a summer blessing...

...heard "three little birds" by bob marley this morning... such a happy sweet song! :)

oh my, it has been such a busy week... but finally, it is friday & today is the last day of my church's vacation bible school! whew... it has been a lot of fun hanging out with the kids this week... we had 23 kids in our 1st & 2nd grade class... wow! they all listened to the stories (for the most part) & they seemed to have fun! (i hope...)  & we could really tell that many of them worked hard on their memory verses. also, they gave over $200 to the (boys vs. girls) missions offering & that money will go to buy school supplies for poor children in other countries! they seemed happy to give for a cause like that! i just have to say, VBS week is always a tough one... BUT it is such a blessing to see the kids learning about Jesus' love & gift of salvation!! i pray that what they have heard in VBS will stick with them as they get older! Oh Lord, please use this experience to forever touch their lives & thank you for the blessing it brought me!

my first chevron bracelet...

since it's been so hot outside, my favorite thing to do is stay where it's nice & cool... making woven chevron bracelets! (it's my fun alternative to knitting, which i don't do a lot of during the summer...)

yesterday i finished my first bracelet & i love how it turned out!!

they are so easy to make... & the finished product is so cute! :)

now i have to start working on 2 more, for my best friends ever, my mom & sister

what colors would you choose for your bracelet?

friendship bracelets... from purl bee

i love that this trend is making a comeback! friendship bracelets are so colorful & easy to make!

all you need is your favorite colors of embroidery thread. i have been wanting to make one with

the chevron pattern & this DIY tutorial from purl bee helped me a lot...

{photos from the purl bee}

weekend movie: soul surfer

on saturday, my mom, sister & i went to see "soul surfer"! we didn't get the chance to see it when it first came out, but they were showing it at the dollar theater near where we live, so we thought we would go see it! we had lunch before the movie at red robin! & went to baskin robins for ice cream after the movie! yumm!!! it was a perfect day!!! & wow! what an amazing movie...

it is based on the very inspiring, true story of bethany hamilton... (in case you don't know) she is a pro-surfer from hawaii, who lost her arm in a shark attack in 2003, when she was only 13 years old. it was a miracle that she even survived & it was her amazing faith & family that got her through everything, so she could surf again! i can't imagine how hard it must have been, but she never lost hope in God's plan. the story was so inspiring! the cinematography of hawaii was so beautiful. & the surfing scenes, which bethany did herself, were amazing! it's definitely a good one to see!


& this week... it's all about vbs at my church... yay!!! my sister & i are teaching the 1st & 2nd grades! on Sunday afternoon we decorated our classroom with the new york theme for lifeway's "big apple adventure"... anyway, all the fun is about to begin, so i am sure it will be a crazy week, but i am looking forward to it!! i will share a few photos soon....

i hope you all are having a happy monday!
:)

happy birthday grandma!

today would have been my grandma's 73rd birthday! she passed away in 2004, but i still miss her so much & think about her almost everyday! she was so special to me & my whole family...

this is my favorite old photo of her, when she graduated high school... so pretty!

she had songs that she always sang to me & my brother & sister... my song was "you are my sunshine". i remember her singing it to me so many times, even when she was sick. she always called me her sunshine... she was my sunshine! she blessed my life in so many ways & there are so many sweet memories of times with her. those memories are such a special blessing to me now that she is gone...

my grandma dropped & picked us up from school everyday, because we didn't like riding the bus. my grandma watched movies with us & made the best popcorn ever. my grandma loved her "soaps"! my sister & i still watch "days of our lives" because we always watched it with her (...now my other grandma watches it with us)! my grandma colored with me on the floor when i was little, we went through many barbie coloring books! my grandma loved going to the mountains for picnics. my grandma loved everything about Christmas; she always went all out & she definitely instilled that in the rest of us! oh... there are so many more i could share... but the best of all is that my grandma loved Jesus so much & she taught me so much about Him!! i am so thankful that she is my grandma!

i love you, grandma!

TODAY...

sadly, i have always struggled a bit with knowing & understanding God's plans for me... i know that it's all about having faith, but so often that is easier said than done. well, lately i feel like i have been learning more about what it really takes to trust God's plan... & honestly, it is all up to us! we each have to make a conscious & daily choice to trust that His plans are perfect for us. the Bible tells us that "the plans of the LORD stand firm forever..." (Psalm 33:11) so we need to trust those words each day! we need to wake up every morning & give him our day, trusting Him with all things, big & small. & we have to spend time reading His word & talking to Him each day... that is the only way that our faith in Him will grow! 

we have to make a choice to give Him each day, as it comes, one day at a time...

so, i have decided, no matter what, today is beautiful, because the LORD gave us this day!!

{Psalm 33}

20 we wait in hope for the LORD; He is our help & our shield.

21 in Him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in His holy name.

22 may Your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD,

even as we put our hope in You.

today i will be spending a lot of time preparing for my church's VBS, which is next week!! my sister & i are teaching 1st/2nd grade! we are so excited, but there is still a ton of work to do...
please pray for us!! :)

i hope you all have a beautiful day!!

OVER THE WEEKEND: rockies baseball

i am a big fan of Colorado Rockies Baseball! A BIG FAN!!

& on Saturday, my family & i went to a game! it was their annual "fan photo day", so my sister & i got photos with some of the guys, which was amazing!! & even though they lost, by only one point & because of a really bad call.... it was still a really fun game!! :)

^ with Ubaldo Jimenez (starting pitcher)

^ with Dexter Fowler (outfielder)

^ with Jim Tracy (manager) such a nice guy!! :)

^ with Jonathan Herrera (second baseman)

^ with Matt Daley (reliever)

(love the high socks!!!)

& another beautiful colorado sky over coors field....

what a wonderful time we had! :)

GO ROCKIES!!!

HAPPY FRIDAY! {psalm 27}

i love to sit outside, in the quite of the morning.

as i listen to the birds sing... i read, journal, pray...

it is always the perfect way to start off my day!

this morning, i read Psalm 27 & it was full of verses that inspired me...

The LORD is my light and my salvation;

whom shall I fear?

The LORD is the stronghold of my life;

of whom shall I be afraid?

{v. 1}

Hear my voice when I call, O LORD;

be merciful to me and answer me.

My heart says of you, “Seek his face!”

Your face, LORD, I will seek.

{v. 7-8}

i am so thankful for the word of God & the comfort it brings me each & everyday!

i hope you all have a fun & restful weekend planned.

this weekend, i am going to see my favorite team play baseball!

i am so excited!!

:)

colorful summer style...

i had a bit of fun playing in polyvore today,

inspired by some of my favorite summer trends.

these items are cute & relaxed for the hot summer days.
& the summer-y color palette is my favorite!

summer days by brightside_02

summer shorts from j.crew

little blessings...

today i am thankful for the little things i have seen through my camera lens lately!

lavender in the warm summer light...

sweet blackberries from the garden...

& pretty peach nail polish...

sometimes the simple things are such a blessing & gift from God. there are so many big things in this life that we just can't control... truthfully we have to trust those big things over to God alone. but He never leaves us with nothing... there are so many little blessings in life, things we may have to look deeper for. often we need to meditate on Him & His love to realize all of the things He has done for us!

i read something the other day that i really liked...

"it helps to focus on the smaller things & somehow God meets us there."

:)

inspired by: linocut prints

from peaseblossom studio...

my fourth of july...

God Bless America!!

it was a wonderful day of family, food, fireworks & fun!!!

america!!

i am so thankful for all of the freedoms that we have in America!

i can believe in God freely, because of how this country was founded

& because of so many people who have stood up for freedom!

i am thankful & proud to be an American!

but my true & everlasting freedom is in Christ alone!!

all that i have been given is a gift from Him...

i am mostly thankful for that today!

i hope you all have a happy & safe 4th of july!

{see my photos from last year...}