♥ Lovely Porches ♥

I love porches.  To me, porches give a home an instant cozy and welcoming element.

There are memories made on porches.......in days gone by especially.  In those days when times were simpler and folks weren't on the go constantly running their children to extracurricular activities, they would gravitate to the porch in their rockers, swings, or benches, and watch the kids play in the yard during the day or catch fireflies after dark, while they enjoyed simple conversations ,sipping their lemonade or coffee.  Porches were actually just an extension of their living space.  Families LIVED a great deal of their lives on porches.

I love the appeal of porches.  Every house I could or have ever dreamed of living in or imagined in my life has ALWAYS had a porch.  And I admit that I will slow down and take a closer look at porches when I drive by them.....whether they be large meandering wrap-arounds or cozy small ones......they all draw me in!

Wanna take a stroll with me today as I stop by and visit some pretty and inviting porches?  We can imagine who lives there and what it would be like to visit for awhile on these cozy welcoming porches!

Okay, let's go......

I just love that last one!  Whoever lives there would have a hard time getting me to leave!

And mine seems so simple compared to some of these, but I worked with what I have.  :)  Here's our front porch this summer.....

Thanks for taking a stroll with me today.  I hope you enjoyed the porch tour! I bet you had a favorite that you could imagine yourself on right about now!  :)

Take time to grab you a cool glass of lemonade or a cup of coffee in the morning and enjoy YOUR porch.  Enjoy the simple moments!

♥ Tammy ♥

A Simple Country Pleasure

These days I seem to always have a jar of hand-picked fresh flowers, compliments of my kids.

And they make me smile. Who needs a dozen red roses when you can have these?  :)

~Home~

Home.  It's my very favorite place to be.......provided my family is there.  It's our haven.  As a matter of fact, Cedar Haven is the nickname I affectionately gave our home.

Love my sign made by Kendra (At Home with K)! 

We've made some radical changes this past year in our home.  One of the biggest, one that's made a huge difference, is that we no longer travel 40 miles one way to dance three times a week.  It was Joy's choice, but definitely something I had been praying about.  We figured between actual dance and the drive time to and from there, we were spending 7 1/2 hours minimum a week (usually more though).  Joy had been feeling the stress of the hurried lifestyle with no time for anything else, and had been battling with what to do.  With the addition of our Luke this year, I think we all felt the need to slow down and enjoy life's simple moments more.  However, we did leave the final decision to Joy.  She confidently announced last September, after going a few times to dance, that she wanted more time at home, time with Luke, and time to try other things.  All this to say that now our outside activities this year have taken place during the day while dad is working (gymnastics, homeschool gym day and guitar lessons).  This has made a tremendous difference.

Simplifying our lives with less trips out of our home has made our home so much more content and peaceful.  It has improved the atmosphere - the entire "feel" of our home - since we've slowed down.  It especially changed the evening hours.  We were already accustomed to our days at home with homeschooling, but we were rushing late afternoon and early evenings to activities to the point that when we had an evening home, it was a huge treat.  Now it's more the normal to be home in the evening and the outside activity that occasionally arises is the exception.

Don't get me wrong.  We made it a point to do things together as a family before when we were rushing to activities (that's just it....it was more effort....a determined.make.it.a.point.to.do) because it was important, but now the small enjoyable things happen much more often naturally as a family because we're here at home more.  I know this has also helped tremendously with Luke's adjustment, attachment, and security this year also.  He's had a secure home routine, and I think that has made a huge difference. 

When I was younger, way before I was married and had children, I knew that a wife and mother was what I desired to be above all other things.  The career part waivered, but not the vision I had of being a wife and mother.  As a matter of fact, I would plan out in my mind how I would fit my career into my home life and it always had to include being home with my children (when the time came for us to have children).  Mothers on TV shows like June Cleaver (Leave it to Beaver), Lucy (I Love Lucy), Caroline Ingalls (Little House on the Prairie), and Olivia Walton (The Waltons) were my role models.  I know I'm showing my age now.  :)  In real life, there was my very own mother, who was always at home with us.  I knew without a doubt that was the home life that felt right for me....even as a child and teenager.  Thankfully, I have a wise husband who has always supported that desire and shared the same ideas, beliefs, and values concerning our home and family.  (We discussed this many times before marriage because it was very important to me, as it was to him).

Being home in the late afternoons and evenings has allowed us to create a routine that I think will be remembered far above rushing to lessons or outside our home for activities.  Now when dad comes home from work, Joy and Luke rush out the door (usually barefoot) to greet him with a hug and kiss as he opens his car door, and then I'm waiting for him at the backdoor with a welcome home kiss.  Oh, we did those things to welcome dad before, but now it's different.  It's anticipated and slower paced, not hurried and on our way somewhere.  It's hard to explain, but it just feels different.

I've been enjoying reading the book, Organized Simplicity.

The author states something that I wholeheartedly agree with.  She is speaking of the time that mom serves as a taxi, carting kids from activity to activity - play dates, lessons (which by the way stretch the family finances too).  What happens to the things we enjoyed growing up?  Things like lazy days reading a book, playing outside....etc?  The author, Tsh Oxenreider, says, "I wonder what our children's memories will be when they reflect on their upbringing - an innocent time full of play and exploration, or the booster seat on the way to ballet practice?"  Ouch.  That's so true and made me ponder and reassured and reaffirmed to me that we were doing the right thing by slowing down and changing our priorities a bit, concerning activities.  I have great childhood memories that included playing outside alot, reading alot, eating homemade popsicles, riding my bike, and playing games.   I don't want my kids to miss out on the good stuff.  

With our afternoons and evenings home now, there's more time for better meals with sit down dinners as a routine and more homemade desserts (instead of saving those for when company is coming).  :)



I've enjoyed trying out new recipes and Joy is learning to cook and loves it.  I want her to remember us cooking and laughing together (and I'm sure she'll remember the messes Luke makes when he's "helping").  :)

Strawberry Cobbler

There's more time for evening bicycle rides.

Or 4 wheeler rides.

Time for playing in the sandbox.

or slip-n-slide.

And of course, the pool.

We've read more books aloud - books that inspire - and this all after school is "officially" over for the summer.  Books like these....

More time to gather together in our room and watch educational, inspiration or family movies or documentaries.  Two or three years ago, we gave up our cable TV and don't miss it at all - it's wonderful!

There's more time to get back on track with routine family devotions time.  There's more time to do as the Bible says in Deuteronomy 6:7 concerning teaching your children God's Word and ways - "Impress them on your children.  Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down, and when you get up."  

Time for exercise.  Working out several times a week has been enjoyable and provides a time when we gather upstairs in the loft....Jason and I exercising, Luke playing with his trains, Joy exercising and then reading aloud to us (I love being read aloud to since I'm usually the one that does that).  We often do our devotion time at this point too.

Even simplifying our stuff.  The book I spoke of that I've been reading, Organized Simplicity, has opened my eyes to all the "stuff" that needs to go in our home as well.  I've cleaned, decluttered and organized our bedroom and bath closet and drawers so far.  If we hadn't worn it in a year, it went.  I'm still working on other rooms, but so far we've sold a few things, donated alot of things, and taken out many bags of throw aways.  It feels good!

Being home more has allowed a regular nap time (for Luke - not in the car on the road much at all)...and quiet time for Joy and me.  I love this too!

Home and family have always been right behind God and faith in Him, but it just feels more content now.  I think somewhere along the line, we (mostly me) had said yes to too many activities.  It's actually liberating to say no sometimes too!  I think everyone is happier in the long run the simpler we keep it and the more we stay home.  As a matter of fact, when we are away from home, Luke asks, "we going home now, Mama?" (or kome as he says).  

It has also allowed more time to work on our apartment/pool house or "Cedar Loft" as we dubbed it.  We're making progress there....Jason mostly.  The part where he'll need me out there working with him is getting close.  :)

Oh and not to mention with the price of gas, we're saving money because we try to coordinate trips to town to make the most of our time and money when we do go.

So with more time at home, I imagine you'd wonder why my last blog post is dated April 24th, right?  Well for that, I really have no excuse apart from the fact that other things have prioritized my time.....not anything huge, just simple things.  And sometimes my computer tends to be a time robber.  I'm trying to work on that.  Therefore to fight temptation, I have to press the off button.  However, I have missed it and am anxious to be back to bloggin' and am trying to work this into my simpler home life routine, as well as some crafting and decorating that's long overdue too.  I guess you could just say I needed a break to focus on other things, which also included finishing up our school year and winding down.  And honestly, for some reason, I didn't feel I had much to offer the blogging world.  Do you ever feel that way?  But I'm finding myself with ideas and thoughts flooding into my mind that I'm anxious to share with my blogging friends and I'm also just anxious to be back.  :)

So what about you?  What do you do to create a homey atmosphere....peaceful and content in your home?  What do you do to create a simpler home life?  Have you made changes that have led to a more "home and family friendly" lifestyle?  I'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas on making your home "a home" with time to enjoy the simple pleasures and creating a content and peaceful atmosphere.

I looked up the definition of home in my trusty 1828 American Dictionary of Language by Noah Webster - the original dictionary.  It says:

Home (n.) - a house, a close place, a place of rest.

I like that.... a place of rest.  That's how it should be.

Then I looked up the same word in the New Webster Dictionary (1993).  It says:

Home (n.) - one's own abode, the abode of one's family, residence.

I like the family part, but I think it was intended to be a place of relaxation and rest, for all the family, just as the 1828 dictionary implies. (I always prefer the old dictionary version). 


Home.....it really is our haven and the center of family life......where the very best memories are made.  That's why it's my favorite place to be.  :)  
      

Are We Nerds or What?

I guess this picture says it all! The three of us....Jason, Joy, and me sitting on the deck last night after supper, with our laptops (well that was my seat with the laptop in the chair)....doing what we do on our laptops......me reading blogs and emails, Jason actually working from home, and Joy playing games.



It was nice while it lasted....a little breeze by the pool....until the mosquitoes decided to visit.



Then we moved inside to the sunporch.....







Life is good! :)

A Special Windmill

There is just something about windmills that I love. I've always loved them ever since I can remember. I love the big towering ones in the fields on farms and even the smaller ones backyard style. I guess they just say country to me.....and well....I think you know by now how I feel about country!

I don't have a windmill myself, but my daddy does. And my daddy lives next door. He's had his windmill for quite awhile. It's not one of the big towering ones, but it's a fairly good sized one. I remember when he first purchased it. It was silver with barn red trim. I loved it then, and I love it now!



Daddy has always put his windmill in a spot where both of us can see if from our windows. There's rarely a day that goes by that I don't stop by the window and look out to see which way the wind blows. Which way the wind is blowing is not all that important to me as much as it is just being able to "know it" from one glance. I love that! Now there are times, when it's nice to know when a cold north wind is blowing in or a southern wind storm is blowing in, but for the most part, I just enjoy watching it tirelessly and carelessly turn in the breeze. Maybe it makes me feel like I'm on a farm or living in Little House on the Prairie....I don't know...I just love that feeling!



My daddy's windmill is not just any windmill though....it's special. As the grandkids have been born, he's added their names to it. For years, it said Trey and Colt. Later he added Kemper and Joy to the the oldest boys' names. Then Laci came along at the tail end of the grandkids, bringing the grandtotal to five. So here's what the windmill looks like now:



And the very last paint job that the well loved windmill received was John Deere colors! Daddy painted it all and brought it over for me to paint the names on for him. I was glad to do it!



Daddy's windmill is a peaceful,comforting, and simple pleasure that brings me much happiness. Does anyone else out there share my love for windmills? :)

New Beginnings

We've been blessed with a few of God's gifts to us through nature.....one of which came right to our kitchen bay window. We sat down for supper the other evening and this cute baby rabbit decided to pay us a visit.



Jason spotted him first! I went to grab my camera in hopes of catching him before he decided to hop away. To my surprise, he decided to stay awhile (probably to his mother's dismay). I decided to call "it" a "he". He was just sitting there watching us eat supper and stayed perfectly still as we moved near him too. He even let me close enough for a photo.



At this point, I was beginning to worry that there might be something "wrong" with him. As a matter of fact I was asking Jason what we should do...we couldn't just leave him there for dogs to find. If there was something wrong, I wanted to see what we could do for him. Jason encouraged me to wait awhile and make sure Mama Rabbit wasn't near by....saying that if we touched him and he had our scent on him, she might kill him. I suppose this is the case in Rabbit World.



I'm so glad we did wait because within a few moments, I looked out there and Mama Rabbit was inching close....coming to fetch her wayward adventurous little one. We stayed as still as possible and in a few minutes, baby hopped along with mom. Can't you just imagine the "talkin' to" (or more) he got when they got home! :) But he sure gave us a simple pleasure with his little visit at dinner time and I guess we must have been at least a little interesting to him......curious little fella!

And at the edge of our gravel driveway are four little kildeer eggs. Every year we have kildeer eggs in almost exactly the same spot.



When I went out to get photos, Mama Kildeer moved away from the eggs squawking at me!
These were the closest I could get to Mama and Daddy Kildeer, even with my 300 mm lens.



And then Daddy Kildeer flew in from nearby, so they were on oppposite sides of the eggs, just watching me.



Mama Kildeer creates quite a commotion to distract visitors from her precious babies. She runs to the far side of the driveway just a fussin' and flappin' her wings to gear our attention away from her babies and focus on her. She sometimes even acts like she has a broken wing. She actually did this for my photos!







It's amazing to me how God made each and every creature so intricately...with their own built in protective modes. I'll keep a watch and try to catch the little babies as they make their little debut!

I'm so thankful for spring and all the beauty that goes with it...God's gifts to us through nature.....new beginnings. :)

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UPDATE - I typed the above post earlier today with intentions of adding the rest of my pictures, and then this evening, Jason spotted our wayward visiting baby rabbit again! He came to almost the same spot...just over in the grass. I was able to get some better pictures!



I'm wondering if he remembered us or if his Mama tells him to stay put.



Or if he's being disobedient being out here!



Isn't he the cutest? We gave him a name.......Rascal.



And look at this.....it's pure torture for Bambi lying in the bay window sill watching little Rascal. She was just cocking her head, eyes big, ears back, and purring. And still Rascal stayed.



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One more thing....please continue to remember Joy in your prayers. She has started running fever AGAIN this evening and saying she's tired and sleeping a lot and not feeling well. So we're off to the Dr. again tomorrow. I'm not feeling so well myself. Thanks so much for your thoughts and prayers....we sure appreciate them! :)