high school, here she comes !

June 17, 2016January 7, 2017 melodyannday2 Comments

Okay, okay, I know what you’re probably thinking. “Who has a party for their child for finishing 8th grade?” It is true, most people don’t make a big deal out of moving into high school.

But, we home school – and for my girl who has worked so hard over the past year -so there was no promotion assembly to attend, or any type of “graduation” at school. I decided we would party on our own!

On a side note, there seems to be overwhelming, unexpected tragedy everywhere right now – whether thinking about last week’s mass murder of innocent people, or a young toddler drowned at Disney in a freak accident by an alligator – None of us know about tomorrow; better to celebrate life with joy today! I’m happy we took the moment to love and appreciate our daughter and tell her just how much we think she’s incredible.

Here are a few photos from our afternoon with friends and family. We are so grateful for the folks God has placed in Emily’s life to love and support her!

summertime on the porch

June 5, 2016January 7, 2017 melodyanndayLeave a comment

When I was a child, my sister and I spent weeks at a time at our Great Grandmother, GG’s home in Ottumwa, Iowa. Conveniently it was located next door to our Mammaw and Pappaw’s house. I have so many happy memories of summertime in Iowa.

Summer was spent doing important things like picking strawberries from the garden, playing under the oversized Willow tree in the far front corner of the yard, and sitting on the davenport on the front porch to watch Lightening storms in the evening. Catching lightening bugs at dusk was always on the agenda, and of course, indulging in GG’s hot chocolate sauce over Hy-Vee vanilla ice cream for a treat.

I can feel it, like it all happened a few days ago; sitting there on the davenport with GG in the heat, the humidity wrapping around our necks like a thick winter scarf while sharp, forks of lightening stabbed at the dark in the distance. The glider-style couch had a large bright blue floral pattern on it that I can still see now when I close my eyes. And she always wore a cotton, loose fitting, house dress and looked absolutely comfortable no matter the temperature…

I’m draped with memories of GG from my childhood, especially in the summer season. While it used to bring pain, I’m filled with so much happiness now when I have a quick memory of her, her laugh, and her sparkling eyes. Our summers were golden with GG.

One thing I recall for certain : GG began her mornings with God’s Word. When we woke in the morning, we would see her Bible open, next to her cup of Folgers. Could there be a better way to start a summer morning? No. absolutely not. Well, except for the Folger’s part!

Without realizing it (until recently), I have been following in GG’s footsteps; waking early to read my Bible and sip coffee (but, not Folgers), or wearing the always comfortable, always appropriate loose cotton summer dresses. I even thought recently that I needed my own davenport for the back deck so that we could watch the lightening bugs glitter in the evenings.

I’m so grateful for the simple childhood memories that, even to this day, call me back to what is truly important!

from Psalm 92:

1 It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
2 to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
and your faithfulness by night,

friends and loved ones · in my kitchen · who knows?

mom + strawberries+ me = jam

May 19, 2016January 7, 2017 melodyannday1 Comment

Yesterday, at 3:45 P.M. my Mum texted, “no strawberries.” What a bummer! We had been planning all week to make strawberry jam, so this was a bit of hindrance to our plans. Strawberries, are truly a big part of making strawberry jam. So, our redirected plan was to try for early next week, maybe Monday.

At 5:20 Mum called to say – there were berries after all! She and dad would be over shortly with 8 quarts of fresh-from-the-field Tidwell’s berries. We were on!

JAM!

With the event of my parents moving to Chattanooga recently, Mum and I keep recognizing all the things we’ve never done together as adults. And so far we seem to be good partners in crime.

The jam-making was lots of fun – and sticky – and almost a huge disaster. We got into a bit of a jam, while making our jam. We had lids pop off of two of our jars while they were processing in a pot of boiling water. We almost had a hot, sticky mess on our hands! But, mom, after 30 years working as a surgical nurse in the operating room, thinks faster on her feet than anyone I know, and we managed to take care of things efficiently and quickly.

You know, there are many times I go it alone. I’m independent, quite a bit hard-headed – and I strike out to accomplish projects without help. But, I don’t believe that is how God made us to really function. He made us for relationship, with Him, and then with others. In the small things, and in the big things – Life is better in community!

I keep thinking of this Scripture from Ecclesiastes 4:

9 Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. 10 For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!

Jam-making in my kitchen is the perfect example – My prior jam making skills, and my mom’s quick thinking added together is what made our adventure a satisfying success! Loving one another and encouraging one another thru all of life’s jams is a big part of life in Christ! Here’s to many more jams with you, Mum!

friends and loved ones · in my kitchen · who knows?

Easter

March 29, 2016January 7, 2017 melodyanndayLeave a comment

This past weekend we celebrated Easter.

My entire married life we have spent every Easter with Michael’s folks. I especially enjoy that tradition because Michael’s mama makes the best deviled eggs – and I usually eat roughly a dozen. okay, maybe not that many but I love them. a lot. Anyway – that’s 16 years of Easters. This year was the first time that we were able to spend time on Easter with both of our parents – lunch with my folks, and dinner with Michael’s.

My parents have always lived quite a distance away, so spending Easter together was just not possible. But, this was their first easter in Chattanooga, near us. There were Easter decorations out at my mum’s that I hadn’t seen in a long, long time. It really transported me back to my childhood. So, when we began talking about our menu for Easter lunch, I told her we had to make one of my favorites that I remember being at just about every family celebration.

Watergate Salad, sometimes called Pistachio Salad, was at every Christmas family gathering, Thanksgiving dinner, Birthday party, Graduation Open house – you name the occasion, there was watergate salad. It is pale green and fluffy-probably not healthy at all – but very yummy. I’ve never made it for my own kids – so, this first Easter with my folks seemed like the right time!

And – I thought maybe you needed this in your celebration repertoire! It is super easy and de-lish! It’s perfectly delightful just about any time! (Yes, I realize I’m late blogging about this so that you can not make this for Easter, too. My apologies, but sometimes things just don’t go as planned when it comes to blogging! )

Here’s the recipe – it is the “pistachio salad” recipe at the bottom (taken from an old “church lady cookbook” my mom has that is dated 1984!).

crushed pineapple, and pistachio jello…

mini marshmallows, and yes, that is a lot more than 1/2 cup!

the light fluffy green goodness! yum. yum. yum!

It is super simple! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂

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a joyful 2016

January 4, 2016January 7, 2017 melodyanndayLeave a comment

We were standing in the bathroom, a few days ago, New Year’s Eve to be exact – it was Mackenzie and me. Her fluffy white towel wrapped snuggly around her waiting for me to help her get dressed. I had just brought in her clothes and she was frowning.

What had I brought her to wear?

From my perspective: it was a brand new outfit from Gymboree (purchased on sale of course) and it was super cute – sparkling pink corduroys and the matching lavender and pink striped shirt. I thought for sure she’d love it – girly, but simple.

From her perspective: It was plain. Her favorite shirt was in her dresser drawer, and this wasn’t it. The stripes were boring and even though it was brand new, it wasn’t enough. frown. frown. frown.

After long conversation, she put it on because she had to, (because I’m the mama) but not with a happy contented heart. Truthfully, it made me sad because I shopped and purchased those clothes for her, because I love her and had her “likes” (or dislikes as the case may be) in mind.

The new year came into view later that day, but I kept thinking about that little exchange with my baby girl. She and I are so alike.

You know, I wore 2015 around like my daughter in her least favorite shirt. It wasn’t my favorite year- I’ve seen better (or so I’ve thought without realizing it, till just now). I wore it because I had to. And although I tried to be grateful for the blessings from my Father’s hand, I can say I was not extraordinarily content or happy about them. I’m always looking for the next better or exciting gift, even though He gave so much – and it was exactly what He planned for me, knowing my needs.

I didn’t realize how insulting my behavior in 2015 was, until my daughter didn’t like the new shirt I provided… Thankfully, my Heavenly Father is gracious and gentle with me ; His mercies are fresh and new, here at the beginning of 2016!

Long lists of resolutions are not really my thing, but as the New Year rolled in, I asked the Lord to help me be grateful and content in Him. That may mean any manner of blessings and trials alike, I realize that. It is my prayer that living a thankful, satisfied life will bring a deeper, abiding joy in Him this 2016.

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let down

December 15, 2015 melodyanndayLeave a comment

I stared at my computer. In a show down with an unacceptable email I had received, I squinted my eyes and glared at the screen. Slamming my laptop shut, I stormed away. I was angry. No, infuriated.

In a few minutes, I came back and opened the computer again. Nope. still mad. And I walked away again.

I tried to sleep on it.

The next morning, I was still irritated when I tried to think through the situation. You know that phrase, “things will look better in the morning?” Yeah, that isn’t always true. A friend had let me down. BAM. no explanation. no understanding. So, there I was high and dry with no comfort and no immediate solution.

When Michael came home from work I tried to discuss it with him, but I didn’t find him as sympathetic as I’d hoped. humph.

So, I went to my room to pout and pray about it. Pouring my frustrated little heart out, so let down and frazzled by it all, I found myself wanting the Savior of the world to snatch away any blessings he may have given this friend… As my prayer turned into more and more of a rant, I’m pretty sure I heard Him say quietly,

“Sometimes you let me down…”

oh. shoot.

“And I still forgive you…”

As I sat on my bed I tried my best to let these thoughts settle down deep in my heart.

What is the real truth? The only One who has the right to call out sin, and bad decisions and sinful actions or in-action, is the truly perfect and sinless Jesus Christ. And what do I know of my relationship with Him? He does not point out my mistakes and errors and sin with condemnation or anger. Although His anger would be justified after the sacrifice He has made.

No, in mercy He reaches towards me with love ; with a gentle hand He chastises me and He draws my heart to repentance. And He does this, He forgives, so that as I know forgiveness I also can forgive others.

Heavenly Father, Thank you for loving me and forgiving me no matter how many times I let you down. Help me to give that same loving forgiveness to others with a tender heart. amen.

friends and loved ones · who knows?

love your neighbor at Aldi’s

November 23, 2015 melodyannday3 Comments

I went to Aldi’s today for a little pre-Thanksgiving grocery shopping. The only word I can think of to describe the trip is mad house. My Aldi was packed with crazed holiday shoppers buying every manner of food items you might need for the big feast. It was almost a grocery cart traffic jam.

No less than three times I ran into (almost literally) the same woman who seemed to be shopping for the same items as me, except she may have been shopping for a family three times the size of mine. Each time I tried to say something friendly and smile. Initially she was unable to respond in kind. But, by the last time we met we discussed the pros and cons of the Aldi’s freezer selections. As I was pushing my cart thru the parking lot to get my bags to the car, I ran into her one more time. She waved and smiled and I wished her a happy thanksgiving.

First, I want to say I’m not a stalker. Second, being outgoing is not typically difficult for me. Though I grew up a bit north of here in the midwest, my family has taught me this: be kind to people in your path. Look folks in the eye. Speak kindly. That kind of thing. Having made sure you understand those specifics, I wanted to share what I realized today. North, south, east, west – I’ve noticed people are tense. Even here in the south, where it is typical, even expected that you would make conversation in the grocery line, people are not at ease in public the way we used to be. Fear is no respecter of geography or cultural norms.

Did I mention the lady I spoke to looked like it was possible she might be from the middle east? I can’t say for sure whether she was or wasn’t…

Honestly, I’ve walked on our city’s streets and wondered if there’ll be an attack here, like there was in Paris. And I know it is not an impossibility. I’m not paralyzed by my fears and anxiety. Not exactly. I’m just not as friendly as I was. Instead I tiptoe around afraid. And worse, I’m suspicious. This is the opposite of loving my neighbor.

Recently I’ve been bombarded on Facebook and social media and news outlets about refugees coming to our country, and what our Christian response to them should be. It seems ridiculous for me to be thinking about housing refugees when I become extremely nervous just seeing a person of middle eastern decent in public. And don’t tell me I’m alone in this: I’m not the only one who is afraid of all the scenarios of “what might happen.”

Today, I began to understand that loving my neighbor has to start in the checkout line at the grocery store. It is moving beyond my anxious heart and believing that I must love those God allows me to meet. Will I ever use my home or my resources to show God’s love to Syrian refugees? I truly don’t know. I will leave that to Him and try to move obediently into opportunities He gives. But, I will love my neighbor as He commanded starting now – even at Aldi’s.

Matthew 22:36-40 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

green thumb envy... · it's a runner's world... · who knows?

run your pace…

November 12, 2015January 7, 2017 melodyanndayLeave a comment

A few days ago I came across the sweetest little yellow rosebud that I ever saw. She was hanging on for dear life, on the rose bush in front of my house. Here, in mid-November, she is a bit of an anomaly, waiting patiently to bloom.

She has a hard road a head of her over the next couple of nights when the temperatures are supposed to drop and the wind is supposed to pick up; normal weather for November, but, not for delicate yellow roses.

I can’t help but wonder how she feels about it. Does she feel like she’s blooming at the wrong time? maybe misplaced? or dismissed? There are times when I can identify with her – in many parts of my life, but specifically in my running.

You know, I wasn’t in good shape as a younger person when it would have been normal or convenient. When others were playing ball, beginning new sports or even running, I was sitting on the piano bench practicing for hours at a time and days on end.

So now, here I am at forty, just now taking up with being healthy and I feel like such a late bloomer. I know that this path I’m on has been carefully laid out for me by the Heavenly Father himself. However, that doesn’t help me sometimes. When running with a friend, or with my husband, when I’m working out trying to improve, or running in a race – I’m slow. painfully slow. And I find myself trying to run at someone else’s speed – desperate to keep up with others.

Do you know what I’m discovering? I can only be myself. A little late to be learning at 40, right? But, I’ve arrived at this moment in my life, by His hand. I can only be who He’s created me to be. Regardless of what others are capable of – I can only run my pace. No matter how wrong it may feel at times, He’s created me and He’s thinking of me at every step.

I love this reminder from Psalm 139:14-17

I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.
My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.
How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!

Sometimes it is cold and windy, waiting to bloom in November, but I am not a mistake. and I am not alone.

a bit of history · friends and loved ones · who knows?

locked out

October 27, 2015 melodyannday2 Comments

It happened at our church on the first night of children’s choir a few weeks ago. Nothing unusual or out of the ordinary was going on – I arrived at the church with two of my children and started preparing for all of the choir activities I had planned.

My Isaac and Mackenzie were happily situated at the back of the sanctuary on a pew, playing on iPads and waiting for me while I did my thing. I ran upstairs to make some copies and find the rhythm sticks. Without realizing I became a bit distracted chatting with Pastor Chris – when I heard a faint holler.

It was “Moooooooooooooom!!!!” with an urgency – two little voices crying out in the distance. I dropped what I was doing and bolted down the stairs thinking I was about to find one of my children injured. Setting foot in the back of the sanctuary – I could still hear their cries from a far – they were not sitting where they should have been.

I began opening office doors, cry room doors, closet doors – all the time hearing their calls, but never discovering them behind those closed doors. And then finally -I flung open the door to the outside corridor between the sanctuary and the fellowship hall. And there they were : locked outside!

At once they began to sob: “We thought you had left us! We didn’t think you were coming for us!” Upon much consoling and wiping of tears, I convinced them that just wouldn’t have happened.

Their account goes like this: they had come looking for me, stepped out into the walkway between the entrances, let one door close behind them before knowing if the other door was unlocked. And so they found themselves – where they weren’t supposed to be. I encouraged them to wait for me next time.

And so my story goes too. Maybe yours too?

Often I struggle with the events of this world. It is so broken by the effects of sin. How can I go on? I wander off the path distracted – looking for ways to fix this world; maybe new government or laws, possibly stronger morals in our communities, or different politics, or new religious ideas…

The reality is, while those may be okay in some aspects, there isn’t true salvation in any of them. When I finally remember this truth, that none of those things are are ever going to work, I come to my senses…

and it is then that I find myself desperately pleading with God Himself, “Come back! Why have you left us here? Have you forgotten us? Are you ever coming back?!?” Not unlike how my children were calling out for me…

The good news is that no matter what is happening on this globe, or where we’ve misplaced our hope for an artificial savior, He has not forgotten. He’s not throwing open closet doors searching for us. He’s not late or distracted. He knows exactly what’s going on – He will come back for us at a very specific time that He has planned, just as He’s promised.

He is the only key to our hope and salvation. His promise in John 14 is as true as it has ever been, and certainly one to cling to:

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. 4 And where I go you know, and the way you know.”

friends and loved ones · home schooling · who knows?

here, lately…

October 15, 2015October 15, 2015 melodyanndayLeave a comment

We’ve been in the midst of beginning our Thanksgiving season. At our house we try to celebrate God’s good gifts to us with thankful hearts from Canadian Thanksgiving all the way to American Thanksgiving – which spans about 40 days. (give or take a few)

Mostly, we try to write down and collect up “thankfulnesses” on little cards. Each day we store them up in a jar. Eventually, on Thanksgiving morning, we will spread them out on the dining room table and read them.

Giving regular thanks, right here at this time of year, is a way to combat my own sinful heart in the coming season. The Advent Season is supposed to be about Jesus coming as our Redeemer and Savior – but often times it ends up in a materialistic quagmire and the pursuit of accumulating more stuff. In my heart of hearts I want to enter Advent this December with my mind dedicated to the giving of thanks for Jesus most of all.

In the mean time, let me give thanks to Him for all of his gracious blessings! These small mercies, that are actually really big in my life, make my journey oh so sweet.

my girl, with our newest thankful jar, her own creation.

our homeschooling life, on-the-go learning at Panera

this pup and her girl – both make me smile.

this new music, balm for my (sometimes- weary- mama’s) heart.

Grandma’s pumpkin pie, eaten with my folks at their house a few miles from mine, celebrating Thanksgiving together. (oooh- there are several things to be thankful for, just in that one phrase)