do i have anything to say that isn't random?

i share:

robin hood:  saw it last night.  loved it!  would definitely recommend it.

babies:  i'm not pregnant.  it was a movie i was dying to see.  saw that it was playing at ky theater this past weekend, didn't go, and now it's gone.  so so so very sad.  i really hope that it comes out on dvd.

lost: can you believe i haven't mentioned this?  i love lost.  my husband loves lost.  we loved lost.  i can't believe it's over.  i've heard some negative comments about the ending but it didn't bother me.  i even liked it.  i didn't have anything already planned in my head so my expectations were open to whatever.  ben definitely wanted more to be revealed about the actual island.  i'm ok with the continued mystery.

date night:  last night we got to cooking out some din din & see a movie {that's when we saw robin hood}.  it was one great night.

pool:  i'm going to go, perhaps multiple times, this weekend.  we don't belong to a pool but i have a feeling i'm going to be at one anyway.  i'm see-through and it is time to end this madness.

{via}

weekend:  i'm super excited about this weekend not only because i will hopefully get some color but also because i will have a day off work.  woohoo holidays!  we may or may not be having a family cookout.  if we do i will be thrilled about that as well.

flowers:  i want to plant some flowers.  i want to have some tulips, lilies, sunflowers, peonies, and lilac bushes.  i want to be able to trim them and place them all over the house.  that's my dream.

trees:  since we moved in i've wished all of our current trees were different types of trees.  i've never felt more like this than right now.  we have two pear trees that i have diagnosed with fire blight.  "fire blight is a bacterial disease that is particularly destructive on many varieties of apple and pear. it may also damage certain ornamental plants, such as flowering crabapple, hawthorn, mountain ash, cotoneaster, pyracantha, and spirea. if not controlled, fire blight can destroy the blossoms and fruit and may damage or kill the plant by stem infection."  awesome.  the treatment for this is super random and i hate it.  hate.

benches:  i want some....yes please.  my home would also love some benches.

pop:  i shouldn't be spreading my addiction to all but i couldn't resist spreading the joy.  last night i found that you can get a 24 pack of coke or pespi products at walmart for $3.88.  if you don't buy pop often...this is a deal.  a huge deal.  {i live in lexington, i don't know if this promo is happening nationally}

whole foods:  i took my first trip this week to get cherry yogurt covered pretzels. they are uber yummy and i need them.  i got there at 8:54 and they close at 9.  i purchased organic bananas, cereal, milk and.... no yogurt covered pretzels.  couldn't find them.  sad.

here they are...

the sole flowers that popped up at our new house this spring.  4 pink tulips.  that's all the previous owners left for us.  that & weeds.

at least these pinkies are pretty!

this past weekend we tons of fun.  i can't wait to share it with you in it's entirety but first i wanted to voice some very interesting news.  i did yard work.  yes, it is true.  i know your jaw is on the floor but i do not lie.  ben was at work on saturday afternoon, it was gorgeous out & we had just had a huge storm the night before.  i knew that all that rain would have softened up the ground, making my job much easier.  i set out with my limited amount of gardening tools {and gloves of course}.  i weeded...and weeded....and weeded.  our house was a jungle.  i should have taken a before and after picture.  i didn't landscape anything, i basically just preformed emergency over-growth surgery.

we have so many things we'd like to do to the outside of our house but i'm not sure how long it will be before we get to it.  our neighbors from both sides congregated in our front yard to talk shrubs, give support to our first de-jungle-ing efforts and gossip.  i felt just like i was on a tv show.

to our left we have the nicest, most helpful neighbor in the world.  yes, he is more helpful than your neighbors.  he kindly told me that i had trees growing in our gutter and promptly brought over his extension ladder to remove them for us.  who knows how large i would have let these maples get before i spotted them!  i'm not the most observant apparently.

this was the view:

{this isn't our house but it looked just like it}

i felt so relieved that our nice neighborly neighbor had been so helpful & that our gutters weren't going to break and fall off the house!

i was relieved until i walked around the back of the house on sunday to find that the entire length of our house was surrounded by a flourishing, floating, mini-hedge.  fortunately, i have the sweetest husband who climbed right up on top of the roof to remove the forest that was attempting to consume our home.  thanks benny!!

i feel like i should give benny a second shout out for mowing our foot tall grass and mowing over the giant patch of weeds that i think was once referred to as a flower bed.  most of the weeds came up to at least my knees and some even my waist.  but benny had no fear and trampled them all.  i hope they suffered a terrible death.  i feel pretty confident that we will shortly be writing a revenge of the weeds post.

all gardening & landscaping tips are welcome here at {with grace & lace}.  do share.  oh oh oh, and if you just LOVE to do yard work and just don't have enough to do at your place...swing on by.  i'll let you garden your little heart out.

i only need one of each {ok maybe two}

so currently we {meaning me & my husband as well as me & my biblestudy} are all trying to be very money conscious.  we're trying to be good stewards of what we're given, give away as much as we can, stretch ourselves & develop new {biblical} views of how to handle money. in an effort to not be wasteful or frivolous i've tried to refrain from purchases that are just for my pleasure etc.  i'm not sure why but i thought that 'window' shopping would be good for me.  like tricking my mind into thinking i really went shopping.  i wouldn't necessarily recommend this type of thinking.  i want it all.  stingy consumer jen jen settle down!

.here are all the things i don't need.

i don't need a gorgeous yellow leather couch with beautiful, colorful pillows for all my friends to visit on

i don't need all kinds of precious kitchen accessories {excess-ories).

like this darling tea-towel

or ceramic farmer's egg crate {reusable of course}

or this bright magnetic timer.

what about....

wooden picnic utensils, you're guests would go crazy.  $10 for a pack of 10. 

small cookout + this partyware = adorable!

and i may have 5 aprons already and rarely cook but i think everyone could appreciate the fact that i need to make cereal in these 2 aprons.

additionally, i don't need to spruce up any of the bedrooms in our house.

i don't need fun filigree leaf sheets.

or a fancy mirrored dresser + canopy bed

or funner than fun sunbird sheets.

last but not least for our bedroom, i don't need this bow-tied duvet set.

on to things i definitely don't need, but maybe you do. 

i thought these curtains would be such a cute pop of color in a little girls room or in a play room.  i love when kid stuff looks a tad grown up.

maybe for your office or dining room?

oh oh oh & one last thing.  i don't need this girly, weathered mirror hanging in my guest room either.

i'm so glad i got all of those things i don't need out of my system. 

i feel like i need to mention...i would probably feel ok if a box filled with all these goodies arrived on my doorstep.  i wouldn't have too much remorse.

all images from anthropologie

{so if you're preparing my giant box...that's where you can find all these goodies}

friday

{neha via picasa}

monday felt like a friday.

tuesday felt like a friday.

wednesday felt like a friday.

thursday felt like a friday.

and finally, it is friday.

.finally.

does anyone ever have those days {or weeks} besides me?
so ready for the weekend. 

ready to sleep in.

maybe yard sale, maybe craft, maybe shop, maybe see friends, maybe kiss my hubby, maybe go on a walk, maybe be in the sun, maybe snuggle in the shade.

happy friday friends!

ps. my big brother paul had to have an emergency appendectomy yesterday.  it seemed that all went well and that they took care of things before they got too bad but i later heard that he was running a very high fever and that it wasn't breaking.  i think this lead them to believe that it had already ruptured more than they initially expected.  prayers for paul's recovery please!

quick update:  brother is doing better!  still in the hospital but his fever has broke & sounds like he's finally feeling a  bit better!  hooray!  still not out of the woods though...prayers still welcomed!

weekend recap

i mentioned my super fun weekend and now i shall share.

benny & i had been wanting to spend time with his family forever & ever but over the last month or so they have been making frequent weekend trips to chicago to visit ben's aunt {who is doing so well by the way!}.  so we postponed our visit until this past weekend.  and it was a blasty blast.

we arrived friday evening after work to northern ky expecting to spend the remainder of the night with the brzinski's but lo & behold they weren't home and each of their cell phones were on the kitchen counter.  we thought, with our luck they were probably in chicago again.  :)  with our newly open schedule we had the chance to go get some grub with the dorsey's & the margrave's plus bonus margrave {baby james}.  it was so nice to be able to catch up with our dear friends {and their babe / soon-to-be babe}.

after spending hours at an empty jimmy johns we made our way back to benny's parents and hoooray...they were home!  we got to visit, give our mother's day presents {a rice bag & a shrinky dink homemade by my artist husband} & relax.  i definitely should have taken a picture of the shrinky dink.  you all would have appreciated that.  later that evening two more friends stopped by.  TREAT!

{justin & tay.  both with their best facial hair}

saturday we had a very exciting day planned.  we went with ben's mom & pop to skyline for lunch {it was skyline time} and then headed off to the krohn's conservatory for a japenese butterfly exhibit in cincinnati.  before i get into butterflies i should say that the other attendees made me very happy.  it is a well known fact that ben & i look like we could possibly be asain.  let's just say, we felt right at home.  i loved it.

here are some pics from our trip there!

{if ben were really small he would live somewhere like this mini grove i think.  this was the benjamina forest}

{above:  that butterfly had hearts on its wings.  it was awesome}

ben's mom wore a flowered dress to attract all the butterflies and it definitely worked! one latched on to her and took a ride all around the conservatory with us.

afterward we made our way to brewsters for some ice cream.  you know how i adore ice cream.  and it was the perfect day for it.  it was warm and sunny {but not unbearable}.  even better, my bro-in-law was able to join us.  yay for sibling time!

the fun didn't stop there.  after coming home for a "cat nap" {which lasted an hour and a half, apparently the butterflies took it out of us} we got up to visit hillary & alex!  double date!  believe it or not they did not have one single picture together on facebook for me to steal {i think that needs to be amended very soon friends}.  in leu of pics of the happy couple i must share their babies, ok fine they are hillary's puppies but they are the cutest.  may i have one please benny?  i love them {the couple & the puppies}.  we made use of hillary's new patio furniture, the beautiful weather & gobbled up some food at cheddar's.

last but not least...sunday.  oh, lazy sunday.  ben wrote campaigners for most of the day {which was awesome by the way} and i just hung out.  ben's momma made crepes, it was the first crepe i ever ate.  ben's poppa made homemade cheese.  yes i said homemade cheese.  i observed so that someday i can also make homemade cheese.  it was yummy & de-licious.

my favorite part of the day i will have to save for later...but lets just say that i carried home with me a treasure trove of goodness that sunday.

.excellent weekend in my book.

blog-life reflection of real life

about a week ago we were listening to talk radio {which ben loves & i absolutely loathe}.  on top of being talk radio {evil on its own}, it was terrible talk radio.  this local show was awful.  fortunately, out of no where, the host made an excellent point. i loved it.  it really stuck with me and made me think.  thank you, horrible talk radio. 

he was talking about the first few years of his radio career; he spoke of how he never checked any his ratings.  he knew that they were doing well because of the companies that wanted to advertise with them and the amount of people that would call in but he was never wrapped up in the numbers, the popularity, etc.  he said that the more he started to "check in" on their stats the more concerned he became with other's opinions, what other's thought of him and his work.  it made him want to conform to the idea of what other people wanted him to be.  he wanted to please his listeners.  he was tempted to stop being true to himself {maybe just in minor details but conform nonetheless} in order to win others over & to gain a bigger following. he spoke of his realization: the more you worry about what people think of you the more you lose yourself.  if you're constantly striving for popularity, to be well liked or to please others you will change and mold yourself into someone other than yourself.  

i think this kind of thinking affect all facets of life {including blogland}.  if one were to worry about pleasing readers, gaining followers, being recognized you could try and change, tweak, discuss things in a way that you think the masses will enjoy, even if that compromises {slightly, perhaps} the things that are most true of you.  i recognize that some people have "business blogs" where there business is spurred on by their blogging, it affects their livelihood.  i'm all for business blogs of course, but much like the radio host, is there any circumstance worth compromising & conforming what's true of you in order to spur on your popularity or career?  i vote no.

so much more importantly, having this kind of perspective makes you want to point to yourself more than anything else.  being encompassed with other's people's perceptions of you {your work, your writing} drives you to think of yourself and the presentation of yourself above much else.  it makes your life about pointing others to your self, when my {our} number one mission in life is to point people to Life, to the Lord {not ourselves}.

so friends, i just wanted to spur you on... meditate on things that truly matter, keep your eyes fixed on that which has eternal value.  be true to your beliefs and don't compromise to get ahead or be well-liked. when you're standing in front of your Creator i pray that you {and i} will know with full assurance that you lived to point people to Christ & that alone.  the world doesn't need one more person just like everyone else, that lives to exalt themselves, begs for attention or sings their own praises.  the world needs genuine people who stand firm in Truth.

"therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will."
romans 12:1-2

"as a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received." 
ephesians 4:1

just checkin' in

{apartment therapy}

i just wanted to check in and share a few random thoughts for the day.  i have some lil tidbits to share later {which i'm thrilled to record} but those will just have to wait.

{1} i have constant fatigue.  i could sleep anywhere at any time.  what is wrong with me?

{2} benny's working for the evening so other than a quick hangout & a YL support team meeting i'm going to have to keep myself occupied.  the possibilities are endless.  aaaand i have a list as long as my arm of things that need to get done. {ie. skirt my desk, clean my car, shower, kitchen & bedroom, vacuum, etc., etc., etc.}  will anything accomplished or will i watch spencer's descent into madness on the hills? decisions, decisions.

{3}  i had such a fun weekend in northern ky, i can't wait to share!

{4}  last night we had yl club for lhs students and it was amazing.  it was a night where the death of jesus is presented & what it means to follow christ is discussed {well, as much as you can fit into a 15 or 20 minute talk}.  it was so awesome to be reminded of the awesome truth of God's grace myself and to feel so keenly aware of the huge and desperate need that there is for a Savior at that school.

{5}  i have a piano, but it's not in my house.  i wish it was, and that i'd have a place to put it.  i also wish that i knew how to play.  i think i could re-teach myself the basics if i had it in front of me.

{6} we're having a super gloomy week here in ky, i hope it's nicer where you are!  yesterday, we did get to see a double rainbow though.  "very rare." says ben as he's trying to coax me into standing in the pouring rain.  double fun.

{7} political signs in front yards.  does this happen everywhere?  i really hate it.  if you have one in your yard, i don't hate you, just the signs.  they are blanketing lexington as we speak. they don't sway me to vote for one candidate over another, they don't teach me anything about what the candidate is about or what they have to offer.  it only shows me that your yard is filled with signs.

{8} i could eat a gallon of ice cream.  but i won't.