Friday Randoms

we went to the fair

we ate buttery elephant ears 

we saw sharks!

we checked out the blue ribbon winners

we danced on water (well, the niece and nephew did)

we made friends with butterflies


We love attending the fair when it arrives each August. Corn dogs, live concerts, farm animals, funnel cakes, creepy carny's (okay we definitely don't love that!), it's all part of the summer tradition and Michael and I loved getting to spend it with our niece and nephew.

Did you make it to the fair this summer? What's your favorite fair food?
Happy Friday!

Even as he spoke, many put their faith in him.—John 8:30 (NIV)

Blog-iversary: My One Year

I can not believe its been exactly one year since my first post on this blog. 201 posts later, there are many things I have learned and discovered about blogging and running an online shop . . .

• I started to blog simply as a way to share my furniture and craft projects with family and friends. There have been a couple times I lost sight of that and wondered why I felt discouraged. I'm grateful I went through that because now my passion is stronger than ever.

• Blogging is work! Hard work actually. Which is why when I tell people I'm a blogger and they give me the "oh isn't she so cute" look I get a little irked.

• When I look at this project and then this project, and I can confidently say my painting skills have improved.

• That people actually like my projects! I can't tell you how much I love reading all your comments, from a wine rack turned towel holder to a cheese grater turned earrings display. I still feel like a crazy little girl with a hot glue gun in one hand and glitter in the other, just throwing stuff together hoping it turns out pretty. (I don't really use glitter anymore)

• That sometimes the posts you think are going to get a great response DON'T. The posts you throw together at three in the morning and you think are just zombie talk DO.

• Sometimes a picture and one sentence can be more profound than a mile long wordy post.

• Trying to juggle managing a coffee shop, keeping the house clean, spending quality time with the husband, tending to and growing a small business, looking to buy a house, loving on my fur babies, and finding "me" time is simply impossible. I've learned to "do my best and forget the rest".

• I was told as a blogger/shop owner you need to have Twitter. I don't get Twitter. I have tried and tried but I feel like Fred Flinstone in a Jetson kind of world.  So I'm apologizing now if you have been affected in any way by my lack of ability to tweet. 

• That readers want the real deal. Honest, sincere, meaningful posts. They want the real YOU.  And hey, isn't that so much easier and fulfilling than the other option?

• I have made some great friends through blogging! No really, I'm pretty sure I stay in touch better with my online friends than my real life friends (working on that). I haven't had a single negative relationship (fellow blogger, sponsor, customer) and I think that's really something special.

• That I would meet so many women of faith. It was a pleasant surprise and I look forward to meeting more women that love Jesus.

• That I still have a lot to learn. That I will have ups and downs. That this little blog has lots of room to grow. That I deeply appreciate all the support and encouragement you have shown me. I can't wait to see what is in store for Rustic Living. Thank you! Thank you!

In celebration of my blog-iversary I'm offering 50% everything in my shop!
Good for today only! Use code: oneyear

"But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" Peter answered, "You are the Christ."—Mark 8:29 (NIV)

Let's Link Up!

Welcome to Wonderful Wednesday. This link party is here to aid you in finding not only new awesome blogging friends but followers as well. Share the love, follow the rules, and meet new people!This link-party can be found here every Wednesday.

1- FOLLOW YOUR HOSTS VIA GOOGLE FRIEND CONNECT

(the first links in link-up, marked host!)

2-LINK UP USING YOUR BLOGS URL

(please do not use a specific post)

3-FOLLOW OTHER BLOGGERS & COMMENT

(meet new people, make new friends)

4-GRAB THE BUTTON, ADD IT TO YOUR BLOG

(share the linky love, and button up below)

5-SHARE THE WONDERFUL WEDNESDAY NEWS

(tweet, facebook,  instagram & etc about link party)

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN HOSTING
(email at contact.little.petrie@gmail.com)

<a href="http://www.lalalists.com/search/label/WW"> <img src="http://i45.tinypic.com/wu1lxv.png" border="0" /></a>

Group Giveaway Day!

Lots of goodies up for grabs today, scroll down to enter!


 Loving This Unique Life

Forever And A Day

Rustic Living

Random Thoughts By Kathy

Giveaway ends Sunday at 11:59 pm, winner will be announced Monday. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Winner of the Rustik Chic giveaway is . . . Libby! (Followed Krista on Pinterest)

Congrats Libby, I'll be in touch! 

Insta Weekend

I loved sending the Rustic Living giveaway winner all of her goodies! 

Headed to the fair with my Rustik Chic cuff on! Loving the lace. Don't forget to enter the Rustik Chic giveaway, enter here

The stuffed wild elephant was ruthlessly ripped apart by the great power of the golden retriever

My niece and I enjoying an elephant ear at the fair!

Fall is just around the corner which means I'm gearing up with tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches

Enjoying the Boise river with my niece and nephew

Givin' her a boost across the river, moral support from the pups

Sundays + puppies = cozy afternoon naps

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will. —Romans 8:26-27 (NIV)

Rustik Chic Giveaway

I'm the kind of girl that when she shops, she knows exactly what she's looking for. I don't dilly dally. I know what I like, grab it, move on. Then Krista from Rustik Chic came along and totally blew that out of the water. In a good way. 

Krista kindly gave me the opportunity to choose one of her beautiful chic leather cuffs from her shop. I took a gander on over to her online shop and 30 minutes later I still couldn't choose a favorite! How dare she offer me so many wonderful options (insert sarcasm). 

I finally decided on this lovely shabby chic lace flower creation. Absolutely perfect!

Now, Krista is here to offer one lucky winner a cuff of their choice from her shop. Whoever you are, I can pretty much promise you're going to have a hard time choosing a favorite too. Enter the giveaway below!

 Krista has lots of new designs coming in for the Fall season, I can't wait to see!

Giveaway ends Monday at 11:59pm, winner will be announced on Tuesday. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Winner of the Danielle Faith giveaway is . . . #66 Abbey (liked Danielle Faith on Facebook)

Congrats Abbey! I'll be in touch!

 

Sponsor Sale: Ready for Fall

Can you feel it in the air? Fall is just around the corner, and boy am I excited! Football, pumpkin spice chai, and the seasons beautiful colors are just a few reasons why it's my favorite time of year. Still, I'd like to offer one last big promo for the summer. From now until August 31st you can buy one month of advertising with Rustic Living and get the second free (excludes feature post). All positions include a sponsor highlight post and option to participate in a group giveaway, great exposure and traffic for your blog/shop!

All ads are reserved through Passionfruit, your ad will go live as soon as I approve it! For the BOGO promo, at checkout enter quantity of 2 and code readyforfall 
Get your ad below, I would love to work with you! 

Turquoise and Creamy Grey

 Today I'm so excited to share my recent furniture project! I really need to make more time for these kind of things. Pieces like this one are so fun to transform because they can easily go from boring and outdated to stylish and shabby chic!

Before  

(snagged this little lady from a local auction)

 After

As you can see I decided to leave the doors off on the bottom to showcase rustic baskets perfect for holding cozy blankets and books.

 I've been wanting to tackle a grey color and really like how this one turned out, I think it looks like a creamy grey which works as a great backdrop for those vibrant turquoise knobs!

I think I'm in love! But I want to know, what you do you think?

Do you like the knobs? What about keeping the doors off?

"As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease."—Genesis 8:22 (NIV)

Simple Homemade Dog Treats

“Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.” ― Roger Caras

As I put this post together, my golden retriever is curled up at my feet.  She would be happy to know I'm sharing this homemade dog treat recipe will all of you today.

The best part? You probably already have the ingredients waiting in your kitchen. 

She doesn't like having to wait to eat that scrumptious puppy treat!

 

2 cups flour

1 cup oats

1 1/3 cup peanut butter

1 1/4 cup hot water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix flour and oats. Then add peanut butter and hot water. Knead dough and roll out to 1/4 inch thick. Use cookie cutters (dog shapes if you can! I got mine from Walmart, you can also find them here) and place dough on lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until golden brown. 

Watch your fur babies enjoy! Good for up to 3 weeks.

 “A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.” ― Josh Billings

He replied, "My mother and brothers are those who hear God's word and put it into practice."—Luke 8:21 (NIV)