The no BS, no drama blog manifesto

After massive encouragement from two awesome ladies, I'm going to start blogging again.  And after a third shared with me this post from Renegade Mothering I present to you, as my re-entry post, grungerockchick's "No BS, No Drama Blog Manifesto".

1. This is my blog.  That means that I can, and will, write about what I think, feel and see, as it hits me.
2. I'm a human being.  I have a complete life, family, emotions and insecurities just like you do, most of which you can't see or infer just from my blog.
3. You are totally free to agree, disagree or think anything I write is totally nuts.
4. You're not going to agree with everything I write here.  I'm not going to agree with your reaction to everything I write here.
5. That's OK, because part of the reason I write is both to present my point of view to help other people see it, and to broaden my point of view from others' reactions to it.
6. Feedback is awesome and you're totally free to use the comments section to tell me nicely what you think
7. However, since this is my blog (see point 1), you're not free to abuse me via comments here or elsewhere
8. If you do decide to do that, I'll be happy to delete them for you and remind you that I don't appreciate it
9. If that means you don't want to be my friend anymore, I'll be sad, but glad I found out our friendship was only based on me being an exact copy of you and seeing things the same way you do.
10. This is my blog.  That means that I can, and will, write about what I think, feel and see, as it hits me.  

I'm baaaacccck! With some IKEA hack goodness

So...it's um.  It's been a while.  How've you been?  Good?  Good.

My front entrance hall - like many front entrance halls - suffers from a semi-perpetual pile of clutter.  A little while ago, I started fixing this by making a coat rack/bag hooks by up-cycling a plank from a shipping pallet a friend gave me.

I've been wanting a keyrack for that space, and am also planning to build a shoe rack from the remainder of the pallet.  Baker Boy and I also recently "made" a giant whiteboard using one of the windows in the house that looks out on a fence and nothing else, by backing the outside of the window in pretty adhesive wrap.

Then a recent trip to IKEA yielded a BESTA cupboard door in the seconds section for $10, and this weekend project was born...

Jesus is not my shield!

I had a little "moment" in worship yesterday.  You see, I'm a sinner.  I'm broken.  I'm lost.  I make mistakes..."often and repeatedly" as Baker Boy would say.  I'm also saved through the amazing sacrifice of Jesus Christ.  And I'm so used to thinking of that in the following ways:

...my sins are covered by the blood of Christ...
...God views me as whole and perfect through Jesus....
...my sins are washed in the blood of Christ...

Three little words

This is very loosely a sequel to grungerockchick's guide to the fairer sex where I talked about why I really don't think chicks are that hard to figure out.  I am a big proponent of Gary Chapman's The Five Love Languages, and my primary languages are Words of Affirmation, with a dash of Physical Touch.

So this entry is another sassy relationship commentary on why I really don't think words are that freaking difficult! :)

You see the biggest single problem with Words of Affirmation, is people...ahem, especially men...seem to have some idea that this means long winded poetry or, those dreaded words "I love you".  Not so!  It's more about quality and less about quantity.  I have been with men who could talk the hind leg off a donkey and yet still leave me feeling unloved.  I've also been with men who said very little, but in a few phrases could make me feel like the most loved woman on the face of the earth.  I have friends who make me feel loved every day with only a sentence or two.

grungerockchick's guide to the fairer sex

So I was having a wee lil whinge, as you do, to a friend this morning about life in general and as often happens, we had a nice little vent session about you gentlemen.  You see, I really don't think we're that hard.  Really.

When I said to my friend that there are really only three rules you need to follow, she laughed.  Then I told her what they were and she said "Heh.  You're kinda right you know".  I know :).  So, read on...!

Crossing the bridge

Today is Easter Sunday.  Today we celebrate the true meaning of Christ's work for us on the cross...that He not only died for us, but that He was raised to life again for us.

Like many Christians around the nation and around the world, I spent a few hours this morning in a community of faith, worshipping my Savior and giving thanks and praise to Him.  It was also, for me, an opportunity to reflect on what Easter means to me as a Christian, and I'd like to share that with you.

How blessed we are by tantrums

Yes, you read me right.  How blessed we are by tantrums.  You see, I got to thinking the other day, about the walls and barriers we build up around ourselves...and that others put up to keep us out.

My own recent experience with the perils of shutting people out reminded me the immense value in both the intensely scary act of letting someone in...and the simple but invaluable act of being an available, accepting and loving support to those who give us this trust.