February 2012's Cheer

 Friends

Extra love

Books

Unexpectedly enjoyable times

Kids (not of the goat type)

Adventure

Laughs

Music

Memories

Potatoes

Siblings

Excitement

{Image (c) Hannah Gold}

{This post looks like a big-headed robot.}

Acceptance: A Little Reminder

Dear Friend,

     I know that you and I do not always get along, but we sure have weathered some tough times, have we not? Though it has not been easy, or especially fun, I have something very important to say to you now.

     This will probably be one of those "I never thought that you, of all people, would say this to me" moments, but what the heck. I like you a lot. No, it's more than that. I love you. Yes, this is from me. I know that I've been a friend to you, and I've also been your mortal enemy, but I have discovered that you are a pretty darn cool person. This is real, not one of those you-did-something-really-awesome-and-I-worship-the-ground-you-walk-on type things. I love you for who you are, because you, my dear, are amazing.

     I love how you smile and laugh and make others succumb helplessly to giggles. I love how your personality draws people in until they feel like they have known you forever. I love how you take the time to do thoughtful little things for others without thinking about it twice.

     I admire your struggle to be you, how you can fail, forgive yourself, and try again. I admire the strength you show when you have none at all, the way you continue to give when you've got nothing left. I admire that you do not see asking for help a sign of failure, or asking for a hug a sign of weakness.

     I love how you live with passion. You pursue things with all of your heart, and though you do not always succeed, you never give in. I have watched you accomplish huge things in your life. I have seen you take pride in your victories, and I have rejoice for you, also.

     I have learned from you that no matter what praise you receive from others, you must be pleased with yourself to truly be happy. I have learned that loving yourself, faults and all, is a really hard thing to do. But I do love you. It has not been easy. Hard times have come before, and they will again. We are not perfect by any means, and I can assure you that there will be times when I will be furious with you. Just never forget that I think you are a wonderful, amazing, and beautiful person. No matter what, I will always love you differently than anyone else in this world, because to tell you the truth, there is no one else I would rather be.

Lots of love,

Me

-Sara Guilliam

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I came upon this little letter in a book I received a few Christmases ago. I wanted to share it with all of you guys, not to enlarge your heads or anything like that, but because there are thousands, even millions, of people around the world, girls especially, who constantly compare themselves with others and feel like they don't measure up. They do anything and everything to try to fit in, but it never really seems to be enough. There are many people who smile and look okay but are secretly hurting inside. I know that that might not even be the case for you who are reading this (considering I only have seven followers and all), but I don't want to risk the chance that it could be. I don't want you guys to forget that each one of you is special. I'm sure you've all heard that before, but I want you to really think about it and believe it's true. You guys are God's children, uniquely and exquisitely made. Don't think for a moment that you are nothing because in God's eyes, you are everything. He has plans for you, to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a hope and future. He loves you, and so do I. :) Have an awesome day!

{Letter (c) Sara Guilliam; Image via We Heart It}

These Past Few Days...

...I've been taking pictures with my dad's old camera.

 

...my brother and sister have been making friends. Literally.

(This is Jim Bob.)

(This is Sally.)

...my siblings and I have been sleeping in the living room instead of our own rooms (haha).

...my family has been meeting with the Lord every day.

What about you guys? How were your "past few days"? :)

~

On another note, I made a few changes to the blog. You might have noticed the new but short blog description and the massive, border-less images (special thanks to Arielle!). What do you guys think? Yay or nay?

{Images (c) Hannah G.}

These Are a Few of My Favorite Things

I absolutely love patterns. I love the way the colors swirl and mix together in interesting ways. I love bright little doodles and pretty fonts.

I love the ambiance of downtown Alberta. Everything is so pretty and picturesque. I love the fact that not everyone has cars, and many people still walk or ride bikes. I love how everything is either cute, cool, or quirky.

I love "Keep Calm" anythings.

 

I love my sketchbooks. I love my pens and my markers.

 

I love God's amazing world. I love the tall, majestic mountains and the vast, open sky. I love the puffy, white clouds and the cool air. I think God is the greatest Artist ever.

 -----

What about you? What are the things you love? :)

{Images (c) Hannah G.}

iPod Photography

 {(c) Hannah Gold}

I'm back!

Hello again, dear readers! After two weeks of not going online, scrolling through blogs and social networking sites mindlessly, I survived! During those two weeks, I was able to focus on and do quite a few things.

I discovered a new (well, I guess it isn't really) series, the 39 Clues. It's about Amy and Dan Cahill, orphans who know nothing about their parents or their history. Their grandmother, their only friend and solace, had just died and left them the chance to uncover great clues and shocking secrets that greatly involved them, as well as the whole world. Before I ramble off into making a book review, I have to say that the series is captivating and humorous but, take note, there are also a few mildly negative aspects to it. Needless to say, my mom and brother and I are all engrossed in it (we started listening to the audio versions, haha).

I was also able to work on my planner. Remember this post? I was finally able to finalize and put to action a few of my ideas. Sadly, designing it digitally would be too much of a hassle (printing and binding it might be too much alone for now, not to mention expensive!) but, as I keep reminding myself, an artist is not measured by his or her tools. I'll explain more about how the planner project is going soon in another post. :)

Oh, by the way, have you checked the Inspiration page on this blog? There are a few blogs there that I recommend following. I've also updated it; there are some new additions

Anyway, I liked being off the internet but I'm also glad to be back. Stay tuned for the next entry! Au revoir!

Hiatus

Hello there! I'll be going on an internet hiatus for two weeks (unless it’s related to school) due to my bad habits of procrastination and laziness. That means no facebook, tumblr, twitter, blogger, etc. until February 2, Thursday. I realized that I've been wasting so much time on the internet lately, and that I've been wanting to go online instead of doing productive things, so I decided to just stop and take a two-week break.

So until then, I bid you all farewell. See you guys again on February 2! :)

January 2012's Happiness

 Memories
Conversations with friends

Movie nights 

Pianos and guitars

Learning and knowledge

Family moments

Words

Notepads for doodling

Starting with a word from God

Colors

Mysteries

Books

DSLR cameras 

Pretty pens

{Image via We Heart It}

Setting an Example

The beginning of this week has been so far a bit of a whirlwind. I've had assignments to submit (I'm trying a different form of homeschooling this year so I have teachers and assignments), new material to learn, younger siblings to attend to, books to read, posts to write, church and school activities to go to and, of course, there's always the never-ending pile of dishes to do. But amidst all the busyness, I'm thankful that my mom always makes sure we start each day with the word of the Lord.

This week I was reminded of how I should live my life as a Christian. I should be the type of Christian who would serve as an example for other people. 1 Thessalonians 1:7 says, "And so you [the Thessalonians] became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia." Because the Thessalonians had great faith, they inspired and became examples to other Christians. They didn't know it but they became an example to millions of Christians all over the world--including me. Isn't that amazing, to reach people around the world just by setting a good example? That's why I chose this next verse as my life verse:

"You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts." - 2 Corinthians 3:3

I chose it because it tells me that in whatever I do, especially in front of others, I serve as a "letter" from Christ. In the words that I speak and the things I do, I represent Him. I'm an ambassador for Him, and I know that to serve as an example to others, I must first follow the example of Christ.

An Update on My Projects

Hey, everyone. :) This will be a quick post/update on the project I showed you in the last entry. Some people commented on it and I thought my response would be too long for a comment, and the people who commented might not see it. 

The project was supposed to be a journal I could fill in with my bucket list--100 things I want to do before God takes me home (in other words, before I die, which hopefully isn't very soon, haha!). My mom told me of a printing company she recently became a member of, and I could just color-print it there. That's an answered prayer, eh? :) But there are a few limitations to the printing so I just decided to wait until I've completed the 100 things then make a scrapbook instead of a journal. Is that confusing?

So, for now, the bucket list compilation/scrapbook/journal will be halted until I've completed the things on the list. However, I have a new project in mind! :) I found my old planner from Total Girl and I was so inspired by the pretty layout and illustrations. The project I'm thinking of doing is to make a planner of my own! It's a pretty time-heavy, and most likely expensive, project but I'm really excited to do it. I've been doing some research and planning and, hopefully, I'll get it done by September, or at least before 2012 ends. That's a lot of time, isn't it? I'll keep you guys updated. See you next week! :)

{Image (c) Total Girl Philippines}