artistic endeavors: keep calm, now...

Mmmm. That was Friday, June 11.

Just thought I'd share that;) I'm pretty sure that was dark chocolate Ghirardelli's or something. ;)
Hmmm. Wow. Already, today has been something else.
As in...cleaning and organizing a kitchen in desperate need while Anna made an amazing Ratatouille meatball thing in 1 (or 2?) big pans . . . for the trip we take off for on Sunday. After church. (groan) At least I can read. At least the van has A/C. At least we won't have Danny with us, so I won't have to sit in the back with the 3 younger siblings.
Oh. My. Dear.
That happened just a couple weeks ago (on the way to see Grace) and I needed that coffee when we got to our destination. I had observed, tried not to whop anyone's heads off, and tried to focus on the book I was reading. (Uh. Yeah. I read in the back seat with havoc and car-spotting games going on to my left...hard feat, let me tell ya!)
So.
The trip.
We'll be going up north...a few hours...stop, camp for one night...go even farther up north, stay for a couple nights with one of Grammy's nieces who's just a little younger than her...then go down south a couple hours and stop at the church conference where we'll be subject to a couple days of sports, heat, long gravel roads, and wonderfully icy meeting rooms.
Subject to sports, in this case, means Anna and I walking by our brothers --and surely Rach and Lyd this year, as they've grown so much-- playing Ultimate Frisbee or something with a bunch of the young people.
Sigh.
(Don't yell at me, Heather, there are different types of people and I'm not a sports person! And yes, I'll miss you guys too;)
So.
Onto some paint.
Shall we?

Okay, just wanted to show you guys how/where I'm hanging the Miracles one. Note: C.S. Lewis quote.

Mmmmmm:) That, my dears, was $1 and odd change. Random, I know. I don't normally buy chocolate...ahem...but since I was shopping at the grocery store with Dad and Lyd and saw it, sheesh, why not. ;)
And Erynn Mangum, one of my newest favorite authors now...well, her writing kept me up kinda late last night. Kind of, as in...I happen to know a thunderstorm passed over our town with some rain from about 2am-3am. Don't ask me how I know such a thing. ;)

This is the thing I came to post.
Methinks I've been saying that a few posts, now...

I kinda like it:) Tis a good reminder, aye?
Hmm. This is what goes on in my backyard, how 'bout yours?

Yep. That's Caleb, showing a few young neighbor boys how to help out. (snort)
Hey. Someone's gotta clean Gram's commode. Might as well be a boy, since they've got power tools such as this pressure-washer, right? ;)
Yesterday Anna went to the garden (which I have yet to post pictures of, but I promise, they're already taken and waiting for, say, maybe next week:) and came in to make this...

Yes. Homemade pesto on a pita and mozzarella melted on top.
This is my favorite part of summer: eating fresh stuff from our garden.

Pointing to Cubby out there, having fun using water.

A bye? A bye?
His cute way of asking for "a bite." :) Yep, aren't we lucky? He eats healthy stuff, too. Hehe.

Ahem. Don't judge.
Or be jealous.
Yesterday was a life-changing afternoon. Ben, Rach and I got through it. Quite a time of siblings bonding. Ahem. We're totally the unofficial CNA versions of vets...if you know us, you know what I mean. Care giving is way different than you thought it was.
Ha, especially for Gram.
(wink-wink, Donna:)
So yeah. Yesterday was pretty special. Add onto that, my laptop's wifi proxy settings somehow got whacked, so I had to take a trip next door and have Ken click away for a moment. Simple solution, praise God. Thank You for neighbor geeks. :D

Oh. Just thought I should mention that I just drank this.
Um.
After the morning of kitchen stress, with the only thing preventing it from being a black-coffee day being that the lovely new coffeemaker makes my coffee nice and hot unlike my old one, and I didn't want to burn my tongue... I should probably tell you that Heather and I have this saying we use to describe how our day is going.

Let me explain.
If we're putting milk in our coffee, it's a good day.
If we're drinking it black, we need the bold, strong everything of coffee with nothing mixed in to tame it:)
Well. There ya go. Heh heh.
So I used a bit of my coffee saved in the 16oz thermos, dribbled some milk in, and gave it a good little mountain of whipped cream. Oh. Just wait. Hold on a sec...

Yes. One more shot before the thing that tops it...

Sigh.
Yeah, that's Ovaltine.
And yeah, that's evidence behind the mug I have indeed been cleaning the kitchen.
And yes, I did get punished for putting this stuff on top.
How?
Well . . .

It hurt.
I mean, there's nothing like breathing out through your nose and simultaneously blowing Ovaltine into your right eye.
I'm just saying.
At least I got a coffee topped with whipped cream and Ovaltine to comfort me, since no one saw that.
I'm off to keep that kitchen clean. Mmmm, it gives me a good feeling when we eat something healthy for lunch --like lentil stew, which I made for dinner last night. ;) Nope, none of you are alone, if indeed anyone else ever makes enough for leftovers. Heh heh.

Oh, and just to be really coming out of left field (haha), here's some of the things I was telling Heather about the series I've been reading...

Mmmm, guess what? I stayed up till 3:30! (did I mention that I brag once in a while? but only if coffee's in me;) I didn't even finish the book. But gosh, Erynn Mangum has quickly become one of my favorite authors!!! Oh yeah. :) So...woke up around 9:30? Last night at 12am, I was reading, and went down to premeasure (and grind my coffee beans in the basement, LOL!) my coffee so all I'd have to do is push the switch. ;) Methinks I'm hooked on that idea!
Thank God this is the last book in the series . . . No more after-12a.m.'s after this...Well, for a while, anyhow.
The people in the book are just so REAL. Normally, you always relate to something or other with a character, but most times that person is either nearly perfect in every other way, and/or gets their life handed to them on a bronze plate, and/or is way too annoyed with their family. I mean, healthy annoyance is true, okay? But really. Some people just ramp it up too much.
Sigh.
So....I love the girl's wit. Ohmigosh, I do. I hope she's rubbing off on me as I read! For real. (sigh) It's great. Oh, and they don't say perfect things all the time! Sheesh, Erynn Mangum has written one of the best women's fiction in a loooong while. Such real and witty conversations! Oh and I love her Emma-like matchmaking, I want to match-make! Gosh. :)

Honey, she's more than entertaining. She's witty. She's...real. She's obsessed with coffee and chocolate. Even more so than yours truly is! lol.
Oh, and she makes you think. Ya know, that's always nice. And God is sovereign. That's what I loved about the first two books---that was talked about:)

Well. That's a nice long post to tide you over for a while...not saying I'm not posting tomorrow, but I have laundry to do and clothes to pack tomorrow. I always do that stuff the day before takeoff. Hehe.

See ya tomorrow!