The Most Beautiful Fall

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So many times over the last four weeks or so I have said out loud, “I wish I had my big camera!”

All of us here are in agreement that this fall held the most beautiful colors that we have seen in years!

My worn out cell phone camera just would not capture that beauty!

Finally one morning I ran outside and quickly grabbed a few photos of the beauty right around Twin Oaks.

This, though, is NOTHING compared to ALL the color the Lord blessed us with this fall!

I can remember very specific places that I saw color like I have never seen before.

How thankful I am for where we live!!


I told you it was beautiful!!!

Even our landscape was beautiful for SO long!

The change of the season is never lost on me.

God has just really placed it upon my heart to SEE things.

I stop more than once a day just in awe of something around me – the beauty outside – or even the beauty inside of our home!

Do you all do that?

Ask God to give you that heart!

It is wonderful!!

To SEE things and then to PRAISE HIM!!!

Hope you all had a wonderful fall full of color too!!

Hang on tight – here comes WINTER!

My Love Language

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Have you all ever read Gary Chapman’s book called The 5 Love Languages?

It is a GREAT book and makes you think of your relationships with others in a whole new way.

We have had that book in our library for years and years – and I give it away all the time and then buy it again to be back on our shelf.

Blake and I read that book together many years ago and it was SO good for us to realize each other’s love languages!

Blake knows mine is quality time and acts of service.

(Blake’s is words of affirmation and physical touch).

Does he buy me flowers and other treats still?

Why, yes.

Do I feel loved when he does?

Of course!

But I still NEED time with Blake to feel the best kind of love from him!

The week before last I texted Blake and said “I need time.”

He knew what I meant and texted back “On it.”

Those two simple texts turned into two nights away last week.

It was WONDERFUL.

We headed to Madison, only two hours away, early on Monday morning!


After a little shopping, our next stop was for lunch!


We spent the afternoon wandering around fun stores, and then finally doing some clothes shopping for my guy!


Of course there was coffee!

Obviously we were still living in the summer time drinking iced coffee because it was freezing cold outside!!


We got some groceries before heading to our suite to make some dinner.

We stayed at a Staybridge Inn so that we could have a little kitchen.

Dinner was yummy!!


Our two mornings there were leisurely, and SO RELAXING!

We travel with a Keurig, yes.

It was handy and so much cheaper than going out for coffee all the time!


Tuesday we did a bit more shopping, but mostly relaxed – talking and talking and talking about ALL the things.

We had a WHOLE conversation!!

From start to finish!

I got to hear quite a bit about what Blake has going on at work right now – which we never take the time to talk about.

I LOVED that SO MUCH!

It’s the little things, you know?

Here is a photo I sent the kids of my hubby in his new clothes!

He is looking good!!


We made most of our meals in our suite.


I did some blogging while we hung out!

It was a nice relaxing thing to do!!


On Wednesday we had a snack lunch in the van before heading to Costco to stock up on grocery.

We had brought our huge camping cooler just for this thing!

It is always good to get those freezers full again and I feel SO incredibly blessed when they are.


And just like that, our time away was over!

We headed back home late Wednesday afternoon.

Home is my FAVORITE place to be though, since I am a homebody and all, ha, ha.

I can’t say enough about the investment Blake made in our marriage and my heart last week.

It is BUSY here, with so many plates spinning all at once because we have children of all different ages and stages.

I don’t want our marriage to get lost in that!!

That is why we have these little trips.

That is why we have date night.

That is why we choose things to do that we can do and enjoy TOGETHER.

I also read somewhere that the simple act of living a life for the Lord through your family and marriage is literal WARFARE in this world today.

Yes, yes it is.

Blake and I are not perfect.

Our relationship is not perfect.

It will continue to need work!

Good marriages take work!

I’m here for it though….because the husband the Lord blessed me with is worth more to me than anything other than Jesus.

He is ONE IN A MILLION!!

Thank you, Mr. Blake Moschel, for loving me so well!

And thanks, too, sweetheart for our little trip away!

I LOVE YOU MORE, Blake.

Definitely more.

So Long September

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September was here and gone, just like that!!

It was a GOOD month!

Let’s start with all the food photos, because I’m hungry!

I really like including my food photos here in this space, because when I look back at this little scrapbook those photos inspire me to make certain things again!

I forget about some of these things that we make and try.

I have not, however, forgotten about these rolls or those cinnamon rolls.

I heard they are SO yummy!!


Tate and Eliza have been having food styling contests at lunch and I am the judge.

I don’t like this job.

They don’t like me to judge either because I always say they both win, ha, ha!

It is cute to watch them find creative outlets in all that they do though!!


Speaking of creative ways to fill our time – we have been enjoying diamond dot painting lately!

Tate and Eliza specifically are really enjoying this craft, and they decorated a notebook for me to take to the True Woman Conference.

It is cute!

We also still read LOTS of books and play LOTS of games!


Ruby Jane and Sadie Jo still bring us immense joy.

We already talk about how we will always need dogs in our lives!

Aren’t they cute??

Especially when Ruby gets a haircut!


Addie Mae traveled with David and Kayla and their family to Family Camp early in September.

We did not go this year, no.

She had the BEST time and I am sure it was an incredible blessing for David and Kayla to have those extra hands!!

This is the evening she returned home…I asked for them to get together for a photo, ha, ha!!


Blake and I only had one date night in September!

With travels and hand surgery and life – well, you get the picture!

We did take our trio to town a couple of Friday nights to help get grocery because I was not able to lift grocery bags to do it alone.

Of course dinner out made that more fun for us all!


Speaking of surgery, my surgery was in the middle of September, in Green Bay at the Ovation Hand Institute.

It went PERFECTLY!

And I left the “operating room” within twenty minutes of entering it with all that nerve pain GONE.

Hard to describe in words – if you know, you know!

I was literally in tears because that pinching nerve pain that ran all the way up into my shoulder immediately left when the surgeon released that nerve!

My tears made the Physician’s Assistant cry!

We were a mess!

Blake and I got home after a long day with a long drive to a decorated room, a delicious meal, and lots of healing needing to happen.


One day (sometime after surgery), Lane was my special helper and went to town with me to run a million errands!

He is growing and changing by the second and I know how this goes, so I am HANGING ON TIGHT!

We also had a Dr. Ben appointment for Lane that morning and were sad to learn what we already suspected – that Lane has Lyme disease again.

Thankful for treatment and healing!!


Blake worked a whole entire weekend on our pool in September.

Because of all the rain this summer, the foundation under the pool was sinking and our pool was getting very lop sided.

It was NOT good!

With the help of all the boys here and there, they jacked it up, rebuilt the foundation, added some cement for good measure, and it is all fixed!!

Love my handy guys!!


It was while Grant and Blake were out there (in the photo above) that Blake texted me and said “You better come outside and bring your camera!”

Oh my, he was right!!


We had many more beautiful skies in September too!!


That handy man of mine blessed me SO much for my birthday!

The kids told him we needed a new bird restaurant for our deck for the winter months because ours broke last year.

He took them shopping and I was gifted this beautiful one!

He also cleaned the garage while Addie and I were away for the conference that weekend.

It was a HUGE, huge, huge job and I could not be more please with the results!!

The boys helped by getting all of their things out of our garage too.


I love our helpers!!

They are always willing and enthusiastic!

Tate is SUCH a diligent helper in the gardens.

He also loves to serve others here in our home and I just love his heart to pieces!

He is especially good with his nephews and nieces!


I have been enjoying coffee again after a season without it.

It’s always better when the weather gets colder too!

I have a new tumbler from the True Woman conference that you can usually find some iced coffee in right about mid morning.


I think I will get some hot coffee to sip right now!

Doesn’t that sound good?

Here we are half way through October – I can’t wait to tell you all about what’s been happening this month already!

Don’t blink, you guys.

The days and the months are flying by.

I hope you all are having a great October and a great start to your day today!!

Until next time…

The True Woman Conference

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Sometime last year Addie and I signed up and paid for our attendance at the True Woman Conference that just happened in September.

We made this plan with a friend of mine from my college days in Illinois, and we eagerly anticipated getting to have this weekend together!

Unfortunately our plans with my friend changed when she and her family got sick right before we were supposed to leave for the conference.

Addie and I decided to drive the whole way to Indianapolis by ourselves and still attend the conference.

I am SO glad that we did!


We had a room in a beautiful hotel right across the street from the conference center, and a skywalk to get there.

We also had not one, but two small refrigerators to store our meals in and eat out of the entire weekend.

It was perfect!


The conference was named “Heaven Rules” and it was AMAZING.

The kind of AMAZING that you will never forget.

The speakers, the worship (with Keith and Kristyn Getty and Shane and Shane!!), the fellowship with other believers – it was just so powerful!

There were 5,000 God fearing women at that conference, and it was just SO cool that we all shared one HUGE common thread – our love for Christ!!


I even found out that David’s Aunt Sandy was there and we found each other the first night!!


The conference started on a Thursday evening and ended on Saturday around noon.

Addie and I had a late check out, which was a blessing!

We were able to keep our luggage in our room until then, and since we had valet parked our van, this worked out perfectly.

We got some very expensive coffee in the hotel lobby and headed out to start the long drive home!


Thankfully we had planned ahead to stop for the night, knowing it would be a lot to drive the almost nine hours home when leaving Indy in the afternoon.

We stayed in a hotel in Bloomington, Illinois.

We were blessed to be able to meet up with Blake’s Mom for some coffee Sunday morning before heading the rest of the way home!

Our favorite little coffee spot too – Four30 Scones.


We got home around 3:30 on Sunday, and about 30 minutes later our kitchen looked like this!!


Those crazy people made a big meal and homemade ice cream since it was my birthday that day.

There were lots of gifts too – and I LOVE them ALL!!

It was a WONDERFUL birthday with a hubby, grandbabies and kiddos that enjoyed blessing me!!


My absolute favorite parts of that weekend were the time that Addie and I had together, the worship with Keith and Kristyn Getty (specifically), and some very profound things that the speakers said that spoke deeply to my heart.

Two speakers talked of their recent trials that resonated so closely to my heart – and I will never forget the truths that they shared.

Joni Eareckson Tada said this: “God permits what He hates to accomplish what He loves.”

Yes, yes, yes!

Kay Arthur said, “Why fight against God when He is God?”

AMEN!!

After sharing a story about her grandson eating store bought pound cake for the first time, Susan Hunt said, “When we live out true Biblical womanhood in our daily life, maybe others will get a taste and see…then when they taste something else, they will not be impressed.”

What an encouraging challenge!!!!

I have been listening to the Getty’s new album all the time since we were at the conference.

I usually listen on Friday mornings while I am driving to town to get grocery, and sing my heart out with them again!

It has been years upon years since I have been to any kind of conference like this, but I am hoping it is not that long until I attend another one.

What a great investment!!

Not only for me, but for Addie Mae too, and for our mother/daughter relationship as well!

True Woman Conference, you did not disappoint!!

Bless each woman that was there pouring themselves into making that conference happen!!

Please, Lord, use it ALL for our good and Your glory!!

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