JOY INCREASING!

Happy First Day of Spring! 

Memphis has flowers and our snow has dissipated! (Pradip pic)

Just the thought of springtime brings me JOY!

In every season.....winter, spring, summer, fall, ordained by God;

Focus on Him. 

Lean in to others in the "church."

Result = JOY 

Think increasing JOY!

Come let us sing for "JOY to the Lord"! (Psalm 95:1a) for "all my springs of joy are in you." (Psalm 87:7)

Everlasting JOY!

SNOW DAY COMETH!

WINTER WEATHER ALERTS!

Our news forecast for ice, snow with gusty winds and COLD temps have continued for over two weeks.....but mostly avoided us! 

UNTIL TODAY!

Snow as seen from our side door and outside our great room window.....

......and it continues!

Another season of weather....a bit like season's of life. Up and down!

Be as prepared as you can for seasonal struggles and the "winters" of life. 

Trust God, who is control of all our elements, for the results of all the snow days that cometh! (Psalm 74:17)

SPRING IS COMING!

Officially, the spring season will begin March 19. But.....signs are already popping up in gardens and field's everywhere! White dogwoods filling fields in Hernando, MS. Budding heritage snowball bushes in yards of many friends. An unfamiliar magnolia bush. A saucer magnolia, according to my horticulturist neighbor. It looked like a tree with two different color blooms to me.

How could I have missed this visual springtime treat at GAC for so many years!?

May the Lord give me eyes to see. May I lift my head and open my eyes to see the beauty He has created without losing focus of the the Creator, by whom all things were created through Him and for Him. (Colossians !;16)

FALL FAVES!

Some things speak autumn at our house.

The sight of Psalm 143:8 on my computer screen. 

Sight of ginkgos on Grandview. (Genesis 2:9)

Smell of chili cooking.

Taste of pumpkin roll and Werther's Original Harvest Caramels.

Sound of rattling from the glass pumpkin jar lid....an alert that someone is helping self to some candy corn.

It's how I knew my oldest grandson had come through town for a visit. 

I almost heard him before I even saw him.

How grateful I am the Lord God created seasons for us to savor with all our senses.

PETAL PEEPERS to LEAF SEEKERS!

Early last week TEMPS were sweltering in all caps. Folks made travel plans to go to the north east to be leaf peepers....as colors were at their peak. Now it's CHILLY in all caps. Yet, there are still a few garden gatherings to recall the lingering flowers of summer and to see all the new mums, pumpkins and fall foliage. 

Enjoy now because we know how quickly fall comes and goes. Soon first snows will be just around the corner followed quickly by spring. May we all be joyfully expectant for each season.

The beauty of each season is created by God. Those that realize this seem to enjoy each season all the more. (1 Corinthians 3:7)

FALL WALK-A BOUT!

Fall began for us last night at 9:04 pm CDT.

So grateful for God's creation of seasons,...."seedtime and harvest, cold and heat" especially in the area where I live. (Genesis 8:22) A move from petal peeping to leaf peeping.

Today is the first time temps have dropped in weeks enough to take a "cool" morning walk. A glorious time in" my" neighborhood. (Acts 17:26)

Without a doubt gingko fall foliage is my favorite.....

.....one on the left is beginning its magnificent brilliance while the one on the right is just beginning. A great motivator to keep me walking daily. BTW, yesterday's USA 9/22/22- 6A, gave a map w/ dates for leaf peepers in all states to plan peak times for their fall foliage peeks.

Sometimes yard signs show support of coming and goings in which neighbors participate. Ride for Education. LeBonheur Children's Hospital. St. Jude.

This one was so timely---a great reminder that this weekend is the Pink Palace Crafts Fair. Hooray for 50 years of art, food and fun!

So many eye blessings on my walk means I'll share more in the coming days.

I conclude with "changing" door wreaths. I love Mimi's! A great reason to always walk down her street. 

Door wreaths are a reminder of the good ole South......and why I so  love my fall "neighborhood walk-a-bout!"

FOOD FOR THOUGHT FRIDAY

My first "morsel" of thought this morning came in the form of a memory.

Making "Snow Cream" with the kids. Scooping off just the pristine tops of the flakes...

and stirring them in our "melty" ice cream, because I rarely had cream or whole milk on hand.

SNOW DAYS! For both kids and teachers those 2 words are music to their ears.

Why? 

Maybe it's God's way of slowing us all down. 

Snow from Heaven. (Isaiah 55:10)

A way of hemming us in with his "silent" beauty....

away from busyness. (Ecclesiastes 3:11a & Psalm 46:10)

A time for family.

A time to look out the kitchen window.

A shelter of sorts.

A time to focus on Him and His hand in all of creation!(Genesis 8:22)

Yummy "food for thought Friday" as I sprinkle just a tad of snow on top of my Amaretto Cherry Cordial ice cream.

CHOOSE: SEASONAL CONTENTMENT

Sitting at the breakfast table looking out at the patio it would be easy to bemoan the "leaf situation." That is,  if I were the resident"raker." 

But....I have never even turned on a leaf blower so my thoughts were more positive than hubby's who tries to calculate the number of leaves left on the trees against the meteorologist report for upcoming rain. Then he weighs all of that against the arrival of the first grands on Monday for Thanksgiving.

I, on the other hand, am grateful for the God-designed seasons (Genesis 1:14) and think about what fun those Texans will enjoy running through those leaves and hearing them crackle beneath their feet. And our little New Yorker will love them as well as there is ground beneath theses leaves and not asphalt an just throwing leaves in the air and watching the wind blow them can be fun.

This morning as I remembered  Genesis 8:22, " While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease,"  I was content to sit with a cinnamon stick in my cuppa and watch the leaves dance. In this season of my life, I'm thankful that the Lord has chosen for me to dwell in a part of the country that has a bit of all the seasons to enjoy. (Acts 17:26) 

That's my Friday choice----seasonal contentment with a leaf strewn view.

Boun-TEA-ful Harvest

While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, And cold and heat, And summer and winter, And day and night Shall not cease. (Genesis 8:22, NASB)

Autumn is visually my favorite season---the cooling temps also add to its seasonal charm, especially in the mountains. God's offering.
Roasted veggies. Caramel apples. Gingerbread. Pumpkin Roll. An autumn abundance.

What a bounty---apples , nuts and a canopy of leaves in the mountains of western North Carolina this past week. Everything in abundance.

Honey Crisp apples offering a snap and tingle in one's mouth from Barber Orchard off of Hwy 74N on Old Balsam Road just south of Waynesville, NC. Pecans and almonds from the "nut man's" white panel truck at the corner of Hwy 19 and Hwy 276 at the turn to Lake Junaluska, NC and a carpet of leaves as well as a canopy of color above us on the Henize property off of Walnut creek Road and Hwy 64 between Franklin and Highlands, NC.

"The earth has yielded its produce; God, our God, blesses us." (Psalm 67:6) 

How this verse rang true for us and dear friends as we soaked up the crisp, clean mountain air of North Carolina. Carolina blue skies seem to emit a keeness of sorts as the temps begin to fall.

A boun-TEA-ful cuppa blessings for me......and my dear friends!

Spring: Day 1

3/20/12 Many writers speak of springtime as the season that eases in or tiptoes in with scents to tickle our noses and blooms to delight our eyes. A time of no extremes. A time of transition between the chill of winter and the heat of summer.

Weather wise, spring of 2012 entered weeks before its designated calendar day and defied such descriptors. It blew in with gale force winds, tornados, flooding and record-breaking high temps that would then plummet without warning. 

Today’s powerful wind gusts scattered the petals of our "early blooming" cherry tree far and wide---and even into our living room through our pane-less frame. The Window World gal said it was “magical” to see all that pink whirring around. Pink cotton candy. (My thought---it looks like we just had a wedding in here.)

None of this surprises our Creator. As our earth revolves, seasons will continue. “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.” (Genesis 8:22) We just get to enjoy each of them.

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: 2 a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, 3 a time to kill and a time to heal, …….... 4 a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, 5 ……….. a time to embrace..... (Ecclesiastes 3:1-5)

 Spring: a favorite season for many----embrace it and enjoy!