Some days are just golden

And today was one of those-

My beautiful grown up niece endeared herself even MORE to me by asking K to present her with her class ring and today was the Ring Ceremony.   This marks my third year in a row attending that ceremony at that school, and sadly is the last one for our family.   My niece is the senior class president and gave an amazing speech, motivating and positive and just perfect, and on a day after having read Scripture at her grandfather’s funeral yesterday.  I used to fantasize when I was younger that my sister and I would have kids who grew up together and were close.  These sweet pictures are the fulfillment of that dream.   And THEN….  Parade Time!!!!

View Full Album

We go up at noon to secure a good space, with chairs and blankets spread everywhere, and one or two of us hold vigil there until our friends can join us.  Today was a perfect parade day, and I have the sunburned neck to prove it!

Wednesday Link Love

Aren’t these beautiful?!

I’ve always loved spools.

Great little pinata for your next hen party.

I LOVE Annalea’s banners, and her other fun things too, and am excited about her new etsy shop.

It’s Derby weekend, and in case you failed to get your hat ready in time……

Every time I look at their blog, I shake my head and say, “Those Mennonite Girls CAN cook!”  

Would love to see this exhibit.  Be sure to read about it.

When I was 7, we lived for a few months on Rochester, MN and my mother made a playhouse for me to play in what I guess was supposed to be the pantry.  I loved it, so this spoke to me.  Now, how can we work out a hidden passage to a mother’s hideaway?

For Today

 

Outside my window…..  is a gorgeous full moon, so bright that it makes a shadow between our houses. 

I am  thinking...about calendar stuff and how to make everything fit in between now and graduation what with moving two college kids, prom, parties, some new responsibilities at work and so on.  I get calendar fatigue and panic several times a day of late.

I am thankful for...the life of my brother-in-law’s father.  He died peacefully at home on Sunday.  My brother-in-law is the solid rock of our family and such a fine fine man.  That didn’t just happen by accident.  I didn’t know his dad well, but know he must have modeled a lot of that to his son.

From the kitchen...there is mostly the smell of carryout food.  Again.  Seems like lately cooking good meals has been a challenge and tonight I needed something quicker than even a crockpot meal could offer.

I am wearing...brown.  Which does nothing for my spirits.  And oddly enough, is the color DH says is his favorite color.  Who picks BROWN as their favorite color?!

I am creating...nothing.  Maybe tomorrow!  That’s my new mantra.

I am going...to be nice tomorrow.  No matter how hard my teenage daughter tries to bait me into acting poorly.  I swear I will just be nice.

I am reading...All the Living by C. E. Morgan.  This is this month’s book group read and so far it’s very good.  Written by an author from Berea!

I am hoping...that Thursday is pretty.  We have a long long tradition of attending the Derby Parade.  That’s my one Derby event!  Anyway, we go hours early and stake out this big spot and then friends and family slowly join us and I do love a marching band!  Can’t wait.

I am hearing...nothing.  A sleeping household.  Makes me happy!

Around the house...it’s still decorated for Easter.   Need to make the transition to seashells and then I’m good to go until Fall.

One of my favorite things...is an afternoon nap.  And I haven’t had one for a while.  I miss that old friend!

A few plans for the rest of the week……..S is coming home and bringing her boyfriend!  And it’s Derby weekend!  Lots of prom prep shopping for the next weekend which will be so so so so busy getting S moved back and K to the prom.

Here’s a picture for thought I am sharing….

 

I wish I could roller skate in the Derby Parade.  Or just roller skate.  Or be in the parade…..

Today I have joined with other women who are choosing to linger on the simple things on Tuesdays through The Simple Woman’s Daybook.

Wish List

I want one of these

 

And one of these

And some more of this

 

And I am sure if I had them, my yard would look like this

Ya think?!

Maybe I just need a few of these

 

9:50 pm

With very rare exception, my mother and I talk every night over Skype,  generally between 9:20 and 9:50 or so.  It was my sister’s idea to hook us all up with Skype and I have so enjoyed my little nightly face to face visits with my mom.  My daughter Skypes me from her dorm room too which is very fun.  I can’t remember what story I had told to make my mother laugh so, but I LOVE the picture. (Cause I LOVE my mother!)

Night vigil

 

I’m not saying I advocate sleep deprivation.  I  have read all of the articles about the many health hazards that brings.  But I just love the wee small hours of the morning when the house is totally quiet.  On those days where I have no responsibilities  and if I were allowed to live on my own internal time clock I would opt for staying up really really late, sleep til some reasonable time in the morning, then take a nice long nap in the afternoon.  Anyway, I loved this poem that I read last week.

 

Vigil

by Dennis O'Driscoll

Life is too short to sleep through.
Stay up late, wait until the sea of traffic ebbs,
until noise has drained from the world
like blood from the cheeks of the full moon.
Everyone else around you has succumbed:
they lie like tranquillized pets on a vet's table;
they languish on hospital trolleys and friends' couches,
on iron beds in hostels for the homeless,
under feather duvets at tourist B&Bs.
turns repetitious. You are your own voice-over.
You are alone in the bone-weary tower
of your bleary-eyed, blinking lighthouse,
watching the spillage of tide on the shingle inlet.
You are the single-minded one who hears
time shaking from the clock's fingertips
like drops, who watches its hands
chop years into diced seconds,
who knows that when the church bell
tolls at 2 or 3 it tolls unmistakably for you.
You are the sole hand on deck when
temperatures plummet and the hull
of an iceberg is jostling for prominence.
Your confidential number is the life-line
where the sedated long-distance voices
of despair hold out muzzily for an answer.
You are the emergency services' driver
ready to dive into action at the first
warning signs of birth or death.
You spot the crack in night's façade
even before the red-eyed businessman
on look-out from his transatlantic seat.
You are the only reliable witness to when
the light is separated from the darkness,
who has learned to see the dark in its true
colours, who has not squandered your life.

"Vigil" by Dennis O'Driscoll, from "New and Selected Poems, 2004

Wednesday Link Love

We had a pitch in at work today and someone brought this. It was the hit of the day. Same recipe, only she used praline pecans which she said you buy in a can at Kroger.

Beautiful to look at, impossible to think of keeping clean!

I loved sewing cards as a kid. Aren’t these fun?!

I can think of a lot of fun things I would do with these, and what a fun thing to have around for kids!

Lovin’ these Earth Day cupcakes!

Amy’s starting another stitchalong. Since I only did one square the last time around, I could start afresh. Or not.

I really want to try this!

I think these are great, but it’s sort of a sad day when the only two that would accommodate all that I carry around are called a satchel or a weekender!

I’d like to go to all of these but it would be quite a commute. I’d like to go to the praying with the elements session the most.

I love this poem, and think it will come in handy someday.

Acckkkkkkk…..I love this!

Need a fun idea for Mother’s Day?

So, what movies would you pick? I’d pick Sound of Music, Story of Us, and When Harry Met Sally.

OH, I love wild violets!!!

For Today

Outside my window…..  I hear cats…..several of them  The joys of urban living- feral cat colonies.  There is a huge group living just beyond my back yard, in my back yard, in my neighbors yards…Sigh.

I am  thinking...about my youngest leaving for college in the fall.  As her final days of her senior year are winding down, I’m having a mighty hard time staying in denial about her impending departure.  While there are days when both of us would say we are more than ready for that, today is not one of those days.

I am thankful for...my beloved friend Di and a tender time of discernment tonight as she explores the possibility of ordination.  What a gift it is to get the opportunity to really affirm the gifts of someone you love dearly.

From the kitchen...I smell basil, and on my fingertips as well after threading basil and mozzarella and grape tomatoes onto skewers for a pitch in at work tomorrow.

I am wearing...pants that clung to my legs with static cling all day and made me irritable.  It’s April already, for crying out loud.  And I use fabric softener!

I am creating...a planting plan for my unruly untended yard.  I’m going for easy.  Zinnias and cosmos.

I am going...crazy, I think.  Yesterday a girl at work asked me for change for a dollar.  I rooted around and found enough change and handed if off to her.  She handed me a dollar bill and I said, “What’s that for?”    Sad.

I am reading...The Girls from Ames – slow reader.  Needing to hunt down a copy of a book by a Berea author which my book group is doing next month.

I am hoping...to celebrate my older daughters birthday with her this weekend and maybe even get to finally meet her boyfriend.

I am hearing...no air conditioning.  Sadly, it’s not just because it’s very cool out.  It’s also because my air conditioner has totally quit working.  I am feeling pretty sad about that!

Around the house...are leftovers from a Thunder get together with my family and community meal that need to just move on.  Tooooo many cookies and chips and dip and such.

One of my favorite things...is having friends who cry as much as I do!  And over the same things.  My friend told me tonight about passing a dead groundhog on the side of the road near our house and standing beside it was the most forlorn looking other groundhog.  As her car approached, it scurried away but from the rear view mirror she saw it take up its vigil again once she passed.  So, we both had a cry over that tender scene.

A few plans for the rest of the week……..hopefully, enjoying my newly turned 19 year old daughter all weekend.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing…..

Two years ago today- visiting the campus at Berea, full of excitement and hope and mystery as college days approached.

Today I have joined with other women who are choosing to linger on the simple things on Tuesdays through The Simple Woman’s Daybook.

Music Monday

I don’t know Taylor Swift from Miley Cyrus really, but this video captivated me.  I don’t have to even know the people in them- old family movies always choke up. Just seeing little ones, knowing how fast they grow up, how fast things change…..

Anyway, K and I have had some really nice days together, so this is for her. 

Happy Birthday Donna!

Today is my delightful friend Donna’s birthday, and I’m sending her a virtual piece of chocolate chess pie to celebrate.  Head over to Mommy’s Kitchen for the recipe.  (and about a zillion other good recipes I might add)  

Donna, I hope you wake up to something wonderfully new blooming in your garden, and will look forward to a post about it.

Adoption Story

First, I”d like to share a wonderful story from my extended church family, the first thing I read this morning.

In response to the outrageous treatment of Artyem by his adoptive family, one of several things that the The Joint Council on International Children's Services has done is to send out a call for adoptive families to "share with the world" their positive adoption stories on Thursday, April 15. Dillon International in Tulsa, our family's adoption agency, is supporting this call. In support of the Council, I am sharing our story with everyone, new and old, in my email address book and on my facebook page. Please join with me if you have a positive adoption story to share, as we raise awareness of the need for children to find permanent, loving homes, and as we share many stories of adoptions that have gone well! I share our story with the cooperation and permission of Carissa, 7, and Caroline, 5, who have also added names of those in their world with whom they would like to share.

We Are The Truth - an adoption blogger day: To ensure the world knows about every successful adoption, on Thursday, April 15, 2010 blog about your adoption or the adoption of someone you know.  It doesn't matter if your adoption is with Russia, domestic or otherwise international.  Let the world know your truth! 

THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING! FEEL FREE TO SHARE!

Carla

Please also take a look at  www.villageofhope.

From the C. Breeding Family, Kentucky

        She wasn't feeling well...she seemed so tired. But she reached out her little left hand and grabbed my neck, while her tiny fingers on her right hand rubbed my arm.  I was prepared for tears, terror, a need for soothing, but she seemed to be soothing me instead.  Her face nestled instantly into my neck. I was afraid to move, afraid to disturb her. Her jet-black hair was thick, sweaty, and I never wanted to move my cheek from the top of her head.  Eventually, I made my way to a mirror across the room so that I could see her face without moving her.  After hugs, photos, admiring all around, we made our way down the hall to the hotel room where we would spend our first days together as family. I made a bottle for her and sang, "God is so Good" as our first song together, adding, "God made us a family" as our own made-for-the-occasion verse. We were a family. Finally. After a long wait, I came as fast as they would let me come to bring her home.  Those precious first hours together quickly turned into days, weeks, years of learning and loving each other, not as in a fairy tale, but in the work and love that intertwine in building a real family, with the ebb and flow of frustration and ecstacy. Two years later, those little fingers grown into chubby toddler hands,  we received into our hands and hearts the tiniest, most active, wirey baby I had ever seen. Our new little one wouldn't have any of this snuggling in or laying back to observe the world... she wanted to move, move, move and experience every adventure as quickly as possible.  There would be no sitting still to listen to songs, but we soaked up many slobbery kisses until months later she finally allowed me to hold her the snuggly way of a mama and baby. She finally let me in.  And those precious snuggles turned into hours, days, weeks, years of loving and of being family.  When a rough patch comes, I say, "We are a family. All three of us. God took something that could have been bad, and together made it into something better than we could have imagined. We are family forever and ever! Always! There is nothing that anyone could ever do, nothing that could ever happen that would make us NOT a family."  And now, as life is lived in the typical routine of church, visits to the public library, ballet lessons, basketball teams, gymnastics, filling lunch boxes, and dropping off at school, and the not-so-typical routine of having to explain that not all babies come from the airport but some from a hospital, annual reunion trips with those who began their lives together in the same orphanage, and culture camp, I understand that my life truly began when those little fingers first grabbed my neck and never let go. Our family was completed when we reached out and tried to hold on to our little bundle of energy. It's the three of us.  Not one of us perfect, but together perfectly blended.  All of us in love with each other. A wonderful Grandmother where mutual admiration abounds, and a host of "friends like family" who love us too. A beautiful family built in a miraculous way through adoption.

Our story

View Full Album

Sometimes I feel “embarrassed” to tell our adoption story.  We have dear dear friends who have waited, are waiting still, for their adoption story to unfold.  Ours was not a story of waiting and hoping for some child somewhere, praying that they were being well cared for until we found our ways to each other.  Years after DH and I had put to rest our hopes of children, our door opened to three beautiful children and when we didn’t even really realize it was happening, they came to stay. 

We fell into parenthood with many huge advantages- our three children had been dearly loved their whole lives long, had been raised by mothers who had delighted in them, had been kept in good health and care.    We became a family years before any court document said it was so.    At first, it seemed too tender to stir up too much as our daughters had just lost their mother, and then as time went by there was the issue of locating their birth father and the fear that he might make some claim on them.  I am forever indebted to my friend and  boss who gently but steadily pushed me along the path and even connected us with our attorney or we might have never made the journey.    As the happiest of Christmas gifts, on 12/27/2005 our girls took our names and we as a family experienced a sense of permanency and freedom from the fear of the birth father showing up someday.    Our son, is our son.  As surely as anything in this world, that boy is my heart of hearts.  There will likely never be any court document that states that, he will not carry our name, he has two living parents who can claim him in a way I can’t, but he could not be more ours in our hearts.  Although he has been in our care and custody for years, he was growing in our hearts long before that.

I am mindful every single day of the gift made to us by two mothers- when they could not parent  any more, they generously allowed us to step in.  In truth, I know that I am Plan B.  In a perfect world, their mothers would have been able to raise them.  I’m sure in their hearts that each of my children would have rather Plan A had worked out.  But I don’t believe any one of us is anything less than grateful for the broken road that led us to be a family.

Wednesday Link Love

Been a while since we’ve had a laugh over at Cake Wrecks.

This is a great idea.  If you are lucky enough to have kids at home, you will not be sorry you did this.  If your kids, as mine, are gone……you may get lucky enough get one at Christmas.  I don’t think we’ve all been together since then and I’m not seeing it happening again in the near future.

There are so many fun ideas here.  I want to be at that party!

Oh my I love these!!!  I will be looking for great bottles and jars!!!

There used to be a man in the Germantown area of Louisville who had a scaled down version of this paradise.  I think his neighbors were less than entertained by it all, and by the throng of adoring fans who lurked in their alley all of the time.  Then one day it was all just gone.  I would seriously go right down to Texas to see this place.

I love Robins, so of course these made me happy.

Sadly, I’ve now reached the age where I actually think that these are very practical rather than that they are just a joke….

Why so serious when you could be having this much fun?

Check out all of this sweetness.  Keep scrolling- lots of gorgeous entries.

Don’t these make a fun Mother’s Day idea?

For Today

Outside my window…..  I hear the thumping of the bass in a car waiting at the light.

I am  thinking...about my youngest and a very important job interview she has tomorrow.

I am thankful for...this day.  I was originally scheduled to have surgery today, and put it off in order to better recover from being sick a couple of weeks ago, and it felt very right to do that. 

From the kitchen...I smell arugula picked from the garden tonight.  Made a little pesto with it and it stirred up a good smell!

I am wearing...sweat pants and a t-shirt that I wore to the garden tonight.

I am creating...ideas for a work project.  May not seem like creating, but for me, to re-work something is to create and infuse it with new energy, so I think it counts.

I am going...to bed soon with the hopes of sleeping well.  That has been somewhat of an issue of late.  Not so much getting to sleep, but staying asleep for the night.

I am reading...The Girls from Ames and enjoying it.

I am hoping...to one day get to see my son!  I’ve been disappointed the last couple of times I thought I was going to get to see him, and I am almost afraid to hope any more about it!

I am hearing...the air conditioning…..which I truly did not want to be running in April (or especially in March!) but with my allergies it seems to be a necessity this week.  Just can’t sleep with the windows open.

Around the house...I’m just loving my new floors so much and so happy to have my oven fixed.  I feel like I have some heightened sense of gratitude these days, just so so glad to have and be in my home.

One of my favorite things...is having people over and cooking for them.  I really enjoyed having a big group in Sunday night for dinner.  I was keenly aware of how much help my daughter is to me when I am cooking for a crowd and wonder how I will ever do it all  without her.  Maybe have smaller dinner parties?!

A few plans for the rest of the week……..this weekend is Thunder Over Louisville, a huge fireworks show that kicks off Kentucky Derby festival time.  I’m very excited to have my family coming down to hang out and watch the fireworks.  I could just sit on my porch alllllll day long on Thunder day and watch people and talk to strangers.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing…..

Potatoes newly planted and peeking above ground in the community  garden tonight.

Today I have joined with other women who are choosing to linger on the simple things on Tuesdays through The Simple Woman’s Daybook.

Good-bye Dixie

I’ve spent more time than I’d like to admit today watching Designing Women clips.  What a great show-

There are some scenes I still think about, like this one-

And though the quality is very poor on this one, I still think about this entire episode-

One last clip.  Great memories!

Dixie was always so lovely to her fans when she came each year to attend the Kentucky Derby.  What a great lady!

I just wanna make enough to buy this town

I’ve probably heard my friend Paul sing this song a dozen or more times, but tonight at Goatwalker when he sang it I almost felt like I might cry.  From where I sat I could see out the window.  Where the view for years was that of a bustling row of apartments in the Clarksdale Housing Project there is a gaping hole waiting to be filled with 6 story luxury townhomes.      I just wanna make enough to buy this town and keep it rough.

Where the Bottles Break- John Gorka

I walk where the bottles break
And the blacktop still comes back for more
I walk where the bottles break
And the blacktop still comes back
I live where the neighbors yell
And their music comes up through the floor
I live where the neighbors yell
And their music wakes me up
Life beyond the playground fence
Is serious as basketball
Life beyond the playground fence
Is serious
Four blocks from the steel mill blasts
I paint my claim up on the wall
Four blocks from the steel mill blasts
I paint my claim
From my end of the southside drag
It's a common thought to call the cops
Further west it's been gentrified
They turned biker bars into flower shops
I kind of miss those Harley guys
Who rarely did a body harm
They mostly liked to drink and shout
And flash the pictures on their arms
It happens when the money come
The wild and poor get pushed aside
It happens when the money come
The poor get pushed
The buyers come from somewhere else
And raise the rent so you can't hide
The buyers come from out of state
And they raise the rent
Buy low sell high
You get rich and you still die
Money talks and people jump
Ask how high low-life Donald what's-his-name
And who cares
I don't wanna know what his girlfriend doesn't wear
It's a shame that the people at work
Wanna hear about this kind of jerk
These people aren't saints
No people just are
They wanna feel like they count
They wanna ride in their own car
People aren't saints
No people just are
They wanna feel like they count
They wanna ride in their own car
I just wanna make enough
To buy this town and keep it rough
I just wanna make enough
To buy this town
Buy low sell high
You get rich and you still die
Money talks and people jump
Ask how high low-life Donald what's-his-name
I walk where the bottles break
And the blacktop still comes back for more
I walk where the bottles break
And the blacktop still comes back
I live where the neighbors yell
And their music comes up through the floor
I live where the neighbors yell
And their music wakes me up
Life beyond the playground fence
Is serious as basketball
Life beyond the playground fence
Is serious

It’s Official

 

Winter is past!  Welcome back Dairy Kastle- your chili dogs and Fat Elvis Shakes, long lines and Boston Shakes- Welcome back!

Thinking of Ryan and his legacy tonight….

Ryan White died 20 years ago today. 

I will make every day World Aids Day by making sure my children hear the facts about HIV/AIDS at home before they hear the myths on the street.

I will make every day World Aids Day by leading my faith community to bear witness to hope rather than perpetuate shame.

I will make every day World Aids Day by speaking truth to power, continuing to advocate for the allocations necessary to give access to care to all who need it.

I will make every day World Aids Day by making sure every teenager I know knows when to use a condom, how to use one, and all of the places where they can get them, including from me.

I will make every day World Aids Day by remembering that good sex is safe sex, and it’s okay to insist that my partner wear a condom.

I will make every day World Aids Day by making sure my sisters have not only the knowledge but the self confidence to protect themselves.

I will make every day World Aids Day by walking along side of my brothers and sisters already infected, encouraging them to live lives bigger than their disease.

Wednesday Link Love

I’m not sure how I have not stumbled upon Becky’s Blog before, but it is just a FEAST of color and beauty!  Oh, Becky!  I want to have every room in my house filled with your colors!

I’m sure you can detect themes in my links each week and can pretty much guess what I’ve been craving, and I’ve been craving beauty.  And I found it here and here and here and here.  Sigh.

And I must have a little foot thing going on too- loving these  and ooohhhhh how I would love to trace my horrible flat hurting foot and send it off to the Aurora folks so that I could have my own pair of these!  Be sure to watch the video.

Then there would be (as always) the food theme……like, how much would I love for Louisville to have this amazing line-up of food carts?!   And the next time I feel the need to comfort someone (or myself), this recipe is coming out.

So, I thought this was the coolest idea ever when I first read of it last year.  And when my birthday came around……I had forgotten it.  Will I remember this year?  I guess that’s the difference in her being 30 and me being…….not 30.  But isn’t it a great idea?

Thinking that this is pretty fun too…..

Hope you feel rich and happy!

Link Love Add-On

 

I want to fall asleep to these sounds.  Like, now.  A heavy quilt, this sweet sound, and a smile upon my face.  Good-night.

Today

FOR TODAY
Outside my window  I still hear kids playing- evidence of spring break.

I am  thinking...about the miners and families in West Virginia, about their hard scrabble life and the fear of accident that they live with all of the time.

I am thankful for...feeling better finally.  I just woke up feeling normal yesterday.  What a long week!

From the kitchen...tonight there were baked potatoes FROM MY OVEN!!!  Just fixed today.  Can’t wait to really be able to cook this weekend.

I am wearing...black.  My favorite color for clothing.

I am creating...some simple notecards for a friend as a surprise.

I am going...to have all of my kids under roof this weekend!!  Yay!  I am never happier, and it’s been wayyyyyy too long since I’ve gotten to look my son in the eye.

I am reading...getting ready tonight to pick something from my Christmas stash.  I think it will be The Girls From Ames.

I am hoping...to do something fun with K on Thursday.  She hasn’t really done anything fun for spring break.

I am hearing...everyone in my house doing their own thing.  DH has a tv show on, K is on the computer in the kitchen, Herbie is grumbling and wanting to be held, and Willow is smacking her lips in her sleep.

Around the house...is a general lazy feeling.  I just feel so dang good to feel good.  The house needs some attention, but I’m thinking maybe I can get away  with crying “sick” for a day or two more?  Probably not.

One of my favorite things...is that once the weather is warm, the neighbors are all back out on the porches at night.  Had a great porch session with my neighbor Mr. Al  and my nephew on Sunday.   In the early hours of Saturday morning I stood out on the porch and looked up and down my street and wondered if anyone loves their neighborhood as much as I love mine.

A few plans for the rest of the week……..a vacation day on Thursday and then on Friday the gathering in of my little chicks.  Already making the grocery list.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing…..

Symbols of God’s love- in green!

Today I have joined with other women who are choosing to linger on the simple things on Tuesdays through The Simple Woman’s Daybook.

Dancing to the rhythm of the resurrection song

View Full Album

Easter isn’t over until I hear this song or see these sweet people.  Only thing that could have made the day better would have been if C had been able to be with us.

Good Friday

It pulls at some deep corner,

this scene of mother holding battered child,

cradling a son, become a worm.

The hair she had combed,

blood-matted,

the silken skin, gashed.

"What have you done to him?"

turned to "At least you can do no more."

Blackened nails, limp arms willingly pinned,

energy drained from one who feared he could not do enough all

lost to the weariness of the long dying.

In crushed silence, we enter the empty night

of those who murdered God,

vowing we will not add another splinter

to that cross.

Good Friday Kathy Coffey

Loving This!

Wednesday Link Love

This time of year never passes that I don’t think about the year I awoke to a baby chick in my Easter basket.   Recently, good friends of mine have been hosting 5 little chickies in their living room and it has brought back some of those memories.  I happened upon this the other day, and may I say that I would so gladly live in Heathe'r’s chicken coop?!!

Check out this $5 challenge.  Pretty cool, huh?

I’ve thought of this paint by number mural all week!

Interesting article on Embracing Abundance

On that great and glorious day when I have an oven again (don’t even ask) I will make some of these!

Today’s beautiful weather makes me want to fix a pitcher of this and sit on my porch for hours.

And maybe I have found my niche……..not camping, but glamping!