Friday, May 4, 2012

Company Girl Coffee 5.4.12

Today's Small Thing is to come up with "Creature Comfort" for each of the five senses.  Since I was already going to share about our guest room here on my blog today, I decided to take the idea of having company over and run with it. 

Before

After
Sight: Our guest room has a new, fresh coat of paint!  We went with two colors, both in the warm grey family.  I am going to finish one of my Grandmother's old dressers to place in there and my husband is bringing home a painting to bring it all together.  Just in time to have company over this weekend!  Yay!

Smell: Chili in the crockpot for dinner tonight!  I will be making corn bread to go with it.  This meal always fills my kitchen with irresistible aromas!

Taste: Hmm...maybe I should have saved the chili for this one! :)  I'm always up for a good chocolate and I have some Frangos hidden away for a rainy day.  Yum!

Touch: Hugs and more hugs for our friends that are coming to visit!  I haven't seen them since January so they are missed and I am really looking forward to their stay.

Sound: There will be lots of laughter going on this weekend as our children play with their children and the adults visit and play board games. 

I love to play hostess and make our guests feel at home.  We've known them for years and they are like family to us. 

Have a blessed weekend everyone!  Thanks for joining me for coffee today!
~Melissa  

Monday, April 30, 2012

Psalm 103 - Bless the Lord, O My Soul!

This psalm renewed my spirits this morning.  I hope you are encouraged by it too.

Bless the LORD, O my soul,
And all that is within me, bless His holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
And forget none of His benefits;
Who pardons all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases;
Who redeems your life from the pit,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;
Who satisfies your years with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.

The LORD performs righteous deeds
And judgments for all who are oppressed.
He made known His ways to Moses,
His acts to the sons of Israel.
The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness.
He will not always strive with us,
Nor will He keep His anger forever.
He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him.
As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
Just as a father has compassion on his children,
So the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him.
For He Himself knows our frame;
He is mindful that we are but dust.

As for man, his days are like grass;
As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
When the wind has passed over it, it is no more,
And its place acknowledges it no longer.
But the lovingkindness of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him,
And His righteousness to children’s children,
To those who keep His covenant
And remember His precepts to do them.

The LORD has established His throne in the heavens,
And His sovereignty rules over all.
Bless the LORD, you His angels,
Mighty in strength, who perform His word,
Obeying the voice of His word!
Bless the LORD, all you His hosts,
You who serve Him, doing His will.
Bless the LORD, all you works of His,
In all places of His dominion;
Bless the LORD, O my soul!

Sunday, April 29, 2012

The Playroom!

We have this little room above our garage that immediately became the kids' playroom when we moved in last Summer.  Because it is not heated, it got a little neglected over the Winter.  Every time someone would go to put something away, it would just get tossed in there instead of put back in its place.  That's how it ended up like this...

Before
For the past two weekends I have asked the kids to give me an hour a day to work on the mess.  At first, it was really hard to know where to begin.  With some loving direction, they sorted, organized, threw out trash, and finally got it all clean.  Now it looks like this...

You can see the floor!

Games, Craft Supplies and Puzzles

Reading and Drawing Corner
I'm so extremely proud of my kiddos for a job well done!  Just in time to enjoy it with company next weekend!  Way to go!

I could still use one more set of shelves in there for storage, but that'll have to wait.  Garage sale season will soon be upon us and I'll keep my eye out for just what I need.

Saturday, April 28, 2012

Full to the Measure

"For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace."   
-John 1:16

I love this verse!

Paul uses this same word "fullness," in Ephesians 3:14-19, when talking about the love of Christ. In both cases, the greek root word is pleroma - definition - fullness, fulfillment, completion (Strongs concordance 4138)

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord's holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." (Emphasis mine.)

Filled to the measure. What does that mean to you? To me, that means never empty. Christ's love never runs out. Out of His fullness we have all received. And there is more where that came from. Grace upon grace. We have eternal access to this power, this love, that strengthens us and fills us up on a daily basis.

That, my friend, is a love worth celebrating!

May you be strengthened out of His glorious riches today,
~Melissa

Friday, April 20, 2012

April Flowers

FFA Wa-High Greenhouse
Last week I went on a field trip with my 1st grade daughter and we walked though this greenhouse.  The minute I stepped in, the sights and smells brought me clear back to my childhood.  When I was a kid, my parents owned a hardware store.  In the Spring, I would always go on trips with my mom to go pick up flats of flowers from very large greenhouses to sell at our store.  We even had a little greenhouse of our own in front of our store for the plants that needed the extra warmth.  I have such wonderful memories of going with my mom on those trips, and then helping her water the flowers when they needed it.  It makes me smile to think about it, and share it here.

Today's Small Thing  over at Home Sanctuary is to celebrate your history by finding an object in (or around) your home that brings a sweet memory to mind. 

The above picture is what came to mind when Rachel Anne talked about sweet memories.  It's been 25 years since we closed the doors to our store, but the memories will remain in my heart forever.  Now I have children of my own, and I love to take them with me to our Dollar Plus store.  They help out in any way they can and we are making memories of our own.  I hope that one day, they will look back and smile on these days with fond memories of us building something together.

Why not join us for Company Girl coffee today and share some sweet memories of your own? 
Blessings,
~Melissa

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Rachel Anne Ridge Art and Home

My wonderful friend, blogger, and artist, Rachel Anne Ridge is having an open house over at her new website this week!  You can visit her over at www.rachelanneridge.com and view all of her beautiful work.  In addition, she is running a special this week, through Monday that gives 15% your purchase of a canvas, and if your order is over $100, shipping is free!  Use code OPENHOUSE. 

Her canvases are an expression of her faith and would make a great addition to any home.  I have one of her originals hanging on my wall that I won several years ago at Home Sanctuary and she is having another giveaway in honor of launching her new business.  You can get the details here.

 Whether it's a piece for your own home, or a gift for a friend or family, you'll love what you see at Rachel Anne Ridge Art and Home, so let's get shopping!

Friday, April 6, 2012

Spring Break

This week we're on Spring Break. We spent 5 days on the West side of the mountains with family. Even though it was raining most of the time, we still had lots of fun. We stayed one night at my sister's house, and three nights at my mom's. 

We arrived home yesterday, just before my DH got home. The kids were so happy to see daddy pull in the driveway, they didn't even let him get out of the car before giving him huge hugs! :)  I kept forgetting my camera everywhere we went, but here are a few photos.
View from Grandma's House

Me, My Sister, and my Grandma

Cousins with Great Gram

Indoor recreation - Coloring Grandma's table cloth

Fields of Daffodils

Then we came home to this!

Is this Spring Break, or Winter Break?