Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Stitch Fix #1

A friend promoted StitchFix on her Facebook and I took an interest. It's similar to a personal shopper. You create an account and answer many questions about your current fashion and what you want it to be. You pay $20 and about a month later, they send you 5 items matching your answers to the style questions. You try on the 5 items and decide whether to keep them or not. Your original $20 goes towards your purchase. If you keep all 5 items, you get a great discount.

I created my account in December, answered all the questions and paid $20. My shipment arrived last week. You have 3 days to try on everything and decide what you like and what you're keeping. They send you a pre-paid shipping envelope to send the items back. Here are 4 of the 5 items:

Boatneck Sweater - SENT BACK
I LOVED this sweater but I needed it to be just a bit larger in size. 

Surplus Jacket - SENT BACK
I really like this jacket but the bedazzles drove me nuts. I looked at trying to take them off and it would have been impossible and left some snags in the material. 

Asymmetrical Zip Jacket - SENT BACK
This was not at all me in any shape, form or fashion. 

Lace Detail Button-Up Blouse - SENT BACK
This was not at all me, but I think I could have made it work should it have been in a different color. 

The 5th item was a royal blue scarf. I love scarves, but I also SENT BACK the scarf. The price was a little too steep for a scarf.

I sent all 5 items back. While I "lost" $20, I don't really consider it losing. I was interested in Stitch Fix and will do it again in the future. You can schedule as you go or mark that you want a shipment each month. I'm going to do it as I go and as the budget allows. It was definitely fun to see what others would pick for me and eliminated a lot of the stress in going to the store and being overwhelmed by all the options.

A few added perks to StitchFix:

• they send you a styling card to help you pair the items with either items you already have in your closet or something else you might consider purchasing
• you can request a specific item (trench coat, black pencil skirt, etc.)
• you can also mark what you don't want included in your shipment (shoes, jewelry, etc.) 
• they send you a tracking number as soon as your package is sent 
• they send you a  pre-paid envelope to mail everything back in
• A BONUS! I ordered last month and they said my shipment would arrive last week. However, I went out of town on Wednesday, the day the package was to arrive. You only have 3 days to mail the items back so I knew my time was limited. I simply emailed them and told them I was headed out of town and since I ordered a month ago, there was no way to know and coordinate all the logistics. They emailed me back and gave me a few extra days. Great customer service!

If you're interested in trying StitchFix, let me know. I can send you a link where I'll get a bonus referral and I'd love to know you're doing it and help you in any way. 

We bought a house!

Do you ever ask God for something, knowing that He will provide but hesitant as to what all the details and specifics will look like? J and I had been asking God for a house...I take that back, we asked Him for a home. A house is where we have lived for the past four years - an apartment that provides shelter, running water, and safety (much more than most of the world). However, over the past four years, we've had crazy neighbors, and I'm not exaggerating - the smokers, the screaming baby, the couple who fought all the time, the dog that never stopped barking, and the man who smoked pot while carrying on a conversation with J...just to name a few. It's no lie that ministry is hard and in part, we wanted a home where we could extend our ministry apart from the church building and in turn find an oasis to call our very own. 

Our past is filled with some details that we'd rather not relive. We've spent the past six years paying off debt and staying very, very close to our budget. We looked at houses back in the summer. I thought I had found the perfect house - not excessive, great neighborhood, etc. We went and looked at it and then headed to the bank. After many weeks of them prodding every detail of our lives, they essentially said "Thanks, but no thanks!".

In my selfish, sinful nature, I thought I would never get that house out of my mind and perhaps the Lord had made a mistake (wink, wink!...you've never thought that before, right?). J and I had decided to stop looking and try again in January/February. We would peruse the Internet looking but never being serious because we were waiting until the new year. 

Ministry in December was VERY overwhelming - we had something on the schedule almost EVERY day/night. In the midst of everything, J saw this house on a website and it had an accompanying video (see the end of this post). He prayed about it and approached me with it. My first thought - no way, it's December we don't have time to buy a house. My second thought - this house is SO much more than I could ask for or imagine and is much lower than our top price point. My third thought - Jesus, is Your timing going to every match mine?  :)

So in the midst of the busiest week of December, J and I went and looked at the house. Then in the midst of the busiest week of December, we met with a bank (a different bank than we met with in the summer). Again, they prodded every detail of our lives and over many weeks, they said "Yes!". We offered the buyer a price, they counter-offered, we counter-offered back, and then they said "Yes!". 

As I look back on this journey, I don't want to forget how the Lord has provided so much more than we could ever imagine: 

• While I thought His timing might be off, we were so busy in December, I didn't have time to stress or worry. We would sign some papers and then back to ministry. We would stop several days later, provide more paperwork and then back to ministry. The Lord's timing was impeccable! 
• The price of the house is so much lower than we thought we would ever pay and so much more than we thought we would get for the house itself. 
• The extras of the house are again so much more than we thought we would ever have in a house and more than we dreamed of having - a remodeled kitchen, 7 fruit trees, a herb garden, a jetted tub, a rain shower, hardwood floors, a designer craft room, 4 bedrooms, and I could go on! 

We are grateful that the Lord has answered our prayers! 

May we be the best stewards we can possible be of all the He has given us.

My Prayer for 2014

Spirit, Lead me where my trust is without borders

Let me walk upon the waters

Wherever You would call me

Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander

And my faith will be made strong

In the presence of my Savior 

Everything Changed!

On a night like this on a broken road
She is far from sleep, She is far from home.
For a baby's cries tear the still of night
She wonders why...

The future was bright and clear; she planned for a wedding day.
Her daddy would hold back tears, giving her hand away.
Now all her hope and fear in a cradle lay
For a baby came and everything changed!

On a night like this many years ago
As she held him close, she had come to know
That a mother's heart could not let him go
And she now knows why...

The future was bright and clear with hope and a promise made.
The light of the world was near, choirs of angels sang.
Heaven's exalted King in a manger lay
Cause a baby came and everything changed!

When our dreams grow dim and our hearts grow cold
He is never far from our broken soul.

Gloria! Our God is with us!
Gloria! He has come to save!
Mercy and love now for every generation
For the Savior came and everything changed! 

Wordless Wednesday - Merry Christmas!

Thankfulness

For Thanksgiving, J and I stayed here in Huntsville. We were blessed with many invitations to spend time with area families since we couldn't be home with ours. However, J and I decided to stay home and cook for ourselves.

My guilty pleasure is DVRing the Rachael Ray show each day and coming home and watching it (or if it's a busy week, watching them all on Saturday). She did a week full of shows called "Wild Turkey Week". We combined several of her recipes and came up with our own menu, along with some of our own staples.

First, on Thanksgiving morning, I woke up at regular time when I had the perfect opportunity to sleep in; I hate it when that happens. Since I was up, I made sausage balls for breakfast. They were delicious and we're still enjoying them!

After the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade started, we started cooking. I saw a friend's Facebook status that said she was cooking in between commercials. Our apartment is small and the kitchen, dining room and living room are all the same room so we cooked during the parade and commercials. 

Carrot Souffle

Sautéed Green Beans

Leftover Corn Casserole from our church's Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday.

One of the recipes we loved from Rachael Ray was called "Turkey Breast in Blankets". We'd never used pastry sheets before but it was a great success. It was similar to Beef Wellington.

Before cutting into them...

After cutting into them...

We didn't love Rachael's stuffing on the Turkey Breast in Blankets recipe compared to another day where she made Buffalo Ranch Stuffin' Muffins. We combined the two ideas and made Buffalo Ranch stuffing both inside the pastry pocket and with our leftover stuffing, we still had enough to make stuffin' muffins. Stuffin' Muffins are the perfect portion control and allow you to get some of the crispy edges of the stuffing as well as the mushy stuffing in the middle of the muffin. 

While we missed being with our families, we loved being able to stay home and cook for ourselves! 

Favorite Things

I had seen this mentioned on several other blogs. I wasn't so sure spray lotion was for me. However, I was in need of lotion so I decided to try it. It's amazing! It's easy and applies great. This particular smell is cocoa and is amazing. It smells like chocolate but not overly powerful or too much. I will definitely buy this again and again. In fact, I told J I'm going to add it to my Christmas list to ensure I get a good stockpile of it. :) 

Favorite Things Friday

In my quest to lose weight, I've been switching up the fitness routine. My recent obsession has been this...

I'm not going to lie - it's pretty intense and just down right hard sometimes. Yet, I still love it and it's one of my favorite things. I typically workout in the morning at the church's Fitness Center. Then I shower, eat lunch and head to work. However, sometimes my mornings are packed with other things so I have to workout in the afternoon. When that happens and there's still things to be done and places to go, I use this...

It's dry shampoo and I love it. It allows me to "wash" my hair and go when time is of the essence. Not to mention, it also smells great! 

Projects for Summer

Sugar Block of the Month, June - Home Sweet Home

Sugar Block of the Month, July - Lime Sherbet

Sugar Block of the Month, August - Camp Out

Sugar Block of the Month - The quilt squares thus far...

Block of the Month April 2012 redo - Sunny with a Chance of Hex

Block of the Month June 2012 redo - Greek Cross Block

Favorite Things Friday

I don't know what Peach Bourbon smells like, but what I do know is this new scent from Bath and Body Works is amazing! I love washing my hands even more now! 

Favorite Things Friday

J's parents returned from Hawaii a few weeks ago. We got fancy Hawaii coffee mugs! 

Mine is the Starbucks Hawaii Mug from the "You are Here" collection. 

J's is a masculine flip-flop mug. 

We love them both!!

Wordless Wednesday

Hot & Spicy

A few summers ago, I discovered jalapeno jelly. It was delicious! I had it as a glaze on porkchops, on a hot deli sandwich in lieu of mustard/mayo, and even slathered some on some cornbread. It was fabulous...that is until it ran out and I had no more!

I searched high and low looking for jalapeno jelly. Farmer's markets had hot pepper jelly but usually it was red (not green like I had previously) and had chunks of peppers where the other stuff had been smooth. I asked a few friends that canned different things and none of them had ever made it. I finally found some at a farmer's market in Virginia when visited my parents. It was great but mailing something as fragile as a jar of jelly comes with risks and FDA guidelines ban liquids more than 3 oz. I had a dilemma!

The dilemma was resolved last week when I met my friend C. C is the Martha Stewart type. When I told her I loved jalapeno jelly, she offered to teach me how to make my very own. Oh my - I was in heaven! And to make matters better, the jalapenos came from her garden!!!

We left all the ribs and seeds in from the jalapenos make it extra hot and spicy. Here are all the lovely jars we made.

Here are the porkchops I made the next night.

Here's a crafty jar, where I added a swatch of fabric and took it to a friend's house who invited us over for dinner.

While I don't have all the equipment for canning (did I mention C's kitchen is to die for?), I do think I could can veggies/jellies/jams but on a much smaller scale than C and I did the other day. It was definitely delicious and worth all the time and effort to make it!

Wordless Wednesday

California Vacation, 5 of 5

This is a series of posts about our recent vacation to California. Vacation seems like a foreign word most of the time, because we don't know how to take one, can't afford one, the timing is off, etc. However, we planned and budgeted accordingly and enjoyed our 6 days away. 

Fifth Stop: Dodgers Game

J's uncle bought us tickets to see the Dodgers on Friday night. We are hardcore Texas Rangers fans, but we still loved going to see the game. Our seats were phenomenal both in location and they were comfortable and much more roomy than some of the seats at The Ballpark at Arlington.

We ate a Dodger Dog for dinner.

We were able to get a quick fix for the Texas Rangers. Michael Young is a former Ranger but now plays 3rd base for the Phillies (the Dodgers were playing the Phillies).

Dodger Stadium is on a mountain so we got a great overlook of the city.

No worries - we have plans to see our Texas Rangers in September! 

California Vacation, 4 of 5

This is a series of posts about our recent vacation to California. Vacation seems like a foreign word most of the time, because we don't know how to take one, can't afford one, the timing is off, etc. However, we planned and budgeted accordingly and enjoyed our 6 days away. 

Fourth Stop: Hollywood

On Friday, we went to Hollywood with J's parents. We went on a trolley tour. Our tour guide was less than desirable and our tour was 20 minutes late starting, but we did get to see many sites that we may or may not have found on our own.

A small glimpse of The Hollywood Bowl

Sunset Gower Studios
The studio for Golden Girls, Deal or No Deal, I Dream of Jeannie, Bewitched, and others.

One of the oldest studios in Hollywood.
The home of Castle and America's Funniest Home Videos.

The actual hotel and fire escape used in the last scene of Pretty Woman. Remember where Edward rides up in his white limousine to capture the heart of Vivian. 

California Vacation, 3 of 5

This is a series of posts about our recent vacation to California. Vacation seems like a foreign word most of the time, because we don't know how to take one, can't afford one, the timing is off, etc. However, we planned and budgeted accordingly and enjoyed our 6 days away. 

Third Stop: Malibu

The original purpose of going to California this summer was to attend J's cousin's wedding. The wedding was cancelled about 6 weeks prior to our vacation, so we decided to go anyway and it was a great decision! J's parents had planned to attend the wedding and from California were going to Hawaii for some much needed R&R. We spent time with them on Thursday and Friday and then on Saturday we went our separate ways.

We drove to Malibu and had dinner with J's cousin and his uncle. We ate right on the beach. If you're a Saved by the Bell watcher, I felt like I was at Malibu Sands Beach Club. Remember Zack, Kelly and the gang worked there for the summer. This restaurant/beach club had that same feel to it. We ate outside on the beach in a little cabana. The ambiance was incredible!