Craft Show

I have always enjoyed going to craft shows; I just love looking at things people have made, and finding special gifts for friends and family that just can’t be bought at a retail store. Back in July, I really started wanting to make crafts; I quickly learned that crafting was very therapeutic for me. It was my way of escape, allowing me to focus on creating.

So…I made a few things, and was encouraged to continue to create more...so, In September, I got the grand idea of creating enough products for a craft show…now, this was not an easy, and always fun venture…my house was pretty chaotic…I didn’t want to take time to tuck everything away, and then haul it all out again the next night after work…so our kitchen table was pretty much covered with paper, fabric, glue guns, felt, tiles…ect. However, I pushed through, and we had our first show!

Last Saturday, Kel and I had a booth in the Believer’s Fellowship Craft Market. We had a wonderful time meeting other vendors, as we sold our products that we worked so hard to finish. The other vendors were so nice, we got lots of great tips, and were very encouraged through them. Here are a few pictures.

 

Will we do it again? YES. We will be a part of the Lanier Christmas Market on December 17,2011…Hope to see you there!!

One Year!

I can’t believe it's been a year since Kellen and I got married!

November 6, 2010

So we tried the top layer of our cake, it had been frozen for the year...Looks can be decieving, it was actually really good. I don't remember trying it on our wedding day, so Im really glad my mom saved it for us. :)

Ive leared a lot this past year. It’s been a year of adjustments…

-The first couple of months I had the hardest time sleeping; I wasn’t used to sharing a bed, especially with a boy!

- I have learned ans still learning that I have to rely on Christ and seek Him in knowing how to love and support my husband. (Media, and my expectations are pretty much always going to be unmet.)
-Im learning how to love unselfishly...only through Christ.

-I’ve learned that it’s a blessing to be able to share life with your best friend, and LOVE having someone to come home to.

-It’s been wonderful not to have to worry about having to find someone to fix small things around the house, or take care of the cars.

-I’ve learned that communication is hard…but, we are getting better at it. J

I think the biggest thing I have learned through marriage is that I have caught a small glimpse of God’s love through Kellen. See the thing is, I’m not the easiest person to live with, I get cranky, hurt, upset, tired, and my emotions can get a little out of hand. However, Killen’s love for me doesn’t waiver. It is constant. He has shown me unconditional love, when I least deserve it, much like Christ.

Kellen, thank you for showing me God’s love.

Birthday Fun...

This past Wednesday, October 26^th, was my birthday. Now, this birthday was different from the 27 other birthdays I have celebrated…because this was my first birthday as a married gal! I must say, my husband did an incredible job making me feel so special!!

The day started with him making a special breakfast with pancakes and bacon, and then right before I left for work, he surprised me with a band for my wedding ring! What a sweet surprise. It was a birthday/1^st Anniversary Gift.

Then, after work, he picked me up and we went to the Menil Art Museum…if you are in Houston, you should check this one out…it’s a hidden gem…and FREE! J I love going to art museums. Right now we are in class learning about the fall of Assyria, and looking at the History in that region, so I was a bit fascinated by the ancient sculptures. Kel even gave me a little history lesson along the way. J (He’s so much smarter than I am. Hehe)

Menil Museum

We then went to the Hobbit Café, I had been to this place once, and wanted Kellen to experience it. It’s a small cottage, with pictures and figurines of hobbits all over the place…I know, quirky, but unique. There food is really great, it’s all natural and healthy, (like you have to pay extra for French fries or onion rings) we shared some blackened tilapia…and a huge piece of carrot cake (not healthy J ). Here is a picture, it’s horrible and blurry but it’s the only one of the night.

Low and behold, there was another surprise for me waiting. When I walked in the front door, Kellen had placed a post it note with clues for lil’ gifts he had hidden all over the house. J I love his thoughtfulness! I got a self healing cutting board and rotary cutter so I can start cutting!! J

I think this was my favorite birthday... ever.

Redeemed Ministries

Did you know?

Houston is the most trafficked city in the US?  

Although, yes…Houston has lots of traffic, Im not talking about cars.

 Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery where people profit from the control and exploitation of others. Sex trafficking occurs when people are forced or coerced into the commercial sex trade against their will.  Child sex trafficking includes any child involved in commercial sex. 

There are more people living in slavery today, than any other time in history.

The reality is, there are thousands of women living in brothels, right in our own backyard. These brothels face as massage parlours, modelling studios, tea rooms, and even nail salons.

I first learned about Human Trafficking while I was in Ethiopia. After returning, I began researching, and discovered there were 7 brothels within 10 miles from my suburban home.

I did some research and found an incredible ministry to partner with;

Redeemed Ministries serves to:

EDUCATE people - Raise awareness of the existence of modern day slavery.

SEEK victims - Enter into the places of slavery to identify the enslaved.

BUILD relationships - Foster cooperation between legislators, law enforcement, service providers, etc.

IDENTIFY resources - Facilitate and advocate on behalf of victims to receive aftercare.

REDEEM hearts - Restore honor, worth, and reputation.

For about 3 years I have been volunteering with Redeemed, and currently serve as a coordinator for outreach. My eyes have been opened, and heart pierced.

These women are modern day slaves and have no voice. They are trapped in horrifiying situations. Held against thier will and in fear of their lives, they have become hopeless. Having no freedom, their cries for justice have been silenced. The pain of their circumstance has gone largely unnoticed, hidden. Their enslavement continues as the world around them conducts business as usual. Justice has been stolen from them. These women are hidden from the spotlight, but they are not forgotten. In order to be set free they need someone to fight for them. Someone needs to stand up for what's right. They need a voice.

Will you be a voice?



If you would like more information, please check out the website:
Redeemed Ministries

You can also leave a comment, or Email me.

Our Response: Prayer.

On Saturday, August 6th, Kel and I joined 30,000 people at "The Response". I had heard about the gathering from friends, and looked up the website: A day of prayer and fasting for our country...with politicians?  I must say, we were both a little skeptical, not knowing at all what to expect, even the website was extremely vague. However, we made the trek down to Reliant, to check it out.

Once we exited the freeway, I saw people lining the streets with signs, shouting as we drove by. Protesters. Their signs read, "There is no God", "Where is the Love?" , "Hatred isn't a family value", "Why Pray?". Immediately, i just began waving, and smiling as we drove down the street and into the stadium. I quickly felt tears rolling down my face, I wasn't mad or angry at them...I was hurting for them. I was broken for them. I felt sad, somewhere along their journey, they ran into someone who proclaimed to be a Christ follower, who treated them wrong, so wrong that they felt the need to protest. I was shocked at how much my heart ached for them, and how much I wanted them to know love from Christ AND His followers.

As we joined the others in the stadium, and spent hours in prayer and worship.It was an overwhelming experience, a small glimpse of what heaven will be like, singing with thousands and thousands of people, worshiping the throne of God. And yes, I prayed for revival to spread over our nation, strength and direction for political leaders, and justice to reign in our country...but, I think I spent most of the day praying for the protesters, and asking God to bring redemption to their hearts.

Here are a few pics we took:

Governor Rick Perry

Look there, its our friends John and Rob, in a crowd of 30, 000...they were a few rows down!

US! :)

Congrats Glenn and Lesley

Im so excited, my brother Glenn, and his girlfriend, Lesley just got engaged!

 He did a wonderful job on the proposal, he even hired a photographer to capture the moment:

My parents had a little get together for them with all their friends, so of course I wanted to have some fun decorating! I had seen a couple ideas online that I wanted to try out. 

One was yarn balls....not balls of yarn!

This is a simple craft, but messy...fun and messy!

Items needed:

yarn (I used 2 different colors)

a bag of balloons: I used 5 inch round balloons to make smaller yarn balls

Mod Podge, see my last post on how to make homemade CHEAP mod podge

Instructions:

1. Blow up, and tie a balloon. I only blew it up a little, because I wanted it to be round, and not oblong.

2. Did the yarn in the mod podge mixture.

3. Begin wrapping the balloon with the yarn. You want to leave areas where the balloon is not completely covered. 

4. After you have the balloon covered as much as you wish, squeeze the excess glue off of the yarn ball.

5. leave out overnight to dry.

6. Once the ball is completely dry, you can take a pin and pop the balloon.

Whaala!

You have a yarn ball.

You can place them on the table for decoration, hang them from fishing string, place them in a basket...let your creative juices flow!!

The engagement lunch was so much fun, while I was busy decorating, my love was makin the burgers!

Happy Engagement Glen and Les...we love you guys!

Ordinary Glue

I have come to realize that in creating fun crafty projects, that there has been a common ingredient:

This is true, whether its creating a mosiac with scrap paper, making a fun photo frame, tile coasters...Mod Podge is a must. Since it can be pretty expensive, I decided to make my own...and it works!

Homemade Mod Podge:

Ingredients:

1 jar with twice the volume as the glue that has a lid. (I bought mine from Hobby Lobby when it was half off for $1.10

3 regular size white glue bottles. (I bought off brand from walmart for 29 cents.)

Water

How to:

1. Pour the glue from all three bottles into the jar.

2. Fill the now empty bottles of glue with water.

3.Pour the water in the glue bottles into the jar.

4. Fasten the lid on the jar and shake.

Walla! 

A Jar of Mod Podge

Cost: 1.97, this includes the jar, so each batch of Mod Podge will only cost me:

.87

As much as I use this, its a HUGE savings!

Ordinary Cabinets

About a month ago, Kellen and I were driving to my parents house to have dinner. Kellen, my thrifty hubs, spotted a pile of cabinet fronts sitting out by the road. Now, most people would call this pile, trash, but to Kellen it was sturdy wood, and lots of knobs to be reused on furniture. So we stopped on the busy street, put the hazards on, and started piling some into the trunk. After a couple minutes, I convinced him that we had enough, and dinner was waiting. Kellen's treasure was only about three minutes away from my parents, so once we got there, Kel convinced my dad to go back with him and load the rest up.

So we started brainstorming what all we could use the cabinets for...and this is what we came up with....

Wallla! 
Its a Fun and Funky Chalkboard! 

Here is the simple how-to:

1.Strip the cabinet front using paint thinner and a scrub brush.
.
2. Paint the outer and inside molding (We chose black and pink).

3. After the paint is dry, use painters tape and  cover the inside molding. (pink)

3. While the paint is drying, we made our own chalkboard paint.(See recipe below)

4. paint the flat surface with the chalkboard paint, after the paint is dry remove the tape.

5. Mod Podge wrapping paper between the two moldings.

Chalkboard Paint
If you haven't noticed, chalkboard paint is pretty expensive. However, I did a little research (thanks to Pintrest) and found a super easy way to make the paint extremely cheap!

1. 1 cup of paint (any color)
2. 2 Tablespoons of tile grout.  White Dry, non sanded tile grout. I found mine at Home Depot for five bucks and some change.

Mix the two together. Make sure there are not any clumps, and then paint! (We used a foam roller, and the paint went on really smooth)

This is so easy, and fun...the possibilities are endless!

We are in the process of making about twenty chalkboards, all different colors and patterns....the best thing, all the materials were recycled!

I would love to be a part of a craft show, however, I'm finding that its too late for the fall shows. Registration for a lot of them was over in June. Oh well, maybe an Etsy store? any ideas??

Discovering the Heights

This fourth of July was a bit different than years past. Normally the two weeks prior to the big day, parking lots and side streets are sporadically filled with:

However, while the northern half of the country has been experiencing heavy rains, we have to manually water our grass, and we are in a drought. So, consequently, they were all:

I must admit, it seemed a bit odd not to hear the popping of black cats or the screeching of the lightning bug. However, we made the most of it and went out with my brother Glenn and his girlfriend, Leslie.

Glenn took us to a really cool pub in the Heights called Taps (http://www.tapshouseofbeer.com/).  Pulling up to the entrance, Kel was ecstatic to see the epic barrel entrance (featured below).  Now, I have to preface this. I am not a beer drinker. Kellen desires for me to enjoy the brewskies, and I try, but usually after the third sip, I've had about all I can handle. Im definately the fruity drink type. However, as I walked in and saw the 82 beer taps, I was certian I could find something that was decent. So.... I actually found a beer I liked, it's...drumroll, this is a huge deal (well, I think it is)....pear ale, yes...It was delightfully refreashing! (btw-Kel says its not a real beer!)

The best thing about Taps is that they have two patios with really fun games....corn hole, a gigantic connect four, and an oversized jenga! We had to try them all.

Houston put on a thirty minute firework display downtown. Glenn's job allowed their employes and families to watch the display from the top floor of the parking garage. So after all the games, we headed to watch the fireworks with all the other Houstonions. Thanks Glenn and Les for inviting us! We had a great night!

Sabbath

So lately I have been thinking about the word Sabbath. More so now than when I was single, I find myself in need of a sabbath. Maybe because when you are married, there is always someone around, and I find myself unable to just read, pray, and journal like I used too. I used to be so disciplined when it came to reading and working out. Ugh.

Do other people have this problem post wedding? I am almost through with a biography of Amy Carmichael. She was quite a fasinating lady, someone whom I greatly respect. Reading about all her missionary ventures leaves me with an itch to travel.( Ill probuably write more in a later post)  Anyways, I am trying to incorporate more sabbaths in our lives.

 What does sabbath look like for you?

I would love to get others thoughts.

Weekend O' Fun!

Usually our weekends consist of  going here and there, meeting with people, cleaning, and the never ending list of things to do. However, This past weekend was actually really relaxing.

Friday night we spent the evening cleaning out the garage, now to a normal person, this probuably wouldn't be too fun, but to me, I love organization. When the house is clean, I can be much more relaxed. WHen the house is in chaos, I feel like my whole world is a mess. :) Saturday, I actually did my first ever cleanse. Im really needing to get back to working out and wanted to jump start the new lifestyle by  getting rid of some of the junk! Well, lets just say that I stayed in for the day!!

I moved to Copperfield about three years ago, and I had yet venture the pool...until Sunday night. Im so excited that our pool is open till 9pm every night. (Its not so dang hot!!) Kellen mastered the grill and made some yummy kabobs. (I was impressed, he even went to the store to get some fresh veggies, and pineapple.) Last minute, We had the Baileys over, and then all 7 of us went to the pool. It was quite a fun night full of diving boards, slides, and noodles. I hadn't jumped off a diving board in YEARS!  I think we shall return to the neighboorhood pool!

I promise this blog will not be a play by play of our life....stay tuned!

Blog?

Yes, the Kapsars now have a blog. :)

Kellen and I both have so many friends and family that live far, and some near that we just don't get to chat it up as much as we would like, so hopefully this blog will help us stay more connected, or at least let you know what we are up too!

Im also hoping that we can display some of our thrify DIY projects. Both Kellen and I love creating! Whether it be furniture, cheap recipes for home remedies, or fun art, working on  projects is very therapuetic for us both. please follow us as we venture to show how our little ordinary world is full of beauty!!