pinkcherrymama

{ awesomeness from "BraveGirls" }

{ last night's sunset from my backyard } i get a daily email from the wonderful ladies at BraveGirls and thought i would share with you. i know that both men and women can relate! Dear Overwhelmed Girl, Do you have the completely irrational belief that so many of us have that  you can be everything to everyone....especially to those that you love? Do  you believe it’s your job to keep them all happy, to help them with everything  that they are struggling with and to then go out and save the world in your  free time? Do you over commit and then beat yourself up when you under-deliver? Are there a million things on your list that were really really important that  you didn’t even get to because you got caught up in doing things that weren’t  nearly AS important? Ok now.....take a deep breath. Now...take another one. One more. Remember that you are wonderful. You are loved.....and, phenomenal friend... amazing woman.........you are a human being. You DO have limitations and it is  totally ok for you to say no sometimes....lots of times. In fact, it is essential. When you don’t stop to rest....to think....to recharge....to remember.... to restore.....you end up grouchy, tired, uncreative, angry and numb to lots of  life. You are a sparkling, beautiful girl and we need that sparkle.....so STOP  today and make a list....prioritize it...be realistic. Say no to at least 3  things today..........practice.  Say yes to yourself....to joy...to rest....to being 100% present to the things  that matter most to you..instead of a tired and diluted version who has too much  to do to ever do her best at ANYTHING. Don’t lose yourself while you are trying to  be everything to everyone.... If at all possible....only have enough on your plate that you can do your best at  everything you have to do.......your life will take on new meaning and happiness. Just practice...this is a hard one, but so worth it. Hang in there......you are loved! Xoxo in 2 days, we will be off on another adventure to Hume Lake with our high school youth ministry! in these rough financial times, it is going to be tough, but we know that God wants us to go and share, learn and help grow the kids. He will provide as He always does. the kids did a couple of car washes to help raise money and this past weekend, they got this little beauty to wash!, yep, that's a bentley. pretty cool :)   little buddy is so excited  to go that he can't contain himself. this morning, he brought out his "curious george" lunch pail to "pack". this is all a 4 year old needs for a week of fun...    tooth brush, "warrior head band", whoopee cushion, toothpaste....check! have a wonderful night! ~r

"1 of 75", oops!

my previous post included pictures that did not realize where not supposed to be posted. i will post pictures again when they become available.

back in june, my daughter, kalie, who was turning 16, asked for donations instead of presents for her birthday. the money she raised went to the Tumaini school in nairobi, kenya, to fund a summer Bible school for the kids. by providing this summer school, the children were able to have meals which they do not get when school is not in session.

our church provides the only funding to the Tumaini school. the cool thing about it, is that we are able to develope relationships with these kids through sponsorships and mission trips where we will be able to visit them and keep in contact with them. kalie and i plan on going to Africa during her senior year of high school, God willing.

our youth group has launched a 75 student, $1,000 in 75 days, fundraising campaign to raise $75,000 to build a school with a small health clinic for these children. thus, the " 1 of 75" title. 
 we only have 56 days left!!!

as of now, the students at Tumaini school, are only able to go up to the 3rd grade level. the money raised will build a middle school for these children. after they graduate up to the high school level, we will be sponsoring some of the students to actually come here, to our homes and attend high school; something they would not have an opportunity to do in nairobi.

we are so excited, as a family, to be "1 of 75", and raising money for this awesome project!

if we can get 250 people to donate $4 each, we will have raised $1,000 toward our goal!

if you would like to help out you can donate by clicking here:

if you need a tax letter, please let me know and i will mail one out ASAP.

jimmie, kalie, brittany and i, thank you all in advance for your support.

for more information on our student ministry, click here

me slow down? psh, ya, right! i've got carnivals to go to and cakes to make!

edit: quick note. i just found this awesome website that makes photo books and they are awesome! look to the right of this post at this link . i got to see one first-hand a couple of weeks ago and they are super high quality and look very professional. i can't wait to order one! anyway, just thought i'd share for any of you picture happy people out there!

i have come to the conclusion that the elusive day when i might have some down-time, to catch up on all of the projects that have found themselves becoming dusty on the shelves, may in fact, never come. this conclusion has actually made me feel a bit more free in the sense that now i just won't worry about it coming...if it does actually happen to come, what a surprise i will get!!! that being said, here is a look at what's been going on this past week...

 

my super-duper helpers, made my life a whole lot easier by mixing and kneading the sugar-paste i am going to use for a wedding cake this weekend. the "client" for the cake is actually one of their old youth leaders who has moved to orange county. it 's awesome that they got to have a hand (literally!) in making something for such a special day.

after they finished mixing the sugar-paste, i made molds using real sea shells...

once the mold was dry, i brushed powdered sugar into each mold and pressed sugar-paste into each. i then pulled each cast out and laid it onto a 3x thick piece of batting to dry.

the next step will be to spray everything with an edible pearl paint. 

 i think i mentioned before that big daddy j had the past week off. we filled everyday with something! i was able to take my "small group" girls (which is actually a big group) from church to sushi and the carnival on saturday AND we had a sleepover...can you believe i stayed up past most of them..wimps!

seriously, automatic weapons on a kiddie ride? what the heck?!?!?

gotta love the small-town carnivals! such cheezy, sparkly, awesomely rad fun!

ttfn!

~r