the last post...

I love blogging on this little space of mine on the worldwide internet; it was a way for me to share a creative outlet with you.  I love all of the opportunities that I have been given by way of ABL.  I love all of the amazingly talented ladies that I have been able to make my blogging buddies.  I seriously have loved every bit of it.  Unfortunately, due to recent events in my personal, professional and spiritual life, I am choosing to make this my last post.

A part of me wants to hold on and keep blogging, but I know that in order for me to get where I am destined to be and be what I am called to live to be I have to give something up.  I will still be active on social media platforms (Instagram, Facebook and Twitter) and I hope to be able to interact with you all lovely people there.

I hope throughout the course of ABL you have been inspired to have a more beautiful and intentional life.  Live it to the fullest and keep your eyes on Christ!  I love all of you and am so grateful for your readership; you've been such a blessing to me.  Thank you for being a part of ABL and caring about the little things in life that make my heart pitter-patter.  Cheers!

can I have these, please?

Lately, I have found myself to be on such a shoe kick and I am constantly shopping for them non-stop.  I am thinking it may be because of one of last week's posts.  Did you see the post about me being in a competition with three other lovely bloggers in partnership with OnlineShoes.com?  Well, we are in the final crunch days of the competition and I need your help to keep me in the lead!  Go here to vote for me and to see the kicks that I customized.  While you are over at make sure you check out some of the thousands of shoes they have.  Here are some of my favorites:

one  //  two  //  three  //  four  //  five

recipes: kale chips

I have two words for you today (okay, it's way more than two words, but why be so technical?).  Kale. Chips.  Have you ever eaten these crispy little bites of goodness?  If you follow me on Instagram, then you have seen me post these a lot lately.  My brother in law, Daniel Crews, got me hooked on them a few weeks ago and then I got my husband hooked on them!  I have had several people ask me for my recipe, so here it is:

Ingredients

1 bundle of fresh kale

2 tablespoons of olive oil

salt & pepper

1.  Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.  While your oven is heating, wash and thoroughly dry your bundle of kale.  Tear off bite size pieces of the kale (leaving the stem out) and place in a bowl.

2.  In the same bowl as the kale, drizzle the olive oil over the kale and mix.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  I like using freshly ground pepper and either kosher or sea salt.  Be careful not to over salt them!

3.  Line a pan with parchment paper and spread the kale out evenly over the pan as a single layer.

4.  Place the pan in the oven on the center rack and bake for 12-15 minutes.  Make sure you watch it closely when you are past 12 minutes so you don't burn them!  I tell you that from experience, because I have burnt them before - not yummy at all!

 

5.  Once they have slightly browned, pull them from the oven and place in a bowl to eat and enjoy!

See?  I didn't watch mine closely enough and some pieces were extra crispy (I'm still learning to gauge the temperature of my lower oven - by the way, dutch ovens are a must!).  Thankfully Joshua likes the flavor of burnt things - gross, I know!

If you want more flavor, you can add fresh squeezed lemon or grated parmesan cheese sprinkled on top after you remove them from the oven.  Be careful adding dried ingredients to the mix, because the purpose of roasting the kale is to alleviate moisture, so if the spices are already dried, they will just burn.  Add them on top with 2-3 minutes are left.  I like mixing in minced garlic after I drizzle the olive oil on top in step 2 and throwing on some parmesan cheese with 1-2 minutes left!   If you decide to make these, I would love to know your opinion!

Oh, and please hop on over to vote for me and my new kicks!

style files: new balance shoes & a contest

I am so excited to share this post with you all!  Do you remember the giveaway I hosted back in February when I was able to give away a pair of Corso Como Alfazema heels compliments of www.OnlineShoes.com?  Well, I partnered with www.OnlineShoes.com again!  This time, I was given the opportunity to design a pair of New Balance Shoes and in particular a pair of Women's New Balance Shoes for me which is perfect timing because I was in need of a new pair of sneaks!  I am in a competition with three other lovely bloggers and need your votes to win!  Plus, just for voting you are entered in to win your own pair of New Balance 993's!

I loved being able to customize the color of my New Balance 993's on the New Balance website.  I loved that I was able to see what my shoe was going to look like before I finalized my design.  This may seem petty, but I really loved the fact that I could have my monogram embroidered onto the shoe!  Ahh...  Those little details get me every time! 

Well, I am sure you are dying to see my shoe now aren't you?  Before I show you my design, I want to give a shout out to a couple of the students in Joshua's and my Student Ministry.  We had some students over at our house and we all huddled around our computer and collectively came up with the design!  I wanted it to be a collaborative effort with a variety of people so I could develop a really awesome and marketable shoe because, if I win, my shoe will be produced as a limited edition and sold on www.OnlineShoes.com - how awesome is that?!

Cue the drum roll....

Tada!

I really like how it turned out - it's not super girly, but not all boy.  I think it is the perfect balance of colors and that it is gender neutral which was one of my goals of creating a marketable shoe for www.OnlineShoes.com.  What do you think?

If you would be so kind to go vote for me, I would love you forever - seriously, I will love you.  Cue Whitney Houston's power ballad "I Will Always Love You"....  Please hop on over here to vote for me!

Oh, and another shout out to my amazing friend and photographer, Matt Whytsell!  He truly is a talented photographer and you should go check his work out on his website.  Here are some more of my favorite images:

Don't forget to vote for me and spread the word!

be right back

This weekend I am launching a new ministry called the P31 Summit at my church and I could not be more excited about it!  This is something that I have been wanting to do for over five years now and I have finally taken the initiative to do it.  It has been such a blessing to work with so many amazing women and men of faith to pull this off.  Please pray for this event and our leaders, band, speaker and participants.  Satan has been hard at work trying to throw huge obstacles in the way to get me and our team down and doubting, but that is just proof that God is up to something good and has big things in store for the weekend!  With that being said, I will be out until next week, but I have some pretty awesome posts lined up for you!  See you next week.

good friday

Today I remember how much my God loves us and how big His love is for us.  The biggest sacrifice that a person can ever make was made for me.  I am so grateful for the cross and what it means to me personally.  I pray that you and your family have a reflective Good Friday and an extremely joyful Easter.