Its About The Cross

Below I have posted the lyrics and the video to one of my favorite Christmas songs which reflects the real meaning of Christmas and its joyous reminder to us as Christians of the good news of the gospel. Hope you enjoy!


It's not just about the manger
Where the baby lay
It's not all about the angels
Who sang for him that day

It's not just about the shepherds
Or the bright and shining star
It's not all about the wisemen
Who travelled from afar

It's about the cross
It's about my sin
It's about how Jesus came to be born once
So that we could be born again

It's about the stone
That was rolled away
So that you and I could have real life someday

It's about the cross

It's not just about the presents
Underneath the tree
It's not all about the feeling
That the season brings to me

It's not just about coming home
To be with those you love
It's not all about the beauty
In the snow I'm dreaming of

The beginning of the story is wonderful and great
But it's the ending that can save you and that's why we celebrate

It's about the cross
It's about my sin
It's about how Jesus came to be born once
So that we could be born again

It's about God's love
Nailed to a tree
It's about every drop of blood that flowed from Him when it should have been me

It's about the stone
That was rolled away
So that you and I could have real life someday

It's about the cross



Have a Blessed Christmas!

Friday Fill-Ins

1. Said the night wind to the little lamb, awww! you're so cute.

2. The first Noel, the angel did say, a girl should get so lost in God, that a guy has to seek God to find her.

3. Walk with God, Over the hills and everywhere.

4. It came upon the midnight clear, a urge to awake and eat some pickles and doritos, yum :).

5. Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Let your heart be light.

6. And the thing that will make them ring is the carol that you sing hopefully in tune, hee hee.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to a Bible study with the youth, Christmas caroling and a Christmas singing contest :) , tomorrow my plans include spending time with my sweet fiance, Christmas play practice then an early Christmas dinner with my papa and Sunday, I want to worship my amazing Lord and Savior!

To join in on Friday Fill-Ins click here.


Is he not the cutest lil' piggy ya ever saw!!!??? Annette told me about him around Thanksgiving and emailed me a pic of him and when I showed it to my mom she just had to have it. He's so adorable!!. ..and the best part is, its a PIG and its pink! HA, that's awesome. ..and he has the cutest lil' curly tail too, hee hee.

Hope you all have a very Merry and Blessed Christmas!

Wordless Wednesday

Not Your Mama's Rubber Gloves

This is for the lady that wants to stay fashionable at all times, even while cleaning!

Are these not the cutest lil' gloves ever?! I found the tutorial on Little Birdie Secrets and of course had to share it with all of you. Considering we have a dishwasher but NEVER use it, crazy I know but I'm serious. ..it has turned into a cabinet for us no lie, we store plastic bowls and containers in it, hee hee. So these cutsie gloves would not only do the job but be very fashionable as well. ..and I love fashion. Plus it seems pretty easy to make. All you need is:
Household rubber gloves
Oil Cloth (¼ yd. cut is enough)
Ribbon or trim
Sewing machine
Hot glue gun

Even though I have no idea how to use a sewing machine, I'm going to figure it out. What a great gift these gloves would make. I think I may make my mom some for Christmas too, Shhh! . ..and they would be Oh! so cute with a matching apron! But the apron will definitely be bought and not made :p

Friday Fill-Ins

1. Friends must be chosen carefully.

2. Good health; it's exhausting to maintain.

3. I'm ready for Christmas.

4. Heavenly is one of my favorite perfumes.

5. The oldest ornament I have is in the picture to the right, which was made by my grandma in 1989.

6. Take some pickles, doritos, fruit roll ups, oreos, crackers, popcorn, some salt & vinegar chips, cheese puffs and a nice cold dr. pepper, mix it all together and you have what I eat on a regular basis after supper and sometimes throughout the day. (hee hee, I love to eat junk food, although it doesn't show but my nickname definitely fits me :p)

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to actually I'm looking forward to the whole day because I'm spending it with my mom and friends and were going to look for my wedding dress :) then going out to eat of course, ha! tomorrow my plans include more wedding dress shopping!(gotta find that perfect one) Oooo! I'm so excited!! and Sunday, I want to worship my amazing Lord and Savior!

Have a Wonderful weekend everyone!

To join in on Friday Fill-Ins click here.

Christmas Paper Winter Scene

I ran across this cute lil' paper pieced winter scene in a frame at Two Peas in a Bucket and thought what a great idea it would be to actually make one myself. I always have little pieces of scrapbook paper, buttons, ribbons, etc. left over that I have no idea what to do with until I saw this. ..and it would be so cute to sit out every year at Christmas but you could always make one for each holiday. So I do believe this will be one of my next projects :) She also did one using a shadow box. I love shadow boxes. I think they're so cute. Have you ever bought Christmas wrapping paper that you think is just so adorable you don't wanna use it? Well if not I have! and now you can take those lil' pieces that are too small to wrap a gift and make a cute tree, star or whatever you desire out of it to create a scenery of your choice and frame it like these or you could even use fabric! Aahh, I'm so excited!! It doesn't take much, I tell ya, hee hee.

Disney On Ice

Last week me, my aunt and lil' cousin went to disney on ice. OH! I just love going to see them skate. This year was the Incredibles and we got front row tickets! I'm talking bout the VERY FRONT ROW. The floor seats where ya have to sit in a regular chair and not those coliseum chair thingy's. Talk about shivering and chattering teeth and of course I had to buy a snow cone which made it that much worse but it was yummy, hee hee. It was so cold and naturally we got ice thrown on us but it was so amazing to be that close. Usually we sit three rows up but I think I have been converted to floor seats :p Anyways, I had never seen the movie before so I had no idea who they were or the story behind them. But it was about the Incredibles and their vacation/adventure to Disney Land. It was so awesome!. ..so I figured I would share some of the pics I took. They aren't all that good because it was hard to take pics with them moving as fast as they were but I got a couple of good ones. Of course if I had that nice camera(the nikon D40) michelle has they would have been perfect in every way, hee hee ;) I took a pic of goofy every chance I got so you may see him more than once :)

. ..If you click on the pics below you'll be able to get a closer look at them

Friday Fill-Ins

1. Snow is beautiful to watch as it comes down.

2. I'm looking forward to marrying & spending the rest of my life with the love of my life :).

3. Starbucks is the best coffee ever!

4. One of my favorite old tv shows is The Cosby Show.

5. I'm done with my Christmas Shopping, Whoo Hoo!.

6. The most enjoyable thing around the holidays is gathering together with family & friends & of course those delicious meals & yummy desserts.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to a delicious dinner & fellowship at michelle's house, tomorrow my plans include attending a church event and Sunday, I want to worship my amazing Lord & Savior!

Have a Wonderful Weekend!

To join in on Friday Fill-Ins click here.

Random Questions

I received these list of questions from Megan & Tracey in an e-mail and saw that they posted theirs so I figured I would play along and post mine. Feel free to play along if ya already haven't.

1. Two names you go by:
1. Piggy
2. Brianna

2. Two things you're wearing now:
1. Dress pants
2. Green Sweater

3. Two things you would want [or have] in a relationship:
1. Christ
2. Love

4. Two of your favorite things to do:
1. Shop
2. Spend time with my family, friends and fiance

5. Two things you want very badly at the moment:
1. To be married :)
2. To be at Disney

6. Two people who will fill this out
1. Annette
2. Raven

7. Two things you did yesterday.
1. School stuff
2. Went to a revival

8. Two things you ate yesterday
1. Lasagna from Olive Garden
2. & Salad from Olive Garden (Yum!)

9. Two people you last talked to:
1. Mom
2. Ryan

10. Two things you're doing tomorrow
1. Going to Disney on Ice (Whoo Hoo!)
2. Hmm, I'm not sure what else

11. Two favorite holidays:
1. Thanksgiving
2. Christmas

12. Two favorite beverages:
1. Dr. Pepper
2. Sweet Tea

13. Two people no longer alive that you'd like to talk to
1. My grandma
2. Aleese

Thanksgiving at the Beach

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. Mine was great other than I missed my sweetie terribly. I was going to post some pictures of our Thanksgiving at the beach but I forgot my camera. Ugh! I know. Who forgets their camera?! It was absolutely beautiful when we arrived Thursday. Sunny skies with a temperature of 70 degrees. But then it rained the next 3 days. But we still had a great time. Our Thanksgiving dinner was catered by the K&W Cafeteria. Definitely not as good as a home cooked meal at maw maw's but I managed to enjoy it, hee hee. Of course we got a lot of shopping done & lots of great deals too. Although we didn't get up at the crack of dawn like some crazy people :p but we shopped from 9:00a.m. 'til 10:00p.m. every night we were there. Talk about tired legs and feet. So anyways, its great to be home. I love the beach but after awhile you're just ready to get home and snuggle up in your own bed. Aahh, which felt so good. Anyways, sorry for the boring post and for no pics. I know you all missed me though, hee hee.

A Psalm of Praise

Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.
Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.
Psalm 100:1-5

God has blessed & provided me with so much that it's truly indescribable & I just can't thank Him enough. Below I have listed a few of the things I'm most thankful & grateful for:

-For what He did on the cross for me & suffering & dying for my sins
-A wonderful family and incredible parents who've provided me with the necessities of life & so much more(I'm very spoiled :p)
-An amazing fiancé who encourages me and holds me accountable in my walk with the Lord
-A loving church & members to worship & fellowship with
-Great Christian friends
-Good health & a sound mind
-Jesus himself & all that God is for us in Him because He is our great reward, nothing less

Have a Wonderful and Blessed Thanksgiving!

Friday Fill-Ins

1. The last band I saw live was actually not a band but a Christian group, The Phillip's Family.

2. What I look forward to most on Thanksgiving is celebrating it at the beach(but I'm going to miss my sweetheart!).

3. My Christmas/holiday shopping is about to begin.

4. Thoughts of laughter fill my head.

5. I wish I could wear fall/winter clothes all year long.

6. Bagpipes are absolutely beautiful to hear as they play amazing grace.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to a Bible study with the teens, tomorrow my plans include trying on bridesmaid dresses, going to a b-day party & spending time with my sweetheart and Sunday, I want to worship my Lord & Savior and enjoy a yummy Thanksgiving dinner afterwards!

Have a great weekend!

To join in on Friday Fill-Ins click here.

Jennie-O

Most of you have probably seen the Jennie-O turkey commercials. I think they're absolutely HILARIOUS! Last week me and my dad saw the commercial below and we both just died laughing but my mom wasn't able to watch it in time and of course when ya wanna see something it never comes on so we hadn't seen it since but Leah had 3 posted on her blog(including the one we saw) and I just had to post this one on mine. I've only seen this one and one other but this one below is my favorite! I can so picture myself doing this because one, I don't cook and two, I know the turkey probably weighs more than I do, hee hee. You have to watch it if you haven't already seen it and if you have you know you wanna see it again :p

More Random Questions

I received another Question Survey through e-mail and since its about the holidays, which are approaching rather quickly, I figured I would share it. ..

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Both

2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial (a real one is to much hassle for me)

3. When do you put up the tree? The day after Thanksgiving!

4. When do you take the tree down? New Years Day!

5. Do you like eggnog? Eww, Yuck!

6. Favorite gift received as a child? Oh there were so many but I would have to say my power wheels Barbie Corvette and go-kart

7. Hardest person to buy for? My mom

8. Easiest person to buy for? Ryan

9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Makeup that had been used, Eww!

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Charlie Brown Christmas & Frosty the Snowman

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? During the fall

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Yes, hee hee (the makeup I received that had already been used, Ha! Just kidding)

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Honey Baked Ham, Mmmm!

16. Lights on the tree? Yes, White lights

17. Favorite Christmas song? Joy to the World

18.Travel at Christmas or stay home? Travel

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, and Rudolph (I have to sing the song to remember :p )

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Star

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Both

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? All the traffic, long check out lines and rude people, Ugh!

23. Favorite ornament theme or color? Bright colors. ..the picture to the right are my exact ornaments

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Honey Baked Ham, macaroni & cheese, green beans, rolls, dumplings, biscuits & of course all the yummy desserts!

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? CLOTHES!

Turning *25*

This past weekend was my fiance's 25th birthday! This is him cheesin' with his new ipod. He of course had to work on saturday so we surprised him with a birthday dinner which included a big, juicy steak :p I'm thankful to have such a Godly, Christian man as a fiancé(soon to be husband)that is so encouraging to me and keeps me strong in my faith and in my walk with the Lord and holds me accountable. He's very special to me and has made such an impact in my life and for that I am very grateful. I thank God for the love we share and the relationship He has blessed us with. God has done such an amazing work in the both of us and still continues to do so and I pray He will continue to be at the center of our relationship and that we will both keep Him first throughout our lives together. In the words of a dear, special, inspiring, saint of God who's gone on to be with Her Lord and Savior, "I pray we will be Consecrated Christians".

Hope your birthday was as special as you are to me :)
♥I Love You!

Friday Fill-Ins

1. Please feel free to read my blog and leave a comment.

2. When I get clothes or towels out of the dryer I can't help sniffing it occasionally.

3. My favorite thing to cook is chicken pot pie.

4. Pumpkin Spice Latte from starbucks is something I can't get enough of.

5. That's the thing I love most about fall.

6. People who drive 30mph when the speed limit is 55 always makes me think to myself, what the heck?

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to going to a revival, tomorrow my plans include getting things ready for my fiancé's birthday dinner :) and Sunday, I want to worship my amazing Lord then go to a baby shower!

To join in on Friday Fill-Ins click here.

Enjoy your weekend!

Thanksgiving Delight Dessert

Layers of snow-white whipped cream and spiced pumpkin mousse create a festive dessert for the holiday season. Top with chocolate curls for an elegant presentation.

I found this delicious recipe and thought I would share it. Doesn't it look absolutely scrumptious? When you get done drooling over it(hee hee), I posted the directions on how to make it if anyone is interested. I'm not much of a cooker but I'm so gonna figure it out even if it does take a couple of tries and experiments :p

What you need:
5 large egg yolks
1 cup(s) sugar
31/2 cup(s) heavy cream
15 ounce(s) canned pumpkin
2 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoon(s) ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon(s) ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon(s) ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon(s) salt
1 teaspoon(s) powdered gelatin
3 ounce(s) shaved dark chocolate

DIRECTIONS
1. Fill a large bowl halfway with ice water and set aside.
2. Whisk the yolks, 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, and 3/4 cup cream together in a medium saucepan. Heat while stirring continuously with a rubber spatula or woode spoon over medium-low heat, until thickened and the mixture coats the spatula -- about 10 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and set over the ice bath. Stir to cool.
3. Add pumpkin, vanilla, spices, and salt to the egg mixture. Stir 1 teaspoon of gelatin in a small bowl until dissolved. Gently whisk into the pumpkin mixture. Beat 1/2 cup cream to stiff peaks, and fold into pumpkin mixture. Pour into a shallow dish, cover and chill until cold and thick enough to fall from a spoon in heavy dollops -- about 8 hours or up to overnight.
4. Beat the remaining cream and sugar to stiff peaks. Alternately layer the pumpkin mousse and whipped cream in a glass serving dish. Sprinkle the chocolate shavings between top two layers. Serve chilled.

Y-U-M-M-Y

In Honor of Our Veterans

Veterans Day
Representing the red white and blue
The colors of our flag stand out proud and true.
The white stars on blue background with red and white stripes
Remind me of these veterans, who all risked their lives.
Just so the people of the U.S. could all live in peace and be free
These are the heroes that represent you and me.
They stood up strongly, untied as one,
And kept up the fighting until they were done.
And although some have fallen, and lost their lives in war,
We pray for each one of them.
And now that their souls live on forever more,
Above in God's hands.
They watch over our nation,
And give us strength to triumph over others with strong anticipation.
So every year, when this day comes by,
Think of all the veterans that while fighting, had to die.
And remember that they were people
With fire and passion embedded inside.
They die for this country,
So remember and honor them with pride.
By Taylor Weinman


Honoring and Praying for our Veterans and Active Duty Military Personnel Today and Everyday!

Meet Lacey

Lacey is my new betta fish. Yes I bought a fish and yes I named her :) Over the weekend mom and I went shopping and of course we had to make a trip to Pets Mart for Harley. As mom always looks for new things to buy Harley (as if he don't have enough), I always venture off to see the cats, hamsters and this particular day, fish. I've never been a real big fan on having fish. When I was younger we had one of those really big fish tanks in the middle of our living room/dining room. We had like 8 to start off with then you would wake up the next morning and have like 20. It was ridiculous. Over time I got tired of dad or mom flushing the toilet just to watch the fish twirl around and go down it. But anyways, I saw Lacey, who was a baby betta, and she was so cute with her pink and yellow colors (If you click on the picture you may be able to see her better). Well I have two cats so I knew I wasn't going to be able to just place her tank anywhere. So I looked around and guess what? I found a small fish tank that you can mount on the wall!!! How cool is that?! .. .and it was pink and green! .. .and I knew it would be easy to clean and change the water because you just slide the tank out and then slide it back in when you're done. ..and of course I found a lil' plant to go in the middle and pink rocks to match the background design, hee hee. So now she's just hanging out in her new cute casa(house) on the wall in my room and safe from the cats, hee hee :) So now you've read about and met my newest addition :p