Free at Last! Thank God Almighty, I'm Free at Last!!!!

 

Many nights without sleep yielded this.  It may not look like much, but it's a year's worth of school work (or at least many examples thereof) in date order, 4-3" binders full. The night before I didn't sleep at all.....yep, I am OCD......pretty pathetic really.  But......drumroll please.....the girls not only passed but got rave reviews for their portfolios!!!!!  After all that's happened with D's health and hospitalizations, doctor's appointments, physical therapy appointments, disrupting our normal school routine, I am soooo proud of them!!!!!  We still have some things to finish this summer, but, we finished most of it, and did well!!!  
Yayyyy!!!!  Free at last!!!!  (It's not only kids who are happy school is (mostly) over!!)



Kyri was a little incredulous that it was finally over for the year.....


Elly was exceptionally excited!!!  And a bit silly............

     After the portfolio review, I met my friend Diane for lunch.  I set that up because that way, no matter how the review went, I had something happy to look forward to afterward.  Clever, I know.  Well, actually, more mental health self preservation.........ok, back from that rabbit trail, my friend Diane has a lovely office that is almost as beautiful and elegant as she is.......the ladies she works with are lovely as well........



The above painting was painted by another mutual friend who's an amazing artist, who also happens to be named Dianne.  She paints the most exquisite paintings,  she gifted me with one, and it sits in a place of honor in our dining room.  I couldn't resist taking a pic of Diane's painting from Dianne!!!  Isn't it just lovely????


 
Her coffee and tea station, isn't it just fab???

Below, my friend Diane, and yes, I did cut myself out of that picture!  I had not slept at all the night before, just powder and a bit of lipstick and not even nicely dressed!  Are you kidding, next to Diane, well, the poor woman was  slumming being in a picture with me that day!  Good thing she's not like that, and went to lunch with me anyway!!! 




This is the gift she gave me.  I mean, look at this delicious leopard print, I was excited before I even opened it!!!







Then I DID open it, and it was a beautiful painted stone by a FABULOUS artist that also happens to be a mutual friend of ours.....is she talented or what????  This amazing woman also is an amazing photographer, and designs a line of amazing greeting cards!!!  Did I mention she's amazing?? I'd been wanting  one of her painted stones for awhile, and voila!  Thank you Diane!!!!!

We had a wonderful lunch, it was lovely to relax and chat without wee folk to interrupt.  I love them dearly, but occasionally, it's nice to have a complete, uninterrupted conversation.....bliss.............




As if this day wasn't good enough,  God just continued to pour out the blessings!!!  I got home, and a friend from church phoned, and offered us a pair of dressers, they no longer needed them, and were wondering if we could use them?  Oddly, enough, two of our dressers were on our last legs, perfect!!  I wasn't too worried what the dressers looked like, I can take just about anything and make it work with paint or refinishing.  I had no idea it would be like this!!!! This is the first dresser they brought, is it gorgeous or what????  I mean, let's just say, I'm not changin' a thing!!!!  Thank you Linda!!!





Oh, there's more!!!  God continues to pour more and more into the already overflowing blessing basket!!  Then I received a gorgeous package from the same friend that painted that gorgeous stone.  Her name is Sandi, and she just blows me away!!  I was excited before I even opened tha box!!!  Then I opened it , to find beautiful colorful tissue paper, and open that to find the beautifully wrapped packages above!!  Clara loved the ribbons so much, she had to wear one of them in her hair!!









This is the hand made envelope, I mean, the envelope,  was just gorgeous!!!  I think I'll frame it , and hang it near my desk....love it!!!










Dear Sandi, sent me several of her beautiful photography cards, and her amazing photography  book!!!  She and her dear husband John live on Cape Cod, and she takes the most breathtaking pictures of the beach, it just makes me feel as though I'm right there with her, a mental deep breath and ahhhhhhh  tension release.........







I am forever blessed by this dear soul!!!  Thank you Sandi,  you have blessed me(us) so greatly with this wonderful box of deliciousness!!!!!  I love it!!!!






To celebrate such a fabulous day, and the fabulous portfolio review, the kids and I went to Chick fil A for ice cream and play time for the younger ones in the play area (it was 98 degrees, the park was a big NO, ugh!).  They had a blast, but Clara insisted on wearing her pink princess rainboots.  Didn't matter that it was nasty hot, and humid (this IS after all Maryland....?:-), didn't matter that those boots have been through one too many sisters and are cracked in places, nope it had to be the those.  So we went with it,  I mean she's five, she can get away with pretty much anything in the fashion kingdom and still pull it off.....and all was well in the land of B.


May your day be blessed.....


Only Because of Jesus,


anne