Rural Simplicity

Week 10 - Sleepy  Baby naps are the sweetest!  Week 11 - Lucky Lucky = Blessed. I am so blessed to live on beautiful acreage, stay home with my children, and collect rocks for today's educational goals.  Week 12 - Spring I am so excited for Spring to finally be here, but I am also excited that the snow and cold isn't gone yet. There is still so much winter downtime stuff I want to accomplish before the rush of spring hits.  Week 13 - Body Little people, chubby hands, feet, and faces. Irresistible, huggable, snugly, and simply scrumptious! You can see preiouvs weeks here and here .  Next months topics are Macro, Emotion, Blessings, Earth.  Sarah 

Why? Why does everyone keep talking about simplifying? Maybe I like buying five pair of my favorite jeans at once, maybe I like every single one of my two dozen coffee mugs. My kids love their toys - yes, all of them! - so stop bothering me! But do you really? Simplifying life gives you more time to do the things you need and love. Simplifying isn't about a fad, or a look. It is about rhythm, sanity, and peace. Trash Can Let's start with a simple one. How many trash cans do you own? What rooms are they in?  The best places for trash cans are one large one in the kitchen and small ones in the  bathrooms. If you have a room that is an office, schoolroom, craft room or something of the sort you will want one there also, but that's all. One can in each place.  Toys Toys are overrated, in fact they are hard on your kids development. (we all know that kids like the box better than the present)  Go through the toys and throw away any items that are broken or mi

February and March are always two months of intense reading for me. The holidays are over, the new year has settled in but Winter is still keeping me snug and warm indoors. So here is my list of reads over the last few weeks. River Town Written by journalist Peter Hessler I've read one other of his books and have yet another of his books on my shelf. He has a beautiful way of writing and living that brings you past the politics and into the daily struggles and achievements of the common Chinese individual.  Pride and Prejudice Written by Jane Austen in 1797 and published in 1813.  It's old, and it's a classic, but I've never read the book. I've read a couple of other Jane Austen books, and watched a few movie versions of this book, but this read through was my first. I did it as a part of an online book club and throughly enjoyed getting other people's perspectives on it. I find the language confusing at times, but always catch on eventually.

Gratification grat- uh -fi- key -shuh n  - noun 1. the state of being gratified; great satisfaction. 2. something that gratifies; source of pleasure or satisfaction. Instant Gratification It has become a well used term. American's have it deep in their bones and their family histories. All the way from going west for land and gold, to getting the newest smartphone every year. (Is it even a year between phones anymore?) But of course, down deep in all of the gratification lovers, at the heart of all want is a desire to be full, complete, and restored. Instantly receiving likes on a photo you posted will only momentarily fill you with happiness. Buying that new shirt will only fill that void until something else catches your eye. And that's because only God can fill the God-shaped hole in our lives. God is the gratification we are seeking. More money, more power and fame, or more tangible things only complicate your life - distracting you (artfully so by Satan) fr

Week 6 - Window This is the first mental picture I got when I saw the weeks theme. Due to baby items, my sink is always full of clean and dirty dishes.  Week 7 - Love This is an old picture I pulled back out, because I'm just not sure I could beat it. The lighting, the subject, the meaning behind it all. Love.  Week 8 - Family  It took me an extra  week  to take this one because I kept looking for an opportunity to take a picture of all four of us. I finally came to realize that, that is NOT our family right now. It's little people helping little people, it's mom behind the camera, it's grabbing the camera during dinner, it's little groups of love gathered together under one roof. Week 9 - Day in the Life As a mom this is what most days look like. I'm not looking decent enough to get a picture of myself and I have a child touching me in some way! oh, and it's awesome!! One photo a week has been a delightful way