White woodwork, here we come!

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Somebody pinch me! Last night David said "yes" to my plea (once again) of painting our woodwork white. I'm so excited, I can hardly think of anything else. The one exception is that we can't touch our newish, gorgeous wood windows. We spent a pretty penny on those, so I don't blame him. And who knows...by the time we are done, he may change his mind.

I figure the transformation will take us all summer long. So now I'm on the hunt for the perfect white paint color to use. And I'm devising plans to replace the nasty carpet on our stairs with wood stairs. And figure out which rooms will also get the addition of board and batten treatments. Is it going overboard to want to add it to every single room? Probably. So I'm thinking the top choices are entry/stairs/hall, our room and the kitchen/dining room. We'll leave the living room and basement alone. For now. *insert evil laugh*

Here are the inspiration photos I've been gathering. I'm so excited!

Ahhh...the Nester. I love everything she does. *sigh*

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Oh look! Here are the yellow walls and yellow curtains I've been dreaming about.

I may go this route for our room afterall.

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This will make such a nice backdrop for our dining room.

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Love the double rows here, so kids can reach the hooks too.

This is so happening in our entrance!

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I just love the look of all white with color up above.

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I'd love to add it up and down both sets of stairs too.

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And a little shelf on top, where appropriate, will be nice.

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Oh, and I think our bathroom needs it too. ;)

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Karla and Jen both have great tutorials if you are looking for one.

On my hoop {Sneak Peek}

Oh, Mother dear, see here, see here...

For once I'm ahead of the game!

After making a blog header from Sarah's easy tutorial I thought I would make our own Valentine's this year. This will be the first year that the girls have a large group to pass Valentine's out to. Even though they are in different classrooms, I thought I'd make it simple and use my favorite photo of both of them together. I think this is the last photoshoot I had with my camera, before it broke. *sigh*

First try isn't too bad. Kind of cute. I like the direction it's going, but something is missing. Needs more color to balance the cookies.

There, now this is better. Almost perfect.

The pink background is a little too dark. But I'm not changing it. It's plenty good enough, she says to her perfectionistic (is that a word?) self. Wanna take bets on whether this gets redone. again. ;)

I'm going to use Jenn's idea (who by the way is with her son right now, to bring him home - insert happy dance here) and cut slits to insert suckers. I'll print these as 4x6's.

Valentine's Day cards on the cheap. Love it!

Sweet Tweet {Just Listed}

This week has been a trip down memory lane for me. Hard to believe it was over two years ago (was it actually three?) that I took these photos. The girls were just itty bitty, weren't they? Well, between what I had left in my stash and what I've scouted out, I have enough fabric to offer this collection at least once more (maybe twice, depending on what goes first). So excited! I'd LOVE to make these again. And looking at them now, I'm struck by how they look like something I'd still design brand new today. You wouldn't say "oh, those were SO two years ago, " would you? ;)

Click here for the listings.

We have also added the matching Sweet Tweet and Raggedy Ann dolls to our collections. How fun for a little girl to have a Dollie that no only looks like her, but is dressed like her too. *swoon*

On my heart

I want to share with you something that's been on my heart this week. So much so that I actually cried as I was telling David about it and why I was helping out. But there is no way I can do this justice myself so I'm going to copy most of this blog post,here.

Do you see that baby over there in my sidebar? His name is Cliff. He has Downs Syndrome and is living in an orphanage in Russia.

Here he is...

I'll let Jeannette tell you the rest...

"I will begin with a picture.

Of the sweetest, squishiest, yummiest little baby boy ever.

Of little Cliff.

Just 3 months older than my girls.

Cliff who has Down Syndrome.

Cliff who lives in an orphanage in Eastern Europe.

Cliff who is not a statistic.

Who is not a stock photo.

Who is a real, true, living, breathing precious babe.

Really, truly living in awful conditions.

Alone.

No mama to kiss a feverish forehead.

No daddy to throw him high in the air.

No amazing pediatricians to give him a sticker and a lollipop after a shot.

I’ve been tortured by this sweet face.

Every night I lay my own babes down in their cozy beds in footed pajamas.

Every night I kiss them with a “mama loves you. see you in the morning. i’ll miss you.”

Every night I crawl onto my own pillowtop mattress and cover myself with my plush down comforter.

Every night I think: “Cliff is still laying in a disgusting, stark crib in a government run orphanage on the other side of the world.”

Cliff is real.

Cliff needs a home.

Cliff needs a family.

But for a family to bring home little Cliff, they need money.

And a lot of it.

And sometimes, it is simply that pesky issue of dumb, dumb, dumb money that keeps a sweet baby like Cliff in a vile government run orphanage.

Practically untouched.

Yet, I am encouraged by the fact that while Cliff may not have a cooing mama…he has a Father who loves him more than any of us can dare to imagine.

A sweet boy perfectly and wonderfully made by the same Creator that made your own little bundles.

Loved and as precious to God as we are.

Is your heart as broken and yet encouraged as mine?

Do you want nothing more than to scoop up Cliffy and hug him and kiss him and sing silly songs to him???

I do too.

My insides ache thinking abou t it.

Cliff is one of 143 MILLION orphans in the world.

Million.

Please stop reading right this second.

I want you to let that sink in.

143 million. Babies. Toddlers. Kids. Teens.

Children.

And Cliff is just one.

And that is crazy and overwhelming.

And it makes me want to throw up.

It makes me want to look the other way and walk away.

Pretend like I never saw it and go back to my turkey prepping, Christmas shopping, crafting, and wrapping.

There’s nothing I can do. It’s too big. It’ll never go away.

Right?

“Once our eyes are opened, we can’t pretend we don’t know what to do. God, who weighs our hearts and keeps our souls, knows what we know, and hold us responsible to act.” -Proverbs 24:12

WE can help Cliff.

One by one. Little by little.

I’ve teamed up with Reece’s Rainbow to be Cliff’s Christmas Warrior this season.

Here’s the scoop:

We are going to band together to help bring Cliff home.

I don’t know where home is, but we will make that easier for his family.

Donations will go directly to Cliff’s adoption grant fund. Not the general Reece’s Rainbow fund. Not spread out among 100′s of kids.

It will all be for Cliff.

So that when a family steps forward to take him in…some of the finances for his adoption will be covered.

Making it that much easier for them.

Because not all of us are called to adopt a baby.

But we are ALL called to serve, love and give.

“Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.” -Psalm 82:3

It’s right there. No bones about it. God makes it ultra clear.

It’s not about the perfect gift. A melt in your mouth turkey. Crafts. Or Martha-esque table settings.

THIS is what we are called to do.

To God be the glory."

You can donate to Cliff's adoption fund right here.

Tomorrow is the last day.

Only 40% of the goal has been met so far.Even $1 or $5 will make a difference for Cliff.

Thanks for listening.