Day 31/365

As the snow slowly begins to accumulate we are cozy in our humble homestead enjoying our fire. With Matt and I busy catching up laundry and tidying up a bit, it's  almost time to snuggle up to watch some TV while working on  projects to enter at the Will County Fair.
At the rate  the snow is currently  falling. I see little hope for being snowed in. There is a tiny tiny bit of hope on the horizon, though s we may have beautiful white-out conditions tomorrow afternoon. . . .
Please  pray with me for more snow and for it to snow really really  hard through Monday  noon . . !!!

Day 31/365

My day in pictures . . .
. . .
. . . .
Joy Dare ~ a gift on a paper, in a person, in a picture . . .
~ My newest list  . . .
~ Encouraging  words from friends . . .
~ Vision and greater understanding  . . .

Day 29/365

My day in pictures . . .

  . . .
Joy Dare
3 old things seen new~ relationships

Joy Dare

•• 27th~ 3 gifts in the kitchen . . . Fresh, hot coffee; view; home cooked supper
•• 28th~ 3 graces found in friends . . . Love; support; encouragement
•• 29th~ a song heard, a soft word, light seen . . . Beating of heart; quiet hello's; truth of situation and how to find hope

Day 29/365

My day in pictures  . . . .

My Head Covering Journey ~ Part 8

Good morning! Glad to see you again!!
I wanted to share with you a bit about my Christian head covering journey . . why I'm doing this and where I'm at. The reason for this journey is  simply a need to be obedient to my Lord. As any child I delight in pleasing my parent  . . and .  isn't our Heavenly  Father  the most  awesome parent  in the world?!?!?!
I think covering my hair is such a simple request, it's very difficult to explain away disobedience. And yet, I can be quite disobedient. I've gone quite  while now with no covering  . . . not even during public or private prayer. And I know my bad behavior hurts God's  heart.
On Saturday  evening  I sat on my bed contemplating my shelf of head coverings. All sorts of hats, snoods, scarves and bandanas sat congested on my shelf and mocked me. I had taken so much care to choose  styles and colors I liked then caved under pressure from criticism of those not directly responsible for my personal Biblical walk. I wimped out, plain and simple. No excuses and no one to blame but myself. A mix of continued bullying from several sources and a struggle to keep the coverings from slipping off my hair, keep my hair inside and deal with a covering while going through summer's he's exhaustion seemed to be more than I could take.
Now, knowing I don't need to cover my hair fulltime  until I remarry I am free to try different coverings and ways to anchor securely (without the use of Gorilla Glue!) without feeling compelled to wear it every time I step out of my home. This realization gives me a bit of a reprieve as i sort through my stash of coverings and try anchoring options.
This picture is the (hand knit by me) snood I wore yesterday. I received compliments and a request for me to make one for a sweet lady. Those reactions are helpful, as positivity always is.
I am also thinking about the need to cover during prayer and want to reread those Bible passages. I have an idea for a simple solution that will look like an adorable fashion statement (actually saw someone else had same idea too). I plan to work on prototypes soon and am excited to see others thinking along the same lines!!
This journey of obedience can be  difficult  as it's requiring me to step outside mainstream religion and truly follow Biblical  teachings. Most people don't seem to want to hear about a God who saves by grace then expects obedience. They want to be saved then do whatever they want. My attempts to be as obedient as possible cause way more stress than is necessary in the lives of those who don't even live with me. And their stress over my obedience causes taunting, bullying, rumors . . .  It does make my walk more difficult, but also blesses me as He rewards me for proceeding forward even in the face of such harsh opposition on account of following Him.
And so . . ?
I will continue with my head covering journey and studying to be pleasing to Him.
My faithfulness will be blessed.

Day 28/365

My day in pictures and an interesting  map I found on facebook.

Dead Sea Scrolls Bible . . .

"In the Beginning (Bereshit)"
34:1-7, 17-21, 30-31
35:1-9, 17-29

I do love this story and am still enjoying seeing the differences between this (very original) Bible and the portrayal on TV. . .  Once again Bible study  confirms that more study is always good.
It is reassuring to know that He protects us from the poor decisions of others. As I read of Jacob's life and how God moved him to another town when Jacob's sons' behavior made life in Shechem impossible.
As long as we are obedient, He will do the same for us too. He will keep us safe and fulfill  His  Devine Will in our lives.

Be Grateful Challenge * January 27, 2015

A peaceful morning . . . too comfy bed . .  fluffy comforters. . . . sweet boy . . honesty . . Snow ⛄!! Salvation and all the blessings that brings . . . Matt cleaning up . . . IEP today . .  laundry running . . . A job . . . . a vacation day and the possibilities it holds. . .  watching plans finally come together . . .  watching CNN and the storm  details  . . . pulling storefront together and getting a  clearer vision of where I'm headed. . . .  Aunt Mabel's potty all polished and a sweet dolly positioned . . .  an amazing IEP meeting and Matt's  hard work paying off so that he no longer needs services . . . the true blessing of this vacation day and all I've been  able to get  done . . . a warm fire . . . Miss Nannette's pinafore almost finished . . . Firewood hauled in by my sweet Matt . . . several chats with my Mom 💜 . . . watching ❄ Winter Storm Juno on TV 📺  off and on  all day  . . .  seeing huge amounts of hope for our future . . . more "me time" to sit at McDonald's and  work on my blog and watch interesting  people interact . . . A supper of veggie omelets  cooking 🍳 on the wood stove while Matt soaks in a hot bath . . . .
We are soooooooo blessed!!!!! 😇

Project for Will County Fair

As I quietly watch Ander Cooper 360 I'm  back to working on a project for the Will County Fair  . . I must admit I'm so excited about all my entries. Tonight I'm sewing dozens of pleats into a pretty pink pinafore. I want every stitch absolutely  perfect.
I really really want that rosette!!! Last year I was able to earn  blue ribbon for my upcycled dolly. That was totally too exciting!! I really enters figuring I probably wouldn't win any ribbons and was intending to use the experience to learn the ropes and get a good long look at which projects won which levels of prizes. Matt and I walked the fine arts building over and over foe hours taking so many pictures of projects entered, especially those winning prizes and those that were particularly  interesting /innovative.
This year we're not newbies and I fully intend to walk away with multiple ribbons and , hopefully, more than one rosette. Excellence is important and only my very best work may be entered. What I may think, today, is worthy may be surpassed next week by an even better item I create.  
Yes, I am competing with people from all over Will County, but, more than that, I'm competing with myself.
Excellence is Imperative!!!

Homestead Ramblings . . .

Good morning! You know, sometimes I just like to ramble and share random thoughts with you . . . For those days I love this "stream of conscious" writing style . . . I learned this at Fairmont West High School in 1982 and am still loving it!! 
I am setting up  quite quickly for a gift shop and coffee shop . . . Will provide hand made clothing (baby's to start) as well as dried herbs and gourmet jams and jellies . . . Want to be go-to shop and have community see me as a resource to be protected . . . .
Also looking at our  skills and what we still don't know  . . . .i would like to become proficient at hunting and trapping and hope to work on those skills over the next year . . . Sat at McDonald's, used "me time" and really looked at where I am  compared to  where I need to be. . . . All good 😃 that's a super nice feeling!! Now to fold all that laundry I had drying on the shower rod . . . .
Have a great evening!!!
⛄

Joy Dare - January 26, 2015

A gift before dawn, at noon, after dark . . .
- Peaceful warm house and knowledge He protects us through it all . . .
- Errand for work and watching the snow begin to fall . . .
- A break for "me time" to sit quietly at McDonald's  and look  over where I am compared to where I want to be . . . On Track!!!

Day 26/365

Snowy Joliet . . . 

300 N Pine St, Joliet, IL

300 N Pine St, Joliet, IL 60435

Snowing!!!

Day 25/365

Good morning  . . . It's always morning in our world as a fresh start is always possible!
How is your Sunday going? For us it is a day of rest and catch-up  . . . Rest because we are home and safe . . . And we are working hard to catch up laundry, dishes, hauling in firewood, as well as other numerous chores. . . We've done our obligatory newspaper run retrieving a Joliet Herald News as well as Chicago Sun Times . . . The Herald is cheaper, but the Times has amazing articles . . . . I continue to tape interesting articles to the bathroom walls so Matt will see this information  . . . .
Our fire's roaring and Matt's been great about hauling in wood, kindling and tinder so we'll be warm without  running the furnace!
Okay, time for me to check on laundry then bill paying . . .  then I need to try to finish Miss Nannette's pretty pink pinafore!!
Busy,
   Busy,
      Busy . . .

Me * Day 470

I walked 8177 steps . . .
81.77% . . .
Long day as my bones hurt despite the vitamin D therapy and I forgot my ibuprofen at home . . .
Still a decent workout, though!!
Sent from my T-Mobile Android device

Me ~*~ Day 470

I walked 4492 steps . . .
Paid workout us over for today . . .
Running around today, balancing books then running at warp speed toward a fiery wall .. .
Now for personal errands and time with my son . . .
I am blessed and looking ahead with my plans more fervently and with far more determination . .
Sent from my T-Mobile Android device

Redecorating . . .

A pretty picture from Grandma and Grandpa's farm is finally hung. She brings a feeling of home and family to our homestead as she ushers in memories of visits to the farm in Lockport, IL.
Sent from my T-Mobile Android device

Me °_° Day 469

I walked 10136 steps . . .
101.36%
A good day . . .
A busy day . . . .
So blessed!!!!
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Day 22/365

I've been watching the weather tree pretty closely lately and have not seen any signs of buds for new leaves . . . The weather is so odd now that spring could show up in January and not surprise me a bit.
I can tell you they three (3)fat happy squirrels sure are having fun playing tag in that tree .. . . As I watch I'm wondering if it's more retrieval of a stolen acorn then tag. . . . .
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