The Lowcountry Ruby

     Tomorrow is the last day of 2023, so recently I've been reflecting on my spiritual growth this year, especially in the area of surrender, as that was my word of the year. Here is what I learned:     1. Surrender is one thing I never should stop working on. I will never be perfect at giving my desires to God and opening myself to His will. Every single day I need to remind myself that the temptation to be a control-freak is real and strong, but I need to combat it diligently.      2. I definitely grew in the area of surrender. God has shown me His will in several different areas in my life, and I learned that when I obey Him, He fills me with His perfect peace.      I'm so thankful for the past year and the growth I've experienced. I pray that He will continue to grow me in the area of surrender.  With His Love,  Alyssa Wells If this post was encouraging, please follow, comment, and share! 

     Merry Christmas, y'all! I cannot believe we're nearing my favorite holiday! My family has more traditions for this season than we do any other time of year, and I have a hard time picking a a favorite! I will say that making Christmas crafts as gifts for family, friends, and neighbors is pretty fun. Today I'm gonna share three of my favorite crafts from this year: Christmas Spice Potpourri, Snowman Candle Holders, and Christmas Cards.     1. Christmas Spice Potpourri     For this super easy project, all you need is a handful of cranberries, three cinnamon sticks, two whole nutmeg, a palmful of whole cloves, three oranges, pine needles, and a plastic gift bag with a tie. Alternatively, you can buy these ingredients in bulk and make several gift bags instead of just one. You can even make cute gift tags like the ones I designed!      If you're making them as gifts (or if you want to make some for yourself), you'll want to give instruc...