Some Pictures from the Weekend

Spring Mill State Park is easily one of my favorite IN parks.  There is just so much to do that we could not get to it all in one weekend.

Above is the mill at the heart of the restored village.  In its day it was the hub of the area.  350 pigs also free ranged this area back in the day.  Something I'd like to have seen!  The mill was so successful in part because it was located next to an abundance of flowing water from a cave about 500 feet away.

The village also has a beautiful herb and flower garden.  The mill's owner didn't have to grow a garden of food as there were so many wagons of supplies coming into the village every day. Imagine that.  In the early 1800's, they didn't eat local.  (ha!)  The garden was used for parties, medicine, and there were pea fowl walking around as well.  The village owner was wealthy and was not the typical pioneer.  He had money to spend and wasn't afraid to spend it.  (I learned a lot on our walking tour of the village!) 

The park also has a memorial to a local hero, Virgil Grissom, the astronaut.

We also visited the nature center, which is situated next to a man made lake that went wonky due to sediment coming from the cave water.  This used to be the swimming beach. Now it is a favorite hang out of Great Blue Herons.

We spent most of Saturday keeping cool in the giant swimming pool. It got pretty warm, but the pool was delightful. 

 Here's the campsite...

Ryan got his own tent this trip.  It helped him have some private space away from siblings when he needed it.

Here they are in front of the camp store.  I just love their flowers!  

The sunset was very pretty Friday evening. 

Another view of camp site number 125.

Last time we camped here, in 2009, this is how the kids looked.  Amazing transformation in only three short years!

From 2009!

Today, I will joyfully wash and hang out all our blankets and sleeping bags, looking forward to our next camping trip in four short weeks!

Epiphany 2012

We are doing something a little new to us this year.  We are attempting to celebrate more of the church calendar.  I may go into the whys another time, but for now, here are some pictures from our Epiphany.

How To Be Happy According to Benjamin Franklin

I really enjoy gleaning from the past.  I came across this list and thought I'd post them here as something to think about.   Although, Mr. Franklin did not always live up to his virtues, it is still valuable to have something to aim for.  I would do well to write my own personal list.  

Benjamin Franklin's Thirteen Virtues

Temperance: Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.

Order: Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.

Resolution: Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.

Frugality: Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.

Moderation: Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.

Industry: Lose no time; be always employed in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.

Cleanliness: Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, clothes, or habitation.

Tranquility: Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.

Silence: Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.

Sincerity: Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.

Justice: Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.

Chastity: Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another's peace or reputation.

Humility: Imitate Jesus and Socrates.

How To Be Happy

For the most part, I consider myself a happy person with many blessings.  I decided to write a little about how I achieve this state of being as a record perhaps for my children one day. 

1. Wake up every morning with a grateful heart.  Spend time in the Word of God.  Ask Him to help you navigate through your day in a way that pleases Him.  
2. Exercise for 20 to 30 minutes a day.  Even if you are not training for an Olympic sport, you will reap many benefits from this simple step.  You can be proud of yourself for one thing.  You will have more energy.  You will sleep better. 
3. Eat less, avoid sugar, regular or diet soda, and refined foods.  Be moderate.  
4. Purpose to work hard for the glory of God whatever you do.  No grumbling.  Look for ways to bless others.
5. Be the first to say you are sorry.  
6. Look people in the eyes when speaking to them.  Smile!  
7. Go to bed at a decent hour.  Get up early enough to do #1 &#2 on this list.  Get up before your children.  
8. Do not spend money you do not have, EVER!!!  
9. Save for a rainy day, even if this means you have to say no to yourself now.  
10. Spend time marveling God's creation whenever you are able.  

**Bonus:  if you want to grow old gracefully, never stop moving,  reading / learning, and don't watch a lot of TV !  (From personal observation of my elders) 

I Have No Complaints

"One wise mother insisted that her children write out all their complaints in 200 words or more. She received few. This is a good exercise for all of us. Make your list and go over it in your prayer time with God."
~Elisabeth Elliot

"Do everything without complaining or arguing." Philippians 2:14

Gleaning From the Past

Good Monday morning to you all! It was a lovely weekend here. The temperatures are below normal and it was raining yesterday, giving my gardener the weekend off from watering. *grins*

I find myself in a seeking mood.  I am drawn to all things old.  I have a thirsty desire to glean from ages past, especially the late 1800's to early 1900's.    This knowledge that I am seeking is all about home keeping.

Last night I curled up with a couple good "books", I will call them books, for it was indeed from my computer that I read.  Gutenberg.org is one of my favorite sites.

The first is called, The Book of Household Management by Mrs. Beeton.  This book is more geared to a household with servants.  It was fun to read, anyway.  I just read the parts pertaining to the mistress of the house.  It has volumes on each servant's role.  Very interesting.  However, since I do not employ a house full of servants, the next book was more relevant. 


I also read bits from The Easiest Way in Housekeeping and Cooking by Helen Campbell. Some of the ideas are a little out dated, but there are real gems in these old books too.  I really liked the chapter entitled, "A Day's Work" in Mrs. Campbell's book.  The first sentence amused me.  Finally someone who understands! 

"It is safe to say that no class of women in the civilized world is
subjected to such incessant trials of temper, and such temptation to be
fretful, as the American housekeeper."

I like this quote, too. 

"In the beginning, then, be sure of one thing,--that all the wisdom you
have or can acquire, all the patience and tact and self-denial you can
make yours by the most diligent effort, will be needed every day and every
hour of the day. Details are in themselves wearying, and to most men their
relation to housekeeping is unaccountable. The day's work of a systematic
housekeeper would confound the best-trained man of business. In the
woman's hand is the key to home-happiness, but it is folly to assert that
all lies with her. Let it be felt from the beginning that her station is a
difficult one, that her duties are important, and that judgment and skill
must guide their performance; let boys be taught the honor that lies in
such duties,--and there will be fewer heedless and unappreciative
husbands."

I am also revisiting Mrs. Child's book, The American Frugal Housewife .  

I plan to look for more books in this line of thinking.  My library is in want 

of any that I can find on my own. 

Do you have any good old books you might 

recommend? (Or blogs?)  

Shaping of a Christian Family

Good morning friends. Are you enjoying a peaceful home this week? It's been a lovely week here. The sunshine and warmth does wonders for my soul. Here's a little post about a wonderful book I am pondering at the moment. It's the kind of book that you must not hurry through and you must go back and read it again, perhaps, as your seasons in life change. How I love and thank God for Elisabeth Elliot.

The Shaping of a Christian Family by Elisabeth Elliot is currently my self encouragement reading. Actually, I purchased this book many years ago.  I hung onto it, hoping one day it would "click."  Well, it has clicked!  I think I am finally through being spoon fed good books. Hooray!  It's embarrassing to say that I put this book down more than once and for more than a few years because it just did not make sense to me.  However, now I am finally mature enough.  I am certainly older!  And my family is beyond the baby stage, when I first tried to make sense of this awesome book.  Unfortunately, it would have been of great benefit to my family if I had persevered way back then!  *sigh*

The Shaping of a Christian Family is actually a sort of autobiography for Elisabeth Elliot's family.  It is  filed with remembrances from her mother and her father's journal entries sprinkled with Elisabeth's godly wisdom about raising a Christian family.  

The book begins with the history of Elisabeth's maternal grandparents and her parents.  Her maternal grandparents were Christians, but certainly not on fire for the Lord.  They lived a comfortable life with servants and big houses, lake houses too.  It was not until later that the family became devoted to Jesus.

Elisabeth's father came from a more modest family that was living for the Lord.  Her father decided to be a missionary in his late teens, about the same time Elisabeth's mother came to the same independent conclusion.  

I highly recommend this book. It is filled with godly advice, quotes from Scripture, and good old fashioned remembrances of time gone by.  This remarkable family serves as an example to the rest of us striving to bring up godly children.  It's just so encouraging to my heart! 

"The ordering of a peaceful home is not possible without the application of eternal principles.  It is, after all, mostly little, common things that make up our lives.  This is the raw material for the spiritual life. If we despise small things, regard normal household duties as burdens, routines as boring, rules too confining, we will never learn, nor can we teach our children, to live a life of holy harmony.  This takes faithfulness in the troublesome details first of all, learning to do them well that we may make of them an offering to the Lord, for it is His work, after all, given to us.  It is our daily bread for which we should learn to be thankful.  Such faithfulness is the ground-work for all God may ever ask us to do."
p. 129-130