Valentine's Day

How did our Valentine's Day go? Well...we did better this year than previous years! It still got a little lost in the shuffle but we did start one new tradition that was really fun. Secret Cupid. Of course I found it on Pinterest: http://www.bombshellbling.com/secret-cupids-valentines-day-family-tradition/

We should've started a week before but hey, it's me and we started a few days before. Better late than never right? Anyway, I went to dollar tree and bought a bunch of goodies, baggies and Valentine's, set them in a centralized location with a pen for writing on the Valentine's 

Then I made little notes and shoved each one into a sealed envelope for each person to pick one

Everyone got an envelope with a name. I picked two so I could help Gracie participate. My two oldest (boys 20 & 15) were reluctant but humored me and played along. We had 3 days to give secret treats and Valentine's to each other. It was really fun and everyone enjoyed the mystery. We had several laughs and it was cute to see everyone being sneaky. We even got in the mood to play clue because we wanted to solve the mystery. 

On Valentine's Day we went on a hike and in the evening, after dinner we revealed our secret Cupid! It was so much fun. I hope we will do this every year. 

Here are some links we used to learn about St. Valentine:

http://m.cbn.com/spirituallife/ChurchandMinistry/churchhistory/st_valentine_the_real_story.aspx

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/st-valentine-beheaded

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/4768652

And here are some ideas we didn't get to but hope to do next year:

-Send care packages and/or Valentine's to lonely people. We had a list going of people we thought could use a little extra love (widows, retirement homes, single people, etc) but didn't get a chance to mail them out in time for Valentine's Day. Maybe we will spread some love on an ordinary day instead. 

Another pinterest find, Heart Attack:

Smother someone with paper hearts that have reasons why you love them on it. http://www.bombshellbling.com/heart-attack/

Valentine's dinner:

My plan was to make a dinner themed with hearts and red then do our Secret Cupid reveal and Maybe have some games related to love. But...instead we ordered pizza and played Clue. 

Ding dong ditch:

Got this idea from a friend who does this with her kids. It's kind of a mix between the Secret Cupid and care packages. Secretly give treats or baked goods to people in your neighborhood. Especially the elderly or shut ins. Or anyone needing extra love. 

So, that was Valentine's Day. The next overlooked holiday is St Patrick's day. My husband is Irish so he is interested in doing something. I said "Go ahead!" Haha. We shall see...I'm gearing up for Easter. Possibly my favorite holiday!

Blues, Costa Rica & a Birthday

I've been in a funk lately. It's a recurring funk. Trying to sew my way out of it. Still have Valentine's Day ideas in the back of my mind somewhere and hoping it doesn't get lost in the shuffle again this year!

Yesterday, my oldest was offered a scholarship to Costa Rica. He would need to leave within a week! While scrambling to get a passport and plane ticket the opportunity was extended to the fall semester so he decided to go then instead. He will take these next several months to prepare for traveling and missions work there. I'm so proud of him and am thankful that he's gonna stick around for a few more months. 

My birthday was last week and I turned very old. Nothing exciting except for I had a bad cold for only one day. One of my bestest friends dropped me off several home remedies and some sweet treats. Not sure which thing did it - the ice cream & cake or the ginger tea & oils but I'm thankful that the cold was only one day!

I hope the blues turn to blue skies soon! I have a lot to be thankful for and I've got a lot to do!!

Valentine's Day Traditions?

We've never really had any traditions for Valentine's Day. I guess the only tradition would be me scrambling to make the cupcakes and valentines for my kids' school party. I've always flip flopped between feeling like Valentine's Day was either a dumb or romantic holiday and neither one of those ideas really sparked an interest in me to celebrate it as a family holiday. The idea of it being a holiday to celebrate God's love may have crossed my mind once or twice but with my birthday a few weeks after Christmas and my sons birthday a few days before Valentine's Day, the holiday always got lost in the shuffle.

With a new little one to teach I think it's time to put on my preschool mommy hat and dive into creating some fun and meaningful traditions for Valentine's Day. And what better way to celebrate the holiday of love than to reflect on the only lasting, true, perfect love, agape? It's always humbling to take a moment and remember just how great and personal God's unfailing love is.

Psalm 57:10

For Your unfailing love is as high as the heavens.

Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

Isaiah 54:10

"For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, 

but even then my faithful love for you will remain. 

My covenant of blessing will never be broken," says the LORD, 

who has mercy on you. 

Micah 7:18

Where is another God like you, 

who pardons the guilt of the remnant, 

overlooking the sins of his special people? 

You will not stay angry with your people forever, 

because you delight in showing unfailing love. 

Romans 5:8

But God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us

while we were still sinners.

1 John 4:10

This is real love - not that we loved God,

but that he loved us

and sent his Son as a sacrifice

to take away our sins

Ephesians 2:4-5

But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much,

that even though we were dead because of our sins,

he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead

(It is only by God's grace that you have been saved!)

Psalm 86:15

But you, O Lord, are a God of compassion and mercy,

slow to get angry 

and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness

Zephaniah 3:17

For the Lord your God is living among you.

He is a mighty savior.

He will take delight in you with gladness.

With his love, he will calm all your fears.

he will rejoice over you with joyful songs.

Romans 8:38

And I am convinced that nothing can separate us from God's love.

Neither death, nor life, neither angels, nor demons,

neither our fears for today, nor our worries about tomorrow - 

not even the powers of hell can separate us

from the love of God.

Lamentations 3:22-23

The faithful love of the lord never ends!

His mercies never cease.

Great is his faithfulness;

his mercies begin afresh each morning.

Through having a tough few years emotionally and a very tough pregnancy God truly pierced my heart with his love and my heart was healed. I am now able to love and live life to a greater extent than ever before. My hope and prayer for my children is that they would know and feel God's love so personally that they will be able to stand confidently through all the seasons of life. This verse is what I want my children to get out of Valentine's Day:

Ephesians 3:18-19

Then Christ will make his home in your hearts 

as you trust in him. 

Your roots will grow down into God's love 

and keep you strong. 

And may you have the power to understand, 

as all God's people should, 

how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 

May you experience the love of Christ, 

though it is too great to understand fully. 

Then you will be made complete 

with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. 

So, Valentine's Day traditions, a holiday celebration of glorious love. Where do I start?

Happy New Year!

I hope everyone's christmas was very very Merry. Ours was great! There were a few changes from what we usually do - some good and some not so good but overall it was a very nice Christmas. 

Now that Christmas is over and after taking these few weeks off, I'm looking forward to focusing more on the shop again. I've got a new work area set up and got a lot of new tools that I'm excited to use. New fabrics too!

Right now I'm finishing up a few modifications to some play mats, getting headbands and bows lined up for Valentine's Day, sending out orders, playing with new gift wrapping for headbands, and rethinking many processes. I'm pumped for the new year!

Welcome!

Welcome to the new website and blog. I am still in the process of getting everything working. There's not much to look at right now, but you check out my facebook and etsy sites.

Thanks for stopping by!

-Tina