Wow, this month has sped by. It’s hard to fathom that September is almost over.

We celebrated Labor Day with traditional grilled burgers and a much-appreciated long weekend. The next weekend, my son, daughter-in-law, and grandson made dinner for us for Grandparent’s Day and brought over flowers and a colored picture from Timothy. We attended the state fair for the first time in years. Mid-September, we celebrated my youngest son’s birthday.

My daughter-in-law made the cute lemon blueberry cake.

Then my family from TX (two sisters, my step-father, and nephew) came to visit for a few days, and just left Wednesday morning. One day we all drove to SC to see family there (two sisters, my niece and great niece). It had been three years since we had all see each other. We missed my brother and sister-in-law in CT. We got this picture of all five sisters, with my brother and s-i-l’s picture on the phone:

And this one of all five of us with my step-dad:

This was the whole group after dinner in SC, minus Jesse, who couldn’t come that day:

It was so good to catch up with each other, more than can be done on FB and through texts and messages. We laughed (and ate!) so much! Timothy got to meet his second cousin for the first time. We took the kids to a park one afternoon and visited the mall in TX. We played lots of games. Most of all I enjoyed just talking with everyone.

Creating

I just made one card this month, for Jesse’s birthday. You can tell his interests by the card and the shirt he wore in the first picture. 🙂

“Gamer” was done on the Cricut, “Happy Birthday” on the computer, and the border at the bottom was a sticker.

Watching

We’re enjoying our regular shows being back on with the fall season. We’re trying out the new version of Quantam Leap, but the jury is still out—we’ve only see one episode so far. We like the College Bowl, where college quiz teams compete against each other, hosted by Peyton and Cooper Manning.

I have not found anyone who likes the new Rings of Power, based on Tolkien’s writings. But we really like it. That may be because we’re not familiar with Tolkien’s work outside LOTR and The Hobbit. I hear this program is basically writing their own stories. But the feel of it is very Tolkien-ish to me. The main thing that would ruin it is if they bring modern-day sensibilities into it, especially “woke-ness.” So far that hasn’t happened. The one thing I don’t like is that they’ve made the main character, a younger version of Galadriel, arrogant and angry and sullen. But she’s fighting a battle no one else sees the need for so far, so maybe she’ll mellow out over time.

We also watched an old movie called Desert Rats starring Richard Burton. It’s based on a true story abut a little-known battle in Tobruk during WWII.

Reading

Since last time, I have finished (titles link to my reviews):

• The Lost Heiress by Roseanna M. White, first in the Ladies of the Manor series. A young woman in Edwardian England finds she is the missing daughter of an earl. She doesn’t realize she is carrying a hidden treasure that an enemy will try to get first by flattery and romantic insinuation, and then, when that doesn’t work, by force. Excellent.
• The Reluctant Duchess by Roseanna M. White, the second book in the Ladies on the Manor series. England’s most eligible bachelor rescues a Scottish young woman from an abusive father and even more abusive fiance by marrying her and taking her to England. But she struggles fitting in to her new role as a duchess, and their relationship does not go smoothly at first. Then there’s that pesky hidden treasure from the first book that bad guys are still after
• A Lady Unrivaled by Roseanna M. White, third and final book in the Ladies of the Manor series. Lady Ella Myerston is sweet and cheerful. She wants to help protect her brother’s family and their friends from the danger that has haunted all three books. But everyone else want to shelter and protect her. She feels she’s not being taken seriously, but she’s determined to do what she can. Lord Cayton is a changed man from the cad he used to be, but not everyone trusts him. The two become an unlikely pair to bring the series to a close.
• Jesus Led Me All the Way by Margaret Stringer, an autobiography of her 40 years as a missionary in what was then Irian Jaya among former headhunters and cannibals.
• Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown. From the back book cover: “Essentialism isn’t about getting more done in less time. It’s about getting only the right things done. Only once we discern what is absolutely essential and eliminate everything else can we make our highest possible contribution towards the things that truly matter.”

I’m currently reading:

• Always, Only Good: A Journey of Faith Through Mental Illness by Shelly Garlock Hamilton.
• The Hatmaker’s Heart by Carla Stewart
• Women and Stress: A Practical Approach to Managing Tension by Jean Lush and Pam Vredevelt

Blogging

Besides Friday Fave Fives, Saturday Laudable Linkage, and book reviews, I’ve posted these since last time:

• Passive or Pursuing? Is the fruit of the Holy Spirit something we passively receive or something we actively pursue? Both.
• Daily Light on the Daily Path. I’ve been using this devotional book, made up entirely of Scripture, for about 30 years. A friend had never heard of it, so I thought I’d share about it.
• When You Have to Say No. We have more opportunities than we can handle these days. I shared some ideas for discerning when to say no.
• What Is God’s Highest Calling? Sometimes we hear that motherhood or full-time professional ministry is God’s highest calling. But that’s not what the Bible says. What is, then?
• When Spiritual Routines Get Boring. Routines are helpful in many ways. But prayer and Bible reading on autopilot aren’t spiritually healthy. Here are some ways to alleviate our frail human tendency to lapse into thoughtless routine when spending time with God.

Writing

I was asked to participate in a critique group which meets every other week via Zoom. We take turns presenting our work for the others to edit and make suggestions about. It’s been so helpful, no matter whose work we’re critiquing. I’ve started implementing some of the suggestions.

I enjoyed all the activities of September, but I am looking forward to a quiet October. So far, the only things I have scheduled are lunch with a friend and a couple of medical appointments. We usually carve pumpkins sometime during the month as well.

How was your September? Are you looking forward to anything in October?