Purple Prose [Search results for FUN] 

Today is my daughters' birthday.

My oldest daughter turned 6, and my youngest daughter turned 1. I wanted to do something special for them since their party isn't until Saturday. Last year, I was in labor on my oldest daughter's birthday, so, this year, I wanted something fun we could do (no, I don't consider Labor fun! Necessary, but not fun lol).

Last night, I checked the weather and the Weather lady said it was going to be hot, steamy, muggy, humid, no clouds, barely any rain. I thought, "That's AWESOME! I can give them a great birthday!" (kinda bragging a bit to myself about what *I* could give them)

So, I decided that we'd all load up (the "baby", the 4 year old, the newly turned '6', me, and my mother too) and head to the city so we could have a nice celebration for their birthday. I told them we were going to have a big day. That it was going to be fun (bragging in a sense of all the fun *I* was going to bring them by going on this trip). I'd checked the weather... it was going to be a BEAUTIFUL Day.

Well... we piled in. We rode (stopping once for a potty break). We shopped. We had fun. We never looked at the sky.. nor did we notice the ominous looking clouds rolling it (since the day before, the weather lady said it wasn't going to rain... It wasn't going to rain!)

I, however, didn't take into consideration Proverbs 27:1--

Don’t brag about tomorrow,since you don’t know what the day will bring.

Sigh...

Can anyone see the foreshadowing in this tale?

We were in the party decorations store, and heard it...

Big, heavy, claps of thunder. Not just claps. Long, ominous rolls of thunder. Extended rolls that you hear in the summer months.

We paid for our stuff and headed to the car... in time to see the lightening start.

Yeap, our "Hot, Humid, Muggy" day with NO RAIN turned into a big BIG downpour. And when I say BIG, I mean Have-to-pull-over-because-you-can't-see-the-road BIG.

Don’t brag about tomorrow,since you don’t know what the day will bring.

Truth be told, I don't like driving in the rain. When I was in college, I'd turn down dates if it was going to rain because I didn't want to drive in it. Hydroplaning wasn't my friend! I was scared to death (PUN INTENDED) of it.

Still am actually.

And to have to drive in the rain with not only myself, but my Mama and 3 small kids in the car... well... lets just say there were lots of silent prayers going up.

Needless to say, we made it home safe and sound. It rained heavy buckets on it for the better part of the 35 minute drive home (which of course took longer today). All the while, I just kept thinking about that Weather Lady. I know they can make mistakes. Predicting the weather is, in effect, predicting the future.. and only God knows the future.

And GOD knew it was going to rain. I wasn't the smartest person ever for not realizing that, HEY, the Weather Lady could be WRONG!

Don’t brag about tomorrow,since you don’t know what the day will bring.

We did end up having a great day. It didn't go much like I planned. I was going to take them out to eat (didn't happen). I was going to take them shopping for a toy (They found some for $2.00 at the party decorations shop that they wanted more). I was going to spend quality time bonding out of the house (They wanted to come home and play with their toys).

What *I* wanted didn't mean squat... But what I GOT was just right.

We had a really great day!

As for the Weather Woman... well, she WAS right. It DIDN'T rain in the city she was in...

Much love, Kelly

(linked with: Women Living Well Wednesday, Encourging Words Wednesday)

Today's letter in the A to Z Challenge is...

O is for Opportunity.
I have some query letters out right now for the book (which I don't know if it will ever see the time of day-- if God wants it too it will... ). I've written some for publication and contests..
But do you know what's missing?
Writing for fun :)
Sometimes when we get so focused on something, we forget that we started it for fun (like blogging-- and having kids... ).
SO, I've decided to bring the fun back-- and I want you to be a part of it. This Friday, I'm starting Faith Fiction Friday.

Don't freak out on me--
If you have a blog, you are a writer of some sort, so this should be easy, and freeing.
The idea is for me to post a picture on Friday. Your job (and mine) is to write a 100 word fiction OR non-fiction story based on the picture. Post the story in comments (and leave your blog address if you have one so others can visit you). It's that easy.
Does it have to be exactly 100 words? Heck no. It needs to be 'around' 100 words, but you won't get deleted if you go over.
This is just something to be fun-- not to stress over-- to let your creativity soar.
I'll put the post up Thursday night along with the picture so you can have a chance to work on your story.
I'm so excited about this, guys! I hope and pray you are too!
Much Love,
Kelly
Linked with: Oh Your Heart Tuesday Winsome Wednesday, and Women Living Well Wednesday

Here are my results of this week's quest... yes, I actually did it :) I enlisted the help of my girls... actually turned off the tv (I KNOW! It was strange without PBS kids for 2 hours)... and we cleaned. And had a GREAT TIME. I'm going to miss this when they get older and cleaning isn't as fun for them. Oh well... no sadness today... Ok.

Here is how our morning went...

THIS...

Is what their closet looked like. This is what he has honestly looked like for years. I haven't hung clothes in there... well, in about 4 years when the clothes rod fell and I just never put it back up (lazy much!). Their clothes are all in another room (dresses anyway). And this closet just ended up being a catch all for... well... everything. You can see there are 3 backpacks (2 are mine from about 9 years ago and 1 from my oldest daughter, our christmas tree (yes, our Christmas tree is a 4 foot, white, pre-lit tree... Don't judge), a carseat, some big toys, a train set (my grandfathers), just a jumbled mess of messiness.

Not a room fitting 2 little ladies.

And a waste of space. Nothing was being played with. Just being a big, messy, unusable eyesore.

Finally, with the girls help we got...

This..
.
.

And

This..

ACTUAL dresses hanging from their ACTUAL closet.

I could do a happy dance...

And kick myself for not doing it sooner (sorry girls).

I know the walls aren't all that. I'll get to them someday. Maybe cleaning them up will be one of NEXT years Quests (because I KNOW you all are looking forward to next year ;))

Here is the final product (or at least, how I'm leaving it today..)

I think there is a big difference. I can't store the train or the tree anywhere else because I just don't have the space. I have another closet that I 'may' try to put them in later, but for right now, they are fitting ok in there. I know it's not 'perfect', but at least it's usuable.

However, today's confession is that... my kid have a lot of stuff. I didn't get a good before picture of their room previously, but lets say that we haven't been tidying it as we should this summer. It wasn't 'messy', just full of stuff. It's the catch all for all of my kids toys.

Here is an example of how much stuff they have in there...

(Um... no. Those toys aren't normally on their beds lol. I had the ladies put them on their beds so the baby could be in the room and not eat any of them. Those blocks there were what she played with.)

They have a LOT Of stuff.

I gave them 3 choices on all of it... keep, toss, yard sale.

And here are our results...

Much better :)

HOWEVER, I'd be a big liar if I didn't show you the reverse of this shot.

That's all of their stuff that we didn't want to give away or sell. I'm not entirely sure what to do with it. I mean... Hmmmmmmm... Any ideas from you awesomely organized Mamas?

So, there you have it :) The end of week 6 for me. YOU still have until Saturday to get your closet finished. Remember, you can pick which ever closet you want. This closet has been my nemesis all summer lol.

OH, and I just remembered that I said "Cleaning Was FUN!" And I meant it. My ladies had the best time playing with the toys that hadn't seen the light of day in years.

Especially...

We found this in the 'non used' closet. Now, to you and me this might look like some little baby toy. Not to my oldest 2 ladies. THEY decided it was a rocket ship. So all 4 of us (the baby included) spent a good hunk of time flying in outer space. We zipped. We zagged. We ducked (the 11 month old thought we were all silly doing that... ). We whirled. And my oldest daughter went all Dora on us because we had to listen and match the correct instrument to the correct sound... so the mole aliens wouldn't get us. (THANKFULLY, we knew what a drum, a trumpet, and a guitar sounded like! Shew!)

They have already made plans for our return trip tomorrow. I can't wait.

So, there you have it, ladies. Cleaning IS fun... especially when you find a really cool rocketship in your closet.

Much Love,

Kelly

(Linked with: The High-Heeled Housewife--Homemaking Link-Up

Today's letter in the A to Z challenge at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/ is...

R is for Rejection.
We talked yesterday about how if you send query letters then you will (more than likely) get a few rejections. Rejections aren't fun (how dare they not like something you worked so hard on!), but they are part of it. You get sad, you move on, and you keep sending them out. Simple as that...
But if it's not *that* simple for you, I've found a site that has the number of rejections famous authors have gotten over the years. The link is: Wavy Lines. Go visit because I'm not going to write them all...
I found out that:
Harry Potter (J.K. Rowling): Rejected 12 times
Mary Higgins Clark: Rejected 40 times
A Time to Kill (John Grisham): Rejected by 15 publishers and 30 agents
Twilight (Stephenie Meyer): Rejected by 9 agents and 5 no responses (which equal no)
Carrie (Stephen King): Rejected 30 times
SO, the point is for you (and for me). Rejection doesn't equal bad or give up. It means to keep going and find someone who does love it-- if not, write something else and keep going :)
That said...
WELCOME TO THE VERY FIRST FAITH-FICTION FRIDAY!!!!
*Balloons... confetti... streamers!!!*
Because I'm sure this will cause some confusion, I'm going to give you the deets below.
1. I will post a picture.
2. You will get inspired by the picture and write a 100 word (give or take) story (either fiction or non-fiction OR devotional).
3. You will post your story in the comments section of this blog below.
4. You can post your blog on the link-up after you've added a story to comments.
5. Somewhere on your blog, put the Faith-fiction Friday button.
6. Since this is new, I'm asking, begging, pleading, kissing your feet, to please spread the word about this. I'd love for this to be a great place for people to read and write Christian fiction (believe me, there aren't many places on the internet that have it).
If you have any questions, just ask. Like I said, I'd love for this to just be fun-- but it won't be fun for me (or anyone else) if no one participates (I'm paranoid that I'm going to check back after work and there be no comments or links up... )
Anyway...
Here is today's picture:

Welcome to Faith Fiction Friday-- where good stories meet faith.

I'd like to thank the wonderful people who have been participating in Faith Fiction Fridays these past few weeks. I'd love to invite others to join the fun as well (even if you don't write; commenting on the stories gives a lot of author morale).

If you don't know what Faith Fiction Friday is:

1. I will post a picture.
2. You will get inspired by the picture and write a 100 word (give or take) story (either fiction or non-fiction OR devotional).

3. You will post your story in the comments section of this blog below.

4. You can post your blog on the link-up after you've added a story to comments.

5. Somewhere on your blog, put the Faith-fiction Friday button (feel free to shrink it if you want).

6. Since this is new, I'm asking, begging, pleading, kissing your feet, to please spread the word about this. I'd love for this to be a great place for people to read and write Christian fiction (believe me, there aren't many places on the internet that have it).

If you have any questions, just ask. Like I said, I'd love for this to just be fun-- but it won't be fun for me (or anyone else) without participation.

Linked with: Laura @ Beholding Glory

Here is this week's picture:

Image: dan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Remember, write your 100 word (give or take) story based on the prompt picture and post it in comments. Then leave your blog in the linky--

I'm going to admit that I love Kid shows.

Love.

I was actually getting sad the other day thinking about when my kids won't like to watch them any more.

What will I do?

Sneak and watch them on youtube when they go to bed?

Umm... (Lets not discuss what is blasting in my headphones right now, shall we... )

I thought I'd list my Top 5 FAVORITE kid shows. There is no real point to it really. Well, there is... I want to share the awesomeness of these shows if you haven't seen them before (and truth be told, if you have small kids, you probably have).

I had 4 things I ranked these shows on (YES, I went that far with it lol).

1). Watchability-- for parents
**in this world where we don't have a lot of time to spend with our kids because of other responsibilities, it's a good thing when a tv show is actually interesting for both the kid and the child. That way you can watch together, talk about it, and learn lessons together.

2). Educational
**Sponge Bob will not be on my top 5 list (Spoiler alert!). Not that he's evil or anything.. just that he's not all that educational. I like my kids to learn from their shows... and not just about Krusty Krabs.

3.) Entertaining
**This goes back to the watchability. There are some shows that are educational, but boring as mud (well, mud would probably be more fun).

4). No Whining Kids/Animated characters
** My kids imitate what they see on tv. They do little plays for me etc. And sometimes they deal with conflicts like the characters on the shows do... which is good... except... for the fact that they have to do the 'bad' thing before the conflict occurs. Which means, I have to hear the 'whining'. And whining, even if it's fake whining, can grate your nerves. Plus, I don't think it teaches a very good lesson on getting what you want.

SO, those are MY criteria for judging my top 5. It's, of course, my own opinion. Don't shoot the messanger...

My Top 5 Favorite Kid Shows (on right now)... preschool Moms, be ready to nod... or go "Really?"

1. WordGirl (PBS)
WordGirl chronicals the life of Becky Boxford. She's a 5th grader by day, superhero by night. Becky is actually from the planet Lexicon and arrived on Earth at age 2 when her spaceship crash landed (oh yes, you heard that right).

I love WordGirl because it gives wonderful vocabulary lessons, has interesting stories... and a monkey named Captain Huggy Face... How can that be wrong?

Here is a snippet...

Love...

2. The Fresh Beat Band (Nick Jr.)
Now... this used to be my favorite show (yes, I admit it... I also admit to listening to their song "Here We Go"... right at this very moment. And my kids are asleep. Yes... I know). They only slipped to second because... well... my kids aren't much on Nick Jr. right now. They are all about PBS and I haven't got to see much of them lately. That, and they pulled a Darrin with Marina. Grrrr... I have more thoughts on The Fresh Beat Band, but to leave myself any ounce of credibility intact, I shall restrain myself.

Instead, here is a snippet...

3. The Electric Company (PBS)
The original show started about 30 years ago. I remember it from when I was little. I love watching this new Re-boot with my girls. They love the dancing, singing, and *gasp* learning. They make reading fun and that is challenging. The stories are interesting. The lessons are really well laid out. It's just a great show.

Here is a clip...


4. Super Why (PBS) (Can you tell we watch a lot of PBS? lol)
In Storybook Village, Wyatt and his 3 friends solve problems using the "Power to Read". You have 'Alpha Pig' with Alphabet Power. Princess Presto with Spelling Power. Wonder Red with Word Power. And SuperWhy with the Power to Read... AND, of course, SuperYou. It covers all of the basis, is fun, doesn't get *too* old, and has great messages.

5. WordWorld (PBS) WordWorld is a place... where words come alive. Each animal, house, tree, log, bowl, etc, is made up of letters which spell that word. When they want to make something new, they just find the letters and put them together. It shows words in concrete forms. A C... A... T... can spell cat. But seeing it together, letters and animal, makes it more real. I really like WordWorld.
And... here ya go...

AND there ya go. My top 5 favorite kid shows. Sorry, this seemed to be a promotion for PBS lol, but we have started watching a lot of it.
OH, honorable Mention... The baby loves Sid the Science Kid :)
What 'kid shows' do you love? (YES, I said YOU) What shows do your kids like? What do you look for in a quality kids show? Share your comments. :) I'd love to hear them.
Much Love, Kelly

Happy Dec. 21st, Friends!! I've been working on content edits for my new book, SAINT SLOAN, and thought I'd give you a sneak peek at it. I've given you snippets before, but not this one...

By the way, any General Hospital fans here? The 'inspiration' for Aaron in the book came from Brandon Barash, aka Johnny Zacchara. Only younger (he's 19 in the book).

(from abc.com... YOU'RE WELCOME WORLD! ;) )
“Then why did you tell me to stay away from him?” “That’s a good question.” Aaron’s voice boomed from the kitchen entryway. Sloan jumped when she heard it. Ray said he slept until ten and it was barely eight. Friday night she had been so appreciative of him. Now, thanks to the testimonies of others, she was nervous to see him. He looked tired with messy hair, wrinkled navy blue work pants, and a day old beard. Despite herself, she couldn’t take her eyes off of him, specifically his lack of a shirt. Aaron had his arms crossed over his well-built chest and leaned on the door facing. “Why did you tell Miss Sloan to stay away from me, brother?” Sloan tore her eyes away from Aaron’s biceps in time to see Ray lean back in his chair and cross his arms as well, almost as if accepting a challenge. “Because, brother, for all of your good qualities, you can still be a jerk sometimes.” “Runs in the family.” Aaron smirked as he walked into the room and grabbed a paper plate. He piled the last remaining pieces of pizza on it and got a coke from the fridge. He turned a seat around and sat at the head of the table next to Sloan, putting her smack dab in the middle of them. “What ya working on?” Sloan forced her eyes to stay on his and not venture down his very long, very muscular, very nibble-able…“Biology," she said quickly. “We’re studying Biology.” Don’t look at his neck… don’t look at his neck. “Biology. Not Chemistry.” He winked at his brother, who glared. “What are you doing up so early?” “Why? Have a special evening planned with your lady friend, here?” Aaron grinned at Sloan. “Not if you count homework as fun.” “I don’t. That’s why I dropped out.” “You dropped out?” Sloan asked before she could stop herself. Aaron wiped his mouth with a paper towel and narrowed his eyes. “Kinda had to after Ma left. Got my GED and never looked back. I guess Ray told you the whole sordid affair.” “A lot of it, I guess. I’m sorry she left you like that.” “Don’t be. It was the best thing she’d ever done for us, right Ray? To answer your question, brother, I have to go into work early tonight: nine instead of eleven. At least it’s overtime. Money.” “I didn’t know,” Ray said. Aaron shrugged. “I didn’t tell. But it worked out well. I got to spend time with my little brother and his new woman.” “I’m not his woman,” Sloan said, then tried to backtrack. “I mean, I don’t mean that I wouldn’t like to be or there is something wrong with him… but we just… met… again… and….” Aaron laughed and fell back in his chair. “I’m kidding, girl. Don’t read so much into it.” Her phone vibrated on the table, and Sloan panicked. “Oh no!” Everything ok??? It was her mom! She’d forgotten to text her. Sloan prayed with everything she had that her mom hadn’t already called the police. Fine mom. Sorry. Got carried away talking. Be home soon. “Your mom didn’t call the cops I hope,” Ray said. “The cops? You use the same line on him that you did on me?” Aaron scoffed with is mouth full of pizza. “Man, you’re brutal.” “Safety first,” Sloan said before her phone vibrated again. Ok. If you’re sure. She let out a calming breath and put the phone back on the table. “Phew. Mom’s ok with all of this, but I really need to get home. Ray, we got everything finished we intended to do tonight, right?” “Right. We got the outline done. Now all we have to do is finish writing the blasted thing.” “Fun times.” Sloan smiled and put her book back into her backpack. Once that was done, she grabbed her phone to text her mom again. “I’ll tell my mom to come pick me up on her way home. It shouldn’t be too much longer.” “Why? I’m going that way,” Aaron spoke up as he walked to the trashcan with his plate. “I have to be at work at nine anyway. Why don’t I drop you off?” “I can drive her.” Ray sounded almost defensive. “That would be silly, Ray. Her house is on my way to work. It only makes sense for me to take her… home.” Aaron glared at Ray, and Ray did the same, with Sloan stuck between them. “It’s fine, Ray. Really. It’s not like he hasn’t driven me home before.” Sloan said to break the tension. Truthfully, she’d rather ride home with Ray but didn’t want to be a burden to him. “You’re sure?” “She’s sure. Come on, my dear.” Aaron stood behind her seat and helped her up. The gesture would have been gentlemanly, even romantic if he wasn’t doing it just to aggravate Ray. “Don’t stay up too late, little brother. Remember, it’s a school night.” Aaron ruffled Ray’s hair and Ray smacked his hand away. “Be careful.” Ray said slowly. “I will,” he said helping Sloan get her backpack on. “Precious cargo and all.” “Thanks for everything, Ray.” Sloan smiled and hoped he understood how much she meant it. “Supper was delicious.” “You should see what he can do with spaghetti,” Aaron said from behind her. “Aaron…” “I’m not lying. It’s really good. Maybe you can come back and try it sometime.” “I’d like that,” Sloan said, and she meant it. Except for a few awkward moments, she’d had a good time. “Tomorrow at school we’ll pick another day for you to come over, if you want,” Ray said as he cleaned up his and Sloan’s plates. “It’s a date then,” Aaron clapped from the hallway. “Come on, princess. I’ve got to get a shirt on. Let’s get you home.” Sloan followed Aaron to the hall and tuned around to Ray. He was watching her from the sink and looked sad to see her go. She wondered if it was more because she was going home or because she was going with Aaron. Sibling rivalry didn’t seem fun, not that she would know anything about it. She was an only child. Taking a deep breath, she walked back to Ray, stood on her tiptoes, and kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks for supper.” When she leaned away, he smiled and peeked over her head toward the hallway. She didn’t have to look to know Aaron was there. Aaron may have won round one (taking her home), but Ray won round two (the first kiss). “You’re welcome. See ya at school tomorrow.”

Because I can't seem to have an original idea... I've decided to follow along with Shanda from A Pause on the Path
And link my most viewed post from 2011.
This post came from June.. remember those 'Cleaning Quests"?
Yeah... I'm going to have to do them again this summer... my house looks, well, lived in at the moment...
sigh.
Anyway, my most viewed page for 2011 with 159 views is
Cleaning is fun... (and I'm not lying)
(A blurb... )
Here are my results of this week's quest... yes, I actually did it :) I enlisted the help of my girls... actually turned off the tv (I KNOW! It was strange without PBS kids for 2 hours)... and we cleaned. And had a GREAT TIME. I'm going to miss this when they get older and cleaning isn't as fun for them. Oh well... no sadness today... Ok.

Here is how our morning went...

So, I wanted to take this time (6 1/2 hours before the ball drops here) to thank you all so much for your support of this little blog. It means a lot to me. I can't wait to see what God has in store for this (and you.. and me) in 2012!
Happy New Year!!!!


'Twas the day before Christmas And all through the house, I huffed and I puffed. I had become a big grouch.
The stockings were up. The tree glittered on I cleaned and I cleaned From dusk until dawn.
"This Christmas," I thought "Will be perfect this year. I'll do everything right I'll somehow find cheer.
My kids played around me. I couldn't keep straight, how many times I'd picked up the same toys. I became irate.
"Kids!" I shouted, anger within "How many times have I told you, it must be perfect this year!" "So, s top getting things out! The house needs to be spotless for us to have cheer!"
My kids shrugged and went off in their rooms. What they were doing? I didn't care, Just as long as they didn't come out soon.
With them gone, I cleaned... Oh, I got it all spotless. It was beautiful. It was perfect. I was awash in bliss!
My kids came out to eat the Christmas ham. Everything went well And I was as happy as a clam!
I had made Christmas perfect, with my sparkling home I'd given the perfect presents an iPad and iPhone.
After the kids went to bed, we did too And I smiled, thinking how I'd pulled through.
Santa had come before we'd gone to bed. Everything was perfect. I'd done exactly everything I'd read.
That night as I dreamed I saw Jesus next to my tree. He looked sad and said, "Why did you forget about me?"
"I didn't, Lord," I pleaded and shouted. "Don't you see this tree. And the presents we've opened?"
"They were all for you, Jesus, And I know you were served. It was the perfect Christmas, That only you deserved!"
Then Jesus smiled sadly, And looked down to the floor. I was shocked and asked, "Are you OK, Lord?"
"How did Christmas come to this?" said my Lord with a shout. "When did 'perfect' mean leaving me out?"
"Did you tell your family while eating your ham. Did you tell them anything about the Great I am?"
And I thought and I thought. surely I had. I had done everything right: the way I'd been taught.
"Tomorrow is my birthday," Jesus said with so much power. "I'd love to be remembered with more than a Nativity Scene shoved in a corner."
"Don't forget why you have presents and cake. "Don't forget it's Me- The reason for all- The reason you even need a Christmas tree."
"I love you, sweet lady. But now I must leave Remember what I said, Enjoy your family and let be what will be."
I awoke with a start. What had it meant? I fell out of bed and on my knees I bent.
"God, I'm sorry. So sorry," I cried "Please forgive me. I remember now its about the One who was born to die."
"The presents are fine. The candy is harmless. But without you, Jesus, It's all meaningless"
The next morning, I woke my kids up with a smile and a grin. I sung Carols and laughed. I felt like a girl again!
And do you know what happened that day? I had fun, actual fun Even if things didn't go my way.
My son broke his toy. My daughter spilled her food. I didn't yell or fuss I didn't sound rude!
I enjoyed myself and on that Christmas morn. I forgot about being perfect. And remembered the One who was born.
~by Kelly (originally posted Dec. 24th, 2011 on this blog)

Psst. I have a secret. I hate editing photos as much as I hate going to the dentist. Both take too much time and are boring. Really boring.

But the truth is, once I get past the basic color correction and cropping, which takes time on my slow computer, goofing around with different effects is a lot of fun. The most challenging part is figuring out which look I want to go for.

When choosing the specific effects you want to apply to your photo, decide what your theme is or what you’re trying to achieve. Then experiment. Remember, factors such as lighting will affect the final outcome, so what might look great in one photo may look hideous in another. And you can even layer effects to achieve a whole new artistic masterpiece.

Of course to do all of this, you’ll need a photo editing software, such as Microsoft Elements®. But considering all you can do with it (including organizing your photos), it’s worth it.

In the two altered shots shown here, I went under ARTISTIC and FILM GRAIN. The INTENSITY was set at 1 for the picture in the middle, and 10 for the picture on the right. The one on the left is before the special effect was applied. The settings for GRAIN and HIGHLIGHT AREA remained the same for both (10 and 2, respectively). With these three settings, the possibilities are endless.

Have a great week!

Welcome to Friday, Friends! :)
I can't tell you how happy, thrilled, humbled, excited, (and all kinds of good things) I am about the response to 'Faith Fiction Friday'.
I'm glad you are all excited about writing and reading these.
So, enough from me, what is Faith Fiction Friday...
1. I will post a picture. 2. You will get inspired by the picture and write a 100 word (give or take) story (either fiction or non-fiction OR devotional). 3. You will post your story in the comments section of this blog below. 4. You can post your blog on the link-up after you've added a story to comments. 5. Somewhere on your blog, put the Faith-fiction Friday button (feel free to shrink it if you want). 6. Since this is new, I'm asking, begging, pleading, kissing your feet, to please spread the word about this. I'd love for this to be a great place for people to read and write Christian fiction (believe me, there aren't many places on the internet that have it). If you have any questions, just ask. Like I said, I'd love for this to just be fun-- but it won't be fun for me (or anyone else) if no one participates.
Here's is this weeks picture...

Image: Simon Howden / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Much Love (and Happy Writing!)

Linked with: Faith Filled Friday @ Beholding Glory

When you have written and submitted your story in the comments section, don't forget to add your blog to the blog list :)

My middle child loves bubbles so imagine my excitement when I saw a commercial for this...
Crayola Colored Bubbles!

I mean, HUZZAH, right? Colored Bubbles! My daughter would be in total bliss.

So, this Easter, "The Bunny" brought her the colored bubble set with sidewalk chalk...

She was very excited so we went outside to play after church... and the excitment faded.

Two of the big selling points to the colored bubbles (besides the colors obviously) are: 1. They are washable. 2. They are in spill proof bottles.

Both claims I found to be false.

Exhibit A:

This is my daughter's shirt (I was smart enough to let her wear one of her Daddy's old white ones) after the bubbles... that's fine. I expected a mess... I mean 'colored bubbles' after all...

However, after I washed the shirt right after we got back in...

The stains are there... they aren't bad stains, but if she had been wearing one of her shirts and not one of her Daddy's then I would have been kinda angry. Part of it is my fault. I read AFTERWARDS that I was supposed to wash in hot water (I always wash in cold). I'm unsure if that would have helped or not... so that may be my error and not the company...

But not this one...

Exhibit B:

Remember when I said one of the claims was "Spill Proof Bottles"?

Yeah...

This product was so messy and so messy that my kids didn't want to use it much. The bubble solution would come out of the 'spill proof top' when you were pulling the wand out and go all over them. Twice I heard, "Ew, Mama!" and looked and they had green or purple hands. I thought maybe I had made a mistake, and the product was for older kids... but no. The age for it is 3+ which they are. I even disliked how messy it was when I used it, and I was trying to be careful.

Exhibit C:

This isn't really a 'claim' and it DID say to test on the surface before you started, but really... I'm going to test it and wash it off while I have 2 young, excitable, hyped up on excitement and Easter candy waiting in the wings???? Yeah... I should have...

The picture above is the 'before' shot which is perfectly fine because I expected the bubbles to make a mess when they popped... that was supposed to be the fun of it (although nothing really was fun about any of it).

And here is the after...

I washed... and washed... and washed... and washed... and washed with the hose and it wouldn't come off. The purple did really well which surprised me really because we had more trouble with the purple bottle than the green one. I can't say I'm exactly thrilled about the state of my carport right now.

The bubbles were pretty. They didn't hang long and they seemed to be really heavy (I guess from the solution used). I liked the idea... but was very disappointed with the outcome. This won't be a product I buy in the future, and I hate that because I usually love Crayola products.

Much Love,

Kelly

Well, I just happened to remember I had this, so I thought I'd use it for it's purpose... to talk about me. I figure I'd write all of the things I would normally write in to my friends on a message board, but most of it is very random and well, this way they don't have to read it if they don't want.

Today's thoughts:

1. The O.C. fanfiction people are the best in the world!!! And I truly believe that. They read, give feedback, are friendly, etc... and some of the stories they write are amazing. I love it. If you want to check it out, go to fanfiction.net and find OC stories. Now, if you don't like the OC, you probaby won't get any enjoyment out of it. But if you are new to it like me, then you'll probably love it. You will learn, if anyone ever reads this, that I tend to be about 3-4 years behind on what's 'in'.

2. Never go to Wal-mart to get your hair colored. You go in for brown and come out with jet black. Not fun. If I make it through tomorrow at school, then I'll be all set.. but man my eyes look pretty. They have never looked green before.

3. It's not right when your 2 kids wake you up at 3:45 am because one has peed in her bed and one has lost her fooler. It's not a fun way to start a day... especially when you've got newly black hair.

So you see basically what this will be is a place where I can write random stuff. I hope you like random LOL.

To celebrate the release of her NA novel (which is awesome, btw), Mila Ferrera is doing a blogfest Wednesday July 10^th. This is your chance to post about a time that you decided to do something even though it scared you, either to get over that fear or because you knew it would be good for you. There’s even a chance to win some prizes.

Because I’m participating, I won’t be blogging next Monday. I’ll be blogging on Wednesday, instead.

What are you doing this week for summer fun? Are you getting any writing in?

The thing I love most about blogging is that I’m part of a wonderfully supportive writing community. *group hug*

Some of my friends have chosen to explore other publishing routes beyond the typical traditional path, and I’m excited to introduce you to their new blog.

<<<3

If you're a fan of YA fiction, you've probably heard of the Tenners, the Elevensies, the Apocalypsies, and the Lucky 13s. Now marketing guru Shelli Johannes Wells has teamed up with twenty-four other indie and small press authors to bring you The Indelibles.

Who are the Indelibles?

“We are indie authors who write middle grade and young adult fiction. We are dedicated to leaving a permanent mark on the world with our stories and words. We are The Indelibles.”

Each week, they'll explore fun, fabulous, and fierce topics for today's teens, drawing on pop culture and themes from the books they write. Check out their official launch Monday, January 9th for fun giveaways, including a Kindle Fire. They’ll also be having a "blogger” chat on January 11th and a writer/author chat on the 18th to answer questions about self and indie pubbing. See their blog for details.

Follow the Indelibles on Twitter.
Like the Indelibles on Facebook.

Today's letter in the A to Z challenge from www.a-to-zchallenge.com is...

X is for eXciting news...

What's the exciting news, you ask.
Well, it's... Faith Fiction Friday!

Here are the details:
1. I will post a picture.
2. You will get inspired by the picture and write a 100 word (give or take) story (either fiction or non-fiction OR devotional).
3. You will post your story in the comments section of this blog below.
4. You can post your blog on the link-up after you've added a story to comments.
5. Somewhere on your blog, put the Faith-fiction Friday button (feel free to shrink it if you want).
6. Since this is new, I'm asking, begging, pleading, kissing your feet, to please spread the word about this. I'd love for this to be a great place for people to read and write Christian fiction (believe me, there aren't many places on the internet that have it).
If you have any questions, just ask. Like I said, I'd love for this to just be fun-- but it won't be fun for me (or anyone else) if no one participates. Here is today's picture:

Image: dan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net Alright, it's your turn. When you leave your story in comments, please make sure you link up your blog. HAPPY FAITH-FICTION FRIDAY!!
Linked with: Faith Filled Friday @ Beholding Glory 


So, yesterday I blogged about my clutter room which is starting to drive me nuts. I want it clean, however, the shear size of the project scares me a bit (I mean where to start, what to do, etc). SO, as I was feeding the baby lunch yesterday (I had already finished my Sat. chores by then.) I thought, "I'm not doing anything else today. I'm tired. I just want to sit."

And then, my eyes turned behind me to my kitchen...

Oh my kitchen.

I should say that I live in an old farmhouse that was orginally built 100 years ago and was renovated to its current glory in 1981. Yeah, I said 'current' glory. We moved here almost 8 years ago... had 3 kids... and have had no money to update or really decorate it... so basically, it just looks like an old farmhouse... no I won't say old. It looks like a very lived-in, charming farmhouse. I love my house. It's not new or fancy or "pretty" but we really love it anyway...

ANYWAY, I said all of that to say this... I'm going to show pictures of my house. Be kind as you look at them...

(Don't know why I always have to add disclaimers lol).

So, back to my kitchen... I was feeding the baby and had this thought, "Why don't I organize/clean out the dishes cabinet?" Ok, that task should have taken all of 10 minutes. It's not like I have a lot of dishes/cups/ etc, but everytime I was putting things away, I either 1) couldn't find the space or 2) things would nearly fall out (fun. fun).

Here is a before picture of my cabinet...

I had already taken the plates out when I decided to blog about this so forgive me of that... see that mess??? Ug. So I took everything out, cleaned, washed down, and filled the dishwasher...

Yes, I totally have a WWE popcorn holder... total geek here.

And then...

Of course, dishes led to the baby's cabinet which led to the medicine cabinet which lead to the cleaning cabinet which led to the refrigerator...

Get the idea...

And this is when my husband got up and said, "What happened?" lol lol.

Yeah.

Anyway, after about 2 hours of cleaning (breaks of course because I have 3 small kids who need their Mommy)... I finally have...

And...

AND (my husband got on the bandwagon and threw away all of the boxes and broken mirror that I blogged about yesterday... )

So now the kids can go back into that room... YAY!!

I'm so excited for my kitchen (can you tell). I haven't had an actually clean and organized kitchen in 8 years (when we moved in here). Its not perfect, but it's mine and I love it :)

BTW, I have friend who own http://www.finchfound.com/ are having a GREAT giveaway!!! I know I have like 2 readers, but I wanted to help them out. They are having a terrific giveaway. Check it out!! http://finchfound.com/home/2011/4/30/boon-plum-for-you-a-giveaway.html

Much love,

Kelly

Well, friends. I made it home from my adventure in one piece. It was touch and go for a while. It's really NOT fun being lost in Nashville. I was caught alternating between cursing like a sailor and praying like a saint.. SO I decided that wasn't doing any good, and cut out the cursing. And a miracle happened! I was supposed to be looking for 'Frankin Pike'. I got turned around somehow and ended up back on the interstate (nice!). Anyway, I was freaking out, turned on the first road I saw because I was going to turn back at the redlight at the top of the ramp... ONLY the ramp didn't stop at the redlight. It just kept on going. SO (freaking more and praying like the dickens), I went on and decided to turn around again at the next road to take me back to the road I missed, to take me back to the interstate, to take me back to the road I made the wrong turn on (I know, makes a LOT of sense lOL). Anyway, as I started to turn I looked up and saw the road sign 'Franklin Pike'. I almost cried from happiness. And turns out it was the right road and the right direction!! I found the place easily after that. I could have kissed the ground when I got there though LOL.

Now, the meeting was an autism training for SPED teachers. It was interesting... after the first hour when I couldn't stop looking at other people's hair color and wondering how ugly mine really was. Finally I went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror, decided I didn't look half bad, and went back. I focused the rest of the time.

The end of the day was very interesting... since I had absolutely no idea how to get home. But I love trying to get home from Nashville without directions. This is going to sound corny probably, but it makes me think of my Daddy and smile. My Daddy didn't talk a lot, but he did give good advise. One of those was that when getting home from anywhere, always go toward Knoxville. I kept thinking that over and over, which would have been wonderful, if the first crossroads I came too weren't "Nashville" and "Huntsville". I prayed, chose Nashville (deciding I'd rather stay in Nashville that go all the way to Huntsville. It turned out to be the right way and after getting off of several interstates (I-65, 24, 440, and 40), I ended up home... finally. It was actually really fun coming home. Going, not so much.

**I think I've mentioned this before, but I don't feel nearly as confident or attractive with this new hair. I feel awkward and self conscious... very self conscious. I"m going to try to dull it. I can't take it much longer.

Ok, off to relax with the family. Watch some Dancing with the Stars (I'm rooting for the Olympic man to go this week). It's not wrong to have a SMALL crush on an 18 year old is it... Cody Linley is adorable! He's definitely my favorite to watch this season. Makes me feel like a dirty old woman LOL

*Ignore the misspellings... please... *

Ok, so... I guess that since I'm not obsessing about TTC or being pregnant, I need something else to occupy my time, and it seems I have found it. I found a video on youtube yesterday about 'Homemaking Binders' or notebooks and I had no idea one even existed... heck I had no idea what one was! So I watched... and I watched... and I watched... and I just kept finding them (search 'Home Making Binders' on Youtube if you are interested). Anyway, instead of being appaulled by any idea of a schedule for cleaning (I mean... EW!), I was entralled. I couldn't stop watching and all I knew was... I wanted one!

Lets get something straight here... I'm not organized... at.all. I wasn't before kids... I'm not after kids... but I WANT to be now. Something clicked in my head after I turned 30 that I want a clean (and I use 'clean' loosely...remember I DO have 3 kids and a full time WOH job so.. yeah) home. I want to be organized... I want an idea of what I need to do daily. In short.. I want a schedule. And yeah, I totally get that things will happen. Kids will cry, get sick, be clingy, etc so I KNOW this isn't set in stone, but it's a good guideline to go by.

I found a great site http://www.moneysavingmom.com/ that I LOVE! It has lots of very usual printables which I will use... when I get a printer (I know, sady I don't have one, so that's why you arent' seeing any pics of my own homemaking binder... it's handwritten and kinda sad looking... yet anyway. You may later when I do a before and after type thing... or heck, I may post them tomorrow... who knows?)

Anyway, I found making a HomeMaking Binder was super easy and actually kinda fun. In my binder so far I have, "Remember Daily" (which I will go over soon), Daily sheets to accomplish, A master list of daily housework, Saturday Cleaning masterlist (Saturday morning I'm cleaning like a banshee... can't tell it by Saturday afternoon, but *I* know it was clean at one time!), Laundry check list, Schedule/Morning Reminders (ie, kids' snacks, bottles, etc), and a calendar with when bills are due, dates, and the bills behind them in their own little plastic sleeves so I can keep up with them and know when I paid them (and they aren't cluttering my kitchen island).

So, if there is any interest, I'm going to continue to blog about my coupon experiences and my new home making obsession. If not... well then, I'm not sure what I'll do lol. Anyway, I wanted to leave this post with the "Remember Daily" sheet of my Binder... it's the IMPORTANT things that I can't forget. It's the first sheet I see...
~Play with the kids first and foremost
~Things don't always go according to plan
~My family loves me, but they also love clean socks and underwear
~I will do everything out of love
~Breathe in... breathe out
~Everything will be ok.
~Smile more than frown
~Through God all things are possible
~Have FUN!

Much, much love (and I hope you do one of these notebooks with me and share your experiences)
Kelly

I found this sheet and absolutely love it!

It can be found here: http://www.executivehomemaker.com/

More specifically... here: http://printable.tipjunkie.com/wp-content/uploads/406__all-about-my-mom.pdf

If you teach/have a school aged child/know a school aged child, this is something that will either humble you, make you laugh until you cry, or at least put a smile on your face. Some of the questions are: "If she had extra time, she likes to... " "My mom laughs when... " "My mom is _____ years old."

I've done this with several groups of kids and one thing that kinda made me be taken aback was the fact that some of them said that "Mama doesn't laugh." So that make me think of myself, of course. I know there are days when I don't laugh enough. There are times when I'm just grumpy and witchy (for lack of a better word ;) ). However, I don't want my kids to grow up and think that I never laughed. So my goal for the rest of the week is to make a conscious effort to laugh more with my kids, my school kids, and my husband (I'm sure that will freak them out lol). I want to be one of those 'happy' people... you know... the annoying kind ;)

Anyway, I may blog about my little experiment as I seem to like to do lol... but that's the thought for today... JUST SMILE MORE!!!!! :) :) :) :) :) (oh yeah, and do the mother sheet! Its fun and will fullfill your daily laugh/smile quota). Another idea is that crossed out 'Mom' and replaced it with 'Nana' and had the girls do one for their grandmother for mother's day lol. That was fun (poor Nana ;) )

Much love,

Kelly