Weekly Poll - April 30th

Last week's poll results ended up being pretty even among all our readers. I find that amazing! Isn't it so wonderful how God created us all different? For those of you that are wondering what personality type I am...I actually think I am closest to Choleric. Yep - that's right. Are you surprised?

Here are the results:

Sanguine - 21%

Choleric - 24%

Phlegmatic - 28%

Melancholic - 28%

And now for this week's poll question:How many times a week do you cook?

Considering there's only one woman/girl in my household, I think my answer to that question is pretty obvious. :) But we also go to at least one of our parent's house for dinner each week, so if I'm honest, I only cook about 5-6 meals a week. I have a fabulous husband who would be happy to each the same thing every night and doesn't need lots of side dishes or bread to go with it. So, basically, I'm a pretty spoiled wife. I can cook one meal, make a salad, and we'll eat that for two nights in a row. Ahhhh -- I'm so blessed!

So what about you? How many times a week do you cook?

Taking Time to Smell the Roses...

I don't know about you, but I'm a "doer". My mind is constantly thinking about all the things on my "list" - my mental list - that need to be done. The floor needs to be swept, the dishes need to be put away, a note needs to be written, I need to finish reading that borrowed book, the cat needs a bath, the groceries needs to be purchased, a phone call needs to be made...and on and on the list goes. It never ends.

Consequently, I'm not one to just sit down, listen to the wind, and "smell the roses". I thrive on busyness and feel so accomplished when I can get things checked off my list. Those moments of quietness that I do experience (whether it's lying in bed before I fall asleep or spending time with someone) are rarely ever real moments of quietness. I simply can't enjoy "being still" because I'm thinking about all the one hundred and one things I should be doing.

Two weeks ago, my husband and I went on a 2-1/2 day camp-out with his family. It was my first time to be on a real camp-out. When we arrived, it started raining. It rained the entire time. For 2-1/2 days straight. Previous to the camp-out, we had made big plans of hiking, climbing rocks, spending time with everyone around the campfire late at night, taking lots of pictures, etc. But instead, we spent our time trying to stay warm by huddling under a canopy during the day and burying ourselves inside our sleeping bags at night. Everything was cold, wet and muddy.Near the end of the trip, I was feeling like the entire weekend had been a waste of time. We hadn't even gotten to spend much time with Joe's family as the rain never stopped. But as we headed for home, watching the cloud-covered mountains fade in the distance, my brother-in-law (who was riding with us) said something that really challenged me.

"When we hiked to the top of the mountain (in the rain) yesterday, I could have stood at the top and stared at the beauty around me for hours. I just like to soak it all in and meditate on God's creation."

I had been a part of that hike too. And yet the entire time I had only thought about how cold I was, how my cell phone didn't work, and how I just wanted to go home so I could take a warm shower and get the mud off of me.

My brother-in-law went on to say that he thought those people who can't stop and take time to really enjoy and soak in God's beautiful creation miss out on so much in life. Needless to say, that hit home for me.

Ever since then, I've been mulling over his comments. While I might think the mountains are pretty, or the flower in my garden is lovely, how often do I really stop and consider the wonderful miracles of God. (Job 37:14) Am I so busy (and enjoying the busyness) that I don't ever take time to soak up the works of my awesome God?In Psalm 46, God Himself commands His children to "Be still, and know that I am God." (vs 10) If I never take time to know God by experiencing and learning about His creation, I won't ever really know Him. There is so much we can learn from God when we study and enjoy the things He made. Listening to the trees rustle in the wind, hearing the birds sweetly sing, watching the brightly colored flowers grow in your garden, looking in awe at the majestic mountains, and enjoying the presence of your children/spouse.

So my challenge to you today...take time to smell the roses! Every single day.

Weekly Poll - April 23rd

Last night, I was getting ready to post the weekly poll when my wonderful husband came home and told me that we were going to have a "date". He listed off a bunch of things we could do and left the decision up to me. He's so sweet! We ended up spending the evening reading the Bible together, reading/discussing a chapter in our Night Light: A Devotional for Couples book (I love this book!), painting my toe-nails and finger-nails (did I mention I have a wonderful husband??), and talking. Sometimes it's just fun to drop everything and take time to enjoy each others company. And that is where I'm so thankful for my husband, because I am not one to stop what I'm doing just to take time and "smell the roses". We definitely balance each other out in a very good way!

I was thoroughly impressed with how many of you keep journals and write in them regularly. It was definitely an inspiration - so thank you all!

Do you keep a journal/diary?

Yes - 75%

No - 25%

How often do you write in your journal?

Every day - 22%

Once a week - 38%

Once a month - 9%

Less than once a month - 31%

Remember how I mentioned above that my husband and I balance each other out because of our different personalities. Well, that just happens to be what this week's poll is about:

Which personality type are you?

I love studying about personality types, spiritual gifts, differences between men and women's behavior, etc. so this poll question is one I've been wanting to ask for a while. :) Some of you may not be familiar with the four personalities so I've listed some details about them below.

Sanguine: Social-type, enjoys fun things and events, easily makes new friends, the entertainment provider at group interactions, tendency to over-promise, has a hard time getting things done, thoughtful and sensitive

Choleric: ambitious, lots of energy, a doer, commander, strong, very decisive (and sometimes stubborn), confident

Phlegmatic: easy-going, laid back, self-content, consistent, observant, relaxed, likes a peaceful environment, affectionate, dependable

Melancholic: thinker, list-maker, highly creative, independent, often a perfectionist, can easily over-analyze, ponderer

While studying these personality types, I came across this easy simplification of each type: "A Choleric likes it 'my way', a Melancholy likes it 'the right way', a Sanguine likes it 'the fun way', and a Phlegmatic likes it 'the easy way' ."

Don't you think it's so wonderful that God gave each of us a different personality? He knew we needed order, creativity, relaxation and even a little fun! :) So, which personality type did God give you?

You're going to have to wait a week to find out which type yours truly is...because this week, I want you all to guess. :) Leave me a comment telling me what personality type you think I am (those of you that know me can help me out as I still am not 100% sure!).

And then go vote in our poll, telling me which personality type YOU possess.

Free Web poll for your Web site - freepolls.com

Page from My Journal: Chronicling A Day in the Life of A Reader

I'm Kayla, a 19-year-old girl living at home, striving to glorify the Lord in everything I do, and fall more in love with Him each day. I’m the oldest of ten children and absolutely love living in a large family. In June of 2009, I graduated from high school after being homeschooled my whole life. I am currently a distance-learning student at Verity Institute, an accelerated college program, where I am majoring in English. This day in my life is about as “normal” as it gets around here.

8:22am – I open my eyes to a bright and sunny Wednesday morning. Looking at the verses I have posted on the bottom of my sister’s bed above me, I meditate on 1 Peter 3 for a few minutes while trying to fully wake up. I decide to get up, but can’t make the bed yet because my 2 ½- year-old sister, Charity, is still asleep. After pulling on my sneakers and putting my hair up, I start my workout routine (The 30-Day Shred) in our clothing room, where there’s a large, open floor area.

9:04am – Satisfied with a good workout, I head to the kitchen to start the morning pot of coffee. While in the kitchen, Charity comes walking in after waking up, so I talk and cuddle with her for a few minutes as well as change her diaper. Then I shower, dress, and get ready for my day.

9:40am – After making my bed and grabbing myself a cup of coffee, I sit down with my Bible for reading and prayer. I read some portions of 2 Samuel, John, and Proverbs. Sometime during my reading, Stephanie (17) notifies me that breakfast is ready. She made poached eggs on toast. Yum!

10:30am – I sit down to start studying my Social Sciences & History CLEP prep book. I’ve been studying the subject for a week and a half now and will be taking the test in two days. After just a few minutes, I’m called to Wisdom Search, our family devotion time. We usually have Wisdom Search earlier in the morning, but we’ve all had a late start today due to a late evening with company the night before.

11:10am – Today’s Wisdom Search, which consists of reading a chapter of Matthew and praying, concludes and Dad is off to work. I fix him his travel mug with coffee and we all say our goodbyes. Then, as the primary dishwasher in the family, I proceed to wash the breakfast dishes.

11:25am – Back to studying… I read several chapters of my textbook including one on sociology. The material is interesting, but not the most edifying since it’s from a secular viewpoint and I do my best to view the concepts through the lens of Scripture.

12:50pm – Time for a study break. Allison (15) has told me that she is finished writing her blog post for today’s verse in our Scripture memory challenge and would like me to read it. I get on the computer to read her post and publish it and then I check my e-mail and bloglines.

1:30pm – Lunchtime! We have leftovers to eat. After finishing and tidying up a bit, I read the mail which has just arrived and then get ready to go out.

2:00pm – Stephanie, Allison, and I are out running errands. We go to Ross to find some Hawaiian-looking outfits to wear to a party this weekend and some gifts for different friends, Goodwill to drop of a donation, Publix for some groceries Mom needed, and JoAnn’s for some craft supplies for different projects we’re working on.

5:00pm – We’re finally home. I unload and load the dishwasher again, wash the remaining dishes, tidy up the kitchen and surrounding areas, wrap up the gifts we’ve just purchased so they’re ready for the weekend, and write a note to a friend who just got married. Then I sit down to get some more studying in before dinner.

6:35pm – Time for dinner. Mom has made a delicious meal of ritzy chicken, squash, salad, and bread.

7:15pm – I take Stephanie over to the church we used to attend where she still volunteers at the library. This is a job I did until I passed the baton to her after starting college. I usually drop her off, but this time I decided to stay and visit the other librarians since I haven’t seen them in awhile. Tommy (7), Matthew & Mark (4), have also come along to read and play. After chatting with some people, I sit down to study a bit in between reading books to the boys.

8:25pm – Steph’s shift at the library is over, and it’s time to run just a few more errands. At Ross earlier in the day, I had accidentally purchased something in the wrong size, so I quickly exchanged the item for the right size. Our next stop is JoAnn’s (again) for a piece of fabric Mom needs.

9:15pm – We arrive home. After chatting with Mom, I wash the dinner dishes, take out my contacts, and get ready for bed. Then I fix myself a bowl of Neapolitan ice cream and sit down at the computer to unwind a bit, check e-mail, and schedule the next day’s blog post.

10:30pm – I go into the family room to find my family watching a movie and sit down to join them. While watching, I add the refill pages we purchased at the craft store to a scrapbook.

11:07pm – I’m in bed, meditating on the goodness of God, and drifting off to some much-needed sleep.

Weekly Poll - April 15th

I was elated to see so many "kindred spirits" (yes, I'm an Anne of Green Gables lover) out there. Glad to know many of you all love flip flops as much as I do! Here are the results from last week's poll question:

How well do you like flip-flops?

I love them and can't wait to pull them out each summer. - 58%

I have a few pairs, but they're not my favorite shoe. - 12%

They're okay. I wear them once in a while. - 23%

You'll never see me wearing flip flops. Ever. - 6%

This next poll question is to inspire me. Well, at least I hope it does. :)

Do you keep a journal/diary?

You see, ever since I was old enough to write, I've kept a journal. Writing out what is happening in my life has always been very important to me. Being able to put on paper my thoughts and feelings is very helpful for me, especially when I'm discouraged or in a tough spot in life. And one of my favorite pastimes is to go back and read through my journals, seeing what God has done in my life, the answered prayers, and how many times He has brought me through trials. It is truly encouraging. Of course, my favorite journal entries are the ones about Joe -- long before I ever knew he was interested in me, I was writing about my interest in him. :)

But recently, as in the past several months, I have gotten so busy that I can't seem to find the time to write in my journal. And the longer it gets between entries, the longer I wait, because I know that there's going to be so many things to write about. Tonight I pulled out my journal. The last entry was back in December. For me, that's really sad. I used to journal at least once a week.

But I really want to become more faithful about writing on a regular basis, so I'm looking for some inspiration. I'd love to know how many of you keep a journal/diary. And if you do, how often you write in it. If you want to inspire me even more, leave me a comment telling me how you fit it in to your schedule. :)

And while I'm on the subject, I just have to show you my journal. It's the cutest journal ever (thanks to my brother for finding it for me)!And the back of it -- isn't this darling? :)

So, this week there's two polls. If you answer yes in the first poll, you get to vote in the second poll. :)

Of Kitchen Disasters...

Joe had to be away this evening until late, so I decided to make use of the time by cooking.

I started out by mixing up a batch of Brown Sugar Oatmeal Pancakes. These are one of my favorite pancake recipes and since I haven't had them for several months, I was excited to make them. I was also looking forward to using the griddle which my parents gave to me as a wedding gift. It's a really spiffy digital one -- and I just assumed the pancakes would cook at 425 degrees. That's the temperature they always cook at, right? (This was the first time I was using it for pancakes.) I dropped the batter onto the griddle and listened to it sizzle.

While those were cooking, I began peeling apples to make Chunky Cinnamon Applesauce. We had 3 apples that have been in our refrigerator for almost a month. Up until now, I just haven't taken the time to use them in cooking (they aren't the kind you eat by themselves!), but tonight was the perfect opportunity.

I was halfway through the second apple when I smelled something burning. Not cluing in to the smell, I just finished peeling the apple. But then I realized that the smell was getting really strong. Ahhh...my pancakes.

Quickly I grabbed my spatula and flipped the first one. Burnt. Usually, if the first one is burned, that means the last one isn't too bad. But as I flipped them one by one, I realized that they were all burnt. Every. Single. One. Black and crisp.

Of course, since there's only two of us, I had cut the recipe in half which meant that the eight that were burned were well over half the pancake batter. Oh well. You learn by mistake, right? I immediately turned the griddle down to 300 degrees and resumed peeling apples.Gratefully, the last few pancakes turned out okay. Probably because I was closely monitoring them this time.

By now, the apples were on the stove cooking and I was looking for something to eat for dinner. Burritos sounded good and I thought it would be fantastic to "grill" one on my griddle. I left a burrito on the griddle for a good 15 minutes while I consumed a salad. When it felt hot and crispy, I took it off and began to chow down. But it only took a few bites for me to realize that it was majorly undercooked. The cheese wasn't even melted. The beans were cold. But the outside was crispy. So I peeled off the outside layer and ate that, throwing the rest away.

Suddenly, a very familiar burnt smell reached my nose. The apples! But apples don't burn, right? Or do they?

I lifted the lid of the pot to discover black apples. Yes, black. I learn something new every day.

Needless to say, right then and there I gave up on any other cooking plans I had for tonight.

Isaiah 51:12-13

Page from My Journal: Chronicling A Day in the Life of A Reader

My name is Rachel; I am 14 years old. I love Yeshua with all my heart and strive to please Him in every way possible. Even though I wish I had a big family with a lot of siblings, I instead have only one brother who is turning 17. (We may be able to foster a little girl though, which I am so excited about!) One day I hope to live on a farm with lots of children. I am not a city girl and never will be. I absolutely love dogs, especially Golden and Labrador Retrievers.:) And I try and live life to the fullest. You can check my blog out at Peculiar Treasures.

A Saturday in My Life

8:00am - Time to get up! After eating breakfast, I begin my morning routine of feeding the dogs and checking my e-mail.

Roxy

9:45am - I shower and get ready for the day.

10:20am - I'm ready for the day and I decide to finish watching a movie that I started last night.

11:40am - Time to practice piano! I only started about a month and a half ago so I'm not that good, but I love playing. :)

12:05pm - I'm hungry for lunch. Today I eat 2 vegetarian sausages and 2 rice cakes. I don't eat pork and regular sausage has pork in it, so I eat vegetarian ones instead. I am also allergic to gluten (which is in bread) so I can't eat bread. This is very hard for me because I love bread; but I will get such bad tummy cramps and constant stinging as a result if I eat it.

12:45pm - After checking my email again, I blog a bit.

1:15pm - My mom comes back from shopping and I look at what she bought. Today she just got things for her bed. After looking it over, I go back to the internet.

1:30pm - This afternoon, I'm going to a friend's house. So I begin getting ready.

1:40pm - Off to head to my friend's house. Today, we decide to dress up in olden day outfits and take pictures. We have a lot of fun! We also watch the movie, 'Fiddler on the Roof'. I absolutely love that movie and think it is so funny.

Talia and me

6:00pm - I'm back home. My mom has a bad headache and can't cook dinner tonight, so my parents and I hop in the car to go get something for dinner. We take a long time deciding on what to get and getting the food because everyone wants something different.

7:00pm - We finally arrive back. We eat dinner and then I feed my dogs.

Max

8:00pm - I work on typing a post on my blog.

8:15pm - Our family sits down to watch a movie together.

10:30pm - Time to get ready for bed. It's the evening routine of washing my face, brushing my teeth, etc.

10:40pm - Once I'm ready for bed, I spend time praying and reading God's Word.

11:00pm - It's the weekend which means I go to bed later. :) I read a little bit before heading to bed.

11:30pm - I'm in bed!

Is this something you would like to be a part of? I'd love to hear from you. We are in need of people who are willing to chronicle a day in their life to post on this blog. If you are interested, please email me: modestpatterns @ sbcglobal.net (remove spaces)

Weekly Poll - April 8th

Wow! What a whirlwind the past two weeks have been. I want to say thank you to all of you for your patience and for allowing me to skip last week's poll in order to tend to the needs of my house and husband since I had been gone so much. You all are the greatest!

Since the poll lasted a bit longer, it gave more people the opportunity to vote. Looking at the difference between the results from a week ago and the results today, I'm actually quite glad we had this poll up for two weeks.

What Color Is Your Hair?

Brown - 69%

Auburn - 8%

Black - 4%

Blond - 10%

Red - 6%

Grey/White - 0%

So my prediction was correct...there are a lot of brown headed readers out there. :) And I'm definitely not surprised.

With the warmer weather, I have began digging through storage to find summer clothes and shoes. Of course, I love this time of year so it's always great fun to do this. But there's one thing I look forward to when I'm pulling out summer stuff more than anything else.Flip flops! I love flip flops.

If I could, I would wear flip flops everywhere. They're so comfy (most of them, anyway!); they're super cute; and they come in such fun colors and styles. I am a barefoot girl at heart, so naturally any kind of shoe that is close to bare feet instantly calls my name.

Believe it or not, I've been known to do this more than once.
I even wore silver flip flops to my wedding. They weren't anything fancy- not even sparkly - but the $5 I paid for them has long since paid off as I still am wearing them everywhere today. The photographer thought I was joking when I put them on. But little did he know how crazy I am about flip flops. :)

In my opinion, the most wonderful kind of flip flops are the heeled ones - and if they have flowers (and just happen to be purple) - that's my kind of shoe!
Today I told my husband that I needed to go shopping. Amidst other things (like free coupon items!), I think it's time for me to invest in some more $2 flip flops. Seriously. I only have a couple of used pairs for this summer. And considering they're my staple summer shoe, I think it will be well worth the few dollars spent.

Because they'll most likely be pulled out again next summer. And the next.

And even if I'm the only one wearing them because they've long since gone out of style, they'll still be my favorite shoe of all time.

We're Having A Sale!

I fell in love with these aprons from Marie-Madeline Studio the moment I saw them. And they're just as much fun to wear as they are to look at! So we're having a sale...

From now through Saturday, April 10th, you can get any of these apron patterns for only $6.97! So hurry and get yours here before it's too late.
Don't forget to buy some cute fabric for your apron. Fabric.com has some really cute spring fabric you should definitely check out. Like this Fresh Poppies Green, or the lovely Tropical Paradise.

And who knows, after you purchase your favorite apron pattern and some cute spring fabric and finish sewing it, you'll probably just want to don your new apron and mix up a batch of Sugar cookies.
To eat with some ice-cold lemonade while sitting outside, soaking up the sun and this beautiful Spring weather!

Page from My Journal: Chronicling A Day in the Life of A Reader

My name is Julianna! I’m twenty, turning twenty-one in June (I’m very excited). I was homeschooled all my life, graduated from high school in 2008, and am now a stay-at-home daughter working in the family business, while trying to soak up homemaking skills from my excellent mom. I teach 17 piano students on Mondays and Wednesdays, and am currently trying to prepare them all for a recital in May. When it comes to faith, my family and I are Christians, practicing Judaism. Every day in my week is so incredibly different, I had trouble choosing which one to blog. I chose Thursday, since it’s one of my favorite days – I don’t teach piano that day, and sometimes it almost feels like a vacation!

Julianna (left) and her sister

5:30am - The beautiful strains of classical music fill the room. Our alarm is set to 89.9 WDAV, the local classical music station. It’s a lot better waking up to that, rather than an annoying beep or buzz. I sit up and start my morning prayers. They begin with the Prayer Upon Arising (Modah Ani), which is one of my favorites:

“I gratefully thank You, O Living and Eternal King, for you have returned my soul within me with compassion – abundant is Your faithfulness!”

Other prayers included, among others, are the Prayer for Livelihood, Torah Blessing, Sh’ma, Wayfarer’s Prayer, and even the Prayer for a Suitable Mate. After I’m done, I get up and do my quick morning routine of face-cleansing and mouth-washing.

5:50am - Still in my pajamas, I curl up on my bed with a book. I’m very close to being done with Home, by Julie Andrews (a memoir of her early years), so I go ahead and finish it up. Very charming, sweet, and funny – just like her. Not all actresses are Miley Cyruses and Heather Grahams, thank goodness.

6:38am - Finished reading, I get up, make my bed, get dressed, do my make-up and hair, etc. This wakes my two sisters, with whom I share a room. Normally, Christine (two years younger than me) is up already, with me, but she’s not feeling well today, so she slept in a little. Mary, my youngest sister, normally waits until the last second to get up. Today, I choose an ankle-length sundress tie-died in my signature color (a turquoise blue) – it’s going to be over 80 degrees in Charlotte!

7:06am - Normally, this is when I check my mail and phone and catch up on any messages I may have received, but our email is actually down. It’s been down for the past two days. However, my dad managed to get the Internet back up yesterday, so I write a quick post on the book I finished yesterday, Outwitting the Gestapo. I’m reading through Holocaust books right now, in an effort to understand the events of that time period, and somehow feel a little more connected to the suffering of God’s people.

7:40am - I join my family in the family room for what we like to call the Sit’n’Sip. 7:30 used to be breakfast time, but gradually, we all stopped eating breakfast. No particular reason, other than we just weren’t hungry! Occasionally my sister Mary (15 and still growing) or my 17-year-old brother will have something. As I enter the room, my sisters point out the cool shadow effect happening on our wall, due to the bouquet of daisies, potted tulips, and wooden lamb sitting on the table. I grab my camera for a picture. I love the result, because it personifies our life right now: the daisies are in an empty horseradish jar, leftover from our Passover celebration on Monday evening. We used them to decorate our seder tables. The tulips are a hostess gift from my great-aunt, who attended the seder, and is a model guest. To me, they are a symbol of our family’s hospitality – my parents, especially my father, are responsible for that. The lamb is a Jim Shore Heartwood Creek figurine, and we put it out every Passover season. It is very special to me.
8:52am - Thursday mornings, I like to go over to the local Caribou Coffee and meet up with a few other knitters in our area. We knit, chat, and have great coffee all morning. However, this morning, not many people will be able to make it. In fact, only one woman says she’s going to come, so we invite her to come to our house instead of the Caribou. The coffee is better, and free! She says she’ll arrive between 10:00 and 10:30, so I use this empty window of time to go do a lot of errands. I drive all over Charlotte and Matthews, making a drop-off at Goodwill, visiting our homeopathic doctor for some refills on supplements, the grocery store, the UPS store, the Vitamin Shoppe, the jeweler, and even the Backyard Wild store, where we buy their homemixed bird seed. Finally, I head home.

10:41am - Three minutes after I walk through the door, armed with packages and bags, Mrs. Lindsey (our fellow knitter) arrives! Mrs. Lindsey is in her sixties, and is one of the sweetest women I know. She has been a family friend for years, and is now busy knitting and sewing for her grandchildren. She has the most magnificent way with words, and writes the best thank-you notes EVER. When I’m in my sixties, I want to be just like her. :) Anyway, we all get some coffee & try the “matzah brei” that my sisters made while I was gone, as she starts to tell us about her experience needle-felting in January. We are currently celebrating the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Lev 23:5-8), so we don’t have any cakes or cookies on hand to serve; having cleaned out all leaven (yeast, baking powder, baking soda, etc.) from our homes before the Feast began, we can’t eat or make anything like that, either! The brei was really good, though! It was a lot like French toast. Definitely a recipe to keep on hand. We served it with jelly and marmalade. Yum.

1:02pm - Mrs. Lindsey stayed for about three hours! We had a great time – knitting, talking about her grandchildren, my piano students, traveling, the knitting tea party we went to last week, and various other subjects. I had two knitting projects that just needed finishing, so I got that done. Mrs. Lindsey worked on a striped scarf, and my mother made a lot of headway on a lacy sweater she’s making. Morgan, my older sister, joined us around 12:00, and did a few rows on her own sweater. It was a fun time. After waving goodbye to Mrs. Lindsey, I head into the kitchen to make some iced tea. It’s hot in Matthews!

1:15pm - I work for my father on Thursday afternoons. He owns his own business (IT), and runs it from our home. All five of his children work for him. Morgan is his Chief Operations Officer (COO), Christine and I do the accounting (she’s Accounts Receivable, I’m Accounts Payable – but I supervise everything in that realm), Peter is our senior technician, and Mary is Logistics Manager. My father is a generous boss, we have flexible hours, and the commute is unbeatable. Today, I send out some invoices, check on questions for customers, order a product from a vendor, and finish up tickets. I feel very productive, even though the email isn’t working yet.

2:57pm - Finished with my bookkeeping for my dad, I work on some figures for my client down in Georgia. Having worked in accounting for almost nine years, I now freelance for a few companies. For my Georgia client, I do data entry and manage his payroll. This time, I have a little trouble getting into his computer – there’s somebody else logged on. So I leave it and go outside to enjoy the warm weather and get some much-needed summer color!

3:33pm - Having finished Outwitting the Gestapo and having written the post, I decide to start my next Holocaust book, We Are Witnesses. I never like to start the next book on my list unless I’ve posted on the one I finished first. Otherwise I get my facts confused. We Are Witnesses is truly touching. It’s diaries of five teenagers who died in the Holocaust, so you can imagine how tragic it is.

4:05pm - Morgan asks me to read her Holy Week post. I do, and we have a great discussion about the differences and similarities between Christianity and Judaism. Morgan is intellectual and a leader; it’s great to have deep conversations with my sister. Encouraging.

4:30pm - Thursdays are one of my cooking nights, with my sister Christine. However, tonight is special! Us five “kids” have been invited to Greg’s house. Greg Bartos is the young man courting Morgan. He has invited the five of us over, and he and his sister are cooking us dinner. They are so sweet. We don’t need to leave until around 5:15pm, though. So I head back into the “lab” (the room in our house we use for business) and try to finish my work for my client in Georgia. The computer still won’t let me in, so I give him a call [side note: I HATE THE PHONE]. He gives me a temporary solution, but that doesn’t work. I send him an email (yes, the email is working again!!) and tell him I’ll finish tomorrow morning. There are still a few minutes until we leave, so I go ahead and get some piano practice in. I don’t take piano lessons anymore, but I accompany a homeschool choir on Tuesdays, and I’ve been asked to play in a graduation coming up – both need so much practice! Yikes!

5:17pm - Christine is not coming to dinner tonight, since she’s not well. So the four of us pile into Morgan’s vanilla VW bug and drive down to Fort Mill, stopping on the way to pick up some movie snacks (Greg has recommended a movie, and we’re watching it together tonight). As the scenery flies by, I try to recite my Ephesians verses (my sister and I have memorized one-and-a-half chapters so far!); I do ok, but the drive is a little too hypnotic – I keep losing my place!

6:08pm - The Bartos residence is smelling wonderful. Mrs. Bartos is at a table with a student she’s tutoring, and Greg and his sister Adriah are in the kitchen finishing the cooking. They’ve made rice, broccoli, and a salad, cut up an organic rotisserie chicken from Earth Fare, and set the table beautifully. Dinner is a lot of fun, as we laugh about different things happening in our lives. Morgan tells a funny food story about her visit to a university; Adriah relives a few of her old April Fools’ jokes; Greg mentions the time he and a few friends put chicken bouillon cubes into the shower head at college, so freshmen ended up showering in chicken broth. He was quite the prankster. He’s obviously wised up, though – his school just named him Student of the Month for April. We are very proud of him, and can’t wait for him to become a true part of our family.

8:32pm - We take a break from the movie to have jasmine tea, which Greg bought specifically for this occasion. The movie centers around India and its people, and apparently jasmine tea is very popular there. How apropos. So, sipping our tea and popping the occasional movie snack into our mouth, we finish the film.

9:30pm - It takes exactly 30 minutes to get home from the Bartos’ house, and we have a 10:00 curfew. The movie finishes right on time, and we quickly get our stuff together and leave. Morgan puts the windows down on the way home, since it’s still about 70 degrees. It’s a beautiful night!

10:01pm - We pop our heads into our parents’ room, where they are getting ready for bed and watching a Law & Order. We don’t have a TV, but they like to download episodes from Netflix and watch one or two before bed. They say it helps them relax. I’ve never actually seen one. Our parents ask all the normal questions – how was the movie, what did you have for dinner, did you have a good time. You know the drill. We say goodnight.

10:21pm - After getting ready for bed, I run downstairs to check my mail one last time, and sure enough, all the mail I’ve missed for the past three days has showed up in my inbox – 42 messages! I scan through it, looking for anything important. Nothing there to keep me up, though, thank goodness! I run back upstairs and say my evening prayers, the Bedtime Sh’ma. As I fall asleep, I suddenly remember that I was going to blog about today – and I start drafting it in my mind.

Is this something you would like to be a part of? I'd love to hear from you. We are in need of people who are willing to chronicle a day in their life to post on this blog. If you are interested, please email me: modestpatterns @ sbcglobal.net (remove spaces)

Pictures from Last Week

My sister and her family were in town last week. We had a jammed packed week filled with all sorts of fun. It was a great opportunity to put my camera to use taking tons of pictures. :) Below are some of my favorites.

Hudson and Silas playing

The two "mommies"...the girls loved Alexis

Baby Alexis - my newest niece

Hudson

The 45 meals that my sister, sister-in-law and I cooked one morning. My freezer is completely stocked now...

An outing to the zoo - We thoroughly enjoyed the gorgeous weather!

I love this picture!

We saw lions napping...

And laughed watching Kathrynne and Cadence hold hands everywhere they went.

Kathrynne went up to this map and stared at it for a long time. I thought it was just too cute!

Easter Sunday - the little girls picking out gifts from their great-grandparents with help from my bro-in-law

Matching shirts! (Kaitlynn, Kathrynne and Cadence)

With my best friend - my wonderful hubby, Joe!

I bribed her for this picture -- a spoonful of ice-cream! :)

He Is Risen!

Christ hath risen! Hallelujah!

Blessèd morn of life and light!

Lo, the grave is rent asunder,

Death is conquered through His might.


Christ hath risen! Hallelujah!

Friends of Jesus, dry your tears;

Through the veil of gloom and darkness,

Lo, the Son of God appears!


Christ is risen! Hallelujah!

Gladness fills the world today;

From the tomb that could not hold Him,

See, the stone is rolled away!


Christ hath risen! Hallelujah!

He hath risen, as He said;

He is now the King of glory,

And our great exalted Head.
Written by Fanny Crosby

"Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; He has risen! Remember how He told you, while He was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again'? Then they remembered His words." Luke 24:5-8

Weekly Poll - Postponed

Just thought I'd let you all know that there will not be a poll this week. My sister (and her family) has been in town this week, and I've been spending all my spare time with them...which makes for long days and late nights. (Plus, this morning I helped make over 45 meals with part of my family!) So, I'm postponing this week's poll until next week. I hope you all aren't too disappointed.

In the mean time, I would love to hear suggestions of what you would like to see for future poll questions. I've got ideas, but the more, the merrier (especially when they come from readers!). So...get your thinking caps on, and let me know what you come up with, okay?