Before we left on our sabbatical my husband and I joined a couple in prayer.  The Wife prayed,

“Lord, would you just give them something special every day?”

That prayer came to my mind last week, and what a joy to realize that it has surely been answered!  Some days there has been something really special more than once in the day!  But for sure, there has been at least one really special moment each day of the twenty-something days we’ve had thus far!

Let me show you a few of those recent special things…

Click on the pictures to get a closer look.  From top left to right:

We had dinner last weekend at a neat place out in the country – it’s an old general store turned into a restaurant.  The menu item we love most is called a Barbecue Sundae.  It’s a mason jar layered with baked beans, cole slaw and scrumptious barbecue, and topped with a wedge of tomato that makes it look like the cherry on top!  This was my view from my table – the American flag flying just outside the squeaky screen door!

On Friday morning, my husband said, “I’m going yard saling; come go with me and then we’ll stop for a bagel for breakfast!”  We used to love to go hunt through yard sales, but we hadn’t been to one in years, so this was a fun event!  At one house we both found several Christian books by favorite authors, and I also secured a couple of kids Sunday school song CD’s for 50 cents each that I’ll be using in my Bible Club each week.  It was worth our time to get all those items – and for less than one CD would have cost in the store! Even better than the deals was the fun we had doing something spontaneous! We ended with bagels at Wheeler’s Bagels and enjoyed them out on their patio.

I’ve enjoyed having the time to do a couple of crafty things!  I made this Tennessee sign for our patio.  My daughter, Alli, saw something like this and asked me to make her one.  A man at church gave her several pieces of old wood, so after I made hers, I made one for us, too!  I love the way it turned out, and it only took me about 30 minutes, and that includes making my own TN stencil!  You can’t see it too well, but there’s an orange heart marking out East Tennessee!

One afternoon my husband made a small pot of coffee.  He brought me a cup in this pretty Fiesta cup and saucer.  How sweet to swing on the back porch and sip the coffee.  Also, how blessed I am to have a husband who is so thoughtful to search and find the perfect mug for a small cup of afternoon joe!

Alli’s birthday was Sunday, so after we each attended church, she and her husband joined us at our house for a little celebration!

Another crafty thing I got to do is sew slipcovers for my swing’s pillows.  The sun had faded the once red pillows, so this remnant fabric I found at Hobby Lobby gave them a nice, updated look at a small price!

Baking is another love of mine, as you know if you’ve followed my blog for any time.  I got to make these Chocolate Orange Cakes with Ganache for Alli’s birthday. ( I’ve shared the recipe here.)  It was a perfect birthday cake since they’re individual cakes.  The recipe makes 6, so there wasn’t tons of leftover cake.  These are SOOOO good!

My husband attended a conference one night this week, so while he was away, I took the opportunity to do some study out on the back porch.  The quiet and the view were the perfect backdrop to allow the Lord to direct my thoughts as I studied His Word!

On Wednesday I got to another project – I repainted my book cabinet.  I had painted it about 20 years ago, and because stenciling was popular then, I added the stencil.  I thought it was time for an update, so I used the same paint color that I used on my dining room table several years ago.  I also changed out the hardware, once I brought it back inside.  Maybe I’ll do a post about that in September!

I may add a touch of another color on the back of each shelf.  Still thinking about that!

It’s been fun to look for the “special” in each day.  You know, we should do that every day because our God is good and does good. Psalm 119:68

 What special things did you see in your week?

We’re on the countdown of our last week of sabbatical, then I’ll be back to blogging every weekday!

Have a wonderful weekend worshiping (and looking for what special things God will do in your life!).

Stay refreshed,