Today my two oldest boys played ice hockey on the pond with their friends.
And I found out what my first grader likes to do at christmas time.
Me too, Sarah Joy!
xo
winter (first day of)
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Category Archives: it’s the little things
open your eyes wide; let in the light
“According to the attention restoration theory, spending time in nature relieves the stress and metal fatigue caused by the ‘directed attention’ that work and city life require.”
from NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC magazine (January 2016)
It was a rather sluggish sort of day, blah and tiresome.
But then I read the National Geographic article and thought, I need, I really really need to get outside. I put on my warm layers and went for a walk.
When I returned home, I was delighted and surprised to see a rare flock of blue birds by our pond.
“Should I bother getting the camera?” I wondered.
I quickly made up my mind, walked up to the house and grabbed the camera, half expecting the birds to have flown away, but praying that God would give me the opportunity to take a few nice bird photos. He gets all the glory……..for His gift to me, and now to you, in seeing and admiring the pretty little birds he made and provides for.
Bird photos are tricky but the nice thing about them is they take some concentration and determination, both of which are good for pulling oneself out of ones thoughts and cares of the day, and into what is seen through the lens. Getting manual mode just right, the lighting, seeing the shadows and sunshine fluttering and falling, watching for a bird to land in just the right spot.
You give to them,
they gather it up;
You open Your hand,
they are satisfied with good.
Psalm 104:28
See the birds of the sky, that they do not sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns, and your heavenly Father feeds them.
Are you not of much more value than they? Matthew 6:26
It wasn’t all bluebirds, either. I saw robins, juncos, a titmouse, finch, blue jay, and goldfinches. They were eating the seeds off of the dried autumn grasses and bushes.
“Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. If you pull the blinds on your windows, what a dark life you will have!” Matthew 6
In my deepest troubles, I frequently would wrench myself from the persons around me and retire to some secluded part of our noble forests. John James Audubon
*****
you are loved.
having fun
Rich always gets a craving for Pinkberry on Sunday afternoons…..I am SO over it….but he mentions it, and since I can’t always say “no”, this past Sunday I said, “Okay, lets go but we are taking the children to see Santa Clause.” To this he had less enthusiasm but as he would do just about anything for that tasty frozen yogurt treat, he said, “You know the line is always super long for that.” and I understood it was a “yes” from my husband.
The line was a little long, but not too terribly bad. Our son David, who is now 14, absolutely refused to see Santa, because “it would ruin his dignity”, and went away to wander the mall while Rich and I took our three youngest through a process of getting a special badge, doing a few fun North Pole activities, and then finally visiting with Santa for the all important portrait. Seth was the most reluctant and shy, Sarah was the most excited. Caleb was in the middle (perfect).
There was one part of the event where the children were able to go into a little room of sorts to stand in a beautiful falling artificial snow. I, of course, right away thought to myself, “Perhaps we should avoid that part or they will get covered in it for their photo with Santa.” I thought it was very unwise of the elves to put the messy snow BEFORE Santa, why not AFTER? However, I am super proud to say, I put aside my own controlling tendencies and let them have all the fun they could possibly have. I pretended I didn’t care. Although we brushed it off them, you can see the snow in Sarah’s hair like dandruff and some flakes of it on the boys, too.
There was a dear mom behind us with her two PERFECTLY dressed girls in all their Christmas finery (velvet and hair bows, white tights and black patent leather) and they avoided the flakes of snow like it was the very plague. They stared in wonder at Sarah scooping it up and throwing it sky high, while I heard the mother whispering instructions to her prim and proper daughters to not get any of it on their dresses, and I could tell by their faces that they had no intentions of doing so. And I knew that could have been my mothering technique, as well. I understood perfectly how they all felt because I felt that way a little bit myself.
I don’t really have a point to this story except that it was a close call for Sarah, and a learning experience for me (again). Every day is a lesson on “control” for me….and slowly God is taking it gently from my hands so I can have a little fun, too.
You who are young, be happy while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Ecclesiastes 11:9
the day of thanksgiving
My brother Dave got some great pictures on Thanksgiving day. I thought I would post the ones he sent to me, along with the few that I was able to take on that day, as well. It’s funny as I look at them I feel peace…but in actuality the day was quite busy with lots and lots to do and think about (and I never did get the pumpkin pie out of the fridge to serve! totally forgot about it). I had lots of help from my Mom and everyone. It truly came together wonderfully.
Seth was determined to peel potatoes. I let Jacob help me peel when he was four years old and he peeled his finger so it’s always been an emphatic “no” from me to Seth. He took matters into his own hands and found a peeler in the drawer for himself. And yes, he did just fine, after all HE is almost eight. Thank you, Seth!
His look of intense concentration was just the dearest.
We turned all the heat off in the house but it was still too warm to start a fire in the fireplace. But I love this room….(we added it to the house a few years ago)
I played a few hymns for the potato peelers.
Rich, Jacob, and Ethan watching something on a phone….
I like how Dave took wide photos to get the details of the rooms.
my husband and his boys (plus Michael, Jacob’s best friend) watching TV
Sarah started eating the homemade rolls as soon as they were done. They are obviously her favorite thanksgiving food.
Grace and her Aunt Maria made the corn casserole.
Mom, sister Amanda, sisters in law Cassandra, Maria, and Melissa, daughter Grace, myself, and my niece Abigail (who turned 16 yesterday!) surrounded by lovely fiestware. 😉
Caleb and Dad having a chat.
kitchen help 🙂
Dad played football with his grandsons. Seriously, he’s the best.
quick family photo before we ate dinner
LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE!
My sister Amanda took these during Dad’s prayer of thanksgiving to God for all His numerous blessings to our family and the world……..
and then we served up our plates of food and ate all over the place….yes indeedy it was delicious
(I had no appetite which is the only downfall for being the hostess….I get so busy and distracted that I can’t enjoy my food! LOL) the leftovers have been delicious, though.
and then there was time for a few goofy sibling photos…….
so thankful…whenever we can all be together in the same house….there’s just nothing like that feeling. I never want to take it for granted.
Happy Thanksgiving!
PS. and now on to Christmas. 🙂
thanksgiving preparations
We are hosting thanksgiving dinner for our family on Thursday and this morning I began preparations.
I made the rolls…….
let in a kitty
kept making rolls….
including a round pan of cinnamon rolls to be baked on Thursday morning for breakfast.
(for you, E)
At this point, everything went into the freezer. On thursday morning I will take the rolls out and put them in pans to rise and then bake them so they are nice and fresh for our feast day.
next I will make a couple of
pies, but first some
coffee. With
Jake.
day with the college boy
Good afternoon! I took David to the orthodontist this morning which was nice because (does this happen in your family?) as is typical, the car is the best place for my children to open up and talk. We have nice conversations about anything and everything. So I got to hear everything that David wanted to talk about. After his appointment (“What did they do to you Dave?” “They put in a new, thicker wire.”) we scooted into the Goodwill store quickly to look at 1) dishes 2) DVDs and 3) books. Then….Dunkin’ donuts for a snack. He got a mint hot chocolate and a breakfast sandwich on waffles. I got a snack sized breakfast wrap thing and a hot tea.
I dropped Dave off at the middle school (right before he got out he said, “Wouldn’t you rather just take me back home?” and I said, “No, get out.”) and then parked so I could walk and as I walked I talked to my friend Kathy on the phone, and sipped hot tea.
*****
This weekend’s great event was getting up super early in the morning (4), and leaving to drive three hours for a visit to our college boy. Rich and I took the younger children with us, but Jacob had work so he wasn’t able to come along.
We were in terrible moods for half the trip. It was dark and raining and we had to stop at every red light on our way to the highway, which was driving Rich crazy because we were literally the only ones on the road. We also couldn’t figure out how to get the new DVD player in our vehicle to work but eventually David figured it out and the sound of Looney Tunes filled the air. About an hour down the road we all started perking up. We left so early because we wanted to surprise Ethan by getting to him in time to take him to breakfast. He wasn’t even awake yet when we pulled up to his dorm. The dorms are kept locked so I called him on his cell phone to tell him we had arrived. We saw his light turn on behind the blinds in his window as he quickly pulled on his clothes and came out in the chilly rainy weather and into the family car, where we all smiled at him.
We ate breakfast at a very nice, casual place, filled up with nice ordinary people. We felt comfortable and happy and our waitress was capable and pleasant as well. I ordered steak and eggs. We all ate so much food that we were able to completely bypass lunch.
After breakfast we went for a little drive and then stopped at a Norman Rockwell museum. Next up was bowling. We also visited a bookstore in town which was great (used bookstores are my favorite).
We headed back to the college. Grace and I sat and read our books for well over an hour. The college kids had an event going on where you could get an empty Pokemon character and stuff it yourself to make a stuffed animal, it closed with a zipper in the back. It was so cute to see all these big college kids sitting around boxes of stuffing, not unlike sitting around a campfire, talking away as they made toys, of all things. Seth, Sarah, and Caleb managed to each get in on the action, too. The college kids were so nice to them. Grace and I would look over at them and then look at each other and smile little smiles of joy. Rich and Ethan played pool downstairs together, and David joined Grace and I and put his head down on the table to take a nap.
We began to get hungry so we left for an early dinner. (It was so rainy and chilly–39 degrees!) Ethan was craving pizza so we found a well-reviewed pizza place 20 minutes away which ended up being amazing. The place was a very low key, “hole in the wall” sort of place with an awesome view of the town and the train tracks. Very busy. You had to order at the counter and then sit down to wait for your pizza to be done. When it is done they call your name and you go up to get it (no waitresses). There was a lady at the table next to us who talked to me about our large family. We rarely get the comment “are they all yours” any longer. We used to get it all the time when the kids were small, but now that three of them are taller than me we don’t get that question as often. But she loved the kids and it was a friendly little conversation.
The pizza was incredible. Their most popular pizza was made with their garlic knot dough and was simply covered in garlic, I think it took a full 24 hours for my breath to get back to normal. I had two pieces of it, it was topped with tomatoes and cheese. We bought three large pizzas and simply stuffed ourselves until there was only one and a half pieces left and Rich said, “No more, the rest is for E to take to his room with him.”
Then it was time to drop Ethan back off at his dorm. There were tears shed but all in all it was a most pleasant day! Beautiful. You know, there is just nothing like the feeling of being safe and loved in your family.
Rich had to take it twice. 🙂 family photo at the breakfast place! Isn’t the decor great? I love rooms that are filled with stuff everywhere you cast your eye. Inside the well-decorated bathroom there was a sign which said, “Girls, PLEASE do not steal the decor!” The word please was underlined three times.
I admit I am a little sad that our oldest son is not in this photo, but aren’t they handsome? Seth is 7, David is 14, Caleb is 11, and Ethan is 18.
*same breakfast, same facial expressions*
I’m laughing as I look at it. Their breakfast was called the “gut buster”
beautiful mountain stream
We went to a Norman Rockwell museum, which was a building full of every cover and/or illustration that he ever did, plus little signs giving more information about his life and pictures. There were NO original works, but we have been to the real museum in Stockbridge so we were okay with seeing the many many prints.
my favorite:
Rich’s favorite:
The pizza was so good. Rich even said it was better than Grandes. (the place we go to “back home” all the time, which we’ve been going to for our whole married life).
*************
So I wanted to tell you guys that I’m finally on instagram if you want to follow me here is my link: SHANDA’S INSTAGRAM .
Happy Monday!
thankful, so very very thankful
These mashed potatoes are soooooooooo good!
I’m still using my Grandma’s potato masher.
fiesta potholders
martha stewart pot
The potatoes were a snack for these fine young men. (By the way, I took all these photos last week but didn’t post them yet). Ethan had a week home from college.
Rich was away on a business trip for five days. I took this picture of the boys for him after their football practice….as you can see, Seth is full of energy STILL!
This morning he was showing me how his shorts didn’t stay up and I said, “Dressing you is like trying to dress a broom stick.” and he said, “That’s because I’m skinny.”
He also said, “When I grow up I’m not going to get married so I can still live with you.” “You don’t have to get married but you could still have your own place,” I replied. “I’ll be your neighvor.” he said. (exactly how he pronounced it)
WHAT??? All I did was walk out the front door when I discovered this very very cool green insect on the dresser on the porch. Isn’t it amazing?
You can make discoveries at any time and any place. Keep your eyes open.
I want to draw this bug. Wouldn’t it be fun to draw this bug?
I have a fascination with the Salem Witch Trials but this book was disappointingly difficult to read. It put me to sleep every evening. I finally put it down and read reviews on amazon — gratified to see the majority of them felt the same as I did. I bought this book at Costco and will be returning it.
The Trouble with Magic, by Ruth Chew (my latest read to Sarah book)
Little Women
The Little’s Surprise Party
Young Amelia Earhart
Tales of Peter Rabbit and his Friends
Heidi (full of illustrations)
Art book
Charlie Brown book
I love having books everywhere I turn here.
Sarah reading to Mama.
Seth reading to Mama (with Sarah next to us).
Little Bear books are the best. You know they make me tear up? Heartwarming stories. And then she wrote Hunger Games, can you believe that? (I did read Hunger Games and enjoyed it but got bored with the rest of the series, haven’t seen the movies.)
Dress up
Another homegrown pumpkin (we had four)
Kids are the best
a bunny bee and soft flower petals
(isn’t it so cute?)
To be glad of life, because it gives you the chance to love and to work and to play and to look up at the stars; to be satisfied with your possessions, but not contented with yourself until you have made the best of the them; to despise nothing in the world except falsehood and meanness, and to fear nothing except cowardice; to be governed by your admirations rather than by your disgusts; to covet nothing that is your neighbor’s except his kindness of heart and gentleness of manners; to think seldom of your enemies, often of your friends and every day of Christ; and to spend as much time as you can with body and with spirit, in God’s out-of-doors–these are the little guide-posts on the foot-path of peace.
Henry Van Dyke.
((David caught a snake.)) Yesterday Michael and Logan walked to our house to visit and said they rescued a snake from the road, it’s tail was run over so they put the hurt snake in the woods. I was so happy with them.
Our cats love sleeping in laundry baskets.
DAVID!!!! getting so tall and changing daily…..drinking that yummy raw milk does wonders. He’s been on the Rip Stick (see it behind him) a lot lately. He loves to go to football practice with his brothers and while they are on the fields, he is on the parking lot with the rip stick (for 2 hours!). Last night he was hungry and made himself a little pot of rice for a bedtime snack. He’s the best at making rice and has a scientific precise way of making it. He’s also been eating tortilla chips and salsa on a constant basis. It always amuses me to see the kids to through “their favorite snack” stages. I remember when Grace would eat a can of corn every day.
In a weak moment, I let Parker take a nap next to me.
GLOWING GLOWING GLOWING…….the outdoors is simply dazzling.
“Early in the morning, my song shall rise to Thee.”
Ethan and Tessa making pasta for dinner.
Is there anything more cozy than being outside and looking at the bright windows of YOUR house, with YOUR family inside???
Last night Seth looked back at me as he was going downstairs to bed and said, “Mom in the morning I want eggs for breakfast,” and he pointed his finger at me like Gary George, and continued, “Fried. Two.” Then, a thumbs up. I was smiling, “Okay Seth!” So this morning I put a healthy amount of butter in a cast iron pan and fried him up two eggs, served with whole wheat toast.
He said to me, he said to me with his mouth full, “This is a good breakfast, mom.”
my new garbage disposal
“There is often more wisdom to be found at the edges of life than in its middle. Life-threatening illness may shuffle our values like a deck of cards. Sometimes a card that has been on the bottom of the deck for most of our lives turns out to be the top card, the thing that really matters. Having watched people sort their cards and play their hands in the presence of death for many years, I would say that rarely is the top card perfection, or possessions, or even pride.
“Most often the top card is love.”
My Grandfather’s Blessings, by Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D.
Good morning, friends.
When I first woke up this morning, I sat in my bed with a cup of hot coffee and listened to the wind. It was a lovely autumn wind, yellow leaves were flying past the windows. Wind chimes were loud enough to hear and their music was saying, “It’s a windy morning!”
It has died down some, and the rain of yesterday is past, leaving clean fresh air and a brilliant blue sky. It’s hardly 50 degrees and feels invigorating but chilly.
I’m eating lunch as I type; vegetable soup.
The children are home from school for Columbus Day. Sarah Joy had a dentist appointment at 9, which I was not looking forward to after her year of kidney stone adventures. She was so sweet and brave until the last when the tears came…..she was worried that the dentist would pull her loose tooth out right then and there. The dental hygienist was sweet and understanding with Sarah. As a mom, that meant the world to me.
On Saturday we spent the entire day at the football field. Rich, myself, Sarah, Seth, and Caleb.
Rich officiated Seth’s game. Seth made several good plays as a quarter back (at his level, the boys take turns trying different positions). I was able to get this series of photos showing an impressive pass to his teammate, who did a great job at catching the ball.
Seth with the ball……
…..ball in the air……
…..with a catch and first down! Not bad for 6 and 7 year olds!
We had time to leave and eat dinner before Caleb’s game, which they won brilliantly.
It was raining on and off the whole day and we were soooooo ready to be home afterwards.
I love this little girl with all my heart.
And this one, too. Rich took Grace with him to go get a new garbage disposal.
The other day I was tired and grumpy but trying very hard to not say anything. Zak was here and he played a prank on Jacob in the kitchen. Jacob had left his cup of coffee on the counter while he went to the bathroom, and while he was gone, Zak put coins and butter in his coffee. I was in the kitchen, working, saw everything, and became annoyed. Jacob came out and dumped his coffee down the drain, and into the garbage disposal went the coins. I continued to be annoyed and I said to Jacob, “YOU put your hand down there and get the money out.” I assumed he did and the next day when I used the disposal it of course made (along with me) a terrible noise of distress and woe. I instantly knew what had happened and was mad this time. I put my hand down there and retrieved two almost unrecognizable pennies. I got the broom and used the end of the handle to try to get the disposal moving again, but no. I sent Jacob a text saying *no friends this week* (it was last week now) and he was still saying things like “It wasn’t me, it was Zak”…. like I cared WHO it was, which I did not—as long as I was not the one to have to deal with the messes of teenagers. “It was only one penny” they insisted. Rich was alway on a business trip and now my garbage disposal wasn’t working at all. As a homemaker, this was very unsettling. I called the plumber and he fixed several things (like a drippy faucet in the bathroom) but said he would have to get to the disposal in a few weeks. When Rich had time to look at it on Sunday, he discovered a QUARTER stuck so tightly in the disposal that there was nothing to be done but buy a new one. Thankfully, the disposal was old anyway and honestly needed to be replaced or I would still be annoyed at this moment. (I am over it and Can Now Laugh).
Rich and Grace came home with a garbage disposal so quiet I don’t believe it’s even working because I’m used to my old one that was as loud as a chainsaw and dripped gray water into a bowl under the sink each time I used it.
While they were out shopping for the disposal, I had asked Ethan *which would he rather take back to college with him, brownies or cookies* and he picked cookies and said, “Thanks Mom” which completely melted my heart. He kept coming in the kitchen to eat the dough. My kitchen was a mess because the disposal wasn’t working. True! Really! 🙂
I made the best chocolate chip cookies ever and even snuck in some wheat flour. I pressed pumpkin seeds on top of a dozen (kids won’t eat them, of course). Ethan took about a dozen with him to school.
This is an easy snack for the kids….buy a loaf of garlic bread at the store and bake it according to the package directions. Then, open up the loaf and put some sauce, cheese, and dried basil and bake it again until it’s done. Glorified french bread pizza.
I watched David play the piano.
And noticed Gentleman Gray sleeping in an odd place with his leg sticking out. 🙂
We ended up sitting on the floor in the corner together, petting the cat.
Jacob made the trip to Vermont yesterday with his brother. They took Grace and Tessa along, and Zak, too. Although it was sad to have to say goodbye to Ethan again, I heard this morning that they had a very nice time together on their little road trip, listening to music and stopping for coffee and a buffet for dinner.
The view from the porch yesterday evening was stunning.
Love.
“Blessing the life in someone usually requires a deep respect for their uniqueness, an openness to allowing them to uncover who they are rather than shaping them into who we want or need them to be. Innately, blessing life confers a greater freedom on those we bless.” ~Rachel N. Ramen, M.D.
the grubby pumpkin
This was more of a gardening problem. I didn’t even plant the pumpkins but we were thrilled (the children and I) to find them growing in the garden. My mom is the expert pumpkin grower so I texted her the other day to ask when it was that you picked the pumpkin. We had one that had been orange for a while and two that were still green. She told me that if I started rolling it, it would break away easily from the vine so I went outside to roll a pumpkin. I was so excited.
But when I rolled it I was confronted with a ghastly sight of a family of grubs living underneath. One of them stayed attached to the pumpkin and I quickly flicked it away, far away out of sight. It appeared that they were eating the pumpkin as much as their tiny little mouths would let them.
“That’s Barry’s pond,” said Matthew.
“Oh, I don’t like that name, either. I shall call it–let me see–the Lake of Shining Waters. Yes, that is the right name for it. I know because of the thrill. When I hit on a name that suits exactly it gives me a thrill. Do things ever give you a thrill?”
Matthew ruminated.
“Well now, yes. It always kind of gives me a thrill to see them ugly white grubs that spade up in the cucumber beds. I hate the look of them.”
“Oh, I don’t think that can be exactly the same kind of a thrill. Do you think it can? There doesn’t seem to be much connection between grubs and lakes of shining waters, does there?”
~Anne of Green Gables, Chapter 2
The pumpkin did break away nicely from the vine and I carefully lugged it over to the hose to wash it off. I wondered if the grubs had eaten holes through the rind.
After a wash, I cautiously pressed my finger all over the blemished side of the pumpkin and discovered that it was still hard without any soft spots or holes. I sent photo after photo to my Mom and she was just as grossed out as I was, if not more. She suggested throwing the whole thing in with the chickens to enjoy. After all, what if the entire pumpkin was crawling with grubs? “I wouldn’t want to see what might be inside it.” she texted, “It’s like a little nightmare for Halloween.”
Like any loving chicken keeper would do, I did go back over to the grubs and scoop them up along with a worm. I threw the handful of dirt n’ grubs into a bucket and carried it down to the coop.
They were gone in no time.
By the way, grubs are the larvae of Japanese beetles. And guess what else I learned? Moles are the natural predator of grubs and only live in lawns that have them. They eat up to fifty grubs a day. If you have a lot of moles in your yard, you have a lot of grubs.
Aren’t things getting interesting?
So anyway, what to do with the pumpkin?
This is what the grubby side looks like today. Scratchy and rough, I’m keeping an eye on it for any spoiling. So far, so good. It’s our very first *we grew it ourselves* pumpkin!
It still has a pretty side and so I decided to place it by the walkway near the house, next to the rocking chair. I like to sit and wait for the bus and/or watch the kids play while sitting in my chair. Every once in a while I give the pumpkin a loving pat, or use it as an end table for my phone.
I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself,
than be crowded on a velvet cushion.
Henry David Thoreau
recipe = yum yum!!!
A nice whole grain, nutritious, and flavorful salad~
First of all, you need to cook your wheat berries by combining 1 3/4 cups water with 1/2 cup rinsed soft white wheat berries and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a pan. Bring to a rolling boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for one hour or until tender. Drain and set aside to cool.
((I used Bob’s Red Mill wheat berries, and this is the recipe on the back of the bag.))
Wheat Berry and White bean Salad
Salad: 1 cup cooked wheat berries
1 cup cooked white or navy beans (I used one whole 15oz can of white beans)
1/2 cup green onion, chopped (I used regular minced fresh onion)
1/2 cup celery, sliced
1/2 cup tomato, diced (if you’re still trying to use up summer’s bounty, you can increase tomato)
Vinaigrette:
1/2 cup olive oil
2 T. lemon or lime juice
2 T. white wine vinegar
2 T. chopped parsley
1 T. honey mustard (I used 1 T. honey plus a half teaspoon of mustard)
2 T. minced shallot (I omitted)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
Mix the vinaigrette by combining all the ingredients with a whisk or blender. Add the salad ingredients and mix well. Let chill several hours or overnight.
I’m not the only one who liked it; my sister in law asked for the recipe, & Rich liked it, too.
The four of us went to Sturbridge this afternoon to get coffee and visit the Yankee Candle seconds store. It’s becoming a yearly trip for us and quite fun. Fall weather is beginning here in New England, the air is clear and hot during the day, chilling down at night. We also visited a few other quaint shops, too.
Now we are home. Isaac and Cassandra left and Rich and I are reading on the porch. I’m wearing soft wool socks which feel extra comfy after a day in flip flops, a pair of sweat pants, and a gray shirt. Hair up in a ponytail/bun.
Caleb is frying hamburgers for himself and the kids– and I can smell them through the open window. The neighbor boys just left with hamburgers in their hands.
There is a cool breeze and over in another chair is our cat busy giving himself a groom.
Rich is reading a book about Revelation. Our arms are touching.
I heard an owl hooting! Every few seconds it does it again, it’s off in the distance in the woods and I wish I could see it. There are quite a few birds in the garden taking seeds from the hanging sunflowers. I wish owls liked sunflowers seeds.
I should go get my camera and take pictures of the birds.
Make the salad!
xo
Good to be Home 