Pink & Emerald South Asian Indian Bride & Groom Cake Toppers

South Asian Indian Bride & Groom Cake Topper Wood

Hand Painted Love Boxes

The Hiding Place...

When I was in junior high school, I had an important formative experience. I came home from the school library with a Sweet Valley High romance novel. When I got home my dad saw me with the book and asked what I had picked up at the library. I'm sure my choice was a deep disappointment to him, but I don't remember him saying anything about that. I do remember that I never read that book and I started reading books that my dad gave me from our own library. The Hiding Place was the first of those books. I then read; The Guns of Navarone, The Robe, The Magnificent Obsession and many others. After that, I had a better idea of what to choose on my own and I became a more discerning reader for which I will forever be grateful.
This summer I decided to introduce dad's reading program to my own daughter. She is very sensitive and this book has some difficult topics and so I read the book aloud to her. I'm so glad that I did because I needed to read this book again.
The courage of this family and the amazing things they were able to accomplish with faith and little else is infinitely inspiring.
After hiding Jews for a year in their home, the ten Boom family is arrested. When they are interrogated, the Nazi in charge speaks to the elderly father Casper ten Boom and says, "I'd like to send you home, old fellow... I'll take your word that you won't cause any more trouble." Evenly and clearly Casper replied, "If I go home today, tomorrow I will open my door again to any man in need who knocks."
Friday afternoon a middle-aged man came to my own door, he was red faced, sweaty and trying too hard as he presented his proposal to paint address numbers on my curb. I have a "no soliciting" sign on my door and I'm very suspicious of strangers so I said "no" almost immediately. For two seconds I watched this man walk away, watched him sigh and watched his shoulders slump. It took some time to dawn on me, sadly, but I made a terrible mistake. I turned away someone in need, someone who I now feel sure is out of work and trying to feed a family.
We have limited resources and time to give and so it requires having the gift of discernment with us at all times to know where we should be and when we can help. In his important talk, Our Strengths Can Become Our Downfall, Elder Oaks says, "We are commanded to give to the poor. Could the fulfillment of that fundamental Christian obligation be carried to excess? I believe it can, and I believe I have seen examples of this. Perhaps you have also seen cases where persons fulfilled that duty to such an extent that they impoverished their own families by expending resources of property or time that were needed for family members."
Most of us can probably share more than we do and that is certainly true of myself. This book is an example that charity is what is required and charity is something we can only give when we have His spirit with us.
Charity is also what is required to forgive. Last week in my Sunday School lesson, I used this scripture in D&C 50:24 "That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth birghter and brighter until the perfect day."
This scripture explains such an important principle. We are commanded to tithe, but we recieve the testimony of tithing when we keep the commendment or "continue in God". In the end of this book, Corrie ten Boom tells about an experience she has giving talks about the gospel of Christ. After one of these talks a guard who had terrorized and humiliated her in the Ravensbruck concentration camp came to her to shake her hand. After speaking of forgiveness she found that she could not lift her hand to shake his... so she prayed for help to lift her hand to his. "As I took his hand the most incredible thing happened. From my shoulder along my arm and through my hand, a current seemed to pass from me to him, while into my heart sprang a love for this stranger that almost overwhelmed me. And so I discovered that it is not on our forgiveness any more than our goodness that the world's healing hinges, but on His. When He tells us to love our enemies, He gives, along with the command, the love itself."
I know this is true. I know that the word of God has the power to bring peace and hope in the darkness. I know that goodness and courage are spiritual gifts that our Father in Heaven can give us when we call on His name. I know that He knows each heart and every hurt and has the power to make us whole. I know that His love and compassion for each of his children is infinite.

Jane Austen...

Jane Austen

hand painted peg doll

at

Hand Painted Love Boxes

Emily Dickinson...

On the bottom of this doll in very tiny writing it reads,

"Hope is the thing with feathers... ~Emily Dickinson"

Hand Painted Love Boxes

Betsy Ross...

Betsy Ross needle in her hand and stars in her hair...

at...

Hand Painted Love Boxes

Payal's Pretty Cake...

Payal's cake toppers were so fun to paint. Peachy pink with gold and silver embroidery and crystals. Her lengha was stunning with a lavendar bouquet... see more custom cake toppers...

HERE...

Spinach & Mushroom Salad

I had this lovely salad at a super delish party I went too.. With the help of the internet, I tried to copy the salad the other night.. and it was pretty tasty... Sarah, is it close? Mmmm...

Ingredients: big bowl of baby spinach

1 cup of sliced mushrooms

1 cup swiss cheese shredded

some sliced red onions (1/2 cup)

1/2 pound cooked bacon, crumbled

1 large pear diced

Dressing: 1/3 cup apple cider vinagar

3/4 cup canola oil

1/3 cup granulated sugar

3/4 tsp. salt

1/3 tsp Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon sliced onions

Directions: Layer the ingredients. Blend the dressing and pour it over the salad just before serving.

Biscuits flying in formation...

Not only did little c's biscuits fly in formation.. they were DELISH!

Traditional Lengha, Dupatta & Sherwani

This groom is wearing a traditional sherwani, the beautiful long coats worn in South Asia. I love traditional Indian wedding clothes. They are so intricate and beautiful and the colors are so rich. What a treat it was to paint this beautiful couple. Best Wishes!

Custom Cake Toppers can be ordered at...
Hand Painted Love Boxes

Red, White & Blue!

Love Boxes in Red, White & Blue... HERE.

Jockeys...

The Jockeys are perfect for race day..

find them at

www.handpaintedloveboxes.etsy.com

The Best Days...

These are just a few pictures of some of my best days. When I was little, my brother got a puppy for his birthday. I still remember how the present was moving.

4th of July one of Mom & Dad's amazing BBQs

Some of our prettiest dresses...

Dancing at Melissa's wedding...

c reaching the top!

Sun Valley

A&B.. a perfect match.

Mom & The Aunts & Uncle Monte w/ their fun cousins

my darling, wonderful and dear grandparents

best friends a girl could ever have...

a day at the beach..

cousins and dress ups

Christmas

All of these perfect days were made possible mostly by people I have not met and cannot see.

They leave comfortable homes, children, wives and families...

to fight and sometimes to die in far away places where they are beloved by some of the people

and hated and hunted by others.

They almost always lose something. Some lose limbs or sight. Some lose their minds. Some lose their friends... for us, so that we can have a perfect day. Days like these aren't possible without freedom.

Our FREEDOM is so taken for granted that most of us don't vote. When we do vote, we vote w/out learning and researching the issues or the character of the candidates. When we do pay attention, we are wooed by sound bites and media tricks. We know more about reality TV than our own history. We are so dumb, that our own government steals from us, lies to us and takes our liberties without protest.

There is no way that we can calculate the cost in blood and treasure that has been spent on our behalf.

May we make great strides to repent. That is the best way we can thank those who have sacrificed so much.

Big Rainbows...

Big C pulling big rainbows out of the river... by Flaming Gorge in April 2012

Derby...

It was so fun to make this stuff. Check Derby Party off the bucket list...

Best of all.. dear friends were there to share.

Run for the Roses...

Colorful Jockeys in Racing Silks...

Peg Dolls by..

Hand Painted Love Boxes

King Nebuchadnezzar's Dream...

Daniel Chapter 2 Reading
　
Narrator: And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him.

Narrator: Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans for the shew the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king. And the king said unto them:

King Nebuchadnezzar: I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream.

Narrator: Then spake the Chaldeans unto the king:

Chaldean #1: O king, live forever: tell they servants the dreams and we will shew the interpretation.

King Nebuchadnezzar: The thing is gone from me: if ye will not make known unto me the dream, with the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made a dunghill. But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof.

Chaldean #2: Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation of it.

King Nebuchadnezzar: I know of certainty that ye would gain the time, because ye see the thing is gone from me. If ye will not make known unto me the dream, there is but one decree for you: for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof.

Chaldean #3: There is not a man upon the earth that can shew the king's matter... And it is a rare thing that the king requireth, and there is none other that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.

Narrator: For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. And the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they sought Daniel and his fellows to be slain. Then Daniel said to the king’s captain:

Daniel: Why is the decree so hasty from the king? Then Arioch made the thing known to Daniel.

Narrator: The captain made the thing known to Daniel and Daniel asked the king for time and he would show the king the dream and its interpretation. And Daniel asked his companions, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego:

Daniel: Pray for the tender mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret; that we will no perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

Narrator: Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. And, Daniel said:

Daniel: Blessed be the name of God forever and ever; for wisdom and might are His. I thank thee and praise thee, O though God of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and has made known unto me now what we desired of thee.

Narrator: Then Daniel was brought before the king who asked: Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?

Daniel: Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.
Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.

King Nebuchadnezzar: And what is the interpretation of the dream?

Daniel: Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory. Thou art this head of gold. And after thee shall arise another kingdom (silver) inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron. The feet and toes, part clay and part iron, are the fourth kingdom divided.
And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.


**Note: My friend Laura put this reading together and it was a hit in our Sunday School Class & in Family Night! So, I thought I would share.

We pointed out to the kids that President Obama lives in the White House, that the White House is a symbol of kingdom. It is interesting to discuss other examples of Kingdoms living and dead... Then, explain the symbolism of the stone cut without hands (made by God). Point out that the temples of God are covering the earth and that this revelation given by Daniel 600 years before the birth of Christ is coming true in their (the children's) lifetime.

The Wind Blows in the Direction of the Promised Land...

The last few years seem to have been full of troubles for our little family. I don't want to make a list here, but we have been whelmed... not overwhelmed, but whelmed. Over the weekend, I have felt some fear and doubt and I have been a real grouch to be honest. I hate that little "picked on" voice that gets into my head and says things like, "How can this happen? We pay our tithing. We live in a modest home. We save. We try to do everything the prophet asks us to do. We blah, blah, blah...." What an irritating whiner! I hate whining.. This helps me not at all.
When people ask me my favorite scripture story, I never hesitate. I always say that I love the story of the Jaredites in the Book of Ether. I love the Brother of Jared. He has fears too. His country is in upheaval and he must take his friends and family and lead them to some unknown place. And so he asks the Lord what he should do and where he should go and the Lord tells him to gather up everyone and his flocks and other things,

"And when thou has done this thou shalt go at the head of them down into the valley which is northward, And there will I meet thee, and I will go before thee into a land which is choice above all the lands of the earth."

Then, the Lord tells the brother of Jared to build great barges, that he will be leading his friends and family on a great voyage. But, the barges have no provision for light. He goes to the Lord and asks him how he is going to see in the dark in the barges that will set forth upon an uncharted sea. And, the Lord asks the brother of Jared, "Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye may have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea?" Interesting. So the brother of Jared makes some 16 small stones or some crystal or something, "and they were white and clear, even as transparent glass..." And, then he asks the Lord to touch the stones. His faith is so great that he sees the finger of the Lord as he reaches out to touch the stones. And then the brother of Jared is transfigured and redeemed and brought into the presence of the Lord. It is such an amazing and beautiful story.
But even though the brother of Jared has had this perfect faith, he still has to lead his people on the scary voyage into the depths of the sea.

"And it came to pass that they were many times buried in the depths of the sea, because of the mountain waves which broke upon them, and also the great and terrible tempests which were caused by the fierceness of the wind.
And in came to pass that when they were buried in the deep there was no water that could hurt them, their vessels being tight like unto a dish, and also they were tight like unto the ark of Noah; therefore when they were encompassed about by many waters they did cry unto the Lord, and he did bring them forth again upon the top of the waters.
And it came to pass that the wind never did cease to blow towards the promised land...

I crave security. I love saving accounts, life insurance, food storage, stable jobs and good health. There are lots of things that we can and should do to preserve all those things. But they are things and things can be flimsy and temperamental and they can be lost. Our faith can be lost too. Sadly, I have seen people suffer all of these losses without the hope of faith.
I am grateful for faith. I love the Lord. I know the He is here for us. I know He will meet us and that with His breath He will blow us toward the Promised Land. We just need a moment to gather our family and our courage so that we can meet Him down in the valley.