Three Months of Saturdays to Stop and Smell the Peonies

For those that asked...(O.K. - just one of you asked!)...the beautiful Amazing Grace Cross stitch in the picture below was made by my amazingly talented and beautiful sweet mama.
When I first went to work full time, I remember being overwhelmed with the change (I haven't really ever recovered, actually!). I took on a "just put your head down and go" type philosophy. Just survive this. Get through it. I was so absorbed with making sure I woke up on time and had us all ready for the day by 8:00a.m. that I forgot about Saturdays. I forgot that Saturday would come and I wouldn't have to get up and run this race. Sweet Saturdays. Oh...how I love thee.

Because I work at a school...summer holds the promise of three months worth of Saturdays. During the school year, I sometimes just "put my head down and go" (between Saturdays and Sundays that is!). And I forget that Summer will come. Summer will come with it's long lazy days of sunny sweet goodness. With lemonade and sweet tea...and lounging by the pool. Summer will come with morning devotions that don't need to be rushed. With golf games in the midst of spectacular landscaping artwork shining glory on God's creation. Laughter and bike rides. Fishing at the reservoir. Ice cream cones and strawberry pie. Popcorn and baseball games. Family time...and being the person I really am when I'm not "putting my head down and going". When I can be in my haven...my home. It's the first week of summer here...and I can feel myself returning. The awareness of the need to care for my home and make it beautiful and welcoming. The desire to do so. All washing over me along with the first rays of this glorious season.

It's time to stop and smell the peonies...

I would have said roses...but peonies are what I'm smelling right now...peonies from my front flower bed..filling my front room with their glorious splendor.



I was going to crop the golf balls out of this picture (Timothy uses the front room as a putting green sometimes!)...but then I thought, nope - that's us! Oh, and it looks like the floral arrangement at the bottom of the stand has tipped over as well. Just keeping it real folks...just keeping it real...



Lately, I'm spending a lot of time doing this...



And preparing shipments filled with a whole lot of these...



And making preparations for this...



So yesterday, when the Kid Fest came to town, we stopped to do a little of this...



And a bit of this...



And...just the right amount of this...



Because sometimes you just have to stop and smell the peonies...