My 100th Post: My First Ever Giveaway!

I'm so excited... My 100th post is finally here! In celebration I thought it would be a lot of fun to host my very first giveaway! Now, I know I don't have the greatest amount of followers and readers but I thought this would still be a fun way to celebrate. :) So here are the items I will be giving away:

~ Prize Number One ~

This is a beautiful, 14" x 16" pillow that my sister made especially for this giveaway. Thank you so much, Sis!

Isn't it just gorgeous?!

Here is a close-up of the three different fabrics.

~ Prize Number Two ~

A set of three different cards made by me! :)

Here is the first.

A look inside...

This is the second card.

Another peek inside...

And here is the third one.

And, of course, a look at the inside.

~ Prize Number Three ~

A cute button journal!

With some pretty ribbon on the side to tie it closed.

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Now here's how this giveaway will work:

I will be giving away each of the three prizes to a different winner.

• By leaving me a comment on this post... your name will automatically be entered one time for each of the three prizes.


• By putting the special button I've created for this giveaway on your sidebar (linking back to this page) OR (for those without a blog) by sharing with me your favorite thing about my blog... your name will be entered a second time for the prize of your choice. Just leave me a separate comment telling me you've done so and for which prize number you'd like to have your second entry.


• By posting about this giveaway on your blog (feel free to use the button I created) OR (for those without a blog) by sharing your favorite Bible verse or quote with me... your name will be entered a third time for the prize of your choice. Be sure to let me know you've done so and for which prize number you'd like to have your third entry.

ANYONE can enter, but I will not be shipping outside of the U.S.

The drawing will be held on Monday, November 30th. Happy entering!!

May the Lord bless you and keep you!

~ Taylor

An Award and a New Blog Background

My friend Lindsay awarded/tagged me! :)

These are the rules for this tag:

• Do a post about the person who awarded you, and their blog.


• Give the award to 5 of your favorite blogs, give a reason, and leave a comment telling them they have been awarded.


• Answer the 10 random questions


• Have fun!
  

First of all, if I could award this one to Lindsay I would! ;) Her blog is such a wonderful place to find encouragement! It's always exciting for me when she posts something new because I know it will be something delightful and God-glorifying! She is my penpal, and a very special friend! Thanks, Lindsay!

Now I will award:

• Elizabeth J. @ Footprints in the Sand -- She always has something biblical and thoughtful to post about... and I love waiting to see what she is going to write next!


• Emily Anne @ The White Way of Delight -- A sweet Christian girl, her blog is full of exciting posts and pictures!


• Rachel & Jessica @ Young Homemakers -- I just recently found their blog and have really enjoyed reading their posts... their dedication to being young, Christian homemakers is encouraging!


• Joelle @ The Fingerprints of God -- She posts some nice and thoughtful things on her blog that are a joy to read!


• Alexandra @ Firmly Fixed on the Father -- Another delightful blog... one of my favorite things about it is getting to read her "A Young Maiden's Daybook" posts each Monday!
  

Now for the 10 random questions:

1. Have you ever ridden an elephant? Nope.
   
2. Have you ever eaten squid? Nope.
   
3. What is something crazy you have done with your best friend? The craziest thing I can think of at the moment would be when I was 12 and playing around with two of my friends. While one of them lay in the floor, me and the other one piled tons of blankets and pillows and stuffed animals on top of her. Then we would fall from the couches onto the stuff piled on her and scream like silly girls... (Trust me, there were LOTS of pillows and blankets.) lol
   
4. Have you ever held an alligator? Nope. But I have pet a baby one.
   
5. Have you ever let a snake slither through your fingers? Yes, they were grass snakes that my sisters and I would find in our old backyard. Also, I let a lady place this HUGE (and I mean HUGE) snake around my shoulders at some pet show thing before. I was 12 and I don't know what I was thinking. I would probably pass out if I did that now!
   
6. What is your first and foremost dream in life? To get married and have children (only Lord willing! :) and to live a God-glorifying life of complete faith in Him! Also, for my Dad to be healed COMPLETELY by God's mighty hand.
   
7. What is your dream vacation? Now that's a really tough one! I don't think I can pick anything in particular. I love historical sites and I enjoy spending time with my family... I'm easy to please!
   
8. What is the funniest movie you have ever seen? I don't know... maybe "Walking Across Egypt".
   
9. What is your favorite song? Oh my, that's even harder to answer! I have so many. I think I'll just have to list more than one! 1)The hymn "How Great Thou Art" 2)Healer & Joyfully by Kari Jobe 3)You Are Everything & Motions by Matthew West 4)City on our Knees by Toby Mac... and lots of others!
   
10. If you could change the world in one way, what would you do? There are lots of things that could be done, but one of the biggest would definitely be to bring everyone to Christ and have people caring more about one another than themselves.
    

Now that that's finished....

What do you think about my new blog background? It's definitely a big change from the last one!

Well, I can't believe it but this is my 99th post... which means my 100th one is coming up next! Be ready because I've got something exciting planned!

Until then... May the Lord bless you and keep you!

A Few of My Favorite Things...

I've seen a lot of other bloggers doing this sort of post lately, so I decided to do one of my own! I've put quite a few things below... so be prepared for a lengthy list! :)

Here are some of my favorite things...

Reading and studying my Bible...


Spending time with my family...

Singing... especially with my sisters.

Talking with my mommy... ;)

Doing barnwork with my daddy...

Playing card games... Our favorites are Spades and Diminishing Spades.

The hymn "How Great Thou Art"...

Christmas... and participating in our church's Christmas program each year.

The television show "Little House on the Prairie"...

The movie "Faith Like Potatoes"...

And "Walking Across Egypt"... it's such a sweet film!

Music artist, Matthew West...

and Kari Jobe.

Taking pictures with my camera...

Eating cereal... my favorite is Kashi's blueberry.

Of course, I love blogging!

And my curly hair... :)

Shopping for pretty skirts...

Swinging at the park...

Baking...

Fruit... bananas, strawberries, kiwi, grapes, & cantaloupe are some of my favorites.

Cleaning... I love a clean house!

Children... they're so precious and I love taking care of them.

Writing letters...

My favorite season: Fall

And lastly, my favorite Bible verse:

"Come near to God and he will come near to you."

(James 4:8)

Alright, that's everything for now... although, I'm sure I could come up with many more! :) Have a wonderful evening, everyone!

All pictures taken from Google Images

Growing in the Grace and Knowledge of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

Yesterday our family went to an event being held at a really nice park (about an hour away from home). My dad's parents and his aunt were there with us. We had such a lovely time and the weather was absolutely perfect! It was so good to see all the falling leaves and pretty scenery around. Here at home we don't have too many "color-changing" trees--they're all mostly dead now. So, I was sure to get a few pictures!

With that thought, I couldn't help but be reminded about how important it is to God that we encourage one another to remain faithful to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and to not fall away from the faith, becoming dead in our works. Many places in the Bible remind us to encourage one another daily with a strong purpose in mind: that not one of us become hardened by sin's deceitfulness and that our love for God and one another would not grow cold. It's very important to Him that we care for one another's needs and continually encourage each other in the Lord. "But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sins deceitfulness." -Hebrews 3:13 Also, in the book of Matthew, Jesus brings up a subject similar to this when discussing the end times with his disciples. He says: "Then you will be handed over to be persectued and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved." -Matthew 24:9-13 God created us with a need for each other. And His desire is that we would be united as a Church and continually encouraging one another for His namesake!

I hope you enjoy the pictures... :)

"Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me."

Matthew 11:6

"Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen." 2 Peter 3:17-18

I pray you all have a wonderful week! God bless you!

Photography Contest

I'm so excited! Keilah from Looking Through the Lens is holding a great photography contest, so I decided to enter a few pictures. Here are a few details about this contest:

Theme: Seasons

Categories: Spring, Summer, Fall and/or Winter.
The picture can be of anything you like (portrait, landscape, still life). But it simply must say it's season.
You may enter up to one (1) picture for each category.

There will be one (1) winner for each category.

Winners will have their pictures posted on Looking ThroughThe Lens blog, and have their blog linked to.

Deadline: November 10th 2009

So here are my entries:

Winter


Fall

Summer


And Spring!

I hope everyone is having a very blessed Friday!!

How Great is Our God!

The Creation

All things bright and beautiful,

All creatures, great and small,

All things wise and wonderful,

The Lord God made them all.

Each little flower that opens,

Each little bird that sings,

He made their glowing colors,

He made their tiny wings.

The purple headed mountain,

The river running by,

The sunset and the morning,

That brightens up the sky;

The cold wind in the winter,

The pleasant summer sun,

The ripe fruits in the garden,
He made them every one;

The tall trees in the greenwood,

The meadows where we play,

The rushes by the water

We gather every day.

He gave us eyes to see them,

And lips that we might tell

How great is God Almighty,

Who has made all things well!

-Cecil Frances Alexander

"How great is God—beyond our understanding!"

Job 36:26a

This wonderful fall weather is so nice. I can't believe it's already November! Let's remember to praise the Lord for his beautiful creation... It certainly is beautiful! I hope you all are having a blessed week!

Picture by: Raymond Gehman

A Young Maiden's Daybook--Entry #21

Today...
November 2, 2009

Outside my window...
Bright and sunny--not a cloud in the sky!

I'm thinking...
I hope the weather stays this way for awhile. We've definitely had plenty of rain!

I'm thankful for...
My loving, hard-working parents! They do so much for us and often we don't realize just how much they do!

I'm wearing...
My pajamas! :)

I'm reading...
The Bible, The Cross and the Switchblade, Pictures of Hollis Woods, The Story of Christianity, Adventuring Through the Bible, & More Than a Carpenter

I am creating...
Nothing that I can think of at the moment.

One of my favorite things...
Drinking a banana smoothie!! (Just blend 1 banana, 3 ice cubes, some milk... and v'oila!) I love it!

For education this week...
Bible/apologetics; History of God's kingdom; Literature; Language arts; Biology; Algebra.

A keeper at home skill I am using/learning...
Same as usual: Cooking, baking, cleaning, babysitting!

A spiritual lesson I'm learning...
To continue to put my trust in God, and praying prayers with complete faith in the Lord that they will be answered--to have big faith in God!

A godly character trait I plan to work on...
Faithfulness and prayer

Scripture I am memorizing...
This week: Matthew 1:21; Mark 10:45; Luke 19:10 (for school) :)

I am praying for...
My family, my Dad to be healed, our church's Christmas program, and lots of other things, too!

For the rest of this week...
Schoolwork, Dad's PET scan today, some other appt. tomorrow, church, and work.

A picture I'd like to share...

This is a hawk that got into our chicken pen quite a few weeks ago. No, he didn't harm any chickens! :)

(To find out more about how you can participate in a Young Maiden's Daybook, click HERE.)