Visiting Casey, IL

A few months ago, I heard about this little town in Illinois named Casey. It is home to many world’s largest items. I knew that it was the kind of quirky place that we would love. But, when would we go? We have a LOT on our plate right now, which really is the perfect time to get away. Scott took a day off of work, and away we went.

They are currently getting the world’s largest golf club and twizzle stick certified. Most all of the items are within walking distance of each other. So, wear some comfy shoes. The town is covered in beautiful flowers. You can tell they work hard to keep their place beautiful.

I think the rocking chair was probably my favorite. It’s massive! Currently, they are selling tickets for someone to win the chance to SIT in the chair!

These knitting needles are inside of a store called The Farmer’s Wife. It is such a cute shop!

This cute candy shop is home to the world’s largest wooden shoes. You can toss money inside of them to donate to the local food pantry.

The second floor of this building is home to a little year-round Christmas store.

After a short drive, you can find the World’s largest golf tee and pitchfork. The pitchfork is next to Richards Farm Restaurant. There is a gazebo full of swings and tons of pretty flowers.

We made a stop to see the giant book worm in from the of the library. Of course, I had to go inside and see the library, too. It is in a beautiful building that was built in 1937.

We drove again and followed the map to find the giant baseball bat and the twizzle spoon.

I love that each world’s largest and giant item has a verse from scripture on it. It’s a sweet touch and shows that they really put a LOT of thought into what they are doing in town.

They are in the process of getting certified with more world’s largest items! I can’t wait to go back and see all of the new additions. The girls all had a blast exploring the town and seeing all that it had to offer.

There are so many cute shops to walk through, cafes to eat in, and ice cream and candy to treat yourself with. They also have golf cart rentals so you can drive through town if walking is difficult for you.

If you are looking for BIG fun in a small town, you should definitely stop in and visit. It is worth the trip!

Farmhouse Update- Week 19

Hi, Friends!

We are still in a waiting period for the carpet. We went to the house and cleaned most of the windows over the weekend. Scott also went one evening and cleaned the inside of the cabinets.

The master bedroom floor is re-done. The farmer thinks he will sand it down once more and even out the stain. You can see where the floor has been damaged, which just adds to the character. Once it’s done, the baseboards will go back down.

These rose of Sharon bushes are going to get moved around. The farmer’s wife is going to plant these along the line of the property before the ditch and road. That way, we can have a visual barrier for the girls to know where they need to stop.

The carpet should come in from the factory this week and get put down. I am praying that this is my last “update” before saying that we’ve moved in! But, we are at the mercy of a carpet factory at this point.

This week, I plan to go over during the day and move some things in. We will be able to get settled a little faster that way. I need to get some shelf liners. My sister gave me some pretty contact paper, but it’s not sticking down in the kitchen cabinets. I’m looking at this non-adhesive liner. It’s the best price I’ve found so far on it.

NINE

1. Who is your favorite person ever? God
2. What is your favorite color? purple
3. What is your favorite show? I’m gonna go with Barbie
4. What’s your favorite outfit? My pretty owl shirt and blue jean shorts
5. What sport do you like the best? basketball and soccer
6. What song do you love? Til the Day I Die
7. What’s your favorite cereal? Lucky Charms
8. Who is your best friend? Lillian
9. What is your favorite book? Sanity and Talula
10. What are you really good at? Almost everything
11. Where do you wish you could go on a vacation? To Minnesota or to New York or to Oklahoma or to Michigan
12. What is your best memory? All the special times I had with my family… when we all went to the nursing home for Grandma’s funeral and papa pullen’s funeral. Those were the happiest times when we were all together
13. What would you buy if you had $1000? I would probably buy all of the Lego sets I want. Particularly, I would do Andrea’s concert.
14. What is the yuckiest vegetable? broccoli
15. If you have a wish, what would it be? to have a pet bunny and enough money to take care of it
16. What is your favorite ice cream? chocolate
17. Who is your biggest hero? Daddy cuz I remember when I was little I almost drowned in the pool and daddy saved me. Also God because He saves everyone.
18. What do you like to do with your best friends? I like to talk and do special things with them.
19. What do you hope you’ll get to do before your next birthday? I would like to head to the beach or the pool.
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? An astronaut, a mom, a clothes maker, let me see… artist

5 Back to School Books

School’s First Day of School // This is the sweetest book about a new school. He is nervous about the first day and all of the children that will be coming. He learns that it’s nice to have all of the children learning– and he learns, too.

The Pigeon Has to Go to School Who doesn’t love Mo Willems’s pigeon books? Pigeon thinks he doesn’t need to go to school because he already knows everything. He quickly learns that school will be wonderful.

LMNO Peas This is a fun way to teach Letters and sounds! The LMNO peas can be anything they want to be.

It’s Your First Day of School Busy Bus This is another sweet story about Busy Bus’s first day of school. Busy Bus’s driver inspects everything to make sure he is in tip-top shape for his first day of school. Busy Bus goes from being fearful to excited about the new school year.

Lost in the Library While not entirely SCHOOL related, this is a lovely tale of the incredible stories one can learn from a book. Lost in the Library is perfect for the kiddos who will be learning to read.

The Complicated Heart Book Review

I received an advanced reader copy of Sarah Mae’s new book “The Complicated Heart”. Once I started it, I finished it the next day. It was so captivating that I could not put it down. It is currently available for preorder. You can get the audiobook version for FREE if you preorder before 9/17. Just visit thecomplicatedheart.com for more info and to claim your preorder bonus!

Goodness, where do I even start? There is so much to unpack, and I’m sure I will not do this justice.

Sarah’s mother was an alcoholic. She was abusive and mean, but Sarah desperately wanted to be loved. Sarah was sexually abused by men..boys.. who would take advantage of her. Here’s the thing that you should know about Sarah. She doesn’t shy away from the messy and ugly parts of her testimony… the ones that so many want to hide in the closet. She shares it all. She shares the hard things so that she can point directly to God. As if she is saying, “Look at God! Look what God did in me through this.”

I don’t want to give too much of the book away. The story is so captivating and heartbreaking. The story of redemption in her and her mother is BEAUTIFUL.

There are definitely parts of the book that are hard to swallow. She writes in the beginning about ways to examine if you are in a place to read what she has written. Here’s your warning that I’m going to talk about some of them..

When Sarah was 16, she got pregnant. She wanted to keep the baby, but her grandmother would no longer speak to her. She was desperate for love and agreed to have an abortion (link to her story). This part of Sarah’s story changed my life. I was able to see abortion through the eyes of a scared teenager desperate for people to love her again instead of from the Christian circle eyes of condemnation. Here’s the thing. In Christian circles, we label abortion as murder; which it is. BUT, we fail to stop and reach out to love on the scared teen mom expecting a baby. We don’t LOVINGLY encourage her to find and follow Jesus. We shame and condemn as though HER sin (and HIS.. let’s stop ignoring that) is so much worse than our sin. Our sin of gossiping, lying, having a bad attitude, gluttony, etc. Jesus died to cover ALL sins.. not just our “minor” sins.. Sin is sin is sin by the way. Sarah sharing this has allowed me to minister to multiple women who carry the weight and shame of their decisions in a way that I probably never would have been able to otherwise.

As the book goes on, we learn more about Sarah’s mother, Susan. We see that she, too, was deeply wounded and never knew how to show love. She, too, was abused by one of her parents. We see the story of her coming to know Jesus. We see the story of restored relationships. We see the hurt and heartbreak. The joy and celebration. The struggle. We see the legacy of abuse and shame ending.

I am blessed. I grew up with two loving parents who showed me love. I was never abused. I never walked through the pain that Sarah or her mother did. But, I know that is not the story for everyone. This book is incredible. This book will change lives. I am so thankful that Sarah told their story.

I HIGHLY encourage you to pre-order this book. If you can’t afford that, get on the hold list ASAP at your local library. In the mean time, you can follow Sarah on her blog, Instagram, or Facebook and see how incredibly God has used her.

Farmhouse Update- Week 18

This isn’t an exciting update. haha! Being at the home stretch, we are mostly waiting on the carpet to come in. We both also worked most of the day Saturday, so we didn’t get to go work at the house. On top of that, our kids ended up sick on Saturday. That being said, we’ve been away from the farm much more than we wanted to be. We didn’t get to do any work at all, but the farmer has been busy.

He got the master bedroom sanded down. It’s actually been re-stained as well, but I didn’t get a picture of that. We got to visit with him and hear some updates on Friday before anyone got sick. The girls were very excited to learn that he has a lot of knowledge about rocks. He’s going to bring some fossils and geodes to show them, which I love.

Back to the house– He has a lot of OLD doors around, and said he could bring some by to put into the house. He knows how much I appreciate the history of it all. I love old doors. He has also talked about building a half-door to put at the top of the stairs to the cellar. We can safely keep the kids and dog out of there without taking away from the charm of the home. So cool!

Since we were homebound this weekend, we got a lot of packing done. Time slipped away from me on Sunday and I missed going to church! Scott usually goes to AM service when the kids are sick. I go to PM so I can make it to choir practice. I suppose it’s probably a good thing since the sickness spread to the one child that was well yesterday. Boo. We did get several areas completely packed yesterday. Scott was also able to repair our dryer that went out on Friday. #WhenItRainsItPours

I will leave you with a beautiful sunset picture. We have the best views at the farm!

I Surrender

The Complicated Heart

Do you ever have those times when you feel like you just CAN’T CATCH A BREAK? We have been in a season of no breaks for so long. Our battery suddenly decided to go bad and die yesterday. My dad was so helpful and got it jump started a few times for me. We really didn’t think the battery was dead because all of the lights and electrical stuff was working.

Scott ended up taking it somewhere when I went to work to find out what was wrong. It turned out to be the battery and we had to get that replaced. More money sunk into the van. I know batteries aren’t expensive in the grand scheme of things, but that ends up being two tanks of gas that we could have bought instead… a week or more of groceries.

I’m so frustrated and overwhelmed. I make to do lists every day and I don’t know where to start because there are so many spinning plates.

I’m waving my white flag. I surrender. When I pray, all I can do is beg God to help. He knows my heart. He is sorting out what I can’t seem to say.

Last night, when Scott and I were reading Marriage After God, we got to a chapter about finances. This couple took time away from their full-time ministry to get out of debt; knowing that there is nothing God-honoring about being a slave to debt. It was actually really comforting and reaffirmed that we are in exactly the right place where God wants us. It doesn’t fully make sense. It doesn’t make sense that we are working really hard and more things keep falling apart causing more problems. I don’t get it, and I’m frustrated. But, I know that God is in control.

I’m sure to others, it may look like we have thrown our hands up and given up on ministry. NOT SO. If God permanently called us away from full-time ministry, we would absolutely obey. However, that is not the case. We have surrendered our lives to His leading.

4 Things

I’m on two book launch teams right now. I’m over the moon excited about both of them. The first is for Sarah Mae’s new book called The Complicated Heart. Sarah is unafraid of the messy parts of her life. The areas that most people want to hide under a rug are the ones that she brings front and center to show how God worked through it all. This book highlights her painful relationship with her mother and how she learned love and forgiveness. The next book is by Emily Ley and is called When Less Becomes More. Emily is all about simplifying your life. I got to listen to her read a portion yesterday and had tears welling up in my eyes. When she said “I felt empty” I knew this one was written for me. All of that to say– you should definitely pre-order these books! If you pre-order on amazon, you get the lowest price that the book goes in between the time your order is placed and the time the book launches.

Do you have flies and gnats in your house, too? I know that the farmhouse is going to be full of them, so I went looking for a solution. These sticky strips that hang in your window are the best!!! They aren’t really noticeable unless you are looking for them, and they catch a ton. I heard that they work best in the corner of your windows, and so far that is true. I know it’s gross, but it’s also SO HELPFUL to know something that works.

Scott and I have been working through this book together. We are about halfway through, and really love it so far. At the end of each chapter, there are questions for you to answer together. It has been a great conversation starter and really eye opening for both of us.

My friend, Kyle, is trying to open up a board game cafe in his hometown. Click that link and watch his video! It’s so good. I love the idea and think the whole country could use something like this. It’s a safe place to play games, eat snacks, and hang out. His kickstarter campaign is in its final days, and I would love to see him get it going. It’s an all or nothing campaign, so if it isn’t fully funded it won’t be happening. Please consider donating even if you don’t live there and showing that we want more wholesome options for our families!

Farmhouse Update- Week 17

Happy Monday, friends!! I’ve been quiet on here again. We are cleaning, packing, and working a ton. It feels a little overwhelming right now, but I know that in one month it will be much slower. Here is where we are currently at:

Almost all of the trim has been painted and put back up around the windows and doorways. The baseboards won’t be put back down until the carpet is laid. The contrast isn’t quite as dramatic in person as is showing in the pictures. I honestly think I’d like pure white trim a lot more, but this is something that was on hand. We are all about cutting costs. Realistically– curtains are going to cover quite a bit of the trim anyway.

The oven is all cleaned up and put back together. The new vent hood is hung. We are going to be foregoing a microwave here, and I’m actually really excited about it.

On Saturday, we painted the ceiling in the kitchen. I’m not sure if you can really tell in the previous picture, but the ceiling was pretty discolored. It was really noticeable over where the stove is. The farmer said it had probably been 40+ years since it had been painted.

We also put Kilz on the office and living room floors. The previous tenants had a TON of cats. They would apparently drag dead animals in. So nasty. Anyway, this coat of Kilz will keep any smells from rising through the new carpet.

New plywood has been put down in the school room since that flooring was much older. This will help the carpet lay better. Speaking of carpet, here is a grainy picture of what it will look like.

It’s a really pretty grey color with bits of tan mixed in. It’s such a pretty neutral and will hide any dirt really well. Plus, it’s so soft! The color is called Ash Grove. It will be going in the office, living room, school room, up the stairs and in the bedrooms upstairs.

This is the flooring that will go in the laundry room and upstairs bathroom. It’s all so pretty and neutral.

Even the yard and gardens have been getting cleaned up. The trees and bushes have been pruned, and are already showing lots of signs of regrowth. Isn’t that how life is?

Are you ready for the most exciting part? Once the carpet comes in and gets installed, we should be good to move in! At most, it would be two weeks before the carpet comes in. They are going to try and get it in much faster since we have our first party at the house in early September.

I can hardly believe it. Last night, Scott and I sat on the steps at the farm while the girls played. The breeze was blowing and birds were chirping. Monarch butterflies kept flying by. The kids were pretending they were in a fairy garden/ on a pirate ship / making soup and it was just bliss.