I Don't Know

Sunday's weather was beautiful.  Sunny and warm, with a nice breeze. Lovely.  This field is right next to the church I've been going to.  Of course, the pictures don't do it justice.  And neither do any words I can come up with. 

And I had just told Libby the day before that I didn't think it was really possible for us to understand heaven with the words that we know.

 So maybe part of the beauty in the field that particular day was having just come from worshipping God and then watching about 15 people get baptized outside in a pool set up for the occasion.

But my car was parked facing the field and when I got to the car, I stopped.  And looked out over the field as it blew in the breeze.  And took it in.  Took in God. And remembered the camera in my purse, and made the kids wait, and took a picture.  Trying to capture God.

PLACES

PLACES I SEE GOD

I love the way the leaves of this squash plant gather drops of water along the edges each morning.  

My knock-out roses (I think that is what they are called) have bloomed in all their glory.

PLACES I NEED GOD

My almost-sweet-sixteen year old opened a bank account and got her first debit card.  With a driver's license in a few weeks, I definitely need God!

PLACES I PRAISE GOD

In Burger King, thanking the King of Kings for my three beautiful kiddos.

PLACES IN MY HEART WHERE SADNESS HAS SETTLED

-The sudden death of a friend today

-The grief of my friend who was there to find him

-Watching another friend make hard life decisions

-Watching people destroy their lives with drugs

-Knowing that the Thief has come to destroy and knowing he is just so good at it

-Navigating relationships

-Reading Emily Dickinson

-Being alone

-Not being alone

PLACES IN MY HEART WHERE THANKSGIVING ABOUNDS

-Sarah, Libby and Jacob

-Freedom in Christ

-Knowing the One who came to give abundant life

-Knowing that he is JUST SO GOOD AT IT

Easter Thoughts

That picture has really nothing to do with what I am about to say.  But isn't he a handsome kid?  This was taken at sunset at the beach when we had finished dinner and were all in a relaxed mood that only the beach and the ocean can produce.  :-)

I was telling a friend Saturday night that I had gotten my kids' Easter baskets together and hidden (I don't know why they feel their baskets must be hidden, but that is what we do) and then he said I was a good mom and he told me that he had never received an Easter basket in his whole life.  I knew he had grown up in a dysfunctional family, but this revelation stopped me cold.  I looked at him, seriously puzzled, and said, "Are you kidding?!"  Nope, he wasn't kidding.  No one had ever taken the time to put together even the simplest Easter basket for this child, now grown.  Even a less-than-good mother would give her child an Easter basket, wouldn't she?  From the perspective of my sheltered and comfortable life, this makes no sense to me.  We weren't rich when I was growing up, but my sister and brother and I never went a year without an Easter basket. I suddenly felt so grateful for my "normal" childhood, I wanted to cry.

Thank you mom for always having an Easter basket ready on Easter morning for Melissa and Matt and I.  And thank you dad for working so hard to earn the money with which she was able to buy them.  I love you guys!

Seedlings!

Update from the garden.  A sunlit picture of the fence to keep Rufus out.  And Rufus, being kept out.

Peas!!!!!

Spinach!!!

This is my first real time to put a seed in the ground, care for it, and watch God make it into something good and useful!  It's pretty exciting stuff.  Still waiting on my green beans to emerge.

My Garden

So.... my friend Tammy (who is very much into eating "clean") and I had big plans a while back to plant a vegetable garden in her backyard together.  But, then we decided perhaps we would just put some plants in pots on our back porches, since neither of us really has time to maintain a large garden at this point in our lives.  So we headed to Home Depot and for the price of a couple of big pots, we both got these raised garden kits and some soil to put in them.  Mine is 4 x 4 (I think she went back and got another ) and I have planted squash, green beans, cucumbers, spinach, sugar peas, cilantro..... and.... I think that may be it.  Some of my plants I bought at Home Depot and in the rest of the garden, I planted seeds.  Oh, and I have a tomato plant that will stay for now in the container I bought it in.  I surely hope SOMETHING grows.  I will be highly disappointed if I don't get at least one vegetable to eat after all this hard work!  :-)

Here is the progress:

I put it up close to the house hoping to ward off creatures.  Of course, Rufus had to get in and start digging, so I went and got a little plastic fence to put around it- the picture isn't very good, but I took it at night so I could get this post written.  He is capable of jumping over the fence, but thankfully he is too stupid to know it.

If I ever win the lottery (which will be hard since I never play the lottery), I would love to have lots of pots of flowers on my back porch and some nice patio furniture and a grill.  And then I could entertain out there.  And grill the vegetables straight out of my garden for my guests!  :-)  We have to have dreams!

Highlights of our Recent Beach Trip

I tend to over-do on the pictures, but you don't have to look at all of them.  The pool at the condo was one floor below our balcony, which was convenient.

 Our view of the Gulf.

 Pictures of us at The Hang Out (cool, open-air restaurant with live entertainment).  (Also, very expensive!)

 Jacob playing on the beach.

 Jacob climbing while waiting on our table at LuLu's.

 The girls getting ready to do the rip-cord.

 Waiting to ride Go-Karts (Jacob's favorite part of the trip).

Never go to the beach without a variety of colors of nail and toe polish.

Jacob's Birthday

Jacob had a birthday.  It was March 20.  He turned 11.