Writing on the Doorposts

Last week Steve and I decided to change out the chandelier in our oh so tiny 1st floor bathroom (I'm not kidding - It's more like the size of a locker than a powder room).  Like most of the cosmetic updates in this old house, it became a weekend warrior project.  

 The electrician had to cut some holes in the wall in order to run the wire up to the ceiling so the wall had to be repaired and re-painted.  Which meant that the sink had to be taken out so we could paint the entire wall.  

And that, somehow, meant that we needed a new faucet.  We also got a new toilet seat but that just isn't something photo-worthy. (We obviously can't be trusted in the hardware store unsupervised).

And because we are the kind of twisted people that apparently enjoy even more work, we took some inspiration from Rebecca and covered the walls in old book and Bible pages.   We used a universal wallpaper paste to adhere the pages and, so that they can be wiped down if needed, we applied three layers of clear coat on top.  Note: when I say "we", I mean Steve. He did a ton of work and totally deserves all the credit! 

My contribution was some ruffles and lace for the windows.

Oddly, adding the pages to the walls doesn't make the room look any smaller.

It turned out so beautiful that the kids are calling it the "hotel bathroom".  And on the plus side, it's a great place for kids to read Bible verses.  After all, they're a captive audience.  And the Bible says that we should take every opportunity to teach our children God's Word.  Almost sounds like we planned it this way.  Yeeeaaah, that's what I'm going to tell everyone anyhow.

And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up... You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Spoken For

 Happy Valentines Day!

I hope your day is filled with all things lovely.  Today is my oldest son's 21st birthday.  Some of you may remember that he had some very serious health issues in the last year. I'm delighted to tell you that he is doing very well!  We will be spending our Valentines together as a family, at his request.  Someday I may share more of that story but I'm still gathering some of the broken pieces of me.  God is healing us in beautiful ways.  He gave me this place to write and to heal, I know that.  But parts of the story aren't mine to tell to the entire world so while He weaves His beautiful threads, I'm recording my thoughts - pen to paper - privately.  

But here's a sweet little story... One day last week, while I was shopping at Sal's Boutique (Salvation Army), my youngest and oldest sons were making a Valentine gift for me.  It's hard to fathom but my 8 year old son didn't want to go junking with me :)  so he asked if he could go to his brother's work (It's our family welding shop so grand kids and siblings often stop in).   Apparently, one found heart shaped copper pieces and the other welded them together.   The younger one ran off to find another fun project or adventure.  The other... The sheepish smile and gentle "adult" hand that gave it to me, melted my heart.  

From the moment he was born I have said that he is my valentine but this last year, when I nearly lost him, I would weep with my husband at night when no one else was around - sobbing words... "This boy is heart of my heart".  I don' t know if I even knew what that meant but the Bible talks about "bone of my bone", "flesh of my flesh" and that's what I felt.
Like any mom can relate to, I love each of my children deeply, immeasurably.  But when one of them hurts, my attention turns to that one.  I ached for him... and because of him.  Deep, can't-figure-it-out, lost-to-it kind of aching.   When I say "heart of my heart" I know some of you moms know what I mean, even if it isn't a definable term.  And that copper heart represents something pretty miraculous that's unfolding.    

Maybe you've been feeling some "unfolding" lately too...  a pull to something you know is God, even if you don't want to admit it.  You are His "heart of my heart".  That one step you are contemplating, that proverbial step of faith, it is a blind step but if you have been waiting for something, some kind of sign... this is it.  Know that change can happen with God!  

Creative Moments

 Before we throw ourselves back into the routine of school, I thought I'd share a few of the creative moments that we've had around the Blessing Farmhouse this Summer - just in case you were wondering if we have done ANYthing besides  barn sales and flea markets (since that's all I seem to post about lately)...

 We've had paper garlands coming out of our ears!

 I think we have paper in one state or another on every surface.

Literally!

 And the kids have had creative moments of their own.

(please pardon the blurry pics - most of the pictures of the kids are taken with my phone, on the fly)

One son has spent every breathing moment working on his great love!   He practices with the team four days a week for 2 hours.  My mom-instinct says, "That's too much!  He's just 8".  But he loves every second of it and daddy is right there beside him, coaching.

He definitely considers "juking" an art form!

 I caught our middle son playing his new acoustic guitar on the park bench while Mr. Blessing and I were busy selling at the French Country Market.

 Although I don't care for it, he sees beauty in creating ramps and jumps and painting his "art" all over them!

No broken bones despite all the ramps - whew!

He surprised us one weekend by asking if his grandpa could baptism him in the pool.

(My dad is pastor and has church each week a different nursing homes around town)

Our oldest boy worked hard on re-building a motorcycle, taking many Saturdays to get his M-class license and managing his work schedule.  He stopped over last night as he was taking his first official ride after waiting all Summer. 

He might look a little aloof here but we've been through a lot this Summer.  He's grown, matured and I'm so proud of him!

Our daughter expresses art in everything that she does.  She spent weeks planning for her yard sale.  She made signs and created soda pop snow cones with her neighbor friend.   She went to camp each day for three weeks at one of  the local churches and created art and music and fun everyday.  She cried when the last day came.

And the big event for her was finally being able to get her ears pierced!  Now it's all about expressing her uniqueness with earrings.  =)

Each of them an artist in their own way.

Even though I'm not linking up to the French Inspiration party today, come on over to French Cupboard and check out all the loveliness

All my Eggs in One Basket

 I've never been one of those all-your-eggs-in-one-basket kind of girls.  I don't want to narrow my focus to one thing (ie: sewing, crafting, photography, restoring old things, etc).  I love the variety!  One day I want to sew.  The next day I want to refinish a cabinet.  I can't imagine waking up everyday to face the exact same work projects that I had the day before (go ahead and say it, I'm spoiled).
   

   So this week when I jumped from journals to tea-dying a lampshade to "papering" a room divider, I wondered if there's a better job in the world than what I get to do. 

 My daughter played with her American Girl paper dolls on the floor beside me as I cut pages from old reader books for the journals.

 My youngest son and I worked together on the divider and when we were done, we sat in the middle of the mess we made in the living room and ate fudgepops.  

 The details are so much more rewarding than the paycheck!

 It's been a while but I just had to take a minute to count the blessings of working at home.

As the Kitchen Turns...

 Our kitchen is reflective of the rest of my life these days.  It's kind of a jumble!  My son has still be struggling.  Our whole family, really.  It's been a super hard week but while I have been busy being a mom, Mr. Blessing has been busy working on the kitchen for me.  It's our French Farmhouse Kitchen-On-A-Budget.

The inspiration for my cupboards came from this beat-up, old farm table.

Neighbor Bob stopped in yesterday and when I proudly showed him our new/old cabinet fronts, he said, "You like things sorta different don't you?" (hahaha)

I can't wait for everything to be done so I can show you.

(My version of Easter grass - Spanish moss)

This weekend I am definitely celebrating a resurrection of sorts in my son and a resurrection in our farmhouse kitchen.   But most important, let's all pause and celebrate the resurrection of God's Son!

Thank you God!!

Join us for Voila! - French Inspiration at French Cupboard

Update

postcard: ebay seller fireangel

Thank you for all your prayers, emails and comments!  I can't tell you how much they comforted me. 

For those of you who don't know, my oldest son (age 20) was diagnosed with serotonin syndrome on April 1st after begin taken to the ER, non-responsive with seizure type spasms.  Serotonin syndrome is caused by too much serotonin in the brain. We had a very scary couple of days in the ICU, followed by a week of unusual behavior.   He is doing much better now, though he has physical therapy for muscle loss due to the seizures and he tires very easily.  But his brain and kidney functions are good!

postcard - ebay seller onedandelionwish

And his mom?  It's an experience that I'm sure will remain one my worst memories.  Even up to last Sunday, I was feeling a bit "frail" but things are settling down and we are getting back into our normal pattern.

I think I may have gone from red to gray in one week.  

Parenting definitely requires something more potent than 28 day hair color! 

Thank you for having been there with kind words and prayers.   ((HUGS)) 

Intense

 It's like looking through some bizarre lens.

A week ago today our oldest son (the one that moved out recently), was admitted to Intensive Care.  It's been a hard week and I'm not up to sharing all the when, where and why stuff but I will say that he was not responsive and near death when I was called to the ER Friday night.  Once stable, we were told that he may not have full brain function.

  After a scary couple of days, he is awake and doing very well and expected to fully recover.  His mom however has been a bit of a wreck.  I can't explain the run of my emotions this week.  I often feel like the world is swirling about around me and I'm still, watching it all... Only one thought in my mind... Only one topic of discussion... My boy. 

Although we feel a bit hung out to dry, God is faithful even when we are too exhausted to recognize it.  We are so grateful for our son's life and for the close friends who have been here to help with the kids and late nights.  This weekend we will rest and bask in the faithfulness of God! 

  

He will cover you with his feathers.  He will shelter you with his wings.  His faithful promises are your armor and protection. (Psalm 91:4)

White Wednesday Therapy

 Thanks so much for all your kind words and thoughts.  It is great therapy having others to chat with.  Of course, it's also great therapy to paint the child's room and find new vintage items to accessorize with! Having my oldest child move out has turned into a decorating extravaganza.  We got his room painted and realized how shabby the hall and stairwell looked so, of course, those had to be painted too.  The living room is at the bottom of the landing so we had to spruce that room up a bit.  And the sleeping porch studio is just around the corner from the living room...  

Mr. Blessing has the afternoon off today.  Maybe we can finally tackle the kitchen! 

I'm sharing some photos of the studio over at French Cupboard today if you'd like a peek.

Kicking & Screaming

 I was a good mom last week.

Not that I don't make the effort everyday but last week there was a stand-out mom moment... 

 

One of my four sweet baba's officially moved out of the house last week.  

He's 20 and ready to be more independent (I think he's been saying something along those lines since he was 14 but now Mr. Blessing and I agree with him). I'm ok about him moving out (Mostly ok).  So I was a good mom while he packed and loaded up the remains of his childhood.  I didn't hang onto his leg and try to drag him back in the house. I didn't make him stop to pose for a memorializing picture while he was holding his mattress (I took pictures out the back window )...

 I didn't tell him to pull up his pants while he was carrying that basement-worthy sofa!

I did not pull out the baby pictures that night after he left.   

(WHEN did all that facial hair happen?  No, despite what my children might say, it did not happen while I was blogging!)

And I did not sit on the floor of his empty bedroom wishing for a few more years.

Ok, I sat on the floor...  And wished for a few more years.  But then I did what good moms all over blogland do - I painted the room and started decorating!

A Revived Tradition

When my oldest son was little, he and I used to make an annual trip to our local Christmas store so that he could pick out a new ornament. It was one of the few splurges for us back then.

My boy grew up and our annual trip isn't as exciting for him anymore so it's been a few years since I have been to the Christmas shop. In fact, I kinda forgot about how cute it is with all the storefronts and a cobblestone "street".

My youngest kids and I decided to drop by for a visit yesterday while their older brothers were busy doing older brother stuff. Well, I should say that I decided we were stopping by for a visit. They were entirely un-trilled about the idea.

Until they walked in the front door! They loved walking from room to room guessing what the theme of each tree was. It was fun watching their excitment!

The annual trip is revived!