Saturday, August 27, 2011

A Little Glass Work

Today I spent my day working on a new glass mosaic. This is what it looks like from my eyes.



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Friday, August 26, 2011

Joplin: A community with a need

About 2 months ago, my mom and I made a trip down to Joplin to assist in cleanup from the tornado on May 22, 2011. The devastation was greater than anything I could even have conceived. However, the Lord is definitely at work in that community. The church we worked with, Grace Baptist Church, was definitely getting things done. They were very organized and really had a successful system of getting things done/finding new things that needed to be done. They are such a great blessing to their neighborhoods. There are also other churches in the area that are doing great work as well! If you haven't already, I would definitely recommend a trip over there. We only served for half a day as we were passing through and it was totally worth the experience!!

here are a few images from that trip:




























Please continue to pray that the Lord will bless and provide for the families that have lost their homes.
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Thursday, August 25, 2011

La Dolche Vita

As you can see I have recently changed the layout of my blog site. For a while I've wanted something really simple but could never really find what I was looking for. Then I realized that I would have to create it. So after spending about 6 hours last night I finally found a way to make my blog more me.

I want to tell you a little more about my new title "La Dolche Vita." La Dolche Vita is "The Good(sweet) Life" in Italian. This important to me for several reason so I wanted to break it down. :)

First, the Italian part. I have had a passion for Italy for as long as I can remember. I have always wanted to go there, I have been fascinated by the people and the way of life, and intrigued by the simple beauty. They have a phrase, that many of you may have heard, but it is "L’arte di non fare niente" or "The art of doing nothing." In a society where staying busy is people's number one goal and where ADD is prescribed like it's nothing, this has really interested me. The fact that people are content with doing nothing and taking the time to just enjoy life. That sounds like life to me.

La Dolche Vita, the good life, that is what I aim for.  Not just going throughout the day just to get by, but really enjoying every minute of it.  Not just wasting time, but using time to it's fullest, even if that is simply doing nothing. I want to experience all the beauty this world has to offer. I want to travel, I want to meet people, I want to sit and listen to nature, and I want to see the world through simple and peaceful eyes.

That is my goal.

This will be a place where I share those adventures, those experiences.  And where I share my story with those I meet along the way.

so hopefully there will be a little change in the future, but a good one of course :)

Vivere la Dolche Vita, Live the Good Life.
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Wednesday, August 24, 2011

My very first couponing Money-Maker!!


So today I went couponing at Walgreens and actually MADE MONEY from one of the transactions!! It was pretty exciting because it was my first time couponing on my own, so i was a little nervous going into it. However, it ended up being very successful and I wanted to share it with all of you :)

So here is what I bought today:



By mixing manufacturer's coupons with store coupons as well as coupons with store promotions I was able to make out with some great deals! Altogether today I paid $6.71!!! for all the stuff above! Here's how I did it!

I broke everything into 3 purchases so I could use the coupons most effectively.

TRANSACTION #1: Colgate toothpaste
In the walgreen add it showed that if you buy this toothpaste for $4.99 you will get $4 in register rewards (money to use at walgreens). So it's like you paid only $0.99. However, I had a coupon for $1.50 off that same toothpaste! So:

Original Price: $5.49
Sale Price: $4.99
- $1.50 with the coupon
Price I paid: $3.14

THEN: $4 register rewards
Ultimate Price: -$0.86

I MADE $0.86 just by purchasing toothpaste!


TRANSACTION #2: Dial Body Wash
In the same add it showed Dial body wash on sale for $3.99 and you will get $3 in register rewards. I also had a coupon for $1 off 2 of those soaps.

Original Price: around $5.00
Sale Price: $3.99
-$1.00 off 2
-$4.00 register rewards from prior purchase
Price I paid: $ 3.47

THEN: $3 register rewards
Ultimate Price: $0.47 for 2


TRANSACTION #3: Dawn, baking soda, salt
Since I had those $3 register rewards I wanted to use from the previous purchase I chose to get items around that price: Here is what I got:

Dawn:
Original Price: $1.99
Store Coupon Price: $0.99 (in Sunday's Walgreen's ad)
-$0.50 manufacturer's coupon
FINAL PRICE: $0.49

Baking Soda:
Original Price: 2/$2.00
Store Coupon Price: 2/$1.00 (Sunday's ad)
FINAL PRICE: $0.50 ea.

Salt:
Original Price: 2/$2.00
Store Coupon Price: 2/$1.00 (Sunday's ad)
FINAL PRICE: $0.50 ea.

SO:
$0.49 dawn
$1 baking Soda
$1 salt
Total: $2.49
- $3 register rewards

FINAL PRICE: $0.00

I would have to say that today was really successful! and now I don't need to buy body wash, baking soda, OR salt for a little while!! can't wait to see what my next great purchase is.

What kind of couponing deals have you gotten?

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

I'm finally home.

It's so amazing to finally have a chance to feel "at home" in my new place! I have spent so much time cleaning and i would say i'm only partially the way there! BUT things are getting more and more like home!! So I wanted to share my new home with all of you. Enjoy! (so sorry some of them are turned the wrong way, i couldn't figure out how to rotate them)





























I absolutely love it! :)

Also, today i have been scrubbing the grout in between the tiles in the kitchen with bleach water. Here is the difference:


Before

After

It has made such a difference!! I love how much nicer it all works!

Erica

Sunday, August 14, 2011

I'm in Texas!


Hey everyone! I am finally here and settled! I absolutely love my new home! It is absolutely beautiful and my family completely blessed me by helping me unpack nearly everything! They helped it truly become a home! I will be posting pictures within the next few days :)

So this week I dealt with confusion, frustration, and exhaustion. However, I also got the chance to feel blessed, content, and true joy. It was an amazing week and i wouldn't have traded anything that happened!

On Monday morning, we packed up the moving truck! My dad had two guys come over and that was such a help! I don't know what we would have done without them! Everything was so heavy! haha However, the sky was amazing!









A few weeks ago, my mom met a woman at an event she was speaking at and she gave her the name of a woman here in Killeen who I needed to connect with. Her name is Elizabeth May, and she and her husband, Chris, are working to become the new leaders of the Hospitality House here in Killeen, TX . The Hospitality House is a place that is made to bless the people of the military. Right now they have dinner and bible studies every Friday night and they open up their home to soldiers on the weekends so that they can get out of the barracks and into a positive environment. Check out the hospitality house here: http://www.soldiershospitalityhouse.org/

I got into contact with Elizabeth before I came down here simply to hear about her organization and then I asked her if she knew any guys who could help us move a piano (We only had my dad and 2 brothers). She ended up sending 7 people!! They had a youth group from Kansas working with them for the week on a missions trip. They showed up at my house and had the ENTIRE moving truck emptied in about 20minutes!!! It was incredible! THEN, if that wasn't enough, she sent over homemade dinner for us so that we didn't have to cook! Overall, the Lord was definitely there to bless us that day!

On Friday, my family and I went down to Austin in the afternoon for a fun day in the city. We went to the history museum there, and then we went to the Congress Avenue Bridge and watched 1.5 MILLION bats wake up and fly out of under the bridge! It was one of the coolest things I have seen in a long time! If you haven't been there to experience that, next time you're in the Austin, TX area, stay in the city until about 730 and go over to the bridge. They will fly right before the sun sets!












Overall, we had an amazing week! I can't wait to continue to get settled in and then have Kendall come home!! It's all coming up so quickly! But God has been blessing us, and we are so thankful for that!! :)

Erica
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