Summer is here

Hello Folks ~ it's hard to believe we are almost into July and today is the first day of summer. Right now, at 6:22 p.m. EST it is 90 and feels like it is 100. YIKES! No wonder I feel like hibernating. I am so thankful my Friedrich's a.c. is working fine again. A couple of shims, a new hole drilled into the bottom casing, and making a wider pathway for the collected water to go where it should to the outside. I'm thankful to Stephen who came and did this work for me, for free. He's been in the a.c. business for over 30 years. Met him through church.

I bought a Lasko pedestal fan a few weeks back, and it sits in the hallway at night blowing the cool air from a.c. into the bedroom, which keeps the temp in bedroom at around 74. Very comfortable for sleeping.

A week ago I mowed as grass was dry, the next day we had rain and then off and on since then. So I did that at the right time. It needs it again, but I'll wait until next week and then get out early to do it. 

I also got a couple of loads of laundry washed and hung out to dry and that was a good thing also, as a couple of days ago I started smelling something 'dead'. Saw lots of flies, and then saw that it's a critter, either racoon  or possum, in the hedge around the secret garden, hedge next to clothesline area. I know from experience that in a few days nature will take care of it all. When my dear husband was here, he would take care of digging a hole and moving critter to it to be buried. Since I'm here by myself, I'm not even going to attempt that. I don't want to end up wretching.

This morning I saw that I had a regular gardenia in bloom and also a Tahitian gardenia had a bloom. The scents are so wonderful.  I just sat here a little while ago, in my creative space, editing photos while listening to soothing instrumental music, and felt like crying for joy. God's creation is such a beautiful gift to us. These days it is so easy to miss seeing so much loveliness because we are so engrossed in social media, so busy, busy busy. 

So, here is some loveliness for you to enjoy.

  

 

 

In the picture above, you can see a glimpse of the statue below through the window. We bought her at a local flea market many, many, many years ago for $10. She's made of cement. Her head and arm have been knocked off, but DH put her back together again.

I did a google search a long time ago and believe she is called 'The Weeping Woman'. She has aged nicely.

 

I've  been feeling a tad down lately. Those feelings come and go. Being a widow has made some drastic changes in my life and I miss my dearest and best friend so much.

I've been re-reading a book titled "Whisper - How to Hear the Voice of God" by Mark Batterson.

I read uplifting books before going to sleep and after turning off the light and laying there in the quiet, praying last night, these words came to me, "Let it go." I knew what the 'it' was, all of the things I'm anxious about. Those three words, calmed my spirit. 

This morning as I read more in this book, these words jumped out at me ~

His, God's, word does not return void. 

I looked it up in my Bible and this is the scripture from Isaiah 55:11 ~

"So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."

Then in verse 12 it says:

"You shall go out in joy and be led forth with peace."

I then was flipping through pages and came across this verse:

"Call unto me and I will answer thee and show thee 

great and  mighty things which thou knowest not.

Jeremiah 33:3 KJV 

A week ago, I finished a 549 page fiction book called 'The Forgotten Garden'. Near the end of the book I read the following: 

"You make life out of what you have,

 not what you are missing." 

Boy oh boy, that hit me and I felt like God was speaking to me through those words also. 

He can and does speak to us, we just need to calm down, be still and look and listen.

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An online friend sent me pics of rocks she had covered in crochet, with a cross as the focal point. I've made a few and given them away and they are great little reminders that God is our rock.

Psalms 18:2 NIV says this:

 "The Lord is my rock,
my fortress and my deliverer;
my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold."

Below is the last one I made. I had bought a bag of river rocks at Home Depot for around $9, (much cheaper than buying a little craft bag of them), and I am going through it picking out rocks that will work for this project. I wash then off, let them dry, then paint them with clear nail polish.

 

 

  Here's a batch cleaned, waiting for polish then the crocheting.

 

Ok, that's it for now. I pray that any of you who are going through tough times, that you will call out to God. He cares deeply for each of us. He will be our strength when we are weak.

Love, hugs & prayers,

FlowerLady

Le Jardin Secret

Oh my goodness. This is absolutely beautiful. Enjoy.



The garden of my dreams.

Such a deal!

Hello Folks ~ I want to thank all of you for your concern with my not having a.c. for a couple of days. I want to tell you that this tiny 5000 BTU a.c. is keeping my little cottage very comfortable. It has been as low as 74 degrees in the bedroom which is the furthest room from the a.c. I almost think it is doing a better job at cooling this place that the larger BTU by Friedrichs. I put a Lasko, pedestal fan in the hallway which blows the cooler air into bedroom and have a ceiling fan over the bed. I am very comfortable. God is good! 

The man who cleaned my large a.c. unit is to be here tomorrow to drill a hole or two in the bottom pan of the unit, so that water can drain out. I haven't contacted Friedrichs yet, but did take photos of the deteriorating fins. I am really bummed with this unit as this company has the reputation of being the Cadillac of air conditioners. I bought this thinking it was going to last me a good many years, not just two. 

I am so thankful for this Daewoo tiny a.c.

This morning I did a couple of errands, had to get windshield wiper blades, saw a shoe store that was going out of business and stopped there, but they weren't going to be opening for another 40 minutes or so, so I went on my way. Decided to stop at a new thrift store I'd heard about, and checked out their shoe dept. as I need new shoes for gardening in. This is the pair I found. Almost new, just a bit of a scuff on the right toe area. I knew nothing about the brand, I tried them on and they are perfect, 7 1/2 wide. They are made in the USA. I got home and googled them, they are SAS tripad comfort, $171. I paid $4.99.

 

When I told my friend about them, she said God placed them right on the shelf just for me to find. They were the best looking shoe of this type on the shelves.

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I was reading something the other day about taking long canes of roses and bending them over, to make more shoots come out along the cane. Well, I did that with the 'Bermuda Kathleen' rose that I have, and it is doing great. I've another cane from it that I need to bend over in the opposite direction.

  

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I will be facilitating with the lady who leads GriefShare at my church. We have become friends since I went to the first session. We were together yesterday at her apt. viewing the video for the one time session for 'Loss of a Spouse'. We visited, had lunch and after I got home, I laid down for a nap, but couldn't sleep.

I got up and got out some supplies and created this piece.

I have 14 more of the little bottles. They are flat on the back side. The little tear drops are sewn to the felt underneath the bottle. The bottle is sewn down. There is a bluish crystal at the top of bottle. I'd like to make these up to give to participants. It took me roughly 2-3 hours to make, not sure exactly.

I've been itching to create again and this is the perfect start.

We had a little rain today, more is expected. We really needed it.

That's it for now. Have a wonderful weekend wherever you are.

FlowerLady

Tiny a.c. unit keeping me cool!

Good morning Folks ~ two nights with no a.c., first night not too bad, second night not so good. Since my a.c. man can't get here until Sat., I got out the tiny a.c. unit, still in the box, given to me a few years back. I unboxed it, read the instructions, but could not lift it into the window. So, I let the assistant pastor at church know that I needed help in putting the unit in the window. He and the one young man who had helped get the chair here, came, put the unit in the window, and got it sealed in to keep cool air in. Then, we plugged it in and thankfully it works. I am so thankful for the gift of the little unit and for the help of these two young men. 

It was 84 in the bedroom, furthest room from a.c., outside was much worse, feeling like it was 10 degrees hotter. I went out to an American Sign Language class last night, a thoroughly enjoyable evening, and something I am looking forward to again. It was still warm in the house when I got home, but the humidity was being sucked out and that was a good thing.

In the middle of the night I checked the thermometer in the bedroom and it read 78. YAY!!!! I slept really good, getting almost 10 hours of sleep. 

This morning I need to get a few groceries. Then it's back home to relax. Having two days of no a.c. really drained me. I was starting to get 'grumpy' also. Heat does that to me. 

Yesterday after my Sr's Bible study, a gentleman from the church who feeds the homeless with collected goods from stores, came by to see if any of us wanted anything as he had surplus. I took 4 ears of corn, some butter rolls, and an apple strudel with walnuts, and 4 Fuji apples. Another blessing!! Pray for me as I plan to be more frugal than I already am.

Ok, with that, it's time for some breakfast and get ready to go get some groceries.

Enjoy your day, count your blessings, and thank God for all.

FlowerLady

A.C. problem again

Hi Folks ~ Here it is another hot and humid day in s.e. FL. This afternoon my 2 year old Friedrich a.c. clogged up again and started leaking inside like before. It's only been a couple of weeks since the a.c. was taken out of wall and cleaned with hose outside. I am bummed to say the least. When the a.c. man was here and was cleaning the unit, he said the fins were eaten up pretty bad, especially on the inside of the back section of fins. Things aren't being made like they used to be. The a.c. does have a 1/4 inch slant to the outside, so that's not the problem.

We've had other Friedrich a.c. units, one lasted 12 years and the other 9. They have a great reputation for being the 'Cadillac' of room a.c.'s. I do have a warranty that my BIL paid for so I need to get in touch with the company. 

I have the windows closed to keep out heat and humidity, and have two fans to blow on me tonight. I do have a tiny a.c. unit I may have put in the living room window, but, it  can't be done tonight. The a.c. man cannot get here til Fri or Sat. to clean big unit again. Depressing!

Tomorrow it is supposed to be 90, don't know what the real feel temp will be.

 To top it off, I got my quarterly property tax bill in the mail today.

I need to relax, and trust God to work all things out, as He has in the past. Pray for me to be calm and patient.

On a positive note, two men from the church picked up my chair for me on Sat. morning. It fits perfectly in the space. The chair is a little dark for the summer, so I've covered it temporarily with the only thing I could find in my stash that would work. Not perfect, but I like the summer look.

Here's the chair before in the first photo, then covered in the second. Oh yea, the chair is a La-Z-Boy.

 
Miss Tork is enjoying the chair.

Ok, that's it for now. 

Doing without, 

makes us appreciate so much more,

whatever it is that we are having to do without.

FlowerLady