What you do in your house is worth as much as if you did it up in heaven for our Lord God. We should accustom ourselves to think of our position and work as sacred and well-pleasing to God, not on account of the position and work, but on account of the word and faith from which the obedience and the work flow. ~ Martin Luther

Wednesday, August 08, 2018

The Month That Was: July




































July was a crazy, crazy, crazy month.  Every weekend was jam-packed with hosting parties and a wedding and the days in between, filled with those wonderful summer field trips that don't seem to happen when there is bookwork looming in our homeschool days or sewing projects, or baby animals or food- apparently, lots of food, since that seems to be all I have been taking pictures of lately. 

I have to admit, when I am dishing out plates or making burritos and the whole surface area of the island it being used up, I feel a deep sense of satisfaction.  I am always acutely aware of how incredible it is to feed these mouths.  That feeling doesn't always come when we serve things up at the table individually, but it does come when I am filling row after row of burrito or laying out circle after circle of plates.  It seems impressive somehow.  This isn't just a lot of food to eat, but it is individual mouths that I am feeding and each one a gift.  People ask me if I want more children some day and the answer is always a resounding YES.  I have to restrain my enthusiasm a bit because I know my answer is already shocking to them, maybe I shouldn't appear like a TOTAL freakshow.  But yes.  Yes.  More plates lined up in a row, please.

We are just starting to harvest garden things and everything tastes so sublime!  A colander of cucumbers, I got a picture of that.  The black cherry tomatoes- I wanted to take a picture of those first dozen because they were so beautiful but I made the mistake of popping one in my mouth...and then promptly eating the whole lot.   A few squash (though after about five zucchini total all my plants died. WHAT?!?!?!)   A motley and meager garlic harvest.  But worse where there is none, right?

And should you ever find yourself at my house at breakfast, and I happened to ask Andrew to slice cheese to go along with your scrambled eggs, you may possibly, most-likely will find your cheese in cabin form.  A cheese architect.

That little feather and bird crossback shirt I sewed up for Ineke a few weeks ago and it has become my favorite little summer number on her.  I want to make 50 more.  Well, that might be a *tad* much but... it sure is precious.  I had a canary yellow gingham one when I was a girl and both Corynn and Adele wore it once upon a time, but when Ineke wore it the first time she found some nailpolish and painted the front pink.  I traced it and made a new one.  It isn't canary yellow and it wasn't mine, but hey.  I can see her little bloomered bum so all is well.

I also managed to whip up a graduation present by painting a quote on a piece of wood.  I saw the quote on a sign at Hobby Lobby but the sign wasn't really my style (or hers) so I made a different one.   I loved the result so much I think I may have to do some of these as Christmas gifts.  Different quotes of course.  ;-)

Is there anything so dreamy as porch sleeping?  When I first brought up the idea of a bed on the porch, Matt laughed and called it the most redneck thing he had heard.  I don't know, it doesn't seem redneck to me.  And you have it on good authority that Matt has been seen sleeping there a time or two.  Just sayin'.

Here is a Mama tip for you: if you want your toddler to be occupied for hours in the summer, just give them a spray bottle.  As a bonus, they stay hydrated!  Ineke would spray plants, spray stones, spray flowers, spray herself... really is such a clever toy.

When my brain is not working on the thing right in front of me (and even when it is), it keeps trailing down winding roads leading to vast oceans of unknown.  I wake up at 3 am almost every morning and my brain swirls thoughts for an hour...two, before I finally am lulled back to sleep.  My heart breaks a little bit and hopes a little bit in the darkness and nobody knows but me.  I go about my days doing the next thing, willing arms and feet to move in meaningful and productive ways, knowing my thoughts can be a million miles away in secret places.  Will I ever be able to share them?  Will they ever find a voice?  Will they ever shine in the light of day?  I don't know the answer to these questions but for now, they are mine alone.  Secret bits that I hold close when I can do nothing else.  And those exhausting hours staring up at the pitch black ceiling are precious even though they break my heart a little bit.  Little pieces of me, I am changed.  God has each one of us in His hand, praise God.   The Lord knows I need to be there...and it is a comfort to know that others are there too.

The picture of Matt on the couch is so dear.  He was feeling crummy, having recently been diagnosed with Lyme, and Ineke crawled up, her spunky self and tucked herself right in under his wing.  In a blink of an eye she won't be able to do that anymore.  I am glad I caught that.   Before Matt started feeling crummy, he did an amazing Papa project I can't wait to show you.  A clue is in the picture of Ineke in the sand.     Any guesses?


6 comments:

Ulli said...

Pink ladybug, blue lips, black and white puppies, good food, porch sleeping, flowers and harvest. Great pics of a wonderful life, and a great post Rebecca. Hope you're okay. Private thoughts are simply part of us, even heartbreaking ones. Own them, but you don't have to share them until or unless you're ready. Wishing Matt health. It's a long road, but there is success at the end. My brother has Lyme, as does a friend and her son. All are doing much better after a year or more of treatment.

We have a wedding in our family in about a month. Small and private. So happy! Our beautiful granddaughter is over a year old and on the move--keeping everyone busy and chasing after her! Life is good.

Blessings to you and yours...

Rozy Lass said...

A bed on the porch is just about the most blissful thing I can imagine! Elegant, romantic, rich! I have a holy envy of your porch!

Abigail said...

Oh, that shirt is so sweet (the girl yet sweeter). Maybe someday one of your grandbabes will follow in her Mama's footsteps and paint the bird and feather one.

You did a lovely job on that framed quote! The girls have been whipping up a ton of calligraphy here, too. It must be in the air. (So one would think, until one realizes that the Mama Bear has not been whipping anything up...)

I love this post and all the good and color spilling over, but I must confess I'm pretty sure what I feel for your porch and that charming bed is a most UNholy envy. Not that admitting a sin publicly reflects repentance, but, still...most decidedly the unholy variety. ;) I am truly so glad for you and these gifts God has given through the hands of Matt and Co. Your beautiful home could be splashed in a magazine, but it's infinitely better than any of those, particularly with all those plates lined up in a row. Here's to more, Lord! <3

We should hang out sometime at 3 a.m.! We could chat about your thoughts on Godric, which I've been dipping into in small amounts late at night/morning, and which I'm hoping you like, mostly because I'm been holding it up for so many years. No pressure, though. :)

Abigail said...

p.s. I'm suing Corynn for copyright infringement. I filed a patent for blue lips long before 2018. Tell her to bring the briefcase of money to Knoebel's, and we'll be squared.

marthahelen said...

So much loveliness tucked in and overflowing in the midst of all the achey things, too. I only know you from a distance but you have such a joyful and thankful and God-glorying heart, and it blesses me to read your words! Here's to those hopes and prayers in the dark and for garden surprises and a lazy slow august, too. xo from NC
martha

Leah said...

I love Ineke's new summer outfit! It's so adorable! I think I recognize those breakfast burritos. lol I think having a bed on the porch is a truly brilliant idea! I'm so grateful for the time we had together earlier this month. It was such a joy to all be together again. We must do it again next year!

So many things I want to say but I don't have the words. Just know that you have been in my thoughts and prayers often, not just these past couple weeks, but for a couple years. May you feel God holding you close as you seek His face, dear friend.