BIRDS NESTS & BUNNIES

I had a crafy-weekend with with my youngest sister, 10 year old Susanna. She came to spend part of the weekend with us while bigger sister & parents were involved in a youth group function.

We made braided fabric birds' nests at the suggestion of Happy Things http://happythings.typepad.com/happythings/2008/02/happythings-2-3.html

First we cut long strips of earthy-colored fabrics, which we braided together.

Then we sewed the brades into a coil, to form a cup shape.

The finished product looked like this:

And the very happy nest-maker looked like this:

Then we planned the dinner menu, which ended up looking like scalloped potatoes from a box, chicken noodle soup & biscuits from scratch. We rouned off our healthy dinner with ginger ale, while watching (for the millioneth time) the one Tom & Jerry video in our collection. (Which is, incidentally, the only cartoon that she'll watch). She was delighted to hold the power of making all of the evening decisions without her opinionated older sister "helping".

Here is a cute pic of Nan making the biscuits:

Sunday she went home, and I came back to the house & spent the afternoon making her Christmas present (SHHH! DON'T TELL HER!), which is an adaptation of this adorable pattern from Wee Wonderfuls http://weewonderfuls.typepad.com/wee_wonderfuls/store/wee-bunny.html

The pink one turned out a little bit bunchy, and I had to change the way I made the ears because it was nearly impossible to do them the way that the pattern said. But I think that they turned out just great. And the best part is that everyone who made them was raving on how easy & fast it was. I thought "yeah, right, they might say that it's easy, but as soon as I try it, it will turn into a huge ordeal". But they were right! SOOOO easy!

PROMISED

I read something someone wrote this morning, and it has stuck with me…they were musing on whether their life was all that there is, or if more can be expected…as a child of God, is it right to want more, or to just be content with what is. But the poser was the comment that, after all, Jesus never promised anything.
Just a musing, something someone was thinking about, something I happened to stumble upon on the right day at the right moment to get the gears in my head working. It may not be right to expect or demand more than what has already been bestowed- but I know that Jesus has promised things to me. He has promised that He will give peace, and that abundantly. He has promised that His yoke will be easy & His burden will be light. He has promised to be with me always. Snippets from very familiar Bible passages, often glossed over in their extreme familiarity & over-marketed clichéness. But just stop for a moment and consider these all-to-familiar verses…or are they?
He has promised PEACE. Peace like a spring day with daffodils, peace like a hug from a loved one, peace like the sighing of Bronn Journey’s harp, peace like the moment when the autumn sun dies into the earth in golden hallowedness. He has promised me peace.
He has promised lift the weight of those things that are too hard for me to bear, strength when the journey seems to long endure, help when the burden is too heavy, HELP when I can no longer see my way through the storm or the fog or when the trail withers and fades away and I find myself alone in a wilderness. He has promised to ease my burden. He has promised help.
And he has promised to be WITH ME always! To be with me when I am happy, to be with me when I am sad. He will be there when I have spent the last of my strength and can go no more, He will whisper in my ear when I don’t know what to say. He will be beside me when the voices of the angels of heaven are shouting for joy over me, just as surely as He will be right by my side when the dark forces of the hosts of hell rise up to defeat me. He will be with me always.
He is Emmanuel- God with me. He is El Shaddai- my God is enough.
He has promised.

Where I find myself

o·a·sis

(ō-ā'sĭs) n. pl. o·a·ses (-sēz)

1) A fertile or green spot in a desert or wasteland, made so by the presence of water.

2) A situation or place preserved from surrounding unpleasantness; a refuge: an oasis of serenity amid chaos.

(courtesy of www.dictionary.com)

SEPTEMBER

A month which is usually filled to overflowing with wonderful things- crispness returning to the air, perfect hiking weather, the last of the summer sun, putting the garden to bed for the winter, finishing up the last of the yard projects, cutting firewood & curling up in front of the wood stove's blazing cozieness... but not this year. September this year has been a month of foggy brains, kleenex, tylenol, orange juice & blankets on couches. I have been sick with Something for nearly a month now. Finally gave up and went to the doctor's last week only to find out that it's just a sinus & ear infection- all that for THIS?! The guys at work are hoping for a case of the bird flu, and I'm sure that it's much more related to the Plague than a simple sinus infection. At any rate, I have learned from my dear hubby these long weeks how to properly put a dinner menu together as I've watched him alternate between the "pancake & sausage", "saltines & pnut butter" and the "microwave popcorn & pudding cups" menu...poor guy is desperately ready for a wife to make dinner again!
The Doc gave me a prescription to some version of something which is reportedly capable of killing the nastiest bug in no time (though lots of time has passed & the bug still hangs on) so hopefully October can be the month of hiking, leaf raking, gardening & general battening-down-the-hatches before winter comes.

On another note, many of my friends have asked for a long time for me to post photos of our wedding. I finally found them this weekend, and will try to get some up on here soon (just in time for our second anniversary, too!).

INTRODUCTIONS

I would like to introduce you all to our little critter family...

Bongo is a Basenji/English Pointer cross. His humongous ears are his biggest asset. They make every female-anything swoon on the spot (forget peaceful walks when people are around!). He loves to dig huge holes, and be with his people (whom he adores). He is 60lbs of laughing energy, is slowly chewing our back porch to the ground, loves to run and drives Daniel crazy. He joined us in June of this year, and is approximately a year old.
Isabella the Imp came along in July. She's a Snow Bengal & comes from a succession of homes where life was not so good for her. She's probably 2 years old. She looks innocently sweet- but she opens all of the cupboards, sorts through all of the contents, steals all of the toys, and pokes at the other cats until a raging brawl occurs and threatens to tear the house apart...but she is of course above reproach in all things.
Polaris a Korat, and the Queen of our Castle. She maintains her rule with an iron paw. The only thing she is afraid of is the rabbit (go figure- but the rabbit gave her a good reason!). We got her when she was a wee 6-wk-old kitten, and named her "Polaris" after she dove into a bowl of carrots & snatched one away for her dinner, snarling & growling. Polaris means "Spirit of the Bear" and is another name for the North Star. She's now 2 years old.
Sherman was a stray found huddled in the woods at my parents. We think he's a Russian Blue, and about 1 1/2 years old. His one goal in his new life with us is to love and be loved...oh yeah, and spend as much time as possible sleeping on something soft & cozey. Life in the woods was terribly traumatic, and he never wants to go outside again. He earned the name "Sherman" because he is, as Daniel says, like a Panzer Tank...Panzer didn't quite fit, and since he's an American cat he was named after the American tank "Sherman".
Serengeti is a Bengal cat like Isabella. The breed is a direct decendant of a wild cat breed which is found in Africa/India/etc. He is special, and he is quite sure of it! Every night he "kills" his toys & brings them to our bedroom loudly proclaiming his superior hunting skills...and then he curls up on the bed & purrs contentedly for the rest of the night. He is 1 1/2 yrs old, and can jump 7' straight up. He views his greatest personal accomplishment as being the time he nearly killed the duck (ran out the door & pounced) that is twice as big as him. Well, he thinks he nearly killed the duck- really the duck just lost two feathers & some dignity.

There are several more critters that live in various corners of our home & yard, but the introductions will have to come at a later date when I have photos...

More soon!