Kelly Trepp, Author

Congratulations, folks! We have made it half way through 2012. Now, I don't want to get you too excited, but that means that there are only 175 days until Christmas ! Be still my heart! With that exciting news out of the way, I thought it might be nice to do a mid-year reflections post to see how closely I have followed my New Year's declarations that I made back in January. For those of you less inclined to click sketchy links in blog posts, here's a quote from my New Year's Reflections post: In 2012, I will run my first half-marathon and my first marathon if all goes according to plan. I intend to run more, read more, and stress less. I am determined to spend more time with family and less time stressing over work. Much less time stressing over work. I will nurture my relationship with God and spend more time in Church and worship. I will be a better version of myself. The best version I can be. Let's see how I've fared: In 2012, I will run my f...

For the better part of the last week, I have been in the sunshine state, praying for a miracle; and God has answered those prayers. My 80-year-old grandfather discovered a Meningioma tumor in his brain in November. At the time it was considered benign, as are most meningiomas, and the diagnosis was to observe the tumor's growth over the next year and see how it was progressing. Unfortunately, my grandfather started showing symptoms of the tumor shortly thereafter, having seizures that were taking a toll on his fragile body. After more MRIs in mid-March, the tumor appeared to have grown in size by about 20 percent. Surgery was now a necessary reality. So how did I take this news? That my grandfather, whom I very rarely get to see because he lives in Florida half the year and two hours away the rest of it, was going to be having life-saving surgery? I packed my bags and booked the last flight out on Friday evening after work. It's not really as heroic as I make it sound. ...

... just got a little bit craftier! I not only strive to be a fit wife, but a wife fit for a king! We're talking cooking, cleaning, gardening, and crafting to make this house feel like a home. Leading up to the wedding, we were tight on the budget. We wanted to get through the wedding without any debt. Now that we've passed that hurdle, let the homemaking begin! Friday I posted about temptations . One of my temptations was a craft project I've had waiting for me since last weekend. Today I took the time to finish it up! I originally found this craft inspiration on Pinterest , from a blog that I mentioned the other day ( Delightfully Noted ). I thought it was a perfect step to homebodying our home. First I had to gather all the materials. Notice the can of spray stain. I wanted to do a rich, warm, wood tone rather than a glossy spray paint in hopes that the color would pop and match the lighter, distressed color in the frame, as well as the tones and color scheme ...