It’s been a full and lovely week. I’m sharing favorite parts with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story.

1. Family all together. My oldest son, Jeremy, is visiting from out of state. My husband took most of the week off and Jesse and Jason and his family have been over more than usual. Lots of talking, laughing, feasting, playing games.

2. Jeremy’s birthday. So glad he could be here for it!

3. Outings. One day this week we visited the largest (for now) new Buc-ee’s in Sevierville. Buc-ee’s is a super-sized gas station (120 pumps!) and convenience store. They have “the cleanest restrooms in the country,” food like fresh brisket, bakery items, and their own name-brand snacks (Buc-ee’s Nuggets with various flavorings), a whole wall of Icee flavors, clothing, and home goods—you kind of have to experience to get the full impact. 🙂

I was surprised to see a lot of kolaches (rolls wrapped around either sausage or fruit filling) and-mesquite flavored meats, which I hadn’t seen since growing up in TX. Then I found out the owner of Buc-ee’s is from TX.

It was interesting–but noisy and busy. For all the food they sell, there’s no place to sit. So we got some sandwiches and drove to Seven Islands State Birding Park, a place Jim has wanted to visit, to eat at their picnic tables. There are several different trails of various lengths, but we didn’t explore much due to the heat.

There are walls of information in the barn-like entrance and signs about what plants attract which birds. :

4. Games.We play games a lot anyway, but it’s especially fun where Jeremy is here.We’ve played Jackbox games, Uno Flip, and last night an epic round of Settlers of Cataan that was so close, three of us were set to win at the end. Jason did during his turn.

5. Refrigerator messages.

The week has gone by way too fast, but thankfully we still have a few days together.

Happy Friday!

It’s been a busy week, and I welcome the opportunity to pause with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story to remember the best parts.

1. Return of the hummingbirds. We’ve had more than the usual trouble this year with ants and teeny flying bugs getting into the hummingbird feeder. Then they decompose, and the hummingbirds don’t come around—or if they do, they hover a bit and fly away. As I once again emptied and scrubbed the feeder, I looked up how to make hummingbird food at home. Since I put the new stuff out, we’ve seen more hummingbirds this week than we have all summer. They must like it! My husband rigged something to keep ants out, so hopefully the feeder will stay usable for longer..

2. Kayaking. Jim, Jason, and Timothy went to a nearby lake to kayak for a bit. It was Timothy’s first time, and it didn’t take him long to get the gist of rowing.

3. Jason and Mittu’s 14th anniversary. We watched Timothy so they could have a date. They brought dinner when they dropped Timothy off and brought me a Crumbl cookie afterward. My FaceBook memories have been filled with posts about “wedding week,” so it’s been fun to reminiscence.

4. Safety and electricity. We had some strong thunderstorms here one night, with a tornado touching down about 11 miles from us. Limbs are down and trees uprooted all over town. Thankfully, our area was fine. Jason helped a neighbor cut up a fallen limb that was blocking the road–but first they had to deal with a bowling-ball-sized active hornets’ nest in the branches! Thankfully they were all safe.

Then we had a few more storms Wednesday night, though they weren’t as severe. We did lose power then, but not for long.

5. Four-way FaceTime. We’ll celebrate Jeremy’s birthday when he is here next week. We usually ship the presents he opens here to him when he goes home. We sent some of the heavy or large presents to him early, before his trip here–we get free shipping from Amazon, so it didn’t make sense to have them shipped free here and then have to pay a mint to ship them to him in RI. When he received our early presents, he set up a Face-Time call with all of us so we could see him open them. Thankfully, the connection worked for all of us. It was fun to have a little pre-visit visit. 🙂

We’re looking forward to Jeremy coming in this weekend. Jim will take most of the week off as well, so we’re anticipating a lot of good family time. Meanwhile, there’s much to do to prepare.

Have a good weekend!

It’s the first Friday in August. Many of my favorites this week have appeared here previously—but it’s good to be continually thankful for continued blessings. I join Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story to share pour favorites from the week.

1. A lunch invitation. My son and daughter-in-law invited us over for a lunch chicken nachos last Sunday after church. Afterward, we played a children’s version of Charades with my grandson that was surprisingly fun.

2. My husband offers to go to the grocery store for me sometimes. Other times, when I go and come back hot and tired, he’s willing to get something out for dinner.

3. Timothy visit. We got a voice text from my grandson yesterday asking if they could come over. Of course!

4. Lighter temperatures. It’s been in the 80s this week rather than 90s—70s one day. With humidity in the 90s, it’s still been warm and muggy. But even that little drop helps take the edge of the heat.

5. Anticipation. My oldest son comes for a visit next weekend! My husband will take next week off, and the other kids will be here more than usual.

That’s my short but sweet list of highlights from this week. What’s one of yours?

We’ve finally arrived at the last Friday in July. I’m ready to turn the calendar page! Meanwhile, here are a few favorites from the last week. I’m sharing with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story.

1. Dinner with the family. Jesse’s car tag was delivered to our house, so he came over Saturday night to pick it up and have dinner. We asked Jason, Mittu, and Timothy if they wanted to come, too. Then something we ordered for Jason’s birthday a couple of weeks ago was finally delivered, so we were able to give that to him as well. We enjoyed the time together and even got in a couple of games before everyone left.

In the “not exactly a fave but kind of meh” category, I made these Zucchini Cookies for dessert. I was excited because the recipe only used five ingredients and they were all healthy (except maybe the chocolate): peanut butter, oatmeal, zucchini, banana, and chocolate chips. They didn’t spread out like cookies usually do, so the first batch remained in a ball shape and were still mushy in the center. I flattened some and cut others in half and put them back in for a few minutes. They were. . . just okay. They tasted a little too banana-y at first, but not so much after a few days. I’m wondering if I could use less banana and more of one of the other ingredients. What do you think? I know some of you are great at adjusting recipes.

2. A sweet text. Mittu texted Sunday afternoon to ask if they could come over because Timothy said he hadn’t gotten enough time with us the night before. Nothing warms a grandparent’s heart more than hearing their grandchild wants to spend time with them.

3. Lunch with Melanie. We usually get together once a month or so, but missed the last couple for various reasons. It was good to catch up and discuss all the world’s problems. 🙂 We used gift cards to Red Lobster.

4. A much-needed haircut. I was debating with myself whether to get my hair cut after lunch with Melanie, and I’m glad I decided to take care of that while I was out.

5. More gifts of produce from our neighbor and a man at church.

Anything exciting happen with you this week?

It’s a dark and stormy day as I write Thursday afternoon. The rain should become more sporadic through the day, so hopefully the flood warnings for this evening won’t become reality.

But what better activity can we take part in on an overcast day than counting blessings. I’m sharing with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story.

1. Jason’s birthday was this week. We enjoyed celebrating him with homemade deep dish pizza, salad, bread sticks, and carrot cake at his and Mittu’s house.

2. An improved hair dryer.I turned my hair dryer on one morning to discover it was suddenly turbo-charged. My husband had used it one morning and thought it was running a little sluggishly, so he took it apart and vacuumed out the lint and dust inside. I can dry my hair in half the time now!

3. Praying with people is something I approach reluctantly. I’m not sure why—maybe it’s just my natural introvert tendencies. The most recent church we were members of didn’t have a mid-week prayer service, though we prayed together at Bible studies and such. Several of the churches we’ve visited over the last few months had Wednesday night prayer meetings, but usually the pastor led in prayer after everyone gave prayer requests. The church we’re currently attending has a prayer meeting where we split up into groups of three adults and a few teens or children. The idea is for us not only to get to know the younger folks, but that they might learn from praying with older people. Then the young ones are dismissed to a time in the gym while the adults keep praying.

It’s a little uncomfortable until I find whoever I am going to pray with. But I am always glad for having prayed together. Last night, one of the women I was with was either very perceptive, or the Holy Spirit was guiding her (probably both things were true) as she expanded her prayer beyond the few sentences I shared.

Then it was really sweet praying with children. We had three girls with us who were maybe 8-10. They were so earnest in sharing prayer requests and were not afraid to join right in when we took turns praying.

4. A perfect word of encouragement from Scripture right when I needed it.

5. A bright new day. Friday morning, the storms and flood warnings are over, we didn’t lose power, and Jim made it home safely from a day trip for work.

Have you found bright spots in your week?

We’re almost halfway through July already. I’m not sure how that happened so quickly, but it’s time once again for a break to remember the best parts of the week with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story.

1. Job provision. I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that the particular service desk where my youngest son, Jesse, worked was closing. But the company felt they had places for everyone at other desks. (Same company, same location, but they do IT work for a variety of businesses.) He got confirmation just yesterday that he was hired for another desk, pending a security check–which should not be a problem since he cleared security before. There was no reason to think it wouldn’t all work out, but it’s a joy and relief to know it did and his immediate work future isn’t in question.

2. Recipe updates. A few years ago, I organized notebooks for recipes I had cut from newspapers and magazines and, more recently, printed out from the Internet. For some time now, I’ve wanted to go through those, pull out what I didn’t want any more, and add in some new ones. I had a strong desire earlier this week to accomplish something that did not involve the computer, so I spent a few evenings sorting, culling, adding, and rearranging the recipes in the notebooks. I still have a couple of small notebooks to do, but I went through the biggest ones. It felt quite good to do so! And as an added bonus, we had a few laughs over “What was I thinking when I cut this out?” recipes, like this one:

Jim said, “Yep, that makes a mockery of pecan pie.” I like pinto beans, but not masquerading as pecan pie filling.

3. A successful new recipe. Oddly, after all that recipe shuffling, I was uninspired to cook this week. But I pulled out one recipe I’d wanted to try for a while, Asian Lettuce Wraps. I didn’t have some of the ingredients on hand, so I made a simplified version using ground turkey instead of chicken. It was really good. We had some romaine leaves on hand that Jim uses in place of tortillas for tacos and hamburger buns to try to reduce his carbs, so we used those. I think I might try Bibb lettuce next. This is a versatile recipe that can be adjusted for various substitutes, so I am sure we’ll be using it again.

4. Chung’s Mini Frozen Egg Rolls. These are very good and do surprisingly well in the microwave. They made a nice supplement to the Asian wraps for both dinner and lunch the next day.

5. Good toilet paper. 🙂 When TP was in short supply during the pandemic, we got some of the lowest bargain basement brands as “extras.” We hadn’t had to use them much. But this week I missed going to the store at my usual time, and we ran out of TP. I opened one of the individually wrapped store brands–and I was never so glad to finish a roll of toilet paper in my life. Think the worst public gas station TP. Yuck. This may sound silly, but since we use TP every day, and it affects our hygiene and comfort level, I’m happy our regular brand is readily available these days.

How are you this week?

Here we are at another Friday, time to pause with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story to stop and count our blessing.

1. Gifts from the garden. Our neighbors have a sizeable garden and bring us some of their excess throughout the summer. They just gave us some fresh zucchini last week.

2. Independence Day. We’re thankful for the freedoms we enjoy in this country that so many fought so hard for. We had grilled burgers and hot dogs for dinner along with several sides and a banana cream pie that Mittu made. Jim had bought some small fireworks and Jason had bought sparklers and “pop-its” that you throw on the ground to make a popping sound. From our lawn chairs in the front yard, we could see over the trees a bit of larger fireworks displays in other areas. It was a fun day!

3. Lunch out together Sunday. Jason, Mittu, and Timothy had joined us for church Sunday. Afterward, we proposed going to eat somewhere. After a lot of looking at apps to see what was nearby, we ended up at a Mexican food place near our house. Jim had not been terribly impressed with it the last time we ate there together, but he enjoyed the meal Sunday. So maybe we can go back some time. 🙂 As it stood, I would sometimes get takeout from there when Jim was away. I grew up in southern TX, where Mexican food was a staple!

On a side note, the restaurant had several TV screens on around the room. They were showing, of all things, a hot dog eating contest. It was pretty disgusting to watch.

4. Hours of reading. After coming home Sunday and taking a nap, I spent most of the evening reading. I fit most of my reading in here and there, so reading for hours felt so luxurious and restful.

5. Not getting thunderstorms. My weather app showed the possibility of thunderstorms for several days this week. I don’t think we got any, though we did get some rain here and there. Thunderstorms always include the possibility of losing power, so I am thankful we didn’t have to deal with any of that this week.

How was your week? Good, I hope.

As June winds down to a close, it’s time to pause and consider the blessings of the past week with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story.

1. Model rocket adventures. When our boys were younger, they had fun putting together and launching model rockets. My husband found one of our old rockets from those days and supplemented it with some new items from Hobby Lobby. We invited Jason, Mittu, and Timothy to meet at a park to launch them, and Mittu made us a picnic lunch. Unfortunately, though, she wasn’t feeling well and ended up not coming.

We had a great time, and Timothy was impressed and excited. 🙂 I wish I could put a video here of his reaction.

2. Bad news/good news. My youngest son, Jesse, works for a company that does out-service tech support for various other companies. They’re divided up into different service desks for each company. He got word this week that the service desk he has worked in for years will be closing. The good news is, his company thinks they they have places on other service desks for all the employees.

3. A benign test result. Jim had a biopsy this week and got good results back. It was expected that the results would be benign, but it’s great to get that confirmation.

4. Good feedback. It was my turn to present a chapter for our critique group, and the feedback was so encouraging and helpful. If you’re thinking of writing for publication, I can’t recommend a critique group highly enough. It helps to know where you’re on the right track and where you need more clarity, or to have a perfect suggestion for wording or arrangement.

5. Fifteen minutes extra. Our critique group has added fifteen minutes extra to our meeting time for whoever can stay, just for some open discussion time. Sometimes someone will have a specific question about their own work or a general question about writing or publishing. Not only has this time been helpful, but it’s been fun to get to know the ladies more.

And that’s a wrap. How was your week?

June is flying by quickly, and it’s Friday once again. Time to gather with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story to think back through the best parts of the week.

1. Father’s Day. I felt bad about Jim grilling on the day set aside to honor him. It seemed like I should have cooked something while he sat with his feet up. But grilling is what he wanted to do, and we all love his burgers. 🙂 It was actually a group effort, with different ones contributing food or tasks. Mittu made a tasty spice cheesecake. We FaceTimed with Jeremy while Jim opened presents from us all. It was a great day.

2. Four solid hours of sleep. I wake up several times at night due to various physical issues. Once I’m awake, I have to get up and go to the bathroom. I usually get back to sleep pretty easily. But one night last week, I slept over four hours without interruption. It was lovely and refreshing. I wish I knew what made the difference so I could try to replicate the conditions.

3. Zaxby’s ice. I love their food, too. But I also look forward to their munchy crunchy ice. Along with my meal, I get a cup of just ice and bring it home to pour my own decaf tea over it. I usually have more than half a cup of ice left, which keeps well overnight in their insulated cup in the refrigerator so I can do it again the next day. A simple but much-enjoyed pleasure.

4. Planters filling out. I didn’t take a picture when we first planted these in May, because they looked pretty sparse then. But they grew quickly. The only disappointment was that I had a few pink petunias there that didn’t make it for some reason. But the purple ones really took off.

5. Unexpected Take-out. I was at the computer yesterday afternoon when Jim came in to get a cup of coffee. He asked if I had any dinner plans and whether I’d want to order something out—not from our usual fast-food places, but from a restaurant. Yes!

I’m also thankful for safety this week as Jim traveled out-of-town, partly in the rain, and I was home during thunder storms. The power blinked a couple of times, but, thankfully, did not go out.

How was your week?

This was a week when it was hard to come up with five favorites. It wasn’t a bad week, but nothing stood out as worth mentioning. But that’s one reason I love this exercise with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story. When I look and consider, the blessings are there. Here are a few:

1. Impromptu family dinner. We’ve had a pork loin in the freezer for a while, and Jim decided he wanted to cook it Tuesday. He cuts it up and marinates it in the sous vide cooker Jeremy made for him, then finishes it off on the grill. As he cut the meat up, I thought, that’s much more than the two of us can deal with. I texted the kids to see if they wanted to come over, and they were all free.

2. A cool summer evening. Summer hasn’t officially started, but the temperature and humidity feel like it. I ran errands Tuesday afternoon, and by the time I navigated the grocery store and lugged groceries in and put them away, I was red-faced, hot, and sweaty–and, I am sorry to say, a little irritable. I bumped the AC down and turned on the ceiling fan while preparing dinner, and finally cooled off. I wasn’t excited when everyone congregated outside, but I was pleasantly surprised that it felt really nice as we sat and talked and watched Timothy play.

3. A good meeting. Jim met with the pastor of the church that we’ve been visiting the last several weeks to ask several questions.

4. Good answers to a couple of specific prayers this week.

5. A productive week after a couple where I felt like I was spinning my wheels.

Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers out there this weekend!