Report from the Seamstress

{Above picture: typical sight last week.

fabric, pattern pieces, pins, scissors, measuring tape, and misc scattered all over. In the middle of the picture resides my classy mug of yummy Tim Hortons coffee. 

*thank-you to the sweet people who gifted us that big tub of Tim Hortons when we were in Canada this summer! Its been keeping me alive!=)

Last week it was mostly me and my coffee and my sewing machine during the days, with Celtic Thunder Christmas music keeping us company...and rehearsals every night @ church. 

So I'm sorry for the lack of anything on here this past week. It has been a crazy seven days;

however, I am so thrilled to report that the sewing is DONE and I am back to sanity. =)

For some reason deadlines make me more prone to mistakes. 

{why am I like this?}

Having a Friday deadline with all the sewing projects, seemed to just be inviting my seam ripper to the party. =/ Unfortunately that item was busy busy busy all week, as well as my sewing machine. Agh! How I hate ripping out seams!

By Thursday night I knew sickness was just around the corner if I didn't take care of myself. Thankfully I got all finished on Friday and missed the sick-in-bed kind of sickness that I thought might be coming, and instead just got the "well-enough-to-be-out-of-bed-but-wish-to-be-in-bed" kind. =) In spite of not being totally up to par, I am super thankful that I'm able to be up and doing things. This would be the worst time of year to be sick, for sure, with all the rehearsals/performances and everything going this week!

And speaking of thankfulness...I'm super thankful for the cousins that came all the way from NY to visit over Thanksgiving! Lovely times we had and I'm so grateful for family! We made so many fun memories-keep an eye on the family blog, as my sis will be posting pictures from Thanksgiving weekend, on there soon!

Come back tomorrow or Wednesday for pictures of the projects I sewed! =)

-Chels

2013 Live Animal Christmas Play!

Y'all may remember me talking about this quite a bit last year, here, here, and here.

It does not seem like a year ago but indeed it is, because once again I am in the thick of getting ready for this production.

The blog will probably be a little silent this week, as nearly every spare moment is being spent at my sewing machine sewing costumes, or at church, in rehearsals.

I wanted to take a quick minute here this morning though to invite y'all to come to the play!

It is free and open to the public.

{doesn't get any better than that, huh?}

There are approx 200 actors in the play.

And live animals. in the church. on the stage. 

the baby calves reside in the baptistry. =)

I'm telling ya, you want to come see it for yourself. =)

Showing information is on the flyer below. Please go ahead and use the tab at the bottom of the post to share this on facebook, twitter, google plus...whatever works for you. 

I'm spreading the word here! Last year we had to turn people away but this year an extra showing has been added so there will be extra room, which means we'd love it if more people came.

A little more info from our pastor.. (with my notes added in italics =))

A Southeast Iowa Christmas Tradition

"A stunning theatrical production!"

We cordially invite you to celebrate Christmas with us in a dramatic way. The

2013 production will show Saturday December 14, 2013 at 11AM, 2PM and 5PM and

Sunday December 15, 2013 11AM & 5PM.  All Showings are a gift to you and

complety free of charge!  DETAILED INFORMATION BELOW...

"Experience the true story of Christmas come to life !"

*Animals Up Close!

You will enjoy, Camels, Reindeer, Llama, Sheep, Goats, Cows, Donkeys,

Chickens,

Red Tail Hawk, Horses, Dogs, a fat pig and much more, in the sanctuary!  You will have an

opportunity to get up close to many wonderful animals! The kids are sure to enjoy!

*Stirring Music!

The show includes over eight live musical specials as well as scores of

Musical Productions that will stir the Christmas Spirit within you. 

*The Bible Story in Compelling Drama!

The compelling dramatic journey will take you from a marketplace in

Nazareth to

a manger in Bethlehem where baby Jesus is born. Watch as King Herod, the

Roman Soldiers and many Jews try to destroy the Messiah.  The production

finishes with Jesus' glorious resurrection.

*Great Seating Close to all the Action!

The Auditorium is large enough to host such an event but small enough to be

close to all the action.  You will feel like you have taken a journey

right in the Christmas Story! Ah, the sights, the smells, the sounds of Christmas!

*Special Effects!

The show uses many professional special effects that is sure to make your

experience exciting!

*Hot Chocolate, Popcorn and Candy Canes!

As you enter the building, enjoy delicious christmas refreshments!

Everything

is free of charge. Merry Christmas!

{my mother and brothers will be serving you all these yummy things...=)}

*The purpose of the play!

John 3:16-17

"For God so loved the world, that he gave His only begotten

Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world

through Him might be saved."

Information/FAQ:

- We are not professionals. This is a homemade church play. All actors and

workers are church members who have sacrificially volunteered their time.
{this is hands-down the most amazing thing about the play. long before we ever attended Marion Avenue Baptist Church, we were blessed and impacted each year by this play. Now that we actually attend and are involved..we have been able to see and be a part everything that goes into pulling this off. And it is incredible. Multiple church members who use their vacation time for the year to take off of work these two weeks before the play and work at the church. People who work so hard and push themselves to be as professional as possible, in every aspect.  It is a beautiful example of the body of Christ working together and I just thank the Lord that my family gets to experience it!}

- All Showings are free of charge.
{in other words...you have no excuse for not coming =)}

- You do not need tickets to attend.

- Seating is given on a first come, first served basis.

{come early for a good seat!}

- The 2PM show on Saturday is reserved for large groups -

email mdpdavis@yahoo.com with your group reservation.

- The show is 2 hours from start to finish.

Located at:

Marion Avenue Baptist Church

215 South Marion Avenue Washignton, Iowa 52353

(319) 653-4113

*note-the dates on the promo are the 2012 dates, not this year's dates!

Please come and join us?!

more updates to come later on this week!

-chels

Black Friday Online Sales||Fashion

I love Black Friday shopping.

Contrary to certain other family members of mine, I don't mind the crowds or waiting in line. =)

This is because I go with no expectations, other than to enjoy the time with the friends I am with. 

Since I'm not all stressed out about getting a certain deal, I can relax and be blessed by whatever unexpected treasure/s I may find for a bargain! (this is the way to do it, my friends)

This year, however, I find myself majorly behind on sleep and energy. Plus, I have cousins here and due to a common lack of interest amongst us to brave the cold and driving to town at 11pm, we decided to opt for the cyber shopping option this year. 

I rummaged around on various favorite brand sites of mine (Old Navy, Maurices, & Jen Clothing, to name a few) but none of the above named had any spectacular deals. 

{if they were to ask me for marketing advice, I would tell them to drop the "if you buy $50 worth you get free shipping" deal, because it seems a bit lame. Goodness, all of us cyber shoppers are STAYING HOME and not being part of the mob rushing at them. The least they could do would be to give us free shipping with NO strings attached. Right?

Right. =)

Well, I wasn't about to buy $50 worth of brand-new things.
 Sorry, Old Navy, Maurices, & Jen Clothing! I'm sure somebody else will go for your {ahem} "deals". =)

Even though its not technically a "black friday" sale item.... this skirt is a good deal over on Maurices. I'm not personally getting it only because I have been privileged to find three khaki pencil skirts of various shades at thrift stores this year. (!!!!) And I really can't justify a fourth. But if you are in need of a cute, modest pencil skirt (black or stone colored), then head on over! It will show up that the skirt is $26 but it is actually 75% off of that. {insert cheer}

One deal that I did take advantage of tonight is over on DownEast Basics. I LOVE their WonderTee-it is incredible for layering! It's the perfect top to wear underneath a crocheted or sheer shirt, for those times when a cami doesn't quite cut it. =) 

For today/tomorrow they have a deal going where you can get 30% off your entire order. My sister and I stocked up and each got several WonderTee's/camis. We haven't tried their camis before but we've heard rave reviews from multiple friends so we included a few in our order. 

Sorry for no picture with this post-you'll just have to imagine me, my sista, my cousin, and my cousin-in-love, all sitting here in in our little office, shopping on our laptops. Exciting picture, eh? =)

Happy Weekend, friends!

-chels

Thankful, Not Expecting

                "Be thankful for what you have. You have no idea how many people would love to have what you've got."

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                  "Not what we say about our blessings...but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving."

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"There is always, always, ALWAYS...something to be thankful for."

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"And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; 

and BE YE THANKFUL."

~Colossians 3:15

So much to be grateful for today. I've was so challenged last night-our pastor preached a very convicting message about how the enemy of thankfulness...is expectation.

We expect so much-all of those daily blessings that we just take for granted and "expect" that they will be there for us everyday.

I've been reminded once again of all the many blessings that I have, and to be thankful for them.

To list a few of the many right now...my family, a godly heritage, a warm house, freedom of worship, an amazing church where I am spiritually fed so abundantly, cousins that came all the way from NY for Thanksgiving (whohoo!) and last but not least...that amazing custard pie my sis made in my honor today. =)

Happy Thanksgiving!

-Chels

Makeup Humor

This is a classic. Why would I do a tutorial on makeup when Martha does it so much better? {hehe}

Someday, I'll give y'all a "real" tutorial, but for today..this one is just too good NOT to share. =)

Enjoy a laugh in your day, peoples! 

-Chels

Welcome Back!

My excitement today is spilling out all over this new blog! Go ahead-browse around for a while and look at everything and then leave me a comment and let me know what you all think!

Amongst other new features you will find:

-New pages (at the top of the site) 

-a blog button along the side of the blog (if you are a fellow blogger, feel free to "grab" the button and post it on your blog sidebar!)

-a tab set of 6 subjects along the side...click on a tab to read the posts I've done related to each subject! (more coming soon to this-I'm still in the process of going back through the archives and giving new descriptions to each post so they will also be included in the link)

-a very cool "pin" button on each picture on my blog-simply hover your mouse over each picture to click and "pin" my pictures to your pinterest albums!
-a options bar at the bottom of each post, allowing you to share my posts on various social networking sites. (a pinterest one is coming soon!)

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This all would've NEVER been possible without the amazing skills and creativity of two very dear friends!

Credits to:

Hannah Elise...

for the Pinterest button design/installation & all of the stellar photography. Hannah, you just blow me away with your ability to capture light and people so well! Thank-you so much...and also thanks for all those times I text or email you with some random little question of a tech glitch I've run into. I couldn't even count the times you've bailed me out of trouble. =)

Rachel (Wissmann) Busenitz...

for the subject tabs, blog button, & blog header designs, and way more ideas/brainstorming/helpful tips/emails than I could possibly count! I feel like I owe so many elements of this blog to you, Rachel! Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you!

Okay, well, that's it for today! A little introduction to this new look...hope you stay awhile and browse! Don't forget to leave some love in the comment box! =)

-Chels

New Couple in Town||Changes to the Blog

  I had to grab a few pictures of my lovely cousin and her new boyfriend the other night, 

as they were leaving our house for their first date!

{favorite}

Awww!

#nootherwordsneeded

It's such a beautiful time of life for both of them. 

And I'm having a ball just observing and listening and helping in any way I can. =)

love it...

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Moving on....from the new couple in town, to the much-less interesting topic of changes to the blog. =)

This morning as I was sitting at my desk contemplating the coming week and all the challenges that I know are ahead with the new blog design-I felt like the Lord gave me the wonderful idea of shutting the blog down for the week, so I can work on the redesign over a period of several days, and don't have the pressure of getting it all done right at once. 

I'm giving y'all a heads up so you know what's going on when you try to pull up my blog and instead a page comes up that says "sorry, but only invited readers are allowed to read this blog". 

Remain calm...I'm just changing my blog settings to make my blog "private" for four days.

(Thursday, Friday, Saturday, & Sunday) 

For those 4days you won't be able to access the blog. 

I'm so thankful for this blogger feature of shutting it down for a bit, because that will give me sufficient time to try out different things/ideas, and to figure out the sure-to-occur problems and kinks that will happen when tech-challenged me endeavors to change things. =)

Thank-goodness for blogger making it easy by providing me with some easy design tools...and thank goodness for the two dear friends who are/have been helping me so much by providing ideas, inspiration, new bio photos, and a new header!

I'm super excited that this is finally happening! 

I am leaving the blog open until Thursday, to hopefully give most of my readers time to see this post and know what's going on.

If y'all think about it, you can be praying for me-I need clear direction from the Lord about a few things for this yet.

I'm really passionate about this blog being a dynamic growing place-not just a blog that is fun to "surf". Although I want to keep it fun. =) 

But I really need to have the right balance of fun and serious. And I'm seeking how to do that.

For the rest of the week, hop on over and keep up with me/our family on my family's blog, as my sister will be posting there about our upcoming Church Christmas play (and recordings, rehearsals, etc in preparation for that!), the big fundraiser dinner we did at church for it, the upcoming National Bible Bee (and daily updates on how our four national qualifiers are doing in the competition rounds) and random other things that are going on here at the Bontrager farm.

I'll see y'all back here bright & early next Monday morning, for the "new look"!

-chels