Saturday Scriptures: God's Perfect Harmonies

God's Perfect Harmony

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Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious--the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies. 

Philippians 4:8   The Message

In music, playing in perfect harmony is everything. Groups tune their instruments before a performance in order to ensure that everyone is playing to the same pitches and not deviating out of tune. For violinists, tuning to "A 440" means that we are making certain our A string is perfectly in tune and then we tune the other strings to match the A string using perfect 5ths. An "A440" means that the A tone is vibrating at a speed of 440 vibrations per second (440Hz). When I first began playing violin as a child, I did not understand what an A440 sounded like and so I relied on a pitch pipe to help me to tune all of my violin strings. Over time, I was able to train my ear to hear the "perfect 5ths" to tune my G, D and E strings, but I still needed to be certain that my A string was perfectly tuned. So time and again I returned to my pitch pipe to hear the "A440" to tune my A string. When everyone in an orchestra or band is perfectly in tune, there is a moment when all of the vibrations of sound come together in perfection. When this happens a chord can "sing" and you can actually feel the harmony in your insides. I have often teared up when playing or listening to music and the vibrations reflect this perfect harmony because it is such a beautiful and heartfelt moment. 

In Philippians 4, the Apostle Paul reminds us that we can experience God's perfect harmony by filling our minds with good things. That can be extremely difficult to do in today's world. Everywhere we turn there are things that we see, hear, participate in, listen to and read that can distress us, anger us, hurt us, discourage us and make life seem ugly. It takes daily practice and effort to focus on the good and not the bad, the things to praise and not the things to curse, the beautiful and not the ugly and hurtful, the truth and not the lies. It takes daily practice to fill our minds in the way that Paul suggests. 

Just like when I was a student of violin and had to return time and again to my pitch pipe to hear the perfect vibrations of "A440" in order to tune my instrument, I must return time and again to that which keeps me grounded in Christ. Prayer, scripture, worship, meditating on God's word.....these are my "pitch pipes" of faith that help me to tune my spirit in order to keep my thoughts steady, purposeful and positive in faith. 

Jesus is my true "A440" and as Easter Sunday approaches, I pray that you, too, may feel the perfect vibrations of His love and sacrifice on the cross for each of us. 

Blessings, Peace and Happy Easter!!

Debbie

Style Tips from Debbie: Make Friends With Thrifting

Be A Thrifty Thrifter

Happy Monday, everyone! Today is #4 in my series; Style Tips from Debbie and today's tip may seem simple at first glance. Making friends with thrifting is something I learned long ago. I have always been a thrifty shopper and, in my opinion, being a thrifty thrifter goes far beyond simply shopping at Goodwill. Let me explain further in this post. 

Shopping at Goodwill or other thrift shops is certainly a tried and true method of thrifting. And while not all of my clothing is thrifted from Goodwill, several articles of clothing are from there. I wrote a post quite awhile ago giving hints on shopping at Goodwill. You can read or review that post here. The most important thing to remember when shopping at Goodwill is to give each article of clothing a really good look over before buying. I don't even want to spend $3-$4 on an article of clothing that is soiled, missing buttons or damaged in some way. I see shopping at Goodwill as having two purposes: I can find gently used garments which I can wear and enjoy for a cost effective price while at the same time helping out folks who gain employment and training through their work at Goodwill. It's a win-win situation! That's why I not only shop at Goodwill but also regularly take donations there. 

I'm also a thrifty thrifter in other ways, however. If you have read my blog for any length of time, you have noticed that I find clothing and jewelry in many different places and types of stores. I am absolutely fine with shopping at what some consider "low end" stores such as Walmart and K-Mart. When I was growing up, my Mom was a department head in Ladies Ready to Wear for the now closed Hills Department Store chain. She taught me how to look for quality in less expensive garments. Things like looking at the thickness/quality of the materials, making certain the hemming was straight and well done and looking at the quality of the accessories or embellishments on the garment. Her teaching has stayed with me and I use her training all the time when I look at clothing. If a less expensive garment does not look well made then I pass it by. But, if it is a cute garment, is well made and looks good on me, I'm not going to pass it up just because it comes from Walmart and doesn't have a fancy brand name. That is just not me. I have purchased clothing and accessories at Walmart, K-Mart, Rite-Aid, Walgreens, The Dollar Store and beauty salons that look good and I enjoy wearing. I have also passed on clothing/accessories in these same stores because they did not look well made. That's all part of being a thrifty thrifter! Take a look at the outfit that I'm wearing in the pictures you have seen so far. This outfit contains pieces that are quite inexpensive and some that are more expensive. Can you tell the difference just by looking? 

I feel that being a thrifty thrifter allows me to enjoy fashion without overspending. If I make a fashion mistake, I'm not out a lot of money. I can enjoy variety in my wardrobe. to me, being thrifty is a responsible way to shop. 

How about you? What is your opinion on being a thrifty shopper? Hope you'll leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers!

Until Next Time,
Debbie

Pink Tulips Easter Tablescape

Tulips, Bunnies and Easter Eggs Tablescape

With Easter a mere week from this Sunday, I decided to add some Spring-like and fun Easter decor to the dining table. This tablescape features gorgeous pink tulips, an egg-shaped dish filled with bunnies and pastel cloth eggs and a sweet Easter basket filled with larger pastel Easter eggs. 

The bunnies have a slot to be used for a place card but I stuffed an egg in the slot instead.

The light blue egg plate and bunnies came from Target a couple years ago. The pastel cloth eggs are Dollar Store finds, I believe. 

I am so enjoying these pink tulips! How pretty they are on the table. I couldn't resist tying a pink polka dot ribbon around the base of the tulips. You can never have enough pink, right?! Unfortunately, a certain furry member of our family (Cassie!) would not leave the tulips alone and I read that tulips are poisonous to cats, so the tulips are now living on our front porch table. Sigh.....cats!

You gotta love this face though, right?!

And, this one too!

Have a great weekend everyone!
Debbie

Easter Decor

Easter Decor

Hey Everyone! As hard as it is for me to believe, Easter is just a mere two weeks away! I thought March went by quickly but it seems as if April is moving just as quickly. So, I'm sharing my Easter decor with you today. Just a few things I have added around the house to notch up the Springtime decorations a little more to look like Easter. 

I created this sign filled with butterflies-a sign of Spring and of new life. Perfect for Easter! I painted the board a pale green and added stick-on butterflies. In the first picture you saw it displayed on the foyer table, but it actually "lives" on the side table in the living room. It is hard for me to get an accurate picture that shows the colors on the living room table because I'm shooting pics directly at a window. Thus, I moved it to the foyer for some of my picture taking.

I also added a glass vase full of colorful faux eggs to the side table. I'm so glad I bought these eggs because they are so pretty and no dying eggs was necessary!

Here, you can see the colors a little better. 

And, I'm loving my Easter egg "tree" with the colorful eggs hanging down. The tree looks good next to my bunnies and my butterfly "Laugh" sign. I love the pastel colors of Spring, don't you?!

I also added a blue checked bunny to the wreath on my front door.

I'm really into blues right now and this bunny is just too cute!!

And, that's pretty much it for Easter decor right now. How about you? Are you adding any Easter touches to your home? Hope you will leave a comment and let me know!

Until Next Time,

Debbie

*Not a gifted or sponsored post. All writing/opinions/photography are my own. 

Style Tips from Debbie:Find Your Happy Color!

Find Your Happy Color!

Hey Everyone! Today, I'm posting another hint in my ongoing series, "Styles Tips From Debbie." You know, if you're like me there is probably a favorite color that you love to wear and that makes you feel great when you wear it. For me, that color is blue. I love to wear blue and feel immediately drawn to clothing when blue is the color. That's why blue is my "happy color."

In my opinion, a happy color is not quite the same as a "signature color" or a "color coding" color. I'm not certain I have a particular signature color. I think the definition of a signature color is when a person tends to wear one particular color most of the time. And I wear a variety of colors, not just blue, although I do wear blue frequently. I was "color coded" years ago and was told I am a "muted summer" so I do look best in colors that are softer shades of blues, pinks and greens like you see here on the color wheel. 

Source

But, even though blue is one of my color code colors, the reason I choose to wear blue often is because of how it makes me feel. Blue is simply a happy color for me. Whenever I wear it, my mood lifts and I have a smile on my face!

I decided to do some research on the color blue for this post and I discovered that blue is a color that represents calm, creativity and intelligence. It represents sincerity and quietness and does not like to make a big deal out of things and avoids confrontation. I never knew that personality traits can go hand in hand with color. No wonder blue is my most favorite and happy color! It fits my personality perfectly!

According to an article by Jacob Oleson, blue is sincere, reserved and quiet and seeks peace and tranquility while promoting physical and mental relaxation. No wonder I love blue! 

Today, I chose to wear several shades of blue. I like the combo of the lighter blue top with the darker blues of my jeans, necklace and shoes. 

And even my vintage handbag sported navy blue! 

So tell me, what is your "happy color?"  Shop your closet and discover the color that brings you the most joy when you wear it. Do a little research and find out the details of your happy color. Do the details fit your personality? I was surprised with what I found out and you may be too! Be sure to leave a comment and share your happy color with me!

Until Next Time,

Debbie

Match Made in Seven: Accessories

Accessories Make The Look!

Welcome to the monthly edition of  Match made in Seven! We are an international group of fashion bloggers who meet once a month. One of us chooses a theme in turn, and that can be anything. A book, music, a color, a movie. And then we style an outfit based on that theme. The theme of this month is chosen by Debbie and is: Accessories Make The Look! Also, take a look at the other bloggers and how they have interpreted the theme this month. (See list at end of post).

I'm excited to be able to choose the theme for this month because accessories are near and dear to my heart! I am definitely an accessories girl who believes that the right accessory can bring a little extra "oomph" to any outfit. I'll be taking a very basic outfit of jeans and a brown long sleeved tee and showing how it can be styled to look very different depending on which accessories are worn. 

Here, I'm keeping it simple with a necklace, bracelet and brown flats. Pretty low-key styling. 

Adding brown heels and a cute peach color tassel clutch brings the style up a notch, don't you think?

Heels have a way of always making any outfit look dressier, don't you agree?

Nothing like adding some bold pops of color with a flowered kimono and red booties. 

And some extra red with the addition of the straw purse. To me, the outfit looks totally different than in the first picture. 

And, look at how the outfit instantly changes with the addition of some bright shades of pink. I love this Spring-like look!

Which styling was your favorite? Please take a moment to leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers! And be sure to visit all of the other lovely ladies and see how they styled this month's theme!

Darlene of https://aquamarinastyle.com/

Sonja of https://www.yustsome.nl/

Bettye of https://fashionschlub.com/

Anna of https://www.muttonstyle.com/

Emma of http://www.style-splash.com/

Nancy of https://www.nancysfashionstyle.com

Until Next Time,

Debbie

Boho Style Skirt and Weekend Happenings

Boho Style

I hope you are having an awesome first weekend of Spring! I'm popping by to share a thrifted boho skirt that brings some "spring pink" color and also sharing some weekend highlights. Let me know how your weekend is going at the end of the post, OK?

I've been hunting for a feminine style, swishy skirt to wear and I found this pretty one at Goodwill a couple weekends ago. I like the brown, creme and pink tones of the skirt and the little pink designs have sparkly adornments on them to give a little extra "oomph" to the look. I figure this skirt can easily go through all seasons just fine. I didn't start out to specifically choose a boho style skirt, but I do like this particular one.

It's very lightweight and comfortable to wear. I did a little pattern mixing with the checked blouse under the sweater against the paisley print of the skirt. I think it works. 

I have priced these boho style skirts online for around $38, so I figured the $4 price tag at Goodwill was a real bargain! What do you think?

In other news, it has been an interesting and unique Saturday for the Mr. and I.  We stopped by our local university to cheer on the Robotic Teams that are competing. This was a new experience for us and it was enjoyable. Here, we are standing next to the "Macon County Bot's" robot. One of the Mr.'s friends is a mentor for the group. It was fun to see high school students getting enthusiastic about robot science! We are standing in the area known as the robot "pit" and therefore we had to wear safety glasses. 

Here, our friend explains the robot's inner workings to the Mr. 

After lunch, I dropped off the Mr. at a trail and I went to walk at the N.C. Arboretum. Some of the flowers are just beginning to get blooms so there weren't many flowers to snap photo of. Instead, I took pics of the some of the architectural displays like this one at the entrance to the educational building. 

I tried to get artistic with an interesting viewpoint. These pics were taken with my phone camera by the way. 

I like the mountains and wheat in this metal sculpture.

Like the butterfly on this metal archway that covers the path up to the educational building.

Buds just coming out on what I believe is a tulip tree. (Correct me if I'm wrong. I'm not a tree expert!)

Such a unique metal sculpture in this garden area! 

And this is how Debbie has spent the weekend so far. How about you? How are you spending this first weekend of Spring? Hope you will leave a comment and let me know. Whatever you are doing, make sure to enjoy!

Until Next Time,

Debbie