Show & Tell Friday for July 31

For today's show & tell, I have just a few treasures from my early summer ribbon board. I have a ribbon board in my front hallway where I display paper treasures. Most of these cards are newer, not vintage, but they are so pretty I thought I would share. I always get so much enjoyment from the cards I am given, and save many of them to display again and again, varying them with the season.

I love the mix of summer flowers jumbled together in this card. Notice the tiny forget-me-nots just at the tip of the pencil.

This is a summery Holly Pond Hill card by Susan Wheeler. I love her work.

I love the orangey flowers in this thank-you card.

Day lilies are so beautiful. How I would love to have a patch like this!

I own a tea tin much like this one, but I keep tea in it. Isn't it a neat idea to use as a planter, though?

Blue hydrangeas are gorgeous -- some of my favorite flowers. This is a design from a Mother's Day card.

Last but not least is this seashell-themed note card. I love the saying!

That is my ultra-simple Show & Tell for today. To see what others have shared for Show & Tell Friday, head on over to There is No Place Like Home.

Happy Show & Tell Friday!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 25

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank plenty of water, got about 21g fiber, exercised, and got 6.5 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- worked on the Bible study Becoming a Woman of Grace, by Cynthia Heald; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:10-11. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying. Made a new page for my prayer journal.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Stuck to my schedule and accomplished most things on my list. Planned menus, went grocery shopping.

* Creativity -- Spent time working on craft preparation for our church's kids' outreach on Saturday. Posted in my blog. FINISHED a sewing project -- a set of curtains someone had asked me to make, which have been giving me fits. Spent a few minutes thinking about handmade Christmas gifts for this year. Wrote in my journal.

So that was day 25 of my challenge. I'm very pleased with how things went, especially my quiet time. It was wonderful... exactly what I want each day's quiet time to be, but it doesn't always work out that way! It's been a very encouraging week in that department.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 24

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank plenty of water, got about 27g fiber, exercised, and got 6.5 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- worked on the Bible study Becoming a Woman of Grace, by Cynthia Heald; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:10-11. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying. Made a new page for my prayer journal.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Stuck to my schedule and accomplished most things on my list. Did three loads of laundry and hung them on the line with the hopes of getting them dry, since it was somewhat of a sunny day (a rarity this summer). Unfortunately the day was so humid that only about half of the items got completely dry.

* Creativity -- Spent time working on craft preparation for our church's kids' outreach on Saturday. Posted in my blog. Worked on a sewing project. Spent a few minutes on cross stitch Christmas ornaments. Wrote in my journal.

So that was day 24 of my challenge. I'm very pleased with how things went, especially my quiet time. It was wonderful... exactly what I want each day's quiet time to be, but it doesn't always work out that way! So far, it has been a super week in that department. I am also thankful that the Lord helped me to accomplish a lot yesterday even though I was out of the house for half of the day.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments! Just a couple more days! Tomorrow will be my last day of this challenge.

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 23

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank plenty of water, got about 23g fiber, exercised, and got 6.5 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- worked on the Bible study Becoming a Woman of Grace, by Cynthia Heald; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:10-11. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying. Read through the next chapter of the study Quiet Confidence for a Woman's Heart in preparation for the next Sunday School lessons I'll teach.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Stuck to my schedule and accomplished most things on my list. Shifted my meal-planning gears to come up with something that would be good for a very hot day. Potato salad, yes, but what to have with it. Meat loaf would be good, but I didn't want to heat up the oven. My old Quaker Oats cookbooklet (which has a great meat loaf recipe) gave directions for cooking it in the microwave. It worked perfectly!

* Creativity -- Spent time working on craft preparation for our church's kids' outreach on Saturday. Posted in my blog. Worked on a sewing project. In the process of craft preparation (as mentioned above) I did a bit of decluttering in the craft closet. Found an unfinished girls' blouse and skirt that won't take much work to finish and may fit a granddaughter. Also found a tablecloth/napkin set all stamped for embroidery -- I know this is a UFO given me by someone else. The napkins are all stitched, but the tablecloth doesn't appear to have been started. Fun find! I have been wanting to work on an embroidery project, so I guess this will be it. In the evening, spent some time on cross stitch Christmas ornaments. Wrote in my journal.

So that was day 23 of my challenge. I'm very pleased with how things went, especially my quiet time. It was wonderful... exactly what I want each day's quiet time to be, but it doesn't always work out that way!

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

A fabulous raspberry pie....

A week or two ago, friends from Florida on a road trip stopped by to spend a weekend with us. They brought us a wonderful gift -- a quart of raspberries they had picked in New York state the day before. These raspberries were perfectly ripe and were the largest, most succulent raspberries we had ever seen. They just called out to be made into something special. Our friends asked somewhat wistfully if I had ever made a pie with fresh raspberries -- they had never tasted one. So I thought back to the most delicious, fresh-tasting raspberry pie I had ever made. Years ago, when I worked at an inn as a part-time pastry cook, this was a featured recipe. I memorized it during my time there. They made this pie with cut-up strawberries, then raspberries, then blackberries, as the respective fruits came into season. I don't recall them making it with blueberries, but I think it would be every bit as good using those. Here's the recipe:

RASPBERRY CREAM PIE

1 9-inch pie shell, baked and cooled
1 quart raspberries*, divided use
1 1/3 cups water, divided use
1 cup sugar
3 Tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 pint heavy whipping cream (that would be 1 cup)
1 teaspoon vanilla

Put 1 cup of the raspberries into a saucepan with 1 cup water and the sugar. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer the mixture for 15 minutes. Mix the cornstarch into the remaining 1/3 cup water and stir into the simmering mixture. Cook and stir until thick. Cool the mixture and stir in the remaining 3 cups of uncooked raspberries. Place in the refrigerator until cold.

Whip the cream until stiff and whip in the vanilla. Pile the whipped cream into the baked pie shell. Gently spread the raspberry mixture over the cream. Chill the pie 3 to 4 hours before serving.

* Or use blueberries, blackberries, or halved or sliced strawberries. I have never tried using a combination of berries, but I imagine that would be good, too.

Our friends raved about this pie and said they wished it was polite to lick one's plate! It did turn out to be absolutely delicious. I had never had such remarkable berries to make this pie with before, so Mr. T and I enjoyed it every bit as much as our friends did.

If you want to use some summer berries in a marvelous way, try this recipe! And let me know what you think!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 22

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank plenty of water, got about 23g fiber, exercised, and got 6.5 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- worked on the Bible study Becoming a Woman of Grace, by Cynthia Heald; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:10-11. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying. Made a new page for my prayer journal. I am making some pages which thank and praise God for our spiritual blessings as defined in Scripture.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Did several loads of laundry and part of the weekly home blessing... changed sheets, emptied wastebaskets, etc. Shifted my meal-planning gears to come up with something that would be good for a very hot day.

* Creativity -- Spent time with a friend working on crafts for our church's kids' outreach on Saturday. Posted in my blog.

So that was day 22 of my challenge. I'm very pleased with how things went, especially my quiet time. It was wonderful... exactly what I want each day's quiet time to be, but it doesn't always work out that way!

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 21

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- failed to use the Body Clutter Investigator, ate quite well, drank quite a bit of water, got 7 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- Finished memorizing 2 Peter 1:8-9. Had a good quiet time of reading the Bible and a shorter prayer time than usual.

* Homemaking -- failed to make a schedule for my day. Other than meals and dishes, didn't get a lot else done in the homemaking department.

* Creativity -- Spent some time working on my journal. Posted in my blog.

So that was day 21 of my challenge. For a Sunday, I'm quite pleased with how things went. Even though I didn't use the BCI, I'm pleased that I kept up with good eating habits anyway and got quite a bit of water.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 20

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate quite well, drank quite a bit of water, got about 23g fiber, went for a walk, and got almost 7 hours sleep. We did stop for an ice cream cone while out doing errands, but the flavor was pumpkin pecan, so that counts as a vegetable, right?

* Devotional life -- worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:8-9. Had a good quiet time of reading the Bible and praying.

* Homemaking -- failed to make a schedule for my day. Other than meals and dishes, didn't get a lot else done in the homemaking department.

* Creativity -- Helped my granddaughters with their woven pot holders. Figured out a way to crochet around the holders (one row while still on the loom) to keep them together once removed from the loom. (I was using old plastic looms my kids had used, but new loops. I was quite discouraged by the way the loops kept popping off the loom, but my wonderful hubby figured out a system with rubber bands to keep the loops in place. I was looking through HearthSong today and saw that they sell the metal looms and cotton loops. Probably much more satisfactory!) Posted in my blog.

So that was day 20 of my challenge. I'm quite pleased with how things went.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 19

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate quite well, drank quite a bit of water, got about 21g fiber, and got 7 hours sleep. Managed not to eat dessert even when everyone around me was having ice cream.

* Devotional life -- began the Bible study Becoming a Woman of Grace, by Cynthia Heald; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:8-9. Had a good quiet time of reading the Bible and praying.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Other than meals and dishes, didn't get a lot else done in the homemaking department. Oh, did 2 loads laundry.

* Creativity -- Spent a few minutes cross-stitching. Helped my granddaughters get started on woven pot holders. Posted in my blog.

So that was day 19 of my challenge. I'm quite pleased with how things went, since it was a very busy day and we had five grandchildren here over the course of the day.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Show & Tell Friday for July 24

For Show & Tell today, I want to share some of how our bathroom improvements turned out. I only wish I had taken some "before" photos so you can see what a huge improvement it actually is. The sink was an antique cast iron job, nearly impossible to clean. The wallpaper was damaged from years of people washing their hands and splattering the walls. It was not only stained but actually shredded in places. We removed the wallpaper and primed the walls and painted them off white. Then we put up a shell-themed wallpaper border.

As I mentioned last week, I made this little "valance" to continue the border above the window.

The previous wallpaper had a theme of old-fashioned ships on it, so I had some shell-themed items in this bathroom already. I had planned for a long time that if we could ever make any changes here, I would just keep the seashell theme and hope I could find a border to match. I was so pleased to find one in Walmart.

This is a sink we were given. Isn't it amazing there is a little seashell indentation for the soap?

And this is the seashell wreath made by my friend Paula many years ago. It hung in the old bathroom, but look how amazingly the ribbon matches the color in the wallpaper border!

That is my simple Show & Tell for today. To see what others have shared for Show & Tell Friday, head on over to There is No Place Like Home.

Happy Show & Tell Friday!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 18

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank plenty of water, got about 26g fiber, exercised, and got 6.5 hours sleep. Baked some very healthy muffins to keep in the freezer for a healthy start to my day.

* Devotional life -- finished my study of Psalms; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:8-9. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying. Chose a new study to begin working through.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Finished shopping list, went grocery shopping. Vacuumed upstairs and down. Got all the trash out so Mr. T could take a long-postponed trip to the dump.

* Creativity -- Wrote in my journal. Spent some time on a sewing project. Posted in my blog. The journal I use is one to which I add interesting pictures and stickers, as a sort of scrapbook.

So that was day 18 of my challenge. I'm quite pleased with how things went.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 17

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank plenty of water, got about 20g fiber, exercised, and got 7 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- continued my study of Psalms; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:8-9. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Worked on a shopping list, planned ahead for supper to leave pizza dough in the bread machine and a pasta salad in the refrigerator (since I would be out of the house all afternoon). Picked and washed some lettuce from the garden.

* Creativity -- Wrote in my journal. Spent some time on a sewing project. Posted in my blog. Did a few minutes worth of cross stitch. Gathered some supplies for the kids' crafts I mentioned yesterday.

So that was day 17 of my challenge. I'm quite pleased with how things went.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 16

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank plenty of water, got 30g fiber, exercised, and got 6.5 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- continued my study of Psalms; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:8-9. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Did some laundry, worked on a shopping list, did some work in zone 4.

* Creativity -- Wrote in my journal. Spent some time on a sewing project. Posted in my blog. Spent an hour or so with a friend planning crafts for a kids' outreach our church is doing.

So that was day 16 of my challenge. I'm quite pleased with how things went.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 15

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank plenty of water, got 22g fiber, exercised, and got 6.5 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- continued my study of Psalms; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:8-9. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying. Added a new page to my prayer journal.

* Homemaking -- failed to make a schedule for my day, but got a lot accomplished anyway. Did several loads of laundry, changed sheets, started a shopping list, planned menus. It was a nice day and all of the laundry got dry. Did some weeding in the garden.

* Creativity -- Wrote in my journal. Spent a few minutes on a cross-stitched Christmas ornament. Posted in my blog.

So that was day 15 of my challenge. I'm quite pleased with how things went, and am especially encouraged with how the Lord helped me get right back on track after a busy weekend. I'm also pleased that I could fit in some creativity even on a very busy day.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

How does our garden grow?

Finally, after weeks of rain, we have had a few good days. A few of the plants in our garden are starting to show promise of producing fruit and veggies.

Our garden, as I may have mentioned, is just an experiment. We have not planted one in probably 20 years, but this year we decided to give it a try. Our soil is poor. Mr. T cut some trees to allow more sunlight to reach the garden plot, but it's still too shady in some parts and too sunny in others. And then of course, all that rain...

A number of our plants died, and almost all of our squash seeds (both summer and winter types) as well as cucumber seeds, evidently rotted in the ground.

But finally there are some blossoms on the surviving plants.

Here's a buttercup squash blossom. There are more coming along.

Tomato blossoms.

Blue Lake green bean blossoms.

Bright orange marigolds. We like to plant these along the edges of the garden to help with pests. Sadly, some of our marigolds died, too.

And last but not least, this is our first harvest from our garden -- some delicious leaf lettuce!
And that's how our garden is growing!

Menu Plan Monday for July 20

A bright sunny day here in northern New England. My brain isn't working creativity-wise after a weekend of company meals, but I've gotten together a menu plan. Here it is, including, as it often does, meals that didn't get used last week:

MONDAY: One-Pan Potatoes & Pepper Steak, Broccoli/Cauliflower Blend

TUESDAY: Broccoli Quiche, Breakfast Potatoes, Tossed Salad (garden lettuce and grape tomatoes)

WEDNESDAY: Pizza or Calzone, Pasta Salad or Soup

THURSDAY: Garlic Lime Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans

FRIDAY: Hot Dogs, Baked Beans, Coleslaw

SATURDAY: Grilled Chicken, Potato Salad, Marinated Vegetables

SUNDAY: Crockpot BBQ Ribs, Potato Salad, 3-Bean Salad

If you would like to see menus which others have shared, head over to I'm an Organizing Junkie and check out the links. Often, well over 300 people share links to their weekly menus. You'll find some great ideas and often recipes too.

Back-on-Track Challenge, Days 13-14

Things have been somewhat off track the past 2 days:

* Health & energy -- ate quite well, drank quite a bit of water, went for a walk on Saturday, got a good amount of sleep.

* Devotional life -- continued memorizing 2 Peter 1:5-7. Had a shorter quiet time each day because of having house guests and things to do with them.

* Homemaking -- kept things fairly neat over the weekend, made to-do lists and followed them.

* Creativity -- didn't find time for this over the weekend.

So that was days 13-14 of my challenge. I'm quite pleased with how things went, especially with a houseful of people and a lot of extra cooking to do.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 12

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank quite a bit of water, got 22g fiber, exercised, and got 6 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- continued my study of Psalms; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:5-7. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day and pretty much stuck to it. Did a lot of cleaning in the bathroom and master bedroom. Scrubbed the tub and washed the shower curtain/tub mat. Changed sheets to prepare for company.

* Creativity -- no real time for creativity today (other than in planning/serving meals).

So that was day 12 of my challenge. I'm quite pleased with how things went, especially that I found time to exercise on such a busy day.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Show & Tell Friday for July 17

For Show & Tell today, I am going to kill two birds with one stone by combining a show & tell with a homemade life post. Today is very busy as we expect overnight guests to arrive for the weekend. I have a LOT to do before they arrive!

So here are some of the homemade things I've been working on.

I needed a birthday card for my dad and decided to try and make one. I am a novice at paper crafting, but I do have some supplies for that sort of thing, so I got them out and referred to card project instructions I had found at the Jo-Ann fabric site some time ago. The idea was to do machine stitching around the "window" in the card, but I had these little "frames" on hand and decided to use one of them around the opening instead. I didn't have time to go to a store for any sort of embellishment, so used a moose button I had on hand. The only problem is that the holes in the button make it look as if the moose has been shot. Oh well... it was not too bad for a beginning attempt, I felt. And the recipient liked it!

In our part of the country, summer can be very humid indeed. So much so that toilet tanks sweat, and it's pretty much a necessity to keep a towel or something else behind the toilets to soak up the condensation. I usually just use a neatly folded old towel and that works quite well and can be tossed into the washer and replaced quickly. But sometimes, especially in a small space, the towel gets sort of messy-looking. I wished for something equally effective, but prettier. On someone's blog, I had seen a pattern for making a bath mat out of an old towel and backing it with cotton fabric, then trimming with an embellishment of some sort. So I decided to adapt that idea to make a mat to go behind the toilet. I cut an old towel into 4 pieces vertically (after first cutting off the ends) and used 2 of them to make this mat. I backed it with part of an old muslin curtain and trimmed it with a shell-themed candlewicking design (which had resided unfinished in an old sewing box for years). I'm quite pleased with how it turned out.

Here is a picture of my homemade swiffer duster refill -- scroll down to see the link to the instructions. I tried it out in a very dusty area, and you can see how well it worked.

And then this. We just redid a small half bath and had a small amount of the wallpaper border left over. It occurred to me that I could make a sort of valance for the bathroom window with it. I glued it to a piece of foam core board and glued on hooks to just hook it over the curtain rod. For hooks, I used the metal clamps that come in skirt hangers which you get when you buy skirts or pants. They were exactly the right size to work as hooks for this project. I do apologize for the sideways look of the photo. There is only a narrow hall outside the door of this room and I could not go far enough back to get the right perspective. This shot was the best of three.

That's my simple Show & Tell for today. To see what others have shared for Show & Tell Friday, head on over to There is No Place Like Home.

Happy Show & Tell Friday!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 11

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 11

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank quite a bit of water, got 23g fiber, exercised, and got 6 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- continued my study of Psalms; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:5-7. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying. Added a new page to my prayer journal.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day and pretty much stuck to it. Did a lot of decluttering in the computer room and reorganized my closet. Dusted in the computer room and bedroom. Planned menus, made a grocery list and went grocery shopping.

* Creativity -- Wrote in my journal. Crafted a valance for the downstairs bathroom window.

So that was day 11 of my challenge. I'm quite pleased with how things went, and am especially encouraged with how the Lord helped me plan my day and how He gave the strength to carry out my plans. I'm also pleased that I could fit in some creativity even on a very busy day.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

For the homemade duster refills...

Susie and Mrs. Doug both asked about how to make these dusters. I followed these instructions. The instructions are great as are the diagrams. It's suggested to use a microfiber cloth to make these (so you can just toss them in the washing machine), but I had none on hand so I just made up my prototype using a generic type of dry refill for the swiffer-type mop. It works well but I think the microfiber is really the way to go. If you scroll down through the comments on the tutorial, you'll see that one person suggests stitching down the center of the refill to make it stay on the handle better. I did that, but didn't stitch quite all the way down so that the little clip on the handle will hold it in place more easily. Hope this is helpful to you!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 10

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank quite a bit of water, got 25g fiber, exercised, and got 6.5 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- continued my study of Psalms; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:5-7. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying. Added a new page to my prayer journal.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day and pretty much stuck to it. Planned meals for a busy weekend with a houseful of guests. Washed and dried the guest towels and did several loads of laundry.

* Creativity -- Wrote in my journal. Did some cross-stitch on a Christmas ornament.

So that was day 10 of my challenge. I'm quite pleased with how things went, and am especially encouraged with how the Lord helped me plan my day. It was a busy day, with a lot of time spent out of the house, and had the potential to be quite stressful, but planning helps so much!

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 9

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, didn't drink quite enough water, got 25g fiber, exercised, and got 6.5 hours sleep. Had company for supper, so did eat dessert. But it was a low-fat dessert!

* Devotional life -- continued my study of Psalms; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:5-7. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Dusted the downstairs rooms and did more of the weekly home blessing. Planned and carried out a schedule for preparing a company meal with some complicated logistics.

* Creativity -- Made a homemade refill for a swiffer duster. Did some cross-stitch on a Christmas ornament. .

So that was day 9 of my challenge. I'm quite pleased with how things went, and am especially encouraged with how the Lord helped me plan my day. I was also encouraged with making that duster refill. I love how the swiffer dusters work, but I refuse to pay the price for the refills.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 8

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, didn't drink quite enough water, got 21g fiber, exercised, and got 7.5 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- continued my study of Psalms; worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:5-7. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Did part of the weekly home blessing; caught up on laundry.

* Creativity -- Finished all four curtains!!! Did some cross-stitch on a Christmas ornament. .

So that was day 8 of my challenge. I'm fairly pleased with how things went, considering I spent several hours out of the house in the afternoon. I'm especially pleased to have finished those curtains.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 7

Here's how things went on a very busy Sunday:

* Health & energy -- didn't keep up with the Body Clutter Investigator, but ate well, drank quite a bit of water, and got 6.5 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:3-4. Read my usual amount in the Bible, but had a shorter prayer time than usual (which is normal for me on a Sunday).

* Homemaking -- failed to make a schedule for my day. Kept up with basics like dishes, etc.

* Creativity -- Finished the second curtain. Got the ruffle gathered, pinned, and basted onto the third curtain. Spent some time planning crafts with a friend for a children's outreach our church is planning.

So that was day 7 of my challenge. I'm fairly pleased with how things went. Even though it was an extremely busy day, I did still stick with eating well and drinking enough water, and did manage to get some creative things accomplished.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 6

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank quite a bit of water, got 25g fiber, went for a walk, and got 7.5 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- continued my study of Psalms (I'm currently studying Psalm 96:1-4); worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:3-4. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Did a bit of decluttering in zone 2.

* Creativity -- Got all of the pieces for the remaining 3 curtains hemmed, made casings in the top part of each, sewed gathering stitches in all 3 ruffles. Finished one project I'm making for the bathroom. Did some cross-stitch on a Christmas ornament. .

So that was day 6 of my challenge. I'm very pleased with how things went. I'm especially pleased that I could fit a good bit of creativity into my day, as it's very important to keep my responsibility-filled life in balance.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Back-on-Track Challenge, Day 5

Here's how things went yesterday:

* Health & energy -- kept up with the Body Clutter Investigator, ate well, drank quite a bit of water, got 32g fiber, exercised, went for a walk, and got 6.5 hours sleep.

* Devotional life -- continued my study of Psalms (I'm currently studying Psalm 96:1-4); worked on memorizing 2 Peter 1:3-4. Had a wonderful quiet time of reading the Bible and praying.

* Homemaking -- made a schedule for my day. Didn't do anything (other than dishes and basic upkeep) in zone 2. (Yep, I'm seeing a pattern here. Maybe today will be better!) Did a couple loads of laundry, did some ironing, vacuumed upstairs and down.

* Creativity -- Got both pieces hemmed for the third curtain. Completed the main part of the fourth curtain. Started hemming the ruffle for that one. Wrote in my journal. Started the project I'm making for the bathroom. Did quite a bit of cross-stitch on a Christmas ornament. Posted in both my blogs.

So that was day 5 of my challenge. I'm very pleased with how things went. I'm especially pleased that I could fit a good bit of creativity into my day, as it's very important to keep my responsibility-filled life in balance.

How about you? If you're taking part in this challenge with me, share your thoughts in the comments!

Show & Tell Friday for July 10

Because I have a strawberry collection, people who know me will occasionally send me strawberry-themed greeting cards or note cards. Recently I was going through some of the cards I have saved to decorate with and came across several I would like to share here.

This one features a bountiful basket of strawberries. So pretty!

Here is a small card with a strawberry-decorated teapot. Hmmm... I would like to have one of these in real life! I'm sure there are teapots out there with a strawberry theme. Maybe I'll settle for a teacup... it would be less expensive and take up less space.

And this one is my favorite, a strawberry sprite! Isn't she pretty?

That is my very simple Show & Tell for today. To see what others have shared for Show & Tell Friday, head on over to There is No Place Like Home.

Happy Show & Tell Friday!