B Faves

It was a totally relaxing week for me! My husband had to work of course, but I took this week to do things like read, work on photobooks, go for long walks, shop, bake and spend time with my girls.....here's some faves/blessings that highlight the week....and for which I say, Thank you, God!

Claire

Dave and Claire swimming in the laps lane
Moreau Lake State Park
6 July

• BEACH TIME! Dave and I were absolutely exhausted last Saturday, the day after cleaning the mud out of my dad's basement.  (for an update on the flood see the end of this post).  Saturday we slept in, had a leisurely morning and decided very spontaneously at around 2 pm to escape the high humidity of our town and get up to one of our favorite lakes.  Our oldest daughter had to work so it was just the 3 of us.  It was awesome.  We swam, read books, chatted, swam some more and then when the beach closed at 6 pm, we headed over here to visit our friend's ice cream place. Bill and his wife have been Christian friends of ours for years and we love stopping there in the summer. The ice cream is great and it was a real blessing to get some relief from the heat and humidity!

• BIKING!  This past week was hot and humid until yesterday, but the mornings weren't too bad, so I did a 5 mile bike ride one day.  This road was virtually empty on my ride and I saw a baby fox.  On the return trip back down this road, I saw the mama!  I was glad I was on my bike and not walking! I didn't bother to snap a pic of the fox as I didn't want to alarm her.  The biking felt so good but I was drenched in sweat by the time I returned home.  The blessing, besides the sunny ride, is that the central AC quickly cooled me down and I enjoyed some breakfast and a shower in the quiet house.

Courtney's Cake!

Courtney and Claire
11 July

• BIRTHDAY BONFIRE!  Yesterday was my oldest daughter's birthday (Courtney).  She turned 20! I can't believe it's been 20 years since I first gave birth.  She wanted her dad's homemade pizza for dinner so he cooked, and I baked her the chocolate cake she wanted.  Then we made our first bonfire of the summer.  The blessing is that the humidity broke around 9 a.m. and it was a gorgeous, perfect summer day!!  She has had quite the charmed birthday weather over the last 20 years. It has only rained ONCE on her birthday and that was in 1996 when she turned 3. (I have kept a journal!)  I think she had a great day!! (and a bonus for her is that she wasn't scheduled to work!)

photo courtesy of offtothefilms.com

• BACKWARDS! Wednesday evening after Claire's ballet class, she and I decided, since it was too humid to play badminton, to watch a Netflix movie. We chose this movie about a rower who trained for the Olympics but didn't make the final team...and what her life was like after that.  It was part romance, part drama and it was very family-friendly!  We really enjoyed it and highly recommend it.  The blessing is that we had that time together.

Saratoga Performing Arts Center
at Saratoga Spa State Park
view of the lawn and upper balcony

Ballet dancers with the NYCBallet at SPAC 2013
Photo courtesy of Albany Times Union

• BALLET!  "Dancing is music made visible" ~George Balanchine(1904-1983, Russian choreographer and co-founder of the New York City Ballet; also known as the father of American ballet)

That's one of my favorite quotes about ballet and music by one of the world's leading choreographers.   The New York City Ballet is here for the week at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center in the Saratoga Spa State Park, just 20 minutes north of us.  Since Claire and I have a lawn ticket for her and one adult until she turns 18, we go often. The ticket is good for any ballet or classical concert.  We went to Opening Night on Tuesday and although it was a very humid and hot evening, it was wonderful to watch the 5 ballets.  We are going again tonite.  Sadly, the NYCBallet is only here for this one week this summer!  But...next week the Royal Canadian Ballet will be at SPAC and we have amphitheater tickets (lower level) to see Giselle!  We've never seen that particular ballet so we are really looking forward to it. I splurge on center seats once a summer.  For the rest of the performances, we will be on the lawn. For those of you unfamiliar with SPAC, click here.  Claire really watches these ballerinas and I love watching her expression........the NYCBallet is truly the greatest ballet company in the world...we are blessed to be able to see them!

I hope you have had some relaxing moments in your week as well and can find five faves.  Today is my spiritual birthday and as I look back over the years since first accepting Jesus as Savior in 1975 at age 15, I have realized that every single day God grants to us has some kind of blessing in it.

  Link up with Susanne from Living to Tell the Story to share yours!

HAPPY WEEKEND!

Update on my dad's flood:  the water is out of his basement. His car did end up being totaled so he has a loaner right now while insurance figures out what he can get towards a new one.  He now has hot water again, thanks to a new hot water tank. Last Friday while we were there cleaning the basement from all the mud, the National Guard was on his street hauling away the large dumpsters and the Salvation Army gave us some much needed cleaning supplies.  Dad needs a new washer and dryer and he'll need a new furnace. Also, his church family showed up one day last week and cleaned up his yard fairly well. He lost the entire backyard but some of the flowers were saved.  We are thankful that things are looking up and that people have helped him out when we can't be there.  That is a huge blessing!