Eucharisteo Moment:singing the doxology

Eucharisteo - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember as thanks to the Lord.

the love of peas...

My mother can attest to the fact that for my entire life I have had a deeply rooted hatred for peas. It was one of those foods that took hours of sitting at the table when everyone else had left, and I sat there, hiding them in  my napkin, finding ways to get rid of them, just not eat them. As an adult, I have learned to "tolerate" them and I am humored at the fact that my children LOVE peas. My kids eat them as if they were as delicious as M&M's. I know, it's weird, but there you have it.  Then I discovered these beautiful babies at Sprouts. The sign said "English Garden Peas" which conjured up the idea of Peter Rabbit, Benjamin Bunny, and I felt that if I didn't buy them, I was betraying Beatrix Potter herself. Now, I am a very tactile person. I have to feel things, it's just who I am. I will say that shelling these peas was pretty near perfection for a tactile person. It was romantic! Opening the shells, popping out each pea.... amazing! And then the taste!!!! Oh my, never have I tasted such a pea. Baby definitely got in on the action and I was amused to watch my little guy eating raw peas and relishing them, even crying because he wanted more. I obliged...

I cooked the peas along with some fresh zucchini, red bell peppers and some really good sausage I found at Costco (spinach and bell pepper-Yum!)

Then I added, feta cheese, a little parmesean cheese, some sundried tomatoes and tossed it with couscous. 

A nice healthy dinner and the peas were delicious!!!

converted silver tray

I was so inspired by this blog and loved how it looked and then I remembered... wait... I found a tray a couple years ago in a box that someone was giving away (junky books etc) Here is the tray as it looked.

and after being inspired to make it a magnetic board, this is how mine turned out!

I made some magnets using old magnets and double stick tape and some pretty papers I stamped awhile back as well as some tiny clothespins a friend gave me (hi friend! I miss you!)

I love how it turned out. I love that it was completely free for me as I had all the necessary materials. I love how it greets us as we come in and out of our home. Maybe you have an old metal plate or platter. This is such a rewarding project!

Projects finished today...

I had a lot of fun with this one (also making something else I will show you tommorow when everything dries!) I like this vase, it's a good size, it's looks like it's nice, but in reality, it's plastic. Here it is...

It's nice the way it is, but why not add some charm to it, why not paint it? Yes, I just simply gave it a couple coats of white paint and I think somewhere along the way, it turned magical. I love, love, love how basic and easy and rewarding this project is. I'm thinking mason jars, wine bottles, the possibilities are endless!

I also finished a rather easy project for a wee little one about to be born. Something handstitched is always nice. I just cut out clouds from another fabric I had lying around and embroidered around them. It has velcrot attachments on the ends, I'm hoping it will be stained with pees and carrots, maybe some peaches and accompany many smiles and giggles!

July's Eucharisteo List

So I finally finished reading the book. It is a fabulous book in so many ways, something I should have read years ago. You can find Ann's blog here . An inspiring blog. I started printing out her Eucharisteo list (or thanks to the Lord) and we all found things to be thankful for during the month. I will continue doing this. It's wonderful seeing the whole family putting things on the list of what they're thankful for. Cultivating a life of thanks is something that needs to begin early. Here are tidbits of thanks for the month of July.

*Children snuggling with Daddy(watching funny video's on his phone)

*babies playing with bowls and spoons on the kitchen floor

*Eddrick is thankful for being healthy

*Abigail is thankful for really good food

*Daddy is thankful for his boys and girls and their differences

*blackberry pancakes

*handmade stationary from Grandma, drawn by her

*four year olds that color Renoir, but making the colors like a Lautrec

*the morning light coming through the kitchen window

*exciting school project

*the Lord's faithful provisions

*Planetariums

*the city of Phoenix

*our local church, the body of Christ

*Lox and bagels

*Booming Thunder

*the morning after a rainstorm: everything is clean and sparkly

*a grey, stormy sky

*toothless grins

*caring dentists

*mother and son dates

*the sound of rain on the windows

*baby fingers with mushy bananas between them

*bouquets of lavender

*wine on sale

*the feel of bread dough in your hands

*a three year old's need for Snoopy, the cute way he pleads for it before bedtime

*summer vegetables

*grapefruits

*basil plants

*watching stock car races with my son

*the gentle hum of a ceiling fan and it's lullabye effect