Sometimes a Bucket Just Isn't Big Enough. . .

To wash off all the dirt,
Or to hold all your blessings!

Dear Readers,

We had a lovely weekend here, including a visit from a dear friend of my mother's (Hi, Denice!). My mother taught her children in school twenty years ago (Wow, where did the time go?) in a two-room schoolhouse in rural Idaho. She is an artist, and gifted us with this oil painting while she was here:


Yesterday, we were also surprised by receiving this tribute to Victoria (our baby who died recently) in the mail:


It was sent by my sister-in-law's friend in California (Hi, Rachael!), whose thoughtfulness was truly touching.

A big thank you to both of you, dear friends!

"When good friends walk beside us. . . On the trails that we must keep. . . Our burdens seem less heavy. . . And the hills are not so steep. . . The weary miles pass swiftly. . . Taken in a joyous stride. . . And all the world seems brighter. . . When friends walk by our side. . . " ~Author Unknown

And now, here's the poem we're working on memorizing for October, along with pictures of our plum-pickin' adventure last Friday:

A Little Song of Life


Glad that I live am I;
That the sky is blue;
Glad for the country lanes,
And the fall of dew.


After the sun the rain,
After the rain the sun;
This is the way of life,
Till the work be done.


All that we need to do,
Be we low or high,
Is to see that we grow
Nearer to the sky.


~Lizette Woodworth Reese

While we were in town, we did some thrift store treasure-hunting and found this "You have to be kidding- Only $10?!" dish set (Among other treasures, but no shoes for Audrey!):

And came back all tuckered out!

My mother's friend Denice brought some scarecrows she'd made so that she could take pictures of them and then paint them. The girls had fun dressing them up and then taking pictures of them, too!

"Who you callin' a scarecrow?"

Thanks so much to everyone who visits here, and for the kind comments you leave. The girls (and I!) just love to see themselves being commented on-hopefully they don't get "Big Head Syndrome" from it all!

I'll be doing a giveaway of some fun vintage hats, aprons, and patterns in the next bit, so you can be looking out for that ;)!

"Reflect on your present blessings, of which every man has many; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some." ~Charles Dickens

Love,

Marqueta