Happy Monday After Mother's Day!

 Good Morning! I hope this Monday morning after Mother's Day finds you all feeling refreshed and ready for a new week! Regardless of whether or not you were overwhelmed with joy, or underwhelmed with not much of any kind of special activity over the weekend, today is the beginning of a new week! Each new day brings hope and new possibilties for blessings and also for being a blessing to someone else who may be struggling to find her joy.  So I thought I would start out this morning with some special little extra blessings, and hopefully some things that will bring smiles to your faces as well...

#1   Praise the Lord! We've been getting some much needed rain over the past several days, and the promise of more to come in the next few days! That is such a joy to my heart and to our land and pond! No, there still isn't any noticeable water in the pond, but it is like a big old sponge that is soaking up all the moisture it can, and one of these days it is going to overflow with pools of water once again!

And just look at how our garden is growing!!  Little squashes are developing!

And the tomatoes are getting bigger every day...

And some are even turning red!  Those of you who are experienced gardeners, should I pick it now, or let it get bigger and more red before I pick it?  And what are those lines on the leaves? Some kind of insect or worm?  The tomatoes appear to be healthy, but I don't know what these lines are on the leaves...I don't want to use any chemical pesticides...

Anyway, it gives me great joy to see these little gardens growing:

And my wildflower garden is sprouting up really well...probably too well as the seeds were all sown quite on top of each other...so time will tell what develops...plue I need to do some serious weeding around it and keep the grass out.

#2: And look what else sprouted up in my garden yesterday!  Son Scott showed up for Mother's Day afterall!

We had already agreed last Sunday that he didn't need to drive 2 hours back again this week since we weren't going to be having any big Mother's Day dinner because the other kids weren't going to be available and we were going to do something else with them during the week...which I already wrote about Here:Link to earlier post about my Mother's Day celebration at the Beach (in case you missed it).    But he decided he wanted to come on down anyway (he had more laundry to do! LOL) and so I went ahead and put some country style ribs in the crock pot and got some corn on the cob  at the farm market on Saturday, and we ended up having a really nice dinner together.  I was  thrilled, of course!  

We enjoyed a nice afternoon of just visiting and relaxing before he had to head back to Jacksonville...

Of course, he wasn't our only "guest"...Lily Grace wanted to get in the act and wore her "I'm Mom's Favorite" t-shirt.  This was a standing joke, when Scott and Benton each were gifted a similar t-shirt from their Aunt Peggy one year for Christmas, and so a friend of mine created this shirt for Lily Grace.  

(If you still don't know who Lily Grace is, you can check out her blog HERE, although it is sadly out of date) 

A certain Kitty named "Blackie" was surprised to see Lily standing there on HIS chair, and I also think he was surprised to see her t-shirt, because I'm certain that he thinks that he's Mom's favorite!

You will note that he immediately took possession of Lily...

I almost literally had to pry her out of his grasp...we probably won't try that again...Lily was a little nervous...

And then I think Blackie was a little nervous (look at those eyes!) when I took a selfie of the two of us!

The camera really isn't his favorite thing, but you'd think he'd be getting used to it by now...

So that was the excitement for Mother's Day!   Oh, but wait, it wasn't over yet!!  We did get a really nice rain...and guess who else showed up for a visit?

#3: If you are a Facebook friend, you may already have seen these...but for the rest of you, I hope you'll enjoy this Mother's Day visit from the Bluebird family! We never got to see the babies when they left the nest, so it was nice of them to come back for a visit, even if it was in the rain!  They were such fun to watch:

Daddy bluebird is checking to make sure the coast is clear and that it's safe to let the youngsters come over here to "visit".

Mr. Cardinal kept flying in, trying to get to the bird feeder, but Daddy Bluebird kept chasing him away...

Here Daddy is having a chat with one of the "kids"... 

And this "child" is hanging on to the trellis, waiting for someone to bring some more food... The parents do still bring some food to the babies, but they are also learning to hunt for food for themselves...

Here this one is waiting on the roof, trying to keep from slipping off...

Baby on top says, "Hey, Mom, I'm up here!!"

Here are two very hungry youngsters on the roof, telling Daddy to hurry up with dinner..."We're getting wet and cold up here on this roof!"

I think this is one of the babies flying off...

And this one is hanging on to a small branch on the tree...very well camouflaged...

PLEASE come feed me! I'm getting really wet here!!!

And I'm out on a very small limb here! 

I think I've been forgotten!

Hey! It's cooler and safer here in the shade of this tree!!

Hmmm, maybe my brother had the best idea...it sure is slippery and wet and cold here...

I'm hanging on for dear life...

Daddy, are you up there? Are you bringing me any food????

Calm down, child! You know I won't forget you! Just be patient and wait and I will take care of you...

Son, don't turn your back on me when I'm talking to you...

I wish you Bluebirds would hurry up and go away so I can get back to my bird feeder! I'm hungry too!

Son,  I'm  still talking to you! Turn around and look at me!

And so it went, until they decided it was time to move on and they flew away to the tree tops where they spend the nights in safety and away from the predators.  

Here are some verses that came to mind as I was writing this...like the little bluebirds, we sometimes get frightened in the storms of life, or we worry that we will be forgotten by those that we love ...or even by God Himself...But God has promised us that He will always be there for us, through all the storms and times of anxiety or worries about the future...

[Isaiah 41:10]: "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand".

[Isaiah 43:2]: "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you...".

[Joshua 1:9]: "...Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go".

[Matthew 28:20]: "...And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age".

[Deuteronomy 31:8]: "The LORD Himself goes before you; He will be with you. He will never leave you or forsake you. Do not be afraid or discouraged".

[Hebrews 13:5]: "...for he has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you'". 

And then there  precious words of Christ, reminding us not to worry about food or clothing or anything...

Matthew 6:25-27, 31-34 NKJV

Do Not Worry

25 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 

32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 

33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 

34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Yes, if we will "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, all these things shall be added to you."  He will provide all that we need, and even more...blessings upon blessings.   That is what I believe and have found to be true in my own life. I pray it is something that you are learning as well. 

I hope you enjoyed this little Monday after Mother's Day "celebration" with me!! Praying that your week ahead will be filled with little joys along the way. Watch for them! God wants to bless you with His love and care every day!!