In everything give thanks...

At times I struggle feeling like when someone asks, “So, what’s new with you?” I really have nothing to say. I don’t have kids to brag about (although I brag about my nieces, nephews, and friend's kids anyway), I am working the same job I have for years (and try to not bore people with the details), I am doing LT for going on 10 years – nothing that new about it, live in the same house, have a lot of the same friends who are mostly busy dealing with their own lives… yeah, the answer “not much” is kind of depressing when it sometimes seems like everyone else has so much going on. For a change, today I just want to acknowledge how incredibly grateful I am to be able to say, “not much” is new in my life.

In the past week, I have been a friend and support for several people who have a lot going on in their lives, lots of drama (the real life kind of drama). I am honored beyond words to be someone they can call when they need a shoulder to cry on, or a sympathetic ear, or a pan of brownies, or whatever. Nonetheless, it hit me today that I am profoundly grateful to God that He’s asked me to be a support during their drama, and that at this moment, my life has very little of my own drama in it.

So, although I know that my turn for drama will come- it always does- for today, I am very grateful for my boring life. (Just to clarify, by “boring” I don’t mean there’s nothing going on- rather, there’s a lot going on, but its of the normal mundane variety- housework, work work, de-icing the porch, Christmas shopping and preparation, Life Teen, etc).

For all of you experiencing drama, I am praying for you!! And don’t forget these dramatic times so that during the slow times so you can be evermore grateful for those boring, mundane days.

Insights from life with the BOC

Seriously, someday i'm going to write a book called "Everything I know about God I learned from my dogs and digging in the dirt"... sometimes I do think its ridiculous how many spiritual insights I get from those oh so simple things in my life... and I am awed by a merciful God who meets me right where I'm at, in those simple things in my every day life.

Anyway, this week's inspiration came a few nights ago. It was a stressful week at work (which I'm not so good at), a cold week in Michigan- so the dogs wouldn't stay out for more than a few minutes at a time, meaning they were antsy and fighting in the living room (which I do not allow), plus I had been busy several nights in a row, so they were starved for some attention. I knew I needed a work out in order to work off some stress and thereby sleep that night. I arrived home at 10 pm and decided it was time, cold or not, to go for a walk with my antsy BOC. Naturally, the hardest part is between me asking them "Wanna go for a walk" and actually getting out the door because they are soooo excited its almost impossible to sit still long enough to get a leash and choke collar on. Anyway, after an excited and unproductive few minutes, I managed to get collars and leashes in place, scarf, mittens and a hat on myself, and we headed out the door amid wagging tails and grinning pooches.

It was a clear night and I enjoyed seeing all the stars in their glory - they feel so close and yet so far away. Breathtaking. We walked around the block and to the road behind my house. It was a very dark and very still night, with few streetlights along our route and no traffic on that bypass road. As we passed the football field (directly behind my back yard) I decided to let the dogs run for a bit- hoping they wouldn't go too far or run away. They raced back and forth across the football field, zooming in the darkness. I couldn't really see them at all, until they zoomed by me (something about black dogs in pitch darkness doesn't really work).

Now I'm certainly aware that nearly nothing is as exciting for the dogs as freedom and space to run- particularly in places they usually have to be leashed. An open football field is much more exciting than my fenced backyard, duh. I'm also aware that although we do work at it, my pooches are not impecably trained or always obedient. Nonetheless, I wanted to test the system and see if they'd come when called, even in the excitement of zooming across said football field. So, I knelt on the cold ground (trying to get a glimpse of their locations in the light by the distant parking lot light). "Maggie, Suzie... Come" (very excitedly). Out of nowhere, Suzie comes racing to me, full speed, and hurls herself into my arms, licking my cold face, ecstatic!! Maggie, on the other hand, was busy sniffing a culvert. I knew she had heard me, but clearly she had more important things to do. I called her again, she stopped sniffing and started walking my direction, stopping several times to sniff the ground, before coming all the way to me. Meanwhile I didn't give up, I continued to call her name and encourage her to come. Several times in the next 15 minutes I repeated the exercise, and each time, Suzie would come racing to me the minute I called, while Maggie would continue what she was doing until she was good and ready, and then she'd come at her own pace.

And suddenly it hit me... how often do I hear God calling my name and instead of running to Him as fast as I can, I finish what I'm doing, explain that I can handle this, "be with you in a minute Lord" and then go to Him once I've finished what I consider to be important?? Hmmm. Jesus, help me be more like Suzie* and run to you at the sound of your voice, ecstatic to be Yours, to be called by name, to be invited into your arms.

*and by praying to be more like Suzie, i mean just in those things- not in the licking my butt, peeing when I'm nervous, or licking stranger's faces things. :D

Winter

I am so not ready for the arctic blast!! Winter is the hardest season for me by far... and it appears to be here to stay. Since I am working on being grateful for all things, I'm going to list what I like about winter, and not the many inconveniences and instances of being cold that get me down... ahem... Things i like about winter:

• sweaters


• fuzzy socks


• slippers


• cozy nights in sweats and wrapped in a warm comforter


• a good fire in the fireplace


• crafting or sewing projects in the evenings


• a fresh snowfall (excluding the shoveling and clearing of the car)


• hot chocolate, hot coffee


• cutting down the christmas tree


• christmas


• baking and the warm kitchen that follows


• the season that comes after winter


• the season that comes before winter


• finding a warm spot


• suzie sleeping on my feet and keeping me warm

What do you like about winter??

Mistakes

Sometimes you learn valuable lessons from mistakes (yours and other people's) and sometimes mistakes just bite you in the behind. Today was one of those days, mostly feeling the toothmarks. Ugh.

"Tomorrow is a new day, with no mistakes in it" Anne of Green Gables

Domestications

This evening ended up being a cozy nice fall evening. After racing across town at the end of the work day, getting soaked in the rain, drying off on the car ride home, only to get soaked again between the car and the house... i didn't have high hopes. But it was great, one of those little moments to savor (maybe why i'm still up at 12.41 am- hours past my bedtime). Anyhoo, it was a very domesticated sort of evening at the Nichols Homestead. I had started green tomato pie (tastes like apple pie), got Donal going on pumpkin butter, and then Garrett, Fiona, and Owen arrived... the boys for haircuts and Fiona for a visit. Perfect. While I cut Owen's hair, Fiona zested the orange for D's pumpkin butter (apparently zesting had him intimidated). Then while I cut Goot's hair, she rolled out my pie crusts for me. She's a pretty awesome little sis, I must say. Not just because she can zest an orange or roll out a pie crust, but because she is beautiful, fun, cute, and an answer to my life long prayer. God is good.

Anyway, back to the domestications, by the end of the evening we'd done 2 haircuts, made 2 pumpkin pies and a dozen pumpkin tarts, 1 green tomato pie (shh don't tell my fam until after tomorrow), pumpkin butter, cranberry cinnamon bread, a cleaned up kitchen, and... drum roll please... a new pillow for Maggie.

Yeah, so months ago I made Suzie a pillowcase to match the dining room. I'd used scraps from old capris, chair cover scraps, and other fabric leftovers... and to this day, it gives me a little thrill to see it in there, all classy looking. Well, Maggie's been lusting over Suzie's oh-so-cool pillow and the crazy lady of the house doesn't particularly like that there is one classy pillow cover and one ugly dog blanket, side by side. So after the bread was in the oven and everything else was done, i pulled out my box of fabric scraps to see what i could do. At first it was looking grim- and that darn Uncle D had the nerve to make fun of me!!- but then i came across a pile of scraps from when i made a quilt for my bed, which just so happens to be a similar color scheme as the dining room!! Wow. Goldmine. So I pulled out the scraps, started sewing, and finished it just before the bread came out of the oven... its awesome and makes me smile. Maggie went right into the crate, sniffed the new blanket and is sleeping on it now.

This is a pic of the happy bitches on their matching or at least sort of matching pillows... obviously the camera phone pic doesn't do those lovely pillows justice... but regardless, the pooches are happy and the crazy lady of the house is off to bed with a smile on her face and ready for pumpkin pie tomorrow.

Old friends...

Here's an AWESOME article by Jeanne Marie Laskas (my current favorite author). She's talking about old friends, friends we shared life with, friends we're terrible at keeping up with... sooooo well said, it all rings true... here, read it for yourself.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/23/AR2007102301558.html

So for all of my old friends, plot friends, whatever you want to call them friends, I love you! I'm sorry I'm terrible at keeping in touch, but I still love you and you are very very important to me :D Happy Thanksgiving.