Texas Woman's Daybook

For today...Monday, November 5

Outside my window...the sun is already setting!  I'd forgotten how it feels to go off Daylight Saving Time.

I am hearing...the simplified go-cart that Benjamin built with his grandfather yesterday.  It's going up and down and up and down the sidewalk.

I am praying...for my husband as he studies for his comprehensive exams scheduled for November 17.  Will you please join me?

A heart of thankfulness...so many things!  Fun times with a friend last Thursday in Canton as I learned the ropes and picked up some great new-to-me dishes for the Choate Bed and Breakfast. A great date with my husband over the weekend (we have four years on which to catch up).

But finding this in my inbox has to top the list:

"Hobea tuna ngaham email ngosia.  Ngai logore kiure fi alei." (Good to have your email.  I was so happy!)  My good friend, Ofoaen, has a brother who has e-mail access in Honiara.  He responded to an e-mail from Aaron and let us know that Ofoaen

 is recovering beautifully at home from her cancer surgery.  He also gave us a little bit of news from Marulaon, the twin on the left died last month.  She was basically blind, but so very spunky.  Her sister is now the only sibling left from a very influential and special family.  I'm sad for my friends Kiko, Grace Delight, and Daisy to have lost their mother.

I am creating...still trying to sew some gored skirts from that beautiful paisley pin cord I found on sale.  Looking at the week ahead, it doesn't look like I'll be sewing much.

I am reading...still working on "Give Them Grace".  I don't want to rush this one.

From the kitchen...layered Italian zucchini casserole.  Not just a way to use up your garden bounty, but a delicious and healthy meal!  The aroma is filling up the house right now because it just came out of the oven - supper time!

Pondering these words..."Alone we can do so little.  Together we can do so much."  ~Helen Keller

Noticing that...Sarah has grown 2 1/2 inches in the last seven months.  We measured kids today to renew their passports.  I think she has officially hit her growth spurt!

From the learning rooms...John Singleton Copley, Marie Antoinette, Louis XVI, John Paul Jones, Franz Joseph Haydn, Benedict Arnold

One of my favorite things...Burt's Bees Almond Milk Beeswax Hand Creme.  My hands still haven't adjusted to living in America, and this creme makes a big difference (plus it smells nice!).

A few plans for the rest of the week...Southwest Children's Choir tonight, Dallas Museum of Art's free First Tuesday tomorrow, Aaron and I are speaking to the 3rd and 4th graders at church about Bible translation in the Solomon Islands on Wednesday night, Thursday we'll enjoy hosting a delightful family from our church staff, Friday we get to drive to Denton to meet a fabulous musician friend, and Saturday the kids have a bowl-a-thon fundraiser for choir, a birthday party, and our Sunday School class has its Thanksgiving fellowship; finally, we will enjoy great food and fellowship Sunday at lunchtime at the home of some encouraging friends.  A full week enjoying God's blessings of friends!

A peek into my corner of the world...our Minister of Missions joined us for lunch, and after the adults discussed some business, we all enjoyed a little play time outside.