over the weekend.

this weekend was one of the best weekends i've had in a long time.

mama and i went shopping friday morning.

i scored this awesome elephant necklace and purse.

necklace: jcpenney | purse: belk

we stopped by lowe's to get some flowers. i went crazy with my phone.
i'm pretty sure the cashier thought i was cuh-razy.

after revival friday evening, we came home to find a ridiculous amount of people parked on our property.
the carnival came to town and it just happened to be right next door. great.

after realizing there was nothing we could do, we decided to walk over and get a funnel cake. 

i baked all day saturday and went to the last night of revival.
i was sad it ended, but thankful for the way God worked in my life through the week.


sunday. oh, sunday. my favorite day of the week.
7 people were baptized sunday morning. praise the Lord!

and then i went home and took a two-hour nap and couldn't fall asleep last night.

'twas a wonderful weekend, indeed.

chocolate chip muffin pops.

fun fact about me: i lovelovelove to bake.
cakes, cookies, pies... oh my! baking is so fun.

i bought a donut hole/cake pop maker yesterday.
i was a little skeptical since that whole cake pop ordeal i had two years ago. don't ask. 

i decided to try out this little machine, not expecting much at all. (the cake pop incident of 2010 scarred me for life.) 

i'm pretty sure it's the best purchase i've made in a long time.
i spent all morning "baking" these little yummy treats. 

 i used a chocolate chip muffin recipe courtesy of betty crocker.

 i think it's safe to say i will be making a lot of donut holes and cake pops.
stay tuned for new and yummy recipes.

instagram.

instagram: joyfulamber

praise God so much.

i posted here about beginning my journey as a sponsor for a child through the compassion ministry.

last week, i received my first letter from my sponsor child!

excitement, tears, and laughter followed opening that sweet letter.

she drew me a picture. excitement. 

the first line of her letter stated "praise God so much." tears.

she was praising Him because she lost her first sponsor and shortly after, God provided her with me. more tears.
she closed the letter with a simple question: "are you a man or a woman?" laughter.

this little girl has changed my life, and i've never even met her.
she is always in my prayers and thoughts.

i was recently researching the meaning of her name (kwagala) and i came across this blog.
in luganda, "kwagala" means "love". 1 corinthains 13 was referenced for more on the context.

i immediately purchased a necklace and received it in the mail yesterday.

now i carry her with my everywhere i go.

over the [four day] weekend.

she's aliiiiiiive! i've been MIA since last wednesday. sorry 'bout that.
i had a four-day vacation and the internet was the last thing on my mind.
i caught up on some much-needed sleep, had lunch with a friend, and shopped til i dropped with my mama.
it was supercalafragalisticexpealadocious.

• -thursday was just what the doctor ordered.
  -mama and i got up early and headed to okc for a day of shopping.
  -we ate at smashburger and had starbucks (twice).
  -i bought a fedora. it was a spur-of-the-moment purchase and a major score.

• -i spent friday afternoon in stillwater with alisia.
  -we ate at buffalo wild wings and talked. and talked and talked.
  -i stopped by old navy on my way home and scored these super cute and comfy pants on sale. 
  -as i'm pulling into the driveway, i notice there was a ferris wheel next to our house. totally random.

• -i spent saturday in my pj's and watched friends and the golden girls.
  -i'm not a morning person, so i get a little jealous of people who do their bible study in the am. since i woke up before noon, i decided to join all you morning people. (who cares if it was 10:30?) i must say, it was glorious. i'm considering trying to wake up earlier. (if that happens, congratulations -- you will witness a miracle!)

• -oh, sunday. my favorite day of the week. there's something about church and afternoon naps that does a soul good.
  -we started revival sunday morning. the pastor is my kind of pastor. he tells you like it is. no sugar-coating. no feel-good message. no tip-toeing. he talked about how, in dating, we tend to treat ourselves like a used car. we let others test drive us, giving them the option of keeping us or looking for something better. but that's not how God intended it to be. he also draws pictures with chalk and incorporates it into his message. i'm excited for this week!

 i added a title to my resume this weekend. you can call me chef amber. here is the recipe for my new (quick and easy) creation.

cheesy ranch potato bites:


slice a bake potato. (already cooked)
add sour cream and shredded cheese.
sprinkle ranch powder on top. (i used the hidden valley powder used to make dip)


heat and enjoy!

instagram.

instagram: joyfulamber 

over the weekend.

-what i'm about to confess will shock some people. 

(i know this because some of my instagram friends almost had a heart attack). 

i have never watched an episode of friends. 

i know, i know. but that all changed this weekend. 

- i spent my saturday night glued to news 9. 

tornadoes slammed the northwestern part of oklahoma and six people were killed. 

the path of destruction was devastating to see. please pray for the families affected. 

- after church, i took a walk around the property and snapped some pictures.

 all in all, it was a great weekend. now i'm ready to face these next two days and then FREEEEEEEDOM! 

blogging rut = random thoughts.

i'm in a blogging rut and can't think of anything to write about, so here's a post of randomness.

• the pictures i take with my iphone baffle me.
  i remember when the flip phone came out, and it was the best thing since sliced bread.
  now we have phones with cameras that are basically mini-computers. case in point:

• my mama got me a starbucks gift card for Christmas last year. awesome.
  but then it got even more awesome.
  you can reload the card and get rewards and points.
  points = free stuff. free drink on my birfday. free refills on certain drinks.
  check out the website for more info.

• today is my last friday of tax season. after today, i go back to working four days a week. winning.

• you know when you hear a song, buy it on itunes, and then listen to it 16 times in one day?
  that's what i did (and still doing) when i heard "take me there" by trip lee, featuring jimmy needham.
  do yourself a favor and buy it. 

• i am currently reading four books. why i do this to myself, i'll never know.
  so i decided to finish this one before i continue the other books.
  when i started reading "Jesus + nothing = everything", i had no idea the author was billy graham's grandson. embarrassing.

and these are some of the things that are floating around in my head.

if you are still reading this, go buy yourself a cupcake. 

joy in the little things.

nature makes my soul happy.