Joy List Monday - In Praise of Pink Carnations

And in my flower beds,

 I think,

Smile the carnation, 

and the pink.

~ Rupert Brooke

Though thought to be a boring flower

by many,

I am not afraid to say

that I love the humble pink carnation.

My husband knows this

and

brought home a bunch last Friday.

I love pink carnations for their 

reliability.

In bouquets they hold their 

bloom

long after other flowers have withered.

And they always have a delicious clove

scent.

One day I hope to cut pink carnations from my own garden.

But for now. . .

I'll enjoy 

the ones that come from the store.

(Thank you, dear husband.)

Are you looking closer at the beauty around you 
or aware of things to be thankful for today?


(Some of you have asked about the progress on our cottage.
I'm working on an update that should post tomorrow.)

Joy List Monday was prompted by Anne of My Giant Strawberry. I love her idea of "taking a few moments to jot down bits of beauty that I've noticed or any little details in my day that are bringing me joy." 

The Art of Homemaking    

Joy List Monday - Thank You

Thank you to all of you who wrote such nice things 
about me and my Saturday Spotlight feature 
at Kris's Junk Chic Cottage.

You make me feel all

warm

and 

fuzzy

I'm so busy right now

with the

cottage construction

and all the decisions involved.

I promise I'll post an update in the

next day or two.

I have so much to share with you. . .

construction progress, the floor plan and finishes.


But for now, I'm showing you

this sweetness. . .

Baby animals always bring me joy.

How about you?

(Both photos in this post were taken Saturday afternoon - 
just a few country miles from our new home site.)

Are you looking closer at the beauty around you 
or aware of things to be thankful for today?

Joy List Monday was prompted by Anne of My Giant Strawberry. I love her idea of "taking a few moments to jot down bits of beauty that I've noticed or any little details in my day that are bringing me joy." 

The Art of Homemaking    

Joy List Monday - Home and Away

HOME

familiar

comforting

filled with simple things I cherish

AWAY

discovery

renewal

memories I long to relive

Thank you for all your kind words expressed to me last week

while I was sick.

Your sweet thoughts and prayers mean so much.

I'm feeling much better!

Are you looking closer at the beauty around you 
or aware of things to be thankful for today?

Joy List Monday was prompted by Anne of My Giant Strawberry. I love her idea of "taking a few moments to jot down bits of beauty that I've noticed or any little details in my day that are bringing me joy." 

The Art of Homemaking    

Joy List Monday - The Good, The Bad and The Thankful

I'm a little late in getting my joy list out today,

but I have good reason.

Early this morning our builder called to tell 

us they were breaking

ground for our new cottage.

Yes!

The  Good

This is it folks.  T.i.n.y. Scott (the construction supervisor) is standing about where the kitchen sink will be.

So, of course, we dropped everything and 

made the 1/2 hour drive to see the happy event. 

By the time we arrived they were nearly done.  

Let's face it, digging for a 667 square foot cottage

doesn't take very long.


We're very thankful construction has begun.


On the way back home we drove by a home in our 
town to see this. . .

The Bad

Neighbor's garage - Tree uprooted by the wind

Thursday night we had a terrible storm,

with wind gusts clocked as high as 115 mph.

This enormous pine was uprooted and fell

on the garage.

There was other damage around the county:

trees uprooted, roofs that need repair, and

fences that were blown over;

but as far as we know, no one was hurt.

For this we're especially thankful.


Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever. ~ Psalm 107:1

Are you looking closer at the beauty around you 
or aware of things to be thankful for today?

Joy List Monday was prompted by Anne of My Giant Strawberry. I love her idea of "taking a few moments to jot down bits of beauty that I've noticed or any little details in my day that are bringing me joy." 

The Art of Homemaking    

Joy List Monday - Language

"Coffee is a language in itself" 

~ Jackie Chan

"This is the fruit of my confessions of what I am, not of what I have been, to confess this, not before Thee only, in a secret exultation with trembling, and a secret sorrow with hope; but in the ears also of the believing sons of men, sharers of my joy, and partners in my mortality, my fellow-citizens, and fellow-pilgrims, who are gone before, or are to follow on, companions of my way."

~ Augustine of Hippo

Matthew 22:36-40

It's simple.

Love God first and foremost.

Then love each other unselfishly.

"We need the Spirit of God whose fruit is joy in God. We need to have the law written on our heart, not just written on stone, so that  when it says, 'Love the Lord with all your heart,' the Word itself produces the reality within us. In other words, we need the gift of joy in God.  Left to ourselves we will not produce it.  That's what Christ brought for us when He died and shed the blood of the new covenant. He bought for us the gift of joy in God." ~ John Piper

 When I Don't Desire God - How To Fight for Joy

-- Love your neighbor as yourself --

A gift to me from Susan

My new friend Susan Nowell at My Place To Yours sent me her husband David's new book

Dirty Faith

David is President of Hope Unlimited for Children

an organization that ministers

"to the physical, intellectual, and spiritual needs 

of some of the world's most desperate kids - the street children of Brazil."

Dirty Faith is next up on my reading list.

I know it's going to inspire me to

put my faith into action.

Susan's latest blog post is about

W O R D S

She writes about the importance of words

About speaking love this Valentine's Day

with the

Valentine Project

Susan writes:

"This year, when you sit down to write Valentine cards for family and friends, write an extra one—or more!—for a girl at Hope. Cards can be store-bought, handmade, made by your children… doesn’t matter. Feel free to write a note of encouragement if you wish. Don’t worry; it will be translated for you."

I'm going to be participating in this wonderful project.

I hope you'll consider participating too!

Here's the link to Susan's blog and more information about Valentine Project.

Girls as young as 10 come to Hope Unlimited from the streets and slums of Brazil, where they are constantly threatened by abuse and exploitation.

Hope Unlimited

Are you looking closer at the beauty around you today?

What have you discovered?

Joy List Monday was prompted by Anne of My Giant Strawberry. I love her idea of "taking a few moments to jot down bits of beauty that I've noticed or any little details in my day that are bringing me joy." 

The Art of Homemaking    

Joy List Monday - Looking Closer

I was standing today in the dark toolshed. The

sun was shining outside and through the crack at

the top of the door there came a sunbeam. From

where I stood that beam of light, with the specks

of dust floating in it, was the most striking thing in

the place. Everything else was almost pitch-black.

I was seeing the beam, not seeing things by it.

Then I moved, so that the beam fell on my

eyes. Instantly the whole previous picture

vanished. I saw no toolshed, and (above all) no beam.

Instead I saw, framed in the irregular cranny

at the top of the door, green leaves moving on the

branches of a tree outside and beyond that, 90 odd

million miles away, the sun. Looking along the

beam, and looking at the beam 

are very different

experiences.

C.S. Lewis - "Meditation In A Toolshed"

God In The Dock

The heavens declare the glory of God;
    the skies proclaim the work of His hands.

Day after day they pour forth speech;

night after night they reveal knowledge.

They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them. 
Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
Psalm 19:1-4

Are you looking closer at the beauty around you today?

What have you discovered?

Joy List Monday was prompted by Anne of My Giant Strawberry. I love her idea of "taking a few moments to jot down bits of beauty that I've noticed or any little details in my day that are bringing me joy." 

The Art of Homemaking    

Joy List Monday - Seeing Red

A Farmhouse I Often Pass

The Luncheon Salad I Prepared

This Scrap Quilt I'm Creating



"Red is the ultimate cure for sadness." ~ Bill Blass

Our Christmas Poinsettia Still In Bloom

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 
Ecclesiastes 3:11

Have you taken time to see the beauty around you today?

What have you discovered?

Joy List Monday was prompted by Anne of My Giant Strawberry. I love her idea of "taking a few moments to jot down bits of beauty that I've noticed or any little details in my day that are bringing me joy." 

The Art of Homemaking    Home and Garden Thursday   

Share Your Cup Thursday    

Joy List Monday - A Beautiful Morning

Beauty Outside My Door

A Narnia Winter Landscape

On my walk

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12

A neighbor's window

"Art is the window to man's soul. Without it, he would never be able to see beyond his immediate world; nor could the world see the man within." ~ Ladybird Johnson

Back Home

My husband the artist at work

Have you taken time to see the beauty around you today?

What have you discovered?

Joy List Monday was prompted by Anne of My Giant Strawberry. I love her idea of "taking a few moments to jot down bits of beauty that I've noticed or any little details in my day that are bringing me joy." 

The Art of Homemaking    Home and Garden Thursday   

Share Your Cup Thursday