What Do You See Outside YOUR Open Window Today?

What Do You See Outside YOUR Open Window Today?
Remember: "When God closes a door, He always opens a window!" You never know what might be out there waiting for you!

Thursday, July 11, 2024

Thursday Thankfulness

Thought I'd start this post off with something to get your attention!

While I've been writing this post this afternoon, I was smelling this "peach dump cake" baking in the oven. Hubby has a little bit of a sweet tooth and likes cakes and cookies. When we run out of something good, he reminds me it's time to bake something.  Since we've been sick the past couple of weeks, we haven't been eating much of anything too yummy.  But thankfully we seem to have our appetites back and I also have my sense of taste back, which I had not totally lost, but what sense of taste I had wasn't good...things all tasted extremely salty and/or metallic, which was not very pleasant.  

So I am very thankful that I was able to smell this baking...

And because it smelled so delicious, I decided it needed to be sampled while it was still warm, with a little bit of whipped cream on top:
And a cup of tea...a little tea party with the fairies... And YES! It was just as delightful and delicious as it smelled!  
In case your mouth is watering and you want some of this, here's how easy it was to make:
I used a Duncan Hines White Cake mix, and a large can (29oz.) of sliced peaches in syrup.
Here's what I did:
I melted 1 stick of butter and poured it into a 9"x13" baking pan.
I dumped the dry cake mix on top of the butter, and then added three whole eggs and stirred them all together. 
Oh, I forgot, I drained the peaches and saved the syrup, which came to about one cup of syrup. If not, you could add water to make it 1 cup.  I poured in the syrup and stirred that in with the batter mixture.  
Next I added the sliced peaches and stirred them around so they were evenly distributed in the mixture.
I sprinkled a little cinnamon on top and then baked it at 350 for 30 minutes.  
No frosting necessary. Just use a spritz of whipped cream or ice cream if you prefer.  It really is good, and actually is not overly sweet.  

I am very thankful that we seem to have finally turned the corner and may even be on the other side of this illness. Actually, I had a little setback yesterday. I woke up with my throat starting to feel sore again, and my glands were swelling in my throat.  And I just felt so fatigued, which is how I've felt for the past two weeks, but thought I was getting better.  So I decided not to mess around anymore and called the doctor and asked if I could come in to see him. They said yes, but please wear a mask, even though I am past the quarantine period for covid.  No problem.  After examining my throat, etc., he ordered some steroids (prednisone) for me to take for three days to help get me over the hump of this thing. That plus taking allergy medicine each day (claritin), and continue to drink lots of water, etc.  I do feel better today than I did yesterday, but still the fatigue is real.  We went to Walmart today to get caught up with stuff we needed, and that was challenging, but we made it and are so thankful we could do it.  Hubby is doing about the same as I am, but at least we are improving together, and we are extremely thankful to God for His healing!  Our goal is to be able to go to church Sunday and make it through both Sunday School and Church! I still can't sing, so will just have to listen while others do the singing. That will be "music to my ears"!  

Meanwhile, back on the home front, or rather the back porch, "Blackie" the neighborhood kitty seems to be right at home on our porch chairs.  He has been spending the better part of each day on the porch, sometimes switching from one chair to the others, trying them all out, much like "Goldilocks and the 3 Bears".  ("This one is just right!") LOL.

And then he gets bored with the chairs and moves to the table...
Oops, he saw me!

Seeing me looking at him becomes an invitation to come closer and watch us through the doors:
It's a stare down...He watches our every move...

Trying to send us a message I believe...


Well, it's not going to work, "Black Kitty"...or "Blackie", I'm not giving in...we don't need a house cat.  And the neighbor lady already feeds you every day, and you get to lounge around on our soft cushions all day in the lap of luxury...what more do you want???

"I sure would like to move inside with you..."      Well, it's just not going to happen.  We are not really "cat people", and we don't want to be tied down to having to take care of an animal and then when we want to go places who will take care of it?  Cats aren't like dogs...they don't travel well...so Blackie, please stop trying to make me feel sorry for you!  You are perfectly happy out there watching the birds and catching lizards and moles and frogs, and getting good food every day at the neighbor's house, and lazing around all day on the porch...It's not going to work, so please stop it!  You wouldn't like being cooped up all day in the house, I promise!  To be continued...LOL.
I know if my sister Doris were here she'd be telling me to let the poor kitty in...but she's the cat person in the family, not me!  And besides, what would our Grand-puppies think if they came home from their vacation in Minnesota and discovered that Grandma and Grandpa had a CAT living the house?  They'd be really put out with us! LOL.

Moving right along...I think Blackie is bored now because the Bluebirds seem to have left the nest...

I took this picture today...no one is home! all the babies must have flown the coop, and I never even got to see them! But hopefully they have flown up high to safety with their parents and are enjoying the wild blue yonder!

We do still see the Sand Hill Crane family passing through, and I've noticed them out on the marsh island of the pond at night again, so that's good news.  Still sad that they lost one of the colts, but this one is growing bigger every day and flying high with the parents, so that is good.

And I am so thankful for the rain we've been having pretty consistently lately.  It is helping Still Waters Pond to be refreshed and revived little by little.

Isaiah 43:18-20  NKJV
18 “Do not remember the former things,
Nor consider the things of old.
This is a very dry area in the little canal between our land and the Goose Island.  That used to be filled with water and I could kayak through there.  Won't be able to get around there for a while yet, but it will come back...

See? here is where the waters are starting fill it back up:

It's looking better every day:
19 Behold, I will do a new thing,
Now it shall spring forth;
Shall you not know it?
I will even make a road in the wilderness
And rivers in the desert.

And now even the water birds are starting to come back... This Great Blue Heron spent a long time in the pond today, which is the first I've seen of him in quite a while, and there's a little white Egret tagging along beside him, hoping to get the fish the heron doesn't find...

20 The beast of the field will honor Me,
The jackals and the ostriches,

Because I give waters in the wilderness
And rivers in the desert,
To give drink to My people, My chosen.


Not sure if you can see this or not, but there is a dragon fly doing a hand stand for us on that stick in the pond:

See him better now?  There were dragonflies everywhere, eating mosquitoes and bugs as they hovered over the water. They are happy for the pond being restored as well!
There, that's a better view! Isn't he amazing?  One of God's special creatures, showing his thankfulness for a place to live and eat and enjoy the life God has created him for! He even likes to show off for the bystanders!  



John 7:37-38
37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.
 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”


Yes, I am very thankful to God for all He has done for us...our healing and restoration of strength day by day...and the rains that are coming to restore the pond and the earth and springing up with new life everywhere, and even a little friend, "Blackie", who helps us to see that he feels safe here on our porch and being close to us.  Maybe we can work out a mutual arrangement that will make everyone happy...time will tell.

Well, it's time to go try to take a little walk this evening. We try to get out every day and increase our distance of walking...we haven't quite made it as far as we normally would go yet, but we do get a little farther each time, so that is progress, and we are very thankful indeed.

I hope you are doing well where you are...and oh, one more thing. Those of you who are blogging friends with Debbi over at Debbi's Front Porch, I am sure she would appreciate your thoughts and prayers right now for her and her hubby. He is experiencing some serious health issues right now, and needs our prayers.  Thank you on their behalf.

Okay, good night everyone! "

1 I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart;
I will tell of all Your marvelous works.
2 I will be glad and rejoice in You;
I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.
Psalm 9:1-2











 

13 comments:

  1. Pam: Glad you and John are feeling better. I loved the pictures of the birds and the pond. We had VBS for three nights this week. We had a nice group of children. God smiled on our school. Peace and blessings to you and yours.

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  2. Hi Pamela, I pray you and your hubby feel well enough to go to church on Sunday. I love all the pictures and the verses to go with. God is good!

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  3. Whew, it sounds like this latest round of the "c" word is taking its toll ... longer than one might imagine. Have you heard how Benton and Rose are faring while in Minnesota?
    I'm happy to see you're indulging yourself with that peachy delight. I refuse to turn on our oven until the temp drops below my age, but have copied it to enjoy in a few month's time.
    Like you, I'm not a cat person at all. They're fascinating, but I prefer watching at a distance. Maybe Doris needs to come visit and bring along a big box?!
    Rest well!

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  4. I'm glad you are improving and got some meds to help combat this nasty virus!
    The dump cake looks delicious.
    We had a dragon fly like that on our porch this week and I marveled at the intricate beauty!

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  5. I am so glad you and John are feeling better, but sorry for the little set-back you had. Glad the doctor could give you some meds to stop it in its tracks! Your cake looks SO good. I can almost smell it!! I wish I could come and get your porch cat. He is beautiful and I miss my black cats. I am glad I don't live close enough to get involved!! He looks healthy and cared for. Nice to see the pond filling up again and I'm glad the Sandhills are coming around. Yes, much to be thankful for, indeed! Hugs!

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  6. Glad you are both improving-it takes a while to get over that stuff! That cake looks delicious!

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  7. the hand standing dragon fly brought to my memory a few years ago, when my friend and I were at Bray Park and we wandering into a flock? a group? there were literally thousands of dragon flies. three large hills of overgrown grass and it was alive with them. we stood in amazement. Swarm is the word I would looking for. darn senior memory! so happy you are getting rain, we are too. several times a week for the past 3 weeks. everything is GREEN but like you, the ponds we see are slow to fill up but better than they were.... I am wondering if you have what I have heard called Long Covid. the symptoms linger for weeks even though the virus is gone. so happy you are able to walk more and more each day

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  8. Praying you are much better very soon.

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  9. What a wonderful post today. I love everything about it. You are a word-master.
    I'm so glad you have turned the corner and are finally on the mend...glad you went to the doctor for meds. This being sick especially when its the two of you together is for the birds. Love your tale about Blackie. I'm not a cat person either (sorry friends) The neighborhood cats love our backyard and think the flitter birds are their personal buffet. We keep chasing them away. the birds are NOT theirs for the tasting.
    Love the verses and the photos to go with them.
    Have a wonderful weekend. So hot here..going to be 113F by the end of the day. UGH
    Sue

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  10. I"m so happy to hear that you all are continuing to improve, Pamela, in spite of that one set back and the continued feelings of fatigue. PTL! The photos of the dragonfly are amazing! I'm glad that you are getting the rain you need to bring Still Waters Pond back to life.
    Blessings!

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  11. Glad y'all are feeling better. Praise the Lord! I hear that Ivermectin works wonders too and it's OTC (Over-The-Counter). No doctor visit needed. We keep some on hand but never get sick anymore since giving up sugar & carb's. And we've been exposed too.
    Wonderful pics of the birds and pond. It looks so tranquil there. Summer is definitely upon us because it has gotten so hot and humid. That drags on these old bones. Makes it difficult to get anything done after 10 am. I'm soooo ready for Fall. *giggle*
    Keeping feeling better and have a great day! 💙

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  12. Glad to read that you and John are feeling better, Pam, aside from that little setback so good you went to the doctor's office right away. Hopefully, the meds will have you back to feeling better. Thanks so much for the peach dup cake recipe as I need to make a cake for July birthdays in the dominoes group we play with on Fridays and this sounds perfect as some folks can't have chocolate. I can understand you not wanting to be tied down with a pet, so Blackie will have to look elsewhere. We feel the same way as much as I do like cats. Nice to see the crane family again, but sad that one of the colts is gone.

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  13. Kitty wants loving contact with someone. Sometimes having needs met just isn't enough.

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