A Birthday to Remember

     My birthday was Sunday, and it was one to remember! My birthday was full of surprises. On Friday leading up to my birthday, Sarah, my sister, told me that she wanted to go shopping that afternoon. We went shopping at a few stores, got some popsicles, and then we headed for home (at least that's what I thought). However, we pulled into the Target shopping center in front of a frozen yogurt place. My sister asks "Do you know where we're going now?" I answer with a "no". Secretly, I am hoping that we are not going to have frozen yogurt right after having a popsicle. Thankfully, that is not where she is planning to take me. Instead she surprises me with a pedicure! We had to wait a while, but it was relaxing and fun. Once we finish, I barely have time to let my toes dry because Sarah is in a rush to go. So I clumsily march out to the car in my styrofoam flip flops trying not to trip in them. We listened to Hamilton on the way home. It was a fun day, but it got better.

   When we got home, I walked in the door and saw balloons. I was very confused why there were balloons. Then some of my sweet friends popped out of their hiding places and yelled "surprise"! I was shocked. I'd always wanted a surprise party! It was such fun getting to hang out with a small group of my ballet friends. I want to give a big shout out to Laura for the idea of giving a surprise party and to my mom and sister for doing the planning. Y'all did a great job because I didn't suspect anything, was very surprised and had a wonderful time!

Saturday was a lazy day and we did not do much. Sunday came, and it was my 21st birthday. The plan was go to church and then go out to eat. There was a possibility that Sarah and I might work in the three and four year old Sunday school class. I didn't expect they would need our help, but I am glad they did. It really made my day getting to spend time with these sweet children. I got several hugs, and got in a few good laughs. While I was writing a boy's name on his paper he told me "You are someone who cares for me". My heart melted. That totally made my day.

These are the things that made my birthday so special! I wanted to write them down so that in years to come I can visit these sweet memories again.

Back to School Supplies and Organization

I love school supplies! So in this blog post I'm going to show you some of the school supplies I have bought and little bit about how I organize my school stuff.

The very first thing I do, is I color code. I assign each class a color and then choose binders and planner stickers based on that color. To know more about my organizational method check out my Back to School Organizational Ideas blog post. Next, I label everything, so I don't get confused.

Now for the school supplies! Let's start with planner stickers. I bought a little book of cute planner stickers for 50% off at Micheal's. It has 1,486 stickers so I'm probably set for a long time. I also purchased some customizable stickers off of Etsy for my classes. To learn more about how I use my Etsy planner stickers check out this blog post, here. Want to know what planner I use? Click here.

"Be Still" Pen

Pen & Pencils on my desk.

Now for pens and pencils. I love these gold pencils! I mixed them with my #2 pink pencils on my desk. My pens I purchased from Kristin Schmucker. She has a lot of cute items to buy.

Gold pencils from Micheal's. 

Now, for the cutest eraser ever (purchased from Target)!

We all make mistakes.

What are some of your favorite school supplies to buy? I hope everyone has a wonderful school year! As always thanks for reading! Come back next Thursday for a new blog post! 

DIY: Painting My Desk

With lots of help from my mom and some insight from my grandparents, I painted my desk! The light color really brightens up my room, and I am loving it! Have you ever wondered how to paint a desk? There's actually more steps than I though there would be. I absolutely love seeing things transform into master pieces, so I thought others would enjoy it, too!

Before & After

The desk we painted was a desk we picked up for free off of the side of the road several years ago. The finish of the desk had lots of small scribbled engravings. The desk needed a little bit of wood glue here and there before we could start on anything. After that, we cleaned the desk with Murphy's Oil to get rid of all the dirt.

Next was sanding. This was probably the hardest step. The sawdust flew everywhere, so I would definitely recommend using a mask and safety goggles so it doesn't get in your nose and eyes. Once most the finish of the desk was all sanded off, we wiped the desk down with a tack cloth to get rid of the dust from sanding.

The drawers after being sanded.

Very first coat of paint!

Next, we did the primer coat. Then, we painted three coats of white paint (lightly sanding in between each coat). Lastly, we put on a wax to seal the paint. Once dry, the handles can go on and the desk is done!

Finished Product!

Thank you for reading this week! I hope you enjoyed seeing my desk go from drab to fab!

God's Protection of my Family in Nice, France

    Exactly one week ago, it was Thursday afternoon July 14, 2016. My mom just got off the phone with my dad, who was with my sister in Nice, France. My heart started to beat faster as she told me something had happened, but they were alright. All we knew was that a truck drove into the crowd. It seemed trivial as long as they were okay. I had no idea it was a terrorist attack or how bad it actually had been. I decided to Google what happened in Nice, France. The title read that 30 were dead, and I discovered what actually happened. Then it hit me how terrible this attack had been. My dad and sister were at the exact event where this terrorist attack happened. They were about 500 to 1,000 feet beyond where the truck had stopped. Thankfully, God protected them.

      There was a large crowd at the promenade celebrating Bastille Day that night. There were beautiful fireworks and music. My sister and dad were listening to a man play some music, when they decided to step out of the crowd. Soon, they saw panicked people running, so they ran not knowing why. A man took them and many others into his travel agency office that was in a basement. This is where they hid. I'm so grateful to this man for finding a safe place for my family until it was safe to go back to their hotel. In scary and hard times, there is always those people helping others. I think it's important to focus on these people because it's so easy to focus on the evil in our crazy world. After about a little over an hour, my dad and sister were able to take the back roads to their hotel and arrived safely.

     As the news continued to update, I learned 84 were killed and 202 were injured. Almost 300 people were killed or injured at the event where my family was, but God protected them. It was a lot to process. My heart rejoiced in God's sovereignty. Yet, at the same exact time, my heart was heavy. I felt for the families of those who were killed. I learned a father and son from Texas had died. I was shaken up, and my family was safe. I could not imagine what it would be like to have a family member killed during the attack. Before this event, terrorist attacks in France seemed so far away. Sure, I thought they were sad. However, after this experience, I have so much more compassion for those whose families were killed or hurt.

     I still went on with my day, but inside my heart was broken and I mourned for all those affected by the attack. I secretly hoped no one asked how I was because I really wouldn't have known what to say. I felt so loved and so broken at the same time. The next day, my dad and sister retraced their steps from the night before and visited the memorial full of flowers for those who died in the attack. It was a day of mourning in Nice. To me, this event served as a reminder that those I love could go home to heaven at anytime. God knows the number of days they will be here with us, but I don't. If it's not their time, God will protect them. God is good.

Thank you to everyone who reached out to us and supported us during this scary time. Thank you to everyone who prayed for my dad and sister's safety. We are blessed to be surrounded by so many caring people.

10 Things to do When Bored

Honestly, I never understood when I was little (and still now) why people could be bored. There's so many things you could do and places to go! Plus, if I ever told my mom I was bored she would have put me to work doing chores. So here's a list of fun things to do this summer.

1. Bake something yummy: It's always fun baking cupcakes or cookies. Try a new recipe, and see how you like it. You could even have a decorating contest with a friend or sibling. Want to try something fancy? Try making macaroons; click here to see a friend's blog post on how to make them!

2. Go on a picnic: This is something fun to do with friends or even family! If you can't all agree on a place to go eat or if your friends are broke, then this is a good solution.  To check out the fun picnic I had with my friends click here!

3. Snuggle with your dog: On rainy days, sometimes it's nice just to relax, do nothing, and snuggle with a soft puppy. If you don't have a dog to snuggle with go find a friend that has one. You're missing out. 

4. Make Bath Bombs: Have you ever wondered how to make bath bombs? Well wonder no more and try it yourself by clicking here to see my blog post on how to make bath bombs.

5. Go to the pool: If it's a sunny day, go get your swimming suit and hang out at the pool. One of my favorite things is just floating in my pink inter-tube in the pool. It's so relaxing.

6. Make an easy bean bag toss: It's really easy to make this fun bean bag toss. I made mine with my sister. So if you want to do it with your siblings too click here to see my post!

7. Go antique shopping: I always enjoy antique shopping. I usually never buy anything, but it's just so fun to look at all the pretty things. My mom and I did a little antique shopping the other day, and it was a blast.

8. Organize your closet: I love to have things organized. Last summer I clean out and organized my room and it was well worth my time! If you need some tips for organizing your own closet then click here to see my blog on that!

9. Make an inspirational board: I have a board with Bible verses and inspiration quotes. I love to read them when I'm stressed or feeling down. If you want to make one, too the click here to see mine!

10. Start a project like painting a desk: This summer I'm painting my desk! I'm VERY ecstatic! If it turns out the way I hope, it'll be featured on my blog.

These are some of the things I like to do when I'm bored.

Fourth of July DIY Bean Bag Toss

I hope everyone had a fun 4th of July! I'm back this week with another DIY project! My sister and I made a fun and easy 4th of July bean bag toss that I thought would be fun to share on the blog. I originally saw this idea on Pinterest and thought it would be fun to recreate.

To start, pick out two types of patterned fabric. I chose some navy stripes and red and white polka-dots from Walmart for under a $1 each. Cut a rectangle out of the fabric and fold it in half with the wrong sides together creating the size of bean bag you desire. Next, sew two sides of the bean bag up on the sewing machine, and turn the fabric right side out so that the pattern can be seen. Fill it up with beans and sew the remaining side shut. I made eight bean bags total: 4 red and 4 blue.

Next, you'll need some plastic plates. We bought a package of four red plastic plates at Walmart for less than $1. Then, on Microsoft Word, we printed out numbers to tape to the plates. The first one was worth 5 points, then 15, then 30, and the furthest was worth 50. When adhering the numbers to the plates I'd suggest using tape, because when we used glue they didn't stick and blew away.

I hope you enjoyed this simple DIY! You could use this not only for the 4th of July but really for any summer event. Of course, you can choose whatever colors you want your bean bags and plates to be!

DIY Bath Bombs

Bath bombs are fun and cool, but why pay for them when you can make them yourself out of ingredients that you usually have around the house? Below is the recipe and steps for how I made these lavender bath bombs. I got this off of Pinterest, but changed the recipe up just a tad.

You will need:
1 cup baking soda
1/2 cup corn starch
1/2 cup of lavender scented Epsom salt
4 tablespoons of cream of tartar
4 tablespoons of coconut oil
1 tablespoon of water
Food coloring

1. Mix your dry ingredients (baking soda, corn starch, Epsom salt, and cream of tartar).

2.  Mix your wet ingredients (coconut oil, water, and food coloring). I'd suggest using one color of food coloring. I put a drop of red and blue in mine hoping it'd turn purple, but I just ending up with a bath bomb that had specks of red/pink and blue in it.

3. Very slowly pour a little bit of the wet mixture into your dry mixture and stir. Continue to do this until all of the wet mixture has been mixed into the dry ingredients.

4. Use a mold (I used a muffin tin) and pack your bath bomb mixture into it. At first I used a spoon to pat it down, but later I found it works better to actually use your fingers. I usually did about two heaping teaspoons into the muffin tin and then squished it down as hard as I could. It's key to get it as compact as possible.

5. Once all of the molds in the muffin tin are full, flip the muffin tin over onto a cookie sheet. Gently tap the bottom of each mold to make sure the bath bomb comes out onto the cookie sheet. Continue until you've used all of your mixture. It should make about 8 bath bombs.

6. Let dry overnight. Once dry, be very careful. These are super fragile and crumble easily. That's the one flaw about this recipe and I'm not sure how to fix it. I've had about 3 crumble or break. Actually, one of them broke because my sister got home after I had just made them (they were drying) and she thought they were cookies. So she poked one to see if she could get some frosting on her finger to see what they tasted like. I honestly don't think they look like cookies at all (my sister's crazy).

7. Last of all, you can package them up to make an adorable gift for a friend. Again, it's kind of a bummer they're so fragile because they could easily break in the bag when transporting them. I honestly would be tempted to just give a friend a bag that said "magical fairy dust for your bath" because by the time they get their gift home it'll be crumbled to dust.

In the end, I realized making bath bombs isn't as easy as it sounds. Maybe with a different mold or a lot of practice, they are easier to make. At first, they weren't sticking together and they kept crumbling, but with a little experimenting, I finally got them to cooperate. I'd challenge you to try and make them at least once, but I won't blame you if after making them you just go to the store to buy them.