Thankful Thursday--Sovreignty of God

I am thankful this morning to have been reminded again that *nothing* takes God by surprise.

He has reminded me over and over of that in recent months. As I read this Thankful Thursday post, I thought as I have thought often recently, that God's Sovreignty can at times be very painful. That has been a new realization this year. When we have experienced trials in the past, the Sovreignty of God has always been a comfort...but I have discovered through this past year that there are sufferings of a depth that can truly make the Sovreignty of God *hurt*. However, I am so thankful that that realization has come hand in hand with realizing God's love on a whole new level. He has shown me that the pain of His Sovreignty is always accompanied by the immensity of His Love and Care. He truly does "carry us close to His Heart as a Shepherd" (Isa. 40:11).

Robin Sampson posted this quote from Warren Wiersbe in her Thankful Thursday post this week...I am thankful that God led her to post and led me to see them, as I *needed* these words today:

“If we only endure our trials, then trials become our master, and we have a tendency to become hard and bitter. If we try to escape our trials, then we will probably miss the purposes God wants to achieve in our lives. But if we learn to enlist our trials, they will become our servants instead of our masters and work for us; and God will work all things together for our good and His glory. (Rom. 8:28).”

I am thankful this morning that no matter how hard the day or how blah my mood, God always reminds me of His incredible blessings if I will just stop long enough to be reminded. I'm thankful for Thankful Thursday giving a *push* to stop and let Him remind me.

Remembering Papaw

I am sitting here stunned at the moment realizing that this picture, if I have my dates right, was taken 27 years ago today. It doesn't seem possible that it could have been that long ago...and yet there have certainly been many changes since then (for instance, I think the recliner in the background has been recovered *twice* since this picture was taken! :)). I *think* that this picture was taken on my Papaw Brown's 80th birthday, May 29, 1981.

A true gentleman. That is the most often-heard description whenever people talk about my grandfather, who died in 1986 at the age of 85. A hard-working man who often worked 7 days a week, 364 days a year, a gentleman who was rarely seen without a long-sleeved white shirt, tie, and his ever-present hat until he was well into his 80s, a faithful husband who had been heard to say during his last fight with cancer, "I just hope I live until our 56th anniversary." He did, and died less than a month later. An incredible family historian who compiled a 3 inch-thick, legal-sized *book* of our family history by typing with two fingers (he typed *everything* and typed amazingly fast for someone who only used two fingers :)) and copying on an old xerox copier at the library. A dyed in the wool worrier (who passed that trait on to his oldest son and his youngest grand-daughter. :)) A stern man who also had a wonderful dry sense of humor and could make me laugh faster than almost anyone.

Papaw and I had a very special relationship. I was grandpa's girl and everyone knew it. When I was two, my mom was hospitalized, and while my other grandparents were still working, my grandfather was ten years older than the others and had already retired. This man who had spent most of his own children's childhoods working suddenly found himself in charge of a two year old while my daddy was at work. Some of my earliest and best memories are of the time I spent with him during that time. Years later I would pack up my books and head to Fort Smith in the spring of 1986 when he was diagnosed with cancer for the last time. I spent many hours in the hospital with him, and then many days with him and my grandmother after he went home. One of the greatest blessings of homeschooling my last two years of high school was having the flexibility to spend most of those last few months with him, and time with my grandmother after he died.

I found this recently...a poem that my great-aunt, his sister-in-law, wrote for my grandmother 6 months after his death:

He was a very noble man.

Forget him, we never can.

It was so very plain to see

He was devoted to his family.

He was kind and understanding,

Never harsh or commanding.

He was honest and forgiving

Working hard to make a living.

He is missed so very much

That gentle smile and loving touch,

That vacant chair that seems so quiet,

The long, long days and silent nights.

We miss you, Foy--

Feb. 87

Jessie Robertson

Tackle It Tuesday

This is going to be another *two-tackle Tuesday* for me. :-) We got a *lot* done on the house last week...but of course, never *enough*. ;-) One thing I had really *needed* to do last week that didn't get done was re-organizing my bedroom. Because we have so little storage, our bedroom ends up being the *catch-all* for everything...and it has gotten really bad this time! So...I know I won't probably *finish* it today (too much else demanding attention as well!), but I want to spend at least an hour getting a good start on it. I won't have an hour tomorrow, but I'm going to try to spend at least an hour the rest of the week until it is finished.

My second tackle for today is finalizing our summer schedule, chore lists, and school plans. I have been working on these, but we've had several major changes lately (dad's job schedule changing, adding piano practice, etc.), so I need to adjust things and get it all finalized and printed up. I created some forms a few weeks ago that I think are really going to help us...I just need to get them *launched* and in use. So...I plan to get that done today as well.

Check out what others are tackling today at 5 Minutes for Mom.

Menu Plan Monday...

I didn't stay on track as well as I needed to last week...thus you will see some of the same items on the menu because we didn't eat them last week. (Some we did have last week and are just having again. :))

Monday:

B: Cereal

L: Out (Birthday Party)

S: Hoagies and Salad

Tuesday:

B: Cinnamon/Cheese Roll-Ups

L: Tuna Sandwiches/Cottage Cheese

S: Fajitas, Rice, Refried Beans

Wednesday:

B: Oatmeal

L: ?? Gone to Used Book Sale

S: Tilapia, Slaw, Beans

Thursday:

B: Scrambled Eggs/toast

L: Nachos

S: Chicken Patties, Baked Mashies, Salad, Green Beans

Friday:

B: Yogurt Smoothies

L: Tortilla Roll-Ups

S: King Ranch Casserole

Snacks:

Rice Cakes, Protein Balls, No-Bakes, Muffins, Crackers and Pepperoni, Fruit

Thanks to Laura at Orgjunkie for hosting Menu Plan Monday!

Our New (Well, not *exactly*...) Piano

Twenty-some-odd years ago, as a teenager, I bought a piano after inheriting some money from my great-aunt. The piano I originally bought was an antique Steinway square grand, which looked a little like this . I soon learned that while an antique Steinway square grand was a nice *thought*...this particular one (and from the reading I've done, most of them at this point :)) was great for looks but not practical for someone who actually wanted a piano to *play* seriously. :-) So...we traded it in for a much newer but not *new* Baldwin Acrosonic. My dad had worked for Baldwin at two different times in his career (I'll have to post more on that subject sometime...:)), so he helped me to find *just* the right piano...and I was attached to this one from the beginning.

When I moved away from home, my piano stayed behind. Recently, my mom decided to buy a piano a friend was selling, so that my piano could come *home*. I had started accompanying a children's choir at church and needed to be able to practice regularly (I hadn't in over ten years...ack!), and my children are ready to start learning to play now. It was no small feat to move not one but *two* pianos, but a great crew of men helped us and we finally got everything where it needed to be on Friday. The kids are *so* excited (I hope they stay that way when they have to start actually *practicing! ;-)), and so am I!

ETA: Can anyone help me figure out how to position the photos in my post where I want them? When I use more than one photo in a post, I can't seem to get them to end up where they are supposed to! (I *wanted* the full piano on the right at the top with text to the left of it, and the piano keys at the bottom of the post in the center...help!)

ETA2: Thanks to Joyful Days for helping me figure out how to get things (mostly:)) where I want them!!

The Reading Nook

I have been intending to post a picture of our new *Reading Nook* ever since I posted about it in my WFMW post. Here it *finally* is. The size makes it a challenge to photograph...this picture is taken from the doorway of our bedroom; the opposite wall has a doorway leading into the living room. We still have work to do in here...I need to make new curtains for the front door, we are going to add a small bookcase just to the right of where I was standing, and I need to reposition the swag and the artwork above the loveseat (we used to have taller furniture in that spot :)). Billy also said we can be on the lookout for a good deal on a screen door. I decided after we got the loveseat moved in there that it would be really nice to have a screen door on the front door (directly across from the loveseat) so that on nice days we could have the door open and feel the breeze. I can't wait to get that done! :) I love our new cozy spot!

Small Houses revisited...

Earlier this week I ran across some great links on small houses in a post at Starry Sky Ranch . As I mentioned in my WFMW post on Small House Survival, I am on a quest for *outside the box* solutions to our space and storage issues, while working to make our house warm and homey. Although our house is not a mobile home, I was really inspired by the photos here and here . Thanks to Kim at Starry Sky Ranch for posting these links! I'm always on the lookout for more good ideas...I'll be posting as I find them, and would love to hear any ideas or see any photos anyone else has.