what's going on

My dad has been here this week, enjoying some time with the grandkids:


But, the main reason he came was to help Adam finish up the siding. The long stretch of the west side of the house is done:




From this perspective, the north side looks done:


By the end of the day, they hope to have the south, east, and north sides finished. Adam will still have the second story on the east side and the attic dormers to finish up, but we are so thankful to have had this week of beautiful weather and the help of my dad to get the house (mostly) sided, and ready for winter.

A couple of evenings, I helped Adam make applesauce with an original Squeezo Strainer. This thing was pretty slick; we bagged and canned a full laundry basket of apples in two short evenings. What made it even faster was that the people who gave it to us had mounted a small motor on a board, and with a belt drive attaching the strainer to the motor, we were able to churn out applesauce very efficiently.


So, that's all the work that has been going on. I've been outside helping here and there, cooking, taking care of the kids, et al. I am surprised that, even with getting up (much) earlier than I'm used to, I have been so busy such that I don't have time to check my email, much less read blogs, or write here. I'm starting to feel as if the blogging world that I've been a small part of, is fading away in importance for me. Quite frankly, it was the sheer volume of new posts, at Faith and Family Live (currently averaging more than 45 posts per week!), that has turned me off. I just can't keep up with that and when I try, it is just words that I am looking at. There is no time for the reflection that is necessary to leave a lasting impression. The words are just noise bouncing around in my head.

Led by the Holy Spirit, I stopped by Small Treasures a few days ago. I had deleted this blog from my favorites list a while ago as I was trying to limit my Internet time. She had posted a prayer by St. Thomas Aquinas on ordering a life wisely that I immediately printed out and have been praying each morning. I'm not sure exactly how this is all going to play out over the next few weeks, but the encouragement and support I've felt from reading other blogs has diminished and trying to keep up with everything - and everyone - has become a source of anxiety and stress for me. I still plan on maintaining this blog, but right now I need to make some space for silence:

"The LORD said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper." 1 Kings 19: 11-12