I is who I is....er, I am who I am...me be who me be

Hi! I am Amy! Some of you know me, some of you *think* you know me and some of you wish you didn't know me. For so long I have worried about what people think of me...so much so that I have lost who I really am to please people that don't matter. As Dr. Seuss so beautifully said, "Be yourself, because the people who mind dont matter and the people that matter don't mind."

I have decided that I am not gonna waste another minute (ok I might waste a few...truth is I already have as I typed this) worrying about what other people think. So in honor of this I am sharing an interesting and shocking (read: totally boring and...well...possibly still shocking) Amy fact. Wait for it...wait for it....I hate doing crafts with my kids. Shocked? Blown away by this shocking (boring) truth? I know you are asking, "why would *crafty Amy* hate craft time with her kids? She's so....crafty!" Ummm...no. She's not. Truth is....the mere thought of the mess makes me cringe. And even more than that...no matter how hard you try...no matter how much time you invest...no matter how much love you sprinkle throughout a well planned activity...no matter how hard it was for you to push through to buy that bottle of glitter *shiver*....you still have critics...haters...complainers.

Does this make me a bad mom...no. But putting that out there makes me feel like someone might think that I am. And because of that, I doubt myself and keep trying to be something I am not...which is beyond exhausting!!

I'm learning to just be ok with who I am...all of my imperfections...quirks...strange sense of humor...overthinking EVERYTHING!!...my uncanny ability to make the most normal situation into an awkward moment...ummm *weird awkward silence**birds chirping**crickets rubbing their hind legs on their wings*.......yeah.

So love me or hate me...I am who I am! And that's ok...I think.

You can only be the best you when you start being the real you!~Amy Stull :)

Now please excuse me while I over think the title of this blog and the content of this post. Have a great day and live in the sunshine!!! :)

Will you help me??

Titus 2
3 The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things;
4 That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children,
5 To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.

Ladies, there is a huge need in our culture for women to help/support each other. I have been challenged this year to be a better friend and make myself available to other moms/women. The other side of this is also being willing to accept help when you need it! I am the first to admit I have an awful time accepting help from anyone. I think, 'I don't want to be a burden' or 'people will think less of me if I admit I can't do this on my own.' Unfortunately I think I have pushed people away and missed out on blessings because of my pride and my "I can do it on my own...I got this" thinking.

Will you commit to helping another woman? Know someone who just had a baby? An older woman who spends her days alone? A mom who has many little ones that could use a hand with laundry or maybe just a smiling face with a cup of coffee in hand?

We can do this! We can change our society, ladies! We need women to invest in women. Teaching, encouraging, helping, supporting, comforting, lightening the load. Just 30 minutes of your time could be just what a struggling woman needs to keep going another day!

What to Expect...improved, but still lacking...A LOT

I was given a free copy of "What to Expect When You are Expecting" at the Dr.'s office yesterday. I was so thrilled to see they updated the VBAC info and they actually say now that it is a much better option in most cases than a repeat c-section. Even though I was thrilled with this very important addition, so much of the rest of the book is comical and proves to me even more that homebirth midwives are light years ahead of the "traditional" medical community. I wish more women would become informed about birth and their bodies and not just hand themselves over to a Dr. Please know I am not saying that everyone should have a homebirth. What I *am* saying is that hospital birth experiences could be changed dramatically if women truly understood birth and their bodies and simply took charge of their birth. Did you know that issues like pre-ecclampsia and gestational diabetes can actually be prevented? You won't find that info in "What to Expect...". I am so thankful for the midwives I have been blessed to know and who have taught me so much. Also for those who I've never met, but through their books have greatly impacted my life and my last 2 births and now this current pregnancy. to be continued...

Debunking Perfection

I have struggled since I was a little girl with wanting to be "perfect" and have lived all of my days feeling like I've just not measured up to the girls on the fronts of magazines, or the cultural expectations of going to college, becoming successful; having a career, knowing exactly what to say in every situation...there is not an area in my life that I have not striven to be perfect, but I have continually failed and have felt defeated as I was not getting any closer to "perfect". God revealed why this morning during my Bible reading and below are my thoughts. I gained a whole new outlook on my life with this matter of being "perfect". I hope it helps you too!

To become perfect isn't transforming yourself into what you think everyone else wants you to be. Perfection comes when you become complete as the person you *are*. Striving to be who you are not will only create a more imperfect you. In our culture we have completely recreated what the word perfect means. It started out meaning complete, whole, or mature. Now it's having all the *desirable* elements, qualities, and characteristics; as good as it's possible to be. When God uses the word perfect in the Bible, He is not wanting us to try to work towards an unattainable goal (which is the latter of the preceding definitions.) He wants us to become mature and whole as a person....which *is* possible.

When we get so focused on perfection we are actually doing our families and ourselves harm. We become uptight and so consumed with something that is completely out of reach. I have too often painted an unrealistic picture in my mind of what the day will be like only to end the day crying and wondering where I went wrong when things didn't go as I thought they would or should. Now I see that I just simply need to stop painting these scenes. So many things can happen in a day that can throw "perfect" out the window in a hurry! My main focus should not be the painting, but the subjects. I get so caught up in what the next scene should look like and miss many moments in the here and now. I thought I was loving my family by wanting to create perfection for them. All they really need is me just being with them and not worrying about every little detail...although I do still believe some of the details are important, lol!! Losing my perfectionistic mentality may take some time! :)

Below is the verse that has changed my heart and my vision. Another way I have found to Live in the Sunshine and be a ray of sunlight for others!

Psalm 101:2 I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.

Creating Home ~Sweet~ Home: Part One

In all of the craziness over the past few weeks (FIL passing away, one sickness after another and a cough that has just hung on) I have actually managed to finally get my new weekly schedule in place. For years Sundays have been a disorganized mess.

Recently I read (on a blog maybe??) about Sundays being a calm day with little to no work being done..essentially a day of rest. I was challenged to figure out a way to make that happen here. I also have felt for a while that I have been domestically letting my family down, especially in the area of cooking and doing weekly grocery shopping. We fell into a nasty rut of running to the store daily for that evening's meal. We hated the inevitable question, "what do you want for dinner?" My husband was the one to go to the store then come home and fix the meal...oftentimes because I was too busy with something else. I realized that I was always putting that "something else" before my family. So I ordered a book called "Large Family Logistics" and was inspired by the very first moment I opened the book. I decided to get back to weekly menus and once a week shopping. Each day in our week now has a theme...Monday=laundry, Tuesday=Kitchen, Wed=office, Thurs=town day(errand running), Friday=cleaning day, Saturday=maintenance day, Sunday=the Lord's Day.

This week was not a full week following our new plan, but the few days we implemented the changes really made a dramatic difference in our home. My husband seems relieved at each mealtime, which gives me a great feeling of accomplishment. Our Sunday was also hugely impacted by the new schedule. I started on Saturday making sure things were super clean and had a crock-pot meal cooking for Sunday afternoon. I did our weekly grocery shopping on Saturday evening. I also purchased paper plates, plastic cups and plastic forks for use only on Sunday. Those 4 things set the stage for a transformed Sunday. Before there would have been 2 stops at Walmart on Sunday and an hour or more meal preparation on Sunday afternoon. Then dishes were left for Monday morning as we would rush out the door for evening church services. Monday was the biggest nightmare and was dubbed "dig out day" for obvious reasons.

Today there was only 1 quick stop at Walmart for a Thank You card. Our afternoon meal took less than 10 minutes to prepare. When we were finished, we tossed most of our dishes into the trash :) The rest were quickly loaded into the dishwasher. As I write this, there is nothing left for Monday! There were no drastic changes implemented, but several small changes that made a huge impact on our daily living! Be watching for Creating Home Sweet Home: Part Two~Renewing my Spirit

Sewing Room Makeover: Sneak Peek!!

The final touches are slowly being put into my Sewing Room Makeover! I was going to wait until everything was perfect before doing a reveal, but I have had several people asking about the room. So here is what the room looks like today...

 My final choice in paint color ended up being "Celery". I LOVE how it turned out!! The doors for the cabinet will hopefully be getting their final coat of paint tonight. We have talked about painting the pegboard...especially the large portion under the cabinet...but I'm just not sure. I would love to hear opinions on this! We have enough of the coral color seen on the chalk board tile frame below, but I think that may be too "in your face" for pegboard! Not exactly loving the stark white either.

 

I love these organizational tiles I picked up for just $2 each at our local craft store. The frames were unfinished wood and we made them come alive with coral, light teal, pale yellow and orange paint. We purchased the 7oz paint samples at Lowes for just a little over $2 each, which was plenty of paint for such a small project.

Remember the funky floral bins I found at Lowes that I just loved? Well, I ended up taking them back when I found fabric that I loved even more for curtains (fabric pic coming soon). The fabric is what inspired the coral, blue, yellow and orange seen above on the frames. I was pretty excited when i found these blue bins that actually matched the blue paint I bought!! I can't wait to get the shelves organized and all my fabric out of the plastic totes under the tables!!


I just love these little jars I found for my buttons!!

Hopefully the final reveal will be done this weekend!!

2011: Changing the Resolution to Revolution

Happy New Year!!

Have you made your New Year Resolution list? I bet it looks much like mine...lose weight, be  a better person, mom, wife, be more organized, etc. Another thing we may have in common is how long it takes for us to forget the things on our list. When I began thinking of the changes I wanted to make in 2011 I immediately discouraged myself with thoughts like, "how long did you use the treadmill last year?" and, "you know it won't last, so why even bother with making a resolution?" The problem is I *DO* want to change some behaviors in 2011, but I believe I need to have a reVolution in my thinking and actions before a reSolution will ever happen.

Webster defines resolution as "the act of determining". Another definition I found was "firm determination".

Revolution has many meanings, but these two apply to my idea:
"a : a sudden, radical, or complete change
 d : a fundamental change in the way of thinking about or visualizing something"

For years the "firm determination" of my resolution just hasn't been enough to get me to stick to the changes I wanted to make for a New Year. So this year I am going to be making a New Year Revolution to help me with my New Year's resolutions...

1. All of the things on my list are totally doable.

2. nothing happens overnight...change takes time, and I have a whole year, right?!

3. don't bite off more than you can chew....I know my limits and also know that discouragement comes when I get overwhelmed.

4. The Bible says in Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
Being armed with the knowledge that I can go to God for guidance and help when I am discouraged will help me be successful in checking off the things on my list.

The road to success is not straight.

There is a curve called Failure.

A loop called confusion,

speed bumps called Friends,

red lights called Enemies,

caution lights called Family.

You will have flats called Jobs.

But, if you have a spare called Determination,

an engine called Perseverance,

insurance called Faith,

a driver called Jesus,

you will make it to a place called Success.

~author unknown~

5. I will not allow what I *feel* people think of me discourage me.

The first thing I am going to do is print those 5 points (New Year's Revolution) to use as a reminder when my thoughts are getting off track...maybe a couple copies...one for the fridge another for my bulletin board. Alongside that will be my New Year's Resolution

1. Lose weight (once and for all)

2. Be a better wife and mother...be more attentive, loving, understanding and nurturing.

3. *daily* Bible reading and a set prayer time

4. Do for others on a more regular basis

5. Stick to my daily schedule I created in November!! 

As I read over that, it all seems so simple, but change is hard and numero uno has proved itself to be way more difficult than it was when I was...well younger..."welcome to your 30's" my husband tells me. I must remember it *is* possible and I *will* do this!

What's on your list this year? How are you going to make it happen? Do you need a revolution as well? I will be posting updates to let you know how my Revolution and Resolutions are coming along! My prayer is for a completely revolutionized life for all of us this year! Don't forget to Live In the Sunshine in 2011!

Sewing Room Makeover: Paint

Choosing paint colors has always intimidated me! Our kitchen was repainted 3 times, our bathroom 4 times...all because I loved the color on the little 2x3in swatch, but once it was on the wall it wasn't at all what I wanted. So choosing a color for a room I will spend a lot of time in kind of makes my head spin. Not to mention that I know my husband is only going to *want* to paint this room *once*!

My family and I ventured out to Lowe's and I stared at the wall of swatches. I was drawn in 2 directions. I really liked the relaxing hue of the slate blues paired with white and the vibrant cheeriness of the lime greens paired with pinks. I picked out all the swatches I loved and just kept mulling over them. While there we priced a few items for the makeover. One thing I knew I would need was bins for storage....I immediately fell in love with these...

Aren't they cute?!?! This made my decision much easier....Lime green and pinks it is! But which lime green?

To help me decide the exact shade, this morning I went to valspar.com and played around with their virtual painter...so cool!! Here's the before and after using Sonic Lime on the walls and Positively Pink & Pink Burst as accents. (Pegboard will cover the unsightly breaker box...not sure if I will paint the pegboard...used it as a visual for the accent colors.)

I would love to hear your comments on the paint colors!!

Sewing Room Makeover: Bookshelves!

My wonderful husband picked up the bookcases last night from Walmart and put them together for me. I was actually surprised at the quality of the shelves given they were only $26. I am very pleased with them and can't wait for my comic book backing boards to come so I can tackle my jungle of fabric!

After

Before

 

Sewing Room Makeover: Frugality *SCORE*!

I ♥ getting the lowest price possible....I found my bookcases (need 2 for sewing room makeover) online for $35...thought that was great, then noticed they were only 9in deep. Most of my storage baskets/containers are about 11+ inches, so I started looking at other bookshelves hoping I could find something as cheap or within a few dollars of the other one. My google search led me back to Walmart to an "In Store Only" item which was In Stock *AND* only $26!! They are the perfect depth and are wider as well! Here's a pic from walmart.com...

Mainstays Bookshelf as seen on walmart.com

The bookshelves will be the new home of my fabric and yarn stash which will make everything more accessible.

I read on a few blogs where people used comic book backing boards for creating bolts of fabric. I have ordered 300 of them and am anxious to get them!

I will be blogging the Sewing Room makeover throughout the entire process...hoping to show what you can do with a small space on an even smaller budget :)