There are so many different things that satan uses to steal our joy.

In the background of all these life changes, I am doing my best to to spend time with the One who is the source of joy.  There is contentment in the still, small moments of life where I hear His voice whisper, "Peace!"

 

A night out with my girlie

It was a beautiful night to go downtown Knoxville.  Alisa invited me to join her on a celebratory dinner date!  She wanted to celebrate the sale of my first house.  What a thoughtful idea!

We went to Market Square for dinner.  It was yummy!

Then we walked around the square to explore...and found this cool candy store!

We walked to a neat coffee shop and sipped as we walked and talked.  We found a bench and watched people.  It was a gorgeous evening to be out and about.

The Tennessee sign!  I am thankful for these little excursions to learn about our new state.

We made note of a couple other places to visit on another time!  We will have to grab the other two girlies to join us.  Thank you, sweet girl of mine, for thinking to celebrate this achievement.
 

Supper on the porch

Tuesday was a busy day.  It was fun to re-connect with supper on the porch!  We had air-fryer potatoes with cheeseburger fixings on top.  I forgot to take the hamburger out to defrost.  Whoops!  I was focusing on not forgetting the treats I baked for Bible Study and make sure the dogs went out before I left.  Alisa left the fresh veggies, and so I made a dip with some of them.  Yum!

We shared supper and talked about the property we had looked at.  We shall see what transpires in the next few days...

 

Easter Weekend

We started our weekend with a supper date on the patio Friday night.  It was a great way to spend the evening.

We went for a drive on Saturday to look at a couple properties.  It was a beautiful day for exploring.

Alisa joined us on Saturday night and we went on another excursion to look at a property.  As we made our way back home, we passed a place Alisa knew about but we had never heard about..."Do you girls want ice cream?"  Yes, please!

We finished the prep for Sunday and I turned around and found this sight calming and welcoming.  God has given us a nice place to live.  I am looking forward to our family gathering around the table together for Easter dinner.

The rolls came out of the oven right before bed.  Ohhhh, they smelled so good!  We went to bed with "visions of hot, buttered rolls dancing in our heads"!  About 2:00am, I woke up to the sound of rain.  It rained all morning long.

The tulips held their heads up bravely in the chilly, rainy morning.

As we drove home from church, we could see blue sky!  The sun was coming!

A couple pictures...

Waiting for everyone to arrive...

And Mom fail...these were the only pictures I got while we were all together.

Around the table together...conversation and laughter...

with yummy food and lots of sweet tea!  I have been trying to just be present and enjoy our time...and I find myself not taking very many pictures (trying not to be annoying).

I enjoyed listening to Ted and Alisa "geek out" about different pieces of money and dates and facts about them.

Everyone left and all was quiet.  The planning takes a few hours...the day arrives and is over before we know it!  We all are so very thankful for this new privilege here in Tennessee!

This and That

Tuesdays are set aside for Ladies Bible Study from 10:00-12:00pm.  I look forward to this time every week.  God is giving me new friends through this time.  When I pulled in for the first time after being gone for a month, the grounds looked so pretty!  The tulips have stayed beautiful for a second week.  There were 3,000 tulip bulbs planted.  The gals are hoping they stay strong through next week for the special Luke 14 party for special needs families.

A reminder from the Bible study leader to take home and meditate on what Christ has done for us.

The beautiful days of spring...the Hope we have for every season of life because of our Savior.

More clean-up of dead Japanese beetles and other bugs.  This time, outside in the storage room, so it can be organized into a more useful area.  I took the Christmas tree bags and TV moving box to the storage unit.  As I cleaned, I found a little box that has a new purpose!  I carefully looked...but no eggs...yet.  I left the door cracked but noticed the little bird goes under the door too!

A little better!

Our favorite view these days...

Walking around with the dogs and noticing that Teddy got WAAAYYY more than just gravel.  I keep finding all sorts of treasures...and hoping our tires don't meet up with the sharp ends.

Supper on the porch...with an audience!

 

Quiet Moments in the countryside

We passed a church sign that held the words to an old hymn, and they have played through my mind all week.  I am sad that we don't hear these old songs very often anymore.  So many great truths to fill our hearts and minds with good things from our Heavenly Father...
Living He loved me, Dying He saved me, Buried He carried my sins far away!  Rising He justified me, Freed me forever, One day He's coming back, O Glorious day!

One day when Heaven was filled with His praises.

One day when sin was as black as could be

That's when Jesus came down to be born of a virgin

Dwelt among men, my example is He.

Then one day they led Him up Calvary's mountain

Then one day they nailed Him to die on the tree

Suffering anguish, despised, and rejected

Bearing our sins, my Redeemer is He.

One Sunday the grave could conceal Him no longer

That day when the stone rolled away from the door

That's when Jesus arose over death He had conquered

Now He's ascended, My Lord evermore.

Home...and out and about

I am thoroughly enjoying the deck with the dogs!  I did laundry and while it dried, I took a little drive to the thrift store.  I had seen a little drop-leaf table sitting out in front of the store on Sunday and then again on Tuesday.  I decided I would go see if it was still there.  The gal was asking $10 for it!  I said 'Thank you, Lord!" and brought it home and cleaned it up.  It is perfect for the porch.

I picked up birdseed and I am still waiting for the birds to find it.

We have been checking out different properties.  Ted asked me to drive by one as I headed to town.  I had to stop and just look at the beauty of the area.

I stopped at a cute boutique we drive by all the time.  Such cute, girly stuff!

I stopped at another spot to see if it would be a good date place.  It was not what I expected, but the coffee drink I got was good!  I bought a dozen eggs and a jar of salsa for our supper.  I walked around the back to see the pigs and goats.  The goats were napping but the pigs were noisy.

I enjoy checking out all the little local spots!

The drive home was just pretty!  Beautiful cloud formations always make me think of Heaven, and memories of our loved ones there fill my heart, mind, and tears come.  I always wonder what the clouds look like from the splendor of Heaven's view.

Waiting for Ted to get home from work...listening to the birds and looking up again!  

A yummy supper on the porch...and the salsa was very good!

 

A new month

and this month's calendar picture brought a smile!  We found out we have a membership to the country club through Ted's company.  We look forward to checking it out.  On the tour, Ted was asked multiple times if he golfed.  "We offer classes."  And we both laughed.