Saturday: I had planned to get up early this morning but not as early as I ended getting up. I was sleeping rather well at 5am when the first rumbles of thunder sounded. Shortly after six, flashes of lightning lit up our room. I got up and pulled the curtains closed, because the flashes were so frequent and bright. I could see through the slits of the blinds that it was a continuous sort of lightning. Thunderstorms do not bother me in the least except as a noise factor, but lightning here can be a rather queer thing. It flashes horizontally though all the weather/cloud sites will tell you it does not do so this close to the ground. I've seen it though, so I know full well it does! It unnerves me. It's bad enough to see the great forks that run from cloud to ground but this business of electrified air all around just isn't something I care for at all.
John and I had a discussion about breakfast the night before. I'd said I'd like a bowl of grits...He said, "Well if we're having grits, I would like eggs..." and so there was our breakfast menu. Not our typical one for a Shabat morning. I made the grits and he fried the eggs so it wasn't a heavy duty morning prep for me.
My cat looked and acted as though she were not well. I'm suspecting her usual summer hairball malaise despite our buying the hairball control food. I mixed her up a little tuna, a little olive oil and a little of the tuna liquid. She did at least eat a little.
Katie and Taylor arrived about noon. We had a nice birthday meal, the request of Katie. I made beef stew. I don't know what it is about summer that makes John long for a pot of stew but he'd already mentioned it. Katie of course, has her own reason for her cravings. Generally she prefers a meal that has separate components that she can carefully separate on her plate and eat one item at a time. Sam is the same way and Josh, too, so it's a personal preference thing that runs in the family apparently. Anyway, John wanted stew and Katie wanted stew. Two birds, one stone. I made a crock pot of stew. It was just like the old days: John wanted all meat and vegetable, no carrots or broth thank you. Katie wanted mostly broth and only a little of the vegetables and meat. I got the Mama bear medium mixture of it all. Taylor at least tasted it. She declared it was good but she did not eat it. She requested a green salad with shredded cheese and ate all of that.
Taylor is a girly sort of girl and though she played with blocks and bowling set, she wanted Barbies. I couldn't find the Barbies anywhere. I found their clothes, but no dolls. I know that Josh and Isaac had them last but what they did with them is beyond me. They were not in any of the tool boxes nor the toy box.
Taylor wants to be 'beautiful'. I raided my drawers and found a lot of old fashioned and glittery necklaces, bracelets, clip on earrings, gloves and some cheap adjustable rings that Katie had given me when she was in elementary. HOURS later she was done. I'm going to see if I can't make up a dress up box before she visits us again.
I was not aware the plan was for Katie and Taylor to spend the night and Sunday with us so I wasn't prepared but it all worked out.
Sunday: I slept a little later this morning. I discovered something Saturday. We had thunderstorms come in several times yesterday and about an hour ahead of each, I had an anxiety attack. I am not afraid of the storms at all, despite the lightning. I've had several attacks over the past week or so but these most definitely seemed to be triggered by barometric changes. So I ended up taking an anxiety tablet last night. Hence sleeping in this morning.
Taylor begged to go to church with us. She has no idea what church is, but she wants to go with us. Again, I rued the knowledge that in our very large church, small children in service are really frowned upon. I know this well because about three weeks ago a grandmother, daughter and small granddaughter sat in our row. The little girl was about two and she was a fidgety sort. She wasn't a bad little girl but she did get a litle noisy at a key moment. I will be the first to say that really she ought to have been taken from the sanctury for a brief spell but she wasn't. There were some pointed gazes from the pulpit in her direction. I do understand that there is a moment of decision and any distraction might be used as an excuse not to make that decision...but it also reminded me that this is not a sort of church that is kid friendly in one sense. It is expected that small children will stay in nursery, older children will go to their own group services, teens to theirs and adults will worship alone.
I know how distracting it is for a parent to have children in service. I do. I can remember getting absolutely nothing from a sermon when my children were in church with me because I was kept so busy shushing and reprimanding and catching them as they made an escape up the aisle, etc. However, I grew up in a church where children were part of the congregation. My children grew up in churches where children were part of the congregation. One of the churches we attended there was an autistic child who frequently got upset. Not one person in the small congregation was phased by it. But that is just not something that's going to happen in this church. I do NOT want to take my granddaughter to church and drop her off at nursery...It is a moment of real conflict for me to say No to Taylor's request to go with us and frankly it brought up a lot of my own personal convictions about church in general and about this church in particular.
John seems to feel this church is where he wants to be and I will not urge him to make a different choice. We've been in and out of several churches in our marriage...But a discussion between the two of us this evening sort of clarified something for me. We haven't joined the church we attend now. It's been brought up and John has declined each time. He is not interested in attending Sunday school nor of becoming part of the senior members group (and neither am I on that score). Life groups are out for John due to his work schedule. I find the drive home in the dark a bit nerve racking. They don't offer group meetings in summer when I might attend and drive home in something nearer daylight. So those are all valid reasons for our not joining, though they may seem mere excuses to another.
Some of John's conversation this evening was also about hurts we've been dealt in the past at various churches. I'm not talking the minor sort of offenses that some will use as an excuse. These were deeply personal and harsh things that happened. I've been asked to leave three different churches in my lifetime and while I can see that God used my being expelled for my greater growth and good, in being in a large church we fly very low under the radar. We are not known. We are not likely to be asked to exit for any reason. We are anonymous. But the price we pay for that is a lack of connection, no community feeling. And of course, I must deal with the feeling that little children are not welcome...
At present, however, John is happy. And since it's not a mutual dissatisfaction we shall stay where we are.
After service today we went to Dairy Queen where we met up with Katie and Taylor and we all enjoyed a $5 lunch each. We had plans to attend a movie that Taylor was excited to see, "Secret Life of Pets 2". Between lunch and show opening we girls went into Goodwill. I found two more tops for myself. Katie found a shirt and a dress. She was so impressed that it was a LuLaRoe dress for $2.50. We found a shirt for Taylor and a book for both Taylor and the two little boys. I barely spent $20 for all of that.
This particular day there were two items that were such cool finds. One was a square sort of cabinet that intrigued me. I was thinking possible bedside table. When I opened it I found it was an old 33 rpm record player. The other was a table with a stool. It definitely wasn't a vanity nor a desk which were my first thoughts. It was an old sewing cabinet with the cast iron sewing machine in it and heavy as could be. Oh to have had a pick up truck!! One day I shall have a truck and bring home all the treasures...I have no idea where I shall put them all but they will be home, lol.
The movie was enjoyed by each of us. I think Taylor's biggest pleasure was the popcorn, lol. I ate some of it but that little girl ate a huge amount. Each time I reached into the bag she'd turn to me and say, "It's mine. I'm going to eat all of it." Well she nearly did! We said goodbye to Kate and Taylor after the movie and sent them on their way. Taylor went back to her dad's and Katie will be going to work when she returns from that trip. John and I came home and had a sandwich supper and collasped in our chairs. It's been a very long weekend, but an enjoyable one.
Monday: We were both awake well before 5am. John didn't know that I'd also been awake well after 1am. Sigh. Some nights are just harder than others for me. I thought I'd go back to bed this morning but somehow, I never turned in that direction.
First after John left, I fed the pets. The cat was better enough this morning to come to the back porch and wail at me for not feeding her. I had meant to linger on the back porch a bit. For one thing, the dogs were content to just sit with me and for another it was just beautiful out. It was fully daylight and misty fog was creeping across the fields in patches. The Asiatic lilies bloomed out overnight and were scenting the air with the loveliest fragrance. The cat was insistent. I don't know how it is that a smallish sort of cat can make such a great lot of noise. So I went round front to feed her. She sniffed her food and then walked away, sigh.
I decided I might as well clear up the mess John had left on the floor with his work boots and that led me to notice the lunch basket from the fridge was still on the counter. I picked it up to move to the fridge and there was the bread meant to be in John's lunch bag...sigh.
Outside today, I swept porches, dusted pet hair off seat cushions, deadheaded flowers, watered plants and rearranged a few pots in flower beds. I would like to have painted but it was very, very wet out there this morning. Everything I wanted to paint is wet, as is the ground. We've not been predicted rain today but I'm seeing a definite bit of cloudiness in the west.
I have a load of clothes on the line and when that is dry I will hang out a second load. I've picked up the house overall and just need to remake my bed and put fresh towels in the baths.
Two of the orchids finally stopped blooming. I followed directions on the package of orchid bark and Pinterest posts and cut away dead roots, then repotted. Fingers crossed. I always feel I'm committing murder when I follow these seemingly radical measures to try to keep plants healthy. If you have orchids then you might want to do a Pinterest search and read instructions to help you get your orchid in shape once more. I'm not sure I did it right, but I know for sure it needed a little TLC despite the blooms because the medium had broken down and there were numerous dead roots.
One orchid was potted up with little palms. I had left it alone for two years but the palms were growing quite yellow. When I repotted the orchid, I found few dead roots but the palms were completely pot bound and had perhaps a tablespoon of soil to sustain them. I repotted the palms separately. Now all three plants have been watered in and left to settle down a little before I move them back to the front porch later today. I keep them on the front porch because that is an area that gets filtered indirect light and is better for the orchids than harsh direct sunlight.
Tuesday: I woke quite early this morning. John had told me that my anniversary gift was coming today and I was not sure what time they'd be coming by to deliver it. A co-worker and her partner build these planter boxes. I asked to have mine left unfinished so I could paint it the same green color as my rocking chair on the back porch. I thought it would stand out well in the flower bed. I think I'd like to make it my herb garden. It should be a perfect fit for my little flower bed by the back steps and give me room to add a few more pots of things to that space. Isn't this nice?
I had planned to make a certain dish that requires cucumbers and radishes as a side this week but knew we wouldn't need all of that English cucumber I'd bought. In reading back through past July blog posts, I came across the refrigerator pickle recipe that Dora shared with me a couple of years ago. I sliced cucumbers and sweet onions today and made some pickles. I think using the water and vinegar will make it less tart. I find as I get older that I do not like really tart flavors. Regardless, John will love having these in the kitchen to pair with meals.
I mixed up the fresh tomato sauce. John and I had a sketchy lunch today and I know I will want something hot later on today. I serve the sauce at room temperature but over hot pasta. The sauce is super easy to make:
Easy Fresh Tomato Sauce
Dice as many tomatoes as you'd like. I generally try to make enough for about 2 cups of sauce. Add them to a jar and then season with garlic, salt and pepper and your choice of herb. I used dried oregano but plan to add some fresh basil to it this evening. I let the tomato mix sit on the counter for an hour or so before adding in about 1/4 cup olive oil. The longer this sits on the counter during the day the better it tastes. I pick it up and shake the jar periodically. This is so easy to make and tastes absolutely delicious. I've carried it to pot luck dinners for years and it's always a huge hit. I never have leftovers to bring home.
You can serve this sauce with shredded parmesan or with cubed mozzarella, but it's absolutely delicious on it's own. Try it with fresh mozzarella, too.
John washed a full load of clothing this morning when he came in. He hung most to dry.
After reading my June goals, then posting my July goals, I got busy yesterday afternoon and cleaned our bedroom closet. It looks much neater. I'd like to get bins to put all the quilts/blankets etc. in but I managed to neaten those up. I removed all my shoes and purses from the closet. I decided to give up one purse and several pairs of shoes that are just painful to wear. This freed up one shelf on the cube organizer that is in the closet nook. I then emptied a bag of stuff I'd been keeping since quitting Jamberry and reduced that stuff down to two small organizers. They fit perfectly on that empty shelf.
While I was digging about in that nook area, I went through my scarves. I had three that I felt were good candidates for becoming kimono type covers for summer. As Debby mentioned in comments earlier this week, it is a perfect cover up for cooler restaurants this time of year. I also like the lightweight coverage if a blouse I really like has skimpy cap sleeves or it's so very warm outdoors I prefer to wear a tank...However, as Josh calls them, my 'arm flaps' are not my most attractive feature and I do prefer to have them covered, so this will be a perfect 'accessory' to add to my wardrobe. Mind you I do consider a kimono cover more than just summer wear. It's a splash of color, an added note of interest, all year round but it's especially nice for summers.
So this morning, I went right to the sewing room with the scarves in hand and cut them as prescribed in the video. This video was just a popup in the lineup of suggested 'this might also interest you' videos, not one I am routinely subscribed to, but what a nice stumble upon that was. Just think. I'll now have three new kimonos to expand my wardrobe and nothing more than roughly an hour of my time required. Beats spending an average of $29 each at the store, agreed?
This afternoon John mowed the lawn. When he was done, I went out to the front porch with a glass of cool water and an ice pop for him to cool down with. The flies were fierce out there, buzzing and 'sticking' as Granny used to call it. They made it miserable to try to sit out there, they were so annoying. I remembered a trick Jd told me they used on the Coast Guard boats: pine scented cleaner and water mixed in a spray bottle and sprayed about the area would keep the flies at bay. I had mixed some up last summer and having just cleaned the broom/cleaning closet (tackling my July goal list and June list simultaneously this week), I took the bottle out and sprayed and all the flies disappeared immediately. I'll tell you all, that worked rather well!
I'll also tell you that Pine scented cleaner will not be Pine Sol. That now smells like Gain detergent a scent profile that the cleaning industry has gone nuts over. I always liked the pine scented Pine Sol but a few years ago they changed it to 'evergreen' which was also not a pine scent. Anyway, Katie bought a bottle of cleaner for her house the other day and I kept looking at it thinking it would say on the label that it was Gain scented but no, it just says Pine-Sol as it always has done. So check out the dollar store brand cleaners and give it a sniff test if you plan to try this trick for flies, unless you have essential pine oil about the house.
Yes, I am tackling odd jobs from both months' goal lists at present. Whatever I can lay my hand to and doesn't require cash or materials I haven't got, I'm trying to get done. Often when I make up a goal list for the coming month, it's jobs that have come to my attention over the previous two weeks that I see need to be attended to but I was too busy to stop and do at that time. Yesterday the closet in our bedroom (June) and today the broom/cleaning closet (July).
Wednesday: Katie ran out last night to drop off an item Mama had requested from the massive stash of stuff she still has at the house in town. I could say a great deal over that...but I won't...
John and I were sitting on the front porch eating an ice pop when she came by. She grabbed one, too and sat with me on the porch until we'd finished eating.
For last night's supper, I cooked pasta and made a big green salad and shredded Romano and cubed Mozzarella. I cooked a full 8 ounces of an ancient grains penne and then tossed the pint of sauce with the pasta. I sprinkled the servings with cheese and mozzarella. That pasta with fresh tomato sauce is soooo good! I'm going to add it to our menus routinely while the weather is hot and tomatoes are in season. This salad travels well, too, since it doesn't have to be refrigerated. Katie, who doesn't care for fresh tomatoes, ate a plate full of the stuff and quickly said 'Yes' when I asked if she'd like to take the leftovers home to keep for a quick meal. She added, as I dished it up, "That's really good!" Yes it is. And it's not expensive nor is it hard to make.
She'd nicely cleared the table and rinsed everything and stacked in the dishpan for me. I like a dinner guest that is willing to do a kindness like that, don't you? I loaded up dishes after she left and ran a full load on a short wash. I always let them air dry.
This morning I'd planned a breakfast but found my turkey bacon was no good at all. I don't know just why it spoiled but I'm glad I took note of it as I started to lay it out on the baking sheet. It's a wonder I noticed at all. I hadn't had my first cup of coffee and I was still a bit bleary eyed.
Spoiled bacon put me off the idea of cooking which worked out fine. John apparently had a desire for cold cereal this morning and I soon realized why. Last week a co-worker had shared a box of Cinnamon Toast crunch cereal with him for a late supper at work. Bess told us that the Aldi brand was just as good or even better as it's one of her favorites. John made sure we got a box last week when we went shopping but we hadn't had cereal for breakfast since shopping. He was rather pleased with his breakfast, lol. Can't say I was upset over it. I just wanted to drink my coffee and that's what I got to do without having to make a meal, too.
I find it amusing that we are both slowly adding in these 'kid friendly' cereals to our routine healthy cereal purchases. I developed a real fondness for the Sugar Smack type cereal at Aldi last year. Now here's John with his Cinnamon Toast cereal, lol.
I checked with him at the breakfast table about any plans he had for the day. He said he had none and that suited me. I was going to do all sorts of things this morning: make another batch of bagels, try my hand at a French bread recipe I'd come across, paint the planter, unload the dishwasher, sew kimonos. I didn't do any of that. The French bread recipe requires a good bit of rise/punch down sequences. That prohibited my going outdoors at all if I started it. I had a meal plan for the day but the meat had to thaw. I decided painting came first today and got dressed in my 'paint clothes'. This is an old t-shirt and a pair of jeans that are liberally smattered with paint already. I was digging in the cabinet for my green paint when I realized that I'd promised John again this week that I'd tackle those doors in the foundation. And that job is another from my June list... Sigh...So I got my tools together and retrieved the almost full gallon of grey paint from under the bench in the back entry and went outdoors to tackle those access doors.
Gnats, grass, dogs, dang frog (how did he get under the house and how is he surviving there? And WHY did he have to pop up when I opened the door?!), gnats, sweat. I kept thinking the dog was panting mighty hard or I was breathing too hard one, but looked up and there was John watching me work. He'd apparently been cutting a semi-broken branch and dragging it out of the flower bed. He wisely said NOTHING about how I was doing the job, because the rules of this house are simple. Don't ever criticize the job someone else is doing, unless you are prepared to be handed the tools and left to do it your way. I was muttering and fussing the whole while I worked because the humidity had me dripping wet in no time at all and I've mentioned a few times how much gnats irritate me buzzing in my ears. But those doors are DONE.
I always have this 'might as well' attitude when I'm doing a job that has already gotten me messy and while I've got out equipment I mightn't have normally had lying about. Today's 'might as well' task was to walk over to my shed and touch up those white smears I made on the front door of my shed last fall when I painted the crossbars and trim. You can see those white smears on the grey paint from the back porch. You can see them from inside the house if you look out the window at the shed. Heck you could see them from the front porch, which is the furtherest point from the shed so we're really not talking about tiny imperfections. I touched up the gray paint on the doors.
Up close and personal, I could see that the crevices in the vertical siding were not painted...So the door got touched up, then I started painting the crevices too and John, who'd decided now was a good time to spray for weeds against the foundations of the house and sheds, came along and reached up to the top of the boards to fill in those crevices where I couldn't reach. Well opportunity presented itself at that point and I soon had him wielding the brush at my direction in this section or that and I used the foam roller to go over some of the broader board areas that had a thin coat of paint at best. John kept sneaking away from the job, but I'd call him right back, lol. I noticed a piece of the siding was lifting and separating and had him go get screws to anchor it down. Then I commanded him to fetch a hammer, which meant he had to come indoors. He handed that to me and beat it back to the house mighty quick instead of sitting on the back porch as he'd been doing in his sneaking away and went indoors so he couldn't hear me any longer...Rats!lol I finished touching up the front of the shed, hammered in a couple of nails that had worked their way out and walked about the shed looking for any more I could find.
We still have about a half gallon of paint. Truth told, in walking about the shed, I could see that there are other parts that could use a better coat of paint but that was definitely not a job for today. I was wiped out. I came indoors and showered and drank a glass of Powerade.
Today's dinner was an easy prep meal of Asian Roll Ups. It involved a seasoned beef meatball that was shaped into ovals and broiled. You wrap these meatballs in Boston Lettuce leaves with rice, cucumber, shredded carrots, radishes, scallions and cilantro. You serve it with a dipping sauce. The recipe left something to be desired. I made it quite a few times about 15-20 years ago. Today, I found it messy to eat, under seasoned and skimpy looking, but it filled us up though we did eat every single meatball, which was about 2/3 pound of beef and more than we'd typically eat. I don't even know if I put this on my planned menu this week but I did have it in mind while I was shopping last week so I had all I needed to make it on hand.
I rested a bit after putting away lunch things and rinsing dishes. Then I went to the sewing room and set to work on the three scarves I planned to make into kimonos. That went very well but it took longer than I'd planned. The fabrics were very sheer and slippery and that made the sewing a bigger task than it might have been if I had been using flannel or challis scarves instead. I had thought I'd tackle those accent pillows today as well but the tension in my shoulders and neck was too great at the end of the kimono sewing session. No matter. I have added three new pieces to my wardrobe and it took not much more than an hour and a half to do it. John didn't seem overly impressed but I know what a savings this was and am glad to alter something that was already in my wardrobe and not being used into something that I hopefully shall wear.
We put a frozen cheese pizza in the oven for our supper tonight. I say 'we' but it was John who did so. I was drained after my session outdoors and didn't even empty the dishwasher of dishes I ran last night nor do the dishes that fill the dishpan at present, sigh. It shall keep until morning I expect. I'm sure the Housekeeping Fairy is on strike still.
Thursday: Up early this morning. I woke just a few seconds before the alarm went off and had rolled over to my other side to get more comfortable and go back to sleep. I swear it waited for me to begin that initial doze before it went off. Ugh. At least I slept last night which is always a pleasant thing.
Packed John's lunch. He's perfectly happy with his choice of hot dogs or peanut butter and jelly but I slipped a washed large potato into the lunch bag. He'll bake in the microwave at work and stuff it with cheese slices. It's another meal option he likes now and then for work. No one shall ever accuse him of being hard to please, bless him. And I double checked to insure he got the bread needed to make his sandwiches.
So he was sent off with coffee, breakfast eaten and a full lunch bag.
The cat, who was ailing over the weekend is better, thankfully. Katie noticed on Tuesday when she was out on the porch that Misu had bite marks on the side of her face. I never saw any swelling but I knew that she wasn't herself and acted weak. I thought she was having trouble with a hairball, a common enough spring ailment for her. Apparently a row with a non poisonous snake took place and hence she simply didn't feel good, but she's back to herself this morning. She had her kitty treats then marched to the front porch where she called out that she was starving for her daily meal as well and then came to be brushed. Silly cat. Outdoor cats are given an average life span of 2 years but Misu has been with us now for 11, I think. I was worried about her Sunday and I'm glad that she's back to being herself.
I thought we were going to have rain last night. The weather app assured me there was a 100% chance of it. I went outdoors and put hanging baskets and potted plants from the porches down on the steps so they could get that 'free' watering. Well it never rained at all. I left the plants sitting on the steps all day long. The ones on the back porch steps got full sun all day. I used rain water we'd caught in a bucket to water them this afternoon, then put them back in their usual shady spots. It might be my imagination but I really think the palm trees looked a little livelier for their sun bath.
Out with Mama today. It was my turn to pay for lunch and her turn to buy dessert. She wanted to go to a peach shed and buy peach ice cream. She insisted on going to one we don't usually go to and I found out why when we arrived. "They have a peach pound cake here and I want one!" I shook my head. Mama gets what I consider the most ridiculous ideas in her head. The ground at this place was covered with chunky gravel and there was no way she could walk into the building so I went in to tend to the purchases.
The counter was run by the typical teens, which isn't a problem usually. They were polite but the young lady was so very busy telling the young man what to do and all and then pushing him out of the way to tend to things...Well she messed up my order entirely, failed to charge me for one item, started to ring up all my purchases as one when I'd asked to have it done as two orders, etc. The ultimate happened, too. When we got back to Mama's this afternoon, Mama insisted I had to have half the pound cake which I'd told her plainly I didn't want. As she started to cut into it, I flipped over the tin it came packed in to read the ingredients and it wasn't even a peach pound cake! It was a pecan praline pound cake. The young man went to the back to get it from a freezer and handed it tot he girl who looked it over, nodded and handed it back to him and he packed it right up into a bag when he came back. I never thought to check it myself, since Miss Bossy had approved it...Mama was very disappointed but we weren't about to drive 40 miles round trip to return it.
I was so very weary when I left Mama this afternoon. I felt much like I was underwater and just couldn't drag myself to the surface one more time for air. I stopped at Starbucks and bought the largest iced coffee they had where I'd normally opt for a small decaf. John accused me of trying to soothe my troubles with drink...Well yeah, if it's caffeine on one of these long hard days, lol.
Turning towards home, I texted Bess to ask if they were up from naps so that I could stop and get fresh eggs. She texted back before I settled into my chair here at the house that they were up. I am glad, because if I had had a chance to get comfortable I wasn't going to want to go anywhere and would have begged off. The boys are always good medicine for me.
Bess had the eggs sitting on the table waiting on me. I saw Isaac's buzz cut for the first time. He looks just like a mini boy! I asked if he knew how cute he was and he looked at me and said "Yeah!" He told me I had "Aigs" on the table, lol It was good medicine to be in the house with the boys and with River who has determined that I am gramma and she must have her share of Gramma attention as well.
Josh is getting big for wanting a hug but I noticed after I'd hugged him he kept coming back to stand near me. At one point he leaned into me hard and sniffed. "Why don't you smell?" he asked. I laughed. I realized this morning that I'd forgotten to put on any perfume and I'd felt half dressed. It amused me that he noticed but I do recall how I loved to smell Granny's Desert Flower perfume and Grandmama's Chantilly Lace scent. I guess it's just a thing a child is very attuned to.
Bess and I had a rare chat for about an hour then I headed home about the time Sam got in from his day. He said I was running off just because he came home but I knew he and Bess had things to talk over about his day and the boys wanted his attention. I gave him a big hug and assured him I would spend time with him soon.
Now I am going to go try to find something for supper. For a change I have nothing in the house that is leftover, nor any type of sandwich filling etc. I don't want dairy (yogurt nor cheese) and can't eat peanut butter this time of evening. I'll go dig around and see what I might find. Perhaps I'll cook myself an 'Aig'!
I think for July I'm going to do as I did last year and keep a diary blog. It will allow me a slight blogging break and yet I'll not go completely radio silent on you all. I feel I need the refreshment that comes with that sort of blogging, so don't be upset if you see no menu post come Sunday. Since it's the last day of June I'm going to just go right into Diary Mode after this post.
Friday: Awakened at 6:15am this morning by a text notification sound. I wasn't keen on waking that early but naturally, once awake, I had other things to attend to and I thought I'd check the messages just in case it was from John saying he was going to be late coming in...It was Katie who'd been out working Uber all night and wanted to know if I had coffee. I had just enough time to brew it before she came in. It was lovely to sit on the back porch this early summer morning. The sunrise was subtle but a pastel morning with a soft breeze is nothing to be sneered upon. Nor is gentle conversation and dogs who lie at your feet with a wag of tail now and then to state their own contentment.
John came in from work and found the two of us there. No breakfast had been started. He knows the important things too, though and he got a cup of coffee and came out to join us. The cat spread her love from one of us to another and we all sat peacefully on the porch until the cat had enough. She ran to the front porch and began yowling for her breakfast which made John ask about his...sigh. I'd had my Mary moments and now it was time to be Martha all over again.
The house is clean. I've a plan for today's lunch and will soon make up a plan for tomorrow's Sabbath meal. I've had a little conversation with Bess. I felt so battle wearied yesterday when I came home but today, I am refreshed. Today I am restored. His mercies are renewed every morning.
Remember dears, that I shall be mostly doing dairy type posting over July, though I do have a post in the works for purchases made in May/June.
Come share what you did this week to live well...
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Just want to say thanks for posting all your frugal ways. I learn something new from you every week. You always give me lots of inspiration and ideas! We have had very similar experiences at large churches that we have attended. Most of the churches around here have moved from having bible studies or ladies groups at church to home groups. That is hard for me, as I have some social anxiety about going to a home where I have never met anyone. I really enjoyed the posts that you used to do about setting up your outfits, where you showed photos of your inspiration and your outfits. Would love to see more of that!!!
Susanmarie in Pacific Northwest
Susanmarie, I agree with you. I was nearly ill the first time I attended a small group in a private home. Purely nervous anxiety! I did try to join life groups with a Bible based format but so many these days aren't that even. They open and close with a prayer and that's about it. I was less anxious over the small group that met in church but it was so far from anything biblical that I dropped out.
I have been thinking I'd do a few more outfit posts so hang in there with me and I'll get them up. I've been following a stylist who does very high end fashion looks from her thrift store finds...She's a little fashion weird for my personal taste but I admire her creativity and the ways she draws inspirations from different sources so I've been re-inspired to be more creative and thought I'd share some of that here on the blog.
Love the planter box and I think a church is terrible if they don't welcome children. Really with church attendance way, way down how do they expect little ones to come to love the gospel if they are excluded. Just my opinion.
Happy belated birthday to Katie! Love the planter box, that is lovely. Can't wait to see how you paint and fill with flowers. How creative to make a wrap with the scarves. Would love to see it if you want to share sometime.
Too funny about John and painting. Glad he helped with your might as well projects. ;) Last year I was staining the deck when it felt like a hundred degrees. I was using semi transparent stain, so it wasn't covering that great and dh came out and said it looks like it needs another coat. No thank you for staining, or it looks better...needless to say, if he wanted another coat, he would have to do it himself.(which he didn't) ;)
Oh I saw some glass cafe tables at kroger today for 40% off, so might check you I r area just in case.
Enjoy your break! I don't know how you find time to write so often, but we enjoy your posts.
Florida has that cloud to cloud horizontal lightning, too. In fact my Mom was telling me that they had a lot of it this week as well. We have had many storms and thunder and lightning here, too. I am thankful for the rain but it is always disconcerting to go to bed at night with all that going on and the weather radio going off every 30 minutes in the night. I am often tempted to stay downstairs until it is over but we would not get any rest down there either. Twice this week we have had breakfast on the porch swing with homemade sausage biscuits and coffee. Those are my favorite mornings. We can eat in the screen porch most any morning but I love the swing. Fireflies are out in full force each evening and the cicadas are singing to us all night. Ah, it is the height of summer.
This week we hired a young man to clean our roof. It was full of all sorts of debris and sticks and there was no way we could do anything about it with this tall house. It was well worth $100 to me to get it done and he swept the entire roof. Tree trimming has been on our 'big' chore list since last summer. It is a horrible job of hauling extension cords all over our property and moving them over and over again. This week I saw a deal on a cordless rechargeable trimmer. I asked Hubby to take a look and order it if he thought it would do the job here. He ordered it saying he would return it of he did not like it. It came and he assembled it but it was much more heavy than he expected. He went out to give it a try and came back in 90 minutes later saying he had trimmed all the trees! And he loves it! It did all that on one battery charge , too. The neighbor boy came this morning and hauled all the branches to the burn pile so that is DONE! It am going to take pictures and list the old electric trimmer on Facebook Marketplace and hopefully can recoup most of what we paid for the new one.
Our church is somewhat like yours when it comes to the children up to 5th grade but they are welcome to stay in the service with the parents if that is the family's preference. We have designated Sundays especially around holidays and when there is something special when all the kids are in the service except the babies. Our grandchildren absolutely love going to the children's programs and toddler nurseries at our church. I would encourage you to check out the program at your church and consider taking the grandchildren. These big churches do an excellent job of taking care of the children and teaching them from God's Word. Our church takes this area of ministry very seriously. My husband used to volunteer and he had to be there early each time to meet and pray for the children and be ready to care for them each week. The workers have to be background checked and cleared before they can work with the children. We also have security checks to keep the children safe. If you do not have children in the children's area you cannot go into that wing of the church, etc. I would talk to Taylor about it beforehand since she would need to know that she would not be with you but with other children. She might not want to try it but our grands cannot get to their rooms fast enough! And they wave goodbye because they want us to go and let them enjoy it! We have small groups for adults but that can be whatever the group chooses to be. We have a group of just us and one other couple. We meet for breakfast each Wednesday and we care for each other through support and prayer. We do not do a Bible study because that is not what we want our group to be at this time. We are all retired and desire fellowship more than anything. We tried some of the groups for our age but they are huge and not what we were looking for. We love our little group and the support and love and caring we have for each other.
Have a great weekend!
Kathy I had thought of sharing. Just didn't do it on Wednesday when I was showing them to John as he wasn't complimentary and I was moody, lol.
Lana, John has those rechargeable trimmers to use here and they do make a world of difference! He loathes the idea of having a gasoline motor on anything which is the only real option for our yard and the batteries hold a nice long charge.
I'm not worried about Taylor's safety at church at all. I know first hadn how careful they are and children must be checked in and out again etc. I just wish I could give her a more personal grandparent/grandchild sort of experience. That's my problem. I can however, take time to build that relationship and impart things to her as Granny did with me on visits too, I guess.
Yes! We love our cordless helpers. The blower and string trimmer are always in heavy use here. This pole saw is a real game changer with all our trees!
Hi Terri. Lovely post...inspiration and comfy relaxation (loved your porch descriptions). Glad your kitty is better. I like the idea of your diary posts. Looking forward to anything you write, if I'm being frank, and I am haha! I hear you regarding the larger churches...Dr.Missler was a huge advocate of what he called "small home groups". That idea appeals to me a lot. But there aren't many out here. I have a few friends I am thinking about talking to about them. My morning prayer time is very satisfying right now. I am off. Thanks again for the cozy post as always.
Love,
Tracey
Xox
We were always with our parents during church services. Everyone first had Sunday School the met for church. We knew we were to be reverent and that church was not a place to be noisy and to sit was still as we could at our age. Mom let us draw and have one chicklet some Sundays. We only drew on the back of the bulletin so could not do much and only had a pencil. I have one of my drawings. It is the church as I could see from seat. precious because that church got torn down to build the new one and without that picture I would have forgotten how it looked. All the children sat with the parents except tiny babies. The is how we got taught to sit still and hopefully try to listen and understand the word of God. A few times a child spoke out but it was ignored or th parents walked the child out of the service. I would have thought that every church would have the children in the actual regular service by 3rd or 4th grade at least. Teens having teen services? When are they taught to be adults in regular church? Our church has all the extra classes and such at night. I cannot drive at night. Even the children's vacation bible school is at night. Our classes though are very bible based.
We too love our battery yard tools. We love the Works brand. The tools are weighted nice for easy handling and light in weight too and the batteries last forever. They sure get a workout here.
This June sure has been cooler than last year was here. We are grateful for that. Still being outside for any length of time you still get hot and the humidity is high and you know how that is..
I am interested in the kimono pattern and will look at the video. Who is it that you see on line about your wardrobe? My arms are very big and I can no longer wear any cap sleeves and need a longer sleeve. That is not easy to find. I have noticed some knit tops having a sleeve that is just above the elbow but cut tighter than a usual sleeve is. A nice look for me. I may need to start making my own tops to get a sleeve I like as I see so few of these longer yet shortish sleeve tops. Oh how I would love to be able to wear sleeveless ! :-)
What a lovely anniversary present John gave you. He knows you like pretties for your yards.:))) Sarah
Lol’ing at your daughter separating her food! One of my daughters does that ever since she could feed herself, and she’s 23 now. Have you ever seen anyone dissect a slice of pizza? She will peel up the cheese,look for any chunky type bits, remove them to the side, and only then eat it. She even eats pasta with sauce on the side, so she can ‘dip’. And all the food must be VERY separated! I think it’s her creative side, but it drives my husband crazy😂 I say, to each their own. My husband eats Motts applesauce (and ONLY Motts) on pretty much everything. Have a great week! Best, Liz
I have never,in my life, heard of anyone being asked to leave a church. Where is the Christianity in that.?
That's too bad about your church not welcoming children in the service. Yes, an hour is a long time for a child to sit quietly, but they can't learn to do that if they're not at the service. Last December, Greg and I took the kids to my brother's for a symphony concert. We attended worship with them the next morning. I was surprised and a bit offended when the children were sent away halfway through the service. They were fine, and had their own Sunday school service, but I felt like they were "dismissed" so the grown-ups could worship. My own children grew up in the front row of the church sanctuary where they could see and be seen. It was a small congregation, and all of the children were welcomed.
Thanks for the fresh tomato sauce recipe - I'm going to try it this next week. I got some fresh mozzarella when I shopped last night and will use it with the sauce.
I forgot to mention that I love your birthday planter boxes, and yes, herbs would be perfect in them. What a fun gift!
Liz, my kids do not go quite that far, but Katie above all others generally dislikes 'mixed up' meals...come to think of it, Sam is not so fond of casseroles either. They prefer separate components in their own separate spaces on their plates.
Dear Anne...My first reaction was to laugh...There is nothing Christian about it. It's very much a man (human) failing and it's far more common than you'd think.
Tracey, Home groups are something I've thought long and hard about myself. But I have my husband to consider. It is where he feels lead to take us that I must go. If God wants us elsewhere, He is usually quick to impress both John and myself.
Sarah the current trend in women's blouses is a three quarter length bell sleeve which should fit your arms well...However, these sleeves tend to hit me at that point just below my waist (I am short waisted) at the fullest point of my hip and just widens me.
I have been watching bjonesstyle on YouTube and she also has her own website now and is on Instagram as well. It's fun to watch how she pairs things. She mixes prints like nobody and yet somehow always looks high end fashion. Not my style but she does make me think.
Tammy, I expect you'll like that fresh tomato sauce quite a lot. Yes, I'm afraid that the current trend in churches is to separate the family. I am not sure it's the right thing but then no one asked me...Just my personal feelings on the matter.
Well we posted the old corded pole trimmer on Facebook Marketplace and sold it for only $8 less than we paid for the new cordless one! I will keep this in mind in the future for upgrading tools to make jobs easier!
Lana, That is awesome!
At our church we don’t even have a nursery during service. Children are welcomed and encouraged to attend with their family. Our youth director conducts a short Children’s Sermon midway and the kiddos go up front and sit and listen and interact. That’s when some of the most interesting statements are made. Lol
In fact, there are also little laminated sheets in the pews that state that all children are welcome and that a part of spiritual life should be an opportunity for kiddos to grow up in the pews and learn to be a member of our Christian community.
Only rarely have we witnessed an out of control child and the parents promptly took them outside and then returned when they were composed.
As far as the pastor giving stern looks from the pulpit, our pastor is the young father of two active twin boys so he is able to tune out any external noise. Lol.
I'm sorry time out with your Mom is so wearisome, but I understand. When I read of your regular times with her I know sometimes it is a struggle. And on those days, I feel it is OK to have a treat to smooth the rough spot.
Your ambition at home makes me so envious. I want to be here and working on bettering my home but for now I need to be working outside the home. I miss my daily "just me" times here puttering. I got a small taste of it yesterday as I cleaned the basement for our oldest son & his family's visit. I put on an audio book and went to town scrubbing and organizing. I just need to vacuum and Farmer needs to clean up his mess near the back door.
And finally, we attended for one year, a large church that did not allow small children in the service. And if you did come in and the child made noise, the usher would ask you to take him to the nursery. That is not my idea of "family" nor "community." Which is what we are suppose to be. The WHOLE body of Christ, including the "unimportant" members. I love babies in church. Sometimes they need to be taken out but if not, then the rest of us, should pray over that mother and child and for anyone who is needing to hear the message Satan is trying to keep them from hearing. Today we sat with a family of small children, under the age of 7. The young girl of the family sang so well and loudly during worship time. It made me glad. And I'm sure she watched me praising with closed eyes and raised hands. I hope a teaching moment for the family; that we all praise God in different ways and no way is the only "Right" way.
Enjoy the time "off" in July. You've prompted me to maybe dust off my old blog and give it a try again.
Carolyn, that sounds more like the church I grew up in...Several others we attended had Sunday School but church service was a shared service. It seems to me the last ten years has seen this trend of separate worship for different age groups.
Kay, I would love to see you and Carolyn and Tammy all return to blogging routinely! However, I am too well aware that blogging is not a quick process and requires some measure of editing and uploads and is not all play and no work. Enjoy your family visit!
Another busy week Terri! I have had the same thoughts as you about children in church. When we lived in lower Michigan and had all 4 boys at home and the youngest 3 being all 5 and under, we attended a church that really didn’t like us bringing the kids in. They kept offering to take the kids the kid’s church and we politely said, “no thank you”. We grew up going to church with our parents and that’s how I wanted to raise our family. Well, another move or two (or three!) and the kids ended up going to kid’s church. I guess we gave in. We have been hurt by a church too and that is why right now I stay home and just read the Bible. Safer that way, lol. I have thought about going to a large church in the Milwaukee suburbs as, like you, we would be anonymous, but just haven’t made the leap.
Your planter is such a lovely gift. I will be interested to see what color you choose to paint it. We were in our vegetable garden the other day and I mentioned to my husband that it would be nice to have a bench to sit a spell. Well, a few weeks later after being busy in the garage, he presents me with a garden bench! I am such a blessed woman. I too am trying to decide what color. I am thinking either a buttery yellow or a royal blue.
Thank you for the fresh tomato sauce recipe! I shall try it now that tomatoes should be getting better at the store.
I thought of you the other day when I was picking strawberries in the garden and a big frog jumped a mere inch from my hand! My husband put it over the garden fence, but then he and our youngest son had a conversation about how beneficial the frog was to eat insects in the garden. So they put it back in my strawberry bed! Ugh....men. I told them that they can step into the middle of the strawberry patch for the rest of the harvest, because I am NOT.
Well, off to get breakfast going and get outside to take a walk before the heat and humidity kick in too much. Summer finally arrived in force last week. Have a lovely day Terri. Nice to have a visit with you.
Karen, I'm going to paint it Island green, the same color I painted the rocking chair. I thought I'd get to paint that this week but I had boys yesterday, groceries today, a cook out tomorrow and John wants to do something or other on Friday...That pretty much does this week, lol. It will be a nice bright pop of color in the flower bed. Ugh on the frog, I know they are beneficial but they jump at me and scare me.
Island green will be pretty! I think I saw your table set the same color? Yes, it would be lovely to have a free, open day to oneself to just work on projects. No cooking or cleaning! Have a happy 4th! We are just hanging out here at home. We watch a neighbor or two who light of the bigger fireworks in the comfort of our home (mosquitoes always chase us off the porch!).
"In the end, it is not the table setting or the clothing or the bread or the meal. It is that I come. I come because no matter how horrible the week behind, I need the refuge only God can give."
Wow, beautifully expressed, as always Terri. I've only just begun reading and am blown away. You write such things that I think we are all experiencing or have experienced but don't really talk about. It's so encouraging and comforting to know we are all connected in our human experiences. Thank you so much for communicating these poignant, simple points so beautifully. I'm off now to read more. There may, or may not, be more comments forthcoming. Haha.
Much love,
Traceyx0x
For a number of years my husband and I sat at the back of the church with two rows of children/young teens. It gave the parents a break and allowed them to focus on the service. We brought candy or mints for the kids and did our best to keep them quiet and also teach them to follow the service.
That group of kids is all grown now and I've been thinking that I'd love to take on another group. Our schedule is so crazy that we don't make it to church every Sunday like we used to but I'd like to try to make that a priority this fall.
Fortunately our congregation is fairly small and very understanding about kids in the service. It's actually the parents who tend to want a break from their kids and that's why we let them sit with us. I think it's important for kids to be included.
Your talk about painting reminds me that I still have three shelves to finish painting for the cookbook cabinet we had built months ago. My husband is out of town on business so maybe I should tackle that this weekend and surprise him. :)
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