Sunday dinner

~

Hot, steaming gravy runs all over the mound of potatoes, over and around the tender chicken... And I'm thinking this is just the thing on this damp, cold day that scowls sharp with ragged clouds and can't decide whether to actually rain or just make threats.

Crock pots are a gift to cold people with not enough energy to make a meal after sitting in a chilly classroom half the morning. The hot food warms me from inside and feels like comfort. It's the perfect meal for before a nap. And a nap is just the thing for a cold Sunday afternoon.

( so today, right this minute, I am thankful for...)

521. crock pots making meals while I'm away
522. easy gravy = mushroom soup poured over the meat and thickened as needed later
523. Hot food when I'm cold, warming me up from the inside
524. Restful Sundays
525. worship time
526. family time
527. nap time

~

joys and thank yous

I haven't blogged much these last few months. real life required my attention, and there wasn't enough of me left over to write about it.

But now that I am here, I want to pick up on my list of joys and thank yous, my gratitude list, right where I left off.

504. freebies for my birthday, or any time

505. skype!

506. adorable grandgirls who light up when they see me, making me feel like a celebrity

507. being loved with an everlasting love, unconditionally, constantly, and lavishly

508. laughing with my kids

509. having kids who show respect and consideration for others

510. dancing to oldies - daughter's favorite choice in music

511. pedicure with custom painted designs on my toes!

512. turquoise

513. grape juice

514. frappuccinos, rarely, but yum.

515. jasmine green tea and dark chocolate

516. taking pride in the accomplishment of a grown daughter as she graduates

517. getting to know my kids' strengths and talents as they develop

518. new recipes that turn out well

519. metro cruise, and being there with my kids

520. Vitamin D supplements - they really make the shorter, darker days so much easier

embracing this wildness

Today, Daughter has a broken tooth that must be remedied immediately. She's in considerable pain. She has hardly eaten or drunk anything in 36 hours (except for a smoothie last night), has a headache, and is very hungry and thirsty. On top of this, she woke up this morning with allergies bothering her and giving her a sore throat! She must feel terrible! This is the girl with a huge national registry exam later this week and who is also moving 2000 miles away in two and a half weeks... so there is a lot going on for her. We need to get this tooth taken care of so she can do the next thing.

Life piles up sometimes... and I guess hers is.

We will get her to the dentist and it will be better. We will figure out a way to pay for it even though there is no insurance. She will do great on her exam even though she will worry herself to a frenzy, and she will get moved on time.

A friend posted today that we need the wild places, the untamed places, the unsolved mysteries. Even in the middle of Our Town, right downtown, there are places yet not cultivated, places where the trees and weeds grow and the poison ivy creeps bright red up the trunks. There is beauty in the untamed, the unexplored, the unknown.

Life is like that too. As much as I wish to get it all figured out, tame my schedule, and understand everything...weeds and tangles appear. Teeth break and pain shoots right through the place in life where I thought it was all cultivated and smooth. Schedules change and unknowns pop up. Maybe that's ok. Maybe it's ok to do what you can and then let the rest be. Maybe the unknowns and unexpecteds of life are the wild places that we need more than we know. Maybe I need to do what I can to make things right, and then just embrace the rest in all its messy glory. Maybe I need to be more thankful for the uncultivated places in life, the unknown and unplanned, the unsolved mysteries, the "don't knows".





(ps - if you want to read my friend's post about the value of he wild places, go here:
http://studiobeerhorst.squarespace.com/journal/2011/10/10/into-the-wild.html?lastPage=true#comment15279492)

Biggby ... breakfast in the car...sunny day, daughter with me... Great start to the day!

Retro Metro Cruise

Fun stuff!

Classic cars, cruising through the streets of town.

Showing their stuff in store parking lots.

(Isn't this gorgeous?! )

Oldies blasting, kids dancing.

Free food, and a fake Elvis.

Thanks to the generosity of one local business, we enjoyed free burgers,
hot dogs, chips, and root beer floats for supper!

A contest for the most authentic 50s style girls.

And Family.

(They are all watching the little ones.)

What a fun night!

working at sunshine

today did not start out very fun.

so i am working at it.

working at bringing some sparkle to the day, which would otherwise be hard and dry.

like a stale biscuit.

without jam.

step one -
starbucks. something very large, decadent and sweet, with a coupon to make it free. free always makes it even better. settled on a venti, haf caf, soy, java chip mocha frappuccino with a shot of peppermint, afagato. with whipped cream and syrup. i think i pretty much maxed out my freebie coupon with that concoction. it was the perfect thing for this particular morning.

step two -
focus on Truth, like, "there is therefore no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus..." And "I will never leave you or forsake you." To know that I am loved unconditionally sure drives away discouragement of any kind!! Truth wins, every time, hands down! No matter the circumstances, I can wallow in His love! It's secure and it's always available.

step three -
spend some quality phone time with offspring far away. I love my kids so much! I miss this one and his family so much it hurts! But a chat on the phone makes them feel closer.

step four -
crank up the oldies and dance in the kitchen. made the daughter smile (because she's too polite to full out laugh). tunes from the 60s can really cheer up a day, plus dancing gets the blood flowing and is pure good fun!


so... it's coming along. this day is getting better. we'll see how it ends up. big storms are coming through. maybe they'll cleanse the air.

I hope your day is a good one! if not, tell me what you plan to do about it, please. I can always use more ideas.

this moment

cicadas and the sound of a mourning dove...

iced tea and a book out on the porch...

this is what summer afternoons are made of.

(joys and thank yous #502 and #503)


(I'm going. Right now. I can't bear to miss this moment.)