Scheduling Time

Today's challenge from 31 Days to Clean was to create a schedule to make better use of our time. I am definitely one of those people who loves to plan, but has trouble sticking to that plan; therefore, I have made my schedule very flexible, left plenty of open space. I have in bold the activity which is the most important to complete during each block of time. I'm going to do my very best to stick to this schedule all week, even if it feels a little unnatural at first, and then at the end of the week, I'll re-evaluate and shift whatever needs to be changed. Thanks for the encouragement and ideas Sarah Mae!

5:00 a.m.

~ Get up
~ Take laundry down stairs
~ Cup of tea
~ Quiet time

6:00 a.m.

~ Laundry in
~ Dishes away
~ Get dressed and ready
~ Computer time

7:00 a.m.
~ Breakfast & get ready for work

8:00 a.m.

~ Work

Lunch time

~ Eat with Hoss (if he's home)
~ Get ready for supper
~ sewing projects

1:00 p.m. or 2:00 p.m.

~ Back to work

5:00 p.m.

~ Home
~ Get supper on the table
~ Clean kitchen

6:00 p.m.

~ Check daily six-list and finish whatever is not done

7:00 p.m.

~ Hang out with Hoss
~ If he’s doing other stuff, computer time or sewing projects

10:00 p.m.

~ Bed time

Thanks for reading,

New Address . . .

In surfing my way through the blogosphere, I've found many little niches that I like to visit. One of those spots is Whimsy Wishes. I like it so much that I'm on the mailing list :) Poor Lila had to change the URL at short notice, so she has asked us to let everyone know of the new address, so we can all find her again! Clicking on the picture will take you there, or the new URL is http://awhimsywish.blogspot.com/

It is well

This is my very first "Then Sings My Soul" post! For this week, I'm going to use one of my very favorite old hymns. It Is Well by Horatio G. Spafford and Philip Bliss.


When peace, like a river, attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul.


It is well with my soul, it is well, it is well with my soul.


Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, let this blest assurance control, that Christ has regarded my helpless estate, and hath shed his own blood for my soul


My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought! My sin, not in part but the whole, is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more, praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!


And, Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight, the clouds be rolled back as a scroll; the trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend, even so, it is well with my soul.


When I was very young I would listen to the Adventures in Odyssey adaptation of the story behind this hymn over and over again. To this day it still astounds me that a man who lost so much could write such a powerful testament to the Lord's love and faithfulness. This is probably a reflection of my lack of faith, but it is such a powerful lesson for me.


I am deeply comforted to "let this blessed assurance control" when my life seems to be spinning completely off the tracks, and I know that I have no control of my own over a situation, God is not surprised by the circumstances that shock me and he is and always will be steadfast and faithful to protect and provide.


Thanks for reading!

~ my husband rocks! Friday ~ Our Engagement Story

Welcome to week 3 of ~my husband rocks! Fridays~ I'm so glad you are joining us.

My post for this week is a little trip down memory lane. Well, it wasn't really long enough ago to warrant a lane, so we'll call it a walk around memory block. :)

On the afternoon of Friday, February 16, 2007, I was sitting at work, minding my own business when Austin came through the front door. He asked me a few random questions and then out of the blue said, "You need to come with me." I kind of looked at him in disbelief before I said, "It's only three o'clock, I can't come with you, I work until 5!" He calmly repeated, "I know, but you need to come with me right now." I was having trouble wrapping my mind around the situation, so I said, "OK, let me ask my boss." At this point, Austin was laughing a little bit as he replied, "I already asked her, but you need to come with me." I quickly shut down my computer, gathered my things and followed him outside to his truck.

In the front seat was a dry-cleaning bag which contained his suit. He took me back to my apartment, and as he dropped me off said, "You have 30 minutes, dress to match this suit! And bring some warm clothes to change into later."

I ran up to my apartment, and hastily prepared for something fancy (although I had no idea what we were going to do). I was ready in record time, and he whisked me away to Des Moines (which is about an hour drive).


When we arrived, he made his way to downtown through the snow that had started to fall on our way there, and as he was carefully weaving through the one-way streets, he told me to close my eyes. We parked the truck and entered the Hotel Fort Des Moines. He walked through the lobby, leading me to the restaurant on the ground floor. There we enjoyed the most delicious meal I have ever had in my life. I had the salmon, and Austin ordered the New York strip. Both meals were absolutely wonderful!


As we were sitting at dinner, several other couples came in and were seated at tables near ours. Each of these couples mentioned to the waitress that they had tickets to "The Phantom of the Opera," and could they please have their food in time to eat and make it to the show.

The first time we overheard this comment, I looked at Austin in surprise and said, "Phantom, I didn't even know that was in town!" (Being totally honest.) Austin looked back at me, appearing for all the world to be as surprised as I was, and said, "Neither did I, we should see if they have any tickets available at the door!" At that, I launched into a fifteen minute protest about how ridiculously expensive the tickets would be and how we should just drive back home and rent a movie. Austin let the subject drop for the rest of the meal, and after we had finished and paid we got back in the truck and headed (I thought) for home.


Not being terribly familiar with downtown Des Moines, I didn't realize that Austin was headed for the Civic Center (where the Phantom of the Opera just happened to be taking place). He pulled up to the valet parking section and told me to get out of the truck. Again, I began to protest about how expensive tickets would be if we bought them at the door. To which he responded "How about we just use these tickets that I bought in October?" as he pulled a packet of tickets out of his coat pocket. Needless to say, I was surprised (again) and speechless (which does not happen often)! Because he had purchased the tickets so early, we had the most amazing seats! About 10 rows back from the front and off to the side just a little bit. We could see EVERYTHING in spectacular detail! Our seats were so close that we could feel the heat of the pyrotechnics! It was ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC!!! After the show we headed back out to the truck, and I thought that the evening was over - what a wonderful, romantic surprise! Right?


WRONG! We drove a few more blocks when the GPS unit announced that "you have reached your destination." I looked at Austin and incredulously asked "There's ANOTHER destination?!!?!" He just smiled at me and began to gather up the warm clothes that he had wisely reminded me to bring along ("Just in case we want to go shopping or something while we're up there!"). We had just arrived at the Brenton Skating Plaza

which is an outdoor skating rink. We changed into our warm clothes and borrowed some skates. The front lobby area had seemed rather empty, but it wasn't until I reached the ice that I realized that we were the only two people in the whole place! It was a cold night, so I thought that maybe it was just a coincidence that no one else had decided to come skating, but I asked Austin "When do they close?" and he answered that they close at 10:00 pm. Well, it was already well after 10:30 pm, so I gave him an "are you serious" look, and he laughed and said, "Yeah, they're open just for us!" I thought he was being silly, so I asked him about three or four times if he was serious. He just laughed and we skated around a little bit more. It was a little bit cold at the outdoor rink, and it had started to snow again, and Austin asked if I was ready to go. I told him sure, and we started to skate towards the exit. He grabbed my hand and said "Well, there was one more thing!" and he (very carefully) knelt down on the ice, and as the snow was gently falling on us, he asked me if I would marry him.

I said yes!

As he was standing back up, he kissed me and then said, "And if you'll look over my right shoulder, my parents have been over there taking pictures!"

No, this is not the closing scene to an Oscar-winning drama, this actually happened in my real life! It was without a doubt the most romantic, wonderful night of my entire life!

This is just another reason why my husband rocks! And this was before he was even my husband!

Thanks for reading everybody! Be sure to check in with all the ladies in the list to the right to hear about more husbands who rock!

And remember, on Fridays From*me Tees will refund your shipping on any order of two or more items if you mention the great adventure and ~my husband rocks! Fridays~ in the "how did you hear about us?" section of your order form, so run on over there and check them out, too! Thank you From*me Tees!

If you'd like to find out more about why I started MHR Fridays, either click the top button on the right hand side (if you would like the code to add it to your sidebar, use this code

<a href="http://honestandlasting.blogspot.com/2008/06/my-husband-rocks-friday.html"><img src="http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn135/katylinvw/mosaicmhrf.jpg"/></a>

) or this! If you'd like to join in the fun, leave a comment with a link to your post, and I'll add you to my list (also on the right hand sidebar) If you're not a blogger, but still want the world to know about your amazing husband (or wife, or husband to be, or wife to be, etc.) leave a shout-out in the form of a comment! If you're unable to comment, e-mail me at katylinvw [at] yahoo [dot] com and I'll add your shout out to this post!

EDITED: Sorry to everybody who already commented or signed the mister linky - my blog is being contankerous this morning, and we're trying to fix it!


Have a great weekend!

Thankful Thursday!

Today is my very first Thankful Thursday post, and I'm pretty excited about it!


I have so much to be thankful for!


I am thankful for my wonderful husband who loves me and who is committed to me!


I am thankful for my amazing family - my fantastic parents and in-laws who love me like their own! Our wonderful siblings (all of you! Tom, Ashley, Kindra and Kelli!) I love you all so very much!


I am thankful for our friends! I love you all, and it has been so fun having you here this week Doobie, and I'm looking forward to the 4th!


I am thankful for new blogging friends, even though you are only real in my computer (lol!) I still love you :)!


I am thankful for our beautiful home and the fact that our town was spared damage in all of the crazy storms and flooding that Iowa has seen lately.


Most of all I am thankful for Jesus, and His love for me and His absolute patience with me - even when I am completely unlovely. :)


What are you thankful for this week?

Thanks for reading!


P.S. ~ I know you were all dying to hear me rag yesterday and it just didn't happen! No fear though, I am working up a doozy for next week, lol!

An Award!

My dear, sweet blog friend Barb from The French Elements has honored me with another award! I am just beside myself with happiness! Barb is such a wonderful lady - she has a fabulous family, has had many interesting experiences, and uses her oodles of talent to create tons of delightful bath & body products! Be sure to visit her and check it out!

The rules for this award:
1. write a post with links to 5 blogs that make me think or make my day.
2. Acknowledge the post of the award giver.
3. Tell the award winners that they have won by commenting on their blogs with the news.

5 blogs that make my day . . .
chatting at the sky
Showers From My Heart
We are THAT family
John Deere Mom
this is the life

You should definitely check out these ladies' blogs!

Thank you ladies for making me laugh and making me think and encouraging me! :)

~ my husband rocks! Friday ~

Happy Friday everyone!

Welcome to another installment of ~my husband rocks! Friday~

The decision to purchase a "fixer-upper" was not a difficult one for Austin. Throughout his life this has been the pattern for his family. All through his growing up years they would move into a house that had great "bones" but needed a lot of TLC and they would go to town. The education he gained from this alone has been absolutely invaluable, but he is also one of those people who is just naturally competent at just about everything. With our home, even if he didn't know exactly how to do a project going into it, by the time he was done he was practically an expert.

Now I, on the other hand, had never used a reciprocating saw (I couldn't even tell the difference between a reciprocating saw and a skill saw), didn't know what a plumbing flange was, and had no idea about most of what we were getting into.

However, despite my inexperience, Hoss allowed me to be intimately involved in the entire process from start to finish. Not just picking out cabinets and countertops and door handles and paint colors - which he gave to me as well - but he patiently explained the processes and tools that would make our crumbling old Victorian into our dream home.

He is a skilled craftsman and a patient teacher, and that is just one more reason why my husband rocks!

Thanks for reading everybody! Be sure to check in with all the ladies in the list to the right to hear about more husbands who rock!

And remember, on Fridays From*me Tees will refund your shipping on any order of two or more items if you mention the great adventure and ~my husband rocks! Fridays~ in the "how did you hear about us?" section of your order form, so run on over there and check them out, too! Thank you From*me Tees!

If you'd like to join in the fun and tell the world about why your husband rocks, either click the top button on the right hand side (if you would like the code to add it to your sidebar, use this code

<a href="http://honestandlasting.blogspot.com/2008/06/my-husband-rocks-friday.html"><img src="http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn135/katylinvw/mosaicmhrf.jpg"/></a>

) or this, and sign the Mister Linky! If you're not a blogger, but still want the world to know about your amazing husband (or wife, or husband to be, or wife to be, etc.) leave a shout-out in the form of a comment! If you're unable to comment, e-mail me at katylinvw [at] yahoo [dot] com and I'll add your shout out to this post!

Have a great weekend!

The Heart of the Home

Our Kitchen!

When we first purchased the house, we were under the (naive) impression that all we would be doing was "updating." This house was simply going to be a "hobby." We look back now at our initial ToDo list and chuckle over how easy we thought the process was going to be.

1. Repair plaster as needed
2. update light fixtures
3. etc.
   

Well, ALL new drywall, electrical, plumbing, siding, windows, doors, appliances, and flooring later . . . . we are finally on the "home stretch."

The way that the kitchen turned out completely exceeded my expectations! Not that I did not have every confidence in Austin & Bryce's ability to make it fabulous, but the odds were definitely not in our favor. You see, we had measured for new cabinets and purchased them (on an amazing sale at Menard's) when there was no drywall on the walls, and we had just the most basic of ideas about what we wanted the kitchen to look like. As often happens with remodelling projects, every step takes much longer than you expect it to, so once the cabinets arrived, they had to live in the garage for just shy of a year while we finished framing and leveling and repairing termite damage (another LOOOOONG story for another time) and having drywall installed, taped, textured, and finished. Needless to say this is not the manufacturer-recommended process for installing kitchen cabinets and having them actually fit the way you had envisioned. Old homes are also not known of their plumb and level lines and surfaces.

This is what the kitchen (well, the spot where we ended up putting the kitchen) looked like before we started:

Remember, this house was divided into 5 apartments when we purchased it, so this space was being used as a child's bedroom/hallway between a family room and the dining room. The walls were covered in chalkboard paing (all 4 of them), and the carpet was really as red as it looks!

Behind this door (above) was the main floor furnace. There was also a furnace on the second floor. And this corner (right) is where our kitchen sink now sits.

Even with ALL of this craziness, and the odds stacked against them, my wonderful husband and father-in-law gave me the kitchen of my dreams! Come with me and we'll take the tour :)

This (above) is looking into the kitchen from the dining room. There used to be a wall between these two rooms, and the main floor furnace used to sit directly to the left of the exposed chimney. (This is the rear view of the 2nd before photo. The chimney was inside the wall, and we decided that it looked nice exposed. We still need to clean it up and seal it.) Every surface in this kitchen is perfectly level, and we could have a party inside the top cabinets without them even coming loose!

This is the corner in the third before picture. (Please forgive the poor quality of my photography.)

There you have it! I am truly spoiled :)

Thanks for reading!

P.S. ~ Thank you all for your kind comments and your thoughts and prayers! Praise the Lord we have had several beautiful days of sunshine! We are still in a flood warning until early Monday morning, but the weatherman was calling for rain today, and there's not a cloud in the sky!

P.P.S. ~ Many of you asked about my huge calendar! I will be posting next week about how I put that together!

P.P.P. S. ~ Don't forget tomorrow is ~my husband rocks! Friday~ !

Clean Workspace!

Monday's challenge from 31 Days to Clean was to clean up our office/workspaces.

Here's what my desk looked like before:

And I don't like to think that I'm living in the past, but my calendar was still on

(which is so embarassing!)

But this morning, my desk looks like this:

And my calendar is doing its job

because we're finally in the present :)

Hope everyone has a happy Wednesday! Thanks for reading!

Fathers Day

I know I'm a little late in sending out my Fathers' Day sentiments (not only here, but I literally just sent out a little package for my parents to cover both Mothers' Day and Fathers' Day - I know, the guilt I feel over this is terrible - I am trying to get better at this whole planning-ahead-in-time-to-mail-to-Colorado thing, I promise).

However, I would like everyone to know about all the great men in my life!

My wonderful husband!

Who will be a fantastic father to all of our future children :)




My dad!
(Pictured here making his delicious homemade ice cream!) Always a great encourager and loves me and my sisters to pieces!

My father-in-law!

(He was Austin's best man at our wedding, and this is my best friend and matron of honor Stephanie) I totally hit the jackpot in the in-law lottery! They're both wonderful!

My Papa!

My grandfather on my mom's side. A loving and generous man.

My Grandpa Faulkner!

(Pictured here with my sister and grandmother) Another kind and wonderful man!

I am so blessed to have so many wonderful, godly men in my life! And on top of these five, I have scores of uncles and male cousins who are terrific husbands and fathers!

Happy Fathers' Day (even if it is a little late) to all of you! I love you very much and I am so thankful to have you in my life!




The following is the lyrics to "My Father's Eyes" by Amy Grant. I have loved this song since I was five or six and my mom would play the record. It's in my playlist on the left-hand sidebar if you would like to listen to it. This has really been speaking to me this week, and I thought it was appropriate for a Fathers' Day post.

"I may not be every mothers dream for her little girl,
And my face may not grace the mind of everyone in the world.
But thats all right, as long as I can have one wish I pray:
When people look inside my life, I want to hear them say,

Shes got her fathers eyes,
Her fathers eyes;
Eyes that find the good in things,
When good is not around;
Eyes that find the source of help,
When help just cant be found;
Eyes full of compassion,
Seeing every pain;
Knowing what youre going through
And feeling it the same.
Just like my fathers eyes,
My fathers eyes,
My fathers eyes,
Just like my fathers eyes.

And on that day when we will pay for all the deeds we have done,
Good and bad theyll all be had to see by everyone.
And when youre called to stand and tell just what you saw in me,
More than anything I know, I want your words to be,

She had her fathers eyes,
Her fathers eyes;
Eyes that found the good in things,
When good was not around;
Eyes that found the source of help,
When help would not be found;
Eyes full of compassion,
Seeing every pain;
Knowing what youre going through,
And feeling it the same.
Just like my fathers eyes,
My fathers eyes,
My fathers eyes,
Just like my fathers eyes.
My fathers eyes,
My fathers eyes,
Just like my fathers eyes. " source

Thanks for reading!

Flood update, a tag, and an award!

Happy Saturday everyone!


Hope you all are enjoying your weekend! This morning's post is going to be busy, so hold onto your hats!


Quick update on the floods - our little town is now an island (well peninsula is more correct at the moment I suppose). The only way to leave town is to head North as the highways to the East, West and South have all been closed because of flooding. They had crews sandbagging our water department (which is nearly under water) and a small town to the south of us all day yesterday, and the National Guard is here in force. I have taken many, many pictures, and will hopefully have an all-pic post up sometime this weekend.



The last we heard, they were planning on letting water out of the dam to the extent that it will raise the river by 2 feet every day for the next nine days, so we are likely to be without running water for awhile (there is no way that the sandbags at our water department will withstand a total of 18 feet more water - aren't you proud of my math skills). We continue to covet your prayers as we wait for the waters to recede! Thanks again to everyone who has been praying for us and all of the sweet comments you have left! Sorry to be a downer :)

~~~~~~~~~~~

I've been tagged by Donna over at An Enchanted Cottage!

Here are the rules for her game:

1. link back to the person who tagged you.
2. post these rules on your blog.
3. share six unimportant things about yourself.
4. tag people at the end of your entry.


Six unimportant facts about myself:

• I can touch my nose with my toes



• I would eat honey plain if I didn't feel like such a pig when I did so



• My family makes fun of the way I pronounce the words "green" and "cotton"



• I have a calendar on my office wall that is taller than I am



• I usually walk on my tippy toes (an apparent side affect of my undying love for high heels?)



• One of my shoulders is higher than the other, and the same is true, but opposite for my hips (did that make sense?)

TAG!

I tag Sarah, Barb, Ashley, and Chelsea!

~~~~~~~~~~

And I am honored to have received an award from Sarah Mae at Like a warm cup of coffee!

This award is "dedicated to many who nourish and enrich the spirit and creativity. They see dedication, creativity, camaraderie, joy and above all, ART, much art. I wish that this prize is entertaining to all those bloggers and to bloggers who day by day share this space and enrich it a little more each day." ~Arte Y Pico

Thank you so much Sarah Mae! I am deeply touched that you would present me with this honor :)

I would in turn like to present the award to the following people:

• 
  
  Donna at An Enchanted Cottage


• 
  
  Cora at Hidden Riches from Secret Places


• 
  
  Kathy at Mama's Losin' It


• 
  
  Stephanie at Live.Laugh.Love.


• 
  
  Staci at Staci's Heart

These women make me laugh, and cry (sometimes in the same post). They are beautiful, talented, and loads of fun! Thank you ladies for brightening my days :)

The rules for this award are as follows:

1. You need to choose 5 blogs you consider deserving of this award for their creativity,design, interesting material, and contribution to the blogging community regardless of the language.

2. Each award has to have the name of the author and a link to his/her blog to be visited by everyone.

3. Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that presented him/her with the award. I know it says this is a rule but I also know that not everyone likes to do this. I won't be hurt if you don't.

4. The award winner and the one who has given the award have to show the Arte Y Pico blog so everyone will know the origin of this award.

5. To show these rules.

That's all for now! Thanks for reading this insanely long post! :)

~ my husband rocks! Friday ~

Woo hoo! Today is our inagural episode of
~ my husband rocks! Friday ~

My husband rocks because he is absolutely hillarious! In fact, I have a button on my flair board (Facebook) that says "You know how to make me laugh when I don't even want to smile!" And it's absolutely, 100% true! It doesn't matter how I'm feeling, he always knows exactly what to say to pull me out of my slump, and this is one reason why my husband rocks! There are sooooooooo many more, but you'll just have to come back every Friday (:>) to hear all about them!

To join in the fun, or to learn more about ~ my husband rocks! Fridays~ click here.

To hear about more husbands who rock, visit the ladies in the list to the right!

2-post morning :)

Okay - this is the post I was going to write last night, so for all intents and purposes, think of this as Thursday :)

We had our friends Tyler & Emma over for supper this evening and then went out "flood-watching" (hence, no blogging). Thank you all for your concern and your sweet comments about our weather. Several towns have been evacuated including one 15 minutes away from where we live. The news is reporting that the Des Moines river is higher than it has ever been before (even in the floods of '93). We appreciate all your prayers and look forward to a break in the weather on Saturday!

~~~~~~~~~~

I'm participating in 31 Days to Clean, and our "assignment" yesterday was to write our clean home mission statement. Mine is as follows:

I will strive to keep a clean and organized home in order to create

a peaceful and inviting retreat where Austin and I
can enjoy our time together and with our family and friends. Staying on top of
my homemaking responsibilities is a practical reflection of my love
and respect for Austin. Making my routines a daily priority
will free up time that is otherwise spent "crisis cleaning," and will
release me from the stress and guilt I feel when our home is a disaster area.
Conquering the sins of selfishness and laziness in my life
will bring glory to God and harmony to our home

Thanks for reading!

beautiful sunset

Even in the midst of all of our crazy weather of late, God gives us something to smile about! Austin took these great pictures while we were running our Shopper route yesterday evening!

Please pray for everyone affected by the tornadoes and all of the flooding thus far and yet to come here in Iowa. It's gonna be a rainy week!

We have been very blessed!

Thanks for reading!

"Here is the test to find whether your mission on earth is finished. If you're alive, it isn't."
~Richard Bach~

~ "my husband rocks" Friday ~

In a time when nothing is more certain than change, the commitment of two people to one another has become difficult and rare. Yet, by its scarcity, the beauty and value of this exchange have only been enhanced.

~Robert Sexton~

Marriage is truly a beautiful thing. Easy? Definitely not. Fun? Not always, but often. Worth it? Every minute! However, in today's culture marriage has gotten a bad rap. Married couples in movies and on television are often depicted as miserable and mutually disrespectful. In break rooms across the world one can find co-workers engaging in ritual "spouse bashing." And more and more people have simply stopped believing that marriage is of any value at all.

Being a newlywed myself, I've honestly been a little discouraged by the negative connotation marriage is receiving. Until I found a company that's doing something about it!

That company is From*me Tees! You can get to their website by clicking on that link, or the button in my sidebar. Below is a snippet from the "About Us" section of their website.

"From*me Tees was started by a married couple who knows what it is to work through hard stuff and yet stay together and stay committed through it all. One of the great and wonderful mysteries of life is that loving each other in action--what we do and say--produces romance. Everything in our culture today teaches the opposite, that romance turns into love, but nothing could be further from the truth. Love is a choice and we decide how we're going to treat each other in the good and in the not-so-good times. What a hope-giving reality that a strong relationship can be built, simply by changing how we interact with our spouse.

Marriage was created to be a blessing and a little kindness and respect goes a long way. Accept the fact that your spouse isn't perfect and then start taking notice of all the good things they bring to the table! Pretty soon you can train your mind to be grateful for who they are as opposed to feeling disappointed about who they are not. When you allow yourself to believe that your spouse rocks, you will free yourself from the downward spiral of self-pity, disappointment, and even dispair. The key is to change yourself! And you'll be surprised at the positive affect it has on the one you choose to love...and you!" source

I was so excited and inspired when I found their website (thank you An Island Life) and read their mission statement! This is exactly what I've been looking for and trying to create in my marriage! Marriage should be fun and happy and wonderful, and we should look at it in a positive light! (That being said, I am fully aware and willing to put in the work and commitment it takes to create a lasting marriage, but that doesn't have to be a drudge or a chore, either!) And I decided that I am going to join them in putting marriage in a positive light! I want my husband to feel loved and respected by me, and I want to encourage others in this as well!

Thus ~ "my husband rocks" Fridays ~ is born!

Every Friday, I will be posting a story, or photo, or quote about how and why my husband rocks! And I invite you to do the same!

"No husband is perfect and it doesn’t really matter. What matters is how I set myself up to think about him. If I focus on his failures, his annoyances, or ways in which I’ve felt hurt by him, then I will interact with him as a hurt and frustrated and disappointed wife. That makes for miserable living for me and my husband and those around us. But if I focus on his strengths, his potential, and the ways in which I feel blessed by him, then I will interact with him as a forgiving, blessed, and contented wife. And there’s no greater need a man has than to feel respected by his wife. If he feels like all he does is hurt, disappoint, and frustrate, then the same atmosphere and the same actions will be perpetuated. But if he feels that his wife can be happy and responsive regardless of his shortcomings, he feels respected and empowered. Then a positive atmosphere is perpetuated and actions, once destructive, can improve in an environment that is rich for
cultivation and growth into deepened respect and intimacy." (from the From*me Tees Mission Reflection)

If you'd like to join me in ~"my husband rocks" Fridays~ every Friday, write a post proclaiming to the world why your husband (or wife, or husband-to-be, or wife-to-be) ROCKS!, then come back here and comment with the permalink to your post!

And as an added bonus . . . . if you make a From*me Tees purchase (of at least two items) on Fridays as part of this "carnival," From*me Tees has generously offered to refund your shipping charges if you mention my blog and the "my husband rocks Fridays carnival" during checkout at the "how did you hear about us" reply link!

To add the button

to your sidebar, use the following code

<a href="http://honestandlasting.blogspot.com/2008/06/my-husband-rocks-friday.html"><img src="http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn135/katylinvw/mosaicmhrf.jpg"/></a>

Thank you Barb!

I am honored and humbled to say that Barb from The French Elements gave me the Arte y Pico award! Thank you very much!

The rules for this award are as follows:

1. You need to choose 5 blogs you consider deserving of this award for their creativity,design, interesting material, and contribution to the blogging community regardless of the language.

2. Each award has to have the name of the author and a link to his/her blog to be visited by everyone.

3. Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that presented him/her with the award. I know it says this is a rule but I also know that not everyone likes to do this. I won't be hurt if you don't.

4. The award winner and the one who has given the award have to show the Arte Y Pico blog so everyone will know the origin of this award.

5. To show these rules.


I have discovered so many fabulous blogs in the very short time that I have been blogging (as evidenced by my ever-lengthening blogroll, lol!), that this was a very difficult decision; however I decided to highlight the following 5:

• Melissa at A Little Loveliness
• Sarah at Burgeon
• Sarah at My So Called Junky Life
• Dawn at The Feathered Nest
• Sara at Sadie Olive

Thank you ladies, you are all so lovely and talented!

Our House

In December of 2005, my then-boyfriend, now-husband, purchased a large Victorian home that had been divided into 5 apartments, and we embarked on the journey of turning it back into a single family home.

To get an idea of what we were working with, click here.

From three apartments, the resulting floor plan is an foyer/entryway (depending upon where you were raised), a front sitting room/living room, a large dining room, another large room which we're calling the library (it has built-in shelves, and Hoss will probably use it as his office space), a laundry room and half-bath across from an open kitchen, and a family room/tv/entertainment room on the main floor. The 2nd floor has 3 bedrooms (one I'm using as my office) a full bathroom for common use, and a master bedroom/bathroom suite. The basement is unfinished, and there's a 3-stall garage in the back. (Pics of the current status will be posted as soon as we have them :>)


Sometimes I feel like we've been working on this house for forever, and sometimes I can't believe it's come as far as it has! I am so thankful for my wonderful husband and his family. He basically knows how to do everything, and what he doesn't know how to do, he will either research or try until he figures it out, or his dad knows how to do it and will come over and help!

His current project is making all of the casement and baseboard trim, and today he finished all of the baseboard!

Here are the piles of wood that he started with:

From here he runs them through his uber-fabulous moulding machine!

And here's what it looks like coming out of the machine:

The machine is wonderful, and it cuts so quickly and so fine, that the moulding does not even need to be sanded when it comes out the other side! :) I'm excited to start staining and get it hung! More pics and stories to come! We'll keep you posted!

Thanks for reading!

"Life's challenges are not supposed to paralyze you, they're supposed to help you discover who you are."

~ Bernice Johnson Reagon ~