies on wings untied.

Will you teach me how to soar,
to see things never seen before.

But most importantly of all,
will you teach me how to fall.

Will you teach me how to love,
with a love that comes from God above.

Will you teach me how to dream,
how to face the future sight unseen.

Will you teach me how to be,
the only thing that I can be....

Me."

Thank you for the lesson Kellie. Today you changed my heart.

*Music by Phil Raddin. Lyrics Anonymous