Some Things I'm Loving...

Every now and then, I find some thing that I am so stoked about.  Today, I want to share two of them with you - 'cuz we're cool like that!

#1 - Trader Joe's Quick Cook Organic Brown Basmati Rice 

I love the idea of feeding my family brown rice, but can never seem to cook it perfectly.  I've tried a single boil, a double boil, a rice cooker... everything.  Nothing seems to make this healthy alternative into a tasty alternative... until now.  Something about scratching the rice grains to allow for a quicker soak or something... but this stuff cooks in like a third of the time as regular brown rice... and surprise - it has great flavor.  I cook it in chicken broth and that's it.  I would actually serve this rice to guests... it's that good... revolutionary!

#2 - Dash & Albert Rugs

To be honest with you, I can't really afford many rugs these days...this stay-at-home mommy gig doesn't pay much!  But I have been drooling over Dash & Albert's rugs for a while and I happened to see them carried at one of my favorite boutique-ey (like my new word?) stores in Alameda - Daisy's.  I actually picked up and unrolled a rug that I knew was PERFECT for my guest bathroom/kids' bathroom. [Aside: Imagine the kind of challenges that come with trying to decorate an adult themed guest bathroom while still making it kid friendly enough for evening bathtime and toddler potty training!] As I stared at that beauty of a rug, ran my hands over it, wiped my tears, one of the workers explained to me that this was actually an indoor/outdoor rug.  My initial thought was, "Dang it... I can't decorate worth anything!" But then she got super excited as she explained to me how amazing this rug actually was... it was perfectly comfortable underfoot yet could be sprayed down with a hose and washed outside.  Wait - did she say I could wash it down with a hose?! Uh, HELLO!?! Music to a potty training toddler mom's ears!  I was sold.  Did I mention to you that this beauty was actually in my budget too?  Beautiful and affordable.  It had it all going on!  Yeah for things working out, right? 

So now it's your turn.  What are some things you are super pumped about lately... those things that the rest of us should not go on living without knowing?

Hope Out of Hatred

Today, I have a lot more hope than I had yesterday.  Though it was fun watching Oakland from my balcony as its citizens set off more fireworks than I have ever seen, and while it was amazing to watch the enormous explosives my neighbors set off over my garage, these weren't the cause of my increasing hope.  The cause was actually something horrific that happened before any fireworks hit the sky.

One of my neighbors fireworks

I had run down to the local drug store to pick up some last minute items for our little bbq.  As I got out of the car, I heard a man on a megaphone yelling something.  Being very familiar with the street corner evangelists around our city, I expected to hear words like, "Repent", "Salvation", "Sin", etc.  But as I turned my head, I saw the man with the megaphone marching across the parking lot, carrying a hat full of bagged cookies and the men following him were doing the same.  I realized that they must be having a fundraiser of sorts.  As he neared, the man with the megaphone said, "Black babies and brown babies shouldn't be hung out in the streets."

Now, my initial thoughts on this man and his cookie-carrying followers had shifted.  As disturbing as his words were, I began to think that he was trying to raise support to stop violence against brown & black children.  (Because why else would someone be marching through a parking lot, carrying cookies and shouting in a megaphone?!)  If he tried to stop me, I began for formulate my out... "Sorry, I can't financially give today, but I do believe that all people are loved by God and I pray against harm to any children in the world."

As I turned to walk into the store, the man walked right toward me and shouted in his megaphone, "It should be the white babies hung out in the streets instead!"

Yeah, it was like getting the wind knocked out of me and being too shocked to even process how evil, how racist and how hateful those words actually were.

I made it through the store, bravely walked to my car and drove toward home.  As I was driving, emotions started welling up.  Who talks about any babies like that?  It doesn't matter what color someone is - you NEVER talk about hanging a baby out in the street!  It doesn't matter what you have been through in your life or any hatred or injustice you have experienced.  It really doesn't.

I pulled into my driveway to see the miraculous job my husband did cleaning out our garage and tried to put on an excited face to let him know how amazing of a job he had done.  But it didn't last that long - I broke down.  I just sobbed.  SOBBED.  And through my tears, I relived the story.

After talking it through, I think God began the healing in my heart.  What that man said, whether it was to me because I am a white girl that crossed his path, or whether he was going to say it anyway, he was just a glimpse of the hurt in this world.  He is a symptom-bearer of the evil in the world.

Our view of the citizens of Oakland's free fireworks show

But the good news is this: God is at work redeeming His people!  This man, and his evil words are not too far from the redeeming hand of God.  I have HOPE that God is at work in the world!  God invites me to be a part of this work - to not live into the hatred that was shown to me - but to live into the HOPE of a loving God who is turning the world upside down with his Love.

July 4, 2012

Can I be real with you today?  I'm feeling a bit anti-celebratory on this festive day.  I've been thinking about the state our country is in and the similarities we have to the state it was in 236 years ago.  I'm pretty certain that although on paper some men declared freedom, it wasn't all that celebratory.  Let's face it, we were in the middle of a war.  And if we are being real, there were people living on American soil who weren't intended recipients of the freedom that was declared.  I do have to give these founding fathers some credit... I believe they were honestly trying to establish something bigger than themselves.  From their perspective of the world, they wrote a decree, a demand, an establishment of our independence.

This one is for my fellow scarcastic friends out there! Source

I've been avoiding the obligatory, "God Bless America/Proud to be an American" Facebook status, because I don't really feel this way right now.  I'm genuinely grateful to live in this country.  I am learning to accept its faults and claim them as my own.  But I believe that God is bigger than just blessing America.  America was never established as an ambassador of God's kingdom.  It was established as a place where no one could inhibit your freedom to practice your religion or lack thereof.  Christians, on the other hand, you are called to be ambassadors of God's kingdom.

{Begin soapbox rant here:} If you believe the government shouldn't allow unborn babies to be killed because it is wrong, tell them so! Don't tell them it is wrong because we used to be a country established on the Bible.  And don't tie this issue to whether or not you think affordable healthcare is socialism!  Politics is not the way to move forward the kingdom of God! {End soapbox rant}

I'm not an economist, a politician nor an historian, but I feel pretty safe to say that we are not too far from where we were 236 years ago.  We still have a lot to learn about war and freedom.  And we still have leaders who are trying to do something bigger than themselves.

Here's my new Facebook status: Happy 236th Birthday America! May you [and the rest of the world] experience the undeserved blessings of God!

Tres de Mayo Ruffles and Flags

Every year when Cinco de Mayo rolls around, we host a party for the college-aged students we work with.  This year, that party fell on the 3rd... hence a Tres de Mayo party!  And what good is any fiesta without decorations?!  I've been wanting to try these crepe paper ruffled streamers for a while and since we are on a major budget, I figured that this was a good time to use them.  And seriously, how much cheaper can it get than crepe paper?  The ones I bought were 2 rolls for $1 at the Dollar Tree.  I was hoping to grab some red, green & white for the 3 colored ruffles... but the store only had green and white.  Sometimes you've just gotta work with what you have, right?

I think the ruffles came out Ah-Mazing! I can't wait to make more!  But I've got to tell you something - we haven't even been in our new place 2 months and there are quite a few boxes to be unpacked, pictures to be hung and closets to be organized.  I really have no business decorating for holidays.  But every now and then, I just need to be creative.  Anyone else feel that way?  Those curtains in the background of this picture.... they are from Ikea and haven't been hemmed.  But I needed to put that aside to decorate for a Tres de Mayo party.

This mantle is covered with all the items that I don't have a place for, but don't want the kids to break.  It is also covered with the crepe paper ruffles I didn't have time to be making! Ha! Oh the irony!  That's the way it is sometimes, right?  Sometimes we need the simple, creative things.

Since I only had the green and white crepe paper, I knew I needed some red.  I pulled out the last few sheets of the red-hued scrapbook paper pack I had in the closet.  I cut the paper in 1 1/4" strips and cut each of those strips 6" long (i.e. half of a sheet of scrapbook-sized paper).  With my hot glue gun heated up, I folded the strips over some bakers twine and dropped on a dab of hot glue in the middle.

And there ya' have it!  Fiesta decor on a budget!  But budget doesn't stop there... these thing were made for reusing.  They need a way to be stored up for the next party.  The ruffles are pretty sturdy with the stitching running down the middle and roll up nice and neat.

The flags were another story.  Those things can get tangled to the point that makes you wish you had tossed them in the trash after the 1st time you used them.  I needed something to make storage much easier... and that's when I remembered the way my Grandma had stored all sorts of things in empty paper towel tubes.  

It may not look pretty, but it works... my silly little flags are all stored up for the next party.

Maybe the Fourth of July!

Home Verse

Proverbs 11:25 (TNIV)

"A generous person will prosper;
 whoever refreshes others will be refreshed."

A friend on Facebook shared this verse in his status today. I actually stopped in my scrolling "tracks" and thought about this verse.  I ran it through in my head - over and over.  This makes sense to me. This is really what we want our home to represent.  Having just purchased a new place, this is really real to me.  We want the people who walk in our doors to be refreshed and to feel blessed.  We love an amazing God and are constantly aware of how much we also need His refreshing.

The way this verse resonated with me made me think about a post by Emily over at Jones Design Company.  She asked the question, "What kind of family are you?"  I really didn't think that I had an answer for that and went on my way.  But having read this verse led me to the thought: What if that was what our family was all about? What if we were a generous and refreshing family?  How cool would that be?

That's what I want our home and our lives to speak!

And now the artsy part of me is trying to figure out a creative way to display this verse in our home!  Any suggestions?

Shopping with a Purpose

It isn't hard for me to admit that I love shopping.  But what I love even more than just shopping is shopping with a purpose.  I am not talking about going to Target with the purpose of buying Up & Up fabric softener.  I am talking about using my buying power to make a difference.  In this case, it was making a difference in the lives of very young girls in Oakland.  The boutique committed to at least 25% of the proceeds (many vendors gave a lot more!) going to New Day for Children. 

New Day is a grassroots organization that is seeking to combat the evils of human slavery & sexual trafficking of young girls.  This is a huge weight on my heart, especially because Oakland is a hub for trafficking activity.  New Day seeks to provide safety and holistic healing for each of the girls.  Though this type of care is not nearly as expensive as moving these girls in and out of "Juvi," it does have a cost.  New Day is committed to having each girl fully funded before entering the program, which does mean that girls have been turned down when there hasn't been money.

In steps my friend Natalie.  She felt a burden to use her gifts to raise money for New Day so that one day, no girl would ever be turned down due to lack of funds.  Natalie is the creator of Natterbugs.  She makes the most amazing lotions, soaps and body products.  They smell so yummy!  And they look even yummier!!

Natalie was the one who rallied everyone together to sell any and all beautiful handmade items and donate a portion of the proceeds to New Day.  This year was the 2nd year for the boutique and what a blessing it has been!  I know it took a toll on Natalie and our other lovely friend Wina (who has the amazing ability to make everything look like it came together without lifting a finger - aren't you jealous of people like that?!) So tonight I just want to say, "Thank You!" to you beautiful ladies.  You do amazing things and I am inspired by you!

Don't worry... I have pictures of the boutique (well, I tried to take pictures in the middle of my shopping and chit-chatting!) on my camera and will get those up soon.

Thanks for taking the time to hear me out from up on my soap box.
Now it's your turn...
"What is your favorite way to shop with a purpose this Christmas?"

Christmas Wishlist

I've got to admit - sometimes I think things in my head as if I were blogging them. Sad, I know - but it's true.  So as I was assembling my Christmas Wishlist and picturing what it would look like on "my" blog and how I would write about each item on "my" blog, I thought, "Why not?" Why shouldn't I start up my own blog and have a place to write out all those crazy one-sided dialogs (totally different than a monologue!) I have running in my head.  So here we are!  My first ever blog post! {Are you as excited as I am?!?!}  And what better topic than my Christmas Wishlist.

 These are the 'Jane' Boots by Frye.  I first saw these here.  Do you know how badly I wish I was the winner the Pioneer Woman picked??!! It would have been amazing, right?! With their $300 price tag, I don't think I will be getting these this Christmas. {sigh} I guess that is what Wish Lists are for... wishes!

These are from the November giveaway over at Jones Design Company.  Not only am I in love with these adorable mittens (that fold back to reveal gloved fingers!), I am also in LOVE with the fact that these gloves are made with purpose and beautifully provided for sale by the folks at Noonday Collection.

Lastly, I want a real hot glue gun.  Sounds ridiculous, I know! But I love doing projects that look super fancy, but only needed a glue gun to complete.  I have been using a terrible, tiny, cheap glue gun for years.  The thought of having to struggle with my less-than-functional gun every time I want to create just makes me sad.  So, yes, this Christmas, I am asking my husband for a hot glue gun.  You know he thinks I'm crazy, right?!


That's my Christmas Wishlist friends... well that plus world peace! (Obviously!)

What is on your list this year?