Something Lovely: The Violets on the Windowsill

Now that they have bloomed so nicely, maybe I'll buy them some plant food.

Something Lovely: A Birthday Dinner

The loveliest birthday gift of all was a fondue dinner. The whole family started in the morning, prepping every last ingredient they could, anticipating an evening full of soccer practices and dinner served after dark. Ally stayed home by herself cooking it all and setting the table. Her work was amazing. She was praised without measure. Then, in the nighttime quiet, Bryan quietly thanked me for training a girl who could pull off such a birthday fete. Motherhood, a calling rewarded with abundant blessings.

A Moment of Our Day

Hope your day held just a few moments that were equally as lovely.

Something Lovely: Summer Flowers

Through trial and error, error, error, I have found a few reliable plants that will bloom in my garden beds. It's such joy to spend ten minutes cutting summer's beauty and bringing life into our home. God's work is all the best there is in the world, it is good, and there is nothing lovelier than what His hands have made. Including you and me, fashioned by His hand, cared for by His love, beautiful in His sight.

Observe how the lillies of the field grow;

they do not toil, nor do they spin,

yet I say to you that not even Solomon 

in all his glory clothed himself like 

one of these.

Matthew 6:28-29

Something Lovely: Friday Afternoon

     A quiet Friday afternoon at home, and you can find us in the yard, digging in the dirt, pulling weeds.  While Kara is riding her scooter and hiding from passing cars, Sam begins to collect worms.  He digs a hole, with his bare hands, his bare hands mind you.  I am bent over the Antique Hollyhocks and am quick to provide the appropriate recognition for this feat of strength.  He moves worms from all over the bed, to tangle in his pit.  We begin to call them Pit Vipers, although with Colorado family we know full well the true identity of a Pit Viper.  Family lore is replete with tales of Rattlesnakes, where they've been seen, and how many have been killed in the yard each summer.  In renaming a common worm a Pit Viper, we've added an element of excitement to this mundane afternoon.  When Arden joins the game, he soon wonders if worms like sunshine, and becomes their Protector, their Shade Provider.  The first canopy design was rejected because it covered the hole entirely, and while the worms may have been happy, the Tamer of these wild garden creatures could not see his work.  You see before you the second design that worked with the angle of the sun and allowed for access to the shade sheltered worms (who were no where in sight when I wandered back out with my camera, ingrates).
     Thinking back over the whole day, this product of imagination and concern for living creatures was one of the sweetest moments.  I'll bet you know the recipe for these moments, and engineering projects, as well as I do:  time, quiet, one engaged mom, and a couple kids.  Optional: add dirt.  Dirt never disappoints.

Something Lovely: A Thoughtful Friend

     Our pastor's wife brought these tulips when they came for dinner.  We could see just one bud, almost ready to burst, the other blossoms following as the days past.  The gift is such a thoughtful gesture, a little something extra and unexpected, that brings a longer lasting joy.  When I come down in the morning I'm astonished by that glorious pink, radiant in the morning sun.  I remember not only the gift, but the giver.  I think of her gentleness, godliness, and sincere concern for others.  I'm grateful not only for the tulips but for the friend.
     Years ago another godly woman brought me a small token of affection, a single rose bud and stem of variegated sage, plucked from her garden.  She explained she would buy bud vases at the thrift store for 99 cents and keep them on hand to give away.  She and her husband kept a gigantic, beautiful, marvelously well tended garden.  And, you see, as they planted, pruned, weeded and watered, they were always thinking not only of themselves, but of others.  I still remember her love and the simplicity of the gift.

Let all that you do be done in love.

1 Corinthians 16:14 

Something Lovely: The Kitchen Sink

   

Challenged by the post on kitchen flow and a pretty sink over at Like Mother, Like Daughter, and loving the practical wisdom she shares, Ally and I spent yesterday afternoon working in the kitchen.  I don't have a logical bone in my body so I needed Ally, my girl of "infinite-resource-and-sagacity" (that's Kipling, we were reading yesterday and it suits her).  As soon as I mentioned traffic flow and awkwardly arranged cupboards Ally had a whole list of problems, and therefore several days worth of projects and improvements.  We swapped the brown dishes and Grandma Lake's crystal, so that the brown dishes can come right out of the dishwasher and into the cupboard.  Ally also built a strong case for switching the microwave and toaster.  She mentioned how difficult it is to get to the microwave when I'm at the stove; true.  I've been thinking, the morning crowd around the toaster pushes me back from the coffee grinder, and maybe separating the toaster and coffee maker, by bringing the microwave over isn't a half bad idea.  I'll do that tomorrow.  Finally, Ally wanted to reorganize the entire pantry which is quite a chore.  Someone designed our entire kitchen without one shelf high enough to fit a cereal box, and the whole pantry went downhill from there.
     Yesterday's kitchen challenge resolved another problem here, that of Ally's morning chore.  She does breakfast dishes.  She likes to get up early, eat, do her chore and sit right down to math; and can I really complain about that?  But, most of us eat breakfast later and at nine I'll ask,"Why haven't you done the breakfast dishes?"  With a knowing smile she always tells me that she did.  Indeed.  So, yesterday we decided Ally can empty the sink and dishwasher, leave the kitchen clean, and when the rest of us straggle through around eight, we'll put our own dishes in the dishwasher.  It's so deliciously simple I don't know why we've been letting this cloud hang over our heads.

     I've been the Christmas Grinch this year, but all of this put me in a good mood.  I baked Grandma Lake's stollen (with dried fruit instead of candied).  I pulled out Great Grandma Bush's nativity set.  And we all trooped out to the woods, next to the soccer field, of course, and cut greens for the windowsill.  It's all good, that Grinch heart grew just a couple of sizes.

     When the time came to blog today, I hesitated.  We have such an ugly counter top, with the same theme running into the garden window behind the sink.  I just knew it couldn't compare with all the lovely (newer) ones out there.  There are also claims being thrown around that the filming of the Lego battle broke Ally's camera and it just didn't work the way it ought to.  And my camera?  It's out of batteries.  All photos are taken by Ally a wonderful girl of 13 and of infinite-resource-and-sagacity.  However, in a spirit of gratitude I'll just post what I have and hold my head high.