Wreath and Cycle

Belle made a comment the other day about the Christmas wreath that was still hanging on our door. I was ashamed. On my to-do list (as if it isn't long enough), I wrote, "Make girls an Easter wreath before leaving for Brazil." Max time I planned to spend on it: 30 minutes. And I succeeded. It's so simple and maybe a little tacky, but my girls are so proud of it. If you can't tell, all I did was buy 3 bags of 1/2 priced Easter eggs at Hobby Lobby and hot glued ribbon around each one. Then I hot glued them onto a wreath I already had. Like I said. 30 minutes. Maybe cost me $3. My kind of project.

I tried to get a shot of it hanging on our door, but the glare was too fierce, so I moved it inside. As I was snapping some pictures, I noticed Jeb jumping up and down at my feet saying, "Cheeeeese! Cycle! Cheese! Cycle!" Translation: he wanted me to take a picture of him and his new motorcycle. And ok, so I know he needs a haircut. Hopefully that will happen before we leave as well. He's still stinkin' adorable.

Almost there...

I NEED the girls' room to be DONE by the time we leave for Brazil... which is only 2 1/2 days away!! Everything is out, and yesterday I started painting the walls. I hope those girls love me because I am EXHAUSTED. But I'm having fun. I am just praying it all pulls together as well as I think it's going to. MAYBE by Wednesday, I can reveal it all. Fingers crossed!

The ONE completed item actually IN the room is the chandelier, and oh my... I want to marry it. I'm smitten.

Here's the blank slate.

Estella Dru (in her nice dress??) cleaning baseboards. I just slipped a sock on her hand backwards, and said, "Go for it, Kid." She actually helped me out a lot.

This is the staging area. I'll be glad to have my table back.

And here it is... drumroll....

I may love it so much because I put so much time into it. But I do. I love it.

Maybe Wednesday....

More Fun Projects

I am living and breathing Project: Belle and Estella Dru's New Space at the moment. I finished two small projects today, and I must say, I am totally digging on them. The first... I just needed something big and round for one of the wall focal points. I looked high and low, and found nothing. Then, of course, it was Hobby Lobby to the rescue. I got this jewel at half price today.... exactly what I was wanting, except for the color. Actually, I loved it as it was, but it just it didn't the funky feel of the girls' new digs. So... I made it work. And I love it.




Next, I took an old lamp I bought when Estella was probably two and gave it a makeover. The only cost was the trim, which set me back all of $9. The soft beads were 1/2 off at Hobby Lobby for around $1. I already had the paint. Total cost: around $10 for this one-of-a-kind lamp. They loved it... which is all I need.



We have a lot to do this weekend, but we're almost there! Did you hear that Matt? I said, "WE!!!" Get your tool belt out, Mister. I've got a list with your name on it!

Girls' Room: Sneak Peek

I have been working away on the girls' room. There are still two big projects left, but things are going so well. I could not be more pleased. I am on a TIGHT budget, but hey... that's how we roll. And to be honest, it's just more fun that way.

My latest completed project is a chandelier. Matt's mom gave us an old one back in the summer, and I'm so glad we waited until now to put it to use because I am IN LOVE with how it turned out. I'm only giving a sneak peek here so I won't give anything away before the big reveal!



And here's another sneak peek at one of the pillows I put together. This room is all about cool, fun, funky. The girls can hardly wait, but I'm not sure who is more excited.

Weekend Story in Pictures

What. A. Trip. Home. Wow. We had quite the time this weekend. It all began on Friday afternoon. We packed our stuff and our kids into the Jeep and headed off for Grandpa's house near Russellville. And things were going great.... Until just before Knoxville when the Jeep began making some strange noises. It was almost dark out, and I asked Matt if I should panic. He assured me that I shouldn't, so I resumed singing along with the radio. And then... more noises. Much more serious, loud noises. And Matt said, "Ok, panic." The only thing he could do was pull/coast into a rest area, but I was yelling the whole time, "Not a rest area! Not a rest area!" All I could think of is the horror stories associated with crime, including MURDER, in rest areas. But there we were. In a rest area parking lot. In the dark. With a dead Jeep. And criminals lurking behind bushes and buildings.

Matt called Grandpa, whose neighbor happens to have a wrecker service. So, help set out after us quickly, but for over an hour and a half, we waited... and took iPhone pictures to pass the time.




After our rescue, we got to Grandpa's just in time to get to bed. The next morning, Matt got up and rode with a great friend who volunteered to take him to Ozark to meet our brother-in-law, Pat. Pat took Matt back home where another friend loaned us a great SUV until the Jeep gets fixed (and who knows when that will be). While Matt was gone, the kids and I took advantage of the gorgeous day. While they played in Grandpa's backyard, I went through several tubs of Grandma's clothes that have been sitting in the shed behind Grandpa's house. As I re-folded them all, I found this half piece of gum (a Grandma staple) in one of her shirt pockets, and I cried 'happy' tears for the next five minutes.


And then I unhooked the trailer all by myself and took the kids riding all by myself on G-Pops' rhino. I took this picture as we were riding through Grandpa's field. Poor Jeb got cut out, but I promise he's there. I almost got stuck in a creek all by myself, but that's another story....

Jeb and Pawpaw were so funny. Jeb kept crawling up in his chair with him and either telling him to "rock" or "move." On this occasion, Jeb had told him to move, and of course, Grandpa did. I love this shot. They look like two friends just chillin'.

At one point during the day, the girls came running in and said they had made a "picture of me out of nature." When I went to see, this is what I found. The face and eyes are rocks. The hair is old shingles off Grandpa's house. And the mouth is a squished jelly bean. I think I am just beautiful.


Later that day, we baked my little brother, David, a cake. His birthday is TODAY, by the way. Anyway, I'm not a skull and crossbones kind of girl, but I knew my bother would like it. The layers inside were black and white.


Matt got home around 5pm, and we were all happy to see him. The next morning, we decided to go to church with Grandpa, and, as a last minute surprise, our pastor asked Matt to preach. And whereas I would have totally panicked and said, "Are you crazy?" Matt hopped up and rocked it out. I mean, isn't that what you would do, unprepared and facing 200+ people? I love that man. He's got crazy, big things waiting on him.

And while I thought I was a fun mom the day before, the kids were relieved to have their daddy home so he could take them fishing. They didn't catch a thing, but Matt got some cute pictures. I love the Slaughter kids.





After fishing, we baked a cake for good friends who helped us out during our time of crisis. I call it the Angela Cake. I think I made it up, but I've been making it so long, I can't be sure. It's strawberry cake with white icing, drizzled with melted chocolate, and filled with chocolate covered strawberries. Estella just wanted to lick the spoon.



We had a great, great weekend. I miss my Jeep and am hoping it doesn't cost a kazillion dollars to fix, but I could not have asked for a better visit. Sometimes when things happens to set you back, it reveals how many people you have to lean on. And that's a great thing to know.

Hope

Last night while watching tv with Matt, I heard this quote by Friedrich Nietzsche. “Hope, in reality, is the worst of all evils because it prolongs the torments of man.” I let that roll around in my head for a while. How utterly heartbreaking is that notion… that hope is futile because, ultimately, we are destined to disappointment and failure, and to hope only extends our suffering. To bring hope into disrepute is to blow out the candle that’s burning for us somewhere up ahead in this darkness. Sometimes we only catch a glimmer of it, just enough to know it’s there, but we keep walking toward it in faith, believing it will lead us home. I am overcome with the thought that there are those who go through life’s impossible times without hope. That, in itself, is heartbreaking.

I’m not afraid to confess it. I am desperately clinging to hope. Without it, I would have sat down right where I was a very long time ago and would be there to this day. But I think I always believed the Word when it said, “There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.” God has been so good to me. He allowed me to grow up in circumstances that taught me the importance of unconditional love, acceptance, trust, loyalty, commitment, and faith in a brighter day. He is the author of my story. And though there have been days when, if he’d have handed me the pencil, I would have erased until the eraser was gone and done a massive re-write, I believe that it’s a perfect story. From beginning to now, it’s His will for me, every smile and tear and mountaintop and valley--all of it made me this person I’ve become. And while there is MUCH room for improvement, I am a product of my story. From a very young age, I believed with all my heart that, “…hope that is seen is no hope at all…. But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.” I don’t know how “patiently” I waited, but God gave me my heart’s hope when He gave me Matt and my babies. Instead of using the eraser to erase the parts of my story that were difficult, I use the ink to write new chapters. Instead of erasing words like ‘fear’ and ‘doubt’ from the chapters of my childhood, I write, ‘courageous’ and ‘sure’ in the chapters of my own children. It’s an amazing thing.

If today, God looked down and decided I’ve met my blessing quota for this life, I hope I would be content with what He has already given me. But I have to come clean--there are other things I’m hoping for today… that, in faith, I am believing Him for. My heart is desperately searching for something specifically. I think on it every day, hoping. Praying. I remind myself that He knows the plans He has for me. Nothing surprises Him. I hold tight to hope. He is faithful, and either way, He is God, and He has my heart. In the past several months, I've adopted a new 'motto' it seems. And it's one that perfectly fits with every chapter of my life, past and present--He is big enough. Not an Earth shattering thought on the surface, but when I consider its truth, it settles and fills my heart like nothing else.

Surprise Rainbow

Since I have been a little 'off my game' lately, I decided to surprise the girls tonight with something out of the ordinary. Every Tuesday night in the Slaughter house is Taco Tuesday. The girls have dance, and after, we have tacos and cheese dip. Every. Single. Tuesday. I cancelled once in lieu of pizza and was nearly banished by my entire family. Seriously. There were tears and wailing. It got ugly. Lesson learned. So after tacos tonight, I pulled out this cake. (By the way, the idea is totally pirated from here. My colors aren't nearly as vibrant as hers, but the Slaughter kids didn't care.)









The look on their faces when I sliced into it and they saw the rainbow colors inside was absolutely priceless and totally worth the time I spent on it this afternoon. I love those girls. Especially my Estella Dru who said, and I quote, "Mama, you should make that cake for tv. It's awesome, Girl." Compliments don't get much better than that.