Wow!  Can you believe we are at the end of August?!  Really?!!!

September is upon us, and I am beyond excited!  It is time to bring out the mums and pumpkins.  This is my favorite time of the year!

So let’s say goodbye to August with a GREAT linky party.

Remember: This linky party is to spotlight

your BEST DIY project of August.

Here are a few guidelines for my party:

*Your project needs to be about DIY home decor or home improvement.

*Only one project  per blogger, please.

*Your project needs to be from the month of August.

*Please enjoy visiting other great projects by other bloggers and leave some comment love.

I looked through my August posts, and decided that  my best project, (or maybe just my favorite), was the DIY Nursery Word Art I made for my sweet niece, Courtney.

It is the first time I have ever made anything like it, and Courtney and I think it looks great in baby Colt’s nursery!

Courtney is scheduled to have a C-section on Friday, so please say a prayer for her and baby Colt.  Thanks!

Now it’s your turn!  I cannot wait to see your best!

(FYI:  I will also be spotlighting some of your projects on my blog in September!)

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Hello, friends!

Thank you sooooo much for the over 100 sweet, uplifting, encouraging, loving comments you left on my blog post yesterday!  You guys are so precious to me. :)

I went to my physical therapist again yesterday, and she hooked me up with those electro-thingys  to help the muscles in my back relax.  I am feeling much better.  I am still overwhelmed with all of the things I still need to do, but I am taking all of your great advice and taking it one step at a time.  I’m gonna live in the moment and not be discouraged by unfinished projects or work.

Many of you suggested that I tackle one corner of my home at a time, and that’s what I have decided to do!  I’m not going to focus on how every square inch of my home needs to be remodeled. :)  I am going to start with one little section, and work on it until I am finished.  (Not including the addition.  My hubby will be continually working on that.) :)

So I am focusing on the boys’ bathroom for now.

We have already done a couple of things like removing the sliding shower doors and the moose head toilet seat.  :)

But we still need to remodel the vanity and paint the walls.

Today, I am going to show you a shower curtain I made for the boys’ bathroom using the NEW Martha Stewart Crafts Decorative Paint Line, brought to you exclusively by Plaid Crafts!

A couple of weeks ago, I got a huge box of Martha Stewart products in the mail.

It was a HUGE loot of goodies!

I was amazed by all of these cool products, and so were my boys!  (I had a hard time keeping them out of this stuff!)

The new Martha Stewart Line is available at Michaels stores in the US and Canada starting the last week of August.  I’ve heard some stores are already selling them. :)

There are over 160 different paint colors to choose from, and they work on ALL crafting surfaces including wood, metal, glass, ceramic, terra-cotta, and fabric.  They are also indoor/outdoor safe, and dishwasher-safe on glass.  That helps to take a lot of guess work out of buying paint, doesn’t it?!  Yay!

Another added bonus is the paints are non-toxic, so they are safe to use with children. :)

I decided to use one of the Martha Stewart stencils for my shower curtain.

I had a drop cloth (which was a curtain in my previous home) that I thought I could use for the shower curtain.  It was a 6 ft x 9 ft drop cloth.  Since the tub was about 6 ft across, this would be perfect.  I didn’t have to hem the sides or the bottom of the drop cloth.  The only part that I had to sew was the top! Perfect!

I used the Martha Stewart stencil brushes to do the job…

I taped the stencil to the bottom of the drop cloth with scotch tape because that is all I had.  But it got the job done!

Then I mixed some navy blue paint with Martha Stewart’s fabric medium and painted over the stencil.  This was the fun part!

 I was hoping and praying that it would look good when I took the stencil off the material, and it did!  Whew!

I continued this same process all the way down the shower curtain until I was finished.  Then I ironed over the whole thing when I was finished to let the paint “set”.

And I love the way it turned out!

I KNOW you love seeing a picture of my toilet! :)

It only took me about 30 minutes to do this stencil project.

I used my sewing machine to create some button holes on the top of the shower, but I was hoping to find some cute shower curtain rings before I show you that part.

The possibilities are limitless with this line of craft products!

Look at the beautiful pillows that Jen at Tatertots and Jello created with her Martha Stewart Stencils!

You can see Jen’s tutorial and review of the Martha Stewart Decorative Craft Paint line  HERE.

My sweet in-laws are coming in this weekend, so I will probably not do anything else to the boys’ bathroom until next week, but I have a few things in mind.

And I am going to be using some more of these wonderful products from Martha Stewart and Plaid to help me!

If you are interested in trying out some of these products for yourself,  here is a link to a 40% off Michael’s coupon.

Have a blessed day!

The opinions in this post are Mine all Mine.

Full post disclosure here

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Hey Friends!

I hope you are having a great week so far.  :)

Today, I was hoping we could just chat…ya know, as friends.

I’ve been feeling overwhelmed lately.  Well actually, ever since we moved in June.

I absolutely love the land and location of our new home, but the home itself has been a difficult adjustment.  I can truthfully say that I dislike everything about the inside of our home (minus the addition).  The rooms are very small, the flooring is hideous, my kitchen is disgusting, storage space is limited, and most days I feel like I am living in a junk pit.

I do not like to complain on my blog because I want it to be a positive, uplifting place.  And whenever I start to complain about my circumstances, I feel like a brat.  I begin to think of people who are less fortunate.  Of children who would love to call my house “home”.  Of people who sleep on the ground rather than a bed, and who would never complain of a room being small.  Of children with hungry bellies that wouldn’t give a hoot about how ugly my kitchen was, but instead would be smiling as they discovered the food within it.

I really have nothing to complain about.

So why am I complaining to you?

Because I want to be real with you.

Every since we moved into our new home, I have been posting about all the projects we have been completing around our home.  I have been sharing videos of our hard work, and of some of the fun.  And you have left so many sweet comments.  Many of you ask how I get it all done?  How do I keep it all together?

Well, I don’t.

Last night, I was sitting on my couch crying.  Not bawling crying, just crying.  I had been to my physical therapist earlier that day, and my back was killing me.  I do not think I have ever shared this on my blog, but I have scoliosis in my back, and I deal with chronic back pain.

I had so much to do last night, and my back wouldn’t let me.  I felt defeated as I looked at the piles of “stuff” that still needed to be done.  Like all of this junk in front of my fireplace that I don’t have time to organize.

And this gorgeous antique buffet that I purchased at the Habitat Store a couple of months ago, but haven’t had the time to refinish.

And my back patio has just been storage for more junk and projects.  The theme song from “Sanford and Son” comes to my mind every time I look at it.

Adam and Eli’s closet door has looked like this since the day we moved in…

I do not even have the energy to share pictures of my kitchen and bathrooms with you.  :)

Should I even bring up the 200+ emails in my inbox that still need to be answered and taunt me every time I open my gmail account?

Everywhere I look, I am reminded of all the work I have to do.  It’s not a good feeling.

And oh yeah!  Let’s not forget that I am raising four boys!  Yowza!  There are baseball practices, piano lessons, homework, meals to cook, laundry, etc.

Ugh.   I feel so overwhelmed!!

And I needed ya’ll to know that.

I need you to know that I do NOT have it all together.  I need you to know that sometimes I just want to cry from all the frustration.

So what’s a girl to do?

Continue crying?

Eat an entire tub of ice cream?

Write an entire post about her woes and complain to thousands of people she has never met in real life? :)

Or Pray.

Seek God.

Read His Word.

Can you hear me preaching to myself?

I need to keep my life in perspective.

I need to keep my mind focused on what matters most.

That is not my  home.

Not my blog.

Not my DIY projects.

It’s my heart.

Am I seeking peace in Christ?

My mom’s favorite verse was, “Peace I leave with you.  My peace I give to you.  Not as the world gives, do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled nor let it be afraid.”  John 14:27

John 16:33 says, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

Psalm 105:4  “Seek the Lord and His strength, Seek His face evermore.”

I want to share with you an excerpt from my devotional book, “Jesus Calling” by Sarah Young.

It is written like a love letter from God.  Here is what He is saying to me  today:

“TRUST ME in the midst of a messy day.  Your inner calm–your Peace in My Presence–need not be shaken by what is going on around you.  Though you live in this temporal world, your innermost being is rooted and grounded in eternity.  When you start to feel stressed, detach yourself from the disturbances around you.  Instead of desperately striving to maintain order and control in your little world, relax and remember that circumstances cannot touch My Peace. 

Seek My Face, and I will share My mind with you, opening your eyes to see things from My perspective.  Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid.  The Peace I give is sufficient for you.”

Ladies, please KNOW that I do not have it all together.  If I have ever portrayed that I do, I am sorry.

I’m just a wife and a mom struggling to handle all the responsibilities thrown at me each day.

But it is my prayer that I never loose focus on what matters most in this life.  And that I seek God to give me His strength and His peace in my heart.

Thank you for letting me share my heart with you today.

(I feel better already.)

:)

God bless you, sweet friends.

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I am so excited to tell you about this $100 Giveaway from Kris Watts Photography.

Kris is an amazing photographer AND person!

She takes the most beautiful pictures.  I am so thrilled to share some of them with you today.  I know you will enjoy them.

Her newborn photos are some of my favorite.

Doncha wanna just ooooh and aaaah?

I soooo wish newborn photos were all the rage (like they are now) when my first boys were born.  I cannot get enough of these photos!

These moments are PRICELESS!

Kris also takes pregnancy photos as well.

Here is my precious niece and her hunky husband.  (My great nephew will be arriving in just a few short weeks!  So excited!)

I love the way Kris made this  collage of pregnancy photos.

And more…

I LOVE these engagement/couple shots!  This first picture is so cool!  (Is that Carrie Underwood?)  :)

If you need a photographer to take some wonderful family pictures, Kris can do it.   Check these out…

ADORABLE!!!

Oh, these precious children!

Maybe you would like Kris to take some pictures for your Christmas cards this year?…

Oooh, I want to squeeze it!!

And if you are a parent of a Senior student this year, maybe you would be interested in Kris taking some Senior photos for you!

Aren’t her photos amazing?!!!

That’s why I asked her to take some photos of me for my blog.

I needed a “head shot” for the Haven website, so I called Kris to help me out.

It was totally weird to do a photo shoot by myself (I’m am used to taking pictures of my kids or with my kids).

But Kris made it a lot of fun.

Here are a few shots from my photo shoot…

The pictures she took around this fabulous old red truck were my favorite!

That old red truck sums up this Ky girl just right!

And just for fun, I took some pictures with a cute little hat that Eli picked out for me.

The boys said, “Mama, you look cool!”

It made me smile.

Thank you, Kris, for my photo shoot!

If you love looking at beautiful pictures, you will love browsing around Kris’ website.  Click HERE to visit, (and enjoy the beautiful Christian music in the background.)  :)

Now here’s the good news!

Kris is offering a $100 gift certificate toward a photo package to one lucky

Beneath My Heart reader!!!

Kris is located near Lexington, Ky, so keep that in mind. :)

How do you enter to win?

SIMPLE:

Just visit Kris’ facebook page, click “like”, and come back and tell me in  a comment.

That’s it!

You will be entered to win!

Thank you, Kris, for this wonderful giveaway!

I will announce the winner this Friday, August, 19th.

Goodluck!

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