Late Summer Tea

 

It's time for tea again!  If we haven't had tea in awhile,

Miss E will point at the china cupboard and say "tea pahty!"

She's such a sweetie.

 

I made this delicious Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cake

for our tea today.  It's even gluten free.  Can't have

too much chocolate, right?  My doctor says dark chocolate

helps when you're stressed.  Bring it on! (:

 

Miss E wanted to use our red transferware for our tea today.

One thing I love about red transferware is that it goes with

everything, whether it's Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter,

or old quilts and garden flowers out in the yard!

 

This is my newest tea cup and saucer, my Mom found it at

a flea market.  The pattern is "Bristol".  I love it!

 

Miss E always makes sure to add an extra large

spoonful of sugar to her tea. (:  She's using our

mini tea cup and saucer, with scenes of Washington D.C.

 

I hope you have a lovely end to your summer,

and enjoy these nice coolish days!

 

I'll be joining Sandi for Tea Time Tuesday again this week.

On Purpose

As many of you know, one of the things I struggle with is epilepsy, which means having seizures. I have all kinds of seizures, usually they are small and you would hardly be able to tell I was having one. But I have also had the big scary ones that are harder on the family than on me, since I don't remember them.

Sometimes I really hate having bad health.

One of the worst parts of epilepsy is not being able to drive. It's hard to give up the independence that driving brings. (Thankfully my family is great and takes me wherever I need to go).

My friend recently recommended the book, The Grand Weaver, by Ravi Zacharias.  The first chapter is called, Your DNA matters, and it was so relevant to my life, since my doctor had recently done a DNA test on me and he could see in my DNA the reason I've been having seizures.  Here is an excerpt from that chapter...

"To be able to accept the wonder and the marvel of one's own personality, however flawed or 'accidental', and place it in and trust it to the hands of the One who made it, is one of the greatest achievements in life. His 'registration number' is on you. Your DNA matters because the essence of who you are matters and whose you are by design matters.  Every little feature and 'accident' of your personality matter. Consider it God's sovereign imprint on you."

God made me the way I am for a reason. And he made you the way you are for a reason. He can be trusted. There is something specific that he wants me to do that I wouldn't be able to do if I had all the energy in the world and was always rushing around here and there in my car.

Blessed is the man who makes the LORD his trust...

Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders you have done.

The things you planned for us no one can recount to you; 

we're I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare.

Psalm 40:4-5

I'm looking forward to seeing God's purpose unfold!

Simply Sunday

--Our oldest son unloading hay--

Wow, summer is not long enough!  Just one more week and then our three oldest will be back in school and our three youngest will be doing home school. I included Miss E in the home school group because she will definitely want to be included in whatever we are doing.  This is my ninth year to home school, and I seriously spent about 2 hours planning the year and getting ready, that's all it took!  The older I get, the more I like simple.

Especially when it comes to technology.  We got a new computer and I cannot get the internet to work on it.  So here I am blogging on my phone.  One of those frustrations I'd really rather not have to deal with.  Oh well.

I love Sundays, the music, gathering with other believers, the relaxing afternoons with the family, its good.  I was amazed again today by God's grace and forgiveness that he so freely gives to all who come to him.  He's awesome!

--to the praise of his glorious grace,

which he has freely given us

in the One he loves.

Ephesians 1:6