Hello Summer!

Now that summer is here our temps have been lower. I’m not complaining. I much prefer temps in the 70’s instead of the 80’s and 90’s.

Addy is happy with a storage tub filled with some water to play in. Who needs a fancy blow up pool?

I don’t know if I’ve shared these quotes from Alistair Begg before but I’m posting them here for my benefit.

“Don’t erect a monument to all your disappointments.”

“There is a perverse sense of satisfaction in our feeling sorry for ourselves”

And some verses from Psalm 119: 133, 160, 175:

Keep steady my steps according to your promise, and let no iniquity get dominion over me.

The sum of your word is truth and every one of your righteous rules endures forever.

Let my soul live and praise you and let your rules help me.

Have a good Saturday everyone.

“Baba, Where’s My Rag”?

Our Father’s day table this year was Red, White and Blue inspired by Flag Day. There were 11 of us counting Addy and JJ. Addy’s chair is not in these photos. At all the meals we’ve had at our house when I set the table with napkins and napkin rings I’ve added one for Addy too, on her highchair tray. For this meal I overlooked doing that. Baba fail! When Laura helped Addy into her highchair Addy looked around at the table I had set and said, “Where’s my rag?”. I hurried to grab her a napkin ring and napkin. I love that she calls a cloth napkin a rag.

The photo below is Addy in her chair at her house but she has an identical one at our house. I did not take photos of everyone around our Father’s Day table or the delicious food we had. Blogger fail. Since Addy’s question was the quote of the day I wanted to include a photo of her in this post. In the future I will not forget Addy’s rag.

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When Addy saw this banner (bunting) she said, “how cute”.

Reminds me of the song we used to sing…

The Lord is mine and I am His

His banner over me is love

He brought me to his banqueting table

His banner over me is love

I’ll keep our red, white and blue décor up through the summer.

It is staying light so late here in the northeast corner of Washington State. It was so light when we hit the sack at nine. Today we are heading to Spokane for an appointment. We’ll do a little shopping while we are there, too. Colville has a Wal-Mart, a Country Store, a North 40, a Builder’s supply, an Outdoor Sports store, a couple small décor stores, a few furniture stores, a Do-It Center, and a small independent Sears. When we go to Spokane we like to hit the Home Depot, Costco, Trader Joe’s, Hobby Lobby, Fred Meyer, At Home, T.J. Maxx and Total Wine.

More and more we are learning to do without the Spokane stores that we don’t have in Colville. I’m learning to appreciate Wal-Mart. When we lived on the Coast (Seattle area) I very rarely stepped foot in a Wal-Mart.

Today is the last day of Spring! Yikes! Enjoy the day dear bloggers and my other friends who visit here.

2 Months ~Jaymison Joshua

Jaymison Joshua’s  2 month mark has come and gone and before this time gets away from me I want to document it. He is nine weeks old today. It is so easy to concentrate on firstborns with no competition for attention. When you have a toddler around during the stages of life of the second born it’s easy to get distracted. That’s life and it comes with some good benefits for the second born, too. It’s not all bad to not be in the limelight all the time.

Here are our firstborn and second born. This photo was taken on Father’s Day 2019.

“Wait a minute Baba, this post is all about me so stop with the distractions.”

Saturday June 15th.

“I see you, Baba.”

Baba and Gramps love talking to you and watching you. We love you!

JJ, you have our full attention.

We thank God for you and ask Him to lead you and guide you to walk with Him.

“There’s Auntie Laura taking pictures of me and Baba.”

You and Uncle Joshua chillin on the couch.

Here you are with the guys on Father’s Day 2019.

Numbers 6:24-26 English Standard Version (ESV)

24 The Lord bless you and keep you;
25 the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
26 the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

Colville Rodeo Parade

We had a super weekend but I left my camera at our kids’ house in all the excitement and only have these fun photos our daughter-in-law posted on Facebook to share for now. My camera will get dropped off tomorrow.

This weekend besides being Father’s Day Weekend was the Colville Pro-West Rodeo Weekend. The parade was on Main Street. Our kids went to the parade on Saturday afternoon before coming to our place for a early Father’s Day dinner. Addy was a little concerned about all the loud noises.

She had fun collecting beads and candy from some of the floats in the parade.

It was a hot and humid day and Dear and I opted to skip the parade this year and make the final preparations for our time together Saturday evening. Just look at that sky in the photo above. It says heat and humidity to me. I am so very thankful for the heat pump we had installed in November. It is a pleasure to be cool inside when the temps get over 90 outside.

Thank you, Laura, for the great photos that you always take and share with us!

Hope you all had a good weekend.

The Old Rugged Cross ~ Hymn

The Old Rugged Cross

On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,
The emblem of suffering and shame;
And I love that old cross where the dearest and best
For a world of lost sinners was slain.

Refrain

So I’ll cherish the old rugged cross,
Till my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a crown.

O that old rugged cross, so despised by the world,
Has a wondrous attraction for me;
For the dear Lamb of God left His glory above
To bear it to dark Calvary.

Refrain

In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine,
A wondrous beauty I see,
For ’twas on that old cross Jesus suffered and died,
To pardon and sanctify me.

Refrain

To the old rugged cross I will ever be true;
Its shame and reproach gladly bear;
Then He’ll call me some day to my home far away,
Where His glory forever I’ll share.

Refrain

Words and Music by George Bennard

Summerlike, Summery…

We’ve had a week of very summerlike weather.

Can you see the sun shade dear put up for me so I could weed and not get burned to a crisp?

Now all I need are some nice knee pads.

The shade cloth was a relief to my body for the section I was working on. I need to get out in the early morning hours to weed again.

The Clematis at the end of the deck is moving up and clinging to our garden trellis. This one is a deep wine color or maroon.

Many more blooms are getting ready to show off.

The purple one and first one to bloom is continuing to show more blooms.

Way on the other side of the yard is the last to bloom Peony and it looks like it will be pink. We have 5 deep red peonies, a white one, and this pink one.

The lawns are mowed. Some weeding is done. Some weed killing is done. Watering is ongoing. We are looking forward to a Father’s Day celebration here on Saturday evening. It will be the first time our little Jaymison comes to Gramps and Baba’s house. It’s been several weeks since Addy has been here, too. She came once after Jaymison was born with her Auntie Laura.

Tomorrow is Flag Day. We’ll be flying our flags and I hope to have my red, white and blue buckets off the shelves to do some decorating at our Country Bungalow.

Happy Flag Day and Happy Father’s Day Weekend to all of you!

Seek First…

Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?

 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

~Matthew 6:26-34 (ESV)

It has been such a treat to enjoy the variety of birds that fly and perch in our back acres. How is your week coming? We are having a heat event with temps predicted in the 90’s tomorrow and Thursday and upper 80’s for Friday and the weekends. We are doing yard work in the early hours and watering in the evenings.

So far we haven’t managed to kill off any of the pretty things that are blooming in our yard. We purchased some rain bird sprinklers to use in our front acres so that they can do the watering for us. Gradually we are learning what are the best techniques and devices to use for the upkeep of our country bungalow.

St. John Vianney Chapel ~ Kenmore

While I was “on the coast”, besides spending time with the Mennonite Girls in Canada, I was able to have some extended time with our Coast Kids. On Thursday afternoon my daughter-in-law and I were able to visit this chapel in Kenmore where she and her family have a lot of history. The chapel is now a part of Bastyr University which is an alternative medicine university. I’m happy that they have kept the chapel in tact. St. John Vianney church have built a new church further down the road from this location. The stained glass windows are amazing works of art. I hope they will always be preserved.

After we spent time in the chapel we drove past our former home in Kenmore and were a wee bit disappointed in the upkeep of the property. Laura’s parents have also sold their homestead in this past year and we had the same feeling when we drove past her childhood home.

Later on Thursday evening we had a tasty dinner at Josh and Laura’s with Andrew, Katie and my sister Lana and her husband Steve. I was so pleased that we were able to have this time of fellowship together while I was in town. On Friday I got some alone shopping in and when Katie was done with work we spent a few hours together and met up with Josh for dinner, too. My time on “The Coast” was filled to the brim with what matters most.

Linking up with Angie at Letting Go of the Bay Leaf for Mosaic Monday.

I’m catching up after being away from home and this will be a busy week into the weekend, too. Hopefully I’ll have some good pockets of time to visit my favorite blogs. Hope you all have a good week ahead.

God is Working His Purpose Out ~ Hymn

God is Working His Purpose Out

God is working His purpose out
As year succeeds to year;
God is working his purpose out,
And the time is drawing near;
Nearer and nearer draws the time,
The time that shall surely be,
When the earth shall be filled
With the glory of God
As the waters cover the sea.

From utmost east to utmost west,
Where’er man’s foot hath trod,
By the mouth of many messengers
Goes forth the voice of God:
Give ear to Me, ye continents,
Ye isles, give ear to Me,
That the earth may be filled
With the glory of God
As the waters cover the sea.

What can we do to work God’s work,
To prosper and increase
The brotherhood of all mankind,
The reign of the Prince of Peace?
What can we do to hasten the time,
The time that shall surely be,
When the earth shall be filled
With the glory of God
As the waters cover the sea.

March we forth in the strength of God,
With the banner of Christ unfurled,
That the light of the glorious Gospel of truth
May shine throughout the world;
Fight we the fight with sorrow and sin
To set their captives free,
That the earth may be filled
With the glory of God
As the waters cover the sea.

All we can do is nothing worth
Unless God blesses the deed;
Vainly we hope for the harvest-tide
Till God gives life to the seed;
Yet near and nearer draws the time,
The time that shall surely be,
When the earth shall be filled
With the glory of God
As the waters cover the sea.

Words: Arthur C. Ainger, 1894.

Eleven Years and Counting…

On Wednesday, June 5th, eight of the Mennonite Girls Can Cook gathered at Lovella’s for a luncheon to celebrate our 11th year together.

Lovella provided all the oh so delicious food except for that beautiful cake that Anneliese made and brought to share.

Prayer For Friendship

You have blessed us, O God,
with the gift of friendship,
the bonding of persons
in a circle of love.

We thank you for such a blessing:
for friends who love us,
who share our sorrows,

who laugh with us in celebration,
who bear our pain,
who need us as we need them,
who weep as we weep,

who hold us when words fail,
and who give us the freedom
to be ourselves.

Bless our friends with health,
wholeness, life, and love.
Amen.

This poem by Vienna Cobb Anderson was shared with us by our dear Betty who lives in the same Province as Charlotte so neither of them could be with us for this celebration at Lovella’s home. The weather did not hamper our wonderful time under the tent. Our time and our ongoing friendship is all this poem expresses.