Living as a Victorious Christian Woman

Sometimes you don't have to start a project from scratch, but instead use the bits and pieces you have on hand to completely update an existing piece. That's how I created these beautiful, patriotic floral arrangements. I spent an entire afternoon raiding the church attic, and I found totes full of fun supplies that I could repurpose into two matching arrangements. I started with two green plants that have been there absolutely forever and added a cascading floral pick to the middle. They were a little smooshed, so it took some work to straighten all the wires out, but I love how they match the cascade of the plant itself. There were so many red, white and blue carnations that I lost count after a while. I chose the ones with the longest stems and started alternating colors right around my fireworks. The tighter the better, and again, some of them needed a little floofing to look like flowers and not pancakes. Note to self: do not put anything else in the storage bin with the f

If you're looking for a delicious recipe to fix for a 4th of July party, look no further. All you need are three ingredients, four to five hours and an empty stomach, and you'll have chicken so tender you may have to use a spoon because it will fall off your fork. Yes, that's the voice of experience. Ingredients: 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs 1 bottle balsamic salad dressing 1 Tbsp minced garlic 1. Turn slow cooker on low and spray lightly with nonstick spray. 2. Place 4 chicken thighs in a single layer in the bottom of the slow cooker, pour in just enough dressing to cover them and sprinkle in half the minced garlic 3. Repeat with the remaining four thighs in a second layer, dressing and garlic. 4. Cook in slow cooker 4-5 hours, until chicken is cooked completely and is fork-tender. Serve with fresh potatoes and veggies.

There is no better time than the week before Independence Day to be praying for our nation. It's clear if you watch the news, read the paper, talk to people in town or listen to the radio that our country is in dire straits. It's up to God's people to join forces and pray for our leaders. I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;  For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. 1 Timothy 2:1-2 Inspired by God, Paul wrote to Timothy that he needed to be praying for all men, but especially for the kings and those in authority throughout the known world. And if Timothy taught the church to pray for the government and its leaders, they would be a spiritual force to be reckoned with. It's now our turn to take up the mantle and take a stand in prayer, or a knee as the case may be. Here are just a few ideas of where to start:

One of my favorite times of year is upon us - our community's rodeo! I have a few cowboy-themed paper craft supplies left over from a past project, so I grabbed everything I could find and made this adorable layout. I started by outlining the horizontal lines with blue patterned washi tape to mimic a fence. Then I tore pieces of brown speckled washi and randomly added them to the page. Each piece of washi has a sticker image on it, along with some words and gear to create little clusters. One of the greatest inspirations for our planners - or any other craft project for that matter - will come from our daily lives and what is important to us. I love rodeo week, and now I'll have the week's events journaled and recorded. If you're doing something cool this week, are passionately pursuing something or just enjoying something, turn it into this week's planner pages - you'll be glad you did.

I have never in my life seen a dog with as many different expressions as our Diesel Mack. You can literally see his emotions and feelings racing across his face. Goofy Look at my tonsils Slightly sleepy Enjoying an ear massage A little concerned Love you, mama Did you hear that? You're my favorite Seriously? Boop Look at me, not her Hi This is the best Scratch right there Slightly concerned again Why did you stop? I'm still here That's my head Being sweet makes me sleepy - off to nap

  The mama bird who built her nest on top of our security light is a trooper.  She lays eggs two or three times each summer, in the middle of the hottest time of year.   Usually there are five babies, and she keeps them all tucked away in the overflowing nest. She protects them diligently, flying away if you approach, but keeping a close eye on you. Soon, so soon you might miss it, and the fuzz comes off while the feathers come in. I keep an eye on them at that point because I know they're about ready to fly off into a brave, new world. And then mama is an empty-nester again. For a little while anyway. It's not too long before she'll be raising another brood and the Carrell Wildlife Preserve will be full of happy, healthy new birds. 

There is no better place to find a variety of holiday-themed decorations than the dollar store. Actually, our dollar store just became the $1.25 store, but I refuse to call it that. Whatever its name, they have three aisles full of patriotic crafts and decor, so this Army wife is pretty happy. I used my last stash to make this pretty God Bless America wreath. I found garland, a couple of wall hangings, flag bows, styrofoam stars and lots of gift wrap bows at the store, then raided my own stash for a few goodies and my favorite white wreath. The red, white and blue garland has little flags in it, too, so I wrapped it evenly spaced around the wreath, making sure to fluff up the flags so they would stand out. Then I secured the God Bless America hanging in the middle with a couple of twist ties. It was very cool that the star fit exactly in the opening of the wreath - this design was meant to be! As a finishing touch, I tucked in about a dozen little multi-colored stars that sparkle every

Today is Flag Day, the anniversary celebration of adopting the Stars and Stripes as our national flag. To celebrate, let's make these fun and simple chocolate-dipped Oreos. You can't eat just one... Start by melting four bricks of chocolate-flavored almond bark. Personally, I like the taste of almond bark better than the melting chocolate in a bowl you get from the store. Place the bricks in a microwave-safe bowl and heat them for 30 seconds at a time, stirring each time, until they are melted, smooth and creamy. I like to use a lollipop stick instead of a spoon because less chocolate sticks to the stick than the spoon. That means you have more in the bowl for dipping. While the almond bark melts, choose your sprinkles. Oreos are fairly small, so keep your sprinkle size small, too. I did a few with the larger sprinkle mix on the right, but they were way too big and I didn't get very many on each cookie. The sprinkles on the left were perfect. Now for the fun part! Dip each