Thankful Thursday: the Monday Edition

Well, as life goes,

my schedule has been anything but scheduled.

My "Thankful Thursday" post is late,

but ...

better late than never.

Thursday was our 15th anniversary.

It is not hard to think of what to post in honor of this day.

How thankful I am for 15 years of marriage.

How thankful I am to be loved so unconditionally.

How thankful I am for a God who grounds us when life's turmoil would seek to overthrow.

How thankful I am for a union that truly is most often unified.

How thankful I am for the transformation of mind that has happened to both of us to make us more like God and better able to serve and love one another.

I am thankful for the strong man by my side ...
the one who challenges me ...
the one who encourages me to do right ...
the one who props me up or lets me rest when strength is failing...

On Thursday,
we began our day with an interval run.
How we enjoy the time together.
Time to work on health together.
Time to talk (when I am able).
Time to challenge and encourage.

15 years and prayfully many more

Everyone Needs It ...

God continues to show me that everyone ... EVERYONE ...

needs fellowship.

There are those who may claim to be loners,

but even they need the touch of others.

For many years, I have feared to "just stop in"

to see people in the church.

I felt intrusive.

I wondered if it was only meeting a need that I had for company.

But with each additional visit,

the chatting increased,

the visits lengthened,

people grow more comfortable.

Sometimes they remind me that they value it.

Sometimes they make sure that I am making a return visit.

I am shown that I need to give fellowship.

The need is great.

It becomes harder in a fast-paced world.

My days are filled with other ministries and home responsibilities.

It is hard to skip the text and arrive in person.

But I need it, and so do the people in my life.

Is there someone that you can minister to today?

Is there a visit that you can make this week?
Later this month?

You may meet someone's needs.

A Challenge Until May

I have been given another wedding challenge.

The last one was corn meal muffins for a reception,

the next one is for May ...

a gluten-free apple, cherry, or apple-cherry pie.

The bride and groom are not gluten free,

but they have a brother-in-law who is.

My first attempt will be this Sunday for a fellowship dinner.

An apple-cherry pie.

Hubby is excited 

and the groom-to-be thought it would be good if I tried
every month for the fellowship dinners at church.

Have you ever made a cherry-apple pie?

What did you think?

Success? Failure? Just stick with the "old faithfuls"?

Update:
The pie was a success.
Hubby loved it.
We both thought it was the best gluten free crust that I had ever tried.
The bride really liked the mix of the two pies
(her favorite is cherry and his is apple)
In honor of the wedding,
it has now been named the "Chapel" (ch-apple) pie!

Cloud Cover

Do Hoops and YoYo make you smile?

They are Hallmark characters and they definitely cheer me.

They were a regular part of electronic correspondence between hubby and me

while he was out at sea.

Typically, this solar-powered girl is looking for every bit of sunshine she can.

But this month, I am thankful that August has been a little more mild than usual.

I am thankful for the overcast days.

I am thankful for the days of rain.

The grass is still green.
The cherry tomatoes are plentiful without too much extra work.

While we wait on our new a/c unit to arrive and be installed,

it spares the old one from overworking

and spares me from more sopping towels that are catching the drain pan overflow 💧

What are you thankful for today?

Update: as of 11 am ...
the old a/c unit is ripped out.
If hubby can fix the floor (water damage) tonight,
the new unit will be installed tomorrow!
And today is cool, breezy and comfortable ... so we shouldn't suffer too much tonight.
God's timing is perfect - we will be up and running and comfortable for our guest.
We are also thankful that they are installing a heat pump
that is supposed to cut our heating and cooling bills substantially!

The Old Switcheroo

This summer I have spent a lot of time outdoors.

The house got painted including trim.

The porches were resealed.

Last week, I repainted the white parts of the decks.

I also worked in the gardens last week to tidy them up.

This week, I was back in the house.

Not only did the rain drive me in,

but we needed to fix up a room for my MIL's upcoming visit.

We had moved the guest room to the smaller of our two extra bedrooms,

because most of our guests are one nighters and that was sufficient.

Since our guest will be with us about 2 1/2 weeks,

we switched the guest room back to the big room.

Because that room gets the bright morning sun,

we added some room darkening curtains.

I finally replaced the sheets which were left from my college days 😀.

We emptied part of the closet (and once again realized that we have a lot of stuff).

We emptied a chest of drawers.

The room is ready for Saturday and so are we!

A Change in the Garden

Often when we throw outdoor parties,

folks will ask me what flowers are in my garden.

I know most of them, but often in the middle of entertaining, the names escape.

So this weekend,

I made some sweet little labels for my plants (which are fading in the summer heat).

I took used canning lids,

sprayed with leftover spray paint,

used sharpie for the names,

used old paint for the flowers,

then used some wire left from making our many wall hangings for the stakes.

I still have a few to finish,

but I was pleased with the result 

and using odds and ends was even better.

Enjoy your trip into my garden.

Quick and Easy

Every once in a while you have to hit the "reset" button.

That button where you remind yourself and refocus on goals.

I guess the middle of the year is a good time ...

that and results of recent blood work :)

We are back to focusing on getting more veggies.

We tried an excellent recipe for a grilled veggie sandwich on Friday night.

It was simply grilled zucchini, peppers, and onions brushed with oil and balsamic vinegar
and sprinkled with salt and pepper.

The bread was toasted and spread with a cheese spread.

It was a big hit.

Tonight's quick and easy recipe was:

Spicy Mexican Pork Chops with Pepper and Corn Saute

The pork chops were sprinkled with salt, pepper, and chili powder.

Then they were sauteed for 2 minutes per side in 2 TBSP of olive oil.

Next dump a can of diced tomatoes and green chilies on top and simmer for 20 minutes.

DONE!

The brown rice takes the longest, but it is still easy.

Just follow instructions on bag.

For the Pepper and Corn Saute,

Sautee chopped red onion and two bell peppers
(red, green, or orange look good with the corn).

Then add a bag of frozen corn and heat through.

DONE!

Enjoy!

Truth and Righteousness

Revelation 19:1-2a

And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: For true and righteous are his judgments:

This is our church Bible verse for the week

and part of the Sunday School lesson that I will teach on Sunday morning.

It is also a great reason to be thankful.

It is easy to get down as we look at wickedness around us.

I am thankful that I serve a God that rules with truth and righteousness.

We may not see rewards or punishments in our timing,

but His timing is perfect and can be trusted.
Alleluia ... Praise the Lord!

I am also thankful for the ability that God has given for the body to heal itself.

Hubby was struggling last week with some respiratory "stuff."

With rest, smart eating, and prayer,

he is feeling much better.

Into the Garden

With the house and shed repainted,

I move on to straightening the gardens.

The Lord has sent a break in humidity

and some cooler mornings,

so I am headed to the yard beyond the weekly lawn mowing adventures.

I need to trim around the trees (yes, this involves scissors).

I need to do some weed spraying around gardens and walkways.

And the weeds in the vegetable garden ... well, they are BAD!

On a positive note, the volunteer tomatoes are doing VERY well.

There is minor weeding in the flower gardens and some dead heading as well.

I am focusing on the outside right now,

because soon we will be preparing the inside for a MIL visit.

We are looking forward to an extended visit,
but will have to make the guest room more comfy than our typical 1-2 night stays.

It will be the first visit in our home in over 10 years probably.

I am also looking forward to starting a new book today.

My nephew just self-published a book he wrote for his Senior year of high school.

It is available in hard copy and ebook formats.

Would you like to support him?

Check it out here.

What Will You Transform Today?

What are you desiring to transform in your life?

For me,

it may be health,

it may be my home,

it may be a circumstance,

it may be an added discipline.

It only takes ONE decision.

Will I snack before dinner?

Will it be sweet tea or water?

Willl I stay on top of the cleaning, the weeding, the laundry?

Will I be part of the solution, or part of the problem?

Will I stick to a disciplined schedule or blow it off?

Maybe you are not seeking to "transform" your life,

but now that one decision today could affect you life in a great way.

While this does apply to the adults reading this blog,

I especially challenge my younger readers (yes, you nieces and nephews).

Make wise decisions today!

Spend time in God's Word.

Make wise use of your time.

Be helpful.

Look for ways to minister to the needs of others.

Keep learning all you can today so that the open doors before you are many.