Trash to treasure........

So do you girls remember the frame I found?

It was my hidden treasure from when I cleaned out my garage. It was a five dollar frame I had bought downtown on the square.....Well let's just say only Jesus only knows how long ago I bought that thing.

So I went shopping in Canton to Laurie Anna's on Friday. Her shop is amazing, incredible, and just breath taking. Be warned though girls going with kids is quiet scary. There wasn't much room to move around due to all of the supreme cute things waiting to be in my home :D There are the cutest ducks that you have ever seen there. They are made of like sticks I think. I have been dreaming about them ever since. I wonder if they are still thinking of me. I think I will be going by Thursday this week to go back and claim them. They would be much happier at my house!

I love the idea of tying silverwear to the garland how cute is that?

Thanks Laurie Anna's!
click here to go check out her blog

So moving back along.......I saw a really cute wreath there which lead me to this garland. Well I put them together with a plate that I had in the cabinet and this is what I got!

I was and am super excited.

So that was part of my weekend. Did you all like when brownies met cookies? Well everyone around our house loved them. Two 9x13 pans later it is a total win that everyone who has come by loves the brownies. So with all of brownie eating I have been getting ready for Chik conference. One of the things I needed was a picture for the information brochures for conference......so CD, Brailey and I all went down to the square downtown to take these pictures. These are some of our pictures.

My little Brailey Girl! I wonder where she gets those poses from....

Ohhh and the shirt I have on in this picture well yea I realized after I got there that it had a bleach spot on the back. Guess that is why I haven't worn it in over a year.....LOL underneath it all no matter how much we fix ourselves up we are all still dorks from time to time! The last picture here is the one I picked it will be going on about five to 700 brochures that will have all of our conference information on it! March 6th is Chik Nite and we will be revealing our other two speakers! It is going to be AWESOME!

Love you Chiks!

Crystal Sparks

When Brownies Met Cookies

So it all started with me just looking around on the Internet at different cooking websites for something new and different to make. I was just minding my own business when

BAM

I see this recipe!! I knew that I had to make it! Just the picture on the screen made me want to eat the computer!

So I made it and girls it is so easy and you are going to love love love it!!

Step 1. Get Betty Crocker's brownie mix and cookie mix! She is amazing and her stuff out of the box is so good! I am so thankful for Mrs. Betty she makes our life so easy!

Step 2: Mix each of the packages in separate bowls as instructions say on the package.

With two kids around you have to get the stuff out of the bowls as fast as possible before the kids eat it! LOL so this is why it is a empty bowl picture!

Step 3: Put brownie mix in a 9x13 pan greased. Have your oven on to 350.

Step 4: Dollop cookie dough throughout the pan in tablespoon size.

Looks so good huh?

Are you hungry yet????

Step 5: Bake at 350 for about 35-40 minutes.

Step 6: Let it cool

Step 7: Make this ganache recipe to spread on top of brownies:

12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate morsels

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

6 Tbsp butter
In a small saucepan, heat cream and butter until just before the boiling stage.
Pour over the chocolate morsels.
Let stand about 20 seconds and stir until smooth.

Step 8: Now I recommend to poke holes all in your brownie/cookie to let the ganache soak into it for optimum yummy goodness!

Step 9: Let cool and then cut up and serve

I hope you all love them as much as I do and did! I got this recipe from Bakerella! She is amazing! If you have never checked out her blog do so it is full of great ideas!

Happy eating let me know how yours turn out!

CHIKS WE HAVE A WINNER

Ok so I am not a party animal staying up till midnight just isn't good for a girl ya know? So I have decided that even though I am a hour and a half early I would go ahead and do our drawing! Drum roll please!

And so the winner is..................

Someone who is funny, inspiring, proud mother of two and always having a party even when it isn't her 100th post. Her hubby is the cat daddy of her heart so the winner is......

Well she loves to dress mannequins

and make us all smile.....

Debbie at Trash Talk!!

Congrats girl hope you enjoy it as much as

Pattie and I have! E-mail me your information

so I can get this in the mail to you!

Blessings to all of you that entered to win!

Dream builder's VS. Dream stealer's

There are two kinds of people in this life

My mom and dad

Type 1: Dream builders-These are people that see your potential they will encourage you to reach your destiny! They are the ones that will always be there to pick you up when you are down! They give encouraging words and number one thing is they won't let you give up! These are God sent people into your life!!

My Pastors and in-laws

Type 2: Dream Stealer's-These people are from the pit of Hell. They try to shove your inadequacies in your face at all times. They constantly remind you of how you can't reach your destiny. When you are down they will kick you to try to keep you there. Sometimes people like this will come into your life posed as a friend to just surprise you and really hurt you in the end. Keep in mind these people are from the devil not from God!

Everyday you come in contact with lots of people. My Pastor always encourages me to stay around dream builders.

Matthew 7:15&16

Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles

Right here Jesus is warning us that there are going to be people that will come into our life and try to tear it apart. He also tells us that we can identify people by their fruit. So if someone is ripping you apart girls look at their fruit in their life? How is their life going?

Me and CD

My Pastor (click here to hear his messages on line) says to have a very short list of people that you take correction from. Those people should be authority in your life. Everything else that comes your way take it with a grain of salt. Don't let it bother you. Go back to the dream builders in your life and see what they say about it!

Hubby and me

What got me on this you might ask. There has been several dream stealer's sent my way this week. It really grieves my heart. I just want to encourage us to always listen to the voice of love and encouragement in our lives. There will always be those you will try to knock us down! The enemy's number one goal in life is to take away your dreams once he takes that away then you loose hope in your life! Don't ever let him take your dreams! Guard them with everything you have!

But CHIKS just don't listen to them! Remember God is love. Anything that is contrary to the voice of love is from the enemy!

Patti and Dr. Sandy

So who are my dream builders in my life?

My husband, mom and dad, Pastors, CD, Jennifer, Pastor John and Mrs. Anne, Nancy, Misty Westlund, Crystal Boney, Chuck King, and Patti and Dr. Sandy! These are just to name a few!

I know that these people will always be there to encourage me support me love me through anything that I am going through. They are the voices of love in my life! These are the voices that I choose to listen to. Everything else goes out the window!

.....................................................

So the book.......Tonight at Midnight I will announce the winner so leave comments girls to get chances to win!!! Also go to Patti's blog to get even more chances to win!!!

I love you girls I believe in you CHIKS and I will always be a dream builder in your life!!! You Chiks rock!!

*HUGZ*

Spring Cleaning at the Sparks!

Yesterday was Brailey's Valentines day party at school. The thing I love most about being a stay at home mommy is getting to go to events like that! Being able to watch her have fun and help the other moms out is so awesome!

She is my little posser!

So after the party I came home and I just popped off to hubby and said you know this would be a perfect day to clean out the garage! He just kind of laughed at me.....So I went about my wifely chores for the morning. Then I went looking for him......He was out there getting it together to start cleaning out the garage!

So I went and got on the clothes that you wouldn't ever want to be seen in public! You know what ones I am talking about! LOL :D

So you are probably wondering how bad was your garage? Ohhh girls it was so embarassing. You know the commercial where the girl pulls her car into the garage and there is junk piled all around the car? That was me! The sad thing is I don't keep my home that way! I am a neat freak I would even say bourderline OCD. So everytime I would pull into my garage it was like nails on a chalk board for me!


So we spent the whole day cleaning. It was such a beautiful day the kids played outside and had a blast while we slaved! So one truck load of giveaway stuff and one truck load of just trash we have a beautiful garage. Our closest friends came by because it was something they had so see to beleive!

So I found this in the garage I bought this a long time ago! I am going to do something cool with it so that is for a future blog stay posted!

I got to thinking about my junky garage and it made me realize that all of us have areas in our life like my garage was. Maybe it isn't your garage cleaned, but rather your finances, emotions, marriage, kids, or depression. We never intended for it to get out of control, but something happens and we loose grip on it. Once it gets so out of control we feel so helpless because the problem seems so big! Never let your problems get bigger in your view than your Jesus! All it takes is a little determenation. Some support from those you love and you can whip those out of control areas of your life back into shape.

Ok so on to something else! There are only a few more days for my great awesome amazing giveaway!!! So leave comments for your chance to win! You for sure want to be the winner of this book it is AWESOME!

So what am I giving away?

Jospeh Prince's book Destined to Reign!

And if one chance isn't enough leave a comment on Delighted Heart because she is giving one away also! If you visit her blog come back and tell me and you get tripile the entries!!

So leave your comments it always makes my heart smile to know that you stopped by! Plus I love going and seeing new blogs!!!!

The next generation!

I am so excited about all the Lord is doing in my life. My heart is so full of joy. My Chik Team and I loaded up and went to High Point Church for Mrs. April Simon's Chik Nite. What a blessing that was! All I can say is wow wow and double wow! She is such an amazing woman of God and I am so thankful that I have the honor and privilege to know her! She is the one that we got the Chik Nite idea from!

April preached an amazing message and at the end she had all of the young teenage ladies come to the front for us women to see what we are needing to leave a legacy to. It was so powerful. I was weeping uncontrollably. I have such a soft place in my heart for this upcoming generation.



I have been preaching in the schools for the last 5 weeks. In that time I have seen about 15 plus salvations and tons of girls get delivered from depression, anger issues and self esteem problems. I have always known that this generation was desperate for help. After the last 5 weeks those girls so put a place in my heart. I had the amazing privilege of preaching to around 45 girls in those weeks. All of which God touched in a special way. The thing that grieves me is that there are still girls walking those halls that hate their life and hate who they are.

This generation is so hurting. More than ever they need us as women to rise up and be their spiritual mothers. Most of them have never had someone in their life that truly cares. My heart just aches for these teens today. I know that the Lord has called my husband and I to parent this generation spiritually.

I just want to challenge you ladies that read this blog......a challenge for you to leave a legacy. Reach out to a young person in your life. Make a difference in them. Be the best living example of Jesus that you can be.

Mrs. April Simons always says "Your life is telling a story make it one worth reading!"

Pour into them. Let them talk to you and you listen to their heart. Don't judge them of how they fix their hair what tattoos they have and how they dress. See the heart that is beneath all of that.....The heart that Jesus loves so much.....

You will see kids that are misunderstood

Kids that just want someone to care

Kids that go home and cut themselves because it takes away the pain

Girls that sleep with boys to try and fill a void in their heart

Kids that are being raised up in a fatherless generation

Kids that constantly have media images reminding them that they aren't good enough!

If all of us women would rise up and just take one or two young people and begin to pour into them we would change this generation in a short time. The most rewarding thing in life is knowing that you have changed some one's life. I have heard it said once the best thing we can do is to live a life that shows the love a Christ and then reproduce that in someone else. That is so powerful!

I guess I am blogging about this today because this is the first week for me not to go to the school and preach. Part of my heart is broken today with out my girls. I find myself weeping as I type this because I see their faces in my mind, and I wonder if they are ok.....I wonder how things are at their homes this week, if that father hurt them this week, if that mom yelled at her again, if that boy took advantage of her again. All I can do is pray for them and believe that the Holy Spirit is there comforting them through whatever they might be facing this week.

Jesus the HEALER

The Lord has been doing so much in me these last few weeks. It is as though I am having new revelations of God's word!

The thing that has been pressing in my heart is either God's word is true or it isn't. April Simons says that often and I really let that sink into my spirit. Either we believe the whole Bible or we don't. So many times people pray for healing with it being optional for God to do it. Even though the same word that led to your salvation is the same word that will heal your body. It is just a matter of do you believe it?

I mean really believe it!

My daughter started running fever the other night. I knew that this flu stuff that had been going around was trying to get onto her. I immediately laid hands on her expecting nothing less to the answer to my prayers. Her fever broke instantly and she woke in the morning totally better.

HALLELUJAH!

Jesus came so we could have an abundant life. The only thing keeping us from having that life is us. Everything has been done that will ever happen. Jesus can't do any more to make your prayers be answered. We have rights to everything we could ask. The only thing is do we believe it?

Since I have made this choice that miracles in my life are not going to be optional happenings I have seen 4 people get totally healed of sickness and things that they were battling with!

It all is because of one thing. I take the word literally. If it says we are healed then that is it we are healed. There is no stipulations. It is a fact and I take what I am seeing in that person as a lie. Healing has to take place when you take that kind of position on things!

Don't forget to leave comments my girlfriends to register for the super great prize!!!

I love you girls start expecting MIRACLES IN YOUR EVERYDAY LIFE!

Mommy and Daddy get away!

It had been a year and a half since our last get away. So needless to say it was time for a little time for just mommy and daddy. I know this sounds so retarded, but you don't realize how much you miss your hubby until you get sometime a lone with him then you realize wow this is the best thing in the whole world!

So where did we go you might ask?

The Horseshoe Hotel and Casino in Louisiana.

God's favor was on us from word go. First of all as we were making plans to go I was thinking "Man I sure would love to have some spending money to buy some great stuff while we are away." I mean really a girl has to be ready to buy a cute pair of heels at all times! :D

So the day before we left I had a precious woman come up to me and gave a word that the Lord had laid on her heart to me. It really blessed me. It is always good to have the Lord confirm things to you. Then she handed me $100.00!

PRAISE THE LORD

Isn't God so good I thought!

So we went to the hotel. We had already got a wonderful deal of $90.00 for a room at the Horseshoe. Well when we got there the lady checking us in was a super sweet woman. She asked "Do you all mind being on a top floor? With a river side view?" Of course we say "Sure sounds great!"

We walk into our room and see that she had upgraded us to a room that usually costs $780.00 per night!! I then look at the receipt in a panic and realize that she only charged us $50.00! The Lord not only upgraded our room, but at an even better price!

Here are some pictures from our room at night it was beautiful! You can see me and hubby in the window ;)

This is our room at night

This is it during the morning

So after we saw how blessed we were with a nice room we go down and meet a really sweet lady. She then gave us four free meal vouchers to eat there at the casino! Praise the Lord we had been blessed yet again!

The Lord never ceases to amaze me with His favor and His blessing in my life! It is so wonderful to be a child of the King!

So hubby and me and a wonderful time! We learned that gambling was for sure not for us. After playing $13.00 we learned that we would rather buy something for someone or give it to a person in need. Then to play it in a machine. So we went to the movies twice and went shopping twice. We like to do things in twos i guess! It was for sure fun! I even got my toe nails painted while we were gone!

Call me country, but I am just a Texas girl I can't help it but the best part of the whole trip was this

I love TEXAS!!

Well that is it for today! Make sure to leave comments! The more you leave the better your chances are to win!

Destined to Reign

I have learned in life everything we put into our spirits is either helping us or hurting us. I love the word of God. I love growing in the word and learning more and more about the Lord. If you think you know all of God I hate to tell you, but you have only seen the beginning of His goodness, glory, love, mercy, and I could go on and on.



So I started watching Joseph Prince on t.v. ohhh about 4 or so months ago. His preaching so touched my heart. I decided to buy his book and give it a whirl.

I realized very quickly that this is the most life changing book I have read in my whole life. I have read all kinds of books from Paula White to Joyce Meyer to Oral Roberts. Now don't get me wrong all of them have wonderful great books and I encourage you to read those books too! I must say thought this book by Joseph Prince is so life changing. He preaches of Grace in such a way that was hard for me to get my mind wrapped around. I am believing God that I will get the honor and the privilege of meeting him one day!

This is the best book! It will truly walk you through how to live a life that is victorious. Free of condemnation, guilt, and instead in God's love and mercy! Gets me fired up just thinking of it!!

So I can't just go on and on about a book and not give one away! I have already given away several. The best thing to give to someone is the word because it never comes back void! So I will give away a book on February 16th. All comments left between now and then will go into my drawing for your free book! More comments you leave=more chances to win :)

So comment it up girls cuz the race starts........................NOW!