Monday Monday ~ Blessings

 Psalm 96:1-6

Oh, sing to the Lord a new song!

Sing to the Lord, all the earth.

2 Sing to the Lord, bless His name;

Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.

3 Declare His glory among the nations,

His wonders among all peoples.

4 For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised;

He is to be feared above all gods.

5 For all the gods of the peoples are idols,

But the Lord made the heavens.

6 Honor and majesty are before Him;

Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.

Happy Monday! I thought I'd start out with that beautiful Swallowtail Butterfly enjoying sipping the nectar from the Bottlebrush Tree in our yard.  When I first planted that bush, it was small, and I really didn't think about how large/tall it would get. I mainly wanted it for my butterfly garden area so it would attract butterflies and hummingbirds. 

 It is definitely doing exactly what I wanted it to do! My only complaint is that it is getting quite tall and is starting to obstruct a part of our view of Still Waters Pond!

I thought about transplanting it to a different location not quite so central to our view of the pond, but then we wouldn't be able to see the hummingbirds and butterflies when they are on there...so I guess we can sacrifice the one to be able to enjoy the other, and yes, we can still see the pond.  And actually, once the blooming season is over and the hummingbirds and butterflies have moved further south for the winter we can trim the bush back down to a more reasonable level and let it grow stronger before the next blooming season begins.

Oftentimes in life we do have to learn to make some sacrifices of something that seems really good to achieve something even better.  It's not always easy to do, but when we think about the overall bigger picture, it makes sense. 

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 seems to sum up this thought about making sacrifices in our lives now for that which is greater for us in the long run...that is, for eternity!

"16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, 

yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 

17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, 

is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 

18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, 

but the things which are not seen are eternal."

That is a good reminder for me today.  It seems like lately I've been making little sacrifices here and there in being able to do some of the things I enjoy because of my hubby's health issues, and then even this past weekend because of my own health issues. Nothing serious, just a virus of some sort, but I had to forego attending a baby shower at our church on Saturday and then also church services yesterday.  But I definitely didn't want to "share" any germs with the expectant mother or anyone else, and it was truly better for me to stay home and rest and get over whatever this is. Today I am just kind of washed out and still tired, so it is definitely best to just stay put and rest and recuperate.  

Friday evening we invited the kids over for "Taco Friday" (instead of "Taco Tuesday"). I was feeling fine then, and we wanted to give them a break from their kitchen redo that they were tackling all last week.  And no, they didn't get it finished yet, but at least they made some good progress. I will definitely post pictures when the job is done. 

And lest you think we don't pay enough attention to our Grandpuppies now that we have our own porch kitties...here's Rose holding Spice up to look out the window above the curtain we put up to keep the pups from seeing the cats out there.  Apparently the cats were not in sight at this moment or she wouldn't have been able to hold a squirming pup for long...LOL. 

And there's Sugar waiting her turn to look out the window, with her doggie toy squeaking away... LOL.

They sure are sweet pups and we enjoy them coming to visit...but the curtain idea really helps keep them from going crazy over seeing the cats.  At one time Sunshine peeked up over the curtain while sitting in the chair that it was fastened to, so we had to distract the pups really quickly and Sunshine was satisfied that there wasn't much going on so he moved on.  Blackie also peeked once as well, and again, quick thinking inside averted a noisy uprising. LOL.  

I guess there isn't much else to share today. I just wanted to check in with you and let you know I'm still here. I didn't get around to read very many posts over the weekend so I am a bit behind in knowing how all of you are doing.  Hopefully I will get caught up this week.  

Oh, one more special story...This is a picture of my dear friend Sharon and her son Robb. Sharon passed away from cancer in 2019.  Sharon adopted Robb when he was about two years old. Although Sharon was single, she raised Robb with so much love and care. He had some special needs and life was pretty challenging for them for a while, but with God's love and guidance, Robb grew to be a very fine young man.  They lived here in Florida for a good while, which is where we became acquainted, and we became their "Florida Family".  However, Sharon was originally from a very large family in Minnesota, and in her final days she went to live with one of her sisters there until she passed away.  Robb also went to live in Minnesota and eventually got a good job and met a very sweet young lady.  

We have stayed in touch with Robb through Facebook and also other family members. I was very thrilled and blessed to receive these pictures from Robb over the weekend:

Meet baby Ellie!  I knew she was expected, but she came a little bit early, so this was a pleasant surprise:

And here's Baby Ellie and her happy Mama:

Of course my first thought was how happy my friend Sharon would be to know that her Robb is now a Daddy, and that he has grown to be a very responsible and thoughtful man.  I know Sharon would've been thrilled to be a grandma, and I hope she can see Baby Ellie from heaven.  Who knows about these things? Only God knows for sure, but I have a feeling Sharon already knows all about little Ellie, and if people in heaven can pray for us here on earth, you can well imagine that little Ellie has been bathed in heavenly prayers and love ever since her conception.  

Psalm 139:13-16

"13 For You formed my inward parts;

You covered me in my mother’s womb.

14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

Marvelous are Your works,

And that my soul knows very well.

15 My frame was not hidden from You,

When I was made in secret,

And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

16 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."

I wish they weren't so far away, as I would love to play surrogate Grandma for little Ellie, but thankfully Robb has many doting Aunts and cousins and family members nearby who will definitely make sure that Little Ellie gets LOTS of "grandma"  kind of love.  She will be much loved and blessed for certain. I know that she will be added to my prayers and who knows? Maybe I'll get to meet her and hold her someday. 

Okay, that's all for now. Thank you for listening. Have a blessed and wonderful week my friends.

Thursday Thankfulness and More

 Where has this week gone? I can't believe it is Thursday already! And it's almost over as I am just starting to write at 8:15 p.m. I may have to finish this post tomorrow. We'll see how far I get!

So, let's start out with some pictures to get our attention...

You may wonder what this picture is all about...well, I saw this while we were taking a walk the other morning and I had to take a closer look...

At first I thought it was just another tall skinny tree growing up in the middle of that oak tree and palm tree...

But upon closer inspection I realized it had climbing spikes in the sides of it...

And it wasn't a tree at all! It was an old telephone pole that was surrounded by two trees that grew up around it!  This is on one of those vacant lots where the old houses used to stand before the highway came through and they tore them down (or moved them) to make room for the highway...

No telling how long it has been there...long enough for those trees to grow all around it!  I just thought that was pretty amazing!  Sometimes when you open your eyes and observe things around you, you see all kinds of things you never noticed before. I bet I've walked by that pole at least 50 times and this was the first time I noticed it! LOL.

So here's some other pictures of  "do you see what I see?"

If you look closely, you will notice that the Sand Hill Crane family is standing out in the yard, right beside the back porch where Sunshine and Blackie are sitting and very quietly observing them.

The cats did not move a muscle while the birds were up close to them, because they didn't want Mama or Papa Crane to get all excited and start jumping up and down and flapping their wings at them to scare them away.   It was actually kind of a stare down for a little while, with the cranes staring straight at the cats, and the cats nonchalantly trying to ignore them, but also very aware of their presence.

Finally the Cranes started to move away, although they still kept a close watch on the cats, but Sunshine and Blackie finally felt comfortable enough to move and reassure each other that they had won the contest.  There's always something to watch around here!! Never a dull moment!

And speaking of "never a dull moment"...son Benton sent me these pictures a while ago.  They are in the process of doing a "kitchen refresh", as he called it.  

Rose took off some vacation time this week so they could do a lot of projects around their house, mainly this kitchen redo.  They are going to paint the cabinet doors and walls and brighten up the whole place! Plus they will be getting new countertops!

Here Rose is putting on the primer over the paneling, and then they are going to paint it.  As you can see by the amount of paneling, they have a big job to do, plus painting all of the cabinets!

Whew! I'm glad they are young and full of energy!  It makes me tired just thinking about all of this work!  But I know they will be happy when it's done and it will look so much brighter and prettier!

I am thankful for their talents and also their willingness to do these kinds of things together. They are a very special couple and we are very proud of them and thankful that God brought them together. (and that they live nearby so we can enjoy having them around!)

So now, I know some of you may be wondering how hubby is doing. He seems to be doing fairly well this week, but still dealing with so much fatigue.  Yesterday we met with our Primary Care doctor, and we were thankful for his listening ear and thoughtful approach to what we were sharing with him. After  going over every thing that has been happening, he did order a lot of lab work to be done. We had to go back this morning to get that done, and we will have to wait for the results to meet again, which will actually be in a couple of weeks because we wanted to be sure to get this same doctor. Our clinic has rotating doctors and you don't always get to see the same person every time, but we wanted to make sure that we would see  him again, so we are willing to wait until he is available. I'm sure if there was anything glaringly wrong in the results they would call us back in before then, but we are trusting that won't be necessary.

Actually yesterday, after leaving that office, hubby also had an eye appointment...so we headed there and once that was done it was lunch time so we decided to stop at Captain D's and eat. It's fairly new and we've never been there before. I was afraid that all they would have would be fried fish/seafood. But surprisingly they do have grilled dinners and several choices of healthy sides, etc., so we were pleasantly surprised and had a good lunch. I actually had enough to take home and have leftovers for supper.

Then this morning after hubby had to do fasting labs, we went to one of our local diners for breakfast! We haven't been out to eat two times in a row in a LONG time! I felt like we must be on vacation or something! LOL.  

I am thankful that things are under way regarding finding out what is going on with hubby. We are praying that it will be something that is reasonably "fixed" with proper medication or diet or some other treatment...but we are placing these things in God's hands and trusting Him to work it out. We take comfort in this promise from God's Word:

Psalm 55:22 NIV

"Cast your cares on the Lord

and He will sustain you;

He will never let

the righteous be shaken."

And also from 1 Peter 5:6-7

"6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, 

that he may lift you up in due time. 

7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you."

Thank you all for your kind words and thoughts and prayers. I will keep you updated as we learn things, but for now we are just trying to take things one day at a time and trusting God to work it out.

I hope you have a pleasant rest of your week!  I'm trying to get around and visit with you as I can. You are all very special and dear to me.  Good night for now.

Tuesday 4~Summertime

 I know I'm a little late to the "party" for this week's Tuesday 4, but HERE is the link if you want to follow along and see what others are writing today as well. (Or join in with your own post! The more the merrier!)

Summertime

Hey! Welcome back to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 where we ask just 4 questions each week to give you something to blog about, something to think about and a reason to visit other blogs!


♫Summer time and the living is easy says the song. So how is summer going for you? Let's talk about it.....

1. How has summer been so far? Has it been easy or hard or are things moving along as usual? Is the weather getting you down or are you enjoying it so far?

Well, living here in Florida, it has been HOT and HUMID. But then I've noticed on the the weather reports that a lot of you up north have actually had hotter weather than we have so far this summer!  I actually talked to one of my cousins in Pennsylvania yesterday because it was her birthday and I try to remember to call her every year on her special day...(which is another story...because a few years ago I called her mainly to tell her about some family news, and she told me it was her birthday and she thought maybe that was why I was calling...and I had to admit that I didn't realize it was her birthday because for many years she belonged to a religious group that didn't believe in celebrating birthdays or any holidays, so I was surprised that she mentioned to me that it was her birthday...and so I decided then and there that I would try to remember to call her on that day from then on since it seems that now she wants "celebrate" her day)...anyway, as I was saying...my cousin said that it has been VERY HOT and HUMID where they live, and they do not have air conditioning since they usually don't need it.  She said they do have a LOT of fans in every room and that is how they are managing. It was very nice to get caught up on all of her family news and to keep our family connection going as best as we can, since we probably haven't seen each other in person in over thirty years.

2. What have you been doing this summer? Even the little mundane things count.

Well, mostly just trying to keep up with our regular household chores and activities. We haven't done nearly as much this summer since hubby hasn't felt real well.  BUT, we finally did go back to church on Sunday, and that was a real blessing!! It was SO good to see everyone and also to get and give many hugs!   Tomorrow hubby has an appointment with our primary care doctor,  and I hope we will begin to zero in on whatever is going on with him. We shall see. Prayers are always appreciated.

3. What are you going to do? Any plans? What interests you this summer?

No plans since hubby hasn't felt well enough to make any plans.   Oh, one other good thing...we finally heard from our grandson Noah the other day! We hadn't talked since Christmas, even though I send him text messages and pictures, etc. all the time. He's almost 26, works long hours and stays very busy, and well, I guess young people today just don't realize how important it is to stay in touch with old folks like us. We live 1500 miles apart, so we can't exactly just get together anytime we wish. Our conversation was wonderful and we were so thankful to know that he is doing well. He did have a car accident a couple of months ago and his brand new car was totalled, but he wasn't hurt nor was the person in the other vehicle, so we are very thankful for that. And he was able to replace his car with an older version of the same car with a lower payment...so maybe it worked out for the better in the long run. I told him that we pray for him every single day, and that we know God was truly watching over him in that accident. I hope he realizes how much he is loved by us and by His heavenly Father.  

4. It's been hot in most of the country How are you weathering the heat ? What are your ideas for staying cool in the hottest weather of summer.

Well, I wish we could do this...

We do take a lot of naps...but we just can't sleep on the porch like these kitties...

Sometimes we do fall asleep sitting up...but we are inside where it is cool in the air conditioning and sometimes with a fan on us as well!

Or maybe Sunshine was just praying. It was time for breakfast and he was patiently waiting for me to bring out the food!

And like these two kitties, we do seem to eat a lot...but we try to eat more fruit and salads and not such heavy meals as in the other months...

We are very thankful for the rains we have had; as you can see Still Waters Pond is filling back up and the grass is growing in where it once was just black mucky mud...

Everything is looking much more lush and beautiful once again, which is an answer to prayer.

We could still use more rain, and I am certain we will get it eventually, but we are thankful for everything that God has already provided.

On a different and sadder note...

I know some of you have already seen this picture on Facebook. I think it may be AI generated, but whoever did it, it certainly speaks to my heart. We've all been hit with the horrific tragedy that has taken place in Texas this past weekend...our hearts have been broken to think about those precious young girls being swept away in the waters of the flood...but when I think about them passing through the waters and leaping directly into the open arms of Jesus Christ, Who is standing there at Heaven's Gate ready to welcome them "home", well, that gives me great comfort.  I know the road ahead for their families will be be a long, difficult, and painful journey, but for those who are believers, if they can visualize their dear sweet daughters safe in the arms of Jesus, it has to help bring some measure of comfort.

Matthew 19:14 NKJV

14 But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”

This is a link to a previous post I wrote some time ago about "Understanding God's Plan", which I think gives some comfort and clarity in this difficult time.  Again, my heart goes out to all of those suffering such great loss at this time. May God comfort them as only He can.

I hope that your summertime will be filled with blessings and making happy memories with your loved ones and friends.  Thanks for joining in.

Saturday ~ Holiday Revue

Happy Saturday of the long Independence Day Holiday weekend!  I wonder how many of you are still celebrating the 4th of July holiday with family and friends...or are you just relaxing and recovering from a busy day yesterday?  That's kind of what we are doing...unwinding and catching up on our "naps", since we didn't get any yesterday! LOL.

I'm still enjoying smelling those beautiful roses and admiring the zinnias...and look at those luscious little tomatoes my sweet dil Rose brought us yesterday from their very own garden!

There is nothing better than home grown tomatoes, no matter what size they are!  These were so sweet and good, I've kept them on the countertop where I can just grab one and eat it whenever I want!

I did have some yesterday with my salad, along with our bbq chicken, potato salad, deviled eggs, baked beans and rolls...it was all very delicious.  My thanks to our son Scott for grilling the chicken for us again. He's the expert!

As I had mentioned in my previous post HERE, I wasn't  sure what I was going to make for dessert the night before...but I finally decided upon one of our old family favorites, actually, it is my sister Doris' recipe, and she has often made it to bring to family dinners, but since they couldn't come to this one, I made it instead...this is an "Oatmeal Cake". (or what's left of it! LOL)

Here's the recipe in case you are interested. However, please change that 11 x 13" pan to a 9 x 13" pan. Not sure where that other came from and I'm not even sure a pan that size exists! LOL.

It is a very moist and delicious cake, and can be eaten alone or with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream if you so desire. (or a cup of tea or coffee!)   Just don't bring it to a gathering where my sister Doris will be, or we might have two cakes! LOL.

As promised, Benton and Rose brought a watermelon, so here he is cutting it up...it was so nice and red and ripe and juicy, but no seeds for a seed spitting contest this time! LOL.

Here we are enjoying our watermelon...while hubby was taking our picture...

And here he is...can you tell he seems to be feeling better?  He mostly is, but still seems to stay very tired. Hopefully some tests this next week will help us zero in on what is going on.

He definitely appreciates everyone's prayers, and so do I. Thank you!

I wasn't going to share both of these pictures, but I couldn't decide which one to use so I just went ahead and included both.  I hope you don't mind.

Now, this is a funny picture of Blackie. Why? Well, because we had gone to a lot of trouble to hang up that sheet over the bottom half of our glass doors so  that when the grandpuppies come over they wouldn't be able to see the kitties out on the back porch. They get so excited and just keep barking at the cats, and it becomes a real "issue".  Just before the family got here, we looked out and saw Blackie there staring back at us with those big green eyes as if to say, "Ha Ha, I fooled you! You can't keep me from looking in! I like to see the doggies too! LOL".   Well, we knew that would not work, so we had to do some more work on our curtain before the doggies got here.

It worked just fine, but sadly Sugar (below) and Spice (not pictured), were terribly disappointed to not be able to see the kitties and do their usual greeting of bark, bark, bark, squeal, squeal, jump, jump, etc. (if you have doggies, you know what I mean!)  So Sugar and Spice mostly just laid around acting very bored to be at Grandma and Grandpa's house, like a kid who says "I'm bored, I have nothing to play with", while surrounded by a room full of toys:    

Isn't she just pitiful? LOL.   We love our grandpuppies. They are so sweet.  But we also love peace and quiet while trying to visit with the family, so some sacrifices had to be made.  I'm sure they'll forgive us.

Oh, back to the 4th of July, I noticed that a lot of you were doing a "Saturday 9-Lady Liberty" theme for your posts yesterday or today.  I don't usually participate in that particular weekly format, but I wanted to add a special picture of "Lady Liberty" and "Uncle Sam" in honor of the occasion! This picture was taken yesterday (not taken by me, but it was on Facebook) during the annual Independence Day Parade in our historical downtown, and these are some very dear people to us.  "Lady Liberty" and her husband "Uncle Sam" are members of our church, and the lady, Kim, is especially special. She has been battling cancer for the past two years, and I want to tell you she is such a strong person and a real fighter! God has definitely been with her, and she is such a testimony to all of us of faith and perseverence in the face of a strong foe. I continue to pray for her every day, that God will help her to win this battle, and that one day soon she will definitely be "Lady Liberty", FREE from all cancer! 

This was our flag yesterday morning at sunrise. It was a bit foggy, but I couldn't help but think of and sing our Star Spangled Banner as I put out the flag.

O say can you see, by the dawn's early light, 

What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming, 

Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight, 

O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming? 

And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air, 

Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there; 

O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave 

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? 

I know the reason we have fireworks on the 4th of July is to remember the "rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air..." and we  usually go see some fireworks in our little town. But to be honest, last night we were both just so worn out that we didn't feel like leaving the house. We could hear the "bombs bursting in air" from here, and if we had gotten up to look out the windows, I know we could've seen the "rocket's red glare" all around us, as many people in the area love to do their own fireworks show. But us old folks just decided to stay home and relax and get to bed early.  I've seen lots of pictures online from everywhere, so that satisfied me.  And we said our prayers of thanksgiving for our freedom, and for the privilege of living in this great country, where even with all of her flaws, this is still the greatest country in the world, and we are extremely grateful to God to be able to call this place our home. We pray that God will continue to "shed His grace on thee".

Here's another favorite anthem, not our "national anthem", but one that we sing with fervor and as a prayer of praise and thanksgiving.  

"America the Beautiful"

"O beautiful for spacious skies,

For amber waves of grain,

For purple mountain majesties

Above the fruited plain!

America! America!

God shed His grace on thee

And crown thy good with brotherhood

From sea to shining sea!

O beautiful for pilgrim feet,

Whose stern, impassioned stress

A thoroughfare for freedom beat

Across the wilderness!

America! America!

God mend thine every flaw,

Confirm thy soul in self-control,

Thy liberty in law!

O beautiful for heroes proved

In liberating strife,

Who more than self their country loved

And mercy more than life!

America! America!

May God thy gold refine,

Till all success be nobleness,

And every gain divine!

O beautiful for patriot dream

That sees beyond the years

Thine alabaster cities gleam

Undimmed by human tears!

America! America!

God shed His grace on thee

And crown thy good with brotherhood

From sea to shining sea!"

Amen.

I hope you and yours have had a safe and happy holiday. Let us remember to pray for those families in Texas who have been devastated by the horrific flash floods that swept away homes and precious children. My heart is breaking for the families of those dear little girls at that camp. May God give them comfort as only He can. Makes you want to hold your own loved ones a little closer and whisper words of thanksgiving to God for their safety, doesn't it?   Yes, may God be very near and dear to those families right now. Amen.

Thursday Thankfulness, a Book Review and More!

 It's Thursday, the day before Independence Day...and a good time to stop and smell the "roses" along the way and count our blessings...

Blackie seems to really appreciate sniffing the posies...

But Sunshine doesn't want any part of it...

He turned his head and headed the other way...

This was as close as I could get him to them:

even though he doesn't seem to mind sitting right in the middle of the flower bed and watching the birds. Thankfully he doesn't bother them...they fly away before he can get close.

Anyway, I've been enjoying our zinnias and roses blooming once again!

I stop and smell the roses everytime I walk by them!  These are exceptionally fragrant, and I just can't resist them!

Oh, someone mentioned the other day (I think it was Sandra from "MadSnapper") that she really liked this green vase...

Thank you, Sandra! It is a very special vase. It belonged to my mother, and she always used it for roses...so that is what I prefer to put in this vase whenever I have any to enjoy!  It's a real keepsake!

Now, talking about "old things" that are special...that would also include "old souls...with frayed edges and colorful stories".   I saw this meme on our friend Myra's "Respice, Prospice" blog post the other day.  I asked her permission to share it and she said by all means  to go ahead... Thank you, Myra!!

It made me think about my friend Belle, whom I told you about HERE a few days ago.

Oh yes! That would describe Belle quite well!  She's an amazing 87 year old lady with perhaps some "frayed edges" and some very "colorful stories",  I say most lovingly, however.  I've only just met Belle, but she somehow managed to worm her way into my mind and heart really quickly.  

So, I told you I would tell you more about her books after I'd had a chance to read them.   Yes, she wrote these two, and quite a few more, which can be found on www.lulu.com, in the fiction section under the name of Belle Tilley. There are actually some in ebooks if you are interested in checking them out.

Now, I haven't finished reading the "Collection of Short Stories" yet, but I did read the first one.  Here is the dedication that Belle wrote in the beginning of that book...

I found this dedication to be very touching.  It makes me stop and think about those who have encouraged me along life's way, and helped me to reach higher, dig deeper, and work harder to achieve those goals that others could see would be good for me that perhaps I couldn't see for myself.  Sometimes it is just a word of thanks or affirmation from a friend or a loved one...or maybe even a perfect stranger who appreciates something I've written or said or done when I had no thought of receiving any accolades or rewards. That little "pat on the back", or "atta girl", that makes you want to keep trying and not give up.  We just never know how much our words to others might really mean to them.   

Here is the index, or table of contents, for the Collection of Short Stories.  I bet you can guess which one I chose to read first...

If you guessed "A Cabin in The Woods", you would be correct.  Those of you who have followed me for a while should know that I have a thing about wanting a cabin in the woods.  I enjoyed that little story, and was impressed with it enough that I decided I wanted to go ahead and read the other full length book first and then come back to the other short stories later.

Surprisingly, these paragraphs below are actually from the  first page of the other book, "Murder Is Where You Find It".  Again, it starts out with a scene from a cabin in the woods, so that got my attention right away as well.

Belle does a good job of getting your attention early on in the book so that you want to keep reading to see where it will lead from there.  My original thought was that I knew this book was going to be about "murder", and from that first page I was concerned that the "murder" was somehow going to be connected to the young lady Ashley and her lovely little cabin. Well, I won't give the story away but I will say that her life does take some unexpected twists and turns as the story unfolds and the crime is committed.  

Belle introduces several interesting characters throughout the story, and each one of them have you wondering if this is the one, or is it that one...or what's going to happen to them...or...well, you get the idea...she manages to keep you guessing throughout the story as to what is really going to happen next, and who is going to do what.  I must say that once I got into the book, I didn't want to put it down. I appreciated also that Belle did not fall into the trap of using foul language or having graphic love scenes (although there is some romance involved...we just don't need to know ALL the details), but she did use some grisly descriptive language to describe the murder scene. However, that's what murder is...a very grisly scene, and so that would be expected in a murder novel. 

Belle did a great job of keeping you guessing about each of the main characters, and I will say that even though I had a little inkling of who I thought might be involved in some way early on in the book, I kind of dismissed that idea as the story progressed and it appeared that the crime was solved.  However,  Belle, in my opinion, expertly threw in some twists and turns and surprises that created an ending that I never saw coming! 

So all in all, I would give it a thumbs up! I wouldn't mind reading some of her other books.  And I would also say to never underestimate  those "Old souls with frayed edges and colorful stories" who may come knocking on your door some day. This one sure surprised me!!

Now for some other surprises today...

Yes, these are very young armadillos!  Click here for more information about the Florida Armadillo

While the three young armadillos were running all around the yard, here's Sunshine and Blackie, sitting back and watching the show! They didn't seem to be unduly alarmed at all.

I was not happy to see this one in the zinnia flower bed.  Good Grief!  First it was Sunshine, and now an armadillo?  I do hope these plants survive the summer!

If you are not from the south or southwest, you may have never seen a live armadillo.  They are quite unusual looking creatures, that's for certain!

They are normally nocturnal, but these three youngsters acted like kids being let out of school early and running around the playground, exploring every nook and cranny of the yard.

I don't know where the parents are...maybe they are taking their nap and letting the kids run free!

Regardless, they were fun to watch for a while, but I really don't want them making holes and tunnels in our yard. However, we live in the "wild", so to speak, and I don't think we are going to be able to totally deter the wildlife from passing through. I hope you enjoyed the show!

While all of that was going on, we also had another visitor to the garden:

Can you see it?

This is a female Ruby Throated Hummingbird!  She is enjoying our Bottle Brush tree blooms that have just blossomed recently!

I love to see them enjoying the natural nectar of the flowers as opposed to just drinking from the feeder that we have set up with sugar water in it for them.

This is the REAL stuff that they love, and I am so happy God provided it for them!

What a treat!!!

We have been enjoying some lovely rainstorms this afternoon, which has replenished the earth once again with the nourishment it needs...and our Still Waters Pond is also rejoicing and refreshed!

1 Chronicles 16:31-34 describes it best:

"31 Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;

let them say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!”

32 Let the sea resound, and all that is in it;

let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them!

33 Let the trees of the forest sing,

let them sing for joy before the Lord,

for he comes to judge the earth.

34 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

his love endures forever."

As we prepare for our Independence Day celebration tomorrow, I want to pause and give thanks to the Lord, "for He is good...and His love endures forever."  I give thanks to God for our freedoms that we hold so dear...for our country with all of its beauty and amazing natural resources...for the blessings of our home, family, community, churches, and the abundance of everything that we so freely enjoy. We are blessed as a people and a nation. May we never take that blessing for granted.

I hope that you and yours will have a wonderful day of celebration tomorrow. We will have our "kids" here for a cookout...with son Scott at the grill cooking chicken. Rose and Benton will be bringing the potato salad and watermelon and deviled eggs. I'll be baking the beans and making a salad and some kind of cake or pie...I haven't decided yet, but it's getting late so I guess I'd better get with the program! 

Whatever you do tomorrow, please take time to "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, and His love endures forever!"  Amen.