Summer Days, Summer Projects

Summer begins at our home when our rose bushes begin to bloom, usually in early June. This year didn't disappoint; most of our rose bushes bloomed in abundance! 

I love the summer season and the beauty it brings from God! Like last year, this summer has also been very hot. It felt like someone hit the "repeat" button on this summer, although, I'd have to say that last summer was worse. We have enjoyed some sporadic rains showers this summer, and lately, we've been enjoying cooler mornings, a sure sign that fall is coming. We're not sure why the last two summers have been relentlessly hot. (much more than what we remember in previous years) That being said, I still treasure and love and thank the Lord for summertime, even with incredibly warm temperatures.      

Unfortunately, Covid went through our home again (a second time) during the month of July. (one of my sisters tested positive with it) Thankfully, it wasn't quite as bad this time, but I dealt with a lack of energy for a couple weeks. (the heat didn't help) Praise God! We recovered just fine and are feeling normal and healthy again. God is so good! 

Here are some pictures I took this summer that give a glimpse into my summer days. 

A soft pink rose from one of our rose bushes.

Clusters of roses from one of our bushes! 

An abundance of roses in front of our home! 

Cheery, yellow roses in our backyard. 

Delightful, peach roses in our backyard. 

More lovely flowers from an evening walk in our neighborhood. These are yellow “Columbine” flowers with pink “Evening Primrose” flowers.   

Delicate “Evening Primrose” flowers. I love these!  

Of course, summer wouldn't be complete without visiting our nearby river! I now frequent this river often, especially in the summer. 

 

So serene. So peaceful. 

So picturesque. 

Whenever I'm here, the outside world, with all its problems, seems so far away. I love to be here.   

Another day, another visit to the river. (see below) I felt led to pray on a particular day for our nation and our leaders as we're told to do in Scripture. (1 Timothy 2:1-2) This seemed like a nice place to pray.

I love flowing water! 

While I was praying, I spotted a large bird. Is that an eagle? I got closer and snapped a picture! Yes, it was a bald eagle! A few minutes later, when I wasn't looking, he flew away. I decided to continued praying, and while doing that, I looked up and saw three or four bald eagles flying above my head! I could hardly believe it! A coincidence? I don't think so. The eagle is our national bird.

A bald eagle! 

Back to my little happy place at the river one evening. 

As usual, the skies have been so beautiful this summer! 

Magnificent clouds one evening.
"Even so, come, Lord Jesus, come!"   

On one of my evening walks, I turned around to see this brilliant sunset!  

Colors of gold, yellow, and orange in accents of gray! 

I love summer sunsets! 

A beautiful, full moon one evening in July. 

This large, full moon in August truly looked like a "honey" moon to me.

I always enjoy the abundant fruits of summer such as: strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, cherries, and peaches!   

Sliced strawberries with popcorn on a Sunday night! 

Rainer cherries are my favorite cherries! A rare treat. 

My mom had these hydrangeas that she purchased on our kitchen table recently! I absolutely loved them! A reminder to me that summer is still here. I’m glad. 

This summer, I planned on doing two projects. One project was taking down wallpaper in my bedroom and painting my room.  

The wallpaper that is in my room right now has been in there for exactly 20 years. (since 2002) I was 19 years old when my sister Cheri and I wallpapered our room. We had so much fun helping a friend of ours put it up! We were even more delighted when we found quilts (at JCPenny) that matched the wallpaper perfectly. 

In our previous homes, Michigan and California, we never had wallpaper in our bedrooms; we just had white walls. In our little home in Michigan, my parents could've done whatever they wanted because they owned that house. I guess they decided plain white walls worked well in the bedrooms. Because my parents rented our home in California, they were very limited on what they could do. We couldn't wallpaper there. When we moved to this house, my Dad became a homeowner again, and we could do whatever we wanted to our home. My mom was delighted! 

I remember telling my mom in my late teen years that, if I could have a wallpapered bedroom, I’d want it to look like an "Anne of Green Gables" room. When we found this wallpaper (through friends of ours here in Colorado) it was exactly what I had envisioned. The wallpaper was blue (my favorite color) and white striped with a small floral design going down the white stripe. My sister, who used to share a room with me, loved it as much as I did. We were so pleased with the finished result. It was everything I wanted in a wallpapered bedroom. God gave me my heart's desire. 

To this day, I still love my wallpapered bedroom. My mom loves it too and says that it’s her favorite room of the house. Since my sister no longer lives at home, I have my room all to myself, although her bed is still there (no pillow on it) for when she comes home to visit. 

My bedroom

After 20 years, I decided now would be a good time to take down my wallpaper. I needed a new quilt (my quilt is thread bare and has enormous holes in it!) and it can be difficult to to find a quilt that matches wallpaper. Paint is more versatile. 

I wanted to do it in summer while the weather is nice enough to air the room out while painting. It doesn't work as well to paint inside when it's really cold or hot outside and the house is shut up with the heat or air conditioning on. (neither one works well upstairs in my room anyway) That leaves a narrow window of time in the spring, summer, or fall when the weather is nice enough for the windows to be open. Late summer/early fall seemed like a good time to do it! 

 

In July, I went to a local Sherwin Williams paint store to look at paint colors. 

So many colors to choose from! 

I went to the far right, middle section. An ivory or light cream color paint is what I had in mind. I took along one of the tie backs from the curtains in my bedroom to help match the color I was looking for. I love the curtains in my room, and I wanted the paint to match them. With the help of an employee there, I found one that was exactly what I had in mind, a color they call ivory lace. 

Paint cards are fun! 

I took some paint color cards home, narrowing down my final decision to: Creamy or Ivory Lace. I decided on their Ivory Lace color. I wanted something soft, warm, and inviting. This color is also very versatile, I think. I even like the name they gave this paint color.  

Both colors went well with my curtain tie back. 

I now have two gallons of Sherwin Williams “Ivory Lace” paint in my bedroom, waiting to be used. 

To my delight, I found a new quilt online at Walmart (for just $40!) many months ago that was what I had in mind and will go very well with the paint color I chose. (this quilt could almost go with my wallpaper, but I'm ready for paint again) 

My other summer project was going to be sewing some new dresses - new jumpers to be specific. But rather than sewing, I've been browsing the internet all summer for a nice jumper pattern.    

Over the years, I've worn many different dress and jumper patterns. On rare occasions, I've worn a skirt, but I don't like elastic around my waist, so I don't usually wear skirts. I believe in dressing modestly, and I like clothing that is comfortable and flowing, so I wear dresses or jumpers. Jumpers are my favorite. They work well to slip on over a shirt or a blouse, but currently, I don't have a good jumper pattern. 

Occasionally, I'll find a jumper that I like in a store, but it’s rare. I love being able to sew my own. Fabric shopping is so fun too! (I like soft, sweet, gentle, small floral prints. I also love beauty and elegance. I don't like big, bold, bright prints and colors quite as much.) 

Thanks to some tips from a friend who is an excellent seamstress and is also excellent with patterns, I'm hoping to have a new jumper pattern soon so I can begin sewing! 

What I wanted to be a “summer” sewing project will likely turn out to be a “fall” sewing project instead, but that is okay. “To every thing there is a season...” Ecclesiastes 3:1 says. 

Each season is a gift from God. For now, I'm continuing to enjoy summer while it lasts. 

My Journey Through Part of the United States

If you read my two, previous posts on this blog, you know that I was in California for almost 3 months this spring, working for some Christian friends of mine who live there. 

Before going, I debated whether I wanted to fly or drive. Admittedly, flying is much easier. But there is nothing like having your own vehicle with you, plus, you're able to take a lot more along. That being said, I decided to drive instead of fly. It wasn't the first time I'd driven my vehicle out of state.    

During the ten years that I made my harp recordings, I drove from our home in Colorado all the way to a Christian recording studio in the state of Pennsylvania. I did that for four of my six recordings. For my first two recordings, I shipped my harp out in the crate it was originally sent to me in, and I flew to Pennsylvania to join my harp. That worked well. But for my last four harp recordings, I drove my minivan with my harps. The drive was long, but worth it. I included the cost of driving to and from Pennsylvania in with the total recording cost. 

An added perk of all my recording trips was getting to see family and friends along the way. (we have family in Michigan) Driving from Colorado to Pennsylvania (and back) gives a delightful view of the changing scenery from state to state. (I admit, some states are more enjoyable to drive through than others.) Even Nebraska and Wyoming, with their boring, flat, open prairies, have their own beauty. Every state is truly beautiful in its own way. 

The first time I drove from Colorado to Pennsylvania with several harps in my minivan, I had church friends (sisters) join me. I had lots of company and we took turns driving. That was so nice! But the second time I drove to Pennsylvania to make another recording, I was alone for two out of the three days of driving there. I had to get a hotel one night alone. Staying at a hotel, alone, as a single, 28 year old woman at the time was not fun. I had to do the same on my drive home, and on that trip I told myself "never again". Although everything was fine, and I was in frequent contact with my Dad on my phone, I didn't like staying in a hotel by myself like that. I was kind of scared. 

True to my word, I never stayed in a hotel alone again during my harp recording trips. My Mom went with me for my last two recording trips. 

Almost four years ago, I went on another, long road trip to visit friends in the states of Missouri, Kentucky, and Tennessee. I drove alone but stayed in the home of friends every night. On that trip, I drove through Kansas and into the states mentioned above. I saw states and scenery I'd never seen before. I enjoyed that!

Since that trip, I hadn't gone on any road trips, and I'd never driven to California before. I rode with my family when we moved from California to Colorado almost 24 years ago. And I was with my family when we drove back to California to visit my Grandpa once, and another time, to attend his funeral. 

But to drive to California myself, all alone, was something new for me. The two day drive seemed easy enough, but I didn't like the idea of having to stay in a hotel all alone in Utah somewhere. I hadn't done that in a long time and hoped it wouldn't happen again. 

The Lord blessed my trip. He was with me and gave me peace. Everything went just fine on my way to California, including my one night hotel stay in Utah. I enjoyed the scenery along the way! 

I took a few pictures while driving to California in early April, but on my drive home to Colorado in late June, the weather and scenery was spectacular! Other than being extremely warm outside, the weather was absolutely perfect!

Normally, I never use my phone while driving. But, I used it as my GPS for most of my trip, and in places were there weren't many vehicles on the road, I decided to quickly snap a few pictures. 

I drove through the desert of California going through Nevada, a smart part of Arizona, Utah, and then into Colorado. Although I didn't relish the idea of staying a night alone in a hotel in Utah somewhere, I was excited about my drive home.   

I've seen the United States going east to states like Michigan and Pennsylvania many times. But this time, I was getting to see part of the United States from the western side. 

Many Americans enjoy traveling to other countries of the world, so much so, I think we sometimes forget how beautiful our own country is. Anyone who knows me well knows that I love traveling to the country of Israel. However, the United States is my home, and I'm thankful to live here. Our country is so beautiful! 

If I was married and had children, I think it would be so fun to take the children on a road trip through different states. It could be educational as well as enjoyable! (that is, if the children weren't too young)     

I will put a brief description below each picture.  

    

Large, giant mirrors in the desert of California!
Quite something to see! 

  

The desert of Nevada - incredibly dry and barren! 

The desert of Nevada, very close to entering Arizona. 

Beautiful Utah! I had no idea Utah was so beautiful! 

Desert region of Utah. 

The large structures in the desert of Utah were spectacular! 

It was so much fun to drive through Utah! 

The barren desert of Utah. Photo taken on a stop.  

A rainbow cloud was over me and in front of me when I was driving from Utah into Colorado. I'd had a dream about a rainbow while sleeping in a hotel in Utah the night before.
In my dream, the rainbow represented God's Presence. 
To see this while driving the next day was simply:
 "Wow, Father!" Thank you!" 
God reminded me that He was with me
and was watching over me. So special! 

"Welcome to Colorful Colorado!"

Western Colorado

Colorado is, indeed, colorful and very beautiful! 

The Colorado River! Western Colorado. 

Driving through the Rocky Mountains of Colorado.  

The mountain scenery in Colorado took my breath away! Truly majestic! 

A quote from Laura Ingalls (Little House on the Prairie) summed up my thoughts well about driving home:  

“I knew there would be rivers to cross and hills to climb, and I was glad, for this is a fair land, and I rejoiced that I would see it.” ~ Laura Ingalls