"Here I Raise My Ebenezer" (For the Graduates)

Well...

It's that time of year again!


The sun is shining, the birds are chirping...

...and school's out for summer!

Graduation is tomorrow for many high school Seniors, and this year's 'crop' is near and dear to my heart. Some I've known since before they entered high school, and some I've known for only a few short years. Regardless of that, they've been in my prayers a lot this week, and I'd be remiss if I didn't share what is on my heart.


But first... what's behind door #1? A trip down Memory Lane!

RFA Graduation 2010

Anywho! Here we go.

You're probably wondering why I used the name Ebenezer in the title of this post.



And if you didn't see that before, you saw it now and are definitely picturing Ebenezer Scrooge in your head.

Didn't picture him like that? How about like this?

Or maybe like this?

You're welcome.

But I'm not here to talk about Ebenezer Scrooge....


We used to sing this song in my church at 'Cuse that had one particular line...It always made me giggle: "Here I raise my Ebenezer, hither by Thy help I've come." No matter what I did, I never could take the song seriously because I was always picturing someone taking Ebenezer Scrooge and holding him up like this:

Well, it turns out there's another meaning for the word 'Ebenezer' in this song. The word 'Ebenezer' in Hebrew translates to "stone of help."It's mentioned in the Old Testament of the Bible...

"Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the Lord has helped us.”
1 Samuel 7:12

When Samuel and the Israelites defeated their enemies, I imagine it being an amazing moment. Samuel decided to comemmorate this awesome, defining moment by putting a stone to mark the spot of the battle.

But this stone would serve as more than just a reminder of the battle that had taken place: it would serve as a public acknowledgement of the Lord's provision in their time of need. 

"He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the Lord has helped us.”

By making this Ebenezer stone, the Israelites were able to stop and examine their surroundings. "Thus far the Lord has helped us"- Look how far God has taken us when we trusted in Him. Look at all the little ways He in His goodness has provided for us. In the same token, if God has brought us this far, imagine how far He can take us if we trust in Him!

I'm sure you can look back at your life and see a series of "Ebenezer" stones in the desert- poignant moments of reflection and assurance of God's love, provision and guidance.
Many of you will graduate Saturday, and I'd like to encourage you to take advantage of that wonderful experience. Have an 'Ebenezer' moment, if you will. Look back at the last several years and see how God's hand has provided for you. Look at how far He's brought you. Thank Him for how He has helped you "thus far" and rejoice over where He will bring you to if you commit your ways to Him. Surely you will do wonderful things! How do I know?

"Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26

To all of the graduates- I'm praying for you! May God continue to bless you as you seek His plan for your future!


Love,
SL

Ginormous Poster Prints (Thrifty Wall Art Series: #2)

It's not a rare occasion for me to find something cool on Pinterest.

cute, but impractical deer.

It's also not rare for me to want to try and re-create something that I've pinned on Pinterest.

However, it is rare for me to find something, especially a craft, that when recreated actually works. 

(...and I'll give you a clue: that deer is not it!)

Credit to Sugar Bee Crafts

This craft is a gem! I pinned it immediately because I was in shock.

The caption from the original post said it all-
"...$13 (that's $8 for the print, and another $5 worth of an $11 foam board because you won't need to use the whole board...)"

How can that be? $13 for a GIANT picture? I'm in!

As a college student, I'm all about finding an inexpensive way to decorate my room with cool things.

swanky peacock feather/willow branch bunch in my room!

It's even better when these things are compact and can be folded or rolled...


...Or when they're so inexpensive that you don't mind tossing them at the end of the year and starting again the next year.


So how do you go about making one of these snazzy larger-than-life poster prints?

Assemble your materials.

You'll need:

- 1 picture file, preferably a picture you don't mind being giant!
- 1 flash drive
- a backup picture in case the first one you picked doesn't work.


Finding a picture that will work for this project is kind of tricky. Luckily, I have a roommate with incredible photography skills. She was more than happy to provide me with a picture to use for my project. Here are some tips for choosing the right picture:

- It should be as big of a picture file possible
- It should already be a black and white photo
- It should be the highest quality possible... remember, it's going to be HUGE!
- If this is your first time trying it, I wouldn't do any faces. Do an image that can be a little fuzzy and still look ok.
- If you are savvy with computers, format the image to be the exact size of the poster that you want, so there won't be any surprises at the store.... It would be sad if it came out all stretched out!


Step 1:

Find the correct photo.

Puppy!..... Nope.

Too 'busy.' Try again.

 Nope... cute, but the image quality isn't there.

Plus, isn't it supposed to be black and white?

Try again.

Nope. Not that kind of black and white. Though that was clever...

...or this kind of black and white.

Must find something a little "bigger".... And remember that time I said to use something like a flower if possible?

Pretty close... now just find one that's black and white!

Ah-HA! There it is! It's high contrast black and white, it's big, and has detail but not too much detail.


This wasn't my photo, by the way. This was my lovely-and talented roommate Jenny's photo. All of the credit goes to her!

She is a truly gifted photographer. You should really check out her work at her website.
She's in Colorado right now, climbing mountains, and I'm sure taking amazing pictures along the way. I miss you, man!

Step 2:

Once you've found the picture you want, it's now time to locate your flash drive.

If you're me, that's usually a problem. I'm a music major.... we don't usually have to actually utilize technology for our classes, unfortunately.

Once you've located that flash drive from a dusty corner of your room, load the picture onto it.

Step 3:

Check to make sure the picture actually loaded onto the flash drive. Do this by sticking it back into your computer (or better yet, someone else's computer) once the picture's already loaded. That will ensure there's no heartbreak once you get to the store.

Please.


Learn from my mistakes.


There are few sadder things than having the store employee say these fateful words... "I'm sorry, miss, I didn't see any picture files on this flash drive."


Check first. Save yourself the time, gas and heartache!


Step 4: 

Head over to your local office supply/printing store. I'm using Staples for all of the following pictures, because Staples is what I use in Rome.

Because that's the only place to go in Rome.

Step 5:

Find the Copy & Print Center. Ask the person at the counter for Engineering Prints.

Here's the deal with Engineering prints: they're a cheap way for an engineer to get a big, black and white line drawing of what they're building.


they come in 3 sizes, and have 3 different prices:

18"x24" - $1.79

24"x36"- $3.59

and 36"x48"- $7.29

Now, let's think about this for a second. Before you go doing what I almost did, consider 1) the size of the wall you have to work with, 2) and how big you REALLY want your picture. The photo of Nate staring at the camera blown up to 36"x48" might be a little creepy staring at you while you eat your dinner.

It's easy to be so stunned by the price that you say "go big or go home! Let's go 36x48!" But realize...


That's GINORMOUS. Imagine if that picture of Nate's face was blown up to 36x48 and sitting on the wall in the dining room?

That'd bring the concept of "begging" to a whole new level.

Step 6:  

Ask for Engineering Prints and hand them the USB port with the picture on it. Be confident! 

Why? 

Because their next sentence will most likely be this: "We don't usually do this because the Engineering Prints aren't exactly photo quality.

Be confident. Tell them, "Don't worry about it! I know that, could you pretty please try it anyway?"

If you get someone who's not feeling adventurous, they might refuse. But, if you find the right person, they'll go ahead and do it for you. 

Step 7:

Start praying.

Sometimes the picture refuses to print, sometimes the printers are broken, and sometimes the printers freeze in the middle.

Oh, technology.

It's really quite the "perfect storm" of events that need to take place for you to be able to walk out with a print...

But it's SO worth it!

Mine came out great. I decided to change the orientation of it and make it a landscape photo, with the middle orchid blossom being the star of the show.

But I couldn't leave it black and white, could I?

I added some color!

How did I do that, you ask?

My friends Katy, Michelle and I sat down with a container of watercolors and some watercolor pencils and went to town!

Watercolors are very cool. The pencils are even cooler. They're expensive, though, so the regular ol' thing will do just fine. A little watercolors go a long way. (I got my little palette of them at Hobby Lobby in the clearance aisle for just a couple of bucks!)

Oh, and just so you can have a size reference, here's me with my printed poster.

It's pretty big... 24"x36"!

I hope you try this... let me know if you do and if you have any success!

Best wishes for a wonderful week!

Blessings, 

SL

....This week's post was brought to you by:

...Beautiful antique peonies! :) 

But I Digress...

This has been a very interesting week for certain!

A myriad of things have happened:

The Poopies Poppies were in full bloom!!

Both in Rhode Island....

and in Rome!

Wherever they are, aren't they such a lovely "pop" of color?!

Oh man.

Do you see what I did there? Didn't even mean to do it.





Anywho....

This week also brought me to a new discovery in the culinary world.







Korean food.

Recently I did a post about Persian food. More specifically, I mentioned this wonderful part of Lubia Polo called tadeec, which is the crusty "browned" rice that sticks to the bottom of the pot.


It's absolutely delicious. So delicious I'm sure it must be illegal somewhere.
So much goodness in one pot.

                          ( ^^^^  This stuff )


Well, I learned that in Korean cuisine there is a rice dish.



And it has crusty rice at the bottom.

I would show you what it looked like....

But I ate it way too fast. It was that good.

I would also tell you what it was called, but I can't pronounce it.

So....

Bring this girl. She'll order for you.

Wow. Talk about digressing? I had a topic for the week that wasn't food OR flowers...

But I'll continue.

While writing this week's post, I came to a decision: Each week's post will be "brought to you by" a different flower. 

This week is brought to you by the Poppies.

Or Poopies. Which ever you type first.

I'll have to owe you guys a  legit post later tomorrow. 

Look for one soon on more thrifty wall art! :) 

Lots of love,

SL

Outtake: Just like Ree.

Here's something I didn't have room to include in yesterday's "Just like Ree" tutorial on Perfect Iced Coffee.

The Mason jar I was going to serve my iced coffee in had a sticker on it for its former purpose as a holder of pickles.


How dare it.


Isn't it terrible when you go to re-use something and it has a sticky sticker on it? Even worse, isn't it terrible when you go to remove said sticky sticker residue and your container of Goof Off is empty?

That's exactly what happened to me. I thought it would be the perfect time to show you all a handy little tip I learned!

Here's what you'll need:

- 1 icky jar

- 1 tube of toothpaste (the more "white" and the less "gel" in it the better!)

- 1 toothbrush you don't mind sacrificing to use for crafts/cleaning from now on

Step 1: Apply enough toothpaste to cover the sticky area. Spread it around with your finger and wait.

Step 2: Wait. Wait for a couple of minutes. The longer you wait, the less time you'll have to spend scrubbing with your toothbrush.

Step 3: Get your handy-dandy toothbrush and scrub. If it's not coming off with a certain amount of ease, you might have to add a little more toothpaste and wait a minute longer.

Also, if your toothpaste is composed of more green gel than white paste-y substance, it's going to be more difficult. I had to scrub harder because my toothpaste was Crest Complete with Scope, and it was all green. If you're planning on removing many labels at once, then I'd suggest going and getting a little travel size of plain toothpaste.

Step 4: Rinse it off, and there you go!

This is a great tip that will work for pretty much anything that you need to remove the label for... as long as it is something that can get wet.

Then you can do fun things with your newly clean jar!

like... turning them into fun office supply holders!

Or... when in doubt, you can always add some acorns.

Love and blessings,
SL

Just like Ree.

Kinda.




I'm a big fan of Ree Drummond- The Pioneer Woman. She's a blogger, author, photographer and Food Network host with a love for the Lord.

Her blog is the funniest thing on the internet. Besides the Corgi Flop.



You should really check her blog out.



But really.

You won't stop laughing.

You'll be sitting in a quiet place and suddenly burst out laughing uncontrollably.

            (photo by Ree Drummond)

......Or maybe that's just me. Check her out though, it's time well spent.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/


Anywho, on to today's quest.
In an effort to entertain myself, I was reading through Ree's blog and happened upon a side-bar called "Perfect Iced Coffee" with a very tempting picture.

Those are three wonderful words.  I just had to click. Once I clicked and read, I was hooked. I had to try it.  Ree lamented about an iced coffee problem similar to mine- by the time I get my coffee iced, it's no longer coffee. It's just.... awkwardly creamy/brown water.


I thought I'd try her recipe and report back to you all.

What you'll need:
-a pound of coffee (in my case, half a pound of coffee. You'll see later)
-a large pitcher
-a strainer
-some paper towels
-copious amounts of time to wait before you consume said iced coffee

Step 1: Realize that you're not in Syracuse so you don't have your Shelbylicious apron.
Realize that you have another really cool apron at home and put it on. Change is good, right?

Gather your materials.

Step 2: Buy the coffee that Ree used in her blog. It was really cheap.

Step 3: Realize that the can is in Spanish. No comprende!

Step 4: Realize the other side is in English. Ah-ha!

Step 5: Combine half a pound (8 oz.) of coffee and 1 gallon of cold water.

Step 6: Attempt filling the pitcher from the cold water tap on your refrigerator. But don't do it. There aren't enough hours in the day....

Step 7: Ahh, much better. Fill and mix, fill and mix.
Make sure all of the coffee grounds get moistened.

It makes this oh-so-delicious looking brown-ish slurry-thing. Ick.

Except for don't eat it. Really.

Step 8: Now put the cover on the pitcher and walk away.

Walk away.

Just walk away. You don't need to put it in the refrigerator, you don't need to stir it. I know, it's hard. Just make sure all of the grounds have gotten wet and walk away. It'll still be there in the morning, unless you have a pesky Leprechaun that steals your iced coffee in the night.



....8 hours later....

Phew! It's still there!

Step 9: Assemble what you'll need for the straining phase of the operation- and find an assistant!
Get another container (another pitcher would be preferred) and place the strainer over the top. Ree recommended using two cheesecloths for fine straining, but all I had were paper towels. Three of them layered worked pretty well!


Cheesecloth has always been quite a mystery to me. Where do you buy it? Is it re-usable? Is it like a towel, but thinner?

Anywho. Step Step 10: Ask your handy-dandy assistant to slowly pour the sludgy-coffee mixture into the strainer.

Lookin' good!

Mmm! Sludgy!

While she was doing this, I got out some Mason jars to drink our coffee from, to really finish off our Pioneer Woman Parody.

haha. Alliteration.


Wait. Is that alliteration? I'm not quite sure. I always had a lesson during English.
Anywho...

Step 11: Once it's all strained out, put it in the final container of your choice- I kept the concentrate in this container while I washed the first pitcher out.

Yay! There you have it, folks. Iced coffee concentrate. Store it in the fridge once it's done. Here's how we made it into drinkable iced coffee (it's TOO strong in this state!):

Step 12: Fill your glass with ice and then half full (not half empty! haha!) with the concentrate.

Step 13: Add your favorite type of dairy/non-dairy stuff. Add a lot of it. A lot. This stuff is really strong.

We tried Silk, Almond Silk and Fate Free Half and Half.

We were surprised. You know which kind of "cream" tasted the best? Almond Silk! It's in the McDonald's glass. You can use more of the Almond Silk, too, without fearing your coffee turning completely white.

And 2 Splendas. 1 won't do.

So... there you go! Ree Drummond-style iced coffee concentrate!

Just like Ree!

...Kinda.


Lots of love,
Shelbylicious