My little seventh baby is almost two-and-a-half.  She looked so bright and cheerful this morning that I got the camera out.

This morning, I woke up thinking about my daughter Grace.  She turned thirteen today. 

However, Grace isn’t home and I can’t sing Happy Birthday to her.  Her room is empty and my heart aches today, missing her.  Guess where she is? 

JAMAICA.

She is in Jamaica, experiencing her first missions trip with a group of other people from our church.  They left yesterday morning and will be back next Saturday.  They had a lot of gospel-work/preaching/teaching/children’s activities planned but I heard this morning that the area they are visiting was hit hard by hurricane Sandy and they may be doing more “hands on” work than originally planned.  If you think of her, maybe you could pray for the team, that they would be safe and involved in lots of meaningful work.  I know it will be life changing for her.

Since she is not home on her birthday, I took a few pictures of some little things that remind me of sweet Grace.

I spent some time looking at her special Winnie the Pooh baby book.  Little Sarah saw Pooh’s picture and excitedly said, “SHAMPOO!” 

I can’t believe Grace was this tiny.  She was our smallest baby, born at 5 pounds and 13 ounces.

In her bedroom, I noticed that she found and framed this snapshot of her and Jacob, her oldest brother whom she admires and respects very much.  I look at this picture and smile at their baby faces.

When Grace goes to thrift stores and antique shops with me, she is always drawn to the little things; like this dog figurine, tiny basket, and sea shells.

And this bird.

I found this book on her bed.  This is one of her favorite authors.

She collects snow globes and yes, she has her own fiesta tea set (just like mama).

When we named her Grace, we hardly had any knowledge of what God’s grace meant to us in our lives.  Even now, thirteen years later, I wonder if I really grasp the boundless beauty of life with Christ.  But I do know this, every day I am thankful for HIS GRACE, and so glad we named our daughter after one of the most lovely spiritual gifts from God. 

“Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord.”

 A daughter is a day brightener and a heart
warmer.
— Author Unknown

A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

inspired by soulemama

Having a time out for almost accidently defacing his mama with a flying tennis racket. 

These are the golden days of learning, and providing the family with lots of stories to remember.

I love you, precious boy of mine.

Happy Hollillween!

(Caleb’s original spelling)

Yesterday afternoon, while the storm blew around us and the children ran around in the house, I mixed up some homemade bread.  The recipe is HERE.  I doubled it.  There are two loaves left today and it’s still fresh and soft. 

We got through hurricane Sandy just fine.  Our power flickered on and off all afternoon but we never were without electricity.  We did lose cable/Internet but that was kinda nice.  The games came out; Apples to Apples, and Monopoly.

Rich was able to go to work today, and the children had another day off from school so I also ventured out.  The eight of us went to Savers and then to the mall.  I wanted to get Ethan and Jacob’s hair cut but the mall was closed; only Barnes and Noble and the children’s play area was open. 

I scored this pair of clippety-clop clogs at Savers, Hannah Anderson, for only 8 dollars. They fit perfectly, too. 

Sarah and Seth scored some “vintage” Fisher Price toys.  Now all they need are some of those nice plastic people, the ones with the round ball for the head.

Baby Gap canvas sneakers; 1.99.

But, we really went for the books.  I was especially pleased with the Eloise Wilkin illustrated Birds book, and the Garth Williams illustrated Chicken book.

When we got back home, I hung clothes out on the line.  The sun came out ever so briefly but for the most part it’s been a very colorless day outside.

The wind still gusts now and then.  The clothes were flapping on the line and took no time to dry.

It’s been so wonderful having the children home.  Caleb caught me walking around the pond and ran down to join me.  HE WANTED to be with his mama.

To our surprise, Grace heard us talking and came out of the chicken coop.  It was a regular good ol’ time.

We didn’t lose any trees in this storm, but a few branches came down and the pond rose up to new heights; almost reaching the top of the dock.

The dryer is humming, Grace is singing, Ethan is playing the guitar, Seth is crying, a door just opened and shut, and Sarah is pattering around in her new little shoes.

The sounds of home.

Hope you’re having a lovely day, friends.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving
and into His courts with praise.
Be thankful unto Him, and bless His name.
For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting;
and His truth endures to all generations.  Psalm 100:4-5

I almost feeling like I should apologize for “more fall pictures” but I won’t.  I know some of my lovely friends&sisters like to enjoy this time of year through the camera lens because they are in other places (for instance, deserts or the deep South), and do not get to experience first hand the autumn colors.  So, I keep blogging these (this is quite possibly the last) fall pictures because I can’t help myself; it is my favorite time of year, and because I do want to share my little bit of God’s beautiful world, with you. 

In these harvest days, the leaves on the trees turn different colors, fall to the ground, and after a while they get gloriously crunchy.  Seth and I walked on the edge of the road today so we could hear the crispiness.  The smell that comes up from these dry leaves is sweet and earthy, a distinct smell all it’s own.

I do enjoy the color combinations that God Himself designed into nature.

Brown and deep Yellow

I looked for a long time at the tree (in the left-hand background) and the pink of these leaves. 

Beige, Gray, and Dusky Pink

Pink and Green

This next sight was fun.  It stopped me in my tracks again (the children are SO patient!)……

A single red leaf surrounded by pinks and greens.  All arranged and designed, seemingly just for me!   

One of our neighbor’s artful front stoop:  six potted mums, a birdbath, and a bright blue milk jug

(sitting here, wondering if I should anonymously print this out and pop it into their mailbox? with a note saying their decorations were appreciated?)  would that be weird?

street curb

street curb plus a cute boy

On our way home we found our cat.  He is a prowler…….we find him all over.  The other day he was in the neighbor’s cabbage patch watching birds on the other end of the road. His territory is the whole neighborhood, apparently.

His name is Spot.  My grandpa gave him to me when he was still alive and living in the old farmhouse.

Seth got all tired out on the walk, though you wouldn’t think it possible.  He said, “MOM.  When we get home I AM GOING TO NEED A BREAK.” 

(I might add, “to tire him out” is one of the purposes of these almost-daily walks). 

Sarah Joy was along, but she was in her stroller until we got home.   I unbuckled her and then she got to play in the leaves, too.

“Then lift up the head with a song!

And lift up the hand with a gift!

To the ancient Giver of all

The spirit in gratitude lift!”

Amelia A Barr

Grace, you’re such a doll.  I love you…and hope you’re having a good day at school today.

Dear Friends,

Hello!  How are you today?  I hope you are well and enjoying your day so far.  I just put Seth and Sarah to bed for nap time and finished up some homemade applesauce.  I have an “apple cider” candle burning on the table, right next to a bouquet of autumn leaves that we picked this morning.  It smells sweetly of apple in the house.

It’s an apple-day here today because yesterday after church we went and got some nice ones from the apple farm that we visit every year.

The lady had two huge apples up by the register.  She said the orchard guys brought them in to show her.  They were bigger than I’d ever seen. 

We bought several varieties of apples, a warm apple pie, a dozen freshly-made donuts, frosted pumpkin cookies, honey, and fudge.

Seth and Sarah sat with me outside this morning as I began peeling…..and peeling…..and peeling.  I honestly should get one of those apple/peeler/corer/slicers that they say work so well.  I peeled some of the skin off my thumb knuckle.  Seth tried to help but he’s still too little.  They both took little nibbles out of a lot of the chunks before I threw them in the pot.  It’s sunny and windy, a very pretty fall day, good for hanging clothes on the line (which I am also busy doing; tackling the laundry mountain).

I finished up the peeling inside, at the table.  I left Seth and Sarah eating their lunch here (in chairs sitting nicely) as I took the scraps down to the chickens.  When  I came back I found them……….

….under the table having a great time.  One of the joys of each day is watching these two develop into best friends.  They do everything together.

I put a little sugar, vanilla, lemon juice, cinnamon, and nutmeg into my homemade applesauce.

The butter is out because in a little while I am going to bake a big pan of my Aunt Mary Ellen’s apple crisp.  Oh, my fat!

Bubbling applesauce.  It tastes that much better, homemade, with a thick, almost creamy consistency.  You close your eyes and say a dreamy, ‘mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm’

*************

My soul is delighting in the Lord.  It is a joy to come through spiritually “dry” times and back into a satisfying goodness of His Word.  The preaching yesterday filled me up, as does the Bible study I am participating in, and the book I am reading.  (Life in Jesus, a Memoir of Mrs. Mary Winslow).  Almost every evening lately, after dinner and the children are clearing away the dishes, I sit at the piano and play the old favorite hymns.  Then, in other times, the music and words come back to our minds and I hear the children whistling or humming the familiar songs.

quotes:

“Every new trial, and every fresh cross, drive me into the very bosom of Jesus; and it seems as if I could lie there, and feel the very throbbings of His loving heart.”

“Whatever draws or drives us to Christ is a mighty blessing.”

“Dear child, all God has said to us in His word is true;  heaven is true, and we are very near it.  It is all around us.  Jesus is there before us–there to welcome us.  Oh, to realize it!”

“My sweetest meditation, lying down and rising up, or walking in the night, is HEAVEN.”

“What would we do, in this poor dying world, without a throne of grace, and a God of grace upon the throne, in our every time of need?  Oh let us keep close to Him who loved us with an everlasting love, and with loving-kindness has drawn us to Himself.”

~Mary Winslow (b. 1774, d. 1855)

love.

i found it.

It was a great morning all together.  After breakfast, we went for a long walk.

It rained a lot yesterday but the sun was out today and we very much enjoyed the beauty all around us.  (there’s nothing like clean woods, I drank the air.)

Up at the top of the mountain we looked over the railings of the look out tower; miles and miles of views.

The days can be so busy with school and scedules, it’s a sweet blessing to have Rich and the children around me on the weekends.  Feels right, and all is well.

We went to Moe’s for a taco lunch after our walk.  I heard someone from another table say, “That’s a large family!”  She was smiling and I did, too.

Happiness does not depend on outward things, but on the way we see them.  Leo Tolstoy