Love Conquers All

A heartfelt thank you to all our friends, family, brothers and sisters-in-Christ for the love and support you have given us during this difficult time.  Paul, Jon, Kristina and myself are so blessed to have each and every one of you in our lives.  We are putting one foot in front of the other right now and with God's help each day will get a little easier.  He is our Comforter and one day will wipe all the tears from our eyes - praise Him!

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.   Romans 8:38-39

Love,

Lisa, Paul, Jon and Kristina

Found a Bargain!

How cute is this..................

I found this wire stand at Marshall's for $7.99!  What a bargain!  I thought it would be fun to have a dessert party and use different wire holders to identify each dessert.  Now I'm keeping an eye out for some other neat ones.  I think some smaller - placecard size - ones would be nice, too.  Have you seen any out there? 

Blessings,
Lisa

Goodbye for Now

A great lady went home to be with the Lord yesterday.  My mother-in-law, Claire, pictured here with all five of her children........... Paul, Tom, Jeff, Steve, Bonnie and her loving husband, Paul, who was waiting for her in heaven.   She will be missed by all of us and we are grateful for the time we had with her.  Despite a difficult childhood, Claire was a loving and caring person who took in "strays" her whole life.  Anyone could show up for dinner and be welcomed to her table.  Need a place to stay?  Claire would open her home and her heart to all.  The Holy Spirit definitely gave her the gift of hospitality and she practiced it her whole life.

Now I'd be lying to say we didn't have our ups and downs through the 39 years I knew Claire.  But that's the reality of life and we always got past our differences.  Being two strong-willed women wasn't always easy, but we learned to respect each other and love always won out.  Family was so important to Claire - especially her grandchildren.  She adored them all. 

Claire was such a good sport.  Her "boys" would tease her unmercifully - about everything.  She would either laugh it off or give them a look and say something like  "I'm going to pinch your head off!" -  she knew the teasing was just their way of loving her.  Claire never took herself too seriously.  So now, when my kids tease me, I smile and know that it's just another way of saying "I love you, Mom."  I thank Claire for that life lesson.

I love you very much, Claire, and I'll miss you until we are all together again..................

God bless you,
Lisa

My Daughter's Present

I promised you a glimpse of the present my daughter gave me for my birthday........... 




drum roll please.......................      




are you ready?...............     




One... Two..... Three......

TA DA!


Yes, it's a book!  And I LOVE books.  But this one especially.  In fact, the day before she gave it to me we were shopping the Anthropologie my daughter works at and I happened to pick up this book.  Now my daughter was cringing as she watched me -  would I hate it and put it down or like it and try to buy it?  I LOVED it ..... AND I was trying to be good and not buy anything, so after coveting it for a few minutes, I put it down.  Now you can imagine how surprised and delighted I was when I opened my present and found this book!  I was flabbergasted - but I shouldn't have been because my daughter knows me so well.
                                                                                                

The book is called ETCETERA etc. creating beautiful interiors with the things you love. by Sibella Court.  It is filled with amazing images and ideas.

I think it's really going to help me loosen up - some of my decorating is too rigid, constricting - as if I had to 'follow the rules.'   In fact, she suggests the reader break one of the unwritten rules about books by writing notes in the book, dog-earring pages, and using the book as a journal of sorts.  I love that!  And I'm going to do that.  Don't you love books that are well worn?  You can tell someone really loved that book.  And I love this one. 

I even love the book without it's bookcover - as shown here.  If you think you would love this book, too, you can find it at an Anthropologie store (which I also love!)  And I love my daughter, too (along with my son and husband, too)!  Thanks for a wonderful birthday, sweetie!

Blessings,
Mom

Super Fabulous Weekend

Well, the snow finally stopped coming on the weekends so we were able to go visit our daughter!

Of course we had to celebrate my birthday (finally! ... just kidding) AND Valentine's Day (XOXO), so it was a weekend full of surprises and gifts.  I must tell you, having two grown children who are artistic is incredibly inspiring. 

These are my Valentine flowers from my daughter, Kristina......... how beautiful they are and they will last - FOREVER!

This is my birthday card - completely handmade, inside and out! 

The scalloped lace around the edge is all handcut and punched with a needle.  The paper is handpainted with stripes and flowers.  I just love it!

Tomorrow I'll show you what she bought me for my birthday - I think you will really, really like it!

Blessings,
Lisa