Just because...

It was late. He gets home late a lot. Work does that to us. Sometimes we don't know if we own a business or if it owns us. But it was late, and I was hungry. I looked to see if he would sit in the driveway and finish up his day on the phone, and who knows how long that could take, and I was hungry. But just as I was thinking I'd go ahead and start eating without him, I saw the outside dark. No truck lights, no cell phone lights, and I knew that it meant he was coming in. And I was hungry. And he came in with a big, colorful, beautiful hydrangea and a card. Just because....



And then I forgot how hungry I was. Taken back by the beauty of that hydrangea, the perfect words on the card, and that he did it all just because. I often don't feel worthy of just because...

The next morning I was fetching some work he had brought home for me and left in his truck. And as I was digging through, I saw it. The Love Dare. Remember that book made hugely popular by the movie, Fireproof? And I knew. I knew. I knew that he had completed Day 1 with those flowers and card....which actually made them that much more special. Because everybody and their brother was reading and going through that book a few years ago. But we rather didn't get to it and let it sit on a shelf. And he's grabbed that book off the shelf, and he's not going through it because everybody else is or because it's part of a church marriage builder, but he's doing it just because....just because....he loves me....

I didn't tell him I found the book. I knew he probably wanted to go through it quietly himself. And when I told him that I had gotten the work from his truck, the look on his face told me that, indeed, he wanted to go through the book quietly...just because he loves me....

DNOW

photo credit

I decided I would serve. And I spent the better part of the week cleaning and getting ready. I think I should have been in prayer more. For their hearts. The evening was here and I met my crew. They were girls of all kinds spending the whole weekend in my home for DNOW (church youth event). Actually, they are still here, and I have a gazillion things to do, but I'm writing this instead. So, I can remember. They are all pre-teen and early teen in age, and there are sweet girls, pretty girls, popular girls, and unpopular girls. And it's one of unpopular girls who seems to have taken me back a bit. I should have a special place in my heart for unpopular girls...as I was unpopular, too. This girl is slow. Like you could tell she is maybe a special needs. And so I'm trying to make it a point to not cast her off. I think I need to try harder. They are all at church now with their leader going through there sessions and small community mission projects, and so I began to tidy up a bit. I'm just saying having 13 girls and 3 leaders in your home and spending the night for the weekend...in your small home...well, it's an excellent way to give up yourself. Anyway, I'm tidying, and putting things up. And I come upon the unpopular girls stuff. It's worn and not new and fancy like some of the other girls things. And I should have a special place in my heart for girls like that cause I grew up on the poor side and didn't always have new or fancy. I move her stuff over so I can get in a closet to put some things away. I look down and see him...or her. It's mostly covered but I can just see it enough, and I pull it out. A stuffed animal so worn and loved. And I don't know why but tears filled my eyes? Well, I do know why. In a time when pre-teen and teen girls are so past the stuffed animal stage, this young girl is not. I wonder what the popular girls, way too cool for stuffed animals would say. Well, nothing because it is a church event, but I can't help but have my heart filled by her, her tattered things, and that worn out stuffed animal.

So, I'm off. Off to pray for these young ladies in the making. And I'll pray earnestly for them all...knowing that whether unpopular or popular...we just all really need Jesus.

Finding what you want in what you give...

Every year I expected it. On my birthday, especially on my birthday. On Mother's Day. On Valentine's day. I wanted to be treated and feel like the most special person ever. Ever. And saying that now just sounds so...selfish.

Every year he never expected it. Never. Not on his birthday, not on Father's Day, not on Valentine's Day. He was content and expected little except maybe a card or some small something. But no big day long celebration of him.

But this year, I did it for him. I took the focus off of me and focused on him. His birthday was more than it's been ever, I think. And it wasn't that it took a lot of money or a grand present. It was just little things throughout the course of two days. A table set fancy, confetti, a special text or two at work, his favorite Chinese dinner. It was two days of celebrating him. And he felt so special. I know it cause he told me that night. I gave what I always want. And in the giving I found what I had been looking for all along. I felt loved and special right along with him. And this morning I find these words to be the truest....

“You only have what you give away. All that you’ll ever have is only what you’ve shared”

~ Ann Voskamp

The blue balloon...

We had been coloring. Fep reminded me I had not colored with her in several years. But a cute Winnie the Pooh coloring book in the dollar section at Target compelled me to dust off my Crayolas. And I sat there with her. She admired my coloring thinking me the queen of the Crayola. And I soaked in her love.

The next day Fep was back to coloring on her own, and she colored a picture of Christopher Robin handing Pooh a balloon. The balloon was blue and I immediately thought, "Not sure that's the color I would have chosen." Moose followed that thought with, "Fepper, why did you color the balloon blue. It's supposed t0 be red." And then we all had a big discussion on the color of the balloon in the Disney Winnie the Pooh that first aired in the late 60's. I agreed with Moose that it was red. Fep insisted it was blue. Moose dug through the old VHS's and found that first Disney made Pooh. On the back of the box was several pictures from the movie...one of Pooh on his blue balloon. I said, "Well, it may be blue on the back of the box, but I really think that's just on the box and it's red in the movie."

A night later, we piled in my bed, coloring book, Crayolas, and a bit of excitement in hand, and watched that Pooh video. And what do you know, but the balloon is blue. I asked Fepper if she looked at the box or if she just remembered it was blue. She said she just remembered it. And for some reason that filled my heart. I think it's that Fep is going to be 13 this year and to know that as she's growing that her little girl days are still in her memory and in her heart makes my heart filled with it all.....

Ooops! I did it again...

When I made that cake 9 months ago, who would have thought? Who would have ever thought that I'd actually misspell "birthday" again? Not me. That was good for a one time laugh, right?
Enter birthday cake #2.....

MMMMM HMMMMM. I misspelled birthday again!! Good grief. And I got nothing this time. I was putting those candles on that cake, got to the end to put on the "y", and thought, "Why do I have two letters left?" And then I saw what I had done....more laughs....more smiles...more memories.

Yes, I homeschool my children. Don't judge me ;)

Ohhhhh! And today, just happens to be my sweet husband's birthday. He loves me even though I can't spell "birthday"!

To Hear the Quiet....

By nature, I'm a homebody. So, that I love being a wife, mother, homemaker, comes rather naturally for me. I love having my house in order, routines, etc., etc., etc. I love every day kind of every day stuff. That December through the first week of January was none of that was rather trying for me. I tried to embrace the season, and there were moments that surely I did. But overall it was rather stressful for me. In the end, I was depleted by too many places, too many people, and too much busyness. Nothing that looked routine. Except maybe a day here or there. Probably that the Lord knew I needed that just to keep my sanity.

Now in this second week of January, I am reclaiming that life I love. This morning as I prayed, I prayed over routine, structure, and order. The people are gone, the chaos has calmed, and I find myself already being filled. Sunday evening we had a snowfall like we haven't in quite some time. Maybe 5 to 6 inches here. And I always think of winter as quiet. There is such a huge difference when you go out at night in summer and in winter. Summer nights are filled with bugs, frogs, locusts all harmonizing together. And I like that. But winter...winter nights are so quiet. There is just not a single sound to be heard. This morning as I was making my bed and looking out the window, seeing the blanket of snow which still covers the ground, I could literally hear the quiet. And I found my soul being filled...and I look forward to quiet days filled with routine, family, home, and Him.

Happy Birtday!!

A few weeks ago, we had a birthday party for a close friend. And I made him a cake. This cake...

(Rustifer is his nickname. We live by nicknames around here.)

And yes, I do homeschool my children even though I apparently cannot spell birthday correctly. There's a real reason I messed up, but I won't bore you with the details. The laughter and joking throughout the evening over it was so worth the mistake. It was the kind of laughter that makes you loose your breath. The kind of laughter that makes you cry. I just love that kind of laughter. We embraced the mistake and really got into it, because then we changed the signs....

Everybody has a birthday. But not just anybody can have a birtday ;)

Pesky...

Pesky, they are. More than just getting in our bird feeders. Here is a snippet of a recent conversation between The Bob and I:

The Bob: (working on truck, has the hood up) "Those darn squirrels are chewing on wires in my truck. They've chewed on this here. This cable has been chewed on. Look at this...."

Me: "How do you know it's the squirrels. Maybe it's mice?"

The Bob: (putting his hand into a foam covering in the top of the hood) "Because he's left his nuts in here!" (Pulls out acorns...)

Me: (walks away giggling)

:)

Their Adventure Books...

If you haven't seen the movie UP, you really should. I took my children to see it last summer, and I expected so little from it. I only went because my children wanted to see it. When I cried at the beginning of the movie and again at the end, I couldn't believe that such a little movie would bring out such emotion. And again I expected so little of it when I walked in the theater.

Yesterday, Fep put in the UP dvd. I was in the kitchen only half watching it. I was cooking up some spaghetti for supper...slicing onions to be exact. The little boy character, Russell, began telling grumpy Mr. Frederickson what he liked doing with his Dad. At the end of his conversation he said, "I know it sounds boring, but the boring stuff is what I remember most." And that line cut to my heart, and I wasn't sure if the tears were from that movie line or the onions. Maybe it was both. But I can't help but have my heart filled by that one simple statement. Because it is the boring stuff that I like to remember most from my childhood. The simple everyday stuff. And it fills my heart to know that that is what my children will remember, too. Just the simple everyday stuff their Mama did with them, that they did with their Dad, and that they did with each other. The days pass so quickly that I can't remember it all. But they will. They will remember the boring stuff the most. And just like Ellie in the movie, their Adventure Books will be full.

Just a glimpse more...

Because just one glimpse was not enough...not for my heart anyway...

Glimpses of Home....

Emily at Chatting at the Sky is hosting Glimpses of Home...just a simple something or something representing home...


I picked this because this is what I'm longing and waiting for. Plush green, flowers blooming, and front porch swinging...I'm ready for the life that Spring brings to home....

Yuletide...

like this little fella?

find more like him right here

I have a confession to make. I had to look up "yuletide" in the dictionary to see what it meant. Just in case you may be in the same boat I was in, it means "Christmas season". So yes, that title fits this post. And YES I know we've not even had Thanksgiving yet. But I like to put up the tree some time during Thanksgiving week, and seeing that we've taken a break from home schooling this week for the holiday, we put it up today. I have to say, I am like Ebenezer Scrooge when I put up the tree. Up to the attic to get down a gazillion heavy boxes. Down an attic ladder with a gazillion heavy boxes. Children rushing to see what goodies are in those boxes. Paper flying everywhere. Tangled lights. And then this...

A floor that I cannot even walk across. It's enough to make a neat and tidy person crazy. It took about 2 -3 hours to do everything, and I had to apologize two times to my children within that short time period (shamelessly hanging head low). And why? Why do I get so grumpy about it? I love it when it's finished. And I hate being this way...I wish I savored this time with my children. I think I need a professional Christmas decorator to come and do it for me. I vowed to the children today that I will not do it without the help of The Bob again. That's what his manly muscles are for...taking heavy boxes from the attic.

And when it's finished...


all is well. Even Dixie was glad to find a spot on the floor again ;)

I'm a Foodie

Hello. My name is Kat. I am a Food Network addict. You watch American Idol and like the sharp tongue of Simon Cowell, you say. Not me. I never watch that. I watch Chopped and like the sharp tongue of Alex Guarnashelli. You don't even know who that is, do you? I adore Bobby Flay, Barefoot Contessa, and Duff. I think you know that you have Food Network on a lot when your children take up the art of plating their food. Plating your food is an art, you know. You know plating it...plating food requires creativity and makes food lovely and attractive....so that you want to dig right in. Sunday, Fep was put in charge of fixing lunch after church. Moose requested a PB& J sammy no crust with chips on the side. When I come into the kitchen, this is what I see....

Yes, Fep is taking up the art of plating your food. I think she's a Foodie, too.

A Day in My Life (Part 2)

My goodness. I feel like this is the post that will never end...my hat is off to Jessica and Candy who have done several of these post. They take quite a bit of time and thought. It did for me anyway.

So, picking up where we left off....

12:15 Lunch Break. The kids ate lunch and had some "screen time" and Fep got on the computer while Moose finished a DVD he had started the day before. Then they both went outside to play. I eat, check the computer (blogging and such), clean up kitchen from lunch, finish the laundry to do for the day, and start dinner preps making a chicken casserole to put in the oven later....

Time to start back to school work at 1:20. Fep has to do spelling and history. Moose has to do spelling, penmanship, and practice guitar. Normally he would do this late afternoon /evening, but I have errands to run later, and he has guitar lessons this evening...

While the kids work on school work, I work on Payables and Receivables for our company. They finish their work and I finish mine, and we leave for the library at 2:50....

We are regular library patrons. But today, Fep "officially" gets introduced to the Dewey Decimal System. After going over it with her, I have her look up books to test her new knowledge....

After the library, I go completely brainless and forget that it took me 15 minutes to find something to wear, weight gain, etc., etc. We stop here for a Frosty...

Right across the street from Wendy's is my next stop...

Once every 4 - 6 weeks, I go to Sam's and stock up on some meat and household items. I like to buy my chicken, ground beef (or any beef), laundry detergent, and some other misc. items there. After Sam's, I take Moose to our office to meet up with his Dad who will take him to guitar lessons...I also pick up the work left in my "Box". I handle payroll, personnel stuff (benefits, insurance, 401K), and deposits....Sometimes we don't know if we own a business, or if it owns us.....Anyway, I do all my work from home, but this is the main office :)

Fep and I get back home at 6:15. I unload my Sam's purchases. She does her afternoon chores. I started back on dinner preps and looked through the work I picked up at the office. Got frustrated when looking at the work laying before me. Decided I would look at it when I was fresh tomorrow. Then I tidied up the house. I love me a tidy house. Love it with me, will you....

At 7:00, I did more dinner preps. Fep had been on the computer, and I told her it was time to get off. When she did, she set the table for dinner for later when The Bob and Moose got home. After helping, she went outside to play.

7:15...I sat down to work on this Day in My Life post. Fep comes running in to look up something about a bird she saw in the yard. Fep is a bird nerd :)

7:30....The Bob calls and he and Moose are on the way. They are running late as he forgot to transfer the company phone to the answering service and had to go back to the office :( Looks like it will be a later dinner....

8:00 The Bob and Moose arrive home. Moose is excited because his guitar teacher went over music from Star Wars with him. Moose loves Star Wars.

Then we eat dinner....chicken casserole, green beans, rice, and roll...

The cake on the end is supposed to be for a pot luck over the weekend. Oh, and The Bob is smiling in the picture, but he's really thinking, "Woman. I'm starving. Come on and let's eat!" ;)

8:20 The Bob and I go on the front porch to talk while the children clean up the kitchen. When they get dinner and the kitchen cleaned up they join us. And we all chat for a few minutes.

8:45 We come inside. We decide that the cake I bought will not make until the potluck on Sunday, and we decide to cut it and have a piece ;) The Bob checks emails from work, I lay down on the couch and listen to a sermon on CD from my pastor, and the children play.

9:00 The children get their baths and resume play afterwards.

9:45 The Bob comes to chat with me on the couch, so I turn off the sermon I've been listening to. It's a sermon on submission. The Bob comments it sounds like a good sermon, and asked if I put it on for him to hear. I told him no that it was on the wife's role, but if he wanted I could give him the sermon CD on the husband's role ;) We chat for about 15 minutes and realize that it's 10:00 and that the kids should have been in bed 30 minutes to an hour ago. At 10:00 we all go to bed....

I'm not sure if this was a typical day. But this was my day yesterday. The Bob works a lot of hours, but if at all possible, we try to eat earlier in the evening. 8:00 is not our normal eating time. Also, the days I don't have to leave the house don't seem so hectic. As I scan back over this day, I think it looks like I'm living like a crazy woman. But the day really did flow smoothly. My heart's desire is to be at home and to be a keeper of my home for my family and for the Lord.

A Day in My Life (Part 1)...

There are a couple of blogs that I like to visit that will from time to time take you through their day in words and pictures. I really like that. I don't know why, because it's just everyday stuff? But I like it. I like it a lot. I've always wanted to do "A Day in the Life of Me" post, but I knew how much time it would probably take. And I was right. So, my daily life will be done in two parts. I'd also like to add that when you do this it makes you extremely mindful of how you are spending your time and your actions. Extremely. So, I've found this to be a beneficial little experiment of sorts. So, here we go....oh, and these pictures are so blurry. One day I'll have a nice camera.....

7:15 am - Rise and shine little lady. You're getting up late!!! (I should get up at 6:30). Have coffee, swing with Fep on the front porch, make hummingbird feed for their feeder, and start laundry...

8:00 am - Go to my room for personal bible time and devotion which I always do in my unmade bed...

While I'm doing this the children are working on their morning chores and stuff...

8:30 am - Look for something to wear - this took 15 minutes!!!! I knew I'd end up in a picture so I was trying to look my best. It didn't happen, and it took 15 minutes because I've gained 14 lbs., and my clothing options are very limited at the moment. (Sigh) I also reboot the laundry.

8:50 am - Clothing picked out, I get in the shower, then dress, put on make up and fix my hair. I'm high maintenance, and I always fix my hair and put on makeup. Always. I'm high maintenance, plus I need it. If you know what I'm sayin'!

9:33 I'm ready and I decide that my bed will have to wait and we need to start on school.

We go to the front porch swing to start school off with our Bible lesson...

Then, I started Fep on English and Moose on Math...

After I got them started, I made my bed, folded laundry, and emptied the sink of dishes....
I had to stop mid fold on the laundry and help Moose with his next subject...you can see he takes it very seriously ;) The pile beside me was the laundry I'd been working on....

Moose finished up his morning school work. He worked from 9:30 to 11:00 he did Bible, Math, English, Reading, and Science. Fep did not get finished until 12:15, and she did Bible, Math, English, Reading, and Science also. Moose is in the 3rd grade and Fep the 6th. She has quite a bit more work than he does. At 12:15 we stopped for lunch. The kids had frozen pizza, and remembering that it took me 15 minutes to find something to wear, I had a Weight Watchers friendly sandwich and pretzels...a 7 point value :)

Are you tired of this yet? I just about am...but part 2 will come tomorrow :) There's more school, more housework, some errands, and just.....life.

"When you're smiling..."

"When you're smiling, when you're smiling, the whole world smiles with you." Do you know that song? We sing it all the time. Anyway, these are just a couple of the many things in my home that makes me smile. First I give you...

This was the first Christmas present Fep ever bought me herself. She was around 5 years old at the time. In additon to Heather, I have another best buddy, Lisa, who took her to Dollar Tree so she could have something to give her Mamma that she picked out and that she paid for herself. I remember that Fep even wrapped it. You can imagine what 5 year old wrapping looks like. This little angel only cost a dollar, but I wouldn't take a hundred for it. It warms my heart every time I think about the thought that went into it.

Then another smile maker is....

Heather gave me this this past Christmas. I love it. I absolutely love it. It sets of the china cabinet beeeeyouteeefully. Real nice, it does. Oh, and if you love it, too, she makes them and sells them in her Etsy Shop. And I'm sure yours would make you smile, too. And really, this is not just a Heather promo because we are best buds. I love that tassel, and I've gotten compliments on it. It's a real smile maker.

And finally....

I made this blueberry jam this morning. It will make me smile when it's in my belly ;)

For more smiles....

Did you know?

Did you know that yesterday was Flag Day? I didn't until I read Dawn's Blog this morning. Thanks, Dawn :) Even though we didn't know yesterday was Flag Day, it just so happens that we did put up a new American Flag yesterday. What a wonderful coincidence!

Other activities for our Sunday....

Rupert does The Dog...

Granny comes for a visit...

And we take in the Lord's beautiful creation...