my week

These days are keeping me busy, a late night post is in order.
Here are some little snippets from my week.

Gage and I made these very funny little candles at Pioneer Farms. We hand-dipped them ourselves. What a great experience we had there. I even milked a Jersey cow!

 I am tired of buying processed snack foods! So........I made crackers today. I used a few different recipes. The ones we liked the best were from here. I will definitely try them with whole wheat white flour next time. Graham crackers are up next.
I haven't made homemade Grapenuts in a long time. It is time for those, too. If I keep HM Grapenuts and granola around, it really cuts down on my family clamoring for store-bought cereal. This is a good thing.
Oh, and I also need to make yogurt. Looks like a busy Friday for me.

I am knitting a Baktus scarf. I have a bunch of sock yarn to use up, so I thought I would make a scrappy little scarf. It will be so nice and cozy.

I did my once-a-month bulk shopping yesterday. That always feels good to get done. This weekend is busy with baseball. We are wrapping up the season, and I think everybody is glad. Now bring on Summer vacation. Only 16 more school days!

Have a blessed day, Tami

done

{totally unrelated to the post, just a cool pic}

I was really going to try and keep track for a whole year.

If you have checked my *One Thing* page lately, you will see that I made it about 3 months.

I *really* like to finish what I start. This is a little hard to let go of. It's all good though.

I decided to be done with it for a few reasons.
It was hard to remember to do everyday or even every few days.
I felt like it was becoming redundant.

The good that came out of it?
I really do these things all the time (redundant) - this is great!
I have a list to refer to when I am feeling aimless and uninspired - Yes!

Overall, I would say that this exercise did what it was supposed to do. I took notice.
My *one things* turned into a lot of good things.

Learning to let go of unfruitful activities is a good thing. Maybe this will be the last thing on the list. Yes.

Have a blessed day, Tami

memorial weekend

Fun at the park. (with lots of friends)
Relaxing at home.
Summery outdoor meals.
Projects around the house.
Mostly sunny and warm, with a massive rain shower this morning.
Enjoying the slow pace of this last holiday weekend of the school year.
The kids have 18 school days left. I can't wait.

Hope that you are having a relaxing Memorial Day weekend!
Blessings, Tami

make do

Our kitchen is coming along. My search for the perfect set of old cabinets will be a long one, I fear. Until then we will repurpose and make do with the set of cabinets we pulled out of the island. I removed the butcher block top and hubs cut it to fit. We hung the leftover piece of butcher block as a "shelf" of sorts to give that L-shaped design I want. I will say that it looks pretty great, and will work really well for serving food and I like it for folding laundry on too. It is a little lower than cabinet height. We cut them down to fit under the window. I haven't tested it out yet, but it feels like a great height for me to hand knead bread. I need to finish painting under the shelf. My laundry basket wants to live under there :~)
Even though I have a vision in my mind of the perfect set up, I am happy to reuse and repurpose what we have. It saves money and it saves time. Eventually, the perfect vintage cupboards will make their way into my life, or.......maybe he'll make them, *wink*.

I am off tomorrow morning to spend 2 days with my 10 year old at Pioneer Farms. A school fieldtrip to teach us how families lived 100+ years ago. I am so excited to go with him, I did this 5 years ago with my oldest. It is so fun.

Have a blessed day, Tami

inside & out

A read a quote the other day and was instantly changed.

"There's a reason women want to be beautiful. It's part of our makeup, our innate knowledge. Just as we have an undeniable yearning to know God before we can even articulate it, we know we are meant to reflect His beauty. Cultivating beauty starts in our HEARTS, but we should not think our outside matters nothing to Him."

Can I get an Amen.

I walk a fine line of wanting to be physically attractive and wanting to let looks be unimportant in my life. I want to be loved and accepted just the way I am. A belief that I am shallow if I care about looking beautiful, and to focus only on inner beauty, for that is where the treasure lies. Then why do I feel so vibrant and alive when I take care of my body by dressing well, exercising, and eating well? All things that enhance physical beauty? Why would God put this good thing in my heart, if it weren't valuable to Him? I see now that outward beauty is valuable to God. I used to think that the inner beauty I was cultivating, would automatically be seen as beauty on the outside. Then I thought, this would mean that it doesn't matter what I wear, if I bathe, etc. ~And this just isn't true, is it? God wants all of it for us, the inside and outside, all for His glory.
This is so freeing for me.
I truly believe that each person possesses their own unique beauty. A personal beauty that can be ignored or appreciated. A beauty that when appreciated, is cared for and pleasing to the eye. I was in a sort of rebellion for a few years about wearing make-up. I hated that it was expected of me (by society and certain well meaning family members), that I would only be considered attractive if my face was painted. That really irked me. I wear it occasionally now, and feel pretty doing so. Living in rebellion is not fun, I just needed to let it go.
There's one other thing.
There is only one person in this world that I care to be physically attractive for, my husband. The fact is, he is human. He will never love me like God does. God finds me beautiful inside and out with a love I cannot even fathom. Humans just aren't capable of it. It will always be important for me to catch the eye of my loving, but very human husband. It is an honor for me to make an effort for him. I want him to still desire the woman he married 20 years ago, and to know it's important to me. A long and fabulous marriage brings glory to God. This I truly believe.

Here I go chatting at myself again, working things out in my head and heart. Writing always helps. I am praying with my hands moving on the keyboard, but my heart and mind are still, focusing on the thoughts and feelings, and processing what the Holy Spirit is saying to me. Thanks for hearing me out. What do you think?

Have a blessed and beautiful day, Tami

(the above quote came from a wonderful website called The Next Step.)

friday already?!

Is it Friday already?
Things really speed up before they calm down. Wow.
We are in a end of the school year frenzy. Field trips, class projects, science fair, playoffs, end-of-year teacher gifts, end-of-year coach gifts, parties, freshman cruise........WHOA.

I am ready for the lazy days of summer already. Even lazy days need to be deliberate, as we navigate and prioritize the summer fun. It would be easy to stay just as busy all summer. We are being picky with our plans. Keeping it simple.

Two family camping trips. Really fun ones with good friends. Yes.
Swimming at Grandma Kat's.
Lots of berry picking.
Growing and preserving.
Beach and park exploring.
Lots and lots of time at home, outside, playing with the neighborhood kids. Done.

That is the plan.

We are having glorious weather this week. Finally.
I planted three tomato plants yesterday. Old German, Sungold, and Sweet 100's. Yum.
I also put in 4 zucchini starts, 5 sunflower starts, and my celery experiment. I noticed that I have 2 potato plants coming up from the bed last year. I will leave them and see what we get. I still need to plant my green beans and more carrots. I plan start thinking now about what I will plant in the fall. Cabbage, carrots, and some greens to overwinter. We'll see.
Everything else is coming in nicely. Raspberries, snow peas, leaf lettuce, apples, potatoes, blueberries, rhubarb. These are all good.

Enjoy the weekend.
Blessings, Tami

we have light

A few holes in the ceiling and we have a kitchen light over our table. I love having a handy husband.
We may eventually change this light out for a single pendant fixture, but for now we are reusing the one we have. More to come.

Blessings, Tami

weekend

What a wonderful Mother's Day. So much love. (and food).
Enjoying lovely weather today.
My Yukon Gold potatoes are growing wonderfully in their barrel.
The chickens are so happy to be out in the sun.
I am buying tomato plants today! (a day after Mother's Day tradition)
Green beans and zucchini are going in.
Let's hope that the weather holds out. The sun has me motivated!

Have a blessed and sunny Monday. Tami

{this moment} belated

Joining Amanda.

project::kitchen

Remember when I was complaining about my kitchen?
Trying to appreciate it?
Well we've begun making a few changes to help me with that.

I have always been a fan of a big harvest table right in the middle of the kitchen. If you have the space for it, this allows a work surface and eating surface all in one. My kitchen was cut in half before by an island that served as a catch-all. It had to go.
All in one day, I disassembled the island and corner table & benches. We bought this great table on Craigslist for practically nothing. It works for now, but eventually, Eric will be making a new, larger top for it out of reclaimed lumber. We should be able to seat 10 people when all is said and done. I am thinking I will paint the mismatched chairs white. I would love that.

This is the corner where the table and benches were. We put the cabinets from the island here temporarily. What I really want here is an "L" shaped mass of cabinets topped with butcher block to utilize for storage, but also to serve as a buffet surface for when we entertain. In my dreams, we will find an old set of cupboards, pulled out of an old house, that we can use. I would paint them white and distress them lightly. Perfect.

Ideally, I would like to replace all of my cabinets and make them more in keeping the the age of my home (103). You know the ones. Painted wood, inset doors, cabinet latches and bin pulls, a bread drawer. Yep.

In the meantime, I am elated to have this project underway. I can't wait to see how this evolves. I want to take my time and make the right choices, so we don't have to do this again. If our choices are design-wise appropriate for the age of the house, we shouldn't have to do it again. That would be nice.

I will update with progress as it happens. I am so excited. :~)

Have a blessed day, Tami



my day

A tiny lilac bloom.
A pie from the last of the frozen berries and rhubarb.
The heavenly smell of lilac in my kitchen.
The first of this years rhubarb.

Noticing beauty around me today.
Enjoying a day without rain.
Feeling relaxed and content.

Have a blessed Wednesday, Tami

blue bird prayer

At my ladies retreat a few weeks ago, there was another writing that we did. It was an exercise in pondering an object and letting that inspire prayer.
At the retreat I won a little handblown glass bird. This bird served as my inspiration.

Blue Bird Prayer

Little glass blue bird
Where did your color come from?
Surely not imagined in the mind of a man
A color so beautiful that only God could have created it
It is the deep blue of a tropical ocean,
the intense blue of a precious gemstone
that has been formed deep in the earth by your refining fire
Am I made intense and brilliant and colorful by your refining fire?
Am I given wings by your grace and love?
Will my path be made smooth like the glass of this bird?
It was only made smooth by the fire it was blown by
No two of this bird exist
She is unique
Unique in color, shape, and texture
Only by your hands Lord
Amen.

Have a blessed day, Tami

my week

This week I have been incredibly out of sorts. With my girl home sick with the flu, there has been a welcome, but unplanned stray form my usual rhythm. My house is a wreck. There is a ton of laundry to do. The checkbook needs balancing...I have chosen to be alongside my girl comforting her, nourishing her, and joining her for a few favorite movies. As she dozed on Monday, I did manage to scrub a toilet and clean a chicken coop. Also, being totally engrossed in a book for 3 days didn't help my house either. (Gotta love a good book)
Our intense baseball schedule continues and dinners are hurried and simple. It is running me down a bit. I think the slow cooker and I need to become friends. The light at the end of the tunnel is 7 weeks away. Summer break. Summer break is slow, and peaceful and together. Just what we all need.
Even though this week has been astray from my normally ordered and rhythmic life, I am
declaring it all good. It is good for me to go with it, to just let the house be, not be totally on top of things for a few days, maybe even let a few balls drop. Gasp. A good lesson in giving up control.
Next week will be back to regular programming, that is unless my efforts to contain this flu bug have failed..........then I will be caring for more little people, and praying it's not me that gets it. We will see. Hopefully, I will be able to spend a little time out in the garden and get my tomatoes, beans, and zucchini planted. I also have a little project going in our kitchen. I will have photos as soon as we have more of a plan. It is exciting for me, little changes that get me closer to my dream kitchen :~)

Have a blessed day. Tami

:right now:

right now I am:

• snuggled up in a wooly sweater
• feeling uninspired to write
• pondering some life stuff (all good)
• wishing the gray skies away
• craving pancakes with peanut butter and syrup
• taking care of my girl, home from school today
• happy that my kitchen is clean
• getting ready to tackle the laundry next
• looking forward to an evening at home
• wishing you a blessed day

Have a great one! Tami