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!
Showing posts with label First day of Summer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label First day of Summer. Show all posts

Thursday, June 20, 2024

Thursday Thankfulness and More

 Happy first day of Summer!  Not sure how I really feel about that...summer is not one of my favorite seasons since we live here in the "Sunshine State", and summer is HOT, HOT, and MORE HOT! And HUMID too!  But if I can list at least one thing I am very thankful for, it would be our central air conditioning...and also the fact that since we replaced our old AC unit last June, we have noticed that our electricity consumption so far in these past few warmer months has been considerably less, and our electric bill has literally been cut in half from what it was during the same period of time last year!! Now that is a blessing I can really be thankful for! It also goes to show you how much electricity the older less efficient appliances really use, and when at all possible, it is worth the expense of replacing them with newer models.  

It sure beats having to fan ourselves with hand fans and other kinds of fans...Like I wrote about HERE a few years ago when our AC broke down.  However, we were thankful then and would be thankful now to have those fans if we needed them again.  

That hand made fan above belonged to my husband's grandmother, and I expect it is quite old, but it still works!  And those coasters that say "Life is BETTER on the porch!" would be true, if it wasn't 90 degrees outside! LOL. Our porch sitting season is actually in the fall, some of winter, and spring. But definitely not summer!

Because it has been so hot, we haven't been outside much. We did take an early walk this morning before it got too hot, and yesterday we went to Walmart and walked around the store doing our shopping for a while, so that was our exercise for that day! 

This week has been rather quiet compared to most weeks lately. Tomorrow we do have to travel all the way to St. Augustine for hubby's eye appointment with the Ophthalmologist. They are still trying to determine if he needs to have his cataracts removed yet, or if they need to treat another eye condition first that could be more serious than the cataracts. Hopefully we will get some answers tomorrow. Praying for clarity. (Hey! That's a good word to use in this situation! LOL).

Speaking of hubby, this past Sunday was Father's Day.  I've already posted these photos on Facebook, but not here.  

Here he is with his gifts from the kids...new lights for the yard. He LOVES these lights.  He has them all around the yard, and he loves to go outside at night and look at them. So they couldn't have given him a better gift!

2 Corinthians 4:6 NKJV
6 For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Our family gathered for lunch after church...Scott, Benton, Rose, John and yours truly. We had a Chinese Stir Fry dinner...partly cooked by me, and partly picked up at the local Chinese take out place. They provided the egg rolls, rice, and crab rangoons and fortune cookies. I cooked a chicken and vegetable stir fry, which was very good. We had that peach cobbler that I baked the night before for dessert.

Here's "Daddy" and his boys...well two of them. We always miss our dear son Matthew on these special days (and every day).

Here is a favorite very old picture of Daddy and his three sons, taken during the Bible Story reading time at bedtime each night.  This is a priceless and precious picture  to me. As you can see, Scotty was just a baby, and Benton and Matthew were in Kindergarten and Pre-school. Those were such sweet times. 

(Sorry for the reflections on the glass...I didn't want to take it out of the frame)


Proverbs 22:6 KJV

 "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, 
he will not depart from it."

I am very thankful that our sons have a Daddy who loves them and who took the time to teach them about Jesus from a very young age. They were given a strong foundation on which to grow and develop and build their lives. Were they always perfect? No, they were normal little boys and teens and young men who tested the waters and sometimes made wrong choices in life, but when all is said and done, they have a faith that still sustains them in their adult years, and also that carried our son Matthew into heaven when he was 41 years old.  I am so thankful that he knew and believed what Jesus said:

"6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."  John 14:6 KJV

I have no doubt that we will see Matthew again one day in heaven.

I guess I will sign off for tonight with those thoughts.  I don't have any new photos yet for "Friday Foto Friends", so we shall see what develops tomorrow. We have to take that ride over to St. Augustine for the eye appointment, but there won't be any time for doing anything extra as hubby will probably have his eyes dilated and we will want to come straight home after the appointment. The sun will be too bright for him to do any sightseeing! (And I will probably be driving home, so no chance for me to take pictures along the way!)

So, good night for now! I'll catch up with you later!

Happy First Day of Summer!
This was the end of the school year class picnic in 6th grade. I'm the crazy one on the left with the bubblegum cigar in my mouth and the feather in my hat. The other sweet girl is one of my best school buddies, Mary. We were both redheads, and when we got together, anything could happen.  "Those were the days, my friend. We thought they'd never end..."   Mary and I do still stay in touch via Facebook, but she lives in another state and it's been way too many years since we actually got to be together. Maybe one of these days we can make it happen. I hope so. We aren't getting any younger.

Thursday, June 21, 2018

The First Day of Summer: A Day of Rest and Rejoicing

It is the First Day of Summer and I have declared that today shall be a day of REST!!  I know, you are probably thinking, "it isn't Sunday or the Sabbath yet..."  But my body tells me it is to be for me a "day of rest".  We traveled last week, came home and had something to do every single day since we got home, and today is the first day that we don't have anything that we absolutely HAVE to do, so I am declaring it a day of rest!!  Besides, it is supposed to get into the high 90's today, and the humidity seems to be way above 100%, if that is possible...so it is a good day to stay indoors and try to keep cool...and rest

We started the day with our time of devotions... We read Psalm 97 and also Matthew 6:7-15, which included The Lord's Prayer. 

Verse 1 of Psalm 97 says:

"The Lord reigns;
Let the earth rejoice;
Let the multitude of isles be glad!"

After reading our devotions we took our morning walk, (before it got too hot)  which is a time of joy and blessing and worship for me as I thank the Lord for His beauty that surrounds us, and for His marvelous creation that He has given for us to enjoy:

 Even the ponds and lakes reflect the Glory of God  

"The heavens declare His righteousness;
and all the peoples see His glory."
Psalm 97:6




The Sand Hill Crane family was gathered together, apparently getting their breakfast....

And then this deer stepped out in front of me...

and she leaped across the road to the safety and security of the woods...

But then she stopped and waited to see what I would do...(and of course I stood there and watched her and took her picture! What else would I do?)

She seemed to want to get a better look at me...checking me out to see if I was a threat...

She actually even stepped toward me for a little closer look, and I just spoke softly to her and reassured her I meant her no harm...

She's thinking about that...

And then she turned to go further into the woods...

It wasn't until I got home and looked at my pictures up close that I noticed this deer is a mama...if you look between her legs and under her belly you will see that she is a "nursing mama"....

And then she moved on into the woods, and took one more look back at me, and I decided to go on my way and leave her alone...perhaps her fawn is hidden there in that thicket...!

I am comparing this picture below to those above....this one was taken several weeks ago in our yard, and at the time I said that I thought this deer was "with child"...and if you look at the markings on her face compared with the one above, I believe this may well be the same deer...and now I know my suspicions were correct!  So now I will definitely be on the alert to watch for the baby fawn(s) to appear.  
"Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous,
and give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name."
Psalm 97:12

Okay, back to my "resting" for  the day.  In honor of the First Day of Summer I had this for breakfast:


Cheerios with fresh peaches, blueberries, and strawberries on top! Yummy!!


So, how are YOU celebrating the first day of summer?