Following a daybook style of writing this afternoon...
As I look out my window, the foot bridge, that I ordered and Gary assembled and painted, is waiting to be positioned in the back yard. The plan is it will be put within view of where I am sitting now (i.e. where this snapshot was taken just minutes ago). Whereas we have bark mulch covering a good portion of the yard, we are waiting on a contractor to replace that with rock. The bridge will wait indoors until the rock is in place.
This past week included cake and ice cream for my birthday, but not on the same day. As I tell anyone who apologizes for forgetting my birthday, I celebrate all month long, so having cake and ice cream on two different days does not bother me.
The "Orange Cream Iced Bar Cake" was a discounted perk from our grocery store, a benefit from being on their weekly BOGO email list. We invited a couple of next-door neighbors to enjoy it with us one afternoon. Then on another day we stopped for ice cream while out in the truck (we do that rather often, as you may have noticed ....😋)
Yesterday we drove south about an hour to visit a car show held on the east side of a large lake.
Gary (who is a car guy) and I have been together since 2022, so by now I've been to a lot of car shows. Often they are held in beautiful locations. Here in Florida's abundance of sunshine, shade for these shows always a plus.
The snapshot above is Gary beside a 1960 Chevy Impala. He has owned 28 cars since he gave up driving a farm tractor as a teen. He has a list of them which includes the following:
8 Fords
(including 2 Mustangs and 2 Thunderbirds)
12 Chevys
(including 2 Corvettes)
2 Volkswagens
2 Buicks
5 Toyotas
1 Dodge
I am amazed how he can tell me the year of just about any older car he sees.
My long-time blog followers may remember this snapshot taken in early 2022 of the two of us with his 2002 Ford Thunderbird:
At the time he said he had to get the car to get the girl (me), although truth be told, he had ordered the car before our first date was planned.
Of course we found some T-birds at the car show. This red one from 1957 was especially nice.
One of our current vehicles required a revision due to a recall notice, so one day this past week the Ford dealer sent out their truck to our house to do the work. The dealer has done this for us several times since we bought the truck, which saves us having to drive some ten miles and sitting in the waiting room.
Today before church we rode our bicycles within our gated community, per our usual habit. The outdoor temperature was mid-forties, which is colder than we prefer, but the wind was calm and that's a big plus. Pedaling into a headwind translates to quite a workout. So we braved the cold with warm clothes and now this afternoon we are sitting on the lanai with the windows open!
Family highlights this past week included:
1) more positive updates regarding my premature great-nephew who continues to charm his nurses from his incubator
2) lunch with two young people who call me "Grammy"
3) a FaceTime visit with one of my children
4) a text conversation from Japan(!) with another of my kids
5) conversing with a couple of my nieces
A pleasant pastime for me is to fill in designs with my colored pencils.
In recent years these verses have meant more to me than ever before as I've faced things that were new and baffling to me.
After praying about a matter, I choose to trust the Lord will provide a solution and then choose to get busy with something to keep me from fretting. Oftentimes, coloring inside the lines does it for me.
The next thing I plan to do today is to have Gary proofread this post (as I always ask him to do) and then give thought to what to have for supper.
Thank you for stopping by, and for those who are able to leave comments, I thank you.
Until next time, grace and peace.
9 comments:
I am always happy to catch up with you through your blog. We really need to think about getting together again!! Sending love and hugs!! Have a blessed week ahead, dear friend!! xo
The bridge looks so nice! It's going to be a great addition to your yard.
I like seeing all those old cars. I feel like todays cars all look so similar. It used to be that when a car drove by the house and waved, we knew who it was by the car, but I can't do that anymore.
I have an app for online coloring program with the same sort of pictures. I find it relaxing too. That verse is a good one to dwell on.
OH, I love that little bridge, and I know it will be a real joy to have it in your lovely back yard! And I love seeing those old classic cars too! My big brothers were both "car guys",(same age era as your Gary) and I grew up hearing about what car was what back in the late 50's and 60's, so I knew a lot of them. Nowadays all cars look alike and are not pretty at all. Such a shame! That cake sure looks good! And I love your coloring books. And I love hearing about all of those wonderful family contacts this past week. That is a real blessing for sure! I know that made your heart really happy. (((HUGS))) Wonderful post. Thank you.
Your coloring pages are so pretty, Barbara. The car show looked like fun and that orange cake looked delicious. Your family contacts sounded awesome. Have a wonderful week!
Rock will be a nice base for that bridge and your other yard art. When we are in a 'waiting room' from the Lord it is good to get busy with other productive things. Looks like a fun outing. How nice to invite someone to share the cake! Happy new week to you.
Wow, the bridge is so beautiful! Gary has done such a nice job on it! My husband and I love car shows also, but they're too hard on him nowadays (he's now a permanent nursing home resident and uses a manual wheelchair). Our city usually has 2-3 car shows each year for various events. I grew up with a neighbor boy who built his own cars from scratch... he always had a different car to show each year for a goodly amount of his adult life. // That cake looks so scrumptious! Seems there are a lot of "orange dream" and "orange cream" type goodies in the stores lately. I want, but I can't, lol. // I also do a lot of colored pencil drawing... I have a three books my kids gave me a few years ago. I find the coloring and painting (oil, acrylic, watercolor) to really help me "get away from my brain." But I really rely on God... I lean in to Him every day. Paul is right in what he said about trusting the Lord in eerything. // I'm very sorry to see of the loss of your husband. Gary sounds like he is a wonderful man and a great blessing in your life. // I've added you to my blog list, so I will be back to visit! Have a very blessed day!
Thank you for your quote from Philippians 4:6-7.
Nothing wrong with having cake and ice cream on the same day. I like both. And I like those cars too. Very stylish.
God bless always.
The foot bridge is beautiful. I look forward to a picture of it after it is installed. The old cars are gorgeous, too. And yes, I remember that picture of you and Gary with the blue car. That looks like it would be a fun ride. I have purchased coloring books, and I like the idea, but I end up getting hung up on choosing colors and I tell myself I'm not good at this. You make me want to to give them a more serious try. What I do when I am tired of thinking is typically easy crochet or knitting - something that doesn't require me to reference a pattern. Or scrolling on YouTube - which I'm deciding isn't the greatest plan. ;^) Okay... You've just about persuaded me to pull out a coloring book and give it an honest try again. I really like your blue toned picture. I think I would feel more successful coloring in tones of one or two colors rather than all the colors in my collection.
What a sweet photo of you both - in front of that beautiful car:) Does he still have that one? I have always thought of cars as practical means of transportation but I know they are much more to many:) Good for you celebrating that birthday...and then celebrating some more!! And, yes, choosing to give our cares/burdens to the Lord really makes the difference. Thank you for the encouragement!!
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