Our Sunday Today

Thank you, Lord, for a get-together of some kind. 

We're still doing drive-in service with our church. We talk to the ministers who come up to the window. I am more of an extrovert than I thought! Even that little bit of interaction brightens my spirit.

Phillip serves us communion during the service.

That has been a bit of grace for our family. To take communion all together before Liz leaves for college.

These three are going to a youth group this afternoon that's opening up for the first time. There will be mask-wearing and social distancing and all that, but they are looking forward to getting out! 

This has been my hand project the last 6 months or more. I wove red acrylic yarn that Liz didn't want, on my little hand loom. Then I sewed all the pieces together and painted the back with non-slip rug backing. I'm going to put it in the garage or in the laundry room when I change out the rugs right before school starts (I like a new rug in the garage for back-to-school). I asked Harrison where I should put it, and he said, "Uh, probably in the laundry room." Ha! It's not very pretty (all those threads that I just left ~ I was not about to weave them all in for a rug!); but I love that I could use up yarn scraps and do something with my hands in the evenings. I saw some patterns for cloth rugs so I might give that a try next; use up old t-shirts and such. 

Well, Covid has not been super fun. But we aren't promised a life of super fun, are we. I've been reading On Reading Well by Karen Swallow Prior. It uses literature to explore different virtues. Yesterday's chapter was on Patience. She says: "Failure to recognize either the current condition of the world or the promise of its future will lead to either of the vices that patience moderates: wrath owing to an unwillingness to accept this reality of the world or dispiritedness that is a form of withdrawal from this reality."  I am definitely a withdraw-er. I don't want what's happening in our world. I don't want to deal. But I need to deal. 

I'm thankful for my neighborhood. It's been a little harbor of fellowship. I'm grateful for my Schole Sister who is an extrovert and totally up for meeting every other week for coffee and education talk. I'm grateful for my kids and husband ~ it's fun to be isolated with them ~ the kids been playing a lot of cards together and they are so funny to listen to.

I've been having trouble breathing. Not sure if it's in my head (panic attacks) or if it's a physical problem. It does seem to start when I'm outside or in the van or somewhere stuffy. I'm going to give it some time and see if I need to see a doctor. I haven't been to a doctor in 7 years....

Finding Things to Do

When most things are shut down and it's 102º outside, what to do, what to do?

We have a couple extra things planned per week. 

We have our daily chores and activities. 

And we have a lot of down time at home. 

That's not so bad.

This was a day of kids in the house. 

I don't do this very often. It's a pretty loud kind of day and Mr. Phillip is working from home, so we try to have things to do that quell the running around and chasing each other. 

One of the girls likes to help me cook or bake, so we made lemon custard sponge cake. It was fairly simple and very delicious. 

We had lunch. They played outside for a while. Phoebe led them in card games. Then I had them sit at the table and draw while I read two chapters from Prince Caspian (I've been reading the Chronicles of Narnia to Harrison this summer). 

Harrison drew the two above. Such juxtaposition. 

Phoebe sketched the skull. 

I quote Liz: "Phoebe? Are you okay?"

Perhaps it's the San Antonio effect of Dia de Muertos. They did have her form a decorative skull out of clay at her Southwest School of Art class.

And we went with the Travis' to Pedernales State Park. 

You have to make reservations several months ahead, but it does limit the number of people who are there so that it's a more relaxing, fun time in the river. 

Harrison brought his raft. 

They named the different places of the river: Pirate's Cove, Witch's Brew.

There are fossils in that limestone. And miniature gorges. 

It was super hot, but a really neat place to see. 

We had cool breezy shade, a river, picnic lunch, good conversation.

4th of July in the Neighborhood

Flags along the sidewalk facing the main road so others can share in the celebration spirit. 

Alec came over for supper and fireworks.

We didn't plan this at all, but all the neighbors around the cul-de-sac came out to do their fireworks at the same time. So everyone got to enjoy everyone else's contribution!

Our family didn't have big fireworks ~ sparklers, Pop-ems, tanks and smoke bombs. We also had ice cream bars for anyone who wanted one. Which was a surprising hit among adults and kids alike. 

But the other neighbors had some really good fireworks. 

This was the finale' from Amy next door. 

She does a good job with her selection of fireworks. 

Then some of us went to Comanche Lookout Hill to watch the fireworks all over the city. 

It was a late night, but a fun 4th. 

Summer Colors

We had some time of opening back up and now things are closing down again. The usual summer activities had all been canceled already and the glimmers of hope that some would return in July have now vanished. But summer is still summer and we are free of school and the out-of-doors is still available. We will enjoy our down time at home and get outside as much as we can without dying of heat-stroke.

You know I love to plant something in those old boots! 

These are Phillip's old boots from last year. 

The swing is still a hit at our house. 

This guy has taken several Sundays to walk by and wave the Texas flag as we hold drive-in church. 

We shared Gone with the Wind with the kids last week. 

It was the first movie my mother saw in the theatre, and I remember watching it a number of times as a kid. I noticed for the first time how hard they hit the theme of The Chivalry of the South. I was reading A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court to Phoebe last year. I gathered from somewhere that Mark Twain blamed the length and maybe even existence of the Civil War on the romantic notions of chivalry that the South possessed. A new idea to me that was reinforced watching Gone with the Wind again. 

Our internet went out for the weekend. The mall near our home has free internet, so we spent some time hanging out in the seating areas so Phoebe could play Clash of Clans and download books and such. 

Neighbor kids are staying in their homes most of the day ~ presumably because of the heat. But they wander out in the evenings to play.

Playing some Slap together while the internet is down. 

We visited the Japanese Tea Gardens Monday morning while it wasn't super hot. Very beautiful. Not busy with people. A great time to go, San Antonians!

Jon and Phoebe fighting over who gets to put the last piece in the puzzle. 

Well, it looks like they are peacefully working together at this point, but it did get harried soon after this.

Jonathan loves flags. 

He bought this one this week to celebrate the 4th. 

Harrison made a tank yesterday.

I started this book journal in 2015. I started out planning to read the 100 Best Books. But whose list to use? And what genre? I found 100 Best Christian Books and 100 Best Non-fiction and so on. So I printed out three different lists and would just choose from those. But then I've accumulated a number of literature podcasts that also recommend so many good books. And I joined one of them to do a 2020 Reading Challenge which is guiding what genre I read. So my list of 100 is just what has happened over the last five years. They're not necessarily The Best (who decides that anyway?). But last night I filled in my 100th book. The journal starts with The Book Thief and last night's was Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I have many more pages to fill out and I love keeping this journal, so it's a practice I'll continue. I am surprised it took me five years to get to 100! 

Phoebe did a 20's hairstyle. 

She did so well! 

Beautiful.