Give Thanks

Sometimes you don't know what you have until you get the opportunity to see what others do not have.  I recently participated in a community service/mission project through our church called Love Loud.  Love Loud is a yearly mission project in which many projects are taken on by First Baptist Woodstock to serve the community.  Projects vary from home repairs to hair cuts and anything in between.  This project centered around a grandmother who had recently been given temporary custody of three of her grandchildren whose mother had been jailed for drug and shoplifting charges.  DEFACS would not allow the children to stay with her unless a list of items were completed in order to make her home a safe place.  You see, this grandmother's health was not good and her home had fallen into disrepair.  Along with about 100 other volunteers, we transformed this home into a safe place where hope can live, children can thrive, and a family can count on love from complete strangers who are the hands of God.  These before and after photos are just a glimpse of what the Love of the Lord can do.

 

Before

 

After

 
Needless to say.....I have so much to be thankful for!  Often in the daily rat race of life, I forget to give Thanks to the Lord for all the small things.  My friend, D'Ann, created this very neat display in the entry to her home and I thought it was just what we needed in our home to be a daily reminder to give thanks for all we have. 

 

D'Ann's Foyer Display:

 

 

 

Since I don't have the same items to use, I couldn't just straight up copy D'Ann.  However, be assured that if I had the materials, I SO would have recreated her foyer table!  She is my creative muse, and so many of my projects begin in D'Ann's head...or collectively through our thrift, craft and antique store inspiration! :)  So I decided to make a smaller and slightly different version that I could place on my kitchen table.

 

This is what I came up with:

 

 

 

So here's what we did....print out the word 'thanks' and scribble with pencil all over the back of the word.  Lay the paper on the pumpkin and trace around the letters with a ballpoint pen.  This will leave an outline of the word on your pumpkin.  Use a sharpie marker to fill in the word.  To make the pennant banner, cut out the triangles from burlap fabric.  Print out the word 'GIVE'.  Hold up each triangle over each letter in a brightly lit window.  You will be able to see the letter through the burlap so you can trace onto the burlap with a sharpie.  Hot glue the triangles to a piece of twine.  D'Ann's pumpkin is bigger and all her lettering is bigger.  She used her great old frame to attach the GIVE part of the message and sat the pumpkin on an awesome yardsale find pedastal thing.  Since my pumpkin is sitting in the middle of the kitchen table, I devised the wood banner holder using a log from the fire log pile in the back yard and some twigs.  I had hubbie cut two hunks of wood from the log and drill a hole in each that fit the twigs I found.  In went the twigs and I just tied the twine to each.  And there you have it!  Two different ways to display a meaningful message in your home! 

 

 

I hope each of you will take time to GIVE THANKS for all the blessings you receive in life!  I know I sure have so much to be thankful for!  Thanks for reading~

 

 

Linking to some great parties!