Unplugged

Hello Friends!

I've taken a little time to unplug this week.

Very little email, blogs, facebook, and surfing.

Lots of family time, spring weather, reading and spring cleaning.

Sometimes a girl just needs to step back and take a little break.

Thanks for understanding. I miss you and your sweet comments.

See you next week, though.

Enjoy your weekend!

HUGS!!!

Green Gone Too Far

Last week the world celebrated Earth Day. I made a point to post on facebook "Celebrating Earth Day by giving glory to the One who made it and sustains it alone."

I do believe we need to be good stewards of our earthly home. In fact, we've made a few changes at our house to be green:

I'm the poster child for carpooling ... we no longer drive to school. :)

I use reusable grocery bags when I remember.

I recycle. A lot.

In fact I thought I was pretty good at recycling until I ran across this little number this week:

What? Don't recognize them? C'mon. Every woman needs a set to be earth friendly.

If you don't have a pair of cloth feminine pads, you are putting our earth in serious jeopardy. Feeling guilty? Me neither. But it sure gave me a good laugh. Where they come from is even funnier.

The website is called Party in My Pants. In all my years of being a full fledged woman, I've never thought of my monthly visitor worthy of a party. Much less in my pants.

Seriously?!

So, here's my question for you. What have you done to be earth friendly? Would you consider a "party in your pants?"

Just for the record, my answer? Nevah.

Backyard Box Garden

I'm linking up with Kimba's DIY party. She has a DIY day every week with awesome giveaways!

Yesterday we had a little discussion about gardening, (Thanks for all of the great comments!) in which several people declared their love for vegetable gardening. As I mentioned yesterday, I am a wuss when it comes to the summer heat of NC. We've tried vegetable gardening many years over but each year the weeds get out of control like unruly children in a grocery store.

And then there's the deer, rabbits, and squirrels that think our yard is their own piece of paradise, with a free lunch program.

After many failed attempts at a "real" garden, we decided to do raised beds. Last year brought a successful harvest of tomatoes and basil, so this year we tripled the size and got a little creative.

We wrapped the entire garden in bird netting to keep the munchers out. My man attached it at the bottom with some little 1x1 boards. And then he came up with this brilliant idea:
See that little screw poking out of the side? The bird netting hooks onto it and can easily be removed by human hands, not hooves or paws.
Another shot of the netting "closed" from the top. I'm so glad I married that guy. MacGyver's got nothing on him.

So here's our 2010 garden. The beauty of doing small raised beds is that there is little room for weeds to grow. Now if we could just figure out how to add air conditioning.

We're growing lettuce, cabbage, tomatoes, herbs and okra.

What's your favorite summer veggie?

A Lil Sunshine

I've turned into my mother. I mean that with all due respect, mom.

This time of year I can't walk past a home improvement store without getting giddy. Heck, I can't even walk into the grocery store without perusing the blooms that line the sidewalk.

There's just something about seeing the flowers and imagining all of the foliage potential.

I love to garden ... seasonally. As in spring and fall. Once the summer heat kicks in, my interest dries up like a Nebraskan dust bowl.

So for now I'll pretend that I have a green thumb and that our spring weather will last for 5 months.

How about you? Do you love to garden? Flowers or veggies?

Or do you prefer to purchase your flowers wrapped in cellophane in the cooler next to the produce dept?

A Cheerful Heart

As a mother you hold one of the greatest superpowers known to man: influence

It's a scary thought to know that the moment your child is placed in your arms you will be the most influential person in their lives for the next 15 years, possibly ever.

As you shape, mold, encourage and guide your children, the days can become long. It's easy to allow the daily grind to cloud our long term vision. Let's take step back and examine the heart.

What kind of attitude do my children see in me?

Do I respond in weariness or joyfulness?

A cheerful heart is good medicine

But a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

Proverbs 17:22

Parenting isn't easy, but I want my children to know that I love being their parent.

If all they remember is my weariness, what kind of legacy will I leave?

I want them to experience life with a cheerful mom.

Remember that influence we have? If I respond to my children with cheerfulness, then they will learn to respond to others with that kind of attitude. Not overnight. But if I set the example (on a daily basis) eventually our home will be filled with cheer.

I've often observed moms who respond to a whining child with whining of their own; a teenager with a sour attitude with a bad attitude to match. What good does that do? It only tells the child this behavior is appropriate and acceptable. It's a natural response to react negatively. I often catch myself doing that very thing.

However, if I set the tone, I am being proactive. Ah, that's so much better than being re-active.

'Cause, I'm not good at reacting, especially when it comes to whining and sportin' a tude.

So let's work on being cheerful moms together. Are you in?

Sunday Rest

A cheerful look brings joy to the heart,

and good news gives health to the bones.

Proverbs 15:30

A Must Read

I love to read.

Give me a good book and a chai latte and I'm yours forever.

I'm not afraid to put a book down if it hasn't grabbed me within the first chapter. Too many fish in the sea to waste time on one that won't bite.

I especially love to read books that are recommended by others; however, I usually hesitate to return the favor, knowing that our tastes in literature might be oceans apart.

So today I'm going to take a giant risk and not only make a suggestion, I'm going so far as to say you NEED to read this book:

Any person, at any stage in life, in any socioeconomic level, will be changed by this book.

Very few books have touched my soul the way this book reached in and snatched me. I bawled through the heart of the story line. I'm just thankful that it was 11:30 at night so that mama didn't have to explain why she was a blubbery mess with mascara running down her cheeks.

A word of caution: Don't flip to the back of the book and peruse the photographs. It will be a plot spoiler for you. Spoken from experience, unfortunately.

Have you read it? What did you think?

Have you read the sequel?

What book has snatched you, changed you?

I love a good recommendation!