joyful in little things

Finding JOY in the little things...

Helping my girl prepare for preschool.

(dry erase boards from $1 bins at Target...score!)

And watching her eat the fruits of her labor.

JOYFUL about what I'm working up with these...

Linking up here:

joy with vinyl crafting

Having a little fun with my sassy Silhouette...think I'll name her "Sassy."  We have so much fun!

Here are those notebook cases made by Sterilite that I first posted here. Got them at Walmart and couldn't WAIT to "sassy" them up with some vinyl!

Also discovered these little pencil case pretties at Dollar Tree.

The notebook case above and the pencil case below are a gift from my daughter to her friend, Evelyn.  We'll throw in a cute new journal, coloring book, and a box of crayons...VOILA...birthday gifting the JOY way!

 My son's teacher requested some hand sanitizer.  So...maybe she didn't request the GI-NORMOUS size and didn't expect it to be personalized, but...why not??

Also, I first blogged about Sally Henson's "Salon Effects" Nail Strips here. Well, I finally got around to doing mine & my 4 year old daughter's toesies....can you get over the adorable-ness????

PEDICURED PIGGIES!!

My daughter's tiny toesies were a little more difficult, plus the filing made her squirm because she said it tickled.  I told her she should get used to it, because this is just what we girls do :)

Look at the variety of styles they carry.  Hmmm...which ones do you like best?

JOY-fully linking up here:

joy of discipleship

Last year, I attended my first "Downline Ministries" conference here in Memphis. The 2011 Summit is scheduled for October 28-29 at Faith Baptist Church in Bartlett.  You can get more info on Downline Ministries Summit HERE.

The purpose of the DownLine Women’s Summit is to enlarge the vision of every individual Christ follower for making disciples in any context of their lives and awaken them to their potential to leave a multi-generational legacy for Jesus Christ. By attending this year’s Summit, you will valuable insight into Biblical discipleship and learn how to invest your life wisely in order to leave a multiplying legacy of faith that magnifies the name of Christ to all nations.



What a life-changing experience it was for me!! I am so excited to go back and I just found out that one of my new favorite authors is one of the speakers...Vicki Courtney! She is the author of many books, but my most recent fav is "The 5 Conversations You Must Have With Your Daughter." I helped facilitate the study last year at our church with other Moms of girls and was so encouraged & inspired to teach my daughter that she is BEAUTIFUL in God's eyes! I can only imagine what insight she can give us in discipling our children.

joy for the weekend

This is what I call "fun." True crafting JOY!

Found these Sterilite Notebook Cases at Walmart a few days ago.

Can't wait to show you my Silhouette SD can help me create.

What brings you JOY this weekend?

joy of pinterest

Have you been on PINTEREST?

What is it?

Well...in a nutshell...

Here are some things I found this week via Pinterest about back to school:

from sizzlenspice.blogspot.com

from writestuff.com

And what a cute idea for any of your child's teachers as a class gift.

From mandydouglass.blogspot.com

And this TRULY speaks to my love of water bottle labels -- Sight word water bottle labels!!!

Aggghhh - the cuteness!  From blog.amyatlas.com

happy birthday, lil fella

Ok, so I'm still learning on this new camera of mine, but love having a new subject.  My nephew turned 3 over the weekend and, like always, we made a weekend out of it! Plus, it was a last chance visit to see my family before the kiddos start back to school.  Here's a few pics from the festivities:

first attempt with heat transfer w/my Silhouette SD (name only)

I'm in LOVE!

photography joy

One of my besties has launched her own photography business and my Ally was fortunate enough to be one of her first subjects.  See her blog post here about taking my baby girl's photos for her 4th birthday.  My friend, Faydra, is so meticulous and is an absolute perfectionist.  She and I just laugh when we get together to sew.  I read directions and say, "Blah, Blah..." and she follows them to a "T." Of course, the end results are proof of that, too..ha!  Not a day goes by that we don't discuss something we've found on crafting or photography blogs.  Photography has truly become her JOY and she is loving it!  Make sure to check out her how her business is growing with each little smiling face at Faydra Foster Photography.

back to school with my silhouette sd

Back to school stuff - Again, love me some Dollar Tree!

See how the bottom compartment comes off for a snack or storage? So smart!

Found these babies at Target for only $4 and when I saw the blank space on back...couldn't resist!

summertime stuff with my silhouette sd!

How lucky am I that hubby bought my Silhouette for me at the beginning of summer! I'll admit, I was a little intimidated at first because I've SEEN all it can do and have drooled over this baby for months.  All of my children's teacher's were blessed with a Dollar Tree water bottle personalized by my little crafting wonder.  Here's a cup I recently did for myself (gotta treat myself every now & then).  Don't cha love Dollar Tree? I could do a commercial.

Even though our pool is just outside our back door, I still find myself taking two or three trips back inside to carry everything out.  When I saw these handy carry-alls in the Dollar Bins at Target (although $2.50 - I'm a sucker), I couldn't resist. LOVE the color!

See?? Room for my home phone, cell phone, and a book to read.

This baby has been known to carry out a box of Ritz & squirt cheese too...for the kids, of course.

Perfect lil nestling spot for my cell for texting by the pool.

Love these storage containers from Dollar Tree.  The one above is being used as a glorified wipes container.

One below contains a FIRST for me -- Homemade Butterfinger Ice Cream!!!

What have you made this summer?