Summer Decorating

I've been aching to go to the beach lately. Being a redhead, it's something of a curse to love the beach as much as I do. Wish I had a nickle for every time someone said to me, "you'd have a good tan if all your freckles ran together." Oh, the mockery us redheads endure as children! There is actually some home video footage taken at the beach when I was around 8 years old wherein I was clothed in blue jeans and a long sleeve shirt. Complete with sunglasses and a ten gallon cowboy hat. My mother had obviously had enough sunburn drama to last her a while.

Anyway, in honor of summertime, I thought I'd share some of the summery decor around our house. It's not much, but it's mine. And it's paid for...

I copied this tray idea from a condo where my in-laws stayed when we went to the beach last year. I fell in love with it so much that I searched and searched for the exact tray until I finally found it at Target, of all places. The vase holding the candle came from Michael's. I filled it with genuine Panama City Beach sand, and shells, starfish, and sea glass from Pottery Barn. I actually like this display so much that I kept it out through the winter months, too.

A couple of years ago, my husband stopped at a yard sale to let me look (and I didn't even have to ask!) and I found this little roll-top desk. It was pretty sad and not really anything special. I'd been looking for something to to act as a vanity for this bare spot in the bathroom. I took her home (for $5!!) and gave her a makeover. Although it's relatively non-functional, it pretties up an otherwise useless space. I usually keep bath salts in that decanter, but looks like I'm out.

Not much is going on in the kitchen, summer-wise, except this bowl on our kitchen table that I filled with shells and driftwood.

Here's a side table in our living room. Trying to decide whether or not to paint it. For now, I'm liking the color of the wood. I've always thought that most everything looks better painted white, so who knows? Sorry about the glare.

I found the little fish plate at the local antique mall (or flea mall, as it's called) a few weeks ago, and they hydrangeas came from our yard.

My sister-in-law had this shadow box coffee table in a garage sale a few years ago and when it didn't sell, she let me have it. Being true to my instincts, I painted it white (Heirloom White) and lined it with burlap. I really had bigger plans for this table, but this is as far as I've gotten so far. It's filled with a few shells, driftwood, and a beach photo of my family. On top is one of my favorite summer decorations. I got these little jars from my mother-in-law, and the shells came from past trips to the beach. There are tea lights inside the jars, but they wouldn't stay lit for the picture. Sorry...that would have made for a better photo.

Finally, my little pewter seashell. I found it at the antique mall the day I found the fish plate. I was quite happy with my finds on that particular trip.

Wonder what my son will say when I tell him I need him to go to store for bath salts and tea lights?

I'm linking up with:
Thrifty Treasures@Southern Hospitality
DIY Project Parade@DIY Showoff
Sister Sunday@Sisters of the Wild West
Sunday Show-off@Twigg Studios
Spotlight Saturday@Classy Clutter

Blessings,

Encouragement

Have you ever wondered why, in the Bible, there are those really long lists of people's names? You know, the ones that tell us so-and-so begot so-and-so who begot so-and-so?

I was thinking about that recently. I'll just admit it...I've always sort of skipped over those parts, thinking how in the world that could possibly be of any value to me at this present time. But if there's nothing in the Bible that isn't beneficial for us in some way, then there has to be a good reason why God wanted us to know about these people.

We learn in Acts 17:26, "And He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place." God decided ahead of time that we would be placed where we are, in the exact time that we need to be, to carry out His purposes.

Esther was told by Mordecai that perhaps she was placed in the king's house "for such a time as this" - to carry out God's will for that situation, at that particular time. He made sure that Esther was there and He equipped her with all she needed to follow through with His plans.

It's hard to wrap my mind around the fact that God would use me for anything, to be honest. At times, my life seems so mundane and boring. Maybe those ancient people felt the same way. And, when I think about how many people there are in the world, and when I put that together with the thought that God loves and knows each and every one of us intimately, that's really hard to fathom. Matthew 10:30 says, "And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered."

That's a LOT of hairs!

It occurred to me that maybe He took the time to list the name each of these people in order to point out to us that our mission here in this life is not insignificant. Those people, humpteen thousand generations back, played important parts in history, and they probably had no idea how they were being used in God's amazing plan. For us, their lives were of great importance. God worked out the details of their lives to accomplish His goals, which, in turn blessed us immeasurably.

So, maybe that seemingly endless genealogical list of names we can't pronounce isn't just page filler. Maybe it's meant to be encouragement for us. When we feel like there's no real purpose for our lives, it adds a new perspective to know that the things we are doing now may very well be leading up to something bigger, even generations from now. And, though we may never realize what that big event is, we can rest assured that God will remember and He will bless our efforts. It's not all for nothing. God was there with them then and He's here with us now. He knew them by name and He knows us by name, too. For me, that's a comfort and an encouragement!

Blessings,