Blackberry.

Our blackberry bush is getting large... I love the ripe black berries.

 We also got some strawberries, sweet and fragrant...

If you want to find out all the good vitamins that are in blackberries, see here.....
and here is another link that will tell you how good these black berries are for us, see here

Prickly life.

Life can be prickly sometimes. Like a desert prickly cactus. Since they grow in the hot, waterless places, they have long deep roots to be able to reach the deep water underground. I believe this is one of the Joshua Trees, that we passed driving in hot, windy Arizona. Sometime we walk through death of a loved one in our life, but there is always life around a corner.

When life is prickly, windy and dry... don't worry, there is always hope, an oasis of green, peace and water in the near future, where our feet can find rest and refreshment.

Blue.

I count my blessings when my heart feels sad.... there is so much beauty, so much sweetness around me, but I am sad that I have to go back to work after my maternity leave has ended. My little one is used to fall asleep as he nurses, his little chubby fingers holding on to my shirt. I would rather stay home and be a homemaker, then a full time employee at a large company. But I have hope that One day my husband will have a good job, and I will stay home with my little ones. Its a simple hope, and while we live we always can hope. Hope, imagine it in your future, keep positive, and it will happen. We live by faith and not by facts. God does amazing things even now. My sadness is nothing compared to some families I read about. My heart and prayer goes to this family: http://prayforian.com/

Is it June already?

Wow, June came fast this year. Well this whole year is going super fast. We went to visit my parents on a long road trip all the way to MO. It was nice to see my family, my parents, their new house that they built almost by themselves. On our way back we stopped at the CA ocean, which was nice to relax before we returned to our every day life. Here was a picture of almost all of us together. My parents have 11 grand kids so far!

My girls loved playing with the white puppy.

Seeing the chickens, the ducks and collecting the eggs was an exciting thing for us city folks..:)

Some of the girl cousins sitting together, enjoying ice cream.

All together it was a good trip, and we plan to see all the family again in the near future...:)

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.