The Ways of Her Home

Embracing the homeward call

Summer Shrimp and Peach Salad

I'm a salad girl. Any time, any season, any meal. My kids have joked that I will even make breakfast into a salad, ha! Summer is the most salad-friendly season of all. Fresh greens, fresh veggies, and fresh fruits, all waiting to be chopped, tossed, and going in my mouth! And then there are peaches. Sweet summer peaches. They're one of life greatest pleasures from June through August. Truly! So I've been seeing these salads that pair shrimp and peaches, and I knew I had to try it. I looked through several recipes, taking inspiration from each to come up with my own that would suit my family’s taste. We tried it last night and really enjoyed it! I'll definitely be making this again ... Read more

Teach Them Tuesday: First Favorites

I believe one of the most rewarding works my hands have been blessed to do as a mom has been holding a book open to read to my children. In my very unprofessional opinion, reading to a child in our laps or sitting beside us gives opportunity for physical closeness and quality time together, making it a wonderful way to bond with that child. I have always loved reading with my kids, and, like many of you mamas, would have done so regardless of homeschooling. Today I'd like to share my favorite early literature guide for children. First Favorites by Veritas Press has a very special place in this mama's heart. It was the tool that helped expand the subject of reading into a love for ... Read more

Fluff the Nest Friday: Staining the Picnic Table

Happy Friday, everyone! Today I’ve got a lot of cleaning to do on the inside of my house, but first I'm going to take you outside to share a little project I finished last week as part of my patio fluff. I stained the picnic table that my family gave me for Mother's Day! I used Valspar One-Coat Exterior Stain and Sealer in the color November Grey. It's an opaque stain. It is so true what they say about preparation being 90% of the job! I've learned from my many mistakes that it's better to go ahead and put the time into prepping a project to make it go more smoothly and end up with pleasing results. So the first thing I did was sand every square inch of the wood surface, smoothing ... Read more

Fourth of July 2020

I hope you all had a great Independence Day! We enjoyed some "safe" entertaining over the weekend which gave me a fun reason to decorate a little. Nothing too fussy--just flags, flowers, and chalkboards! White crepe myrtles and flags tucked in blue and white vases were just enough! I added flags and patriotic ribbon to old wreaths. Pretty simple! This one is in the front hall by my front door. I snatched the blue bow from my lemon wreath. And this one sits on my mantle. The night before the 4th, we had some friends over for hot dogs and fireworks! Most of our time was going to be spent outside so we cleaned up the backyard and put out a few festive ... Read more

Teach Them Tuesday: My Bible Coloring Book

Good Tuesday morning! Today I want to share a coloring book that I used with my kids for many years. It's Shirley Dobson's My Bible Coloring Book. This recommendation is not just for moms, but would also be great to have on hand if you're a grandmother, aunt, babysitter, or Bible class teacher! It covers 119 Bible stories with a coloring page and scripture reference for each Bible story. It's a fun way to go through the entire Bible with children. For my pre-readers or new readers, I would either tell them the story or read it from a beginner's Bible and then let them color the picture. Later, when they were independent readers, I would cycle the coloring book again, having them read ... Read more

Fluff the Nest Friday: Front Porch Patriotism!

I'm feeling extra patriotic with my nest fluffing today! The hubs pressured washed all the concrete yesterday and then I put back the furniture, flowers, and FLAGS! With the disrespect so many have shown our country's flag in recent years, I felt the need to go a little *extra* on the stars and stripes this year! So, we are waving it proudly with a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our America! Now that the front porch is ready, I'm heading to the back porch to splash a little patriotism around back there! But first, I want to acknowledge some other special birthdays today! My sister, Katie, was born the baby of us five on July 3. We kids were SO excited over her arrival! While my ... Read more

The Blessing of God’s Refusals

A couple of weeks ago while I was walking in the early morning hours, I noticed this turtle in the grass, just about to crawl over the curb and into the street. Aware of the morning traffic that would soon occupy the road, I reached towards the turtle to pick him up and turn him in a safer direction. He flinched and defensively pulled his head back, not trusting my intentions. I picked him up and turned him around, hoping he would crawl back towards the woods from which he'd emerged. I don't think he was too happy with me interrupting his desired path, and for a minute there it looked as though he was turning around to head back towards the street again. I stood in front of him to block the ... Read more