ladies in yellow...

Everytime I see these lovely little flowers, they remind me of ladies in fancy yellow dresses. I love them. My dad gave me these :-)

a friend of mine...

they have finally arrived...

let the gardening begin!

before and after

Before...

Be sure to take note of the subtle wall paper on the bed wall :-) It was so much fun to remove the wall paper. hehe! Really, it wasn't too bad... there was layer upon layers of wall paper, so when we started removing it, all if came off in chunks like card board.

After...

All the embroidery hoops AND the fabric in them I got at thrift stores. I think I spent $5.00 total on this project.

The white pic frame was actually a gold framed clock at one time. We got it as a white elephant give at a christmas party this last year. I took out the clock pieces and spray painted it white and then put in a fun picture of us! Oh yes, and I can't forget to mention the art piece... this was done my lovely friend Pips Ebersole. At one time, she had an Etsy shop, but it is closed at the moment. If you are interested in her work, you can follow her on her blog at this address;

http://flyingpips.tumblr.com/

These white candle scones came with the frame pictured above. Like I said, they were apart of a white elephant gift that we received and they were both gold. I tell ya, a little spray painting does wonders! Also, got the funky yellow chair at yet another thrift store... think I paid like $3.99. Originally I bought it for when I do senior photos and such but I thought it looked great in our room too! Although, my husband does like how "70's funky" it looks. Oh well :-)

Our pillows are all from different places... bed bath and beyond, ikea, and some I made from Joanne's fabric or thrift store fabric.

These are the curtains I made for our bathroom. I found the fabric for them at a thrift store... its actually a queen sheet set. I paid $2.99 for them- such a bargain! And I still have leftover fabric for other fun projects!
Anyway it sure is fun to look back at what our room started as and see how far its come! What fun it has been to make our home! We feel so blessed!

spring beauty and Gods glory

I just can't help myself when it comes to blossoms and spring flowers... I just have to take pictures of them! There is something so lovely about nature... I just can't believe that God created something so beautiful for us to enjoy, and to bring Him glory.

The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
(Psalm 19:1 ESV)

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?

Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under his feet,
all sheep and oxen,
and also the beasts of the field,
the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea,
whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
(Psalm 8:3-9 ESV)

For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
(Romans 1:20 ESV)

showering baby king

Just a few pics from a shower that we hosted at our home a few months ago! It was SO fun! Can't wait to meet that sweet baby girl!

coconut flour bread

Hello all! I tried this recipe a while back, and am just NOW posting it! So sorry! Anyway, this recipe is indeed different than the coconut bread that I posted a month ago or so. This recipe is actually made with coconut flour- crazy right?! The great thing about coconut flour is that it is NOT a grain so it is perfect for those that are gluten intolerant.
This recipe was great! It was for sure not what I was expecting it to taste like though. Don't think "bread"... think more like "coffee cake" texture. Its great for breakfast or for a snack but probably would not go well with savory dishes.
Give it a try! Tell me what you think!

love
jess




Coconut Flour Bread: Ingredients
3/4 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup ghee (or butter), plus extra for greasing the pan
6 eggs
up to two tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon unrefined sea salt

Coconut Flour Bread: Equipment
stand mixer, food processor or mixing bowl and whisk
loaf pan

Coconut Flour Bread: Method
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Combine coconut flour, ghee, eggs, honey and 1/2 teaspoon unrefined sea salt together.
Mix all the ingredients together until they form a smooth paste with no clumps.
Grease a loaf pan.
Spoon the mixture into the loaf pan, and bake in an oven preheated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 minutes.

new blog name

So, I finally got a new blog name. What do you think? I think it fits perfectly!
I had stumbled upon the following verse... it was my inspiration for the new blog name!

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
(Ephesians 5:1-2 ESV)

I'll be making more changes to the blog in the next few weeks. So be on the look out!

love.
jess

Spurgeon love

Did I mention that I've really been enjoying Spurgeon lately?.... I especially love the quote at the bottom.

" If God should always rock us in the cradle of prosperity; if we were always dandled on the knees of fortune; if we had not some stain on the alabaster pillar; if there were not a few clouds in the sky; if we had not some bitter drops in the wine of this life, we should become intoxicated with pleasure, we should dream "we stand", and stand we should, but it would be upon a pinnacle; like the man asleep upon the mast, each moment we should be in jeopardy. We bless God, then, for our afflictions; we thank him for our changes; we extol his name for losses of property; for we feel that had he not chastened us this, we might have become too secure."

" So surely as the stars are fashioned by his hands, and their orbits fixed by him, so surely are our trials allotted to us: he has ordained their season and their place, their intensity and the effect they shall have upon us. "

Charles Spurgeon

love,
j

p.s.
still praying/thinking of a new blog name... waiting for just the right name!

changes...

hello friends!

This is a really quick post...
I just wanted to throw this out there and let you know that I'm thinking of changing the name of my blog. In life, God brings different seasons and those different seasons bring growth... in the past 6 months of being sick with Valley Fever (I'm still sick, but am having more good days than bad- praise Jesus!) the Lord has been doing some really hard and beautiful work in my heart. There are things that were once important to me, that consumed me and robbed me of my affections for Christ... but now those things pale in comparison to my Savior. I'm not saying that I don't struggle anymore. I'm saying that I AM STRUGGLING and fighting and persevering to find all my hope, value, security, acceptance in Jesus ALONE... so that He alone is my treasure in this life. I want the name of my blog to reflect those things.

So yeah... just a heads up that I'm thinking of a new blog name.

love,
j