Life Happens...

I have such good intentions of blogging more often but life happens & then I figure, "Who is really interested in reading more often anyway?" :)

#1244 ~ laughter

It's an amazing morning here thus far with the outside temperature on the computer registering 57 degrees. Up until late Tuesday night, the air-conditioning in our home had remained DISABLED as the majority of us are not inclined to frigid temperatures. (We are also attempting to cut down on energy costs.) Finally when the living room thermostat reached 94 degrees, we decided to turn it on in order to help us sleep better. Last night, it went back OFF! :) In all actuality, all four of us prefer to having the windows open & waking to fresh air, singing birds & sunshine streaming down on us. :) Mallary's infamous retort is always, "They didn't have air in the 1800's & we don't need air now!" I'm grateful for the simplicity of our girls. ♥

#1222 ~ daughters who serve

The company that Kyle works for was on vacation shut-down starting June 28th through July 8th, so us girls had our favorite guy all to ourselves for ten days straight. *Bliss* ♥ In the past the plant closed for two weeks every summer but due to production demands, that time frame has been shortened.  Typically we do things & go places & spend money & fill our days but this year we chose not to for several reasons. It was a tough decision that took much discipline yet when it was all said & done, we were grateful. ♥

#1250 ~ nieces who fit right in

We:
*stayed HOME
*slept in the tent in the backyard (ugh)
*cut wood for the firepit
*swam in the pool
*worked in the garden
*played LOTS of Scrabble & Yahtzee
*sat around the firepit most every night
*ate s'mores
*read our Bibles
*discussed Scriptures
*shared what God is teaching us & how He is working in our lives
*made breakfast together
*went for walks
*took in a baseball game with fireworks following
*sat under the shade tree
*cross-stitched
*colored
*read the biography of Corrie Ten Boom aloud
*drank LOTS of coffee ♥
*shared supper one evening with friends
*enjoyed a 4th of July parade with Marci's family & another friend & her family ♥
*found contentment in SIMPLE life... ♥

#1251 ~ a sister, my sister who blesses my day

Honestly, I loved every moment of it all except for...sleeping in the tent. Ugh. I'm all for being festive & I love the "idea" of it but really... Roosters crowing at 4:45 a.m. (yes ours) & (yes the ones I asked for), dogs barking (from all different directions), car alarms going off in the near distance, trucks zooming by (at two in the morning), bulls bellowing (longing for the ladies across the fence for don't you know...it's always better on the other side), crows cawing, cats scratching to get in, frogs singing... I like sleep & I like laying as close to my man as I can when I bed down for the night & neither of those things really happened. I mean, how do you lay as close as you can when you're sleeping on ground as hard as cement, angled down hill & have six layers of blankets on you?!? And how does one sleep with so many random ongoing noises!?! We slept in the beloved tent five or six of the nights & by the end, I'd had enough tent to last me...until they decide to put it up again. My word for the year is "savor" so I will purpose to "savor" even those unrestful, uncomfortable, make-me-cranky nights in the tent, for one day our girlies will no longer be home to make such memories. ♥

Pool maintenance man that I love so much...♥

Beyond thankful for their willingness to help out & work hard...♥

Nearly the death of me...

Love time together in the pool...♥

Never too big...♥

Love the attire...♥

Preparing for the evening firepit...♥

Love watching them work together...♥

♥

Fixing up a nearly broken toe...♥

Baseball fun with great friends...♥

Celebrating FREEDOM...♥

Love this little man... ♥
Tuck riding with his daddy in the firetruck at the parade...♥

MaKayla loves the blessing of these two lives...♥

#1247 ~ children of friends

Taco salads under the shade tree...♥

Cross stitching...♥

Reading Corrie Ten Boom of an afternoon...
Yes, I am aware of all the "pepper" in my hair...
Kyle loves it...♥

Intently concentrating...♥

Firepit food...♥

Yahtzee...♥

Scrabble & cookies...♥

The best BBQ chicken you will EVER eat...♥
Grilled by hands I love...♥

Sisters...♥

Thankful...♥

Three lives that bless me EVERY day...♥

War declared...

♥

They DO know better...♥

Down ya' go...♥

Victory is won!!!

Not having Kyle around has been a MAJOR adjustment & although we are somewhat back into a routine this week has been a busy one already with Savannah & Ciera spending the day with us Tuesday & Jordan joining us for a bit that evening. Having Jordan here resulted in me/us getting to see Marci/Mark which I/we always love & a trip to the Frosty for a yummy but not-so-healthy twist ice cream cone. Yesterday morning MaKayla had a commitment & since we were so close & couldn't pass up the opportunity, Mal & I went & visited Julie & Bryant. MaKayla joined us later & gave Julie a pedicure & fresh paint & design on her toes. Of course we stayed longer than planned so that everyone could get their turn in on snuggling Bryant. (I got the short end of the stick as Mal is a baby hog...and then MaKayla thought she HAD to HAVE her turn.) It is always so good to sit & chat with Julie. We think alike in so many areas & greatly enjoy any time we get to spend together. Last night was Worship Team practice for everyone but me (not musically inclined AT ALL), so I was blessed to take a good walk & enjoy a refreshing visit with Dawn. Always, always a blessing to my heart. ♥ Today is laundry, regroup, mow the yard & be with my girls.

♥

♥

LOVE...♥

#1252 ~ scent of baby

Sorry for all the pictures yet I know some of you LOVE them so here-ya-go. :)

Thanks for sharing life with us. We love each of you & pray your day is abundantly blessed. ♥

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; 

all who follow His precepts have good understanding.

To Him belongs eternal praise.

~Psalm 111:10~

Simple Joy...

Sitting here with my cup of coffee, thanking God for a new day...
A day already sprinkled with sunshine...
Reflecting on the goodness, graciousness & provision of a faithful Savior...

#999 ~ the inexhaustible hope of Christ

Life has been abundantly full the past several weeks, thus the reason for lagging blog posts. With teaching two separate studies (covering totally different subjects yet all centered around God's Word), being a wife, mom, homeschool teacher...doing laundry, dishes & housework...fixing meals, mending hearts, nurturing lives...time goes. The days pass. The weeks disappear. The months dissipate. It's called life. ♥

Our good friend, Julie came for a visit a few weeks back & we were very excited to see her. She & her husband, Brian will be welcoming their first "arrow" in the very near future. MaKayla was ecstatic to be able to see/touch/pat Julie's baby bump (us girls in this family love baby bumps :) & it was so much fun to be able to catch up on life with her. Julie has been a "mainstay" in our family for several years now; mentoring MaKayla in quizzing, helping to care for our girls during Kyle's illness & simply being a tried-and-true friend. We love, love, love her. ♥

The chicken coop is coming right along & most everything is done with the exception of hanging "siding" on the outside of the structure. The butcher/broiler chickens will soon be meeting their demise :), our layers are growing, growing, growing & our ducks have finally found the outside world as their permanent residence. (We were never so glad to get the dears out the door...) Along the way we've added to our brood & now have 50 plus laying hens. As we were doing research people commented on how addicting this type of thing could be & although I simply couldn't fathom it, I now completely understand  the concept. :) We have several different varieties & are truly enjoying their presence here on our home front.

When we went in to Orschlen's a week or so ago to get chicken feed, we of course had to go back & see what "new stock" they had received as far as poultry & ended up bringing this precious little guy home (along with 12 more layers...)

A baby gosling that had arrived injured/handicapped... One of the managers on duty asked if we would be interested in taking him & MaKayla immediately responded, "No. We don't want/need a goose (she has one that incessantly chases/hisses at her at Jon & Jane's) & it will probably die. I DO NOT want to take home another animal that I am just going to get attached to that will eventually not make it..." I called Kyle & he said, "Aww... Yeah, bring it home." I'm all about submission so we boxed him up & brought him to his new residence (much to MaKayla's dismay). He simply could not walk. at. all. We tried putting him in with the ducks (that was before they got booted out the door) & they just trampled him, ate his food & emptied his water dish repeatedly. After one night of that, we constructed him his own little home in our living/dining room.

We did a great deal of research on what his problem might be & alternative ways to correct it but nothing worked. We made splints for his feet & tied his legs together... That only seemed to make things worse. MaKayla called the vet but they were out of the office & way behind so it would be Monday before they could get back to her. We cuddled him, played with him, named him, gave him baths & just loved him. By the time Monday rolled around MaKayla had worked with him enough that he was actually walking but he wasn't eating at all & drinking very little. His strength was gone & he was pretty much lethargic. MaKayla talked to Dr. Joe on the phone & he mentioned a few possibilities to her. We attempted to find the supplements he recommended but to no avail no one had it. We hashed around the idea of taking him to see Dr. Joe on Tuesday but weren't overly keen on paying an office visit (I mean really, who takes a baby goose to the vet) as well as spending out a significant amount of money on shots (antibiotics were mentioned) or other medications. As we tucked him in for bed Monday night, MaKayla was in tears & I simply just prayed that if there was no hope for his little life, that God would allow him to go to sleep & pass away therein. Neither Kyle nor myself slept much that night wondering... He got up & checked on him a few times & both times 'Harrington' was still hanging on, which to me meant that God had a plan... By 5:00 Tuesday morning, he was more lively but still not "thriving" & at 10:30 we were sitting in the vet clinic waiting... Mal HATES going to there as every time we do go, the news is bad & we end up saying good-bye to someone we love... Dr. Joe looked him over good, looked up at MaKayla & said, "I think he's gonna be just fine..." ♥

#987 ~ Dr. Joe's affirmation on Harrington's health/life

Simple joy...

I was still skeptical as the little guy still wasn't eating or drinking but I chose to trust... You see, when MaKayla brought Winston home & we cared for him, we didn't exercise our faith like we could have/should have. We fell short & just resolved that there was no hope...no options...no chance for Divine healing... I'm a firm believer that God CAN & WILL use anything we allow Him to, to build our children's faith. With Winston, I fell short, gave in & defaulted to hopelessness rather than FAITH. A building block. A learning lesson. A life/spirit-changing experience. I wasn't going to make the same mistake again...

As the days have progressed, through God's touch, MaKayla's nurturing & lots of TLC from the rest of us, he is thriving, active & changing every day. He is held a bunch, doted on constantly, worked with frequently & loved in unending measures. To be honest, he's completely spoiled.... ♥

Once this Bible study season comes to a close, I hope to be back to blogging more regularly. I truly miss it...sharing how God is speaking as well as the events taking place in our lives/family however I remind myself daily (many times a day) that my focus must be on what is most important...my family & what God has entrusted to me. It's a fine line...a distinct balance.

Thanks for stopping by... ♥

"Ah, Sovereign LORD, 

You have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. 

Nothing is too hard for you."

Jeremiah 32:17