SALE IN THE HOUSE

For those of you vintage wardrobe fans, here is an update for you. I am running a sale in the shop on all vintage clothing. Take 20% off of all vintage clothing items. Happy shopping!

New Linen Bundles!

Just a quick little shop update! I have listed 8 new bed linen bundles in the shop this morning.

OH HAPPY DAY

BLOOM 2

GLOW

It Has Been Way Too Long....But Here is The Scoop!

Wow! I guess I have taken a bit of a break from the blog world! There are always times in my life where I do more writing in my head and living in the moment and it is just a bit beyond my grasp to actually get it all down. Or some days, I am just not feeling all too inspired and overflowing! I am sure everyone can relate with that.

My last two weeks have been filled with both-amazing moments filled with gratitude and the everyday mundane stuff that just feel like a broken record I am spinning on. My pillow has been my good buddy too, just a bit more tired than normal. So, instead of glaring into my computer screen, I have chosen to cuddle with my pillow and dream.

I had the privilege to share last Sunday a small part of my testimony in our 4 church services. As the youth leadership is moving to encourage our church family to be committed to pray for the youth in our church, I was able to share how profound of an impact that has had in my life!

I was incredibly blessed to have an older women in my life pray for me from the time the Lord was knitting me together in my Mama's womb, to the day that she went to be with the Lord! Ruth was a very precious part of my faith and I am sure I do not even realize the scope of the work the Lord has accomplished in my life because of her faithful prayer for me. I will tell any one who asks how they can help the youth today-"Do battle for their souls, on your knees!" Prayer is where so many battles are won! There is nothing better than spending time with Jesus , he wants to hear from us, He loves us! So, after the nights of tossing and turning, due to incredible stage fright, it was awesome to share what the Lord has done in my life-recounting the ways He has been faithful! I am so excited to see the work He will accomplish in the lives of our students!!!

Even better than that, I was able to do it right along side my hubby, who preached that week. I will never tire of listening to him share his heart for the Lord! I do not get a chance to serve right along side him very often anymore, being the stage of life we are at. I joke with many that while Matt runs the youth groups at church, I run ours at home. With 5 wee ones, homeschooling and working from home, I am not in the midst of it like I used to be. But I know how quickly seasons change, and am enjoying exactly where the Lord has me right now!

We have also been blessed to have been given a beautiful wooden playset for the kids outside-how amazing is that! So, we have been getting the yard ready for that. Lets just say the amount of rain has not been the best for putting in a playground! I even mowed the yard in the rain yesterday, because it just could not wait any longer! Our yard looks more like a mudpit right now, not that the kids have any complaints-yikes-I have to stand guard at the door to make sure no escapees get past covered head to toe in this brown gook! Thank goodness for rain boots! But this playset is a dream for our family, one we never anticipated having! What an awesome gift that our kids will surely spend hours upon hours on! Thankyou for loving our kiddos dear friends!

We are getting ready for our first ever sleep over-I know I am in over my head! But a good friend has assured me I will be just fine if I run the boys hard outside and feed them well:)! Sounds like a plan to me! I give you an update if I in fact do survive!

And !!!! It arrived-it is finally here! It is official! I received my first copy of my first ever published articles! Altered Couture contacted me some time before Christmas to design some dresses for there summer edition and after recieving the dresses, Beth asked if I would write an article for them. But! I was able to also get an apron and article published as well! Yeah!!! I had never expected or sought to do this, so this was a wonderful experience to participate in! The funny thing about this whole thing is-These magazines are the only ones I ever purchase, they are like beautiful books for any creative! So cool! I did have to do a little giddy dance when it arrived in the mail-I must admit-I am not too proud:)

Just enjoying a quiet rainy evening with my favorite magazines and a chance to think through some new ideas! Cozy creative-my favorite! Nothing better than an old favorite chair to snuggle up in and dream.


A very fun, three page spread for the dresses! Yeah!
A sweet second article that I did not know they were going to publish-what a treat!

On the creative side- I was able to make a new tote for my mama's birthday. She loves shabby chic and had a fun little list of requests for this new bag. I was able to use some very pretty, very shabby vintage bed linens. I was also able to happily quilt it with my new toy as well! Happy Birthday Mom!




I was able to do a little work on a new skirt-it is still in the works! I have been playing with deconstructing and reconstructing skirts into something new. I have so far used one pair of pants and 4 skirts on this project!


These are some of the skirts I am reusing. I love the rich reds!

Lots of layers and long!!! My favorite!



In cleaning out my studio, I came across the clothing pieces I have been saving to create a purity quilt in all whites and creams. I have been wanting to make an all white quilt for some time and finally had enough to make a baby quilt. That is almost ready to be quilted.




I have made some pretty new napkin sets for the shop, some fun Star Wars IPOD cozies, new Happy Saturday clutches, and a few new pillowcase dresses in honor of my article:).






I now have another purpose for bed linens! But I am not actually using them myself! My son is the creative one in this! My mom has taught the older three how to crochet, so Cole has no taken to crocheting with fabric. He has been working on his first rag rug. It has been pretty cool to watch it come along! He is determined to finish it as a floor mat, long enough to use for sleeping on at his sleepover! I have to cut up a huge pile of strips for him each day. He works on it in between classes, while watching TV, and when he is supposed to be asleep:)-I had bought him a headlight flashlight so he could read at night while his baby Noah was fast asleep across the room, he has managed to come up with plenty of other uses for it, including crocheting till midnight, little bugger!



Spring cleaning has also gotten it's hooks into me unfortunately. I tend to get a bit obsessive when i get into these projects! I always seem to get myself in way too deep! Half way through ripping some room apart, I want to sit down in the middle of the floor and cry. It seems impossible to put it back together! Why does my garage never actually get clean!? I lose so many hours out there with no redeeming thing to show for it! But the other big one was my studio which has now taken over half of the basement. It is a bit interesting, fitting a shop within our house! But I did manage to get through that feat this week when the shop was slow. Thankfully I finished before things picked up again.

I finally moved my main sewing machine upstairs out of my studio, with the inspiration of my friend Lora from Eagerhands. She had a photo of her sewing machine by a window and I knew I must accomplish this too, for my sanity! I was desperate for sunshine and fresh air and just could not spend all my time in the basement. So after parting with some things to make room for my machine, I now have a sweet spot near my livingroom window-ahhhhhh. But get this! I finally move upstairs to do my work and my lovely laptop decides to checkout! Figures doesn't it:)-Guess where my desktop is located!-YEP-the basement-haha, joke is on me.



I have been nursing this old laptop for a silly amount of years, but it has done me well! I have only one request from it-make me a living:)! Not much to ask, right?! My dad has kept this ancient going for me, amazing! But, I am starting to see the end of the tunnel-so this week, I have been backing up everything because there is no guarentee it will even turn on next time. Fun stuff-what a blessing though it has been to me! I hated computers until I opened my shop-so it has been a wonderful tool that I have grown quite amused with.

One last lovely detail! I found a real treasure yesterday on my hunt! A victorian book of days. For those of you who are not fimilar with this, it is a unique way to journal-for me at least. I found my first 12 years ago before I was a mom. I have been using it ever since and it just plain did not have any room left! It really is meant for only one year-but I have managed to cram in 12 years worth. I am a very inconsistent journaler and many times only really wanted to capture the essence of an event, so this was perfect! But what I never expected or forsaw was how neat it was going to be to see the events of multiple years for the same day. I have to be careful about when I decide to read through it because it can be all consuming-seeing just where life has taken you from year to year. For instance, In 2002 on Feb 17th, we took Joslyn to our Valentines Banquet -she was 6 days old, that is where Dana held her for the first and last time, being she passed away not long after that Joslyn's birth. Joslyn Dana was named after her. Then On Feb 17th in 2005, I was experiencing contractions with Isabell who ended up not coming until March 7th, and then in 2006, Matt took Cole to Monster Jam. It is something that just amuses me-it is a curious timeline. I always wish I was better at keeping it. And if you are not fimilar with these victorian book of days, there is one more fun thing about them! They smell so good! They all have a floral scent, my book of days from 12 years ago, still has it's scent!!! It is a calming and fimilar friend!

Spring Is Here.....

Spring is here! My little lovelies have picked their first bouquet of dandelions for me!

Barefoot on green grass.


The Bluest Skies.



Grapevines trimmed.



Eggs in the nest waiting to hatch.




Time to till up the garden.


Sand throughout my home from wee ones playing in the sandbox.




Creaking of the swings on the swingset.



Digging in the dirt for wiggle worms.


Long walks.




Buds about to bloom.


The sound of lawn mowers!


Sleeping with the windows open-ahhh

A Room On a Budget

So many of us have very little extra when it comes to embellishing our homes. There is no hiring painters, interior decorators, or shopping high end home furnishing stores. But hey, honestly, where is the fun in that anyways! Dressing our homes is not a quick task but more of a gradual growing into them.

I want to honestly share that money is not always my favorite subject, and of course, it is a part of so many areas in our lives! I have my share of bad days when I have to very purposefully remind myself of the Lord's promises and that he knows exactly what I need and when I need it. And if I do not remind myself of those things and remember what is really important in life, I find myself taking a ride on the pity me train! Curse those days I sound like a spoiled child with "I want, I want, I want" Or "that is just not fair!" Ewww! Can I just edit those days out of my past please! Wake up woman! Look at all the blessings around you!!! I know this sounds a little strange for a decorating blurb but it is actually linked in there somewhere, for me at least. And- I want to share how in order to be an encouragement to you fine ladies who enjoy dressing your homes in beauty.

I have noticed recently how much of a broken record I have begun to sound like! When a friend or family member asks me "Where did you find that?"-99 out off a 100 times, the answer will be "a thrift store," or "do you really need to ask?" Now, we have been in ministry all of our married lives, and we were married in school, so there was no fancy career path ever in our history. There is no wealthy family heritage, or "made it big" investment to fall back on. We never did think much about earthly gain, always seemed pretty pointless to us to chase after money since the Lord has the ability to give and take where He deems fit, and since it is not eternal or the answer to happiness. Being wise with what we have however, does get consideration though. Learning to live within our means is always a struggle, one we succeed in some days and fail in on other days! So, thrift shopping has always been a part of life, but not begrudgingly as many of you will understand. I would treasure hunt no matter what my bank account was. I am not sure there would even be a line drawn between have to and want to. I actually want to do what I have to, if that makes sense. True, that there are many great outcomes from thrifting, saving money, being eco friendly-all the waist we have in this country is obsurd!-being frugal is wise- but the real truth is I am just very content to be where the Lord has me and how He has created me. He gave me a part of His character-"creator"-creativeness is a drive for me, it is pretty hard to get through a day without creating in some way. That is where my moto came from for my shop, "Created In His Image-Explains the Need to Create."

So, I have taken a few pictures of treasures in my girl's room to encourage you that beauty does not have to cost a pretty penny. You can be wise with what you have and you can take your time at accomplishing it!




For many years I had collected antique baby dresses, but here's the thing, I did not pay antique store prices-ouch! Many of them I found for less than a dollar at thrift stores. One in particular was found a big church rummage sale-it was priced near 20.00 dollars but did not sell, on the last day which was their bag day, I inquired if it was included in that and the sweet lady there just threw it on top of my bag with a smile-lovely! They are so unique and delicate which earned them a place hanging on the wall in my girl's room.

All three of our girls share a bedroom. Fortunately we have a basement for all of their toys, leaving their bedroom for sleeping and clothes. But you know little girls, they love to keep all their treasures in there with them! So how in the world do you store cards, jewelry, trinkets, and junk:) without the clutter overtaking a small room! Besides each of them having a fun suitcase under their beds to store memories and a keepsake jewelry box for jewelry, I found these vintage kitchen tins at the local thrift shop in the brown toile like patterns to match their room. Now they can store more immediately needed goodies on there dressers.

This antique picture stirs me every time I look at it. To me it is priceless-to the thrift shop who tossed in in the mess on it's shelves-$1.50! I of course love that my little ones see this as they drift off to sleep, hopefully reminding them of how much Jesus loves them!


For the girls bedding, I have been able to over a few years gather some really pretty and cute vintage sheets.(I know-what a surprise, the sheet lady using sheets) Some I have used in their original state and others I have reconstructed into shams and throw pillows. These brown and cream toile shams are some of my favorites! Even the girls blankets and comforters are thrifted(most of them being overstock that stores just ship of to thrift stores even though they are brand new) .

This hat was something Madi and I discovered while looking for "Nancy Drew" clothing for our fall festival. Just something simple in the colors of their room, and it doubles nicely as a dress up hat! Again, only two dollars for a sweet little statement.

We enjoy our home, it is a place of rest and retreat. It is a never ending work in progress and it is one done on a small budget, but we love it and we are learning to appreciate what we have been given!

Things to Be Thankful For...

I don't know about you, but I have found that my answer to "How are you?" seems to quite frequently be followed up with-"BUSY." But more than I would like, it comes across as something negative, but in reality, it is not! Maybe I need to be a bit more colorful in my responses, a response that conveys how blessed and full my life is.

The weeks leading up to Easter weekend were "busy", Matt's schedule was busier than normal with trips and meetings, our bathroom was being repaired in the free moments, I had been buzzing with letters and phone calls to old friends I had been able to finally find thanks to facebook, and we were getting the house ready for family to stay with us for Easter. But as the Easter weekend arrived, a sense of calm arrived as well despite all the happenings going on. It was a blessing to "prepare" for the remembering of all the Lord has done for us!

I have been thinking about the weekend and wanted to reflect on all the things to be thankful for, great and small. So here they are....

1.Good Friday-thankful for my husband and kiddos forgiving me-I woke up in a "mood" overwhelmed with all that needed to be accomplished before our company arrived. They know me so well, and allowed me to work it out knowing I would need to apologize sheepishly.

2. Thankful for lists and senses of humor. I made a list and every time we accomplished one thing I ended up adding another( my kids laughed instead of grumbling-that is what I am really thankful for!)

3. A smooth last minute Easter outfit hunt for those of us who needed something new. Only one of us needed new shoes-that has got to be a first!

4.A fun first haircut for Noah-and Bell even forgave me for cutting off his curls.

5. A mad dash to get ready for Good Friday service turned out to be one of those times you realize just how cool a big family is! With seven of us working together, mighty things can happen in a half hour!

6. An absolutely beautiful Good Friday service to set our hearts on the incredible sacrifice Jesus God made for us.

7. Coloring books and crayons for Bell and Joslyn that tell about Jesus. They helped keep them focused during church.

8. A treat of Starbucks mocha on the way home.

9. The 3 little ones drifting off to sleep quickly.

10. This is one of my most favorites. All day long I had a bit of a nagging ache in my stomach about our late night plans with our older two. I have been praying for a few years about when it would be appropriate to let our kids see The Passion. And this year I felt a peace about it, but I still was not anxious. I finally realized that that feeling made perfect sense, it is incrediably difficult to watch and be reminded of the torment Jesus went through because of us! But watching it with Cole and Madi and Matt was a very precious and memorable event. So I am thankful for that horribly beautiful movie. I am thankful that it is not just a movie, but a reminder of the TRUTH.

11. I am thankful for waking up with the "right" attitude Sat morning!

12. I am thankful for my zune! I wasn;t really to thrilled with the idea of grocery shopping amidst the last minute chaos for Easter, and wanted to spend the day reflecting and talking with Jesus instead, but, I did have to feed my family, so I decided to take my zune and listen to worship music as I shopped. It was the best grocery shopping ever! I did have to work a bit at not busting out into song though(HAHA). I may have scared the other shoppers.

14. Thankful for Joslyn openly sharing her struggle with faith because she cannot see or hear Jesus. Thankful for the quiet time in the car while running my errands to cry out to the Lord for her. It is so good to give your children to Him who created and loves them so deeply. And it is so good to weep sometimes.

15. Thankful for my Mom and Dad in law arriving safely late Saturday evening. And thankful for the first late night talk of the weekend.

16. Thankful for in-laws who I consider to be Mom and Dad, loving me like their own daugther. Thankful for a "Daughter" birthday card and letter as evidence for this amazing gift!

17. Thankful for arriving at church on time even though we left later than we should have-don't you ever wonder if the Lord slows the clock just for you!

18. I love holidays like Easter and Christmas when all the students come home to spend it with their family! It is so neat to worship with them! Lots of hugs and smiles. Thankful for the fellowship the Lord gives us.

19. Thankful for time in the kitchen cooking with Mom. I have learned so much of my cooking from her!

20. Thankful for a pretty day in which I could watch Grandma and Grandpa playing with the kids in the back yard! And yes, Grandpa even climbed up on the roof of the playhouse to get Madi in a game of tag. Grandma painted a birdhouse with Bell and it hangs in the apple tree now. I believe the kids mentioned that birds have begun to move in already.

21. Thankful for Matt also cooking for our meal and for shuffling all the furniture around in our living room to fit everyone for dinner!

22. Thankful for a yummy meal! And leftovers!

23.Thankful for Angie my sister in law arriving safe on her flight. Thankful that Madi and Joslyn had fun going with to pick her up.

24. Thankful for a sister in law who sacrificed time with family to share the Gospel with all the little kiddos she works with each week.

25. Thankful for time to play video games with family-doesn;t happen too often-but it is pretty fun!

26. Thankful for my kids and husband helping me to get the dishes done quickly after the big meal! I even got to sing a little.

27. Thankful for LONG talks with MOM at the kitchen table. She clings to Jesus and it is always wonderful fellowship in the sharing. Lots of tears and lots of laughing.

28. Thankful for my brother in-law, Ben, arriving safely on his flight and for a safe drive for matt and Cole to pick him up at 12:30 am! Thankful for a long talk with Angie while they were gone. Thankful for the first 2:30 am conversation between us kids.

29. Thankful for a lazy morning. A quiet run(drive) to the store in the rain (almost snow)for flour(how did I manage to forget that!). Thankful for home made coffee cake.

30. Thankful for our adventure to the antique store(all 11 of us)! Sorry Ang that we did not stay longer-you and I will have to spend a day there some other time!:)

31. Thankful for a late lunch at Olive Garden! YUMMY! Thankful for the little girl who sat behind Noah and kept him amused! Another meal full of laughs! Thanks Mom and Dad for the treat!

32. Thankful for a quick run to the store with matt while the kids stayed home with the rest of the fam! Thankful to Matt for running in and letting me take a little nap in the car-holy cow-I needed it!

33. Thankful for pizza and a movie(Prince Caspian). Gave me a chance to get the dishes done and kitchen cleaned up!

34. Thankful for another conversation till 2:30 am with Matt, Ben and Ang. But this one I paid for:)

35. Thankful for the safe return home of my family. Thankful for a good day back to school for the kids even though a sense of sadness loomed in the house after everyone left.

36. Thankful for God's creation-signs of spring are appearing. We have a bird's nest in our welcome wreath outside with 4 tiny little eggs waiting to hatch. This is the second time this has happened to us. Afew years ago a morning dove laid her eggs in our flower put on the front porch and we got to see the babies hatch. She got used to me enough that I was able to water the plant she was sitting in even. So it will be fun to see this happen again!




There really are countless things to be thankful for and reflecting on them and thanking the Lord for them brings great hope. So busy-oh yes! But life is "FULL OF HIS RICHES" WOULD BE A MUCH BETTER WAY TO DESCRIBE IT!

Oh the Tears-Babies First Haircut

There are a few things I am slow to give it when it comes to my little ones. I have been through the changes five times now and it only slips by faster with every one! I enjoy those few baby stages as long as I can. But there is a time for everything, right? So yesterday, after tossing around the idea of Noah needing his first haircut for some time, I finally gave in. I held off as long as I could knowing that a simple few cuts changes their appearance forever. No more baby-now a toddler. No more whispy bangs, no more baby curls.

So I stood Noah up on the toilet in the bathroom being down to only his skinnies, and wet down his hair. All the while Noah being quite amused. I had two onlookers with me in the bathroom as well. Joslyn and Bell were there for moral support and of course directions on which hair I should cut. I started with the front and everyone cheered how cute-yeah! But as I turned Noah to work on the back-a small plea came from my Bell. Not the Durls!(that is curls in Bell language), I of course am thinking the same thing and not appreciating the reminder of how hard it is to cut these sweet things off! So I said, I know sweetie, I love them too, but I have to. She pleaded again and I took my first cut. Just as though my heart was audible, Bell broke out in sobs! There will remain to be first times for everything in this house-and this one was bittersweet. Never would I have imagined Bell would be so attached to Noah's little curly Q's! She actually left the bathroom sobbing, so distraught that I had cut his curls. Like my heart was not aching enough, now I had crushed my daughters heart! Well, I quickly finished up the haircut and snapped a few pictures. I went out to talk with Bell and she assured me that she could not love Noah without his curls. Do not worry though, she was hugging on him within the hour talking about how very "Dute"(cute) he was.






Noah is so cute, and such my little man now. All boy-mischief, laughter, and love. Here we come terrific twos!

IT IS FINISHED-THE FORCED BATHROOM DEMO!!!

Many of you are wondering what ever happened with our bathroom demo-yes, we have been taking showers:). Once we finished all of the plumbing and the surround was put in and chaulked at 1 am in the morning Saturday almost two weeks ago-we took a breather. Life had to resume to normal for awhile and we also needed to make some design decisions on the finishing touches. So last Sunday Matt and I dropped the four older ones off at Awana and choir and took Noah on our semi date since Matt had not been home all week and I was feeling a bot like a single parent! Where did we go on our date!? MENARDS, of course! We picked out tile to edge the surround and all the fun supplies to install it-arghh! We sipped coffee while talking shop and walking up and down isles. I did have to back track a few times to try and find the last place Matt left his coffee. And it was kind of fun just having Noah! What is that all about-one kiddo to keep track of:)! It is a lot of fun getting one on one time with our kids no matter what we are doing.

Matt put up the tile on Monday and we have just finished grouting it tonight.(Confession-we still have to caulk around the tile-but it is time for bed, since Matt started tonight after youth group!) WE ARE FINISHED FOR THE MOST PART! What a nice feeling and we are very pleased with the outcome! Now I am just praying for no surprises for awhile!

Lessons From My Son

My son Cole has gone to bed for as long as I could remember, listening to books on CD. The all time favorite is of course all of the Narnia stories, I think he could quote them word for word now! But among some of the other favorites were star wars. Around the time he began listening to them, he also was getting out of bed really late at night in tears and completely worried, but he could not tell us why, he didn't know himself. We would pray with him and talk with him, listen, and just sit rubbing his back trying to help him fall asleep. It went on for quite awhile and one of the things he decided to do was to quit listening to the star wars, not that he didn't enjoy it, but it wasn't something that was helpful to his mind while he was falling asleep. But even after that, the worry still persisted and made it difficult to fall asleep. I just kept praying for him asking that the Lord would show Cole what he needed to do or what it was bothering him. I was stumped and needed the Lord to take care of Cole in a way that I could not. One night, Cole came out and told us that he was going to begin reading his Bible at night before he fell asleep. He was going to start at the beginning and just read it all the way through. Cole even wrote out the date he began and put it above his bed as a reminder. Cole replaced everything that was not beneficial for that, that was. I have looked back on that decision of my young son, and I have seen that the Lord had given him wisdom beyond his years, the Lord answered my hearts prayer and healed Cole's mind through his Word, which He has promised to do! Cole has gobbled up the Bible and has an amazing memory for what he has read. I will never tire of having Cole tell me about the passages he read the night before, picking out details that I did not remember. My own son has made scripture come alive for me! I have told some of my friends that I never thought I would hear myself saying to my child, "Stop reading your Bible and go to bed"-although I can't really bring myself to doing that very often! And when he gets out of bed at 11pm just dying to share something, I am trying to remember to listen instead of shooing him off to bed again. I will continue to pray that Cole hides God's word in his heart, never to depart form it. My long haired baby boy of 11 years old blesses my heart everyday with the reminder of God's great love for us! All of our cares really do belong to the Lord, trying to solve them any other way is just pointless, what an awesome way to learn-by being a MOM! Cole has continued his journey through the Bible faithfully almost every night and fear has been a distant issue from the past. I love picking up that well worn, binding torn book of his that seems to follow him throughout the house everywhere. It is a tough bedtime if that Bible is nowhere to be found! Sleep will not come! May I live my life the same way!


Phillipians 4:6-9

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me-put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

April Showers Bring May Flowers?

Yes, we are having a snow storm one week before Easter! It is actually quite beautiful and I am really loving this! I never listen to the weather, so I was out in flip flops tonight:) . Flip Flops and a winter scarf, funny! I know spring will come soon enough and gardening, days in the pool, and long walks will be at our doorstep. But isn't it beautiful?! One last beautiful display of God's purity!