My Summer Project

When I first heard about the live action Beauty and the Beast I could not contain my excitement.  I grew up on the animation, it was one of my favorite movies, and now they were making a live action of this beloved movie.  When it came out I planned an outing with my friends on opening day to finally see the long anticipated movie.

I loved it so much!  Of course, just like most movies, there were a few parts I didn't care to much about but this post isn't a review so I won't go into details.  One aspect of the movie I absolutely loved was all the costumes.  I felt like it was a feast for my eyes taking in all the amazing costumes.

Each summer I usually pick a sewing project to work on so this summer I decided to make one of Belle's dresses.  But which one should I make? I could never do her yellow dress. Yellow just isn't my color and I'm still not sure if I like her yellow dress from the new movie.  It just doesn't feel like the old dress, it feels to modern.  But her blue dress on the other hand.  I fell in love with it the first time I saw it.

This outfit is amazing! I love all the separate pieces that make this outfit. The apron, the pockets... I even plan on making the bloomers Belle wears under her skirt.

Last week I picked out fabric for the dress.  It took a while to find all the right fabric but after much searching I was able to find just the right pattern for each part of the dress.

I can't wait to make this costume!  This will officially be my second cosplay (technically my third if you count the Hiccup cosplay I made for my brother) and my first Disney cosplay! As I work on this dress I will be taking pictures of the process and I plan on posting a tutorial just like I did for my Astrid Cosplay.

I'll say it one more time, I'm very excited about this project!  I can't wait to start ;)

How To Love God

How do you show someone love? Isn't love just something that comes naturally? You don't have to put any thought into it, it's all about how you feel, right?

Yes, I guess love can be feeling, but it's so much more than just a feeling. When you love someone how do you show them that you love them?

By serving them. By learning all you can about them so you know what pleases them. Spending time with that person and communicating well with them.

So love is actually an action and the feeling comes with the action. With this in mind how can we love God? We can try to chase after the feeling of being loved by God but when days come when we don't feel the love we will be confused and find ourselves left alone and discontent with our life.

As we purpose each day to meditate on God's word we are showing God love. When we spend time studying God's word we are spending time with God and we can learn about how we can please Him. The beautiful thing is that as we do this, God will fill us with the love and joy we long for. But we must follow through with the actions and trust in God and He will supply the feeling.

To love God is to love His word. 

It's truly a beautiful thing when we can learn to love God in this way. I want to be like the psalmist in psalm 119:97 when he cried out saying "Oh how I love your law, it is my meditation day and night."

Fill Me With Wonder

"Open my eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of your law." Psalm 119:18

I have a longing in my soul.  I want to see wondrous things.  I want to be amazed.

To stand in awe of mighty mountains that make me feel small.  To witness the power of a thunderstorm. To see how vast and how deep the ocean is.  To travel the world.  To have my breathe taken away by the wonders of God's creation.

But what am I to do when I find myself getting tired of the mundane routine of everyday life. When I'm stuck at home do I have to put these longings and dreams aside?



The amazing truth is that I don't have to go anywhere to find the answer to these longings.  I don't have to go to the mountains to know that I serve a mighty God.  All I have to do is look outside my window to be amazed at the wonders of God and His creation.

And the amazing God we serve has given us His Word. Each time I open my Bible I get to learn more about how much God loves me.

Each time I spend time with God I want to be filled with awe at the wonderful story of grace and mercy that is found in His Word.

May we never lose our wonder when we ponder the goodness of our God and all He has done for us. 

Good-bye Spring, Hello Summer

"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."

As one season comes to an end, a new one begins.  Spring is over and summer is almost here. Every spring I work at a living history camp (Rock-N-Water). At this camp I pretend I'm from 1854 and teach kids about the Gold Rush.  This year was my fourth year working at this amazing place.  To me Rock-N-Water is a ministry because each day I am able to teach others about God and serve God in such a fun and unique way.

Even though I'm sad the camp is over, I'm choosing to be happy for all the fun I had and all the lessons I learned.   Memories are an amazing thing and I choose to treasure them. There's a huge smile on my face because I know that God is so good to me and He has blessed me so much through this camp.

Now as the green grass slowly fades to brown, and the temperatures begin to rise, I'm reminded that summer is here again.  To be honest with you all, summer isn't my favorite season, mainly because of the heat.  Who enjoys the heat?  I'd rather have cold weather.  But there is nothing I can do, summer has arrived once again.  

Do I have any summer plans?  I wish I could give you a list of things I am planning to accomplish this summer, but I don't. And, you know what, that's okay.  Each day comes and I'm learning to trust God in the uncertainty of the future.  I'm learning to live my life day by day, step by step.  The truth is that it's okay to not have a long list of summer plans and accomplishments.  I know God has great plans for me and I can't wait to see what He will teach me this summer!

Do you have any fun plans for summer?