A Day to Myself

I received an early morning call that one of the boys I watch was sick and both would be spending the day at home.  It has been what seems like forever since I had a day to myself!  Things went on as normal and then Megan was off to school.  Oh what should I do....

The first thing I did was curl up on the couch with a cup of tea and watched some mind numbing TV and surfed the net a little bit. 

Then it was time to get some housework done.

While I was dusting, making beds and doing a general tidy the laundry was working away.

The one task that never stays complete for more then a few hours.  Not a complaint, just an observation.  During a recent sermon I heard that if you have more then two extra outfits then you are wealthy by the world's standards. 

Some of the afternoon was spent outside. The only thing left in the garden is tomatoes. 

Then it was time to head out to pick up Megan and run a quick errand to pick up my glasses. 

I have been waiting not so patiently for these.  I broke my other pair and my back up has a big scratch across one of the lenses.  Not fun!

After dinner my parents called and asked us out for ice cream.  A nice way to wrap the day up.

I love the boys dearly but it was really nice to go about my task without helping little hands.  A nice break for sure!

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!

Simple Pleasures

Simple pleasures are best. ~ Alan Bradley

 

Flowers for fall.

 

 

Anticipation for homemade pizza.

 

 

Late season green beans thanks to my mom planting a second crop.

 

 

The gentle rain hitting a metal roof. 

 

 

Running for parade candy.

 

 

Enjoying the change of season.

 

Watching imagination at work.

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!

Out and About

Saturday was a gorgeous day! The sun was shining, the sky was blue and you could feel a touch of fall in the air. There were some errands we needed to run and decided it was a perfect day to jump in the van and get them all done. Hop in and enjoy the ride!

 

The first stop was our favorite place for eggs.  Four dozen in the cooler.  I hope these stretch farther then the week and a half the last batch lasted.  Not only do I enjoy eggs for breakfast I like chicken and egg salad for lunch. Oh yeah and I can't forget the baking. 

 

 

Did I mention it was a beautiful day!? 

 

 

The next stop was the bookstore.

 

 

My dear mother-in-law asked if I could pick up some books for us to read if she gave me a gift card.  Why yes, I would be happy to! 

 

 

Me in a book store is like a kid in a candy store.  :)

 

This little girl was happy as she picked up some tabs to make it easier to navigate during her quiet time. 

 

 

Then it was through the drive thru for a prescription. 

 

 

We then zipped across the street to pick up a few sale items. 

 

 

While shopping my father-in-law called.  Would we like to come by for lunch.  Sure!  We live very close to this store and dropped off our goodies and then hopped on the interstate.   

 

 

My father-in-law lives on the other side of town.  It was worth the drive.  We enjoyed a nice lunch outside and then Megan wanted to go out in the woods. Before she left she grabbed a stick and she and papaw made a fishing pole. 

 

 

"Fishing" at the pond.  We could really tell the lack of rain as the pond is down about five feet.  I thought her fishing was so stinkin' cute! 

 

 

On the way out the woods we saw a turtle.  Papaw talks about the turtles all the time but this is the first time that one of the grandkids got to see one.  Neat!

 

 

A couple of hours later we were back on the road.  We stopped at my parents to drop something off and Megan ended up staying there for dinner and Chuck and I left to do our big grocery shopping. 

 

 

Megan was all smiles when she returned home.  She was into Grammi's scraps and created a vest and headband.  She was super proud of her creation. 

 

 

Then it was time to unload.   Enough to last through November.  I am sure you can imagine there were a ton of bags. 

 

Once everything was put away I sat on the back porch enjoying my tea and watching night fall.  Sure it was a long, busy day but also a productive one.  Now other then a quick trip for milk or fresh produce I can stay home for several weeks and enjoy a good book or two! 

So tell me do like to hit the road and get it all done at once? 

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!

Capturing the Moment

We are blessed to attend a wonderful Bible based church.  There is a family there that really has a heart for children.  In fact they bought several acres years ago and have been building a youth ministry.  Their daughter is close to Megan's age so she is in the same class with her at church.  This couple volunteer to teach the class Megan is in at least three Sundays a month.  They are wonderful!

One of the things that they encourage is quiet time.  Each week they have a quiet time sheet that the children can pick up.  Megan mentioned it a couple of times and I said she should pick one up if she wanted.  A couple of weeks passed and she brought one home.

Each evening we go into Megan's room and as a family read from a Bible bedtime story book.  After the story it has questions so it encourages us to discuss what we just read.  Anyway, after reading Megan prays and then she gets 15 minutes of quiet time.  Sometimes she would draw and other times she would read.  We are flexible about what she does as long as she stays in bed and is quiet.  After bringing home the sheet from church she started to have true quiet time.  Be still my heart!

Fast forward to the end of the week and we are back at church.  When we took Megan to her class we told Mike and Pam about Megan's quiet time.  After church Pam came looking for me to tell me that Megan was such an encouragement to the class.  That they mentioned that someone had completed quiet time for a week and they mentioned Megan's name.  She said she was all smiles.  They have an offering time were the children offer something they will do that week to honor God.  Pam said that most of the children followed Megan's example and said they were going to have quiet time this week! 

Megan is continuing to have quiet time each evening and makes it a priority. The thing that warms my heart is that no one made her do this.  With a little bit of encouragement she took the initiative to do this herself.  It brings tears to my eyes when I think about how God is working in her little heart.  We are super proud of her!

It's That Time Again

The last few days it has been on the cool side here.  Yesterday I went to sit on the back porch after dinner.  I was out maybe five minutes and had to come in because I was getting cold.  So cold in fact that I broke out the hot chocolate! (You can find the recipe here.)

Megan was delighted and requested extra marshmallows.  

The news is reporting that it is going to warm up again.  I am happy to hear that as I am not quite ready for it to be a hot chocolate day everyday.  I like the gentle change of the season so I can throw the windows open and enjoy just a little nip before it get super cool.

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!

Rainy Morning

It seems like forever since we have had a truly rainy morning.  For months it has been no rain or a quick shower.    When I opened the front door I could tell that it had rained as the sidewalk and edge of the porch were wet. A true blessing as I vaguely heard a report about crop failure if we didn't get more rain. As the season changes I have had to turn lights on for the beginning of our day. This day the light had to stay on as it was a dark, gray morning. Then the skies opened up and it poured.

A rainy day is perfect for:

Pancakes!  Don't forget to add little bit of fall seasoning:  pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon or maybe a little nutmeg.

Enjoying the aroma of dinner cooking.

Lighting a candle.

Although it was short lived and it ended before lunch I loved every minute of it!  It caused me to slow down and spend some time fluffing the nest.  Praising God for some much needed rain and the slow down to enjoy simple pleasures!

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!

When Things Don't Go As Planned...

I was having one of those days.  I was overly tired as we stayed out late the night before with our home group.  Once home I couldn't fall asleep and then I was wide awake early the next morning.  It was decided that it would be a great night for delivery.  The pizza was ordered and I knew I needed a little pick me up.  Instead of grabbing some paper plates and rushing through dinner I decided to go the extra mile.

A quilt was thrown over the outside table and real plates were brought out.  Candles were lit, flowers were moved to the table.   The pizza was even transferred to a pizza pan instead of the box.  I was ready to have a nice relaxing meal with my family.  To come away from it feeling a bit refreshed.

Then the bee arrived.  It arrived and decided to stay.  Megan was about ready to freak out!  She ended up jumping up and running inside.  The flyswatter was brought out and we tried to get that little guy.  No luck!  After a few minutes of looking like crazy people swatting at a bee I blew out the candles and we retreated inside. 

I will admit at this moment I was low.  The peace, beauty and refreshment I so desired was not to be.  I sat at the kitchen table on the verse of tears. (Remember I have been having one of those days.)  I looked at Megan and then thought.... Is this a test?  She is watching me, learning from me by how I react.  I really wanted to cry and say how unfair it was.  I just wanted a little peace.  A little beauty.  A little recharge.  I didn't say any of those things.   Do I want Megan to mask or hide her emotions?  Of course not.  I do, however, want her to handle her emotions.  Not to stamp her foot like a spoiled brat when things don't go as planned.  There are always going to be things, many things, that fall short of our expectations. 

I took a deep breath, said a prayer or two and put a smile on my face.  I picked up the pizza pan and offered my family another slice.  What could have been tears and complete disappointment for me turned out just fine.  We laughed... we teased... we enjoyed pizza pie and I grew.   

Faith is often strengthened right at the place of disappointment. ~ Rodney McBride
 

May you day be filled with joy and contentment!

Pinned It, Made It: Salt Writing

I imagine most of us have seen this by now as it was on a very popular blog. It was one of those things where I went "why didn't I think of that!" Anyway, I brought it to the table late on a Friday afternoon.

The boys were entertained as Eli drew whatever, Abe practiced writing his name and Megan wrote her spelling words.

By the time we were finished Megan knew how to spell all of her spelling words for the next week. Yes! By the end it was a little messy. Next time we will move it to the outside table. Trust me there will be a next time. I don't think we have ever mastered all twenty spelling words that fast!

 May you day be filled with joy and contentment!

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