June Sponsor Feature

I would like you to meet Alexis - not only is she as sweet as pie - but she had a great giveaway and YOURS TRULY won! A beautiful necklace made from recycling materials. (See below)

So head on over to visit Alexis and don't forget to tell her that Pamela  sent you!

Hi! My name is Alexis and I blog over at Christian Wifestyle! Blogging has become an outlet for me to write about life as a young married lady trying to live a life pleasing to Christ. I just started blogging at the beginning of April and I love it so far! I have "met" so many amazing ladies already. I got married at a young 18 and have been married for almost 3 years. I am a University of Florida alumni - Go Gators! I wish I was craftier than I am, but I am a work in progress. I am a Florida girl through and through. I love sunshine and sweet tea. I have been asked more times than I can count where I'm from because of my accent, which I am learning to love. Stop on over and say hi, I'd love to hear from you!

Social Media Links:

blog: www.christianwifestyle.com

facebook: www.facebook.com/christianwifestyle

twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/alexis_meacham

instagram: username is alexismeacham

Lyrical Monday - There Will Be A Day - Jeremy Camp

There Will Be A Day

by Jeremy Camp

I try to hold on to this world with everything I have
But I feel the weight of what it brings, and the hurt that tries to grab
The many trials that seem to never end, His word declares this truth
That we will enter in this rest with wonders anew

But I hold on to this hope and the promise that He brings
That there will be a place with no more suffering

There will be a day with no more tears
No more pain, and no more fears
There will be a day when the burdens of this place
Will be no more, we'll see Jesus face to face
But until that day, we'll hold on to you always

I know the journey seems so long
You feel you?re walking on your own
But there has never been a step
Where you?ve walked out all alone

Troubled soul don?t lose your heart
Cause joy and peace he brings
And the beauty that?s in store
Outweighs the hurt of life?s sting

But I hold on to this hope and the promise that He brings
[. From: http://www.elyrics.net/read/j/jeremy-camp-lyrics/there-will-be-a-day-lyrics.html .]
That there will be a place with no more suffering

There will be a day with no more tears
No more pain, and no more fears
There will be a day when the burdens of this place
Will be no more, we'll see Jesus face to face
But until that day, we'll hold on to you always

I can?t wait until that day where the very one
I?ve lived for always will wipe away the sorrow that I?ve faced
To touch the scars that rescued me from a life of shame and misery
O, this is why, this is why I sing

There will be a day with no more tears
No more pain, and no more fears
There will be a day when the burdens of this place
Will be no more, we'll see Jesus face to face

There will be a day with no more tears
No more pain, and no more fears
There will be a day when the burdens of this place
Will be no more, we'll see Jesus face to face

There will be a day he will wipe away the tears
He will wipe away the tears
He will wipe away the tears
There will be a day

*Jeremy Camp is one of my fav Contemporary Christian artist - I have been to a couple of his concerts now.


Watch the
video

Lyrical Monday Lead Me by Sanctus Real

Lead Me
by Sanctus Real

I look around and see my wonderful life

Almost perfect from the outside

In picture frames, I see my beautiful wife

Always smiling, but on the inside

Oh, I can hear her saying

Lead me with strong hands

Stand up when I can't

Don't leave me hungry for love

Chasing dreams, but what about us?

Show me you're willing to fight

That I'm still the love of your life

I know we call this our home

But I still feel alone

I see their faces, look in their innocent eyes

They're just children from the outside

I'm working hard, I tell myself they'll be fine

They're independent, but on the inside

Oh, I can hear them saying
Lead me with strong hands

Stand up when I can't

Don't leave me hungry for love

Chasing dreams, what about us?

Show me you're willing to fight

That I'm still the love of your life

I know we call this our home

But I still feel alone

So Father, give me the strength

To be everything I'm called to be

Oh Father, show me the way

To lead them

Won't You lead me?

To lead them with strong hands

To stand up when they can't

Don't want to leave them hungry for love

Chasing things that I could give up

I'll show them I'm willing to fight

And give them the best of my life

So we can call this our home

Lead me 'cause I can't do this alone

Father, lead me 'cause I can't do this alone

* I love this song - something about it always gives me chills when I hear it.

Watch a touching video here

Lyrical Monday - Praise You In This Storm - Casting Crowns

Praise You In This Storm

Casting Crowns

I was sure by now

God You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
But once again, I say "Amen", and it's still raining

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear Your whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

[Chorus:]
And I'll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
And every tear I've cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when
I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry to you
And you raised me up again
My strength is almost gone
How can I carry on
If I can't find You

But as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

[Chorus]

I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord
The Maker of Heaven and Earth

[Chorus x2] 

This has always been one of my favorite Casting Crowns songs - I have been to 3 concerts and always love to hear this one.

Lyrical Monday

I would like to begin a new post each Monday  entitled "Lyrical Monday" - which will be the lyrics to a song that has touched my heart or has been on my mind. I may or may not post the reason(s) behind the chosen lyrics. I will include the artist and may even post a great video link to go with it. :-)

My first Lyrical Monday post:

Walk By Faith

artist: Jeremy Camp

Would I believe you when you would say

Your hand will guide my every way

Will I receive the words You say

Every moment of every day

[chorus]

Well I will walk by faith

Even when I cannot see

Well because this broken road

Prepares Your will for me

Help me to rid my endless fears

You've been so faithful for all my years

With one breath You make me new

Your grace covers all I do

Yeah, yeah , yeah, yeah, yeah, ya

[chorus]

Well I'm broken- but I still see Your face

Well You've spoken- pouring Your words of grace

[chorus x2]

Well hallelujah, hallelu

(I will walk by faith)

Well hallelujah, hallelu

(I will walk by faith)

I will walk, I will walk, I will walk by faith

I will, I will, I will walk by faith.

This song has been my theme song since the first time I ever heard it. When I had my first phone that could have ringtones, this was my first ringtone downloaded. At one time I had a website that I entitled "Walk By Faith" but I shut it down when MSN began to charge for their websites. 

 I love the scripture this song is based from...2 Corinthians 5:6-8 Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord - for we walk by faith, not by sight- we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.

If you ever heard Jeremy Camp's testimony then you will know that he wrote this song on his honeymoon after marrying the woman he loved who had ovarian cancer and died just months later.

If you would like to read Jeremy's bio - check out this link.
http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/jeremy-camp-biography/a8b9345ac4b1f62948256de9002c6c00



Grand Opening - My Etsy Shop

http://www.etsy.com/shop/Pamela2Heaven

I just re-opened my etsy shop this weekend - right now I am concentrating on baby & children items - leg warmers, headbands, diaper covers & bibs - but plan to expand a little at a time. I have several good sewing and craft ideas  - just have to take the time to get them together and on inventory. I am excited and hope to have some fun with it!

Stop by & check it out!

Shrimps, Snails & Puppy Dog Tails

My newest venture with

"Pamela's Fish Gallery" -

(will explain that further into todays blog)

  - an addition of Red Cherry Shrimp and Mystery Snails - breeding, of course!

I am so excited that one of my Golden Mystery Snails FINALLY laid her first clutch of eggs (two actually!!) and they have hatched! What started out as a little pale peach color glob of a blob attached to the top of my aquarium has hatched into dozens upon dozens of teeny tiny litte snail beings. So small you would need a magnifying glass to see and then couldn't tell if they were even moving.
As of today they are little more than a week old out of the hatch and you can now see them crawl all over the little birthing net that I have them in. They are adorable! (seriously! :-) I also have purple, ivory and blue mystery snails - hoping to breed - waiting on the next batch of eggs to be laid. So exciting!

I started out with six little red cherry shrimp - I don't even know how many I have now. They are funny little creatures. They carry their little eggs under their bodies - protecting them so carefully - and then when they hatch the little guys have to run like crazy to their hiding places until big enough to escape being eaten by anything in the tank that can grab them, including their own mama! I have good hiding for them so many many many survive!

I just put in my first ad on craigslist for these little cuties. Now along with baby fish, I am in the shrimpin' and snail business.

About that "Pamela's Fish Gallery" - last night my husband comes in with this 3 foot x 5 inch nice piece of wood and wants to make a sign to hang on the wall where all my aquariums are - and that is what he came up with! I thought that was pretty sweet - so he had me write it out in my fancy handwriting and he is using all his cool tools to make it look nice.

My Top Ten "Annoying" List

There are things in my every day life that just get on my nerves. Some things are big, some are little, some I can't do a thing about and some that are just plain annoying! I made a list of my top 10 things that fall on my "annoying" list...just for the heck of it! ha!

1. Lint on my clothes
2. Drawstring in my sweatpants
3. Socks that slide down in my shoes
4. Chipped Nail Polish
5. Dry lips
6. Shoes that won't stay tied
7. An itch I can't reach
8. Finding an empty carton or jar in the fridge.
9. My coffee getting cold before I get to the bottom of the cup

and my #10 most annoying thing:

10. Being awaken with "Are you asleep?" aghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

I did it! I overcame my short hair scare

If you read my last blog post then you know that I was contemplating cutting my hair. Well, I did it! I bit the bullet and overcame my anxiety. First, I arrived 30 minutes early for my appointment so I could casually (yea, right) go through the hairstyle books. I already had the hairstyle picked out with pictures on my phone to show my stylist, but I wanted to find big photos in the books to make me more comfortable that these were "dos" she had possibly cut before (of couse she has, it is a simple straightforward cut, but still....this is MY hair we are talking about.) I found the style in the short hair books on several pages and bookmarked them all. (overkill?) Anyway, when it was finally time for my appointment and I have about 12 pictures to show her - she gasped in awe that I was actually even thinking about it - she had NO idea...and she knows how crazy even talking about this makes me. Then the other 2 stylists had to come over and check it out - along with their gasps of "OMG - no way!!" That almost sent me running out the back door, but I steadied myself - my mind was really really made up this time! I put on my smock - and we were ready to rock. My stylist (Nora) offered me a bottle of water - *should have been something a little stronger, I think* - and away we went. She started chopping - and there was no turning back. When she was done - it was a choppy, uneven, crazy looking mess! Oops - I didn't realize she was just getting some of the length out of the way to do the highlites and THEN we do the REAL cut...whewwwwwww. I was about to have a runaway!! Once we started the highlites I was back in familiar territory and almost forgot that my hair was even being cut. I got all into a magazine so I was pretty calm by then. Ok, time to wash/rinse and then put on a good heated conditioner - sit under the dryer for a few minutes - and back to the chair - time to do the REAL cut...

I got a little anxious a time or two when I would see Nora studying the photo in the book - thinking "Ok, she said this is a simple cut, easy as pie, why are we STILL looking in the book????" I just shut my eyes and thought, "well, it is done now - you can't go back, just gotta hope for the best".

She put those shears down - starting blow drying and walahhh - swung me around in the chair to see the finished product and I LOVE IT! I absolutely love it! Funny thing is - it is almost as short as when I was 10 years old and the hair cutting trauma began! wow - who would have thought?
Best of all, my hubby loves it, too. My daughter loves it, my mom loves it, my friends love it - so I am so glad I did it!! :-)

My Before Pic

Changing Hairstyle Trauma

I want to change my hairstyle. I want to, but it is just not that easy for me. It sounds crazy, I know - and believe me - when I hear myself talk about it - I know it is ridiculous. I envy those girls who can just walk in to a salon and pick a new do. First, I have to think about it, then I have to look at about 100 styles, think about it some more, get a gazillion opinions, think about it some more, then IF I actually get as far as making an appointment - I pretty much scare the poor soul who is about to cut my hair half to death with my wild eyed look and my hyperventilation.
I know where my drama - stress comes from - I can pinpoint it to the exact moment! I was 10 years old. I had long, pretty hair. My mom worked night shift. My dad had to get my sister and I off to school. Dad gets tired of dealing with 2 girls with long, tangling hair in the mornings. Dad takes  girls to get hair cut. Problem solved - and I looked like a BOY! Not just a little bit - a lotta bit! All the way off - like as in Mia Farrow in RoseMary's Baby off! Pair that with a flat chest, no make-up age - BOY! I had to wear a headband every day just to be able to half way look like a girl. UGH! Trauma - I was NOT cute at all. :-(

Sooooooo...Right now I have been in the "thinking" stage for about a week. I have looked at 100's of hairstyles...I have the hairstyle I want. I love it.
- NOW all I have to do is make that appointment! My heart is pounding.....

My First Official Upcycle

I am sure I have been "upcycling" for ever,  but never even realized it. Today I specifically set out to take one shirt and not waste a single stitch of it. I succeeded! I made a cute pillow cover from everything except the sleeves and I didn't let those go to waste either! It took me all of 5 seconds to come up with an idea for them. I knew I had a couple of old clear vases under the sink that haven't seen the light of day in years. I just spray painted them the olive green and then sewed up the sides to make little slipcovers to dress them up. I am in the process of decorating my "new" sewing/craft room and my dominant colors are black licorice, chocolate, olive and sea breeze blue. (Colors sound so much prettier with edible names, don't they?)

Lovin' Fimo

I am really getting into this fimo stuff.

From wikipedia:

Fimo is a name for a brand of polymer clay made by German company STAEDTLER (STAEDTLER Mars GmbH & Co. KG). Fimo is sold worldwide. Its main U.S. competitor is the American brand Sculpey. The material comes in many different colors; there are many finishes to choose from, and even a softener to use with it because it can be hard to work. It is used for making many things, including jewelery, accessories, and small trinkets. Once shaped, Fimo is baked in a standard or toaster oven for about 30 minutes at 110°C (230°F) to harden it. Once baked, it can be cut, drilled, painted, sanded, and sliced thinly.