New Stuff

The Fireflies Are Back!

I'd like to take a moment to say, is there anything more relaxing than a warm summer dusk and watching the fireflies talk to each other in your backyard?  I contend not!  It seems to me that fireflies have been more scarce this year, but last night as I was reeling in the hose, they were out in full force.  I sat down in a patio chair and just enjoyed watching them blink to each other for quite a while...it's just fascinating to me that they can do that.  To me, seeing the fireflies is a quintessential summer staple.  I'm not a bug person, but I do like the fireflies and their blinking little behinds!  For some interesting facts on fireflies, check out this link.

Fireflies!

What Else Is New?

Well, I'm proud to say that we have had several projects finally completed on our house!  Our roof has been replace and looks great, our living room has been repainted and rearranged and looks great, and our new couch has been delivered and looks great.  The roof took about a day and a half, and we did have an Amish crew do the work.  Overall, they did a great job.  We decided to go with a two-tone gray shingle instead of staying with the reddish-brown shingles that were there when we bought the house, and it's a nice change.  They also re-roofed our shed out back. Over the Independence Day long weekend, my husband and I were able to repaint the living room and hallway with some deeply-discounted Sherwin-Williams paint (we bought $45 a gallon paint for $25 a gallon!) and we went back to the basics--a creamy off-white color, which looks great with the leather couch and large wall map picture from Hobby Lobby (which we purchased on clearance).  Except for the couch, it was a pretty inexpensive change, and we couldn't be happier!

New Boss

We're also going through a transition at work.  The former pastor was reappointed to a new church, and the new pastor started Friday.  I don't work on Fridays, and Monday was a holiday, so I didn't actually work with him until Tuesday...except I barely saw him.  I know what it's like to be the new person at a job--I've been that many times.  I don't think, though, that I've ever had to experience a new boss!  This will be a new experience for me, and a time of transition for everyone.  My husband has patiently reminded me a few times that I don't really work for my new boss...that I work for Him, and that God's in control of the situation.  As a person who seems to increasingly dislike changes and disruptions in my daily routine, it's difficult to handle some of the recent changes with any sort of grace.  I don't have a choice, though, and it will all work out one way or another.  I just need to continue to put my trust in Christ.

New Creative Idea

As you might have noticed, I've been pushing hard for my new website, The Sunflower Tree, to take off.  I would really like to see this become a real business for me, but I can't do it without your help.  So I ask you to take a moment, visit the site and "like" it on Facebook.  Even more helpful would be to share it on your Facebook page!  The more people that know about it, the better the chance that I'll start getting some orders.  I'm constantly creating new ideas, and I post them as quickly as I can while working around my job and housework and so on.  I'd like to say thanks again to those of you who have shared my site--I'm very grateful!

It seems as though there are a lot of changes and new things in our life lately.  There are sayings about trials and changes: "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger", "(fill in the blank) builds character", and so on.  I do believe, as many do, that God uses trials (big and small) to transform us into the creations He meant for us to be.  We need to be flexible and have faith that what He allows is for our good and His perfect will.  Romans 12:2 says, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will".  2 Cor 5:17 says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!", and Isa. 43:18-19 says, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.  See, I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?  I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland."  Perhaps the trials that God allows us to experience are His way of making a stream in the wasteland of our lives.  When we thirst for Him and His mercy, He will not only nourish us, but he will change us and cause us to grow in Him!

My New Online Store!

Okay, so I think I have everything together now!  Drumroll, please... I'm starting an online venture called "The Sunflower Tree Designs and Paper Goods".  You can see the website by clicking here.  My goal is to ultimately be a self-sustaining web store, but I need your help by telling others about it.  Please share the link with anyone you think might be interested!

To the right is one of my notepads.  I draw the designs, edit them in Photoshop, and turn them into cute little notepads.  They range in size from small enough to fit in your purse to the size you see in the photo, 5" x 8".  Most are the size of a quarter sheet of paper, though.  I'll be adding more items regularly.  I do still have my Etsy listings, but will probably not continue it after the listings expire in a few months.  

Thanks to everyone who has been kind enough to follow my blog.  I am very grateful to have such kind and caring family and friends!  And now, I'll go back to writing about what we have been up to, instead of selling things (although I'll be keeping a link to The Sunflower Tree for people who visit the site but don't know me).  Thanks again!

"Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you"--James 4:8

Short Update

Hello all!
I'm sorry I've been scarce on here lately.  I've been working on a new idea and will be ready to unveil it soon!  Until then, I will be busy repainting our living room and hallway with my husband, and having a nice, quiet, relaxing weekend.  I hope everyone has a great Independence Day and remembers what we celebrate this weekend--the country that was given to us by God, that so many have been willing to serve and sacrifice for over the last 230+ years, and that will hopefully continue into the future for years to come.  Freedom was never something that was free, and we will always have to work and sacrifice for our freedoms (or what's left of them).  Thanks to all of the troops that have served and are serving, and God bless America, this weekend and always!

Regardless of how long America lasts, God is always going to be there with us.  Ephesians 3:17-19 says, "so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God."  May Christ dwell in your heart, whether you are serving your country abroad or enjoying the freedom you have in the United States!

A New Venture!

Hello everyone!

Just a quick note to let you know that I've started a shop on Etsy.  It's called The Sunflower Tree, and you can view my listings here.  I'll be adding more items as time allows, so please check back often!  Right now, I have recipe cards and note cards listed.  I will be exploring the option of customizing items in the future.  If you have any ideas or suggestions, feel free to leave a comment at the end of this post.  Also, in the near future, I will be starting a website to sell my goods.  I'd appreciate your support, and there might even be something in it for you!  Watch Facebook for more details soon.  Thanks, and happy shopping!

Birthday Weekapalooza!

Hubby's Birthday

Definitely homemade!

Well, it's here again--my husband's birthday!  Where has the year gone??  We try to have a week of fun when our birthdays roll around, which is usually a fun time.  So this week has been his Birthday Weekapalooza!  He requested a blueberry pie for his birthday, instead of a cake, so I was busy Friday baking.  I made the pie, and I also tried a new recipe for Strawberry Bread, which turned out very well.  It was a delicious recipe!  (Note: The link for the bread will take you to the recipe in my recipe blog.) I gave him his gift, and surprised him with a trip to the African Safari Wildlife Park in Port Clinton, Ohio.  You drive through a large, fenced-in area that holds deer, llama, bison, zebras, and giraffes, and you are allowed to feed them all!  As you enter the gates for your first trip through, you are given a cup of animal pellets, which is included in the admission price.  You are also able to buy carrots and more food, and feed the animals as much as you want--they come right up to the car and know exactly what you are going to do!  It was such fun.  We'd never done anything like that!  Check out the pictures below:

"Hey, you guys have air conditioning in here??"

"C'mon, guys, I just want a carrot..."

Quit using my car as a napkin!

Whoa!

No caption necessary.

After the trip through the safari, we went back to the park for some Naspig races at Pork Chop Downs.  Unfortunately, the battery in my camera died after the safari, and I didn't get any pictures of the pig races, but trust me, it was fun!  There were also animals in the park to see, and we spent a while walking around and just enjoying the beautiful day.  Hubby had a great time, and a great birthday!


Hail Is For Houses

We are finally getting somewhere with the hail damage claim.  On Tuesday, our insurance adjuster was finally able to come and inspect the damage.  We had our contractor there to meet with him as well, and the insurance adjuster agreed with most everything that was suggested.  We had an insurance check in our hands before he left that day!  I can't say that I've ever gotten to deposit a check that big before, but sadly, it will all be gone in time.  Oh well, easy come, easy go!  As of now, we have bundles of shingles and other roofing materials in our front yard, waiting to be installed.  We thought they would come Friday and replace the roof, but no one appeared, so it might be Monday or Tuesday of next week now.  We are still waiting to hear whether the siding can be matched or not.  The contractors we hired use Amish carpenters to do the work, so we know that it will be done well and correctly when it is completed. 

Missing couch

We gave away our couch and recliner chair last week.  Why, you ask?  We gave them to family members who needed some furniture, and we had been wanting to replace the couch for a while.  It worked out that they wanted them, and they were able to come and get them last week.  We did shop for and purchase a new couch, but we are waiting for it to arrive, and it could be several weeks yet before it appears.  In the meantime, we do have one chair and ottoman in our living room, and we pulled out a desk chair and footstool from our other rooms, and we have a somewhat comfortable temporary situation.  While we are waiting for the new couch, we plan to repaint some walls and do some redecorating, so that we will have a fresh new living room once everything is back to normal.  It will be nice to update a little--I tend to get a stagnant feeling when I can't or don't change things around every once in a while.  I'll try to remember to take a few pics and post them on here later!

Dog Days Already?

Woof.

Wow, I can't believe how quickly the weather seems to have changed.  We went from extremely wet and cool to August heat and a welcome dry spell.  There is a saying in Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and I'm sure every other state that goes, " just wait five minutes and the weather will change".  Well, that's certainly been true lately!  I'm not complaining, though; I do like the hot, humid summer weather.  It reminds me of when I was young and loved to play outside during the summer vacation.  We didn't have central air, just a window air conditioner in the upstairs where the bedrooms were located, and that was turned on at night only when it was too uncomfortable to sleep.  What fun it was to spend all day outside playing with the neighborhood kids!  We'd ride bikes, roller skate, play games, swim, or play on the swing set in the back yard, and it never seemed to get old.  I never wanted to come inside for the night, and I couldn't wait to get outside again in the morning.  I was probably dubbed the "smelly kid" because I didn't even want to waste time bathing.  Just let me go out and play!  It's too bad that we tend to lose that playful nature as we mature, and the pressures of being grown-up seem to swallow what adventurousness we might have otherwise had if we were still carefree.  Happens to all of us, I know; but wouldn't it be great to have that back again?  If you had one week out of your life, where money, time, physical fitness, fear of the pain of injury, and all of the other concerns of an adult were just completely forgotten, what would you do with that blissful innocence?  I know what I would do--everything I am too old and out of shape to do now!  I would play on the jungle gym, and swing on the swings, and run through the sprinkler, and eat a tuna sandwich at the picnic table.  Then I would run around, and get a cramp from eating, and not let it bother me; I would go get the biggest, shiniest kite I could find and fly it all afternoon.  After that, I'd come back and have a grilled hamburger, because it's not summer if there is no grilled meat, and then I would jump in the pool that had been warmed all day by the sun and swim around until the mosquitoes were too much to bear and the fireflies were putting on a spectacular light show.  Only then would I resign myself to the confines of my home's four walls, although gladly would I fall exhausted into bed for the night.  Those would be the days!

I hope others have the same type of memories that I do.  It was great to have the freedom to have fun!  There are truly days where fun is a very elusive notion, and if I'm not careful, I'll find it to be a distant memory.  Every day is a gift from God Himself, and should be treated as such!  So why is it so easy to let life weigh down so heavily on our hearts that we lose the freedom our spirits long for?  As long as we look at the blessings that God gives us on a daily basis, we should find our hearts full of joy and gladness.  Blessings of family, love, stability, comfort, rest, relaxation--James 1:17 says perfectly what I'm describing: "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."  Not every gift is tangible, but every gift--every blessing--can be felt in our hearts.  What blessings are you thankful for today?