: Love Day 2013 :

 

I can't believe how fast these past few weeks have gone!  We start off the week full and as the week goes on nights & days fill up and boom!  It's Thursday and we're almost done another week! 

Well last week we celebrated Thursday in a special way because it was "Love Day" :: Here are my two littlest love bugs just before school

 DECOR : Love day style 

The boys had a few rough days at school through the first weeks of February, so we were not even sure if they were going to get a "Love Day Feast" {as we call it} unless they got their butts in gear at school.  So two nights before love day I brought out a few decor items as their behavior had changed and they deserved Love Day Feast. 

:: Our kitchen chalkboard ::

:: Computer Nook ::
 

:: Counter top details ::

 

 : I spent a few hours making these little lolli pops I had seen on Pinterest.  We gave these away to Cole's class and I made sugar cookies {I have an awesome recipe from my Aunti Pam} for JJ's class, no photo of the sugar cookies as it was well into the night on the 13th when I finally finished them! :

 
 

: Love Day Feast :

On Valentines day we do a meal that we call a "Love Day Feast of Roast Beast" :: We have a full roast beef dinner with all the trimmings, this year I made a strawberry {because it's pink of course!} cake with cream cheese icing as our dessert.

: Here's the table all decorated :

 : Our cake on the table :

: I picked up three balloons for the boys and to use as centerpieces, since I had the polka dot wrapping paper {thanks Ikea!} left over from Christmas it really looked quite coordinated without me putting too much effort into it! :

 : Jacob's place setting :

 : My Mr. came home with a growers bunch {20 stems} of white casablanca lillies.  He had thrown me off the night before saying that roses were the true love flower especially red roses, I however disagree in a major way and don't LOVE roses and especially RED ones, white yes...but not RED! So he did good with the growers bunch and he also got them at cost so that also made me VERY happy ;-) :

 That's it for today, I hope you all had a wonderful LOVE DAY and if this one wasn't that great I pray that next year you can celebrate LOVE in a special way.  We have had our share of not so lovely "Love Days" and I truly consider myself blessed to be able to celebrate our love as a family. 

{XoXo}

: Dinner :: Recipe Coconut Curry Shrimp :

Hey Lovelies!  

Sorry I've been away from here, didn't have much to post about and I am preparing a book post that hopefully I will have up next week. 

But for now I will share a little recipe that we love around these parts. 

Last night I posted this photo on instagram.  When I went back to it there were multiple comments asking how to make it, so here you go! 

Coconut Curry Shrimp  

{a la Mr. L}

Quinoa {1 cup makes ample servings for 4 adults}

2 cups frozen small/medium shrimp

1 can coconut milk {we use Trader Joes lite coconut milk} 

1 cup thinly sliced peppers {yellow/red/orange} 

1 medium white onion 

Currey mix 

Butter/Pam/Olive Oil to coat the pan

1. Place 1 Tbsp of butter/pam/evoo in a large skillet, add curry spices {we have a pre-mixed spice selection from our local ethnic spice isle} 

2. Heat up the mixture of butter & spices, be careful not to burn it.  Apparently {via the chef} this is a very important part..."it wakes the spices up" :: Okay then! 

3. Add onion & peppers and cook till translucent on medium heat

4. Rinse in cold water the shrimp to defrost them and remove the tails. 

5. Once onions & peppers are cooked hike the heat up to 7 {between medium & high} and add the shrimp.  Let it heat away for 2 minutes, don't do more or your shrimp will be rubbery and that's never good! 

6. Add a full can of coconut milk and let simmer on low for 5 minutes until incorporated. 

7. Pour over your scoop of quinoa and voila you have dinner in aprox. 15 minutes.  I make my quinoa ahead on Sunday so we have it for the week, if you do this in advance it will save you from having to wait for the quinoa to cook as the curried shrimp is quicker than the quinoa!

Enjoy! 

* * * 

There you go Lovelies!  Hope you have a great weekend!  We are looking forward to a few fun events and spending time with friends, if you want to see what I'm up to you can find me on instagram...Lord only knows, I'm just a little in love with it!  But as for Sunday it will be social media free so I can spend time with my little family. 

{XoXo}

: Hospitality :

I have friends who are amazing at hospitality; who invite people over and say come as you are and accept us as we are.  I don't feel overwhelmed by these types this is their gift, they are people filled with the gift of hospitality. 

I love that gift, I try and hone my gift of hospitality...but to be truthful sometimes I'm too uptight to let my guard down and invite people in. 

This is where Edie comes in, she has this hospitality thing down pat.  Well not really; she just lets her guard down and welcomes people in. 

"Hospitality isn’t about inviting people into our perfect homes, it’s about inviting them into our imperfect hearts."

She continues to say: 

"It’s about learning to live from that vulnerable place where we open ourselves to love.

And ultimately, it’s about Him—The perfect Host who provides for everything we sinners need, right down to the best wine for the wedding feast.

This ebook is for anyone who has felt his own poverty and known the redemption of being loved anyway.

This is hospitality, on purpose."

I encourage you to purchase her ebook, if it's anything close to her blog on 31 days of hospitality it's bound to be amazing! I just wish I could actually hold it in my hands.  Books like that I don't just want them on my kindle I want them on my nightstand too! 

Hope this encourages you {and me} to open yourself up, be vulnerable and have someone in.  You never know how it will bless you! 

Have a great evening lovelies! 

{XoXo} 

   

: Comparison :

 We have all  read this quote "Comparison is the thief of Joy" ~Theodore Roosevelt

As well as this quote "Jealousy comes from counting others' blessings instead of your own" ~unkown

Theodore wasn't the first one to say don't compare, Jesus asked us to look to Him first.  To call on the Holy Spirit for guidance, not Facebook, not Instagram {no matter how much I love it!}, not Twitter & not blogs. 

Go to Him.  

Be found in Him. 

We live in a world filled with social media, filled with conversations without an actual voice, just words, essentially without any commitment, we can do it all...make dinner, text with a friend, do homework with my child, listen to the Mr. and his day.  

I love social media just as the next person, but when I saw this sign on Sunday posted by Aedriel {Hello Lovely!  Find her blog here or on IG under Aedriel} morning it challenged me to be more in tune with my family and to put the social media down for the day. 

And let me tell you it was hard! I found myself going to it time and time again and had to say "no Shawna, you can't".  Then I found myself accomplishing A LOT! Since we were out all day Saturday it most definitely could be defined as our day of rest/fun.  

So on Sunday while I found myself with SO much time {I allowed myself to respond to texts & log in on MFP} I was able to vacuum the whole house, practice reading with Jacob for an hour, clean all the washrooms {3}, load & empty the dishwasher, do 5 loads of laundry and put 4 of them away {the last one is still in the dryer}, make dinner, dust the main floor, bake cookies, prepare lunches for Monday, watch a show with Paul {we are so sucked into Downton it's not even funny!} read a magazine, clean out the pantry & fridge, play trains with the boys...and menial other tasks between all that!  And this was all after going to church in the morning, stopping into the grocery store for a few necessities and making brunch for my little family.

Lovelies, that is ALOT of stuff to accomplish and all because I put my phone down, well probably not but I can say I spent much more quality time actually living.  I was more aware {every time I reached for my little black device} how much time I've wasted by staring at that little screen.

I try to not compare when I see a photo posted on FB or IG and think "Gee I wish I was invited" or "hmmm, wish I could do that" instead of living my life to the fullest, watering the grass that is on my side of the fence and taking time to sprinkle a little love on my neighbors grass while I'm at it...

How different would the world be if we stopped comparing and rushing on about how great someone did something or looked but actually blessed them with affirmation that comes from Christ. 

I know that FB & IG & Twitter can be an encouragement, I too have been encouraged by what people have posted and sometimes it is a fantastic tool...that is as long as our hearts are turned towards Christ and we are lifting Him up by our actions {even the actions of posting a photo}.  I'm not saying you have to be a holy roller about posting a simple photo on IG but I'm talking about not posting it to make others feel jealous or envious.

“Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.” Galations 5:26

It's interesting to me that a book {zee Bible} written thousands of years before any of this technology can still speak directly to the heart of the matter & the mess that the world has created out of all of these outlets. 

 “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 12:2

This post really went on much further than I thought it would.  It all came from just taking one day to remove myself from the distractions of this world to realize how much I miss out on because I'm allowing the distractions to come in.

Happy Monday Lovelies!  I encourage you to choose a day that you will renew your mind and spirit by putting down the social media that crams our minds, it's amazing how refreshing it feels!  

Much Much Love! 

{XoXo}

: Friday Favorites! :

 WOW I can't believe how fast this past week went and now we're onto another fun filled weekend! We've got dinner plans, supper club, birthday parties & church to look forward to...So much for January being a "catch up month" :: It's great, I'm not complaining, we love being busy with life! 

I wanted to share a few of my "fave's" this week with you :: Click on photo for the link to find some for yourself! 

"Olive Authentique" products 

{specifically show is the essential oil//I use it before going to bed on my neck}

 My collection of white jugs, this has been vastly improved due to inheriting a portion of a collection. I'm so grateful for them!  Love the simplicity of them.  

{they are currently featured on my white shelves in our kitchen}

 "The Message" this is my go to book when I want to get into the word :: The Mr. got this as a gift from his church when he graduated and it has been in our coffee table ever since we married, I would say it gets opened almost daily.  I love being able to dig into the word with the simplicity of our English.

 Vase of fresh grocery store tulips.  Sometimes we all deserve a little pick me up and this one is my go-to product!  $4 later for a sweet little arrangement of tulips does the heart good!

 Ahhhhh "VOLUSPA" I got two of these candles for Christmas from my boys and I'm in LOVE!  I would never buy one for myself but as a gift they are just amazing!  This one literally smells like Hawaii!

 Well that's it for today Lovelies!  I'm off to pick up my little luvs from school :: Have a wonderful weekend and I'll see you back here on Monday! Muahhhahaha! 

{XoXO}

: Word of the Year | 2013 :

 The past 24 hours has been quite aggravating, I attended a women's event at church and walked away not feeling welcomed and loved instead just criticized & belittled and left feeling like less of who I know myself to be.

At any rate, I was planning on writing about my "word of the year" here today but last night with the way I was feeling deflated & disheartened I had thought I wouldn't blog at all today. 

But as I was scanning through Facebook this morning I came across this verse that my friend had posted 

{this is directly from her post}

Romans 12:17-21 (NLT)
Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.
Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say,
“I will take revenge;
I will pay them back,”[a]
says the Lord.
Instead,
“If your enemies are hungry, feed them.
If they are thirsty, give them something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap
burning coals of shame on their heads.”
Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.

Now, I know with the above situation I have chosen to do good, to not harbor anger and animosity but to be level about it ~ I know God will make good on the situation and I'm trusting Him for it.  This verse was just God using a friend to remind me of HIS plan, not mine.  And friends, I want to be in the backseat as Jesus drives...He really is the best chauffeur! 

Anyway, back to my word of the year...it's actually two words..

 Glory&Honor

from the passage in Psalms 8 :: Over the holidays I was reading my devotional and this Psalm was in it. It speaks of all the works that God did, all that He created and all the care that He took in his creation.  We are to crown him with Glory&Honor.   

That particular part stood out to me and as I searched my heart and talked to God about my word of the year, this kept on resounding to me that I am to give in all that I do/say/accomplish Him the Glory&Honor

    Do I know what this means or looks like; not nessisarily.  But I will trust in Him, in His timing and in His plan, for His plan is better & bigger than I can even imagine! 

 Last years word was "FLOURISH" :: I don't know if I flourished per say, I know I grew in great ways and learned more of what God wants me to be.  I know that you can't flourish without planting seeds and I KNOW that God planted seeds so I just need to carry on and keep watering those seeds to see them come to full fruition and flourish! 

Here's to another year! 

Love & blessings on this beautiful {at least in Vancouver} 

sunshiny day! 

{ XoXo }

: Project Organization | Home office :

 

So the office, its a funny little space.   It's actually not that little {aprox. 10x10} but it's right off the entrance when you walk into our home.  So when you walk into our home, you either notice it or walk right by it.  If you walk right by it; great!  If you stop an notice it I cringe a little. 

It's always been an odd space to fill. With almost floor to ceiling windows, a set of mirrored closet doors and some horrible cream carpet that I try to hide by having an area rug on it cause until it's removed it will never be clean!  Everything in this office we have inherited, the book shelf {the Mr.'s Grandparents} the desk {The Mr.'s Parents} the desk chair {my Grandfathers} the wicker chairs {My Parents} the little book shelf {my Parents} the rug {also my Parents} :: I like me some hand-me-downs so I do ;-) the only item I owned in this little office is the drapes and decor items! 

I don't have any money to spend on re:doing the office, not any that I want to put into it as we are are saving for our built-in that will be going into the family room. 

So with no budget and a crazy paper filled mess from months of neglect over November & December on Sunday I tackled this mess...

  

To be honest the space just wasn't working for me.  

1. I want to not cringe when friends walk in and see the office

2. I want it to 'work' for me {not just looks wise but as a functioning office}

3. Paperwork drives me mad so there has to be a better way!

Here is the office once I moved the desk and the book shelves {if you follow me on Instagram {shawnalad} you know that I started this on Sunday afternoon while the Mr. was out as he hates it when I tackle jobs that seem endless}

 

: This is now what you see when you enter the office :: Much better, no? :

: and from the window to the closet :

 : I keep magazines I really love so the office is the perfect spot to keep issues that I just can't part with :

: to add some different perspective, this is from the closet out the window :

 : I love my little desk & chairs, I would LOVE to have an all white dreamy airy office but I'm not willing to dump money into something that really doesn't matter, so for now, we have hand-me-downs and I'm quite pleased with them! :

 : So there we go; one more project completed and ready to tackle the next one {not sure what that is yet, but I'm sure there is something!} : 

: I hope you had a great day, mine was a little rough for a few different reasons, but praying that tomorrow looks better and the sun comes back out to shine on me! : 

Happy Wednesday Lovelies! 

{ XoXo }

: Project Organization | Kitchen Sink :

I wouldn't say that I'm a clean freak.  Like anyone else I like my home to be neat + tidy. 

I love it when our beds are made {which as of yet they are not} and when the laundry is all caught up. In a perfect world when I'm not out cuddling new babies and spending time playing micro machines on the floor with my little men or at the table doing homework all these things get done in a timely manner. 

However, truth be told holding new "freshies" and spending time with my kids trumps living in a perfect home where everything is uncluttered, finished and put away.  This is just not reality! 

Mixed with all that comes with being a mama {who also works a little & volunteers a little} comes with a challenge to find a way to make the normal feel cleaner, neater and more organized. 

So today I tackled under the kitchen sink.  Pet peeves with this area is, it's always changing, I can't have coordinating labeled things {I'm not that ocd} but I can take things and re:organize them.  

: This is the mess I started out with :

 : Got a few supplies from my local dollar store :: $8 later I was in business :

 

: Since we didn't buy this house new the wood under the sink was quite beat up, nothing could clean it and I wasn't about to paint it just so more water and junk could make it look bad again.  I had seen someone put these sticky tiles down under their sink and thought that was the perfect fix!  

Then when I was at the dollar store getting my baskets I saw boxes of the sticky tiles for 3/$1.25 :: they may not be the exact look that I was going for but hey for $3 I can't beat that! Especially since they will be inside a cupboard not seen for half the time! :

 : The finished tiled cupboard :: took me about 20 minutes to do this :

 

  : Voila! The finished product!  I don't like packaging, boxes etc. so using the re:usable bins for my dishwasher pucks and little odds and sods makes it much more appealing to the eye and makes it so that I {+the mr.} can see where everything is! It's a good thing and I love it! :

: Well I'm off to go finish making the beds and fold thus said laundry before I go get the boys, I'll be back tomorrow with my completed office overhaul :: Feels so good to cross things off the list! :

Praying you enjoy the day : Happy Tuesday Lovelies! 

{ XoXo }