Life Blessons

Crafts, Cooking from Scratch & Getting Outdoors: An Update on My 27 Goals for this Year

When I turned 27, back in April, I made a list of goals to accomplish this year: 27 things to do while I'm 27. Since then, I've been keeping track of my progress of the items featured on that list. Some of them are easy, some are meant to help me spread my wings in this new-ish city of mine, some are nigh-on impossible that I'll be chasing after for years to come. But they're all worthy goals to guide this glorious year of 27.

Here's a look back at how I did on whittling down this list during the months of September and October:

Goal #3: Continue trying new recipes and learning to make things from scratch.
This one is a definite success! Over the past couple of months I have attempted to make, among other things, my own bread, pita, hummus, bagels, pizza dough, tortillas, bread sticks, hamburger buns, chicken pot pie, corn dogs, fudgecicles, chicken stock, tomato soup, ranch dressing, granola bars, carrot-cake cupcakes (from Michael's birthday!) and of course even my shampoo from scratch.

There are still quite a few items on my to-make-from-scratch list (including sloppy joe sauce, salsa, ravioli, salad dressing, and cheesy broccoli soup), but I'm quite pleased with the progress I've made so far! It's started to become natural for me to attempt to make things from scratch myself, rather than just pick up a can or box at the grocery store.

Goal #13: Undertake a new craft.
Another success story! First I made the artwork for our living room wall. Then I started watercolor painting. Then, I crafted a travel map to showcase all the different places Michael and I have traveled together. Then, I kicked off a monthly craft night with some girlfriends that inspired me to fix up a variety of clothing items from my closet. This has turned out to be quite a crafty year...And I've still got more projects in-waiting!

Goal #27: Go to a ballgame or other outdoorsy event this summer.
Well, kinda. Even though we live in the home of the Braves, I have yet to make it to any Atlanta-area sports game. Which doesn't really bother me; I don't care for the sports experience itself, but more for trying something new. And when you look at this goal that way, there have definitely been "outdoorsy events" that fall into the "trying something new" category.

For example:
• We've attended two local bird-watching excursion that gets us up early in the morning to explore a nearby park and its avian inhabitants.
• We've gone hiking with my in-laws at Kennesaw Mountain.
• The park near our house hosts concerts every week, and we gather with friends to sit on a hillside and listen to the music while winding down from the weekend or playing a game of bocce ball while the sun sets.

So headway is being made on my list of 27 Things To Do While I'm 27. I'm now over the halfway point, with just five more months to go!

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Upcoming Review of Immersion Blender from CSN Stores

Last winter, I was able to offer a giveaway on Life Blessons for CSN Stores. Now, in the coming weeks, I'll be working with CSN Stores again, this time providing a product review from one of their 200+ stores. Whatever you're looking for, they're apt to have a store catering to that, with niche-specific shops for everything, including even one dedicated to finding a new dining room table.

When I was notified of the opportunity to review an item from any of their stores, I went straight to the CSN shop dedicated to household appliances, where I found the Cuisinart Smart Stick Hand Blender that I'll be reviewing. I've never owned an immersion blender, but I'm looking forward to taking this one for a test-run. Especially as winter creeps in and soups promise to crop up on my menus, I think this will be a great tool to have handy. Plus, Michael is always whipping up smoothies, so I'll be curious to what he thinks of this immersion blender, too.

Look for this review in the coming weeks, and in the meantime, take a moment to check out all the variety that CSN Stores has to offer!

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Ask Me Anything! Submit Your Questions

UPDATE: I've started responding to some of your questions in a new Q&A series. If you'd like to keep up with the latest of the Q&As I've posted, click here.

One of the things I like best about blogging is the back-and-forth that happens between me and those who read this little blog of mine. Occasionally I've received a few comments and emails asking more about a specific topic I've blogged on, my experience regarding different situations, or blogging advice.

Normally, I just write back directly, answering these questions as best I can. But I thought that perhaps more people could benefit from the questions asked and my attempts to answer them.

So I wanted to officially invite any questions you might have—whether it's follow-up regarding anything I've written about in the past, situations or advice, or your general blogging questions. Then, in the coming weeks, I'll start to answer them in regular blog posts.

Feel free to ask your questions anonymously if you like; there's an option in the comments below to post anonymously or you can privately send me a question anonymously via my email form (just type "anonymous" and "anonymous@anonymous.com" into the name and email fields). If you'd like your name/blog associated with your questions, that's fine, too! Just let me know and I'll happily include that attribution.

I'm looking forward to the questions you all have up your sleeves and appreciate you taking the time to send them my way!

Click here to view the latest questions readers have asked me, and my responses.

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Lessons from Nehemiah: More Than a Man Who Rebuilt a Wall

I recently finished reading my way through the book of Nehemiah in my daily Bible reading plan.

It was the first time I'd read Nehemiah's full story, beyond just rebuilding the wall but also rebuilding the people of Israel back into a God-glorifying nation. He saw the need of his people, left a life of luxury and prestige, and took up the hard task to restore his people.

As I've been reading through the Bible, I've noticed how few real "heroes" there are, despite the conventional ones we look to. Abraham was a liar. David was an adulterer. Noah got drunk and angry. Yet these are the heroes we hold up, being the first Jew, a man after God's own heart, the only righteous person on earth.

But when I read Nehemiah's story, it's almost refreshing to read a story of someone who really was able to live out their faith in a God-honoring way. It offers a glimpse that this way of life we're racing after is possible, by the grace of God.

I was also struck by his faith and the way he continually turned to God throughout the book: Throughout his story it tells how he continually prayed to God for strength and wisdom and blessing when he was about to embark on a difficult or life-threatening task. Later he tells of how "my God gave me the idea" to register all the people of Israel, making it obvious of how in tune he was with his God and able to recognize his voice. And when they find the Book of Law of Moses and everyone weeps because they realize all the evil they've been committing unknowingly, he tells them to stop crying and start celebrating, because he recognized that it is a day of joy when the Law has been rediscovered and reestablished.

And so, in this man who isn't one of the usual Sunday School superstars or Bible "heroes" everyone names their children after, I found a new appreciation and example to be commended.

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Call for Guest Bloggers: Share Your Testimonies

I believe in the power of testimony.

When we share our testimony—putting to words the things that God hath done—it increases our faith. Both for the one sharing, who is reminded of how God has moved in their life, and for those listening, who are encouraged from this story to trust that God indeed hears our prayers and is at work today. These stories help us all as we look to the great unknown of the future and trust that the God who was—who touched and mended and saved lives yesterday—is the same God who is today and who is to come tomorrow. We can trust him with all that is yet to be.

But even more than that, sharing our testimonies gives God the glory, glory. We praise him when we recall these stories of deliverance and provision and perfect timing. It says in Revelation 12:11 that Satan is overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. Something spiritual happens when we share these stories with one another.

Which is why I'd love to open this little spot up to you and invite you to share your stories, as a guest blogger for Life Blessons. It doesn't have to be the typical "testimony" about how you became a Christian, but just specific times in your life that God has really made his presence known to you or how you've learned more about him through a specific experience. Stories about how God has encouraged you that you can then pass on to encourage us. (Want some personal examples from my life? Here's my story about God guiding to my move to Grand Rapids and some of our answered prayers.)

If you're interested in submitting a testimony or two from your own walk with Christ, please email me at lifeblessons [at] gmail.com. Include your story as well as a little bit about what you learned through this experience. Feel free to pull from old blog posts or journal entries. (Try to keep it between 400 and 700 words, please). Also, if you have a blog, I'm happy to link back, so make sure you also include that information, too.

I'm looking forward to reading your testimonies and making this blog a place where we can all grow from one another's experiences!

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Shopping My Closet for Crafts

I mentioned awhile ago that I would share some of the crafts I've been working on to update some pieces I no longer wear from my closet. Most of the changes are very minor, but have helped give each piece the extra dose of personality it needed.

I still have a couple more fashion-related projects on my craft to-do list, but for now, here's some of the progress I've made with four recent crafts from my closet: