Life Around the Lodge

two amazing sights~the lilacs bloomed late this year so we are still enjoying them
all around the lodge and lots of swallowtales are fluttering around

tommy loves being in the water~clothes, shoes and all, an almost daily occurrance

christian built a fire the other night

what fun to just hang out with our hot drinks and talk
after a long day of working.....

miss lizzy always loves being in montana and

thrives being outdoors for the majority

of the day as all the kiddos do

the dining room was beautiful for the first wedding of the season

with all the lilacs on the table

I have been reading out of "Streams in the Desert" most days.  It

always seems to be what I need to hear or the encouragement I need

at the time.  I love how God does that, puts situations in my path or people or

words that remind me that he is faithful and with me each step of the way.

I can easily start worrying about each individual child and their future which truly can make

me neurotic or I can focus on today, the needs for today, pray for them and leave it up to Someone

with a whole lot more experience who loves them even more than I do! Sheesh...it sounds so simple!

Why do I have to make it so stinkin difficult then?  Probably for some of the same reasons

Thomas chooses everyday to be naughty....WE ARE SINFUL CREATURES IN NEED OF A SAVIOR!

Why do I so so so so SO easily fall into the trap of thinking the weight of the world is on MY shoulders?

When will I learn that He wants to lighten my load?  I am reminded of the verses in Matthew 11....

"Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and

 LEARN from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 

For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Awesome.....after writing and thinking and reading the above verse I already feel more at peace.

I know I am a SLOW LEARNER, but so glad the Teacher is patient!

Time to be off to bed.........

 

Holland Lake Falls~

Yesterday we hiked to the falls for the first time this trip.  It was a gorgeous day, even felt a bit too warm.  The mountains were indescribable.  All I could think of was Psalms 121...."the earth is the Lords and the fullness there of".  The wildflowers were abundant all along the hike.  The twins did great too despite Thomas falling a couple times. 

an awesome reflection on our way up the trail

                                                          carolina with the wildflowers

The Mission Mountains reflected in the Lake

The kiddos at the top with Wanda

beautiful views all the way down the trail

Thomas and Carolina are great little hikers. They sang all the way down (didn't want them to know but i was trying to

have us make as much noise as possible to warn any grizzlies that we were coming~

this area happens to be the gateway where the bears cross the valley!!! )

and talked about what they wanted to eat for lunch.  Eating is a really big part of

our time here at the lodge!  Hoping to get up to the falls often.  It's such a good hike!

Montana

Holland Lake

Montana

We arrived safely in Montana!  After such a crazy two weeks, driving actually felt like a breeze.  I hate the feeling that things are just out of control busy all around me, but that pretty much describes life leading up to our departure on Monday! 

Pictures of our trip...California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Idaho and finally Montana!!!

This trip I think I appreciated the beauty of Utah more than I have before. Sounds weird to even say that, but I am a lover of green, with lots of trees and I find hot weather torturious. Bring on the cool, mild temps and I am one happy camper.  Needless to say, I think my thoughts turned to the awesomeness of God in creating such vast differences in our world.  I can finally appreciate and respect the beauty of Utah.  Would I choose to spend time there? Nope, passing through is just grand!

Especially, knowing BEAUTIFUL MONTANA is waiting for us at the end.

Packing up the car after our stay in Fillmore, Utah.

My four fellow travelers! Awesome travelers that they are....

They made the trip fun by keeping a good attitude, singing with Dolly Parton when

I would get sleepy and listening to great stories.

This amazing story helped us pass the time!

Highly recommended....

What is it about Montana, but as soon as our drive took us into Montana, we all felt peace and enjoyed just staring out the window at the beauty!

Holland Lake Lodge

It is so so so good to be here at my brother's lodge.  It has rained off and on since we arrived last night.  Everything is very green and lush and smells so fresh and clean.  I never get tired of going out on the point in front of the lodge and looking at the beautiful mountains in either direction.  The weather can literally change in a matter of minutes around here.  Just tonight as I walked the exhausted children back to the cabin to tuck them into bed, one of them exclaimed "Look, the sun has finally come out, but only on the lake".  Sure enough the water looked all shimmery and beautiful, but where we were standing in the trees it seemed to be getting dark already!  Awesome!!!!

Here are just a few things we managed to do before we left....
1. Lots of piano recitals.
2. End of the year pool parties for all the kids
3. Katherine's promotion from 5th grade
4. The twins birthday...they are five now!
5. A couple field trips
6. Helping with the flowers for a wedding
7. I had a lovely root canal
8. Visiting with a number of friends we won't see for at least five weeks
9. Preparing our home and garden for our departure

  We are enjoying just being here at the lodge.  Kids are playing outside most of the day, I have had a chance to read, all slept in this morning, and kids are getting a chance to work!  Katherine worked in the afternoon and evening~doing dishes, setting the dining room up for dinner, filling waters, Lizzy worked for nearly three hours cleaning cabins and the lodge.  It is good to see the kids work hard!

We gathered out by the lake for worship today.

Loved looking up from reading and seeing the twins chilling

on this big rock trying to follow along in their Bibles.

Isaiah 42:16



I will lead the blind by ways they have not known,

along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;

I will turn darkness into LIGHT before them

and make the rough places SMOOTH.

These are the things I will do;

I will not forsake them.

This verse, that a dear friend shared with me back in January, speaks to me so clearly.  I keep it close by to read daily.



God doesn't expect me to go through this without HIM!   He doesn't expect me to know what to do or how to do it.  He just asks me to trust in Him, to lean on Him fully. He knows that I am "blind", that I am on an unfamiliar path, but He promises to give me light, His light and make the path smooth by caring for me, the kids and such.  He will not give up on us down here in this crazy world, dealing with hard things.  All He asks is that we LOVE Him and TRUST Him.  As I look at the past and see how He has cared for me, I can rest assured that I am in good hands.

Expanding Our Living Space

Making our patio comfortable and very usable was a goal from the beginning of fixing up this space, I also wanted to have it be hip, clean, and crisp looking. Some of the furniture I had, some was bought at IKEA, other things had been collected overtime. I wanted to do a post about it because it turned into a VERY FUN project thanks to my friend Angela who helped me shop and arrange things too. We are both huge fans of Pinterest. Inspiration started with an outdoor space that I pinned 6 months ago where everything was taupy (is that even a word?), creamy, white washy, with lots of containers with green plants.

Here it is after!

Here are some before pics, of course, I wish I had taken a few more.....

                           We moved EVERYTHING off the patio and swept it clean.
                         This allowed us to think of things in new places and start fresh!

Here I hung hooks from Anthropologie that spell CALM. 

Hopefully the word speaks to me AND

the kiddos too! (wink, wink) Actually I love the verse in Psalms that says

"He calmed the storm to a whisper and stilled the waves". 

 Life has felt like a storm since last September, but I love

 this awesome reminder of what HE does for us! 

I have never cared for the three modular, square columns that adorn this patio area.  They are structural so not able to knock these beauties down.  I thought about planting vines that would grow up and cover them, but I thought maybe it would start looking like a jungle!  So one is covered with this bookcase from IKEA.  I love how it looks, doing the job nicely of hiding the ugly!

The art print and paper is from Emily at Jones Design Company

And the cool baskets were a steal at IKEA. These hold sunscreen,

garden clippers, and magazines and books.

I have had this blue sunbrella fabric for over two years now, and finally had it made into cushions for the chairs.  My mom found the fabric up north for quite a steal.  They are nice and thick and with zippers so I can wash them when needed.

The mirror is from IKEA, the hurricane a mother's day present from the kids several years ago, and the plants from Roger's Garden.  I have never seen a topiary Olive Tree!  I love it and hope it is not too finicky.

So far so good!  Wheeled white cart below the mirror was bought last fall at The Barn in Big Fork, Montana.  This antique store is a favorite when we visit the lodge.

The ceramic table was recently purchased from Redlands Estate Sale.

Thanks Angie for spotting this and encouraging me to check it out!  Love it...and love that it is old (30+years) and that it was cheaper than the new ones that you see everywhere now!

This oval basket works great on the patio.  I have had it for a while now, but hadn't found the right place for it inside the house.  Love it with this simple boxwood that I found at Roger's Garden.

Across the pool sits this little table and chairs with thick stripey cushions.  All items from IKEA,

including the stripe tray, another "ty Angie" purchase.  Can't wait to get an umbrella for

over this table so it is enjoyable to sit! 

Last thing to do is get the stripe fabric on this bench seat made into a cushion.

Angie also has a couple more ideas for the area to the left of the wreath

.

Curtains were a further attempt to cover those columns!  Kids have really enjoyed doing plays from the pool side and pulling the curtains shut to create a stage.......

Thanks for sharing in my excitement in creating this outdoor living space.

Now if that pool will just warm up a bit before we head to Montana!

Books, Books, Books,

1. As a family we are listening to Swiss Family Robinson (unabridged from Blackstone Audio). I have to admit I have never read it, absolutely thrilling it is! We have added a few new words to our vocabulary such as CAPITOL. It is used as an adjective not a noun such as "We found a capitol red tomato in our garden, the first of the season." We have over used it since hearing it, but it is such a capitol word..... The other positive part of the book is the close knit family bond they have and the four strong manly boys that exhibit good character. They watch out for their mother and respect their parents authority while at the same time exploring, keeping the family supplied with food, and inventing new things to keep the everyone comfortable. The father also remembers to thank the Lord for their safety and His providing for them.
2. Mary and I are reading Rainbow Garden by Patricia St John. This is one of my favorites. I believe I have probably read it 10 times! Simple teaching from the Bible interwoven throughout the story. "In His presence is FULLNESS OF JOY"
3. Katherine is reading 3+ books right now! Across Five Aprils,  Because of Wynn-Dixie, and On the Other Side of the Mountain. She is also reading The Happy Path for Pathfinders.
4. Elizabeth has the usual 5 books going...one of the Soup Books, The Year of Miss Agnes, Adventures in Galilee, A Child's Look at the 23rd Psalms and can't remember what else right now. One of my major goals was that my children would be lovers of books. So far they all love to be read too and the older girls love to read.
5. Twins "listen" to a lot of what is read to the older kids and lots of audio books.  They do pick up more than I realize.  I have read a lot of Marguerite de Angeli's books to them and to Mary....Thee Hannah, Yonie Wondernose, and Skippack School.  Of course, we always read lots of picture books.  When I feel bad for not reading more at their level I remind myself that the older girls didn't have so much soaked up that was "above" them, so these little guys are really getting MORE read to them!!!
6. We just finished Caddie Woodlawn's Family which was a first for all of us.  Oh how we enjoyed the adventures of this endearing family!  This is the sequel to Caddie Woodlawn which we read last year.  When we were through we were all a bit sad.  Mary asked if we could start the next book....there is no next book I replied!  "WHAT!" she exclaimed, "Why not?"  I agree, why is there not more written for us to feast upon?????
7. What should we start next to read all together?  Ideas include....Lassie Come Home (unabridged) Benjamin West and His Cat Grimalkin (K and E remember me reading this to them, but would love to hear it again) or maybe a Kate Seredy book.  She is an author I am dying to read who wrote The Good Master and the sequel called The Singing Tree.  Another idea is a good biography about someone extraordinary!  Always a good choice to hear about the life of someone who sets an example for these children and myself.  We'll see....always so much to read and so little time!