Lessons and a Sweet Outing...

If there is one very important aspect of living in a large family that I have learned along the way, it is that selfishness of any size or kind cannot be tolerated, and that self-pity in any form cannot be indulged...

Why is it then that the very thing you strive to do away with in your life, Satan uses to cause you to stumble and fall...?

~

Such have been my thoughts on this subject since that morning when, I confess, I allowed the seeds of discontentment to sprout and grow...

I praise Jesus that I have a forgiving family who love me very dearly, and after shedding a few tears and crying out to God for his mercy, I sent the Enemy on his way and enjoyed a very pleasant afternoon with my dear mother and sisters....

"Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."

2 Corinthians 7:1

 

As it so happened, my father had a course after work that afternoon, and we decided to accompany him and stop at an outdoor area where there was a coffee shop for us older ladies to enjoy and plenty of open space for the younger girls to burn off some energy whilst he was busy...

...Two of my very favourite things...coffee and a nursery!

Mom's lovely coffee...  Don't you just love the rich colour of this creme...?

 It seemed rather fitting to have hot chocolate as the weather was quite bleak with a slight nip in the air...

 I've never had a hot chocolate like this one before...frothy hot milk was served in a tall glass with a few pieces of milk chocolate on the side...  

The chocolate was stirred into the hot milk and melted to create a wonderfully enjoyable drink which was neither too rich nor too sweet...just perfect in my opinion!

Nancy decided to join me and have a lovely hot chocolate too!  What a delicious treat!

 Who wouldn't want to share with such a sweet little one as this...?

Oh, such preciousness!  The look on her face says it all, doesn't it...?

Special sisters and dear friends ~ Nancy and Beth

I thought these flowers so very pretty...there is something so delicate and attractive about small white flowers, isn't there...? 

"...See how the lillies of the field grow.  They do not labor or spin.  Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was not dressed like one of these."

Matthew 6:28

 

Dear me!  Can you relate to moments such as these, my friends?  Being three is never easy, is it?

Sisters pose under the pretty arbor for a few pictures...

Beth and Sofia

Just look how tall and grown up dear Beth is becoming!  

It truly warms my heart to see her so aware of her important role in our family...just this evening I had the blessing of hearing how she brushed Sofia's teeth for her, read her a story and then tucked her into bed like a regular mommy!  And such good practice too!  

I recall how I used to do precisily the same thing when I was ten years old and Beth was three...now that is a blessed thought indeed!!

 Rebekah and Beth

"All things bright and beautiful,

All creatures great and small,

All things wise and wonderful,

The Lord God made them all..."

I sometimes envy Nancy who takes her crochet work along with her wherever she goes!  

I must show you some of her lovely work some time...she attempted to teach me how to crochet last Saturday, but I think I may just stick to knitting:)

Did I mention there was a nursery...?  Mom bought this gorgeous lemon scented pelargonium to add to our little herb garden! 

What special memories were made on this Wednesday afternoon and I praise the wonderful Lord that I was able to capture this sweet outing with my camera...how we will treasure these photographs in the years to come! 

This beautiful, yet quite wild patch of nasturtiums and ferns reminds me of when I was a little girl and the days when Nancy and I would spend hours playing outdoors and only coming in for meals...being in nature gives one a splendid appetite, you know!  

We would play with our dolls among the plants and flowers and even incorperate the greenery into our game on occasion!  

 Such darling girls - Sofia, Rebekah, Gabrielle and Beth.       

 

 And I just had to get a photograph with my sisters!  

How they make me smile...laugh and shut my eyes and count to ten (or 100...) in frustration sometimes!  But oh!  I do love them all so much!

 They make life so rich and beautiful...  Chaotic, yes, but I wouldn't trade these precious sisterly relationships for anything in the world!      

~

"Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.  Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil."

Ephesians 6:10-11

Dear friends, be encouraged that the Lord loves us even when we are feeling low and unsure of the next step to take...  His heart overflows with love and mercy towards us, even when we fail, and that is a tremendous comfort, isn't it...?  

Blessings in the wonderful Lord!

~  Though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.  For weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself agaisnt the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.  2 Corinthians 10:3-5 ~