bike riding

I came home from work Friday to learn that Makayla has learned to ride her bike. That fast? Finally! About two months ago Tim took her training wheels off, and since then her bike has been in the shed. I don't know why she decided to learn Friday, but it only took her between the time she got out of school and the time I got home. I was starting to worry about her because she's 7 years old. Would my child be normal if she never learned to ride a bike?
Sunday, we went for a family bike ride around town. It was great! I had been waiting for this for a while now. I have been wanting to go bike riding, but Makayla has been the hold up. As we were riding, my pedal started coming off so I stopped to see if I could fix it. I was in awe, when a complete stranger offer to fix it. He went back to his shed and brought back a wrench. I am not used to such friendliness. It is so awesome to know that there are still people like that out there. This has been also been a great reminder that I need to get back into my exercise routine. I was very hot and tired after the bike ride, but it gave me lots of energy later in the evening.

short-time visitor

This spider made is home on our deck during the month of August. At nights, he made a large web to catch his meals. By the mornings, the spider and his web was gone. I don't know where he has gone, but I'm glad he stopped by for a while to eat all our pesty bugs.

9-11 changed my life's path

As I drove to work this morning, the radio was talking about how 9-11 effected peoples lives. For me it was a new life. I remember being at work that morning. My supervisor told me what happened. I never tuned into the news. My first thought was that a small plane lost control and flew into the tall building in New York I had never heard of before. As the day went on I learned more and more about what was happening. The event of the day was really messing with me. That evening I went home and pondered why people would do this. I came to the conclusion that it was an evil thing and that I wanted nothing to do with it. Previously, the Lord had been tugging at my heart. But at that point, the evening of September 11, 2001, I made a decision to live my life following Jesus...I am saved! Never again will I be the same person.

financially blessed

I have come to notice here lately that God is really taking care of us. We thought it would be a struggle to live on a one-person income, but truthfully is has been a blessing. We are not struggling at all! As I drive to work in the mornings and park in the lot, I notice that pretty much everybody has a newer vehicle. I am proud to say that both of our vehicles are paid for. Not necessarily all, but a lot of other people are still paying for their newer vehicles. There are lots of other things that we don't have which helps us focus on God. We do have basic TV and phone, but we do not pay for extras. I use a calling card to call long distance when necessary. Yes, it's a pain, but it saves me money. I am very suprised that I am living so easily without the internet. I do have access to it at work, but I realized that I could live without it if I had to. In actuallality, we would end up wasting too much precious time on the interenet. Most libraries have internet access if one really needed it. Also, since we live in a rural community, we have found things like a strawberry/blackberry farm and an Amish community. It's so exciting to find those things! We can enjoy the little things including a financial-stress-free life. By following God's direction for us to live simple, He has really blessed us!

dining table & chairs

Shortly after we settled into our new home, we purchased this table and chairs. My mom and sister knew of someone who was updating their set and sold this one to us at a very frugal price. I had been wanting a new dining set for a while, and I'm glad I held off from purchasing one from the store.

knitted diaper wrap

I made this for my nephew, Noah. I had given Lori (his mom) enough time to post this picture on her blog, but since she hasn't I will have to. She's had it 3-4 months now, I thought maybe I would have seen a picture of Noah wearing it by now :) (Elizabeth, don't take this as a jab at you.) I was going to make one of my regular soakers, but when I saw the wrap it was just Lori. She's just a "wrap" kind of person if you know what I mean. I was not thrilled with the outcome of this pattern found at www.warmheartwoolies.com, but you'll have to ask Lori how it worked out for her because I didn't actual use the wrap.

back to your basics cookbook

I purchased a used copy of the Fannie Farmer Cookbook. I read about it in my favorite book The Complete Tightwad Gazette. The author Amy Dacyczyn wrote that it was her favorite cookbook. Now that Tim is doing a lot of the cooking, he is wanting something that shows him the basics of cooking with every day ingredients. I have been looking for a cookbook like this for along time. Amy seemed like the basics type of person, being frugal and all, so I thought I would take a chance and purchase her recommended cookbook. At first, I wasn't so sure, but the more I read through the cookbook the more I like it! It shows pictures of all the cooking tools, tells it's name and identifies what it can be used for. It explains what each spice is and the best way to use them. It shows how to cut and cook different meats. The book has simple basic recipes for about everything you can think of. If you're already an experienced cook...say your mom or grandma taught you well growing up, then this may not be the book for you. I think it would make an awesome gift for someone learning how to cook or who just got married.

pillow case

Somehow time is slipping by so quickly. I found some pictures from some time ago that I never got around to posting. Today I will share my unknown sewing talent. I needed a pillow for my chair at work for back support so I mimicked an old pillow case of my mother-in-law's. I found some fabric that I had on hand so it didn't cost me a thing other than a couple of hours of my time. The pillow didn't work out for my chair, but I am using it on my couch at home.

BEFORE

...AND...

AFTER

answer to last post...

Tim figured from her reaction that the cashier lady thought that he is not Ruben's biological father.

I have been noticing lately that Ruben has all same interested of Tim. His favorite toys are cars & trucks (his favorite Cars toy is Mater) and tools. He loves to put objects inside of other things and drag things out of my cabinets. Maybe we should have named him Timmy Jr...

Makayla has been spending as much time as possible playing with her new neighborhood friends. We found that one girl plays mean. A neighbor lady told us one day. Tim told Makayla to fight back, then maybe the girl would back down. Makayla came home this weekend upset after finding the other girl doesn't back down. We haven't seen her since Tim met her at the front door and told her that Makayla is not coming out to play with her because she is being mean.

where does he get that red hair from?

Tim walked Ruben up to the local convenience store today to pick something up. The lady at the counter awed over Ruben's red hair. She then proceeded to ask if his mom had red hair. After Tim responded with no, she looked down with an "oh" look on her face.

What do you perceive this means? I will tell you what Tim thought after I hear your response.