Blossoming

I'm 27 weeks along...
6 months pregnant.

Almost to the day of beginning my third trimester it seems my body has changed.

I'm experiencing more discomfort.

My belly feels tight as the skin continues to stretch.

I need to stay focused on the joy this pregnancy has brought.

I need to continue to stay healthy and exercise to keep my mind clear.

I need to remember to be in a state of gratitude for these moments. These last three months will be difficult I know but I don't want to dwell on it. Instead I want to revel in the beauty of life within... the feeling of movement as baby stretches and rolls about.

I am so pleased to be spending these last 3 months during these lighter days of summer. Though the sunshine will be hot, I am so thankful for the light. Winter can be so dreary here and I am glad to be able to get outdoors now in the early morning freshness for my walks and to enjoy outdoor activities during the day... even if it is just in the shade.

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The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature.

~Anne Frank

Painted Daisy unfurls itself within my garden.

Gazing on Beautiful Things...

Is there anything more lovely than the scent of lilacs?

They are such pretty and feminine looking flowers, don't you think?

There is something so old world about them... unlike a petunia or a rhododendron, for example.

Do you know what I mean? ... or have I become intoxicated with the beauty and you find me rambling nonsensically?

Anyway, with all the rain we've been having, I am missing them due to my lack of time outdoors and have decided that I will bring them in to enjoy instead.

Aren't they stunning in the vase on my counter top?
Simply delightful, I think.

What about you? What's your favorite flower at this time of year?



Are you tired of all this floral photography yet?

If not... here are some more... and even some more over at my Capturing the Beauty!



And if you are, well... I'm sorry, but...I just can't help myself!

As Michelangelo once said, and I repeat,

"Gazing on beautiful things acts on my soul, which thirsts for heavenly light."

I just get such joy from it.

"Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you."
~Nathaniel Hawthorne

Just a couple photos of the Butterfly Gardens from our little trip to Calgary this past weekend in honor of my birthday last week and in celebration of another homeschooling year completed!

For more photos and/or video check out my Scrapbooking Blog and/or my Homeschooling Blog.

On my Sunday Walk.

"Every tear is answered by a blossom, Every sigh with songs and laughter bent,
April-blooms upon the breezes toss them.
April knows her own, and is content."

Susan Coolidge (pseudonym of Sarah Chauncey Woolsey)

*****

Oh, that I would be content, as well, with these cold, blustery days. Warmth will come. In the mean time, I refuse to stay indoors for long and so venture out in winter gear in search of color, light, and life. This is what I found today in my garden and while walking along the pond.

New Green

"And Spring arose on the garden fair,
Like the Spirit of Love felt everywhere;
And each flower and herb on Earth's dark breast
rose from the dreams of its wintry rest."

~Percy Bysshe Shelley, "The Sensitive Plant"

*****

Woke up to snow this morning, but the sun soon appeared and turned the white to shimmering droplets on new green in my garden. It's the first day of Spring tomorrow and I'm so happy!

Photo's of Yarrow, Bachelor Button, Maltese Cross,
Tulips, Snow in Summer, and Clustered Bellflower

I'm still learning...

Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift...
Live simple... Love generously... Care deeply... Speak kindly...
...and leave the rest to God.

~ author unknown

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Raining this evening... for the first time in months...after a beautiful sunny and warm day of 18C.
I love the fresh scent of it and how it seems to be washing away the "yuck" of old winter... so fitting for the second day of Spring, don't you think?

Photo: Jacob's ladder after the rain. (Summer 2008)

Live in the Present Moment

"Live in peace without worrying about the future. Unnecessary worrying and imagining the worst possible scenario will strangle your faith.

God alone knows what will happen to you. You really don't even own the present moment, for even this belongs to God. So live according to His will.

Each day there is just enough that God gives you to take care of - nothing more or less is expected of you.

Who are you to ask the Lord, "Why are you doing this to me?" He is the Lord- let Him do what seems good to Him. You certainly don't need to add your wisdom and your plans to His wise and good plan. [...]


The future is not yet yours - perhaps it never will be. And when tomorrow comes it will probably be different from what you had imagined.

It isn't enough to separate yourself from the world's ways. You also must allow humility to be formed in you, then you will turn away from your own self nature.

Every trace of pride must be conquered. Your pride in thinking you know much about spiritual things is more dangerous than being very rich. Pride helps you believe you are something important in a much more subtle way.

Put aside your self interest and simply let God's will unfold around you. Everything He does for you is for your good. Worship Him without having to know and see everything. [...]


Above all, live in the present moment and God will give you all the grace you need."

Excerpt from "The Seeking Heart" by Fenelon

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"The Seeking Heart" is a collection of letters written by Fenelon and rewritten in modern English by Rose Marie Slosek.

I am really enjoying this book and some of the letters ring so true for me in certain times of my life that I have decided to record a few of them here as I come across them... to help me remember and for future reading.

On Raising Boys...

"I'm all new at this business... I'm not so sure how to do it right, see?


(But) Ain't so hard as all that. Mostly it just takes lookin' at a kid right in the eyes when he tells you somethin' he thinks is wonderful but maybe to you it don't amount to a hill of beans. You gotta remember that everything is new to a kid...


I'm gonna put hammers in the hands of my boys. I'm gonna let them help me build up this place again, and they'll feel good about what they done, too.



I think a kid... any kid at all... mostly just wants to do good. Sure, they ain't gonna do everything just right the first time, but that ain't a sin. That's just what learnin' is all about. Make a mistake. Try again. Do it a little better next time- and better yet, the next time.


Everything's new and wonderful to a kid... They think they can sprout wings and fly. They believe everything they imagine is possible... I reckon that's what the Lord meant when He said we ought to be like little children. They have faith still. They still believe they can move mountains.


Maybe their souls remember what it was like to be in heaven where maybe they really could fly. Then we grow up and learn about gravity, and we become grave in our hearts. And then we stop believing.


Well, life will turn out hard for them soon enough. It has a way of doin' that, I reckon. But I do not want to be the one to tell my boys they can't move mountains. No, sir. I look at my sons, and I think... yes, sir, Lord, maybe all things really are possible.

Maybe man was meant to fly. Meant to build great cities. Meant to say to this mountain be moved into the sea... and then find a way to make it happen.


That's what I want to give my boys. If I can do that...

(And) Where do (we) begin?


Right here (with our hearts). Listen to him. Look at him. Teach him what's right, but give him room to make mistakes, just like (we) have made mistakes. Someday he may hurt you. Kids do sometimes. It's part of it, I expect. There will be times when you gotta forgive him, like maybe he has to forgive you.

It ain't easy... but it's worth it.

Live every day like that, and love will just happen."

~Bodie Thoene

(excerpt from "Say to this Mountain", 3rd book in "The Shiloh Legacy" taken from pages 153-155)

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I realize that this conversation is between two fathers speaking about their sons... but it rang so true for me as well that I wanted to record it here to help me remember.

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Photos of my boys... just being boys between 2004 and 2009

"The greatest thing a human being ever does in this world is to see something...

To see clearly is poetry, prophesy and religion, all in one."

~John Ruskin

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I have been busy going through my photo archives, touching up and sorting...

...thinking about detail and focus, color and expression.

Seeing... delighting...

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Photo: a Columbine in my garden last summer.

Mother - Golden Glow of the Home

The man is the brace and ceiling of his house,
He is the straight walls rising from the earth,
The woman is the golden glow of lamps,
The firelight on a hearth. ~Emery Petho

I am not feeling this AT ALL right now... but I've posted it here to remind me that this is where I want to be.

I found this quote in my magazine from Above Rubies.... a magazine that sometimes I really dislike because I feel like I will never measure up... and sometimes I love because it can be very uplifting.

Have you ever read the magazine... what do you think?

Christmas - that magic blanket that wraps itself about us, that something so intangible that it is like a fragrance. It may weave a spell of nostalgia.


Christmas may be a day of feasting, or of prayer, but always it will be a day of remembrance - a day in which we think of everything we have ever loved.

~Augusta E. Rundel

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Many blessings and peace to all of you on this beautiful day.

Katrina

The Talent of Giving...

"Giving presents is a talent; to know what a person wants,
to know when and how to get it, to give it lovingly and well."
~Pamela Glenconner

Yesterday and this evening I received two wonderful gifts from two beautiful friends.

I so love to receive pretty packaged gifts from people who have put a lot of thought into what I like and would want.

They hit it bang on with these gifts: A package of Raspberry Hot Chocolate, Beautiful Christmas Tree Ornaments, and a Vanilla Scented Candle in the shape of a coffee mug!

Perfect!

fphoto friday

If I had to sum up Friendship
in one word,
it would be Comfort.

~Adabella Radici

*****

My son Jayden and his cousin Lindsey,
off to get an ice cream cone while camping in 2005.

For more fphoto Friday visit Natalie at Married to the Preacher.

The Way it Is.

I have been wanting to write out something along these lines for quite some time now and just never seemed to be able to put the words together in my head until I came across this quote at the bottom of Prairie Chick's blog, the Prairie Prologue, and when I read it I thought, "that is pretty much exactly what I want to say!" So instead of racking my brain trying to come up with my own thing I am just going to copy... with proper quoting, of course! So here it is:

"Well, first I must just say – because the thought of another Mama out there feeling somehow inadequate just about breaks my heart – that I most certainly do not ‘do it all’. Sometimes the nature of blogs – and particularly the way that I keep mine focused for the most part on the joy - can create a bit of a false illusion. So I hope no one ever forgets that what you might see on a blog is just one paragraph of someone’s day, or what they’ve chosen to focus on from their day."

Amanda Soule from SouleMama

As an example, here is just one short half hour or so from my Friday last week. Not to say that the rest of the day was bad... it was just a regular day. I helped clean my sister's house in the morning, did some babysitting in the afternoon, threw in a bit of schoolwork for Jayden, etc., etc. You know how it goes! : )

Now, the following pictures (by themselves) may seem like I am the type of mom who bakes with my children all the time and lavishes them with yummy goodies fresh from the oven on a daily basis. The reason why I took these pictures for my blog was to remind myself in the future that I did occasionally do this kind of thing. Seriously, it's such a big deal for me to make dough and roll it out that I wanted to capture the moment in case it never happens again. Of course it will, one just can never say when. ; )

Here's how it really went:

Jayden asks me to roll out the dough for some tea biscuits I have decided to make because I am craving something sweet and I can't find anything in the house that falls into that category, not even chocolate chips! ; )

Now, I haven't baked in ages because I am finding it to be a lot easier to buy the 50% off baked goods at the grocery store when I can get there early enough in the mornings. I would love to be like "the mom who bakes bread, etc. everyday", for my kid's sake, 'cause I think it makes for some good memories, but I'm just not. I don't really like the mess and I didn't even really want Jayden to help me, but I did, and I'm happy about that.

Here is the dough sprinkled with cinnamon and coconut. If I had taken a wider shot of this picture you would have seen three pairs of little hands trying to grab a taste. Even wider? Three children. Two up on stools leaning over the counter and one ON the counter! Gasp! I know! Not very sanitary, eh? But I'm sure your kids have done it too! ; )

And here they are fresh from the oven! "Rich Tea Biscuits" from Company's Coming Cookbook, "Muffins and more". You can imagine what I was hearing while taking this picture. "Mom, can I have some? Mom, mom! Can I try some, mom?!" and so on... "Yes, but hold on! Just let me get a picture! It's not everyday that I bake, you know."

You think they're tired of me and my camera yet? I wonder what sort of memory that will make for them. I can just hear them in the future saying, "Mom was always taking pictures of the oddest things!" Hmmm...

So there you have it. My life isn't all roses but it's beautiful in it's own way and I especially wouldn't give up having messy, loud (but joyful) children for the world!