Woolly Bear FAIL

the woolly bear...

a lot of people think that it can predict the weather...

...will we have a mild winter, or a hard winter?

Here is a picture of one from our backyard... taken just a couple of weeks ago...

...he's laughing at me... I'm sure of it. He looks so innocent and harmless, his light stripe wide, un-alarming.

Looking at him, we never expected to see accumulating snow on October 29.

The snow fell though... heavily. As it collected on the still attached leaves, the branches became heavy, finally breaking to the ground.  This normally quiet event sounded with "crack" and "thud". It was unnerving.

bending...

 ...breaking



I don't recall ever seeing snow this early. And, I'm hoping that woolly bear got it right, that this early winter storm is not a warning of what we're going to see this year.

my soul longeth after You

It's night. My children are washed and in their beds. My husband is at a monthly church meeting. The house is quiet, except for music, there is no noise but the low hum of my laptop.
When I turned the music on, I desired only instrumental. Not particularly in the mood for classical, I left it on the "New Age", where a piano piece was being played. For the most part, the music was repetitive, arpeggios throughout. Although soothing, it became numbing. But, just as I was about to change the channel, a familiar tune jogged my attention.

 As the deer panteth for the water, so my soul longeth after You. You alone are my hearts desire, and I long to worship You. You alone are my strength, my shield. To You alone may my spirit yield.

A song, so familiar to me from early high school years. Words taken directly from Psalm 42. Words sung so many times in my life that they come naturally from my lips, really, without much thought. But, words so beautiful and meaningful ...given thought, cause my heart to surge with longing.

The Psalmist, David, wrote this passage during a very difficult time in his life; a prayer of faith in a time of trouble. The next verses say...

"My soul thirsts for God, for the living God, when shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all day long, "Where is your God?" These things I remember, and I pour out my soul within me." (vs.2-4)

The question "Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me?" is cried out twice. (vs.5,11) The first time the answer is " Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him for the help of His presence." The second time the answer is "Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God."

I love the resolve in David's words. There's no doubt that his hope is in God, and that he will praise Him again. He doesn't say, "when my circumstances change, then I will praise Him", and he certainly doesn't turn a blind eye to the truth that God is always worthy of our praise. He relies on God for help in his countenance and praises Him for His presence in the midst of the trials.

It's easy to praise God when life is running smoothly. When things, while busy and sometimes burdensome, are going well, praising Him comes easily. When we're faced with a difficult season though, sometimes we run the opposite way... grasping for "truth" and answers in a fallen world....

May we have resolve as David had, trusting God no matter the circumstances we're faced with.

"The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime; and His will be with me in the night, a prayer to the God of my life." Psalm 42:8

Our Fall Home...the picturesque and the...not so much

While taking some pictures of my home decorated for fall, I realized that I was trying to keep the "ugly" out of my pictures. Who wants to show the world that your house isn't perfect?

I decided I do.

We all have nice, lovely spots in our homes. And, we all have cluttered, chaotic spaces (even if they're stuffed out of sight, in closets). We all live in our homes, not set them up for pictures in magazines.

I say celebrate it all!

So, without further adew... here's my rendition of celebrating fall...

it may look familiar to a lot of you ;-)

some picturesque spots in our home...

fall mantle... metal  hanging pumpkin, faux leaves, wreath that hung at the church my parents were married in, a few other nick-knacks, and a cute hanging scarecrow (who has a pocket...which we're using throughout November... more on that then)

 happy jacks... each of our boys has one... they're fake pumpkins... we carved them, cut a hole in the back and inserted a "Christmas house light". Whalla... reusable happy jacks! The corn husk garland was a yard sale find, 2 years ago...love how the scarecrows sit right into the garland

 we like scarecrows... they're cute, fun, fallish, and happy... what's not to like?

 entrance table

fall fairies in the bathroom sill... my aunt, cousins and I made these years ago... out of pipe cleaners, embroidery floss and fake flowers... (my boys aren't very fond of this craft project, but it would be a hit with a little girl. if you'd like to know more about them... give me a holler!)

...and... some not so much spots... just keepin' it real folks

the "charging corner"... no matter how many times we clean this corner, anything that needs charging seems to migrate back to it... I'm convinced there's a magnetic draw... and once they're in place, it's just easier for the boys to leave the cords available

dining room table... covered in school projects... with more to come in the next couple of days... and, yes, the table is pushed up against the window... for the football and hand-soccer games that take place in the middle of the room, naturally

bags of snacks awaiting my Little Man's soccer game

library books toppling over their designated basket and spot underneath our entrance table

Happy FALL, ya'll!!!

May your homes be rich with love, warmed by the people in it, busy with all things good, graced by your creative, decorators touch, and cluttered just enough to know that your family loves being there.

Fall

Fall is my FAVORITE! There's just no other way to explain it.

...the slightly cooler temps, although the sun is still so soothing warm. Sitting at a soccer game, I could melt into my chair... the outdoors beckon us to finish our schoolwork and get outside...cooler days are coming...there will be plenty of time for indoor fun then.
...the colors.... the magnificent colors. It's no secret to anyone who knows me that I love bright, vivid colors! My home is painted in the colors of an oak tree leaves, at the peak of fall foliage. From the chair I sit in now, I can see "Lettuce Alone" green, "Arizona Sunset" orange, and "Marigold" yellow. The next room over has "Royal Throne" Red on the wall. I've quite literally painted the colors of fall into my family's every day lives.
However, the fact that we see these colors every day doesn't keep us from standing in awe of God's beautiful creation surrounding us this time of year.

There is a line of trees that we pass every time we leave our home. They're so pretty, with cottonballish white flowers in the spring, full green foliage in the summer, and now, gorgeous hues of red, orange and yellow. For 5 years, we've lived here, passing these trees countless times. And, every year, I say that I'd like to get a picture of them. Well, I finally got my picture.

I admit, it's not the best photo... but I still love the colors in it. And, considering I took the picture while I was driving... and I may or may not have almost jumped the curb in my van... ahem... are cameras considered hand-held devices???  I did make sure there was no one behind me...

This same evening, I was on my way to church for Bible study. And, because I happened to have my camera, I found myself asking God what the sunset would look like when I got to a picturesque spot. He answered with a resounding, "GORGEOUS"!

God is such a Magnificent Artist...

and you'll be happy to know that I pulled over to take this picture... so was my friend riding with me :-)

BOYS

 Made in God's Image
...reflections of gentleness, long-suffering, love, strength

Blessings... reminded daily, hourly of the priviledge to guide them

Hilarious... fun and humor abounding

 JOYS...
happy to know them individually and thoroughly 

Contagious Laughter... ripples delight

Extravagant Love... my thanks to God overwhelming

yOUNG mEN... Maturity brimming on the lip of manhood

4 sets of EYES...
intentally watching my husband and me... our successes... our failures. Our deepening 
RELATIONSHIP with God and each other. Our testimony lived out in front of them.

God's Grace and Goodness...
apparent every moment