A Little Life Update

Since I've been out of the blog-o-sphere for so long, I figured a brief life update would be helpful to any of you out there still tuning in.

Where to begin? Hmm, the Christmas holiday was very nice and full of blessings. I was able to surprise my parents with a 5 day visit to Arizona the week before Christmas. It was just a wonderful time to reconnect with my parents and enjoy the sunshine!

Jared and I went back to Arizona in February but came back just in time for my Stephen Ministry Commissioning. It was such a wonderful evening full of fellowship, love and support. I am so glad Jared got to meet the wonderful new people in my life and share in that special accomplishment. For those of you that don't know, I'd been training for the 8 months prior to my commissioning to become a Stephen Minister. This required 50+ hours on training, every Tuesday night. Stephen Ministry is an outreach Care ministry that Blackhawk offers to those who need someone to come alongside them during difficult times and trials in their lives. I felt compelled to do it and since I've been commissioned and meeting with my Care Receiver it has truly hit me how much of an honor and responsibility it is to be able to share with someone during these difficult times. I feel so blessed for where God has led me with this ministry and I'm doing my best to constantly stay open to his will and guidance.

As you may know, we've been very active in our Life Group for the past couple of years and this summer our life group decided to join a rec volleyball league. You heard me right, Jared and I are playing volleyball weekly. We actually PAID MONEY to play volleyball! :) We're actually having a really great time with it. In addition to the sunshine, exercise and fellowship with dear friends, we're meeting new people and experiencing new things (i.e. they have a nice karaoke bar inside). I'll post a picture of J and I in our team shirts soon.

I have been volunteering for the Dane County Humane Society for the past several months and I love it. Using my event planning/management background, I was able to jump right into a few of their biggest fund-raising events. I've had an incredible time working together with other animal lovers to support a cause near and dear to my heart! The first event I volunteered on was the 2010 Bark and Wine and we raised $65,000.00 for the Humane Society! I am so glad they continue to need my help. I'm already looking forward to more and more events.

Lots and lots of other wonderful blessings have come our way, but in an attempt wrap this up, I'll stop now and post more later. I've got DIY crafts to show you that I made for a wedding shower for my BIL and Future SIL as well some birthday decorations I made for my God-daughter's 2nd birthday. I also DIY'ed some gift bags that so far everyone is just loving. I've also been up-cycling some great finds. You're going to love them! Stay Tuned!

Have you made any great DIY crafts recently? Let me know!! I love new ideas!