I Will Never Forget

Eleven years ago I was a sophomore at Clarksville High School in Clarksville, Tennessee. First period was normal: my next-to boring geography class. Second period was my favorite class of the day: theater arts. I walked into the classroom and sat on my usual couch (since there weren't any desks in that room) and waited for class to start. Ten seconds later, Matt, the teacher's aid came running into the room yelling that a plane had just crashed into one of the towers of the world trade center.

I laughed for a second because of how ludicrous it sounded. Then Matt turned on the tv, and there it was. The tower was on fire with a gaping hole in the side. Minutes later, we suddenly saw a second plane crash into the other tower. We saw it happen live, in real time.

We were all horrified. I don't remember everyone else coming into the classroom, but I do remember my teacher deciding to let us watch and talk about what was going on. Who was she to ignore this terrorist attack and pretend to move on as if nothing had happened? Other teachers at our school wouldn't turn on the tv and stuck to their syllabus. I'm still upset at them to this day. You can't simply ignore something so traumatizing that has scarred our nation and world. That just makes things worse.

The rest of the day felt like a dream. Everyone was somber. As I learned in my third period class about the other planes that had gone down, I couldn't help but wonder who these people were.

Obviously, they were terrorists and had their own agenda and values. But didn't they have a personality? A family? Friends who made them laugh? A favorite food? A sense of humor? A heart and soul? Who were they to take control of ending someone else's life, not to mention thousands of other people's lives?

Life itself is a miracle. It is sacred. A single person is made up of trillions of cells, each alive and thriving. There is a beating heart--a muscle that will pump steadily for 90+ years if taken care of properly. There is a brain, that has neurons which transmit thoughts and words and knowledge and memories so that we can speak about them. There is a mouth, which can taste the most delicious dessert and speak many kind words. There are hands which feel, touch, hug, hold, create, and write. There are eyes that can see the most breath-taking sunrises. There are ears that can hear the most gentle lullaby or hear a rhythm that can move the rest of the body to dance. There is skin which can feel a single raindrop at the start of a thunderstorm on a warm, summer day.

That is not something to take lightly. That is not something that is for another human being to destroy.

I pray that on this anniversary of such a traumatic and unforgettable occasion, we remember those things. I hope that we remember that there are those who do not see life the way you or I do. I hope we remember that, because if we forget we may be reminded of it again, and it could be in another horrifying and mentally scarring way. We must remember the events of September 11th, 2001. We need not dwell on them, nor is it beneficial to simply replay the footage over and over again. That alone won't do anything for good.

However, if we remember that it happened, that it's past, and hold in reverent admiration the miracle that a single life is, we'll thrive. As we keep those things in mind we will honor and love each other, and it will be easier to protect one another from the evils of those who do not respect an individual, much less many individual lives.

So I will remember. I will always remember what occurred that cool, crisp morning as I sat at school, watching the selfish choices of others permanently damage and affect someone's father. I'll never forget those terrorist acts that took the life of someone's son, someone's daughter. Each person who died on that unfortunate day had a family, friends, and such high potential for a future of good.

Please remember that too, and let's live a good life and reach our potential in honor of those who never had the chance.

Affordable Modesty in Fashion

I love fashion.

High fashion is like art: its beauty is in the eye of the beholder and it's not meant to be practical.

But that's not what I wear. I'm not Lady Gaga. I wear commercial and retail clothing. For me, there are a few challenges that come along with that.

1. Finding styles that I like. Lately there have been trends that I'm not a fan of. For example, one trend is clothing that looks (and often is) worn out and aged. While I do like some things with that look, I'm not a fan of jeans that are like that because they wear out so quickly and it can look kind of trashy.

2. Speaking of trashy, clothing these days is ridiculously immodest. I know my standards are pretty high when it comes to this, but what society sometimes sees as acceptable can leave nearly nothing to the imagination. There are so many low-cut, too sheer, unnecessarily short articles of clothing. Some things are a fashion statement, but many others are a body statement. In my experience, when I've dressed to show off my body, I do get attention from boys (and some girls). But it's never attention from the type of people I want attention from. For me, that's what modesty is about (aside from respecting myself). I never wanted a man who wanted me to show off my body in public so he can brag about having a 'hot girlfriend' or who just wanted to get to know me to see if I'd sleep with him. That's the message that dressing immodestly often sends, and I am so much more than a one-night stand or a sexy body to oggle over. So instead of dressing in a way to show off my cleavage, midriff, or legs in order to attract a man who simply wants those things, I decided years ago that I wanted to attract a man with more substance to his personality so that he'd know that there was more to mine too. I wanted a man who enjoyed a conversation with me for the sake of getting to know my mind and who would hug and kiss me just to show affection rather than hoping that doing so would lead to something more. I wanted a man who would look at me and learn the shape of my eyes and smile and would make a fool out of himself just to hear me laugh.

Shortly after I began dressing more modestly because I wanted to, I met my would-be husband (though we didn't get married for 4 and a half years after that). He was and still is exactly the man I'd been wanting to find and marry. He was looking for a girl that dressed modestly to show that she was more than a hot body. I actually attracted the kind of man I wanted when I started dressing like the girl he was looking for. It makes so much sense--it just took me several years to get that through my thick skull.

Don't get me wrong. There is definitely a time and place for some immodest clothing because of the thoughts and emotions it can evoke, but those are moments only for sharing between my husband and myself.  ;)

3. Fashionable clothing can be expensive. There's always Ross, T.J. Maxx, Marshall's, and most especially thrift stores and free piling, but even then a lot of the clothing those places have to offer is picked over so thoroughly that a lot what I find requires some kind of altering to be wearable or stylish (which can be fun too, if I have the time for it).


I recently found a solution to all three of these challenges. You may have already heard about it from the big grand-opening recently or another giveaway. But if you haven't been introduced yet, consider this your formal and official introduction.

ModestPop.com

The concept is simple. This online store sells clothing that is modest and doesn't require any layering to achieve said modesty. Each item costs under $15. And there is something new every day. So if you don't see anything that fits your style one day, there may be something there the next day.

Now, I don't like to promote stuff I don't believe in. So I had to try it out. I was sent the Aubrey top so that I could see if it was as good as it sounds.

It is.

For under $15, you can get a shirt that covers your bra straps, shoulders, and cleavage, and it's long enough to cover your lower back when you sit or lean over.

The fabric is nice and lightweight and really comfortable, and the stitching is pretty decent quality for the price (and this is coming from a professional seamstress). For me to make a shirt of this style would cost more than $15 for the materials alone. It's a definitely good deal.

The size is pretty true. I got a small. The collar and waistline area have a little more stretch than the sleeves and hemline, which are definitely meant for small arms and small hips. It fits me well, so just be sure to be honest with yourself when looking at the sizing chart.

I wore it to church yesterday, and as we were walking into church my husband looked over at me and said, "That shirt looks really nice on you." I just smiled, because he had no idea that it was the one I'd told him I was reviewing for this giveaway. He noticed it and likes it without me asking and forcing an answer out of him. For me, that alone makes it a winner!

And speaking of a winner....

Because I like this top so much, you can win your own cute Aubrey top!

Enter below using this Rafflecopter form if you're interested in participating. And if not, don't forget to meander on over to ModestPop.com to see what styles are in the shop this week.

And, as if that's not enough, if you're shopping at ModestPop.com and you do find something that you like, use the following promo code for a 10% discount for the duration of  my giveaway:

GOURMETSTYLE 

Also note that this applies to people who live in the USA only. (Sorry to those who don't. :( You can still go look at the store though!)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Food on Friday: Amber's Wedding Cake

Remember Amber's bracelet that I made for her wedding last weekend? Well there's something else I have to tell you about. I had nothing to do with it, but it was just too amazing to not post about.

Her wedding cake.

There's something you should know about Amber. She loves Nutella. She has eaten it by the jar on her bad days (who am I kidding--I have too).

With that in mind, our friend Autumn offered to make her wedding cake. By the way, Autumn works at a local chocolate shop called Eclipse Chocolat as one of the chocolatiers/bakers/chefs. Eclipse is my all-time favorite place to buy dessert, or chocolate, or candy, or pure happiness. There are no words to adequately express what an Eclipse experience is like. It's mind blowing. Everything they concoct is unexpected, and yet, the flavors are so rich and always compliment each other perfectly.

photo from eclipsechocolat.com

So for Autumn to make this cake, you can imagine that it wasn't just any ol' cake. Not only was it delicious beyond compare, but it was absolutely stunning too.

The cake was made with dark chocolate, white chocolate sea shells, Nutella, and ground hazelnuts.

(Holy Hannah. Yes, yes I did just say all of that in one sentence.) 

It was richer than Bill Gates and tasted better than Thanksgiving dinner. Autumn is a food genius and dessert perfectionist.

I'm not sure if there is a recipe for this or not. She kind of made it up as she went, I think.

But what I wouldn't give to have another divine piece!

Also, look at how adorable Graham was at the wedding. 

He's seriously such a cute baby. I'm one lucky momma.

Thursday's Thoughts: Remember Babysitting?

My son is exactly 5 months old today. I can't get enough of this kid. Seriously. Just look at how cute he and his dad are.

And thank you, Tom, for photobombing this picture. It wouldn't have been the same without you.

Anyway, I've been thinking about babysitters. I love my mother-in-law, but I'm nervous to leave my son with her. I love my professional nanny friend Karen, but I'm nervous to leave my son with her. For goodness sake, I'm nervous to leave my son alone with my husband for too long. It's not that I don't trust any of these people, because I absolutely do. I think I just worry because I'm a mom, and that's what moms do.

I don't doubt their capabilities in caring for Graham when I'm away for a couple of hours at a time. I just worry about what might happen that's out of their control. Besides, I know my son really well and 90% of the time I can tell what he needs by the sound of his cry or how he's acting. Nobody else can do that.

Then I got to thinking about when I started babysitting for other people. When I was twelve, I babysat occasionally. I have a couple of traumatizing stories too. Actually, those are the only stories I can remember from babysitting at that young age. Perhaps it's because as I got older and more experienced I had less accidents or something. I don't know.

The first time I can remember babysitting was for a family from church. They had three kids--two young boys and a baby girl. Things were going great and I was playing board games with the boys. The girl was off playing with her own toys. At one point I remember getting a feeling to go and check on the girl. So I did. She had gotten into some board games with small pieces and had put several plastic marbles from one in her mouth. I remember her looking at me with tears in her eyes because she couldn't speak, breathe, or cough. I opened her mouth with my fingers, pulled out all the marbles I could see and then proceeded to pat her on the back really hard and then do the Heimlich on her. Out popped the marble that was blocking her airway. She cried and I held her for a while. I moved all the board games from the low cabinet they had been kept in to a high shelf and told the boys what had happened. When the parents got home I told them too. I wasn't ashamed because I hadn't done anything wrong.

The following day at church the mom pulled me aside in the hallway while holding her baby girl and said the rudest thing to me.

"Hey, I have a present for you."
"You do?" I responded. "What is it?"
"Yeah," she said, then snidely finished with, "It's a little blue marble. It popped out this morning in her diaper."
Before I could respond she had walked away.
I stood there stunned. Why was she upset with me? What did I do wrong? Hadn't I practically saved her baby girl's life? I wasn't the one who stored the games in the low cabinet. I went to the bathroom and cried.

I understand that she probably thought it was my fault. Of course her parenting skills and housekeeping skills couldn't be in question. I was the tiny, immature twelve-year-old who hadn't babysat very much and was bound to make mistakes--unforgivable mistakes, apparently.


Another time I was babysitting for a poor single mom. She lived behind her parents in a ghetto one-room guesthouse. She told me what she had in mind for dinner that night, the bedtime routine, and some fun games to play with her son and daughter. We had fun and they were really well-behaved kids. When it came bath time, I filled up this utility sink in one corner of the house for the kids since there wasn't a bathtub, just like their mom had told me to do. I helped them in and they had fun splashing and playing while getting clean.

They were funny too. At one point I laughed and bumped against a plywood wall that was separating the toilet and tiny shower from the rest of the guesthouse. What I didn't realize was that this little fluorescent light over the utility sink-tub was being held in place by the tension between said plywood wall and the wall next to the front door. When I bumped the plywood wall, the light fixture loosened and swung down, hitting me hard in the back of the head. The kids screamed. I immediately pulled them out of the tub and threw towels around them and drained the sink. Then I investigated the problem, and figured out why the light had fallen. As I was wedging it back in place, the little girl told me that my head was bleeding. I reached back and felt my hair caked with blood  that was starting to trickle down my neck. Inside I was freaking out, but I knew I had to keep my composure so the kids wouldn't be scared.

"You're right," I said. "But I'm okay." I really wasn't sure if I'd be okay, but I felt alright enough at the moment. So I helped them get in their pajamas and go to bed. After they were asleep I went and rinsed my hair in the sink/tub, taking care not to bump into that wall again. I started reflecting on what had happened. What if I wasn't standing right where I had been? What if the light had hit one of the kids? What if it had fallen into the water while the kids were still in it? My eyes filled with tears as I was suddenly so thankful that I had been the one to get hurt. I had a pretty deep gash in the back of my head from what my fingers could tell, but I couldn't see it.

I held a paper towel to my head until the mom came home. I told her what happened, because I'm an honest person like that. I was ready to get another rude response, just like the first woman I babysat for. Instead she felt terrible about it. She apologized to me and even paid me a little extra to make up for it. I think I even babysat those kids again because they really liked me and the mom knew she could trust me in an emergency like that.

Those were two completely opposite reactions from the moms to two dangerous situations. Why were the responses so different? I know the situations themselves were quite different. But didn't I do the right thing in each? Is there something different that I should have done in either of them?

I guess for me, I just need to find a babysitter that I know will react well in an emergency. I need someone who will be completely open and honest even if he/she does make a mistake. And if something is my own fault, I hope I can see that.

Have you ever had any babysitting disasters whether you were the babysitter or hired one for your own kids?

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Linked up on:

Wedding Jewelry

When I made Amber her bracelet for her wedding, I actually made two bracelets before making the one I gave to her. I was basically just getting my momentum up to make the perfect one. The third time was a charm. It was perfect for her.

Lucky for everyone else, I now have two new stunning bracelets in my shop for sale.

They're perfect for weddings or any other dressy occasion. If you like any of them enough, I'm even willing to make matching earrings and necklaces for them. And I'll probably do that at some point anyway. But for now, it's just the bracelets.

They're made with freshwater pearls, Swarovsky crystals, and sterling silver. Let me know how you like them!

Brittany!

A few weeks ago I met Brittany. Well, kind of. She emailed me, and through our email conversation I feel like I've gotten a good glimpse into who she is. I have learned that she is kind and caring, genuine and sweet, with a fun personality. I think if we lived in the same town we would probably hang out once a week and try new dessert recipes every time. 

On second thought, maybe it's a good thing we don't live close because we would probably gain some unhealthy weight!! Anyway, here are her answers to my short set of get-to-know-you questions.

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What's your favorite place you've ever lived?  I've only lived in one place...Georgia.  And I love it.  Except for the heat.  And the humidity.

Name 3 things you like about yourself.  My eyes.  My spunk.  My ambition.

What's your favorite dessert?  I have too many to list, but ice cream tops the list.  Then S'mores.  And salted caramel anything.  Yumm!

What's your go-to recipe/food when you don't know what to do for dinner?  This sounds crazy, but popcorn with shredded cheese.  I could live off of it.  Not really a "meal" but I eat it all of the time.  Sad.  I know.  But my favorite go to food is tacos.  They are quick and easy and versatile.  You can put almost anything in a taco shell and it tastes good.

What are the last 3 things you pinned on Pinterest?  

http://pinterest.com/pin/72761350200803821/ {because I love to craft}

 http://pinterest.com/pin/72761350200803811/ {Butterfinger Fudge!  Yes, Please!}

http://pinterest.com/pin/72761350200803715/ {crock pot burger joint soup}

What is something you've always wanted to learn and why haven't you learned it yet?  I've always wanted to learn how to properly do my hair.  It's such a hot mess of frizz and wave.  I wish it was either straight or curly.  Instead I was cursed I mean blessed with a mix of wavy, curly, straight and frizzy hair.  I haven't learned yet because it's too tough to tame.  :) 

Sum up your blog in one sentence.  Hard one.  Ummm...It's me in a nutshell -- yummy, crafty, spontaneous.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?  Pinterest, my family's recipes, nature, books.  Just about anywhere I can.

Is there anything else you want others to know about you?  I'm fun and occasionally funny and I love my readers.

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Isn't she a sweetheart? I'm so happy she got in touch with me. Go check out her blog if you think it's something that would interest you. She's a wonderful lady to get to know.

http://www.britpins.blogspot.com/ 

Amber's Bracelet

I love to make wedding jewelry. I wish I had pictures of all the jewelry I've made for brides and bridesmaids. But I don't. It's probably because I haven't thought of documenting it all until the last year or two. Which is a shame for everything I can't track down and photograph.

Like the tiara I did for one bride. She had her grandmother's old and broken jewelry set of crystals and pearls, brought them into the bed shop I was working at, and the owner directed her to me (which was so flattering to my teenage self). She wanted them made into a tiara for her wedding. So I made them into a tiara. I'd never made one before. But I knew I could do it.

So I did. And it was gorgeous.

I still have my wedding jewelry. Yes, I made my own jewelry, even if I didn't make my own gown like I'd dreamed of doing my whole life (when you find the right dress, you find the right dress... what can I say?) And I have the photos my photographer took of me wearing those pearls. But that'll be another post for another day.

Anyway, when my friend Amber started dating this wonderful-in-every-way, tall, dark, and handsome gentleman, I was expecting the relationship to turn into a marriage. And it did. We all suspected that it would.

One day a couple of weeks before the big day, I asked if she had wedding jewelry. Her eyes got huge and she said, "Wedding jewelry?!" Obviously with all of the moving, planning, working, planning, and smitten daydreaming going on in her life, it had slipped her mind.

I smiled, point to myself and said, "Helllllooo," with a smile.

Of course I'd make her something--whatever she wanted. She did find some earrings she liked from David's Bridal. She asked if I could make them. You know, I probably could have come close, but I told her that she might as well buy them if they're exactly what she wanted. So she did (and it didn't hurt my feelings--it's her wedding, not mine, after all). And then she asked if I'd make a bracelet to match.

So I did. And once again, it was gorgeous.

And it matches the earrings perfectly!!

I love using drop pearls. They have such a unique look when strung together. Add in the playfulness and eye-catching brilliance of crystals and you've got a perfect balance with the elegance and sophistication of pearls.

I found these vintage Swarovsky balls of crystals at a bead shop in La Mesa called The Bouncing Bead.

One of my favorite details to add to any wedding jewelry is to put a heart-shaped clasp on. I found this one at a bead shop in Old Town called Lost Cities. Isn't it a lovely little touch?

And Amber make a beautiful bride. I'm so happy for her!