friday's fave five

Even before the buds show on the trees, even before the grass starts turning green...even before the flowers bloom, there is hope of Spring...in the smell of burning ditches where farmers are prepping and in the smell of the first skunk...yep, we smelled it last night.  Crazy, I know, but that odor made my heart do a little dance!

To participate in a fun Friday wrap up you can go to Susanne's at Living to Tell the Story.

1. And speaking of hope...
The Lord has really given Sunny and I a peace and a hope in the midst of such unrest and uncertainty.  We don't have to worry, but we do need to be prepared for whatever happens.  We don't have to live in hopelessness, but we can have peace that the Lord will make a way when there seems no way.  For any who are suffering with hopelessness and despair during these tumultuous times the Lord is a prayer away.  If you talk sincerely to Him about anything, He is there to give you direction.

2.  Last Sunday we celebrated 'Christmas in March' with our daughter and her boyfriend.  Chels and Brice live in northern Colorado, several hours away.  With everyone's work schedules the way they are, none of us were able to get together until then.  It was a nice visit and after opening gifts to each other, we went out to eat at the local diner and then went out shooting.  It's nice to have things in common.  Brice and his brother have been hunters for awhile, but we're coming a little late on the scene.  Better late than never, I say, given the reality of the world we live in.  I'm enjoying this hobby we can all share.  If you're on top of the news with gun-control, Colorado is trying to pass laws that are against our 2nd amendment rights and, if passed will set a precedence for the entire nation.  (Thus my thoughts on hope.)  Anyway, we loved being with our 'kids' and look forward to being able to get with them again soon(er).

3  My husband is taking an HVAC class in Springs for the next 11 weeks.  Since his class is close to my aunt's house, Grace and I go once in awhile and hang out with her and our cousin.  It's always enjoyable, but last night was even more special because we got to be a part of celebrating our cousin's birthday.  Of course we couldn't leave Springs without a thrift store run as well as going to YoYogurt again!

4.  We live in a very small, rural community of 1200 people.  Last month our librarian started a women's coffee time.  I went to that one and attended again this week.  Our random conversation flowed from talking about the elderly living with family--to the Dawdi house of the Amish people--to discussing the fairly large community of Amish over on the western slope of Colorado, and back to the woman in our group who buys sheep from an Amish family over there.  Sprinkled in between is getting to know each lady, where she's from, hobbies etc.  I'm enjoying the very relaxed and informal atmosphere of just having a good ol' visit.

5.  I mentioned in a former FFF about using our gray water for our garden and lawn this year given the fact that we will only be allowed four hours a week watering time.  The good news, after my husband talked to the Plumbing Inspector, is that it is legal to have gray water pumped from our house to the yard.  No environmental issues nor burearcratic red-tape to jump through.

So there you have it!

It's All Hopeful & Good!

Brenda