This Moment...

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.

 

 

 

 

My Personal Accomplishments from the Weekend

Amidst all the family work we accomplished this weekend, I also had a few things that I completed myself that I'm quite proud to share.

The first is this darling duck planter.  My Dad saw the planter at a garage sale last week, and because I have a long-term adoration of rubber ducks, he picked it up for me for a few pennies.  I decided to fill him with some hens & chicks (succulent), so that I don't have to worry much about maintenance.  These little buggers can grow just about anywhere...and because I was afraid of drill a drainage hole in the bottom (fear of breaking him), I've stuffed him with just two small plants.  We'll see how this works.  I may need to suck it up, and put the drain holes in, go nice and slow, and hope for the best.

Hens and Chicks in a Duck...we've dubbed him Turducken, minus the "tur"

Next was this blanket I made for a family friend.  I started the blanket on May 18th, when she closed on her very own home!  She is a young woman, that considers God in every single choice she makes.

She is the young woman that, during an odd moment of personal struggle in my life, said something akin to - It's strange how everyone thinks it's SO trendy these days to go out to FIND God, but people have such an issue with you when you actually FIND HIM.  How does that work?  It's acceptable to search for Him, but not when you find Him, and begin to live for Him. 

This rings so true for me!  We hear so often, "All paths lead to God," and while it may be true that all paths lead to God, only ONE PATH leads to Heaven, and God's true plan for our life.  Maybe that's the secret?  I don't know.

Anyway, this lovely girl is a dedicated Woman of God, as well as a love of all things Granny Chic, and Uber-Geek/mathery.  And so, as a housewarming gift, I chose to crochet this afghan, in what I'd consider Granny Chic colors, with stripes in the ever-wonderful Fibonacci Sequence. *grin*

I'm calling it Granny Fib

I'm confident she's gonna love it!  And yes, this picture was taken in the garage.  :o) I had determined to stay outside with my family all weekend, even if it was cold and rainy.  So, we stayed in the garage most of the day yesterday.



The last accomplishment was this old tire move to the front from our back yard.  It was left by the previous owners, and for that I'm so thankful!!  Growing up, my Grandparents had an old tire full of hens & chicks, and it's a very personal, VERY important thing for me.  I don't blame you for thinking it's silly - if it was someone else, I'd think so, too.  But, it holds a LOT of lovely memories for me.  Hubby & I have battled about the placement of the tire for the last three years.  I've BEGGED to put it out front, and he's nearly begged me to put it out with the weekly trash.  *wink*  But this year, I ignored his silly faces and eye-rolls, and put it out front anyway.  And, I'm in LOVE with where it landed!  At the end of a row of hedge bushes, there was a circle, that bumped out in the trim around the house.  And, since we moved in, it's been empty.  Boo! 

But no more!  It now houses the humble beginnings of our very own hens & chickens tire!  Yay!

After I placed it, I just stood and looked at it, thinking of all the times I had dug some out of my Grandmother's tire, just to see if nature would fill it back in (it always did), or how I ran my bicycle into that tire, and scraped my leg on the side of it, and Gramma would pour water on the scrape, and get me a wet washcloth or 35 band-aids, for even the tiniest of marks.  Or, my Grampa trying to offer me money to move it, knowing that my scrawy little arms would never be able to scoot it an inch, let along across the yard!

I read something on pinterest that said if you cleanly pull off some of the 'petals' from a succulent, and leave them laying on top of the dirt, they will both root & bloom (that's what the stray parts are spread around the tire).  What an amazing feat!  When it's ripped apart, this beatiful flower will not only start again renewed, it will produce more than it would've in its full, natural form. 

Read that again - when it's RIPPED APART, it will bloom again, brilliantly!  That's just amazing to consider- what a lovely idea to share.  That only we can know that when God allows our lives to be ripped apart, He can help us not only survive, but to bloom again brilliantly, and with more blessings to share than when we started.  What a blessing!

The Unofficial Start to Summer!

We took the long Memorial Day weekend to kick-off the season in the Little Lucas House! 

Ben & I started with a square foot garden.

Mostly, he enjoyed getting to smash the hardened balls of dirt with his hands, and pretend that the spray nozzle of the hose was a shooter.  Haha!

We got this adorable/amazing little square foot garden kit at Home Depot this weekend, and I'm quite smitten!

You can connect them to each other, and create larger raised beds as the need arises.  Since this is our first year with a bonafide garden, we opted for ONE for now. 

We have FAR too many tomato plants, some zucchini, not nearly enough peas & beans, and we opted for separate containers for strawberries and chives, which will be monitored by Connor, the oldest boy.  :)

There were several additions after this pic, but it was cold, and rainy and yucky while we did those, so I left the camera/phone in the house. 

We also started putting up this fence!  I wish I'd thought to take the phone out through the day, and get pictures of all the boys "working on the fence."  But, we were too busy to think about that.  This amazing man, with help from Connor & I, managed to go from nothing to full picket fence in about 30 hours!  It's so amazing!! 

Picture at the end of Day 1 - from the inside!



Picture at the start of Day 2 - from the outside!



That man up there worked NON-STOP this weekend, and we have an incredible new fence tos how for it!  Provided the weather cooperates, I hope to paint it this next weekend (the current color choice is "Eeyore's Rain Cloud" by Disney, please stay tuned), but we'll have to see...it's not looking promising.

It was tough work, but I just LOVED spending our weekend working, and enjoying the company of each other.

WHile our schedules really help us with Ben, and the older boys, it really, REALLY cuts down on the "let's be a couple," moments.  Because we only need to leave Ben with sitters for 2 or 3 hours a day, we are able to depend on our family to keep him.  THis means no daycare bills, and Ben is with people that love him, and care for him.  This is HUGE to me, but sometimes I just miss my husband.

Weekends like we just had give us a chance to BE together, and to WORK together.

Saturday evening, as the big boys went to stay with their Mom, Connor cried - he wanted to stay and help us.  I LOVE that he is so helpful, and such a hard worker! 

So much so that Sunday afternoon we got a call from his Mom, asking if Connor could come back to help us.  I don't think Hubby & I have had many moments that we were so proud of him. 

Him & I took off yesterday morning to buy some plants, and he said, "This is a great day!  Why would you want to WASTE A DAY LIKE THIS PLAYING??"

*gigglesnort*

I'll try to update on the gardening as we go along...provided it's not all eaten by the local rabbits!!

This Moment..

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.

There is something strange that happens when you start considering your life, and the INTENT. 

Suddenly, you start seeing the world around you differently, and you begin to really look into the beast that life has become.  I'm so thankful that, for the most part, we live simple lives.  We have a house that is just small enough for us, and have toys that are just old enough to enjoy. 

This week, hubby sent me this pic, and as I opened it, a coworker happened to walk by, and said, "Wow!  It looks like 1984 landed at your house!"

She was, of course, teasing, and we both laughed.  But then, I thought about it, and I was proud.  I have a little man that has no idea if the year is 1984, or 2013, or any other time in history.  All he knows is that we have a home that is HIS, and where he knows he is safe.  We have a pickup truck that can help us help our friends (or can be an amazing playscape, as was pictured a couple posts ago).  We have a camper, so we can reconnect with nature, and with each other, and still have a space to be cozy, safe, and comfortable. 

No, these things are NOT new, or "tech-savvy."  In fact, they are all older than me!  But, when things are taken care of, they can last. 

So many people are driven for the latest iPhone, or the newest McMansion, and here I sit, in our little bungalow, with our old toys, and think, "What else do I need?"

I reflect on Ecclesiastes 5:19-20 -

19 Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God. 20 For he shall not much remember the days of his life; because God answereth him in the joy of his heart.

Basically, I read - If I am happy with what we have, and realize that these things are gifts from God, I can live my life with joy, and not look back in sorrow, knowing that just as I take care of my child(ren), God takes care of me. 

Of course, I expect our child(ren) to keep up their end of this relationship, and help us- cleaning their rooms, picking up toys, and such.  But, I think God is the same way.  If we will accept Him, and what He has given, and we use those blessings for His will, we can be blessed knowing that while it may be a 1979 Porta-Cabin here, we are storing mansions in Heaven. 

Although, truth be told, I may rather enjoy my 1979 Porta-Cabin in Heaven, too. 

:)

Vineyards and Hot Dogs

My sister had Ben yesterday afternoon while I worked, and took him to my parents house.  I met her there, and we visited with them all evening, as Dad & my brothers began making repairs to the front of their house.  Mom made dinner, and we all ate in the front yard, and enjoyed our time spent together. 

Because of this new idea in my head, I was reminded of Proverbs 31:16...

"She considereth a field, and buyeth it; with the fruit of her hands, she planteth a vineyard."

Now, make no mistake - my mom didn't make dinner from the back yard clippings, or even from a garden.  That's NOT my mom.  :)

No, I considered this verse a bit more with an interpretive mind.  On an ordinary weekday afternoon, the anticipated number of attendees for dinner instantly went from two to TWELVE (I typed it out, so you didn't think it was a typo).  What do you do on a Wednesday afternoon, when TEN extra people show up at your door, and say, "I'm hungry!!  What's for dinner?" 

Well, I can tell you that my response would NOT be, "How about mostaciolli?  And, we have hot dogs & carrots for the itty-bittys!" 

But, this is my mom.  It's what she does.

How in the world have I associated a vineyard to hot dogs?  Well, that's the magic of The Bible and my (sometimes only understandable to me) interpretation (what an awesome book that can be related so well).  You see, I looked around at this mass of food, and emptying plates, and thought...how in the world do you manage this so easily?  How do you manage dinner for an army, with nothing but moments notice?  With the meager ingredients she had for a planned dinner for 2, she fed us all.  With the fruit that, almost literally, could fit in her hands, she filled a vineyard with tasty dinner.

But it's more than that. 

I sat back, and thought - this is what the ROOTS of the vineyard look like.  We all showed up at Mom & Dad's, and it never occurred to any of us that they wouldn't be prepared with dinner.  Even in our 30s, with our own children, we knew that HOME would provide for us and ours. 

By the fruit of her hands, our mom planted a vineyard. 

This is the kind of woman I want to be.  I want my child(ren) to know that if they stop in on a Wednesday afternoon, they will be taken care of.  They will be loved, and TIME will be given for them.  And, of course, hot dogs. 

Intentional...

In my regular Monday browsing of the blog world, I stopped by a blog hop, and found the blog of an amazing woman that has taken my vain, and whiney life, and turned it on its head.  (Here) is her blog, if you want to see...

I spent what felt like HOURS just picking apart every single little nuance in her life over the last year or so (yes, I went a bit stalker...), and (whether good or bad) comparing her faith and passion to my own.

In myself, I was weighed and measured, and found wanting.

This year, she has chosen to live life (more or less) by a single word - INTENTIONAL.

It seems such a simple word, but wow...the impact that the IDEA of this word has had on me!!

Things as simple as a good morning kiss shared with my husband, or picking up dirty laundry.  Every single move I make, I have considered this word this week, in ways I had never EVER considered before.

It had never occurred to me before that in my pursuit of "social media," I had become disconnected from my own family.  It never occurred to me that in my desire to reach out to others, I had left my child(ren) "alone."

I have committed myself to leave pinterest and facebook, and the knit/crochet websites, and the little phone/Kindle games to their own devices for the evenings, and instead to spend time with my boy(s).  While I realize the games won't play themselves, they also won't notice that I'm not playing them.  There is other time for those things.  And if I come to a place where there isn't time for that?  What have a lost, really...?

And do you know what happened?  The first night, I slept.  Peacefully.  I spent time with my child, that wasn't rushed, and wasn't strained.  It was beautiful, and therapeutic, and a MOVING moment for me. 

I woke up the next morning prepared, knowing that in the evening, when I returned home, my boy and I could enjoy our time together, and not just share the same street address for an evening.

And that night?  He slept.  In fact, he slept in!

I know this is a new process for me, and that it will certainly take some adjusting.  And, all week, with all of this going on inside my head, and not SHARING it, my husband has somehow unknowingly supported this.  My desire to make REAL INTENTIONAL time for the boy(s) was complemented by my husband's hard work during the day, to prepare the house for our absence, while we walked to baseball, or spent time with our neighbors, or just sat and shared a hot dog on our front porch.

I *know* that God gave me my husband, to teach me, to help me, and to remind me that I can do things I never thought possible, or to do things I never had a desire to do. There are times when my husband has helped me, or supported me, and he doesn't know it, or heck- msot of the time, I don't even know it!  But, when I turn around and look back, I see that if it wasn't for his steady hand, and his faithfulness to US, I would be LOST (and probably wearing dirty underpants, or drinking last Thursday's coffee).  I don't know how to tell him properly just what he means to me.

Thankfully, he has given me the chance to spend a lifetime telling him, and showing him, just how special he is. 

There will (hopefully) be much more to come on this idea.  I hope that I can keep up with this journey, and I definitely need to start TALKING about it.  Or at least writing about it, and hoping someone sees.