Another Great Saturday

2015 has brought with it some pretty great Saturdays! On January 3, we got an extra day with friends in GA. On January 10th, I had just gotten home and was feeling pretty rotten about it. Jay's birthday and Joe's shopping trip served as perfect distractions. And then there was last Saturday...

Last Saturday was PERFECTION. I had the day to myself (half the house went to play laser tag and my Mom was working). I'm not a person that generally enjoys a day to myself, but I made the best of it. I started the day trying to finish up Rex Stout's "The Doorbell Rang", which happens to be a great mystery, if you're in the market for one of those. When that got old, I fixed myself some macaroni and cheese and left over chicken nuggets and turned on Pride and Prejudice (the Matthew Macfadyen version). From there, I switched things up with "Roman Holiday" (Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn). And then I went back to my reading.

I needed that day. I said "No" to a lot of things to make it mine, but it was so great to recharge and refresh.

This Saturday could turn out very similar. It just so happens that today is National Readathon Day. Since I've got several books going, I'm planning on doing at least some reading. It helps that I'm working on the third book in a series that has really had me interested! "Hidden Agenda" by Lisa Harris is just as good (if not BETTER?!?) than the other two books that came before it in her Southern Crimes series.

This particular book is set off the coast of Georgia as well as in Georgia. A side plot that has been present in the other two books is finally taking center stage. I've been trying to figure out this part of the mystery since I first found out about the series. "Hidden Agenda" obviously shares characters with the other books, but Harris also brought in some characters that we've never met before.

The plot is thick. We've got a police department with unknown moles, a drug cartel with a brutal and uncatchable leader, two people who find out that their Dad is not who they thought he was, and a carload of people on the run. The characters themselves are developed very well. Character development is easy to skip in suspense stories, but Harris doesn't skip anything.

It's not often that I tell you about a book BEFORE I finish it, but I'm confident that this one will end with at least 4 stars to it's name! Grab  your copy HERE.

So...I've got another great Saturday waiting for me and I hope you do too!

What does your perfect Saturday look like? 

Do days to yourself excite you?

* I was provided a review copy of this book by Revell. All thoughts are my own honest opinion.

The Scenic Route: Sunshine and Rain

This weekend began and ended with sunshine. It got up to about 64 degrees and as usual I was soooo tempted to begin working in the flower beds. 

With a little sickness going around the house, I ended up spending a lot of time reading aloud. We finished one of my favorite books called "Stepping on the Cracks" and moved on to its sequel. 

There was also a little bit of rummicube and discovering a new tv series (I think it's called Vera). 

 Saturday was filled with rain and with that came some time to read my first novel of 2014. I'll be posting about this before the month is over, so stay tuned! I'm about half way through and I can't wait to discover how everything will turn out!

Julie and I visited for a good long while when I returned some books at the library. We talked about books that we've enjoyed and just caught up on life in general.

Sunday was very restful. This winter I've gotten into the perfect Sunday routine...This one happened to include the perfect cup of chai with a shot of coffee and some extra quiet time.

To be honest, the whole weekend kind of felt like one long "patio moment"!

I took this last picture this morning. As I write this post, the birds are singing and the rain may or may not continue. I'm off to spend the afternoon working at the coffee shop!

How does the weather affect your weekend? 

What happened wherever you found yourself? 

Through the Rain

I had a shadow again this week. We did lots of driving, went for a few walks which included stops to pick things up or find the wind chimes or a bird that we could hear, played Uno, went to the library, read stories, made biscuits, cleaned the sink, and learned about coins.

Yesterday when I took Heidi's daughter home, it was drizzling. I love driving in the rain! I noticed a lady sitting out on a covered patio looking out at the road. It seemed a little cold to be sitting outside, so I wondered what she was doing. That's when I noticed that there were two other people with her. One was leaning up against the wall with his back to the road and the other was sprawled out looking the same direction as the first lady I noticed. 

As I drove by, I only saw them for a few seconds, but my thoughts stayed on them for a while.

What were they talking about? How did they meet? How was it that on a Thursday afternoon they decided to sit outside while the rain came down silently all around them? 

There they sat visiting and enjoying the quiet that rain brings. 

I drove by enjoying the same rain and the same quiet.

Whoever they are, however they met, and whatever they were talking about - sitting there, they reminded me that for all the trouble in this world, there are still patios where people sit and visit without the pressures of life weighing them down, if only for a moment. 

Maybe this weekend will hold a patio moment for you...If it does, get comfortable and let it help you look beyond whatever troubles you. Maybe that moment will be there to remind you of the work that God is doing in your life. 

Whatever you're facing, He's there using it to make you more like His Son. Jesus served well, loved with His whole being, and stayed close to God. How often did He go away to pray? I believe it was His communion with God - not the pressures of life on this earth, or the needs of the people around Him - that kept Him going.

God led Him and God is leading His people today. This weekend, use those patio moments to be with Him and to share what He's been up to in your life with whoever ends up in the quiet with you. 

Would you do me a favor? Would you take a minute now to tell me about a verse or book or scene that left your soul reminded of its anchor?

Quiet Hearts

I've got some simple words for you today....It's a challenge really. 

I want to challenge you to spend some time today in the Bible. 

Simple as that, grab it, go somewhere quiet (and preferably warm) and just read. Underline or highlight if you want to or just read. 

This read through that I've been doing has been so good for my soul! I look forward to getting away in order to see more of this book that has been a big part of my life for over ten years now.

This February snow has me feeling a tiny bit stir crazy. Add to that a quick trip to the mall to see a movie last Friday and I was reminded that there are PEOPLE out there.

I've got friends I want to see and some shopping I want to do but it's cold and foggy and there is ice and snow so I know it's wisest not to leave this little town of mine....

Reading the Bible isn't making the crazy inside of me go away, but it HELPS. My time in God's Word helps me see beyond the crazy inside of me! 

Go there. You'll be glad you did! 

Mornings I Dream Of

It's Friday evening. The last Friday of August 2013! Where did the SUMMER go? I've got a meat loaf in the oven, potatoes boiling on the stove, and some green beans "marinating" in some garlic. 

 

I know it's been a long time since I've posted. I haven't been coming here to share my thoughts or pictures, but I have been taking the pictures and writing the words. It's been good to just go back. Back to the simple place where the words and memories are just mine. Still, I've missed this and I know I'll miss the fact that I don't have pretty posts to look back on. 

 

So, this morning, I did what I've been doing. I grabbed some paper and a pen and I wrote until I didn't have anything to write....

 

 

 **************

 

 I'm on the back patio. The sun is up and just barely beginning to take the chill out of the air. The sky is becoming a deep blue, fading slighting to a lighter shade at the horizon. It's not even eight o'clock yet, but the birds are chirping, dogs are barking, and I've heard trucks and planes heading off to do the day's work. 

 

 

I had one simple thought this morning- I've been up for several hours and yet I stayed in my room waiting for this hour to come. When things were still upstairs, I came up and began a familiar ritual of gathering and starting laundry. I love doing that "first thing". And so, doing what I love and knowing that I love it, I began to dream up my favorite mornings....

 

I dream of mornings where the house is quiet and still. A place of peace and joy awaits anyone who will rise to have it as their own.

 

 

 I dream of mornings where there is coffee to brew and some sort of breakfast ready to be warmed. I made a breakfast casserole Tuesday night and I've loved eating it here and there throughout the week. I think I've had it at breakfast time only this morning - but I love that it's there. 

 

Some mornings, I dream of baking. On Wednesday morning, that's just what I did. I made cinnamon rolls by myself for the first time. I took my time and had them ready just as my brother and sister began to stir for the day.

 

 

I dream of mornings where it's cool enough and warm enough and dry enough to begin them out on the patio. Perhaps with a book, a Bible, my breakfast, or even some paper and a pen, like today. 

 

And these morning that I dream of aren't about being alone - they are about being surrounded. They are  about feeling the presence of the Holy Spirit and basking in the delights that God has placed around me in this earth that He created. 

 

As the breeze picks up I am reminded that the quiet mornings and a quiet heart hold a peace and joy that can be shared. 

The best part about these mornings that I dream of, is that I simply have to show up. These are God's mornings and my dream is really just to join Him. 

 

 

Just Like Old Times

Over the last few years I've become quite content to just stay home when I can. I used to be on the go at all times. If I wasn't having to go somewhere, I was figuring out a way to go somewhere or have people over. 

Learning to just BE has been a good lesson. A quiet soul is a blessing that I spent many years fighting against. 

Yesterday I got home and decided to pull a chair over to the fire, fix a cup of tea, grab a blanket, and start reading The Hobbit. 

As I set everything up, I realized that it was a cozy sight. I also realized it would make for some good practice with my camera.

The phone didn't ring (and if it would have, I wouldn't have answered it), no one came to the door, and I was content to sit alone by the fire.

When I was growing up I read a lot of historical fiction or bio/autobiographies (think Colonial America, Civil War, WWII, and Civil Rights). Occasionally, I would branch into mysteries and even less often I would venture into the likes of Lewis and L'Engle.

Oh...And I did read the first couple Harry Potter books. I just couldn't get into the whole sci-fi realm. I didn't care who was reading what, I just wasn't going to read about things that couldn't even be real.

Now that I'm older and somewhat wiser I realize that I may have written off a few pieces that are actually worth my time.

I mentioned my love/hate with Facebook. Facebook played a part in why I have decided to give Tolkien a chance. A friend posted these lines and I decided that Tolkien may just be a writer after my own heart,

    "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty wet hole...It was a        
    hobbit hole, and that means comfort." 

Then, I saw the movie and decided that reading The Hobbit MAY just turn out to be like sitting on my grandfather's lap hearing a story that he can see so clearly in his mind.

The purpose of the story isn't so much to tell about hobbits and dwarves and trolls as it is to teach me things about life that he has learned.

That is, after all, what every good story is really about. So, I came home and dug through boxes until I found a copy of the book.

I realize that I may finish reading it (or stop reading it all together) and realize that it is actually just a story about hobbits and dwarves and trolls.

For now, I'm hoping that the bits of eloquent wisdom that were said in the movie came from the book and that the book is full of such stuff.

In the pages of Tolkien's book, the description of the hobbit hole continues,

    "...provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats - the 
   hobbit was fond of visitors." 

Doesn't that sound wonderful? To have a house where you KEEP room for visitors. To keep lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats where they can come and settle in.

As much as I have learned to be content without the constant presence of people, I still love a good visit. I still long to have a home that is suited for company and lots of it.

I know there are several other lines that I could share with you...Lines that gave me the feeling I was hoping for. We'll see what I have to learn from this book. 

In the meantime, enjoy your Saturday! Maybe you will find yourself settled in with a good book. I hope so!

Have you read The Hobbit? 

What is one of your all time favorite books? 

Are you more of a mover and a shaker or a settler and loner? 

Let's Go Fly A Kite

A few weeks ago, there was a VERY windy day. And what do kids do on a windy, "last few days of summer" day? They fly a kite! 

 

I haven't flown a kite in YEARS, probably over 10 years to be exact. When I was growing up, kite flying was pretty much limited to windy days at the beach. 

 

As you can tell, I am sure that this kite got picked up on some beach vacation.

On this particular day, I didn't actually fly the kite. I just watched and grabbed the camera. 

I had just as much fun watching the operation as they had flying it! The laughter, the instructions, the panic as it got too close to the trees. 
 

I was watching as two children, who really aren't "children" anymore, were having a good time. 

Who ever knew that this girl and this boy could become such a part of me? These are the babies I "made room" for. The toddlers I adored. The kids I was always trying to surprise and delight. The two that made me grow up and look "OLD". These two are the friends who go with me on picnics, hikes, horse rides, and to the movies. Who have come along on countless shopping trips and doctor's appointments.They made going out for fries and milkshakes fun and exciting.Playing countless games, having heart-to-hearts, pulling loose teeth, doing chores, cleaning bedrooms (ie HAZARDOUS areas), and making believe.

As young as I am, these two have made me feel like I've done pretty much everything I hope to do in life. (I have the gray hairs to prove it!)

They're right behind me. Always watching, always listening. They're right behind me, growing into a lovely lady and a great guy. They're right behind me, enjoying the "summer" of their life. 
 

 

One day, it will all be over. We'll all have very separate lives of our own. Maybe we'll all live close and get together just because. Maybe we'll live far away and only see each other on holidays.

Only God knows what things will turn out like. In the meantime, I'm very grateful for the time that we have had!

Two Walks

The special light that sunsets create are to me like the peace and joy and strength that come from knowing God and walking closely with Him.

This walk is familiar, it is the sunset. Many before me have enjoyed communion with Him. 

Yet, times come when the walk isn't so close. In those times the peace and joy and strength waiver. 

© Victoria 2012

I think He means for it to be that way. 

In this world that has been corrupted by the sin that we all hold so dear, we desperately need to feel the unsteadiness, the misery that comes when we are not walking with Him. 

Until we know what is to walk with Him, we cannot really know the misery of walking without Him. 

He was always there and yet, 

"...we esteemed Him not..."

Isaiah 53:3 

© Victoria 2011

Without the sunset of walking with God, that special light of truly knowing Him simply isn't there to be enjoyed.

Without the presence of God, lasting peace, joy, and strength simply aren't there to be enjoyed. 

How good He is to give us Himself as well as the ability to find fulfillment in Him.

Walk with Him...Bask in the light of the sunset and take the time to enjoy the beautiful light His presence creates in your life!