One Saturday

Here we are. 

Another Saturday in a multitude of Saturdays.

Our Saturdays have been full of activity lately.  We have had many "on-the-go" Saturdays.  Fun Saturdays.  Busy Saturdays.  This is how the end-of-the-year Saturdays look for us...full of birthday and holiday festivities.

Today we are heading north for my nieces' birthday party.  I look forward to spending time with my family and catching up (as much as you can at a birthday party) with everyone...but that drive.  I do not look forward to the drive.  In fact, I tend to find myself dreading the drive.  And why?  Three hours in a car with nothing to do but pay attention to the road and do what I can to not get drowsy.

And then I remembered that these three hours will be spent with two of my favorite people.  This weekend, it is just the "little boys" and me who can make the trip.  Three hours in a car with nothing to do but pay attention to my boys and do what I can to make memories.  

That sounds pretty good.

So we'll be stopping for lunch.

We'll be testing our memory on the words of our favorite Christmas songs.

We may even play a game of "I'm going on a picnic..." or some other car game of old.

And we will be stopping to pick up Papa B before making a quick trip to Rentown, an Amish store just out of town, before heading to a birthday party for two special little girls.

Tomorrow...same drive but in reverse.

So maybe we will stop for a milkshake.

We'll try singing a Christmas song backward.

And we may even play that memory game from Z to A.

Have a happy Saturday!

We will.  💗

Solar Eclipsing

I do procrastinate.

As a general rule, I procrastinate.

I bought my Oreos that morning.

But thankfully, I had bought 

my approved solar glasses 

and activity books ahead of time.

Two weeks early, in fact!

That is really not like me at all.

So, what's with the Oreos?

Edible phases of a solar eclipse.

And "et" them, we did.

There was nothing like going out and seeing that
first little chunk out of the sun!

Then it was hard to stop watching...

Even Lando and Joe had their glasses ready

thanks to Josh and Matthew.

Profile time!  

Can you guess who's who?

Okay...the next two are give-aways.

I should have zoomed in closer.

More eclipsing going on!

Charlie is such a good puppy.

We told her that she could come out
if she didn't look up at the sun, 

so she turned her back on it.

And on us.

Every now and then we had some cloud cover...

but not much!

Just enough to cool us off a little.

The light started getting eerie, the crickets started chirping,
and the birds were flying low into the trees.

I am pretty sure that I even saw a bat!

It's hard to tell from this far away, 

but the neighbors were grilling out and having a pool party...

complete with music appropriate for a celestial event.

We were all in waiting mode...

And then it happened!

My camera just had to give it a shot.

Here is the sun at its most hidden moment.

So beautiful and amazing!

It continued to look a little eerie for awhile...

And then, right on cue, the the moon
continued on its path across the sun, 

and the storm clouds rolled in,
bringing rain and a bit of thunder.

In less than 7 years, we will be on the search for eclipse glasses again as parts of Indiana prepare for a total solar eclipse.
The Lord willing and the clouds don't come,
we will be sitting in those same places.

Maybe.

I wonder what will change and what will remain the same.
I'm thankful for a God who never changes.
A God who loves to surprise us with the amazing!

A (partial) Totality Awesome Day!

As we prepare for today's solar eclipse, 

I'm sitting and watching the birds and the rabbits...and even our dog, Charlie, knowing that they have no clue that today is special.  That today may be a bit confusing to them.

But we are ready!

 And so is our Sun.

Here it comes, up over the horizon and into the sky,

and sneaking right into our home.

 What will this day be like?

We anxiously await what God has in store for us 

through the beauty of His creation!

A Bird's-Eye View

I have learned.

I have learned not to hang a fern on the front porch. 

The birds tear it up, trying to build a nest.

I have learned that no matter what type of 

hanging plant I have on the porch,

the birds will build a nest in it.

I have learned.

I have learned to hang a Wandering Jew on the front porch.

The birds are much kinder when building a nest.

This is the third summer that I have hung 

a Wandering Jew on the front porch.

Because I have learned.

It was just a day or two after hanging it that I noticed 

stems and leaves on the porch under the plant.

The birds were at work.

And then Momma Finch and Daddy Finch appeared regularly; calling, singing, and warning.

And a few times, William walked past the nest, 

on the way to his truck,  just as Momma bird was exiting.

I'm sure that we about drove those poor birds crazy with worry with all the checking we did on their babies.

 We got plenty of severe beak lashings from Daddy.

But then, just as suddenly as the eggs appeared,
there were fuzzy little babies!

And then wings to replace the fuzziness...

and then a nest that was becoming too small...

a nest bursting with delight!

I have learned.

I have learned that just as suddenly as there are eggs and then fuzzy babies, those feathered, delightful babies fly away.

Leaving just one...

And then, just as suddenly as they appeared, they are gone.

The nest is empty.

I don't know if birds reuse a nest or not.

This one may be the nursery for other babies this summer.

Or it may stay empty.

This is nature study at its finest.

This was meant to be a post that would be
more educational than emotional.
But as I write this, I am reminded that baby birds
are a lot like baby people.
In the blink of an eye.

Well...you know.

Amusings

musings

n. contemplations; reflections

amusement

n. pleasurable diversion

amusings...pleasurable contemplations

Charlotte Mason said that children need 

three things each and every day:

Something to love

Something to do

Something to think about

I believe that adults need those three things too.

Nature, especially in the spring, provides those 

three things for children and adults.

If you are very quiet...very sneaky...you can see the bullfrogs in the ditch before they dive below the water to hide.

The neighbor's rooster is not categorized 

as "amusings" in my book.

Yuck.

But watching Charlie watch the rooster is.

And watching Charlie and the boys chase the rooster 

around the tree is also pretty amusing.

Squirrels.

I think that the word "squirrels" in Latin is "amusings."

And birds...birds are one of my favorite springtime amusings.

I learned many years ago to not hang a fern on my front porch.  The birds tore it apart, building a nest in it.  

But a Wandering Jew is much more bird friendly.  

The pair of finch pick out the leaves that they do not want, 

and then they build their nest.  I have hung a Wandering Jew on the porch for several years now...for two reasons. 

Reason #1

The Wandering Jew reminds me of my Grandma Huff.

Reason #2

The birds

A new location for a bird feeder in the back yard 

attracted a new kind of bird.

Welcome, Rose-Breasted Grosbeak! 

But my favorite amusings is family.

Enjoy your amusings.