*rain, rain, go away

Personally rain is my favorite of all weather! When others are balking at the rain whether it be spring, summer, fall or icy winter; I am loving it! My dear husband always tells me it is because I don't have to be out in it.

It has been raining here for two days off an on, making it near impossible for our dane to get outside and frolic. She loves to be outside running free on her new home front. Today marks the second day of no running, no stimulation and very little attention because my attention is on painting, ripping up flooring, mopping, cleaning .. you get the idea!

But she did find an activity, TOILET PAPER DESTRUCTION that tuckered her out.  This is what happens when your puppy doesn't get out for two days, other than potty time.  Today she destroyed: a roll of toilet paper, a cleaning brush, a sandal (frankly I have always hated those sandals - but I did scold her), a flip flop  and a pork femur.  We are hoping for a clear sky tomorrow so we can all get outside for a while!

*a lesson in patience

patience [which is tireless and long-suffering, and has the power to endure whatever comes, with good temper.  Patience is a virtue, did your mother ever tell you that? It is a virtue that I am sadly, often lacking. When I think on the meaning of patience I am not sure I ever posses this at all. 

We just purchased an older home on 6 acres of beautifully wood land.  It is a property that has been neglected to a degree for the past few years because the man of the house has been traveling due to work. As you might imagine the old oak trees have limbs that needed to be trimmed, fallen branches that have basically rotted away right where they fell, handi-work that was rushed when done or perhaps not even finished.

The age of the home itself comes with some potential problems which we knew when we signed on the dotted line. I am going to have patience down very well by the time it is all said and done. Patience to endure a leak from the air conditioner condenser pan that has caused the flooring to buckle in several rooms (flooring is coming up anyway..so it is not about the floor), patience to wait on our house in NC to sell so we can use our equity to fix all the things that need to be fixed here. Patience and I aren't on speaking terms most of the time, but I do hope to become her best friend.

On a positive note this is my favorite room in the house. (not that learning patience is negative...)

this is the hall powder room

I LOVE the white tiles on the floor as well as the others on the bathroom walls. I love the cold and hot knobs. It reminds me of my grandparents big ole farm house.  I am a bath kind of gal.

Do you see the size of that tub? It is grand. OK. So I know they make them bigger, with all the bells and whistles but I am not so sure they are better. I watched a show not long ago with a couple doing a remodel of their older home. Amazingly I watched them sledge hammer their cast iron tub to pieces and destroy it so they could put in a different one. I know.. different strokes.. for different folks.

(BTW.. my next favorite room in our new home is the kitchen because of the cabinet space.  Compared to our home in NC, I have 5 times as many cabinets if not more. Storage space is NO problem in this home.)

*young quilter

A couple of years ago when our niece came to visit us during her spring break, we made an easy quilt that she could give as a gift to a her teachers' baby. We did a simple turning twenty pattern since Kierstyn wanted to have a huge part in the sewing. Turning Twenty is easy and sewing the long straight lines was quick and simple! We put it together in no time at all. She did a large portion of the piecing herself and I set it in and quilted it.

Here she is back at her home in Florida on the morning she gave the quilt to her teacher who was moving from the area.

Kierstyn signed the back of the quilt and dated it as any good quilter would. 

Although the children in her class had nothing to do with the making of the quilt, Kierstyn decided to have the other children in her class to sign the back of the quilt as a remembrance for her teacher.  Each student surely missed the teacher and the baby greatly.   The baby was as much a part of the class as each student pictured above. 

Kierstyn and I have also made one other quilt that was designed for her dollies.  She will probably get some more sewing in this spring break or this summer when she comes to visit for a while. 

*she's coming home!

Many thanks to each of you for praying for my friend Trina, her husband and their family regarding the adoption of Janna. I am posting one picture here of Momma, Pappa and Janna but please click on the link below to get an update of the journey.  Trina's first post once they arrived in the Ukraine is titled "Were Here", read from there forward!


Seemingly Reckless Faith Blogspot!  - Janna Is Coming HOME!

Thanks again for partnering with this sweet family through prayer! They will be coming home in a couple of weeks, so your prayers are still coveted for the rest of the time they are away from their other five children, provision all along the way, safety and protection and as the Lord leads!

*Josiah's quilt joins Elaina's!

You know what this means... I am setting it in..

I was able to get the Boy and His Panda Quilt set in on Saturday and completed the quilting that evening with a bit of work on Sunday as well.  It will now be delivered over to Holly so she can surprise her kiddos with their beds all made up one day soon with matching quilts! I can hardly wait for those pics!

Binding. Check!

Made with love and care. I am really happy to have been a part of this project.  So happy to have made a desire a reality!   May both Josiah and Elaina get many long years use from their special quilts.


The quilts were picked up and Holly, I think suprised them by making up their beds with the quilts and then had them go into their room at some point (or she mentioned doing this at one point).  I love the look on their faces!!!  Again, so glad I was a part of this even more, since seeing their joyful faces!
Go visit HOLLY's blog to see the pics of Josiah and Elaina with their quilts.

Lynnie

*thankful remembrances on Thanksgiving 2010

Thankful.

Thankful for my Lord Jesus Christ for being humble, and obedient even unto death.

Thankful for my immediate family members.

Thankful for my dear husband, I couldn't have asked for better.

Thankful for the gift of our two boys.

Thankful for relationships of dear friends and our places in each others lives.

Thankful for provision.

There are so many other things I have been blessed with but these things are what I am most thankful for. I pray you and your family have a warm, toasty Thanksgiving.  

*it started with Tippy the Turtle

Since I was a little girl I have always had a deep love for sketching. Do you remember the turtle with the cap that would show up in the TV Guide every few months? Draw Tippy the Turtle and mail it in to see if you have what it takes to be a great artist. I have no idea how many times I drew this turtle, but each time I felt pleased with myself.

Since that time I have continued to paint and draw.  When Robby was young  I spent some time with water colors and made a few pieces of artwork that was frame worthy.  I haven't used water color in years, though I am giving thought to possibly picking it back up in the future.  Currently my favorite art medium would have to be pencils, charcoal and a good quality sketch pad. 

I have also encouraged many a young artist along the way as well.   I have taught a couple of different art appreciation classes with some focused teaching on shading and perception.  I have used both Visual Manna  and Drawing With Children by Mona Brookes with my students.  The book by Mona Brookes helped me improve my drawing skills tremendously.  I would encourage any young adult or adult to pick up this book to work though if you are a budding artist or if you need some improvement in specific areas.   If you are a home schooling teacher you can also get lesson plans from Donna Young's site which will make this book very user friendly for your young artists!

These were not from the classes I offered but rather friends who came to paint.  Mary, Sarah and Henry had a blast on this day.  Plywood, Temper paint, brushes, able bodies and water for cleanup!

Doesn't she look like a pleased artist at the end of a hard days work. She is just taking it all in.

Kara looks as if she is standing at a grand spot, a place that has a magnificent view.   It is her imagination that is magnificent! Kara's love for art has only continued to grow and she is becoming an accomplished artist.

Several of my finished pieces were in frames and not yet packed.  A few of my favorites are still in my sketch book that is no longer sitting out, but packed away for now.  I most enjoy drawing people it seems.   Like anything, my work continued to get better and better with each piece of work.    Sometimes I long to draw, but don't feel quiet or still enough to follow through.  Here are the only two completed drawings that are out for me to share with you.

This particular picture I drew based on an ad in a magazine some years ago.  While I like the shading  in this picture pretty well, the baby's arm is in a very awkward position and even seems out of place.  Since the time I finished the portrait I felt this way, but I printed the scripture and framed it anyway because I love the sweet face.

This is a favorite too.  I actually have a similar drawing to complete for my two adopted daughters, Sarah and Mary. Perhaps before they both leave home to marry I will get them finished and off to their mother for framing. She bought the frames for the drawing about 6 years ago. UGH. Where did the time go?  Shading on this particular drawing  is pretty good, but there is always room for improvement.   

I shall revisit this topic when I unpack my drawing book after the move. I hope you have enjoyed learning something else about me, a hidden talent if  you will.

Oh.. I married an artist too...

Eric drew this about 30 some odd years ago when he first read Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

*home sweet home

Here is a sneak peek of our new home!  Today we close on our house that is located near the Gulf Coast of Florida.  When we starting looking for a new home for our family in August, Eric and I had a short list of specific things we wanted, some things that would be a bonus and of course we had a budget.

We selected a fantastic real estate agent to help our buying experience be more enjoyable and boy are we glad we had an agent. He has certainly earned every penny he is getting paid on this particular sale.   I think all three of us are still sort of in disbelief that we are...moving? Moving? Um.. moving? Don't get me wrong, we are excited about the move. We couldn't feel more blessed having the Army move us to the area our oldest son moved to just a few years ago. Eric will finish out his military service of 30 years here in just 5 short years.  We always planned, dreamed and talked about moving to Florida when he finished his service in the Army.  Were just here a bit earlier than we thought we would be!

The pool was on the BONUS list.  (check)

The barn was on the BONUS list. (check)

Acreage was on the MUST have list.  6 acres of mature oaks! (check)

The house need to be in a specific price range and have desired square footage plus- MUST fit the budget. (check)  The price was 40K lower than the range of all the other house we looked at and none of them compared to all that this property has to offer.  The house is older and we have some changes to make.  We can change the flooring, lighting fixtures etc in a house but we cannot make an acre of land have more land.  Know what I mean?  We have fallen more and more in love with the property since we first saw it. 

 

*a talking stick?

Henry and I spent the afternoon with four of five siblings that belong to a dear friend of mine.  We really enjoyed that time.  We laughed, we listened and listened.  Henry loved every minute of the action, the excitement coming from each one of them. He was actually amazed that each of them had so much to say.  He wanted to talk himself, I am sure (he IS a talker), but he also wanted to listen to each one of them.

When we got home this is what he said, with a serious but smiling face: "If I had five children, I would have this thing called the talking stick. You can only talk when you have the talking stick and there would be like a two minute limit until you had to pass it along to the next one."  HILARIOUS. He wants to make sure he hears each one of them and for each to know that they are heard.

So tell me, those of you who have five children.. how do you do it? Do you have a "talking stick?"

*waiting patiently

Frayja deserves a good treat too right?  Our local commissary carries these HUGE femurs that bring great delight.  Sometimes I can find them already cut into small pieces that she can handle, and sometimes Eric or Henry have to saw them into smaller pieces that she can more easily handle.

(Weight update: She now weighs 102 lbs and still has MUCH to learn and MUCH to surrender to! Apparently we have much to learn as well.)

*make peace with it..

This I found while visiting YouTube and on some days you just simply need some comic relief.

I have come to an understanding with the loose skin on my neck, my wrinkles and other aged aspects of my body.  Perhaps not my hair color (since I still dye it).

*soon to be me

My older and wiser sister, Lori, sent this link to me today, check it out! We grew up in Florida's back yard. Our home town is pretty much as close to Flordia as you are going to get. Many of these things in this slide show are familiar to me, some forgotten, some longed for, so despised (mosquito season) but all will become our reality soon!

This picture was taken last WINTER (oh, excuse me, I meant Christmas season). From left to right: me, Bridgette, Daddy, and Lori.  Lori didn't wear her flip flops on this day, but my baby sister Bridgette had hers on. And yes, I took pictures of feet, I am strange like that.  

This one was taken the same day as the previous one.  We were taking some candid family shots.  In this one from left to right: Austin in front, Henry to the left and my daddy in shoes in  the back left.  Picture taken December 26th, 2010.  If you look behind those feet you will see some little red shoes back there, those would belong to the feet of Kierstyn. If her  mother had allowed she would have been out there barefooted as well!

*a season for everything

Ready for the next chapter. This place has been a real haven to our family. Our boys grew up running through those woods. Eric and I put our touches into the house that is on this land and formed it into the home that we now live in.  We must pack our things now and move our home into the house that is awaiting us in Florida.   We have always loved the beauty of our yard here in Fayetteville.

In the winter it occasionally became a ski slope..

January 2010

In the spring it is abundantly full of life waiting to burst forth...

Spring is a delicious (I like that word) time of the year when new life burst forth after a long cold winter.  To sit and listen the birds chirping throughout the morning is such a peaceful activity. 

 By summer everything is in full bloom and the grass is begging to be cut weekly.  The swing in our back yard is often filled with someone along with a feline of course, simply enjoying the finer things in life.

Don't you simply love four seasons? I do!  As you begin to get a bit forlorn about the hot sweaty days of summer, fall meets you around the corner!  Fall itself has to be my favorite of all the seasons here in North Carolina.  Fall, I will miss you terribly..

I do enjoy raking, as it is something my mother and I always did together in my youth. However, as I mentioned here once before this activity has not been my favorite this year!  We usually wait until the end of the season to rake ALL the leaves at once, but since the house is on the market... well it is another story all together!

Enjoying each season as it rises up to meet me, one day at a time!