Real Simple and Organic

December 1st is here! We were so excited around our house to start decorating and we finally got our Christmas tree! There is nothing better than the aroma of a fresh cut tree fuming throughout a warm lit house. Of all the seasons of the year, this would be the absolute best time to work for Real Simple Magazine, own your own TV show, or be the author of some amazing arts and crafts book. For people who don't enjoy the holidays, or dread the thought of decorating the house- here are some easy, natural, and "organic" ways to make your home festive and fully decorated! Anyone can find berries, pine cones, or pine needles and frame them or set them in a vase! What better way to bring the natural beauty of the outdoors..indoors!

Considering December

I can hardly believe that it is already November, and that Christmas will be here before we know it. I have to admit that I have briefly started listening to Christmas music while I am driving home from school. There is just something about it that makes traffic a little more tolerable. I was thinking about something today driving home. Every year about this time, I start making a list for my mom and dad for what I want for Christmas. It is usually front and back; packed with items that I just HAVE to have. As much as my passion for opening up gifts burns inside, something seems different this year. I started riding the bus to school in September and I have had the opportunity to see a couple things that you don't see on an everyday basis in the beautiful city of Woodbury.

One particular thing stands out. There is this older man that rides my bus who is obviously homeless. He carries around a tarp wrapped around all his belongings tied with an electrical cord. He wears the same jeans everyday and has a couple shirts that he rotates periodically. Now I don't know what this man did or did not do to become this way, but regardless his presence on the bus challenges me to take a look at my life a little bit closer. I honestly can't say that I NEED anything right now. I have over 20 pairs of jeans, over 30 pairs of shoes, and over 15 purses. Something just doesn't seem right of me to start preparing my list of things that I want when people around me don't have more than one pair of pants. I want this year to be different than the rest. I want to find a way to make a difference in someone's life. To take a step away from my list of pointless demands and focus on others.

Where can I meet the needs of others? How can I bless someone else this month? These are the questions I ask myself when Considering December.

Greatest Thing In The World

Some of the most interesting books in the world are the ones that are the oldest. The ones that are falling apart and faded and torn. My boyfriend's mom let me borrow this book titled, "Greatest Thing In the World." I don't know when it was written but the inside note on the front page it said it was given to Mabel Hansen on April 22, 1923. So I am assuming that it is a pretty old book. The book starts out about discussing and analyzing the "Love Chapter" in I Corinthians 13 which is amazing and I will post about later... but the book goes on to talk about Joy- which is what I want to talk about now.


How does someone attain the feeling of Joy? I just wanted to quote this part of the book because there the author describes it so well..... "Where does Joy come from? I knew a Sunday scholar whose conception of Joy was that it was a thing made in lumps and kept somewhere in Heaven, and that when people prayed for it, pieces were somehow let down and fitted into their souls.... No one can get Joy by merely asking for it. It is one of the ripest fruits of the Christian life, and, like all fruits must be grown." I cannot pray for Joy or ask for Joy. I must choose to GROW Joy. I must choose to plant Joy in my life and choose to be joyful in all situations. Some people may have never planted a seed of Joy their whole lives... either that or they planted a small seed, but have never learned how to grow or mature that seed. Therefore, they make that choice to be without Joy.

I have struggled some in my life in feeling constant Joy. And this book has helped me realize that Joy is not something you can simply pray for or receive- it is something you choose yourself to have.. something that you must "plant inside" and water, and feed, and help develop each and every day. The Lord wants us to grow and develop His true Joy.

What does it take?

I usually get scared that I am going to grow up, get married, and become one of those moms who are always comparing with the other moms... and their daughters...and their sons...and always looking around to see who knows the latest gossip about their "friends" next door. You know, the moms who talk crap about one family and then go out to dinner with them the following Friday night? The ones whose diamonds are never big enough or their house is never new enough or their children ar.... I think you get the picture. I look ahead to when that time comes, and I truly hope that I will not become one of those people. I am starting, just now.. to realize what I don't want for my life. I want to find true friends that I know are loyal to me no matter what. I want to LOVE the life that I live and find out how to be content in any and everything. I don't care if I have the biggest diamond on my hand, or the newest SUV, or the biggest cabin. I care about whether or not my heart can be content with all struggles in life. I know a mom with four kids and a loving husband who doesn't even own a wedding ring. That doesn't even matter to her if she has something on her left hand to flag off to the other moms. She lives her life for her family. Not for drama, not for status, and not for some fake idea of happiness.


What does it take?

Life without a car

Well, for starters my transmission went out in my car a couple of weeks ago and we are in the process of fixing it. I know without a doubt that I take transportation for granted. I am now stuck always having to ask my (wonderful and generous) sisters to use their cars... or use my parents cars. You would think that with four cars around the house that it wouldn't be a big deal and it hasn't been until today.
My mom even offered to take me to work and I said, "No thanks, I can just bike... it's not a big deal."
So I decided to bike to work. I have a cute vintage red bike that i got from an Antique store in Stillwater. It is one of my favorite things. But after riding it today, I think I might have to take a break from it for awhile. I had a big bag full of my stuff for the day. (books, sweater, card making stuff) and of course I had to bring my purse too... I left at 7:35 am. I absolutely love biking but this morning it was a touch of evil. I hated it. I had two huge bags falling around the front of the steering wheel... and there was no path half of the time! So i was stressing about getting to work on time, trying to figure out a system for all my stuff, WHILE nervously attempting to stay on the white line on the edge of the road. Cars where flying by me and the sun was beaming on my black shirt. I get to work sweaty, worn out, and hating my bike. Did i mention that i was wearing a skirt? ugh.

Lesson Learned: 1. Don't take your car for granted. 2. Always say "yes" to a ride to work. 3. Don't ride your bike to work because it ruins the fun of biking for pleasure.

Learning to be sincere

Love must be sincere. I read this verse in Romans 12 and wondered what it would be like for the world, but mostly myself and the people around me to have a love that was sincere. How can we learn to be sincere to the people that we meet in the grocery store or to our biggest enemies. I am trying to learn how to reach out to people with a love that is sincere and true. There are many different versions to this verse: 1. "Let love be without hypocrisy, cling to what is good." 2. "Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply;" 3. "Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good."

I truly and deeply want to learn what it means to LOVE others in such a sincere way. It is a command from the Lord... that love must be sincere. How can I show love in a sincere way today?