Simple Woman's Daybook 5/13

 

Outside my window...

Finally, it looks like spring. The leaves, unfolded and proud, gift us with a beautiful green canopy everywhere. Flowering trees hint at the beauty of Paradise. The grasses, splendid in brilliant green, provide a feast for the senses. Birds are nesting and singing everywhere, reminding us of His provision and glory.

I am thinking...

Of the expression "when it rains it pours", for a couple reasons.

Spring storms for the northeast Ohio area began in earnest last night with several tornado and flash flood warnings. Seven-year-old Mary, still terribly afraid of thunder and tornadoes, worried herself into a frenzy and threw up at 9:30 PM. Prayer and songs didn't help enough. She made it into the bathroom in time but instead of choosing the toilet, she chose the sink. (At least it's not the bedding or carpet nowadays, for all but the five year old.)

The brunt of the storm hit our area after the kids fell asleep, with high winds, torrential rain, fallen tree limbs, and plentiful thunder and lightening. I kept the radio on low while I read a novel to get my mind off of it. The nearest tornado warning came as close as the next township over.

When it rains it pours....we woke to a major plumbing problem this morning, what with pipes leaking inside the walls and soaking the hall carpet. Again. I was supposed to see a doctor this AM for my migraines, but I had to cancel due to the water emergency. The best we could do was pull up the carpet and shut off the water after our showers, and arrange for my cousin to come tonight.

I am thankful...

~ that no tornado formed.

~ that my cousin will charge far less than a commercial plumber.

~ that Beth requires fewer speech articulation corrections. She slips up when she's tired, but we're seeing progress in her conversation now.

~ for all the wonderful books we've read this year.

~ that Peter walked down the hall last week, carrying a book and declaring that he "loves devouring words and books". I kissed his cheek and smiled to myself, knowing that he chose the strong verb devouring precisely because he's so well read. Book language in means book language out and that excites me!

~ that I get to watch the babies in the nursery slowly grow up. One of our "newborns" is walking!

~ that despite my nervous personality and the irritation that probably causes my family, they still love me with a beautiful grace.

~ for my husband and our nearly fifteen years together. If I only had two words to describe him as a husband and father, I would choose longsuffering and faithful.

In my kitchen...

It's currently clean and there are pans of water on the counters to help us get through the day without water. On the menu:

~ black bean chili and corn bread, with fresh strawberry shortcake for dessert

~ ground turkey tacos, brown rice, corn, and a thawed berry mix

~ garlic cheddar chicken, brown rice, green beans

~ cheesy egg omelets, cafe potatoes, fresh fruit and toast

~ meatloaf, brown rice, spring mix steamed veggies

~ baked ziti, garlic bread, salad

~ grilled chicken, baked potatoes, steamed broccoli, carrots, cauliflower

I am wearing...

a brown cotton broomstick skirt and pink fitted tee, and wedge sandals I bought in Mexico on a weekend mission trip years ago (we were three hours from the Mexican border when we lived in CA).

I am creating...

I wish I could say I've learned enough about knitting or quilting to have something to list here, but it turns out that reading is my very favorite thing, and every time I consider whether to knit or read, a novel or biography always wins out. I thought I wanted to learn to knit, but it was one of those empty dreams that didn't fit for me. It was someone else's dream that I was temporarily trying on, I guess.

My son Paul, though, is knitting quite a bit now. He's very creative with his hands. Mary is slowly learning but the outdoors call her with a song she can't resist, like I can't resist my books. Peter is called by his gardening--his flowers and plants and dirt.

I am going...

to speech class tomorrow, for Paul's ear cleaning appt (wax) on Thursday, and to the dentist on Friday for my husband and me. I haven't been to the dentist in about 2.5 years, so it may not be good news, but there haven't been any problems.

I am wondering...

if Mother's Day will always be so depressing. For all those who've had to put distance between themselves and their mother, this day can be a downer. We can't change our mother's choices, but we can learn from them and keep our own nuclear-family dysfunction to a bare minimum so that our own children will grow up liking Mother's Day. If finding a Mother's Day card that matches their sentiment for us isn't a nightmare for them, it probably means we did okay.

I am reading...

I just finished Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery, and Little Lord Fauntleroy by Frances Hodgson Burnett. If I can find book 3 of the Anne series, I will start that tonight. I know it's in our shelves somewhere. We watched Anne of Green Gables as a family movie last Friday, and it gave me the urge to read the whole series. Don't ask me why I love children's literature so much. A well-written, well-told story that's good for the soul is what I love best. Anne's nature inspires us to worship God through his creations, and to live in love, grace, and obedience.

I wonder...would Ann think I'm a kindred spirit, or not? My 5-year-old daughter Beth lives in a dream world, so she's definitely an Anne-with-an-e girl. She's always making up things in her mind and pulling us into them, telling us what her new name is (often it's Bella), and what we're to say and do for our parts. She makes me smile and pinch myself so often. Is this enchanting, thoroughly-loving child really mine...born from my 42-year-old womb to bestow blessing on my middle-age years? God is good.

 

I am hoping...

to be able to bathe my kids tonight. My cousin isn't coming until after 7 so no water until late tonight. I'm trying to keep them in so they won't get sweaty, but I don't know how long I'll hold out. They come in so dirty every evening from April thru November.

Around the house...

We've vacuumed and swept and wiped down the bathrooms, but there are hanging clothes to put away in closets, and pajamas and towels in a basket to fold and put away this afternoon. We are listening to Sarah, Plain and Tall, an audiobook, while we fold together.

Scripture to share...

In our morning devotions we are reading James. Here is a favorite:

James 1:5-8 If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 6 But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

There are so many jewels in James that it's hard to find just one. My children and I are learning a lot as we discuss this book, especially the parts about the tongue and about not favoring the rich or having prejudices, and about how God gifts the poor with special faith.

A picture to share...

a brother-sister knitting lesson
(our camera is breaking, obviously)