You only have today to live.

Today is here, tomorrow is not here yet, while yesterday is gone already, and not coming back.

(a wild flower grew up in my back yard, a gift)

Live today to your fullest, enjoy your loved ones, enjoy nature, enjoy the smell of life, enjoy now.

Live your life so that when tomorrow comes you wont feel regret in how you lived today. Be kind to your husband, to your children, to your neighbor, even if you don't feel like it, smile.

Cultivate being thankful to God, to your husband, to your children, to others, even to yourself. We are truly rich in this time and age, so many people don't have what we have in abundance.

The benefits of gardening.

Its good to have a garden.
Its very healthy to grow your own vegies and fruit.
Its very educational for children to see that from a tiny seed they can grow a harvest.
Its good for the enviroment to grow vegies instead of just grass.
Its good for the soul to calm away anxiety, worry or stress.
Its good for the family, to dig in dirt, plant seeds, water the garden, colect the harvest, instead of watching tv.
It saves money, you dont have to visit the grocery aisle in your grocery store.
It gives your imagination a workout, when you get a LOT of zucchini, and dont know what to do with it. :)
It gives a good workout for your body as well and gives you an excuse to be outside in the fresh air, enjoying nature.

I am sure there are many other benefits of gardening which I cant remember at this moment, but you see its very good for you! :)

Monastery in the city.

Monastery (plural: monasteries) denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace(s) of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone. ~~~ Wikipedia.

My house is a monastery. It has rooms for prayer, rooms for communion, a chapel for reading the bible and worshiping God. A monastery is usually in a remote location, close to nature, far from the city and noise. My monastery is in the middle of a large, noisy city. Monks go into a monastery to separate themselves from this world, to be with nature, with themselves and God. While I don't believe in separating myself from the world, like from people, or moving into a remote location, but I do believe that we need to separate ourselves from how the world may act, look, or think.

..they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. ~~~ Luke 8:14

Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. ~~~ James 4:4



Lets not listen to what the world listens.Lets not talk like the world talks.
Lets not read what the world reads.
Lets not look like the world looks, or like what the world admires.
Lets not think like the world thinks.
Lets not act like the world acts, in marriage, with children or life.
Lets not teach our kids what the world teaches. Lets teach about kindness, about love, about charity, about family, about children, about God, about prayer, about holiness and purity.
Lets not be like the world, lets make our house a monastery for the Lord, where we can pray, sing, worship and invite others to join in.

How to make a baby stop crying.

I was holding my super cranky 2 month old in my arms, as he kept fussing, crying, flapping his arms and legs all over. The only way he would take his nap if I was breastfeeding him and rocking him to sleep, as soon as I scooted away to do other 'normal mom duties', he would wake up to fuss again. So I was holding him, trying to calm him down, when my 5 year old came up, and asked why he was crying. I told her that possibly his tummy was upset. So in childish faith, she puts her hand on his tummy and in her clear voice she tells him, “May the Lord heal your tummy! Don’t worry baby, Jesus will heal you soon.” To my surprise the little one stopped crying and soon enough he fell into a quiet sleep. I was amazed! Truly only a child’s faith can do that. Try it; it may work for you as well.

So if you want your baby to stop crying, pray to God, who hears every whisper, and He will help you.

~~~Call to me and I will answer you. Jer 33:3~~~

Anxiety among beauty.

Blackberry bushes grow in our yard. This year we have lots of pretty flowers on them, for a nice harvest come July! I love their beauty, don't you? Such gentleness among the thorns. Sometimes life is a bit on the prickly side, with many problems, many things that may keep us awake at night. But just like a pretty white flower among the thorny bush, there is always hope. Hope is in God alone. He is the one who can keep our life afloat, keep us going forward with strength and joy.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

A fruit basket in the yard.

Its amazing that we can grow our own vegetables, herbs and spices in our yard, and some of us are lucky enough to grow our own fruits as well.

 Last year we  planted some fruit trees, which is a nice addition. Here is our pear tree.

I love the early blooms I got to see this year, followed by lovely fruit.

Here is our lovely cherry tree. Flowers, and then tiny fruit.

Also we have a plum tree. A beautiful green fruit at this point, but probably will turn purple come summer... cant wait!

Its nice to grow our own fruit basket, I am sure it will be much tastier than from a grocery store. Do you have any fruit trees growing in your yard?