Back Porch Revival
Wednesday, August 16, 2017
Rainbows and Butterflies
I started this blog a long while back and I have been pretty inconsistent with it. I know the reason for that is a fear of authenticity. If I'm going to write the blog, then I want to be real, but real ain't always pretty. And when you live in a small town, it's pretty risky feeling to put your ugly out for the world to see.
Tonight's post is driven by a desire to be real. Hopefully I won't regret it, and hopefully it will be the first in a long line of posts that you want to read because you can relate to the real life that we are living over here on the Back Porch.
Guess what else feels risky? Following your calling. Funny how saying you want to do God's will in your life and actually DOING God's will in your life are two TOTALLY different things. And I've learned in the last six-ish years that God will lead you to do some pretty crazy feeling things. He really doesn't care if everyone thinks you've lost your mind. And I guess we have reached a point where, as long as we are living led by Him, we really don't either.
Three weeks ago (maybe three weeks? the days have sort of run together) my husband quit his job. He had felt led for some time to come home and work Back Porch Revival with me. But that was huge. And scary. And so we tried to ignore it and explain it away for a while. But he knew it was what he was being called to do and he finally couldn't ignore it any longer. I won't lie, it was scary then and it's still kind of scary now. That's called being human. It doesn't mean we don't have faith.
Let me tell you what else I won't lie about...it hasn't been all rainbows and butterflies for the last three weeks. We work very well together, but this has also been a HUGE adjustment for both of us. We are having to learn to live together 24/7/365. You know, there's a lot of things you can look past about a person when you know they're leaving in 3 days and won't be back for two weeks. And there's some stuff that just ain't that cute anymore when you know they're gonna be here 24/7/365...IM JUST SAYIN.
And honestly, all the questions running through your head as you read this about how this is going to work, they're running through our heads, too. All we can do is have faith.
We have a lot of awesome things planned. New products, new adventures...new fights...c'mon, let's be realistic here. But we hope you tag along with us to see what happens next!
Much love from the Back Porch ❤️
Saturday, December 24, 2016
Screw You, Norman Rockwell
Wednesday, November 30, 2016
Rusty Ornament Tutorial
I have a pretty fab little project I want to share with you for turning plastic, $1.00 ornaments from the dollar store into awesome, rusty patina goodness...and the best part is that they won't drag your tree branches down to the floor!
I picked up these 10 inch stars for this project...I have done the same process on several other plastic ornaments, so you can use whatever you like.
Tuesday, November 15, 2016
One Man's Trash
Anyway, today is the day that bed post did finally get a new life. I love holiday decorating, but I'm cheap, and I don't like to spend much money to do it. I don't usually keep decorations from year to year, because I accumulate so many neat things all year long, and I like to find ways to incorporate them into my decor. I thought it would be fun to show you how to turn your trash into "holiday treasure".
I made an arrangement for my dining room table. The container for the arrangement is a wire and wicker basket I bought cheap, cheap from a friend.
Sunday, November 13, 2016
Consistently Inconsistent
This has been a ROUGH year...it has been a year that I am thoroughly thankful for, but it has been rough. God has used situation after situation to grow me and stretch me this year. I have so far to go, but I have seen so much growth and progress in myself, that I can't help but look at every situation and feel gratitude about them.
It has been a year of major change...the oil field has affected this house like many others, although not as drastically as some, praise the Lord. Back Porch Revival has changed, and changed some more. There have been a lot of faith walks happening around here, lol.
I have lost family this year, but also feel like I have gained family, as well. This will be the first Thanksgiving and Christmas since my mother and grandpa passed...it will be hard in ways. But I am also very much looking forward to hosting the holidays here for our family.
I have learned about community over competition this year. I learned that, gasp!, the world doesn't revolve around me! I learned that other women are trying to "make it", just like I am...and that not only will it not kill me, but that it might actually bless me, to give them a leg up when I have the opportunity. Even if they don't reciprocate.
I've learned that not being able to do everything doesn't make me a failure. And that BEING an actual failure every now and then won't kill me, either. I've been a failure quite a few times this year...it was a necessary, humbling experience each and every time. And I survived, every single time.
And,, I've learned that as much as consistency and self discipline SUCK, they are necessary. Hit that follow button...there are many new things coming to Back Porch Revival and to our lives in general. It is my hope to share them with you CONSISTENTLY in 2017 and I don't want you to miss a thing!
Saturday, December 5, 2015
Truth In Pictures
Blogging is something that has been a desire of my heart for a long time...I'm not sure why...maybe it's just simply the feeling of release or a hope that someone, somewhere will read some snippet and say "yessssss!!!". I haven't written a post in a very long time, so I figured why not start with a hard one.
Monday, December 22, 2014
It Was House
This Christmas season has not gone as I had planned. I am ridiculously grateful for the many, many blessings in my life, don't get me wrong...but, boy oh boy has this Christmas season not gone as I had planned. I feel quite certain this is one of those times that God had to remind me, yet again, that I am not in charge.
We have all been just silly about the new house...and I think we all had these pretty Norman Rockwell dreams of what our first Christmas here was going to be like. We discussed all the decorations we would hang and the dinner we would eat sitting at our gigantic "new" dining set...oh my! the things we planned. And a month, a ton of doctor's and dentist's visits, prescriptions not covered by insurance, severe colds, a bladder infection, bulging disks and a thrown-out back, a stomach virus, and a shitload of medical bills later...we have a tree up, we have decided the dining table is too big, and we will be going out for dinner and a movie with our boys on Christmas night.
And you know what? I am ok with that. Yes, I had a moment or two where I was just disgusted that I didn't get to Pinterest my little heart out once again this Christmas, but at the end of the day, it was house.
Our "new" house is my husband's grandparents' houseplace. And we LURVE it. It is an old house, but she has great bones. The house is a nice house...it is spacious and has a great pantry...it has alot going for it. But none of those are the reasons why we love the house so. The house just FEELS like home.
I hope that you are lucky enough to have known the feeling (maybe you are really lucky and you STILL get to feel the feeling) of walking into your grandmother's house. My grandma's house just always felt like home...it was the most comfortable place in my world. Everything was gonna be ok when you were at grandma's house. Everything was perfect there...you didn't have to look or act a certain way...it was ok to eat a second piece of cake, noone was judging...it was just HOME.
That is the feeling in this house. When we walk through the door, everything is just ok, because we are home. It is comfortable. It is perfect.
We still have so much left to do as far as updating and finishing the house...small things like touching up trim and painting and rehanging doors. We have all put in alot of hours together to get it where it is now. Alot of late night, delirious hours...and so "it was house" was born.
My boys and I all get a little silly when we get tired...and at some point during our late night painting sessions, someone started yelling "it was house!" from whatever room they were working in. And all of our minds work the the same, so it was immediately understood that this really meant "ohmygoshthishouseisfantasticandicantbelieveitsreallyours". So, for months we have yelled "It was house" to each other.
I think one reason we get so frantic at Christmas is that it feels like a one shot deal. We have a "season" to cram in all these activities and feelings and our favorite foods and such. What I have finally realized this year is that we should live those feelings all year long...why does Christmas make us feel so good? Because we make candy with our kids and give it as gifts to people? Do we have to wait until Christmas to do that?
Yes, obviously there are alot of "Christmas" things we wouldn't do year round..If you are being ridiculous right now and naming them all in your head, then stop...you know what I mean. It's kinda the same as people who save all their good shit their whole lives waiting for special occasions to use it and then die before they do.
Our Christmas may not have turned out quite the way we planned, but it turned out, and for that I am thankful.
It was home.