Month: April 2014

When I Grow Up I Want To Be…

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… a quilter.

Those handmade quilts with the beautiful designs in them are awesome pieces of artwork.  I have some that are probably 100 years old.  And I love them!

Which is why I want to quilt.  Which is why I want to be just like these ladies.

hard at quilting

a quilt like mine

… a horticulturist.

When I become a horticulturist, I will know every plant by its Latin name.

cannabis sativa or cannabis indica

cannabis sativa or cannabis indica

See?  I have already learned there is a difference in the cannabis plant.

I can't even say it's name!!

I can’t even say it’s name!!

EEEEEEEEEK!!!  How did that thing get in this blog?  Am I going to have to deal with those to be a horticulturist?

The real story of my horticulture endeavor shall be growing plants that will have color names because I can’t even remember the common name for them; thus, I will have blues and yellows in my gardens.  Perhaps chartreuse or salmon or — well, the list is rather lengthy.  

my kind of plants

my kind of plant

… a traveler!

traveling down life's highway

traveling down life’s highway

From east to west in our little home on wheels (when we get it) we shall travel the country, meeting people and making friends, seeing all the sights, living in warm weather when it’s freezing-your-butt-off temperatures at home.

The plan is to have a little more horsepower than this RV with perhaps an added amenity or two or three.  Plusher pleasure is my goal.

 

… an actor at Universal!

Darla at Universal

Darla at Universal

Yes.  This is the plan for my sis and I.  We are going to drag our husbands down to Florida in the winter months so that she and I can work at Universal.

We can’t wait to see you all there!

… a sleeper.

(Yawn.)  A goal that’s been a lifelong goal is to sleep at night.  To just go to bed, lay  my head on the pillow, and start snoring.  I’ve seen people do this, and I’ve heard it’s quite common; however, my dear father passed the no-sleeping gene down to me. (Thanks, Dad.)

But while I wait to grow into that, I’m going to count all the things I have grown up to do so far.  Sort of like counting sheep.

garden… scrapbook… play piano…….. (yawn)……. bake… cook………(yawn)………….paint/maintain pools…..wire houses…………(yawn)(yawn)….nap in the car…………….zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

My Class History

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This summer I am planning a remodel for my Sunday School room at church.  The third and fourth graders that have traveled in and out of that room over the years have helped with the necessity of a remodeling.

The door won’t shut and is covered with graffiti.

And I love it!  Well, not the no-shutting part.

The door to my Sunday School class is covered with the names of many of the children that have come through that door on Sunday mornings for the past years.  One of them made me a happy sign for our door.  A happy sign because we have a happy class.

Quite a few years ago I started measuring them up against that door and then putting the date of the measure.  For the two years that they are with me they get measured and marked.  And as the door below shows, the kids come back and continue to measure and mark.

Some of the names of "my" kids over the years.

Some of the names of “my” kids over the years.

The door tells the story of their growth… or their art work… or just the fact that “Nick was here.”

Brock and Ansley

Brock and Ansley

Some of my Third-Fourth Grade Class wannabes come up and leave their names with hearts or in circles or just written across the door.

notes

notes

It’s always a treat to have my “old” class alumni come back for a visit.  Some of the alumni are getting married this year.  That’s how long it’s been.  I think I have been teaching for a long, long time.  And my room is in dire need of an update.

Date and Height

Look how much Emily grew in the two years she was in my class!

Emily and Others

My heart swells with love and appreciation when I look at that door.  For each child.  For their excitement in putting their mark on our door.  For the fact they come back and visit me.  For the salvation of many of them.  For the stand some of them take for their Savior.

For the privilege God gave me to teach these treasures.

 

Soothing the Soul with Seeds

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THE FINISHED PROJECT

The Greenhouse

The Greenhouse

It’s not too big; just right.  It’s not fancy; a hodgepodge of containers and lids-with-no-Soothing the Soulhome to catch water.  I’m not a seasoned greenhouser, horticulturist, grower-of-good-stuff.  But, it’s already sprouting something.  I’m not sure if it’s a tomato plant or a sunflower seed from the dirt I used to sprout the tomato plants.  All I know is the little plant is coming up in the tomato lid.

I  dragged out all my seeds; it didn’t matter how old they were.  Some were in packages from the store; others were in containers; the seeds I had saved from plants in my yard… or someone else’s yard.  I guess I’ll know what they are when they turn into mature plants.  It’s the growing I care about.  Watching the seeds turn into something to nurture.

seeds are all planted… some I have no clue what they are.

seeds are all planted… some I have no clue what they are.

As you can see, my little greenhouse is as haphazard as I am.  The seeds that were in marked packages, got marked as that.  The others are just those surprise plants.  I’m so excited to find out what they are!

Soothing the SoulSince the greenhouse sits on the site of the sunflower house, there are already sunflowers poking their little heads up through the lime and rock, asking “What’s going on here?”

Soothing the SoulThere are other plants coming back to life after their winter siesta: peonies, sunflowers, sage, coreopsis, lilac, honeysuckle, ivy, bulbs of many varieties, lamb’s ear, baby’s breath, butterfly bush, roses.  Just to name a few.  The summer plants that have been waiting patiently in the garage for the spring rains are partying it up in the sunlight and April showers.  Or downpours as is the case right now.  Over six inches in 24 hours.

The rest of the oasis — my backyard — is a mess.  A big pond of muddy water sits where we had to dig up the sewer line, still waiting for the extra dirt it needs after settling.  The fence is down for the backhoe.  The deck is a mess of “stuff” for summer fun that needs cleaned and set to rights.  The pool is covered with the plastic that is covered with rain water, awaiting the right temperature for the uncovering.  Right now it’s just getting rain water pumped off.

But I know in a month, after a lot of hard work, our backyard will once again be that beautiful place of peace and tranquility.  Better (almost) than going to the beach.