| Good morning! After a week of 30C (86F) humid winter days, this morning we awoke to clear skies and a cold nose. How lovely to feel the temperature drop a little. Here in the tropics where you wait nine hot months for winter to arrive, you expect it to be cool when it does. I am praying things stay cool until spring for even though it's not actually cold as many of you would consider winter to be, it's cool enough that we are both refreshed and rested before the onset of spring and the hot, wet, humid days return. On the blog these past two weeks I've written about rhythms, the garden, small treats, a day with my granddaughters, what it means to bless your home, and shared a free pattern as well... | Look after yourself too... Doing what we can for others is very important, but it's also wise to look after yourself and as this is something my husband asks me to do every day, I decided to follow his advice. (read more...) | A day with my girls... Blossom and her family had finally recovered from dreadful lingering head colds, and her little girls were in need of a day of adventure after going cabin-crazy for almost three weeks, so I gathered them up and away we went! (read more...) | How do we bless our home? Yesterday I shared an updated version of my free pattern "Bless Our Home", plus a tutorial to finish the stitchery as a mini-quilt. I also wrote about the deeper aspects of what it means to bless a home. (read more and get the pattern...) | Homemaker Reflections... More and more the Father draws my attention to the simple things, the humble things, the quiet things. I seek out those who look upon homemaking as a noble calling, yet not just look upon it that way, but live it out, day by day, even when no-one is watching. There’s a lot of influencers on social media today, and many appear to have a good message, but I’m learning to wait, to watch, to listen with Biblical ears, in order to see just how true and good the fruit of their life will appear over time. | Friends, find joy in what is right, seek the Lord in all circumstances, and listen to His still small voice above all. It's not what others say or do to influence your life that matters, it's what YOU (and I) say and do, and in turn, how you (and I) display Jesus to our family and to the world. | Let's Stitch Again in July... I've chosen a variety of different patterns for the July set of designs, and plan to complete one as a bonus project for your home. If you're a Let's Stitch Again club member you will automatically receive the bonus project on July 1st. If you're not, but would love to join my 12-month stitchery club then you're most welcome to do so! GO HERE to find out about Let's Stitch Again. The patterns for July feature something for the bookworm, another for the dreamer, and a bit of inspiration for those who aren't really morning people (like my hubby)... | And don't forget, all new members receive a gorgeous gift pattern within 24 hours of joining (see below)... Want to join or find out more? Pop over HERE. | How to receive my blog posts after the cancellation of Feedburner... Before I sign off, a quick reminder that as of July, Google will not longer be forwarding my blog posts to your email address, so for those of you who depend on those emails to keep up with my blog posts and freebies, I have two options you can choose from. Option One - you could follow me HERE on Bloglovin' and check there every few days to see what posts have been added. Option Two - this one is best if you prefer to read my posts via email. Add your email address to the new pink box I've added to my blog sidebar. Once you've done that a confirmation email from follow.it will be sent to you. Click on the link in that email and then you're all set to receive my blog posts again. | Next week I'll be working on the next issue of The Homemakers Heart magazine so I may not blog until that's done, but you never know. If I have something encouraging to share then my fingers will tap across the keyboard and the camera will look for pretty photos, and a blog post will appear. I never know what or when the Father will place something in my heart to write about, but it gladdens me when He does. "Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way. The Lord be with you all." 2 Thessalonians 3:16 Till next time, hugs and blessings | | |