Don’t miss it

23 Monday Jan 2017

Posted by Julia Monroe in All Sparkled Up, allsparkledup, color, encouragement, gardening, nature, photography, sparkling, sunlight

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encouragement, macro, nature, photography, sparkling, sunlight

Yesterday I took a poinsettia outside to shake out the dead leaves. One leaf from the poinsettia had fallen. And then it rained during the night.

The day was busy but from the dining room, the tiny sparkle caught my eye.

The poinsettia leaf was no longer on the plant. During the night, it rained.

I looked closer and it was even sparklier.

The poinsettia leaf had fallen but it was still good for something. It held rain.

What are you missing today? Is there something you need to look at? What is tiny and quiet that you forgot? Love it all. And if you’re what has fallen, collect light from where you are.

Even a fallen leaf can still be bright. Don’t waste anything, even hitting bottom.

Never give up.

Snowflake in the window

03 Friday Jan 2014

Posted by Julia Monroe in All Sparkled Up, art, crafts, nature, photography, sparkling, sunlight, water

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All Sparkled Up, condensation, crafts, drops, paper snowflakes, photography, snow, snowflakes, sparkling, sunlight, water, window

We’re hoping for real snow. But snowflakes cut from rice paper will do for now.

And this is my 200th blog post!

Plan B

22 Wednesday May 2013

Posted by Julia Monroe in All Sparkled Up, crafts, Inspirational, Scripture, sparkling, words

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All Sparkled Up, hope, inspiration, light, Plan B, scripture, sequins, sparkling

I Figured out Plan B. Isn’t that the best feeling ever… When you come up with a plan B that will actually work? :)
Sometimes things are really mixed up and messed up. There’s no order. There is nothing to grasp. You watch Plan A fall away in little bits.

Plan A, scattered like sequins.

You go through the motions of trying to clean up. Again.

And then you think maybe there’s another way.

You start over.

You try again.

Don’t give up.

Plan B.

I call plan B ….

HOPE.

Plan B is Hope. It’s not perfect. It still has cracks around the edges. Sometimes it’s fragile and not very clear. But Plan B will work.

And Plan B is always crazy BRAVE!
Sometime Bravery is all you need to come up with Plan B.

Don’t give up! God knows exactly where you are. Ask Him to help you make it through.

Go for Brave.
Sara Bareilles sings Brave.

[A huge public Thank You to my son Ethan. Ever since I broke my back last year and had 17 vertebrae fused, I can’t get down to ground level easily. As I shared my idea for this post, Ethan became my Hope. Sometimes Hope from God arrives in the form of a person. They bring light when everything seems fractured and dark. Ethan, you’re the best!]

‘For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.
Jeremiah 29:11

Scoliosis

05 Sunday Aug 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in All Sparkled Up, Gilded Girls, Inspirational, Scoliosis, sparkling

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bling, bracelet, Gilded Girls, Scoliosis, sparkling, surgery

Before getting into the Scoliosis part, it’s true: My life IS all sparkled up! Every day I’ve got bling going on.

Bling in the mail…
My amazing daughter surprised me with this package the other day, a Grace Notes box of gorgeous craft supplies from Gilded Life.

Grace Notes box of sparkling craft supplies, from Gilded Life.

Luscious velvet, beaded trims, pearl-studded flowers…

Oh my goodness, I don’t know what sparkled more – the rhinestone chain, sequins and velvet sheen or the tears in my eyes. She knows me so well! ♥

Bling at the dining room table…
My adorable granddaughter and I did some painting. I taught her how to carefully drop one drop of water into each pan of watercolor.

My granddaughter uses an eyedropper to place one drop of water in each watercolor pan.

Then we painted flowers and a blue river. We were all sparkled up in our spirits as we painted together on the page.

Flowers, painted by my granddaughter and me.

My craft table (which suddenly turns into a dining room table when we scrape off the thick layer of “studio” from every surface) is all blinged…
This bracelet was created from a Gilded Life kit back in February.

Valentine’s Bracelet, made from a kit from Gilded Life. I have the chain suspended from a cardboard platform so I can add the charms without it getting twisted.

You’re probably wondering why the subject is Scoliosis but the posts are all sparkled up. If I went to a website called “All Sparkled Up” I would expect the posts to be just that! But while all this blinging and sparkling is going on, I must confess I’ve got a serious back issue – Scoliosis that has progressed to the point of needing major surgery, not an easy undertaking for a 53 year old. The date is set for September 25th and I seriously can’t wait! But I am not my disease; Scoliosis is just something I have, not who I am. Sparkling is something I like to believe people can actually BE. And I like to think that nothing can stop sparkling, not even migraines or Fibromyalgia or Scoliosis.

I’ll be posting about my progress from time to time but only if the posts can be all sparkled up, through color or art, humor or joy, light and truth. I doubt the doctors can use rhinestone-studded bolts in my back but it’s a very nice thought indeed. Wink!

Sometimes we just need to be reminded to…

27 Tuesday Mar 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in beading, crafts, Gilded Girls, Inspirational, jewelry making, sparkling, words

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beads, Gilded Girls, inspirational, jewelry, sparkling

…shine.

Shine!

These beads are from a bracelet kit from Gilded Girls. I looked at the pile of beads and wires and felt there was more to it than just a bracelet. Maybe it was the wing that gave me pause.
Don’t forget to slow down and shine.