in my world ~ june

^My sweet new kitten, Tabitha ♥

^After four weeks, Oscar is still unwilling to accept the new addition to our family.  Sigh.

~ outside my window ~

It is pouring with rain...after a few unusually warm days, cold weather is predicted for the next while, and I am beyond thrilled.
I do so love cosy weather!

 ~ in my cup ~

Strong hot coffee, of course.  {{smiles}}

~ around the house ~
 As usual, we have several projects on the go. 
Mom is sewing pyjamas and leggings for everyone, Nancy is creating a play kitchen and fridge for the children from cardboard boxes, and the rest of us are trying to recover and reorganise ourselves after a big reshuffle of the bedrooms on Sunday!

~ reading ~

I am currently reading an Amish book called, A Sister's Hope by Wanda Brunstetter, but I can't  say I am enjoying it very much...  

I am still anxiously awaiting the arrival of the books which I ordered at the beginning of May, including another one by Miss Read!

~ listening to ~

At the moment I am listening to a lot of hymns sung by Chris Rice...  I find my heart uplifted by the words of truth in the old hymns.

Great is Thy Faithfulness is one I am clinging to at the moment.

~ watching ~

We just finished a series called Living with the Amish.  In this six episode series, six British teenagers are invited to spend six weeks staying with various Amish and Mennonite families between Pennsylvania and Ohio.  

It was lovely to get a peak into the lives of the Amish and we found ourselves inspired in our quest for a simpler, quieter life.  

~ from the kitchen ~

I continue to do most of the cooking.  Lately I have been cooking a lot of double meals to free up a few of my afternoons.  However, cooking double for a large family means I need to quadruple a recipe!  {{smiles}}

~ creating ~

With so much filling each day, I am not finding time to be creative, but I have enjoyed teaching "my" children (in case you didn't know, I am an au pair and teach sewing to the children I help with) some patchwork and applique lately, which they have loved.

~ in the garden ~

 With Winter just around the corner, my garden has been slowing down, and only salad greens, a few herbs and peas are growing well.  Most of my brassicas were annihilated by caterpillars, but thankfully there are still a few plants intact...  Otherwise, the sweet potatoes and beetroot are growing steadily.

~ out and about ~

Now that we have moved to level 3 of lockdown, restriction of movement has been lifted slightly, which means we can walk at any time of the day.
We have enjoyed meeting friends in the forest and at the dam for a walk and hope to get some cycling in too!

~ hoping ~

With a few seasons in life drawing to a close and new possibilities on the horizon, I am hoping that things will become clear soon.  Patience is definitely not one of my virtues.

~ one of my favourite things ~

Having my sweet kitty, Tabitha, sleep on my bed each night.  I love waking up to find her still fast asleep next to me the next morning.  ♥

~ thankful for ~

Being able to go for a long, refreshing walk on the beach on the weekend.

It was really quite cold and windy, but it didn't bother us in the least.  It felt wonderful to feel the sand beneath our feet and breathe in the fresh ocean air after nine weeks of not being allowed on our beautiful beaches.

~ quiet moments ~

Not too many of those...I find myself enjoying the strangest times of peace such as when I am in the car driving down the road to work, or when I get up to make coffee for Mom and I each morning.

~ for the love of words ~

Each morning I love reading Spurgeon's morning devotional.

This was yesterday's reading...

"The deeper our troubles, the louder our thanks to God, who has led us through all, and preserved us until now. Our griefs cannot mar the melody of our praise, we reckon them to be the bass part of our life's song, "He hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad."

~ thinking of ~

June 7th marked the 3 year anniversary of the fire which destroyed our home...

It is amazing to look back upon something so terrible, and see how the Lord's hand rested upon us and how He has provided for us...  

We have seen miracle after miracle over the past few years, and now trust Him for another one...

If you think of it, please pray for our family as we face another difficult situation...

Pray for guidance, pray for provision, and pray that we would remain strong.

~

Happy June, dear friends!

Now that we are halfway through the year of 2020, what have the first six months of this year taught you?

For me, I have realised how fleeting life on earth truly is, and how vitally important it is to keep an eternal perspective...
I have also learnt that my trust needs to be in Christ alone, and that we cannot look to man for provision.

The Lord continues to work in my life and draw me closer to Himself, and I am thankful for His patience and grace.

~

Thank you for stopping by, sweet friends. 

Your visits brighten my day!
 ♥

With much love,

Kelly-Anne

January's Daybook

A recent outing to our local farmer's market was the perfect opportunity for capturing a few sweet moments through my lens...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Outside my window...

Today's deliciously cool weather is certainly very welcome after the few stiflingly hot days we have had this week.

I may even attempt a walk to the park when little Mia wakes from her nap...

But first tea. 

In my cup...

Fruit tea sweetened with honey.

This summer I just haven't been able to drink hot coffee, which means I only drink my morning cup, and then that is it for the day.

As I have been trying to cut down on my caffeine intake, I am so happy about this!

Around the house...

We are so thankful to have Dad home for a few weeks, and the family have been enjoying regular morning beach trips and afternoons spent relaxing beside the pool.

Reading

As usual, I have several books on the go at once...

I did a lot of reading over December while babysitting, and if you follow me on Goodreads, you'll know that I checked several titles off my list!

Currently I am busy with Lorna Doone and A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens.

I was thrilled to add a few books to my growing collection which I stumbled upon at a second hand store a few weeks ago.  More on that soon!

Watching

Not all that much...although sometimes I watch an episode of something (at the moment I am watching the earlier seasons of Call the Midwife again), or part of a Hallmark movie while folding laundry in the evening.

Listening to...

I was over the moon to find two old Celtic Woman albums while browsing a second hand store a few weeks back.

I did a lot of driving in December, so it was fabulous to have new music to listen to.

I also found Josh Groban's Awake concert which I was pretty chuffed about.

Thankful for...

The month my dear friend spent in South Africa and having my dad home.

From the kitchen...

Preserving season is now behind us, and I am delighted with the full jars we have in our pantry.

Together Gabrielle and I made plum jam, apricot jam, strawberry jam, pickled onions, beetroot relish and more.

With the weather being so warm, we are doing a lot of our cooking outside and enjoying a good old South African braai most evenings.

Creating...

A couple weeks ago I spent a few days making up a custom order for a client.  

I made seven ellies, each one slightly bigger than the one before.
It was a challenge as I was working with fabric I don't ordinarily use, and two ellies split, which meant I had to start all over again.

I am so pleased with how they turned out and felt they were definitely worth the effort.

Other than that, I haven't been creating much lately...

Out and about...

 After a crazy few weeks, I am relishing these quieter days and being able to simply enjoy resting at home...  Besides work, I don't go anywhere if I can help it.

One of my favourite things...

I am enjoying so much about life that I don't think I could pick any one thing...

However, I do so love having a swimming pool - it makes summer so much more bearable!

Dreaming of...

Buying my new camera and learning how to use it...

Reading the new book which should also be arriving in the mail soon.

I am hoping...

To start feeling more rested.

To resume my daily walks, although now that it is hot, I need to walk before I have to get done for work...around 6am.

Quiet moments...

I have been enjoying plenty of blogging time almost every morning while Mia takes her nap.

I haven't been able to invest much time in writing the past couple weeks, so it feels really good to be getting into the swing of things again!

~

Well, dear friends...  It was ever so lovely to stop in today.

I would love to hear what has been  happening in your corner of the world this month, so do pop me a little note in the comments section - it is always a treat hearing from you!

Oh, and do stop by Ponderings from the Inglenook where I am guest posting today.
Elizabeth is a dear friend of mine, and it is a true honour to be contributing something to her lovely blog!

Blessings,

Kelly-Anne

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in my world ~ november

 "Everyone should regularly have themselves overwhelmed by nature."

~ George Harrison

 ^Look how deep the stream is after all the rain we have had the past week!

^The little ones playing "Pooh sticks"

 

 ^The perfect imaginary airplane!

^Our two young explorers, Rebekah (10) and Sofia (8).

^I love taking photographs at the railway track!

^And it is always wonderful on an overcast day…makes for a dramatic backdrop!

 ^The three littles – Sofia, Rebekah and Caleb.

 

^We always enjoy our walks in the forest…

 ~

Outside my window…

The world outside is dark and rain is threatening.  I had hoped to take little one for her walk, but we will have to wait till the weather clears…

It would seem that winter is not quite finished with us yet with the past two weeks being cold and rainy…

In my cup…

Rooibos citrus tea.  I have started drinking more herbal and fruit teas so as to reduce my caffeine intake…  I think I am starting to acquire a taste for tea and enjoy trying out new flavours.

Around the house…

This past month saw us shifting rooms around so that both Nancy and I now have our own space, which has enabled me to do a lot more sewing in the evenings and early mornings.  I do miss having my younger sister, Gabrielle, in the room with me, though.

Reading…

Last week I shared that one of my goals for this year was to read more and how I have more than achieved what I set out to accomplish. 

Recently I finished reading Twenty Years After (the sequel to The Three Musketeers) and Bonnie Dundee by Rosemary Sutcliff, as well as Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell.

I picked up The Yearling again and am slowly but surely getting through it.  Although I do think it a wonderful story and really well written, I confess that I am dragging my heels through this book.  I am hoping to start Jo’s Boys this week….

Listening to…

Celtic Woman just released their lovely new Christmas album, The Magic of Christmas.  I know I said I was going to wait till December to start listening to Christmas music…but oh well…I simply couldn’t resist!  {{smiles}}

Thankful for…

It may be almost summertime, but the weather is still pretty cool during the day, and the nights cold.

I love this in between weather and enjoy being able to spend as much time as possible out of doors.  I still walk for about an hour every day with the little girl in my care - soon it will be too hot to do this and I will have to see about squeezing in a walk before work or in the evenings…

From the kitchen…

It is preserving time in our home and I have been spending many a happy hour in the kitchen pickling, preserving and bottling.  So far I have made pickled onions, beetroot relish, tomato chilli jam and strawberry jam.  Soon apricots will be coming in and I can’t wait to start making apricot jam and chutney.

I am expecting a good harvest of cucumbers (I planted so many this year) and would very much like to make my own gherkins with the new cucumbers.

Creating…

As I mentioned last week, I have been spending all my free time in my sewing room.  I am feeling pretty confident about being finished in time for this year’s gift market if I can just keep up this pace.  I also had an order come in (Thank you, Lord), so I need to fit this in somewhere along the line too.  {{smiles}}

In the garden…

My little garden is growing quite prolifically at the moment…  Soon we will be harvesting cucumbers and cherry tomatoes.  The squash has just begun to flower and we haven’t bought any lettuce, spinach or herbs in a long while.  Of course, with limited space, one can only grow so much.  I like to squeeze as much in as possible and use up whatever containers I have on hand.

Out and about…

With the weeks being so busy, I haven’t been out and about all that much.

We did spend a Saturday visiting the open gardens in our area, though, which you can hop over and read about here.

Watching…

Some evenings our family gather to watch an episode of Little Men, a series inspired by the writings of Louisa May Alcott.  Despite being quite old, it is well acted and a series we all enjoy watching.

One of my favourite things…

In the evenings once the little ones have gone to bed, Mom and I make some chamomile tea and sit together for a few minutes before bed…I always love winding down my day in this way.

Dreaming of…

There is a good chance my dearest friend will be visiting this December.  We haven’t seen each other in almost two years as her family moved back to the States…  We are both praying that this trip to South Africa will work out for her family.

My dad comes home for a three-week holiday in January, so we are starting to count down to his arrival. 

I am hoping…

That the weather will play along for the camping trip we have planned for this weekend coming.  There will be around fourteen of us going (friends, and friends of friends), so it should be great fun and I know we will make a lot of wonderful memories!

Quiet moments…

My favourite time of the day has always been early morning when the world is only just awakening.  I love to take my coffee outside and sit for a few minutes savouring the quiet while I sip my morning cuppa.  Of course, with little ones in the house who also happen to be early risers, what little peace there is (we live in a very busy part of town) can sometimes be shattered!

Well, sweet readers.  I would love to hear what is going on in your part of the world this November…

Blessings,

Kelly-Anne

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