thankful 15.

schwew. i'm kind of late posting, but that is because today i am thankful for TODAY. today i lived in the present moment, doing something i truly enjoy with someone i truly enjoy. and mostly, i am thankful that i got to call it 'work.'



i wonder how many hours i have spent at the computer in my life? many of them have been truly enjoyable, but lots of them have simply been 'making the doughnuts' when i would have preferred to make something with my hands.

my friend anne has glorious hands to make things with. and a creative spirit to match.


that's why i enlisted her to make christmas decorations for a client here in town....and that is what we did today. actually, we made ONE pot out of several we'll need to finish before black friday.

we enjoyed ourselves. and we WORKED. our labor produced the kind of thing you cannot make on the computer, and i guess we both found that immensely satisfying.






thank you God, for today's work. i ask that you bless us with more chances to work at something that we love, to create and build and then to reflect and enjoy our creation...

amen :)

thankful 13 and 14.

ah. what a fantastic weekend. i admit i was a bit crabby after saturday came and went, and i did not complete any items that i had on my to-do list. the day was good, just not super productive.

so yesterday, i kicked it into high gear (high for me, which may not be all that high) and got the garage emptied enough to park my 'bert' inside. i woke up this morning sore and satisfied!! bring it, winter, i am ready now.


which leads me to my gratefulness. this morning in my bible time, i thanked God for giving me a healthy body that enables me to do things like clean out the garage. our bodies are amazing, and i take mine for granted way too often.

i did wake up with sore hands and arms from the endeavor. i suffer a bit from arthritis, at least i think that's what it is, especially in the changing seasons. i asked God to take away a bit of the pain today, if He would.


His answer to me came quickly, as i was reading Hebrews this morning. the verses talk about disciplines that are appropriate for God to take in order to better us, because He loves us. even though it might have seemed a bit out of context, the ACTUAL words used went like this:

So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong.

Hebrews 12:12/13



So there you have it, my goal for the week, and my Helper who will make it so. So very thankful for the Word of God, alive and real and life-changing, for sure. Thank you, Lord, let's have a great week together!

ps. Siesta says 'read it, it's good.'

:)

thankful 12.

Saturday day morning wake-up call in the new home.

i don't know why. i don't know why God has chosen to bless me with this life, or with this place, or with this time. i do know for sure that i don't deserve it. but as i see the sunrise again on such a beautiful fall day, i am thankful that God loves me. for that i am grateful, because i know that i know that He loves all of us.

happy weekend, everybody!!!

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,
that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16

thankful 11.

whenever i think about veteran's day, i always ALWAYS think of my uncle gail, who served in the navy. although i have other relatives who served, he is the one that i think of as most exemplifying the spirit of the military. he was a wonderful, wonderful man who always had a huge smile and a hug for me, and who never was shy to tell me he loved me, a rarity in my family.

he died about 6 years ago, and my aunt elizabeth almost 2 years ago to this very day. there are some people in heaven that i can hardly WAIT to see, and these 2 are pretty much at the top of the list.

i am thankful for loved ones, aren't you?
happy friday, and happy veteran's day!

thankful 10.

wow. 10 days into this thankful thing. it's going fast, although i admit i'm not going too deep :) ha. it's kind of whatever i can grab and take a picture of...meaning no people, even though i am REALLY thankful for a lot of you... ;)

lessee. facial pheromones....those are pretty swell. remember when i posted about them not long ago?



seems that SOMETHING has mellowed siesta out. she still vertical scratches on the couch, though, so it's not a perfect thing.

but her new favorite spot to rest (under the tv cabinet) is about 2 feet away from the pheromones. coincidence?

i think not :)

thankful 9.

today i am thankful for serendipity, defined as:

the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for.



which leads to my 'happy accident' from yesterday, as it were.

i now live on a tree-lined street. one of the desires of my heart.

except for when leaves abound, and you are moving and don't have time to deal. and ESPECIALLY when you have a fastidious neighbor who carefully bags HIS leaves in a very, very straight line dividing your property, making your neglect all the more noticeable.

especially when, a couple of weeks later, the wind takes note of the fastidiousness, and decides to blow leaves all over HIS yard, making yours look somewhat tidy in comparison.

and especially all the more when, in a stroke of serendipitous timing, a little man with a mower, blower and bagger comes along and parks on your street, clearing the masses of leaves from the yards of your elderly neighbors.

and when you ask ever so desperately, he tells you he will also remove YOUR leaves for the bargain basement price of $25.


leaving you with another razor-straight property line demarcation, THIS time to your advantage.... :)

ha. until the wind blows, i am sure. happy wednesday!

thankful 8.

today, i'm thankful for art. i was actually GOING to say i'm thankful for the Holy Spirit, but i don't have a good illustration to use.

see, that demonstrates why art is so important :)

i have been framing the new pics over the last week or so. so far, i have only had to buy one frame, and some matte board. very satisfying. i cannot for the life of me hang things level...esp. with plaster walls. i really need one of those picture hanger levels that they sell on infomercials. lots of crooked makes my head hurt.

yesterday, i noticed that all of the art for my office has a bird theme. what?! i do like birds, but that is a little crazy. it's like realizing that all of your sweaters are ponchos. ONE poncho is good, but they cannot all be ponchos or you become the wacky poncho lady. not. good.

art can be complicated, too.


but mostly, it just makes my eyes happy to have a resting place. some days (well, every day) you just need that.

thankful 7.

this guy has taken on some crazy flower action.
he was heading one way, but has completely switched directions
since i moved him over toward the window. love!

well, another beautiful day here in SD....such a lovely fall. i am praying for carey as she directs a video shoot today. we're trying to squeeze the last bit of summer out of every second.

my house is kind of looking like a greenhouse. to be honest, house plants are not my favorite thing. i tend to forget about them, and that usually is not good. they do help to make a long winter seem a bit more cheerful.

i'm grateful for the natural world that God provided for us. i keep thinking about eve and adam, and how beautiful it must have been in the garden WITH God. i cannot imagine how beautiful my garden in heaven is going to be :))

if it's anything even remotely close to the natural beauty of this world, we are in for something good ;)

happy monday!

thankful 4. 5. 6.

thankful for: setting up the new office with a perfectly imperfect accessory from junk bonanza.



thankful for: saturday night on the couch crocheting. oh, pretty yarn, i have missed you!


thankful for: kitty settling into her old perch with the new scenery outside. we both are finding that the new normal is much like the old. feeling grateful to be back to the rhythm of our lives...



'happy extra hour' today, all!

tgif.

tgif. thank God it's friday. that's what i'm thankful for today. this has been an exhaustingly wonderful week! so thankful for tomorrow, for a 'date' with lou at the washington pavilion, and for more cleaning/sleeping/organizing on the weekend. our church also starts a new '3 service' sunday on - of all days - daylight savings 'fall back' day. that should make for some interesting stories.

life is good right now.



i'm also thankful for chocolate chip cookies. going to test the new oven this weekend, with this recipe. i hope they turn out!

well. what's the worst that a chocolate chip cookie CAN turn out? seriously. you can't really totally ruin them, i know this from experience.

come for coffee soon?


Hazelnut Chocolate Chip Cookies
from Food Network

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup (packed) light brown sugar
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 4 ounces English toffee candy (recommended: Heath or Skor bar), finely chopped
• 1 cup hazelnuts, toasted, husked, and chopped
• 1 (12-ounce) bag semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Line 2 heavy large baking sheets with parchment paper. Finely chop the oats in a food processor. Transfer the oats to a medium bowl. Mix in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugars in a large bowl until fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. Add the flour mixture and stir just until blended. Stir in the toffee, hazelnuts, and chocolate chips.

For each cookie, drop 1 rounded tablespoonful of dough onto sheet, spacing 1-inch apart (do not flatten dough). Bake until the cookies are golden (cookies will flatten slightly), about 15 minutes. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets for 5 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack and cool completely. (The cookies can be prepared 1 day ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.)

thank. full. day 2.

yesterday was the first day in awhile that i did not leave my house. i've been feeling a little sickish, and i had a big project to start. it was so nice to not have to go anywhere. it was so nice to work. it was so nice.

i am starting to feel a bit more settled. i look back at the last few months, and i can see how much God wanted me to turn to Him with the unrest. i can see that, really, He was my supply of peace. real TRUE peace in the unknown and the uncertain.

whenever i think back to the days before i was a Christian, honestly, of all the rewards - THIS one is the biggest for me.

thank you, Lord, for peace.

I am leaving you with a gift--peace of mind and heart.
And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give.
So don't be troubled or afraid.

John 14:27

give thanks.

i like what rani is doing in november. a month of thanks. seems easy, right? even though i missed yesterday, i am going to do this too. so here goes...


on a rainy, cold day, i am thankful for my new wool socks from target. i know i just posted about socks last week...but seriously, warm houses and warm body parts are so important and quite a pleasure. as friends head for the great outdoors today for video shoots, i pray warmth and comfort for all.

as for me and my socks, we are going to shut off the phone today and try to work, for what seems like the first time in a long while. happy wednesday!

new view.

so, this is the morning view that i have now from my desk. yes, that is a crack in the window. another thing on the to-do list, waaaaay down in priority :)

the sunrise was very pretty today coming up over the yellow trees. i'm glad that i still have a morning view!

today is the first day that i actually hope to 'work' from fern, so it should be good. the bad is that i am feeling like i might be getting sick. so funny how that works. i am praying against it, and feeling okay either way. i need 'slow' right now.


the house is coming along, although i want to change a ton of stuff, for now i am feeling fine with how things are. it may not be perfect, but it's my stuff, and it feels homey. funny how that works, too :)


today i want to thank God for allowing me this transition, because it has helped me to see Him in new ways, ways that make me want to know him more. happy tuesday all!

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people. Ephesians 1:18

a new normal.

schwew. monday morn at last.

i guess it suffices to say that moving is somewhat chaotic. besides the fact that my keyboard now sticks on the 'space' key - which i use occasionally - i came through it somewhat unharmed.

i have to say, the picture above is what i have been most looking forward to. white bean chicken chili in the crockpot today; pumpkin bread later this afternoon when the dust of the day settles.

yesterday, as i was cleaning out the fridge a couple of hours before the new owners did their final walkthrough, it struck me that i did not feel a ton of emotion. it was not my house anymore. in fact, it wasn't even 'mabel' anymore! perhaps i learned a valuable lesson in that a home is only four walls, and the love and care that you put inside it, and that your friends and family and memories put into it, is what truly makes a home.

i didn't cry. which is nothing short of amazing.

so, today at 4pm i will close on this season of my life. lots has happened, both good and bad. i am ready to be here, and that is good :)




happy monday!

home.

fall boot parade.

so. all of a sudden it's winter today. not really, but i do have to dig out some socks. same thing.

you know it's that time when you start to surf the internet for cute boots. oh, so many to choose from!





you also know you are *50* when this is what you decide to buy instead.

they ARE metallic. that makes me still cool.




:)

let's do this.

Dear God:

I have a good idea. Let's have 70 degree days in October from now on.

Thank you in advance,

Bobbi





ps. if you ever decide to create a large-scale client project using flamingos, just beware that before it's over, you'll be calling them 'effing' flamingos and that your client will say "wow, you sound like the OLD bobbi!"

not. good.

woot.

i kind of don't know what to frame, the artwork or the card!!

that's it.

i'm digging out the farmer socks as of today. i have kind of missed you, farmer socks!



on tap, workwise, i have a flock of flamingos to decorate for a mailer for a client. i was telling a friend that i wish i could put them all in Fern's front yard for a few days, just to mess with the new neighbors :)

ha. happy wednesday!

someday.

yesterday at church, pastor shel mentioned about how he doesn't even hear the word 'busy' when someone is making an excuse why they cannot do something, he just hears 'blah blah blah' instead.

it got me thinking about how we all say we're too busy sometimes, and how usually we follow it up in our heads by thinking 'someday' things will be different. yep, if i'm being honest with myself, it's true that 'someday' has taken up a good share of my life.

lately, my joy has been directly related to 'when' and 'if' the house sells, and i move. as of today, that has been 3 months of seriously compromising my thoughts - EVERY day. what i've tried to convince myself in the process is the thought that 'someday' it will all be over, and i'll be able to focus on other things.

however, in the interest of waiting for someday, i quite possibly have missed some things:

fall. i love this time of year, and i have not spent a day in a pumpkin patch, or visiting my parents in the country, or walking in my neighborhood to see the spilling leaves. i have been outside precious little, usually to pet loco when i see him, but not to rake or feel the sun, which i love so much.

people. i have not been home to see my parents in MONTHS. yeah. that is crazy ridiculous. i live so close. i love sitting in the gazebo and hearing the sounds of the country. i love checking out the garden with my mom, and teasing my dad about being a farmer. i miss them.

reading. i miss reading. i am in the middle of a bible study now, and i usually read it in the few hours before i actually go to group. i miss lounging on a sunday afternoon with a book. or reading before i go to bed. i think reading is one of the precious things we have in this life, and i am sad that i have not done it lately.

cooking. making food. eating food with people. the smell of the kitchen when something is simmering on the stove. oh, how i LONG for this again.





in honor of 'someday' starting today, i plan to live, really live, in the moment - even though it's monday!

would you like to join me?

art makes a home.

i'm ever so slowly getting the new house 'move-in' ready...for me, that means i will NOT have a shower in my upstairs bathroom, but i WILL have some new artwork to look at.

art is not optional in my house. i swear, i would live in a mud hut, and still have art in it! filling my new house with little bits of beauty is one of my truly favorite things to do.

just so you know (i feel the need to justify) = these six pieces of art were less than $150 total. my secret is that i don't buy frames, because i thrift and already have many, many shapes and sizes. in a perfect world, i'd have new frames too, but the art is more important to me. here's what i got:

jonah by jim lepage: i was extremely disappointed in the poor quality of the art (hello jim lp - get a new printer and set up your art for print, not web!) when i got it!!! however, the beauty of the work sort of makes up for it, and i do plan to hang it in my living room right away.

'serve the Lord' reclaimed wood art by the simple standard: my dear sweet cass gave me this for my birthday! what a girl, she snuck over to my pinterest page and found that i had pinned this art :) not sure where i will put it yet, but somewhere where i see it often.

welcome home decal by vinyl fruit: my new door is kind of ratty, so i painted it turquoise and will put this in the window!

birds by dolan geiman: oh my goodness! i got this for 70% off! some of you may remember me pining away for this a couple of years ago. thank you dolan for making your beautiful art affordable!

marilyn by velvet morning: i do have several themes running through much of the artwork i buy - birds, deer, houses, and women. all of them fascinate me, and i really do love marilyn.

nesting birds by bee things: these guys are seriously GOOD graphic designers. and lime green is popping up all over fern these days! i want more of their stuff.

'lemons' and 'love birds' by kingslip: i got this from a place called red bubble. the artist is in south africa, and he calls himself 'designer, printer, farmer, cook' - fabulous combo! both prints were tiny and very affordable - they came very quickly and are really nice in quality! go red bubble!

whew. that is a bunch of goodies. i should mention that most of my old stuff will be finding a new place to live, too. art show, anyone?


:)

october light

even though i have not gotten to spend much time outside this fall, i do appreciate the light that shines into my office window almost every day. fall light is beautiful, yes?

two weeks until move date. so much to do. here's hoping that you have a wonderful weekend with all of the hours in the day to do everything you need to do, including soaking up some wonderfulness.

how do you spell meringue?

well, no lemons today. but i could sure use a lmp!

i bought this print in a tiny size over at red bubble. i've had 'hit and miss' luck with buying from sites who process artist's work directly. this company is in australia, and so far, they seem to be on top of things.

i also have a fab spot to put it in!!! i bet you can hardly wait to see ;)

happy hump day.

we all need an advocate.

so, here we are. a new week, and a new round of negotiations on selling my house. last week, i swear i was on my last, last, last shred of nerves. this week, i learned something new at church! it's actually part of a continuing theme in my life right now: God loves me. not in a 'maybe i'll love you if you get it right, but maybe i'll unleash my wrath on you if i feel like it, for some hidden unknown purpose that seems crazy to everyone else but me' fashion, but in a 'He really means it' fashion.

My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous.

this verse is from 1 John. that's the new verse series we are studying! funny that it blends right into the lab class that is my life right now!

what is unbelievable to me is that right now, for today, i am thinking 'i don't know what will happen and yet i am still okay'. oh peeps. that is revolutionary!




be blessed today :)




pps. the new home is starting to look more 'homey,' too.

comfort food.

today is the last day that i will have to wait to find out if my house is sold. well, technically that day is october 31, but today is a pivot point that will either lean toward 'yes' or 'no'.

i find that when i am super stressed, i don't really have an appetite. i think that it's the same principle that turns most people going through a divorce super skinny. the body just doesn't care about food all that much.

last week, i found some new food to chew on in the form of matt maher. i have loved him for awhile, his music hits on social justice issues and jesus both very beautifully. a couple of weeks ago, i was driving and heard his song 'turn around' for the first time....it made me wish i had not changed the name of my company from 180 creative earlier in the year.

the song is about repentance. repentance as a life style while we are here on this earth. it's beautiful, and makes me think God's plan is so beautiful, too. the whole album is worthy to listen to. one of my favorite lines comes from the song 'heaven help me'. he sings 'i lift You up and i lay me down'. isn't that the truth of every step of the Christian walk? i think it's just profound.

if you have a penchant for buying music, please, don't delay. go buy this album NOW.





one little observation: from the sound of his voice, i've always pictured matt maher looking something like kris kristofferson circa 1976 in 'a star is born'.

um. instead, he sort of looks like a cross between elvis costello and andy warhol. which does not change a thing about how i feel about him :)

mellow.

siesta and i road-tripped over to fern yesterday for a whopping FIVE hours. i was dreading the whole thought, but still, she has to get used to a new life sometime.

a couple of weeks ago, i put her in the car during an open house, and thought seriously she was going to die from whaling and pacing during the 10-minute ride. it was pitiful. then, she circled around and around in the basement and would not come upstairs. too scarey.



yesterday was more of the same on the ride over. but i have employed a secret magic potion to entice her into loving the house itself. it's called feliway, and it's a magic cat drug. made of pheromones, the same ones that cats use when they rub their faces on things because they are happy. siesta likes pheromones.

anyway, initially, she had the same behavior. over the course of a couple hours, i sat down on the living room floor (where i had placed the diffuser)...and coaxed her over.

much to my surprise, she stretched out and flipped upside down, purring....!!!

yay! she also managed to find what i knew would be her favorite spot, my lovely just re-finished buffet.

the only problem of the night was when i thought she got outside, and then accidentally locked myself out of the house with a faulty screen door. which i broke to get in. another thing to add to my wish list, apparently.


anyway, if you have a nervous kitty, i would highly recommend trying. i know for sure that I AM CALMER because i have hope that she will adjust easily!

manna.

i have been going to blog about manna for awhile. it seems that during this house transition thing, God is choosing to give me manna.

for those of you who need 'brushing up' on your manna description, here's what the bible says in exodus:

The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.

it actually doesn't sound too bad, does it? why then, does manna make me nervous? well, because as God intended it, HE was the supply of what the israelites would need. for the record, He gave em some quail to go with that manna....so they should have been quite fulfilled as far as their stomachs went.

but the reality was, they weren't. here's one comment:

"But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!”

ha. ha. i laugh, but yet i don't. i tell God it would have been better to kill me in egypt than to have me out in the middle of nowhere eating manna. he mocks me when i ask if i can go to sam's club and get my manna, just so i KNOW i will have enough. which is kind of not the point of manna.

he whispers to me in the middle of the night His reasons for the manna:

He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.


Lord, for today, thank you thank you thank you for your manna.



ps. some people described the manna as looking like this (hoar frost)....okay. maybe REAL manna would be cool to see.