Tuesday 4~ Summertime

 Summertime

Welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4...
Summer time is upon us.


1. What special memories do you have about summer when you were younger?

Between the two of these links below from older posts about my summertime adventures as a child, you will get the big picture of just about everything I can remember.  Let me suffice it to say that I have a lot of happy summertime memories of vacation trips through the mountains, camping in the State Parks (in a tent) along the way to and from Ohio to visit relatives. Those were the happiest times of my young life. In addition to these memories  there were day trips to the beach or the springs that are all around us in the Ocala National Forest. Some of these excursions  (to the springs) were with the school summertime program, and that was always a lot of fun. 

I hope you will take the time to click on these links and get the whole story of my summertime childhood memories. They are too numerous to repeat  writing again! LOL. (and my memory is fading. LOL).
Here's a link to some of my favorite summer memories

And HERE is another link to more summertime memories

2. What is the highest temperature you've experienced in summer? What about so far this summer? How do you weather the heat or humidity?

We've been having heat indexes of over 110 degrees, which means the actual temperatures were in the very high 90's, with humidity also in the high 90's. Last week we were under a heat advisory almost every day. So far this week it has been a tad cooler, only in the high 80's and lower 90's, which is a nice break. We've also been getting more afternoon pop up thunderstorms. We still need a lot more rain to fill  up our pond, but at least the grass and plants are being watered for me. LOL.   As far as in my whole life, probably the highest temperature I've experienced would be what we had last week, although I do remember times when the actual temperature was over 100.  I know some places in the country have hotter temps than that all the time, but they don't have the high humidity usually to go along with it, which truly makes it feel a lot hotter.  

When it is this hot we stay indoors with our air conditioning running around the clock. We avoid going out in the afternoon as much as possible, and try to get all of our errands and outdoor chores done in the early morning or after the sun starts going down in the evening.


3. What's been on your menu so far this summer?

Nothing extra special, I'm sorry to say. I try to avoid using the oven as much as possible, so very little baking is done or any kinds of meats/roasts that have to be cooked in the oven. However, yesterday afternoon was cloudy and rainy and a bit cooler, so I decided to cook a meatloaf in the oven. We can eat on that for a few days with sandwiches, etc.   We do eat more salads and fresh fruits in the summer.  

I had a root beer float last night. Does that count?

4. What is on your reading list this summer... anything to recommend to us? What's on your TV this summer. Any music you're liking this summer?

I have still been "binge reading" books from this author, Rhys Bowen. I am about finished with this stack, and will take them back to the library tomorrow, where there is at least one more waiting for me to pick up. I think I have a couple more on "hold", which means when they are available from other locations in our county they will transfer them to our library and I will be able to check them out. Ilove that we have this system so that we can order books online through their website and they keep me quite covered with good reading material.  I enjoy these mysteries by this author.  She is quite a prolific writer.

We were surprised to find this little book inside our mailbox last evening when I went out to get the mail. It was not something I had ordered, and it was literally just placed in our mailbox with a card on top addressed to us, but not sent through the mail. It was a gift to us from our Pastor, who apparently was passing by and put it in our mailbox.  We were surprised and blessed by the little gift, and we definitely called him afterwards to let him know how much we appreciated it.

The book is delightful. It is the story of the two ladies who were the original authors of the song "Jesus Loves Me".  They had written the words into a novel they had written, which was published into a book.

Here are the original lyrics:

The novel was entitled "Say and Seal", written in 1860 by Susan and Anna Warner. The Gospel Hymnwriter William B. Bradbury later read the book and the words to the song, and he added the chorus that we know so well and set it to the melody that we sing still today. Actually, we sing this little song every Sunday morning in our church when our children are dismissed to go to Children's Church.

The little book tells the life story of Susan and Anna Warner and their family. One thing that really stood out to my hubby and me (we read this out loud together last night...it's a short book and well worth the read...) was the fact that early on in their lives they had suffered some severe setbacks in their financial status along with other great sorrows.   This says below that "Anna Warner lived long enough to realize that had there been no black sheep (one of their brothers), no moments of bereavement, no stock market crash, no eviction from New York (city), no financial worries--if there had been none of those things, there would have been no books, no worldwide ministry, no thousands of inspired Cadets (West Point was across the Hudson River from their home, and the ladies did Bible studies with them in their home), and no "Jesus Loves Me."   (Page 91).

That little paragraph really spoke to us, because we have also experienced great setbacks and difficulties and sorrows in our lives, and yet God used those experiences to shape and mold us and literally make us stronger in our faith.  Oftentimes it's the things we fear the most ever happening that become the very things that help us become the people God wants us to become.  Those life experiences teach us to rely more on God and His faithfulness, and not so much on our own resources and strength. 

2 Corinthians 12:9-10 NIV

"9 But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 

10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

Does that last verse above remind you of something?   How about the first verse to the song Jesus Loves Me?

"Jesus loves me, this I know,

For the Bible tells me so;

Little ones to Him belong,

They are weak, but He is strong."

And the chorus:

"Yes, Jesus loves me.

Yes, Jesus loves me.

Yes, Jesus loves me,

the Bible tells me so.

So yes, this was a great little gift to find in our mailbox last night. You know, I used to sing this song to my babies while they were still in my womb.  And I continued singing it to them every time I rocked them to sleep.  More than anything, I wanted them to know "Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves me! The Bible tells me so!"  If they never learned anything else from me, that was the one thing most important of all.

I guess this answered the question about what we are reading and what music we are liking this summer. 

As far as TV is concerned, hubby is watching the FIFA Soccer matches, and then together we watch things like "Maine Cabin Masters", "Castle Impossible", and the old Price is Right shows from when Bob Barker was still on there, among other things.  I am not into TV as much as he is. I enjoy reading and writing more than TV.

Well, friends, I guess that's all for now. It's been raining pretty hard while I was finishing this up. Another severe thunderstorm blew through.  

Oh, one last thing...I'm falling behind again in my photo-a-day challenge.  I never did do yesterday's "shadow" picture. It's been too cloudy!

And today (14), is "On the floor".  Let me take a look around and see what I can find...

Well, the only thing on MY floor is probably a lot of dirt and dust to be swept up, so I decided to look outside my window in my room with a view, and I saw this little Wren on the porch railing. 

Because it has been raining and is so cloudy, it's not very clear, plus I am taking this picture through a tinted window.

He was having a conversation with the Red Headed Woodpecker doorknocker.

And finally he flew down to the "floor" of the porch, although he is not very clearly seen here, but he is on the floor, so that should qualify for this picture! LOL.

And with that I will call this post finished!  I hope you are having a lovely summer day wherever you are! Blessings to all of you, and remember, "Yes, Jesus Loves Me (YOU!)... The Bible tells me so!"

Amen and good day.

Tuesday 4~ Travel Bug

 As usual, I am late getting to the party, but I hope it's not too late to join in the fun! It's been a busy few days and I haven't had time to sit down and think about this and what my answers should be...so now that I've slept on it a few nights, let's see if I can come up with anything worth sharing!  I've enjoyed reading everyone else's answers, (actually I am still trying to get around to you all, and by now most of you have moved on to the next thing!)  

So pack your bags and hop on the train, and let's go!

Travel Bug

Hello! It's time for Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 and I am happy you've come by to take part.

I think finding reasons to blog and stay in touch with others, or to meet new bloggers is very important. Blogging also provides you with a record of your thoughts and ideas to leave for your family. It's a journal of sorts really that you share with others.

Summer is June 21st and people usually take advantage of the warm weather to take a trip or vacation or day trips to visit, shop or for recreation.
So could we talk about travel?


1. What are the most memorable destinations you've visited, and what made them stand out? (this could include places like museums, art galleries, etc. not only a vacation site.)

I am trying to remember...our family has not traveled extensively, so it was more the experiences and adventures we had along the way and the places we stopped here and there that were memorable. I have shared several links below to former posts that I've written about some of my family experiences in traveling when I was a child.  With our own children our vacations were mostly going to visit the grandparents, but we did manage to take a few "real" vacations throughout the years. Some of the most memorable places I remember going with our own kids were:

• Biltmore House in Asheville, NC...it was gorgeous, and I'd love to go back now without three young kids that I had to keep in line and reminding them not to touch things!
• Hyde Park in NY
• Gettysburg in Pennsylvania, and all the civil war sites in the area...our 3 sons and their daddy especially loved all of this!
• Washington DC
• New York City and also a Yankees Baseball game at the old Yankee Stadium
• Spent a week in a mountain cabin on "Dream Mountain, NC" with our kids, and met another young family there with kids the same ages as ours, and we ended up having so much fun, picking blackberries and making cobbler, traveling together to Maggie Valley and Ghost Mountain in the Sky.  I had been there before with my parents and siblings, (Ghost Mountain), and it was so much fun to takemy own kids there as well to experience riding up to the top of the mountain in the chair lift and coming down on the cable car.

Most memorable places we've visited (with or without the kids):

• St. Augustine
• The Space Needle in Seattle,WA
• Boston
• a Sleigh Ride at Nestlenook Farm, Jackson, NH  (actually, we did this with our son Matthew and his wife Nicole and our grandson Noah many years ago.  

• See below...the Cog Railway on Mt. Washington, NH

2. Which hidden gem locations have you explored that you'd recommend to others ?

• I don't know if it's a "hidden gem", but if you ever get to go to the White Mountains of New Hampshire and go take a ride on the Cog Railway up to the summit of Mount Washington...that's an experience you'll never forget.  And no matter what time of year you are there, be sure to take a jacket with you to the summit! The temperatures in the valley on the day we went were in the 90's (July), and it was freezing/snowing at the top!
  
  
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  Here's a video so you can experience it for yourself right where you are! But still, you have to be there to feel the real thrill of the ride!
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3. What’s the most unique cultural experience you’ve had while traveling ?

Not so much while traveling, but for our family, when we moved from Florida to Ohio so my hubby could attend Seminary, it was a huge cultural change for us.  We moved from the sunny south to the cold and wintry north, to farm country and all things rural. Our kids experienced snow for the first time, and we enjoyed seeing our first tractor pull. We also lived in an area where there many Amish farms, and we enjoyed the sights and sounds of the horses and buggies trotting by our house every day, and observing how the Amish lived as if it were the 1800's instead of the 1900's. That was fascinating for us. I remember one time that we stopped at a farm stand near our home to buy some vegetables and eggs, and the Amish lady had her young sons there with her, and I had my young sons with me.   I said to her (in my ignorance) that I would love for our little boys to be able to play together sometime.  She looked at me with astonishment, as did her young boys. She may have very quietly said "thank you." I realized then that I had probably made a mistake in suggesting that.  I felt sad about it because I thought it would be so much fun for our boys to experience their farm life, and for their boys to experience our life...but now I know that would never have happened.  


4.What mode of transportation is your favorite for a long trip? How about a short trip?

Well, if our destination is more than two days away, I'd rather fly so that we can get there and then rent a car, so that we have more time to visit the places we are going to see. But now that we are retired, I wish we could take a nice slow road trip and visit many places along the way and come back home a different way. But sadly I think we've missed our opportunity for doing that.  Hubby doesn't really like to drive long distances anymore and health concerns are keeping us from wanting to venture very far from home.  Thankfully we have been able to take a few nice trips to the mountains with our son and daughter in law, and that will probably be the only way we will be doing any travelling (if at all) from now on.  

So thankful for our son being willing to drive us to fun places!

We've come full circle!

Link to older post about my summer vacations

Another Post about Summer vacations

Family Travels as a Child