You Are Worthy

Source: None via Ally on Pinterest

Hey friends!

Last night I was able to take a nice hot bubble bath. What a luxury! I mean, truly, it was. To have some time to myself to soak and unwind was priceless. I received the sweetest bath kit for Mother's Day that I've been able to use a few times - last night being one of them. My sister-n-laws friend makes handmade soaps, bath bombs, body scrubs and the like and she put the kit together. It truly is a treat.

Last night got me thinking. When was the last time you took some time to truly enjoy yourself? To take a few minutes out of your day to do something you want to do. To treat yourself. To enjoy a little luxury like a hot bath, or a good book, or a fancy coffee drink? Dear Friend, you are precious and so worthy of that time.

My challenge to you this week is to carve out some time for you. To take no less than 15 minutes to enjoy something for you. Maybe you'll need to put the kids in front of a movie, or drop them off at a neighbors. Maybe this week you just don't have the extra spending money for a new treat like a piece of jewelry or even that drink from Starbucks. Then take some time to do something else. Enjoy a walk at your local park. Or put on your favorite DVD. Or paint your fingernails. Or take a nap. Now that's a luxury to me!

Dear One, you are so worth it. You are valuable, precious and so worthy of taking some time for yourself. You deserve it. So do it.

The Sunday Seven...On Monday

I missed The Sunday 7 yesterday so since this week has just begun, I'm going to post today. Yesterday we had the "Fall Kick-Off" at our church. Sunday School classes were started and for the first time, I am able to go to a class. I've usually been a teacher or there has been something that has prevented me from attending but yesterday I joined a class. We are watching a video series called "Love and Respect". It's about how husbands and wives can show respect and love to one another. So far it's been very interesting. I'm excited to go deeper in the class. Yesterday was also Aubrey's first time in the nursery. Not for lack of trying though! I have attempted to drop her off a few times but there was never a worker for the infant nursery. Which is incredibly strange because we have a large church. But as part of the Fall Kick-Off, they revamped the nursery program too. So in Aubrey went! She was so tuckerd out that when her daddy picked her up after church, she was fast asleep. The nursery was such a gift yesterday as I was finally able to enjoy an entire church service without taking a talking/crying/babbeling/loud baby out of the sanctuary. Praise God for nursery workers!

Most people can classify their 7 most important areas something like this:



Faith
Family
Relationships
Work
Health and Fitness
Finances
Me Time

You determine what your top 7 are in your life. Here are mine for this week.


1. Faith: God has been really challenging me to respect and serve my husband. Two different concepts that go hand-in-hand. Trying to live that out this week. Also to start every day digging in my Bible and praying.

2. Family: Do something as a family. We've all been going in different directions lately so this week I hope to just spend time together - Aubrey, Shane and I.

3. Relationships: A friend is having a really hard time and I'm going to do my best to meet some of her needs this week.

4. Organization: Begin to prepare for the upcoming Holidays. Canadian Thanksgiving is in two weeks and I want to be ready for that. Also to begin thinking about Christmas gifts and planning for traveling out of town.

5. Health and Fitness: Get in 4 walks this week. Attend me Weight Watcher meeting on Saturday.

6. Finances: Put together a budget for spending money. Time to save for some big purchases!

7. MeTime: Go to Starbucks for a nice drink. Enjoy the time alone.


What are your top 7 things that you will be doing this week? Feel free to leave them in the comments so we can all encourage one another!

To read more about the Sunday 7, head to Allison's blog to read more about it. She created this awesome system!

Pinterest Saturday : Fall Edition

Source: 26.media.tumblr.com via Mandi on Pinterest

Happy Fall, ya'll!

This is my favorite time of year and I just couldn't be more thrilled that it is here. I think this year I will pass on the decorating as we are still living with my in laws and really, our bedroom is just way too crammed to add a few faux pumpkins. So, instead, I'm going to celebrate the season in other ways. We have a trip planned to the pumpkin patch and we will definitely carve pumpkins. I also hope to toast some pumpkin seeds and enjoy a mug of hot apple cider. Yum!

Today I'm posting some of the images I've saved on Pinterest in regards to all things Fall. Enjoy the inspiration...and your weekend!

Source: ahintofhoney.com via Mandi on Pinterest

This Caramel Apple cake literally has my mouth watering. I'm going to attempt to make it. Eek! I can't wait!

Source: etsy.com via Mandi on Pinterest

This beautiful wreath was for sale on Etsy. I'd love to have it gracing my front door!

Source: womansday.com via Mandi on Pinterest

My mom always puts candy corn in hurricane vases and then adds candles. I think the display is so cute!

Source: etsy.com via Mandi on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Mandi on Pinterest

My mom is making this candy corn dress for Aubrey and my neice, Gianna. We bought the fabric last weekend and I hope that little dress arrives in the mail soon.

 

Source: freshhomeideas.com via Mandi on Pinterest

How to cut shapes into pumpkins. I'm hoping to cut stars all over my pumpkin!

Source: thecottagehome.blogspot.com via Mandi on Pinterest

I have a number of pumpkin tutorials on my album "I Heart Fall". Here is just one of them.

Source: marthastewart.com via Mandi on Pinterest

How to make a punch bowl out of a pumpkin.

Source: katieballa.blogspot.com via Mandi on Pinterest

I wonder how many we can cross off?

Source: oopseydaisyblog.com via Mandi on Pinterest

We don't celebrate Halloween in a big way around here - but I do find these pillows just darling.

Source: everythingetsy.com via Mandi on Pinterest

And finally to keep you busy on this Saturday, here are 101 festive Fall tutorials!

Feel free to follow along with me on Pinterest. I'm pinning every day and loving the inspiration! If you follow me, I'll follow back. The more pins, the merrier!

The Sunday Seven

It's time for the Sunday Seven again! I first heard about this awesome concept at The Intentional Peace and just instantly fell inlove with the idea. You pick the seven most important areas of your life and then set a goal for each of those seven areas for you to accomplish for the next seven days. How focused and easy is that? I love it. Basically if my mind gets scattered for the week, I can focus on the top priorities of my life and make sure those things get accomplished. Love it!

My 7 categories this week are:

1. Faith
2. Family
3. Relationships
4. Home Organization
5. Health and Fitness
6. Down Time



Faith: Spend each morning with God reading my Bible and my Mother's Prayer Book. Start to intentionally pray for my husband and make it a real focus.

Family: We are still in Pennsylvania visiting my family and though we leave tomorrow I want to really focus on soaking up every minute I can with my family. The internet and satellite tv can be real traps for me - especially because we get only three tv channels at home! So I'm making it a focus to avoid these areas and have a blast with my family instead. Though we did stop to watch The Pioneer Woman's cooking show. :)

Relationships: Prepare a meal for a friend who just had a baby.

Home Organization: Begin to put together storyboards of what I want our renovated home/rooms to look like. Time to focus! (I'll post these when I finish them. I can't wait!)

Health and Fitness: This has been such a big focus in my life for the past few months. I'm changing my lifestyle and totally enjoying it. I'm focusing on walking a minimum of 4 times this week (minimum 40 minutes each walk). I'll also attend my Weight Watcher's meeting Saturday. I always look forward to my meeting. It's one of the highlights of my week!

Future Planning: We are getting Aubrey dedicated on October 2nd. I'm beginning to prepare now and will order her dress and begin to plan a celebration lunch.

Down Time: Take some time to read some of my new magazines! Such a luxury!


And a special thank-you to everyone who prayed for our trip and for Aubrey's heart. There were no signs of her murmur at her appointment. Praise God! We go back in four months for the final check and if they don't hear anything then we are discharged from their care. God is good! Our drive couldn't have been better as Aubrey slept the entire way - minus the hour we stopped for dinner. She even slept through stopping at the border and the border guard opening the van door to look at her!

Heart

Source: laracasey.tumblr.com via Danielle on Pinterest

Today I hit the ground running. It's just one of those days. I'm tempted to wallow in my exhaustion, in my fear and in my irritation. But I'm instead choosing to let the Lord fight my battle. This day is a big one for us. We are leaving for Pennsylvania but first we must attend a heart appointment for Aubrey. I posted about her condition when I wrote her birth story, so I'll just briefly recap for those who are new to Finding Home.

While we were in the hospital recovering from Aubrey's birth and my c-section, there was a few times that Aubrey turned purple. I'm not talking a light shade of purple - I mean a deep, dark shade that instantly makes your blood run cold it was so scary. She spent some time in the NICU for evaluation and we later had to take her home with a halter monitor to monitor her heart for 24 hours. It turns out there is a hole in her heart. It is pretty small but she will be under evaluation for a year. This is her second follow-up heart appointment since being born. At a year old she will have an echo cardiogram to see where we are at. At her six month well-baby visit, her doctor could still hear the murmur so he said it was best to keep the heart appointment. Not that I was going to cancel it anyways.

So, today we go. I'd really covet your prayers. We are praying that in Jesus name her heart would be whole. Not hole. :) Just had to throw that in. :) God has a sense of humor and so do I. But really, I would covet those prayers so much. Also, we are leaving for Pennsylvania today! I'd love your prayers for traveling mercies as well. It's a long 9 hour drive on a good day - not counting stops for an infant. We won't get there until sometime well after midnight. I'd love it if you could say a little prayer for us. It's a busy, crazy day here and it's a day that more than ever I need God to fight this battle for me.

I Love Lists

I am a list maker. As far back as I can remember, I've made lists. Usually they are pretty detailed lists. I write out everything I need to do, buy, remember and bring with me. A few years ago, when I was traveling for most of the year with each of my Master's Commission teams, I lived by my lists. It was so fun for me to write out each and every thing I would need to bring on my trip. I was even so detailed that I would write down each outfit I would wear each day. Then I could write down that I needed a pair of socks, underwear and a bra for each day. Seems like such common sense but you wouldn't believe how many people under-packed because they never wrote down a list.

I was often teased for my packing lists. But when someone needed a band aid, or shaving cream or an extra whatever, they knew who to ask. Me. I love being prepared but sometimes the teasing would really get to me. But then, a friend forgot her passport driving from Colorado to Canada. At the time you didn't need a passport to cross the border but since she was working in Ontario, she needed to produce her visa...which was with her passport. Long story short, one of the pastors on staff where she worked had to make the three hour drive to the border to verify who she was. And that day, I vowed I would never feel bad about my lists again.

We are heading out of town tomorrow. We are going to Pennsylvania for a visit. It's been 6 months since we have visited my family and I'm so happy to be going. Bringing a baby across the country - and across the border - presents itself with it's own unique traveling and packing requirements. Sunday night, I went to Starbucks to write out my four page list of everything we needed to bring and do before our trip. As I sipped my fat-free vanilla steamer, I realized that I no longer have the time to sit and write out every.single.thing we would need to take for our journey's anymore. We are a family who likes to travel and I just don't have the time to pour over my lists like I used to. It saddens me a bit because I find such joy in writing my lists. So, at Starbucks, I began to put together my complete all-encompassing no-holds-barred 100% complete list to end all traveling lists. I know that it will grown and change as our family grows and changes. In fact, it could be obsolete in six months but for now, I've got the mother of packing lists in front of me.

We head out tomorrow and I'll be sure to let you know how it goes. I have a few other travel tid-bits up my sleeves that I'd like to share with you. Hopefully they can work for you even if you don't have a baby or children. I love to travel and packing efficiently and thoroughly is one of my favorite things to do. It makes the trip so much more enjoyable. I've heard way too many horror stories of people who've forgotten really important things because they didn't prepare well. I'd like to put together some printable lists for ya'll. I'm not sure how to make them general enough for everyone to be able to use so if you have any ideas, please leave them in the comments or email me. I'd love to create something that would work for everyone.

So fill me in! What would you like to see in a travel printable?

We Will Stand

Today, I, along with the rest of the world gives pause to remember the events of 9-11. Such a tragic day in our countries history but let us never forget the sacrifice so many paid. Please take a few minutes to watch this video of a song my friend wrote to honor and pay tribute to those who died - and those who were left behind. ‎10 years ago this weekend the United States came under attack. This song is dedicated to the heroes and victims of that day and the men and women of the American Armed Forces bravely defending the greatest country in the world.

God Bless the USA.

Pinterest Saturday : Home Inspiration

If you are new around here, you may not know that my family and I live with my in laws. There are seven adults, one baby and four dogs living under one roof. Crazy enough, we all have our own bedrooms. Well, Shane, Aubrey and I share a room but that one you might have figured out. We have been renovating our home for the past year. It has pretty much been torn completely down and is being rebuilt as I type. When I move home, there will be brand new walls (including studs, insulation, windows and drywall) for the entire house, a new kitchen, bathroom, flooring, paint, wiring and on and on. It's such a long process and I'm dying to move back home but in the end, this waiting will be worth it. In the meantime, I virtually redecorate my home everyday. I can't wait to physically get in there and move furniture, put paint of walls and fluff some pillows so until then, I just dream!

So until there is actual real decorating, enjoy some of my pins from my Home Inspiration board on Pinterest.

Source: timberandlace.blogspot.com via Mandi on Pinterest

I think this is such a cute idea to keep towels organized. Especially when everyone has the same color towel.

Source: honeyandfitz.blogspot.com via Mandi on Pinterest

My Grandma used to have a Dutch door between her kitchen and screened-in porch. I always loved it! Our mudroom will be attached to our kitchen and I'd love to have a cute Dutch door in between!

Source: finishedbasement.com via Mandi on Pinterest

If only I had this kind of room!

Source: bhg.com via Mandi on Pinterest

Love this solution for dog food!

Source: mommy-chic.blogspot.com via Mandi on Pinterest

This so has to be a feature in my house one day. Someday and somehow I will make it a reality! And did you notice the cute labels on the drawers in the back of the picture?

Source: bhg.com via Mandi on Pinterest

I'm going to use this photo as a jumping off point for our bedroom. Love the frames!

Source: smg.photobucket.com via Mandi on Pinterest

One wall of our mudroom will be cabinetry. Period. We need storage so badly in our home. The cabinets will serve as a home for Christmas decor, everyday decor, off season clothing, hunting supplies and dog training supplies. This is the photo my hubby is going off of for inspiration.

Source: apartmenttherapy.com via Mandi on Pinterest

I find myself loving this aqua blue. I find it in such a theme with things I'm attracted to home wise. We'll see whether or not I'm brave enough to paint my walls this color or decide to go with fabric accents of the blue instead.

Source: houseofturquoise.com via Mandi on Pinterest

I just adore this room!

Source: whi.assets.prod.lg1x3z.simplecdn.net via Mandi on Pinterest

What a cute reading nook!

Source: inspirationfordecoration.blogspot.com via Mandi on Pinterest

My dream craft room. You've got to follow the link to look at all of the photos.

Source: houzz.com via Mandi on Pinterest

Hellos black and white kitchen! And a star. Be still my heart!

Source: nestegg.typepad.com via Mandi on Pinterest

Love this laundry room!

Source: None via Mandi on Pinterest

And finally, the reason I want a hammock. What a dream space.


So that's it for Pinterest Saturday! Check back next week for more inspiration. And, if you can't wait, feel free to follow me on Pinterest! I'm pinning something new everyday. If you follow me, I'll follow you back. The more inspiration, the merrier!

An Ordinary Wednesday

It's just an ordinary day around here.

I've started a new devotional by Beth Moore and already am challenged.

We had a good breakfast of scrambled cheese eggs, turkey bacon and a slice of toast.

I'm folding small little shirts, pants, socks and washcloths.

The sun is shining and it becons me to take Aubrey for a long walk.

Soon Aubery will wake from her morning nap and we'll get ready for lunch.

Later on I'll make Shane a big meal to take to work. He's traveling out of town working the late shift all week.

Crazy work schedules are just normal around here.

The night will cap off around 7 when I'll put Aubs in the tub for a long soak and a good play. Then it's her last nurse of the night and then she's off to dreamland.

Whatever your ordinary day holds, may it be great. Happy Wednesday Friends!


To read what else I had to say about an Ordinary Day, follow this link.

I'm excited to introduce this newest feature on my blog. It's called "The Sunday Seven". I read about this idea on the blog "The Intentional Peace" and really couldn't get it out of my mind. Allison describes it best so I'll share a few of her words but please check out her post for a complete description of what "The Sunday Seven" is all about. Way to go Allison! What a great concept!

Allison writes, "If we look at the ares of our life that need our attention and focus, we can usually find about 7.


Faith
Family
Relationships
Work
Health and Fitness
Finances
Me Time


"The Sunday Seven" are the 7 biggest "rocks" in your life; the 7 things or tasks that really need to happen in each area of your life each week. This is not a list of everything that needs to be done, but it is a list of the most important things in each section of your life. "


See what I mean? What an excellent idea! Today I'm going to share with you my Sunday Seven and each week, on Sunday, I'll share with you my next Sunday Seven. Please check out Allison's post for more on The Sunday Seven.


1. Faith: Purchase devotional by Beth Moore. Read through my new Mother's Prayers devotional.
2. Family:  Spend quality time with Aubrey while she is awake from her naps. No computer or tv.
3. Relationships:  Watch a movie with Shane for some together time.
4. Work:  Organize, purge and sort Summer/Fall clothes. Determine what we need for the new season.
5. Health and Fitness: Walk 7 km's three times this week. Take 5 walks - minimum half hour each.
6. Finances:  Budget for new Fall clothes and Life Planner
7. Me Time:  Take a long, hot, relaxing bath.

So there you have it! My Sunday Seven - the most important things to do in the most important areas of my life.


I hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday! May you find rest and relaxation enjoy your loved ones today!

Pinterest Saturday : Back to School Edition

This post may be a little late for a few of you. For some it will be incredibly timely. Either way, enjoy! There is a lot of inspiraton here!

Today I'm posting a few ideas I found via Pinterest for going back to school. Or...the most wonderful time of the year...or so some say. I wouldn't know because my daughter is only 8 months old but in a few short years we will be getting her ready to start her first day of school. Or Junior Kindergarden (JK) or Pre-School. Who knows! I still have a little time to think about it. :)

Enjoy these ideas to help make this upcoming school year great for you and your kiddos!

A Teacher Survival Kit from Two Peas In A Bucket. When you click on the link, be sure to scroll down to see all to include in the kit. I have a few teachers in my life who would love this!

Adorable Alphabet Tracing Pages so your kiddies can practice writing their letters.

Printables for your Preschoolers.

A Back to School photo checklist so you won't miss anything. This comes from Simple As That blog.

Such a cute idea to record your child's "favorites" in a cute manor.

If your kids are not yet old enough for school, here is a link to a bunch of great ideas to do with your toddlers.
There is a free printable too!  

10 Easy Lunch Ideas!



Freezer Breakfasts via Bold Torquoise. There is a free printable too! Yum!



Such a cute way to schowcase what grade your kiddo is headed into.


If you have any posts or ideas for making the transition back to school great for kids, be sure to leave them in the comments! 
Happy Saturday All!