Spring. Tea. Thankfullness.

It is Spring in Baton Rouge and I love it!

The flowers are growing in my Garden and I love the accidental combination of Blue and Pink.

The orange flowers are for Victoria, my Granddaughter who loves the bright color.

I think of her, when I see them.

On this morning, I am having a Chocolate Chip Scone and cup of Tea.  Nothing fancy. While not such a healthy breakfast, they taste perfect together.

My entire Church is reading this Devotional for the Easter season.

There is a chapter for every single day as we study the meaning of the Lord's Prayer.

This reflection is part of every day's reading.

…..giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 5

I am thankful for the beautiful flowers in Spring.  

And the fine taste of tea.  

And for Chocolate!

My Beautiful Morning.

Early, early this morning while the rain was a gentle mist,  the Egrets were out in large numbers on our little neighborhood pond.

The adults Egrets and the young ones would glide across the pond, and then back again.  What a beautiful welcome to the day.  And not a soul around but me….for awhile.

"The heavens are telling 

of the glory of God;

And their expanse is 

declaring the work of

 His hands."

Psalms 19:1

All Designs Are Copyright Protected copyright 2014 Jeannie Baumeister

Winter Morning.

Winter mornings  are different somehow.

The morning light is more intense I think. 

It comes through my window and finds my old chandelier.

Making beautiful rainbows on my wall.

The sun makes shadows  as it reaches my ivy.

But so quickly lights up the room.

Your word is a lamp to my feet

and a light to my path.

Psalm 119:105

All Designs Are Copyright Protected copyright 2013 Jeannie Baumeister

Stitching Along....

I have been merrily stitching along on this quilt and low and behold, the top is almost complete!

I totally love it!

Every stitch by hand which is my pleasure as I am in no hurry.

A vew from my Sewing Room window - fall has not arrived yet.

The joy is in the journey!

"This is the day which the Lord has made;

Let us rejoice and be glad in it."

Psalm 118:24

All Designs Are Copyright Protected copyright 2011 Jeannie Baumeister

Easter Story

John 3:16 & 17

When we celebrate Easter, we remember that God gave us his Son, Jesus Christ, to be our Savior.

"Why do you seek the living among the dead?  He is not here, but has risen."

An Angel Appeared to Joseph

Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way.  When His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.  And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 

But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  She will bear a son , and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins" 

When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife.

Matthew 1:18-24

He did as the angel of the Lord commanded him.  Again...obedience to God!!

An Angel Appeared to Mary

The angel Gabriel appeared to Mary, a virgin, who was engaged to be married to Joseph. 

He said to her "Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you" Luke 1:28

And the angel told Mary, she would bear a son whose name shall be Jesus. Jesus would be conceived of the Holy Spirit.

"He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David: and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end....The Holy Child shall be called the Son of God" Luke 1:32-35

And Mary said "Behold, I am the handmaiden of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." and the angel departed from her. Luke 1:38

Sewing Circle Meets Again

The Sewing Circle at my Church met again.

There were two quilts being worked on.  This one was getting put together.

This quilt already has the two layers with batting in between and is being pinned.   I like this one.  I like the center squares and the plaid for the backing.  Who knows where the blue fabric came from.  It has long rows of Pin tucking  on it.

Close up of a square.  Four smaller squares of fabric were sewn into a larger square and then little  square was appliqued in the center.

The three layers are tied together with knots.  I am one of the knot tiers!

The smaller children's quilts will be taken on overseas mission trips.  These will probably be given to the homeless here in Baton Rouge.

The Bible lesson was about God's grace as He forgives our sins and gives us a second (and third, and fourth, and....etc) chance.   And we are to think about just what we are doing with the second chance He has given us.  There was more than that to the lesson, but I am left with the thought about what am I doing with my own second chance?

Beautiful Thoughts I Wish For You!!

 

Roses from my Garden (last spring) - close your eyes and you can smell them.

I found this poem on a blog called "The Gathering Place".  It has the most amazing old fashioned illustrations of Roses so you know I love it.  Please visit her and see for yourself!!

May Your Love Flow Like a Fountain

Byron Walls

May your love flow like a fountain
May your days be free of doubt
May your life become as effortless
As breathing in and out
May you always complete what you begin
May you never have so much that you’re a slave to what you own
May you always have the wisdom to leave well enough alone
When dark clouds close around you
May you feel God’s light surround you when you pray
When you need someone to guide you may you know
God walks beside you all the way

May you always wake up cheerful
And give thanks for everyday
Know the love that you receive
Comes from the love you give away
May your faith become a soft place when you fall
May you always bring to life whatever is in your mind
If good is what you’re looking for may good be what you find
When dark clouds close around you
May you feel God’s light surround you when you pray
When you need someone to guide you may you know
God walks beside you all the way

Joy In The Morning

 

"Weeping may tarry for the night,

but joy comes with the morning."

Psalm 30:5

 Lady Gray Tea in an old tea cup. 

 

The psalms are a comfort and encouragement to me.

Roses in a Milk Glass vase.

Night Time In My Garden with a Hummingbird Moth

 And God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds - livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds." And it was so.     ...And God saw that it was good. Genesis1:17

 Moon Flower. 

I love the Moon Flower. About 5" across, it opens at dusk and closes when the sun rises.

Magic every night!

Sounds of the Night.

Hummingbird Moth.  See the long sucker thing he uses to get nectar from the flowers.

Yikes!  What a Face!

A Sweet Dinner. 

For most of my life, I did not know such a creature existed.  When I first saw him, four years ago, I thought he was a night time Humming Bird until he landed. Yikes!  He has a little sucker thing that is much longer than he is, but he hits the flower to feed every time.  He is amazing.  Several of them love the Moon Flowers in my back Garden and flit around every night.  I never knew a person could find something so fascinating, yet repulsive!

A September Morning In My Garden

"And God said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth." and it was so.  ......And God saw that it was good.  Genesis 1:11,12

click on photos for closer view

 

 

Dyed Flax dated to 30,000 years ago.

 Butterflies  love the flowers in my garden.

As I read the newspaper this morning my eye was drawn to the heading "Dyed flax dated to 30,000 years ago" (by The Associated Press).  And I was reminded of something Donna from Baltazor's Fabrics said to me recently.  I have thought much about what Donna said to me.  We were talking about brick & mortar fabric shops closing and women sewing and she said something along the lines of " I think women sew because they thought life would be beautiful and it's not, so they sew beautiful things".  That is not a direct quote and I hope I haven't muddled it too much but I thought about women making their own beauty.  It is such a wonderful feeling to make something beautiful.  When I create something lovely, I love to look at it and admire it.  Not because I think I am so great that I made it, but rather, I marvel that I actually did it. Wow!!  I love beautiful things and it makes me happy that I can make something beautiful!!  The first time I felt like that was when I saw my first born son.  Could I actually have had anything thing to do with this amazing, wonderful, beautiful baby?  I was astounded!!! I was thrilled!!!   Now , I do not feel quite the same thrill when I look at my baby clothes but it is a watered down version of "did I really do this?"

Flowers from my garden after the rain stopped.

When I think about God's creations, the beauty, the detail, the unbelievable variety, I am so in awe.  The photos you see are Passion Flowers from my garden.  I bought the plant 2 years ago and carefully planted and tended it, not knowing that it must really be an exotic weed!  It has come back every year in places I did not plant it and I have to hack it back to keep it from overwhelming my other, more mannerly plants.  Look at the detail He put into it.  What person could ever have imagined all the beauty in this one little flower.  I believe that because we were made in God's image, we were given a creative seed, or desire in out heart to create something.  For me, my creative passion is designing and sewing baby clothes, but it can be different for everyone, and many people have many creative talents.  Elizabeth Travis Johnston once said to me that she kept a very neat house and she loved housework.  Elizabeth delighted in a well organized and attractive home and liked to create the atmosphere such a home has.  Today that would not be called housework, it would be called Interior Decorating!!  Sadly, I do not share in THAT creative talent.

30,000 years ago (or however long it really was) a woman dyed flax to make it more beautiful! You go girl!!