wills and kate

i don't think it would be possible for me to care less about these two. even the paper dolls, which are almost ALWAYS cool, don't look fun!

please, please, please, let them go away now!



;_)

yes. finally.

praying

i am sad for my sweet alabama today, and the other states who have had so many storms.

i am also sad that a country can idolize charlie sheen all OVER the place for months, but usually not really focus on stuff like this for more than a day or two.

God, help us.

Ain't that the truth

the next new thing

sometimes, i cannot believe how my mind fixates on things. of course, it's spring and growing THINGS is a huge focus. i cannot imagine how God felt when he actually invented all this stuff! ha.

anyway. here we go. i've been thinking about air plants. lots and lots of air plants. i sort of remember them from the 70s (i know, i know) and they always were hot glued to a piece of driftwood. i would not do that to them.

oh. what is sort of cool is that they don't need dirt, but they like to soak in a dish of water once a week for an hour. so, in a way, kind of high maintenance. but not.


what do you think? thumbs up or down?

need your advice

so i guess you guys know how much of a pet lover i am. so much so, that you probably don't want to take me to your local humane society for a fun visit. unless your idea of a fun visit is a sobbing graphic artist who cannot bear the thought of all those homeless creatures that God made, and thusly just stands in the corner losing it.

anywhoo, it stands to reason that i got that way by coming from a family who ALSO loves pets. pretty much everybody in my family is the same way as me.

except that my mom and dad don't have any pets right now. their hearts just broke too much after their last kitty passed away over a year ago. i was home sunday, and it just didn't feel right to be there without a kitty to love on.

i KNOW my mom would like a cat. but my dad is being curmudgeonly and saying no to more pets. i KNOW if i brought one home, they would be instantly okay with having one.

i KNOW that everything that you ever read about says do NOT surprise gift a pet.

i KNOW that igloo, elsa and cyrus (see above) think it's a good idea though. but, what do you think?

mother's day is just around the corner ;)

weekend wrapup

ah. second day in a row of sunshine! even though it's still well below freezing (and normal), having the sunshine out makes a big dent in the 'sad' that everyone has been experiencing.

since saturday was still grey and cloudy but kind of warm, i got a start to cleaning off the flower beds. things are quite behind normal in growth, but to be honest, everything looks fine. just small. when the weather warms up, all will be well.


can you guess what i am making? quick trip to the 'lobby' on saturday, and a new little project. i need to finish it up by friday, as it is for an expecting friend....



and then, there was Easter sunday. what a beautiful day! the promise of the sun and warmth was the perfect compliment to the Risen Christ. i enjoyed the day with my family in the gazebo watching the world go by. driving home, i was reminded of the crazy SD spring...this is a couple miles from my parent's house. i still dream about this particular stretch of road sometimes....it's etched in my memory. thankfully, no houses have been built in this area where the river generally overflows some every spring.


schwew. another monday, and my last week of school. i have almost made it! so excited and so ready to be into this new season fully. hope you all have a good week!

a bleak day

another grey day. i think the fact that this week has been cold and grey has helped me to realize the human condition before Christ was pretty bleak. tonite, i will go to a Tenebrae service at my church, to further extend the bleakness. i had never attended a tenebrae service before last year, it is very dramatic and somehow makes more real the significance of the cross. it also makes more real the HOPE for 3 days later!!! i hope you all have a special touch from God on your Easter celebrations.


i got this picture in my facebook inbox this morning. it's a cart from a shopper at my favorite greenhouse, medary acres in brookings. that person and myself have a lot in common, i kind of want all of her plants. i cannot really believe that it's time to shop for plants! i am still wearing socks and fleece jackets every day. i have not been outside to work on the yard once. i guess i will be SUPER happy when the sun finally comes out, and it's instantly TIME. for everything good.

have a great Good Friday everyone!

Easter birdie

thank you for the baby Easter birdie Kirsten! He looks great with my little 'hidden' birdie from Christmas :)

ps. Siesta has not found him yet.

unanswered questions....

why do you suppose my front step decided to cave in, and how do you suppose i would go about mending it?


what do you think caused a LARGE chunk of my front lawn to die, esp. when most of the neighbors (who do not give lawn care one iota of thought) have thriving lawns?


perhaps most importantly, do you think HE is involved with any of this suspiciousness?

it's like magic

okay all you list makers. why did you not ever tell me how wonderful and awesome it is to finish things and CHECK THEM OFF? it's the most magical feeling in the world!

and especially why did you not tell me that after a certain # of things are checked off, that you get to have a popsicle and the rest of the day off?




:)

good day for this

new day

“As they make music they will sing,
“All my fountains are in you.”

Psalm 87:7

that was the chord that struck this morning as i was reading my bible. i find it funny sometimes the odd things that get my attention. this morning, however, it was not odd at all, but God speaking Truth into me.

i've been busy. whenever i get busy, i tend to take control of my life, in order to get the most things done possible. i usually talk to God in quick, 'let me tell you about my day' conversations. i miss listening when i get like this, and i find that one-way conversations with God are not nearly as powerful, when we are the ones leading.

so, this morning i asked Him to reverse that trend. as always, he led me into His heart. i so love that! every devo i read, every bible passage, led me to the truth of it all, that ALL of my FOUNTAINS are in Him! no one else! nothing else!! NO THING else! and He welcomed me back into His heart with ease and joy.

as we enter this holy week, that is a really important thing to know. and to live by. that He welcomes us back with joy. it brings peace to us, and to those around us. it's my prayer for you, too.


sigh.


okay. a couple more things. weekend was good. even though the weather has been strange and cold, i am somehow not that depressed about it. i KNOW that warmer weather comes, eventually it just does.



i did spend some time this weekend being a housewife. i 'put up' some strawberries, because i got them for $1/pound on sale. i actually got 12 pounds, but a few were kind of spoiled, so maybe 10 pounds all together. i made a batch of low sugar jam for my mom, and froze most of the rest. they are great to snack on, or in smoothies, etc in the summer. buying strawberries in season is always a good idea :)


i also thrifted a bit on saturday, a sure sign of spring. i got a couple vases for spring plants, and a potholder for 10 cents, and this pendant watch. lately, i'm kind of into thrifted grandma jewelry. i think it looks good mixed with more modern stuff. i got a couple compliments on this piece, even though it does not keep accurate time. that kind of makes me love it even more!

anyway, life is good. have a great monday, all!

book club

i'm not 100% sure, but i am thinking that one thing almost all of my blog readers have in common is a love of books. i know this to be true of most of you, at any rate. i keep imagining that Heaven will have lots of cool books, and bunches of book clubs, where people find really meaningful things to talk about. there's probably really good coffee to go with the books, too :)



anywhoo, i got a book in the mail today that i am SO excited to read. it's about one of my all=time faves, laura ingalls. of course, it's a modern spin on the little house on the prairie life, so it will hopefully not be too weird. i think the concept is fantastic. i like the title, 'the wilder life.' that's a pretty good spin, too. seriously, i also like that the cover is turquoise. don't tell anybody that, though, it makes me seem superficial. ;)



then there is this one, which does not make me feel superficial. the boys in our church were doing this as a bible study not long ago. it struck me that it might be just as much for women. david platt is a pastor of a church in birmingham, al (oh, my beloved alabama!!) and has some fairly realistic ideas about how we christians in america have CREATED a jesus who looks like us, instead of the other way around. i have a feeling it will be an uncomfortable read, but still. as soon as i get it out of carey's trunk, i think it will be good.


then today in bible study, one of the women mentioned THIS book, because she knows the people. i had a spark of memory in my head from hearing about this before. it's about a homeless man, and how he impacts the lives of those around him. i just can tell from the cover that i will probably like this one.


so there we go! reading!!! with my new bifocals!!! what could be better than THAT on a grey and rainy day????

middle of the middle

schwew. wednesday. i kind of live for when wednesday is over. usually, it's a fairly brutal day in my week.

not so bad today, so far. i feel like i have a bunch of blog topics, but my brain is too scattered to tackle them today.

let's go for nonsensical, shall we?


I got 'progressive' lenses yesterday. for some reason, losing the vision of your youth does not seem progressive to me, but whatever. i don't mind them. you have to literally point your nose at everything you want to see, in order to see it. no peripheral vision whatsoever.
well, who cares, i guess. i have always been a little narrowly focused anyway :)

ha.


the babies are growing quite nicely. it's hard to take a pic to show, but they are probably 3-4 inches high already. will probably be bearing fruit by the time i actually get the garden ready to plant. it's been slow going for me so far, gotta step away from the computer sometime soon.


sigh. at least we had a couple of sunny days to keep our cheer. yesterday i went for a walk, and it was heavenly. today, grey and windy and rain on the way. gotta remember that it's always sunny above the clouds, no matter what we see from down here.


happy wednesday!

body imagery

whew. finally went shopping for clothing yesterday. this has become a very low priority for me in the last years, as wearing my 'home pants' is way more common than it used to be. however, there is a time for acting like you care, and God is telling me that it's right now.

i wouldn't say i've had serious body image issues in my life, but i did spend a good chunk of it thinking that if i were thin, i would be happy. that particular line of thought is interesting to me now, and i cannot believe that at least 15 years was wasted in it. i guess what i now know is that if you cannot be happy with yourself no matter what you happen to LOOK LIKE, then you won't have joy later when you look differently.

that being said, i believe God chooses for us to be stewards of many things, including our bodies. i have not done that so well the last few years, mostly choosing food as my comfort over the stresses of life. it doesn't help that i love food. but anything we love first, before God, is a problem.

so, i'm owning up to it. it's weird when your particular sin is what others can plainly see. however, i am not hoping to be skinny, i'm hoping to be healthy. so giving up worrying what others see is probably on my list as well.

in any case, whether you are a size 4 or a size 16, i would highly recommend Gap jeans. i actually sprung for 2 pairs at (nearly) full price, and even a thrifty girl like me thinks they are actually worth it.

yay! here's to being cute! especially on the inside!



ps. i have no grand sermon about the shoes. but the shoes are pretty good, too :)

for my lovely kirsten

i am excited to visit you next month. i kind of wish it was next month right now.

i have a plan for us, let's make terrariums...?! i am obsessed with terrariums right now, and they are harder than they look!

i will find us some vintage clear jars. then, we can get some sand and dirt and carbon chips and cute little rocks and mini plants at the greenhouse.



ps. we can also do some things that you want to do :))

love you.
me

time travels

i love clocks. always have. i never needed an alarm growing up, that is one benefit of anxiety, i guess. if i have an early morning meeting, i usually wake up at 3am.

however, it's probably a good thing i have an internal alarm, because none of the clocks around here actually work. they are all wonky. i found this lovely center clock at the goodwill yesterday, in a wreckless visit that lasted about 12 minutes. it was $6 and i could see it's potential :)

ha. it actually runs, but the knob with which you can change the time is gone. i cannot for the life of me get it set. i suppose, technically, i might unplug it and wait for the EXACT correct moment to plug it back in. sigh. not sure i really care all that much.

if you do plan on coming over to my house, you might want to bring your watch with you :)



in other news, there is nothing like the feel of hot cement after a long, cold winter ;)) happy lovely wednesday!

good news bad news

so, i got my new glasses at noon today. i ended up purchasing from a place with 'mart' on the end. i could NOT justify spending $500-$600 for designer glasses. seriously people, i'm not designer anything, except i AM a designer. i'm sort of an oxymoron that way.

so, a student of mine recommended eye mart. i was so stunned at the price, i was doubtful. it's also been about 6 years since i had a new eye prescription, so i guess i was a little scared of change. the only bad thing about not changing, is that i could not see. which is a bit of a hindrance.

so, picked em up. everything was huge and bright and sparkled! i drove around town, amazed that i can see stop and street signs. seems like a good thing, right?

until i got home and sat down at the computer. dang it all. for some reason, i can no longer see the computer screen.


doh.


i wish old eyes did not happen...
i guess now i'll have to get a GIGANTIC computer monitor that i can sit several feet away from. that should solve everything ;)

breathe!

sigh. sigh of relief. today is the first 'normal' work day i have had in awhile. generally, mon-thurs has been kind of a blur. and friday has become 'catchup' day, which has somehow also bled into saturday or sunday, or both.

today, i have a normal list. i am learning a couple of things. for one, you miss stuff when you are always thinking about what you have not accomplished yet. you miss joy. you miss really listening to and being with your friends. you miss your yard.

yesterday, i called a couple of people and apologized that i did not have their stuff done yet. i told them that i would rather be honest and admit i am overbooked, and asked if they would forgive me. know what? both of them did, and now i have a bit more time on both of their projects. it really was not that hard to admit that i am a 1-person agency, and that 1 person sometimes cannot meet everybody's needs. schwew.

so, today is good. i still have a really full week, but somehow a weight has been lifted. i DO plan to go outside and poke around in the flower beds, and see what is coming up. i do plan to smile. i do plan to not plan every second out :)

i do hope you get to do the same! happy tuesday :)

thinking about things

spring is in the air, and i once again want to change everything in the house. i love it when motivation returns, but seriously, i cannot change the whole house every year, or every time i want to...even though it makes me happy to think of being surrounded by new.

i did choose a painting, it's the one above called 'meet you there' by judy paul. it really reminds me of psalm one, which is my new life motto. i really love the tree shape, and would somehow like to incorporate that into my setting if i can. we'll see. i have not pushed the 'buy' button yet. still praying about it, and making sure.

anyway, something inside of me is holding me back from just making a bunch of superficial changes. i get the feeling that God wants me to make a permanent shift this time around. to start seeing things from a whole new perspective. what if i did? what would i see? would it be hard or easy to see things from God's perspective? how do i start?

i read this story on a friends' facebook page on friday. it really stuck with me. it's written from a fellow who had the unthinkable happen. i think this made the news nationally, but esp. around here, where the 2 brothers are from originally. they were 2 great guys - brothers - and one needed a kidney transplant. both had families, etc, and the healthy brother proved to be a perfect match for his older brother who was sick. somehow, something went horribly wrong during the transplant procedure, and the GIVER of the kidney died. the sick brother lived. in fact, he is doing well. although both men were strongly Christian before, now the brother who survived says this:

Ecclesiastes isn’t an easy read. A king looks back on his conquests and muses the significance of all his work. The wisest of kings splits the difference between Heaven and earth with razor edged Truth. He deduces that life is no more than “spitting into the wind.”

I have to tell you, as if maybe you didn’t already know, that I concur. Something happened inside me when Ryan died that I thought would revert back at some point, but it didn’t. Color bled off the pages of life. As many times as I’ve seen a globe, I now saw a flat earth. I still can’t label the feeling – grief, depression, detachment. But I didn’t think much of it because I knew the stages and figured it slid nicely somewhere into one of those slots.

But it’s not a phase. Yes, wounds heal and memories soften.

But I think maybe, that perspective is how God means for us to see life here. What I mean is, this place has become our everything. And I don’t think it was ever meant to be. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t embrace the rich moments with family and friends. But I think it does mean to keep an eternal perspective so eternity is the backdrop to everything we do.

I never saw life from this perspective until that night. Who knows if I would have ever ‘got it’? Those that do get it without having to go through something like this – well, they have incredible insight. And I admire them.

you can go read his whole blog at: cometoofar.com

like chad, i want to 'get it.' i want to see beyond what looks to be the right direction, and see from God's seat what the right direction in life really is. that kind of choice involves more than just a casual prayer, or a once-a-week worship gathering. that kind of choice involves leaving this world behind. i admit that i kind of don't know how to do it. there are so many things i love here.

but today, pastor mentioned in his sermon that many, almost any of us, given a diagnosis of terminal anything, would not have a problem giving up our 'stuff.' we'd easily forfit the house or the job or the accolades or the goals or the WANTS just to LIVE.

i want to LIVE, really live, don't you? what if we just decided to do it, and asked God to help us?