I'm a Homebody

My husband and I travel a bit. We like seeing new places and relaxing on a beach. But truth be known, in my heart of hearts, I'm a homebody.

Me hanging out at home with our dog, Kobi.

While I love our time away and visiting family and friends, I'm usually counting the days until we're home again. I love routine, the comfort of home, and sleeping in my own bed. I even enjoy the mundane tasks that go along with being home like laundry, doing dishes, picking up the mail, and attending my church.

Maybe I sound like the most boring person on earth. I might be. But I think there's something good about loving my life so much I can hardly wait to return to its ordinariness. It's called contentment. So, yeah, I'm a homebody. And I wouldn't change it for the world.

How about you? Are you a homebody or one who loves being away?

Linda

No Regrets

As you read this, I'm visiting my husband's family in Minnesota. His dad is 92 and we hadn't seen him for over a year. It was waaay past time. We weren't sure the finances would work out, but we decided we needed to make it happen. The only thing that costs more than stretching the budget to take a trip to see loved ones is living with regret. So that's how I'm spending my weekend. How about you? Any fun plans on the horizon? In the meantime, here's a picture of my cute father-in-law.

Bet you're jealous.

Linda

Timing is Everything

Timing is everything. And when the timing doesn't happen when we think it should, it can be so frustrating and worrisome. That's where faith comes in. Trusting that God hasn't forgotten about you and your situation. He's not like us. He doesn't need prep time, so He can act at the last minute and still have the best result. So don't stress out wondering if God has His divine alarm clock set. He does. And it will go off at precisely the right time for your best outcome. Remember, you're His beloved child and He is always working for your good.

Linda

Get Off My Unicorn

It's Wacky Wednesday and it doesn't get much wackier than this. We're all a little crazy in our own way, aren't we? So let's extend grace to each other. And just smile and nod at each other's special kind of charming crazy. Life would be way too boring if we were all alike. :)

Linda

Love and Gratitude

Love and gratitude. Two timeless things for this Timeless Tuesday. Breathe them in. Breathe them out. We could change the world if we all did this every day. Have a great day!

Linda

I'm a Thrifter

I am a thrift store junkie. Not a recovering one either. I fully intend to stay that way.

I didn't discover thrifting until my twenties. My bestie, Myra, and I loved what we called junk stores. There weren't a lot of thrift stores in those days, but there were some good, cheap places like Pic N Save and TG&Y, the equivalents of today's dollar stores. But they didn't carry clothes. And we liked cute clothes. Did I mention we were gals in our twenties? What we didn't like was the prices of said cute clothes. A dilemma, for us financially challenged girls.

Then along came Savers and changed our lives.

We had shopped Goodwill and Salvation Army, but they just didn't carry the cute stuff. It all seemed too old and too used. We wanted to be thrifty, not frumpy. Savers to the rescue! Racks and racks of clothes, all sorted by color, opened our eyes to the wonders of thrifting. Sure, you have to go through the racks to find the really cute stuff, but that's part of the fun. It's like a treasure hunt! And as if that weren't joy enough, every day there is a special deal of some kind, usually a particular color of tag that is half off.

We shopped. We bought. We came back again and again. We got twice the wardrobe for half the price or less. Not only that, Savers also carries fashion accessories, housewares, books, and toys. One stop shopping.

I must admit I love it when someone tells me they love my outfit. I'm a touch vain that way, as are most folks, from what I can tell. But the real fun for me is to tell them where I bought it and what a bargain it was. Their eyes widen and their voices go up three notches. "You're kidding!"
Uh, no. I'm not.

Seriously, there's no reason to go broke just to dress fashionably. So I'm forever a thift store junkie and proud of it.

Do you thrift? Give a shout-out to your favorite thrift store.

Linda

7 Perks of Getting Older

By the time you read Monday's post, I will have turned another year older. I've never been one to mind birthdays. I mean, they're a gift, right? Every year gets a little better as far as I'm concerned. So yeah. I'll have 56 years under my belt. Here are some of the things I don't mind about it. In fact, I'm downright giddy about a few of these.

1. I'm comfortable in my own skin. Never mind that it's not as taut as it used to be. It's mine, and I love the person God is molding me into. However flawed I am at this stage of the molding process, it's okay, because I'm still on the pottery wheel under the gentle touch of the master Creator.
2. I've got a year's worth of practice ordering from the senior menu. It took me a while, but I am finally remembering that yes, I am a senior in most restaurants and yes, I can order from that cheaper menu with the more reasonably sized portions. And it's legal.
3. My marriage is sweeter. I've always had a pretty good marriage, but with more time to ourselves now that the kids are mostly grown comes more time to dream, relax, work on projects, and just hang out together. There's a nice, easiness between us now that wasn't always present in the busier, more stressful days of raising kids. 
4. My spiritual walk is deeper. Relying on God is less of a struggle in these middle-aged years than it used to be.  I am very much aware of how inept I am in many areas of my life. I have to depend on Him to bring me through. I've learned first-hand how useless worry is.
5. I get to see my children grown up and thriving. All those years of parenting, correcting, guiding, loving my children? Worth it! Now I get to see the fruit of those hectic days and it's so rewarding. My kids aren't perfect. Neither is their mom. But I can see the wonderful people they are and know that all those endless hours, days, months, and years, added up to the sweetest success I've ever enjoyed. And I'm so proud and thankful.
6. Gray looks good on me. Seriously, I'm too lazy to dye my hair. You can read another blog post I wrote about that here. But I'm finding a comforting satisfaction in seeing myself in the mirror and thinking, "Huh. So this is what you look like at 56." I am no super model. But I am made in the image of God and that's gotta be pretty good.
7. I've learned to be a confident Grammy. Fourteen years ago I wondered what kind of grandma I'd be. My first grandchild came when my youngest child was only five. I wasn't sure I was ready for another little one again so soon. I was wrong. Let me be clear. I.Was. Wrong. I found out God equips new grandmas the same as he does new moms. He pours an overabundance of love into our hearts and never looks back. And wonder of wonders, grandchildren didn't make me feel older, as I'd feared, but younger. So now I lean into that role and love every minute of it. I've become confident in who I am as Grammy, just like I did as a mom.

So getting older isn't always so bad. Commercials may try to sell us things to make us look or feel younger, as if being older isn't something to which we should aspire As for me, I'm perfectly happy with middle-age.  I'm older, wiser, and happier than when I was a youngun'.

How about you? Are you happy at the life stage you're currently in? What are some of the perks of being your age?

Linda