Saturday Graces

Graces...things that I do not deserve, but that He has seen fit to give to me. These are all joys here on an April Saturday.

~ A girl who wants to bake her own birthday cake. 
Honestly, my cakes are hit-and-miss so you can't blame her. But she loves to bake and she has ideas for this cake. I'll show you the finished product next week.

~ No one has to work (away from home) today. That is rare these days. 

~ I'm still enjoying the forsythia that was clipped for our Resurrection Day celebration.

~ New issue of Country Living magazine.
I think Bekah enjoys it even more than I do. She looks through every single page, dog-earring the ones that grab her attention.

~ Looking forward to a fresh paint job in the living room.
Mostly, I am looking forward to it being done, not the actual doing of it. I think I'd rather take a licking. The living room flows into the stairway and the upstairs hallway, and we have a wall of built-in bookcases. That's a lot of painting. But Ron is off next week and that is the chosen project. If I disappear, you'll know where I am.

~ This gift tie-on, a darling little project made by our brand new "Keepers at Home" club. The girls also made Nutella brownies. Delicious fun!

~ Listening to my daughter play the piano. 
She treats us to many impromptu concerts as she loves to play and plays frequently. It is one of the joys of my life. 

What are the graces in your world today?

Gathering the Moments of March

On this ninth day of April, I am gathering the moments of March. 

It was a lion-and-lamb month for sure. (And I'm not just referring to the weather!) Whew...what a whirlwind! Those details shall remain behind the scenes, but I can say that all is well and God is faithful and we have all learned things in the whirlwind.

God's faithfulness. 

March illustrates God's faithfulness, maybe more than any other month. The Lord promised the return of the seasons. As long as the earth remains. 

"While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease." (Genesis 8:22)

He promised. 

At the beginning of March, however, it doesn't feel that spring is coming. Ever. It is dark, cold, gray, and brown. No signs of life. But then, even when you can hardly imagine it, it comes. We welcome it with open arms, with delight! Daffodils. Buds. Tulips. Sunlight. Hallelujah!

Sometimes -- no, all the time -- this is a life of faith! Faith that He is working when we cannot see. Faith that He will do what He has promised. Faith that He is always good. 

Sunday Snapshots: Resurrection Day ~ 2015

  ♫ music  ♫

"God Will Provide a Lamb" {...and some musings}

Almost!

It seems that life is busier lately. 

Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. Maybe I'm just slower. Of course, that would be bothersome, because I have always been slow. (I was three weeks late for my own birth and I haven't caught up yet!) So "slower"would not be good news for my family. 

I also think that having children whose ages span nearly 21 years brings its own kind of busyness. Grandmother delights plus homeschooling plus late (late!) night chats with a young adult...all good. Having guests in our home, investing in family, investing in friendships, creating...also good. I would not trade any of it! It just means that blogging (and vacuuming) must sometimes take a back seat to the more urgent. 

I have been gathering my moments...for isn't the best of life lived "in the moment"? Small slices of time, choosing the best, noticing the small things that are really the big things, making memories, keeping those memories tucked away in your heart? I'll be sharing my March moments sometime soon. It may be that you'll be so over March by the time I get there, for time marches on (pun accidental) and April is now and there are new moments to live and choices to make. But these monthly "gatherings" are a record for me and I love to look back and read the story of His hand in my life. 

I have listened to this song over and over and over again as I have driven my minivan to and fro. That is my style. A song will grab my attention, and then I hyper-focus on it, listening, singing, meditating, soaking it in. This as been "my song" lately. As I linger over it, I feel immense gratitude, I feel awe, I feel deeper faith welling up in my spirit. Faith in my loving Father. Faith that enables me to trust Him with everything. Everything.

If you can, take a few moments to listen to this story of an awesome plan of awesome grace.

May your celebration of His resurrection be a celebration of His grace in your life!

Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

John 1:29

Weekend Snapshots: SURPRISE!!

Do you remember last Thursday when I told you that our son Ryan and his beautiful bride were celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary? 

Well on Thursday evening as we were getting ready for Bible study, Bekah saw a vehicle pull into our driveway and said "it looks like Ryan." I wondered who it could be that looked like Ryan? 

It was Ryan!

And Sarah, Eve, Nora, Peter, and Baby Paul!

As the car door opened, I could hear the children giggling, delighted with their surprise for Papa and Gran! We were delighted too!

Ryan had already planned to take a few days off for their milestone anniversary weekend. They were going to take a couple of day trips in their area. But early last week, they had decided to just come our way and make the day trips around here instead!

SURPRISE!! 

Ryan and Sarah ~ 10 years!

This time, they didn't stay at our house. They had their own place, thanks to a dear brother who has a vacant house and generously allowed them the use of it for the weekend. They did a bit of coming and going, but even so, we were able to share some precious time together. Coffee and dessert. Morning coffee at their "vacation cottage." They brought dinner to our house one evening. Gammy and Gampy (my parents) were able to come for a while. They had an impromptu meal with Kati and her boyfriend at Chick-fil-A. And they were still able to fit in a couple of day trips, have dinner with friends, and worship with our church fellowship before the long weekend was over.

Around the table

Peter, 4

Eve, 7.5

Paul, 4 months

Lucy loves Gampy!

Sweets for the sweet!

Puppet show 

Nora, 6

Peter wanted me to take a picture of all the puppets. So of course I did! 

Stories with Gammy

Baby snuggles!

Aunt Bekah gets some snuggles too.

It was a surprise of the very best kind! 

And again, I am grateful that they are finally close enough that such things are possible. I don't take our shared time for granted. 

Spring Candy Bark

We have several springtime gatherings coming up, so I asked Bekah to make this fun and festive Spring Candy Bark! 

Kati has made all kinds of candy bark over the years: peppermint bark, orange bark, coffee bark (all good, although coffee bark may be my favorite). Bekah used Kati's recipe for a jumping off place and came up with this delectable and beautiful springtime treat! 

SPRING CANDY BARK

Melt a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips in microwavable bowl for 1 minute 20 seconds, stirring every 20 seconds or until chocolate is melted. (Of course, microwaves are different. The main thing is to melt slowly, stirring every 20 seconds because it can change in the blink of an eye!) Spread melted chocolate on a cookie sheet that has been lined with wax paper. Cool in refrigerator for a few minutes. 

In a different bowl*, melt 2 bags of white chocolate chips for 1 minute 15 seconds, stirring every 15 seconds or until chocolate is melted. (Again, adjust times for your own microwave, but Bekah recommends 15 second intervals for the white chocolate as it is more temperamental.) Spread melted white chocolate over cooled semi-sweet chocolate. 

* Bekah recommends using a different bowl to melt the white chocolate chips. You could wash the first bowl, but if even a drop or two of water remains in the bowl after washing, your white chocolate will seize. (Bekah's is the voice of experience in this case.)

While white chocolate is still soft, sprinkle crushed pastel candies and/or sprinkles. Bekah used M&M's Eggs and some "Easter Sprinkles" from Target. Gently press into chocolate. (The larger candy pieces need a firmer hand.)

Cool in refrigerator until firm. With hands, break into bite-sized pieces. 

Put some in a bowl or on a pretty plate for an instant burst of springtime on your table!