Pink & blue have been making some fun appearances in my life this week. The combination is special to me because they're the colors we used in Betsey's nursery 5 years ago. WOW.. I can't believe that was only 5 years ago!! Time is such a strange thing as a parent. In one way I feel like my kids are growing up so quickly, while at the same time I feel like I've been their mom forever. It's hard to remember life before kids haha. I'm sure other parents understand this odd feeling!
All of those memories of Betsey's pink & blue nursery had me dreaming of my newborn baby. I just went back 3000 instagram pictures to my first few posts.. Who remembers Earlybird? :D
"Focus on His promises" is something I've heard a lot and never fully understood. I figured that probably referred to hundreds of promises that deserved a lot of study time and attention and I'd get to them eventually.. Another quote I never understood was "God revealed something to me". 😏 To be honest, that second was more annoying than anything because I just didn't see how it was possible to know a message came from God. It still makes little sense in my head but isn't that the best part about how He works? Anyway so yesterday (for the second time this week) a thought popped into my head that I hadn't worked up to. Normally my thoughts bounce off each other and grow into deeper thoughts and I can remember the pattern of thought that lead to where I was, but not these times. God's been dropping some of the craziest things into my head that I know couldn't have come from me! Yesterday it was about everything that He hasn't promised me. He didn't promise that I'd have an easy life. He didn't promise that I'll always be happy. He didn't promise that I'll be successful. He didn't promise me that I'll get to travel the world.. He also didn't promise me running water. He didn't promise me a home with a heater and a/c. I wasn't promised a fridge full of food or a closet full of clothes or a job (or 3) or a shelf of bibles or a light to turn on when my kids have nightmares. However, He did promise heaven to all of His followers & I'm counting on the fact that heaven is going to be far more amazing than anything I'll never get to see here on earth!! & I'm okay with that! 😊 These things don't just happen in my head because I am and have always been a pretty selfish person.. 😁😞 But gratitude has been coming from Him in buckets lately and I'm loving it! 💕 take a second to say thank you to our Sweet Creator today for all the little things.
Hello & happy Sunday!
The girls and I are enjoying a quiet day in so I'm taking advantage of this beautiful day off to write up this week's goals!
- October 12-19 goals -
-make & send current orders
-stock the shop
-finish Fervent
-buy snacks for the day care
-run 10 miles (I can't believe I still haven't hit 10 mi in 1 week. Time to change that!)
-drink Greens before coffee every morning!
-get the girls' halloween costumes ready
-read Awana book and memorize the long version of the verse with the girls.
& most importantly,
-journal & pray everyday!
Doable goals for sure. Now to stay focused on the list and not on my pinterest or instagram feeds...
Any suggestions on staying focused on goals and overcoming distractions?
Hey everyone! Since my last post, I've really been trying to narrow down my list of daily chores and feel happier.
I started reading The Happiness Project a week ago and although I haven't started my one year challenge yet, I have noticed a big difference in my attitude toward life, chores, and being happy!
One of my favorite parts of the book so far (I've only gotten about half way through), is where Gretchen Rubin talks about making a list of what she really likes vs. things she wants to like. This hit me really hard! My husband and I are so different. Like we barely have anything in common. So when I made this list, I realized that most of the 'want to like' side were things that he likes. Of course it's not a bad thing to try to do some of the things that he enjoys if it makes him happy and brings us closer together, but the problem was that I was so stressed trying to do all of the things that he likes on top of the what makes me happy. And I believe that it's been pushing us apart.
Here's part of my list.
What I want to like:
-wearing make up
-cooking
-world news
-going to/hosting big parties
-speaking spanish
-drinking alcohol
-growing a garden
-raising chickens
-having a horse
-exercising
What I actually like:
-coffee
-organizing
-crocheting & knitting
-going to church
-stretching
-creating
-minimalist design
-eating organic (myself and my kids)
-reading
-making lists
I am still working on a few things from the top list because I know (from reading The Happiness Project) that you won't always feel happy doing something that will bring you long term happiness. Some of these include cooking, growing a garden and exercising. I know that if I took the time to cook more often, I would be happy later because Jorge will be happy and my kids will be eating a healthier meal. Growing a garden would bring long term happiness because I will be proud of my hard work and we will be able to save money on veggies. And obviously exercising will make me happier in the long term in many ways. So why don't I take more time for them? That's a good question! I'm still working on putting together my personal happiness project that will last one year. Cooking and exercising will definitely be included somewhere while a few others will be cut out. I can't wait! I'll do my best to keep up with my progress on here.
<3 Erin
I did some organizing immediately after reading the part of The Happiness Project where she decluttered her home and organized some of her kids' toys. I knew my bathroom needed some help so I went straight there and I'm happy with the results!
Drinking coffee while keeping up with a bible plan is my idea of a perfect morning. Right now I'm juggling a few different plans: The One Year Bible, Soul Detox, and Habit of Happiness.
Currently reading! & I highly recommend this book. :)
Some crafting I did recently.
Trying to turn my love of crochet into a source of income. So far I haven't had a sale. But I'm keeping my chin up! I have over 500 favorites on my Etsy shop, so I'm sure a sale will come soon.
One of my favorite recent purchases. Organic lip balm from this Etsy shop
Surrounding myself with bible verses have been a helpful reminder of how to live my life and grow closer to God. I don't always remember them during the day, but seeing them over and over helps big time.
I always wanted to have a blog, but have such a horrible time trying to manage my time and getting on here. Well it looks like I have a blog!! I think all of these page views have come from only three posts haha, but I'm so glad you guys like them and I hope I can write something else you enjoy reading!
For my first post in a while, I'll just summarize my life right now! We have been through a ton in the past year... Getting married, renting a home, going to church as a family, Jorge getting a new job, and myself becoming an It Works! distributer!
Jorge and I got married on May 2, 2014!
Betsey and Beverly are getting so big. They're definitely not babies anymore!
W're taking full advantage of our rental property! In addition to our crazy girls, we now have Heidi the horse and at least 25 chickens!
I've gotten a lot of positive feedback recently on my new hobby! I'm really loving it and I'm so happy that I'm not only not losing interest, but my projects are inspiring others to want to learn! :)
I thought it might be a good idea to write a post that has all my favorite links/guides/tutorials so I can send anyone here and they can learn the same way I did.
This lady is kind of odd ha but this is a good starting video :)
& one for the magic ring:
If you're using a pattern and it's all stuff like sc, dc, hdc and you
have no clue what that means, here's a list of the abbreviations that explain everything. Then
you can look those up on youtube to learn how to do it.
Staying organized is pretty important when you are doing any craft. I try to keep my basket as clean as possible, but occasionally it gets pretty messy.. Also, I love using Evernote and Pinterest to collect all my inspiration, ideas, patterns and tutorials. These are both so great because I can access both from my computer and phone and they are always synced & ready to go. Although I find most of patterns & inspiration on pinterest, I have also used Ravelry quite a bit for patterns! It's probably the best site for knitters & crocheters in my opinion.
First project- Betsey's kitty.
I ended up letting Betsey keep the ball, since I made it before I learned about the magic ring, which really helped with my amigurumi. :) Honestly I should have started with some smaller projects before jumping right in, but I guess it was a good lesson! I really learned what I could do with this kitty.
Google translate helped a lot with this one! I've found that many of the best tutorials aren't even in english ha.. Some on my pinned tutorials on seamless color switching also helped a lot!
Finally got to use my amigurumi safety eyes!
Fourth project: kitty #2
As you can see, it doesn't take long to learn! My fourth project looks nothing like the first haha.. I'm kind of proud of it. :)
I used this awesome video to help learn how to attach the head, ears & skirt waaaay better this time.
Here's an awesome video tutorial on how to double crochet.
This is the same pattern, I just didn't add the earflaps and added the bear ears. I'm going to add some wooden beads inside once I get a chance to stop at Michaels or Joanns..
Since I took this picture, I've added an adorable wooden button to the middle of the flower. :) I'd take a picture of it but Betsey's on my lap watching Mickey Mouse calmly, I don't really want to interrupt if she's being quiet & letting me do my thing on here!
I usually have a few projects going at once, like I think most crafters do ha.. so right now even though I have a crochet doll waiting to be finished, I am also working on a knit infinity scarf for myself, and a knit beanie for Jorge. Here are some tutorials for learning how to knit. It's not as fast or easy in my opinion as crochet, but it's still fun and you can make different things with each, so I think it's nice to know both. :)
Probably one of the best videos out there for knitting basics.
A video tutorial for increasing and decreasing.
Here are some great websites:
Ravelry patterns, boards, knitting and crochet, it's awesome!
Wool and the Gang great video tutorials for knitting. Purl Bee beautiful pictures & free patterns! Lion Brand Yarn has lots of tutorials for getting started on knitting and crocheting, plus tons of free patterns.
If I think of anything else, I'll add it later! This stuff should be more than enough to get you started. Good luck! :)
I now have a huge board on Pinterest filled with future projects and tutorials. I'm sure my regular followers are getting a little sick of seeing so much yarn on their feeds, but I don't really care ha I refer back to that board sooo much everyday while crocheting! I use that & Evernote mostly now to collect all of my project ideas. I never realized before I started crocheting just how awesome Evernote is! Definitely one of my top apps now.
Anyway I'm super happy I'm doing this. I hope I stick with it. A few people have asked to buy some of my stuff, I think they will definitely keep me doing this if anything else slows me down. I could really use the extra money.. Especially once Beverly comes along. I don't know how I'll find the time to crochet with two little ones, but I know there's no way I can afford to put them both in day care so I'm going to have to think of something creative!!
Finished the octopus yesterday!! :) yaaayyyy
Mommy & Betsey were trying to match today. This was the best we could do..
Made myself a cute coaster for my desk using this tutorial! I made it a little bigger than the ones on their site.. I looove it!
What's on the hook tonight- the beginning of another kitty. I'm using a smaller hook this time & wool instead of cotton. I am definitely liking the smaller hook better (size E), but cotton was way easier to work with! The wool does feel good though.. I like how soft it is crocheted all tight. Ha woaaah...... :O
