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At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

Where Ideas for your Home Meet Inspiration for your Heart

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June 17, 2011

Inspiration Friday No. 20

 

At The Picket Fence Inspiration Friday Graphic
Whew! How on earth are we already celebrating 20 weeks of Inspiration Friday??It has been our extreme pleasure to host you all here week after week  and to be so inspired it makes us dizzy sometimes!
Last week we had so many of you link up that we are still making the rounds to thank you and if we forgot someone we want you to know that it was purely for lack of hours in the day. As the party continues to grow (which we love!) we hope you know that you will all continue to be gracious guests and go and mingle with the other party-goers. It sure helps to ease our minds when we worry about folks feeling left out!

And speaking of Parties…

Have you heard about this one? We just haven’t talked about it enough, have we?
We just wanted to remind everyone that this will be happening next week INSTEAD OF our weekly Inspiration Friday Party! We are joining forces with all of these fabulous bloggers to host one big week long summer link party!
We each will have a summer related theme everyday of the week and you are welcome to link up as few or as many projects as you want throughout the week related to any of the themes..and trust us there is a theme for everyone! Because this is a “blog hop” the entire link party will show up on all 12 blogs the entire week so you are free to hop from blog to blog linking up your theme related projects!  We will wrap-up the Block Party on Saturday, here At The Picket Fence with a highlight feature of some of our favorite links! How cool is that?!

So what are the themes you ask?  Well here ya go!

DebbieDoo’s Blogging and Blabbing-Summer Paint Projects
At The Picket Fence (Vanessa)-Summer Activities for Kids
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia-Drop Cloth Projects
Savvy Southern Style-Summer Decks and Porches
DIY by Design-Outdoor Cooking and Dining
Elements Interiors-Summer DIY Projects
Green Door Girl Designs-Summer Fashions
No Minimalist Here-Summer Entertaining
SAS Interiors-Summer Spaces
Common Ground-A Vintage Summer
French Country Cottage-A Shabby Cottage Summer
Stuff and Nonsense-Summer Sales (Thrifting, Flea Markets and Yard Sales)
At The Picket Fence (Heather)-Fresh from the Garden (Garden Recipes and Projects)

Links to all of these blogs can be found in our sidebar!!

WHEW! See we told ya there was something for everyone!  We hope you will visit each of the blogs where they will share what they have been up to this summer and then link up your theme related posts! You will see some blogs share a party date! That makes it even more fun!  Just hop over to the other themes and if you have a post (past or present) related to their theme you can link it up!
And, what would a party be without PRESENTS!?! Except these presents aren’t for us…they’re for you!  Yep! That’s right! There will be 13 GIVEAWAYS..one for each theme! So you will need to visit each blog to see what their giveaway is!  That’s a whole lot of giveaway loving!  All giveaways will be drawn from those who link up projects! The more projects you link the more chances you have to win one of the incredible items we will be giving away!   We’d love it if you’d share the Blogger Block Party with your friends!  Feel free to grab any of the graphics or the code for the Blogger Block Party button located in our sidebar!  Thanks!

Onto the Highlights from Last Week!

This feature has to be one of the most darling 1st Birthday Parties we have ever seen! It comes to us courtesy of Meg from My Cup Runneth Over. You must go over and see more of the details of this Vintage Garden Party!
We also flipped over this Angry Birds “Bird”day Party created by Lindsey of A House on the Rock for her son’s 7th Birthday. They were so creative in how they executed this!
IMG_0216 (2) (533x800)IMG_0195 (2) (536x800)
This incredible Kitchen Transformation from J&J Home completely blew us away!
You absolutely must go over there and see the Before photos as well as hear how they did all of this on a tight budget using mostly Ikea Cabinets and Fixtures.

Kristen from Blessed Beyond Measure shared how they created this beautiful banquette seating in their breakfast nook. Her husband did the building and Kristen did the sewing and decorating.
We think they make a pretty good team, don’t you?

We just loved how Jeri from Annabellea showed how many ways she has been using Drop Cloths in her home. This would be the perfect thing to link up to Kristin’s Drop Cloth Projects Day at our
Blogger Block Party next week!

She has so many beautiful projects going on in her home and her jewelry line is absolutely incredible.

Jeri also wowed us with this gorgeous setting for a Summer Porch Party! Hmmm…
Speaking of Porch Parties…this would be the perfect thing to link up to Kim’s Summer Porchs and Decks party next week. Or even Sherry’s Summer Entertaining party!

We are shameless in our plugs of the Blogger Block Party, aren’t we?

We could see these yummy meals being served on that beautiful porch.
Sweet Little Smoothie shared 2 delicious recipes that have Summertime written all over them!

Are you following At The Picket Fence on Facebook?  Don’t forget we feature many of your links during the week on our Facebook Page! If you’ve been featured there, grab a button as well! Thank you to everyone who shared so many fabulous posts with us last week!  We appreciate you!
Now it’s time to share with us what has inspired you this week!
Thank you so much for joining us for Inspiration Friday at the Fence,
When you are done linking up head over and party with the other Friday Party Friends
The lovely Courtney at French Country Cottage
Our beautiful friend Alison from Stuff and Nonsense
Stuff and Nonsense
And the gracious Debra from Common Ground
vif187

Now all ya PARTY PEOPLE it’s time to link on up…here’s the rules!
 
  • Friend At The Picket Fence in some capacity
  • Link Up any post you’ve written that has Inspired You and will Inspire Others-it can be a home improvement project, craft, recipe, story, devotional…if it inspires link it up!
  • Be sure to link back to your original post and not just your url (main blog address)
  • Please post our button (code in the sidebar) or a text link on your blog so others can join in the fun! (MANDATORY)
  • Visit another guest. Please try and visit at least the link directly above and below you!  We are trying so hard between writing posts, homeschooling, and taking care of our families..grin..to visit everyone’s posts. Sometimes we miss one and for that we apologize.  It makes us feed good knowing others are visiting people as well!  Thank you..it truly means a lot to us!

36 Comments Filed Under: Blogger Block Party, Inspiration Friday

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ann from On Sutton Place says

    June 16, 2011 at 8:04 PM

    Thanks so much for hosting…can’t believe it’s No. 20. Congrats on that! I’ll be back over the weekend to visit some links…have a good one. ~Ann

    Reply
  2. ⚜ ↁℯℬℬᴵℰ⚜ says

    June 16, 2011 at 8:31 PM

    Thanks for hosting girls. I am all ready for Monday..whoo hoo. Just waiting on my giveaway, however, I can still post it even though I may not have it all together.

    Reply
  3. Debra@Common Ground says

    June 16, 2011 at 8:40 PM

    Just linked up, thanks for hosting girls!! xoxo Debra

    Reply
  4. Debbie says

    June 16, 2011 at 8:45 PM

    So much inspiration. So little time…

    Reply
  5. Carolyn@SweetChaos says

    June 16, 2011 at 8:47 PM

    Thank you for hosting! Happy to be partying with you this week 🙂

    Reply
  6. Coley says

    June 16, 2011 at 8:58 PM

    It’s so much fun to look at everyones projects 🙂
    Thank you for hosting!!

    Reply
  7. Carla @ Hammers and High Heels says

    June 16, 2011 at 9:31 PM

    Yay! I made it to the party! Thanks for hosting 🙂

    Reply
  8. ℳartina @ Northern Nesting says

    June 16, 2011 at 10:25 PM

    Thanks for hosting girls, have a great weekend, Martina

    Reply
  9. Sarah says

    June 16, 2011 at 11:14 PM

    Thanks for hosting. I’m looking forward to the Blog Party next week. Love Annabellea’s patriotic table. I’m taking inspiration for the details. ~ Sarah

    Reply
  10. Susan (My Place to Yours) says

    June 16, 2011 at 11:23 PM

    Can’t believe I’ll be traveling next week! Maybe I can still find a way to party a little… Thanks for sharing this week’s inspiring favs!

    Reply
  11. Becca says

    June 16, 2011 at 11:27 PM

    Would you just LOOK at all of that awesome inspiration?! The IKEA kitchen remodel is amazing, and the summer porch is beautiful. I *so* want that chicken wrap! Thanks so much for hosting! I’m really looking forward to next week … trying to get my porch and patio all ready to go. Have a great weekend. xoxo

    Reply
  12. Sue says

    June 16, 2011 at 11:31 PM

    It’s always fun to link up and meet new friends! hugs, Sue

    Reply
  13. classic • casual • home says

    June 16, 2011 at 11:44 PM

    Great highlights…off to check out this week’s fun happenings.

    Reply
  14. Maggie @ Midwestern {Sewing} Girl says

    June 17, 2011 at 12:39 AM

    Thank you so much for hosting, girls! I hope you’ve both had a wonderful week! Lovely features from last week…can’t wait to see everyone’s projects this week!

    Reply
  15. janet says

    June 17, 2011 at 1:01 AM

    Hello Ladies!

    So happy to be here…thanks for hosting!

    Janet xox

    Reply
  16. Diann says

    June 17, 2011 at 1:12 AM

    Wonderful featured inspirations! thank you for hosting and have a great day!

    Reply
  17. Sonya@Beyond the Screen Door says

    June 17, 2011 at 4:30 AM

    So many great inspiring ideas as always! Thanks, girls!

    Reply
  18. Cozy Home Scenes says

    June 16, 2011 at 11:00 PM

    Thanks for hosting the party! So sorry about accidently entering the porch post on last week’s party. When scrolling down, I didn’t notice the dates and kept wondering why I didn’t see it until I relized the old one was still open. Duh! Obviously I didn’t get my nap today. LOL

    Reply
  19. saltbox treasures says

    June 17, 2011 at 6:59 AM

    Next week’s parties sound like fun!
    Thanks for hosting.
    ~ Julie

    Reply
  20. Ivy and Elephants says

    June 17, 2011 at 9:59 AM

    The summer blog party sounds like soooooo much fun. I need to get my ducks in a row and get ready to party. I can’t wait to see everyone there.

    ~Paula of Ivy & Elephants

    Reply
  21. jandjhome says

    June 17, 2011 at 12:24 PM

    Wow! Thank you so much for featuring my kitchen. Thanks for taking the time to do this every week.

    Reply
  22. oneshabbychick says

    June 17, 2011 at 1:40 PM

    Thanks for the shindig, ladies, as always! Have a wonderful summery weekend! ~ osc

    Reply
  23. Wendy says

    June 17, 2011 at 2:25 PM

    Loved the Angry Birds party feature!

    Thanks for hosting!

    Reply
  24. CAS says

    June 17, 2011 at 3:44 PM

    That would be 20 weeks of so much fun! Congratulations! Ya’ll are doing a wonderful job. It’s my “Must check” every Friday.
    CAS

    Reply
  25. blessedbeyondmeasure says

    June 17, 2011 at 4:29 PM

    Thanks for featuring my banquette seating!! It’s so much fun to see others appreciate our hard work! Thanks again,
    Kristen

    Reply
  26. Jeri & Mark says

    June 17, 2011 at 7:25 PM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    Reply
  27. Courtney ~ French Country Cottage says

    June 17, 2011 at 1:47 PM

    Love your features girls~ thanks for hosting! Can’t wait until next week! Hugs, Courtney

    Reply
  28. Hollie - TheSevenYearCottage.com says

    June 18, 2011 at 12:59 AM

    Thank you for hosting… enjoy your weekend!

    Reply
  29. Lynn Richards says

    June 18, 2011 at 4:59 AM

    Well, it’s 10 p.m. here on Friday, I’m thinking I missed the party!!
    We are in Oceanside, getting ready for the team to leave tomorrow.
    Stop by and see the pictures so far!
    Thanks again for all your support.
    xoxo
    lynn

    Reply
  30. Write My Essay says

    June 18, 2011 at 7:59 AM

    Hey !!!
    thanks a lot for hosting.. have a wonderful weekend…

    Reply
  31. Leslie says

    June 18, 2011 at 2:18 PM

    WOWIE! Does it take you girls a few hours to write a post? So much information!
    I think I can take part in a few of the parties…best get off my fanny and get movin’ 🙂
    I love this linky party this week! What a bunch of fantastic ideas.
    I charged my iPhone, and have an hour and a half ride to Ikea (for my birthday gift) this morning. Guess what I’ll be reading?
    THANK YOU THANK YOU for featuring me this week! I am so totally honored and humbled. You know I love you girls, and to be thought of by you as well, that blesses my heart very much!
    I pray you have a beautiful weekend with much joy and rest.
    Love you!
    ~Leslie

    Reply
  32. Jeri @ Annabellea.com says

    June 18, 2011 at 3:41 PM

    Thanks so much for featuring my Drop Cloth Projects AND my Summer Porch Party! You girls Rock! xoxo Jeri

    Reply
  33. Jessica Lauren says

    June 19, 2011 at 2:49 AM

    Thanks for hosting! I love seeing all the great ideas!
    ~*Jessica Lauren

    Reply
  34. Rita May says

    June 19, 2011 at 9:34 PM

    I’m late to the party and also your newest follower.

    Reply
  35. meg says

    June 20, 2011 at 2:20 AM

    thank you so much for featuring our sweet girls birthday party 🙂 that seriously meant the world to me! love your blog! thanks for hosting these fabulous link parties!! thanks again 🙂

    Reply

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I've been watching our cherry trees bloom for 12 y I've been watching our cherry trees bloom for 12 years now and every year I ohhhh and ahhhh over the blossoms like it's the first time I've ever seen them. I gush and I take photos (that look exactly like the ones I took the year before and the year before that) and I make my family come outside and look at them with me which you know they just LOVE to do. 😉 I think that is one of the main reasons why I love spring so much. On the one hand, it's predictable and yet, on the other hand, it still feels like such a surprise after the long months of barren branches.

And yesterday, as I was staring at the gorgeous blossoms for the umpteenth time, I couldn't help but think that I hope this is how I feel when our lives return to some semblance of normalcy.

I hope that the predictable feels special and that the typical feels anything but. I hope that I ohhh and ahhh over the simple things I've realized I've taken for granted. And, most of all, I hope that feeling doesn't go away for a very, very long time! 💗
Are you living with great expectation friends? Bec Are you living with great expectation friends? Because He is risen!

Happy Easter from my home to yours!
Lemon bars all ready for tomorrow! It’s going to Lemon bars all ready for tomorrow! It’s going to be a different kind of Easter for sure but some things don’t change. Have you been baking and getting ready for tomorrow? What’s one thing on your menu that you have to have every year?
If this is Good Friday, why doesn’t it feel so “good”? It all seems backward doesn’t it?

What could be good about the unspeakable pain he suffered? What could be good about the shame and betrayal?

Easter Sunday is so joyful, bright and cheery. Shouldn’t that be the day we call “good”? It just feels so much better!

But, I don’t know how to rejoice over His resurrection, unless I have felt the pain of His death. I have realized that in life the sweetest victories are the ones which were realized after a pain-filled journey.

And, so it is with Good Friday. I know there will be victory over death, but I can’t skip ahead in the story.

Jesus knew what was coming. He knew what he would experience. And he knew why he would go through it. He did it for me. He did it for you.

Do you know that? Have you felt it down in the very core of your soul? 
Sometimes it makes me squirm a bit. Why would anyone do that for me?

Well, because, I can’t do it for myself!

There is nothing I can do to earn that kind of love and mercy.

That is why it is called GRACE.

His grace is freely given. We don’t have to pay for it. He paid the price for us already.

Do you remember that movie from years ago called “Ransom”? A couple’s young son was kidnapped and the parents went to hell and back trying to find him and pay the “ransom” demanded by the kidnappers.

Well, Jesus is our “ransom”. (1 Timothy 2:6) His life was the payment.

Why is it called “Good Friday”? Because that wasn’t the end of the story….
.
…It was just the beginning!
Raise your hand if there’s a table in your house Raise your hand if there’s a table in your house that’s become the landing zone for ALL THE THINGS! 🙋🏻‍♀️🤪 I’ve never been more thankful for our rarely used dining room table as it’s become command central for school books and laptops and games.

Where are things collecting in your house right now?
“Sighing, tears, frustration, anger.” Every si “Sighing, tears, frustration, anger.” Every single one of these emotions has made their way through our home in recent days and, my guess is, they have in your home too.

I SO needed this reminder today from the new book ‘Adore’ by @sarahagertywrites.

Adoration isn’t just sitting at His feet gazing longingly with stars in my eyes. It’s bringing my fears and my sorrows and gray roots in my hair that desperately needs to be colored and my messy house and all of the things that threaten to send me over the edge right now and laying them down before Him, soaking up His word and His presence so that when I stand back up, I am changed for having spent the time adoring the ONE who is... Healer, comforter, peace-giver, deliverer, redeemer.

What do you need to bring to Him today? I’ll share mine in the comments and I’d love to hear from you too!
I’ve always loved evenings, but since this whole I’ve always loved evenings, but since this whole lockdown thing began, I’ve come to appreciate this time of day even more.

It feels the most...normal. Daytime is strange and foreign right now. My husband has taken over our home office, I’m suddenly taking over the responsibility of managing my kids’ distance learning and let me just say that teaching 7th grade algebra to my daughter is hugely ironic since I struggled with math all the way through school. I’m trying to do my own work but it feels utterly futile with the constant interruptions which take precedence right now. In the daytime, I’m constantly reminded of how upside down life feels.

But, in the evening, I cook dinner like I’ve always done and we gather around the table like we’ve always done and we laugh and tell stories and then clean up and play games or go on a walk or watch a show. And that feels SO gloriously normal.

So now I love evenings even more than I ever did before and I’m so grateful for this little chunk of time where the rhythms we established years ago are helping to sustain us now when so much of life feels outside of our control.

What feels ‘normal’ to you right now? Whatever it is, keep doing it. 🌿
When I was in college I would frequently call home When I was in college I would frequently call home and pour my heart out to my mom, sharing with her all that was happening in my life in that completely unfiltered way that you can talk with the person who potty trained you. These phone calls usually took place at night and my mom would patiently listen as I vented frustrations about professors, roommates, boyfriends and the food in the cafeteria. And, inevitably, they would end with my mom saying, “Everything seems worse when you’re tired. Try not to overthink things or make any major decisions tonight, especially when you are feeling emotional.” Dear friends, may I pass along this advice to you today?

If you don’t absolutely HAVE to make a decision right now, I want to encourage you to wait until life gets back to normal. If you are finding yourself over-analyzing relationships and family dynamics, I want to encourage you to remember that everything seems more dramatic when looked at under a microscope. And, let’s face it, being homebound with our loved ones non-stop makes us all feel like lab rats in an experiment.

If you are tempted to quit a job, start a business, start homeschooling permanently, stop homeschooling permanently, move to a new city, buy a farm, quit pursuing your dream, join a commune or make any other major life decision just…wait. Because, if it is in fact the right decision, it will be made even clearer once our lives return to their ‘regularly scheduled programming’. Instead, in this strange season, let’s all just take a deep, collective breath and let it out slowly, releasing the anxiety that threatens to overtake us. Let’s help each other maintain some perspective and not slip into a posture of over-thinking every little thing in our lives. Let’s remember that the enemy of our souls would love nothing more than to use this time when things feel dark to manipulate us into thinking that aspects of our lives are worse than they actually are.

My prayer for you in these days is that you will have the clarity to know what is true and that you will be filled with peace even while we live in this season of so many unknowns.
Raise your hand if you’re doing more baking thes Raise your hand if you’re doing more baking these days! 🙋🏻‍♀️ I’m trying to avoid gaining the #corona15 but my daughter and I LOVE baking together and it does help to pass the time plus it counts as a science lesson right?

If you’re able to find flour in the stores (for the love people please stop overbuying!) and you’re doing more baking at your house too you need to add this apricot bread to your list of new recipes to try!

Normally I’d point you to my blog for the directions but I’m going to do you a solid and leave the full recipe in the comments.

What have you baked so far during this time of social distancing? I’d love some new ideas!
There are a LOT of people out walking in our neigh There are a LOT of people out walking in our neighborhood right now (but still social distancing!) and she decided that she wanted to bring them some joy and put a smile on their face when they pass by our house. Also, the square with ‘say no to coronavirus’ is priceless. 😂 I just love her so much!
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