Go check out the Peru trip on Compassion’s blog!

Such amazing stories. So many children being cared for. So many mothers’ hearts relieved because they have the help they need to make a better life for their precious children. One of the bloggers has her twin daughters with her – I can only imagine the lifetime memories those sweet girls will have. I have especially enjoyed ‘watching’ them on this trip. So many sweet, sweet children. 

Today I am giving thanks for: Content Children.

Today Vince spent several hours going to help those in need by handing out food for Thanksgiving. He was actually a ‘runner’ – a group of high school boys who’s job was to carry food to the recipients vehicle. He was really looking forward to going and enjoy every minute of it. He is 15 – when I picked him up his words were,

“I’m so glad I did that, but it is so hard to not judge people.”

While it makes me sad there are people who will take advantage of those choosing to make a difference and help others in our community, I am so thankful he knew he had to be proactive to not judge. He said the hardest ones were when they’d carry food out to a brand new, clean, $20K car. He just kept telling himself he didn’t know their circumstances.

*Please keep in mind – to us, a $20K car is really expensive, unheard of. In fact, in my lifetime I don’t think my parents have ever owned a vehicle that cost them that much. My dad’s hobby is to buy totaled, wrecked cars, fix them and sell them. In the meantime, we drive them. The van I currently have, I’ve been driving for 6 (or 7) years – I don’t remember. My dad is finishing up fixing a different vehicle for us right now … the last couple days I’ve been driving it to make sure ‘I like it’ {I’ll come back to this}. Right now – the car is three colors. Like it? What is there to not like – the van is getting 17-18 mpg, this car – 27mpg!  Ya, world of difference! Granted, I do find it ironic that when the kids are the size of two small adults & we’ve added a cello to our family we are now moving into a vehicle 1/2 the size. :-D*

Christine spent the day making a Christmas present – totally on her own. Including sewing it together. I didn’t help with measuring, cutting, or sewing. I spent the day working to ignore the nausea I’m still feeling and studying. working on Christmas presents. while holding my new baby niece. I’m really, really ready to feel better. It’s been a long week – but we’re headed into Thanksgiving week. and the kids got the van cleaned out. I get to drive to church in a clean vehicle. YAHOO!

The post Giving Thanks [17] appeared first on Flowers&Rust Co..

In my mind, the rest of the year is a holiday, a celebration – preparing for Thanksgiving; Thanksgiving; preparing for Christmas; Christmas; then a New Year. This year in preparation for Thanksgiving I am wanting to post something I am thankful for each day leading up to Thanksgiving, by publicaly giving thanks.

Too often I forget to say what I am thankful for out loud.

I love this season. Slowing down. Warm & cozy is the norm. LOTS of creating. We pretty much make all Christmas gifts, and this is when we start. Thanksgiving and Christmas are seasons of giving and sharing.

Today I am giving thanks for: Less Wind. Electricity. Water.

Less Wind: Today is less windy than yesterday. I have been able to be online and catch up on the computer. {but as soon as I post I’m going back to sewing. almost done with CJs blanket}

Electricity: Yesterday it flickered a lot. Yet today we have it. So many on the East Coast are still working without it. It is a simple joy I tend to take for granted sometimes. Even with no internet I can still sew, when I have electricity.

Water: Often the wind causes electricity to go out, which then means limited water. I am thankful to have clean water to drink and use freely. So many don’t.

The post Giving Thanks appeared first on Flowers&Rust Co..

I am so thankful for the grace of God. He loves me regardless. 

I am not worthy of His grace. but He has given it anyway.

I mess up daily. but He forgives me each time I ask.

I just have to accept His grace. and ask His forgiveness.

I have lots rambling around in my head – but I don’t have the inclination to work through it right now. But I will. There are just so many things going on and I’m a slow processor. I need time to think. and I’m tired of talking.

Also, I’m asking for grace from all of you – after today I’m not going to post for a few days. We are planning to have Christmas with mom & dad and my brother, his wife & their girls on Thanksgiving. I’ll be crafting. My fingers will be busy. My mouth will be quiet. My mind will race and process. My heart will be content.

I don’t typically buy gifts – we make them. But, I can’t keep up with being a good mom, homeschooling, working, crafting, blogging, and keep up on the house. This year, my brother convinced my parents to draw names. We are only doing a gift for one person. I tried really hard to be agreeable. I just can’t. It ruins the idea of gift giving at Christmas to me to only be allowed to give one gift. 🙂 So, my deadline is three days away… I need to get started. Hardcore! I only have 3 weeks to get the other kids’ blankets made too, ‘cuz mom & dad will take them when they go.

I hope and pray you have a blessed & happy Thanksgiving.

A day of sharing with others. If you don’t have someplace to go – why not invite others over? Remember, you don’t need to have lots of space or fancy things. Just open your home and heart – choose to share what you have. You will all be blessed in the sharing and getting to know each other better. We were created for relationship. First, a relationship with HIM; secondly, a relationship with other believers.

The post Giving Thanks [19] appeared first on Flowers&Rust Co..

To learn more about or link up with Five Minute Friday, go to Lisa-Jo’s blog.

1. Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking.
2. Link back here and invite others to join in.
3. And then absolutely, no ifs, ands or buts about it, you need to visit the person who linked up before you & encourage them in their comments. Seriously. That is, like, the rule. And the fun. And the heart of this community..

Oh and Ahem, if you would take pity and turn off comment verification, it would make leaving some love on your post that much easier for folks!

OK, are you ready? Please give us your best five minutes on:

Roots…

Go: My first thoughts on roots are heritage. I have a rich, rich heritage. I am blessed and I know that. I am so very thankful for my roots. I immediately thought of this picture of my Grandma smelling the roses Grandpa gave her for her 81st birthday. Her birthday was on Christmas Eve. My mom’s mom was born on October 31st.

Funny how both Grandma’s had unforgettable birthdays, and had amazing artistic talent, and both Grandpa’s were pastors. My roots are in a Christian heritage as far back as anyone has ever checked. My mom’s parents were married in Paris and missionaries in Africa when my mom was born. When mom was 1 they moved back to the states because my Grandpa got sick. My mom was the youngest of three. When they came back to the states he pastored in several places. My dad’s parents pastored in the same town in northern Wisconsin for over 40 years. :Stop

These are my dad’s parents in December 2003. {I got my extreme love of flowers from Grandma.} They were the last flowers he gave her while she was alive; she passed away less than a month later. My kids and I were there to help take care of Grandma & Grandpa while mom & dad were in session. A week after getting there my Grandma had a 2nd stroke (1st was year prior, while mom & dad were in session); two weeks later she passed away. My kids and I stayed with Grandpa to help him with starting kidney dialysis and adjustment to life without Grandma. They had been married 6 months short of 60 years – 59 1/2 years! We stayed with him a total of 7 1/2 months. It was amazing, my kids were 6 1/2 and 3 1/2, I’ve never regretted a day of that time. They are still fond memories and none of us will ever forget it. If you ever have the opportunity to take care your grandparents – take it, you won’t forget it. Ever.

~~~ ~~~ ~~~

Today I am giving thanks for: Family. Heritage. Roots.

Family: I have family I miss and love. As I’ve said before – I’m glad it hurts they are gone because it means we love each other.

Heritage: I have a rich heritage of family and togetherness. I realize this is not everyone’s norm and I don’t ever want to take it for granted.

Roots: I grew up not knowing anything but a Christian family with roots very, very deep. Most of my dad’s family is still in the midwest. There are other pastors, missionaries, and Christian college staff in my family. Even with all of these roots, I know I am only saved because of the Grace of God.

{I will work on getting my mom’s parents’ wedding pictures scanned and into the computer.[I have one of my dad’s parents, but I’m saving it for a post with both] It is so cool – with the Eiffel Tower in the background! I have other cool mementos of my grandparents – but they aren’t digital. I’ll have to work on remedying this.}

The post Giving Thanks.2 {FMF: Roots} appeared first on Flowers&Rust Co..

The post Happy Thanksgiving! appeared first on Flowers&Rust Co..

Today I am Giving Thanks for: Children. Time. Childhood

Children: I am so thankful for my children. They are indeed a heritage from the Lord. As hard as being a single mom is, I’m glad I have them. Last night was just me. That doesn’t happen very often {maybe 5 or 6 times}; it was quiet. I didn’t watch a movie or even have music with words. But I’m ready to have them back today. I can’t imagine having split custody. I know my growth has happened because I am a mom and just had to keep going. No matter what I felt like.

Time: I have had lots of time with my daughter this week. Unexpectedly we had three days. at home. {sigh}  Not only did the non-moving pace do me wonders, we had time to just be. Vince had several opportunities come up, since Wednesday morning he has been here for 12 hours – 9:30pm to 9:30am on Thursday. But it’s been good. He got friend time and Christine & I had some good connect time. We needed that time after the brutal week last week – honestly, since she turned 12 it’s not been that great. The last several days felt normal – as in before she turned 12 – it was awesome! {See below for more about my thankfulness for time this week}

Childhood: I ache for children to get to have an innocent childhood. Our culture, society, is rushing them to grow up so fast. I often feel like a stick-in-the-mud for saying ‘no’ to so much of what today expects is normal. I don’t believe we need to be on the go constantly. I see so many kids who are just tired. and not able to appreciate whatever event they are because they’re focused on the next. No matter how much they forward to something, it’s all about the next event. plan. place they have to be.

~~~ ~~~ ~~~

Because we got to stay home {the time I mentioned above in Giving Thanks} the last 3 days I got to sew. Christine had asked me to make her a quilt for her bed. In 20 mins she picked out all the material – over 2 months ago. She has been waiting patiently. When she picked the material I really didn’t like it. I kept thinking ‘Ick! these don’t go together’, but it was all material she really wanted. So I got it. I don’t usually start with a pattern, only an idea. So there weren’t right or wrong quantities to get of each – just is there enough or not?

It started out as being a quilt for her bed. She wanted a disappearing 9 patch. then a quilt to curl up in. then just a “big blanket to cover everything, including my toes.” {I’ve made her two other quilts – one for her crib, one for the toddler bed. neither are quite big enough}.

But I love it! She did an amazing job with colors and patterns. She just grabbed and didn’t have a favorite — it takes me f.o.r.e.v.e.r. to pick material and then I’m tired of it before I finish.

My sets of 3 strips sewn together and cut to make the 9 patch. About here I decided I didn’t like 9 patch blocks after all. {I’ve mentioned loving flowers….never noticed all the flowers around the head of my bed. 3 in frames, on the lamp, and the wood box says ‘petite fleurs’. and yes, my iron has turquoise duct tape holding the handle together :-)}

At this point, I really didn’t like 9 patches. But my points were lining up — love my new machine! Also, I thought why on earth am I going to cut these apart to make the disappearing 9 patch?!  But I did for several. Until I was sick of trying to turn them the right way – what a pain! I sewed many together wrong. I did not pick them out & re-sew, I just kept going! Have to admit I’m appreciating shedding the perfectionist in me. I get things done quicker when I let go a bit… 

When I started this not-twin size disappearing 9 patch quilt…. I made the 9 patch blocks then started cutting them apart & re-sewing together. Decided I didn’t like doing that any more. so there are 9 patch blocks in the center, outlined in a tone-on-tone print brown {from material I had here at home – good thing I had it too! Even though I don’t remember what I actually bought it for.}, then the disappearing 9 patch blocks, with more of the brown to fill in the spaces….

The finished result of all my “mistakes”…My points don’t match, I didn’t measure – which is why there are brown chunks…also noticing I goofed the left corner spacing up. uh, duh.  oh well. Personally, I think the materials are a bit too busy for the disappearing 9 patch. around the edges they are fine, but I think the whole top would have been gaggy.

For the back I used one piece of material. Of course, I didn’t measure, it wasn’t wide enough, so I added 3″ strips on both sides. I did not do a binding. I sewed inside out and flipped it. then sewed around the edges. I stitched in the ditch around the center brown piece and did blanket ties for the rest.

This is a close up of the backside flipped over to the front. The curvy is what I stitched around the outside edge after flipping it right side out. The straight stitch in the ditch is what I did around the center brown square.

So what is it? it isn’t all quilted. it isn’t all tied. there is no outer binding. does that make it a quilt or a blanket? Who knows, but it covers all of her! It is mismatched and she loves it. She is 12 and wanted a blanket to wrap up in, made by mom. She wanted it in time for the lock-in she went to last night. Score – I had it tied, folded, and in the bag 3 hours before she left. Nailed it!

I’m linking up for the first time with Studio JRU for ‘in the studio…sneak peek friday‘. The intent is to share what we’ve created during the week and encourage others who are creating too.

**I sent my camera off last night. I’m hoping they are able to fix it to be the way so many talk about their D3100’s or deem it unfixable and give me the money so I can start all over with purchasing one. I really hope this is not a camera I can’t ever trust – or do anything about.**

The post Giving Thanks [3] appeared first on Flowers&Rust Co..

Daylight Savings & Sleep: I believe these are self-explanatory. I can not begin to adequately describe how the extra hour of sleep is heavenly.

I realize not all states do this, but I am thankful we do. It is wonderful to go to bed and have it actually be an hour earlier. I learned when I was doing school online, to not use that extra hour the night before. I tend to naturally be a night owl – I used to stay up an hour longer and just “claim” I was going to bed at the same time. It never really worked, and I never learned. However, because I was doing school via University of Phoenix and Arizona doesn’t observe daylight savings…my assignments had to be turned in two hours earlier than the midnight deadline, instead of the 11pm deadline I had when we changed back in April. Ya, I learned quick – had 3 cycles of daylight savings in those 20 months. Thankfully, the first cycle was just two short months after I started.

I hope you are able to have a rest-full Sunday. I am looking forward to a day of rest after a refreshing week :-D. It has been a long time since I’ve been able to look forward to the new week ahead. This continues to be the verse I’m hanging onto this week. I know I will need the constant reminder. In particular with elections this week – He is in control! No matter what our circumstances look like. 

I will Give Thanks in ALL circumstances.

I’m not often political on here – but I will say, it is imperative to vote. This is why we live in such a great country, with freedom. Because our forefathers felt our freedoms were important. Worth giving their lives so we could have a better life. For those of you reading who are Americans, don’t ignore that portion of your heritage. If Tuesday doesn’t work for you, look for your local Division of Elections offices, some have the option of early voting.

I’m linking up with Fresh Brewed Sundays with Barbie over at My Freshly Brewed Life. Come join with others sharing a scripture with each other. What a blessed way to spend time with blog friends!

The post Giving Thanks [4] appeared first on Flowers&Rust Co..

I am once again reminded how thankful I am for heat, blankets, warm clothes, my socks. My home. I believe this is self-explanatory, I don’t need to explain what or why.

My home is not big, but it is ‘my space’. A space to call my own. I can’t imagine having it all ripped away with little to no notice. Many on the East Coast have lost their homes. While losing their home and all belongings is huge, overwhelming. So many are barefoot and just wishing they had a pair of socks. I’m in Alaska – nearly the furthest US state you can get away from the East Coast (Hawaii wins by 500 miles) – I feel a bit ‘out of the way’ to be of any help. But, this is a way I can help and I’m excited to have something tangible I can do. Almost like a giving a virtual hug. or a warm cup of tea. with warm feet. I am also giving thanks for this opportunity.

Here is something requiring action, now. and most of us can help. Due to the nature and urgency of this particular need, please mail by Friday, November 9th. Go to Laura’s blog to learn more about the situation, and to get her mailing address. There are also directions for how to donate easily to the Red Cross.

With Laura’s permission from The Shed – I copied the picture and her thoughts directly from her post. This picture is the neighborhood near hers. She is taking gloves and hats too, but other clothing items are in sufficient supply at this time. The shortage is for warmth – socks, gloves, hats.

Imagine it being your child(ren), father, mother, brother, sister, or other extended family member without socks, gloves, or hats, a way to stay warm. Items most of us have lots of and take for granted.

I couldn’t get the socks thing out of my head. People needed socks. People were walking around barefoot. But it was more than that, this sort-of obsession about socks. Putting socks on cold feet signifies warmth and comfort – a small bit of goodness during what will be a long and difficult road. It bothered me all night.

Yes, we live at the shore. Going barefoot goes hand-in-hand with living at the beach. But after this storm? It is much chillier around here. And the forecast is for another possible storm to arrive in about four days. People need socks for warmth. Now.

I am thankful for my warm items of clothing. As an action of my thankfulness, I will be sending a virtual hug to provide warmth. This is how I will be giving thanks this week.

The post Giving Thanks [5] appeared first on Flowers&Rust Co..

Today I am Giving Thanks for: Freedom

I am blessed to live in America. I have not lived through the pain of the price for my freedom. I don’t ever want to take it for granted.

I realize there is a 50/50 chance I won’t like the outcome of different political races, whether local or national. But after today, it is a plan set in motion. This is the way our forefathers set up for our country’s government to hear the cries of the people. I am choosing to give thanks today regardless of the outcome, yet to be determined. I will still be American.

I was first born free as an American, then I was born again into freedom in Christ. I am able to freely worship my Heavenly Father and talk about Him – because of my freedom of  being an American. Others before me believed that was important enough to give their lives for. I don’t want to waste their effort.

Just as Jesus gave his life for our sins.

Our freedom from sin is a gift, a done deal.

We just have to accept it.

So often I get caught up in thinking I have to do something. I don’t. You don’t.

Just like I don’t have to do something to be American. I am American because of the roots of my heritage, my parents’ nationality. … All that said – I do have to choose Christ. My freedom in Christ is between God the Father and myself. Not because of who my parents are or where we live. I am not a believer because I am American anymore than I am American because I am a believer.

“For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1

This verse tells me I could choose the yoke of slavery, even after choosing freedom. I wonder how often do I do this without realizing it? I am eternally thankful for the gift of grace extended by my Heavenly Father. I mess up each day, yet He promises to forgive me each time I ask.

What about you – do you realize when you get caught up in thinking you  have to do something to keep/earn your salvation in Christ Jesus?

The post Giving Thanks [6] appeared first on Flowers&Rust Co..

Don’t forget – if you are planning to be part of helping others be warm. Your packages need to be mailed by Friday! You still have time to go get warm socks, gloves, or hats to spread some warmth. Go to Laura, at The Shed, to learn more about Socks for Sandy– she’s the head of this.

Today I was the recipient of another person’s anonymous generosity. Totally unexpected. I don’t expect to ever know the giver, and they won’t know me. But their generosity will NEVER be forgotten.

I’m going to keep this fairly vague – but I will say I had an appointment today I knew going into I couldn’t pay for. When I sat down I told the person I would owe the money to I wasn’t sure why I was there and it was stressing me out trying to figure out how to pay. She proceeded to tell me someone from another state had called an gave a donation to help someone – that anonymous donation was credited to my account. And we were okay to not do an appointment so as not to accrue more charges today. I was stunned – for a moment, then I burst into tears, and I continue to be stunned.

I told my daughter afterwards – I want to live that way. I want to have money so I can freely give.

Then I realized – the pleasure I have when thinking about someone slipping on warm socks, a hat, or a pair of gloves we have sent from Alaska. I do get to be a small part of a huge giving. I am Giving Thanks! It’s the little things like socks, gloves, and a hat that can keep you physically warm, but a ‘little’ thing like giving to warm the heart and soul.

I’m choosing to give thanks for the opportunity to have received anonymous generosity – so I can even better appreciate the feelings of those who will receive our gifts of warmth. Especially knowing that right now they don’t have the means or ability to provide these articles for themselves.

Linking to Royal Daughter Designs for Desire to Inspire.

The post Giving Thanks [8] appeared first on Flowers&Rust Co..