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Living Well Spending Less {TWO great resources in one!}

December 14, 2014 by Edie Wadsworth 258 Comments

I remember where I was sitting when she told me she her dream was to write a book & get it published within the next year. At that time, she didn’t have an agent or a publisher or even a solid start to a book. Eight months and so much hard work and anguish later, we were sitting on my back porch catching up on life when she got the call from Zondervan that sealed her book deal. We screamed and cried and celebrated together and could hardly believe what God had done in her life in such a short time. I walked with her every step of the way, from the months of writing and editing to the months of planning the book’s release to the overwhelming emotion that comes with bearing part of your heart and soul to the world. I am so proud of her, proud of this book, and am all teary eyed that the time has come for this dream to bless so many people. [Read more…] about Living Well Spending Less {TWO great resources in one!}

What It Looks Like to Care

December 8, 2014 by Edie Wadsworth 14 Comments

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What does caring look like?

It looks like a baby in manger who will become one of us to know our pain and sorrow.

It looks like Jewish boy who even at 12 years old knew the importance of His Father’s house.

It looks like a man whose days were filled with touching people and healing them and giving them life.

It looks so clearly like a cross, where One Man bore the collective guilt and shame of us all, trading His life for our ransom.

It looks like an empty tomb, where the resurrection of One Man sets the rest of us free.

And in turn, it looks like you, learning from Him and living your life for someone else in a ‘myriad of petty little unsexy ways everyday’.

Bless you today and blessed be the name of the Lord—the One whose caring changed the world.

Yarn Wrapped Wreath

December 4, 2014 by Edie Wadsworth 336 Comments

We are so enjoying Advent and a very SLOW move toward Christmas. In other words, I still have pumpkins in my kitchen and on my front porch.

I’m obsessed with all things yarn right now so as we speak, I’m knitting some cool bracelets and a cowl or two. I made these wreaths last Christmas and I love them SO MUCH! This project is so easy and takes a little over an hour. I love to craft during the holidays because it forces me to slow down, to SIT DOWN. I can listen to music or podcasts or I can eat Grannie’s fudge but I can’t run myself ragged while I’m doing it. It’s a great way to teach yourself how to relax. Or at least it is for me. Yarn bracelets coming soon! I also made a pom pom wreath last year which I then converted to a pom pom garland, so check it out too!

What you’ll need:

Foam/Straw/Styrofoam wreath (sold at craft stores for $2-$3)
Yarn – any kind, I used a #4 medium weight
Felt or linen flowers or your choice of embellishments
Spray adhesive
Scissors
Ribbon/string for hanging

What you’ll do:

Do not remove the plastic wrapping from the wreath, especially if you’re using the straw kind. It’s easier to just wrap the yarn right around the plastic wrapping.
Cut four strips of yarn the same length, about two yards.
Hold those four pieces together and after spraying a little adhesive onto the wreath form, begin wrapping. Wrap it in such a way as to cover up the ‘tails’ of the four strands of yarn.
When you’ve wrapped those four strands, make sure you leave the ‘tails’ of those strands on the back side of the wreath. You’ll use the next set of four strands to then cover the ‘tails’ of the previous strands. (I illustrate this is the video, if that’s confusing!)
Continue spraying and wrapping, until your wreath is covered and full. It took me about an hour to finish one wreath. The reason I use four strands at a time and cut them to a manageable length is because a) it’s way faster and b) you can avoid trying to wrap a whole skein of yarn through the wreath form.
When you’re finished, use a piece of coordinating ribbon to hide the last set of ‘tails’ from your yarn.
It looks wonky from the back unless you’re a perfectionist which I AM NOT. But it only shows from one side, right?

And may your crafting force you to slow down dear friends!

p.s—I’m joining my friend Myquillin’s wreath party so head on over for more homemade wreath goodness! And in case you’re in need for some colorful quirky Christmas cheer, head over to my Christmas tour from last year. And by the way? The crazy mannequin with the evergreen bough is coming back!!

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Live {Free} Webinar Tonight and a Cyber Monday Deal

December 1, 2014 by Edie Wadsworth 10 Comments

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Would you hate me if I told you that I’ve only left the house twice in six days? I’m the homebody of all homebodies. We had such a wonderful Thanksgiving and a perfect long, relaxing weekend. I’ve got a huge pot of red beans and rice on the stove and only wish I had a fun knitting project started to give me an excuse not to get out of my comfy chair all day. I suppose I could make a new pom-pom wreath to add to my Christmas decorating from last year but then I’d just be procrastinating what I should be working on, which is my FIRST EVER LIVE WEBINAR!

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Y’all.

At 7pm it’s not at all impossible that I could blow up the internet. I’m hosting my first live webinar and I’m shaking in my cowboy boots. So if you’ve been wanting to learn more about how essential oils have changed our lives or would like to hang out with Darlene and me or would like to witness two 40 somethings bumble their way around the internets, then tune in tonight live! If you’ve recently purchased a starter kit, this webinar will be SO HELPFUL as you get started using the oils everyday.

If you happen to tune in live and if you happen to watch the whole hour-ish and if you happen to decide to try out the oils via the Premium Starter Kit ($300 worth of oils and stuff for way less than that) you will get a free Essential Oils pocket reference book plus you will be entered into a drawing to win a 30 minute one-on-one chat with me about oils or whatever you want AND a free Golden Touch Kit (which contains some of my favorite oils and is worth $100+).

Either way, it should be entertaining to watch. I hope to post the live webinar onto my blog tonight but if that doesn’t work, we will send out the link via my FB page (you should like the page now so you’ll be able to see the link later!) about 15-20 minutes before the webinar starts (7PM EST) so you can just click the link and follow along. That makes it all sound so easy but I guess we’ll see if it turns out to be.

I’m not much of a Black Friday or Cyber Monday shopper but I wanted to tell you about two things I love.

First, I just ordered my Day Designer from Whitney English for 2015. I LOVE this planner so much I can’t even tell you. And I think dalmation dots are gonna be my theme for the new year. Her shop is only open in spurts so get yours while you can.

And second, my dear friend Ruth has opened up her blogging course for a few days. This course will change your blogging life. Everything I know about blogging I learned from her and if you are seeking to grow your blog or turn it into a business, you so need Ruth’s course. It’s normally $399 but for the next few days is only $299. It’s so comprehensive and so full of bonuses that she could charge $2,000 and people would still feel like they got a deal. This is the BEST investment you will make in your blog/business. She’s the master.

It’s called Elite Blog Academy and it is the BOMB DIGGITY.

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I’ve watched her brilliance shine over the past few years as she has successfully built a thriving online business, where she now generates enough income from her blog and her products to more than support her family doing what she loves to do. Watching her succeed has been such a joy. And now she’s sharing ALL her secrets with us. This course is unbelievable and I can’t imagine where I’d be if there had been something like this available when I was starting out. There is nothing like this out there and this 12 module course will literally knock your socks off it’s so good. What’s more? She’s offering double your money back if you don’t see measurable results. It’s that good! You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Registration for the course in a couple of days and won’t open back up until the Spring. The course begins as soon as you sign up.

Click the graphic below to read more about the course and learn. how to build a blog into a sustainable business from someone who’s done it first hand.

Our Simple Advent & an Introduction to The Church Year

November 30, 2014 by Edie Wadsworth 256 Comments

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(Click here to print the church year calendar—our church is using Series B 2014-2015 this year so you can follow along with the readings for today and all the Sundays of Advent.)

Today is the first Sunday of the new church year and the first Sunday of Advent. I’ve been in a liturgical church that follows the church calendar for 8 years and I feel like I’m still learning so much about the rich heritage we have been given in our faith. I’m planning a Lenten study based on the Prodigal Son parable and have been working on it for months and Advent can be thought of as a preview to Lent— a time of prayerful, repentant and joyous waiting.

We have tried to make it super complicated over the years with calendars and activities and have (more than once) become overwhelmed by week number 2. The last couple of years, we’ve used a simple Advent wreath and an iPhone app that has beautiful daily readings that reflect the liturgical calendar. We light the appropriate candle every night and read the reading. So beautiful, so simple, so doable. If you’re “new” to learning about Advent, I’m including lots of links and podcasts below to help you get acquainted with the church year and why the church has traditionally begun its year with Advent. Advent comes the Latin word which means coming and we traditionally think of Christ’s comings in terms of past (the incarnation of Christ on earth), present (in Word and water and bread and wine), and future (His second coming in glory). What is He coming to do? He’s coming to redeem us, to save us, by His perfect life and perfect death on the cross. Advent is ultimately about the cross.

The Church Year

(My pastor did a sermon on the church year last year and it’s an excellent overview of what’s in store as we walk with Jesus through His life and as He teaches and preaches and saves. One of the most peculiar things for me to subscribe to when I became Lutheran was the liturgy and the church calendar. After 8 years, I’m finally starting to really anticipate the rhythm and the meaning of it. In some ways, it seems simple and straight forward but then it’s also rich, complex and layered with the purpose of focusing on the gospel of Christ. By following a set calendar and lectionary, the scriptures are covered in a systematic way, with the life and cross of Jesus at its’ center. The church is centered around the major festivals—Christmas, Easter, and Pentacost, and is divided into two halves. The first half of the church year goes from Advent until Easter and covers the life of Christ. The second half goes from Easter through Pentecost, ends just before Advent and covers the teaching and preaching of Christ. The readings for the Sundays of the year have been the same for hundreds of years as the church fathers and Bible scholars paired them up to help interpret each other. It’s amazing to me how well the readings go together once you begin to see the genius of how they are paired. Even if you aren’t in a liturgical church, you could read the readings every week and begin to get a sense of this brilliance.

We need these season of the church year because otherwise it’s easy to forget that the whole point of it all is not chestnuts roasting on an open fire, or Jack Frost nipping at your nose or even a baby lying in a manger. The point of it all is Christ and what he wins for us by dying on a cross. Whatever can keep us there in a state of humility and repentance is what we need. Advent takes us to the cross.

Why do we need Advent so desperately?

We need Advent because we’re so impatient. Advent is the church’s way of saying Christ is coming and we need to prepare.

Hold Your Horses.

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We need Advent because life has broken our hearts. Because time after time, we’ve been disappointed, left out, and let down. Because we need rescuing from the One whose coming changes everything. The waiting, itself, implies our desperation. We need Him so desperately to come to us. In our sin and our hopelessness, we are wandering around in the darkness, praying for light, for relief, for anything to give us peace. Maybe the pleasures of this life have lulled us to sleep. We neglect His house. We fail to receive the instruction of His Word. We doubt Him at the Supper. Our hearts are hardened toward Him and closed to our neighbor.

We beg Him to break in—to find us, to shatter our idols, to rescue us from sin and death, to pursue us in our depravity and wandering. He must come to us for we are unable and unwilling to come to Him. Advent answers our despair and our self-righteousness with the beautiful mystery of Christ’s incarnation. We are not waiting in vain! We learn on the first Sunday of Advent, as He rides in to Jerusalem on a donkey, that He is coming with His eyes set like a flint on the cross. He means to be our Savior, to conquer death, hell, and every sin that so easily besets us.

The waiting gives us time to repent, to prepare for the Savior of the world to be born, not just in manger, but in our hearts.

The season of Advent teaches us to live in expectation and repentance—to yearn for Him, to remember what it was like to live in darkness and to give thanks to the One who is always shattering the night.

We are desperate for the One who comes.

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The theme of the first Sunday in Advent is HOPE.

We celebrate it by lighting the first violet candle.

Stir up Your power,O Lord, and come, that by Your protection we may be rescued from the threatening perils of our sins and saved by Your mighty deliverance; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

The Readings:

Isaiah 64: 1-9

Oh that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains might quake at your presence—as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil—to make your name known to your adversaries, and that the nations might tremble at your presence. When you did awesome things that we did not look for, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence. From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who acts for those who wait for him. You meet him who joyfully works righteousness, those who remember you in your ways. Behold, you were angry, and we sinned and in our sins we have been a long time, and shall we be saved? We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. There is no one who calls upon your name, who rouses himself to take hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us, and have made us melt in the hand of our iniquities. But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. Be not so terribly angry, O Lord, and remember not iniquity forever. Behold, please look, we are all your people.

I Cor 1:3-9

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge—even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you—so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Mark 11: 1-10 (the entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem)

Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’” And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. 7 And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! 10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!”

Advent Resources

God With Us, Dr. David Petersen
Podcast with Dr. Petersen about the Advent season
Why the Church Needs Advent, podcast by Pastor Matt Harrison
The Season of Advent, podcast Pastor Will Weedon
Martin Luther’s Advent and Christmas sermons, for more depth.
Ann Voskamp’s book, The Greatest Gift, is an Advent devotional with Jesse tree ornaments that can be printed and used along with her new full color book, Unwrapping the Greatest Gift, to be used by families.
The Jesse Tree, has ornaments that can be hung on a simple Jesse tree. We used this book when the kids were small.

An Advent Prayer

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, peace and hope. And as we anticipate Your coming in glory, remind us of Your humble ‘comings’ to us—as a baby in a manger, in humility on a donkey into Jerusalem, in suffering as our Savior on the cross, in service as Your body and blood served at Your table, in cleansing in the waters of baptism, and in instruction in Your most Holy Word. Come to us because we cannot come to You. Come to us in love and forgiveness as we confess before You our utter hopelessness. Come to us with Your abundant mercy and love, which we neither deserve nor can merit. Come and do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.

We wait.

We hope.

We bring only sin.

We wait for You to come and save us.

You alone part the Red Sea and drown our sins in the waters of Holy Baptism.

You alone make manna fall from heaven and feed us life-giving Food.

You alone speak forgiving Words of mercy.

Come to us today. For You alone we wait.

Come, Lord Jesus, come.

One of the most peculiar things for me to subscribe to when I became Lutheran was the liturgy and the church calendar. I’ve been in a liturgical church for seven years and I’m just now starting to really anticipate the rhythm and the meaning of it. In some ways, it seems simple and straight forward but then it’s also rich, complex and layered with the purpose of focusing on the gospel of Christ. By following a set calendar and lectionary, the scriptures are covered in a systematic way, with the life and cross of Jesus at its’ center.

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Blessed Advent to you and yours.

Much love,

xoxo,

edie

p.s. (Enjoy a five year old video of my kids singing O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, complete with a little version of Emme and Hank!)

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Let’s Make Pies {on Instagram}

November 26, 2014 by Edie Wadsworth 10 Comments

Are you new around here? Welcome! And thank you for visiting my blog! I’m honored you’re here and I hope you’ll find some encouragement (and some laughter!) for your days. Join this community of grace lovers and get fun, free stuff every month delivered to your inbox, along with access to free printables, meal plans, and my 31 Days to A Heart of Hospitality ebook!

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Happy Thanksgiving Dear Friends!

I’ll be on Instagram today giving tips and showing some videos of pie making so that you will know 100% for sure that homemade pies are within your grasp. THEY ARE!!

Join me there and we shall make pies together!

Let me preface this by saying that I am NOT an expert pie maker. But my mother in law is and I watch her like a hawk when she’s here.

I’ll be making a big batch of homemade dough and using that for all my pies today. I’ll be making cherry, pecan, and pumpkin. I also have an apple pie recipe here but we had it last month for Stevie’s birthday so I’m not making it today. The cherry will be a double crust but the other two will be single crusts.

Invite your friends on IG to join us!

For the dough, you’ll need:

6 cups of all purpose flour
1 cup of lard (this is no time to fight me on the Lard. Just trust me. Or trust my mother in law. She’s a certified pie whisperer.)
1 tablespoon of sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt

Mix those ingredients in a food processor or with a pastry blender and put them DRY in a ziplock bag in the fridge until you need them. Pie ingredients need to be cold so make sure you put in the fridge at least for a little while!

For the single crust pies, take out 1 cup of dry ingredients and mix with ice water (about 1-2 T) just until the dough comes together but isn’t too sticky. The rest you’ll have to see on Instagram OR you can follow this post on how to make the perfect pie crust. (Warning—I used butter and lard in that recipe and I must say that the all Lard crust is better, tastier, and easier to work with. Don’t hate.)

Run to the store and get your Lard and meet me on Instagram in a little while!

Here’s the ingredients for the cherry pie!

Perfect Cherry Pie!

What you’ll need:

2 cans tart cherries, drained, but save the liquid (I use the Oregon brand, found with canned fruit)
1 to 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 tablespoons cornstarch, mixed in about 2 T. of the cherry juice
1/8 tablespoon almond extract (optional)(I use it, but just a drop or two!)
Perfect pie crust, enough for double crust
1 1/2 tablespoons butter, to dot
Egg wash and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, to sprinkle on top
Can add a little red food coloring, to get that beautiful red color

I will often mix the filling and then precook it in the microwave for a 2-3 minutes.

Bake at 375 for about 50-55 minutes, until top is slightly browned.

Pecan Chocolate Chip Pie

1 1/2 cups pecan pieces
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon flour, plus more for tossing chocolate chips
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1/4 dark corn syrup (could use 1 cup of light corn syrup if you don’t have this)
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt
1/2 stick melted butter

Place the pecans and the chocolate chips in an unbaked pie crust. Mix the rest of the ingredients and pour over the chips and pecans. Bake at 375 and cook for about 55-60 minutes. Cover the pie with tin foil to keep the crust from over browning.