Jun
10
2011Julia and I are exploring the meaning of Beauty, intersecting Beauty with the word of God, and letting Beauty live in our lives. Inspired by a joint feeling of just not measuring up in the beauty category, we’re tackling some hard questions:
- What is Beauty? And does it reside in me?
- And when my husband says that I’m beautiful, how can I receive those words as truth in a culture that says the opposite?
- What am I going to teach my daughters about Beauty?
- And most importantly, what does the Word of God say about Beauty?
Join us as we converse about a topic that touches the heart of all women.
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Julia and I are starting to feel that we’ve covered most everything we set out to cover from the beginning, not exhaustively by any means. However, we’ve done the best we can with our God-given abilities.
But we’re not sure this is finished.
Why?
Because there are millions of women on this planet all with their own experiences and God-granted insights on beauty.
Today I’m going to feature one of them, but first I wanted to ask you, beautiful readers, if you would like to contribute to our conversation.
Have the truths in this series changed the way you’ve thought about yourself or beauty in general?
Did we miss something important that you’d like to cover?
Do you have older girls than ours and want to give us few tips on parenting daughters who embody and know what true beauty is?
Are you a husband or father (I know there are a few of you who drop by… don’t be shy!) who wants to say something to the wives and daughters?
If so, we want to hear your thoughts. Please drop us a line through either a comment or an email (you can find our emails on our blogger profiles) and let us know that you have a new perspective on this conversation. We’ll be honored to feature you.
Now, let’s hear a little from my friend Jen.
I’ve known Jen since our junior year in college. My roommate and I had moved in and so had most of the other new students, but our transfer student from San Diego had not arrived. We were all anticipating her arrival. Seriously, how did a sophisticated city girl from the west coast end up at a tiny Christian college in the foothills of South Carolina?
After hearing that very question approximately 4 million times, quirky Jen began to respond with: “I stood with my back to a map of the US and I threw a dart. Where ever it landed I looked for the closest school!”
Her humor and gentle care won over the whole dorm. Soon she was ringleader for mattress surfing in the hallways, and had encouraged all the girls to open shops in their room with their hidden talents. Jen served up coffee, hot cocoa, laughter, and honest conversation in her dorm room. And not much has changed in all the years I’ve known her.
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| Jen and her future husband Abel in 2005 |
She may have married sweet Abel the woodsman, she may have traveled the world, and she may be suffering from a mysterious neurological disorder that leaves her thoughts scattered and sometimes irretrievable– but when you’re with Jen you feel like you’re the only thing that matters to her and that your conversation is the most important thing in her life.
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Continue reading over here on Julia’s blog.
Jun
09
2011I’ll tell you a little secret.
Our guest room is our junk/storage room. It’s filled to the brim with photography props, bookshelves, a queen bed, my double stroller (I’m seriously contemplating selling it…), and other random assorted junk.
Here’s just a peak into the door.
(Cringes)
Fortunately for this room, it’s going to have to get cleaned out and made into a nursery. So in order to motivate the cleaning… here’s what’s floating around in my head as far as nursery design ideas. Keep in mind that we’re not finding out the gender of this little one so this room is going to quite neutral.
We’ve always known that the walls in that room were destined to be yellow. So here’s the color scheme (All paint samples from Sherwin Williams).
My entire upstairs has taken on a bird and tree them. The girls room has some pretty fantastic Bird Art. The bathroom is built around this amazing tree/owl/squirrel shower curtain from Target. And I just realized today that even our room participates in this theme with a eagle embroidery above our bed. So it seems only natural that the tree and bird theme overflows into our new little one’s nursery.
Here’s a design board of the elements I’d love to include.
Here’s where you can find these items:
(I love it in these colors! Though I might request a lighter blue for the Owls and Birds)
Dresser Building Plan
Dresser Building Plan
(painted in the Stream Color.. or maybe Morning Fog? Or a little Morning fog glaze over Stream?)
(Our neighbor gave us a slightly faded wing back chair like this one that I’m sooo ready to slip cover)
Ikea Leksvik Crib (we’re borrowing it from a friend)
Premier Prints Hoot Owl Village (my idea is to use it as an accent fabric: maybe quilt backing and pillow for the wing back chair)
Premier Prints ZigZag Village Blue/Natural (Curtain Option 1?! Or Changing Pad Cover? or Crib Skirt? or Simple top for quilt/coverlet?)
Premier Prints Ozbourn Village Blue/Natural (Curtain Option 2?! Or Changing Pad Cover? Or Crib Skirt?)
Premier Prints ZigZag Village Blue/Natural (Curtain Option 1?! Or Changing Pad Cover? or Crib Skirt? or Simple top for quilt/coverlet?)
Premier Prints Ozbourn Village Blue/Natural (Curtain Option 2?! Or Changing Pad Cover? Or Crib Skirt?)
So I need some serious help with what fabrics to use for the quilt, changing pad, and curtains. What do you think?
Jun
08
2011I don’t always do the best job of capturing the mundane.
I’m sort of a global person by nature. I love big ideas, theology, writing papers that are 30 pages (or more) long, and trying to see how every little piece fits in the large picture.
But part of the downfall of being a global thinker is that sometimes I just miss the little stuff. I don’t express gratitude for it and sometimes I hardly know it’s happening.
Here’s a feeble attempt to help me truly see and celebrate those mundane moments that are happening. Today we ate cream cheese coated crackers, colored a picture, and got TWO boxes filled with goodies!
Jun
07
2011I opened the girls closet the other day (as the temperatures soar into the 90s here) looking for something cool for them to wear. My eyes fell upon the two Grow-up Together Dresses. Perfect!
I thought I’d let you know how it’s working out this year. Let’s revisit a second. Here’s 9 month old Bronwyn modeling her dress.
Look how tiny she was!
And here are 20 month old Aeralind and Bronwyn taking their dresses for a run at the local playground.
I didn’t have to modify the dress at all to fit, but I may have to lengthen the straps just a little by the end of the summer. The length is perfect for a climbing and romping toddler: not long enough to trip her and long enough to cover her. And it’s so much easier to have hyper active toddler girls in one pieces for quick and painless diaper changes.
I still love the Grow Up Together Dresses and the girls seem to approve! Let me know if you make one 🙂
