Lazy W Marie

Carpeing all the diems in semi-rural Oklahoma...xoxo

holiday details I want to remember forever

Hi!! How are you, how was your Christmas week? I am still buzzing pleasantly from everything and also trying to take a breath, let it all soak in deeply.

Since, in the best ways, life remains too full for me to slow down and write thorough accounts of each little pleasure, I am seizing this quiet Saturday afternoon to at least mention some highlights from Christmas 2018. It was spectacular in more ways than I can relay. Our home, our family, our circle of friends, everything was drenched in grace and joy. It has really truly been a season of Love coming and going from every direction. Here are some of the memories I hope stay with us forever:

Walking through the Blanchard, OK Christmas parade with our Jedi OKC friends. Handsome was dressed as Batman from the waist up, ha! And he drove his Smokey & the Bandit car, which was laced with twinkle lights. So much fun. Just as the sun was setting, we saw a station wagon pull around the corner, topped with a huge tree and filled with people costumed as the Griswold family. We died from laughter.

I want to remember our fledgling outreach project with the Sweet Sperrys. All those tight hugs from strangers, the ongoing feeling of abundance and gratitude. All the random connections and shared prayers.

How side-splittingly hard my sisters and nieces laughed at Snapchat filters. Hashtag-hotdog-face.

And the fun of distributing gifts with my youngest niece, Kenzie. She is enthusiastic and generous, just like her mama!

May I never forget all the many stolen bits of raw cookie dough I enjoyed while baking so many multiple trays of so many different cookie recipes. All month long, from plain and simple to crazy and decadent. My favorites were the monster cookies and one that resembled shortbread and had orange zest, almonds, cranberries, and coconut. Ok, wait, also maybe the espresso-dark chocolate chip biscotti. I claim to not have much of a sweet tooth, which is true, but when homemade raw cookie dough is available, especially when said dough is loaded with extra textures, I am powerless. For some perspective: the Lazy W kitchen cranked out about 20 separate batches of sweets in a few short weeks. I snuck at least a little bit of each one. That, friends, is a lot of raw cookie dough commandeered by yours truly. I will run so fast in January, right? All that sugar and glycogen??

Let’s hang onto memories of Christmas Eve at my parents’ house and then Christmas Day at the farm. I want to always remember the several hours of cooking fresh Mexican food and the hard laughter and warm cuddles with nieces. I want to always remember how great it feels just to be with my parents and siblings, three generations represented, lots of complementary personalities and deep, abiding Love between us all. And the Saran Wrap game!! My gosh!

I also want to always remember my husband’s idea and the effort he made to surprise my Mom with Chinese food on Christmas Day. She had suggested we all go out to eat at a Chinese restaurant and then see a movie together, but the group consensus was a cuddle puddle instead. So Handsome’s gesture was just so thoughtful. I fell in love with him a little more when he made it happen, never mind that everybody was so stuffed we barely ate any of the food, ha.

How downright excited Klaus got every single time we drove him around looking at Christmas lights. He is so boyish and sweet, it hurts a little.

And his discovery of empty wrapping paper tubes. Over the course of the month, he shredded at least four and I am not allowed to throw them away. He continues to guard the slobbered little bits of cardboard as much as he loves his plush toys.

That house at southeast 44th and Harrah Road. My gosh!! It was so festive in daylight hours, with about fifteen inflatables, but at night? The Las Vegas of rural Oklahoma.

How happy and friendly the general public has been all season. Kind of amazing.

Time with my girls. And Jocelyn texted on Christmas Day!

Time with friends.

Downtime and daily routines with my boys.

Watching the pond and probably Meh through the upstairs hallway window. xoxo

Small Group Christmas reception! It was also our one year anniversary as part of this monthly gathering. We had lots of fun. I need to tell you more about this tiny community soon.

Paperwhites, to me, are a perfect expression of the gentle anticipation we all feel around Christmastime. The watching and waiting, the silent vigil, the growing excitement (ha!), and then all the fragrance when the white petals finally open. God with us, the coming, the fragrance of the Holy Spirit when He is near.

Oh. Guess what. I planted mine late this year, but they still grew tall and strong, green and glossy all the way through Christmas weekend. Then, true to the magic of the season, I saw white tufted blossoms sitting quietly the night Jess came to the farm to open her gifts this past Friday night. Is that not beautiful? I love how God orchestrates the details for us. I could never have arranged that on my own. And? He makes something so good (perfectly timed blossoms) out of my mistake (planting the bulbs late). Okay. Let’s remember that gift.

Amazon Prime. Amen and amen.

Glorious, easy, pleasant, miraculous Oklahoma weather. Good weather just makes everything so simple. Would a snowy wonderland be picturesque? You bet. But in our state, those rarely happen without the attendant ice storm, power outage, and car wreck extravaganza. So I will take the gift of springlike weather very thankfully.

Watching The Neverending Story at home, wearing pajamas, thinking about how beautiful the holidays have been.

Many of the details and lots of our traditions are the same as before. But this Christmas has felt different. It has felt different since summertime, really, and in ways that I suspect will last. This underlying sense of permanence makes every gift more glittering, every day glowier, and every every job more meaningful.

What is left to cause us fear? What is left to keep us from feeling joy? 

I mean it is all a stunning amount of joy, and this is the top of that iceberg. I loved Christmas 2018, and I love even more the confidence that our Joy is planted. God is with us now and always. Christmas cannot end.

“If our tigers and hunters are now gone,
then our futures can shimmer out of the darkness.”
~Mowgli, 2018
XOXOXOXO

a run down of our festive month so far

In the week or so since I last wrote to you, we have been supremely busy with all manner of Christmas festivities. Actually, since long before that, this has been the case. Ever since Halloween, the Lazy W and our friends and family have been ALL IN with the winter holidays, and we love it! I just have not slowed down often enough to type out the stories. Today I’ll try and catch us up with headlines and snapshots.

 

A family wedding! My gosh. Did you even know that Dante, my first ever nephew, has married his California sweetheart? It was a magical, spontaneous family event in Bricktown followed by some delicious Greek food and a great big cake from Sam’s. Just mountains of love and laughter. Our hearts all bursted open with Love.

And this past week he shipped out to basic training for the Air Force. Words fail me, really. It has been quite an evolution in our family. (Maybe I can get my sister, his mom, to wrote for you about this.)

Sunday, December 9th: After chores and a quick run, my husband treated us to a fancy lunch date at Penn Square Mall, then we did come clearance shopping at Old Navy. (Gotta have balance, right?) We also went to the OKC Zoo with Mickey and Kellie, then the four of us also walked through the Yukon Christmas lights display together. So fun!

Monday, December 10th: That evening we went to OKC to attend our niece Chloe’s winter strings orchestra concert. Absolutely beautiful, nostalgic (I love how schools smell), and Christmassy! She is a talented violinist and a beautiful, witty young lady. We love her so much. Afterwards, Mom treated everyone to ice cream at Braum’s, yum!

Thursday, December 13th: Jess surprised me with a quick visit and brought along a teensy-tiny puppy she was fostering! His name is Jax, and watching her with him melted my heart. Little Jax has yet to find a permanent home, but the jury is out on whether Jess will make this commitment. 

That afternoon I also had the chance to help out at a second grade classroom party, which was seriously so fun. My husband’s employees have kind of adopted a few classrooms at an underprivileged grade school near the Capitol, and once in a while I get to join the fun. Sugar, laughter, more sugar, Home Alone on the classroom television, and lots of hugs for the win! The kids were enjoying “Pajama Day” when we visited, and I kind of wished I had worn my pink Supergirl onesie.

Friday, December 14th:  Handsome took the day off from the office, so we slept late then soaked up an extra long Hot Tub Summit. Much needed. After that, I made him some breakfast and went for a run. Eventually we got dressed and did some window shopping in OKC (but made zero purchases, ha) and had lots of fun people watching. That evening Mickey and Kellie came to the farm for a cozy meal of appetizers and some deep spiritual talking. Christmas feels different for all of us this year, and it merits some separate writing.

By the way, when Kellie and I were texting each other a meal coordination plan, we had settled on “easy, cozy appetizers.” I made naked chicken tenders for protein and some cheddar sausage balls per my husband’s request. I had carrots with hummus, zuchinni, apples, and a green salad ready in case we were extra hungry. This is what my elegant friend brought:

Kellie claims to have shopped at Trader Joe’s while hungry, ha! But truly, she always feeds us gorgeous, elegant food like this. I wasn’t mad. I never am. And my plain old carrots, hummus, and apples stayed in the fridge. Ha!

Saturday, December 15th: What a day! Handsome and I romanced the daybreak, then I showered and shopped for last minute groceries. Around lunchtime, Jess and her friend Mercedes drove to the farm for some Christmas baking. We made sugar cookies, gingerbread men and mooses (meese?), chocolate nut clusters, and saltine toffee. These girls are incredibly artistic and so much fun. We had a blast!! The afternoon was a whirlwind of sugar and silliness, and I will hold the memories in my heart forever. 

I asked them to smile for a photo and they both grabbed a bottle of buttercream and did this.

Mercedes made two excellent frosting varieties in several gorgeous colors. Wonderful!!

Sunday, December 16th:  The early morning was spent doing chores, packing up more sweets from Saturday’s efforts, and grabbing a gym workout. (I’m enjoying some flexibility with exercise lately, not limiting myself to only running.) Midday, we got dressed up as Batman and Supergirl and took a big, red velvet bag full of toys and candy to the Fairgrounds. The Jedi club participates in a special event hosted by the District Attorney’s office, and it has become one of our favorite events. It is all to benefit a few hundred at-risk children in the area. Heart breaking and heart warming, all at once. 

We touched base with everyone at the farm, giving extra hay and cuddles, then drove back to the city for a going away party for our nephew Dante. This was the night we all gave him our farewell love before he left for boot camp on Tuesday. We all gathered at Mom and Dad’s house to play games and make one more big, fat, happy pile of memories. We all love Dante so much and are so proud of the young man he is becoming.

Sunday night was fun and a great preview to Christmas fun next week too. Genny is coming to town! 

In the cozy spaces between all of this fun, we have been driving through Choctaw and Harrah neighborhood looking at Christmas lights, watching our favorite December movies, playing fetch with the world’s most insatiable German Shepherd, and trying to balance party food with salads, broccoli, and chicken breasts, ha! It is working, more or less. Maybe. Yikes.

 

This year we have indulged in some community outreach, in new and more interesting ways. And my mornings are more often than not spent reading a couple of devotionals as well as the Bob Goff book, Everybody Always. We also gather somewhat regularly with Mickey and Kellie to pray and discuss some spiritual matters. The four of us trade prayer requests and stories about how life is going, and we make an effort evolve toward what we think God is asking of us. It has been quite an experience. Again, lots more to tell there. 

Friends, this blog post is weird, I know. I have been trying to patchwork it together for days, ha! I just needed to drop a pin on life right here, so I can move forward with a few more specific stories. I have things to tell you and things I want to always remember. So much incredible beauty and synchronicity is feeding us, keeping us afloat, I can hardly believe it.

Have you seen the new Mowgli yet?

“With the tiger and hunter now gone,
the future shimmered from darkness.”
XOXOXOXO

 

happy hippie holidays at the farm & sending our good vibes to YOU

Hey friends, and a very happy and healthy Thanksgiving Weekend to you! I hope this finds you feeling deeply peaceful, reasonably hungry, wildly loved, and a little excited. You know… all the exact opposite feelings of holiday stress. Because these times are meant for JOY, even when life is hard. It’s okay to let stuff go and lean into the celebration.

Today I want to tell you about a special event we hosted at the farm last week, and how I feel like it is already helping me roll gently into the winter festivities. I hope some of the vibes rub off on you, too.  

Friday evening, Handsome and I, together with my magical friend Sheila, opened the farm to a couple dozen loved ones for an event affectionately dubbed, “Happy Hippie Holidays.” It was the brain child of ours from over a year ago!

Sheila and I first bonded over a mutual love for both running and holistic wellness, and often our conversations meander over to nutrition and “healthy” recipe alternatives. Well, sometime last autumn we had the idea to host a Christmas cookie exchange party but ask folks to bring more nutritious treats instead of the usual sugar bombs. (No offense, sugar bombs! You have your place in the world.)

We couldn’t do it last year, but this year was perfect. We decided to schedule it ahead of Thanksgiving to inspire folks to reconsider their well being in the midst of what is traditionally a needlessly stressful, overeating, under-nourishing, tension-filled season.

It was the simplest party ever. All we did was invite people to the farm for a simple vegetarian meal and a pot luck of healthy treats, plus outdoor yoga and tai-chi. Sheila volunteered to lead the yoga flow, and my friend Raylene, who is a certified tai-chi instructor, led that. Both were sublime.

Every single day since the event, someone has called or texted me to say how good the yoga felt and how fascinating and inspiring the tai-chi was. Raylene taught us several meditation-type thought framing exercises that I know will help us dissolve those building holiday tensions. (Draw energy from your belly, reorient it, feel the pull of a golden thread up your spine… All so good.)

And I have to say how thankful we are that the weather was mild that day. Perfect temperatures, trace breeze, absolutely gorgeous sunset. With the bonfire blazing we were perfectly comfortable, and by nightfall the sky was inky black to show off the stars. 

We had brainstormed several more wellness activities and parting gifts, which didn’t quite come to fruition, but that’s fine. What we enjoyed Friday evening was perfect. Everyone left relaxed and happy and smiling, inspired I think. The other brilliant ideas will keep. (My husband is totally on board for hosting regular, maybe even monthly, wellness retreats here! Stay tuned!) 

That above (blurry) photo is of a dark chocolate bark made with a variety of nuts and seeds plus honey. It was a sticky, crunchy, sweet and salty piece of luxury, and I felt pretty good indulging in a few nibbles. Yum. Other treats people brought to share were:

  • goat cheese truffles with cranberries, pecans, and parsley
  • shrimp ceviche 
  • pumpkin bread
  • popcorn dusted with chili powder and cinnamon
  • banana oat muffins (flour-less and sugar free, still sweet)
  • walnuts and pecan halves with pomegranate seeds (Thanks Mom!)
  • vegetable curry with roasted chick peas
  • and YOGI TEA!! 

Sheila and I collaborated on the unusual ingredients to make the Yogi Tea happen. It’s from Adrienne’s website, and it was a huge crowd-pleaser. Delicious! Soothing and energizing all at once. Just like yoga.

Overall the night was simple, nourishing, and peaceful. Our small crowd was a nice mix of both friends and family of all ages. My parents brought our youngest niece Kenzie (she is a dance student and was enthusiastic about yoga!). Our youngest daughter came and mingled so naturally with all of our friends (such a pure joy for my heart), plus she participated in deck yoga, which I later learned was her first time ever! How beautiful that my friend Sheila led Jessica’s first yoga flow, and my other friend Kellie was next to her giving pointers and encouragement. 

I was also really happy that so many husbands joined the fun, haha! Since we had billed it as a vegetarian dinner and “please bring your favorite healthy treats,” haha, I got some teasing about what the heck would everyone else eat! Guess what good-looking white-collar hobby farmer grilled a tray of steaks and provided roasted potatoes and broccoli to the guys? It was so perfect. AND several of the men chose to do yoga with us!!

Wellness for all, according to his or her own tastes, ok? Ok. Yes.

I feel like it was a good, gentle, quiet way to step into the winter holiday season. I like having not only “healthy” food ideas in my brain but also some de-stressing techniques in my pocket. Breathing, stretching, visualizing techniques and the reminder to be grateful daily, constantly.

I intend to remember all winter long the sparkling deck lights and stars hanging heavy above us, the feeling of peacefulness and ease, my belly full of warm vegetable curry, and so much meaningful, face to face conversation with good people. It all opened my heart and slowed my pulse. When the holidays try to speed me up too much, when things are suddenly more complicated than they need to be, I will do some yoga outside and try a few tai-chi moves. I’ll eat softer, cozier, more nutritious food and hydrate really well. And I will trade electronics in favor of three-dimensional fun with humans. And I’ll remember that it’s okay to say no and edit details and keep things simple. It might even be better that way.

Happiest possible Thanksgiving to you, friends! I have something else I want to talk to you about, but that will keep too. I hope you thoroughly and mindfully enjoy everything you choose this weekend. Love your people. Give thanks aggressively and let your hearts crack wide open.

Find What Feels Good.
~Adrienne Mishler
XOXOXOXO

 

 

 

pumpkin-coconut soup, simplified

Ahhh soup weather. Oklahoma is finally enjoying a comfortable dip in both temperatures and humidity, so our windows are open and our menu is featuring soup here and there.

Last weekend our dear friends Mickey and Kellie joined us for a casual dinner of old-fashioned chicken and dumplings and newly developed pumpkin-coconut soup. (Food choices is a great idea around here, with a carnivore and a vegetable nut living under one roof.) Kellie brought the most glorious Autumn Harvest salad (pecans, goat cheese, and mustard vinaigrette!) and two substantial loaves of pumpkin bread. Just delicious. We did not purposefully coordinate our pumpkin theme, it just happened naturally. And it’s not the first time, either, ha!

Hashtag Themed Dinners.

Hashtag Menu-Forward.

Okay.

The boys feasted on chicken and dumplings. That pumpkin-coconut soup is one of my personal favorites, and Kellie liked it too. I was so happy. Since that experimental time a few Decembers ago, I have fooled around with the recipe a bit, simplified it actually, and today I’m sharing it all over again for a few people who asked about it on Instagram.

I ate these high-protein, vitamin-packed leftovers for a late lunch on Sunday,
following that delicious pie-sampling event at Savory Spice in OKC.
(I owe you that story too!) I felt totally reset after this lunch.
Supremely nourished, very comfortable. xoxo

Pumpkin-Coconut Soup is one of those “use what you have and then add things as the mood strikes you” type of recipes. Have fun!!

Here are the basics, I have typed in bold the ingredients that seem to set this soup apart:

  • olive oil and basic spices for sauteeing veggies of choice
  • spices like sea salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, ginger, cumin, curry powder, garlic, turmeric.
  • finely diced “trinity” type veggies like carrots, celery, garlic, etc (you might use onion)
  • 1 can pumpkin puree (15 ounces)
  • 1-2 cans crushed tomatoes (15 ounces)
  • 1/3 cup of full-fat coconut milk (maybe more)
  • chicken broth to the thinness of soup you like
  • shredded cooked chicken (I like breast meat, you do YOU)
  • seeds and fresh herbs for topping (we used sweet basil and roasted sunflower kernels this time, the only limit is your imagination!)

Easy, Intuitive Method, as all the best soups are made:

  • Probably your chicken is already cooked and ready to reheat and add to the soup, right? Ok. Have it coming to room temperature while you begin. 
  • Chop and sautee you trinity veggies, seasoning liberally as you go. Allow so much more time than you think, so the base can get nice and soft and mushy and flavorful. Low and slow. Simmery and sultry. Listen to either a TED talk or French music, to encourage the process.
  • Add the crushed tomatoes, pumpkin puree, and some of the coconut milk, stirring affectionately until it is all incorporated and simmering nicely again.
  • Eventually start adding chicken broth to achieve the thinness you like your soup that day, knowing it will reduce and thicken the longer it cooks. This time I added a full “box” of broth instead of just two cups, and I liked it a lot more.
  • Add the cooked chicken. Small, tender pieces are best.
  • Taste and see that the soup is good.
  • Give thanks for things like curry and fresh herbs that you suddenly remember having. 
  • Consider texting your husband to see if he can pick up some roasted pepitas on the way home from the City then decide against that because it’s not worth defending your use of the word “pepitas” over just “pumpkin seeds,” and anyway are TED talks even still a thing, babe? Decide with confidence that sunflower kernels will do great.

The soup is now complete and ready to slurp decadently. Maybe drizzle more coconut milk on top, then garnish in every fancy way you crave. Just know that you will want to lick the bowl clean. It’s warm and filling and the vitamins explode into your bloodstream in the most magnificent, joyful, life-affirming way. I like it served hot alongside a cold, crunchy salad and warm sourdough bread, but who wouldn’t?

I am pretty basic in that way, ha. 

Okay, happy soup weather to you! I hope you try this and find your own twists and ways to make it perfect for you and your people. Please send me the details you discover. Soup will be on the Lazy W menu again soon, and I love all kinds of variations.

And what TED talks are you watching lately? 

“Just as food eaten without appetite is a tedious nourishment,
so does study without zeal damage the memory
by not assimilating what it absorbs.”
~Leonardo da Vinci
XOXOXO

 

friday 5 at the farm: highlights from the week

Five Stories & Memories Worth Keeping from Labor Day Week, 2018:

#1 Nourished

We welcomed September with a Polish feast at our beloved Sperrys’ home.

Pierogis (first for me!), kielbasa, sauerkraut, a big crunchy green salad, and then dessert…

Dessert may not have been authentically Polish, but I guarantee nobody cared. It was called “Banoffee Pie,” and it has changed our lives.

It’s a prebaked pie shell filled with slices of banana, which are drowned in a sea of homemade caramel, and all of it is then topped with a thick cloud of homemade whipped cream, and then some grated dark chocolate because Kellie loves us a lot. I googled the recipe and discovered that sometimes they are made on a shortbread crust, which I am sure is delicious as well. We ate it fresh that night with Kellie and Mickey; then we nibbled leftovers greedily for two full days. It’s one of those desserts that gets better with a little time in the refrigerator. Yum!

Evenings with the Sperrys are so great. We always eat well, which is sharing a meal, which is different than just grabbing a bite with someone. We laugh a ton. And we have deep and meandering, free-form conversations about anything and everything, all four of us. It’s pretty great.

Complete with so many pup cuddles, too. We are in love with their three dogs. This time, after dinner we joined them for a walk around the block. Don’t you love it when your friendships begin to include not just the big, orchestrated events but also the simpler pleasures and routines in life? 

#2 Season of Transition

Pool Season 2018 has been winding down. Every week, we have tried to spend as much time out there as possible. Whether we were in the thick of a tropical heat wave or hunkering down beneath more heavy rain, the pool has been surprisingly comfortable. But those temperature swings and the growing algae are making it all unmanageable. So Labor Day Week is very likely pool closing week at the W.

We are thankful to have been swimming for so many consecutive months this year. It’s been a lot of fun, especially with Bill the Rodeo Inflata-Bull. Ha! In fact, on Wednesday afternoon Jess (our youngest) brought a friend to the farm. They had a pretty entertaining competition over who could stay on longest. It seems there is a technique to not just staying on, but also to the getting on in the first place. If Summer 2019 includes more chlorine rodeo fun, we may have to agree upon a scoring system.  

P.S. I often tell the kids when I snap photos of them visiting the farm, that I will not share the photos online, haha! This is really tragic because they are all gorgeous kids and always take such fun and interesting photos! Anyway.  Please enjoy, instead, a photo of our dinner table garden bouquet and Jessica’s homemade pumpkin pie. Absolutely delicious! She altered the recipe in a few ways, and everyone loved it! 

#3 Back to Work

Having enjoyed so much time off together in August, this first week of Septemeber, although slightly shortened thanks to Labor Day, felt weird without Handsome at home.

The shift in weather definitely enhanced the overall feeling of a new season. It’s almost like back to school, although those particular autumn routines are far in our household’s past. Each “workday” for me this week has been packed with productivity, and my energy has been good and steady. I am noticing that Virgo draw toward deep cleaning and lots of order. I just miss our late lunches and easy afternoons, chilling together. xoxo It was another very good staycation. 

#4 Wet, Unfueled Run & God’s Timing

I had planned on a 12 mile run for early this morning. I ate a good dinner Thursday night and slept well. Unfortunately, we woke up to not just the predicted rain, but flash flood warnings. I normally would eat a bite of peanut butter toast or something before a run that long, but given the time crunch, I decided to just get to the trail asap and grab as many miles as possible, then see what the day might hold. (Treadmill finish is always an option.)

I ran and ran, giving thanks for the excellent glycogen stores from last night’s chicken and broccoli-rice, clicking off one mile at a time. The rain stayed soft and gentle, with lots of black clouds but no lightning and no floods. So I kept running. Eventually, I hit 9 miles at that easy pace then got really tired and really hungry, haha. Then the asphalt got slippery, so all of that together meant that I slowed down quite a bit. The morning finished with exactly 11 miles, injury free, ha! 

This story is worth remembering because YES we can do more than we are prepared to do and because YES if God’s timing can be trusted with the big miracles in life, then surely His timing can also be trusted with little things. One mile at a time.

#5 Thoughts on Loop

I almost cannot stop thinking about a few topics:

  • Adaptogens and adaptation, not just in health and fitness but in all areas of life. Humans are so adaptable! 
  • Will I ever be able to grow zucchini again without squash bugs making me crazy? (spoiler alert, unlikely)
  • The fine line between prayer and meditation and how slow-paced running is definitely related
  • The movie Interstellar (which I haven’t seen in a couple of years but the themes are always with me)
  • Granola, mostly pumpkin infused with lots of coconut, nuts & seeds, and dark chocolate
  • Exactly what to plant in the two big rubber troughs flanking the barn mural

Regarding those trough planters in the above photo: I have some ideas but would love your suggestions! They are both filled almost to the top with well rotted manure, they get eastern exposure, and they are some of the first things you see before parking your car along the gravel drive. I would love some ideas for year round liveliness or at least seasonal color. Thanks!!

Bonus Content:

Friends, we have a few huge miracles brewing, from several areas of life. We have for so many months asked for prayer, and we appreciate every single one.

Now we are in a season of giving thanks. Giving thanks for the present moment, for the hope that keeps us moving, and for the ever increasing evidence that God is working behind the scenes in supernatural ways.

Please keep it up! And please know that we are thrilled to send you Love and pray for you every time you need it. Just let me know.

Tomorrow is Jocelyn’s 23rd birthday. I am so happy and so grateful, I keep catching myself giggling and weeping over it all. 

God is good. Life is beautiful. The whole adventure is just amazing.

Happy September!! Talk again soon!

XOXOXOXO