“Book Nook” in progress . . .
“Oh for a book and a shady nook, either in door or out.” ~John WilsonOur house is getting pretty squared-away, and I’m really excited about finishing a little project this week. When
we were looking for a home, we were happy to find a house with a “FROG” (finished room over the garage – funny, huh?)Anyway, it’s going to be a great room to use as a study for Eric, guest room, play room, homework area, and future kids’ room if we have any more children. It’s large and has a great view of our neighbor’s beautiful backyard. The one strange thing about the room we noticed, however, was this one partition that seemed to just “jut” up from the floor along the wall of the stairs. We discovered that it had to do this so the stairs and the door down into the garage would align properly. That’s fine, but I wondered, “What am I going to do with that big chunk of sheetrock just sticking out of the wall?” It’s too small to make into a bed, too high to put furniture on top, and not practical for much of anything. I just decided I would wait and do something with it later.
Well, today a light went on, and I got really excited (and forced Eric to be excited, too). I said, “Honey, I know this is going to be the one project in this house that you are going to get thrilled about because it involves BOOKS!” hahaha I reeled him in with his weakness. Just kidding 
But he really was happy about the idea, too. I decided to make it something that our whole family would love – a homemade “book nook.” Like most kids, ours love to read (Steven just started bringing books to us this past week and sitting in our laps for long periods of time)! I thought a little book nook (like a giant ottoman) would make this room even more fun for the kids, especially when our friends and family come, and it would be an inexpensive experiment for Eric and me.So, here’s the plan (see the highly professional diagram here): covered foam, pillows, painted wood cut-outs, and a built-in bookcase along the wall. I went ahead tonight and scrounged around at the crafts stores, and I found everything I needed (minus the bookcase) for pretty cheap! (Hancock’s is having a huge 40-70% off sale nationwide I believe for anyone interested.) The foam passed my husband’s c
omfort test, and I was really excited to see that everything coordinates with the bed, too. By the way, the walls will be painted a light rust or light olive green color, thanks to a couple of Lowe’s gift cards So hopefully by next week we’ll have it finished, and we can enjoy our little “book nook” as a family together.Right now you have to really use your imagination (I haven’t even sewn the fabric together, so it’s just hanging down over the foam), but just for fun, I’m posting before, during, and after photos. I know, there are much more important things going on in the world right now than my book nook project…. but I know this little addition to our home will open a world of imagination and memories together. Anyone have any more ideas for this little nook?Here are some of the quotes (thanks, quote garden) that I’m considering for the wall:
A book is like a garden carried in the pocket. ~Chinese Proverb
The love of learning, the sequestered nooks,And all the sweet serenity of books.~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
TV. If kids are entertained by two letters, imagine the fun they’ll have with twenty-six. Open your child’s imagination. Open a book. ~Author Unknown
A house without books is like a room without windows. ~Heinrich Mann
Far more seemly were it for thee to have thy study full of books, than thy purse full of money. ~John Lyly
Books – the best antidote against the marsh-gas of boredom and vacuity. ~George Steiner
That is a good book which is opened with expectation and closed with profit. ~Amos Bronson Alcott
Let your bookcases and your shelves be your gardens and your pleasure-grounds. Pluck the fruit that grows therein, gather the roses, the spices, and the myrrh. ~Judah Ibn Tibbon
Comments / Suggestions welcomed as always! I’m not too confident in my sewing / crafting skills although I am getting better, so any tips for glueing / tacking / sewing upholstery fabric to surfaces would be appreciated!
(Update: photos of finished “book nook” here)
"Give all diligence . . . "
I just have to share this morning devotion with you today!
Click here for the full reading. Here is an excerpt:
Add to this, by God’s Holy Spirit, patience; ask him to give thee that patience which endureth affliction, which, when it is tried, shall come forth as gold. Array yourself with patience, that you may not murmur nor be depressed in your afflictions. When that grace is won look to godliness. Godliness is something more than religion. Make God’s glory your object in life; live in his sight; dwell close to him; seek for fellowship with him; and thou hast “godliness”; and to that add brotherly love . . . “Give diligence,” if you would get assurance, for lukewarmness and doubting very naturally go hand in hand. — C.H. Spurgeon, Morning and Evening
I know it may seem a trivial application, but to me, these words are like rods of iron, strengthening my very soul! “Get diligence . . . add patience . . . look to godliness . . .
when the world outside my home seems to spin in oblivious chaos
when the world inside my home seems to spin in oblivious chaos!
when Lydia is whining for no obvious reason
when Steven’s energy overtakes mine
when I’m up to a problem that I just can’t solve
when my brain is racing and muscles are tired
when I long for more time with God
when I don’t long for more time with God
when I long for more time with my husband
when I want to serve others but feel inadequate
when I’m tempted to judge another
when I think of wars, rumors of wars, and fears and doubts about our world
when I think of “me first” instead of anyone else
I am so glad that adding diligence leads me to the Cross!
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Here is a small album of recent photos – our last days in FL, our first days here in our house and with our family. Our families have come the last couple of weekends to visit and have been really helpful with the kids, unpacking more things, and helping us get settled. Lydia and Steven are adjusting to a new place more and more each day, and Lydia is getting really excited about the new baby coming soon. She talks to the baby every day at least two or three times, and I think she is going to be a really great big sister (as long as the baby doesn’t take up too much of mommy and daddy’s time)!
We really love our new church family, and Eric and I keep saying to each other how thankful we are to be serving here. We miss our former congregation in many ways, yet we really see how God’s loving hand brought us here. Eric is in awe of all that God is doing and how he can be part of it as a staff member. I have started to play my trumpet again, which I really have been wanting to do for a while. I’ll just say that hopefully I will get a lot better over the next several months and be able to make a “nice” joyful noise unto the Lord – they haven’t kicked me out yet! We also really like our home and neighborhood. We feel as though God hand-picked it for us in this season of our lives. One of our favorite parts is by far the backyard, but we probably won’t enjoy it
as much until it cools off some and the misquitos go away; everyone in our family but Eric is a MAGNET for those bugs! So we are enjoying the inside of the house much more right now. We are so thankful and excited about all the memories to come. I just passed the 30-week mark for this pregnancy, and I feel so big! I think I’m just doing so much bending over with two little children that I feel like a whale . . . well, you can decide for yourself after checking out my 30-week picture! haha I am really thankful for my whale-state, however, and I’m getting really excited about this baby coming. Eric and I have decided on baby names, but like the gender, the name will have to wait and be a surprise! Boy or Girl, we can’t wait to meet this beautiful baby in God’s time. I know it’s going to be really hard at first, but I think having two very young kids was such a big adjustment for me (as far as getting rest, cooking, chores, dividing my time between them, etc.) that it may not seem to be much different! We will see . . . we are getting very excited.
Straw for the Dunghill
I thought I would share the second portion of my devotion from Spurgeon this morning with you after I preface with some thoughts . . . Some times as Christians we look at the world within us (our sin) and the world around us (evil of man), and we are terrified. The boast of the snake’s tongue sends a chill down our spiritual spines, and we wonder, “What’s next? What else is going to fall apart?” I thought about this last night on my date with Eric (yum, yum) as we were walking out of a restaurant; who knows why I was having this thought because it seemed to come out of nowhere . . . “some people always find something to worry about or something to complain about . . . ” It’s as though they live their life, though they are children of God, under a perpetual rain cloud, and nothing will cheer or strengthen them.
I don’t want to be one of those people. Why should we be afraid? God has TRIUMPHED over sin, hell, and death! The enemy pretends like this hasn’t happened, but we know the truth. We are guaranteed to suffer by our Lord and Savior, and things may look grim, but we must look to the end, not the middle. As a young wife and mom, this means for me BOLDNESS, FAITH, and JOY as I try to train children, submit to my husband, and work heartily unto my God. Every battle is in his hands, and as Spurgeon says, our enemies are just “straw for the dunghill…”
–
We know their weakness. What are they but men? And what is man but a worm? They roar and swell like waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame. When the Lord ariseth, they shall fly as chaff before the wind, and be consumed as crackling thorns. Their utter powerlessness to do damage to the cause of God and his truth, may make the weakest soldiers in Zion’s ranks laugh them to scorn.
Above all, we know that the Most High is with us, and when he dresses himself in arms, where are his enemies? If he cometh forth from his place, the potsherds of the earth will not long contend with their Maker. His rod of iron shall dash them in pieces like a potter’svessel, and their very remembrance shall perish from the earth. Away, then, all fears, the kingdom is safe in the King’s hands. Let us shout for joy, for the Lord reigneth, and his foes shall be as straw for the dunghill. — Spurgeon; Morning and Evening
Priorities
There are a million ways to lose a work day, but not even a single way to get one back. ~Tom DeMarco and Timothy Lister
I tend to disagree with people who belittle the occupation of home-maker. The job requires a lot of energy, patience, organization, sweat, intelligence, sacrifice, and self-discipline to be done well. I spent most of my kids’ naptime today evaluating a master to-do list on my computer. Since I spent the first 8 hours of this day doing laundry, making meals, feeding meals to hungry mouths, wiping noses, changing diapers, reading, answering phone calls and trying to entertain two noisy children at the same time, silencing quarrels, praying, playing on the floor, rolling around giggling and dancing, and training in matters of the heart, I quickly became exhausted looking at my to-do list and found myself feeling quite drained as I simply read the words on the paper. I felt like I was staring at a golden calf who was threatening to eat up all my freedom and usefulness.
I decided that instead of working on something from my list, I would make a new to-do list to work on for the next several weeks. I have been convicted so much lately by the Lord; I have felt his presence so near to me, and his sweet voice has condescended to my heart as I think of him and talk to him throughout my days in this new place.
I have thought of vivid commands from my Lord and Master: “Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” “Feed my sheep.” “You are the salt of the earth….” “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
So, as I read some of the words this afternoon on my list such as:
- work on budget for August and September
- finish Christmas plans / shopping (I have to be early this year because I will have a newborn that will require most of my energy for a good 2-3 months!)
- put up dining room light fixture (sounds silly, but I can’t have
people over to eat in our home with no light in there) - curtains / doors in Lydia’s closet (her room was used for sewing before, so the kids are pulling all the toys down off the closet shelves all at once; we need to get some covering over the doors to eliminate a massive mess every time they play in her room)
- inventory the kids’ clothes and change out old sizes for new ones
- make menus for the next 3 weeks
- start upacking boxes from the garage, hanging up pictures in the house (haven’t even started that yet) . . . etc, etc.
I thought to myself, “I think I need to make a new list for the next several weeks.” Here are some of the things God led me to write on it:
- Make myself stop and take at least a 20-minute nap in the afternoon (after all, there is a 5 pound person growing inside of me!)
- Take the kids on a walk at least twice a week
- Make sure Eric has lunch to take with him when he needs it for work
- Smile every time I see the kids
- Smile when I see Eric, and give him a hug and kiss
- Tell that person on the phone that I need to go if my kids need me
- Pray before a disaster happens in the house
- Pray for my neighbors and take the kids over to see them at least twice a week
- Invite my neighbors over for dinner, and don’t apologize about the low-lighting or the laundry on the couch
- Slow down, and talk to the baby inside my womb, and pray God’s blessings over him/her
- Cuddle up with Lydia in her bed and read a book instead of telling her, “We’ll read when you wake up.”
- Take that person up on their offer to keep our kids so we can go out for dinner
- Make Sunday a priority, so it will be truly restful and worshipful
- Every time I want to do a project in the house, think of my family and if there is anything they need or if I should check on them first
- Read the Bible to my kids after meals at the table instead of wisking them away to play as I clean up the dishes
- Trust my Savior for everything that I can’t do and only He can!
Ah…. liberty!
Does faith look like insanity to you?
I ask this because I just got a funny and scary email tonight. I haven’t been online in a few days because we have had family visiting, and I checked my mail tonight and immediately chuckled and forwarded the message to my husband.
“Can you and Eric sing in our wedding next May?”
A friend of ours asked if we could do the music for his wedding ceremony. Of course we are honored, and we have said “yes” to anyone who has ever asked us to sing. Maybe that’s the problem. (just kidding) In the last 4 years we have sung for several weddings; 3 1/2 years ago we sang in one, and that night we went home and took a test to find out I was expecting Lydia. Nine months later Lydia was born, and nine months afterwards we sang in another wedding (Emily’s actually). That night we again discovered that a baby was on the way. We were asked to sing in another wedding again when Steven was 9 months old, which was this past January. Even though I got really sick and couldn’t do it that time, you guessed it – that’s when we found out baby number three was coming! What is it about us singing in weddings, going to receptions, and taking pregnancy tests?
So, our baby will be 8 months old in May. We told him, “Yes.” I know, it’s insanity. Anyone else getting married then?
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