A September Life Lately

Dear friends,

I thought I'd drop in with a little "Life Lately" post.  It's always nice "bumping" into you and catching up for a bit.  

I've been sipping:

~ lots of English Breakfast tea.  It just seems to suit my fancy these days.  I did mama dates with the two older Blossoms this week and we hit up Burger King for our favorite $1.69 medium mocha frappes.  Yay for inexpensive, tasty treats!!

I've been reading:
~ The Blades of Acktar series by Tricia Mingerink.  Blossom1 and Blossom2 heartily recommended it.  My stack of books to be read is always tall, but they really, really insisted!  I started the five book series on vacation and thoroughly enjoyed it.  Blossom1 says that every Christian should read the Blades of Acktar.  

Books two and three deal a lot with persecution and making a stand for your faith, from the perspective of young people walking through grief and hard times.  It's been fun and meaningful discussing these book with the Blossoms and their friends.  God gives us grace in our journey as we grow up in the faith.  Combining humor, encouragement, and character lessons in an adventurous Medieval story line ~ what a win!  Now I also heartily recommend this series, for anyone, adult or teen.  

I've been cooking:
~ even when I don't feel like it.  I've gotta say, when school started, my little bit of motivation and energy to cook supper went downhill fast.  Everyone is always hungry here, so that does help me to plow through a little, especially when I see how much better they learn when they have good food in their bellies all day.  

The Blossoms have pitched in too and sometimes, it's just been simpler fare, like dried venison sandwiches and a steamed veggie.  We did make some Buffalo Chicken pizza the other night with crockpot rabbit and it was a Friday night hit!

We're canning a lot these days ~ salsa, pizza sauce, apple sauce, pickled peppers... all that good stuff!  There's still more to be done, but any bit of distaste I have for all the work, especially cleanup, seems to dissipate when I stand and look at the pretty rows of yummy food ready to go on the pantry shelves.  Sometimes mamas, we just gotta be glad over the end result.  

I've been noticing:
~ the shift of the seasons.  I feel a pang of sadness as the (busy!) days of summer give way to (busy!) days of autumn.  As each day's temperatures fall and the leaves begin their dance to the ground, I try to remind myself about the good of all these things that I can't control.  I embrace them, rather than fight them.  And, maybe I'll redecorate the mantle in the living room this weekend.  

I've been wearing:

~ little brown half boots.  With the onset of comparatively cooler temperatures, jeans and boots are on the docket more frequently for me.  I love pull on boots, because they're fast.  A basic boot never goes out of style and always loudly says "well put together!"

I've been listening:

~ to some girlie bickering.  It ebbs and flows around here.  The first part of the week was busy with school and appointments that were necessary and had already been once rescheduled.  The busyness really seemed to add to it.  What are we doing about the bickering?  Plowing through it.  

I'm trying to reinforce with the little Blossoms that aggravation is unacceptable and so is retaliation. Loving your sister is a moment by moment, day by day decision.

I've been loving:

~ coaching the Junior Bible Quiz team.  Half of the members are my daughters and the other half are their pals, so it's nice to already have a rapport with them.  Once upon a time, I was a gymnastics coach.  Though that's not something I really pursue right now, this little hour and a half in my week has reminded me how much coaching is something I enjoy.  

I've been planning:

~ birthday and holiday fun!  Blossom2 is turning 13 this weekend(!!!!) Combined with the holiday, it'll be a fun family weekend with yummy treats and little adventures, probably involving a state park or two.  I'm hoping it will bless her. She's such a blessing to this family!

Happy Labor Day, friends!

Dominique

All pics snapped on a our little ramble in the natural area near our cabin.