Week 43

 Day 296

I loathe staining the deck with my every being. After the hail storm in June, we had to sand it all down first and then restain it. In hindsight, a much smaller deck would have been a better choice when we redid it several years ago. Who needs a deck this big anyway????? We are getting much too old to do such large projects.

Day 297

If you haven't stopped by the Joyhouse inside Evangel church in Bismarck, it is worth a stop. Whether you go on a Sunday and attend church or you stop during the week, there is a sense of peace and calm when sitting by the fire. I would highly recommend! 

Day 298 

There are some books that are just ok and this was one of them. It was actually really good up until the last quarter of the book. It got a little weird and hard to follow. Although it wasn't one of my favorites, I still enjoy downtime to sit and do nothing but become immersed in a fictional world. One positive of this book is the author's description of events or actions in a way that made me feel as if I was the main character, Thursday.

Day 299

Oh, did this resonate with me! Although I know an opinion is just an opinion, I still reflect on the words. I never want to assume I have it all figured out and that I can't learn from others.

What takes practice is discerning the value of their words and whether or not I should consider them.

I do know that I must rely more on God for his guidance rather than my own. I am impatient and feel the need to make sense of others' actions/words immediately. God does not work on my timeline but on His. The answer may not come quickly or outwardly obvious (those are the most difficult ones). 

As the final sentence reads, never let someone take your joy. Your joy is only yours and can only be removed by you.

Day 300

Ireland and Jack had Baby Abfalter's full body scan ultrasound. It was good to hear that everything appears to be well and functioning as expected. They couldn't get a good picture of the baby's heart; however, with Ireland's congenital condition, they are doing an echocardiogram of the baby's heart sometime in November. It is amazing the technology that makes this possible. When I had Ireland, Dickinson didn't have the technology to conduct an echo on such a small baby and she had to be transported to Bismarck for the test. Now, they can do that test in utero before the baby is born. 

It just gets more and more exciting as baby A continues to grow and develop. March cannot come soon enough.

Day 301

Our school held our annual Souper Fundraiser sponsored by the PTO. We sold knoephla and chili curbside. Several students, staff members, and PTO members volunteer their time and help make this possible. The students greet vehicles, take their prepaid tickets, and then deliver their soup. 

This is my third year at Washington and this fundraiser has more than doubled in my time here. We had gallons upon gallons of knoephla along with five roasters of chili. It is one of my favorite events that the PTO sponsors. We look forward to what next year's event will bring.

Each 5-gallon bucket is full of knoephla soup. That is a whole lot of soup.

Day 302

We have had a lovely fall in North Dakota. When it is warm enough to go for a walk with just a long sleeve shirt, life is great. The longer we can hold on to these days, the shorter winter will become. 

Another added bonus is when the wind does not blow. As you can see from the photo, it was a calm and peaceful day to walk by the lake. 

The reflection....

The upper fifties temperature....

The crunch of the fallen leaves....

The chill in the air....

The sun shining.....

As October comes to an end, I relish in what we have been gifted because I can recall many Octobers where we had an abundance of snow and blizzard-like conditions.

🎃Happy Halloween to all of you Halloween lovers out there.🎃