Amy J. Bennett

DIY: Oversized Ruler for the Hallway

January 3, 2014 by Amy 8 Comments

I decided a few weeks back I was tired of loving stuff on Pinterest and wanted to love them in my house instead of on my boards.

Ever since I saw this oversized ruler on Pinterest, I’ve been in love.

I love stained wood and I love numbers and lines and it reminds me of old wooden rulers. Such a little thing to make me so happy every time I saw the picture. I don’t know why I waited so long, but I finally had Scott help me do one of my own last week for our hallway.

Isn’t she grand?

When we added on to the house and extended our hall, the builder suggested we make the corner angled. It created a kind of weird tiny little wall but it turns out it’s a perfect fit for an oversized ruler.

It makes me so a happy every time I walk by.

Of course, the kids immediately wanted to measure their height.

And, of course, Bella had to be measured too!

In order to make it, Scott bought a 6’ piece of finished wood. I stained it with one coat of the same stain we used on Lexi’s treehouse bed—English Chestnut by Miniwax.

For the numbers, I haven’t yet sprung for a Silhouette Cameo to make my own. I found an Etsy shop LittleAcornsByRo that sells the vinyl numbers and lines separately.

It turned out easier than I thought to apply because the lines come in 1 foot sections. You just have to line up the edge of the vinyl with the edge of the board and press them down. The numbers come separately and we just eyeballed where we wanted them. I should mention that Scott worked at a sign shop right out of high school so he’s sort of an expert at installing this kind of thing for me. I left the OCD measuring and applying up to him.

I realized after the fact that some of the rulers/growth charts apply the numbers sideward so it looks like an actual ruler. I’m not sure which I would have chosen if I’d have thought about it. I think either way works.

The tutorials I’ve seen say to add a hook to the back of it for hanging, but Scott screwed the board directly into the wall in all the corners.

We’re guesstimating we have about an hour of work (including the trip to Lowe’s) and $30 (even including shipment of they vinyl) in it. They retail for about $60, both on etsy and in some local shops here. Considering there’s about a zillion ways you could customize this for yourself, I’d say it’s a good Pinterest project to tackle.

The great news for you is LittleAcornsByRo has a 20% New Year’s discount that ends TODAY. If you’re thinking at all about doing this, grab your decals now! Use the code NEWYEAR20. I don’t get anything from referring you, but tell them I sent you anyway!

So tell me, why do you think we wait so long on actually doing Pinterest projects? What project could you do this weekend?

2014 Goals

January 2, 2014 by Amy 15 Comments

For many years I’ve been in the anti-resolutions camp.

I’ve often thought resolutions were just another way to feel like a failure. My perfectionist self didn’t want to set a goal knowing I wouldn’t complete it 100%. But now I feel like it’s better to meet a goal by even 25% than not try at all.

I also think I had some weird spiritual ties to resolutions. If I made resolutions, how was that leaving room for the Holy Spirit to work? I’ve changed my mind on this. First off, couldn’t it be the Holy Spirit leading me to these resolutions in the first place? I mean, Satan’s main plan is to steal my joy and destroy every good thing. That sounds like the complete opposite of a resolution.

Perhaps by having some spirit-led resolutions, I was actually in line with the Holy Spirit. Why not plan some things that make me healthier and bring joy? And I’m pretty sure if I write down a resolution that needs tweaking or even wiped out along the way, the Holy Spirit will guide me.

Also, New Year’s resolutions are what my personality type lives for. I live by checkmarks. If I write something in my notebook and put a checkbox by it, by golly I’ll work to check it. Sometimes I even write something down and check it off after I do it. Making a list and working to complete it is just who I am. I’m not sure why I was trying to fight my personality just because someone else doesn’t think they’re a good idea. Some people would rather die than live by a check list but that’s me and I shouldn’t fight it. If that’s not you, that’s totally ok!

However, my StrengthsFinder results indicated that while I’m good at making lists, I’m not good at celebrating when things are done. I think by writing these down and sharing, even the silly ones, I can be held accountable here and report back. It forces me to stop and celebrate accomplishments.

Most of the goals I’m concentrating on are very practical, every-day decisions. I’m not making major life goals here. They might LEAD to major life changes, but the habits themselves aren’t huge.

I shared the list with my family and asked them to add any family goals. Scott’s first addition was, “My goal is to have a bowel movement every day.” He thought it was hilarious. And yes, he’s the reason I don’t ever take myself too seriously.

He did actually have some good ones to add and got on board with some of mine. The kids added a few too.

After praying over the list, here are my 2014 goals:

Financial

Make one extra house payment
Save x amount for a new vehicle
Pay for Scott’s back surgery, if needed. Ouch.
Replace our swimming pool. Ouch.
Fund travels (Great Wolf Lodge, Allume, Summer vacation, Anniversary trip)

Health & Fitness

Work out 30 min/day, 5 times a week (I’m already admitting this will be tough)
Continue AdvoCare supplements
Stay off sugar as much as possible, aka, don’t eat ice cream every night
Floss every day (Gah. Why can’t I do this?)

Writing/Blogging

Guest post once/month
Write 500 words every day
Post at least 3x/week
Read 3 books about writing/blogging. On the list right now: Bird by Bird, Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook, 2k to 10k, Writing About Your Life
Attend Allume
Schedule weekly brainstorming sessions
Keep an editorial calendar
Schedule a 24 hour brainstorming/writing session away from home
I have a fuzzy goal around writing a book but nothing solid yet. I’m hoping the goal to write 500 words per day will drive me toward solidifying this.

At Home

Learn to can something (Canners, what should I can?)
Buy one sewing pattern and complete the project (I got a head start on this and bought a pattern on Tuesday for an apron)
Plant a garden again this year
Create scrabble wall art for our hall
Make hall room signs
Complete a starburst bracelet on the Rainbow Loom (Courtesy of Emma. I’ve failed at least 4x’s)
Get a landscaping plan for the back yard

Relational

Have coffee 1x/month with a friend
Continue to host small group 1x/week
Have a family over for dinner 1x/month
Have family game night on Tuesdays (we have Taco Tuesday already)
Go on 2 date nights/month
Start a conversation journal with Emma and Lexi and write in it at least 1x/week
Go on an anniversary trip since we totally bombed our 15th last year
Write our Compassion kids 1x/month

Reading

Read 52 books

Spiritual

Continue to attend church and host small group weekly
Memorize Scripture – looking at James right now
Complete The Promised One (1 month left) *
Complete Jesus 90 Days with the One and Only (3 months) *
Complete Whispers of Hope (2 months) *
Complete David (2.5 months) *
Complete Chase (2 months) *
Host/attend IF conference in February
Attend Allume in October

*The specific devotionals may change, but I have these available to me already.

The one thing I know is this year is going to hold a lot of events I can’t even begin to prepare for.

Is this the year we’re going to adopt and I won’t have time to work out 5 days a week?

Will one of us change jobs and we have to skip summer vacation?

Will something unexpected happen at our house and we can’t buy a swimming pool?

YES, lots of unexpected events will happen and that’s ok. In fact, the unexpected usually produce the best parts of the year. Even if they’re hard, we learn and grow a lot.

I’m reminded of some very wise words in Proverbs 16:9: A man’s mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.

So, I’m holding these plans loosely, asking God to direct my steps. No matter what we face in 2014, I’m confident He’ll guide us through and be with us.

I can’t wait to dig into these and share how it’s going along the way. My little check-marking fingers are itching to get started!

In the meantime, what do you think about resolutions—do they excite you or scare you off?

Linked with 5minutesformom.com

2013 in Review

December 31, 2013 by Amy 19 Comments

Oh, 2013, how many different ways could we review you? Top 10 lists are flying around the web and here will be no exception.

First, I want to mention how far we’ve come here. Did you know at this time last year, this site was still named Permission to Peruse? Yowza! We’ve settled into the new name and theme and it’s by far the best change on the blog for quite some time. We started over with a new Facebook page too and I’m happy to see many of you made the switch.

Now, let’s take a look at the year. I thought I’d break it down a few ways. If I was a bit of a better planner, I would have stretched this out to a few posts, but let’s cram it all in today, why don’t we?

Most popular posts by month
My favorite books of the year
My favorite family/personal moments of the year

Favorite Books of 2013

Jesus > Religion / The Language of Flowers/ Eleanor & Park/The Fault in Our Stars/ Beautiful Outlaw / Bread & Wine / Blue Like Jazz / A Shepherd Looks at the Good Shepherd / On Writing / On Becoming a Writer

Some of these weren’t even published in 2013, but these books either meant the most to me or brought me a lot of joy.

Favorite Family/Personal Moments

These posts may or may not have been the most popular but they document some of my favorite moments of the year. If I ever get around to doing a family yearbook, these moments will be in there.

I got to hear Maureen from The Mercy House speak here in town.

I loved following my friend Linda for a day of her 50 RAOK for her birthday.

We did lots of traveling and those are always special: Great Wolf Lodge, visiting Scott’s cousin Carla, visiting friends in Charleston and our summer vacation in Palm Beach to name a few.

We welcomed our Havanese Bella to the family this year.

Emma got braces.

Redoing the bar was one of my favorite changes ever around our house. Having the water leak I thought would be the worst of the year but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Both the girls love their new rooms and we really did need to overhaul those two rooms. The treehouse bed was definitely a favorite!

Hosting a baby shower for my great nephew was wonderful as I watched friends and family gather together to be Jesus for that family.

I loved the P90X program Scott and I did together at the beginning of 2013 and then getting back on track with AdvoCare in October.

Watching what God did at Allume was one of my personal favorites of the year.

Hosting a Sole Hope Shoe Cutting party was a great way to gather friends and get some good work done too.

Thank you so much for taking this journey with me. I love sharing special moments from life, what I’m learning and how God is moving. I wrote this year about having fun and I’ve since realized writing for you and hearing back IS my fun. Thanks for being here and here’s to a great 2014.

Happy New Year, friends!

Linked up with Musings of a Housewife

What I’m Into – December 2013

December 30, 2013 by Amy 26 Comments

I’m linking up once again with Leigh Kramer to talk about what I’ve been into this month. It’s a great opportunity to talk about all the little things I got excited about.

Family and Friends

My Christmas break is officially over. We made a short Christmas bucket list and marked them off through the month, but mostly we hunkered down and spent a lot of time at home. I enjoyed a full week off with the family and man, was it what I needed. We had a great Christmas week and I’m so thankful for another year with family and friends.

Julep Nail Polish

After hearing about it many times, I finally broke down and subscribed to the Julep Maven box–a monthly beauty subscription service–when a friend posted a coupon for a free box.

In my free box, I got two Julep polishes and wow! I was super impressed with how well the polish went on, how shiny it was and even how long it lasted. I’m not sure how many Maven boxes I’ll actually get, but you can count me in as a definite fan of the polish.

Get your first box with the code FREEBOX!

TimeHop App

My friend ohAmanda introduced me to the TimeHop app and oh, it is so fun. Every day it shows you what you posted on your social media accounts that exact day in any previous year. You can’t see any day except the day you’re on.

For example, on Christmas, it was so fun to relive those Christmas mornings again. I have tweets from 6 Christmases ago!

You also unfortunately get to see some rather embarrassing moments too. Like, 5 years ago I don’t think I posted anything that wasn’t related to Twilight for a few months. Sheesh. Sorry, folks.

The best thing is it’s free!

Wedge Tennis Shoes

These wedge tennis shoes are way out of the norm for me but I found them on Clearance at JCPenney’s on vacation and I just couldn’t say no.

They are so comfortable and unlike many wedges, they make my feet look smaller instead of like small boats. Does anyone else think they look like the high-tops in Back to the Future?

Mary Kay Skinvigorate Cleansing Brush.

I just got this for Christmas so I haven’t been able to do any long-term testing but I’m definitely loving my Mary Kay Skinvigorate Cleansing Brush. Everyone raves over the Clarisonic but the price point was just a little high for me.

I can’t compare them, but I really am enjoying the Mary Kay cleansing brush. And at $50 retail, you really can’t beat the price (especially when you’re a consultant!). It doesn’t feel too rough, but it leaves my skin feeling super smooth.

Shameless plug: If you need a MK consultant, I do ship anywhere in the US.

Miche Bags

Speaking of consultants, my mom is a Miche bag consultant. She’s been trying to get me into the bags for years, but I’m a one-bag-at-a-time-and-for-years kind of girl. Seriously, the bag I had up to this month I’ve carried every single day since I bought it in March 2012 in Georgia.

My aunt gave me the mid-sized bag and a few shells for Christmas and y’all? I kind of love it. Like, really love it. Even though no one probably cares, it’s fun to swap out the shell in just seconds to a shell that compliments my outfit. It sounds so trite but it really does make me happy!

Books I’ve Read

Contrary to how I thought my month would go, I read fewer books this month than any this year. I spent a ton of time on the house (and Netflix—see below) and very little time reading. In fact, I only finished one novel: The Misremembered Man.

This novel was billed as a romance but it was so much more. Set in the 70’s in rural Ireland, it’s the story of a man who was abused in a Catholic school as a child and then adopted. The reader comes into the story just as he decides he needs to get married in his early 40’s.

As someone who is trying to adopt a boy from DSS, this was a little gut-wrenching, particularly at the end, but it was just such a work of art. I couldn’t speed read through the Irish accent in much of the dialogue and the vocabulary was rich. The characters were just lovely (well, some of them) and a surprise (and GOOD) ending left me satisfied this was the only book I read all month.

At only $3.99 for the Kindle version and free to borrow for Prime members, you shouldn’t pass this one up.

I spent the Advent season reading through The Greatest Gift. If you’re on the Facebook page, I hope you enjoyed the snippets each morning. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved this book. If you haven’t read it, don’t hesitate to read it at any time of the year.

TV I Watched

What Not to Wear holds a very special place in my heart. I started watching the show when it first began in 2003. I was in my early 20’s and still trying to figure out my style. I learned so much from them and really, feel like I relearn it all every time I watch. I haven’t watched it in years and years, but they put the last two seasons on Netflix. The girls and I were goners.

I’d heard the buzz online about White Collar. Tiffani Thiessen from Saved by the Bell AND Hilarie Burton from One Tree Hill are on the show so you would think I’d be all over it. For some reason I never took the time to get into it.

When my parents got into it recently on Netflix and insisted we did, we took a peek at it one night and we were sold. We buzzed through the first season in just a few days. Great law enforcement drama, great characters, good humor and all around great show.

*While we’re on law enforcement dramas, I should also note that Scott was WAY into the series on Netflix called Flashpoint this month. I watched a few episodes with them and even though it wasn’t something I was into, he was. If that’s your sort of thing, you should definitely check it out as well.

So with that, we’re staring down the end of 2013. I’ll be back tomorrow with a year in review post.

In the meantime, anyone want to share any Christmas gifts they’ve been loving?

Merry Christmas!

December 24, 2013 by Amy 2 Comments

A very Merry Christmas from my family to yours!

Duck Dynasty, Writing and Christmas

December 23, 2013 by Amy 1 Comment

I was entirely distracted at the end of last week with the Duck Dynasty debacle. Truth be told, it still is stirring in my heart. I should confess that I felt like I should have written about it and got scared and didn’t.

Technically, I did write about it but threw it in a virtual trash can and then waited for someone else to say how I was feeling. Once I found a few articles that did just that, I realized just how powerful the written word is. Sometimes you can’t find the words to say what you want, sometimes you can’t put a finger on exactly how you feel but when you read the words that are locked in your heart, it’s like an internal dam breaks in your lungs and you can breathe again. Processing through the written word is just part of me and I suspect based on the number of articles being shared last week, that it’s the same for many of you.

So, even though I’m not as passionate as Jen Hatmaker or get to the heart of the matter like Ann Voskamp or find myself articulate as Mike Cosper, I realize now I should have written. Even if it couldn’t have helped thousands process what happened, it could have helped me process it a bit faster and maybe a few of you too. I apologize for not showing up.

When Thursday rolled around and I was debating writing about the Duck Dynasty stuff, I was already wrestling with some behind-the-scenes stuff that was happening with my writing here. When Ann Voskamp says words are powerful, she isn’t kidding. Vague enough? Bottom line, I was feeling the weight of words already when this Duck Dynasty stuff hit and the weight of their words piled on top of mine left me wanting to walk away.

I was on the way to the school to get the kids Thursday, I told the Lord, I need some encouragement. If this writing thing is going to continue, I need you to show up and help me.

I had decided before I left to get them that I wouldn’t take my book and just read whatever was on my Kindle in the car. As I waited, I opened Denise Hughes book On Becoming a Writer. I’d read it already but it was encouraging to me the first time I read it and decided it might give me the kick in the pants I needed. I came across a section entitled “Know Your Reason for Writing.” Denise asked why we write and then shared her personal mission statement from Isaiah 30:8:

“Go now, write it on a tablet for them, inscribe it on a scroll, that for the days to come it may be an everlasting witness.”

As I read that I felt that tug on my heart that says, I just showed up for you—that’s the encouragement you needed. And it was. I want so much for this space not just to help me process but for it to be like an altar to the Lord to remind us, “God was here.”

God was here. God is here.

And that’s what I want us to remember this week as we celebrate Christmas. Christianity isn’t a list of rules to adhere to or theology to debate, Christianity is about a relationship to experience. It’s about a God who came—who comes–to be with us. Not just for 33 years on the earth but now. He wants to give us life and life abundantly now. He wants to encourage us when we doubt, he wants to hurt when we hurt, he wants to laugh when we laugh.

He delights in us so much and we just keep forgetting to delight in Him too.

And so I ask us to set aside the debates and the anger and the distraction of the season and let him show up. There’s a million reasons you might need him to show up and a million ways he might show up but look for Him. He so wants to and He so will. Immanuel—God with us.

What I Wore Wednesday 12.18.2013

December 18, 2013 by Amy 2 Comments

I pair my outfit photos with matching inspirational photos. Read more about that here.

Email and RSS readers need to click over to the site to see the inspirational photos.

Even though I was the photographer of the weekend, I managed to get zero outfit photos. I took this one yesterday when I was working from home during the day and carted the kids around to get supplies for holiday parties and a quick doctor’s appointment in the evening (all is well).

I bought this huge scarf last year and didn’t really know how to wear it. None of the handy scarf tying guides worked. On a whim, I wrapped it like a shawl today and it was just the thing I needed to stay a little warmer around the house and the ruffles finally decided to lay just right. Something about it made me want to wear a hand muff—anything to stay warmer!

Francis Yap on Pinterest.

Let’s connect! Like AmyJBennett on Facebook. Follow me on Pinterest (where I post these inspirational pictures),Instagram (where you might sneak an early peek of an outfit) orTwitter.

Linked with The Pleated Poppy

You Know You’re Home

December 17, 2013 by Amy 6 Comments

When you breathe your lungs full and the frosty air goes down.

When you laugh for the thirty-sixth time at your husband making Grandma ask the clerk for “B” batteries during Christmas 5 years ago.

When you hold back tears passing their house because it’s been 20 years.

When you open doors without knocking and leave your shoes at the door.

When they go down the frozen hill with their cousins just like you did with yours.

When you sigh at the taste because it’s the food of your people.

When you stack the presents by name.

When you look at faces and see parts of your own in so many.

When you watch the little ones and wonder how they changed so much since last year.

When you hug a little longer at the goodbye because you know it’ll be too long before…you know you’re home.

We had a wonderful long weekend away with my extended family. The snow made it feel like we had suspended time just to live in a special world with our loved ones.

I’m curious, how do YOU know you’re home?