The Saturday Six

One.

 I told you last week about Erica Wiggenhorn's new Bible study that comes out next month. I'm even MORE eager to dive into it now that I have my new Bible to go with it! ANYWAY! The release of the book is close enough now that the book is up for pre-order, and if you order here, you can get a free art print to go with it! Win-win!! This one will be great for small-group study, I can promise you. (Individual study, too! That's how I did the first book she wrote on Acts, and it worked GREAT as a solo study.)

Two.

Loved this article by Jamie Hilty, because it's a beautiful blend of the creativity of reusing items (you know how I love a good repurpose!) and the reuse of places, when one family has packed up its memories and another brings theirs.

Three.

 Did you know you can freeze avocados? I sure didn't know it. This is good to keep in mind since they are usually SO expensive and if I could find a sale...

Four.

Looking for some fun outdoor ideas for this summer? I think some of these work just as well for adults as they do for kids! So if you're planning parties, check them out!

Five.

 This post and its ideas are geared towards families/kids, but I think the daily themes could be EASILY converted to anyone of any age! Take a week this summer and theme it up!! I think it sounds really fun!

Six.

Source

Clearly I did NOT have time to read a book this week, even though I had one waiting in the wings to be read, but I do have a book to offer to you!


One of my friends invited me to her online Usborne book party, and even though I've heard of this company, I've never purchased any of their books (largely because, you know, no children)! But I wanted to help her out, and I had actually run across a recommendation of an Usborne book that's not new, but it's still available for purchase. So I chose that one in an attempt to continue to grow the kiddo library for our visiting kids.

That's how I ended up with the Big Book of Things to Spot. (It's written by Ruth Brocklehurst, Gillian Doherty and Anna Milbourne, Illustrated by Teri Gower, and designed by Susannah Owen.) I'd read about this book, which is actually part of a homeschool curriculum, so I figured it had the blend of both fun value and educational value. (Even though we don't have kids, I am a stickler about the things I add to our stash. I don't want them to be mindless, fluffy toys and activities. I want them to be things that are valuable in learning, while still being fun.)

The book came earlier this week, and I'm not gonna lie: I had fun looking through it myself! It's kind of "Where's Waldo" in style, in that the pages are full color illustrations, but you're supposed to look for certain things on each page. But it's much less crammed than the Waldo books, so it doesn't give you a headache.

The book is divided into four sections, and each section gives you 1001 things to spot in its pages. Section 1 is 1001 Animals to Spot, Section 2 is 1001 Things to Spot on the Farm, Section 3 is 1001 Things to Spot in the Town, and Section 4 is 1001 Things to Spot Long Ago. Each scene is a two page spread, and along the sides of the pages you'll find the instructions of what you're looking for and the number of them you should find.

For example, the first spread is called "On the Farm," so the scene includes a barn, some pasture, a pond, and a field. Somewhere across those two pages, you'll find 3 puppies, 5 ducks, 9 ducklings...etc. Along with the instructions of what to find, there's a sample photo of each thing, so you'll know exactly what to look for. It's great for working on counting, colors, identifying items, etc.

The final section, which talks about things from long ago, features different parts of the world and different years, like Pharaoh's Court in Egypt, 3500 years ago, Going Hunting in India 350 years ago and the Drive-In-Movies in North America, 45 years ago.

Lots of fun pictures, lots of color, lots of learning, and it doesn't make a single noise on its own. (I am not a fan of noise-making books.)

I am glad I picked this one and call it a good addition to our little library for visitors! Oh! And bonus: you can get this in either a paperback or hardback version, so you can choose the affordability and/or durability you need!

Speaking at Indiana Wesleyan

Remember how I told you I spoke four times in four days this week? Wednesday marked the third day and the biggest crowd! In fact, as soon as I agreed to speak, I asked Ryan if he would mind taking the day off work and coming with me, because I needed him! (He said yes without much arm-twisting.)

It was actually really exciting to receive this invitation, partly because it's always encouraging to get invited back to your alma mater, right? And I was excited, too, because this was a different setting than most places I speak. I don't often get to address a more academic setting! But the school planned their first ever staff council retreat, which I think is an amazing event to offer. (It was for the hourly staff and took place right there on campus. Two speakers, door prizes, and a catered lunch. What a great investment in employees!)

They asked if I would speak on the topic of balancing life, work, and family, so I worked for several weeks to put together something I hoped would give them some new perspectives on all those life areas! And since Ryan went with me, I asked if he would also help me. We worked together to practice this talk so we could be coordinated and as seamless as possible in our delivery!

 Fiesta theme!! It was so colorful! (Fun fact: This retreat was held in the same rooms as our wedding reception!)

Guzzling water pre-speaking.

I had prayed so hard over this day, and I sure don't know how everyone else felt about it, but I know with everything in my soul that I gave it my very best and while I know there's always room to improve and grow as a speaker, I know I couldn't have done anything more leading up to that day.

Here are some photos other people took (on Ryan's phone and their own cameras) while I spoke and Ryan helped:

 My mom saw this next picture and asked if he was getting blessed. LOL!! Not really! He was demonstrating how Moses held up his hands during the battle with the Amalekites.

After I finished speaking, we had lunch, and it's possible I sort of circulated during that time to try to catch up with friends! Here are a few:

 (My best friend's mom, Janice.)

 (My dear Ronda, who has been such a good friend for so many years now.)

(Cheri is married to the pastor of the first church I attended as a grown-up. If you've read the Be Still book, she's the one I talked to at the beginning to share what the Lord had put on my heart about fasting. She is such an encouraging lady!!)

After lunch, this amazing lady named Joan McManus Bardsley spoke. Interesting and random fact for you. Joan is twice widowed, and her second husband, Harold, had also previously been married before the two of them wed. His first wife was the teacher in the classroom where my mom worked for many years!

Anyway, Joan used to be a kindergarten teacher herself and just has the most delightful personality and manner of presentation!

After I heard her speak, I started to feel a lot less confident about my own! She was so funny and carefree in what she shared, and I felt mine had been too stiff! But then she told me after it was all over that she felt like she couldn't follow me because I had been so well-prepared. Isn't it funny how we're so critical of our own selves? Bottom line: we had very different approaches, but we both brought the messages the Lord gave us, and when it was over, I had a new friend named Joan! :)

Thank you, Ryan, for giving up a vacation day to come with me and help me on this event. It was better because you were there!!

Sharing with the Ladies of Fairfield Christian and Lakeview Wesleyan

Oh my dear people.

This week has been an interesting one. I've spoken four times in four days. (Don't confuse talking, which I actually never stop doing with speaking, which requires organization and professionalism.

Ryan and I knew, going into this week, that it was going to be absolute insanity. We immersed ourselves in Thieves oils and Halls Defense and vitamins and everything else, but wouldn't you just know it, when Monday arrived, Ryan felt sick, and I had to call out for extra prayers, because the whole thing just reeked of Satan's stupid schemes. He did feel better as the day went on, thankfully, but I didn't know that until I'd already had about a two hour panic attack that he wouldn't be able to go with me to my first event of the week.

So Monday night we actually got to stay here in town for my event! I spoke at Fairfield Christian Church for a women's dinner they held at the church.

On the way, we had to pick up a prop I needed for another talk later in the week, so we had to take the truck. This is what it looks like when you take a lot of stuff in a little truck:

As you can see, Ryan was feeling better and was able to come with me! I was so thankful, because I needed him there!

That evening, I shared a talk called "Stone Altars," and they had worked the whole theme of their decor around that!

I even had a little corner for my books!

Know what else I had that night? A surprise guest!

True story: my mom had never heard me speak, other than at her church! The lady who reached out to invite me to come and speak happens to know my parents, so she surprised me by inviting Mom! It was good to have her there!

(There were a handful of other people I knew, including one of my high school classmates and her mom!)

Ryan was so kind to take some pictures for me while I spoke. He was kind to take one of himself, too! LOL!

LOVED that little room! It was so cute! And I loved all the stone props they used for decorating!

Here's a fun thing, too! A woman came up to me after the night was over and said "I'm not sure if you remember me, but..." and for some reason, I immediately could see it in her face! She was my student teacher in Kindergarten! I asked for a picture with her, and she agreed. When I posted it to Facebook, one of my high school classmates was so kind to dig through our old yearbooks (ours are buried in storage) to find our pictures from back in 1983! Check this out!!

She was so kind and encouraging, and I appreciated her! :)

By the time we got home that night, I was exhausted to the point of feeling sick, but we had to rehearse a talk for later in the week, so we were up late.

And then Tuesday morning, I had to get up and on the road as soon as I took my kiddo to school, so I could speak to the ladies Bible study at Lakeview Wesleyan Church in Marion! Ryan had to work, so he wasn't able to go with me (boo!) but I had fun with this group. There were probably 25 or so in attendance, and they were so kind to me.

After I spoke, they all passed around a microphone to share prayer requests and praises, and so many offered kind words to me about what I shared with them. (My talk that day was called Pouring In, Pouring Out. I've done it several times before and it's one of my favorites.)

Since Ryan wasn't there to man the camera, I have no photos from speaking, but here's the church and my car selfie when I was done!

When I left there, I had to get some coffee, because I had a raging headache, and that just happened to put me across the street from my beloved Cato. It seemed rude, really, not to stop in and shop, since I was right there. Know what I mean?

It was a good and productive trip. You'll see more of the outcome tomorrow. LOL!

And so went the first two events of the week! I'm so grateful for God's grace and strength. I always rely on Him heavily when I speak, and He was so faithful!

Mommapalooza 4.0

This was the fourth year in a row that we hosted Mother's Day at our house. We began the tradition in 2014 without really intending for it to become a tradition. (The best ones happen that way.) We just wanted to spoil our moms by letting them have the day off from cooking, and that turned into inviting siblings and other family members too, and Mommapalooza was born.

The first year, we hosted it outside at our Marion house, in our beloved pirogi, and we had practically perfect weather. We did burger/picnic food theme and had a great time! The second year, we intended to have it outside, but the weather was unbearably humid, and we feared everyone would be miserable outside, so at the last minute, we moved it inside (still at our Marion house). We grilled pork chops and chicken and had a fun crammed in the dining room of our little house. Last year, Mommapalooza 3.0 was our deadline for having round one of home renovations done, even though we still planned to have the party outside on our deck. Sadly, last May was still wintry, so we feared everyone would freeze to death during lunch, and we packed everyone into half our living room for a pot roast (and all the fixins) lunch.

So you can imagine how grateful we were that this year, we had our garage all finished, and we could plan to party out there from the very beginning, with no fear of what the weather might bring! And multiple people commented that it was a very relaxing and enjoyable space for such a party!

(Find Phoebe in the picture for an extra 10 invisible points!)

This year I went with a breakfast theme! Four kinds of fresh fruit (pineapple, watermelon, blueberries, strawberries), quick cinnamon rolls, ham/egg/cheese sliders, Amish breakfast casserole, the Dashing Dish Sausage/Egg/Cheese Bake, ham and pickle roll-ups, and  smoky links in BBQ sauce.

My sister also brought a breakfast casserole, so we had lots of food!

We enjoyed the food, and Phoebe was a BIG hit with the kids. I'm working on building a better collection of toys and books, and they did play with those too, but I've decided having the dog for the day is really the way to go.

 Also ottomans.

 Also balloons.

We got a group photo and the stinkin' thing was blurry. Sigh.

But we got some other good pictures.

We were so grateful for a beautiful day! Even though we ate in the garage, we were thankful for a chance to be outside after! :)