Gettin' Ready for Dorm Life!!

You're looking at this lion's face and wondering what on earth does this cutesy lion have to do with college?!! Have the heat and humidity have gotten to Runner Mom!! Well, that IS true, but this adorable lion's face was on a plastic sorority cup that a friend of mine gave me. She asked if I could paint this on a coffee table that she purchased at a yard sale for $5.00!! Remember those darlin' butler tray coffee tables that were usually in a cherry finish? My sister had one in the 90's, and I simply loved it. Well, I guess the owner of this one got tired of it and spray painted it black! It was not bad, just boring.

I purchased some black paint from Lowe's--they now have the sample cans of Valspar for $3.99!! Love that!! I slapped on a few coats to TRY and smooth out the bumps and bulges--remembering that this was going in a dorm room, not a living room!

Then, I took my regular dinner plate and traced a perfect circle in the center of the table. I added the fun details and then, the polka dots! I took a round sponge brush (Wal-Mart) and painted a plethora of dots using her room and sorority colors. Y'all, this project was simply TOO fun!!! After it dried, I put a sealer on--Minwax, of course!! This is a semi-gloss for the table. Hopefully, it will keep stadium cups that sweat from dripping onto the cute lion's face!!

And no, I didn't replace the brass hinges that don't look like brass anymore--college room!!
(Yes, I worked on it outside just in case the fumes were a little strong!!) So, my table for this precious girl is done, and I just need to deliver it!! I will now have a few dollars to spend at She Speaks...which is in just a few weeks!!! I am so excited about going this year. I attended last year, and I have to say, it was one of the BEST conferences I have ever attended!! Prayerfully consider this for next summer, y'all.

Sweet Blessings!!

Susan

(I accidentally deleted my SUSAN button!!!)

***Hop back over this Friday and have your favorite recipes ready!!!

Slipcovers 101

My mind is as blank as a white canvas and yet, at the same time, processing all kinds of stuff! Does that ever happen to you?

For the past month, I've been trying to figure out balancing family with Bible studies with wanting to start my own little business with subbing with running and with figuring out what to do in my boring "blah" study of ours! I love trying to decorate! Luckily, I'm blessed with a sister and great friends who have a knack for this type of thing. Bless MY heart! I think that I finally have a plan! There are two websites that gave me some great ideas that I'm "running" with--no pun intended!! They're both on my sidebar....Southern Hospitality and Pink and Polka Dot . Y'all, these two gals have been so sweet to answer questions. I'm getting color and "arranging" ideas from Rhoda. Make sure to check out her office pictures! Those are colors that I simply love--lime green and black! I showed them to hubby, and he was ok with it! He generally goes with "boring beige" for everything!

I have also been "junkin' "as well! Fun--especially with your girlfriends! I have a really cool thrift store not far from my house. I found some wonderful but ugly 20 year old chairs there. They would go perfectly in my study! The gal over at Pink and Polka Dot had a cute idea to make slipcovers! I loved the result that she got. Just precious! So, off to Wal-mart I went...looking for cheap fabric to make a dummy slipcover before purchasing the "good" stuff! Praise the Lord...after getting halfway finished with the slipcovers, He put a stop sign in the middle of the road! I was stuck with trying to figure out how on earth this darlin' child got the arms attached to the rest of the slipcover! A half-dressed chair stared at me for over a week! It was pitiful! I finally called my Mama in despair, and lovingly, she suggested that I pay someone to do it--it was not worth stressing over! She is SO SMART!! I just love her!

That's where I am at the moment. I have finally figured some things out! Timing is everything. I might post some before and after shots for y'all to see. And....it will take a while to purchase the items that I would enjoy having in here to make this room fun and inviting, rather than "boring and beige!"(Translated...I don't have enough fun money to do everything that I really would like to do!)

Think of the purpose behind a slipcover. Slipcovers protect pillows and chairs from tearing and getting dusty and dirty. What protects us? In Ephesians 6:11, God's Word tells us to "Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's scheme's." We need to know His Word--by spending time reading the Bible. Just reading devotionals and books by authors other than God is not what this scripture encourages us to do. Now, I'm talking to myself here....not pointing any fingers! Many times it's easier to simply pick up a book by a wonderful Christian author who will explain--in their words--what certain scripture means. This is a great tool! But, we need to be in the Word ourselves. After praying that God reveals Himself through His Word, and then reading the Word, I've started writing down what I believe He is trying to get across to me. Then, I might read someone else's interpretation of the same scripture to see if I'm on the "same page."

This entire section in the Bible (Eph. 6:10-18) on the Armor of God is amazing! If you take each part --sort of like a puzzle--and study it alone: belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit --then put it back together...wow! Y'all, we so need to know God's awesome Word! It is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Praise Him!

Many Blessings,

It's OK to Fail!

Have you ever pondered the question why God might want us to fail? We live in a society where success is everything. We tell our children from early on how great they are, what a good job they've done, etc. We do this to build their self-esteem and confidence. There's nothing wrong with being confident.....but in what and in whom?

The Bible study we're doing that I mentioned last week, The Seven Hardest Things God Asks a Woman to Do by Kathie Reimer and Lisa Whittle, discussed " fail vs.succeed" this morning. And let me tell you, it was a lively discussion!

God wants us to fail so we can realize that it's not about "me" and what "I can do". It's about Him. "Our Weakness is actually his most effective tool in using us for His glory and honor." In order to succeed, we have to fail first...to fall down on our knees and confess to our Father that "I can't do it alone! It's too hard! " Once we do this, we invite Him in to help us succeed--through His grace.

When we are discouraged from our weakness and disillusionment of what we think we can/can't do, we need to focus on this scripture.

"This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD. 'Go down to the potter's house, and there I will give you my message.' So I went down to the potter's house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him." Jeremiah 18:1-4

Are we allowing the Potter to shape us into the form that seems best to Him or to us? I mentioned in an earlier post that I had been praying for a while about taking a leap of faith in starting a little business with painting and photography. I've struggled with God on some aspects of this. All weekend long, my head was full of ideas, ideas, and more ideas! It was one of those times when you wake up thinking and can't go back to sleep! I am not a fan of that! I love my sleep!

Yesterday morning, while trying to have my quiet time, "stuff" simply kept popping into my head, and I couldn't shake it or focus on God! I finally closed my Bible and asked Him if these ideas were from Him and if so, did He want me to follow up on them. Once I asked Him this, my heart was at a peace (Phil. 4:6-7) that only He could provide! I was calm! I knew in my heart that His timing was now...He would be with me in order to succeed and not to fail. I had to wait on Him and trust in His ways, not mine. In the past, I've failed on following through with ideas. This time, I was trusting in One who is Holy and Perfect.

In the past 12 hours, I have FINALLY shown my work to several friends, and their reactions have been so encouraging! I have several orders already! I am really excited! But, I know it was His timing and His desire that I follow up on this dream. In order to glorify Him, I need to remember that I am His clay.

Many Blessings,