Graceful ~

Meaning of the name Anne: grace; graceful; gracious

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Have you ever met me?

Graceful, I am not.

This fact has been a joke in my family since I was young.

It's not something I dwell on for the most part.

After all, it's just a word.

Right?

The past few days have rudely reminded me of the lack of gracefulness that I tend towards.

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A reminder like falling down the porch steps with a basket full of clean laundry in my arms, heading towards the clothes line. (I admit, I laid on the driveway and whimpered like a wounded puppy.  Pathetic. )

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Or trying to finagle an umbrella in the rain.  And wind.  Especially the wind part.  And should I mention that I carry a vibrant green umbrella?  Hard to miss the girl walking down the street with that! All the while struggling to keep it upright and not have it blow away while her hands are full of other paraphernalia.  Awkward moments.

And people ask me why I usually just run through the rain and skip the umbrella.  Really?  They obviously have never seen me try to use one.  One day I'll end up like Mary Poppins and be carried away by it.  Only mine will be bright green.  You'll be able to see me coming!

But there's more to the story than that. Perhaps we are quick to forget that there is a drastic difference between graceful and grace.

And this grace business?

It changed my life.

{Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
that saved a wretch like me...}

That "wretch" the song was referring to, is me. 

I am the wretch, made beautiful only by the amazing grace that God has extended to me.  He chose me, not because of anything I have done, but because of the plan He had for my life.  A plan that He knew before the very foundation of the world.  Wow.

Grace was extended to me, a sinner, and allows me to have a personal relationship with God through His Son, my Savior, Jesus Christ. 

This Grace has promised me an eternity in Heaven, instead of the hell that I otherwise deserved. 

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.
Ephesians 2:8-9

I love that my name means grace; a constant reminder of God's love for me and the beauty of His plan for my life. 

{I once was lost, but now am found.
'Twas blind, but now I see.}

Bacon Bliss

A couple of weeks ago I was introduced to a new method of cooking bacon. It has changed our life. . .or at least our diet!

{Maybe not for the better. . . but our tastebuds certainly are happy!}

I now cook bacon in the oven.

How many of you already do that?

Have I been living under a rock?

{Don't answer that.}

I first saw my mom doing this a few weeks ago and couldn't believe how well it actually worked.  And then I tasted it.  Oh yeah, it works.  And in our house, it has become a favorite!

Good bye, frying pan!  Hello, broiler pan!

The best method I have found is:

• Line an edged pan with foil
• Lay bacon strips flat
• Place is a cold oven 
• Set temperature to 400 degrees
• Cook for 17-20 minutes
• Keep a close eyes on it after 17 because it will burn easily if it goes too long.  When it's done, place on separate plate so the hot grease don't continue to cook the bacon.

The greatest about this method?

NO STINK & NO MESS!

I hate coming home the day after I have cooked bacon and having a dirty greasy smell permeating everywhere. But this way, no smell!!

And once you have all that crispy-cooked-to-perfection bacon...

the possibilities are endless!

We started with this:

Bacon & Brown Sugar Stuffed French Toast

(recipe available here) 

  

This was some good stuff! 

Perfect with fresh maple syrup, straight off the farm!

Next on my list to try is a Peanut Butter & Bacon sandwich, creation compliments of Lindsay.

What do you do with Bacon? 

Wall Decor

I’ve had the urge to spice up my house a bit.

Maybe it’s all the dark & gloom we’ve had outside lately…

Or maybe it’s just the fact that I get bored looking at the same things on my wall all the time.

So I pulled out some wall decal that I bought cheap at Target awhile ago. { And when I say cheap, I mean $3.24-kind-of-cheap. }

I was feeling brave so I plastered them all over the wall in my kitchen, in a hopefully random-yet-seemingly-artsy way. 

{ Exhibit A } 

{ Exhibit B }

It helped appease my current need to have something new on my walls...but we'll see if I come up with anything else in other places. You just never know when the mood still strike...

Do you have any cheap ways to give your house a quick facelift?



Suggestions?

This weekend we are headed to:

AND

I've shopped there a couple times before and found things I like, but wondered if any of you have recommendations of things that are really great from there! 

We don't get to go very often so I want to make sure I'm not missing out on anything!

Do any of you shop there?

{hello monday}

Today I am channeling my inner Lisa Leonard and stealing her idea of hello monday.

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hello perfect sunday

hello 80 degrees and beautiful sunshine

hello shoes and long walk with my husband.

hello birds, singing and happy

hello rabbits jumping in the grass

hello fresh flower beds and daffodils

hello picnic table back on the patio

hello smiles and laugher because we're outside

hello first grilling of the season

hello sun-kissed faces and windblown hair

hello grass soon needing to be mowed

hello fresh laundry hung on the line

hello perfect day; i so enjoyed your visit

hello monday; thank you for the memories of yesterday

what are you saying hello to this morning?

Fairytale Dreams




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Sometimes I think about how amazing it would have been to live in a medieval castle.

We have fantasized about fairy tales since we were little.

Balconies. Moats. Drawbridges. Towers.

Will you climb the tower to save me?

 Knights & Fair Maidens. Princes & Princesses.

The daring rescue of the damsel in distress! 

These tales have undoubtedly created an unrealistic picture in my head of what it was really like way back when.  Back before modern conveniences and equal opportunity.

Blood.  Poverty.  War.  Contamination.  Slave labor.

But there is no denying, those castles look mighty stunning.



 

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The castles themselves might be out of reach, but the men that guarded them...

Those heroes...

They're still around.

I live with one.

I get to spend every day with my hero. 

My prince. My knight in shining armor.

He protects his family. 

Loves me with all his heart.

Works hard to provide.

Slays my dragons.

He tries to make all my dreams come true.

So maybe I don't have any moats or drawbridges, but that doesn't mean I don't have the fairy tale.

Every day I get to be a princess, and I wouldn't trade my prince for all the castles in the world.



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Wordless Wednesday

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Happy hump day,

This is the Stuff



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Standing barefoot in the kitchen.

Eating burned toast; drinking yesterday’s leftover coffee.

Running late for work; gulping down the last few drops.

Lean forward so the coffee running down my chin lands on the floor and not my white shirt.

Last night’s dishes piled in the sink.

Grocery bags scattered all over the floor.

The alarm went off too early.

Allergies are running me ragged. I sneeze as if right on cue.

It’s easy to forget but I need to remember.

“The joy of the Lord is my strength.”

Maybe Francesca Battistelli had days like this.

I like the way she said it:

This is the stuff that drives me crazy
This is the stuff that's getting to me lately
In the middle of my little mess
I forget how big I'm blessed

I choose to have my glass half-full today....despite the burned toast.

Missin' Maui

Have I mentioned that I fell in love with Hawaii when we were there last year?  Yes, I'm sure I have.  Once, twice, maybe a dozen times.  There is a reason they call it paradise. 

Over the past year, many reminders of our time in Hawaii have crept into our lives.

Ornaments.

Window decals.

Birthday parties.

Greetings.

Most recently, I cleaned the shells we brought back.  I soaked them in a bleach solution and scrubbed them up the best I could. 

This is where we found them:

And this is where they are now:

A constant reminder of the place that invades my dreams.

Where are you dreaming of today?