"In August, the large masses of berries, which, when in flower, had attracted many wild bees, gradually assumed their bright velvety crimson hue, and by their weight again bent down and broke their tender limbs."
02 August 2008
31 July 2008
Thankful Thursday
It has been a long time since I did one of these posts, and I have so very much to be grateful for.
Thou art my God, and I will praise Thee:
Thou art my God, I will exalt Thee.
O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good:
for His mercy endureth for ever.
~Psalm 118:28&29
I am thankful that I am alive...and healthy...and even moreso that I have the promise of eternal life...with God...in heaven; how cool is that?!
I am thankful that I live in Texas...even though it is ridiculously hot...almost every day...for months without end; but this is where He has me, so it is where I am supposed to be...and the homeschool laws are great...and I love my church family...and I have wonderful friends here...and a home...and two dogs...and airconditioners...all of which I am thankful for.
I am thankful for the wonderful parents that I was blessed to have been raised by...even though I miss my daddy something fierce...and my mama has alzheimer's...so I kinda miss her in a differen sort of way...I know they loved me...and they loved God too...and taught me about His love.
I am thankful for my husband...who loves me pretty much unconditionally...and would give me anything I want...or do anything for me that is within his power to do...and besides that is a great dad...and incredibly handsome...and does his own laundry...and makes the bed...and prays for me...and is so much more than I deserve...or ever thought I could have.
I am thankful for my children...all seven of them...with their unique personalities...and their talents and abilities...and their challenges...and the many things that God is teaching me through them...and the incredible privilege of being their mama.
I am thankful for God's Word...in my own language...which I can afford...and carry with me...and read whenever I want...or need to
I am thankful for mountains...trees...oceans, rivers, and lakes
for sunrises...cool morning walks...and a warm cuppa tea
for books...and music...and art...and poetry...and for those with the gifts to create beauty...and the desire to share
It's a sign of mediocrity when you demonstrate gratitude with moderation.
~Roberto Benigni
28 July 2008
Pray for the persecuted church in China
From Marlene Behne, who is the assistant to the editor at The Voice of the Martyrs Persecution BlogVoice of the Martyrs Persecution Blog:
As you may be aware, the Olympics this year are being held in China, and China is one of the world's greatest persecutors of Christians. This prayer band will remind you to pray for the Chinese who are suffering for their faith while the whole world is looking at China during the Olympics.
The Simple Woman's Daybook
read more or join in FOR TODAY
~ Monday, 28 July, 2008 ~
Outside My Window...sunrise
I am thinking...what can i give my oldest for her 18th birthday next week?
I am thankful for...God's mercies, which are new every morning
From the kitchen...fresh bread for snack this afternoon
I am wearing...my pj's and robe
I am creating...a shopping list
I am going...grocery shopping
I am reading...The Voyage of the Dawn Treader aloud to my children
I am hoping...for at least one day this week when i will not have to go anywhere
I am hearing...the hum of the air conditioner
Around the house...the weekend mess awaits our attention
One of my favorite things...two this week ~ getting caught in a rainstorm with my three younger children & IKEA dream~shopping with two of my girls
A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week:
cleaning focus: kitchen ~ decluttering focus: laundry ~ a special teatime with Frap
Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you...
I found this photo at stock.xchng
20 July 2008
Sunday Night Random Ramblin' Thoughts
Last week we went to the DMV to get photo IDs for the three children going on our church's Labor Day Weekend mission trip to Saltillo, Mexico.
My husband's passport arrived in the mail.
This week the kids will be doing a few things to earn some money for that trip. Tomorrow O Special One and Sergeant Elf will be going over to help a lady from church with some cleaning/organizing and take turns watching her baby, and next weekend my husband and J~Man will be painting the same family's fence as well as their neighbor's.
Frap and Sergeant Elf went last year, Frap and her dad went the year before, and Tibby and dad went on another Mexico mission a couple of years before that. This means that Lulapalooza, Toodles, and I will be the only ones who haven't been south of the border yet.
In homeschool news ~ the kids have two weeks of studies left followed by a one week break. After that we will only have 13 weeks left for this year which we will probably break up with another two week break. This year has gone well, and it just seems to be flying.
I went to the library on Saturday with Frap and O Special One. I checked out three cookbooks: Totally Dairy-Free Cooking by Louis Lanza and Laura Morton ~ which is okay, The Big Book of Easy Suppers by Maryana Vollstedt ~ which I am thoroughly enjoying and from which I am copying recipes copiously, and The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters ~ which is going on my wishlist! I also got Behind the Mask : A Book about Prepositions by Ruth Heller ~ which we will be using in our studies over the next couple of weeks.
Also on Saturday I spent most of the evening helping get set up for the Grand Opening of The Christian Home Library. I will probably be there most of Monday and Tuesday also. We are so excited about our new location! If you are in the Austin area come by and check it out Tuesday afternoon, and if you live elsewhere in the U.S. please bookmark our web site, because our plan is to be able to ship nation-wide once we get our inventory catalogued and our database up and running. (This is still a way off, but it will be worth the wait!)
I am still not caught up in the kitchen (or the laundry, or anywhere else for that matter), but my terrific husband helped out quite a bit over the weekend, so I may actually get it done this week if I can manage to stay home a bit. I did get menu plans and a shopping list done, so, "Yay me!"
I have taken over Tibby's part-time nanny job since she got a real job at Olive Garden. They didn't need me any last week (which had a negative impact on my food budget); they need me on Friday and Saturday this week and possibly before that, but I won't know until she calls me tomorrow.
The puppies are finally finished with their vet appointments for shots, etc. Having a dog is certainly a lot more involved (read: expensive!) than it was when I was a kid. I cannot believe that in four months we have shelled out over $800, and that doesn't include the food. We love them though, and they are wonderful, sweet mutts. They have grown so much. The SPCA where we got them classified them as beagles ~ HA! ~ Sebastian is 40 pounds already, and Aylin weighs just four pounds less at 6 months old. They defenitely have something bigger than beagle in their bloodline.
The weather here is miserably hot (90 degrees as I am typing this at 10 p.m.) this is the 29th day of 100 degree temps in the last two months. I will never get used to this ~ ugh!
So, in addition to housework (finish cleaning my kitchen), and teaching, my plans for this week are:
Monday ~ take girls to help; work in Library
Tuesday ~ take boys to gymnastics; work in Library ~ Grand Opening!
Wednesday ~ grocery shop if I haven't already; maybe work nanny job; Sgt. Elf's drum lesson
Thursday ~ Sgt. Elf's dance lesson
Friday ~ Toodles' dance lesson; work nanny job
Saturday ~ work nanny job
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