Be @ rest

This verse is bringing me great comfort today.  My sweet friend Anna shared this on her blog today and I immediately wrote it down on a post it and put it on my computer. Putting scripture on my computer is such a daily reminder of where I need to put my trust. God is so faithful!

Psalm 116:7

What I wish I knew at 13

I was contacted to participate in the Dove Self-Esteem Movement by answering the question, "What I Wish I Knew at 13."  To be honest, it was a tough question to answer.  13 was 13 years ago and seems like forever ago!

 At 13 I was attending Perimeter Christian School here in Atlanta. I didn't have that many worries besides school, friends, and boys.  Oh and maybe my sisters.  I do have 4 sisters (and 1 brother), so a few disagreements happened here and there ;)  But, back to my point.  So to answer this question I would have to say I wouldn't change anything.  I had the most Godly mother and father who allowed me to learn from my mistakes.  They loved me, disciplined me, and taught me that Jesus died for me and that He will love me forever. If I changed anything about my past, I wouldn't have been able to learn from my mistakes.  I made a lot of mistakes. Thankfully, I am an open book and talked with my mom and sisters about each issue I was dealing with.  They gave me godly wisdom and advice. Now, I obviously didn't take their advice each time, but I did learn.

Learning from mistakes is how we change. If we never make any mistakes we won't see our need for Jesus.  And this is HUGE for me. I have always struggled with seeing my need for Jesus. At 13 I was so focused on my reputation and what people thought of me, that I rarely saw my utter and desperate need for Jesus.  I would turn to the Lord each time something bad or sad happened, but the in between times, it was all about me.  As I made mistakes and grew in my walk with the Lord, I started to see that life wasn't all about me. At 13 this is very difficult to see.  We feel that the world totally and completely revolves around us.  We also feel that each time something upsetting happens that the world is going to end.  So not true!  If only we could see that at 13, God is shaping us into who He wants us to be.  And to be able to face that head on, with the confidence that Jesus loves us, would be a great challenge to set for 13 year old girls.

Now I couldn't find a picture of me when I was 13, but I did find these...for your entertainment :)

This is me with my mom, and 2 of my sisters. (Dani on the left and Claire on the right).  Sweet night gown mom ;)

This is me with my other sister, Laura. She's got a great grip on me and I'm not worried one bit that she's going to drop me. Also, Laura was one of the cutest kids ever!

Me with Dani (left) and Claire (right) again. 

All 4 of the older girls!  Claire is holding me. Then Dani and then Laura.

This is us with my great grandmother. She passed away last year at 108.  She was an amazing woman!  She prayed for us everyday and left us a wonderful heritage.  I'm the one on the far left. The one with the major thunder thighs.  Like our outfits??  Haha!

Ok, skip a few years...getting closer to 13.  This is my mom's side. 4 generations.  Little did we know that we would have 5 generations alive at one time! I'm the shorty on the right in the little house on the praire dress ;)

Fast forward another few years and we have 5 girls!  Ahh!  Rachel is the baby and she was like our little baby doll!  I'm the one holding her :)  The other sister is Laura.

Again, getting closer to 13. I'm probably 9 right here.  I'm wearing a matching Jasmine t-shirt and hat.  Soo cool. I probably had jean shorts on too ;)

I'm the one in the front with the saylor outfit on.  This was my mom's favorite spot to take our picture...sun in the eyes every time! 

And look!  I found one of when I was 13!  We were an entire family at this point.  When I was 8 (I'm the fourth girl) my parents decided to have another baby (Rachel).  Then they didn't want Rachel to be like an only child so they had another one! They got a boy on the 6th try.  (I'm the one in the demin shirt with the red turtle neck underneath...that shirt had a christmas scene stitched on it.  Very cool!)

And here I am today with MR.P. I have lots left to learn and constantly have to remind myself to rely on the Lord instead of myself.  Thankful for every trial I went through to help me learn.  I am excited about the journey I have in front of me!

Guest Bathroom

Good Morning Bloggers. I took a little blogging break, but I'm back! I've been working on our guest bathroom as you probably remember.  I'm trying to focus on one room at a time, but it's getting difficult.  So many great ideas out there!  I've actually really enjoyed this project, but have yet to finish it.  Follow through is tough!

The walls are a sage green and I plan to use white to fill in the lines to really make the green and white POP!  I can't wait to show the final product. I don't like spending a lot of money, so I shop my house pretty often.  But I also find the value in putting money into things that will last and will help the value of our house in the future.  Here are a few things I would LOVE to put in this bathroom. 

A new showerhead would make our shower wonderful for our guests.

I think a guest bathroom should be just as special as your own bathroom!  And a nice shower head is always a good surprise in my book.  I think I like the chrome the best.

We also need to change out the hardware on the facet.  Here's a question though. Do all facets and such need to match in ALL your bathrooms?  That's something I've always wondered. I know to keep the metal the same in each room, but wasn't sure about the entire house.

I like this style facet a lot.

The price is just right at $35.99!  That's my kind of deal!

Funny story regarding our facet. It's one of those that you pull up...here's a pic.

sorry for the quality...I stole from one of my WIWW posts.

So a little girl in our community group (church) was using our bathroom and she told her mom later that it was the most confusing facet she had ever seen!  I guess we need to change it then ;)

Lastly, I would LOVE to change out the lighting in this bathroom.  I don't really know how to change an over the mirror light to an overhead chandelier :(  But, once I do learn I would LOVE this one! 

I love the details. And again, the price is perfect. 

Everything I listed here can be found at Overstock.com.  Overstock has graciously given me a discount code to share with my readers!  The Code is 121728? and will give you 10% off ALL Overstock items!

All the ideas and opinions expressed are my own. No monetary compensation was received for doing this post, however, I was provided with a discount code.

2 looks for a mantle

MR.P went to the braves game last night, which sadly, they lost. But, he really enjoyed being at Bobby Cox's last game at Turner.  I on the other hand had plans to stay home. I wanted to knock out this mantle and get it right. So I tried 2 different looks.

1st Look:

I added books under the pine cones and put our last name on the mirror with stencils I had laying around.  It's a cheap way to spruce things up.  I like this one bc of the teal frame. It's a darker color of our walls (silver sage from restoration hardware) and makes the mantle really pop!

2nd Look:

I switched the pine cones and frame for balance and added the large white frame for a layered look.  I like this one because I like the white frame. It has the look I am going for. 

Now I just can't decide on which one I like better!  It's currently sitting in the 2nd look.  What's your vote?

Mantle update

This weekend MR.P and I had most of Saturday at home.  It was great. We relaxed, watched the UGA game, and later gave a baby shower for friends that are having twins.  I did find the time to start changing up my mantle.  It's not finished, but it definitely looks much better than before. 

Before:

After:

What do y'all think? I'd definitely like to add some different accessories and such, but couldn't really think of anything.  I have a few things I could spray paint and then add some tall sticks in for some height, but didn't really have time this weekend. I'll also add some books for depth.  Maybe stacking them up under a frame and then turning them around backwards just for kicks ;)  I'll keep you updated on what I add!

Chili's

Ok, so I know that Chili's is no fancy smancy place, but MR.P and I love it. I think because of sentimental reasons.  In college we used to get take out there all the time. Date night for $5 each, YES please!! 

Well, I was visiting Centsible Savings and what did I find?  A coupon for a free skillet queso!  Whoohoo! Date night here we come :) 

Also, when you sign up they send you an email for a few more free appetizers. Definitely worth your time in my book!

Mantles

I think Mantles are really hard to decorate. Mine is by far the most simple Mantle I have ever seen.  

EDIT: Already getting great advice!  I have a large mirror I can lean against the wall.  It's white though, what color should I paint it??

I have never known what to do with it. I love the color of the frames since they bring all the colors in our living room together.  I just can't seem to find the right accessories to accent things. 

Here are a few that I do like.

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This one is obviously more for a kitchen, but I couldn't resist posting it. I love all the pops of color against the white. 

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(via...I think)

So after looking at these beautiful Mantels I have a few ideas.  My sister gave me this really cool water pitcher. I'll spray paint it obviously. Then maybe put some sticks and such in there. She also gave me some great square and rectangular plates.  I'll spray paint those as well.  It'll all come together, you'll see! 

Under Construction

Pardon the changes that keep happening on my blog! Trying to find the right look for me!