Organized like Jen!

As you may or may not know I have been obsessed with "organizing". In part because of Organizedlikejen . I love watching her videos!  This is my new mail system which is very simple and effective!

Anyway she has not just influenced my organizational skills. I also started buying small chains to wear for everyday wear. I love big jewelry but the pieces I have don't really go with my everyday jeans and t-shirts. I don't know why I never thought to wear small jewelry pieces. Not until I watched one of Jen's videos on her other channel.

I'm also coordinating my little cousins wedding next fall so I'm loving my wedding planning book (also another idea I got from Jen). 

One other idea I got from Jen is to have a catch all basket in various rooms that you can fill with things that "collect" during the day and then at night take and put back in their perspective place! I have another basket in mind but at the moment this plastic tub works in a pinch!

I can't remember where I picked this idea up from, but I really want to be organized for Christmas. So I created a Holiday and Christmas planner. Now lets hope I do better with all of these in comparison to my daily planner which I love but sometimes forget to use! HAHA

I'm thinking about doing a video on each of these systems but it won't be until next week sometime. 

Motion In The Ocean!

My weekend got even better when one of my friends gave me free tickets to go this Black Tie event! With Marc in school on the weekends Nicki and I are always looking for things to do! So we were game from the start.

And I never need an excuse to dress up, dress up (well maybe sometimes). LOL

We knew we were in for something different when they handed us these!

I also cannot tell you when the last time was that my hand was stamped for anything other then an amusement park! LOL

As V.I.P's we got access to the entire aquarium! 

And ate some snacks! I mean, you got to have food.

Of course I'm always looking for great party ideas, and this party did not disappoint. They also had a silent auction (that was the "I can't afford that" part of the black tie event). 

All in all we had a great time!!!!!

Passions!

Last Friday I went out with my girlfriends to a place called Passions (more on the name later).

Luv these ladies to life! We always have a great time when we are together! I didn't take my camera so all of the photos were done with our phone camera's. 

As great as the food was, the best part was the company. Can't wait tell our next get together!

My family had a great time teasing me about the fact that the Preachers wife was going to a place called Passions! My daughter even asked me was I sure it wasn't a strip joint! SMH It didn't help that I decided to wear my favorite boots, my short dress and wear my hair down for the first time in a long time! LOL

Hey, I have never said I was a typical PW! LOL

Last of the Fall Decor!!!! I promise! LOL

I have so much to share...I think I'm going to break it down into parts! LOL I'm starting with the last of the Fall decor. I promise even if I find something else I'm not going to post about it. LOL Partly because I'm itching to start checking out the Christmas stuff and most of the Fall stuff is gone in the stores anyway. And if I don't start looking at Christmas stuff by Christmas it will be gone! SMH on that one! Anyway, here are a few things I recently picked up or made.

I have yet to find my old front door wreath so I made this one using stuff from the dollar store. Total cost $10!

This plate came from Ross. I think it was less then $5.00!

Same with the plate here. I hope to find a "fall" centerpiece next year to put in place of my lovely blue one I found this summer at the Thrift store. I love the idea of switching out certain items in my home depending on the season.

My pumpkin candle looked lonely so I found him some friends at the thrift store! LOL

Another thrift store find ($3.25)! I plan to put this on my bathroom door upstairs. I'm still looking for one for my laundry door. Now that I look at this picture I think I need to "decorate" my banister! Well, guess I'm not done! LOL

Last, but certainly not least is this lovely! For years when we first moved into the house I had an "apple" one on my counter. Unfortunately someone broke it. Yesterday Marc and I picked the last one of these pumpkin ones at Sam's Club! Now I need a "fall" cookie jar! LOL So even when I think I'm done, I'm not! The good thing about that is there is always next year! LOL

Next post coming up!!! And of the yummy food I have been eating!

Book Review: How To Turn Your Marriage Around in 10 Days!

I have to admit when I was first approached by a friend to read and do a review on this book I was hesitant. If you have followed my blog a few years you may have seen some earlier reviews of “marriage” books. And after seeing the title "How To Turn Your Marriage Around in 10 Days" I was even more skeptical. But I love to read, especially books by ministry leaders and I trusted the person who recommended the book to me.  

Now I can usually tell at the beginning of a book whether or not I am going to enjoy it. The writing style of the author was light, sometimes funny and very engaging. That is a must for me because as much as I love to read (and I have been known to read an entire book in a day if I’m really hooked) I don’t always have the time to read as often as I would like so if you capture my attention in the beginning I will read it in its entirety.

After each chapter he has an area for you to note take always, a daily prayer and action questions.

Like I said earlier I was skeptical about the ten day thing, but was pleasantly surprised that upon further inspection I actually appreciated the fact that he asked the reader to take time out each day to read a chapter and really meditate on that particular chapter. And the subjects for each chapter actually held my attention (another good thing…LOL).

The “topics” ranged from priorities, to play to dreams (these three actually captured my attention the most). Especially the quote from George Bernard Shaw “We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing”!

After nearly thirty years of marriage I am fairly familiar with the importance of connecting, showing honor, being able to trust your spouse and above all else having an open line of communication. But at this stage in our life I look forward to times of play, keeping our marriage a priority and being able to dream together even thirty years later!

My favorite part about the book is that he kept it simple (K.I.S.S)! This is refreshing after reading many books with so many details that you wonder if any of them will actually aid you in creating a better marriage or send your spouse in the other direction!

The chapter on “Play” resonated with me the most because my family complains all of the time how little I like to “play”. And I am married to the biggest kid around. My husband likes to work hard (and does) but he also likes to play. That can be extremely difficult with me for a wife. I tend to stay in manage mode (I’m a Martha). When the author stated “Life is busy and hard, and well, we forget to make time for fun”…well that is me in a nutshell! And don’t even get me started on the “Dream” section!

I highly recommend this book for couples who have just got married, about to get married, who have been married thirty years like us, or even about to celebrate 60 years (which in today’s time is truly a gift from God and should be celebrated). After all what is ten days out of your life if it will lead to 50 years of happiness and peace in your marriage?  

You can find out more info about the book release and the author Philip Wagner by going here. Stay tuned there may even be a giveaway soon.

Sunday Mind Dump: through the eyes of the Pastors Wife!

Its been a long time since I did a Sunday Best or do any ministry updates for that matter. In all honesty this years highlights have been less about ministry and more about friends and family. Its what I needed after a really rough ministry year in 2011. And I'm glad I stepped back from some things and spent more time concentrating on family stuff. It was especially good when I had a health scare this summer. Right now I'm still taking it easy and I'm good with that but today was a very good day so I thought I would share. Granted its nothing earth shattering but it was just one of those days when life in general is not half bad and you actually spend a little time thinking about how much you really have to be thankful for.

This says it in a nutshell!!! By the way I got this at Ross for $4.00!

I love this picture! Today was youth Sunday at WABC. Marc had a little help in the pulpit...LOL. These cutie pie was the second baby that Marc dedicated at WABC. She is now singing in the choir. And my girl was singing her heart out! When she wasn't checking out what was on Marc's table! LOL

October is Clergy Appreciation month. Next month Marc and I celebrate our 4th year at WABC and the church does a great job of recognizing us so we take this month to recognize our ministry partners and long time friends Diane and Rob. I actually did the presentation this year and Dianne is giving me that look of I'm going to get you later. LOL I don't know why but for some reason it just doesn't click with them that its clergy appreciation month. Which works out for us because we get them every time. LOL

Marc is at Virginia Union University studying for his Masters degree in Theology. He travels 2 1/2 hours away each weekend to class and back so our date days have taken a back seat for now. So Sunday afternoons have turned into date afternoon. This is my dinner at Ruby Tuesdays. I had the ribs and mash potatoes but the cheesecake is Marc's. I ate a small bit but I knew this was waiting for me at home!!!!

This is my son's birthday cake/cupcakes! And yes, I brought my 29 year old son a Batman birthday cake! 

Of course I also brought him Spider Man and Mickey and Friends balloons! That's just how we roll here.

I can't believe its been twenty nine years!!! I also can't believe I use to be so skinny that even in this picture pregnant with my second child I still looked skinny! 

Boy has times changed? LOL

This one just turned 28!

And this one standing here (the one with the attitude at the moment..lol) will soon be 27!!! Again what happened to the time? In a few more years all of my children will be in their thirties!!!! And there poor daddy is still waiting for grandbabies! I on the other hand am perfectly content. HAHA

Well, other then reorganizing, and decorating we really don't have much else going on. We will have our fall fest in a few weeks and of course our 4th Anniversary but mostly we just have some events with the family and preparations for Christmas!!!!!! We may be heading to Ohio in December for our friends installation service. They recently moved their to Pastor a church in Cleveland. There are lots of "possible" trips in 2013 but only time will tell if they actually come true.

Heres to a blessed week for all of you! God's blessings!!!

Almost done! I think! LOL

Minus the front porch (which is in disarray right now and is going to require some extra special care (once the weather lets up a bit) I'm almost done with my fall transition! Of course as soon as I get it looking like I want, it will be time for Christmas! LOL I'm still debating on whether I will do anything to the bathrooms but for the most part I am done inside. Of course if I come across some great finds in the clearance section of my favorite stores all bets are off. But for now I'm pretty much done (I think..lol).

I had decided I wanted to put a wreath on the back of my front door and our Master bedroom downstairs. A long (and I mean a long time ago) Marc brought home these really dinky gold wreaths around Christmas time. I hated them and for years they stayed up in the attic with a bin full of things I had no idea what to do with but they were things my hubby brought home because he thought I might be able to "use" them one day. Recently I started purging stuff and those same gold wreaths were in the pile for "must go" items. But yesterday I took another look at them and figured out they would be perfect for a craft project. Twenty minutes later I had two new fall wreaths for my doors using supplies from the Dollar Tree! I'm hoping to find a few additional wreaths in the clearance section to use upstairs on my laundry and guest bath doors, Or maybe next fall I will make my own. Its not high on the priority list for this year.

What was high on the list was a new wreath for above the mantel and on my front door. I'm hoping to find a wreath in the next few weeks at Michael's on discount for the front door. But I found this lovely wreath at Rite Aid, and it was 50% off so it only cost me about $8.00 and some change. Now I can finally show the completed mantel. I still have not painted the mantel. For years I have been thinking white now I'm not sure so natural it shall stay a bit longer. Any suggestions?

I also picked up a pumpkin candle, and a couple of chickens from Rite Aid, Since I couldn't find the owls I figure the chickens are cute and they have a beautiful fall pattern on their wings. Minus a couple of knickknacks here and there for my end tables and a few "fall" throw pillows I am done in the familyroom area.

The last spot I set my eyes on was the little table in my foyer. I had a "spring" like centerpiece sitting there all summer and I knew I wanted to change it out for something, what that something was I didn't have a clue. But yesterday evening when I did some rearranging I found my vase from my summer table (the one with the seashells in it). I threw a few leaves in, a couple of gourds and pumpkins I had left over and wrapped some garland around the base and there you have it!

So unless I find some really great "deals" this is probably the last update for my Fall decor (of course knowing me I will find something...lol).

Update: And I did find something else! LOL I have been looking for "fall" plates to replace the summer ones I had up. Found these babies at Roses for $3.00 each!

This rack is in my foyer.

I have another set of plate holders in my hallway, so I brought a different style for there. And since I have done about all I can do in these areas its time to move on to organizing our bedroom. So hubby purchased these for us to put all of the extra clothing and stuff that won't fit in our closet. So stay tuned for bedroom updates. 

I made one additional purchase which was a rug for my foyer, but now that I have it in place I'm thinking I should have gotten a darker one. And I'm thinking this one would work out great in my laundry room when it gets its overhaul! 

Well, I think that's finally it! LOL You can see all of my Fall decorations here and here!