Amur Maple Tree

Trying to get one good hat picture...

Birthday Boy

Little A. Ford turned 2, so we celebrated his birthday today. I'm pretty sure this was his favorite present--a popping lawnmower. The cousins had fun playing. Chloe got up in the tree and hung onto a croquet mallet for the little girls to swing on:


One more photo--flowers from friends...

The Many Faces of Lil

Such a pretty tablescape...

I remember the first time I heard the word, "tablescape". My niece's 3 year old used it. Well, today I saw a beautiful tablescape--M. had her mamas and grammas & Cody's Aunt Mary over for lunch. It was so special because we were able to use some very old things. The dishes had been packed away for years. Cody's Grandma told us she got them when she bought groceries. The teapot was my Grandma Jost's--she died in 1954. We had potato soup, chicken salad on croissants, applesauce, creamed peas, and pumpkin pie. Thanks for going to all of that work, M!

House Blessing

KT and I received this blessing from 2 very special friends when we moved to our new home. Maybe it will inspire you to bless your own home if it has never been blessed...

We dedicate this home to love and understanding.
May its joys and sorrows be shared
and the individuality of each person
who lives and visits here appreciated.
We light a candle to love. (Light a candle.)
We dedicate this home to work, and rest and play.
May our home have joy and high fellowship,
with kindness in its voices and laughter running within its walls.
We light a candle to joy. (Light a candle.)
We dedicate this home to friendly life.
May its doors open in hospitality
and its windows look out with kindness toward other homes.
We light a candle to friendship. (Light a candle.)
We dedicate this home to cooperation.
May its duties be performed in love,
its furnishings bear witness that the work of others
ministers to our comfort,
and its table remind us that God works with us
for the supply of daily needs.
We light a candle to cooperation. (Light a candle.)
We dedicate this home to the appreciation
of all things good and true.
May the books bring wisdom,
the pictures symbolize things beautiful,
and the music bring joy and inspiration.
We light a candle to appreciation. (Light a candle.)
We dedicate the time and talent of those who live here
to help build a world in which every family
may have a home of comfort and fellowship.
We light a candle to Christian service. (Light a candle.)
We dedicate this home as a unit in the Church universal,
an instrument of the Kingdom of God,
a place of worship and Christian training
and a threshold to the life eternal.
We light a candle to spiritual enrichment. (Light a candle.)

As the flames point upward, so our thoughts rise in gratitude
to God for this home, and in prayer for God's blessings upon it.

The Original Morning Glory Muffins
Earthbound Farm's culinary consultant, Pam McKinstry, created these muffins in 1978 for her eponymous restaurant on Nantucket Island. The recipe was first published in Gourmet Magazine in 1981, and in 1991 it was chosen as one of the magazine's 25 favorite recipes from the past 50 years. These muffins have a great shelf life and actually taste better a day after baking, when the flavors have melded. Store them at room temperature, covered, for up to 3 days, or freeze them for up to 2 months.
Makes 16 muffins
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shredded, sweetened coconut
3/4 cup raisins
1 large apple, peeled and grated
8 ounces (1 cup) crushed pineapple, drained (Optional)
2 cups grated carrots
1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts
3 large eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.
Sift or whisk together the sugar, flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Add the coconut, raisins, apple, pineapple, carrots, and nuts, and stir to combine.
In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs with the oil and vanilla. Pour into the bowl with the dry ingredients and blend well.
Spoon the batter into muffin tins lined with muffin cups, filling each to the brim. Bake for 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool muffins in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to finish cooling.

This sweater used to be blue...

"This sweater used to be blue when Chloe wore it when she was little." --S.

I ran across this photo...

It is not surprising to me that Newport, RI is on the list of the Prettiest Towns in the U.S. I still think it is amazing that the public can walk on the sidewalk that runs along the edge of the mansions--the Vanderbilt summer home is in the foreground of the picture. What an amazing place! (We stayed in the hotel on the tiny island under the bridge.)

Just when you think fashion shows could not get any weirder...

Infinite Love

"The world of earth is one great scene of spiritual strain and anguish, whose moans would drown the music of the morning stars, if there were not eternity to unfold the mystery, and to reveal that at the heart of it all there is ineffable and infinite love." –

James Baldwin Brown, The Doctrine of Annihilation in the Light of the
Gospel of Love (London: Henry S. King & Co., 1875), 66.

A Word from Habakkuk

"The Lord God is my Strength,
my personal bravery, and my invincible army;
He will give me the speed of a deer
and bring me safely over the mountains."
Habakkuk 3:19 (Amplified & Living Bible)