October This and That

"Change keeps life fresh and adventurous. Embrace change with faith and trust that God will see you through." -Joyce Meyer

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1.) Don't you  just love Autumn? This is the vine beside our house, it went all meh last year, but is beautiful this one. Never give up on things changing!

2.) Speaking of that, for too long I believed my decorating days were finished, that just one more change here would tilt! tilt! the whole thing over into Cluttersville. But whew. I was wrong.

My Randy Lynn Reed calendar arrived, I framed two of her paintings and now color me all inspired to decorate in a year-around autumnal style. Yes, it's a challenge, but you know? I'd forgotten the joy of conquering difficulties.

But now I remember--and am on a new exciting-to-me journey.

3.) Need something lovely to listen to this Autumn? Here's the soundtrack from the first Narnia movie. Inspiring stuff there.

4.) Okay. I'm only sharing this to give you much hope in God's creativity in meeting peoples' needs.

When Tom told me in June the cost of having our basement waterproofed, I nearly fainted. I was, like, oh sure! Let's just go out to the crab apple tree and start pulling down one-thousand dollar bills!

But it needed to be done. Our 90-year-old basement walls were crumbly, moldy and leaking. 

Well, Tom's savings account had 1/3 of the amount, so we set up an appointment for 3 months later and hoped for the best.

Here's the miracle: sometime during those 3 waiting months, I checked our latest bank statement and oh! My mouth dropped open. It's as though someone had deposited 7 extra paychecks!

Now, I confess I do not check our monthly statements, well, monthly. I mostly just rely upon my own math and record keeping. If there's enough in there to pay the bills, well, I'm thrilled.  ッ

 So I sat down for around an hour with all our statements since last January and found only one paycheck I'd not counted. Only one! 

Anyway, all I can think of is that God made a secret deposit of His own. Over and over we've watched Him make a way where there was none and today may I encourage you to stay open to weird, unexpected miracles (of all sorts) in your own life.

The basement after (which shows a bit of how dreadful it must have looked before! Ha! No, actually it's much brighter and newer-feeling than this photo illustrates.)

5.)  Now, I'm not a huge reader of picture books, but The Stranger was autumnally enchanting. Wow. You can read/see it here. By the author of The Polar Express.

6.) So for some added encouragement regarding Today's grocery prices, I made a list of foods from our local Aldi which sell for $1.09 or less. Of course, not everyone has access to Aldi, but most areas have a discount supermarket with similar prices.

Anyway, we don't use all these, but it's remarkable the cheap meals I'm still able to make for Tom and myself in wildly-expensive 2022:

Bananas, fresh green onions, cucumbers

Various canned vegetables, including potatoes

3-pack of yeast

Various canned beans (pinto, refried, etc.)

Frozen peas, frozen green beans, frozen corn, mixed vegetables, etc.

Canned tomatoes

Baking soda

Canned mushrooms

Small tubs of yogurt

Boxed jello, boxed pudding

Canned tuna, canned soup

Canned tomato paste, canned tomato sauce

Canned peaches, canned pears, fruit cocktail

Cake mixes, brownie mix

Bottled spices

Boxed soup or dip mix

Canned green chilies

Boxed stuffing mix

Whipped topping (tub)

Boxed tri color (and regular) rotini

Worcesteshire sauce

Packaged chili seasoning, brown gravy mix, ranch dressing mix and Italian

Boxed rice pilaf mix

Boxed mashed potatoes, au gratin, scalloped, also

Packaged seasoned croutons

Canned sloppy joe sauce, canned Vienna sausage

Small bottle white vinegar

Boxed spaghetti pasta, 15 oz. canned pasta

Various bottled mustards

Frozen chicken pot pie

Boxed shells and white cheddar pasta entree, packaged ramen

Boxed macaroni and cheese

White bread loaf, hot dog buns, hamburger buns

7.) It's been awhile since I mentioned The Cottage Fairy at Youtube. She's another who revels in Autumn and I especially enjoyed her peaceful latest video. Soo relaxing.

And this woman has a lovely idea--taking a vacation everyday! (I can really get into something like that.)  シ

Oh! And have you ever watched this woman while she cleans houses for free?? What a thoughtful thing to do, especially considering what she often faces. Oh dear.

8.)  And here's something to remember. Many folks are saying what they believe looms ahead for our Country. Many. People. But the most important thing is what is God saying?

It helps keep us calm to never forget this:

9.)  And finally, for each of you, my friends, who so faithfully read here year after year, these--  (You are much appreciated.)

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Please remember: My posts are always about more than they appear to be. 

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 "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." ... Matthew 6:14,15