For You. I Sing. I Dance.

If you have randomly stumbled upon this page, you may find yourself curious about the title of our blog:  

our divine romance 

The title was inspired by the lyrics of Phil Wickham's beautiful "Divine Romance." 

The fullness of Your grace is here with me
The richness of Your beauty’s all I see

The brightness of Your glory has arrived

In Your presence God, I’m completely satisfied

For You I sing I dance

Rejoice in this divine romance

Lift my heart and my hands

To show my love, to show my love

A deep deep flood, an Ocean flows from You

Of deep deep love, yeah it’s filling up the room

Your innocent blood, has washed my guilty life

In Your presence God I’m completely satisfied

. . . . . 

Jordan and I are oh so grateful that God's presence completely satisfies us. And the gift that He's given us in each other? Well, that rocks too.

A Sunday Stroll.

Can you tell who snaps the majority of the photos in our family?

diy Modge Podge Monograms

If I could, I would fill every room in our home with letters.

on banners. bookshelves. wall decor. pillows. coffee mugs. & picture frames.

I just adore them.

Years ago, as a broke senior in college, I fell in love with creating colorful collages for my friends and roommates. I would fill my living room table with paint. fabric. ribbon. modge podge. glue guns. magazine cutouts. and spend hours upon hours turning cardboard letters into personalized and affordable room decor.

I recently discovered new wooden letters at Craft Warehouse, which have stolen my heart & thrust me back into the world of modge podging and creative gift giving! Creating personalized letters is an incredibly easy and affordable project, and if you don't already have the supplies laying around your casa, I highly recommend picking them up next time you find yourself strolling around Craft Warehouse with a few extra pennies in your pocket and an hour or two to spare. You won't regret it :)

Supplies:

1. Paintbrush

2. Modge Podge

3. Decorative Napkin ... visit TJ Maxx and Tuesday Mornings for a steal of a deal. 

4. Wooden Letter 

 Laying out the five supplies, which cost me a total of $2.33.

[Note: I like to use the Modge Podge on a paper plate to contain the mess.]

The before shot. K for Katie, my beautiful & inspirational sister.in.law.

The world's most basic tutorial instructions:

Apply a thin layer of modge podge directly onto the wooden letter, cover with one ripped strip of napkin, and then finish with a thin top coating of Modge Podge. Do this until both the front & back of your letter are completely covered, then let sit for one hour to dry.

[Note: Most decorative table napkins have a layer of white under the decorated layer. If this is the case, decide whether or not you'd like to modge podge using the white layer. I have tried both ways & prefer to remove the under layer, but your letter will look fairly similar either way].

Tah Dah! 

A simple, affordable, & adorable craft that will add color and personality to your home or be the perfect gift to brighten someone's day. 

Also, if you're looking to spice up your project, I recommend wrapping yarn or twine around the letter, or hot gluing embellishments, such as flowers or buttons to add texture & personality. What would you add to your letter? 

Enjoy!

A very lovely list.

[Photo courtesy of Pinterest]

Our Family Mascot.

I recently read a blog post about pigeons & instantly decided that these birds must be dubbed our little family mascot.

Do I particularly enjoy pigeons?

No.

Have I recently taken up pigeon-watching as a new hobby to occupy my time while living in small town usa?

Nerrp.

Do I even live in an area where pigeons flock the city streets?

No, thank goodness.

Do I think they’re beautiful birds?

Not the least bit.

However, according to an excerpt from the blog Letters to Ames, “pigeons are excellent communicators. They are strong-willed and committed, in the sense that they will die of exhaustion from a flight before they take a break. They mate for life. They are an urban, street-savvy breed of the dove species (which means a whole heck of a lot to me and my faith). They are perseverant and resilient, able to assimilate in nearly any environment...”

If only pigeons could serve as our marriage and family therapists, then all would be right in this beautiful, broken world. We'd learn by example how to communicate well, mate for life, and persevere through life's most challenging circumstances with determination, strength, grace, & passion.

Rather impressive, eh?? And that my friends, is why I am declaring the pigeon our new family mascot. 

Sweetly Broken.

I heard my favorite worship song on the drive over the pass this evening. The sun was setting over the rolling hills of Eastern Washington and it. was. glorious. So glorious in fact, that for one moment in time, I forgot I was driving in the.little.engine.that.could, clunking along at 50mph in a 70, while recklessly being passed by semi-trucks . . . none of that mattered & for a few good moments, all things in this world felt peaceful : ) Listening to this song at the conclusion of a very long week may or may not have brought this sappy soul to tears. The words of Jeremy Riddle's "Sweetly Broken" are so simple. powerful. genuine. pure. and true. 

"at the cross You beckon me
You draw me gently to my knees, and i am

lost for words, so lost in love,

i’m sweetly broken, wholly surrendered."

I love how this song reminds me that it's not about me. Not even close. What a beautiful reminder of God's love, grace and power in my life.  


If you have never heard this beautiful little ditty, here's an acoustic cover by Brian Wahl, for your listening pleasure. And here's the most adorable cover, which just may melt your heart into a million little pieces. 

Grace.

[Wonderful printable designed by Emily Ley]

i just may have to print, frame & hang this sweet thang.

I Love Him

so, so very much.


thanks for four months of wedded bliss, hubby.

cheers to the next four hundred.

Fall is in the air.

And nothing confirms this change of season better than the current fall flu bug lingering throughout my achy breaky body. 

. . . . . 

Please do enjoy these snapshots that remind me of all the beautiful & wonderful things I love about fall; as I blow my nose [again & again & again], throw on a second pair of sweatpants, unwrap & enjoy another luden's wild cherry throat drop, cough into the sleeve my oh.so.filthy sweatshirt, reheat my third mug of loose leaf tea, and cuddle back into bed for the remainder of the afternoon.

fun orange flowers sitting in my favorite recycled wine bottle

pumpkin spice muffins for small group

jordan searching the fields for the perfect punkin! 

apples for our cider

jordan hard at work: cleaning the apples

laura hard at work: munchin' on a fresh pumpkin doughnut! 

beautiful scenery.

out on the town enjoying local music & wine at wilridge vineyard.

berries from our backyard.