“I Remember Laura” blogathon, week 2: Buttons

Posted on June 9, 2008 by Barbara Harper

Miss Sandy of Quill Cottage is hosting an “I Remember Laura” blogathon on Mondays through the month of June in memory of Laura Ingalls Wilder, author if the “Little House” series of books. There will also be an art swap going on each week in connection with the theme: Click on the picture for more information.

Also throughout the month (I believe on Wednesdays) she will be sharing parts of an interview with Laura Ingalls Gunn of Decor to Adore, a descendant of Laura Ingalls Wilder. Part I of that very interesting interview is here.

This week we will be sharing button collections, button identification and care, as well as button stories. Did you have a favorite dress with special buttons? Did you play in your grandmothers button box? There are many descriptions of the buttons used on clothing in the Little House books, from the plain and serviceable ones for the work shirts Laura made button holes for, the bright and beautiful like the ones that looked like berries on Ma’s dress that she wore to the sugaring off party, to the fabric covered ones for Laura’s best brown dress. Tell us about your button tales!

I don’t remember for sure if my grandmother had a button box: she may have. Somewhere and somehow I developed a love for beauitful and unique buttons, and I seem to have a vague memory of sifting through a collection of them. Though I haven’t sewn clothes in a while, one of my favorite parts of the planning process was shopping for buttons.

Long time readers will probably be getting tired of this picture, but this is my all-time favorite craft I have ever done with buttons, inspired by this one and this one.

I love the vintage look, even though the buttons aren’t vintage: Michael’s sells packets of vintage-looking buttons as well as other kinds. To make it, I googled “heart shape” to find a pattern, cut the pattern out of a lightweight cardboard (which I think was white: if it hadn’t been, I would have painted it white). Then I glued the flat and plain buttons on the base and added the more decorative ones on top. I didn’t make the plaque below it: I just wanted to show the area where the wreath hung. But it is an idea that could be used to showcase special buttons.

Here is another little button craft: a Christmas ornament, made the same way.

Here are some soft trees for which I used buttons, inspired by this one and this one (pattern is at this one as well):

This was a tray I used as a decoration around Valentine’s Day which includes many heart-shaped buttons.

Here are parts of my button collection.

Some in that one are more like charms or jewelry pieces, but they work well in crafting.

In addition, a while back I had a post about various button crafts here: I would add to that this button board I just recently saw here. There is also a Flickr group of Button Wreaths and Button Wreaths, Trees, Balls and Flowers as well as Soft Trees. They are all feasts for the eyes, imagination, and creative juices!

He who would valiant be

Posted on June 7, 2008 by Barbara Harper

These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. Hebrews 11:13

He who would valiant be ’gainst all disaster,
Let him in constancy follow the Master.
There’s no discouragement shall make him once relent
His first avowed intent to be a pilgrim.

Who so beset him round with dismal stories
Do but themselves confound—his strength the more is.
No foes shall stay his might; though he with giants fight,
He will make good his right to be a pilgrim.

Since, Lord, Thou dost defend us with Thy Spirit,
We know we at the end, shall life inherit.
Then fancies flee away! I’ll fear not what men say,
I’ll labor night and day to be a pilgrim.

~ John Bunyan

Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul; Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation. I Peter 2:11-12.

Book Review: Sisterchicks Go Brit!

Posted on June 6, 2008 by Barbara Harper

Sisterchicks Go Brit! is the seventh in the Sisterchicks series by Robin Jones Gunn. A “sisterchick” is defined as “A friend who shares the deepest wonders of your heart, loves you like a sister, and provides a reality check when you’re being a brat.”

This series is a lot of fun and very easy to get into, yet it is hard to call it a “light” read because of the lessons, spiritual and otherwise, that the friends learn. Each book has a different pair of friends in different stages of life going off on an adventure, deepening their friendship, learning about themselves, each other, another country, and their relationship with the Lord.

The friends/sisterchicks in this book are mid-life moms Liz and Kellie who end up in England, where Liz has been wanting to visit since she was a teen-ager. In one sense the landmarks and customs were a little more familiar to me: I have never been in England, but of course I have heard and read more about it than other countries.

In a sense this book didn’t seem quite as “fun” to me as compared to the others, but it has been a long time since I read the last one, so I am not sure whether my memory is faulty. But perhaps it is just that I struggle with some of the same things Liz does and would have had a much harder time when things didn’t go according to plan or when glitches came up than she did. I “know” on one level that God is in control and in charge of all such things, but when I seek Him in the planning stages I tend to think that everything will go according to plan…and, of course, it doesn’t, then I get tense and nervous. I appreciated the reminder and the example to learn to just entrust the Lord with the schedule and the events and everything that happens in connection with them, knowing that He is in control and can handle everything that comes up — and that He might have an interesting detour I never would have thought of.

I appreciated the emphasis, too, that “midlife” doesn’t mean your dreams and your work are ready for the shelf, but it can be a time of exploring and expanding on them.

I do recommend the Sisterchicks series. Let me know if you have read this one or any of them and what you think.

Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt: Bad Hair

Posted on June 6, 2008 by Barbara Harper

PhotoHunt

Theme: Bad hair | Become a Photo Hunter

Thankfully the category didn’t say it had to be our own bad hair! 😀

Most of our scruffy hair pictures come from Christmas mornings.

This is more like a bad facial hair day. 🙂 From a skit Jason was in at camp:

No comment….

And this is poor Susie, actually on her way to good hair, but looking pretty bedraggled…and generally unimpressed with the process.

You can find more Photo Hunt pictures at TN Chick‘s on Saturday morning or on Technorati Friday nights by searching for “photo hunt.”

Show and Tell Friday: Sewing Decorations

Posted on June 6, 2008 by Barbara Harper

Kelli at There’s No Place Like Home hosts “Show and Tell Friday” asking “Do you have a something special to share with us? It could be a trinket from grade school, a piece of jewelry, an antique find. Your show and tell can be old or new. Use your imagination and dig through those old boxes in your closet if you have to! Feel free to share pictures and if there’s a story behind your special something, that’s even better! If you would like to join in, all you have to do is post your “Show and Tell” on your blog, copy the post link, come over here and add it to Mr. Linky. Guidelines are here.

This week I wanted to show some of my decorations and other things related to sewing. Some day I hope to have a combination sewing/craft/guest room where these will go, but for now they are scattered throughout the house.

I don’t know if you can tell from the picture, but this has kind of a 3-D effect with the spools, buttons, and machine being raised.

My mom gave me this. It’s supposed to hold spools of thread but I didn’t want them to get dusty. I think it is cute, though.

This is a little miniature from Boyd’s Bears that my husband gave me.

This is a little removable tray inside the box.

This is what it says inside the lid of the box. 🙂

This is another little Boyd’s Bear box, also from my husband.

This is not a decoration in itself, though some day I may prop this on a shelf in said sewing room.

It holds stationery:

These are some little tins I got very cheaply at Wal-Mart. They open like old-fashioned lunch boxes used to.

I showed this in an earlier S&T about cross-stitched gifts. My sister made this for me. It is a Paula Vaughn design. The calligraphy is from Doorposts.

You can see more Show and Tells at Kelli’s.

Happy Friday!

Donut day!

Posted on June 5, 2008 by Barbara Harper

I saw at Notes in the Key of Life and Money Saving Mom that June 6 is National Donut Day and to celebrate, Krispy Kreme is giving away a free donut to customers. Can’t beat that! Krispy Kreme is one of my weaknesses, especially when the “Hot Donuts Now” sign is on. It’s a veritable magnet. Thankfully it is off our beaten path, so I don’t go by there often. I wonder how long the lines will be tomorrow?

If you can’t have real donuts, Skip To My Lou shows how to make adorable felt ones here. I don’t think I could have those in the house, though — they’d have me drooling for the real ones!

Happy Donut Day!

Thursday Thirteen: Am I the only one who…

Posted on June 5, 2008 by Barbara Harper

1. Likes to shop without help? To me the ideal sales person is one who is close by if you do need help but who doesn’t “hover” or hound you. I realize some may stay close by if they’re watching out for shoplifters. But I hate it when I have my nose in a book and someone comes by to say, “Can I help you find anything?” (Um, no, I found it, thanks.), or if I am met at every corner by someone asking to help me, or if I am trying to make a decision they really can’t help me with, or … well you get the idea. I admit, though, I’d rather have that problem than no help at all.

2. Mutes almost all commercials? I just can’t stand the noise and commotion. They’re usually louder than the show I was watching and usually obnoxious.

3. Doesn’t like slide shows on blogs or web sites? Please, don’t be offended if you use them. I can understand not wanting to take up so much space with a lot of pictures. But I hate sitting and waiting for the next picture to show up. I’d rather see them all at once and then click on the ones that I want to see more of. I’ve seen some slide shows with a “View all pictures” button, and that helps — I click on that and get a quick overview.

4. Doesn’t like instant messaging? I hate being in the middle of reading or writing or thinking and having a window pop up. It feels rude not to acknowledge it, so I just disabled it.

5. Cringes at public proposals? I’ve told my boys they’d better be pretty sure of the answer if they’re going to ask in such a way! But personally I think privacy at such a time is more meaningful. Unless someone really likes being put on the spot.

6. Doesn’t like online articles that just have a couple of paragraphs on the page and therefore take several pages? The prevailing wisdom is that Internet readers like things in short snatches, but I’d rather have the whole thing on one page than have to click over several times.

7. Doesn’t like messy hairstyles?

8. Thinks that there’s not much interesting on the summer TV schedule?

9. Doesn’t unpack my suitcase in hotels? Or even at other people’s homes? I will hang up dresses or things that need the wrinkles to fall out, but the things that stay folded I’d rather just leave in the suitcase.

10. Wishes those who have the right of way would just go ahead and take it most times? We certainly need more thoughtfulness on the roads, but sometimes some dear person is trying to be polite by letting someone else go when they have the right of way, but by the time that’s figured out and signaled and understood, it has taken much more time and effort than if the original person had just gone when they were supposed to.

11. Doesn’t like PowerPoint presentations where text comes up one letter at a time? Get on with it already.

I am sounding awfully impatient, aren’t I? I guess I’d rather use my time in better ways — or, if I am going to waste it, I want to waste it on my own terms. 🙂

12. Thinks pointy-toe shoes are silly?

13. Puts soft drinks in the freezer? Not til they’re frozen solid, but just until they’re slushy. Soooo good!!

You can find more Thursday Thirteens here.

I think I’ve found a time portal

Posted on June 4, 2008 by Barbara Harper

A strange phenomenon has been occurring. I look at the clock one moment, and then I look again in what should be 5 minutes, only instead the clock shows an hour…or more…later.

There must be some type of time portal through which stray minutes or hours are lost. Some alternate parallel universe must be extracting more than its fair share of time, which is going to disrupt the parallelism of the universes and seriously damage the space-time continuum.

That has to be it. I must locate that portal.

I think it is somewhere near my computer….

Wordless Wednesday

Posted on June 4, 2008 by Barbara Harper

More Wordless Wednesdays can be found at 5 Minutes for Mom and the WW hub.

OK, I’ve had about enough

Posted on June 3, 2008 by Barbara Harper

No, make that more than enough.

Enough what, you ask?

Enough of hearing the phrase, “Oh my God.” You hear it everywhere, but especially all over TV. The other day I heard the “oh my” in a high voice with God’s name in a low, guttural, drawn-out voice. On blogs and Internet forums it has been reduced to OMG. And then there are those who say “Jesus Christ” or shorten it to “Jeez.”

Why does this bother me?

Because I worship God and regard His name as high and holy.

He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name. Psalm 111:9.

Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth’s sake. Psalm 115:1.

Praise the LORD; for the LORD is good: sing praises unto his name; for it is pleasant. Psalm 135:3.

Let them praise the name of the LORD: for his name alone is excellent; his glory is above the earth and heaven. Psalm 148:143

The name of the LORD is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe. Proverbs 18:10.

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6.

But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name. John 20:31.

For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Romans 10:13.

And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. I John 3:23.

He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. I John 5:12-13.

Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:9-11.

That’s only a small smattering of what the Bible says about the name of God. One of the ten commandments is “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain” (Exodus 20:7).

What does it mean to take God’s Name in vain? Well, according to Dictionary.com “in vain” means:

a. without effect or avail; to no purpose: to apologize in vain.
b. in an improper or irreverent manner: to take God’s name in vain.

Using God’s name as a lower purpose for which it was intended is using it in vain. That certainly includes using it as an expression of surprise or disgust or anger or silliness or as just a filler in the blank spaces of conversation.

By the way, I believe this also applies to euphemisms of God’s name: gosh, golly, gee and the like. If you look up the definitions, all of these have their origins as an alteration of God or Jesus. But even though people might quibble about that, I think we can agree that using His actual name as an interjection is using it in vain.

Yes, I know this is not a Christian nation and not everyone believes in that name. But it seems that there could at least be a modicum of respect for it. I would never say, “Oh my Allah” or “Oh my Buddha” even though I do not believe in the Islamic religion or Buddhism. Think of the outcry there would be if people started doing that! Why should not the Christian God have at least that much regard?