I've been trying to get some yard/gardening work done which really makes me smile. I love being outside digging in the dirt, so I've not been too busy with knitting. As a matter of fact, I have nothing on the needles right now. I'm ready to start my
Rusted Root sweater, I just haven't had time to swatch and actually cast on.
Here are some other things that have been making me smile lately: A couple of weeks ago, I found this pattern for the
Practically Hyperbolic Dishcloth. It sounds quite impressive. It's actually quite easy. I'm just a beginner crocheter and I found the pattern easy to read. They were fun to make and I know there will be more in my future. They are a great way to use up leftovers.
The girls got invited to a birthday party last week and I tried out one of
Leslie's package pillows. (I forgot to take a picture and remembered as we pulled up the party...:)) It was quick and easy to make. I think it took me less than 45 minutes from start to finish. That's something to smile about. Thanks
Leslie! And from what I heard, the recipient really liked it. We tucked some money in the pocket as her main birthday gift.
We've got a chock full weekend ahead of us: a baseball game, a piano concert, a mother/daughter tea, errands and church. Maybe I can squeeze in some knitting. I hope your weekend brings you some smiles and allows you some time to do something fun.
Yeah!!!! Today is our last official day of school! Things are being wrapped up! John Samuel, Kenzie and I are mere pages away from the end of the gastropod chapter! (exciting reading my friends!) For a final project we have a worm box that we're going to build. {pictures to come!}Maggie is putting the finishing touches on her Nation Project Power Point presentation (try saying that three times in a row!) and Mckenzie tied the last ribbon on her Tag book. 
Mckenzie did this project all on her own. I provided the papers, ribbons and editing skills...she did all the cutting, writing, photo copying, assembling and decorating...:). She used envelopes as the pockets and each little tab tells you something about the book. The last one has her review of the book! She's so proud of it! 
So, all the math lessons are checked off, the credit hour logs are filled in and we're ready to shift into a lower gear. It's been a good year, a very good year. I still have paper work to fill out for our umbrella program, but for now we're reveling in our new found freedom! Hope your weekend finds you checking off some things on your list and finding time to revel! Enjoy!
A couple of weeks back, we were reading during our family worship time about how Jesus came to earth to serve. "Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Matthew 20:28. We got to talking about it and decided that we could really do better in the area of serving each other. So, we decided to have a Secret Servant Day. The idea behind it was to look for ways to serve each other in a way that wouldn't draw attention to the server but rather the service. The goal on Secret Servant day was to do 3 secret things that would bless someone in the family - the trick was to do it in secret. I positioned this white board sign on the kitchen counter as a reminder. The entire experiment proved very fruitful. We had beds made by mysterious bed makers, dishes put away without being nagged, toothpaste wiped out of the sink and lots of other miscellaneous blessings. Everyone had fun thinking about ways that they could be a help to each other. We'll definitely be doing this again from time to time...just to keep our servant skills sharp.
On a slightly different note, I realize how often we use our white boards throughout the day. I actually have a variety of pictures that I've taken of our white boards when I see something I want to remember. I've started a 
I'll take a repeat on Mother's day, thank you. My honey and kids totally blessed me yesterday. It started off with breakfast in bed and lots of handmade cards. Then after church, John handled life while I dug in the dirt and went to the nursery. He had bought me some plants and I 
Oh, and my flowers from the Lord bloomed just in time for Mother's day too! Every year, the 
I added these cute tags to go inside the cup to give a bit more info on the coffee cuff. I slipped them in with the gift card and a personal note. They are over on my side bar if you'd like to print off some to use with your own coffee cuffs. I sprinkled some shredded package filler in the bottom to make everything a bit prettier. 
These made great end of the year thank you gifts. I slipped a Starbucks gift card inside them. 
Do you have a special friend? I have been blessed with some wonderful friends. You know what I mean? Friends that I can just be myself when I'm with them. Friends that I can call when I need a shoulder to cry on, or vent to when I'm feeling stressed. They are there for me when I need someone to pray or listen or laugh. Friends that will tell me when my purse is too mature for me...or that I'm being a little hard on myself. I'm so thankful for the friends God has sprinkled in my life. 
One of those wonderful friends was with me when we stumbled across this scarf. 
It's knit with 2 amazingly different fibers...a merino wool sock yarn and a luscious, frail mohair. Just like friends. Entirely different when apart but wonderful when knit together. Aren't you glad your friends aren't exactly like you? The differences are what make friendship so special. Just like friendship, the scarf took some time to knit. I used every bit of the merino wool. I am so glad I knit this scarf, I will really enjoy it when the weather gets chilly. Every good friendship is the same way, you must give it time and attention in order for it to grow. I encourage you to take some time to let your friends know how much you value them. It'll make their day (and yours too). 
"A friend loves at all times." Proverbs 17:17