Filtering Life

Oh man, I kill me…that play on words. I got a million more people. I am blaming my husband for watering down my wit to puns and double an tantras (how do you spell that?). Bring back New York Kelly quick!!!

So I am here to show you what I have been up to. Remember my post where I was bumming about not taping into my creative side. Well I finally stopped flapping my jaws and started doing. Now there is nothing I am about to show you that will blow your mind. Just some simple home projects to learn about my sewing machine. No need to comment that I did such a great job (although encouragement is always appreciated). I just wanted to say I have stopped “wishing and wanting” away my life and started DOING!!!

Here are my sewing 101 projects. The first one is a modest rectangle curtain for Ryan’s office. I had to make it plain for Ryan and this was my first time cutting and sewing by myself…so here is my fabulous rectangle in all it’s glory. Hold your applause until the end.

My next project was to take a former shower curtain and turn it into a curtain for my kitchen. This shower curtain was from my days when I would spend an insane amount of money on things for my house. It is 400 thread count from Garnett Hill. I heart Garnett Hill…but people….400 thread count on a shower curtain. Oh to get back some of the money I peed away when I was single and making money….sigh….
The key to this little project was lining up the holes so they were even on both sides. I kicked it up a notch from my previous curtain by adding a box pleat and finished it off with some ribbon to hang it by. I plan on making some basket liners to match with the rest of the material.

Finally on our mesmerizing tour of crafting feats….I made a table runner. This was a little more on the frosted side of Kelly, mixing two unlikely fabrics. I love mixing patterns together. I realize this is not everyone’s cup of tea…but I rather like the non-traditional pairing. I call it “city meets country”. Hounds tooth and modern flower pattern unite. I will say, the hounds tooth material was knit and an absolute BEAR to cut and measure. My friend, Jen, gave me the square you see in the middle of the runner…so I cannot claim that. Anyway…I like it and I did it all by my lonesome.

Well that is it. That is all I can muster up to this point. The good news is…I LOVE sewing and this has only ignited a desire to learn more and get to a point where I can make things for other people. Right now I will just experiment on my house.
I do need to take another poll. I am a “namer”. I name my cars, give nicknames to people and animals, etc… I need a name for my sewing machine. I can’t call her Kenmore…I have already determined my machine is a she…but I need to find a name that fits her. Suggestions?

First of all, thank you for the input on Chloe’s hair. I know you may think that there are more important things in the world to worry about than infant hairdo’s such as global warming, panda’s becoming extinct, and will the Red Sox make it to the World Series again (that is for my husband, his brothers and my father in-law) but I beg to differ…that hair dilemma was turning my insides..out. Kidding. I see the “hair sprout” got the most votes…done…it is a good thing I already own about 45 pairs of baby barrettes. Now I will really be up a creek if the top of her head begins to shed…oh please, oh please, oh please hair gods…don’t take my babies signature hair.

On a much more serious note, I am going to shift gears and talk about something extremely important to me. My relationship with God. First of all, I want to thank my very best friend in the world, Dikola, for continually kicking my butt spiritually. I wish you all had the privilege of knowing her…trust me…her heart is as beautiful as her outsides. The first days of our visits together are usually spent telling endless stories to catch up with what we don’t get to on phone dates. By about day 3 we start getting to the nitty gritty. This is where Dikola politely, but firmly, tells me where I am wrong on a few things in my heart. She nailed my butt to the ground on a few issues and people I have been struggling with and then finished me off with some incredible scripture. Now I can argue anyone’s opinion of my life till I am blue in the face…but I can not argue the infallible truth of God’s words when spoken into my life. My heart has been anxious to spend time in The Word again as I have been so sporadic since Chloe’s birth.

I am not a disciplined person…GASP…”but Kelly, you are type A…anal.” Yeah, I know, but my analities take the form of:

1. When walking by the couch, I straighten the pillows…EVERY time.
2. I put away Chloe’s toys after each use, even though I will pull it out again 2 hours later
3. The entire house must be “picked up” before I can lay my head to sleep

When it comes to time management I give myself a C+. I am a list writer and I can blow through tasks like crazy, but setting time aside to spend with the Lord is hard for me. Probably because when I spend time with Jesus it is all encompassing. I don’t just sit and read my Bible for 30 minutes and walk away. I have to journal, sing worship music, stare out a window and meditate, read scripture, move around. It is a holistic experience. One of my favorite disciplines is visualization. It is so hard to clear my mind initially, so I usually have the laptop open and as people or tasks pop into my mind, I quickly type their name or deed onto a Word document so I won’t forget, but don’t have to think about it. After I get settled I take myself to my favorite place in the world. A place so sacred and so special to me. A place where God himself met me and confirmed so much to me. Ryan took the time to piece all my pictures together so you can almost get a panoramic view. (To get the full effect, go to my flickr and view it full size.)

This is the Tien Shan Mountains located in Almaty, Kazakhstan. I spent 6 months in the city of Almaty as a short term missionary. It was a phenomenal experience in my life. I could share a million stories. One day a few of us decided to spend an afternoon in solitude, so we drove to the base of the mountains and then rode a series of 4 ski lifts up to another plateau. This is where we broke off and hiked different peaks to spend 5 hours alone. I am not much of a “hiker”, especially hills…my lungs hate me. However, that day I just kept my nose to the ground and pumped up this particular peak until it was too rocky to go any higher. There I nestled between two huge rocks and zipped myself into a sleeping bag to stay warm and I began to pray. Praying turned to singing, singing turned to weeping. I was in awe of what I was looking at. I was somewhere around 10,000 feet in elevation looking over this breathtaking mountain range. To the southeast is Kyrgystan. To the East is China. The view is beyond description.
In Job chapters 38-40 the Lord speaks to Job and tells him who He is. It is powerful scripture and when you are in nature of this magnitude, the power of His creation can overwhelm you. I realized in that instant, that besides the 4 other people who hiked up with me…no one in the WORLD knew where I was that moment…but God did. At that time, I was at a place of stubborn sinfulness…unwilling to set aside my sin in complete surrender of His goodness. The Lord and I talked many things out that day. I felt His tangible presence over my whole body as well as his loving, gracious, and patient spirit. He is mightier than 10,000 armies, yet gentler than a whisper.
This is the God I serve, this is the God I love. This is my place, my mountain, my memory of one moment in time of my life. When I feel scared…I go there, when I feel alone…I go there, when I miss my Jesus…I meet Him there. This week is a Tien Shan week for me. I am going to my mountain often asking God for direction, forgiveness, and mercy.
Today is Ash Wednesday. Although I am not Catholic, for the last three years I have observed Lent and for 40 days I either give up something or commit to something. I haven’t decided today what I will do…but it is always an interesting adventure. A very minute exercise in sacrifice to focus us on the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.
For those of you interesting in spending time with God, but have no idea how…may I recommend a website that has the most amazing devotionals to listen to. They are only about 10 minutes long, more liturgical in format, but for me, I love that. It starts out with some beautiful music to quiet yourself to, some scripture reading, some challenge questions and then more music to pray to. I promise you will be blessed by taking those 10 minutes.
The website is Pray As You Go. You can literally download a week at a time and put it on your Ipod. That way if you work out or take walks or just steal away to a room by yourself, you can pop on your headphones and quiet yourself for 10 minutes.
So that’s it, just wanted to share more from my heart today. No post would be complete without my wee one. She is still so congested…ugh…but again, has the most amazing attitude about me attacking her nose 100 times an hour.