Category Archives: Blog Carnival

Four Somethings in October

I’m joining a new to me monthly blog party today called Share 4 Somethings 2024. Coming in late since there are only 3 of these left in 2024. Thank you to Jenn at Overflowing with Thankfulness for the party.

Today we’re talking about the things we loved or disliked, accomplished, improved upon/needs improvement, and noticed this month.

Since I’m coming in late, I’ll keep it simple.

Loved or Disliked…

October was a great month watching our kids (3 adult children and their spouses) and grands (two grands, a girl and a boy) soaking in the October moments on the westside of our state. I love that they make an effort to keep their relationships growing and enjoy time spent with each other.

I also loved seeing our grands with the pumpkins they picked at our local Pumpkin farm and corn maze. (photo at top of post)

I disliked the fact that our property taxes practically doubled this year. They are due on October 31st…scary. 🙂

Improved Upon/Needs Improvement…

I could use some improvement on my food plans for hubby and me.

Noticed this Month…

We live in a small country town in Northeast Washington State. We were on Main Street this week and I noticed this sign outside Redbird Boutique (a clothing store). The sign made me chuckle. Hunting season is real in these parts!

Wow! Here we are in the last weekend of October! Enjoy it while you can!

Thanks again, Jenn, for the linky party!

VW’s and Smiles Hodgepodge

Thank you to Jo From This Side of the Pond for our fresh Wednesday Hodgepodge questions!

1. Monday was National Apple Day…did you eat an apple or enjoy something made with apples on Monday? Do you like apples? Do you prefer your apples raw, baked, or in cider? Do you have a favorite variety of apple? 

I did not eat anything apple on Monday. I do like apples but don’t have them often. I enjoy them raw, baked or in cider. I like the tart apples.

2. Do you think there’s any truth to the saying ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away’. Of the following healthy habits which do you find easiest to incorporate into your life and which is the most difficult for you to adopt-

adequate sleep, a balanced diet, plenty of water, eat breakfast, don’t smoke, exercise, limit alcohol,  include fruits and vegetables in your diet, manage stress, limit screen time

There might be some truth to that saying as far as it being a part of more healthy choices.

The easiest for me is; don’t smoke, since I’ve never smoked. Unfortunately I did inhale a lot of second hand smoke in the 60’s and 70’s working in offices where smoking was still okay. The most difficult to adopt is a balanced diet.

3. Who taught you how to drive? Do you enjoy driving? Would you rather be the driver or the passenger?  Do you have a favorite scenic drive near you? 

My brother, Fred, taught me to drive a stick shift. He even let me learn in his VW Bug. I think I taught myself to drive an automatic. While I’m typing the answers here on Tuesday the 22nd, it happens to be Fred’s 75th birthday.

This photo of my siblings and me from 2009 is the most current photo I have of our brother Fred. Left to right; Kathy, Vera, Fred, me, Lana and Steve. My brothers Tim and Leonard are missing from this photo.

The first car I purchased with a car loan and the first car I owned that I actually liked was this VW Bug.

I do enjoy driving if it’s not snowing or raining hard. On a scenic drive, I prefer to be a passenger so I can take photos. On a shopping trip that involves navigating parking lots and getting to several different store destinations, I prefer driving. We are blessed with many scenic drives in our neck of the woods. Driving to Wal-Mart is scenic. Driving along the Columbia River is a favorite!

4. What small habit has had a big impact on your life? 

Smiling. Since early years I have found it easy to smile, especially to smile at people. Smiling has opened up some interesting opportunities and conversations.

5. Tell us about something nice that happened to you recently.

It is so nice living close enough to our grands that we can see them and get that ‘hello’ hug and that ‘goodbye’ hug and any snuggles in between.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

We have been enjoying some beautiful fall colors on all our drives here in Colville.

The golden larches are my favorite!

I’ve figured out my photo issues and I hope my photo platform is slow in making any new changes for me to figure out!!

This is a quote I copied from an article I read this week.

“Discontent makes a wasteland of the greenest garden—-even Eden. But contentment bears fruit in any circumstance.” Andrea Hoglund

Happy Wednesday, Hodgepodgers, Faithful Bloggers, and readers. I’m thankful for you all.

A Significant Hodgepodge

If it’s Wednesday it must be time for the Hodgepodge. Thank you, Joyce for the questions!

1. How did you meet your significant other? If you don’t have a significant other, tell us how you met your best friend. 

We met at a church where this Christian singing group was performing. Greg was in the group and my best friend became a part of the group. I went with my friend to her first performance with the group and met Greg there. Later when they needed to replace an alto in the group, I auditioned and became part of the group. We are on the far right in both of these photos while on tour in England. The sign that got chopped off in the photo above says Jesus is Alive Today. In England we sang in schools during their religious education classes. In the evening we would sing in a church or community center. Our relationship blossomed during our 70’s Christian Rock band tours of England.

Here I am being mobbed for my autograph by young girls at one of the schools we performed at.

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During our tours in England we’d have a holiday week after 3 weeks of singing at least 3 times a day across parts of England. This photo of Greg is from when we were on holiday at the end of our concert series.

2. It’s Department Store Day (October 16)…do you still shop in department stores? If not do you miss that kind of shopping experience? Do you have a favorite department store? Any fun memories of department store shopping when you were a child? 

Living in the country my department store experience is limited to Wal-Mart. I don’t have childhood memories in a department store. When we lived on the other side of the Cascade Mountain Range my favorite department store was Fred Meyer. I suppose Costco is a type of department store or at least it fits the definition. That is a store we always stop at when we travel south to Spokane.

3. Something you’re currently nuts about? 

I love Autumn/Fall. I’m enjoying the change in weather and all the fall color that is showing. I love soup weather.

4. What’s your favorite nut and is there a favorite recipe where this nut is used? 

I enjoy nuts and my favorite nut in recipes is the walnut. Our mom’s Russian Nut Roll (Roolyet) is my favorite.

Our Mom’s Roolyet (Russian Nut Roll)

 

5. On Wednesday we officially reach the ’70 days until Christmas’ mark. Have you purchased any gifts? If you don’t celebrate Christmas then how about Hanukkah presents? 

I have purchased a few things. While in Scotland, I bought a couple of new ornaments for the tree, too.

6. Insert your own random thought here.  

Me and my guy waiting for our charter flight to England in 1973.

My photo sharing site is giving me grief again so it might be a while before I can post more from our travels in Scotland. These kinds of problems are never easy for me to solve. OYE!

Being An Adult Hodgepodge

Joyce From This Side of the Pond has a fresh set of questions for us to ponder for Wednesday Hodgepodge.

1. Growing up, at what age did you think you’d become an adult? At what age did you actually become an adult? 

If I thought about it I didn’t call it being an adult. The older siblings in my family had some responsibilities that were adult like earlier in life. Our parents immigrated to the U.S. just after World War II, legally. Our mom never drove and our pop had to work hard to support a family with 8 children.  Sometimes my older sisters and I walked into town to pay bills in person with cash from our parents. We got ourselves to swimming lessons, the library, and to school. When I got my license there were times that I took my younger brothers to their baseball practices and games. When many of my friends were at senior prom, I was at my younger brother’s baseball game.  In my senior year of high school I had enough credits to graduate with morning classes. I found an afternoon job at a local company and got rides to and from work. I saved up for college with that job. I earned scholarships for most of my college costs. My older sister drove me to the University of Redlands for my freshman year and helped me settle in. We didn’t have and didn’t expect input from our parents on which college to go to. If they could they would help with college costs but mostly we paid our own way. We purchased our own cars and they were mostly used cars. After college I was able to finance my Volkswagen at a school credit union and when I paid that off, like an adult, I earned some good credit.

2.  What’s a favorite item you’ve bought this year?

At our church my area of service is the kitchen and the hospitality branch. We had some money left in the budget so I was able to purchase a coffee system that got plumbed and makes providing coffee at functions so much easier. Instead of those big old coffee pots that you have to fill with water, add the coffee in the baskets and plug in two hours before an event, we can now fill a basket with coffee grounds push the button on the new system and have 2.2liters of coffee in 5 minutes. Yes, and amen!

3. May 28th is National Hamburger Day…are you a fan? If so, how do you like yours? When was the last time you had a hamburger? Besides the backyard grill, what’s your favorite place to go for a burger? 

We do enjoy a good burger. We hadn’t had burgers for a long while but Saturday of Memorial weekend we had a good burger on the way home from shopping in Spokane. We enjoy the burgers at Masters Brew House in Deer Park. Their onion jam that you can have on a burger is delicious. Sorry to say we haven’t found a good burger in Colville. We have fond memories of In N Out burgers.

4.  How have your priorities changed over time? 

The closer I get to heaven the more concerned I am about friends and family and people in general who haven’t had their debt to God paid by Jesus Christ. We all have a debt of sin on our accounts. You can trust Christ who suffered and died and rose from the dead to provide that debt payment.  You need to ask forgiveness (repent) for your sin and put your faith in him and His sacrifice. What Jesus accomplished will pay your debt in full or you will have to pay that sin debt to God yourself in hell. Only Christ’s sacrifice provides the way. You can not earn it by being a ‘good’ person or a ‘religious’ person. It’s a no brainer to me. I’m getting too old to sugar coat this message. Heaven is real and Hell is real. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the Father but by Him.

5. What’s one thing on your June calendar you’re really looking forward to? 

The very last weekend in June our family of 10 will be enjoying time together in Walla Walla at a VRBO.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Our son gifted his dear bride a long weekend away over Memorial Weekend. He took time off of work and cared for our Grands while mommy was gone. We enjoyed feeding them a meal on Friday night of the weekend.

First corn on the cob this year!

If the Shoe Fits Hodgepodge

On the Kirkland waterfront at Carillon Point for dinner on Friday night the 17th of May.

Another Wednesday has rolled around and Joyce has a new set of questions for Hodgepodge.

1. What are you currently juggling in your life? 

I’m juggling exercise, eating, yard care, trip planning, garage sale preparations and understanding apps and catching up with events on my blog now that I have a way to post photos again.

2. How often do you buy new clothes?

When I see something that I know will work on my current body size and is a reasonably priced item I purchase it.

What was the last piece of clothing you purchased? 

This past weekend was all about shoes! We were visiting our kids on the Westside of the mountains. There is a Brooks Shoe outlet that is convenient to where our kids live. I like a particular Brooks brand that works well on my feet. I bought a pair, Dear bought a pair, and a pair was purchased for each of our Colville kids. They gave Laura their sizes and pictures were sent back and forth and purchases made. I found a pair of Merrill waterproof shoes in my size at REI on the clearance table so those were purchased, too. Dear found a pair of dressier/casual Clark shoes at Nordstrom Rack. We had lots of shoe boxes to juggle! 🙂

I’m defaulting to shoes as a form of clothing. 🙂

3. What food festival would you most like to attend? If you need help here are links to some of the bigger and more popular food events around the world-

For many reasons food festivals do not call out to me.

4. May is the 5th month of the year. Tell us something you remember about your 5th grade year. 

Oh boy…fifth grade was a can of worms for me. There are only two teachers in my schooling experience that I had reasons to believe did not like me. One of those was my Junior High Geometry teacher (he’s the one that gave me a D even though my tests, etc. were a solid C) When I questioned him and tried to show him my test results, etc., he blew up in front of the whole class and said quote, “Are you calling me a liar?”. Then he sent me to the girls vice principal. She was sympathetic but I still received the D.

My fifth grade teacher, Mrs. Helm, was the other teacher that gave me the impression that she did not like me. I was an avid reader in my elementary years and beyond and a quote that came into my head one day in her class when she told me to sit down was, “I might be sitting down on the outside but I’m standing up on the inside.” 

In 5th grade running out to the playground the girl right in front of me stopped and bent down to tie her shoe abruptly. I fell over her and ended up chipping a bone in my wrist. The office called my mother and they had to order a cab to take us to our doctor who x-rayed and put my wrist in a cast. Our mother never learned to drive. Our father was unreachable when he worked on different sites around the Los Angeles area.

The good thing I remember about 5th grade is that a girl from Scotland moved to our school and came to our class later in the year. I was fascinated by her and struck a friendship with her and enjoyed her friendship.

5. What are your favorite five words right now? 

Jesus ~ Truth ~ Lovingkindness ~ Rescued ~ Maranatha

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

We enjoyed a long weekend on the Westside of the mountains with our ‘Coast Kids’. I’ll be posting about that and the other events I couldn’t add photos for in the month of May. Blog catch-up including this event…

Joys and Woes Hodgepodge

Speaking of Kentucky this photo is of the Historic Boone Tavern Hotel in Berea, Kentucky. We stayed there on a roadtrip to North Carolina in September of 2021.

Time for this weeks questions for Wednesday Hodgepodge. Thank you, Jo!

1. Did you watch the Kentucky Derby this past weekend?  No

Have you ever been to a horse race? No

Ever ridden a horse? Did you enjoy it?

I just barely remember riding a horse once in my early adult years and it was intimidating.

Have you ever been to Kentucky?

Yes, in 2021 on our road trip to a wedding in North Carolina we drove through Kentucky making stops in Louisville, Shelbyville, Williamstown for The Ark Encounter and on our way out we stayed in Berea at the Historic Boone Tavern Hotel on a college campus.

Do you like Bourbon? 

The bourbon aficionado in the family is Dear and he enjoys it in all it’s forms. Straight or on the rocks or an Old Fashioned, a Black Manhattan, or with a touch of Amaretto. He is not a big fan of the mint julep.

While we were in Kentucky we did schedule one tour at the Bulleit Distillery and enjoyed it and we got the best recommendation for barbecue at the Red State Barbecue in Lexington.

2.  What’s something you wish you’d placed in a time capsule fifteen years ago? 

My very first little white flip phone that was kind of smart.

3. Are you adventurous? Elaborate. 

I am adventurous with conditions. Although I’ve managed to get around on my own in Milan, Italy, while Greg was there for business, foreign countries that are not English speaking are not in my comfort zone. When and if we are able to travel for pleasure, we will always choose the United Kingdom, Canada and the U.S.A. I can comfortably travel to places I’ve never been to before in those countries.

I can be adventurous in the kitchen with trying new things.

Truth be told, the older I get the less adventurous I’m becoming.

4. Something you want to make this year? It can be a new recipe, craft, diy project, a milestone you’ve set for yourself…anything at all. 

I’d like to make more of our Russian heritage recipes and pass them along to the next generation.

5. Cinco de Mayo was also celebrated this past weekend…do you like Mexican food? If so what’s your favorite dish?

Mexican food is comfort food for me. I have lots of favorites starting with good salsa. I enjoy street tacos, burritos, chimichangas, carne asada, chile colorado, and other dishes. My favorite is whatever I’m in the mood for that day.

Have you ever been to Mexico? 

Yes. I’ve only been to Tijuana and Tecate along the border with the U.S.A. and there is a long story as to why and what we did there.

Growing up in the suburbs of Los Angeles we enjoyed Mexican culture and friendships. My elementary school celebrated Mexican cultural days and one of our field trips was to Olvera Street. I can also remember the smell of pinto beans being cooked on the burner in our Mexican neighbor’s kitchen.

Olvera Street, commonly known by its Spanish name Calle Olvera, is a historic pedestrian street in El Pueblo de Los Ángeles, the historic center of Los Angeles.

In California we studied the California Missions in fourth grade. The elementary school that our sons attended in Ventura, California was named after Father Junipero Serra. He is credited with being the founder of the California missions.

Margarita-yes or no?

On the rocks, no salt, please.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I’m slowly going through my blog posts and weeding out photos so that I can to get down below my photo limit. OYE! If that wasn’t enough, now my blogroll on my sidebar has disappeared from view.  I get a failed to load plug-ins message. This is very inconvenient and takes a lot of time to try to remedy.

Hope all is well in your corners!

 

Hello May Hodgepodge!

It’s the Merry Month of May and time for our first May Hodgepodge. Thank you to Jo From This Side of the Pond for the timely questions.

I’ll be using photos from my archives for many posts until I can figure out how to be able to add more media to my site. Such a revolting development.

1. Mayday! Mayday!…when was the last time (or a recent time) you literally or figuratively needed to call for help? Elaborate. 

A few months back we had to call our son to help with our water heater that wasn’t putting out any hot water. Brrr. He was a huge help scraping out a bunch of residue and helping Greg with draining the thing and installing some new parts.

2. May Day…when was the last time you danced?

At our brother and sister’s 60th birthday party at a ranch in Texas on July 29th 2023 we enjoyed some line dancing.

Do you have a lot of baskets?

I have a few baskets.

What’s something you keep in a basket?

Napkin rings. I have a lot of napkin rings, y’all. I have sets in ziplock bags. Sets of 4, sets of 6, sets of 8, sets of 10, sets of 12 and some sets over 12. Sets of 6 and under are in a basket. Sets of 8 are in a basket. Sets of 10 and over are in a basket.

What’s your favorite purple flower? 

Oh, this is a hard one. I love purple flowers. I’ll go with lavender even though we won’t see fields like these until July.

This collage is from several years ago at the Annual lavender festival held in Sequim, Washington.

3. What’s something you may do this month? 

We might be putting out our outdoor furniture soon.

4. Do you like eggplant? Quick topic changes lol? If you said yes in answer to the eggplant question how do you like yours prepared? Of the following purple foods, which one is your favorite…plums, purple carrots, purple asparagus, eggplant, acai berries, blackberries, purple cauliflower, elderberries, purple potatoes, or passion fruit? 

Not a huge fan of eggplant and I don’t think I’ve ever cooked eggplant. In my Russian culinary heritage there is a dish called Ikra that is a popular dish to spread on bread or crackers to enjoy, an eggplant caviar. My mother did make it and my sister Vera has made it. The recipe is in our family cookbook that Vera put together.

  • 1 eggplant, peeled and chopped
  • 1-2 carrots, grated
  • 1 onion chopped
  • 1 can tomato sauce
  1. Saute onion in oil until tender.
  2. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer until eggplant is soft, 1-1/2 to 2 hours.
  3. If it gets too dry, add more tomato sauce.
  4. Another method is to bake the eggplant in the oven until it is soft and then peel and chop it. This will reduce the simmering time.

From the list of purple things, Blackberries are my favorite.

5. The calendar turns on Hodgepodge Day…

“Then you have to remember to be thankful; but in May one simply can’t help being thankful that they are alive, if for nothing else.”-L.M. Montgomery

Tell us one thing you’re thankful for today. 

Just one!? I’m thankful for how our Grands are growing and learning about our God who created them and loves them.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Tonight is Awana Awards night. These photos are from the last couple years. JJ graduates from Cubbies tonight and next year he’ll be a Sparky. Addy will get some awards tonight because she finished all her books and all her verses and then did some extra books and verses! She will still be a Sparky next year.

This is Addy two years ago when she was still a Cubby.

Happy May everyone!

Planning with the Hodgepodge

The photo above is of me on an old bridge in Scotland in 1973 or 1974. It is too bad that I do not know where in Scotland this was taken. This was during one of the summers we toured with our Christian ‘Rock’ Music Group.

Thanks to Jo From This Side of the Pond for Wednesday Hodgepodge.

1. When did you last have cancelled plans? Were you happy about that or disappointed? 

Nothing recently that I can think of. Our 2020 trip to England was the big trip where our airfare and housing was purchased and we had to cancel because of Covid. We were disappointed and were happier about the cancelled plans when we got totally reimbursed for all we had put out in advance.

2. On a scale of 1-10 how much of a planner are you? 

1= I go where the wind takes me  
10=I’ve got a power point on it, no matter what it is
I can let the wind take me on small whim day trips. When we look out the window at a beautiful day and have nothing on our calendar, we are free to pick a direction to drive to and just drive stopping when we feel like it.
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For other trips where either airfare is involved or we drive several days to a destination via car, I’m a obsessed planner! There have been so many things we missed because we just didn’t know it was there. On trips to the United Kingdom there will always be things we miss because of time and energy but I want to know as much as I can to pick and choose what we should not miss.
~
For the day to day stuff, I use a calendar and list of things I need to accomplish in any given week and I love to cross things off on that list.

3. Do you have a menu plan for the week? If so tell us one or two things that are on it. If not, what’s your plan for not having a plan lol? 

Shocking that a Home Economics major has never had a menu plan! I plan a meal as to what is in the fridge and cupboard or head to the store to buy what I need to make an inspired meal or head to somewhere to do a take-out meal. I might have planned better when our kids were little but that was over 30 years ago!

4. The Hodgepodge lands on National Bucket List Day. Do you have a bucket list?

Kind of…

Is it written down or just in your head?

Mostly in my head…

What is one thing on your bucket list? If you don’t have a list, what is one thing you’d add to a list if you did? Yes I’m going to make you think about it. 

Spending some time in the north east part of the U.S. and crossing into Canada going as far as Prince Edward Island.

At present I’m in the detailed gathering of information stage as to where to go and what to see in Scotland. Lord willing, we will be traveling with Josh and Laura to Scotland in September. Once we nail down our dates and flights the real planning can begin with bookings, etc.  Part of my gathering of information is reading a book about John Knox.

5. Rain buckets, a drop in the bucket, couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket, sweat buckets, cry buckets…which ‘bucket’ idiom applies to your life in some way currently? 

Currently, a drop in the bucket seems appropriate as we are entering weeding season and my efforts are always just a drop of what could be done!

6. Insert your own random thought here.  

A couple photos from 2004 when we were in Scotland with our daughter Katie.

We were also in Scotland in 2006. Both of these times were before we had digital cameras.

Happy Hodgepodge to all of you!

Got Skills?

Our grandson turned 5 this week and his new bike is already getting a workout. Riding a bicycle is a good skill to have! JJ at 5 already has many good life skills! We enjoyed a fun bowling party to celebrate JJ this past Saturday.

Thank you to Joyce From This Side of the Pond for skillfully posting questions each week for Wednesday Hodgepodge! 

1. What’s a skill you think everyone should have? 

Tying your shoes. Personal Hygiene. Use of basic tools. Cooking skills enough to be able to feed yourself. Basic Math. Reading. Writing. Following a Map. Driving. Putting gas in a vehicle. Earning money. Making a bed. Cleaning a toilet. Running a washing machine, dryer, and dishwasher. How to use a computer.

I could not stop at just one.

2. Do you have a special place or organizational system for gift wrapping?

I have a general bin with gift bags, wrapping paper and tissue and a separate Christmas bin with the same items. I also have a basic ribbon bin and a Christmas ribbon bin.

Do you still buy ‘real’ cards to send for birthdays, anniversaries, get-well, etc? 

I do still have real cards that I send for these events. TIP: Buy your cards at the Dollar stores where many cards are 2 for a dollar or a dollar each!

3. It’s National Banana Day…are you a fan? What’s your favorite thing to make with bananas or, if you’re not a cook, your favorite thing to eat that contains banana? 

We don’t keep bananas around here typically but when we do have bananas that have fully ripened we enjoy our favorite, Banana Bread.

4. Do you believe in second chances? Elaborate. 

Where would any of us be without second chances? We all fall, fail, make mistakes. We need to be forgiven and we need to forgive. We need reconciliation in this world.

Matthew 18:21-22  Then Peter came and said to Him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus *said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.

5. What is your idea of fun? 

Fun for me is any event that makes me smile at the end of the day. The feeling of satisfaction that comes from time together, good conversations, worthwhile projects completed. Good things and good interactions that satisfy and improve your heart and mind. Time well spent.

Something specific that I enjoy is planning a trip. I like to research areas and consider all the choices of things to see and do. This is a fun exercise for me.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Besides all the birthday fun for JJ, Addy had her first Irish Dance Recital with the Haran Dancers.

Full post coming soon.

Have Patience Hodgepodge

On Tuesday we took our first walk of the year on the Rotary Trail here in Colville. What a beautiful day!

Thank you to Joyce From This Side of the Pond for Wednesday Hodgepodge.

1. Do you complete your own tax returns or hire out? Something you’ve found taxing lately? 

When we have to complete tax returns, we’ve always hired out.

I am finding weeding and other planter upkeep more and more taxing on my body the older I get. Just getting down and up again can be a challenge. Using the weed wacker and the hedge trimmer is harder and harder.

2. It’s spring (in the northern hemisphere anyway)…would you rather spend the day hiking in the great outdoors or planting a garden? Do you/will you have a garden this year? Flowers, vegetables, or a bit of both?

I’m not a hiker or a gardener. I will walk on relatively flat areas with gentle slopes in the great outdoors and I will weed the planters and mow in the grassy areas. We have a wonderful array of perennials that pop up every year without any help from me. I owe those lovely spots of color to previous owners of our country bungalow. Besides peonies, columbines, lavender, day lilies, lily of the valley, we have a relentless rhubarb plant and some garlic that emerges without help from us.

3. Do you consider yourself a patient person?

On the outside I can be very patient. I’m a Born Again follower of Jesus and because of that I am in a lifelong Sanctification process where the Holy Spirit is working on my inside changing my mind about a lot of things through what I read in God’s Word, The Bible. Part of that process is in making me more patient on the inside.

In what sort of situation is patience not desirable?

When your house is on fire or when a life is at risk it is time to abandon patience!

Are you happy with the degree of patience you have in your daily life? If not, what can you do to cultivate more of this quality in your life? 

In many situations I pray that God would give me a ‘Mary’ attitude instead of a ‘Martha’ attitude.

But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:41-42

The good portion is Jesus, believing on Him, sitting at His feet, following Him and learning more about Him and loving Him more and more which develops into a solid trust.

Some practical steps I’ve practiced lately…

Let someone go ahead of me in line. Plan ahead and give myself all the time necessary to accomplish tasks or get to an appointment on time. Think about the other person in a situation and consider what they might be going through. Don’t think too highly of myself and my importance. Consider the other person as important. Tell myself, I’m not in charge of the World, God is.

4. Do you like the flavor cinnamon? If so what’s your favorite something made with cinnamon? 

I do enjoy cinnamon. I don’t have them often but I won’t turn down a fresh out of the oven cinnamon roll!

5. Learn by watching or learn by doing? Elaborate. 

I need both the watching and the doing. After watching I can dive in and do and then I am more confident and better equipped to do.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Do any of you remember the Kids Psalty song ‘Have Patience’ from the 80’s?

Have patience, have patience, don’t be in such a hurry. When you get impatient you only start to worry. Remember, remember, that God is patient, too. And think of all the times that others had to wait for you.