This and that 06|13|15

Jeff and I have enjoyed watching this in fits and spurts. I always ask him, "Is this one going to be sad?" And he always says yes. Full disclosure: Jeff chooses to watch documentaries during his downtime. I'm a bit less cerebral, with this being my current viewing choice (purely as inspiration and entertainment; I'm not inclined to tackle any major reno projects). Both of these have been available to stream via Netflix.

We're having this for dinner tonight. It's a favorite standby of mine, even in summer, and this time I had leftover grill pan chicken to speed it up even more. Tip: Don't skip the homemade chips. And I always add cubed avocado and a dollop of sour cream to my bowl. ( Note: I used some of the leftover grill pan chicken in these last night for another hit.) I love it when a meal plan comes together.

This post made me smile, nod, and share it with my husband. Summary: preachers, man up!

I've enjoyed photography ever since I took some classes during high school. I've never had an expensive camera; I've used this one for the last decade or so (and used it to take the photo above), but -- like most people -- I tend to depend on my iPhone since it's generally with me. Amateur that I am, I'm always up for improvement! I just downloaded the two free ebooks below and really like what they have to offer. "Guide to Photo Composition" offers some simple, easy-to-remember tips that can make a big difference. "Mastering Lightroom" is comprehensive and makes me want to play with Adobe... I downloaded in case that becomes possible in the future!

What are you taking pictures of this summer? And are you posting them on Instagram?






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A window, not a portrait.

I watched a video this morning. It challenged me, convicted me, comforted me, called out to me.

I watched a video this morning. And I read my Bible.



God Wrote a Book from Desiring God on Vimeo.

This and that 06|06|15

I wish I found joy as easily as Bella does. She lives in the moment, gulping every bit of joy from the air that's hitting her in the face, not worrying about where we're taking her because she trusts that we're taking care of her. #faithlikebella

A photo posted by Suzanne (@princapecos) on Jun 3, 2015 at 1:52pm PDT

I finally finished this book (for me, a not-so-daily devotional), and I'm still working on this one and this one.  But when I need lighter reading, I find I'm enjoying this one quite a lot. I found it at my favorite local bookshop, which always has an interesting variety of preowned reads.

We wrapped up school about a week ago, but I'm already thinking about next year. I recently learned of Trello, a cool (and free!) visual organizational tool to help me file ideas and plan for these last two years (!) of homeschooling. (Try it out, then share it with your friends to earn free months of their premium service -- be sure to watch the short tutorials, it'll make much more sense.) I also started using Pocket on my phone and laptop in an effort to stop filling up my inbox with things I see on Twitter or other places but want to read later.

I'm thinking of leading my son through an informal writing workshop this summer (or fall), so many articles on writing have caught my eye. While I'm not sure my highschooler will really go for this, I'm all in.

This was pretty much my favorite response to the Jenner media lovefest:

Before any of us under the age of 40 throw around words like “brave” and “hero”, we should learn what happened 71 years ago today.

— Kevin DeYoung (@RevKevDeYoung) June 6, 2015

Is it just me, or is summer laundry so much better than winter laundry? Laundry has never been my favorite job, but smaller laundry is better in my book. (True story: a friend who knew I disliked folding whites and towels offered to call my hubby with a deep doctrinal question on laundry day because he often unconsciously folds while talking on the phone. Now that's a real friend.)

Besides laundry, what are you up to this summer?