The ABC's of Me

I love this picture. Just because. I also love the Cinema Scope effect on Picnik. :)

I got this idea from Allie over at Allie Photography. She gave us permission to copy it. :) Go ahead and copy and paste to your blog if you would like, just leave me a comment with the link. :)

A. Age: 15

B. Bed size: Double. I am on the top bunk above my older sister.

C. Chore that you hate: Emptying the garbage. 

D. Dogs: None. :(

E. Essential start to your day: I don't really have one.

F. Favorite color: Purple and orange...just not normally together.

G. Gold or Silver: Silver

H. Height: 5' 3". Not tall enough to see over a lot of racks in stores, but tall enough.

I. Instruments you play: Violin and a little bit of piano.

J. Job title: I am a student, knitter, and photography.

K. Kids: I love kids.  :)

L. Live: In Maine.

M. Mother’s name: Laurie

N. Nicknames: Em, Emmy, Toes

O. Overnight hospital stays: None!

P. Pet peeves: Teachers who swear.

Q. Quote from a movie: Hmm...pretty much anything from Tangled or the Princess Bride.  

R. Right or left handed: Right.

S. Siblings: I have 8. Abbie: 17, Lydia: 13, Zach: 12, Luke: 9, Jacob: 7, Sadie: 5, Chloe: 3, and Natalia: 9 months.

T. Time you wake up: A little after 6:00 on weekdays.

U. Underwear: Only when I feel like it.  Haha totally kidding.  Everyday I put those babies on!  :)

V. Vegetable you hate: Hmm...I've never had brussels sprouts, but I don't think I would like them. I love cooked broccoli and cooked carrots, though.

W. What makes you run late: Not much. If anything, other people (like little siblings). Or me driving. :P

X. X-Rays you’ve had: My teeth.

Y. Yummy food that you make: Cookies. Bread. Apple Crisp (Crumble, in my house).

Z. Zoo animal: In Maine, we don't have many zoos. :P But I like giraffes and zebras.

Oh, and I couldn't figure out how to get rid of the white highlight thing. Sorry!

Umbrellas

The other day I watched my sister and brother's soccer game in the rain. I remembered why I love umbrellas so much. You can twirl them on your shoulder. They keep you dry. I like the bright colors that so many umbrellas have.

But my favorite thing about umbrellas is the fact that they shelter and protect you from the rain.

"I will cause showers to come down in their season; there shall be showers of blessing." Ezekiel 34:26.

God's Word tells us that there will be showers and rain. We need rain. It nourishes the ground that our food grows out of. The grass is greener, the flowers brighter after a rain. But sometimes we get annoyed at the rain. We wish that it would go away, get aggravated at little siblings splashing us by jumping in puddles. We don't want to get wet on our way to go somewhere.

But the rain comes when it is needed. Little children splashing gets a lot more enjoyable when you join in and jump in puddles. Umbrellas keep the rain off us.

Sometimes rain isn't always water falling from the sky. Things happen in our lives and it feels aggravating and unending. People annoy us. We get splashed by problems and struggles. Umbrellas can't protect us from that kind of rain.

But God can.

"For You have been a shelter for me, A strong tower from the enemy." Psalm 61:3

"Deliver me, O LORD, from my enemies; in You I take shelter." Psalm 143:9

So go ahead.

Splash in the puddles.

Twirl your umbrella.

Sing in the rain.

Dance with your umbrella.

But remember:

God is our umbrella for life.

He will shelter us from life's rains.

God will take care of us.

There is a giveaway going on over at Giveaways of Blessing. The prize is a set of eight cards with Bible verses on them. Go on over and enter!

A few lovely giveaways

Hello, all! There are a few giveaways going on that I would like to share with you. First, there is a giveaway going on over at Bramblewood Fashion. i already have the button in my sidebar, but then I realized that I could blog about it and get another entry. :) The winner will receive this beautiful earring and necklace set:

  Aren't they just lovely?

                                                                                     

Go on over and enter!

Next, you can win a $25 gift credit to The Rusted Chain over at Tatertots and Jell-O. The shop is simply lovely! You can also go over to The Rusted Chain Blog and win a $25 gift credit to the shop there, too. Go ahead and check it out!

What I've been up to

I thought I would share with you just a couple things that I have been doing lately.

First, the other day I went out and took some pictures. It's hard sometimes to take pictures this time of year because the flower are mostly dead (question: does anyone know where that phrase comes from?) and there is less color outside. However, with some thought, there are many things to take pictures of. 

Including this...I don't really know what it is, but it I think it looks cool.

My sister, Lydia, grew squash and tomatoes this year. The photo below is a squash flower-thing still in her garden.

My latest knitting project is a scarf. Yes, that hole is supposed to be there. :) You can go see a finished one here. I love the yarn! It is just soo soft! I was knitting this scarf in my school library while reading. The librarian waled by and commented on it and said that she knit, too. :) Later, a girl saw it in my bag and pulled it out to look at it. She pointed to the hole and said "You missed a spot here." I had to explain that it was supposed to be there. :)

Oh, and the book I was reading in the library while knitting? Emma by Jane Austen. I love this book!!!!!! I have seen the BBC miniseries Emma and love it, so I decided that I should read the book. :) I already wanted to, though. It is pretty funny and sweet. I'll let you know when I finish it.

And now, enough about me!

What have you been doing lately?

Photo Contests

There are quite a few photo contests going on right now! I am going to link up to a couple today.

First is 

over at Allie Photography. The theme is something you're proud of.

I am proud of this picture because it is from my first photo shoot.

The second contest I am entering is over at:

The theme is anything.

I love the reflection on the water and the sun streaming through the leaves. This is anything. :)

Go ahead and link up or check out the other entries!

I am a Finalist

So, my photo of Chloe from this post was chosen as one of the top five finalists at:

in the photo contest I entered it in. I would really appreciate it if you would go on over and vote for me in the poll on the sidebar. :) Thanks!

Giveaway at Brittany Chavers Studio

Hello, everyone! There is a giveaway going on on Facebook from Brittany Chavers Studio. The lucky winner will receive their favorite item from her lovely shop! Go on over and enter!

This is my favorite item from her shop. She also has earrings, rings, bracelets, and necklaces besides hair accessories.