Wisdom with the Tea Leaves--Pt. 3

Letting these facts brew a bit will make us all better students:

Every artist was first an amateur.~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Teachers open the door, but you must enter by yourself.~Chinese Proverb

Failure is not falling down but refusing to get up.

~Chinese Proverb

The Covenant=The Spirit and the Word in the Heart

"And as for me, this is my covenant with them," says the LORD: "My Spirit that is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your offspring, or out of the mouth of your children’s offspring," says the LORD, "from this time forth and forevermore."--Isaiah 59:21

Wisdom with the Tea Leaves--Pt. 2

These truths from the tea box reflect on healthy aging:

When the heart is at ease, the body is healthy.

~Chinese Proverb

You're never too old to become younger.~Mae West

As we grow old . . . the beauty steals inward.

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

More Birthday Fun

 Our friend Lauren has been Anna's sewing teacher for several months now.  

She surprised Anna with a lovely birthday headband made by her sister, Sarah.

 

Of course, Lauren's fan club wanted to be in a picture with her, too!

 Anna's actual birthday was spent enjoying a picnic breakfast at the park 

with Grammy, Grandad, and Great-Grandpa Riches.

 

It was Great Grandpa's last weekend with us for this visit, 

and we all enjoyed having one more opportunity to spend time with him.

So many birthday blessings!!!

Wisdom with the Tea Leaves--Pt. 1

I was rewarded with several worthwhile tidbits while opening tea bags today.  This group reflects on faith and its relationship to others:

Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can.

~John Wesley

One generation plants the trees, and another gets the shade.

~Chinese Proverb

Unless you believe, you will not understand.

~ Saint Augustine

July Birthday Bashing

 Summer is a busy time birthday-wise around here, and no month is busier in that department than July.

This month's party had four official honorees.  

Here I'm holding the lovely trivet that Brittany crocheted for me.

 Above we find special guest Great Grandpa Riches and Grammy,

another honoree and cake decorating specialist.

 Anna was very pleased with the pink purse Aunt Brittany made for her.

 Eva ended up with an early gift, and was just too cute to pass up modeling her new doll's tiara.

Thanks to Grammy, this princess's wish for a birthday castle cake came true.

Motherhood Motto

"Judge each day not by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant."--Robert Louis Stevenson

"I Will Take Joy"--One Thousand Gifts in a Nutshell

True saints know that the place where all the joy comes from is far deeper than that of feelings; joy comes from the place of the very presence of God.  Joy is God and God is joy and joy doesn't negate all other emotions--joy transcends all other emotions.

Though my marriage tree may not bud

and though my crop of children may fail and my work produce little yield,

though there is no money in the bank and no dream left in the heart,

though otay choose different ways to live their one life,

till my last heaving breath, I will fight to the death for this:

"I will take joy" (Hab 3:18)

                                                                                                 --Ann Voskamp

Sisterly Love

Grammy enjoying the Wednesday afternoon trampoline show with our North Carolinian visitor--Aunt Kathy.

"He Must Increase, But I Must Decrease"--One Thousand Gifts Ch9, Part III

Priceless gems on humility from a couple of godly men:

I used to think that God's gifts were on shelves one above the other, and that the taller we grew in Christian character the easier we should reach them.  I find now that God's gifts are on shelves one beneath the other, and that it is not a question of growing taller but of stooping lower, and that we have to go down, always down, to get His best gifts.--F.B. Meyer

Pride slays thanksgiving . . . A proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he never thinks he gets as much as he deserves." --Henry Ward Beecher

Photojournal Catch-up

What have we been up to lately?

Anna's been busy puzzling and losing teeth.  She's proud of finishing another 500 piece puzzle and of having Ian pull her tenth tooth in less than nine years.

 Everyone has been thoroughly enjoying the trampoline we acquired about a month ago.  The kids even talked Grandad into getting in on the action--though I don't know if they'll be able to get him to do it a second time.

Cael's been talking anyone and everyone he can corner into reading to him. Grandparents are usually a shoe-in.

All of us have been enjoying having Grandpa Riches here to visit!

"Humility Grows Gratitude . . . and Yields Joy"--One Thousand Gifts Ch. 9 Part II

The two gems below are worth tattooing somewhere for repeated pondering:

"How much larger your life would be if your self could become smaller in it!"---G.K. Chesterton in Orthodoxy

"Expectations kill relationships."--Ann Voskamp's mother

Congratulations, Brittany!

 

cousin photo op with the graduating aunt

 

more posing with the graduate

just posing

Brittany's homeschool co-op graduated a group of five this year, and it was one of the most meaningful commencement ceremonies I've ever attended.  I had several teary moments, and to say I'm not prone to such things would probably be the understatement of the year.  Seeing these parents release their children with a pictorial trip down memory lane and a final parental exhortation with each diploma was so encouraging.  Then we all enjoyed the reception, which was followed by a potluck dinner and English country dance.  A truly unique ceremony--homeschool to the core!

Humility: One Thousand Gifts Ch. 9

I think this chapter is my favorite, judging by the number of quotes I highlighted, so I'm going to break it up into several small installments.  Maybe that way I'll quit putting off posting such beneficial material.  Here's the opening quote from the inimitable Martin Luther:

God created the world out of nothing,
and as long as we are nothing,
He can make something out of us.