Tag Archives: winter

How Fun! Vol. 20

howfunCAT

“How fun!” I find myself exclaiming this many times throughout the week. Here are just a few things that touched me or made me smile: 

dried-plant-railing

I’ve been perusing Etsy quite a bit lately.  Not surprisingly, the photography shops grab my interest.  I’ve never lived on a farm, but I’m finding I am often drawn to the barnyard.  I really enjoy looking at the sweet little lamb photos in Yes and Amen’s shop.

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I entered and won a give-away at Alana Taylor for the e-book Escaping Reaction/Embracing Intention by Jacey Verdicchio from The Balanced Wife.  Thank you, Alana and Jacey!  I can’t wait to read it!

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col-park

Last weekend was filled with some very nice experiences.

1) Ed and I spent an afternoon with the camera and the iPad mini at one of our local county parks.  It had warmed up just enough so that we could shed our winter coats for something lighter.  We meandered through the paths and took pictures of last year’s cattails and this spring’s snow drops.  The trees are still void of leaves and we were able to watch quite a few birds.  We even saw a wild turkey!  (You might have seen him on facebook reminding everyone to eat ham for Easter.)

2) I spent Sunday afternoon at our library with other members of our community helping to map out the future direction of our library.  Apparently, they have one of these “stakeholders” meetings every five years.  My family is a huge consumer of books and the library helps us with our obsession hobby.  It was an honor and a pleasure to let them know that the library will always mean “books” to me!

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Just to let you know, in honor of Good Friday and Easter weekend, I will be posting next week’s How Fun!/Whatever is Lovely link-up party early Thursday morning instead of its usual Friday.

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What we are eating next week:

  • Saturday Keilbosa, saurkraut, potatoes
  • Sunday Pasta, sauce, bread, salad
  • Monday Salmon, asparagus, baked sweet potatoes
  • Tuesday Burritos, Spanish rice, corn
  • Wednesday Pizza, cut-up vegetables
  • Thursday Ham and cheese roll-ups, broccoli
  • Friday Omelets, biscuits

Baking this weekend: Lemon pound cake


song-of-sol-snowbellsSpread a little Light this week! Share this above meme on your favorite social media site, or email it to a friend. Click the image to see it at full size.


Whatever is Lovely Friday Link-up Party at Beauty Observed  Link up and let your light shine!

Link-up as many posts as you like that are lovely, excellent, or praiseworthy. Share a wonderful piece of writing, a DIY project, a recipe, or anything else that strikes your fancy!

Thanks so much for participating! I appreciate links back to Beauty Observed. Either a text link in your post, or feel free to use my button. Please visit some of the other links and pass them along to your friends. Let’s spread loveliness everywhere!

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This week has a new “rule” for the linkup. My good friend Dawn has a blog that has been nominated in a contest as one of the 50 best sites on Health and Fitness for 2014. Could you please help her by voting for her blog “Reveal Natural Health”  on this page?

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Have a great weekend! Remember Philippians 4:8. “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

~Comments~

Ice On The Inside

Ice crystals on an old window. Beauty Observed.

Ice crystals on an old window. Starbursts. Beauty Observed.

Ice crystals on an old window. BeautyObserved.
Click on any of these pictures  to see them at full size.

A guest post by my husband, Ed Nicholson

We had an absolutely arctic day here in January. The temperatures got down below zero and ice began to form on the insides of our old windows.  Elizabeth is not one to miss a photo-op.

These crystals are beautiful to look at, but I got to thinking about how hard it can sometimes be to keep ourselves unspotted from the world. The worries of this life can, like an oppressive chill, press in on us and threaten to find a way in. Some days it’s hard to let the light shine. It can feel like the darkness is winning. We fear our hearts are growing cold.

Still, greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world. Martin Luther’s hymn, A Mighty Fortress is Our God is the hymn I thought of when seeing these pictures. God is able to protect what we have entrusted to Him.  And if we crack under the weight of temptation, He is able to wash us clean when we confess and repent. He is purifying for Himself a bride without spot or wrinkle.

Help me, Lord, to remember to find shelter – and warmth – under the shadow of your wings. You are never failing! Amen.

Ed Nicholson – January, 2014

Scripture references:
keep oneself unspotted… James
worries of this life … Gospel of Mark
love of many will grow cold … Gospel of Matthew
greater is He that is in us … I John
God can protect our hearts… II Timothy
God forgives our sins when we confess… 1 John

A mighty fortress is our God. Ice crystals on window. Beauty ObservedClick on the image above to view it at full-size. Save it to your computer and please feel free to share it, or email it to a friend who may need a bit of encouragement.

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Even The Winter

Visit BeautyObserved.com for a little bit of respite in this busy world. Beautiful photography and inspirational memes. birds & nest Matt. 10:29-31

Visit BeautyObserved.com for a little bit of respite in this busy world. Beautiful photography and inspirational memes. bird's nest Matt. 10:29-31

Visit BeautyObserved.com for a little bit of respite in this busy world. Beautiful photography and inspirational memes. Birds and Nest  Matt. 10:29-31

I live in a house built in 1920 that has a normal (read small) city-sized lot.  Over the years, I’ve expanded my flower beds into a large flower garden.  I’m pretty much a failure at vegetables.  I like to think my yard has an English-cottage-garden feel, but it might not actually hold up to that definition.   I just plant what I find pretty and that brings me joy.

I purchased my new camera in October.  I decided not to do the fall clean-up of the garden so that I would have a few extra “subjects” to photograph through our long Ohio winter.  These birds would be in the garage right now.  They probably wish they were.

It’s not a new concept by any means, but I find that my garden can run parallel to my spiritual life.  Weeds left untended become huge root-deep problems that can cause pain during  removal.  Sometimes, the weeds unearth good “fruit.”  Even the good, healthy plants need pruning. When left to their own devices, they can grow too big and overtake the space other plants need to develop.

It’s all a balancing act that needs daily tending from the Gardener who loves and cares for us.  And after all of that pruning and digging and weeding – even in the dead of Winter – beauty remains.

Not even a sparrow worth only half a penny, can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. ...hairs on your head are numbered... Matt. 10:29-31Feel free to pin or share this meme of Matt. 10:29-31 with someone.

My inspiration for the title of this post comes from Audrey Assad’s beautiful song “Even the Winter.”

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