A City Life For Me

Yesterday the kids and I went to Manhattan to help distribute some Gospel booklets.  This was Mission NYC, an evangelistic push “hosted” by Operation: Revival USA.   I didn’t feel as if I “covered my area” very well because I was constantly stopping to help the kids or fix the kids or catch the kids or…you get the point.  But we did distribute a big bag of John/Romans booklets, so it’s up to God to use His Word in the hearts of others. We took a break near the Art Museum.  Here is Nolan, Jill Lucena, Elaine, and Havilah.  Hava has one of the booklets which we were distributing. Elaine and Hava…being Elaine & Hava! Afterward we had lunch and went to the Central Park Zoo to let the kids work off some energy and get out of the stroller a little bit.  It was a fun afternoon, not too hot, and worth the trip! Giant bouncy spider’s web. He gave up, laid down, and enjoyed being bounced by everyone else! Nolan L.O.V.E.D. th...

    {i l.o.v.e. this picture!}

{click to enlarge}

So I guess I haven’t been on here much lately.  I just realized that I missed Wordless Wednesday last week!  Wow!  But I’m back.  Here’s what I’ve been up to…I have a new “hobby!”  A while back there was a guest post on my friend Nicole’s blog about herbs.  I was astonished at the author’s claims to healthiness resulting from using herbal remedies.  I was intrigued enough to ask some questions and start researching.  I watched YouTube videos.  I read articles on BulkHerbStore.com.   I purchased a used book at Amazon.  I checked out books at the library. Finally I decided that I wanted to give it a try myself.  I went to our local Farmer’s Market and purchased a few bundles of herbs to dry, still not exactly sure what I would do with them.  I also bought a mint plant.  I should tell you that I definitely do NOT have a green thumb, and I have killed every plant I ever owned except one hardy African Violet.  But...

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then Nolan heaped the flattery on Daddy yesterday.  I was working on dinner in the kitchen when Nolan came sauntering in, carrying his little tool box with him.  At each object or piece of furniture he would pause, set down his little box, and then take out a tool.  Usually he reached for the hammer.  He would give a little bang-bang and then keep moving, “fixing” everything as he went.  It was so cute to see him being so boyish, so much like Daddy!

For a while now I haven’t purchased replacement dusters for my Swiffer Duster.  I love how they work, but I’ve been trying to cut costs.  I have been using old microfiber diaper inserts to trap the dust in my house…on those rare occasions when I actually dust…which is usually when we are having company.  When I saw a tutorial on Pinterest for DIY Swiffer Dusters from Sew Much Ado , I immediately pulled out the sewing machine & fabric scraps to get started.  Well, not quite immediately , but as soon as breakfast was almost over. They were very easy to make, and I just used old receiving blankets that had been placed into the “upcycle” fabric bag.  I wasn’t very exact in my measurements or neat in my cutting…they are just dusters!  I sewed up 3 of them during a small portion of the kids’ naptime {like after I made cream of chicken soup, washed the dishes from all day, and made a pot of tea}.  The clipping took me longer than the actual sewing...

{click to enlarge} I came across the left picture in my archives recently.  I actually thought it was misfiled… Why is this picture of Nolan in Elaine’s file?   They look rather alike at that age!

{Nap time with extra toys…been getting out of bed, little girl?} {Beach party at Miss Jeanne’s house} {Elaine put her baby in Nolan’s basketball hoop} {Hooray for New Jersey – they have a Chick-fil-A!  It was worth every minute in line and every bit of the $20 we spent!}