DIY - Easter Centerpiece

Easter is around the corner and here in Southern Oregon, the spring flowers are in full bloom! With all the daffodils and tulips displaying their finest colors, I felt inspired to create an Easter centerpiece.

Take a narrow clear vase and put it inside of a taller and wider cylindrical candle holder/vase. I then bought some of the small chocolate Easter egg candies and poured them in-between the two vases. (I would totally recommend putting the candy in BEFORE you put water in your smaller vase, otherwise you have some water-logged chocolate and a difficult time getting the candy out!)

Last, but not least, add and arrangement of fresh-cut spring flowers!

A word of warning, the earlier you put out your arrangement, the more likely you'll be buying some more chocolate eggs before Easter!!

God-Sized Dreams

There is something stirring inside of me. I don't know what it is, or how I am going to do it, or when it's going to happen. But yet, I feel it, an aching to do something bigger than me - something God-sized.

You see, I am plagued with a gotta-do-something-bigger-than-what-I-am-already-doing disease. Sometimes, it feels as if the things that I am doing in the name of the Lord aren't big enough. As if these small(ish) things are somehow insignificant. Here's the thing, to God, anything done in his name is big enough.

So, if you start a charity or simply raise your children to love God, no task is too big or too small. At the end of the day, it's OK to set your sights on a God-sized dream, because "...with God, all things are possible." Matthew 19:26

...and the greatest of these is Love.

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud." (1 Corinthians 13:4) To some, this may sound a bit cliche.

Surely, most of you have attended at least one wedding that included this passage from scripture. Because of its popularity in wedding vows, I think many people find the scripture to be cliche and do not think much of it beyond vows.

This chapter in the bible is often referred to as the love chapter, because its entire purpose is to define genuine, Jesus-like, love.

Let me backtrack. Recently, my husband and I went out on a date night, leaving our sons at my parent's house. When we returned to pick them up, my mom told me that my older son had stuck a pea up his nose, and had apparently left his "listening-ears" at home.

To be honest, the whole thing angered and embarrassed me. The anger that I was feeling was directed toward my son, and even the next morning, I had a really hard time letting go of it. I kept racking my brain as to why he would behave so badly. Had he had a bad day? Was coming down with something? Was it because he hadn't taken a nap that day?

Then it occurred to me, he had done this the last time we left him there for a date night - nearly six months earlier. This is the point when I started to do exactly what the bible calls me not to do; I began to keep a record of wrongs, which just made me more angry.

As I took a shower that morning, this verse whispered into my thoughts:

"

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails." 

(1 Corinthians 13:4-8)

I have no doubt that this is a God-thing, as the lesson for preschoolers this week at my church is about genuine love, and we are using the love chapter to demonstrate this.

What a powerful message this has been for me today. Not only should I work harder at not angering easily and keeping a record of wrongs, I also need to be a consistent example of genuine, Jesus-like love for my children.

So, the next time you hear all or some of these verses at a wedding, don't roll your eyes. These simple truths extend far beyond wedding vows -  they are truly worth thinking about.

"There are three things that will endure - faith, hope and love - and the greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13:13)

Spring is here!

The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever.
Isaiah 40:8

Project 365 - Week 4

Who knew this would be such hard work! With my husband out of town last week, photography wasn't my top priority. Therefore, there are only four images this week.

I haven't thought of my excuse for this week yet...

Love never fails

Project 365 - Week 2

Week two found me thinking outside of the box and I think I like what I came up with!

Newborn Session

Nearly a month ago, my best friend had a baby - and boy is he adorable! Though my experience with photographing newborns is limited to my two boys, I really wanted to give my friends a special gift, so I volunteered to do a newborn session for them and, luckily for me, they agreed!

In all honesty, I never thought I would never fall in love with the idea of photographing people other than my own family, but something about this little guy made me re-think a few things. After this session, I feel confident in saying that I would love to do more of this - plus families and kids.

Here are some of my favorite images from our session:

Project 365 - Week 1

For someone who always feels like the camera is always pressed against her face, I have to admit that this project is very challenging for me. More than anything, I find myself looking for things to take photos of. Now you might think to yourself that looking for a photo is kind of the point of a project like this, but it's a concept that goes against how I shoot. Rarely do I look for something to photograph, rather, I try to capture moments as they happen. I can honestly say that each of the following seven photographs were captured out of inspiration, although it was difficult!

By the time my boys are fast asleep, I am pooped. Try as I may, I cannot find the energy to post a photo everyday for this project! So, I am hoping that posting seven photos once a week is doable.