Spring has Sprung in Texas!

It's a glorious thing to wake up on a Monday morning and realize you have an entire week ahead of you to do all sorts of things but nothing that is absolutely required!

I like to spend the first hour after waking with a cup of coffee and prayer.

I always open the back door - weather permitting and it usually does here in Texas - to the sounds of bird song. I pray and listen and just be still.

I added a small hymnal to my bedside Bible Basket and pray a hymn or two.

Louis Dean is usually out in the den with his coffee and stupor time. We later meet up for our Bible reading together. He has had a favorite insulated coffee cup he's used for the last 7+ years. A neighbor gave it to him when we were living in our camper down at the RV Resort in Katy, Texas when the quads were babies. It finally bit the dust! Summer gave us metal coffee mugs for Christmas and I pulled his out and he is loving it! He's amazed at how long the coffee stays HOT!

By the time we get through with our morning rituals - it's nearly noon!

My main accomplishment on Monday was changing the bed linens!

I washed every single piece of bedding from the pillow shams to the throw pillows to the mattress cover. It took all day! I even ironed all the pillow shams!

But I'm telling you that was the best feeling to crawl into the sweet smelling bed that night!

While the washer and dryer was running, Louis Dean and I went outside and tackled the first of the spring yard work. The weather was beautiful! And the weeds were abundant!!

On Tuesday, Louis Dean took all the aloe vera plants out of his music room and rolled them out to the area behind the gazebo. He's found this is the place they thrive the best.

Look at how big they are! He's kept them under a plant light all winter.

I don't have enough open floor space in the house so I took my denim strips to the deck to lay out the design. I need to shop for a backing next week. Mostly I use a good quality bed sheet.

This quilt will go to my favorite fire fighter/medic!

It smells so good in my front yard!!

This is the best my Carolina Jasmine has ever bloomed!

Can you see all the little honeybees??

Louis Dean thinks we should get a hive here at home.

Tuesday evening found us in the gazebo like old times.......

sipping a glass of wine and feeling good about all we had accomplished.

Today was a rainy day so it's a good thing we had Monday and Tuesday to work outside.

I used a small heart candy mold for my beeswax.

These can be used to make zippers zip smoothly and for your pins and needles.

It smelled so good while it was on the candle melter.

I set up my art table last week but just sat down to paint this afternoon.

I have two dog portraits I'm working on with another two to go.

This is Elsa......

....and this is Winston!

It's been a good week and it's not over yet!!

PLUS - I have news about Summer!!

She has been approved for her spine stimulator trial surgery!!

It is next Monday morning, March 9th at 10:00.

I'll be going over to spend the night with her on Sunday so I can take her to the surgery center in Rockwall, Texas.

Her follow up appointment will be the next Tuesday and if successful - they will schedule the real surgery. Success would be if it cut her pain by 50%.

We are thrilled God has opened the door and we are praying this will be what she needs to get her life back.