A couple of things

First--Rebecca is hosting the 4th Annual November of Thanksgiving at her blog.  You can find all the details here.  I've been participating since the beginning and I really do look forward to it!  To be thankful should be the natural state of a Christian!  All it takes is to stop and think through your day and look for the blessings and provisions, protection and presence of Christ in your life!

Next--I've retired Bookworm Bookmarks.  It has gone into the back storage closet of cyberspace.  You may see it again in the sidebar from time to time as I enable it to collect images I want to keep before removing it altogether, but for the most part, it'll be invisible.

Next, next--I've started a blog for my calligraphy website, The Constant Scribe, called Scriptorium.  It's a place to roll out new projects, chat about the progress of this new venture of mine, talk about materials and techniques and whatever else comes to mind.  Not sure if anyone will be interested in it, but you are welcome to check it out.  I've added a bunch more images to the gallery and will be working very hard to add more next week.

And last, thanks for visiting The Constant Scribe.  I'm now showing up in Google and other search engines and I've had quite a few local hits--no jobs resulting from the website yet--but it takes time!

He doesn't miss a trick

Today was an Elliott day.  I've been picking him up from the sitter's on Tuesdays while Beth takes a class.

It's really fun to go get him and bring him home with me.  We read books and sing and do finger plays. We name all the pictures and magnets on the refrigerator.  We get out all the toys and have a snack--and two weeks ago, we started a new routine.

You see, Elliott has discovered TV.  Two weeks ago, he walked up to the TV, pointed, nodded vigorously then sat down on the couch expectantly.  But there was one problem.  Grandma had never learned how to turn on the TV in the living room. 

You may laugh, but it's more complicated than you would think.  For one thing, someone who lives in my house used to like to lay on the floor in front of the television and turn the on/off button on and off with his foot.  In fact, he liked to do it so much that the button became firmly fixed in the on position.  We got around that problem by plugging the TV into a power strip that has an on/off button on it.  That's not the hard part.  The hard part is knowing which of the three remotes works for which thingy (TV, cable box, or home entertainment thingy) and in what sequence one must use the various remotes in order to change channels and avoid creating the dreaded blue screen error. (which I have done more than once)

Lucky for me, Sam was home and he was quickly able to find Winnie the Pooh and Elliott was happy.  Sam has been working with me and now I pretty much know how to turn on the power, turn on the TV and change the channel--as long as it is already on '003.'  If it says 'Video 1' or'Video 2' or 'Color Stream' or any of the other choices, I'm cooked.

Well, apparently, Elliott was paying better attention than I was!  Last week, he marched right in, pointed to the BACK of the TV where the powerstrip is attached to the cabinet and picked up the correct remote.  Today he did the same thing, but this week I had the camera ready.  Little Mr. Business walked into the living room, pointed to the powerstrip, picked up the remote and patiently waited for Winnie the Pooh while I fumbled with the remotes.  Once he was sure the TV was really going to work, he crawled up on the couch, ready to watch.

That's not all he did, though.  He took a bath (he LOVES taking a bath at Grandma's house!), played with Uncle Sam, ate a man-sized dinner (ham, sweet potatoes, rolls, broccoli, apple and cantelope), read books and generally charmed us all with his cuteness.

John comes to pick him up after work and they stay for dinner.  When it was time to get his coat and shoes on and get ready to go home, he climbed up in my lap and layed his sweet little head on me and snuggled.  He wasn't quite ready to leave, but Daddy put his coat on and he waved bye-bye.  Kisses and whispers of "Grandma loves you" at the back door and he was gone, waving and smiling. 

I walked to the window and waved and blew kisses.  He waved and threw kisses back.

Sigh.  I love that boy!

About five minutes later, John called from the car.  He said he hadn't realized that Elliott had seen me waving at the window until he said, "Ga-mo! Ga-mo!  Bye-bye!"

I guess I'm no longer Ga or GaGa!  I now have a new syllable! 

Just call me Ga-Mo.

books, Books, BOOKS!

Who can resist books?  Not me! So I was interested to learn about Devotional Christian's promotional book giveaway.  If you're interested in entering, just visit their site to learn about their re-launch, then write a blog post!  What could be easier?

While you're there, be sure to poke around and see what they have to offer!  It's a great site to bookmark and return to so go check them out, won't you?

HT: Kim, Dorothy, and Rebecca--my book buddies.

Wahoo!

Today I'm kicking off the website for my calligraphy business, The Constant Scribe.  It's still under construction and I've still got a lot of work left to do but there's enough there to get started! 

Would you do me a favor and check out what I've done so far and come back and leave me a comment?--I'd love to have some feedback--and getting some hits for the old Google bots would be a help!  If you like what you see, feel free to link!

I'll be retiring Bookworm Bookmarks soon, but I will continue to offer bookmarks, blog buttons, and banners at The Constant Scribe.  Thanks so much to those of you who placed orders with me at Bookworm Bookmarks!  (You know who you are!!) It was great fun working with you all and I look forward to creating gifts and bookmarks for you at The Constant Scribe!

Sunday Scripture Meditation

Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.

7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him. 11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, 12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.

13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

Sunday Hymn: Great God, What Do I See and Hear!

GREAT GOD, WHAT DO I SEE AND HEAR!

Great God, what do I see and hear!
The end of things created!
The Judge of mankind doth appear
On clouds of glory seated!
The trumpet sounds; the graves restore
The dead which they contained before:
Prepare, my soul, to meet him.

The dead in Christ shall first arise,
At the last trumpet's sounding,
Caught up to meet him in the skies,
With joy their Lord surrounding;
No gloomy fears their souls dismay;
His presence sheds eternal day
On those prepared to meet him.

But sinners, filled with guilty fears,
Behold his wrath prevailing;
For they shall rise, and find their tears
And sighs are unavailing:
The day of grace is past and gone;
Trembling they stand before the throne,
All unprepared to meet him.

Great God, what do I see and hear!
The end of things created!
The Judge of mankind doth appear
On clouds of glory seated!
Beneath his cross I view the day
When heav'n and earth shall pass away,
And thus prepare to meet him.

Trinity Hymnal #240

Quote of the Week: Spurgeon

All the purposes of man have been defeated, but not the purposes of God. The promises of man may be broken—many of them are made to be broken—but the promises of God shall all be fulfilled. He is a promise-maker, but He never was a promise-breaker; He is a promise-keeping God, and every one of His people shall prove it to be so. This is my grateful, personal confidence, "The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me"—unworthy me, lost and ruined me. 

Charles Spurgeon, A Defense of Calvinism

A peaceful sound

Rain in the downspouts on a dark morning with a cup of steaming hot coffee.

Thinking of fingerplays with Elliott:

The itsy bitsy spider went up the waterspout

Down came the rain and washed the spider out

Out came the sun and dried up all the rain

And the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again

I hope the sun will come out today.  The leaves need raking.  The windows need washing.  But for now I'll enjoy rain rattling in the gutters and images in my mind of Elliott and memories of my own boys when they were delighted with the itsy bitsy spider.

One of the very best things about blogging is the way kindred hearts seem to be able to find each other! 

Yesterday I was contacted by a very talented poet from Canada who found my blog because of its name, Hiraeth, and shared a poem she had written about hiraeth.  Erica has given me permission to share her poem with you.  If you've got a drop of Celtic blood, it will stir your soul and, perhaps, bring tears to your eyes.

HIRAETH

by Erica Dawn Lewis

Upon the green hills of Cymru
I stand arrested by the veiw
of cryptic sea and ancient shore
that stood ten thousand years before
they met my callow eye
and will remain for many more
long after I die

I'm solemn above the briny stew
with thoughts of kin I never knew
fishing the sea, mining the coal
or mining the depths of a poet's soul
A nation's buried history
revived once more because it knows
the blood that flows through me

Blood that fed this fertile soil
with the Celtic tears and toil
of Warriors dead b'neath the peat
that pads the soles of anglish feet
the true Princes of Wales
rule no more upon this shore
except in children's tales

The epic song of Arthur's quest
or Madoc's journey somewhere west
stories of the Mabinogion
or family tales of distant kin
who fought so hard, but failed
to keep their ancient birthright
so to distant lands they sailed

Centuries pass, now here I stand
a stranger in this native land
welcomed by the foe of yore
that chased my people from this shore
leaving me a world apart
from the Cymru pulsing through my blood
and beating in my heart

I don't like getting old

Not all of it is bad, mind you, (being a grandma is FANTASTIC!!) but somedays it feels as though I am falling apart at the seams.

A month or so ago, I was diagnosed with stage II arthritis in my right thumb and tenosynovitis in my right wrist.  I have to wear these goofy looking orthopedic gloves (the heavy-duty one of which I call my gladiator arm!) and take naproxin and a glucosamin/condroitin supplement twice a day.  It's painful and inconvenient, but I was getting better by depending upon my left hand for many of the more painful tasks.  Yesterday, however, my left wrist started really acting up and now, this morning, I can hardly move that wrist without intense pain.  I would bet money it's tenosynovitis in that wrist now.

I just learned last week that my cholesterol is approaching the 'high' zone and my triglycerides are up, so I've got three months to get those numbers down in order to avoid having to take medicine for that.

Sigh. . .

I don't like feeling as though I'm wearing out!  I have too many things I want to do to fool around with physical problems that slow me down!

Well, that's enough complaining for one day.  I have a full schedule today and I'm looking forward to tackling it--as soon as the naproxin kicks in!

Quote of the Week: Stedman

All progress in the spiritual life comes from personally apprehending a fact that is already true. To put it simply, we must see what we already are by God's grace, in order to manifest that fact by godly behavior.

Ray Stedman, Commentary on Hebrews, Chapter 10

Sunday Hymn: Let us with a Gladsome Mind

From Psalm 136

LET US WITH A GLADSOME MIND

Let us with a gladsome mind,
Praise the Lord, for he is kind.

For his mercies aye endure,
Ever faithful, ever sure.

Let us blaze his name abroad,
For of gods he is the God.

He with all-commanding might
Filled the new-made world with light.

All things living he doth feed;
His full hand supplies their need.

He his chosen race did bless
In the wasteful wilderness.

He hath with a piteous eye
Looked upon our misery.

Let us therefore warble forth
His high majesty and worth.

Trinity Hymnal #30

Evening Sky in October

An Evening Sky in October
by Rev. Lawrence Keister

Look upon the twilight clouds,
Eastward they are marching;
Blue is breaking through the rifts
In the overarching.

Changing forms work silently
As by nature's magic,
For these Autumn breezes know
Nothing wild or tragic.

Banners show their artistry,
While the legion passes
Showing, too, how nature's work,
Human work outclasses.

Wisps and fragments still remain
As the sky is clearing,
Just to signal to the stars
For their next appearing.

Here's some happy news!

We're going to have a granddaughter in February!  John and Beth just found out today!

I can't wait to meet her.  I can't wait to see Elliott with his baby sister.

This grandma is over the moon!  : D

Blessing Boxes

Here's a gift I made for my friends, Dorothy and Carol.  These are Blessing Boxes--filled with words of inspiration, thanksgiving, and blessing.  I asked both of my friends for a list of words that are important to them.  They had no idea what was going on.  The mystery is over, though, because I gave them their Blessing Boxes today, so I can share some images with you now.

My Stats

I sort of forget to look at my stats most days.  Today I decided to look.  Oh, dear.  Only 103 visitors.  Most of whom came here looking for recipes, Sunday school lessons, and images of calligraphy. Old stuff I wrote a long time ago.

I guess that's what happens when you forget to blog. 

I've been busy.  I'm busy setting up a website for my calligraphy business.  Busy creating pieces and photographing them and uploading them and editing them and installing them.  It's a full time job!  I'm hoping to get it all done within the next two weeks and then look out!--the jobs should start rolling in! 

But for now, my time is spent in building my business, studying for my Hebrews study, preparing my Sunday school lessons, cooking, cleaning, doing laundry and generally keeping busy.

I do have something to show you tomorrow afternoon.  I think it's pretty cool.  Maybe you will, too.

Until then,

Your negligent blogging buddy,

Kim

“Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.”
Henry David Thoreau

(Let's hope Mr. Thoreau knows what he's talking about!)

Dictionary Word of the Day: Pukka

pukka
\PUHK-uh\ , adjective:
1.
Authentic; genuine.
2.
Superior; first-class.

Origin:
Pukka comes from Hindi pakka, "cooked, ripe," from Sanskrit pakva-, from pacati, "he cooks."

This one is new to me.  I doubt I'll ever remember this word, let alone use it. To me, it just doesn't seem to match with its meaning.

"Although the definition of this word is doubtlessly pukka, I sincerely doubt its usefulness in day to day conversation."

Note to Self: First Freeze

Temperature 26 degrees this morning.  I forgot to bring in my plants from the front porch last night.  So far, they don't seem to have been harmed.

Now the big question is:  Where in the world am I going to find room for my HUGE asparagus fern in this little house?

Sunday Hymn: Lo, He Comes, with Clouds Descending

LO, HE COMES, WITH CLOUDS DESCENDING

Lo! he comes, with clouds descending,
Once for favored sinners slain;
Thousand thousand saints attending
Swell the triumph of his train:
Alleluia! Alleluia!
God appears on earth to reign.

Ev'ry eye shall now behold him,
Robed in dreadful majesty;
Those who set at naught and sold him,
Pierced, and nailed him to the tree,
Deeply wailing, deeply wailing,
Shall the true Messiah see.

Ev'ry island, sea, and mountain,
Heav'n and earth, shall flee away;
All who hate him must, confounded,
Hear the trump proclaim the day;
Come to judgment! Come to judgment!
Come to judgment, come away!

Now Redemption, long expected,
See in solemn pomp appear!
All his saints, by man rejected,
Now shall meet him in the air:
Alleluia! Alleluia!
See the day of God appear!

Yea, Amen! let all adore thee,
High on thine eternal throne;
Saviour, take the pow'r and glory,
Claim the kingdom for thine own:
O come quickly, O come quickly:

Alleluia! come, Lord, come.

Trinity Hymnal #237

Note to Self: First Frost

Thirty-two degrees with blue spruce colored frost in open areas.  Fifty-five degrees in the house this morning.  Had to turn the furnace on for the first time to take off the chill.  Tomorrow promises to be almost wintery with snow in the forecast.  Measurable snow. 

Eve didn't want go out.  Ivy was revved up and running around like a crazy dog.

Now the rush begins. The leaves will start pelting down and we'll be washing windows with chilled fingers and tallying up the filled leaf bags as we set them on the curb.

The first frost last year was a killing frost on October 28.