Unexpected Surprises...

Greetings, Dear Friends!

I'm wondering if you could help 

me with something today...

This lovely flower

surprised us unexpectedly

behind our chicken pen...

And I can't seem to identify it.

It has a beautiful bell-shaped

purple blossom...

And grows on a big stalk

with pointy leaves...

Any ideas???
 

Seems as though this has been

the summer for unexpected surprises

around here...

We also have quite a bit of corn

growing behind the chicken pen

which we did not plant

but must have come from 

some of the cracked corn 

that we feed our "ladies"...

And then there is this

amazing pumpkin patch...

Which seemed to have sprung up

overnight from some seeds

I threw in the mulch pile...

It appears to be taking

over our yard!

Unexpected surprises can feel

that way...

They just seem to "take over"

our lives...

Sometimes the surprises

can be truly wonderful...

But, at other times,

they can be heartbreaking.

The kind of surprise where

you feel "bushwhacked"...

Your spirit is wounded,

and you just don't understand

how or why this happened...

In times like these...

there is so much comfort

to be found in the Psalms...

"God is our refuge and strength, 
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore will not we fear,
 though the earth be removed,
 and though the mountains be 
carried into the midst of the sea;
Though the waters

 thereof roar and be troubled,

 though the mountains shake

 with the swelling thereof."

Psalm 46: 1-3

God is here to help us through
these tough times...
To hold us...
To guide us...

And as difficult as things
might seem right now...
God does have a plan for us
and a purpose for everything
that happens to us...

"The steps of a good man
are ordered by the Lord: and he 
delighteth in his way."
Psalm 37:23

God truly does know what is
best for us...

"For in the day of trouble
    He will keep me safe in his dwelling; 
He will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent
    and set me high upon a rock."
Psalm 27:5

Rushing...

Although she went home to be 

with the Lord over 30 years ago,

I still hear the sweet small voice 

of my nana every day...

Friends, neighbors, and family 

know how much I like to sew...

Because of this, I often inherit cloth 

when someone is cleaning

out their stash...

Recently, my sister gave me several tubs

full of cloth and craft supplies...

Her mother-in-law was moving in...

And she had lots of material that she

wasn't planning on using anymore.

Inside one of the tubs

was a plastic bag full of 1 1/2 inch cotton strips

of cloth left over from her quilting days...

inch

So, I decide to use them to make a 

small strip quilt for a baby...

Now, anyone who sews knows

that you can't rush a quilt...

"Haste makes waste..."

My nana would gently remind me...

Yet, I was so anxious to get this finished

that I hastily put on the borders

and ended up having to rip them out

and start all over again.

Seems like this has been a summer

of rushing...

We were rushing to get the roof

shingled in between all the rainstorms...

Covering the stripped roof with tarps in between the rainstorms...we called it "red neck roofing!"

Rushing to help my parents get their
house ready for yet another showing...

Hurrying to get the float in for summer...

Rushing to help one of my sons find a "new" car
right before he started his new job
after his car became "unfixable..."

We stopped at one of the used car lots
in a neighboring town one afternoon...
The salesman was quick to try
to sell us one of those
"One in a million" deals...

But my nana's voice whispered...

"Something that seems too good to be true...
Usually is..."

And, of course, once again
she was right...
The vehicle had many mechanical issues...

Oh, sometimes I, too, can get very impatient
wanting things to happen before God's timing...

 
Like wishing our tomatoes or
cukes or beans would grow faster..

Yet. once again,
I hear my nana's words of wisdom...

"Patience is a virtue that carries 

a lot of wait..."

Autumn is truly perhaps
my favorite season here in Maine...

Because it seems as though
the "rushing" slows down a bit...

We live on a long dirt road
on the water...
There are about 40 homes on this road...
But only 5 are year round.

During the summer months
We watch our "weekend" neighbors
Rush up here from the cities
and try to cram a lifetime full of memories
into two or three days...
or perhaps, if they are fortunate,
a week at a time.

They "fly" by our home
in their fast cars...
barely pausing a moment to stop
and say "hello" or wave...

But those of us who live here year round

know that there are some things

that just cannot be rushed...

It always takes 6 hours for the tide to come in...

And 6 hours for it to go back out again...

A constant gentle reminder to us

that, in most instances,

 "rushing" never benefits anyone...

As my nana would often say..

"Anything worth having...
Is worth waiting for..." 

Thank you, Nana...

"Desire without knowledge is not good,

    and one who moves too hurriedly misses the way..."

Proverbs 19:2

More Blessed To Give Than To Receive...

 I had the pleasure of spending

a wonderful afternoon

with Jo Jo last week...

baking and sewing.

Jo Jo had wanted to make something

for her new niece...

due any day now!

 What better gift than two

flannel receiving blankets!

Of course,

we took care of the important matters first...

Jo Jo made chocolate chip cookies

while I washed the dishes!

Then we got right to work!

Jo Jo and I got out my flannel stash...

And she picked out enough

for the two blankets...

You need a 30 inch square piece

for the front of the blanket...

and a 40 inch square piece 

for the back and binding.

I just love the color combinations of 

fabric that Jo Jo selected...

And this pattern is so easy and fun...

Just perfect for a beginning seamstress!

This is a self binding receiving blanket pattern...

So simple that you could easily make one

in about 15 or 20 minutes.

I thought I'd demonstrate

 by making some cloth napkins

using the same principle.

 Wanting approximately 12 inch napkins...

I scaled down the blanket.

You need a 10 1/2 inch piece 

of fabric for the front...

and a contrasting 14 1/2 inch piece

 of fabric for the back to make one napkin.

Using some vintage linen...

I cut 6 10 1/2 inch flowered pieces

and 6 14 1/2 inch light denim pieces...

Fold each piece twice

and iron them...

In order to find the center of each side...

Then, starting at the center of each side,

pin the front piece to the back piece...

leaving a 1/4 seam allowance.

 Next, sew each side...

Leaving a small opening on one side for turning...

When finished you'll get these funny

little bunny ears on the end!

 Fold and press the "bunny ears" down...

And draw a line from your stitching

to the fold...

Do this with all four corners...

Sew down your stitch line...

Trim off the extra material...

Turn the napkins right side out...

Make sure to poke out the corners!

Iron out the wrinkles...

Finally, top stitch around

using a zig zag stitch...

it's just that simple!

Since the Lord instructs us 

that it is more blessed to give

than to receive...

I was blessed to give

these to Jo Jo...

For her hope chest.

I have shown you in every way, 

by laboring like this,

that you must support the weak. 

And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, 

that He said,  

‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’

Acts 20:35

Small Potatoes...

We harvested the remainder
of our potatoes last week...

We still had 4 baskets and 

a bag of small potatoes to put in cold storage

when my adorable little niece visited on Saturday...

Planting the seed potatoes last spring...

 She was quite facinated with all the 
different colors and sizes...

 

a view from the roof during our roofing project!

She was curious as to where we got

so many baskets of potatoes...

So I began to tell her about our potato garden...

The first hoeing...

After showing her some pictures

and explaining how the potatoes grow underground...

She got a curious look on her face...

"Auntie, why did you put all 
the little potatoes in this bag?

 Are you going to throw them away?"

 I explained to her that those small potatoes

were very important...

That they were our "seed potatoes"

and that next spring we would plant 

them in the garden to get new bigger potatoes!

What a year for potatoes!

I've often heard folks use the term

"small potatoes"

in a rather negative manner...
implying that a person or thing
was of little significance, importance, or value..

But the Lord teaches us the value of
"small things..."

Remember the parable of the mustard seed?
 
"The Kingdom of Heaven is like 
a mustard seed planted in a field. 
It is the smallest of all seeds,
 but it becomes the largest of garden plants;
 it grows into a tree, 
and birds come and make nests in its branches..."
 Matthew 13:31-32

 

May we never disregard

the importance of

"small potatoes..."

 

Getting ready for next spring's planting!

 

“He who is faithful in a very little thing 
is faithful also in much; 
and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing 
is unrighteous also in much..."

Luke 16:10