Raising Up Rubies- Blog: home dec ♥

Whatever you Want Wednesday ♥ Free Pretty Things for You

Funky Junk ♥ Funky Junk's Party Junk

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

sugar cookie recipe and a little bit of kitchen love ... ♥

the summer is already starting to fly by

every year i say the same thing...

i will not let summer fly by

but sometimes it does anyways ...

even still, i'm determined to make a summer bucket list and complete at least half of it.

our summer seems to start later here. weather wise and when school ends.

school starts the first week of September ... so i feel like i'm still sorta ahead of the game. sorta.

the past few tuesdays we've been making & taking cookies to daddy's work

last week we tried this recipe for no-roll sugar cookies that i found via Pinterest

it was simple & quick

i've been feeling the weight of not doing enough for others

and pointing out to my girls, that contrary to what society tells us,

the world does not revolve around them... or even around our family.

there are kids we can sponsor, people who are sick that we can help,

or dresses that can be made for those who don't have clothes to wear.

or even just for our neighbors. is there something we can do for them? or bring to them?

are we paying attention? to what's going on outside of our little box.

all around us. everyday.

that's the only way. they only way something will be seen as different in us.

not to point towards religion.

religion is empty. it's void.

not to point towards rules

what we should wear, or what type of music we should listen to

... what version we should read.

rules are empty.

and they fall on the deaf ears of a world

that has already pinned the Creator as next to non-existent.

no... i don't want to point others towards rules

i want to point towards a Savior.

the One who is meant to fill the void.

the One who sets us free.

free to live in His Truth & in His Grace...

and striving to find a good balance between the two.

anyways ... that's what's been on my heart lately

and with all this baking goin on, i'm thinking about how thankful i am

for our home, our kitchen ~ it's spacious and comfy ...

so much revolves around this room.

my kitchen sink gets a lot of hours out of me :)

i love sprucing it up, adding little things that make it a fun area to spend time in

i found a little white pedestal dish at the thrift store, and put our hand soap & a bottle of lotion on it right near the sink

then i saw these lights on Pinterest and fell in love

and then decided to make a few strands of my own

i strung them over the sink and later found the aqua bird cage at hobby lobby

threw that and some pom pom flowers into the mix

and now it's like a little party 24/7 right over my kitchen sink :)

to make your own lights, all you need is a string of patio or Christmas lights

(got these white ones at Target in the outdoor stuff)

and some cupcake papers. snip a little hole in the base and fit over the bulb

then repeat. like a hundred times

but it's worth it.

at night when we go to bed i turn off all the other lights and leave these on :)

they're like night lights in the kitchen ♥

much love ♥

linking up here:

Whatever you Want Wednesday ♥ Free Pretty Things for You

Funky Junk ♥ Funky Junk's Party Junk

Thursday, May 30, 2013

diy pennant bunting & a summer front porch ...♥

as i work my way through fixing up our house, i'm slowly discovering my decorating style

and slowly discovering what works & feels best for our family

and realizing it's not about perfection, it's about using what you have

to make it an inviting & welcoming place to live

♥

i've always dreamed of having a wrap-around front porch with a swing and a pretty

spindle-ish wood screen door ... so even though our front porch is small,

it's still fun to spruce it up a bit for summer

sometimes i sit and watch the kids play (they usually don't know i'm sitting there)

or i read there in the morning, after the bus leaves

(unless it's raining)

(or if it's too hot)

(we don't have consistent weather here ... at all)

but it's quiet, and peaceful

the bunting was an easy project ... just cut the pieces to size, sew a pocket and thread some jute through the pocket ... or hot glue directly to the jute

this rocker was on the curb one night before garbage day ... a long time ago

i love it, it's my favorite. i've painted it lots of different colors

this year it got the mint green treatment :)

i hope to find some odds & ends to add to this little wall near the rocker

maybe a mini side table too ... the welcome sign was actually a mirror

with some chalkboard spray paint to cover the mirror

and some almond colored paint around the frame ...

it takes on a whole different look

welcome to the porch! :)

the azalea's are in full bloom this week

that means summer is almost here

the girls will cut a few branches off every couple of days

and put them in a vase near the kitchen window for me :)

well tomorow's friday! that means yard sales! fun fun fun :)

be back soon with some info on my coupon system...

happy weekend

linking up here:

Whatever you Want Wednesday ♥ Free Pretty Things for You

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

free summer print ... ♥

lately i've been worrying a lot about waste.

wasted time.

wasted energy.

wasted words.

waste.

it comes back to the fact that most days if my attitude could speak for it self, it would say

"i got this"

"i'll figure it out"

"i can do this on my own"

that stinks.

cause realistically nothing can be done on my own

i can't be the kind of wife my husband needs - on my own

i can't be the kind of mom my kids need - on my own

i can't even be nice on my own

really

and some days it just feels better to be nasty. doesn't it?

well for a while it does. then it comes crashing down later

but last time i checked

yup.

just checked...

i'm not asked to do it on my own

i'm not called to be perfect

i'm just called to be faithful

My grace is sufficient for you

for my power is made perfect in weakness

second corinthians twelve.nine

and because i try to do it all by myself

it gets messed up

and it feels like waste

but nothing is waste

Psalm 139 says that God is before us & behind us

He is sovereign

to Him

nothing is wasted

in the hands of the One who redeemed my soul

there is no waste

click here to download

then go and listen to this song from Jason Gray

go. do it. ♥

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

a little girl's craft nook ... ♥

i spent some time over this past weekend

(with help from my family)

spring cleaning my girls rooms ... never really shared them on this little bloggy blog

so i thought i'd snap a few pics while it was still clean :)

cause heaven knows it won't stay that way for long.

and cause i'm hoping to change the room up a bit in the near future ...

last year for my oldest daughter's birthday, the hubs built her a mini version of my craft table :)

anchored to the wall and with decorative molding

a cupcake stand & mason jars are here

for all the stuff that comes with crafting supplies :)

found a few canisters from the thrift stores... they hold spools of thread and stamps

crochet is fun :)

this cute little printable calendar is from creative mamma

a few totes for storing odds and ends

and boxes or magazine holders in the dollar section at Target

work great for holding all those loose papers!

remember latch hook?

here's a few other shots of her room...

i wrote verses down on parts of her wall

to serve as a reminder and an encouragement

i'm thinking maybe a little paint ... maybe some more horses (she loves 'em)

and a bunch of buntings & garlands ... yes more of those would be good.

much love ♥ thanks for being here today

linking up to some sweet parties...

Whatever you Want Wednesday ♥ Free Pretty Things for You