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Great Advent Resource

December 3, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 11 Comments

I downloaded this awesome Advent application last year on my iPhone called simply, Advent ’08. It’s a collection of daily readings, prayers, and hymns that correspond to the liturgical reading cycle for the Advent season. One of the things I loved so much about the application last year was the historic christian art that was used with each daily reading and the deep, rich devotional quality to the readings/prayers.

This year, the author/editor of this wonderful compilation is not releasing Advent ’09 as an iphone application but is posting daily advent readings on this advent blog. I think you’ll enjoy it completely. I’ve been reading version ’08 to my kids and then reading the ’09 version on my own.

The introduction to the Advent blog says this:

Advent is a time of preparation and anticipation of the birth of Jesus. Advent is a time of sobriety in the face of His return. The rhythm of American life, especially in the holiday season, seldom leaves time for adequate preparation. Adequate, however, does not imply the amount of time spent, as much as it refers to focus and attention. It is more than just a way to count down the days to Christmas; it is a way to help transform Advent into a journey of faith. It is a way to help prepare for the coming of Jesus to live among us, so that the good news of Christmas morn lingers on long after the packages are opened. It is our hope and prayer that the Holy Spirit would lead you through the Scriptures to a newfound wonder of Emmanuel, Jesus Christ, Savior of the world. May the Lord bless you on your journey.

sampling from Advent ’08

God of Love, You made Your home among us. By faith we believe in You and in baptism we have received You and from Your hand we have received grace upon grace. Grant us, by that same grace, Your truth to dwell within our hearts that we may live in Your peace, not as the world understands, but that peace which only You can give. This we are bold to pray through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

sampling of Advent ’09

Lord have mercy,
Christ have mercy,
Lord have mercy.
O Lord hear my prayer.
And let my cry come to You.
Lord God of heaven and earth who alone is worthy to judge all peoples according to their deeds, have mercy upon us for Christ’s sake! We cannot attain to the standard of Your righteousness as You have revealed it to us in Your Law and through the mouths of Your Prophets. Merciful God hide us beneath the banner of Your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ and by His blood wash us so that we may be whiter than snow and cleansed from all unrighteousness. Merciful Father You delayed Your final judgement of our sin until in the fullness of Your time our Lord was revealed. According to Your steadfast love towards us You placed the burden of our guilt upon the shoulder’s of Your Son, so that having warned us of the judgment yet to come You have called us not fulfill the requirements of the law ourselves, but to trust in Your Son who has done so on our behalf. For His sake preserve until You yet again bring time to completion and send Your holy angels out to gather the last harvest. Father, You have grafted us onto the Vine, continue to change our hearts we pray, by making us ever new after the fashion of our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, One Holy God, both in this world and the one that is to come. Amen.

So, go here and be blessed.

Thanks to Rev. Scott Ryll for this rich devotional tool.

All hymns used in the devotional are taken from the Lutheran Service Book and scripture readings are taken from the ESV.

Girls’ Bedroom Metamorphosis and a little Christmas Cheer

November 30, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 81 Comments

This is what I see now when I walk out of my bedroom door. The little girls’ bedroom—freshly painted and freshened up. It makes me wanna dance a jig. Or to quote Pioneer Woman, it ‘makes my skirt fly up’. And it’s every girls’ favorite color: tiffany blue. I know, I know–I’m teaching ’em early. I’m not sure what I love best, the tiffany blue walls, the currant-red beds, or the very large vintage multi-colored lights. Oh, or the vintage butterfly prints. I can’t decide. I love it all.

Here’s what you can do in a week with $150, a wonderful inspiration photo and numerous cups of the best coffee ever. I saw this amazing guest bedroom {first featured in Domino magazine} on the Little Green Notebook blog—and fell in love instantly.

Jenny did a copy cat design of this room, giving tips on how to get the look for much less. And though her tips were extremely helpful, I settled on an even cheaper/less authentic version than her copy cat version. But it turned out beautiful and my girls love their new ‘grown-up’ bedroom. And if you don’t already read Jenny’s blog, you should. You’ll love it and her and you’ll learn stuff.

Domino guest bedroom

I started this project by painting the beds. These are actually bunk beds that I ‘debunked’ many years ago. I also previously painted, distressed and glazed them about 8 years ago.

In the Domino guest room photo, those upholstered beds can be found at Target online—and I LOVE those beds. But alas, painting our existing beds red was not a bad alternative. I chose ‘Currant Red’ from Benjamin Moore and after sanding the beds twice {to remove the previous finish} I painted them in semi-gloss with two coats of paint. I actually used Behr Paint and Primer and just had them look up the Benjamin Moore color in their computer. I adore this paint—it’s thick and luscious and goes on like butt-ah! And as someone who paints things frequently, I say that with a fair amount of personal experience.

I then used this little rub and buff product {from Hobby Lobby} to give them a more antiqued look. I used my fingers to rub it on and then used a damp cloth to wipe most of it off. It’s kind of subtle but I like the beds much better with this addition. The color is called Spanish Copper.

By the way, I painted the beds in the room. I just put butcher paper on the floor underneath them went to work. It’s a little tricky to paint the very bottom of the bed posts but it can be done.

Next, I started on the walls. I chose ‘Robin’s Nest’ from Benjamin Moore and again had the paint mixed at Home Depot using Behr Paint and Primer {did I say thank you to my friend The Nester for this tip? I owe you a debt of gratitude}. This paint goes on so well that it covered in one coat on these walls!! And those letters on the wall that spell GRACIE—-those must stay forever. When I tried removing them, sheetrock began to peel as well—so I just painted right over them—again. My painter Rick—whose number I have on speed dial—helped me with the 20 foot ceilings in this room. And my somewhat-afraid-of-heights-self was thankful.

I then took Jenny’s advice and printed these vintage butterfly prints from Village Printables and framed them in my $6.99 frames from Ross {a lot better than the $625 each for the prints in the Domino room}. They are exactly the perfect complement to this room and it reminds me of the metamorphasis that will all-too-soon take place in these little girls. I want to cherish the days while I have them.

Scooter, our 4 year old Maltese, sleeps with the girls so we found him a coordinating dog bed–which will, I hope, prevent him from rubbing his dirty paws all over these white quilts {Target–shabby chic collection}. The zebra print pillows are also from Target {$14 on sale} and are a fine and enormously cheaper substitute to the beautiful IKAT pillows on the Domino guest room beds ($240 each I think). I also just happened to be moving this winerack—which I’ve been using as a nightstand—out of my bedroom, so I moved it in here because it was just the right size and shape. Any ideas for what we could store in there, aside from wine bottles of course?!

I then finished it off with a beautiful Christmas cactus, some pine garland and the big-bulb Christmas lights.

This room has the softest glow at night and is the perfect spot to snuggle up with some good reading and our Advent devotionals. I have to take turns sitting on each little one’s bed {“you were on her bed last night”} and have to make sure to give each one the same amount of kisses. I will hold on to that as long as possible!

So there it is: the sort of grown up little girls room—where butterfly kisses and tooth fairy visits are still welcome! But pink is not.

I should also mention that moving the beds toward the center of the room has been a huge advantage. The girls can easily make their own beds. And for now, they LOVE the job.

Before After

What I still need to do:

1. Add a brass-type rub onto the side table/winerack.

2. Find a cheap black and white striped rug.

3. Keep Scooter’s grubby paws off those white quilts.

4. Tackle the very messy closet.

5. Find the perfect ‘thing/s’ to store in the winerack.

6. Read a million more pages together—before they get tired of me.

You can see more photos on my flickr photostream.

Thanks a million to Jenny for making this room seem possible for the average mom.

Oh and come visit me at Blissfully Domestic today where I’m posting my sweater stocking tutorial.

I listened to this episode on Issues Etc—on Luther and Calvin and how you know you have true faith–while working on this project. It’s well worth a listen!

p.s. I’m adding this project to Kimba’s DIY day. Visit the most fantastic DIY’ers here.

Advent Begins

November 29, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 10 Comments

Our most gracious God, we pray for your blessings as we begin our Advent journey. Turn our hearts toward You. Forgive us our selfish preoccupations. Quiet us with Your words of comfort and peace and hope. And as we anticipate Your coming in glory, remind us of Your humble ‘comings’—as a baby in a manger, on a donkey into Jerusalem, as our Savior on a cross, in ordinary bread and wine at Your table, in the waters of baptism, and in Your most Holy Word.

Why do you come to us in such lowly means? Because You come in mercy. To restore us and reconcile us to Yourself. To show Your boundless love and compassion for wretched and miserable sinners like us. You come to bring us life and peace and forgiveness.

In our sin, we often take Your ‘coming’ for granted. We fail to receive the instruction of Your Word. We doubt You at the supper. Our hearts are hardened toward You and closed to our neighbor. We beg You to come—to find us, to rescue us from sin and death, to pursue us in our depravity and wandering. O come O come Emmanuel.

Thanksgiving Replayed

November 28, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 16 Comments

We gathered around the table and prayed a Thanksgiving litany–written by Pastor Bill Cwirla.

The food was served buffet style—-and if I do say so myself—it was pretty yummy!

Some of the crew (my brother was sick this year and we missed him dearly—-he always does the dishes!)

Let the feasting begin!

The ‘teens and tweens’ table and their beloved sparkling grape juice.

A sneak peek at myspace….

…and a whole lot of football!

Apparently my sister has rescued her husband from his ten year old worn out Carhartt (?acid-washed) jeans—I thought it was picture-worthy.

The cute couple Marcus and Katilin (and a sneak peak at my freshly painted tiffany blue door)

I was a little disappointed with my performance on desserts this year. Pride comes before a fall and I sorta pride myself on serving a plethora of yummy desserts. They were just ‘ok’. Next year, I promise to bring back ‘chocolate crusted creme brulee’—-and red velvet cheese cake. Accept my sincerest apologies.

It was a glorious day altogether and we counted our many blessings.
Friday I took the kids to see Blind Side and cried through 75% of the movie. Steve was 95% sure I’d come home with a 250 pound homeless football player. I seriously pondered it and may be in an adoption ‘funk’ for weeks. Today, I’m thinking about resurrecting the fresh Christmas tree tradition. Hope your weekend is marvelous.

Renovations

November 25, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 68 Comments

1. Studio Eight {the craft room makeover}

2. Kitchen Makeover

3. Guest Bathroom

4. Our Homeschool Room

5. Our lake kitchen

Thanksgiving Tabletop Tips

November 24, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 31 Comments

Every year I swoon at the Pottery Barn catalogue and their many varied and luscious Thanksgiving tabletops. Have you ever calculated how much money it would cost to do a table exactly like theirs? A lot of money. An obscene amount of money. So, every year I set out to make my tables comfortable, fresh, and inviting. I took Darby’s tutorial on making Christmas stickers and made Thanksgiving ‘cards’ that I tied to pumpkins.

Then, I printed out the names of my guests {in elephant font at 36pt}, taped them to these cute Martha Stewart tags—that I found in the scrapbook section of Walmart—and tied them with twine to the pumpkins stalks.

Then, I took all my mismatched gold goblets and white dishes and set my table.

I lined the center of the table with 10 votive candles {I bought the votive holders on clearance at Pier One for $1 and then put ’ember’ votive candles in the holders–also from Pier One. ‘Ember’ is a most wonderful combination of orange, cinnamon, and cloves.

I used different colors and words at everyones’ place setting and you can download the words in sets of two in the form of pdf files. For the words joyful and thankful, click here. For the words lovely and wishful click here. For the words merry and cheer, click here. For the words grateful and cherish, click here.

Voila! A fresh Thanksgiving table for under $30 (unless you count the printer ink)!

And because I don’t know when to stop with a good thing, I printed my Thanksgiving menu and my current ‘to-do’ in the same way. I’m pretty certain that I’m more motivated to finish my ‘to-do’ list when it looks like this.

Then, I officially declared this ‘Home-Economics’ week at Logos School and rallied the troops to help me

1)Bake the sweet potatoes {I’ll add the brown sugar, cream, and butter and then bake them again before Thursday}

2) Peel the russet potatoes—all ten pounds of them—-for the chive mashed potatoes. We’ll doctor these up later too but at least the peeling and cooking are done!

3) Bake faux-made bread. I use this Rhodes brand all the time when I need homeade bread in a pinch. You just spray a muffin tin with Pam and put two of these frozen dough balls in each tin. Let them rise for 5-6 hours and then bake them. I’ll be making my standard Parker House Rolls for Thursday too but this way, we’ll have plenty for my family to take home with their leftovers.

And then we sat down and spent a couple hours reading about the Pilgrims and their amazing journey across the Atlantic—and how they landed in a foreign country—tired, sick, hungry with no ready available food or shelter.

We are so blessed. With so many brave people for whom to be thankful.

Check over at Kimba’s DIY day for more creative solutions that are easy to do yourself.