You never let go

Oh no, You never let go
Through the calm and through the storm
Oh no, You never let go
In every high and every low
Oh no, You never let go
Lord, You never let go of me 

We sang this song in church this morning and you could feel people pouring their hearts and souls into this song.  Tears pouring down faces, hands lifted in the air, lifting our voices and allowing the Holy Spirit to soothe our aching hearts. 

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
Your perfect love is casting out fear
And even when I'm caught in the middle of the storms of this life
I won't turn back
I know You are near

And I will fear no evil
For my God is with me
And if my God is with me
Whom then shall I fear?
Whom then shall I fear? 

There is something so amazing about joining together to worship God with people who are truly open.  No, you may not know them, may not know their struggles, but you can relate because you know they are going through something. We all are. And when you see those tears falling and hear these words coming out of their mouths, you know that they are putting all of their trust and hope into the only One that can get us through it.  They are choosing to let this struggle be a lesson that teaches them to be more like Christ.  They are choosing to become better not bitter. It inspires me.

Oh no, You never let go
Through the calm and through the storm
Oh no, You never let go
In every high and every low
Oh no, You never let go
Lord, You never let go of me

And I can see a light that is coming for the heart that holds on
A glorious light beyond all compare
And there will be an end to these troubles
But until that day comes
We'll live to know You here on the earth 

I could hear the pain in their voices as I am sure they could hear the pain in mine. This church is not a place where we hide behind masks of fake perfection and pretend everything is okay. It is a place where we share our troubles and help carry each others' burdens.  Because we know that perfection is impossible, that God doesn't promise that life will be happy, easy, or comfortable. He doesn't promise that we will be rich, famous or even healthy.  So being broken, being hurt, needing help- none of these are things to be embarrassed about or try to hide. He tells us that we WILL struggle because these trials and tribulations will help us to be more like Christ. But He will never leave us or forsake us.  He will hold our hands through it all, if we just believe.

Yes, I can see a light that is coming for the heart that holds on
And there will be an end to these troubles
But until that day comes
Still I will praise You, still I will praise You 

 

WW: Pumpkin Patch

Etsy Giveaways!

My sister Jamie is running a craft fair on her blog this week.  Each day will feature a new blogger who will talk about their craft and also host a giveaway!  On Sunday, winners from each giveaway will be picked and posted here on her blog.

She is giving away a CUTE set of hair clips AND a gift certificate to her Etsy store.

I am also giving away a gift certificate to my Etsy store!

There are several other bloggers giving things away too, so go check out the Craft Fair!

Scarecrow Stroll

During October, our town has "Hay Days." Part of that is the Scarecrow Stroll where all of the businesses and organizations in town can make a scarecrow to put out downtown.

This is the MOMS Club scarecrow.

Don't you love the toddler banging on pots and pans?

Getting a picture of my kid looking at the camera is almost impossible. So getting a bunch of toddlers to look at the camera all at once? LOL Not gonna happen!

(It doesn't work that well for adults either for that matter!)

Grand Opening Sale! Navy Baby Designs (Etsy)

You probably figured it out from my sneak peek last week...

I opened my very own Etsy shop- Navy Baby Designs!

For the next week I will be having a Grand Opening Sale- 10% off all of my tutus.  This includes custom items! Right now my turnaround time is fairly quick, so there is still time to order for Halloween. 

Halloween costume- Friendly Ghost Tutu 

(available with all white, all black, or white and black tutu)

Halloween tutu

Halloween theme Tie Onesie  
(I have a few different Halloween patterns to choose from!)

Here are some of my Halloween/Fall items. Of course I love to do custom work, so don't hesitate to let me know if you'd like something different!

It's My Birthday :)

Growing up, my grandmother always asked for practical presents, and that always bothered me. I thought it was boring. You can get dishtowels and new appliances any day of the week, but birthdays are for fun gifts! It's a day all about you, get whatever you want!

But now I get it.

This year for my birthday I got:

a steam cleaner (I really needed it!) 

a patio swing (which was really for Jackson apparently, but I love it too) 

and a sewing machine!

I love all of my presents, but when I tell people what I got* they tell me I'm getting old! Honestly though, there just wasn't anything else that I wanted.  Yes, I asked for a steam cleaner for my birthday.   Actually, I went to the store, bought it, came home and said, "Hey baby, look what you got me for my birthday!" LOL 

Now I'm gonna go steam clean my carpets (I've got family coming into town in a few days), and then play on my sewing machine for awhile.  I hope everyone has a great day!

*You didn't think I would wait until my actual birthday to open all of my presents did you?

Flashback Friday: Jackson's 1st Halloween

When my sweet baby was just a cute little pumpkin :)

WW: Sneak Peak

What I love about Fall {Friend Makin' Monday}

I have always loved Fall, but I think it is just that much more exciting now that I have a kid.  This season is just so full of fun activities and cute photo ops :)

I've been reading many of your blogs for weeks now as you talked about cuddling up in front of the fireplace and I have been so jealous! It has still been incredibly warm here.  It has finally started staying in the 70s during the mornings, but it still gets up to the 90s in the afternoons!

Anyway, I love so many things about Fall.  I love decorating the house, doing fun fall crafts with Jackson, visiting the pumpkin patch, and going to all of the fall festivals and craft fairs.  We are having a scarecrow stroll, a Zoo Spooktacular trip, and Turtleween (trick or treating with the sea turtles!).   I'm excited about Halloween and about the most important holiday of all...my birthday! I'm turning 27 next Monday!

What is your favorite part about Fall?

Some of my current favorite songs