And the winner is ...

Well I finally made a decision on the bathroom. The winner is a Valspar paint called La Fonda Wild West Green. It matches the greens, golds, and reds in my comforter cover perfectly. It really doesn't show up well here but is a fairly close match. I will have before and after pictures for you soon. I got really ambitious and have painted the boring brass light bar a beautiful textured bronze color. I really hate brass and it is in fixtures all over the house. Once I see how it holds up to daily use, I may just have to paint the rest of the brass too. Well, just wanted to update those of you who have left me wonderful comments. More to come...

Debbie's Dilemma

I decided to take my own advice and paint my bathroom. The way the master bath is situated, It could be any color (just about) and be wonderful. So off to the paint store I go.... ooh townhouse tan is pretty, oh and what about gold. Gold would work. The rest of the house has gold, maybe that's overdoing the gold thing a bit. Green would be nice... hmm. Why is it I can help everyone else pick paint colors for their projects with no problem, but I am having trouble picking my own color? Maybe it is because I know that this is one of those projects that leads to more and more. For example, "since we are painting maybe we should take out the 13 yr old vinyl (still beautiful by the way), and if we are redoing the floor, how about the molding? If we do all that than maybe we should tile around the tub kit" and the list goes on. I started out just wanting to paint, now if I paint, what ever color I end up choosing will have to match everything else that I now think I need to do. Sheesh! Perhaps I should just go with a color and save the rest for a rainy day. No wonder my clients seem so confused.

Mission to Mexico

My daughter Kaitlyn is leaving for an 8 day mission trip to Ensanada Mexico with her youth group on Saturday. They will be building a house for a needy family as well as putting on worship services, kids clubs, and sharing their testimonies (with an interpeter of course). I would ask for your prayers for the team for safety, for God to work in the hearts of these young people to deepen their relationship with Him, and for those who will hear the gospel for the first time to be receptive.
I am excited for this opportunity for Kaitlyn. She just graduated from High School and is still trying to decide her plans for the future. She loves working with children and interns at our church in the youth dept. She feels she wants to work in youth ministry and my prayer is that this trip will help to solidify in her mind which direction to go. I am very proud of Kaitlyn and know that the Lord will direct her.

Prayer for today

We all have moments when the things we say can hurt someone. Often times we aren't even aware of how we come across to others. Sometimes we are aware of it, but we utter the comment anyway. May this verse from psalms be in our hearts today so that we bless all who come in contact with us with kindness and the love of Christ.
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you O Lord my God and my redeemer.
Have a blessed Day!!

Blessings

This morning I am so thankful for weekends away and the blessings of good friends. Jay and I spent the weekend in Seattle for a wedding for the son of some good friends. It was a beautiful ceremony and a wonderful reception at the EMP(experience music project) What a great venue for a wedding reception. It is an amazing building. It was fun to hang out with our friends and just have a time of relaxing and laughter. There is nothing like the waterfront in Seattle when the sun is shining. Pikes Place market is such a fun place to roam and to people watch. Living in a smal town, it is always nice to go to the city and experience the variety of great places to eat and shopping opportuinties. It was a blessing for Jay and I to be able to go without any of our children this time too. I am a firm believer in couples getting away without the kids from time to time. It was a great time away and I am reminded once again how truly blessed I am.

Clocks

I love clocks! No not being ruled by the clock, Just clocks in general. There is just something about them. I probably have 15 clocks in my home (not counting all the digital ones around). I have round clocks and square clocks, old clocks and new clocks,unique clocks and ordinay clocks. Since I love decorating I have used clocks to fill in where I just need a little something. It is amazing how such a cute little accessory can bring a smile to me when I walk into a room. The best part is, when you come home with a new clock to decorate with, your hubby can't complain that you are being frivolous, You bought something with a purpose after all. If all of this talk of clocks has inspired you to get a new one, check out my website www.lovethedecor.com
for some wonderful clocks. Check back often more clocks coming soon!

Friendships

I have come to realize that the Lord doesn't always desire that we are friends with everyone for life. I believe he brings people into our lives at different times and different seasons. Some friends are "for life" and others pass through and move on. I have several wonderful sisters in christ that have been friends for 25-30yrs(no I am not old) some are from high school, others are from early in marrage. Because we have been part of the same church family for 27+ years we have all raised our children together and been "mom" to more than our own. I know what a blessing this is and am reminded of this when I talk with others who are lonely or only have a few they call friends.

Where I struggle the most is when a friendship goes "bad". I had a wonderful friend ... then we tried to work together...without going into details, after several attempts to restore the friendship(prayer,counseling with a pastor together,etc) My friend has closed the door. I grieve the loss of the friendship but at the same time I can know with all of my being that I did what the Lord asked of me and now it is time to move on. Very sad but part of life. I can't help but pray that at some point she will have a change of heart but until then, We move on

My Husband

My husband Jay had a midlife crisis last year... Not the kind that probably came to mind, but one none the less. He and his good friend Jim wanted some adventure in thier lives, they checked around and decided that a mission trip might just be the adventure they were needing. To make a long story a bit shorter, through a few connections they put together a team to build a church in Nicaragua. Beacause Jim and Jay go to different churches, they didn't want one church or the other to sponsor the trip so they met with the Ministy board of evangelical churches in our community and decided to make the trip a church community event. 35 people from 5 different churches made the trip and built the church. Not only building a church but put on a VBS and a medical clinic as well. My husband has since been back there and got to witness services being held in this new building and was just in awe of how God allowed him to have a small part in all of this. I am ver yproud of my hubby and the work he is allowing God to do in him. There is already a 2nd trip planned for Jan 2010 and many people wanting to go, there is talk of a possible well being drilled also. Big things are happening and the lord is very much alive in Nicaragua

Reflection

I had the privilege of having all 4 of my girls home together if only briefly the other night. As I looked around the room I reflected on how quickly the years have flown by. At age 25,23, and 18 yr old twins, I often ask myself "how did I get here" ? When they were little and I was in the midst of millions of diapers and nights that would never end, I remember a very well meaning older mom tell me to savor every minute because I would blink and they would all be grown. I chuckled at her words thinking yea right.
But she was right... They really did grow up quickly. What beautiful young women they have turned out to be. I am truly blessed!!

I guess now I'm the "older mom" saying to each of you cherish every moment with your little ones. The years go by so quickly.