Another November week has come and gone so quickly and we here in the States are fast approaching the "holiday season" beginning Thursday with Thanksgiving. Let's pause, share FIVE of our FAVE blessings that came our way this week and link up together at Susanne's blog.
- DATE DAY WITH DAVE: Since Dave had last Friday off for the Veterans Day holiday, we decided to get chores done around the house in the morning and then headed up to Saratoga to do some Christmas shopping for our oldest daughter at one of her fave bookstores. After that, we used a gift card my sister Joy gave us for this fave place we hadn't been to in a couple of years. Lunch was so good! Then we took a walk on part of the Nature Trail at our very fave state park before heading home. I'm thankful we both enjoyed the day and we agreed we need more days like it. Super spontaneous and fun.
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| Moreau Lake State Park scene from the nature trail looking south |
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| The far side of Moreau Lake where beavers are active |
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| Moreau Lake/Beach...we were the only ones walking the beach! |
- MISSIONARY DINNER: Saturday evening, Dave and I went to our Missions Team Dinner that the missions directors from our church were putting on for the people who went to Guatemala last March (Dave) or Peru a few weeks ago. It was also for anyone interested in the Missions Team. Sadly, there were only about 25 people there. I went as I wanted to meet Sarah, the missionary we help to support financially and with whom our church has a partnership with down in Guatemala. Dave has now been down there 4 times and will go again in 2024. It was so wonderful to meet Sarah (originally from VA and who heard the Lord telling her to be a missionary at the age of 10 yrs old!...she married in her 30s and her husband is Guatemalan). We also got to meet her two sons, Corbin and Cohen. Dave has helped Corbin with computer tech stuff among other things. I'm so thankful we got to eat delicious food catered from this place, and hear Sarah speak and present a slide show of her work with the children and families of Guatemala City. We learned that Guatemala has the 2nd worse public schools in the world, just behind Haiti which has the worst. Sarah and her team help feed a hot lunch to about 127 children several times a week, provide tutoring for school, supplies, and sometimes medical aid, among other things. I'm so thankful our church is a part of this organization known in English as CrossCulture Jesus.
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| Centerpieces at each square table in our church's cafe area where the dinner was held |
- CANAL PATH WALK: Monday was a crisp, cold, perfect Autumn day: blue skies, sunshine (which later turned to grey skies in the mid-afternoon, but it stayed dry!), and temps in the low 40s. Perfect for a brisk power walk along the Mohawk River/Erie Canal. I decided to walk west from the town line for 1 mile then turn around and walk back to the car. There were many people on the trail: young moms pushing strollers, men running, women walking, and one guy went past me on a racing bike. For part of it, I walked more like a slow jog to get my heart rate up and it was a really good feeling because I had no neck or head pain! Glory to God! I'm thankful for beautiful places to walk and this pathway is actually part of the one that goes clear across the state from Albany to Buffalo. Here are 4 of my fave photos from that walk:
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| Heading west along the Erie Canal pathway town of Niskayuna |
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| Color is still fairly vibrant along the canal |
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| this tree has finally said so long to its leaves |
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| The Erie Canal with the Mohawk River behind it this is the piece where it splits |
- CHOIR REHEARSAL! Sunday afternoon from 1-3:30 pm we had our first rehearsal for the Christmas Eve Choir. We will have rehearsals every Sunday from now until Christmas Eve. We will also have a recording session and a Dress Rehearsal. It's a huge commitment. Our worship arts director, who is a paid staff member of our church and main worship leader, had a vision of having a 40 person choir. Not many people auditioned so there are only 29 of us. Most of us were in it last year. Our oldest daughter decided to audition and got in; we all agreed it was a fun time of rehearsing and singing in harmony. The actual choir leader is a young girl who is a graduate of Houghton College (western NY and one I got accepted into although I chose a different college for my undergrad music degree) and who is also a vocal music teacher here in our school district. She is a vibrant Christian and an excellent musician and it's going to be just wonderful under her direction. I'm so thankful to be a part of this choir.
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| One of the songs we will be performing although ours is a more contemporary version |
- MORNING SUNSHINE: We have had some wonderful mornings of beautfiful sunshine and a bit of frost on the ground. Not a super hard frost yet but pretty all the same. The days have been warmer this week although a cold spell is coming up. It's been dry, many of the leaves are still in good color and haven't fallen yet and it's just so beautiful what God has created. I'm thankful for the morning sunshine coming in through my family room deck door while I sip that first steaming mug of coffee. Here is a pic of the farm across the road from us which I took on one of my walks this past week.
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| Cherry Hill Farm and the mountains of Vermont in the background This is on my power walk route and across the road from our neighborhood we live about 45 min west of Vermont |
Those are just some of the blessings from the past week.
What about you? I see from my Stat Counter that I get lots of viewers(and many from my area!) ....how about sharing a blessing in the comment section if you don't have a blog to write up a FFF? Would love to hear from you!
HAPPY WEEKEND!
9 comments:
Your date day sounds fun! How neat to meet the missionary your husband has been working with on his missions trips. The choir sounds fun. I'm glad the weather has been nice and the trees are still holing on to their leaves. We have some bare trees but some still with color.
Sometimes spontaneous days can be better than those you've planned for ages. Glad you had a nice day with Dave and that you got some walking done without being in pain. Well done on being part of the choir. 29 sounds like a big group to co-ordinate but it sounds like it's all very organised. It must have been nice to connect with Sarah in person and hear first hand what's happening in Guatemala. Have a good weekend.
You have had a great week! I always love seeing the photos of where you are walking and hiking. And yay on no headache!!
I so miss singing in a choir. In early December our town is having a choral walk--we will walk to various churches downtown and listen to choirs sing. I can't wait!
Have a happy weekend!
Hi Faith. I love all of the things in this post. I hope to watch your church Christmas Eve service again this year and hear your choir. It was excellent last year. Your day date with Dave sounds fun. Charly and I enjoy doing similar kinds of things on the weekends. So glad you were able to do some walking and hiking headache free this week! The mission organization your church is part of sounds like one that does a lot of good. They are a blessing to so many. I hope you have a good weekend. See you again soon!
Oh those all sound wonderful. That's some of my favourite walking weather. My husband and I got to spend some unexpected time together this week as well and it was a treat. My oldest daughter, Hannah, has started a tradition where we get together at her house on winter solstice and we give one another either a hand made gift or a second hand book. I already have a few picked out.
That canal path walk has such pretty scenes, you have a nice place to walk. Our church supports missionaries too, they do such important work. One of my all time favorite books is God's Smuggler by Brother Andrew, an exciting book to read as he smuggled Bibles in to countries.
Great blog
The fall pictures of the lake are gorgeous! How fun to have a day and Christmas shop and enjoy a lunch out!! I love that there was a supper with the actual missionary you support there to talk and get to know. The choir does sound like a big commitment but also like it's a lot of fun and how special to have Courtney in too.
Hi Faith, I love traditional choirs! I sang in Jr high choir and in my church choir. Our church doesn't have choir. They have a praise band and my granddaughter sings and plays keyboard. She is also learning guitar now. I started Bible journaling by tracing pictures and using good color pencils. www.illustratedfaith.com has digital sets and a physical shop too. You can also find Christian graphics on Etsy. Lots of samples on Pinterest too! There is a link at my blog on the top that says illustrating my faith that has more of my pictures. Enjoy your week!
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