Posts
2 hours ago
5.31.2010
Purple B
Here's my letter for the week! (My favorite letter.) :-)
I doodled and pondered and prayed by hand this morning with my trusty old mircon 03 pen then scanned and colored in Photoshop. The purple color scheme is in honor of Mary. (I found the color scheme here. Pretty useful site.)
I posted it at letterPLAYGROUND... if you want, go over there and jump on a swing or scoot down a slide!
Now I can spell:
The washing machine is calling!!
5.30.2010
Seven on Sunday
Ah...what a week!
1. Monday afternoon was spent on a spur-of-the-moment trip to the Pinehurst Spa to use gift certificates I've had (literally) for years! I had a ridiculously expensive facial that felt ridiculously good. After I got over the first 10 minutes of feeling guilty, the next 40 minutes were amazing!
2. Wednesday and half of Thursday were spent with a nasty, coughing cold. I thought I was in for a week of hacking and feeling miserable based on what E and Mary had just been through, but amazingly it just went *poof*!
3. Thursday night we had a company dinner at the beautiful Pinehurst Country Club overlooking the famous Pinehurst #2 Golf Course 18th hole. We are so thankful for the place we work! (And live!)
4. Friday morning was Mary's graduation from elementary to middle school! She had a phenomenal year. Congrats, Mary!
5. Friday night, we took Mary out in celebration of the beginning of her summer to a really nice dinner at Wolcott's (if you live here, you've got to try it!) and then to a local drama group's production of "On Broadway." Very nice.
6. Saturday night, we met The Boy and The Girl at the Pinehurst Arboretum to be serenaded by Vince Gill under a starry sky while relaxing in lawn chairs. It was probably the most enjoyable, laid-back concert I've ever been to.
7. After the concert, we stopped by and had a quick dinner with the Middle Child and her boyfriend as they were getting off work. Nice time, although short. It's so good to see her happy and laughing.
Of course, there was regular life (working, being Mom, errand-running, house-cleaning, cooking, etc.) all in between. And now it's time for a worshipful and restful Sabbath day!
Happy Sabbath, bloggy friends!
1. Monday afternoon was spent on a spur-of-the-moment trip to the Pinehurst Spa to use gift certificates I've had (literally) for years! I had a ridiculously expensive facial that felt ridiculously good. After I got over the first 10 minutes of feeling guilty, the next 40 minutes were amazing!
2. Wednesday and half of Thursday were spent with a nasty, coughing cold. I thought I was in for a week of hacking and feeling miserable based on what E and Mary had just been through, but amazingly it just went *poof*!
3. Thursday night we had a company dinner at the beautiful Pinehurst Country Club overlooking the famous Pinehurst #2 Golf Course 18th hole. We are so thankful for the place we work! (And live!)
4. Friday morning was Mary's graduation from elementary to middle school! She had a phenomenal year. Congrats, Mary!
5. Friday night, we took Mary out in celebration of the beginning of her summer to a really nice dinner at Wolcott's (if you live here, you've got to try it!) and then to a local drama group's production of "On Broadway." Very nice.
6. Saturday night, we met The Boy and The Girl at the Pinehurst Arboretum to be serenaded by Vince Gill under a starry sky while relaxing in lawn chairs. It was probably the most enjoyable, laid-back concert I've ever been to.
7. After the concert, we stopped by and had a quick dinner with the Middle Child and her boyfriend as they were getting off work. Nice time, although short. It's so good to see her happy and laughing.
Of course, there was regular life (working, being Mom, errand-running, house-cleaning, cooking, etc.) all in between. And now it's time for a worshipful and restful Sabbath day!
Happy Sabbath, bloggy friends!
5.28.2010
Balanced
A word full of meaning...
It's something we have to find
It's something we have to find
that doesn't seem to come naturally to us.
Balance:
1 : an instrument for weighing;
2 : a means of judging or deciding;
3 : a counterbalancing weight, force, or influence;
4 : an aesthetically pleasing integration of elements;
5 : physical equilibrium;
6 : something left over;
7 : mental and emotional steadiness
And it's hard work. It's easiest to achieve when we get others to help us keep things in perspective. Balance is lost in isolation.
And on some wonderful days, it all seems to come together and
"ta-da"!
A couple of "balanced" quotes for you:
"How seldom we weigh our neighbor in the
"How seldom we weigh our neighbor in the
same balance with ourselves."
Thomas Kempis
Happiness is not a matter of intensity but
Happiness is not a matter of intensity but
of balance, order, rhythm and harmony.
Thomas Merton
Elisabeth (in Uppsala, Sweden)
Linda Sue (in Washington, U.S.)
Hannah (in Lund, Sweden)
Veja Cecilia (in Gothenburg, Sweden)
UPDATE: Hannah is hosting this week's WORD. Click over and check it out!
5.26.2010
5.25.2010
Simple
For today...
Tuesday, May 25, 2010.
Outside my window... it's just barely Tuesday, May 25th. Up too early and not feeling well. Blah.
I am thinking... of my sticky-note to-do list for home and work.
I am thankful for... my Keurig coffee maker and extra-bold coffee and warm milk. :-)
From the learning rooms... the girls are wrapping up their school years. Mary is in her last week and E has just a few more. And The Boy decided to push through and take more classes this summer with the hopes of finishing up next May. He had an awesome last semester. So very proud of him!
I am wearing... pj's, of course... What I almost am always wearing when I write these posts!
I am creating... something for this week's weekWORD - balance. (Come join the fun!) And maybe a new letter for letterPLAYGROUND.
I am going... to make a cup of creamy coffee and prop my feet up and spend some time reading the Bible for a while before getting up and going for the day. I am still so far behind in this year's reading plan!
I am reading... 2 Samuel, Matthew, 1 Chronicles... Psalms... A Thomas Jefferson Education, Crazy Love, Family Bible, and Lettering & Type.
I am praying for... friends who are sick, struggling, and discouraged.
From the kitchen... a yummy chef salad with lots of options for individualization last night.... ham, cranberries, cucumbers, peppers, olives, onions, diced boiled eggs, avocado slices... I love having salads for dinner during the summer.
I am hoping... for a productive, encouraging day.
I am hearing... silence.
Words I am pondering... "Not being able to fully understand God is frustrating, but it is ridiculous for us to thing we have the right to limit God to something we are capable of comprehending. What a stunted, insignificant god that would be! If my mind is the size of a soda can and God is the size of all the oceans, it would be stupid for me to say He is only the small amount of water I can scoop into my little can. God is so much bigger, so far beyond our time-encased, air/food/sleep-dependent lives." Francis Chan in Crazy Love, pp. 31-32
Around the house... echoes of small group we held at our house Sunday night. It was good to host again... laughter, good discussion, and prayers.... wonderful to be with God's people.
One of my favorite things... evenings spent sitting on the porch, watching the rain.
A few plans for the rest of theweek DAY... an hour of reading with two cups of coffee, a half-hour of cleaning up the house, off to work from 6 until noon (where I'll get to see hubby, too!), lunch with friends, an errand or two, pick up Mary from school, make a special birthday dessert for a friend, nap(!), dinner with family, walk (if the rain holds out), then to bed early. Another beautiful day in North Carolina!
Here is a picture I am sharing... my trusty sidekicks, Molly and Sadie.
For more simplicity, visit The Simple Woman's Daybook.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010.
Outside my window... it's just barely Tuesday, May 25th. Up too early and not feeling well. Blah.
I am thinking... of my sticky-note to-do list for home and work.
I am thankful for... my Keurig coffee maker and extra-bold coffee and warm milk. :-)
From the learning rooms... the girls are wrapping up their school years. Mary is in her last week and E has just a few more. And The Boy decided to push through and take more classes this summer with the hopes of finishing up next May. He had an awesome last semester. So very proud of him!
I am wearing... pj's, of course... What I almost am always wearing when I write these posts!
I am creating... something for this week's weekWORD - balance. (Come join the fun!) And maybe a new letter for letterPLAYGROUND.
I am going... to make a cup of creamy coffee and prop my feet up and spend some time reading the Bible for a while before getting up and going for the day. I am still so far behind in this year's reading plan!
I am reading... 2 Samuel, Matthew, 1 Chronicles... Psalms... A Thomas Jefferson Education, Crazy Love, Family Bible, and Lettering & Type.
I am praying for... friends who are sick, struggling, and discouraged.
From the kitchen... a yummy chef salad with lots of options for individualization last night.... ham, cranberries, cucumbers, peppers, olives, onions, diced boiled eggs, avocado slices... I love having salads for dinner during the summer.
I am hoping... for a productive, encouraging day.
I am hearing... silence.
Words I am pondering... "Not being able to fully understand God is frustrating, but it is ridiculous for us to thing we have the right to limit God to something we are capable of comprehending. What a stunted, insignificant god that would be! If my mind is the size of a soda can and God is the size of all the oceans, it would be stupid for me to say He is only the small amount of water I can scoop into my little can. God is so much bigger, so far beyond our time-encased, air/food/sleep-dependent lives." Francis Chan in Crazy Love, pp. 31-32
Around the house... echoes of small group we held at our house Sunday night. It was good to host again... laughter, good discussion, and prayers.... wonderful to be with God's people.
One of my favorite things... evenings spent sitting on the porch, watching the rain.
A few plans for the rest of the
Here is a picture I am sharing... my trusty sidekicks, Molly and Sadie.
For more simplicity, visit The Simple Woman's Daybook.
5.24.2010
weekWORD
I'm happy to be hosting this week's weekword. And even happier to have stumbled upon this group via Aimee at artsyville. It's made me think and draw when I'm sure I wouldn't have otherwise. If you'd like to play this week to get some creative juices flowing, just leave a comment (buzz) on this post and I'll link to your blog on Friday with my post on this week's word.
So...drum roll, please...
the word....
is...
BaLaNcEd!!
Yes, that's right, "balanced."
And for your visual inspiration (and stealing shamelessly from Linda Sue's word introduction last week!) here's some eye-candy from an image search on "balanced."
So...drum roll, please...
the word....
is...
BaLaNcEd!!
Yes, that's right, "balanced."
And for your visual inspiration (and stealing shamelessly from Linda Sue's word introduction last week!) here's some eye-candy from an image search on "balanced."
Oh - and if you'd like to host next week's word, please leave a comment in this post!
5.23.2010
Play Things
I've found a couple of places to play with my doodles:
First, is Doodler's Anonymous. I've added a doodle to their flickr photostream. (Can you find me?) Such super cool doodles out there... Like this 'B' that gave me a really, really big smile:
B for Breakfast prints, originally uploaded by justnoey. (Very talented gal in London. Jump over to her blog!)
Second, I've become a member at letterPLAYGROUND and uploaded my very first letter: blue bubble h.
And... I ordered this pen from Jerry's yesterday. Can't wait to try something different... although I can't imagine giving up my micron pens or prismacolors!
Finally, I've started reading Lettering & Type: Creating Letters & Designing Typefaces. It might be a little too technical for me, but I think I'm getting some of it. Interesting, none the less.
5.21.2010
Seven on... Friday???
Ah - hOmE, sweet, hOmE! I had a lovely visit with sister and brother-in-law and nephew (all graduated now!) But I'm so, so glad to be back home. The drive was long, but good and here's an unusually early seven!
1. Finished The Swan Thieves on the way down and liked it very much. Review forthcoming.
2. Bought Mary a gently used Vera Bradley bag and wallet at a store in Montgomery - Plato's Closet. Apparently, it's a chain of consignment stores. I'd never heard of them. She's been wanting a Vera bag for a while and was very pleased with her surprise.
3. I went through a Chick-Fil-A drive thru somewhere between Montgomery and Atlanta and saw something new. There was a large screen at the speaker that showed the person taking your order inside.... voice + video. A little more personal, perhaps? Interesting, I thought.
4. Yes, yes... stopped at a Barnes & Noble for an hour break north of Atlanta for coffee and book browsing... and yes, yes bought two books... this and this.
5. Since none of the other audio books I had with me were appealing, I spent most of the long drive home: a) listening to music which I rarely do and have decided I should really do more of. I listened to her and her and her; b) weeping over things that needed to be wept over (I always do that on long drives by myself); and c) listening to this sermon series (very good) from Sovereign Grace Ministries.
6. How wonderful to come home to a (relatively!) clean house and a warm chicken casserole from a friend?
7. I see the mysterious dt has (finally) posted over at Cayenne Lemonade. What's up, dt? Are you back??
1. Finished The Swan Thieves on the way down and liked it very much. Review forthcoming.
2. Bought Mary a gently used Vera Bradley bag and wallet at a store in Montgomery - Plato's Closet. Apparently, it's a chain of consignment stores. I'd never heard of them. She's been wanting a Vera bag for a while and was very pleased with her surprise.
3. I went through a Chick-Fil-A drive thru somewhere between Montgomery and Atlanta and saw something new. There was a large screen at the speaker that showed the person taking your order inside.... voice + video. A little more personal, perhaps? Interesting, I thought.
4. Yes, yes... stopped at a Barnes & Noble for an hour break north of Atlanta for coffee and book browsing... and yes, yes bought two books... this and this.
5. Since none of the other audio books I had with me were appealing, I spent most of the long drive home: a) listening to music which I rarely do and have decided I should really do more of. I listened to her and her and her; b) weeping over things that needed to be wept over (I always do that on long drives by myself); and c) listening to this sermon series (very good) from Sovereign Grace Ministries.
6. How wonderful to come home to a (relatively!) clean house and a warm chicken casserole from a friend?
7. I see the mysterious dt has (finally) posted over at Cayenne Lemonade. What's up, dt? Are you back??
5.20.2010
Hiding
*Update* - I'm hosting the weekWORD for the week of May 24th. Go here for the word!
This week's word is "hiding." Go over to Linda Sue's for links to others who played along this week. I fiddled and fumbled with the word and ended up just playing around with some hand lettering. First, with more funky flowers "hiding" behind the word itself...
This week's word is "hiding." Go over to Linda Sue's for links to others who played along this week. I fiddled and fumbled with the word and ended up just playing around with some hand lettering. First, with more funky flowers "hiding" behind the word itself...
Then some "bubble" letters... soothing and relaxing to draw.
Then I colored both digitally with Photoshop.
"Hiding" made me think both of where I hide and what I hide.
I want to hide in God, in His Word, in my belief that He is good all the time. But this week I've had to think, do I really hide in Him? Do I hide His Word in my heart that I might draw on it in my time of need? Do I turn first to Him? The answer, honestly, is mostly no. I turn to my husband and my friends first. Then to things, like food (darn those Dairy Queen Blizzards!), the escape into a good novel, the drama of a great movie, and... yes, bloggy friends... even the pleasure of writing on this blog! Ack.
And, even harder, what do I hide? At the most basic, it is the truth about myself... my sin and my mortality. I like to pretend that I am really not so bad after all and that my death is something far, far away. I hide the truths of both my black heart and my human frailty from the one person who really needs to understand it -me!
On "hiding" from the Bible:
“Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.” (Psalm 32:7)
(Don't you love the King James phrasing here? ...compass about me with songs of deliverance. Beautiful.
“Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in thy word.” (Psalm 119:114)
Though wickedness be sweet in his mouth, though he hide it under his tongue;
Though he spare it, and forsake it not; but keep it still within his mouth:
Yet his meat in his bowels is turned, it is the gall of asps within him.” (Job 20:12,13)
And a couple other quotes I liked:
“O' What may man within him hide, though angel on the outward side!” (Shakespeare)
“Hide not your talents. They for use were made. What's a sundial in the shade?” (Ben Franklin)
Good night from the hot and muggy state of Alabama. I'll be climbing back home tomorrow!
5.18.2010
Simple
For Today
May 18, 2010
Outside my window: a black pre-dawn sky.
I am thinking: of all the things I need to get done this morning (at home and work!) before starting to make my way down, down, down to Alabama to go to my nephew's high school graduation.
I am thankful for: cell phones! I couldn't imagine driving eight hours alone without being in touch with those I'm leaving and those I'm coming to!
From the kitchen: made a yummy pot of easy-peasy chicken noodle soup last night... ultimate comfort food.
I am wearing: my favorite nightshirt - a garish turquoise with little embroidered orange and green palm trees all over it. :-)
I am creating: not much... playing with the weekword - "hiding" - being hosted by Linda Sue. Pop over there and leave a comment if you'd like to participate this week.
I am reading: A Thomas Jefferson Education, A Matrix of Meanings, 2 Samuel, 1 Chronicles, and the Gospel of Matthew. Oh, and some Psalms, of course!
I am listening to: The Swan Thieves
I am hoping: to get out of work as early as possible to get on the road today. An eight-hour drive! Ugh. But at least I have plenty of audio books to keep me company!
I am hearing: my puppy Molly scratching, scratching, scratching... she's long overdue for a bath, poor girl.
One of my favorite things: my puppy Sadie wedging herself between me and the arm of my chair while I type.
A few plans for the rest of the week: Just diving down to Alabama and then popping back up by Friday night. Then, hopefully a quiet weekend at home before another Monday rolls around!
Here is picture for thought I am sharing: I pray for The Girl's patience daily!
For more simply simple entries, see The Simple Woman's Daybook.May 18, 2010
Outside my window: a black pre-dawn sky.
I am thinking: of all the things I need to get done this morning (at home and work!) before starting to make my way down, down, down to Alabama to go to my nephew's high school graduation.
I am thankful for: cell phones! I couldn't imagine driving eight hours alone without being in touch with those I'm leaving and those I'm coming to!
From the kitchen: made a yummy pot of easy-peasy chicken noodle soup last night... ultimate comfort food.
I am wearing: my favorite nightshirt - a garish turquoise with little embroidered orange and green palm trees all over it. :-)
I am creating: not much... playing with the weekword - "hiding" - being hosted by Linda Sue. Pop over there and leave a comment if you'd like to participate this week.
I am reading: A Thomas Jefferson Education, A Matrix of Meanings, 2 Samuel, 1 Chronicles, and the Gospel of Matthew. Oh, and some Psalms, of course!
I am listening to: The Swan Thieves
I am hoping: to get out of work as early as possible to get on the road today. An eight-hour drive! Ugh. But at least I have plenty of audio books to keep me company!
I am hearing: my puppy Molly scratching, scratching, scratching... she's long overdue for a bath, poor girl.
One of my favorite things: my puppy Sadie wedging herself between me and the arm of my chair while I type.
A few plans for the rest of the week: Just diving down to Alabama and then popping back up by Friday night. Then, hopefully a quiet weekend at home before another Monday rolls around!
Here is picture for thought I am sharing: I pray for The Girl's patience daily!
5.16.2010
Seven on Sunday
Whew. I'm tired... Not much sleep last night. And now it's hot here which makes me doubly tired. There's a busy-looking week peering around the corner at me. How 'bout you?
Here's my seven for this week:
1. The Boy and The Girl were working at his house yesterday. I couldn't help but snap a few pictures:
2. And a couple of my sweetie, too! Cute, isn't he? Note the boots with the plaid shorts. :-)
3. I'm at home alone right now and all I can hear is the tap-tap-tapping of my fingers on the keyboard. Deep, deep sigh. What shall I do with this quiet time? Read? Write? Draw? Shower? Sleep? Coffee? Ahhh... the possibilities are endless!
4. Email from my Dad on "hump day" this past week:
Good morning sweetheart
Have I told you lately that I love you.(I do)
Daddy
Pretty sweet, huh? Of course, I think it was a ploy to get me to take it easy on him in our online Scrabble games. ;-)
5. I'm enjoying Obsessive Consumption by Kate Bingaman Burt. She sketches her purchases everyday. Pretty cool. Here's her April 2010 set.
6. My neighbor just brought over a piece of pizza from a local pizzeria and a bowl of sliced watermelon. Just because. And it was just what I needed. I sat out on the porch to eat and watched a storm blow throw complete with thunder and plenty of wind. Nice.
7. I watched two movies Friday: Law Abiding Citizen (didn't like) and The Time Traveler's Wife (did like very much.) I think you'd have to have read the book to really get The Time Traveler's Wife, though. And, as always, the book was better than the movie.
Here's my seven for this week:
1. The Boy and The Girl were working at his house yesterday. I couldn't help but snap a few pictures:
2. And a couple of my sweetie, too! Cute, isn't he? Note the boots with the plaid shorts. :-)
3. I'm at home alone right now and all I can hear is the tap-tap-tapping of my fingers on the keyboard. Deep, deep sigh. What shall I do with this quiet time? Read? Write? Draw? Shower? Sleep? Coffee? Ahhh... the possibilities are endless!
4. Email from my Dad on "hump day" this past week:
Good morning sweetheart
Have I told you lately that I love you.(I do)
Daddy
Pretty sweet, huh? Of course, I think it was a ploy to get me to take it easy on him in our online Scrabble games. ;-)
5. I'm enjoying Obsessive Consumption by Kate Bingaman Burt. She sketches her purchases everyday. Pretty cool. Here's her April 2010 set.
6. My neighbor just brought over a piece of pizza from a local pizzeria and a bowl of sliced watermelon. Just because. And it was just what I needed. I sat out on the porch to eat and watched a storm blow throw complete with thunder and plenty of wind. Nice.
7. I watched two movies Friday: Law Abiding Citizen (didn't like) and The Time Traveler's Wife (did like very much.) I think you'd have to have read the book to really get The Time Traveler's Wife, though. And, as always, the book was better than the movie.
5.15.2010
While Waiting
Friday night Matt was so exhausted he went up to bed as soon as we made it home from our early dinner date. That left me to wait up for E to get in from work and then dinner with her boyfriend. So... I watched a movie, then flipped through the channels.
And doodled.... lines, circles, curves.
And prayed.
She was driving and for some reason I was a little worried about it. Just an uneasiness. I told her over the phone as she was leaving work to be super careful, don't speed, really look out for other drivers, wear her seat belt, etc. She said, "Of course, mom. Why are you so worried?"
So I doodled some more... connecting and intersecting, thin and thick, parallel and perpendicular.
And prayed.
Until she made it home safe and sound.
But a friend's nephew the same age as E didn't make it home safe that night. He was killed in a car accident. Makes me sick to my stomach. And my heart is hurting so very, very much for his mother, his aunts, his grandmother. I'm so sad for them. And I'm praying still.
Book Review: A Homemade Life
A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table by Molly Wizenberg, Hardcover: 336 pages, Publisher: Simon & Schuster (March 3, 2009)
Rating: 5 of 5 STARS
Source: Heard about it on the web... Somewhere! :-)
Have you ever read a cookbook? When I went home last summer for my mom's heart surgery, I met a sweet lady in the waiting room who told me she loves to read cookbooks... front to cover! (Somehow, when I meet strangers, talk inevitably gets around to books.) I thought that was odd. Kind of like reading dictionaries or small appliance instruction booklets.
But, I get it now.
Or at least I get it about A Homemade Life. It's a cross between a cookbook and a memoir by the creator of the blog Orangette. Molly Wizenberg's writing coxes you into the pot and keeps you simmering all through the pages. Each short chapter tells you about some aspect of her life (childhood, her parents, the 80's, college, living in Paris, meeting her husband, planning a wedding) followed by a recipe that is somehow connected to that memory. The recipes are wonderful and there are so, so many I can't wait to try. (I'm actually cooking a repeat of one tonight: Bouchons Au Thon.) Her blog has a ton more.
Rating: 5 of 5 STARS
Source: Heard about it on the web... Somewhere! :-)
Have you ever read a cookbook? When I went home last summer for my mom's heart surgery, I met a sweet lady in the waiting room who told me she loves to read cookbooks... front to cover! (Somehow, when I meet strangers, talk inevitably gets around to books.) I thought that was odd. Kind of like reading dictionaries or small appliance instruction booklets.
But, I get it now.
Or at least I get it about A Homemade Life. It's a cross between a cookbook and a memoir by the creator of the blog Orangette. Molly Wizenberg's writing coxes you into the pot and keeps you simmering all through the pages. Each short chapter tells you about some aspect of her life (childhood, her parents, the 80's, college, living in Paris, meeting her husband, planning a wedding) followed by a recipe that is somehow connected to that memory. The recipes are wonderful and there are so, so many I can't wait to try. (I'm actually cooking a repeat of one tonight: Bouchons Au Thon.) Her blog has a ton more.
Here's just a sampling of some of the recipes I want to try:
Little Corn Cakes with Bacon, Tomato, and Avocado
Spicy Pickled Carrots with Garlic and Thyme
Pistachio Cake with honeyed Apricots
Zucchini Noodles with Pesto
Custard-Filled Corn Bread
Radishes and Butter with Fleur De Sel.
Get the idea? Yum! Molly's writing makes me want to know her... and eat at her table!
Highly recommend, bloggy friends!
Little Corn Cakes with Bacon, Tomato, and Avocado
Spicy Pickled Carrots with Garlic and Thyme
Pistachio Cake with honeyed Apricots
Zucchini Noodles with Pesto
Custard-Filled Corn Bread
Radishes and Butter with Fleur De Sel.
Get the idea? Yum! Molly's writing makes me want to know her... and eat at her table!
Highly recommend, bloggy friends!
5.12.2010
Mother - Variation on a Theme
Aris is hosting the weekword over at her blog. The word... is... MOTHER!
What a loaded word, huh? My mother? Me as a mother? "Necessity is the mother of invention?" All those things ran through my head but this phrase - "variation on a theme" got lodged deep in the gray matter of my right brain... so I've had to shake it free and out onto paper in order to move on.
My thought was how our children are variations on the theme of us mothers. (Fathers, too, of course, but that wasn't the word for the week, now was it?!) We give them each pieces of ourselves - one thing to this child, another to the next, and so on and so forth. What they get is usually depending on what is happening in our lives at the time, where we are at in our journey. Or it can depend on what they each need from us as unique individuals. They end up looking a bit like us, but then they are so different, too. They become their own beautiful person.
What a loaded word, huh? My mother? Me as a mother? "Necessity is the mother of invention?" All those things ran through my head but this phrase - "variation on a theme" got lodged deep in the gray matter of my right brain... so I've had to shake it free and out onto paper in order to move on.
My thought was how our children are variations on the theme of us mothers. (Fathers, too, of course, but that wasn't the word for the week, now was it?!) We give them each pieces of ourselves - one thing to this child, another to the next, and so on and so forth. What they get is usually depending on what is happening in our lives at the time, where we are at in our journey. Or it can depend on what they each need from us as unique individuals. They end up looking a bit like us, but then they are so different, too. They become their own beautiful person.
(Pen & Ink)
So in each of these "variations" I show the mother "funky flower" and three (because that's how many I have!) baby "funky flowers" and how they reflect her but are also their own creations.
(Watercolor & Pen)
(Pencil sketch done in my marathon of meetings today at work. FYI...If I'm not doodling, I'm probably not listening!)
I thank God for my children... for what they've taught me about Him and about myself.
5.11.2010
Simple
For Today
May 11, 2010
Outside my window... a deep black morning sky. It's SUPER early!
I am thinking... about the class I'm responsible for at work in just a few hours and all the tiny details of getting it going.
I am thankful for... God's never-ending patience with me, a sinner.
I am wearing... the night's sleep... It's still draped around my shoulders and buttoned up under my chin.
I am remembering... I need to send The Girl some addresses for their cute, cute Save-the-Date cards. See their sweet wedding website here. I made it through one page and I'm already tearing up. Good grief!
I am creating... something for wordweek. Jump over to Aris' blog to see this week's word and to participate if you'd like! I had a fun time with last week's word: story.
May 11, 2010
Outside my window... a deep black morning sky. It's SUPER early!
I am thinking... about the class I'm responsible for at work in just a few hours and all the tiny details of getting it going.
I am thankful for... God's never-ending patience with me, a sinner.
I am wearing... the night's sleep... It's still draped around my shoulders and buttoned up under my chin.
I am remembering... I need to send The Girl some addresses for their cute, cute Save-the-Date cards. See their sweet wedding website here. I made it through one page and I'm already tearing up. Good grief!
I am creating... something for wordweek. Jump over to Aris' blog to see this week's word and to participate if you'd like! I had a fun time with last week's word: story.
I am going... to a local coffee spot, sit out on the deck, and sip a latte with a friend later today.
I am reading... A Homemade Life, The Lies Women Believe, and A Thomas Jefferson Education... Mary really wants me to read The Mysterious Benedict Society so I think I'll start it today. In Bible reading, I'm on 2 Samuel, 1 Chronicles, the Gospel of Matthew, and (of course) Psalms.
I am listening to... Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova who wrote the immensely popular The Historian. So far I'm very intrigued with the story.
In the kitchen... thinking that this, this, and this sound fabulous from Orangette!
One of my favorite things... an afghan my maternal grandmother crotcheted. She died when I was ten or so and I don't really remember her much. But she has quite a story and I think she must have been pretty plucky. I keep the afghan on the foot of my bed and most nights throw it over the top of the bedspread because we sleep very, very cold.
Here is picture for thought... who wouldn't want to work everyday with their husband when you can look across the desk at a face like this? Yep. Always good for a laugh!
For more "simplicity" go over to The Simple Woman's Daybook.
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