Today is going to be a good day!

Hello! Sorry this space has been quiet for so long. I would love to add a few more hours into the day... I bet most of you would agree. I've been having some fun the last couple months with wood burning projects. I enjoyed coming up with the words, designing and burning the one above simply to inspire myself. It is to remind me that if I keep a positive view from the time I awake, it will be a good day, no matter what is thrown my way. There is a bright side to every situation. It is up to us to choose how we will respond. God's way is the best.

I have seen myself change so much this past year. It amazes me to see how God can work within one's self when you are open to Him and welcome to change. I have grown so much spiritually and because of this my physical and emotional well being improved greatly. I am grateful. If you have been in this space for awhile, you know I had a long ways to go with physical health. And thankfully I can say I am now doing so well! God has guided me and He has healed me physically, emotionally and spiritually. With that said, there is always room to grow and improve but I am no where near where I was two plus years ago and honestly it is all thanks to the Lord.

With that said, God has placed the passion in my heart to reach out to others, those who are struggling, whether it is with health, financial, marriage problems whatever, I want to offer encouragement and hope. I have been working on a new site for awhile now and am hoping to share it with you soon. I pray that it will inspire people all over, in all walks of life. It will be a place where I share my heart, words that God has placed on my mind, and the ways that helped me and my daughter heal. My desire is for the new site to be an uplifting space for anyone that stops by.

I've debated about getting rid of this space but have decided against it, because I do love to create. So this space will go back to its original purpose, a place to share designs and art/creations. The new site will be focused on health, wellness and encouragement. I hope you will join me in the new space when it is ready.

Last thing, my sweet and very talented husband made the awesome frame above. He's made a few of them now and I love them! I thought it made the piece. You can check out more of his work at wispwoods.com.

You are so loved! {NEW Art}

{You Are So Loved Art Print}

The giving of flowers primarily shows an act of love. Valentines day and funerals come to mind when I think of moments when flowers are often given, although any time can be special, whether a particular reason or not. It is a caring gesture from one to another.

Love one another. God's greatest commands. If only people of this world followed that one command. Just think how life would be so different. Sometimes it is hard to love others... difference of opinions, jealousy, hurtful words and actions. Someone's negativity can greatly affect us and cause us to react. What reaction do we generally lean towards showing? Is it kindness in return after we have been hurt or is it revenge or even shutting out the other person so we aren't hurt again? I wish I could say I respond in love and kindness just as my heavenly father would and wants us to. But often times it isn't. I am trying to become better at this. I've been slowly reading my way through the New Testament in the Bible. I love how God has given us a life's manual. When we take the time to read His book, learn from His teachings and show it through our own actions life becomes better and full of new meaning. At least that is what I find to be true. Life and situations around me are viewed so differently... better now that the Word is such an important part of my life.

My pencil drawing/charcoal painting, You Are So Loved, was inspired by Him. He blesses the earth with such beauty. It is truly amazing how a simple seed can be planted and it grows into something so beautiful and then can be given to another through a loving action or simply enjoyed where it grows. To me the book of John is one of God's greatest love letters to us. Jesus healing others, comforting others even though he knows what lies ahead for himself. He only did good yet was extremely mistreated. He showed love but was not loved in return. Yet he still died on the cross for each one of us to take away our sins. We are so not worthy of such a sacrifice. When it sinks into our mind of what He did for us because He loves us so much you can't help but want to become a better person and follow His word.

Last weekend we took our daughter to see the new movie Cinderella. It doesn't have quite as a happy feel as the older animated one but it does a great job in showing kindness even when one may not "deserve" it. The big part that stuck out at me was towards the end when Cinderella was leaving the wicked step mother with the prince and Cinderella turned and looked at her and said, "I forgive you." Powerful. For everything Cinderella had put up with you would think she would have reacted with revenge, but she reacted in love. Such a great lesson for young and old alike. ♥

Shop Unglued for last minute Christmas gifts!

My sister-in-law said it perfectly, "I've been running around with my hair on fire." Ha! Surely feels that way! So much to still be done... David finished up with finals last week so we were able to get out and do more Christmas shopping this past Saturday. Yes, we are those people that wait til the last minute. Turned out to be beautiful temps in the 50's which is crazy for SD in December! (Weather drastically changed yesterday though ~ rain + ice + wind + snow = no electricity, not so fun! Some are still out, luckily ours came back at 1am.) Anyway, while in Sioux Falls, we were finally able to make it to Unglued's pop up shop. So fun! Here's a couple quick snaps...

They did such an awesome job at putting this together so quickly! Seriously, amazing. So many fun and unique gifts. We got some fun stuff! The store was constantly buzzing with people while we were there too. Unglued has also been keeping their artists/crafters busy with restocking so there will be plenty of awesome creative gifts to choose from through Christmas Eve... so hurry and get in your last minute shopping before they are gone!

Off I go before the fire consumes me entirely. :)

Shop Unglued Now for Creative Gifts! { two locations! }

Unglued is open today in Sioux Falls, South Dakota! They will only be open at this location through Christmas Eve so be sure to stop by the shop as soon as possible to find unique holiday gifts for your family and friends.

If you are unable to make it to Unglued's pop-up shop in Sioux Falls, check out their year round location in Fargo, ND. David and I were able to getaway a couple months ago to check out their Fargo shop and take part in one of their fun events. We had a blast! Here are just a few photos from our shop visit...

{Ashley (the redhead above) owns the shop along with her husband}

 It is so fun seeing our handmade items in an actual shop! Like a dream come true. :)

{Love necklace holder built my husband from Wisp Woods, how perfect that a bicycle necklace is hanging from it!}

The whole Unglued crew has done such an amazing job at putting the shop together and running everything smoothly. So many fun, creative treasures!

Hopefully soon we can make it to their Sioux Falls shop! Can't wait to check it out!

Lately { Art & Snow }

Here is a glimpse of just a few things going on around here...

{drawing in progress ~ hoping to get this finished at the next painting group day}

A custom request came in for this prayer and I thought it was pretty cute, so changed up the colors and made it into an art block for my Godson's baptismal birthday. It was a fun project!

Loving my extended work space! Unglued is opening a pop-up shop on November 20 in Sioux Falls SD! I can't wait to check it out. I am sure it will be just as amazing as their Fargo shop which is filled with lots of amazing and unique handmade gifts! More info to come.

In other news, the weather has changed significantly. A few flakes came this past Sunday,

more came Monday. This photo was taken before K headed to school Monday morning. School was dismissed at noon since it started getting nasty out and we had blizzard conditions. What kid doesn't like a snow day especially when friends get to come over? :)

 Little B didn't want to leave and instead of putting on his snow gear, put on David's shoes. Such a cutie!

While I was waiting for K to get done with Holy COW yesterday, I was watching the most beautiful snowflakes fall on our vehicle. When I arrived home I had to try to capture the detail.

Aren't snowflakes amazing!?! The intricate details in each one... love it! God did so good! :)

House Tour!

It has been awhile since my last home tour. Shortly after taking these photos Miss K had a nasty allergic reaction to a medication that landed us in ER and I forgot about the photos until recently. So before sharing more current family happenings with you here's some home inspiration that I hope you will enjoy...

Usually I'm drawn to the character of older homes, but once in awhile there is a builder that puts some nice details into their designs. I like unique details! :)

All photos except the first 4 show the work of Zome's Construction. (Thanks for letting us tour your gorgeous home Kevin!)

House Tour

Just because we love unique details in a home...

Hope some of you gained some interior inspiration.

Have a great weekend!

Yellow and Grey Nursery

I was so excited to get these adorable nursery photos in my Enduring Arts shop inbox, I had to share... with permission of course. :)

 

 

I feel honored to have my First We Had Each Other print in such a wonderful collection.

 

 

Isn't that a fantastic space!? It looks like it should be in a magazine. :)

 

Congratulations on your growing family Rhonda and thank you so much for the amazing photos and design inspiration! You are so talented!

 

{ nursery photos by Rhonda Lindholm }

House Project ~ Bookcase Built-ins

Yay! We finally have bookcase built-ins! I have always wanted some in our home... they add such a welcoming, cozy feeling to a space, and my husband is pretty much a bookaholic. :) I was lucky that he left me a couple shelves to fill and Kaelyn got half of a shelf... but he did make her her own bookcase for her room quite awhile ago so it's okay. (You can see a glimpse of it in the nursery tour HERE. Her room has changed quite a bit and her bookcase definitely has a lot more books now.)

 

I really wanted our many stacks of books all over to be better organized. Well when David got the urge to build some bookcases over Christmas break I said it had to go from floor to ceiling... because really that is the best use of space. So glad he went with my idea!

 

So here is the only picture I could find that showed a glimpse of the old bookcase we had in the room before. It worked great but didn't hold near the amount of books we needed it to.

And here is the in progress photo showing what hubby designed and built for the space...

Several people wondered if we'd be able to fill much of it. Ha, ha. They had no idea!

 

Anyways, then it was my job to caulk and paint. Hubby was so excited to get his books on the shelves that he actually helped paint. It was almost killing him to wait a few days for the paint to cure before putting anything on the shelves. :)

Not much space left in this bookcase so maybe we'll have to make another one for our living room someday, right hun? :)