Friday, November 13, 2009

Little Things

You know there are times when I go all out and rearrange a room and drastically change its layout. Sometimes that can take hours or even days...or longer...to ever reach completion.

Then there are times that I do something little...something that takes just a few minutes, but makes a big difference in the room or just in my attitude about the room.

This project is a little of both. I found these picture frames at IKEA (oh, how I love and miss IKEA) and had a fun idea to put pictures of my family eating in the frames and hang it in my kitchen. I gathered pictures, but fell short of the nine pictures needed to fill the frames. I don't remember what happened, but after Meredith was born, I quickly gathered pictures of our family - really any pictures and filled the rest of the spots. That is how the frames stayed for the next FIVE years!!!

Here's the killer part, even after we moved I still hung them in my kitchen knowing that one day they would contain food pictures. But every time I walked past them (a million times a day) they would just whisper to me, "still haven't finished this project." or "see just another project you started but haven't finished" or "so you have pictures of four children - six children are too many for you to handle". Silly how a picture frame can breed such guilt!!!

Well, I am here to say that last week I took 10 minutes of an afternoon and finished my project. I know, ten minutes. Seriously, all that grief for just ten minutes.

The difference? I had to give up. Give up my original idea and allow God to give me a new idea. How many times do we hold on to an original idea when God has something better for us to experience? Too many in my life!

The end result...



...those are my six beautiful children that God gave me and intended for me to be the mother of, all eating their first birthday cake. The spots in between are some of our families favorite recipes or recipes written in someone special's handwriting.

There is my dad's mother's meatloaf recipe; my aunt's Sweet Potato Souffle; my mother's mother's Scotch Shortbread; my mother's BBQ sauce; my Texas chili; and my friend Elaine's banana bread. Not to play favorites, but my favorite is my grandmother's shortbread. As far as shortbread goes, it really isn't very good. In fact it resembles my play dough recipe. But she would make them into balls and press them down and put a red or green m&m in the middle. I would eat around the m&m and save it for the last bite. And the recipe is written by her. I'm sure she is now making Christmas shortbread cookies for Jesus!

And tonight, I made my other grandmother's meatloaf. It just says comfort and homey and is perfect for this cold day with fresh snow on the ground.

A simple project, made complicated by me.

4 comments:

Heasleye said...

Fabulous, Jenn! What a personal collection you have there. Love it!

Elaine

Ivymamma said...

Thank you for the awesome banana bread recipe!!

Deanne said...

what a great idea!! good job Jen! I love it, and you're right it's probably better than the original plan. just wait, you'll inspire other bloggers and we will all see similar pictures gracing the walls of blogging mama's homes! (on their blogs, of course) :)

Deedee said...

That is so cute Jen! Well done! It is simply a lovely idea. :o) And you are SOOOO right - the six kids who God knew you would be the best Mother for!!!! And don't you forget it! There!

Now you have gone and made me homesick! I LOVED your Grammy's shortbread cookies at Christmas time. She usually sent some over to our house with one of your Aunts or Uncles. I always did the same thing with the M'nMs too. Hehehehe! Considering we grew up several states apart - we share a surprising number of memories! LOL! Love ya' girl. Have a great day! And if you could see it in your heart to share that Shortbread recipe, your friend across the pond would enjoy sharing them with her boys this year - hint, hint, hint......... :o)