Rainy Weekend~ Not Mosaic Monday

Day Three of Rain here in the Northeast. It has its charms.

For example, yesterday afternoon all the kids came over, big ones and little ones, and my daughter set up the new Atari game that she gave to the family last Christmas. Right. We're just now getting around to trying it. She and her brother loved playing it as kids when they visited their paternal grandparents. Sometimes their dad would rent a machine and some cartridges to play at home. Anyway, it represents fond memories for them so we were all looking forward to it.

The grands had such fun. I had such fun watching them have fun.

~Awwwwww...~

When they grew tired playing video games from the Middle Ages, they played on Auntie's I-phone.

I'm calling this my Monet mosaic. The quality isn't good, but the subjects were too sweet to toss the photos out.

Mary is away this week so I have nowhere to link. I just wanted to share.

A lovely afternoon and evening to you...

He Keeps Us From Falling

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Savior be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen. ~Jude 1:24–26

A good father, a good parent, must often be firm. I do not mean unkind, I mean firm in the sense that the child knows exactly where he or she stands.

When I was thinking about this, I remembered a time I donated blood at the Red Cross. I was sick almost immediately upon standing and a Red Cross volunteer rushed to my side. The trouble was that he was elderly and frail. Too frail to provide me with any means of support and so down I crashed. There was a happy ending, but it was a bit rougher than it had to be for a while there. I just hope that he didn't get hurt!

Can you imagine God being weak? Unable or unwilling to support you in a moment of illness or crisis or failing? Of course not!

I remember a dear pastor walking to the back of the church and ending every Sunday morning with the portion of scripture above. He said it as a benediction with his hands raised high over our collective heads. What a joy to remember this again today.

Projects Big and Small

He worked through the rain. Up and down the ladder. Got soaked. 

I checked on him often, though I tried to stay out of his way.

My task was to putter about the house. Funny how the simplest things bring back the sweetest memories like this little screen door that always reminds me of the last Thanksgiving when our family was all together. That won't be repeated until Glory.

It was so gloomy that I declared it not too early to put out the harvest lights.

This was only a test... You can see the difference in the wood color from where the windows once sat and where the new window will set.

I finished my utilitarian runner made from mattress ticking on one side, painter's cloth on the back and some gingham edging. I had some fun with creating an easy quilting pattern. Prior to this, I had used lots of linens none of which fit the space. Now my mind is filling with all those sorts of places that could use a tailor made piece — the top of the fridge is next!

Still checking on him... No pressure, Honey! In fact, he is taking the weekend off and perhaps Monday, too. 

Have a lovely weekend... any projects you'd like to discuss?

Prattle On

It's going to rain for the next four days just when John gets on a roll. Perhaps the Lord knows that he needs a break. Yes, I'm sure that's it.

Such a pretty graphic from Graphics Fairy. And so perfect for us in Oak Alley. Every morning, before checking on the garden, I should don my hard hat because squirrels are pitching acorns furiously. They certainly have been an industrious lot.

***

This is a fried green tomato. I chucked all of it into the garbage and started over with much thinner slices. John ate them, but felt that I may have failed. He's never eaten them before, nor had I. He says that I don't have to go out of my way to ever make them again. Right. I won't. So to anyone who does make fried green tomatoes, what am I doing wrong?

***

My daughter volunteers for a certain campaign this autumn. She works a regular job and donates an additional 20 hours or more a week. Last night found her traveling 40 miles to pick up signs for our hometown. Ten of them. She thought that she would be getting a hundred. Hmmm... Oh well, at least she has one for her vehicle.

Yes, that is John in the background. Quite a work out he had yesterday because this is the garage he built. He says that ripping out his own work is some of the most difficult he's ever done. He does build a thing to last.

Say, do you enjoy fried green tomatoes?

Twenty Little Things...

1. Cool, crisp air

2. A bowl of apples

3. Vivid red Leaves

4. Farm stands selling apple cider, apples, pumpkins, mums, and maple sugar candy

5. Bittersweet

6. A yellow carpet of leaves to rake

7. The ripple of the wind on slate blue water

8. Squirrels ramping up their acorn storage

9. Fioré resting in the warm sun

10. Molly napping

11. Leaf bouquets

12. The vivid colors of early autumn to the burnished colors by the end of October

13. Readying the garden for winter

14. Gathering winter berries for holiday decorating

15. Baking cookies to ward off the chill

16. Serving hot tea

17. Pumpkins on doorsteps

18. Sitting in the sun

19. Walking through fallen leaves

20. Children jumping in the leaves

21. Bonus: Visiting blogs that celebrate the season!

I'm linking to Melissa's Fall Nesting Party Twenty Little Things. (See button in my sidebar for other daily events in October.)



Edited to Add: All photos are from former autumns ☺

An Unlikely Star

How glad I am that Diane told me not to snip back the spent rose blooms. It's so pretty. Doesn't it look like a star? I'll have a few more perhaps before the rose bushes are ready to retire for the season.

I was out mowing yesterday afternoon so got to appreciate the west side of the garage being accomplished from a lot of angles. Much better! I'd do a before and after, but I don't want to take away from the pretty. =D

This is a little view into the forest primeval. ☺

*Foliage report* for a certain someone who cares about such things: Very Low in my corner.

What have you discovered lately at your own home that delights you or surprises you? Feel free to share!

Verbosity-osity

A little chat about this and that and nothing much in particular. It was chilly this morning so I broke down and turned on the furnace. This is the second time that it has been on this season and, just as soon as the house comes up to 68F, it'll be going off again. I shudder to think about oil prices this coming year...talk about putting a crimp in a budget that already squeaks.

Yesterday, the unthinkable happened...

Molly and Fioré decided to combine heating reserves and slept in the same chair for two hours. Believe me, it had nothing to do with friendship.

***

After seeing my daughter-in-law's tomato patch last weekend, I realized all over again the error of my ways. You may remember my sharing my little garden a few days ago. It was full of green tomatoes and lots of foliage. Here's Em's...

a lot of red and very little green. So I went aboard my tomatoes yesterday and pruned them heavily. Perhaps I'll get another week of growing time. Still, fearing frost last night, I brought in quite a few. (No frost...36F this morning.) My harvest is lining the windowsill. Helpful post with regard to this issue

***

John has been busy at work on the west side of the house. He'll be all done with that this morning and will move on to the front. 

It sure changes the light out there...much brighter. I'm going to miss the three trellises; however, nothing really grew there since the sun doesn't reach it for long. I know that I can find a new home for them.

***

Do you like those cheesy biscuits at Red Lobster? I have the Bisquick knock-off recipe, which we really enjoy. I scrounged around in the pantry a bit looking for some Bisquick and came up empty. Hooray for the internet, though, because there were several versions of a "from scratch" recipe. Must have chosen the wrong one because we truly hated them. The success of that biscuit comes from its lightness and the ones I made last night were heavy. Looked pretty, but pretty is as pretty does.

***

Must end on a sweet note with photos so gear up, you know what's coming...

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Reminder to Self

Get Out of the House once in a while...

#5 ☺ or the little guy with the final kick that made me chuckle

Watch some soccer...

Enjoy the view...

you'll be back to the same old same old soon enough. 

Though yesterday morning was blue, by afternoon's soccer game and drive, some clouds stole in. Well, into every life... 

Say, are you a stay-at-home person or a get-out-and-about person?

Remember the Blessings~Mosaic Monday

What glorious light today. Haven't seen anything like it for so long that I forget when I saw it last. Clear as a bell. Blue, blue sky with not a cloud to decorate it. Lovely!

Linking to Mary's Mosaic Monday at Little Red House.

A lovely week to you with many clear blue skies...

Keep Looking Up!

After looking at the way things are on this earth, here’s what I’ve decided is the best way to live: Take care of yourself, have a good time, and make the most of whatever job you have for as long as God gives you life. And that’s about it. That’s the human lot. Yes, we should make the most of what God gives, both the bounty and the capacity to enjoy it, accepting what’s given and delighting in the work. It’s God’s gift! God deals out joy in the present, the now. It’s useless to brood over how long we might live. ~Ecclesiastes 5:18–20 (The Message)

Since first reading this verse over at Gwen's Along Fairhaven Way (you'll find the specific post in my sidebar), I have thought about it a lot. Brooding on life? It's a waste of time! How excited I was to learn that the Bible had a word specifically for this very issue.

 Many blessings today and all week through...

Tying Up Some Loose Ends

A little foliage color as of yesterday afternoon. I get a lot of mileage out of that blue roofed barn. Usually I take its photo through my living room window, but this is taken outdoors just around the end of the fence.

This is the tomato jungle. What a fright. I think I have learned something about growing a tomato and that is never to allow the foliage to take over like this. Mid summer, I cut it way back as the tops were towering above the fence. We have some beautiful looking green tomatoes that I hope we may harvest without having to resort to fried green tomatoes.

Like these, which are larger than baseballs. My eyes glint just to see them. Unfortunately, this is usually what happens to them...

This is either a very sad tomato or a Phoenix rising. 

On a brighter note, the third morning glory (I planted blue, purple, and pink) showed up yesterday all at once. I've seen some blue and lots of purple, but no pink at all until...

All this puttering I do and all the hard work John does...

Yes, he's moving right along on the west side.  It'll look so nice to have that tired old brown be gone.

Over and out. I'm closing comments so that you may just peek and run. Have a lovely weekend!

Table Runner Reprise

Now this is what I love about Blogdom. Sometimes a gal gets a do-over. Okay, that and the fact that I can get into ruts, whichever you prefer.

The table looked so nice this morning except for one end of it with a ratty blue-striped towel that John had thoughtfully put down to protect it from newspaper ink. He's sweet like that. I began setting up my tripod because I tend to shake before my morning cup of coffee and it was still early.

*Snap*

Somehow I had it figured that that would be John's cue to move along.

*Snap*

He's still there.

There're only so many unusual disguise angles to take. Sometimes it's best to go for the direct approach. "Honey, could you move over there? Please? Thanks."

There! That's better!

Ahhh, that's a nice unusual, well, if it weren't all whacky lighting from being so early in the morning.

That's pretty good.

Nope. That's best of all. Thanks, Hon!

***

And this just for the purists who don't want no stinking story. ☺

Have a great Friday and a beautiful weekend!