Pretty, Pretty Dresses (*sigh*)

Yes, I am a Shabby Apple Affiliate now.
(See the adorable button on the sidebar?)

No, I don't own one of their beautiful dresses...yet! =)

I don't like doing sponsorship posts much, but their dresses are SO pretty that I thought I'd take a chance so that if you've never heard of Shabby Apple...well, now you can hear of them!

Here a few of my favorites:

If I got a dress...it might have to be one of these two...aren't they AWESOME! 

So click on the link on my sidebar to see these and more. 

Be blessed.
<3

Alphabet Week 6: FFF

Well, after a month's break, I'm starting back up with my Alphabet posts!

We left off at the letter F. This one should be fun...haha! =)

First Word that Pops into My Head:

Fan...It's the first day in 2 years where the temperature here is supposed to hit 90 degrees. The fan isn't on yet, but I'm sure it will be soon!

(Right now at 12:30 PM it's 79 degrees F)

People I Know:

Frank...I loosely know one or two "Franks" but this is honestly the only person I know who's name starts with an F. WEIRD!

Color:

Flax

Forest Green

Firebrick

Fire Engine Red (is this actually a color?)

Fuchsia

Favorites:

Fireflies

Fields

Forever

Fawns

Dictionary Word I didn't Know:

Facetious - 

adjective

1.

not meant to be taken seriously or literally: a facetiousremark.

2.

amusing; humorous.

3.

lacking serious intent; concerned with somethingnonessential, amusing, or frivolous: a facetious person.

This word is also a word with EVERY vowel used once IN ORDER! Cool huh?

(I learned this fascinating fact on my dictionary.com iphone app - it was the "question of the day")

Food:

Fajitas!!!

Frappachino's!!!

Fettuchini Alfredo

Focaccia Bread

French Fries

French Toast

Fried Rice (Korean Style)

Well, there is another Alphabet week post. =) Fun with letters, oh yes!

Be blessed!

Insta-date

Today both my hubby and I had really short work days...Yay!

We were both home by 11 am and ready to spend some time together.

*sigh of happiness/bliss*

We took off for the Farmers Market where we ate peaches, cheesy bread, beef sticks, and fresh raspberries!

...All of which I failed to take pictures of.

(except the raspberries...once we got home)

We walked to a little boutique in downtown and spent the rest of a gift card we got for our wedding. =)

I LOVE the new chapstick

<3

I finally remembered, on our way to the grocery store afterwards, that I should be documenting this date. (LOL) 

And I snapped this photo in the car.

I love my hubby.

I love spending good time with my husband. Taking walks and just doing random, spur of the moment things is the best. He is my BEST FRIEND and I am so lucky blessed that I get to share life with him.

I'm looking forward to a sunny weekend with (according to the weatherman) temperatures over 90 degrees for the first time in 2 YEARS! Wow!

Be blessed.

<3


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WIWW: 4th of July?

Yep, this outfit is that old! But I was am so happy with it that I had to share.

Shorts: Garage Sale for $1 //  Shirt: Forever 21 (birthday gift)  //  Shoes: Target (last year - little girls section)  //  Sunglasses: Street Vendor in Mexico

I don't have much "experience" styling loose fitting shirts like this, so any advice you have would be great. I was pretty happy with how it looked in this outfit though.

A nice white braided belt would have finished it off nicely...oh well! =)

Well, there's one of my WAAAYYY back outfits for you! I have a few more coming and then we'll get current! =P

Be blessed!

<3

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PIMJ: Notes and Contentment...

For today's Peek Inside My Journal post, I thought I'd share the notes I took on Sunday at the youth service. This was actually the second time I had heard this sermon and it hit me in a totally different way this time.

The sermon was on Philippians 4:10-20 and focused on contentment.

(Just a note, these are not all my words. A lot of this is notes from the sermon, and occasionally a thought that was stemmed from what was being said. One of the reasons I decided to post this is because there were a lot of searching questions that stemmed from this sermon. You can see them and read most of my answers.)

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(Philippians 4:11) = "content" - Not lacking a necessary resource. Other writers have described this word by comparing a person to a city...say a port city. There are things coming into that port to help support and sustain the city and there are exports going out of it. The city is dependent upon the imports to survive. However, Paul is saying that he has learned how to be content with whatever he already has even given in life by God with out needing to rely on all these "imports" into his life.

What imports am I dependent on in my life?

• Time with Travis
• Facebook?
• My phone
• Books
• Food - Good Food
• Car = Freedom = Social Interactions

What was Paul dependent on that made him content without external imports?

• Jesus Christ living inside him

"He who had God and many other things has no more than he who has God and God alone." - C.S. Lewis

- I need to repent of covetousness and seek God as my only sustenance...my only "import".

(Philippians 4:16) = The people of Philipi saw themselves as part of the solution the the "problems" Paul was in. 

Do I see myself as part of the solution to "problems" God has shown to me in life?

What "problems" has God revealed to me in the world or in lives of others around me?

Am I a part of the solution to these problems? Or am I a part of the problem, if only by simply doing nothing?

(Philippians 4:18) = Our worship does not ADD to God's glory in any way. He does not need our worship in order to be glorious. He made us and we are His! However, our worship is pleasing to Him. 

Our worship RECOGNIZES His glory, and that is pleasing to Him.

"Either you worship money or you worship God WITH your money." - Mark Driscoll

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The big challenge for me in this sermon was to place my dependence on GOD completely. There are SO, SO many things in my life fighting for my attention and worship...but when I placed my faith in Jesus, He sent  His Holy Spirit to live inside me and that is ALL I need to be joyful and content.

I know that this will be the battle I fight every day for the rest of my life...yet ironically enough, I will only experience victories when I allow Jesus and His Spirit to do the work in me. Such a paradox and I don't fully understand it...but it is SO beautiful and it is so freeing.

All I have to do is surrender...

Be blessed.

<3

A Little Late Because...

...I've been having too much fun!

But here are all my Instagrams since the last time I "photo-dumped" on you all!
(There's some good ones...I think. ;-)

The Photographers at a dear friend's wedding. I got to come along for pictures to carry her train and do other "helpful" things.

The AMAZING bride and groom!

Lakefair Fireworks were STUNNING! They even had some that fell into the lake and then shot back up a few seconds later, exploding after they were high enough...how cool is that?

I attempted to make popcorn in a paper bag in the microwave...lesson learned. I need to use small bags, not large ones.

...my microwave still smells like smoke. LOL!

 What I am NOT eating...

What I AM eating!

These homemade burgers were GIANT...and sooooo good!

 What I AM eating!

Two kiwi with lunch...my tongue and lips burned SO badly!

It was totally worth it though!

What I AM eating...on SPLURGE DAY!

Mountain High Mud Pie from Red Robin...YUM

(Note: We split it 3 ways, so it still counted as my "small" amount of sugar.)

 This bug dropped out of the air in mid-flight at my work...in the staff room.

It was highly entertaining to watch peoples reactions.

It was as big around as my THUMB!

Travis was gone on a youth camping trip for 2 nights. =,(

*tears*

But I had some good girl time...my friend Amy left me this note during the time she was at our apartment by herself. =)

We had an all church BBQ and Baptism on Sunday at Black Lake Bible Camp.

There are few things more encouraging than watching a baptism!

The play set a Black Lake Bible Camp that brought back good memories and made me miss my dear friend Laura in Florida...We get to see them in 6 DAYS!!!

Hope you enjoyed this little peek inside my life for the last week+
Be blessed! <3

Adding Cap Sleeves to a Spaghetti Strap Dress

Hello dear readers!

Are you ready for another tutorial?

I am. It's been far to long. =)

Unfortunately this tutorial is not quite complete. I was altering this dress just a few hours before a wedding I planned to wear it to.  Thus, the final step was rather hurried and I forgot to take any pictures of it. =(

I will do my best to explain it thoroughly and feel free to email me with any questions you might have!

I cut my fabric from some leftover scraps I had. They matched perfectly!

For those of you who don't know what a basting stitch is...it is a straight stitch, but with your machine set so that it is longer than normal stitches. This also loosens the stitch so that it is easy to pull on the threads to gather the material.

(NOTE: I sewed the basting stitches about 1/3 to 1/2 an inch in from the edge of the material)

Next is the final step...

Start by attaching the sleeve to the front.

(NOTE: DO NOT clip off your straps...the cap sleeves will cover them, but the strap will still be the main piece holding up your dress.)

Take one gathered end of the sleeve and (starting on one side of the strap) pin the gathered section to the inside of the dress. Make sure that the fabric is pulled down far enough hide the basting from view when the dress is being worn.

To cross over the strap, fold the gathered fabric up and to the inside so that it is hidden from view and the fabric fold of the sleeve is meeting the fabric of the dress in front of the strap. You will sew it down this way. Place one more pin on the other side of the strap to hold the rest of the sleeve in place.

Using a needle and thread, sew the strap down. I sewed over and back across the sleeve to make sure that it was firmly attached. The bodice of your dress should have two layers...only sew through the inside layer of fabric.

Complete the same process to attach the sleeve in the back.

(NOTE: Before you start sewing the back of the sleeve, make sure that you measure to make sure the sleeve is the right length to fit comfortably over your should...measuring it by the existing strap is the easiest way to do this. You don't want your sleeve so loose that it falls off your shoulder exposing the original strap.)

Complete the same process for the other sleeve, clip your threads and you are done!

So curl your hair, put on make up and get ready for a fancy evening out...or in my case, a wedding!

If you use this tutorial, send me some pictures so I can see your beautiful creation!

Enjoy and, as always, be blessed!

<3

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