Thankful Thursday | soaking up the lovely weather
This week, I am thankful:
for a stretch of beautiful weather
Last weekend, the weather was positively heavenly. Low humidity, temps in the high 70s/low 80s...just so perfect! I soaked it and appreciated it, and when I feel like being crabby about the coming heat and humidity, I will try to pull up those memories. 😉
a mulberry tree in my new neighborhood
I always loved picking mulberries in my old neighborhood, so I was delighted to find a mulberry tree on my walking route here. Yay!
for beautiful sights in nature
I spied these little thistles on a walk the other day, and when I got closer to take a photo, I was delighted to see this little honeybee.
for the little bench outside my front door
It's a lovely spot to eat breakfast, drink coffee, or read a book.
for watermelon season
I am so, so happy that watermelons are plentiful again.
for plenty of rain
Also: the rain we've had has come in the form of thunderstorms, which I do actually love.
All-day-drizzle gets a big thumbs down from me, but a good thunderstorm? YES. Bring it on.
for all the ways there are to save money
I was sitting here thinking about the different ways I've saved money this week; pickups from the Buy Nothing Group, freebies on Facebook Marketplace, an eBay purchase, the cheap Kindle trial I started, some cheap travel I booked, and so on.
There are so many ways to obtain things for free or for cheap, and I think that's awesome.
that I was able to fix the shower draining problem
The downstairs shower was slow to drain and my initial thought was that I should call the landlord. But I decided to check it out myself first, and once I pried off the drain cover, I could immediately see the problem: a huge ball of hair and who-knows-what-else from the previous renters.
I fished it out with some tools, trying not to nose-breathe (!!) and now the shower is working perfectly. Sweet!
that I got a cheap flight to go to FinCon
The conference is in Orlando, in early September (Yes, I feel sweaty already!), and between a cheap initial flight price and a Southwest sale coupon code, I got the flight there for $47 and the flight back for $82.
I don't think I've ever flown somewhere for $47!
for a sweet gift box from a friend
My friend Cate (you can find her online here) sent a box of goodies for the girls and me, and she even included some toys for our cat!
for this rental
I continue to be so grateful...it is a perfect place for me to land for right now.
After reading this, I was reminded that I have a secret superpower--I'm adept at not nose-breathing. It's a valuable skill when you work in a hospital. 😉 So I guess that's my first thankful item. Ha.
We also have had cooler, less humid weather, for which I am grateful. I am thankful that the school year concludes this week--more time with my kids and life will slow down a bit. Very thankful for the lovely young adult my son is becoming--he hops in and helps out without being asked. And I'm thankful for the new bike I purchased in the fall. It's so smooth riding and is the prettiest shade of sky-blue and riding it doesn't feel like exercise.
@Kris, hairy drain clogs are one thing that just about does me in. I do not have your super power and wind up having to tie a thick bandana over my nose and mouth before diving in and cleaning out the drain. YUUUUUCK!
I actually prefer the long drawn out rainy days over violent thunderstorms. I do like the storm segment of Rossini's William Tell Overture, though. 😉
I'm thankful for good classical music. I recently put more on my phone so I've had more of a chance to listen to them while driving and at work. Generally lately I've been listening to Mahler, Ralph Vaughn Williams, Bruckner and my current favorite: Thomas Tallis (although Tallis is choral and not strictly classical.)
That my daughter has done so well in school. She made a lot of friends and is otherwise well adjusted. I know that we shouldn't pass on our own insecurities to our children but the public school system was absolute Hell for me. I made few friends in my 12 years there and going to school was always something I dreaded. I hope that her more positive outlook on education can keep up for a while.
That everyone in my family is healthy.
That vacation time is just around the corner. I need to get away.
@Battra92,
Tallis, yes! Our church organist has a fondness for his music, and so do I.
@JD, I continue to enjoy Tallis and all the other music I learned in junior choir. My sisters and I have said that you can take the girls out of St. Paul's choir, but you can't take St. Paul's choir out of the girls.
@Battra92,
In our choir we have sung anything between Gabriel, Bach, Mozart and Haydn, Orff's Carmina Burana and Arvo Part.
But the non-vocal classics are a great favourite in our household too. Vaughan Williams is beautiful. I am always moved when we listen to Lark Ascending, as it reminds me of my mother who was from the countryside.
@Battra92, I have a friend who is a professional violist in a city symphony. She was beyond thrilled to be performing Mahler last month with the symphony. I was not previously familiar with his work but because of her performance, I made a point of listening--so beautiful!
@Kris, Mahler's Symphony #1 is one of those underrated classics.
@A. Marie, Spem in Alium is quite possibly the most beautiful piece of music ever written. Clearly it was divinely inspired.
@Battra92, I love music too. Some of my choirs have also sung John Rutter compositions, beautiful timeless expressions. Mr. Rutter is still living and recently composed a prayer for Ukraine you can hear on YouTube.
1. I am so thankful for the rain we have had this week. I planted the majority of my garden last week and the seeds are germinating like crazy after the rain water that we have had.
2. I am so thankful that the backyard grading is almost done and soon we will be seeding it and see grass growing! Clearing the trees was a big project but we have been looking at dirt for several months now and I am excited to see green soon!
3. I am thankful that I was able to trim a large dead branch from a tree in our yard that was very unsightly with the trimmers that I was gifted for Mother's Day. I also used them to trim many other trees in our yard and they are proving to be very handy to have around.
4. I am so very grateful that we have a yard large enough for me to be able to plant a garden. It is a lot of work but I truly love it and find so much solace and joy in being able to put seeds in the ground and watch them grow. I love the task of watering and fertilizing the ground and the food and flowers that are produced for my family are so wonderful.
5. I am thankful for the neighborhood kitty that is just the sweetest little guy that we all look after and love on. for the frogs that come to our porch every night and are so fun to watch. For the gardenia bushes in my front yard - gardenias are my very favorite flower and it blesses me so much to see and smell them in the yard of my new home.
Happy Thursday all!
Love it!
I’m thankful for…
…Pride. To me, this means a brother-in-law which doesn’t have to hide who he is from the world. It means a cousin who was able to legally marry her wife, a few years after her social wedding. It means there are 3 trans people in my life who are living as their full, true selves, not wasting 90% of their energy hiding from the world.
…the view out my front window. I will never tire of watching the birds, squirrels and neighborhood pass by! We even saw a sand hill crane just casually strolling by earlier this week!
…living somewhere with good walking/biking. I rarely need to drive, so gas prices haven’t hit us that hard.
…crossword puzzles! I work on the Sunday newspaper one throughout the week while I drink my coffee each morning. It reminds me of doing crosswords with my family as a kid, and is a nice non-screen way to ease into the day.
@EngineerMom,
Thank you for being thankful for pride. My heart very much needed this.
@EngineerMom, love your first one.
@EngineerMom,
Yay for Pride!
@EngineerMom, Amen to #1!
@EngineerMom,
Applaud your first one.
@EngineerMom,
Thanks for adding your first!
@EngineerMom,
Love your #1. I have a beloved niece who does not have to hide who she is, and I am very grateful for that.
@EngineerMom, so thankful for your #1!
Grateful for the wildlife around here: not so much the deer, which are pests, but the rabbits and the birds and the snake who lives in my backyard.
Grateful for a rainy day which means I get some peace from the renovation of my cottage which means my dogs won't bark so I can actually get some work done.
Grateful to be able to fund the reno.
Glad it's summer although I haven't hit the beach once.
@Rose, I am divided about the wildlife, too. I love them because they are cute fuzzy animals. I hate them because of the garden, our chickens, and bees.
Pretty bee picture!
I'll make all my thankful this week about bees:
*I'm thankful somebody in town posted online that they needed a bee hive removed from their house.
*I'm thankful for my son's interest in beekeeping.
*I'm thankful he didn't fall as he balanced on a tall ladder (placed on a hill) while making bees angry because he was demolishing their home and sticking them in a box.
*I'm thankful the bees didn't escape from the box while we were driving them home in the Suburban.
*I'm thankful I wasn't stung and that my sons only suffered a total of 5 stings between them.
*I'm thankful we found and captured the queen this morning when we moved the bees to their new (hopefully) permanent home. It is sooo cool to see the queen.
*I'm thankful to have captured our first free bees.
@Jody S., I know this sounds daft but I would love to hear more about the bees. Where did you find the queen? Did she hide? Is she spottable because she's the biggest?
@Anne, I would love to hear more, too!
@JudyS, Same here--more about the bees, please!
@Jody S.,
What a wonderful thing to do with your son! I hope all goes well and your bees make honey.
@Anne, If you would like to see some about our bees, my son has a youtube channel called Baroque Beekeeping: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4DW97Wf2Ta4SP8atc4LaUQ
Please keep in mind he hasn't had time much lately to do any videos and also remember he was 16 or 17 when he did all of this. The quality of the videos improved with time. I think he would like to make a video about the latest escapade.
He found the queen in the box that he put the captured hive in. He looked where most of the bees were clustered. And, yes, she is spottable because she has the largest abdomen. The drones have bigger eyes and are generally fatter, but the queen's abdomen is longer than the others. It can be very hard to spot her, but my son has a quick eye.
My son is the one who became interested in bees. He researched for a few years while saving his money. Then in 2020 he bought his first bees. It's been a real learning experience for me. Never did I ever think I would be helping with bees; while my son's away at college I will even be in charge of the bees!
@Bee, Thank you. I'm just along for the ride; the bees are all his idea. But it is fun.
A couple of nights ago I found my old list of items we would need to take care of our first house. I was surprised at how many of those items we now own thanks to 1) the previous owner leaving things like ladders and rakes 2) friends and family giving us their extras (lawnmower and shopvac) 3) friends giving us gift cards for house warming gifts. I am so thankful for these unexpected blessings.
I am thankful for the friends who came over for dinner on Saturday.
I am thankful to discover that we live 2.5 miles from a State Park/nature preserve that is full of trails and buckwheat.
I am thankful for the housewarming gift that (cash) that is allowing us to move up our painting project.
I am thankful that our AC works well and the hot weather this weekend.
I am thankful for our ingrained frugal habits that we have always had, they are helping us feel safer and secure during this economic downturn.I know how to cook with beans lentils and frugal ingredients.We have no debts. Grateful we know how to be happy with less.
Grateful for summer.That sounds crazy, as I live in Phoenix, but I like the heat.I don’t go jogging in it, but the forced slow pace we have got to adopt, and the bright sun, all lifts my mood.I use hot days to do some indoor cleaning chores like blinds dusting and closet cleaning.I do all my holiday crafts. I attend some indoor art classes once a week. We go out in early day and evenings for walks and bike rides. Thankful for our climate.I don’t do cold.
Grateful for my friends. Our family has had a very challenging year, and it is the love and kindness of friends that keeps me going!
It's like the whole hygge concept, except for hot weather!
@Madeline, yes for frugal habits. I like to think I’m flexible and able to adapt to different situations because of our frugal habits.
That's got to be the cheapest flights ever - no wonder you are thankful for that!
1. I'm thankful that my husband's managed plan will give him a ride to his dentist appointment -we thought we were done with the dentist, but not quite, as he has a sore spot. Thanks to the young lady in Social Services at his nursing home who suggested this and set it up for me. It takes two to load him in and out of my car, so this will be much better - they will just load him in his wheelchair.
2. I'm thankful that the mystery swelling in my hands has gone down enough that I can wear my 1920's Art Deco ring again. No disrespect to my wedding set, but this is truly my favorite ring. I spotted this one years ago and fell in love with it. I normally wear it daily on my right hand.
3. I'm thankful that took typing in high school back in the 70's. There was a snobby attitude held by the seniors' guidance director, that those of us on the college prep track were wasting our time taking typing, since typing was "only" for steno pools and secretaries (as though those occupations were somehow inferior). Oh, how wrong he was! Everyone types now.
4. I'm thankful for flowers. The brutal summer heat can't vanquish the native flowers planted in my yard. They lift my spirits so much.
5. I'm thankful - and surprised - to find that an olive tree that has never born olives and which was, I thought, just pollinating my bearing tree, decided this year to bear fruit. There aren't many, but it has olives!
I don't even like olives but I think it is super cool that you grow them yourself!
@JD, I didn't take typing in the early 80s in high school, because all the other girls were "to have something to fall back on." My English teacher told me to be the boss, not the secretary, so I refused to take typing.
Well that worked out great. I can type pretty fast with six fingers though.
I learned to type when we got our first computer...I was maybe 12? We had this game called LetterFall, and I played it a lot.
Little did I know I would eventually earn a living by typing words on a screen!
@Kristen,
I have to say it's fun to grow them. I love olives, myself.
I really wish that I liked olives. They are so good for you!
@Rose,
I was on the school newspaper, which was voluntary, not a class, and we "journalists" had designated typing students who typed the columns for us. Our newspaper sponsor was also the school's actual typing teacher, however, so she encouraged me to take her class in spite of what the guidance counselor said. Bless her!
Same situation in my high school, no typing available for college-track students. However, in what I’m now seeing as an enlightened move, all college-tracks were strongly advised to taking typing at the public school. We were told, you will need to type many term papers in college and will be thankful for quick, without looking at the keyboard, skills. It was offered on a few successive Saturdays—and now I’m extra thankful for this!
@JD, I had typing my first year in high school. And as a senior I made money typing term papers with foot notes. I was so happy to use a computer where I no longer needed corrections fluid/tape. And I still call printer paper typing paper which makes my son laugh.
@cc, my experience was similar to yours. My parents insisted that all of us learn typing as part of a set of basic skills (some of the others were swimming and riding a bike), and I too picked up some spare change in college typing papers for folks who never learned to type. The pay got better in graduate school, when I threw in copyediting for those who never learned grammar and punctuation. (These were mostly hairy-chested types doing theses/dissertations on guys like Hemingway and Conrad.) And I confess that I don't miss Liquid Paper a bit, either.
@A. Marie, Hubby took typing in high school and it has served him well in the last 40 something years. I took typing too but it was because my parents wanted me to become a secretary and I was a feminist who was NOT going to get the boss's coffee. I didn't drink coffee and I wasn't going to learn to make it.
@A. Marie,
I just recently wondered if they even sell liquid paper still, during the discussion of wood touch up markers. Our bathroom medicine cabinet has an off-white frame around the mirror. The paint is chipped just on one panel. If I buy white paint it will surely not match. It occurred to me that just maybe I could get away with tiny touch ups with liquid paper.
@JD, The nuns at my borading school made us all learn to type because, "Not all of you are smart enough to become nurses." Weird reasoning but the nuns did us all a favor by insisting on typing skills!
@Rose,
Ha, as a girl I refused to learn knitting socks because my mother said it was something all women should be able to do. In my early twenties I dec ided it would be nice to learn a rare skill and my mother taught me then. Fast forward 25 years and knitting is all the rage, including socks. Who would have guessed?
@Erika JS,
They do! It's usually found in a pen style these days.
What I hated was typing with carbon paper! Hated it with a passion.
@JD, And those pink erasers, like pencils with an eraser for the lead, with the bristles on the end to brush the eraser crumbs away.
Lesson One: f f f (space) j j j (space)
@J NL, Whenever anyone announced that girls or women should do X, I would say NOT ME. Typing? Not gonna be a secretary. Getting married? NOPE. Having kids? nuh uh! I always knew I wanted to get married and have kids, and I got married when I was 22, but I just liked to contradict people. I have never been a secretary or admin assistant though.
I was reminded of this on Mother's Day when driving my mother home she announced she wanted great grandchildren. I said, "You don't think either of my kids are gonna get married and have kids, do you? They're too weird." My daughter piped up: YOU GOT THAT RIGHT. My mother protested that she needed great grandchildren. My daughter said, You got other grandchildren, bug them.
@JD,
Thanks for the pointer! I looked it up online and found the truly wonderful story about the woman-a secretary-who invented Liquid Paper from artist hobby materials. She, a single struggling mom, was fired meanly…..only option was to market her discovery. She ended up a multimillionaire. Love this story and so happy you mentioned the product.
@Erika JS, Interesting story of necessity making good for a clever woman. I learned to type in high school on manual machines in the early 60s, never regretted it as college term papers were agony enough to type. I made a living typing on electric machines, then word processors and then computers. Anyone remember the IBM memory machines that stored documents on plastic cards! Now collecting dust in an IBM museum, but wow they saved a lot of work. I am grateful to have learned how to type really well, organize and design a document and a publication, lay out a document and help the reader gain the writer's intended meaning. Surprise, I love books and appreciate the publishers who still invest in good book design and organization.
The feminists who later insisted on not typing may have been luckier than me, or maybe they had a place to stay while they found the jobs of their dreams. I earned a living without help, paid a lot of rent for me and my sister while she went through nursing school, and later for my husband in graduate school. Typing came in handy when I went to work as a journalist! Also proofreading. It is interesting that so many skills that were scorned in the 70s--typing, sewing, cooking, sports--are now so much more honored and supported. I am still thankful for my skills in all of these, humbly learned mostly on my own. My life and my sisters' lives are so different from what our parents thought they would be!
I'm so happy that you have such a great rental situation. It makes me smile every week.
I have a lot to be thankful for this week!
* I'm thankful for my vet's office getting us in when we realized something was wrong with one of our cats. (The one my 8yo loves with her whole heart and sleeps with every night. This. Cat. Cannot. Die.) Both Tuesday and again this morning when I saw something they said to watch for, they were able to get us in. I'm also thankful for the flexibility to drop everything and go.
* I'm thankful that this all happened this week and not next week when we're out of town.
* I'm thankful that my mom has said she will make sure our cat is well-cared for while we're gone, even if she has to sleep at our house. My initial plan of having a middle schooler check on them midweek is probably not feasible anymore.
* I'm thankful for my husband's great financial planning and inclination to save. It wasn't stressful when our stove died last week because we had money in our home maintenance fund and in savings to cover it.
* Also financial related... I'm thankful that my husband's temporary raise is going to be permanent. It's a relief to my grocery budget, but I'm also thankful that career-wise he's appreciated.
* I'm thankful that my 8yo has had a really good attitude at home for her first week of summer break.
* I'm thankful for the rain that's helping my garden flourish.
That's long enough, so I should stop. 🙂
I hope your cat is 100% soon!
Thank you! I hope so, too.
Thankful that over the past fortnight, I have been able to reach out and make meaningful contact with two people from whom I have been long estranged. Without going into any of the details, I'm grateful that when I eventually leave this earth, my spirit will be a little lighter because of this.
And thankful for DH's ward supervisor, who is doing the best she can for DH and all her other charges under tremendous difficulties.
Ohh, I'm so delighted about your first one. Wonderful!!
@A. Marie,
What a very lovely thing to accomplish and to tell us about! Many of us may have estranged persons in our lives and your post could lift some additional spirits.
I also love that your loved one is well cared for in the present circumstances.
@A. Marie,
I am very happy for you!
We have people in our family who are estranged.
I am encouraged that the sore spot may heal over time.
@A. Marie,
Your first one is especially lovely. I have a formerly close family member who chose to cut me off for something I didn't do, and I really don't know if that chasm will ever close again, as my effort to correct the misinformation was ignored. I hope one day I can put a comment like yours in my thanksgivings. How wonderful that you made this happen in your life.
@A. Marie, judging by these responses you touched a sore spot for many of us. I have a whole section of family who have been estranged from me for ten years and I don't see it getting fixed. Possibly not ever. How wonderful that this happened in your life.
@A. Marie, What a nice thing to read, aout your contact with long estranged people.
@Anne, just to clarify: Neither of my two people were blood or marital relations--and I can well imagine that blood or marital relationships add a whole extra layer of complications. But these were both people who were very dear to me a long time ago.
@A. Marie,
I am happy for you. Mending relationships is a wonderful gift to give yourself. Also glad to hear that DH is receiving wonderful care.
Kristen,
I am such a big fan of your photography. I don’t know how you are able to get the most fantastic shots such as the bee photo and the turtle one from the other day.
I have to go through your posts twice each time, once for the words and then again for the images.
Aww, that is so kind. Thank you! I am no pro, but my pictures have gotten better the more I have practiced. The more pictures you take, the more you learn what looks good and what doesn't.
Also: I take more shots than I post! I tried several times to get the bee on the thistle, but he kept moving. But eventually, he ended up in the right spot.
@Kristen, I always thought you take not only good photos, but interesting ones as well.
Just saw a news story about Clark Little who shoots inside waves. I thought he was brave and has a beautiful eye for art.
https://clarklittlephotography.com/pages/clark-little-the-art-of-waves
@Kristen, I enjoy your photos too. An old pro at the newspaper told me years ago that the main difference between the pros and the amateurs is that a pro will take 100 photos and maybe use one; an amateur will take five photos and be disappointed they are all bad. When you have a lot, you increase the odds of having a really great one or two. And more practice increases the odds again and again, as your camera becomes second nature.
I am thankful for a wonderfully normal blood lipid test yesterday, the result of a new way of eating I started a while back. My cholesterol levels had been disappointing my doctor for seven straight years before this. Also thankful for my sweet family: both the human ones and the critters, for a cool and rainy week, for library books, and a full pantry.
@Ruby, I can totally relate! My labs last week were the best I've had in over a decade, and it's only been a month. It's great to see visible results when you work to get healthier!
@Ruby, I want lower cholesterol levels too, but don't want to have to change my eating habits to get them. 😀
My husband and I are no spring chickens, and every time we bite into a cheeseburger we say, "You have to die of something."
Yahoo for ways to be frugal! I am also feeling that this week. I just got back from errands and found a like-new shower curtain for $6 at Goodwill and $1.25 shower liners from Dollar Tree. Thanks to our landlord leaving some furniture and housewares in our current rental, we haven't needed our own shower curtains yet, but I'm looking for the bargains and planning for our next place, where we will need a lot more things to outfit our home.
I'm also thankful:
- that so far this year I've been able to sew 2 pairs of shorts and I am currently working on 3 pinafore jumper skirts to wear.
- that I found some denim at Goodwill to upcycle. I'm making a pinafore from an old denim skirt, but I didn't have quite enough fabric. Thankfully, there is always denim at Goodwill. 🙂
- that I resisted the urge to buy multiple things at Goodwill that I didn't need. My accountability friend helped!
- that I have YouTube to help me understand how to perform certain sewing techniques. I'm a visual person, and even though my pattern instructions have diagrams, videos are so much more helpful for me.
- for a flexible landlord. He didn't raise our rent after our 1-year lease ended, and he's allowed us to continue to rent month to month. Big blessing! In addition, we paid our last month's rent when we moved in 18 months ago, so we won't have as big a financial hit when we move in August.
@Brooke, Yes to YouTube. I have been learning to sew over the last few years, and my talented friend and YouTube are priceless!
It is truly amazing what we renters find left over from previous renters, even in a house that looks clean. The microwave in our house is over the stove, but NOT vented to the outside--which I don't think the previous renters realized, so they used it. It just vented the grease up through the microwave and out the top. The bottom of the microwave was pure black with grease, but with a rubber scraper and some vinegar cleaning solution, and finally a Magic Eraser, I got it sparkling clean. SO satisfying. The return air vent near the kitchen was also clogged with dusty grease--Magic Eraser to the rescue again.
Once we found a previous renter had apparently flushed down hair scrunchies. Guess what--they don't go all the way down to the sewer. Who'd have thought!
Thankful for seeing the baby rabbits hopping around our yard, and a sweet little female cardinal who sat out on our lamppost this morning and serenaded us during breakfast.
I'm thankful I did go ahead and order a dryer vent cleaning brush--our old dryer had never been cleaned, and I think I got enough dryer lint to knit a full-sized stuffed cat! There was that much. I should have taken a picture so my husband would be more impressed than he was. 😀
Today I'm thankful for healthcare. After an urgent care trip last night and all clear dental trips this morning, I'm very grateful that my part time employment provides these benefits.
I wish I could be like most of you and be thankful for rain, but it keeps bypassing us. However, the temps have been a little cooler and we have a breeze, so that is a blessing.
I'm thankful for our HVAC company. We've been using them for several years, and this week was our semi-annual service call. No surprises, some suggestions, and the personel in the office as well as our service guy are so friendly and helpful. It's only been 4 years since our system bit the dust on the afternoon of July 3 and had to be replaced, so I am truly thankful for the folks who keep my AC running.
I'm thankful for our mower man. As hubby is disabled, all the house and yard work fall to me, and what I can't do must be paid for or go undone. Our guy is so reliable, so kind and helpful, loves what he does, and was so very apologetic that he had to raise his prices for the first time in 3 years due to gas prices. He has let me know about a snake in the yard (he got rid of it for me), shown me a pic of the baby rabbit under the forsythia bushes, given me tips about caring for the yard, and has my husband on his prayer list. I couldn't ask for a better guy.
I am thankful for my new church. I have not attended church for many years, but felt the need to change that. A happy accident (or maybe not an accident) led me to this one, and I have been visiting for over 6 weeks now. I am making new friends, learning about new opportunities to serve, learning at the advanced age of 70 how to study the Bible for myself, and feel at peace about things that have been worrying me.
Stephanie D, your thankful list was very touching to me today. I am delighted about your mower man, and that you are finding enjoyment and meaning in your new church. Thanks for sharing!
@Stephanie D, You remind me how close a frugal thanksgiving is to a blessing! I hope your new church continues to serve you well. My own church family is dear to my heart; I could not begin to list the blessings they have given me over many years and multiple multistate moves. They are the extended family that I don't have biologically.
I'm thankful that
- my kids have the opportunity to go to camp.
- leftovers from the freezer making an easy meal.
- cactus flower
- amazing free parks in the US. I love them!
1. I am not trying to be contrary, but I am so thankful that in less than two weeks the days will start getting shorter. I hate 24 hours of daylight.
2. Thankful that it is in the 60s today because we have had about a week of 70 to 75 degree temps. Too hot. And we have not had rain so our fire risk is very high. Some years the sky is pewter colored and the air stinks because of forest fires.
3. Thankful that although someone in my husband's quartet singing group got Covid and came to rehearsals before realizing it, the husband did not get it. His immune system has not been the same since he had a long period of chemo, so I worry about him pretty much every time he goes out in public. Most days I have my obsessiveness under control but sometimes it gets the better of me...
4. Thankful for electricity. The other day I realized that at that moment I was using my computer, the dishwasher was running, the washing machine was running, I had music playing, and the husband was using a power tool in the garage. It really is a miracle to have a life made so much simpler due to electricity and some days I don't appreciate it enough.
5. Thankful for a salad made of free weeds that are tasty and nourishing: tender fireweed leaves, chickweed and tender dandelion leaves. With some homemade salad dressing and homemade croutons, and a side of homemade cornbread, I feel like a thrifty but spoiled person. I took a local foraging workshop about 25 years ago and for the $10 I paid I have reaped hundreds of dollars of free food---and learned that certain weeds are more nutrient filled than commercially grown greens.
Not thankful that pound hound discovered that he likes tuberous begonias so he ate all of them down to the dirt. Next year they go in my hanging baskets.
@Lindsey, naughty pound hound! But I'm glad that your DH escaped COVID; my DH has been going downhill since the latest variant swept through his ward in April, despite everyone's best efforts to guard against it. (Hence my gratitude for DH's ward supervisor, who has been coping valiantly with DH and other COVID-weakened patients on his ward, in spite of insufficient personnel and other challenges.)
And I also hear you on the electricity and the free weeds. I've never had the slightest luck growing spinach, for example, and I've been substituting lamb's quarters for years.
I am grateful for a holiday break that makes it possible to catch up on visits that were postponed due to covid.
Grateful for good neighbours who cheerfully help clean the gutter and trim the hedges.
Grateful that I have no allergies and can experiment with new recipes.
Grateful that I was welcomed in the outdoor swimming group last summer. I've been swimming there for a year now and it is wonderful to experience the flow of the seasons in that lovely little corner of the lake.
Very very grateful that swimming is good for my painful knee. I was sorry to give up my morning exercise and more sorry still to give up my walks - but my doctor recommends cycling and swimming and I enjoy both.
Man you really do have high arches lol
I love Southwest too!
I’ve been loving out beautiful weather lately. Grateful my son finished out his school year strong. Grateful for my pets, nothing will give you unconditional love after a hard day like a dog at your feet or a cat in your lap. I am particularly grateful that my husband and I both have decent jobs. Inflation has done a number on our savings goals and disposable income, but we are able to pay bills and buy food and gas without trouble. Even if we almost never get our small luxuries from the grocery store anymore.
Haha, yes, yes, I do. I don't think an arch support has ever actually touched the bottom of my foot!
Orlando in September can be extremely uncomfortable, but it is good that most of your activity will be indoors. I was in your area of the country (Washington D.C.) over the weekend and the weather was wonderful indeed.
I am thankful this week for many things.
I am thankful that while visiting Washington my hubby and I walked to the United States Botanic Garden. I was able to see the very rare Corpse Flower in bloom. This was an extraordinary sight!
I was thankful to spend time with my cousin which always fills my heart
I was thankful that all aspects of our trip went smoothly with the exception of having a run in with an overly zealous TSA agent on the way home.
I am thankful for today’s thunderstorm. The heat and humidity are so oppressive this may cool things off a bit. My flowers love it!
I am thankful for the camera on my phone.
I love capturing the beautiful and fun things I see during the day. Yesterday a family of ducks were swimming in the fountain at our post office. I guess it was one spot guaranteed to be alligator free and safe for the ducklings. I was able to take a quick photo and share it with others.
Wishing everyone a week filled with blessings.
I highly recommend the Tub Shroom! I'm not one for buying gimicky things, but was housesitting and they had one. It catches all the hair, is easy to clean and I never have to try to unclog a stupid bathtub drain again.
Yes! We've had the Tub Shroom and loved it. I need to buy the shower version for this particular drain, since it's a shower vs a tub!
hello，may i know where you live？（i‘m from china
I live on the east coast of the United States. 🙂
I am thankful for
The free splash pads near us for the kids to play on hot days
Having both my kids home with me all day now that school is out.
Warm sunny weather this week.
The beautiful peonies blooming in our yard. They are so pretty.
The rhubarb and asparagus growing in our yard.