A very random updatey kind of post

As usual, I have been a bad blogger. I always tell myself I need to be more faithful and then I never am. Reminds me of my plans to stay on top of the ironing. *sigh*

Life here is going along at an alarming rate. How in the world can it be time to decorate for Christmas already? My goodness gracious! I feel as though I just did it! There is truth to the fact that the older one gets, the faster time seems to move. I have enjoyed fall tremendously this year. The mild weather, however has lulled me into believing it will continue forever. Not so. Time to pull out the greens!

School is going well. We just keep working hard every day, being diligent. Slow and steady does win the race. Myles curriculum is so interesting that it is making it easy to stick to it. The eastern hemisphere is something we know so little about. Curiosity has us by the hook. Did you know that in Japan, a child is one when they are born? The Japanese consider the time in the womb the first year of life. I found that so amazing. And beautiful.

Marcus and I are enjoying a Literature Seminar. We go each week to meet with a small group of homeschoolers to discuss a work of literature. I think I may be enjoying it even more than he is. I just love a good work of literature!

I got a new phone today and, silly me, but I am having lots of fun with it. It is a "smartphone". And it really does seem to be smart. It can search the World Wide Web, take pictures, text and even call people. It's a funny world we live in, isn't it? Our phones are smart. At any rate, I am having fun with it, but doubt it will hold it's appeal for long. In the end, I am just a simple girl who needs a phone to call home when I away, which is seldom. For now though it's cool. And the boys think I'm cool for having it, so we'll just go with that.

Well, I am off to light pumpkin candles while I still can. Mistletoe comes out next week, you know. Dinner must be made and the house straightened for Hubby's arrival. God is good to us, isn't He?!

this and that...finally

Okay, I admit it. I am a bad blogger. I have neglected this blog so severely, that I doubt anyone even checks it anymore. Well, I don't blame you. I would have given up by now, too. But, if you haven't given up on me, I will update you on things around here.

First and foremost, we are rejoicing in a son who came home and a Father who hears our prayers. Ethan has been home for three months now and is happy to be back with us. He is wholeheartedly serving the Lord, for which we are beyond grateful. I find myself just reveling in the simple moments. Three boys sitting on a bed together playing on the computer. Rummikub as a family. Life is good and God is better! Thankfulness abounds!

I am relishing in my yard. My apple trees have apples. My raspberries from Aunt Rita made it through the winter and are growing nicely. We planted cherry and pear trees and our blueberries are also growing nicely. Our plum tree has a few plums for the first time. My flowers are beautiful and make me so happy! I love my yard! My tomatoes are just sitting there doing nothing, but the yard looks great.

School is kinda, sorta done. We will continue to do a bit through the summer, so we don't lose what we've learned, but for the most part we are done. Phew. We are still making up for Myles late reading ability, but we will get there. We plan to read lots of books on the glider this summer, as reading isn't really school, but fun.

We just finished up a week of special meetings at church, and I have to say that what I came away with was a renewed love for the Word. What a gift we have been given. A love letter from heaven. Everything we need for every moment of every day is in there. Wow! So, I am reading scripture more. I am posting more verses around my house to memorize, and I am trying to pass a love for the Word to my boys. Such richness, if we will only take the time to mine it.

The days are busy and sometimes hard. Laundry, cleaning, running sons here and there. But the days are also good. Healthy boys driving me crazy. Hungry boys keeping me cooking, but enjoying their food. Handsome husband working lots of hours, but earning a good wage. Fighting to stay slim in a food centered home, but able to walk for miles with strong joints. Hard, but good. That's how life is. It's all in the attitude, I guess. I will choose to say God is good!

Well, life can throw you a few curve balls, that's for sure. I am pretty sure that when I was birthing sons, I never planned on any of them going astray. I saw a bright future, where all five of them made right choices and walked with God always. After all, I was doing it right wasn't I? Homeschooling, loving discipline, loving, nurturing extended family, church.

And therein lies the rub. The truth is it doesn't actually depend on me. They grow up and they make their own choices. And I hope that all that I did right will come back and make things right one day. That all the early training coupled with the promise of God's word will see my son return to Jesus.

So, I pray. And I ask everyone I know to pray. And then I pray some more. And on my good days I believe. And on my bad days, I let everyone else believe for me and just stand and keep on praying. Because in the end, I serve a faithful God and He is good. Even when curve balls are thrown my way.

A bit of fall

I thought maybe I should show you a little bit of our fall this year.
We did our yearly leaf drive up through Santa Clara to Saranac to Lake Placid in October.
It was pretty, as you can see, although a week earlier would have been better.




Isn't he cute?
And 12 already!
And the only one who wanted to go with us.

Look at that smile!
What a cutie!
We rewarded him for coming with us by buying him McDonalds.

That handsome guy is my favorite person alive.
He carries my kayak for me.
And he pushes me out and pulls me back in so my feet stay dry!
I love that man!
And I love kayaking in the fall.

In which I decorate tables

Last Saturday we had a lovely ladies brunch at church. I thought I would show you the two tables I decorated for the event.

My beautiful fall table with my beautiful Rowe pottery.
Notice the gorgeous centerpiece in my mother's gorgeous dough box.
Beautiful, is it not?





This is the fun Christmas table I did with my friend Paula.
We had a blast putting this together, and I was thrilled with the results.
So gay and Christmasy is it not?

It was quite a lovely affair.
I only had to haul half my house to the church.
Then bring it all home dirty, wash it and put it away.
But that's okay, because it was fun and for a good cause.
We raised over $900.00 for our local food pantries!

Happy Holidays!

Davenport

I was just looking through Craigslist and suddenly I was transported to another place and time. Someone was selling a "davenport and chair". Suddenly, I was a little girl, sitting on my grandparents couch or davenport, as my Gram called it, watching The Price is Right. The fan on a stand is running and we are snapping beans while we watch Bob Barker announce the winner of the showcase showdown. We will eat dinner soon...not lunch...dinner. We will have cucumbers sliced the long way and tomatoes sliced into wedges along with our boiled potatoes and maybe roast beef. Gram will ask me how many corn I will eat, because she won't want to cook any extra ears...just what we will eat. When I say three she will smile at me and indulge me. My grandparents always indulged me in the littlest of ways that felt big to me. For dessert we will have a bowl of fresh raspberries or maybe some rhubarb sauce served in the little green and yellow plastic bowls. I will dry the dishes while Gram washes them. I love to put them away, so that I can look around in the walk in pantry. That way I can look up at the pretty dishes on the top shelf. I am hoping to get to settle onto the davenport again and watch the soaps, but Grandpa will probably have other plans for me...plans like weeding the garden or just following him around outside and doing whatever he asks me to do. And he will do it at his own pace, not mine. He doesn't really care if I get to watch the soaps. He thinks I need to make myself useful and he likes a little company...someone to visit with. Eventually, he will let me go back in and I will get to find out what Victor is up to today. I will settle onto the davenport, next to Gram in her chair. Grandpa will come in after a while too and sit in his chair over on the other side of the door.

What a lucky little girl I was. What wonderful memories my grandparents gave me. Nothing big or flashy or expensive. Just fried potatoes and golden grahams and rhubarb sauce and time and patience and love. God has been so good to me.

In which I grab summer while I can

This week has been one of those "I wish summer would never end." weeks. I have enjoyed kayaking, long walks, reading on the glider and having the windows wide open. Sheets have dried on the line in minutes, and I ask you, what smell in the world is better than fresh sheets from the line? Well, maybe a newborn baby, but that's about it. We've had fires in the fire pit and ate yummy marshmallows and s'mores and watched the stars fill the night sky. We've feasted on corn on the cob, fresh tomatoes and grilled chicken, burgers and hot dogs. Summer is such a wonderful gift here in the North Country. Yes, it is. But...Fall is quickly approaching, so I intend to grab as much summer as I can... I am off to pull the sheets in and bury my head in them again. God is good!