Heart shaped bouquet in Shadow Box

Projects galore are happening around this house!

The one that I have finished and that I am pretty proud of is my bouquet display. It has been almost 2 years since we got married and I had no idea what to do with the bouquet afterwards. I hug it upside down so the flowers wouldn't get crushed, but then what??

When exploring Pinterest I found the following post and it inspired me:

http://thecraftingchicks.com/2010/02/rose-heart-shadow-box.html

I did not have as many roses in bouquet as she had saved up, because I used roses and gerber daisies, and the gerbers' do not last nearly as long as the rose buses. Shadow boxes were on sale at Michaels so I got it for under $20. And then I pulled out my trusty hot glue gun.

The biggest problem that I had was cutting the roses off the stem because each one of them had a wire running through them, so I had to use a pair of wire cutters. Other than that, It was pretty easy to clip and arrange. It looked rather empty with nothing in the middle so I found a picture that showcased the bouquet the day of, and I feel it turned out pretty well. 

What has inspired you lately? 

xoxo,
Katie Beth

Fun on the Fourth!

Happy Fourth of July!! 

What an exciting day! Everyone is running around, preparing for family (or going to see family), getting those last minute food items, and making sure there is enough ice and charcoal/propane for the grill. In Florida, those last two are a necessity because it is the perfect time for grilling and it is HOT! 

Unfortunately, the new house did not come with a grill, and we have not been able to retro-fit one yet (it has a beautiful cabana with a prep sink and area for a built-in grill). Our previous grill rusted out the bottom, so the Viking and I no longer felt it was safe for cooking. Rust is not commonly a welcomed spice for chicken :/ However, my dad was gracious enough to let us borrow his charcoal grill for the day, since they would not be using it on their vacation, in another part of the state. The Viking is only really comfortable with propane so he was a little nervous about using it, but he did a wonderful job cooking up some hot dogs and hamburgers! 

While he was getting that prepped and helping to get the house presentable (which was a feat in itself, since we were still working out of boxes!), I was having some fun with some Pinterest-inspired creations of my own. Since I haven't mentioned it before, I am a little Pinterest crazy, so expect to see a lot of posts centered around things I have seen there. I think it helps that the Viking appreciates it too! I will have to post pictures of my creations a little later, since it is so past my bedtime!

We were having my family from Georgia over for an early dinner and break time in between one of their trysts to the beach, and the fireworks on the water. They were a perfect test- run for hosting parties in the new home and it was a home- run! Even though they are my family and all, and there should be no judgement because we all love each other and what not, I was still a little nervous. I wanted to make sure that we had plenty of everything and that there were enough options for 14 people, including a 2-year old. It didn't help that I was woken up early to the fur children throwing up. Apparently lizards do not agree with their tummies, and that is sooooo not a way that you want to be awoken. But, we persevered and I was on my way to making a list of things that I still needed to get and things I still had to do. 

I headed out to Publix, who by the way was having some killer sales on just the stuff I needed, and tried to recenter my thoughts and work on my personal challenge. One of the best ways that I find to focus is through music- it will tug at just the right emotion at just the right time and put everything in perspective. So with that I popped in my Sheree Michele CD and I was on my way. I went to high school with Sheree and I am so amazed at her talent. She is a remarkable song writer and vocalist with a really island/bohemian feel to her music that always seems to relax me and make me reflect on Christ's love. The song that I tuned to was, Wait for You and the lyrics that hit me were "there is nothing better than being wrapped in your arms, and I know that there is nothing that you can't fix." Trusting and whole heartedly knowing this to be true, I knew that I had to relinquish my day to Him and allow Him to work through me with the time that I had with my family.  

The time with them went beautifully- it didn't rain, there was enough seating/food/drinks for everyone, and most importantly we could all laugh and love each other in the comfort of our new home. What an unbelievable opportunity we have to live in a country that is free: free to meet with our loved ones at our leisure and celebrate the blessings in our lives, celebrate the growth in our faith, celebrate the freedom to make our own choices and the freedom to go where we want without fear of strife and conflict around every corner. God Bless America and may the Stars and Stripes always fly proudly in this home. 

Happy Independence Day, friends! 

xoxo,

Katie Beth

Ladies Night

Happy July 1st!!

This past week/weekend was a busy one, mostly consisting of me with a vacuum cleaner, as exciting as that sounds!

We moved into our new house last weekend and this weekend, we prepared the old house for our new renters- a sweet young family of 4 that we have come to absolutely adore. I spent close to 12 hours straight deep cleaning the house so that the new family would not have to worry about the dogger hair- tumbleweeds, considering the mom is allergic to the dander. I was extra concerned for the kids, as they will be rolling on the carpets and I would hate for them to have a reaction at our expense.

Through the all-day cleaning on Friday, I realized something about myself. I can become VERY obsessive if left alone. It was just me in an empty house, with worship music playing for 5 hours straight, until the Viking got off work to join me. It was just the refreshing time with the Lord that I needed, and rejoicing in the fact that He stitched this whole thing together for us when we completely relied on His timing and wisdom.

Another part of my weekend was, getting lost in the world of fictional writing! I am sucker for a good book and I get completely immersed in the world/characters/plots that I read about. My office just started a book club and we rotate hosting once a month. When you are the host, you choose the book, the day we meet, and the menu (that is many times themed with the book). Our last read was Mary Kay Andrews newest release Ladies Night. It was a wonderful read, based in and around Sarasota, FL and was about a women who made her living from lifestyle blogging. She would post DIYs, recipes, and design tips. At one point she was given the opportunity to fix-up an authentic Florida cracker style home, and found love in the process of sheer chaos. It truly resonated with me on many levels. I connected with it through my Floridian roots and my love for all things vintage/historic/once loved; DIY fix- ups that I am currently looking forward to doing in the new house; and in finding something that will keep you grounded through the storms of life. When you feel as though the legs of your life has been kicked out from under you, who do you run to? The main character, Grace, ran to her mother and then eventually her new love, and ended up reconnecting with herself. That underlying theme in the book really made me think. My Sunday school answer would be "Jesus..", but is that really what I would do? My first inclination is seems would be to run to the Viking and have him tell me it will all be okay (that's what men are for right?), but what if he isn't there? What then? This got me thinking even more. Where is my head at and why does my humanity taint my instincts so much that I want to run to something else that's human and fallible, instead of the One that sees it all and holds it all so dearly to Him?

This week I have taken a vacation from the office and will be using that time to organize and truly get unpacked, so we aren't limping through the weeks sorting through mounds of boxes. I am also  going to be using that time to do some self reflection and a personal challenge to find little things to praise the Lord for as well as the big things, so that whenever anything happens (whether good or bad) I will turn to Him first. I can foresee this keeping my mind acutely tuned to all of my blessings and the perspective that His will should be the driving force in my life.

On a side note, reading that book made me so excited about using this blog more and finding such solice in putting feelings to paper, and it made me want to start a ton of home projects and document them. I will have to take that one step at a time though. :)
If you would like to read Ladies Night, I have included the link.

xoxo,
Katie Beth