Popping In!

Well Hello! It has been a while. First I want to let you know that my heart surgery was a success. I am so thankful for that! I am still recovering, but that is going well. I am tired. Very tired. I know that as the days go by that my energy will increase. Thanks to everyone who lifted me up in prayer!

One of the things about having restrictions and being tired is that you have time. Time to think, time to read and time to get antsy. ;) This week of little lifting and no housework has not been easy. There are so many things that I have been tempted to get up and do. I have been a good girl and have let things go. Housework will always be there. 

Chuck has been a true blessing. He has been working some mandatory overtime this week making his work days 12 hours. He has still come home and made sure that dinner is taken care of (thanks to our wonderful church family many times dinner is heating up a meal that has been provided!) and then cleaned up. Plus a million other things that have to be done that I am not able to do this week. He has always appreciated me, but I think he might have a new appreciation after all of this. 

In my time on the net I have been introduced to Laine's Letters. I have heard about her on different blogs, but never had the time to really see what the fuss was all about. I have been reading her achieves and all I can say is OH MY! I have read this, the second entry dated January 4, 2002, close to twenty times. It speaks to me. You can find all of her letters here. I plan to go through them all as I find so much encouragement and many practical things to glean from them. 

I could really use some encouragement now. This year, 2015, has been a rough year. I haven't always been a nice lady this year. Quite frankly I haven't felt well since Christmas of 2014. Add to that a heart issue and surgery all in less then two months. The news that my babysitting gig is ending at the end of the year. (The family moved, but had told me the boys would finish out the school year at their existing school, which is Megan's school. I was expecting to have the boys in my care until the end of summer.) Then there is the mountain of medical bills that are rolling in. 

It is all enough to drive a person batty! Even though I know that 2016 is going to be a lean year for us, I am looking forward to it. More then anything I am looking forward to feeling well again. Speaking of feeling well, I am about to close so that I can go take a little nap. Yes, I know that it is not even 10 this morning. ;) 

I really hope that you haven't found this entry depressing. Really, I am not depressed about all of this. Maybe a little discouraged, but I know that God is faithful. I will get stronger day by day and if my I still don't feel 100% after I recover then I will continue to make changes until I feel well. As for my worries over medical bill. That is what it is. I am grateful that I was able to have the surgery. I could feel my heart beating differently as soon as I was awake.  We will work out the financial aspect. I have found that things always work out. 

This will be my last entry for the year. I plan to rest and enjoy my family this Christmas season. I will be back in 2016 and will have plenty to catch up on. 

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. Luke 2:11

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!

Season of Quiet

I haven't been to my little home on the web in a little while. Not that I don't have plenty to post about, but I just feel the need to be quiet. Sometimes life can get out of control, especially during the season we are entering.

No need to worry that things are out of control around here. Anything but that. We are working to wrap up our garage project. Putting the flower beds and such in order for the winter. Writing list for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Planning a big shopping trip next Friday to purchase Christmas gifts. Cleaning my home from top to bottom. Keeping up with school activities.

Oh yeah, and a little heart surgery is planned for me on December 4th. ;) Lord willing my issue with the random, crazy heart beat will be fixed. If you think about it I could use some prayers for a problem free procedure, quick recovery and also that I will not be overly anxious.

So for now I am going to do the things I love most... take care of my family and home, enjoy life to the fullest and relish this season of quiet.

Joy in the Ordindary

Look around, really look around and you will find joy... joy in the everyday... joy in the ordinary things.

Fall break ended with a week of gorgeous weather.

Cool mornings and warm afternoons.

Perfect for hours of outdoor playtime.

The weekend ended with a bonfire.  I am sorry to see it end. It has been slow, simple and certainly filled with joy.

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!

Working Wednesday #3

Living in a small home (about 960 sq ft) storage and organization are always an issue. Adding some additional storage has been on the wish list for a while.  Chuck and Megan spent some time putting some storage units together.

Three large cabinets have been added to our third bedroom.

Excuse all of the clutter as this project was in full swing when I made my unexpected trip to the ER. It has certainly slowed down the progress in purging and organizing this space. 

As most of you know I keep a well stocked pantry. I buy things that we use often when they are on sale and stock up. I also do some canning. I now have a nice space to store these items. 

I had canning items and such stored on a shelf in the garage and was able to make space for them as well. I am happy because things will be cleaner and Chuck is happy because he will have more space in the garage. Win, win for both of us. 

I like that things are behind closed doors which makes the room look tidy. Now as my energy returns I have more cleaning, organizing, and purging to do in here. Look for this room to show up again in another weeks Working Wednesday. 

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!

Joy in the Ordinary

Look around, really look around and you will find joy... joy in the everyday... joy in the ordinary things.

Helping Daddy with a project.

Enjoying a lazy Saturday morning. 

Saturday afternoon I ended up in the ER.  I had an accelerated heart rate. After 25 minutes of rest and it not slowing down I decided to go in. A little medicine and it was back to a normal rhythm. A scary, strange experience. I was told to think of a beating heart like a circuit board. The circuit goes up and down and beats normal.  I got stuck in a spot on the circuit and instead of going up and down I was going in a loop. Causing an extremely fast heartbeat. I will make an appointment with a cardiologist this week and see what he has to say. Serious, yes, but so thankful that it wasn't worse. 

Megan has been trying to build a card house. She asked if this was cheating. Um, yes. You do have to give her credit for using her noggin. 

 The days are chilly and that calls for cool weather food.

The view out of my front door.

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!

Working Wednesday #2

Giving the front door a fresh coat of paint finally made it to the top of the list. The color is just a little different. A little more burgundy then the previous color.

 I had asked for a vinyl decal for Christmas with the idea to use it on the front door.  

 I love what it adds to the door.

I am feeling the push to get some projects completed as fall is coming on strong. What about you, do you have your summer projects completed?

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!

In the Kitchen

Regardless of if you are working outside of the home or a full time homemaker many hours are spent in the kitchen. I will be honest and say that I go through seasons where I enjoy my time more or less in the kitchen. I imagine that is true with everything.

We like monkey bread, but I don't make it often. Not only is it not healthy, but I always seem to have trouble getting it done in the middle. I have tried all of the tricks like cooking it longer at a lower temperature etc. It just seemed to be hit or miss for me.  I tried it a new to me way over the weekend... monkey bread muffins.

It turned out perfect! Chuck and Megan both said they like it better this way.  I also like that I can have breakfast on the table faster as the cooking time is much less for the muffins. Win, win for everyone.

We eat pork chops often as they are one of Megan's favorites. My preferred way to make them is to add salt, pepper and grill. I have heard people mention that they thought grilled chops were dry. Here is my secret... use a spray bottle with water and spritz them as you cook.  As much as like them this way I wanted to try something different. Enter brown sugar glazed pork chops.

Oh my! These were good and simple to make. Brush the chops with olive oil, salt and pepper. Then coat with brown sugar. (about 2 TBS per 2 pork chops) They have just a hint of sweetness. They were a hit all around and will be added to the menu rotation.

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!  

Joy in the Ordinary

Look around, really look around and you will find joy... joy in the everyday... joy in the ordinary things.

Pure joy as they rode double down the slight hill in the backyard.

My mother-in-law went to a new thrift store and found dresses and skirts for $0.99 each!

A little fun before we called it a night. 

Our neighbors cut down a huge tree. His profession is cutting trees and even he said this one was picture worthy. 

Sunday sunrise.

A day spent at a nature park with friends.

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!  

Working Wednesday

When Chuck and I moved into our first (and only) apartment we purchased a nice oak table. It was used for years until we outgrew it with my in home daycare. We needed a table with six chairs and since this table was an oval we didn't have enough room in our eat in kitchen the way the chairs sat around the table.

I have pretty much given up the childcare business (I have one long time family I provide after school and school holiday care for) so it was time to bring our favorite table back out. Chuck pulled it out of the barn and realized that it was really showing some wear. I have been busy sanding and adding poly to it.

It looks great!  A few more coats to go. I wish I could say the project would be done, but I still need to do the chairs. I am looking forward to having this table back in my home.

Let here what projects you are working on.

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!  

Joy in the Ordinary

Look around, really look around and you will find joy... joy in the everyday... joy in the ordinary things.

Eli celebrated his 5th birthday! He is such a loving little guy with a wonderful sense of humor.

We have examined more things then I can count in the last week. 

My parents went away for the weekend and brought this pumpkin back for Megan. She has named it Bob!

Everywhere you look there are signs of fall.

We are in the process of finishing the drywall in the garage! I can't tell you how happy I am about this. Chuck hates to mud and I know he will super happy when it is done. We are working against a deadline to have it completed before snow flies.  

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!  

Moon Gazing

Watching the moon eclipse was one of the neatest things I have ever seen. Megan stayed up late to watch it begin. She then went to sleep and we woke her up right before the eclipse was complete. Some things you just need to see with your own eyes.

This was the best I could get before the clouds moved in. Well worth the lost sleep! God's creations never cease to amaze me!

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!