July Fave Five #1

TIME FOR THE FRIDAY FAVE FIVES....

And time to reflect back on the week and find moments we loved or that the Lord blessed us with....it can be favorite things, people or events.....thank you to Susanne from over here for hosting this each Friday!

Angel of Learning

by Willow

END OF THE YEAR GIFTS!

The classroom teacher I work with gave me and the 2 other support staff this sweet knickknack.  It is a pleasure to serve with him in the classroom and although we had quite a difficult year, what with one of the students' tragic death, the horrible accident of my co-worker (she came back in April!) and just the students assigned to us,  it really was a productive year.  Learning did take place and it is a joy to be a teacher.  That really is all the "gift" I need...just knowing we are making a difference!

RE-DOING THE DECK!

Claire painting the deck, after helping to strip it.

(normally this would have been done during our Spring Break but we were a bit busy traipsing around Paris! :) )

 Courtney painting the seats

Dave scraping off the old.......

GETTING OUR DECK DONE.  FINALLY!

My husband believes that if we can do it ourselves, then we will.

It was "all hands on deck" Tuesday evening after I returned from my hometown (attended a funeral all day).  It was the best evening!  The humidity broke sometime during the night on Monday and we awoke to a glorious blue sky and temps in the 70's with NO humidity!  So...after eating a quick dinner that my daughter started while I was driving back east from Central NYS, we put on our grunge clothes and got to work.  Most of the floor had been stripped already.  We all painted and my ballerina did the deck floor and did a fantastic job!  I just didn't have time to get a final pic....will do that next week!

CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF MARRIAGE

We just went out for dinner on Wednesday night,  but it was just us and it was so nice to sit, talk, and relax.  I had a delicious dinner of grilled herb telapia, white cheddar potatoes, steamed broccoli, the perfect glass of chilled Zinfandel, and a decadent chocolate dessert that Dave and I shared. 

Of course we had our big celebration in Paris back in April,and definitely enjoyed every minute with our girls at the Louvre (pictured above with the Venus de Milo) and other awesome places around the "city of lights".

The most special thing?

Knowing that altho we have had our ups and downs, like any couple, the Lord has blessed us with each other, we are committed to staying in this most important covenant, and we look forward to at least 20 more years and hopefully more!!

 A LONG INDEPENDENCE DAY WEEKEND ....on Buzzards Bay (Cape Cod for all of you who live west of Albany, NY!)  Dave, the girls and I are joining Dave's parents for a long weekend at "the beach house".  I am writing this on Thursday and we leave tonite once Dave gets home from work and we get the kayaks on his car.  We are looking forward to exploring some of the Cape Cod National Seashore (my daughters have never been hiking there) and we are also gonna try to fit in a trip to Coast Guard beach where there is some serious surf!  It is usually too dangerous to go out very far but it is a great beach...again, my youngest has never been there as it's about 1 hour from the beach house, further out on the cape.  It promises to be a great weekend of reading, resting, kayaking, hiking, eating, swimming, exploring and just hanging out on the large deck chatting and making memories! (this pic is taken from the backyard, facing the bay)

PRAYING FRIENDS!
oh how it warmed my heart to be told by some good friends and acquaintances  from my church and former church, that they were praying for me and my friends who just lost their dad.  It was difficult to see my friends go thru this....losing a parent is never easy...and this was so sudden and such a shock.  BUT....knowing that people were praying that my children would be safe here while I traveled back to my hometown and my husband had to work, really helped ease the stress of the day.  These friends also prayed for my friends to have peace, comfort, and that their faith in God would not waver in the face of this tragedy.  I could really tell, on driving back to Central NY to where my hometown is, that people were praying.  I had such peace and a time of praise and worship in the car!  And being able to hug and love on my dear friends in their time of loss was just priceless.  They mean the world to me and we have always been there for each other....not always in location but in thoughts, memories, and prayers.  I don't get to see them often as 2 of them live out of state....but wow.....having friends here, in my town where I live and raise my children, and have my church, really makes my heart thankful.  Good friends are hard to find.....I am glad I have these friends!


Now....what about you?


What is one thing you are thankful for or that is a favorite moment from your week?  Please share!!


And coming up!!  Marriage Monday, another "summer fun" post, 2 more super easy summer-time recipes, and a devotional based on a Psalm!


For those of you  who continue to visit.....leave a comment!!!! Would love to hear your thots!!