Fire!

We had our first fire of the season which delighted Megan. She has been asking for quite a while and we told her that we would have one sometime this week. She had been not always patiently waiting for this to happen.  We keep looking at the clouds wondering if it would or wouldn't rain. Finally I said lets just go for it. We felt a few rain drops here and there and thankfully that was it. 

I didn't have graham crackers for the the s'mores so I substituted chocolate chip cookies. Sometimes in making do you find a great alternative. I loved this!

Although I am not a fan of pictures of myself you might start to see a few more. I am who I am and if I hide behind the camera my future family members may wonder if I actually enjoyed and took part in the life I was given. The answer to that is a definate yes! I may not be happy with my picture, but I am certainly happy with my life. 

One happy little girl! The late night wore her out. As I type this at almost 8:30 she is still sound asleep. I am enjoying the slower pace of summer and vacation!

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.

I can think of a better place to read a book.

Swings on tree branches are the best!

While making dinner I opened the dishwasher to load in some dirty dishes and realized I hadn't emptied it. Megan jumped in and took care the task. She said she likes to be my helper. :)

Delivering dinner to the family of our new pastor. 

May your day be filled with joy and contentment! 

 

A Little Craft Time

I had the urge to do some crafting. I didn't want to make a trip to the craft store so I started brainstorming. I remembered something that I had seen on Pinterest and thought I could make it happen. (I thought I had pinned it, but I didn't. I tried to find the original, but you know sometimes looking for something on Pinterest is like going down a rabbit hole.)

Since it feels like we live at the home improvent store I was able to pick up paint sticks without making an extra trip out, 

Chuck cut them for me and then I sprayed them with white paint.

I hot glued them together and then created a banner. The letters are stickers that I picked up on clearance for a dollar. 

I lined the tray on my stove with scarpbook papers and used an old milk bottle with button flowers to complete it. I am feeling the need for simple at the moment and this fits that need perfectly. 

May your day be filled with joy and contentment! 

 

Wrap Up

The last couple of weeks have been extra busy. The school year has wrapped up and there were many activities.

Abe graduated from kindergarten. 

There was field day full of lots of water fun and ice cream.

The last big project of third grade was writing first person biographies and putting on what was called a wax museum.  Each student dressed in character and then recited the story of their persons life. Above you can see Betsy Ross and Clara Barton.

Finally school has ended. I think I might be more excited then Megan.  There were awards and then the annual balloon launch.  Each student writes a Bible verse on the card attached to their balloon in the hope that it will spread the gospel. 

I have this last area to paint on the back porch.  It will be the second coat and then the painting is complete.  The roof was installed this week.  We about killed ourselves getting the second coat on the rafters the night before the roof installation. 

I plan to paint this afternoon and then spend the weekend getting everything clean and tidy. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I am looking forward to marking this project off of my list.

Next week Chuck is on vacation and the boys will be taking their family vacation also. Our little family will be staying home. We are looking forward to completing or at least starting some projects and spending some time enjoying each other. 

May your day be filled with joy and contentment! 

 

Occupied

All of my "spare" time the last week has been devoted to painting the back porch. I spent the first few days of last week scraping off the old, loose paint.

It is a huge project, but oh so necessary. We are getting a new roof due to hail damage. The crew came and removed the old roof and realized that they had the wrong material. The correct roofing should be in this week so this is a rush project. 

The first coat was finished Thurday evening. Just in time as it rained Friday and there are showers in the forecast through Monday. Oh how I wish we could paint this weekend, but it is what it is. Come Tuesday my time will once again be devoted to this project. I am looking forward to getting this done as my flower beds are calling my name!

  

Blooms

Have I mentioned that this my favorite time of the year? :)

This is my favorite.

I used a hanging basket and took off the hanger and placed in a bucket I found on my grandparents old farm.  Love!

I don't know if planting the garden or planting flowers brings me the most joy. It is a toss up.

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!

  

Weekend Happenings

What a great weekend! The sky was blue, the sun was shinning and finally the temperatures are rising. We had a wonderful time slowly going about our task. Friday night Chuck helped Megan put together a kit from the hardware store.

Most of Saturday was spent outside. I did some weeding and thinned some plants, Megan played and once again we ate dinner outside. There is something about eating on the back porch that makes dinner slow and more enjoyable.

Most of Sunday was spent on the go. Here we are Sunday morning ready to roll. Chuck's work partner retired last week and we attended a wonderful luncheon to honor him. I know Chuck is going to miss working with Gary. 

Once home we readied that last two raised beds. 

Peas were planted in one and the other is waitng for some strawberry plants to be added. 

I am once again working on painting the inside of my kitchen cabinets. Megan put the last coat on the shelves and I hope to get the cabinet put back together tomorrow and start the next one. It is certainly a time consuming project, but the results are fabulous.

The big garden was tilled! Thanks to my wonderful dad and his lovely assistant.

I can't tell you how happy I am that the weather has broke. I am an outside girl and love this time of year!

May your day be filled with joy and contentment!