A Day (aka a Lifetime) of Thankfulness

As you can tell by the time and date stamp, today is Thanksgiving. It's 10pm and I'm nursing a bowl of ice cream and a glass of ice water in the wake of a tide of tryptophan and family gatherings. Since Joey is still at work and I came home from my parents’ house fairly early because of the snow, it’s given me a bit of time to reflect on the past year.

A few months ago, a good friend and I were hanging out and she asked me a very good question. Sitting on her fluffy, comfy couch, she asked “What would you say that God is doing in your life right now?” I had to think pretty hard about that. You see, I was engaged in a fit of bitterness. I gave a very generic answer and went on with life, but the question has haunted me in the time since then. I find myself considering the potential answers on at least a weekly basis, if not more often. So here I sit with an actual answer.

To start at the beginning, Joey and I entered into marriage with the idea that we’d wait for a few years. That is, until a few weeks after our wedding, at which point we had a so-called “pregnancy scare”. We were disappointed to find that I wasn’t pregnant, and that point decided that we would stop trying to prevent pregnancy. Month after month, I’d exhibit pregnancy symptoms. Nausea (which we’ve now decided is a leftover symptom of the vertigo), aversion to foods, cravings, heightened sense of smell, you name it. Then, lo and behold, I would turn out to not be pregnant.

Needless to say, when people started announcing pregnancies, my heart turned bitter despite the fact that I was happy for those involved (my decade long struggle with depression has NOT helped). You see, not being able to get pregnant leads to a lot of thought trails.

Maybe I'm just an over thinker, but I felt like less of a woman, feared that I wouldn't be able to ever have kids, feared that if that was the case my husband wouldn't want me anymore, and even came to the conclusion that maybe God was preventing pregnancy because he thought I was going to be a terrible mom.

Thank God I have a supportive husband, two good friends who are going through the same season of difficulty, and two friends who weren't in that season but are still wonderful and encouraging.

What did I do? I started praying. Yes, to get pregnant. But also that I would have more trust in what God has planned, even if that plan doesn’t include pregnancy. As I spent time with Him, He worked to heal my bitter and broken heart (though admittedly Facebook in particular is sometimes still trying). The whole scenario put to test something that Joey and I have discussed: that God can open and close the womb as He wishes (as seen in 1st Samuel).

Fast forward a few months and many hours of prayer later, to today. I may not know whether God has predestined for Joey & I to have biological children, but I am extraordinarily thankful to serve a God who has a plan for each and every life, even before conception (Jeremiah 1:5). What a blessing!

Maybe we will be blessed with biological arrows for our quiver, but even if not, I will try to keep thanking God for the other things that are so easily overlooked in the shadow of fear of things like infertility. Because regardless of our thoughts, wishes, plans and fears, God is good and is always worthy of our praise.

 [Author’s note: Please refrain from commenting about the fact that it’s only been six months, that I should try charting fertility, or that “we should wait”. I may not be able to refrain from throwing a proverbial pillow at your head.]

How To: Popsicle Stick Snowflakes

Last winter I ran across a link on Pinterest that featured HUGE snowflakes made of popsicle sticks (see below). As a craft lover, I immediately saved it for use this year. However, no amount of research led me to step by step instructions. With this blog in mind, I decided to create my own set of directions, complete with tips and embarrassing faux pas.

The original depiction.
Credit: http://www.lovethispic.com/image/49982/diy-snowflake-decor

Step 1. Gather your supplies. I used generic craft sticks that I had gotten in a 150 pack at Walmart a few years ago, Gorilla Glue (more on that later), Modge Podge, loose glitter (I used iridescent), and ribbon or fishing line.

Step 2. Lay out the center section of your first design. I found that for my first design it was easiest to start with two sets of triangles and to work from there. I chose Gorilla Glue since it dries quickly, which leads to our first pro-tip. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT, try to chew "dried" glue off your fingers. Inevitably you, like me, will end up with glue on your tongue and teeth. 24 hours later, and it's still on my teeth. Not a fun experience. Other types of glue, hot glue included, would also work for this project. I was just trying to avoid getting burned. Ironic, isn't it?

The inside sections of my second snowflake
didn't really turn out as expected, but oh well!

Step 3. SLOWLY add the outside edge pieces. Rushing will only lead to your pieces falling back apart. One thing I love about this particular project is that since all snowflakes are different, you don't have to be set on perfection. Each snowflake is beautiful regardless of whether it looks exactly like the original or not.

Step 4. Lay down newspaper or some sort of drop cloth to protect the surface on which you are working.

Step 5. Add glitter! If you'd prefer, you could paint the snowflake the same color as your glitter. I decided to go straight for the glitter! Evenly coat the popsicle sticks with a layer of Modge Podge, then pour on some glitter.This works best if you target a small area at a time

Step 6. After leaving the snowflake to dry (preferably overnight), add ribbon or fishing line with which to hang it! I also recommend using a sealant to help lock on the glitter so that it doesn't scatter all over your house!

Step 7. Hang and enjoy. =)

Handywoman in Training

If you know me, you know that I LOVE doing home improvement projects. I like to think that this has origins in college dorm living when one of my roommates, Alexis, and I loved to take up "casual" activities like "casual plumbing" and "casual carpentry". I still like to take up "casual" activities for the heck of it. So when I found a draft/some holes (thank you previous renters) in our bedroom wall, it was time to spring into action!

I had never actually tried filling holes before, but found a product at Walmart that helped tremendously. It allows you to pump it into the holes, let it dry, sand it down, then stain it to match the wood paneling! Now, if this had been a hole in drywall, it would've been a completely different story, plaster and all.

Above are the two holes I focused on. The one of the left is right below our bedroom window and appears to be caused by a swelling of the wood paneling from moisture damage. As for the hole on the right, I have not the foggiest idea how they put a hole into the closet wall, but then again there are a lot of damages to our house that make no sense. 

Since the left hand hole was in fact causing a cold draft from the outside, Mr. Batten stuffed it temporarily with newspaper to seal it until we were able to fill it in. I guess there's a purpose for keeping old Bulletin Board ads after all. =P 

His (temporary) masterpiece!

After work I headed to the local (and insane) Walmart and scoped out the draft repair section. Frankly, it was overwhelming. There were multiple types of putty, spray foam, draft sealer, pastes, glues. Anything you could think of. Finally I went with this product because it was a reasonable price and looked simple enough to use. Unlike some of the other products, it also looked like it was able to be used more than once (some of the spray foams were labeled as one time use). Below is a picture of it, as applied to the area below our window. I have to say, it was incredibly easy to use! You cut the tip of the bottle to the size you needed. I was also able to fill the other hole, which somehow looks like a dragon? You'll have to judge that one for your self though!

The next step, which is coming soon, was sanding. The WoodFiller had to set for at least 8 hours for larger holes, so I had filled the holes before work so they'd be fine before the next time that we went to bed. Being the slow-poke that I am, it was actually a few days before I got around to sanding.

[to be continued]