Friday, September 30, 2011

The Great Purge!

Well, it's finally here! Here's part one of the Great Purge! Prices listed are negotiable, so please make me an offer! (If some older sets seem pricey, that's because they are rare finds and currently worth more!)

I will give a discount to anyone who purchases multiple sets. Buyer pays shipping. I will ship only in the US, and will use USPS Priority shipping. Contact me at my email:maryrosek@att.net

Happy Shopping!
Jumbo Wheels $3 each:

Busy Blocks
Sweet Stars
Bold Snowflakes
Bouquet
Wheels $2 each:
Double Line Stitch Plaid
Bella’s Border
Snowflake
Star Spangled
Watercolor Joy
Boho Friend

Background Stamps, $10 each:

Stipple Plaid
Cheesecloth
Print Pattern
Aida Cloth
Tres Chic
Wild Hearts
Dots and Daisies
Baroque
Bella Toile(pending)
Soft Swirls
On The Spot
Polka Dot
Paisley 1 and 2
Checkerboard
By Definition (pending)
French Flair
Just Jeans
Toile
Antique Cracking
Weathered
Big Blossom
From The Garden
Flannel Plaid
Crosshatch
Floral

SU Sets:

A:

Autumn $10
Art of Life $5
Artifacts $10
A Little Birdie Told Me $10
All Year Cheer 1, 2,3 $20 total
Alphahearts rare $40

B:

Best Blossoms $5
Bella’s Bloom $3
Big Deal Alphabet $20
Best of Cluck $20
Beautiful Season $20
Blooming With Happiness $10
Big Blooms $20
Beauty of Life rare $15
Blossoms Abound $10
Bug Builders $10

C:

Carved and Candlelit $10
Congrats $5
Country Pleasures $15
Cheery Chat $10
Close As a Memory $10
Classic Numbers $5
Collage Numbers $5
Classic Alphabet $20
Collage Alphabet $15
Classic Caps $20
Country Morning $5
Country Hutch rare $10(pending)

D:

Doodle This $15
Dreams du Jour $5
Doodle That $3
Doodle Alphabet $20

E:

Edgy Eloquence $10
Espress Yourself $15
Espressoly For You $15
Elegant Beginnings $5
Everyday Flexible Phrases $15
Expressive Flexible Phrases $15
English Cottage rare $30

F:

Fly Fishing rare $50
Friend to Friend $10
Furnished With Love $5
Fresh Fillers $3
Frames w/ A Flourish $20
Fantastic Foliage $10
Fashion Statements $20
Fleur Cart $10
Faith and Hope $10

G:

Garden Collage $5
Great Groupings $5

H:

Happy Blessings $10
Happy Harmony $5
Happy Everything $5
Handbill Headlines $5
Headline Alphabet $20
Holidays and Wishes $5

I:

It’s Snow Time $20
Itty Bitty Backgrounds $3
It’s Your Birthday $10 (pending)

J:

Journalling Fun $10
Just Journalling 1 w/ template $5
Just Journalling 2 w/ template $5

L:

Little By Little $20
Love Bakes rare $50(pending)
Life Cycles $5
Love Matters $10
Like It A Latte $15(pending)
Love Ya Bunches $5
Little Pieces $10

M:

Mixed Bouquet $15
More Petal prints $10
Memory of the Heart $10
Moose You $10
Many Thanks $10
Mon Ami $3

N:

Noteworthy $5

O:
On Angel Wings $10
On The Farm rare $30 (matching jumbo wheel, unmounted on cling foam $3)
Oh So Lovely $5
Office Accoutrements $10
Old Glory $10
Occasionally $10

P:

Pick A Petal $15
Priceless $15
Party Punch $10
Phrase Starters $5
Pun Fun $15


Q:

Quirky Alphabet $20

R:

Reason To Smile $5
Riveting $5
Right At Home $10 (pending)

S:

Simple Wishes $3
Serene Spring $15
Serene Sunflower $15
So Very $5
Spring Fling $3
Stamp of Authenticity $15
So Many Scallops $5
Short Order Alphabet $20
Sweet Spot $3
Shape of Things $10
Snow Flurries $5
Snowflake Spot $10
Sketch An Event $5

T:

Tart and Tangy $3(pending)
True Friend $15
Tags and Tags 2 $15
Tag Alphabet rare $20
Trimtastic $10


U:

Unfrogettable $15

V:

Very Punny $5

W:

Warm Regards $5
DD Wildflowers $20
What’s Brewin’ $15(pending)
Warmest Words $3
Wonderful Words 1 $15
Wonderful Words 2 $15
Whimsical Alphabet $20
World Over $5
Window Dressing $15
Wild About You $15
Wonderful Wishes $5

Z:

Zoorific $10

SU Designer Series Papers, full packs $5:

Pool Party
Petals and Paisleys
Splash

SU Designer Series Papers, partial packs, $3:

Recollections
Fall Flowers
Springtime Vintage
Le Jardin
Parisian Summer
Afternoon Tea
Soft Sky DSP
Paper Notations
Bella Birds
Petal Patch
Uptown
Delicate Dots
Bali Breeze
Ginger Blossom
Spring Flowers
Au Chocolat
Spring Showers
Loves Me
Petals and Paislies
Hodgepodge Hardware, partial packs $5:

Stylized Silver
Antique Brass

SU Rub Ons, $2: Love and happiness, Eastern Elegance, A Perfect Day



Thursday, September 29, 2011

A Work In Progress


Sorry, friends! I know I promised that I'd have my list of items for sale up by now. Never fear! I have not lost courage! (But I may be holding on to just a few more sets than I'd originally planned!)

The Great Purge is still on! But it takes an immense amount of cataloging of the inventory. I'm nearly there! Last time I counted, I think there were close to two hundred SU stamp sets alone. Yikes!



In my pursuit to streamline the craft, I have decided to go totally unmounted to save space. I will unmount the few stamp sets that I plan on keeping, and will only purchase unmounted stamps in the future.

My plan is to purchase a lot of empty DVD cases from SU and get to work.I've tried a few systems, but after asking for a lot of opinions, it seems that most prefer the DVD system over everything else. (And can I just say how much I hated the CD case system? THOSE stamp sets will be the first to go into the DVD cases!)

If I'm really ambitious, I'll have the list up tonight. I think this calls for a Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte, don't you?

(In the meantime, if there's a certain retired stamp set you are looking for, ask me! I have a few of those rare pricey sets, too!)

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

The Scent of Autumn


I talk to my dear friend, Beth, every week. Even though we live hours away from each other now, we can still talk on the phone as if we're sitting across from each other at Starbucks. Aren't those the best kind of friends?

Whenever one of us gets in a mood and begins to feel down, the other will invariably ask "What candle are you burning?" Beth and I are big believers in the power of aromatherapy. Candles just seem to bring light to the dark days, and a good smelling candle can change a mood in no time.

This month, I am burning a candle from Febreeze called Falling Leaves and Spice. It also matches the fragrance of the plug-ins that I keep near the entryway and in the basement. It smells soooo good!

My college son, John, came home one weekend recently and said "The house smells so good!"

And then my son, Sam, had friends playing in the house and they all said "Sam, your house smells so good!"

When it gets the seal of approval from that many boys, you know it has to be a winner!

I love Febreeze scents! They have a long burn time, and a good scent throw that mingles through the entire house. I also love the fact that I can buy a matching plug-in fragrance. Of course, the cheap price with coupons is also a big incentive.



The Great Purge!

Stop by the cafe tomorrow to see a BIG list of stamp sets, wheels, papers, and accessories that I am selling! I am wiping the slate clean so that I can start crafting again with a fresh new attitude.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Sweater Day


After a few days of steady rain, we are finally seeing some blue skies and sunshine. Sunny and breezy. The perfect weather for drying the winter woolens!

Last week, I was shopping at TJ Maxx with no real purpose in mind. I thought I'd browse through the shoe aisle (you can get some great deals on good shoes there) and then check out the clothing.

After browsing through racks of trendy items and the latest "must have" fashion statements, I decided to go home empty handed and go shopping in my closet instead.

I started by washing a few dresses that had not been worn since last year. I've noticed in the catalogs that dresses are making a big comeback. I figure if they are clean, I'm more likely to grab them. Pair it with a jean jacket and some boots for a funky look, and I've spent nothing. Yea!

Then I moved on to my sweaters. I did a load of gentle wash sweaters and put them in the sun to dry. They are now ready to be worn for the chillier days of autumn.

Today, I washed my "hand wash" sweaters in the big soaking tub in my bathroom. My soaking tub gets more use as a washing machine than it does as a spa tub. (Does anyone use those super huge tubs? If so, do they clean them? Such a pain!)


I have to say, I love my woolen sweaters from LL Bean! I have had these two turtlenecks and two cardigans for over five years now, and they still look as good as the day I bought them. There are some companies that make really nice quality clothing. I also love the organic Oeko-Tex knits from Hanna Andersson. Sometimes you pay a little more for good quality, but over time, you realize that you don't have to replace the items as often. When you buy classics over trendy, you can wear them season after season, too.

I've moved the summer items to the back of my closet, and pulled the fall and winter to the front. One closet, one wardrobe...simplicity at its finest!

Sunday, September 25, 2011

The Good News, and The Good News


Hello, friends! I hope you are having a good weekend! I know I am!

Yesterday was free museum day, thanks to the Smithsonian. Their website was issuing free tickets to museums around the country, and lucky for us, one of those museums happens to be in our neighborhood.

Conner Prairie is an interactive historical museum, with working farms and interpreters that will help you get a feeling for life in the early to mid 1800s.



We love to tour the barns and pet all the animals!


The gardens are lovely, too! Simple plots are found at every homestead.


You can even shop in the general store for necessary items like slate and chalk, homespuns, candles, or a really rockin' hat!



I love the simple life!



But of course, simple does not mean easy. Simple takes a lot of work!

And that's when I had my revelation.

I had allowed paper crafting to become complicated and cluttered. I had become a stamp collector, not a stamp user. My hoarding and need to have it all had contributed to my dissatisfaction with the craft.

God has given me this month to take a step back and look at they ways I can complicate things when left to my own devices.

I can be a simple crafter. I can embrace a less is more philosophy and take my craft in an entirely new direction. But in order to do this, I have to unclench my fists and let go.

Ready for the good news?

It means that I am beginning the great purge! I will be selling down, paring off, and pruning my collection to make room for my new less is more crafting philosophy.

I am so excited!

Keep visiting this blog in the days ahead! You will find some great deals on stamp sets ( many of them hard to find vintage/rare sets), paper packs, and accessories!

And in the very near future, you will see a new style emerge here on my blog. That's good news, too!

"Tis the gift to be simple, 'Tis the gift to be free, 'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be."

Simple blessings, friends! (And thank you for sticking with me on this journey of discovery!)

Saturday, September 24, 2011

The Myth of the Hand Made Card



Do you remember the first time you were introduced to card making? I bet you do! And do you remember when the thought first came into your head "This could save me a lot of money!"

Bwa ha ha ha ha!

Of course, the demonstrator at that home party would be the last person to tell you any differently! After all, she, too, was once the person with that same thought. That was before she'd invested hundreds and thousands of dollars in this money saving enterprise!

I am attending a bible study called "Freed Up Financial Living" this month. This week, we'd learned a very important philosophy. Saving is not money you've lost or given up the use of- it's future spending. In other words, saving is money you keep!

Let's take, for example, this lovely store bought card. It has a cute image and a sweet sentiment... two stamps. Many different colors...ink pads. Differently colored images...markers, pencils, brushes, or other coloring mediums. Different patterns...patterned papers. It is, in fact, dry embossed...an embossing machine and embossing dies or plates. It has a glittered image...glitter glue or embossing powder.

Just like that, this card that cost me less than fifty cents to purchase has now cost me well over one hundred dollars to recreate. To recoup my loss, I'd have to make hundreds of variations of this same card over time.



"But it's therapy!" I hear this time and time again. It makes me wonder how many of the mentally ill are truly using paper crafting as a therapy medium in their asylums. :)



I recently went to Hobby Lobby and spent an hour in the Dayspring card aisle. I found so many beautiful cards! And can we just be honest here...the sentiments in rubber stamp form rarely match the quality produced by good writers at the card companies.

I purchased some lovely cards, I did not have to break the bank to do it, and I managed to fill up a lot of slots in my card organizer.

Why is this so important to me?

When I was a card maker, I would make a card for a challenge, just to have something to put in my gallery or post on my blog. Two or three challenges a week, and that adds up to over one hundred cards a week. The cards were rarely for an occasion that I truly needed, and so they would sit in a big pile in my craft room, just adding to the piles of paper clutter.

I can't begin to tell you how freeing it was to know that I could buy a card, stick a stamp on the envelope (no cards too bulky for postage from the card aisle!), and mail it. Actually, I've already mailed out three, and it feels good!

I am not ready to give away all of my paper crafting supplies just yet. I may use them for some totally different crafty purpose in the future. But for now, I feel freed from the need to constantly spend and craft in this one narrow medium.

Have you spent any time in the card aisle lately? You will be inspired!

Blessings on your crafty Saturday, friends!

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Gooseberry Patch Goodness




Nothing says "autumn goodness" like a yummy baked apple!

Years ago, when Gooseberry Patch was still operating their catalog business, I purchased this apple baker and thought I'd give it a try. It works great! The spongeware pottery is sweet, and the center cone (think mini Bundt cake pan) helps the apple bake evenly in the microwave.

A little brown sugar, some cinnamon and nutmeg, a few walnuts and a golden delicious apple baked for three minutes. Yummy!


Top it all with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, and you have a delicious dessert made for one!


I do miss the Gooseberry Patch catalogs. But thankfully, their cookbook production is growing every day!


I love my Gooseberry Patch cookbooks! So many wonderful recipes! Here's a photo of my kitchen hen guarding three favorites.

I received some exciting news from Gooseberry Patch yesterday! One of my recipes will be featured in a new cookbook, and I will be receiving a free copy when it is published. Yea! The cookbook will be called "Simple Shortcut Recipes", and it should be released in March 2012.

Vickie and JoAnn (the founders of Gooseberry Patch) are featured in this month's issue of Mary Jane's Farm. And if you are luck enough to be attending the Country Living Fair in Columbus, Ohio, you can meet them in person! Every year, I say I am going, and every year, something gets in the way. Drat! It does look like a lot of fun, though. Maybe next year!

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Primitive Pumpkins




Did you think I was going to stop being crafty just because I've stopped making cards?

Au contraire, mes amis!

I'm just channeling my craftiness into new venues!


This week, I am making a felted wool table runner from Primitive Gatherings.

For the record, I am not a quilter. And when it comes to my sewing abilities, well, let's just say that I will never win a straight seam contest anytime in the near future. But thanks to twelve years of paper crafting, I have become a darn good cutter. And with Heat 'n Bond, all things are possible!


This project is not done just yet. I still have to do the stitching, attach a piece of homespun to the back, and blanket stitch all around. Piece of cake!

I bought the kit for this project last fall, when my mom and sister, Tina, were in town. We had great aspirations to knock this project out one night during their visit. But I think we got distracted by movies on the Hallmark channel and put this project off for another day.

This runner will look so cute on my kitchen table. I think I will put my milk glass Longaberger pumpkin dish and candle in the middle. Time to put on my cheater glasses, see what's on the Hallmark channel, and sit down for a night of stitching.

Monday, September 19, 2011

A New Wreath, A New Door, A New Perspective

Autumn is in the air...can you feel it?

I wanted to give my front door an autumn makeover, so I went out looking for a wreath this weekend. Logan's Antique Mall had plenty of options to choose from, and so many lovely things to feast the eyes upon as well!




I finally found a wreath that was not too big and not too fancy.


It has a nice, natural quality with its wispy tree branches and bittersweet.



I found this price tag attached to the wreath, and it stopped me in my tracks! No, not because of the price (this was the cheapest wreath in the store, so I was most pleased!). It was the simplicity of the stamped image and the overall design.


I will admit it. I am enamored with this little tag. Roughly stamped and tea stained, I felt as if this tag was cuter than anything I've stamped in ages. No designer paper. No fancy ribbon. No buttons or brads or bows. One layer, not one hundred layers. Just two letters and a couple of birds hanging out on a branch together. A tag that serves a purpose.

Sometimes, I have a tendency to complicate my life with clutter, and then I need to take a step back and discard some of the layers to reveal some simple truths. Needs versus wants. Health versus happiness. Stuff versus serenity. Priorities, plain and simple.

I'm going to keep this little tag as a reminder to keep it simple.

"He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." Colossians 1:17

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Old Mill Festival


I am so lucky to live in Stars Hollow.

{grin}

Okay, I don't really live in Stars Hollow. Stars Hollow is, in fact, a fictional town that is the setting for the television series "The Gilmore Girls". But in many ways, my little town here in Indiana is just like Stars Hollow. Both towns are charming. Both towns love their cafes and diners. And both towns love their festivals.

Today was a perfect fall day for the Old Mill Festival. Vendors sold their antiques, primitives, and vintage collectibles on the historic courthouse square. There were historic home tours, vintage train tours, and even carriage and trolley rides featuring a beautiful pair of Clydesdale horses.

I thought I'd post a few photos to inspire all of you today!


I loved the name of this booth. It made me think of my sister, Jenny, at Old Maid New.





I LOVED this typewriter...and the best part? It worked!


Go Rose Hulman Institute of Technology! (My son's college...founded by the owners of Clabber Girl Baking Powder!)


This train car is owned by the Indiana Train Museum, and it is amazing! The interior was impeccably designed by craftsmen with every attention to detail!


A sweet lady at this booth was selling vintage Christmas decorations. Santas, angels, Christmas trees and shiny glass ornaments still in their original boxes. I was so excited to find this treasure:


I have been looking for a creche for quite some time. I even went to Bronner's in Frankenmuth, Michigan (a gigantic Christmas store!) in the hopes of finding just the right creche, with no luck. I finally decided that what I really wanted was a vintage creche, not something new and shiny and made in China. This little lovely was made in Italy.


Isn't that the sweetest Holy Family? I just love the patina of the figures.


A beautiful angel to proclaim the Good News!

And what was the price tag for this vintage Nativity? Ten dollars! SOLD!

I love Saturdays in Stars Hollow!

Thursday, September 15, 2011

For The Love Of Joe (and Sammy Joe)


I love Joe. And what’s not to love? Joe wakes me up each morning with a kiss of cinnamon and a whiff of vanilla. Joe wraps me in creamy-sweet caffeinated goodness. Joe makes me a happier person, and let’s face it, a better mother, too.

Ah, coffee! My divine friendship with the cuppa began as a young girl, when my pastor (unorthodox, I know) first introduced me to coffee. My parents were good friends with our pastor and his wife, having spent a lot of hours around kitchen tables together, discussing life and spirituality between cups of joe. I, too, wanted to belong to this holy and mysterious fellowship. Pastor poured out equal measures of coffee and cream, with a few teaspoons of sugar for good measure. It was warm and sweet and smelled like heaven. Instant friends.

During my years as a young wife and java mama, coffee was the life coach that stood by my side each day, quietly whispering in my ear “You can do it!” Coffee was the fuel that kept the mommy machine operating each day. Laundry, sip. Cooking, sip. Cleaning, sip. Staying up all night with a feverish child, gulp!

Cappuccino and I became friends a few years later. My boss, Carol, often came to work each morning with a pep in her step, carrying a Styrofoam cup of frothy, heavenly scented cappuccino. English Toffee. She brought me a cup one morning, and I swear, I was the most productive worker she’d ever seen that day. She could’ve skipped the paychecks from that day on and just paid me in cappuccinos, and I would have been a happy worker bee.

But one morning the cappuccino tasted a little off. As a matter of fact, a lot of things began to taste a little off. And a few weeks later I found out why. In addition to being the mother of a teenager and an adolescent, I was about to become the mother of son number three.

My husband took the shock pretty well. We tried not to do the math too often. (How old will we be when this baby starts kindergarten? High School? College?) I took it all in stride. God had a plan for our family. This new baby would just add to our blessings.

My positive attitude lasted until the first official visit with the obstetrician She told me a new list of foods to avoid. Tuna? Not a problem. Feta cheese and bagged salad? A small sacrifice for the health of my baby. Alcohol? Completely understandable. But wait. Did you just say coffee? Coffee? My best friend, coffee?

The little blessing suddenly became the alien that took over my body, robbing me of my warm liquid joy. Nine months without coffee. I pictured my boss firing me, my husband leaving me, and my children abandoning me after the first week of caffeine withdrawl.

It wasn’t always pretty, but I did survive.

One lovely day on the cusp of autumn, baby Samuel Joseph was born. He had coffee colored hair, creamy skin, and the sweetest smell known to woman. Naturally, I fell in love. On the day we brought him home from the hospital, my husband told me he had an errand to run, and he returned a few minutes later with a steaming cup of English Toffee cappuccino.

What a husband! God has blessed me with all of these wonderful men in my life. They love me, with or without Joe. And though they’ve never confessed it, I’m sure they prefer the fully caffeinated mom to the decaff variety. Who can blame them? I prefer the Java Mama, too.

Happy Birthday to my Sammy Joe. You are sweeter than a cinnamon dolce latte, and you make my life grande!

“Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.” Psalm 34:8


Sunday, September 11, 2011

A Birthday and A Remembrance


On the tenth anniversary of 9/11, I thought you might enjoy a touching article about some of the four-legged heroes of that event. Here is the link:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2033628/Surviving-9-11-rescue-dogs-scoured-Ground-Zero-bodies-commemorated-decade-difficult-mission.html

Our own four-legged girl turned eleven today. Yes, Maggie is a 9/11 baby. Ten years ago today, we were excited to celebrate our puppy's first birthday. Celebration quickly turned to sorrow that day.

Everyone remembers where they were that tragic day. But I also remember the hope in the days that followed.

That Christmas, George and Laura Bush had tears in their eyes when they told the nation the following verse that they had chosen for the official White House Christmas card:

"I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD." Psalm 27:13-14(NIV)

That is the confidence that I want today and every day.

I heard a great quote this weekend (from Beth Moore at the Living Proof simulcast). She said that someone had told her "God is good all the time, and when it appears He is not good, that is because He is great."

We have a great God, my friends!

(And I am blessed to have a great dog. Happy Birthday, Maggie Girl!)

Friday, September 9, 2011

Walking with God


A few weeks back, when the boys started going off to school, I realized that my mornings were in a rut. It started the same way...coffee, the newspaper, the computer, the craft room. It never felt productive.

I just wished there was something more.

And then God whispered to me "You know, there is a beautiful paved walking trail right in your backyard. Why don't you go walking with me?"

Ugh. Exercise? Must I? Okay God, but just this once. I don't want to make this sweaty thing a regular part of my day, so don't get your hopes up.

I strapped on my tennis shoes and went for a walk. And the truth is, I haven't been the same since. I can't miss my morning walks with God for more than a day now. I am hooked.

So, would you like to go walking with God and me today? Great! Get your tennis shoes and we'll get started!


As we head to the trail, we're greeted by this amazing row of sunflowers on the hill. Did I mention the hills? Yes, this walk won't be easy. But God promises us that with him, all things are possible, not easy.



At the trail head, the fragrance of fields of flowers is so powerful! It reminds me of 2 Corinthians 2:15 that says "For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing."

And then I remembered something. Didn't I make a resolution back in January to spend the year walking with Jesus? Finally, I am making that happen! Doesn't it feel good?


Lots of goldenrod. I hope you took your seasonal allergy medicine!


So many beautiful varieties of flowers. God, I wish my garden looked this nice! And God says "You can work on that next year. This year, let's concentrate on growing you instead." :)


This is the part where the trail curves and follows the creek. You can hear the birds singing now. And if you look closely through the trees, you might even spot a blue heron at the water's edge.



Somewhere beyond those trees is my house. I can't see it now, but in about six weeks, after the leaves have fallen, I will see the house on top of the hill.


Speaking of leaves, God shows me a colorful carpet of fallen leaves. He reminds me that seasons change, and we change, but He never changes. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. His promises are eternal. I can try to fight the change, or I can look around and see something new and amazing!




We've reached the bridge now. Time to take a peek into the waters.



I look down at the churning waters, and I am reminded of how life can sometimes be like that...rocky and swiftly moving and mercurial. God tells me not to look down, but look up! There are still waters just ahead.



Let's keep walking. There's more to see!



One lone red tree in this golden field. It really stands out. I recall the verse from Romans 12:2: "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." I want to stand out, just like this red tree.



More lovely flowers and grasses on the trail ahead. So many different colors and textures and patterns! I am blown away by the tiny microcosms of nature, each so unique and perfectly planted.


You are feeling the burn now, aren't you? Yep, me too. I'm even getting a little winded. But get ready. We are at the two mile mark, and there are two killer hills up ahead. Remember Philippians 4:13 says that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. We're getting stronger with every step!



At the top of the hill is a grove of trees. It's dark in there, and you can't always see where the trail leads. But you can trust that there will be a clearing, and you will see the plan. In the meantime, we will enjoy this cool shade for a moment as we catch our breaths.

We've made it through the hardest parts! Congratulations! The rest of the walk is smooth and even. And if we follow God's leading, He always leads us home.

Thanks for walking with me and with God today!