Summertime

It's been a couple of weeks since I've written anything here.  We finished up school at the end of May, and I spent the last few weeks excavating some of the piles that built up throughout the school year.  After seven years of homeschooling, I have finally come to accept that I can do school well or my house well, but not both.  School and the kids always win over dusting and piles, and this reforming perfectionist of a mama is finally at peace with a decorating style that is best described as "Early Science Experiment with a touch of Dust and Lived-In".  (The basement decorating style is "AAAAAAAAAA! with a touch of Run for Your Lives", but that's probably a different post...)

Anyway, I've made a little bit of progress on the piles.  I've also got a ton of summer sewing projects on the docket, so my sewing machine is dusted off and out on the dining room table, waiting expectantly for those spools and bobbins.  We're spending time soaking up the sun, working in the garden, swimming in our neighborhood pool, and generally enjoying the more relaxed pace of summer.

I love summer, partly because the slower pace gives me a chance to reflect on all that God has done and is doing in our family.  As I sit on the patio, soak in the sunshine, look at the flowers, and watch the birds flit around the yard, I am so thankful for the ways God cares for His creation.  It sends me straight to Matthew 6 almost every morning-- "Look at the birds... Are you not of more value than they?  Consider the lilies of the field, how they neither toil nor spin... Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow..."  Summer is such a gift of grace-- a loving reminder from the Father who cares for His birds and His flowers and His children.

Soaking.
              Savoring.
                               Reflecting.
                                                 Regrouping.

I'm incredibly thankful for summertime.