Progress?

A few weeks ago, I started the Knit & Crochet for Romania project. So far, we have 12 participants and I’ve been delighted to see my Blogger friends join me to help provide warm clothing for the the children living in a Christian orphanage in Romania.

My sisters, Sara & Leah, are also participating and together we’ve finished 11 hats. It’s been a blessing to be able to use our talents and love for knitting and crocheting to help these children in need.

If you’re participating as well, please leave a comment and let me know how you’re doing. Our goal is to make 100 hats {one for each child} and I need to know how much progress we’ve made towards that goal.

If you haven’t joined yet, you still have time to help! Please click here to read the guidelines and leave a comment on that post to sign up. If you join, your name and blog will be added to the list of participants in my sidebar!

If you’re already participating, I’m looking forward to hearing about your progress! And, of course I’d be delighted to have more participants too!

Blessings!

 

A New Skirt!

A few weeks ago, Mom purchased this lovely autumn fabric for me. I was so delighted to work with this fabric! Mom and I agreed it would make a beautiful six-panel skirt. I think it turned out beautiful –especially since this is my first paneled skirt!

 

  What have you been working on? Any special projects? Please share a little bit about your projects in a comment below! I hope everyone had wonderful week! May y’all have a blessed weekend!

 

What Happened To My Wisdom Teeth…

It’s been almost 3 weeks since I got all four of my wisdom teeth pulled. And since it’s a common surgery for teens around my age, I thought to write about what happened when I went in to the hospital. Hopefully it’ll help anyone who has to get their wisdom teeth pulled too!

When I was first told that I had to get all four of my wisdom teeth pulled, I was quite scared at the thought of being put under general anesthesia. It would be the first time I was to have surgery in my life! Everyone I talked to assured me that it’ll be easy and that there wasn’t anything to worry about. Of course, since I hadn’t gone through it myself it was hard for me to believe them!

I was not to eat or drink anything after midnight the day before my surgery so I was happy when my appointment was set for 7am. At least I wouldn’t have to fast for the whole morning before my surgery!

Of course, Mom came with me to the hospital and when we arrived we waited in a small waiting room for a few minutes. Soon a nurse called me into a small room. First, she weighed me and confirmed what kind of surgery I was there to have. She asked me if I had any allergies, and then put an I.D. bracelet around my hand.

Next, we were sent to another room and I was handed a bag to put all my clothes in and given a gown to change in to. They also gave me a cap to put on my head and "booties" for my feet. When I was finished changing, another nurse came in and took my temperature and my blood pressure. Mom and I chatted for a few minutes and even took a few pictures of me with her cell phone. :-)

Soon someone from the O.R. came through to take me in to the surgical ward. He was pleasant but I had to say goodbye to my Mom at that point. And even though I felt fine up until then, I was very scared as well and I started to cry. But the nurses there were so nice! They told me I'd be okay and promised that to take good care of me.

After I said goodbye to Mom, I was wheeled in a bed to what they said was the "induction room". There I met with the anesthesiologist who asked me when was the last time I had food/drink, if I had any allergies/diseases, and then he listened to my heart and felt for my pulse. I was still crying at this point, but he was very good at answering all my questions and made me feel safe. I also had a chance to talk with the surgeon again and he answered any more questions that I had and promised to do a good job. Before long, I felt much better and actually felt pretty calm. I know God was helping me and giving me courage to go through it!

Soon, they wheeled me into the O.R. which was right next to the induction room. There are quite a few people in there but they were all pleasant and introduced themselves. One nurse did most of the pre-op work on me and chatted with me the whole time to keep me happy. :-) She put a blood pressure cuff on my hand, then put sticky pads on my chest for the heart monitor. When she was finished with that, the anesthesiologist put the I.V. in. This was my very first time getting an I.V. But he did a good job and got it done quickly. The nurse distracted me by chatting about my weekend while he actually put the needle in. It only hurt for 2 or 3 seconds, and then it was fine. It wasn’t much to be afraid of, really!

Once the I.V. was in the anesthesiologist started putting in several medications. The nurse put a small mask over my mouth and nose that had oxygen in it for me to breathe. Then the anesthesiologist told me he's going to put in the the stuff to make me go sleep. I watched him put it all in to the I.V. line and then I don't remember anything else. I don't remember "falling" asleep or even feeling sleepy. I was awake one second, and sleeping the next. The very next thing I remember is waking up in the recovery room.

My mouth was numbed up and a nurse called my name many times to make sure I was conscious and then let me sleep off the anesthesia for an hour or so. Next they removed all the sticky pads and the I.V. line. Then I was wheeled back to where I started. My Mom was waiting there for me. I slept there for another hour or so before I got dressed again. The nurse got a wheelchair and took me down to the parking lot.

Looking back, the surgery wasn't as scary as I thought it would be. But recovery is definitely harder than the surgery itself. I was prescribed 3 different medications; two for pain and one was an antibiotic. One of the pills made me feel dizzy constantly but at least I didn’t have much pain. On the first day, I spent the afternoon sleeping off all the anesthesia. Then Mom made me a delicious smoothie for supper. The next few days were a blur and I spent most of my time just resting and eating smoothies. By the time a week was up, I felt ready to go to the pool with some friends. This was a mistake though, as my mouth felt really sore afterwards! But the surgeon’s office told me to just rest and take my medications as directed.

It’s now been almost three weeks since I got my wisdom teeth taken out. I feel almost 100% back to normal. Praise God! I’m still taking Tylenol because my mouth is sore when I eat but the dizziness is gone away and I can do a lot more around the house.

I'm so glad the wisdom teeth surgery is behind me! I'll never have to get my wisdom teeth pulled again. Woohoo!!! And even though I'm still nervous about seeing an oral surgeon, I'm happy I was able to go through with it! God gave me special strength and courage to endure this trial and I’m so grateful to Him!

I mentioned before the surgery that the surgeon was planning to put in a small orthodontic screw at the same time he pulled my wisdom teeth. Unfortunately, the surgeon was unable to put it in because he said the area wasn’t strong enough to hold it. Now I have to wait another six weeks for everything to heal before I can get the screw put in and continue with my braces. But next time it’ll be a simple procedure done in his office!

I hope that sharing my story has helped y’all feel better about it. And if you have to get the same thing done, don't worry…it'll be over before you know it!

Summer With A Purpose: Week Ten

Oh, just where has summer gone so fast??? It’s hard to believe that we’ve past the halfway mark of August and summer is almost over. It seems like just yesterday I was welcoming summer with open arms, looking forward to fun times at the beach and enjoying ice cream and watermelon!

But after more than three months of hot temperatures and not-so-fun humidity, I’m actually looking forward to autumn. I’m excited when I think about what I’ll be able to do once the weather begins to cool down… Gardening, cycling, bird watching, and more outdoor photography. Ahh, I can’t wait for those crispy, cool mornings and refreshing evenings!

This post ends the Summer With A Purpose challenge. Emily at My Life Belongs to Him started this in June when she noticed that most of us tend to be less productive in the summer months and wanted to encourage herself and others to do more this time of year. Of course, I loved the idea and decided to join! I can’t say how much this challenge has been a blessing to me. I met so many goals and accomplished a lot this summer and I’m sad to say goodbye to these fun Friday posts. :-(

So for the last SWAP post, here’s a review of what we did this week…

Somehow, we managed to catch the cold. Leah got it first over the weekend and it’s been going from one person to another in our family. So the past few days, I spent a lot of time resting and just trying to get better. I’m feeling pretty good today, thank God!

While resting, I made progress on the friendship afghan squares. Now I’ve completed four squares. I know…I’ve been slow in getting them done but I’m confident that I’ll meet the mid-October deadline. :-) I just love the detail in the pattern I used for this square. It’s called Gulls & Garter.

I’m happy to say that we have 10 participants in the “Knit & Crochet for Romania” project! I already have 5 hats ready to be donated and my sisters Sara and Leah are joining me as well. Sara’s made a couple of hats, and Leah’s working on her second one. It’s been so much fun using our talents to bless others! If you haven’t joined yet, please click here to find out how you can participate. I know you’ll be richly blessed by helping others!

While recuperating from the cold, we’ve been enjoyed working on a jigsaw puzzle. {Any other jigsaw puzzle lovers out there?!} This one was given to us by a lovely friend of ours, and it’s been so much fun trying to piece it all together! I think Leah and Jude are really good at doing puzzles. They’re always finding good fits. :-)

Last month, Sara and I participated in an apron swap hosted by Desiree. Each of us sewed an apron and mailed it to another participant, and my apron just arrived in the mail earlier this week! It’s a beautiful half apron. Allison did a great job! It’s so adorable…and she did a beautiful job packaging it as well!

I was also delighted to receive my order of billion dollar tracts in the mail. They were on sale last weekend at Living Water’s online store and we decided to purchase them. They’re great to give out and they have a good Gospel message on the back. I’ve already given them to a few people I know and they were happy to receive them!

Well, I really hope all of you had a good, productive summer! I’m so thankful to God that He blessed me with a wonderful summer. I met most of my goals and I feel really good about that. ;-) And even though I’m sad to see the summer go, I’m looking forward to the more comfortable temperatures that autumn promises to bring!

I would also like to take the opportunity to thank everyone who leaves lovely comments on my posts! They really do make blogging worthwhile. :-) I’ve begun to reply to all comments, so if you asked a question in a comment please revisit that blog post…there should be a reply waiting there for you!

Hope y’all have a blessed weekend!

A Few Giveaways!

Okay, so if you’ve been following my blog for a while, you’ve probably noticed that I don’t blog about giveaways very often. Actually, this is my first post about friends’ giveaways. :-)
When I started my blog almost a year ago, I decided not to feature giveaways on my blog because I started this blog as a journal and I felt that random giveaways may somehow detract from the ‘journal-y’ feel that I created my blog to have.
But after some thought, I’ve decided to feature giveaways now and then…and I may just set up a separate page for them so they don’t become distracting.
With that said, I’d like to let y’all know about a few giveaways being hosted by a few friends of mine right now!
My friend Lindsay at Content in Christ is hosting a giveaway to celebrate the opening of her Etsy shop. She’ll be giving away a handbag of the winner’s choice! So please click here and enter. It ends tonight!
Leah, another friend of mine, at The Narrow Path is also hosting a giveaway. She’s celebrating one year of blogging. {Congratulations, Leah!}. She’s giving away the book “Preparing to Be a Helpmeet” by Debi Pearl. I haven’t read the book myself but I’ve heard it’s really good. Her giveaway ends on September 1st; click here to enter!

An Old-Fashioned Girl is one of my favorite blogs to read. And Johanna is hosting a giveaway to celebrate her 200th blog post! She’s giving away several great prizes {including a lovely pattern & fabric} so be sure you check it out!

And don’t forget about my giveaway! I’m sewing an apron for the person who refers the most participants to the knit & crochet-along project for Romania! So spread the word and you may win a custom-made apron! :-)
I hope everyone’s having a lovely day!

A Little Bit About Bermuda

On the reader survey I posted a couple of weeks ago, many of you mentioned  you’d like to know more about what it’s like to live in Bermuda. And since I haven’t really introduced you to my island home, I thought I should write an post about Bermuda!

Okay, so first the basics… Bermuda is an island in the Atlantic Ocean located about 600 miles off North Carolina’s coast. It is just 21 miles long and a mere one mile wide so we’re never more than a short walk away from the beach! Our climate is sub-tropical which keeps the temperature here mild year-round. We don’t have any rivers, lakes, or streams so we rely on rainfall for our fresh water. Our island is the top of an undersea mountain, complete with three extinct volcanoes!

But I have to admit that life here is not very  different from life in any another Western country. We work, play, and go to school (or home school!) like most people do elsewhere. But I think what makes life here unique is the fact that the country we call home is so tiny! We only have one official city (the capital, Hamilton), one town, and two villages!And because the island is small, the roads are small too. Each family is allowed just one car so motorbikes are a popular alternative. Even with these strict vehicle regulations, the rush hour traffic into our capital city is no fun!

Because we’re surrounded by water, almost everything has to imported. Food, clothes, toys, vehicles, gasoline…you name it, it has to be imported! This makes the cost of living rather expensive. Here in Bermuda you can expect to pay up to double the U.S. price for basics like food, gas, and even clothing. We pay close to $4 for a loaf of bread and apples are usually a dollar each!  And with limited residential space, real estate and housing gets pricy too! The average family home sells for more than a million U.S. dollars; and renting prices are steep too.

But in my opinion, it’s all worth it. Living in Bermuda, I always look forward to waking up in the morning to fresh ocean breezes, or taking that short 2 minute walk to the beach. My family and I have fun walking along the railway trail and watching the sea gulls, and love taking evening strolls down to the pier to feed the colorful fish. Bermuda is where I was born –it’s where my father was born. It’s beautiful place to grow up and live in and I feel privileged to be here! Yes, I’m truly blessed!

What do you like most about living in your country? What makes your neighborhood special? I want to hear your thoughts in a comment below!

I hope everyone’s having a blessed week!

Easy Craft Patterns

My dear Mom and I learned how to knit together when I was 9 years old. We found a “learn-to-knit” kit one day while browsing through a craft shop. Mom had been wanting to learn how to knit for quite a while herself so we had a lot of fun learning how to knit together. But it was also challenging at times, and Mom had to persuade me more than once to keep working at it. Once I learned though, I couldn’t stop! Since then, I’ve always had a knitting project or two in progress. :-)

A few years after learning how to knit, I picked up a learn-to-crochet book with special instructions for lefties! (Yes, I’m left-handed!). Learning to crochet proved a bit more difficult for me. Several times I put the book away, and then picked up again once I was ready to try once more. But eventually I got the hang of it, and have been “hooked” ever since. :-)

I’m glad that I’ve had the opportunity to learn how to do both crafts. And recently I noticed that many of my Blogger friends have just begun to learn how to knit or crochet. As a beginner I remember searching for easy patterns –small projects that I could start and finish without having to look at the how-to book! So for all my beginner friends out there, I’ve done a bit of searching for you. I must admit first that I’m a bit biased when it comes to pattern websites. In my humble opinion, Lion Brand is the best website for free knitting and crocheting patterns. And here is just a sample of the many great patterns I think beginners would enjoy:

Crochet: Einstein Hat

Skill Level: Easy+

What’ll You Need: 1 ball of Homespun Yarn and a size N13 crochet hook

This hat is great for a beginning crocheter. You don’t need to do any increases or decreases. Just crochet a rectangle and sew it up!

~~~

Knit: Simple Garter Hat

Skill Level: Beginner

What You’ll Need: 1 ball of Fisherman’s Wool Yarn and size 9 (5.5mm) needles

Similar to the crochet pattern above, you only need to know the knit stitch to make this adorable hat. Simply follow the directions to knit a rectangle and sew up the sides!

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Crochet: Block Scarf

Skill Level: Beginner

What You’ll Need: 2 balls of Vanna’s Choice Yarn and a size J-10 crochet hook

Surely you could make this one! Just crochet 6 squares on one color and 5 of the second color. Then sew each square together! Voila –a new scarf!

 

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Knit: Smokey Ridge Scarf

Skill Level:  Beginner

What You’ll Need: 4 balls of Vanna’s Choice yarn and size 9 (13mm) needles

This knitted scarf pattern is also great for beginners! And it works up quickly because you use 2 strands of yarn instead of 1! Just follow the directions to cast on and knit until it reaches your desired length!

~~~

Next week, I’ll feature a few easy patterns you might find handy of you want to make baby throws and kitchen items!

Have questions about the patterns shared here? Just drop me a line here and I’ll try to lend you a helping hand. :-)

Have fun and happy crafting!

 

**In my next post, I’ll be introducing you to Bermuda –the island where I live.**

Summer With A Purpose: Week Nine

Another week, and another SWAP post! Summer has been flying by oh-so-fast! I’m happy that I’ve been able to make these hot summer months, productive too!

This morning I looked at the list of summer goals I set three weeks ago. And I was encouraged to see that I have been making progress! This week I spent a lot of time resting, as per the doctor’s orders. If I do too much activity, my mouth gets sore again so I have to relax a lot…definitely easier said than done for such an active person like me! ;-)

Here’s how I’ve been making progress with each goal:

{1} I decided to organize a knit & crochet-along for a Christian orphanage in Romania. So far I have five participants (including my sister and I!). Hopefully more people will sign up so we can meet our goal and be able to bless these children with warm clothing for the winter. I have four knitted hats completed and ready to be shipped out to the orphanage and Sara might make some scarves to match!

{2} Sorry to admit it but, I haven’t made much headway with the friendship afghan. I haven’t been in the “crocheting” mood lately, if you know what I mean! I’m still trying to slowly ease myself back into a “normal routine” after my surgery two weeks ago. But I’m sure I’ll be knitting and crocheting before long! I’m organizing my yarn today so I can see which yarns would make great squares and maybe find some cool patterns too!

{3} One thing I’ve been doing this week is practicing piano. Playing piano is always fun for me and I’ve been working on some challenging songs this week. This morning, Sara took this video of me playing and singing one of my favorite worship songs, Here I Am To Worship:

{4} I didn’t do much sewing this week. But I did make a new skirt  just a couple of weeks ago and I’m planning my next project –a new handbag! So look out for details and pictures sometime next week!

{5} When I set my new goals three weeks ago, I decided to read at least three more books before the end of summer. Since then, I finished reading both Ships of Mercy and In the Presence of My Enemies. Now I’m reading through Shadow of the Almighty. by Elisabeth Elliot. The book is a biography about her husband, Jim Elliot who was killed as he and 4 other missionaries tried to make contact with a remote South American tribe. He’s life is truly inspiring and I’ve enjoyed reading through it! 

I’ve also been studying the GED test prep book…the work hasn’t been difficult –it’s  just lots of review so I’ve been doing it while resting. 

Even though it seems like I didn’t do much this week, I’ve been making progress toward my goals. I can’t believe there’s just one more week of SWAP! It’s been so much fun being productive this summer and actually get things done!

Did you set some goals for this summer? How are you making progress?

Praying that all of you have a blessed weekend!

A New Look and a Giveaway!

So what do y’all think of the new design? I decided it was time to change things up a bit and spent awhile playing with Blogger’s new template designer. I found the background photo online and then made the header using GIMP. I wanted something simple, yet pretty –I think this design has both qualities. And the new font makes it look a bit casual. :-)

I’d also like to remind all of you that I’m hosting a giveaway which ends on the 31st of this month. To enter, read about my latest knit & crochet along for Romania. Then tell all your friends about it! Whoever refers the most participants to my blog will win a free handmade apron!

Tomorrow, I’ll be writing my weekly SWAP post…complete with pictures! So  don’t worry some photos are one the way. :-) Hope everyone’s having a blessed day!

Survey Results!

While on a short blogging break last week, I set up a short survey for y’all to take. I was pleasantly surprised to get thirty responses! To all of you who did the survey, I’d like to say “thank you!”. It was great to hear back from you –and I will be making changes to my blog based on what you all suggested in the survey.

Most of you said you enjoy reading about my daily life and would like to see more photos on my blog. Now that I’m feeling much better and have been recovering well from my surgery, I’m hoping to use the camera more and write about my life in Bermuda more often! Among the thirty replies from my survey, the average rating (on a scale of 1 to 10) for my blog was 8.6! And everyone agreed that my blog is easy to read and navigate!

And although many of you said my blog looks great as it is, several of you offered design suggestions and tips that I’ll be implementing over the next week or so. I think my blog is ready for a new design, so if things look a little odd or out of place…that’s just because I’m making changes! 

The overall opinion about my blog is positive and I’m happy that, by God’s grace, I’ve made a blog that my readers enjoy.

Hope everyone has a blessed Wednesday!

P.S. I’m using Windows Live Writer(a free program on my new laptop) to write and edit this post. What do y’all think of the new font?

This is just a test…

Today, I’m trying out Windows Live Writer…a blogging program that came with my new laptop. :-) Even though I’m not a big fan of the Windows Live software(just personal preference!), my friend Frannie mentioned it to me, after I asked about the adorable font on her blog.

Perhaps, I can find a font I love here too! And then who knows, perhaps I’ll just use Windows Live Writer to type my posts instead. :-)

Blessings!

Font used: Eras Light ITC, size 8, regular

Happy Birthday, Sara!

Fourteen years ago today, I was joined by my little sister Sara. Since then, we've been the best of friends. Sara's such a lovely little sister. :-) And even though we don't always share the same hobbies, we do so much together and have lots of fun. My sister Sara will always be my best friend!

Happy 14th Birthday, little sister!

 Sara just started her blog a few weeks ago. You can visit her blog here: Live, Love, Laugh.

My sister and I: I'm 6yrs. old and in red | Sara's 4 yrs old and in yellow

S incere

A ppreciative

R esourceful

A nimated

"Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." 

3 John 1:2

Knit and Crochet-Along for Romania

Lately, God has been putting it on my heart to use the talents that He's blessed me with for the benefit of others. A few weeks ago I was reading through Scripture and came across this verse:

 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good until all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. ~Galatians 6:10

Last month while in the craft shop with my Dad picking up some yarn, he had a thought. Why don't we purchase some extra yarn to knit and crochet hats for the orphans in Botosani, Romania? Our family has known the Hand of Help orphanage for several years and have been amazed at the work that God has been doing through their ministry. Hand of Help is a nondenominational, Christian organization that is dedicated to " providing spiritual and physical aid to the forsaken of society throughout Eastern Europe". Their orphanage, located in northeast Romania, cares for nearly 100 children and each of them receive the individual care and attention that every child needs. Several years ago when my sister and I were practicing our knitting skills, we made several hat and scarf sets for the orphanage. They appreciated the clothing so much and it made my sister and I feel happy that we had an opportunity to use our God-given talents to be a blessing to others.

So now that I have improved my knitting skills and have learned to crochet, I quickly agreed with Dad and thought this would be the perfect project for my blog's next knit & crochet along project!

Since the friendship afghans project is still ongoing, I didn't plan to start this month. But after discussing my plans with Hand of Help, I learned that their winter container leaves the US in October and I realized that we need to start soon if the hats are to arrive at the orphanage in time for the winter. This knit & crochet along is great for both beginners and pros because you can choose what you would like to make (a hat or scarf), and use any yarn you like. Here are the guidelines, please read them carefully:

{1}  There are almost 100 children in the orphanage and the goal is to make a warm winter hat for each child in the orphanage.You can make hat and scarf sets or just hats.

{2} The children's ages range from 0-18 so the hats and scarfs can be any size and any color. Please remember that it gets quite cold during Romania's winter so the hats shouldn't be lacy or thin. You can use any needle or crochet hook you prefer and all yarns are accepted.

{3} If you finish the hats and scarfs on or before October 15, please mail them to this address:

Hand of Help - Shipping

1012 South 3rd. St.

Watertown, Wisconsin 53094

U.S.A.

Hats and scarves received before the end of October will be placed in the ministry's container and shipped from there to Romania. If you miss the container deadline, you'll have to send the hats and scarves directly to the Romanian orphanage or wait for another container to leave the ministry early next year. You can find the address for the orphanage here.

{4} And if you've read through this looooong post, you can enter my giveaway! Yes, you read correctly. I'm hosting my second giveaway! (You never know where you'll find a giveaway, do you!?!) It's important to spread the word about this knit and crochet-along so we can meet our goal of 100 hats for the orphans of Romania. To encourage you to tell all you friends about it, there will be a free apron (hand-made by me) for the person who refers the most participants! To enter the giveaway, let your friends know about the knit & crochet-along, ask them to join and let me know who referred them. You can write a blog post, mention it on Facebook, and even tweet about it. And to make it even easier for you to refer your friends here, I've made a blog button! 

To grab this code for your blog, copy
the code in my right sidebar!

At the end of this month, I'll announce the winner of the giveaway who will receive a free, custom-made apron! So get started and spread the word! 

If you want join us, please leave a comment below and let me know you'd like to be counted as a participant. All participants will be listed in my sidebar. Once you've finished your hats and scarves, let me know how many you made so I can know when the goal has been reached!

Happy knitting and crocheting!

A Fixed Blog and Stormy Weather

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post about a technical glitch that was making it difficult to visit my blog from Blogger's Dashboard. Well, I'm happy to announce that it's been fixed! I was editing my blog's HTML about a month ago hoping to make changes the comments section of my blog. The tutorial that I was following didn't work so I forgot all about the editing and didn't bother to undo it. Someone else who also tried the tutorial left a comment mentioning that it didn't work for them either but following the tutorial caused another problem...the same one I was having! I was delighted to find the solution to the problem and fix it. :-) Now you can visit my blog either by visiting the homepage or clicking on the post title in your Blogger Dashboard! If you're having the same problem with your blog, send me an email and I'll be happy to show you how to fix it.

On Friday, I mentioned that a tropical storm was heading our way and we were expecting to feel its effects last night. However, the storm decided to stall just a couple hundred miles to our south yesterday morning. This caused a delay in the stormy weather...and yesterday turned out sunny instead of stormy! According to our local weather website, the worst of the storm is now expected this afternoon. But the good news is that the tropical storm weakened a bit when it stalled so the weather won't be as bad as forecasted late last week. We've already gotten some rain which is always good!

I'm still feeling dizzy and sore so I have a follow up appointment with the oral surgeon for this Wednesday. Hopefully, the dizziness will go away before then! And I'm looking forward to eating "real" food, after nearly a week of smoothies. :-)

Again, I must apologize for the lack of photos here lately. I just might try to use the camera today...so look out for some photos soon. :-)

Have a blessed week, friends!

Summer With A Purpose: Week Eight

I'm back from my short blogging break! I'm glad that I took the break...I really needed it this week. Overall, it's  been a rough week for me. As you all know, I got my four wisdom teeth pulled on Monday at the hospital. Since then, I've been just resting and waiting for everything to heal so I can get back to "normal". I've been having almost constant dizziness which the oral surgeon said might be from one of the prescribed medications I'm taking. It's been hard for me to get much done because I'm so dizzy and Mom has been such a great help to me! She makes delicious smoothies for me and helps me keep track of the medications I need to take. My sisters and brother have been doing my chores which is a big help too!

One thing I accomplished while resting was that I finished reading the book I started last week, In the Presence of My Enemies. It's a really good book and with not much to do but relax, I truly enjoyed reading it! Aside from reading and relaxing, I haven't been doing much else. I did no crafting whatsoever which is a first since I started SWAP two months ago. Feeling sore and dizzy, I don't really feel like crocheting, sewing or doing any of the other hobbies I'm usually so busy with. I haven't even touched my camera all week --which is why there are no photos for this post. :(

On a different note, I would like to say thank you to everyone who's filled out my blog reader survey. So far, I've gotten more than twenty responses and I really appreciate all your input. I'll be making changes based on the survey once it ends so if you haven't done it yet --I'm still waiting to hear from you! The survey closes next Wednesday so head over and do it while you can! Click here to start!

I should mention that there's a tropical storm heading toward us just as I write this post. It looks like Tropical Storm Colin will be coming within 100 miles of our little island Bermuda with the worst weather forecasted to take place tomorrow night. While tropical storms rarely cause serious damage to Bermuda, the weather service always stresses the importance of taking all the necessary precautions to remain safe. We'll probably be getting some extra candles/batteries in case the power goes out, and we'll be sure to bring in any outdoor furniture and stuff that can be blown away. If we lose power, the internet cuts out as well and I won't be able to keep all of you updated if that happens. :(  There's always the possibility that the storm will strengthen before it actually gets here so we're praying that Colin doesn't become a hurricane as that would increase the likelihood of damage.  Hopefully, we'll just get some much-needed rain and won't lose the electricity!

Since I've been restricted to a soft-food diet this week, I've been looking for good smoothie recipes. If you have a favorite smoothie recipe that you think I'll enjoy, please send it to me by clicking here. If I like your recipe, maybe I'll feature it in a later post! :-) Thanks in advance!

Hope you all have a blessed weekend!

Reader Survey

While I'm on blogging break, I thought it would be a good time to have each of you fill out a simple 10-question survey that I put together for all of my blog readers. The questions are easy and just ask for your opinion about my blog. It's anonymous and takes only 2 minutes to complete so please consider participating. I plan to post the survey results on my blog next week after the survey ends, and depending on the results I may do some changes to my blog as well. The survey will be open from now until next Wednesday so head over and submit your answers soon. Click here to start!

Thanks in advance for your help!

*This is a scheduled blog post that I wrote last week. I'm currently on a mini-blog break but I'm still moderating comments so feel free to leave one below! Thanks!*

Where He Leads Me

A few months ago I came across this song while browsing YouTube's praise and worship songs. It was such a blessing to me, and I feel encouraged whenever I listen to this video. It's one of those songs that just touch your heart and leave you feeling refreshed. I thought to share it with all of you, hopefully you'll find it a blessing too!

If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. 

~ Psalm 139: 9,10

Will you follow the Savior where He leads you? Will you hear Him when He calls?

*This is a scheduled blog post that I wrote last week. I'm currently on a mini-blog break but I'm still moderating comments so feel free to leave one below! Thanks!*

Surgery Update

{Photo credit}

Dear friends, just thought to give everyone a quick update. I went in for surgery first thing this morning to get my four wisdom teeth pulled. Even though I wasn't the bravest girl going into it, the surgery itself went well and I was able to go home about 4 hours later. So far, the recovery hasn't been too bad but I have to eat soft foods. Mom just made a delicious smoothie for me this evening -- thanks Mom!!

Thanks to everyone who's been praying for me and wishing me well. I'm hoping and praying that recovery doesn't take too long and I'm back to normal soon.

I'm still on a mini blogging break so I have two scheduled posts that will be published later this week so keep your eye out for them.

Blessings!

A Time To Rest

Wow, can you all believe it's the first day of August? Where has the year gone so fast? It seems like we were celebrating New Years Day not very long ago. Since my surgery is tomorrow morning and I'll probably feel a bit sore for at least the next day or so afterwards, I've decided to take a short blogging break this week. Yep, this is my first blogging break since I started last September. Don't worry though! You probably won't miss me that much because I've written two scheduled posts that will be published later this week. And I should be back in time to post this Friday's SWAP post.

I may do a short post to let you all know how the surgery went but can't really promise that. And depending on how I feel, I'll continue to read everyone's blog posts and leave a few comments too! I'm planning to do a little tweeting before and after my surgery so keep an eye on the Twitter widget in my right sidebar to read about how everything's going. Oh, and if you're on Twitter you can become a follower too. :-)

Hope everyone has a blessed week! And I appreciate everyones prayers for my surgery tomorrow.

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven..." Eccl. 3:1