As I have gathered the moments of last month, I am newly aware of how much life is lived in even one short month. Changes. Endings. Struggles. Victories. Joy. Sorrow. Growth. All of that and more. And while I cannot show all of that in a few photos (nor do I wish to), I can share some sweet moments that are a part of the story.
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We had such fun recreating this 2012 photo of aunt/nieces/nephews!
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| Original photo, taken by Kati in 2012 |
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| Recreated TEN years later! |
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| Also ten years later, but in order of current heights. |
We celebrated a couple of birthdays this month. Ben turned 14.
Daddy turned 85 . . . another milestone birthday!
Ryan and family have been exploring (and loving) their new area.
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| Planting a weeping willow tree to replace a large maple that had to be cut down. |
Ryan and Sarah always plan a series of games and challenges for the campers. This year, Ben won the championship!
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Ron, Bekah, and I joined the campers for an evening meal around the campfire.
Kati sent me this photo of her own family enjoying some autumn goodness. She and Andrew are so good about sending us snippets of their days and we are grateful for that!
We enjoyed our first October in the new sunroom. We had a front row seat to some beautiful foliage! (But I think we'll love this room in every season!)
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| Also loving that pumpkin stem! Do you buy pumpkins for the stems? |
This cluster of turning leaves is on one of my favorite trees, the Japanese maple tree in my parents' front yard.
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| Manz soaks up the sunlight on my bed in the afternoon. |
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| The table was set for October's book club. |
In the struggles and the victories, in the beginnings and the endings, in the joys and the sorrows, our God is always good.
Beautiful month! I do buy pumpkins based on their stems! Another kindred thing!
ReplyDeleteOctober was especially beautiful this year! Stems are important, aren't they?! :)
DeleteI so enjoyed this peek into your beautiful month. Fun to see the '10 year' poses and how much everyone has changed and grown. Loved all your pics, but I so wanted to sit in that blue wingback chair by the window. Such a comforting restful spot. Wishing you a wonderful November, Cheryl. Bren xo
ReplyDeleteIt was such fun photo shoot! And I would love to have you come and sit in that wing chair and we'd have a long conversation about first one thing and then another! May you have a lovely November too, Brenda!
DeleteSo nice that you had some of your family come back for a weekend. It's wonderful to spend that special time with them. We had just our two grandsons spend the night with us for the first time ever! We've been in two different States for over 14 years, and now that we're all back in the same State close by, it makes it doable for them to come and go whenever!
ReplyDeleteWe so enjoyed our visit with Ryan and family! I am happy for you that you are able to see your grandsons much more often! It must have been exciting to have a first sleepover!
DeleteThe comparison photos are so interesting...just to see who has grown tall or gone past the one ahead. I'm sure it will shift again in another few years. Your son and family live in a beautiful area.
ReplyDeleteYour dad looks very pleased...perhaps it's the yummy looking cupcakes. They'd put a sparkle in my eye, too. 🧁
Praying for you and family. May God take care of every need and concern.
I love comparison photos, and this one begs to be recreated from time to time! Daddy has a sweet tooth, so that might explain the sparkle. 😉
DeleteThank you so much for your prayers.
Cheryl, I have missed your posts and was so happy to see this beautiful one today! Your family is so beautiful in the expressions of love for each other. How can Ben be 14 already? Happy Birthday to him and your Daddy!
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry to hear you lost a maple, but so glad you planted a willow in its place. I love trees and feel it is so important to plant them when we can. After coming inside after raking them --again-- I can't believe I said that! I enjoyed every photo and like your friends above said the photo of the children is so clever and so nice to repeat!
Thank you for all of your kind words, Martha Ellen! It is always nice to know that one is missed . . . it's just been that kind of month.
DeleteEvery time one of the grands (or one of my children) has a birthday, I wonder how we got here so fast. Time keeps flying by!
We are hoping that the weeping willow will thrive in its spot. I have loved weeping willows since I was a child playing underneath one with my neighborhood friends. This photo is a fun one to recreate!
I love your pumpkin stems! Everything looks so lovely over there including those darling and growing grands - surpassing their auntie! Here's to a gentle November!
ReplyDeleteBekah likes to say that she is the shortest person in our family besides the ones who are still growing! There are plenty of tall people in our family, but she enjoys that "claim to fame." Thank you for your kind words, Rosella, and I pray for a gentle November for you too . . . especially this year.
DeleteThank you for sharing your snippets with us. Love the 10 year photos! Your new sun porch is a beauty of a room. Will you be able to use it in the winter, as well? Love the tablesetting for your book club. Happy Birthday to your dad!
ReplyDeleteWe had a delightful time recreating the 2012 photo!
DeleteYes, we will be able to use the sunroom in the wintertime too, thanks to the ductless HVAC unit. We probably will not heat it every day, but certainly when we want it available for guests or to eat an everyday meal. I am looking forward to watching a snowfall from the sunroom!
I will pass along the birthday greetings!
What a beautiful family! Love the “then and now” pictures. Your sunroom looks beautiful! I know y’all are enjoying that!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Mandy! We had fun recreating the photo. And, absolutely, we are enjoying the sunroom so much!
DeleteI do so enjoy your photographic eye. Such lovely shots of the light and the stem, etc. etc. What fun to have that line of grands with auntie and to see the changes over the years. Love it! It will be fun to see the seasons from your sunroom. That was a great plan and use of money in extending the gathering space in your home. So good to gather the moments trusting God in His wisdom and providence. Blessings!!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind and encouraging words, Ellen! We do love recreating that photo from time to time and it was especially fun to do it after 10 years. We are so happy with our sunroom and we use it a lot!
DeleteBlessings back to you! I am praying for your Dear as he recovers!
It is always such a joy when I get to visit with you Cheryl, thank you for sharing your memories, I especially enjoyed seeing the photo comparisons, as I go about blogland i ask myself so many times, "Where has time gone?"
ReplyDeleteWishing you and your lovely family a very Happy Thanksgiving.
Blessings,
Sue
It's always a joy to have you visit, Sue! Yes, we've been blog friends for a long while and I am sure that you remember when those "kids" were ten years younger. Indeed, where does time go?!
DeleteHappy Thanksgiving to you and yours, Sue!