Choosing Gratitude #7

Revive Our Hearts calendar ~ June 2010 ~

Gratitude is foundational.  And it is

     transformational.  A grateful spirit, rooted in the

         soil of God's goodness and grace, will radically

       impact how you view and respond to everything

                                                                 in your life.

Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, 

unto thee do we give thanks: 

for that thy name is near 

thy wondrous works declare. 

Psalm 75:1

Nancy Leigh DeMoss ~ Choosing Gratitude: Your Journey to Joy

daybook October 12, 2010

FOR TODAY  

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Outside my window...
…our trees are a mix of green, gold and brown
…three of the calves have wandered out of the pasture to enjoy the green hayfield 
…dead weeds still awaiting Tim’s attention with a match
 
I am thinking...
If so many of the PC-government schools belittle Christopher Columbus, then why is Columbus Day a federal holiday?

I am thankful for...
...my SIL who cooked some good homemade meals yesterday for the field guys (without my help!)   It was my brother’s double-nickel birthday  :-)
…meeting up with a friendly tree-cutter last week who might be a great source for my boys and I to bring home some firewood without Tim and without using our chainsaw
 
I am praying for...
... the Rettigs in Prague, their church members,  and the many Czech who still need Christ (Praising God again:  They had 27 visitors attend the second Bible study!)
... Diane & family
… Leora’s brother, who recently returned from Afghanistan and needs time to recuperate
… Michelle’s 2yo cousin Chloe, who recently had stem-cell transplant to assist her body in battling a neurological disease
  … my dad is traveling to AZ tomorrow, then he and mom leave Saturday for a quick trip to overseas!
 
From the learning rooms...

Yo soy el camino, y la verdad, y la vida… 

~ Juan 14:6a

• Doctrine of Bibliology, another chemistry lab, phone conversations in speech class
  
• First round of tests in grammar/comp and literature;  precis are done, next is a book review of Silas Marner
  
• Stewardship ~ various taxes relating to paychecks  :-(  Mr. Demme seems to share our worldview on that…

From the kitchen...

• Yesterday was a Baking Day!  Bread, double batch of sweet roll dough (which became dinner rolls, hamburger buns, and cinnamon rolls), breakfast tea cake, and Cookie Mama Cookies  :-)
  
• Supper was chicken enchilada casserole
  
• Tonight will probably be spaghetti

I am creating...
a messy desk?
 
I am going...
to work at the farm office this afternoon
 
I am reading...
Lamentations, Gospel of John, So Big by Edna Ferber
I should read more Dickens before I watch any more  ;-)
 
I am hoping...
Tim will be able to get the combine working again this morning ~ Yesterday was a frustration for him (and my dad who did the running for parts).
 
I am hearing...
Mr. Birx in Bible Doctrines, teaching on Bibliology
 
Around the house...
Yesterday was laundry and baking.  Today I just need to cook supper  :-) 
(It should be a Desk Day, considering what I have “created”)
 
One of my favorite things...
crunching through fallen leaves (learned while walking with Tim 18 years ago)
 
Pondering these words...
"Men are never duly touched and impressed with a conviction of their insignificance, until they have contrasted themselves with the majesty of God."

R.C. Sproul

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

People who wonder where

the younger generation is headed for

would do well to consider

where it came from.

 

A few plans for the rest of the week:
Wed eve ~ church
Thurs ~ violin lesson for Miss Music Box (her first with a new teacher)
Fri ~ piano, groceries
Sat ~ big kids have a hayride/bonfire
If Tim is able, we will go to an open house at Learning Rx
 
Here is a picture for thought...
 

  Miss Artist enjoyed playing with a bouquet we brought home from my mom & dad’s a few weeks ago ~ This is her gift.  I often wonder if her time is wasted by academics such as chemistry.

 

~ Find more Daybooks at Peggy's ~

blogger fun

I received this blog award today from Amy at Missional Mama!  Thank you, Amy ~♥~

 

Like any great blogging award, I get to pass it along to several of my favorite blogs (some are new to me, many are now "old" friends)... I hope you will check out those you are unfamiliar with!

• Missionary Emilie Rettig in Prague ~ Our Czech Up 

• Stefanie ~ Itty Bitty Joys

• Sarah ~ train up a child

(I should be linking your photo blog, Sarah ~ It's very fun)

• So here it is!  EveryDayPhoto

• Large Family Mothering (a new find that always makes me think)

• Cathy M. ~ So Much to Say, So Little Time (another great new find!)

• Cindy ~ An Army for the Lord

• Conny ~ The Hutch Haus (The Life of an Ordinary Hausfrau)

• Jodi ~ Granola Mom 4 God

• Julie ~ Herding Grasshoppers

• Sarah ~ And then I Married a Missionary

• Felicity in South Africa ~ Felicity's Thoughtful Spot

• Lea the Southern Belle ~ Cici's Corner

• Jane ~ Sweet Basil Kitchen

• Jenna ~ Feminine Farmgirl

• Dawn ~ Java Dawn

And now for the very boring part:  seven things about me.  Hmmm, what to say?

• I had to list JavaDawn, because I began blogging after reading hers a few (?) years ago.  Dawn and I became friends via my favorite help for history ~ TruthQuest History guides ~ and the related Yahoo group.  Wow. Lots of memories on that potential bunny trail!

• Fact is that I quit blogging and even took occasional sabbaticals from the TQ group, knowing that the computer (i-net) was a huge time-consumer in my day.  Soooo, when I picked up blogging again in June 2009... and then added Facebook (another activate/deactivate item), Tim's prophetic comment was "Now we'll get nothing done!"  So, I have to be very careful, you see, because he knows me and usually speaks truth...   I like to yak!
• (This is one of those time-consuming posts, so I hereby grant full amnesty to any and all of you who choose to not pass along this award.)
• Telling you (thinking about) all of that makes me want to click the red X.  Nothing personal ~ My back has just had enough and then some... And my conversation is full of clutter possibly ~ That's the first unit in speech class: cleaning up and improving conversations in order to be edifying.  (It's not just kids who need to make an effort to sound intelligent and kind... sigh)  Run-on's and prattle come out easily when I'm weary.
• "Video night" tonight consisted of speech class and Spanish I ~ pretty exciting, eh??  Thus I'm at the computer while they've been watching and conversing and quizzing.  I did think I might slip off with a laptop and watch something else... since I did bring home a couple things from the library again today  ;-)  ...but here I still am instead.  I also forgot the dvds at home that should have been returned today!  :o  I am SO thankful they weren't on hold for someone else and could be renewed.  I didn't want to make a special trip back to Ames today, thank you anyway.
• Speaking of driving... I used to enjoy driving my little orange Audi with a manual sunroof.  Was it a 1977?  That seems too new for me to be driving in 1983ish.  We paid $700 cash for it ~ The dealer was willing to come down since it wouldn't even start on the lot!  Oh, but I did enjoy that car!  (and yes, it cost a little more by the time my auto-savvy brother-in-law had it running ~ Thank you, Jon!)  My actual "first" car (age 16) was an old Ford Galaxy 500... The speedometer didn't work, which was not a good thing for a girl who was always running a bit late.  Gas was expensive too ~ It might have gone up to $1/gallon in my early years of driving  ;-) 
• That wins for oldest memory, don't you think?!  Can't wait until I have Alzheimer's for real...  :-\  No, really, I have a difficult time thinking that the Lord will tarry that long.  Doesn't this world seem over-ripe to you?
• This is 8 bullets already ~ Isn't that enough about me already?!  Tim will be home soon... maybe... and I will still be sitting here...   
• P.S. I wanted to add a photo, but I keep forgetting to use LiveWriter, Jodi. 

To accept the Versatile Blogger Award the rules are:

• Thank and link back to who gave you the award.
• Share 7 things about yourself.
• Pass it along to 15 blogs you've recently discovered and enjoy
• Leave your recipients a note, telling them about the award.

Daybook October 5, 2010

FOR TODAY  

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Outside my window...

Sunny blue skies with a good breeze a blowing.  

The cattle which I can see are having nap time ~ Aren't they smart?!

I am thinking...
I should shut the windows to keep out the dust from the gravel road, 

but don't you just love the fresh crisp air of fall?

I am thankful for...

...my dad's biopsy(s) came back with very little to concern the docs ~ They will recheck in 3 months

...soybeans are d.o.n.e. 

...swagbucks ~ Looks Sounds like I will be using my accumulated Amazon $$ for a new phone (landline)

...a really nice chat with new friend Kristina K. Sunday evening after church

I am praying for...

... the Rettigs in Prague, their church members, the group from their US sending church, and the many Czech who still need Christ (Praise:  They had 28 visitors attend the first Bible study a week after the Bible Night)

...Mrs. M, who shall be Miss MB's new violin teacher after she recuperates from this week's medical care

From the learning rooms...

Genesis ~ Isaac marries Rebekah

Ur to Egypt in the Trail Guide to Bible Geography

Adam & His Kin ~ Noah and his family are preparing to leave the ark

Elementary anatomy ~ skeletal system

Doctrine of Bibliology, significant figures, chemistry labs 
And the highwayman came riding-- riding-- riding--

Coming up: writing precis, improving conversation in speech class, learning to converse in Spanish

From the kitchen...

Last night's Plan B was wonderful (if I say so myself  =)) ~ leftovers from Sunday like roast beef, mashed potatoes and gravy, butternut squash
Tonight ~ chicken packets, leftover Oreo cheesecake!
Options for the rest of the week:  spaghetti, egg rolls (ready-made in freezer!), chicken enchiladas, pizza, haystack, southwest stew (oops - that was supposed to be Sunday's dinner to use the zucchini in my fridge)
Today I've baked teacake for tomorrow's breakfast and apple crisp for the field crew (Because when Aunt Karen gives you apples...)

I am creating... 

this daybook post instead of ironing clothes  :o

I am going...

to work at the farm office this afternoon (soon!)  Mission number one: refiling papers that endured a basement flood this summer

I am reading...

I am almost done with Jeremiah!  so I read some in John this morning  ;-)

I am hoping...

the girls and I will be able to finish watching Wives and Daughters tonight... since it got too late last night

I am hearing...

Quiet.  Pencils tapping, pages turning... hmmm, should I be hearing a viola?

Around the house...

yeah, yeah, yeah ~ I know.

One of my favorite things... 

when my husband has time to talk with me  :-)

Pondering these words...

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, 

(and we beheld his glory, 

the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) 

full of grace and truth.

John 1:14

A few plans for the rest of the week:

Wed eve ~ church

Thurs morn/evening ~ coop delivery (buying club), chiropractor

Fri ~ piano, groceries

Here is a picture for thought...

 (This must be from a few years ago)




~ Find more Daybooks at Peggy's ~

Choosing Gratitude #6

...from my Revive Our Hearts calendar for May 2010...


 

 A grateful man or woman will be 

             a breath of fresh air in a world contaminated 

                    by bitterness and discontentment.  

         And the person whose gratitude is a by-product of  

                   and a response to the redeeming grace of God 

          will showcase the heart of the gospel in a way that 

is winsome and compelling.

I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, 

that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world.

Romans 1:8

Nancy Leigh DeMoss ~ Choosing Gratitude: Your Journey to Joy

an fb status sort of post

...I should like to sit here and chat with my blogger friends... but my day is not done yet!  Yet I'm 'needing' a TO DO List to check off what we've accomplished so far, kwim?  So, since I don't have enough time for the Daybook and at the risk of wearying you all with a ~ Very Boring Post ~ as Conny would say...

I have...

• scrubbed the stovetop ~ it's electric but not smoothtop, so you can imagine what all that involves... and how pleased I am to see it clean again!
• baked 2 batches of bread ~ one batch is for my brother
• disappointed my kids by not feeding them fresh bread for lunch  ;-)
• baked peanut butter cookies for the guys in the field, which includes my Tim
• convinced a salesman who called for Tim that after Thanksgiving would be a better time to find him at home
• washed 3 loads laundry (with one left to put away...ahem)
• called for our appointment with the chiropractor... I probably need to stay away from the computer in hopes of keeping the migraine manageable
• delivered bread and cookies... and discussed my new Special Projects employment at the farm office with my aunt
• checked some school papers, read to my kids, and got most of them going on the new course in Bible Lands Geography... and otherwise played served as the mom/tutor
• laughed at Miss Autrey (I think that's her name), the wonderful and hilarious speech instructor we enjoy via A Beka Academy's dvds.  {{huge smiley face}}

I am now listening to Miss Music Box actually practicing her violin!!!  {That IS noteworthy, btw ~ Right, Stef?}  I still need to finalized her first lesson with a new instructor.  (My house is generally NOISY all day long, so it's hard to make phone calls...)

Okay, now it's after 6 pm and supper is still c>o>l>d> because I haven't put it together... Might be a good day for Plan B??  The chicken is cooked, so I can warm it up enough to eat it plain instead ...and still have happy children.

And if we get enough of our list done for the day... the girls and I will watch the final episode of Wives and Daughters, which I brought home from the library Friday (intending to selfishly watch it by myself).  Friday night I couldn't get any of the dvds to work in the laptop that currently lives in my room... So decided to try the Oliver Twist at the TV with dvd player, where it worked (That's a 'Go figure' if you know our dvd player, but I decided God didn't seem to want me to watch in solitude).  That was --hmmm-- good, but not so good at the same time.  (Oh, we were thoroughly entertained by the BBC Drama animated advertisement at the beginning ~ I don't know how to explain it quickly, but if you've seen it, maybe you know what I'm talking about?  Need I add that we are easily entertained?)
Tim actually came home just as we were getting it started, so he ended up joining us... and we stayed up until midnight  :o  (not good for a guy who needs to stay awake in a combine all day Saturday)  I did send the younger kids to bed since the movie was untried ...and it was already late!
Saturday I worked towards allowing myself some time with the Wives and Daughters... it ended up being ~8:30pm before we started that... but I stopped us at ONE 90 minute episode  =)   We are enjoying W&D since the less admirable characters aren't nearly as villainous as Dickens' bad guys.  Elizabeth Gaskill (novelist) would appeal to any Jane Austen fan I'm sure.  Have you seen it or her other works via BBC?

Gotta git!  Kids can watch Spanish while I get supper hot ...

while it’s still green…

 

A while back, far- away Felicity requested more photos of our landscape here...

And Jodie recommended using Microsoft’s Live Writer (after I complained about blogger’s new hoops for posting pics).   So here goes nothing!

First, a pic of the house with most of the siding on ~

The clouds were a-moving that day ~

Guess who’s been here?

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Cattleman’s garden ~

 

which is escaping it’s boundaries of course

 

 

 

 

 

Aren’t they nice to pose together for a photo?

 

And beyond the steers live the heifers and their calves with Bullwinkle ~

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry, this is about as good as it gets with zoom ~ they were too far away (and I wasn’t prepared to hike through the pasture)

 

The kids planted the blue spruce that they brought home from the Farm Progress Show ~ We’ll see how many survive.  And where we decide to plant them next year (?) 

Oh, and I should ask for advice.  The directions say for indoor planting (which is where they will spend the winter):  “place in a cool spot away from direct heat to set dormancy until spring. “ It does NOT say anything about what sort of lighting they need – ???  Our unheated basement rooms will be pretty dark most of the day.  Maybe they should stay in the garage where there’s ONE window?  Any would-be-experts out there?  =)  (I’m thinking they need some sunshine, but I do intend to heat our house this winter, ya know?)

 

Here’s the back side of the house (which is not completely sided) and a patch of mostly dead weeds…

With thanks again to generous people at the Farm Progress Show who gave Tim a sample of some weed killer ~ just what we needed!  Some day this fall (before snow cover) he hopes to burn off the dead weeds ~ Someone advised him to not attempt to shape our future lawn without doing all this first.   (sidenote:  I have looked with some amazement at people mowing their yards the past month or two…  Mowing??)

Thinking of landscaping, here’s my beloved forsythia, flanked by a couple elderberry bushes, if you can discern anything amongst the weeds…  But they are flourishing!  And I am happy about that.

 

The maple tree is not so obvious ~ but it doesn’t look dead either, yes?  We are hoping for the best.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This coneflower has survived the transplant…  (yay!)

We’re still debating the future of the many milk weed… for now they live under the grace of low priority  ;-)

 

That’s all for now, folks…

but stay tuned… There’s many a more photo in that there folder!