Predictability

This morning, I went outside to warm up the car before 

leaving for school with Lottie. As I stepped outside,

I was greeted by the sun peeking over the trees and 

shining directly on the pasture, highlighting the colors.

 The beauty of the moment was simply breathtaking. 

Autumn is still in full swing here.

This afternoon after school, Lottie went outside to feed the chickens

and again, I was caught up in the beauty of the day.

The colors, the sky, the views, Lottie's magnificent red hair,

the majestic chickens, the light breeze shaking free leaves

from the trees surrounding Stillestead,

and Angus racing around, happy to be alive.

When life starts to feel overwhelming, and peace seems out of reach, 

I gravitate to nature for comfort because 

I see His love in the beauty that surrounds me.

 If I allow His peace to guide my thoughts,

they inevitably focus on the abundance I already enjoy

 in my life every day - the vibrant colors, the changing seasons, my loving family, 

the cycles of day and night, and the comforting predictability they bring. 

Even the cooler weather invigorates me and strengthens my faith.

"Joy in this life, right now—not despite the challenges of our day 

but because of the Lord's help to learn from and ultimately 

overcome them—and immeasurable joy in the life to come.

 Tears will dry up, broken hearts will be mended, 

what is lost shall be found, concerns shall be resolved, 

families will be restored, and all that the Father hath will be ours."

-Amy A. Wright

There's A Chance

 

Mondays always start early because it's P-day for my missionaries,

 and Jane is 6 hours ahead of me. Sometimes, I receive a notification 

on my phone at 4:00 a.m., and it's Jane letting me know 

she is eager to talk to me when I wake up.

We usually talk while I help Lottie get up and ready and talk

as I drive her to school.

Jane was just asked to serve as the Sister AP (assistant to the President).

This is a big responsibility, and I am so proud of her for accepting

this assignment. She is a good leader, but even more than that,

she's naturally sympathetic and can connect with

fellow missionaries and the friends she's serving.

She'll do so much good; she's just THE BEST!

In our family group chat, I asked Elder and Sister Nielson,

including Claire, to each read a sentence in their Portuguese.

I say "their" because each of them has a different accent.

I wanted them to each say:

I love my mom so much!

I miss her more than I can say.

I miss her food, working out with her, and then

getting lunch together at our favorite restaurant, Chopt.

I can't wait to see my mom again soon.

I love you, mom!

They each responded by recording themselves, and I LOVED IT SO MUCH!

We all laughed, and they teased me that I needed to learn Portuguese

or else they'd talk about me, and I'd never know what they were saying.

Sheesh, I'm their MOTHER, for heaven's sake! 

The thing is, I DO want to go on a mission one day with Christian,

and there might be a chance I'd need to learn a language.

And yes, I guess there is a chance it could be Portuguese.

I'm exhausted even thinking about that.

I'll wait for that day.

With the Church's updated policy regarding missionaries

being able to submit their mission application 150 days before

their availability date, Gigs will be able to submit his mission papers

in ONE YEAR, and there is a chance HE, too, could speak Portuguese!

 I'm dead thinking about that.

But I'm also super excited!

What Are You Doing With That Knife?

This afternoon, as I was making dinner, Christian came into the kitchen 

and announced today was the day we were going to say farewell

to rooster, Dumpling.

We have more roosters than hens, and they are coming of age,

which means they are becoming mean and abusive

to my hens, which I do not tolerate.

This is called culling and is common among chicken parents.

Out the window, I observed Christian pick up Dumpling and stroke

 his head while murmuring something. 

Later on, I discovered that Christian was actually saying a prayer of gratitude 

for Dumpling's existence on Stillestead farm. 

Then, I had to divert my gaze from the window as 

I couldn't bear to see Dumpling breathe his last.

After butchering and plucking Dumpling in the backyard, 

Christian cut him into pieces and stored them for Angus's food in the freezer.

We're going to have to cull three more roosters in the next few weeks

since we've settled on only two roosters in our tribe.

Plus, my friend Jessica gave me 10 of her Cinimmanon Queen

eggs, which are cozily incubating next to me as I type this.

Hygge Camera

 A package came in the mail for Gigs today.  
He walked in the door from school with a giant grin!

"It came, Mom!" He announced to me.

"What?  What came?" 

I asked him, following him to the table where he fiercely began

unwrapping the package.

"Remember the money you gave me for my birthday?

Well, this is what I got with it."

"Is it a sweater?" I asked. 

Just kidding.

Then he pulled out of the box a 1997 camcorder that 

he bought from a dude on eBay in Ohio.  

It was the same model as my family had growing up.

I was surprised he wanted to spend his money on that hunk 

of junk, but then again, not really.

This is Gigs were talking about.

I asked him if he wanted to film how Hygge our house was that evening

or the beautiful colored fall leaves in the vase on the counter.

Or perhaps me, making dinner.

He was really excited to do all of those things,

 but when he went to open the tape deck to put in the new 

tape to film, and it didn't budge.

I asked him if he was disappointed that it was broken. 

I admit, it was a little anticlimactic for him,

 but he said he would figure out the problem, then spent the whole

night online looking up how to fix an ancient video camera.

I secretly think he likes figuring out these problems.

Go, Gigs, Go!

Happy November!

I took Halloween down today.

It was sad, but also not sad.

I'm ready for the next holiday chapter.

Lottie and I have already picked out some fun projects,

for our Thanksgiving dinner table.

I am so excited thinking about having Claire home for the holidays!  

Chrisitan kept the fire going ALL DAY for me while I worked

around the house.

A cold spell hit North Carolina, and it's been freezing!

(I love it!).

Lottie stayed home from school today.

I think she was having Halloween withdrawals.

Happy November!

 

Halloween 2023!

 Happiest of Halloweens today, my friends! 

Halloween is my favorite holiday, 

and the North Carolina weather did NOT disappoint! 

We woke up to rain and windy weather. 

It made the whole day perfectly moody and gloomy...just the way I love it!

I took Lottie to school, took a spooky Barre class, 

then came home and baked and prepped for our

 family Halloween feast later that afternoon.  

Trick or treating starts early around here,

(especially if it is raining and dark), 

so we had an early dinner together that included:

Halloween Chili with all the toppings and hot cornbread.  

Green apples and caramel dip, baked pumpkin seeds 

(with my secret ingredient, Anise seeds),  goblin grapes,

and, of course, the traditional Root Beer in the black cauldron 

with dry ice bubbling inside.

For dessert, I made a pumpkin spice cake with 

vanilla frosting that I designed 

to look like a spooky, drippy Halloween candle.

I saved a bunch of my summer Zinnias to dry and use as 

centerpieces for my Halloween table.

Gigs and Lottie walked in the door after school

 (Gigs, wearing his gorilla costume).  

They helped me get the final things done for dinner.

This year, I set out a game, Clue, a Nielson favorite.

It was so fun to leisurely play, eat, laugh, and talk.

This is a new tradition, for sure!

Soon, Lottie's friends called her to see where she was 

since they had already met up in the neighborhood near her elementary school

 to wait for her to go trick-or-treating.

She didn't want to leave!  No one did!

That made me feel good.

I'm so glad we like each other!

So we hurried and finished our game. 

(Gigs won; Mrs. Peacock with the dagger in the Study).

I helped Lottie get her cute French girl outfit, make-up

and then she and Gigs left.  

Gigs was in his Gorilla costume and the Chinese leaf hat

that he won at the state fair.  

He was meeting up with friends.

Christian and I cleaned up the house, then ate some pumpkin cake

by our cozy fireplace.

It couldn't have been a better evening.

Everything was perfect (except for missing three children).

Around 8:00, Christian and I picked up Lottie, who was

with her bestie, Antonia, trick-or-treating in a neighborhood

near her elementary school, about 20 minutes away.

One of my favorite Halloween traditions is driving by the pumpkin stand

on a lonely, quiet country road on the way to school,

yet somehow, on Halloween night, it's filled with bright-lit pumpkins. 

I always wonder who makes them and where they come from. 

It's a mystery, and I absolutely LOVE IT!

'Til next year, Halloween!