My Word!

Layla from one of my favorite blogs, The Lettered Cottage, is hosting a party today (on my birthday!) which caught my attention:

I am intrigued by this business of choosing a word for the year that will provide focus and direction to my life.  Imagine, the Word providing direction!  Did you know that another name for Jesus Christ is the Word?

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. (John 1:1-3)

The universe was spoken into existence with a word by the Word!

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for.  By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.  (Hebrews 11:1-3)

Clearly, words are powerful!

I have been convicted lately that I have let some of my relationships lapse or haven't been pouring as much into them as I should be.  This goes for both my vertical relationship (with God)

and with my horizontal relationships (with others).

   Ever notice what that vertical and horizontal represent?

"Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?"  (Luke 9:23-25)

I need to take up my cross and follow daily.  Daily.  Now there's a challenge.  I have been tending to relationships in fits and starts and haven't been very disciplined in the art of daily communicating with my Lord or even with my friends and family.  I have been putting self-interests above His interests (which always prioritize relationships over the things of this world).  Even this little ol' blogging thing can be a major distraction!

So my word for this year is

con·nect   verb \kə-ˈnekt
 1. To become joined or united: two streams connecting to form a river.

2. To be scheduled so as to provide continuing service, as between airplanes or buses.

3. To establish a rapport or relationship; relate: The candidate failed to connect with the voters.

Interesting that my logo has a power cord associated with it.  My phrase for accomplishing connection is:

"The power to DO comes from YOU!"

I know that my Spirit is willing but my flesh is weak and that the only way to actually have daily connection with God and with others in a Christ-honoring way is through my power source: the Holy Spirit.

Lord, please help me to Connect with you and with others in a way that brings you glory.  Help me to be consistent (daily) and deliberate and to find my power to do this in YOU.

A Weighty Resolution

Happy New Year, a little late!

I hope you rang in the New Year with lots of bubbly family and friends.  We went to a party this year, but I actually enjoy staying at home on New Years Eve.  Boring to some but relaxing to me.

New Years is, of course, a time for making resolutions.  I have a love/hate relationship with them.  I think it's good to reflect on my life and the things I want to change, but I feel really bad about myself when I fail, yet again, to fulfill them all.

Like many people, high on my list of resolutions is to lose weight and eat more healthfully.  About 4 years ago, I lost 30 lbs. in 6 months.  I kept it off for two years.

But something has happened to me in the past two years.  I guess I could blame it on hormones (or lack thereof) or stress (Type A?).  But I think the culprit is that I stopped paying attention.  I eased up a little.  Then a little more.  Then a lot.  I've gained back about half of what I initially lost.

Most people wouldn't say that I am overweight, and according to the calculators, I have a normal body mass index (BMI) and weight.  But I just feel better when I weigh about 10-15 lbs. less.  I am short-waisted, so those extra pounds really show, especially in my midsection.  I am the poster child for the muffin top.

When I lost weight last time, I used the online tools at caloriecount.about.com to log my weight, food intake, and workout activity.  I was brutally honest with myself and spent quite a bit of time each day entering information and figuring out the best choices when we occasionally dined out.  I tried to eat about 1,400 calories a day, heavy on the protein and light on the carbs, especially the refined ones.

Honestly, I didn't exercise much last time, but I think I may have to kick my booty in gear in order to lose this time.  My metabolism has slowed, and cutting calories alone may not be enough.  Besides, weight-bearing exercise is good for your bones.

I also plan on being fanatical about portion sizes.  Another tool that I use is my electronic food scale which is incredibly accurate.

If you have any tips on how to lose weight (especially if you're over 50!), please share them in the comments!  Also, if you have a great recipe to share that is diet-friendly, post the link!  And if you are already at your goal weight and have been able to maintain it long-term, what is your secret?

Did you make any resolutions?

Tile Update

This is for my friend Lisa who has the flu and can't come by to see our new and improved kitchen and bath tile.  They're not the best pics because of the lighting, but you can get the idea.

20x20 inch porcelain tile - Artemis Castello Bianco

 The pictures below are probably closer to the color.  There are grey, cream and beige tones.

I am loving this lightened up look!  And the larger tiles are fabulous.  Can't wait to get back to my life, though.  We still have the wood floor installation to go (starting tomorrow).

Wish us luck!  I'm hoping to find an electrical floor outlet under the carpeting since we have such a huge den.  Wouldn't that be nice?

All Broken Up

Today is the day:

Horror of HORRORS!

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The relentless hammer and buzz saw result in...

carnage, carnage everywhere!

I guess I found my mask for Halloween!

Torn Apart

We're getting ready for new floors on Monday. Yay! I think.

I've been frantically trying to move crap out of the way so that the installers can move the furniture more easily without breaking anything and so that my dust cleanup will be minimized.

Emptying the pantry (new, larger porcelain tile is coming)

Better look at the Before tile (and my pantry mess)

Clearing off the bookshelves (bye-bye old carpet, hello wood floors!)

Wow.  Just wow.  Seems like my whole house is torn apart.

Unsettling doesn't begin to describe it.

Party Central

I have a beautiful armoire in my foyer that I bought over a dozen years ago, before the rise of flat-screen TV's.  This piece was purchased to hold a large, deep and heavy TV.  It wasn't built to be an entertainment center per se' but instead has long, undivided shelves similar to what you would see on an antique armoire.

We've moved since purchasing this piece, and we have built-ins in our living area that hold our flat-screen TV.  This armoire has had a bit of an identity crisis ever since and has become a dumping ground for miscellaneous "stuff."  And getting to that "stuff" is no fun.

It occurred to me recently when I was looking at my multiple piles of "stuff" that this armoire would be a good place to store anything and everything related to entertaining:  candlesticks and candles, paper goods, table linens, wrapping paper, bows, and ribbon.  I had these items scattered in several different areas; it always frazzles me when I host (or attend!) a party because I  have to scrounge through the house looking for what I need.  Then it's the Stressed Nest, not the Blest Nest!

SOURCE

I thought about hiring a carpenter to build some drawers or put some dividers into this piece, but I knew that would be pricey.  It wasn't worth it to me to incur that expense.  I knew that drawers would be the most useful so that I wouldn't have to load and unload bins from the shelves, looking for what I want.  Been there, done that.  So I went to Walmart and found these cool modular storage units from Sterilite that fit the bill perfectly!

There are narrow, medium and large drawers that can be configured in a number of combinations to suit whatever application you have.  I bought 2 large tall drawers, 2 medium tall drawers, and 3 narrow drawers.  Total cost was about $75, but they fit just perfectly on the top shelf of my armoire and have added so much functionality!

I loaded up my candles and candlesticks in the large drawers.  (I think I may be a candle hoarder.)

Tissue paper, bows, ribbon, tags, tape and scissors are stashed in the medium and small drawers so that it is easy to wrap an impromptu gift.

On the second shelf, I have table linens galore (napkins, tablecloths, and placements).  Now I need to have a dinner party!

On the bottom shelf are two file boxes (also Sterilite--I should own stock in this company!) and a large basket which holds disposable paper and plastic ware for parties.

  I also have a long plastic box that holds rolls of gift wrap and gift bags.

 Here is the finished result. 

It feels so much better to get at least one area under control!   One down, about ninety-nine more to go.

Linking to:

Bathroom Reveal!!

I didn't anticipate that my little Spring Break project would literally take the entire season to complete.  Wow, this face lift seemed to drag on and on.  But I finally have a reveal!  Disclaimer:  I have a point-and-shoot camera and this is a windowless room, so I did my best with the "long" shots.

Here is what our bathroom looked like BEFORE.  It wasn't a bad space but the wallpaper was not my taste or color preference, and the room felt dark and dreary.

 

Bright brass fixtures and paper bag brown wallpaper



Builder mirror and strip lighting

Chippy cabinets, and not in a good way

Here is our main bathroom AFTER!  Light, bright, airy and soothing!

We framed out the builder mirror

 

Delta Victorian faucets

Anthropologie "Waves" shower curtain = Splurge
Check out this link if you're sewing inclined

pleat detail

Notice the rope trim on the mirror, a nod to the nautical

Blue-tiful color!
("Paleness" by Kwal Paint)



Cost Breakdown:

• $ 25  Glass knobs (E-Bay)                            
• $ 65  Primer, paint and spray texture             
• $ 40  Molding for mirror                              
• $100 Anthropologie shower curtain            
• $334 Faucets for tub/shower and sink         
• $100 Light fixture                                       
• $ 24  New toilet seat (how glam)                 
• $   0  All decorative accessories (shopped the house)
• $688 GRAND TOTAL                 

We got about $450 from Amex and Discover Cashback Bonuses this year which we used towards this project, so total out-of-pocket was $238.

Labor Breakdown:

Vicki V:

• stripped the wallpaper
• primed and painted all surfaces (walls, trim, cabinetry, mirror molding)
• added the decorative details

My Man:

• patched and textured the walls
• installed faucets and fixtures
• cut and installed the mirror molding (used tutorials here and here)
• caulked

 We think it's like a breath of fresh air (very Spahhhh) and love it!

Linking to: