one million things lately
Posted: May 20, 2013 Filed under: artistic, domestic, randomness Leave a comment »hey guys,
sorry i dropped off the planet. i’m thinking that what’s going on in my life is maybe somewhat interesting to me, but maybe not to you. but i’m just going to throw it out there. ready?
1. i’m on a diet. i know. i’m always on a diet, right? but i always quit too soon. i have one million reasons to quit a diet. do you want to hear them? we’re about to get personal.
- no one cares how i look
- real beauty is on the inside
- baking is my hobby
- it’s not working anyway
- obsessing over a diet is not healthy either
BUT i also have a handful of reasons to stick one out. and here they are:
- i’d like to climb mount kilimanjaro in the somewhat near future and i need to get in shape. that would definitely be the most physical thing i’ve ever done and those things don’t usually appeal to me, but this one does and i can’t do it unless i’m physically fit
- i don’t usually finish the things i start. i’m not sure if this is a flaw or a quirk yet, but while i decide, i figure maybe i’ll just finish something and see how it goes. it’s 42 days long. i’m 6 days in.
- sugar makes me feel bad and carbs make me feel bloated, so i’m just going to do this little experiment and see how i do without those things. it’s going pretty well this time.
this diet is a little different from those i’ve done in the past. i just made a few rules (one sugar a week, 2 drinks a week, no straight up carby foods). i’ve made mini goals by the week. one week in i get new make-up, three weeks gets me a haircut, and the full six weeks, a new outfit. that’s kind of fun. also, i’ve bizarrely taken to photographing my ugly food. see?
canned tuna does not photograph well. what’s up with this? i don’t know.
so that’s that. in other news…
i cut jude’s hair. and i don’t have pics for the rest of the family updates, but here we go…
abby’s developed a serious attitude problem
will is sick with the pukes
and brandon is becoming slightly obsessed with the renovation of our new farmhouse, which we close on THIS THURSDAY (insert squeel)!
i have also become slightly obsessed with clay tiles. first i wanted to buy them, but turns out my taste (once again) just happens to lean to the obscenely expensive. well it’s just clay and paint, right? somebody’s making these things, so we decided perhaps we would make tiles ourselves. and so begins a new adventure in making tile. we’re buying a kiln this week. here’s some of my favorites (tiles, not kilns).
and this one is amazing.
and i’m missing my photography business of all things. looking for something fresh and feeling artsy.
so that’s what’s up these days. diets, and tiles, and vomit. how was your weekend?
the avocado farm
Posted: February 24, 2013 Filed under: artistic 1 Comment »hey ladies. i totally don’t have an avocado farm. if i did i would be way fatter. but let me tell you a little story. when jason mraz was writing his album a few years back he retired to an avocado farm that he owns. he lived there for over a year creating, and all the while he never listened to any other music. he just wrote the music that was in him and didn’t want to be influenced by anything at all. just the source. and that’s what i’m doing in march. you will hear from me every day, but i won’t be looking at facebook or any other blogs because i think i’m being far too influenced. i find myself just too concerned with what everyone else is doing and i find myself wanting to blend in. but i’ve got to be authentic, you know? we all do. truly, nobody wants to know what i wore on wednesday (it was probably target) or what i ate (it was probably rice and beans), and sometimes a teeny break is just what we need to get in touch with our own voice and hear what the spirit is saying and what needs to be said. this month might be whack. seriously. let’s just see. sorry if it’s weird. i’m not checking stats either. 
and on that note, a little old school mraz for ya…
tiny muse
Posted: February 20, 2013 Filed under: artistic, the kiddos Leave a comment »today started my first day of my latest art class. i love it already! i’m doing stuff i have never done. many people ask why my art girls have no faces… there is a bit of a deep story there, but really it’s mostly because i’m BAD at it! it looks better when i don’t! case in point: i started off with a portrait of my tiny muse. i included my signature colors of apricot, turquoise, and tea green. she begged for hot pink. she’s always asked for a face so today i tried. it was alright, but the mouth was totally weird. brandon and i were making fun of it but didn’t think she noticed or cared. she kept talking about how much she loved it! but when i took her picture with it she started doing all this weird mouth stuff. i guess she noticed…
yeabsire
Posted: January 22, 2013 Filed under: advocacy, artistic Leave a comment »guys, i’m down to 2 KIDS without sponsors!!! that’s amazing!!! 61 with sponsors and only 2 without! one of them is dechu, who i posted the other day. i goofed up and steph, the girl who was going to sponsor him couldn’t, so she did someone else. that’s super awesome, but now dechu still doesn’t have a sponsor. sorry!!! if you sponsor him, of course, you’ll get your painting sent to you. and then my last little fella is yeabsire. cutie, no?
and here’s his fun little painting. i’ll send it to you if you decide to sponsor him. you can add a bible verse if you’d like.
sponsorship is $34 and will help pay for meals, tutoring, discipleship, medical, uniforms, and all kinds of good stuff.
if you’re interested in sponsoring either of these guys i will kiss you. email me at b.cupitt@yahoo.com and let me know!
Ydidiya
Posted: January 17, 2013 Filed under: advocacy, artistic Leave a comment »I’m sure it won’t take much persuading to get this little guy sponsored… (update: Ydidiya is being sponsored by the Laman family)
but still, i’ll send you his painting if you shoot me your address. click here to sponsor Ydidiya ($34/month) and then email me at b.cupitt@yahoo.com and let me know if you’d like a verse on there.
I Got a New Job
Posted: January 16, 2013 Filed under: advocacy, artistic 1 Comment »OK, it’s not like a job job, but it’s a big deal for sure. So, a year ago or so Give1 Save1 ran a campaign to get some kids sponsored through Children’s Hope Chest in the Greenlight community in Addis. We got a bunch of them sponsored, and if one of those dears is yours, thank you! And now, we’re taking it one step further. OK, lots of steps, actually. Brandon and I have accepted the job of sponsorship coordinators for Greenlight. We have 63 kids total, and only six of those are currently unsponsored. My first priority is to get us 100% sponsored as soon as possible. Right now, all of those kids receive all the benefits of sponsorship ( a meal a day, discipleship, tutoring, etc.), though the quality and quantity of those benefits will increase with each sponsorship. And we want the best for our kids, right?! We want them thriving! After we get them all sponsored I’ll let you know what projects we’ll be working on (financially and physically), to help restore the entire community. First up, is a medical fund, but more on that later! I’m getting ahead of myself.
Brandon will be coordinating the travel side of it. Right now we’re in chats with Children’s Hope Chest in regards to a trip to spend a week with our kids either this year or next year. Comment or email me at b(dot)cupitt(at)yahoo(dot)com if you’re interested in going to meet your sweetie! I won’t be going this year, but definitely next year!!! We’ll be going at least once a year! 
To learn more about Greenlight, click here. And if you have any questions at all about Hope Chest or Greenlight or your child, email me. They have been beyond transparent and trustworthy and would love to answer your questions.
Update: Abel now has a sponsor!
So first, let’s just get these kids set up with sponsors! This is Abel. He’s stinkin’ cute, right? Sign up to sponsor him here ($34), and I’ll ship this little baby to you for free to help remind you to pray for him. Email me at b.cupitt@yahoo.com with your address.
our imaginary birthday party
Posted: January 7, 2013 Filed under: artistic, jesus stuff, pinboard spotlight 5 Comments »hey guys! i’m sort of torn about what i’m about to share, but i think i’ll go ahead and do it. the bible says two things that are wrestling around in my head. on one hand, “Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.” Matthew 6:4
But it also says “Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.” Hebrews 10:24
I’m going to share a little idea and thought process with you, not in hopes of praise, but in hopes of motivating you to love and good works. Don’t tell me I’m nice or I’ll think I should have kept my mouth shut and feel guilty about it. If you really think it’s grand, you can consider doing something similar or changing things up a bit.
By nature, I love to entertain. I’m a visual person, so naturally I ADORE pinterest! I think it’s a source of inspiration daily. Love it. It actually saves me alot. This week I realized that our birthday had snuck right up on us. My 32nd birthday is not such a big deal, but it’s Jude’s 1st! That’s a big deal in baby world! With my others I have spent months planning color schemes, themes, music, food, favors, etc. Well, it seems like Jude just got here! I guess he did. So I freaked out and hit Pinterest and stayed up late perusing Etsy for little homemade touches. It was last minute, but I still had time to make it awesome. So I got to work.
It was going to have a Pajamas and Pancakes theme.
It would definitely have these cool donut and fruit kebabs too.
But the skewers would be all ombre, you know, as a nice extra touch.
No party is complete with out decorations, right? So we’d need some custom colored confetti and these trendy awesome tassel things I keep seeing everywhere.
I started stressing out big time. We just threw a Christmas party a few weeks ago, AND our social worker comes the day after this party. Today, after church, I planned on shopping up a storm to get all the appropriate, and completely on-trend color coordinating plates, cups, washi tape, stripey paper straws, little signs to label everything, digital downloads, invitations, and ALLLLLL that. Every time I throw a “little shindig” it costs hundreds. Hundreds. Like $200-$300 for this little party that he won’t remember. And I’d be stressing the whole time. And all of this occurred to me as I’m sending my hubs and Will and our best friends out to the Church Under the Bridge in downtown Houston. They’ll be distributing a couple hundred blankets for very cold homeless people. They have an urgent need for blankets, shoes, socks, coats, mittens, and scarves. Do you know how cold it is out there?! Really really cold. And sometimes raining. And we have an overabundance of these things. And money to buy more. I started thinking maybe instead of buying fancy tassels (and decorating the sticks that shall hold the tiny pancakes that shall prove to my toddler and our family and friends that I totally love and celebrate him), that maybe Jesus would have me do something different with what He’s given us. So instead we’ll have donuts and paper hats and white plates. I won’t be stressing and cooking a bazillion miniature pancakes while my company is over. I’ll be enjoying Jude and my family and friends. I’ll make it as cute as I can for $50 and the rest of what I would have spent will go to buying warm things for those cold people. It probably won’t make Pinterest, but that’s not what we’re called to do, is it? And sometimes we just need a little reminder that we required to do more. Not for our kids, but for His. 
darling
Posted: January 3, 2013 Filed under: artistic 3 Comments »so, i’ve been recently introduced to an awesome find. have you heard of darling magazine?! i’m in love! truly. seriously, take a peek at the back cover.
i have the first issue in digital, but i am sooo missing real magazines. this one is not a glossy, ad-filled thing either. it’s really more like a book. it’s not something you read and toss, it’s a keeper. every single article is beautiful. fantastic writing and photos… just trust me. you’ll feel better about who you are if you read this magazine. that’s a pretty big endorsement, right? no exaggeration there. and they don’t even know i exist. this isn’t paid advertising or anything, i’m just ridiculously hyped about it. be warned, they are $20 a pop, but remember that’s because there are NO ads and tons of amazing articles. like i said, it’s really a book. that comes out quarterly! i can’t wait for the next one!
so i got so excited about it that i bought one for each of ‘my girls’. and i also painted them, something i’ve always wanted to properly do, but never get around to it. i painted one for myself and one for each of my closest friends. jen, the blonde on the right, gives me new papers and art supplies for christmas each year, so i did a whole set using my new goodies. i LOVE them.
in fact, i’m a little obsessed. i painted several others in this color scheme and pattern. there’s a few in the shop if they float your boat.
and that sums up the start of my week. feeling creative, cozy, and gray… but gray in a good, cozy, creative way. you know what i mean?
the coolest nativity ever
Posted: December 12, 2012 Filed under: artistic, holidays 1 Comment »
remember when i tried to make a modern, yet blinged out, nativity that my kids couldn’t destroy? well, it was too much work. sorry. but no worries, because these came out WAY cooler. you want the scoop? here’s how i did it.
step 1. beg your cute hubby to cut some 7 inch blocks out of a 2×4 (costs $3.50 at Home Depot). sand the edges too since it’s for little hands. you don’t want any splinters.
2. decorate (the basics). in this phase i painted the edges, maybe did a few splashes. here i already added the characters. don’t do that. next time i do this i’ll do it in the next step, so pretend like i didn’t.
3. print your printables. i got mine from caravan shoppe (check out their store, like, right now!). they recommend printing on rub-on transfer paper. i did that, but they were expensive and a little hard to understand. i ended up just cutting it out and mod podging them on (that’s a verb now). next time i’ll print on card stock or transfer paper instead.
4. add a coat of mod podge hard finish all the way around the whole deal. this is where i got a little carried away… add glitter, and stars if you’re into that kind of thing, while it’s still wet.
5. once it’s dry i finished it with a little liquid gold leaf around the edges. this is what i use. you have to do this last if you want it. the wood is really porous and soaks it up if there’s not that glue barrier to keep it from happening. there are a million different ways you could do all this. next year i’m making these for everyone in their house colors. like everyone. so cute and so cheap and ultra awesome!
daydreaming
Posted: December 5, 2012 Filed under: artistic, wishful thinking Leave a comment »
daydreaming about living here. see, winter doesn’t have to be all drab! see the rest here.
