Ruffle Pillow- Finally Finished!

Way way back in March I posted that I was making a ruffle pillow.  Well, I finally finished it!! 

My sewing machine and I were having some issues for a while but I finally got them fixed this summer and I've been sewing away!  (All that time my sewing machine kept messing up, it was just that I was using the wrong size bobbin.  I didn't even know there were different sizes.  Go figure!  Just glad it was only a $2 fix!)

It's looking lovely on our bed!

One Year Blogiversary!!

This little blog turns one today!  It's been a fun year and I am excited to see what the coming year brings for us and to share life with you here!

My personal favorite post this year was The Art of Homemaking

Wanna read my first post? It's about our engagement pictures.

I hope you've enjoyed being a reader of faith. home. love. !  I encourage you to become a follower if you aren't already, and join us for another year of life with the Jenkins! 

Fall Dreaming

Today was a slight bit cooler and the breeze was gently blowing and it has got me wishing and dreaming about fall!  Fall is such a fun time of year and I’ve been collecting some fall inspiration on
Pinterest lately.  Fall decorating, fall food, fall clothes….I’m ready.

Here are some of my favorite decoration ideas:

 

Here are some yummy looking fall recipes:

Apple Butter Cupcakes

Pumpkin Donuts

Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte

 

And here are some of my favorite fall fashion ideas:

 

 

Are you ready for fall?

 

All photos can be found on my Pinterest boards

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's off to work we go!

I started work today and really enjoyed my first day!  Jeremy started yesterday and has been enjoying training  for his new job as well!  We're going to be settling in and trying to get down our new routine this week. Keep us in your prayers during this time of transition for us.  

Thanks so much for the kind comments on my last post, I appreciate the encouraging words! 

Letting Go, Moving On, and Being Real

I’m just going to be real with y’all.  The past two weeks have been full of surprises and struggles and ups and downs.  I’ve tried to write this post several times, but the words just wouldn’t come, the hurts were too fresh.   I’ve alluded to the fact that things weren’t all peaches and cream lately, talking about disappointment, and encouragement from Scripture last week.  This blog is suppose to be a journal, of sorts, of “life with the Jenkins”.  So I want to share the journey the Lord has been taking us on the last two weeks. 

Twelve days ago we were “suppose” to be moving into this sweet little cabin…

We had the boxes packed, the deposit ready, even the linens washed to fill our first home.  I can’t even tell you how excited I was.

Jeremy was suppose to be starting a new job as a youth pastor in the mountains of North Carolina and we were so excited to be beginning a new journey together.

But like I’ve said, our plans are not always God’s plans. 

This story really begins about 7 months ago.  Jeremy sent his resume to the church in February and he had his first interview scheduled at the beginning of  April.  He and I went again for a second interview in May.  We knew that there were three candidates that the church was considering and we knew that they had narrowed it down to two- with us being one of them. 

Jeremy received a call the day before our wedding (on June17th) and the pastor said that the search committee would like to offer him the position, tentative on a church vote. We were sooo excited!  The call couldn’t have come at a better time  and we felt much more secure knowing that a new job was on the horizon, especially because of the fact that we were getting married the next day.

A couple of weeks after our honeymoon Jeremy and I went up to the church to meet everyone for the  first time and Jeremy preached an amazing sermon.   We really enjoyed the day we spent there and we felt very welcomed by everyone at the church. 

Everything seemed to be going great and we started searching for places to live in the area.  We found the cabin, went and visited and knew that was where we wanted to live as soon as the job was official. 

The church is a traditional Southern Baptist church and the church had to have a congregational vote for Jeremy to officially get the job.  We thought it was a done deal.  We really didn’t even consider the “what if” the vote was no. 

Two weeks ago tomorrow,  one simple phone call changed everything we had planned for at least the next several years of our lives.  We didn’t quite get the 75% majority vote that we needed.  We didn’t get the job.  And with those few words, we were left sitting in my parents house, surrounded by boxes and suitcases wondering what in the world we were going to do. 

From that night until now, my emotions have run from confusion, disappointment, heartbreak, rejection, anger, bitterness, sadness, frustration, and finally hopefulness and peace this past week. 

I’m finally loosening the grip on my plans, being ok with the unknown (not fully ok, but much more than before).  I’m not taking anything for sure until it is a done deal. 

It’s been a rough two weeks, but it’s time to let go, and it’s time to move on.  We don’t understand everything, but we do understand that that we are still in the center of God’s will right where we are. 

We’ve actually had a pretty wonderful week this week- Jeremy found a full time job working at a car dealership in Spartanburg, SC (so if you need a new car, you know where to go! ) and I was offered a position as a teacher assistant in the local school system.  We feel so extremely blessed to have been able to find full time jobs so quickly!  We are so grateful for my parents allowing us to stay with them until we can get settled into our new jobs and find a place to rent.  We start our new jobs next week, so keep us in your prayers!

For now, our “plan” is to focus on us and our marriage and just really begin living on our own.  We have been married for two months but still haven’t really been able to be just the two of us.  We’re excited to be able to do that soon!  We’re going to take a break from searching and applying for church jobs and just work and build up our savings and just enjoy life.  We’re not really planning.  We’ve seen where our plans get us so we’re just going to take it one day at a time and thank the Lord for each day He gives us- no matter what it may bring.  I’m learning to trust Him more fully and to live with the freedom of not having my plans written in stone.

“For this is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it”

Psalm 118:24

Cute Free Desktop Wallpapers

I found some really cute free computer desktop wallpapers from Love Mae today.  There are monthly calendar wallpapers, like the August one I downloaded for my desktop below:

as well as some really cute design wallpapers, like the one below. 

 

Click here to get your wallpapers!

 

Enjoy!

MIA

I'm sorry I've been missing in action this week!  It's been crazy busy for Jeremy and lately.  I will hopefully have some new things to share soon.  Until then, I'm gonna sign off until Friday or Saturday while we focus on things going on in our lives right now.  But I'll be working up some good posts for next week :) 

My First Apple Pie

 

Yesterday I made my first apple pie with the leftover apples from canning apple pie filling.  I didn't use one of the cans I made, but just whipped up a batch of apple pie goodness to use.  I'll admit, I didn't make my own pie crust- it was just a Wal-Mart brand pie crust from the fridge section but it was yummy non the less.  (Although I plan to make my own homemade pie crust next time- anyone have any good recipes to share?)

It isn't the prettiest thing in the world, and I totally forgot to actually make the lattice crust on top actually weave through each other (I just laid them all one direction and then laid another layer the opposite direction), but overall I was very pleased with the taste.

 

Here is the recipe that I used:

Ingredients

• 1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie (or just a Wal-Mart crust)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter  (I only had salted so that is what I used
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour (again, I modified because I only had self rising flour so I used that)
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• Sprinkle of cinnamon
• 8 Granny Smith apples - peeled, cored and sliced (I have no idea what kind of apples I used, they are homegrown smaller apples that are tart.)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in flour to form a paste. Add water, white sugar and brown sugar, and sprinkle in a little cinnamon (about two or three shakes) and bring to a boil. Reduce temperature and let simmer.
2. Place the bottom crust in your pan. Fill with apples, mounded slightly. Cover with a lattice work crust. Gently pour the sugar and butter liquid over the crust. Pour slowly so that it does not run off.
3. Bake for 45min to 1 hour at 350 degrees, or until apples are soft.

I slightly modified this recipe from AllRecipes.com.  It has a 5 star rating from 3,834 people so I think it’s safe to say it is good!

Encouragement

Clinging to this verse lately.  Praising Jesus for the hope He provides and asking for patience in the midst of our troubles. 

Click here to download a pdf printable of the verse above.

Canned Apple Pie Filling

I have been wanting to try my hand at home canning for a while now.  It seemed like such a daunting task, but I knew that it would be well worth it to have home fresh food canned to use all year round.  Because we have been on the go pretty much all summer, I’ve not had much of a chance to can any vegetables like I had hoped, but I did can some apple pie filling last week!  Jeremy loves pies and now I’ll be able to easily whip up some apple pies for him throughout the year. 

My uncle and aunt have a huge apple tree at their house and once we got back from Chicago the apples were ripe for picking!  We headed over and filled up two buckets of apples.

We brought them home and washed them and waited until the next day to start canning.

My mom canned pickles and tomatoes several years ago and thankfully still had her canning supplies.  Supplies needed to can included a large pot to use as a water bath, mason jars, lids and rings, funnel, and tongs to get the jars out of the pot. 

I modified this recipe a little to use for canning my apple pie filling. 

Ingredients:

• 4 1/2 cups white sugar
• 1 cup cornstarch
• 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 10 cups water
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 6 pounds apples (I weighed my apples before peeling and that was a mistake.  I should have used more apples, so be sure to weigh after you peel because they will weigh less!)

Directions:
I first washed all of my jars and rings in the dishwasher because they had been sitting in the basement for several years. 

1. In a large pot, mix sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add salt and water and mix well. Bring to a boil and cook until thick and bubbly. Remove from heat and add lemon juice.
2. Sterilize canning jars, lids and rings by boiling them in a large pot of water.
3. Peel, core, and slice apples. Pack the sliced apples into hot canning jars, leaving a 1/2 inch headspace.
4. Fill jars with hot syrup, and gently remove air bubbles with a plastic knife. (be sure to use plastic or silicone spatula to do this.  A regular knife can cause the hot jars to bust)
5. Put lids on and process in a water bath canner for 20 minutes. (be sure to put the lid on the pot while the jars are in the water bath)

I didn’t take any pictures of the canning process because 1) I had no idea what I was doing, and 2) I was too scared I was going to mess something up to stop and take pictures :)

I was only able to get 6 jars out of the recipe, but I don’t think that I filled them enough with apples.  I had an extra jar of apples and I ran out of syrup for them.  I will try and fill the jars up with more apples next time and let them sit in the syrup for a few minutes to settle and rise.  The apples rose in the water bath and I can tell my jars have a lot of extra syrup in them at the bottom.

All six cans sealed and I’ve got enough to make six small pies or three 9 inch pies.  I really enjoyed my first canning experience and can’t wait to can more next year!

Disappointment

My plans become too final in my head.  I plan and dream and hope, and in my head it somehow crosses the line of hopeful and enters the land of concrete.  I'm learning one step and one day at a time that doing so too often leads to disappointment.

How many times does the Lord have to teach me to trust in His plans, not mine?

Today I headed back to a post I wrote six months ago, and was reminded that we shouldn't write out the plans of our life in Sharpie, but in pencil.  

Jesus, teach me to be an open page who readily accepts the plans you erase to write anew.

Couponing This Week

I haven't talked about it much here on the blog recently, but I LOVE to coupon!  About a year or two ago I started playing "the drugstore game" and getting freebies at CVS, Walgreens, and Rite Aid.  But honestly with school I just got tired of doing it sometimes.  It takes a lot of work and planning, and I just wasn't wanting to put that much time into it.  Now that I'm married, and as of now not working, my goal is to stretch the income Jeremy brings in as far as it will go.  I am getting back into couponing and loving it! 

This week I had a good week at Bi-Lo.  If Bi-Lo would allow overage on coupons, I would have received money back on the transaction.  However, they can only lower the coupon value to the price of the product and then you have to pay sales tax.  I also stopped at Wal-Mart and Staples to get a couple of freebies.

Here are my savings from my 2nd week in Aug trips:  I paid .32 total for everything pictured (.35 minus .03 overage at WalMart)

Bi-Lo Trip:

3 boxes of Mueller's Elbow Macaroni- (.92 each and Buy one Get one Free, makes them .46 each) {I used three .55/1 coupons to get the pasta for free)

2 Emeril's Bam Meals- ($1.69 and BOGO, makes them .85 each) {Used two $1/1 any Emeril's product to get Bam Meals for free)

2 Carpet Fresh Deoderizers- (2.65 each and BOGO, makes them $1.32 each){Used two $1.50/1 coupons to get deodorizers for free}

Total Bi-Lo Value: $12. 42

Total Spent at Bi-Lo: $0.35 (tax)

Savings: $12.07 (97%)

Wal-Mart Trip

Degree Deodorant Trial Size: $0.97 {used $1/1 degree coupon to get free plus .03 overage}

Staples Trip

100 free black and white business cards (19.99 value)

*I used Southern Savers to find these deals*

Wash Day

I've spent the last few days laundering all of our new linens in preparation of moving into our own place {hopefully very very soon!} We have stacks of fluffy bath towels, washcloths and hand towels.   Clean and soft duvet cover, sheets, and pillowcases.  Loads of new dishtowels and washrags.  Neatly folded cloth napkins and sweet smelling vintage tablecloths.  Laundry is my favorite household chore, all the fresh smells and soft textures make me smile!  We're all set and ready to use all our linens!

I hung our vintage tablecloths outside to dry and they smelled so wonderful afterwards!  It took less than 20 minutes for them to dry because it is so hot outside.  I think I need to start line drying more often in the summers!

100 Free Business Cards

Do you have a business, Etsy shop, or would you like to just have some contact cards?  Staples has a printable coupon for 100 FREE black and white business cards!  This offer expires this Saturday, August 6th.

Click here to get your free coupon!



UPDATE:

I'm getting a lot of traffic to this post via Pinterest for free fonts.  If you are from Pinterest and looking for the free fonts...please look at the side bar to find the link to the site or click the image below.

On the Road Again

We're back on the road today for another 14 hour drive back to NC!

Say a quick prayer for traveling mercies and that it is an enjoyable ride.  I've got the cooler packed, coffee brewing, and I'm off to make sandwiches.