Feelin' Crafty

Today, I hung up my latest craft project. 

Before you get too excited, you should know that it's the key hanger, not the painted slate. I have some crafting ability, but come on, that's a pretty amazing Block O... definitely outside of my talent level.


Nonetheless, I'm still pretty excited about the key hanger. It was super-easy to make! I started with an unpainted 1x4 (this one happens to be 18in long.) I marked out where I wanted my hooks to go. This board has four hooks. 


Then, I applied tile pieces mosaic style. I started with 8x10" tile sheets from Hobby Lobby (roughly $7 a sheet) and snipped them into small pieces. Two notes on this: 


1. Put newspaper down before you start snipping. The tile pieces tend to make thousands of shards. 
2. I like to have everything in order and in clear patterns. I started with that in mind, but I threw it out the window. I had to keep telling myself that mosaics are supposed to be asymmetrical. As soon as I got the swing of it, I did fine for my first project like this.


As I cut pieces, I laid them on my board. I got everything laid out how I wanted it, leaving my hook marks uncovered, and then I used craft glue to glue the tile down. I let the pieces dry over night, and then I mortared around them. The mortar was part of a kit I got ages ago, so I don't know how much it cost, but you could easily use plaster of paris to fill in the cracks, which is very affordable. 


After the mortar dried, I scraped it off the tile pieces, leaving just the cracks filled. I put two picture hangers on the back, and voila! 

Happy crafting!

Simple excitement

I realized the other day that while I read other people's blogs fairly regularly, I seldom take the time to write in my own. Immediately, I came to a conclusion: I don't write as much as I should, because my life doesn't seem nearly as exciting as those around me, which of course, is entirely my fault. Then, my brain continued wandering, as it often does, and I decided that by golly, I'm pretty content with my life. I need to embrace the simple excitement that fills it. In honor of that conclusion, here are 3 things that made me smile or think this past week.

1. In the FFA parliamentary procedure contest, students are given motions to use to complete various abilities. Tuesday, during practice, one of the motions I gave my students was "to purchase five bred gilts for the FFA lab." Those of us in agriculture, understand that bred gilts are young, pregnant female hogs. While discussing this motion, however, one of the girls missed the memo and declared that they we should in fact purchase new bred gilts, because our old ones are broken. Apparently, she thought they were tools. I laughed a while over that one. 
2. I turned 26 a week ago. When I think of everything that has taken place already over the span of my life, I get pretty excited to think about the future. 26 years, God willing, is just a drop in the bucket.
3. I caught up with my good friend Amanda this week. I love when you can not see anyone for a while (almost a year) and pick up right were you left off. I'm blessed with amazing friends.

Over the coming weeks, I'm going to look for the small joys and embrace the excitement that surrounds me. 

So, let's take a second to catch our breath...

I'm sitting here on a typical Sunday morning, drinking coffee, thinking about the day ahead, and enjoying the beautiful sunrise God has given us right outside my office window! I'm also listening to some of my favorite tunes, appropriately named "Jesus Music" in my iTunes. One of the first songs that played on shuffle this morning was "Sometimes" by Matt Brouwer. Here's the video:

One of my favorite lines is "Sometimes there can be so much more beyond what we see." What a great reminder! This weekend, our pastor delivered a beautiful message reminding us that God is the father. Just like earthly parents make plans that their children don't always understand, God does the same thing for us. We need to remember that He loves us, and He knows us better than we know ourselves. He, not us, has everything under control.


As a textbook Type A personality, I am focused, set goals, and work to get where I want to be. Too often, though, I neglect to understand the power of God's hand in my life. I know He's always there, but sometimes I cast aside the whole "He's in charge," part. My prayer for today is that I can let go of the challenges and tribulations that I face and hand those to God. He's my father, and He knows what's best. I pray for patience and understanding when my plans don't come to fruition, because it's His plans that matter. 


"So, let's take a second to catch our breath, and realize this isn't over yet..."  

The County Fair: More than Rides, French Fries, and a Midway

This week, I've spent quite a bit of time at the Wyandot County Fair, where my FFA students show. This fair is a new experience for me, so I've enjoyed taking it all in. I've found there isn't anything quite like grabbing a cup of coffee, finding a nice corner, and people watching. I've observed some pretty remarkable things while sipping on a cup of joe.

• I've seen the excitement as a new 4-Her shows his animal for the first time.
• I've watched teenagers earnestly shake hands businessmen who have made an investment in youth and in the community by purchasing animals in the junior fair livestock sale.
• I've smiled as farmers catch up with their neighbors and friends, who they don't get to see nearly enough throughout the year.
• I've chuckled as gaggles of kids run around the fair, never getting into too much trouble but raising watchful eyebrows nonetheless.

I've also been reminded of how pivotal the Knox County Fair was in shaping me as a person. I often tell people that outside of FFA, junior fair activities had the most impact on my personal development. Junior fair board helped me further develop responsibility, follow-through, and a solid work ethic. More importantly, it allowed me to "network" with other like-minded youth. (Though, at the time, we didn't call it networking, we called it hanging out!) I'm glad to say that those like-minded individuals are still in my life, though like the farmers I mentioned above, I don't get to see them nearly enough.

I realize that most people will never feel the emotions and nostalgia that those of us who grew up a little more each summer at the county fair experience. If you understand what I'm saying, though, the next time you visit a fair, whether it's where you grew up or not, smile and be thankful for strong, positive experiences being such a big part of our young adulthood. 

Back to school and other fun, fall stuff

I love Sunday mornings. Since Greg and I typically attend our church's Saturday night service, I have Sunday mornings to myself. Greg goes and feeds cows, and I sit at my computer, catching up on the week and drinking coffee. Sometimes, if I'm feeling really crazy, I'll even read a book. Yes, life is good.


I just finished my second week of school at Mohawk. I love it! I have a wonderful group of students. My classroom is just how I want it. It's a nice district. Etc. I miss my Bellevue kiddos, but overall, it's been a good change for me.


Outside of school, life charges on. Greg and I (well, he claims it's mostly my project) planted indian corn and pumpkins this year. Now, I don't believe in doing anything small, so we have roughly 3/4 of an acre of pumpkins and gourds and about the same of the indian corn. Yesterday, we picked our first batch of corn (600 ears) and bundled them into groups of 3. It was hard work, especially in all the heat, but it was a little bit of fun, too!


Stay tuned for pictures!