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sugar cookie recipe and a little bit of kitchen love … ♥

the summer is already starting to fly by
every year i say the same thing…
i will not let summer fly by
i will not let summer fly by 
but sometimes it does anyways … 
even still, i’m determined to make a summer bucket list and complete at least half of it. 
our summer seems to start later here. weather wise and when school ends. 
school starts the first week of September … so i feel like i’m still sorta ahead of the game. sorta.

the past few tuesdays we’ve been making & taking cookies to daddy’s work
last week we tried this recipe for no-roll sugar cookies that i found via Pinterest
it was simple & quick
i’ve been feeling the weight of not doing enough for others
and pointing out to my girls, that contrary to what society tells us, 
the world does not revolve around them… or even around our family. 
there are kids we can sponsor, people who are sick that we can help, 
or even just for our neighbors. is there something we can do for them? or bring to them?
are we paying attention? to what’s going on outside of our little box.
all around us. everyday.
that’s the only way. they only way something will be seen as different in us.



not to point towards religion.
religion is empty. it’s void.
not to point towards rules
what we should wear, or what type of music we should listen to 
… what version we should read.
rules are empty.
and they fall on the deaf ears of a world 
that has already pinned the Creator as next to non-existent.
no… i don’t want to point others towards rules

i want to point towards a Savior. 
the One who is meant to fill the void.
the One who sets us free.
free to live in His Truth & in His Grace…
and striving to find a good balance between the two.
anyways … that’s what’s been on my heart lately
and with all this baking goin on, i’m thinking about how thankful i am 
for our home, our kitchenit’s spacious and comfy … 
so much revolves around this room.
my kitchen sink gets a lot of hours out of me 🙂
i love sprucing it up, adding little things that make it a fun area to spend time in
i found a little white pedestal dish at the thrift store, and put our hand soap & a bottle of lotion on it right near the sink
then i saw these lights on Pinterest and fell in love
and then decided to make a few strands of my own
i strung them over the sink and later found the aqua bird cage at hobby lobby 
threw that and some pom pom flowers into the mix
and now it’s like a little party 24/7 right over my kitchen sink 🙂
to make your own lights, all you need is a string of patio or Christmas lights 
(got these white ones at Target in the outdoor stuff) 
and some cupcake papers. snip a little hole in the base and fit over the bulb
then repeat. like a hundred times
but it’s worth it.
at night when we go to bed i turn off all the other lights and leave these on 🙂
they’re like night lights in the kitchen ♥
much love ♥
linking up here:

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diy pennant bunting & a summer front porch …♥



as i work my way through fixing up our house, i’m slowly discovering my decorating style
and slowly discovering what works & feels best for our family
and realizing it’s not about perfection, it’s about using what you have
to make it an inviting & welcoming place to live 
i’ve always dreamed of having a wrap-around front porch with a swing and a pretty 
spindle-ish wood screen door … so even though our front porch is small, 
it’s still fun to spruce it up a bit for summer
sometimes i sit and watch the kids play (they usually don’t know i’m sitting there)
or i read there in the morning, after the bus leaves 
(unless it’s raining) 
(or if it’s too hot)
 (we don’t have consistent weather here … at all)
but it’s quiet, and peaceful





the bunting was an easy project … just cut the pieces to size, sew a pocket and thread some jute through the pocket … or hot glue directly to the jute






this rocker was on the curb one night before garbage day … a long time ago
i love it, it’s my favorite. i’ve painted it lots of different colors
this year it got the mint green treatment 🙂






i hope to find some odds & ends to add to this little wall near the rocker
maybe a mini side table too … the welcome sign was actually a mirror






with some chalkboard spray paint to cover the mirror
and some almond colored paint around the frame …






it takes on a whole different look
welcome to the porch! 🙂






the azalea’s are in full bloom this week
that means summer is almost here




the girls will cut a few branches off every couple of days
and put them in a vase near the kitchen window for me 🙂






well tomorow’s friday! that means yard sales! fun fun fun 🙂
be back soon with some info on my coupon system…
happy weekend 

linking up here:
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free summer print … ♥

lately i’ve been worrying a lot about waste.
wasted time.
wasted energy.
wasted words.
waste.

it comes back to the fact that most days if my attitude could speak for it self, it would say
“i got this”
“i’ll figure it out”
“i can do this on my own”

that stinks.
cause realistically nothing can be done on my own
i can’t be the kind of wife my husband needs – on my own
i can’t be the kind of mom my kids need – on my own
i can’t even be nice on my own
really 
and some days it just feels better to be nasty. doesn’t it?
well for a while it does. then it comes crashing down later



but last time i checked
yup.
just checked…
i’m not asked to do it on my own
i’m not called to be perfect
i’m just called to be faithful
My grace is sufficient for you
 for <sup class="crossreference" style="background-color: white; font-weight: bold; text-align: start; vertical-align: top;" value="(B)”>my power is made perfect in weakness
second corinthians twelve.nine

and because i try to do it all by myself
it gets messed up
and it feels like waste



but nothing is waste
Psalm 139 says that God is before us & behind us
He is sovereign
to Him
nothing is wasted
in the hands of the One who redeemed my soul
there is no waste

then go and listen to this song from Jason Gray
go. do it. ♥

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a little girl's craft nook … ♥





i spent some time over this past weekend
(with help from my family)
spring cleaning my girls rooms … never really shared them on this little bloggy blog
so i thought i’d snap a few pics while it was still clean 🙂
cause heaven knows it won’t stay that way for long.
and cause i’m hoping to change the room up a bit in the near future …





last year for my oldest daughter’s birthday, the hubs built her a mini version of my craft table 🙂
anchored to the wall and with decorative molding




a cupcake stand & mason jars are here 
for all the stuff that comes with crafting supplies 🙂




found a few canisters from the thrift stores… they hold spools of thread and stamps




crochet is fun 🙂 




this cute little printable calendar is from creative mamma




a few totes for storing odds and ends




and boxes or magazine holders in the dollar section at Target 
work great for holding all those loose papers!




remember latch hook?
🙂




here’s a few other shots of her room…
























i wrote verses down on parts of her wall
to serve as a reminder and an encouragement














i’m thinking maybe a little paint … maybe some more horses (she loves ’em)
and a bunch of buntings & garlands … yes more of those would be good.
much love ♥ thanks for being here today
linking up to some sweet parties…

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pretty plate display … ♥


happy Friday!
some of you have wanted to know more about the plates hanging in the kitchen/office area
how i hung them & where to find them
so i thought i’d show you a few close-ups!




i stumbled across this on Pinterest 
Christina from the Frugal Homemaker uses some felt & hot glue to hang her plates!
that’s it! no fancy gizmos!

plate hangar from paperclip

i have to be honest about this…
there was much discussion between the hubs & me about this method of 
hanging stuff over tile counters 
that he painstakingly installed not that long ago 🙂

but it really works! … 
the hot glue really melts and welds the paper clip to the felt
 since it’s so fiber-ish
(know that’s not a word)
(but this is my blog … m’kay?)

they’ve been hanging for a few months now …
every so often i’ll peek to see if the clips are sliding out from under the felt…
nope! they’re cemented on!
we’re good 🙂

i have to admit …
i have a problem with plates
vintage plates to be specific
i love them, and have too many of them
(cept that mint one with the butterfly … that’s from TJ Maxx 🙂





i found most of these at yard/rummage sales, and the thrift stores
(some were given to me by family)





it’s almost yard sale season around here …
my favorite time of the year 
🙂 




here’s a few other displays i fell in love with from around the web …





{Canadian House & Home}




cassandras dining room after 18
{Addicted 2 Decorating}




 
{Domestic Fashionista}




i hope this inspires you to find a blank wall in your home
bust out your glue gun & felt … and hang some plates!
have a wonderful weekend!
much love ♥
linking up to some sweet parties…

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simplify your kitchen – kitchen cabinet re-org! … part one ♥






i have a little secret to tell you …
i’m a piler
yes … a piler
as in i make piles
but i don’t like piles
i loathe them actually
 and i don’t want any more piles
like ever





i’ve deduced (is this a word?) from my own psychological analysis
that pilers are also people who are indecisive
right?
cause the reason the pile gets made is because
a. there’s no place to put said item
b. there is a place to put said item, 
but the piler is not sure which of the many options should become the home of the said item
(ie: do receipts go in the receipt file or with the owner’s manual?)
(do flashlights go with the candles in case of a power outage, 
or with electronics? … cause they’re electronic)
(right? … are they? i mean if they run on batteries, they’re electronic right?)
(if the hubs is reading this post he’s rolling his eyes)
(well he doesn’t like eye rolling, so he’s probably doing some other gesture of embarrassment)

see… my brain hurts now


back to the piles
for those of you just gettin’ here 🙂
i decided at the beginning of the year to really go through the house and purge
just get back to basics
you can read more about that here, here and here 

and for you gals who have been following right along …
i haven’t jumped the “simplify your kitchen” bandwagon
i just left the kitchen for a while …
to face the basement 
now that that’s done … i’m back on track
(no, there’s no fancy organizing pics of the dungeon … 
what happens in basement … stays in the basement)
(it’s not pretty down there folks)






let’s get goin’!
we have a very spacious kitchen … with lots of cabinet space
and lots of fun areas to organize
off of the kitchen is a little built-in office area 
home to our computer, printer and basically where all family household duties are managed
(finances, schedules, blogging, etc…)
come to think of it, this little area wears many hats
making it more of a challenge to keep clutter-free and organized

here is a short list:

– first aid supplies 
– houses miscellaneous household items 
– where i blog & manage my etsy shop
– shipping area for my etsy shop
– bill pay
– meal planning & couponing
– household binder & files

my challenge:
to get this area out of the pile zone!
and into a functioning command center for our family


in comes my girlie girl 
every month she throws out a challenge to organize a different area in your home
and i just love how she thinks everything through for you, making it that much easier to tackle your problem areas! 

i copied her project list (from this post)
to my clipboard to keep me motivated … turned on some music
and was off to a running start 🙂


since there’s so much to cover in this little area of mine, i’m gonna break it down into a few posts 
starting with the upper half of the cabinets next to the computer area


so the before really isn’t too bad … 
i went through this cabinet last year and got things together
but after some time i realized the set-up would need some re-thinking
just a few things here that weren’t working right for us:

1. the baskets were much smaller than the space they were in
if you’ve got the space for storage … don’t waste it!

2. the baskets were pretty full 
so the overflow was well … overflowing … everywhere else 🙂

3. we had to move or take some of the baskets out when we needed something in the baskets that were more towards the middle of the cabinet 

4. the amount of candy canes that were in this cabinet was ridiculous

5. and yes those mini chalkboard apothecary jars are so stinkin’ cute, but they are for another project and don’t belong in there … so this cabinet started to become a catch-all!





to get this re-org in motion
i headed to my two favorite places and scoped out storage bins
(measure, measure, measure! before you go)

the wrapping paper & floral crates were from Target
(those crates are for the next post when i tackle the bottom portion of these cabinets)
and at Joanns i found the teal bins with the stripe and the mini chalkboards 
(my favorite go-to label item)

aaaaaand the cute phone case is from here
(very random and not needed … just wanted to tell you where to get a cute phone case)






since these bins would be holding heavier items 
i cut cardboard to fit into the bottom, to make it heavy duty 
then wrapped them in the paper for a little bit of cute factor 🙂







they fit nicely inside and i knew they would hold up better in the long run






i dumped all the first aid supplies & medicines (and gum?) on the counter 
and got rid of anything old or expired






for all of what was left i separated into two parts
first aid items: band-aids, cremes, medical tape, gauze
and cough drops






i corralled the smaller items into mason jars with white plastic lids 
then added some labels i made on the computer
(the white lids are sold right with the canning supplies)
















the other bin holds the rest of the medicines: pills, cold & cough etc…





let’s take a peek inside the other two! 🙂
thank you cards & envelopes are always great to have on hand 
(i need to be better about this!)
any extra grocery or notepads were put in here as well






the last bin holds water bottles and drink packets










the smaller baskets on top were from the dollar store … they hold all the miscellaneous things: 
party candles, toothpicks, plastic containers, etc… 







chalk markers work great on these minis
the clothespins were from the $1 bins at Target 
… easy way to label and then change things up when needed






so that’s it! phew …  a lot of function for one cupboard!
let’s do a before & after 🙂








next up! the lower half!


is your office area in your kitchen?
any organizing secrets to share?
let’s do some more … come back soon!

much gladness in my ♥
sweet parties! ♥

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mossy spring wreath … ♥


it’s really anything but spring in upstate NY
but a girl can hope can’t she??
maybe if i do something way out of character
and put my Easter wreath up waaaaay before Easter
spring will come early
cause i’ll be ready
then maybe spring will be ready…
see…
it’s all in the mind.
(heehee 🙂

so remember this neutral fall wreath i made last year?




well i made a spring version!
for directions, see my original post here
this time i wrapped the styrofoam shape with moss
actually moss on a roll! i found it in the floral department at Joann’s

first i covered the shape with green felt, so the white of the styrofoam wouldn’t show through
i cut moss strips to size and glued them down with hot glue
making sure to cover all the empty spaces with little pieces here and there

(i didn’t wind it around the back, since this stuff was pricey 
and i was trying to not have to run back to the store for more!)






once done, i hot glued some wide grosgrain ribbon to the back of the top and 
then hot glued the frame (5×7) to the ribbon tails that hung down in the center

(yeah … um… this took a ton of hot glue)

the simple, to the point printable is from Kelsey @ Tattered & Inked
and it comes in a few different colors too 🙂





add some butterflies or flowers!
i love white anything
(which is weird, since i love everything in color)
but these butters were from Joanns as well 
(floral dept.)

hope you like this spring version of my crazy shaped wreath 🙂
still organizing by the way … will i ever be done?

:/

much loves ♥
sweet parties here:

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pretty diy decoupaged drawers … ♥




if you follow me on Instagram  (raisinguprubies)
you might remember these drawers i covered in paper!
they are the drawers that live in my vanity in our master bedroom






you can see the full post over at Everything Etsy
take a peek, they turned out so fun!
a tour of my master bedroom is here

i have a few things left in this room to check off my list …
one of them was covering these drawers in the vanity 
as well as the drawers in my dresser
and they’re almost done!

with gladness in my ♥
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simplify your kitchen … decorate with sprinkles ♥



happy Wednesday! ♥
just poppin’ in real quick with a cute idea while you’re organizing your kitchen this week 🙂
if you’re looking for an easy and affordable way to add color to your countertop
think sprinkles 🙂
where do we usually keep them??
far far away deep down in the pantry … why?
they’e so cute! why leave them hidden away ….




i found these little jars at Hobby Lobby
at 50% off they were a steal for only .99 cents a piece
gave them a quick wash and gathered up my sprinkle stash




just a little idea to spruce up your kitchen with some pretty colors 
and it’s functional 🙂 
if you like to bake 🙂
i do … do you?




i found this little glass container at a garage sale
corralled all my food coloring bottles into it too
that though, is sitting in my pantry 🙂



be back soon ♥
happy organizing!
sharing here ♥
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simplify ♥ your kitchen …



i’m was so excited to see the spice jar project inspire you guys! 
thanks so much for all the sweet comments ♥
throughout the next few months (or maybe even the rest of the year 🙂 i want to share some of the projects i’ll be tackling, to whip a few problem areas in our home into shape! 
making them more organized and tidy, while helping us incorporate easier clean-up into our daily routine

i made a list … it’s really long … ridiculously long :/
i went room by room and started in the kitchen
the spice-mess is done, now moving on to other parts of the kitchen which i would like to work on this week, while trying to squeeze a bit of crafting in here & there 🙂

inspired by one of my go-to blogs i {heart} organizing along with a few fun things i found at Target last week, (which were either in the dollar bins or on clearance) i decided to start operation-simplify-my-kitchen … 
yay! right??!




♥ the place mats are for the shelves inside the fridge
♥ the glass containers have a pretty teal top (glass as well) that i want to use for an organizing project on another day
♥ the wrapping paper was used in the spice drawer and will get used in a few other drawers too
♥ i already had the gingham canning jars … found them at Walmart a few summers ago … 
but don’t think they sell them anymore, i looked everywhere … boo 😦
those are for another space as well
♥ and my favorite find was the red wire basket in the dollar spot 🙂

i started my organizing frenzy in the fridge … take a peek inside!


the place-mats make for an easy clean-up … instead of taking the whole shelf out to wash, wiping down or washing the mats in hot water is much easier … it’s all about easy when it comes to cleaning for me 🙂



measure and cut straight lines, and they fit right in




this top shelf sees a lot of spill action from juice & coffee creamers 
(ahem … my hubby has a little coffee problem … he likes a little coffee with his creamer 🙂
(well no really, the coconut is mine)




these “pull out” fridge baskets are perfect for yogurt & lunch packing goodies
the girls can pull them out in the morning and choose snacks, fruit and veggies to put in their lunch … it makes it fun for them, and less stressful for our morning when were in a hurry to get on the bus 
(which happens like never)



i’m hoping to make this habit one that sticks 🙂 
coming home with the groceries, washing and pre-portioning fruit, veggies and any other items for lunches and snacks that same day … it makes everything easier when the 
“what should i have for snack” or “how many can i have” 
questions come up 
the mini muffins get put in the freezer to be pulled out and thawed the night before for a quick on the go breakfast before a busy school day or on our way to church 🙂




canning jars are my go to storage containers
they hold the smaller things in the fridge that you want to keep together …
use a label maker or just some pretty paper with double sided tape to describe the contents of each basket




i like to pinch a few pennies and buy the large tub of yogurt
then just divide it up into small lunch size containers




i think the fruit is happy too 🙂 … with it’s pretty new drawer liner




my favorite part of this whole thing? that wire basket from the $1 spot at Target that fit nicely on the door … and now the eggs have a new home 
 a cute one to boot 🙂




next up! i’m moving on to my food & housewares drawers …
and a cute little way to add some color to your kitchen with pretty things that are hiding in your pantry 
(and you don’t even know it 🙂

much loves! ♥
Linking up to …