Make A Difference Monday

Hello world!

I have been busy getting my kitchen painted.

Right now I am a mess.

Paint on my clothes.

Paint in my hair.

Paint in my fingernails.

I am the sloppiest painter I've ever come across.

Heck,

I can't even really say I look cute right now.

LOL

So I'm anxious to hear what you all did for yourselves this week.

Leave me a comment,

or send an email.

I really want to know that you took some time just for you

and what you did.

I actually took some time to do a couple extra blog posts.

(along with getting my massage, which I already told you about)

I love blogging, but sometimes find it even hard to get that done.

Hopefully I will keep it up.

I came across this quote while surfing on Pinterest

(I have to set my timer when I'm on that site.  It's more addicting than alcohol)

"Expectation is the root of all heartache"

~William Shakespeare~

When you stop and truly pay attention

to these words and what they mean,

it's true, isn't it?

As I thought about it,

these thoughts came to my mind:

I've had a hard time being in my own skin this week.

I'm extremely irritated.

Things that would have never bothered me before

totally tick me off.

I find myself saying things

I regret and acting on feelings

in ways that aren't "me".

Why?

Because I expect certain things from certain people.

And because they didn't follow through,

or behave the way I expected,

it hurt me.

So I became my evil counterpart.

And just how on earth does that make the world a better place?

All it does is create a ripple of negativity

and makes me look bad.

So today I have put on my big girl panties,

put a smile on my face,

and will truly work on expecting

nothing and accepting people (and myself) as they are.

I don't think this is going to be an easy task.

But it can be done

if I really want to change.

I think to some level it's OK to expect things.

I mean,

I expect my boys to do what's right.

I expect the sun to come up tomorrow morning.

I expect there to be money in my bank account 24/7

LOL

You get the idea.

And can I just be honest?

This Make A Difference Monday I started

can really irk me.

It FORCES me to look at myself.

Do you know how painful that can be sometimes?
:o)

May your expectations be low

and your rewards be high!

xoxo

Cindy

GenerationQ

I have been waiting a while for this magazine to come out.

Here it is.

The first issue of GenerationQ,
a modern quilt magazine.

I don't know that it's available yet.

To get the issue early you had to

donate a pledge,

and of course,

I wasn't going to pass that up!

You can keep checking back to this site

(click here)

to see when it becomes available.

So I know you're wondering why I REALLY wanted to get this

new magazine ASAP.

Well,

do you remember how many times I've

bragged about my blogger buddy, Melissa,

from

100 Billion Stars?

Check this out:

I was doing the happy dance for her

when I found out she was going to be published in this magazine.

I told her yesterday I received my magazine,

but she hadn't received hers

What the???

But I heard from her today

and her copies are safely in her hands.

I can't even begin to imagine

the feeling she gets when she looks at her name on the

front cover.

Her quilt that's in the magazine

is

G.O.R.G.E.O.U.S

Here's a sneak peak

You can check out Melissa's blog post here

to get a closer look at the quilt.

I absolutely LOVE it!!

Congrats, Melissa!!!

There's also another one of my favorites in this magazine.

Julie Herman of Jaybird Quilts.

This is her project in the magazine.

You can click here to view her blog.

She is full of great information.

I adore her patterns.

As a matter of fact, her Carnival pattern is next on my list to make.

If you're interested in purchasing this pattern,

or checking out her other one's

you can click here

for a list of shops.

You won't be disappointed.

Her patterns are easy to follow

and fun to make.

I hope you all enjoyed your day!

xoxo

Cindy

Bridal Shower

I finally had a chance

to sit down and edit photo's of a

bridal shower I helped give my

good friends daughter.

I've known Brianna since she was this

cute little elementary girl.

It's been a pure pleasure to watch her grow

into the wonderful woman she's become.

It was a beautiful day!

Brianna, the bride to be, was so happy with everything,

which made me happy.

I gave the shower along with her maid of honor.

I didn't get permission to use the photo

of Britta,

so you'll just have to know that she's a sweetheart

and I would throw a party with her any time.

So on with the photo's!

Mother & Daughter

The Bride after we 'decorated' her

(isn't she adorable???!!)

The desert table

And I can't believe I don't have a picture of the luncheon table!

We served egg salad and chicken salad sandwiches along with

bruschetta (Brianna's favorite), chips & dip and veggies & dip.

Of course, what's a shower without the games!

Britta, my hostess sidekick, was in charge of the games.

She chose to do the 'design a wedding dress from toilet paper' game.

It really was a lot of fun.

So lets see the models!

I think this would be a GREAT photo for the cover of Bride magazine,

don't you think?

Faces are blurred, again, because I didn't get permission from them to post.

(with the exception of the gorgeous mother of the bride) 

:o)

Of course, there had to be a winner of this little competition.

So here she is!

You know, the one thing I love is all the gifts the bride to be gets at a shower.

I wish I could have another one.

After 27 years, my 'stuff' is old and worn.

Do I have any takers on throwing a shower for me?

A little tradition I wasn't aware of

is to make a bouquet out of the ribbons

from the gifts. The bride will use this bouquet

during her wedding rehearsal.

How cool is that?

Here are a few close ups of the decorations and delicious desserts

The cupcakes, made by my lovely sister, Sarah

(THANK YOU SARAH!)

PS...can you make more?

I'm kind of hungry for them.

The bouquet of cake pops.

The ones on the left are pink lemonade.

The ones on the right are oreo.

YUMMY!

The table decorations

The cupcake display

(can you believe I purchased this cheap at a garage sale?)

It was all black & gold, so I spray painted it white.

I also used vintage hankies to add some softness to the display.

And finally,

a picture of me with the bride to be.

I felt like I had my picture taken with a movie star.

It was truly a beautiful day.

If it's any indication of how the wedding will be,

then we are in for one of the most beautiful weddings

I've ever been to.

To Brianna:

I have watched you grow

into such an extraordinary young lady.

I know your parents are incredibly proud of you.

(as am I)

Thank you so much for letting me be a part of all of this.

xoxo

Cindy



Make A Difference Monday

I'm a little late posting today,

but hey,

better late than never,

right?

So for this Make A Difference Monday

I am giving you an assignment.

At least once this week

take a few moments just to do what you would like to do.

And if you can sneak in more time

(which I'm hoping can),

do it more than once.

It can be whatever you would like it to be.

Take a nice, relaxing candlelit bubble bath.

Meditate.

Create.

Go to a movie all by yourself.

Go for a drive and stop and get an ice cream cone.

Just something you like

that you haven't taken the time out to do

because life is just too darn busy.

You deserve it!

And there is absolutely no excuse

for you not to do at least one thing

special for yourself.

Me?
I had a massage today.

Nice.

So next week I want to hear what you've done for yourself

this week.

Have

photo source

xoxo

Cindy

Make A Difference Monday

"I am a little pencil in the handwriting of God who is sending a love letter to the world."

~Mother Teresa~

photo source

Make A Difference Monday

"Don't let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do."

~John Wooden~