Each Wednesday I’m recording a Curiosity Journal to recap the past week. Tag words are: reading, playing, learning, reacting and writing.
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Some of you have mentioned that you’re keeping a Curiosity Journal, as well. If you do, leave your link in the comments so that we can visit and enjoy your weekly review.
Reading
Not much time to read this week, though I’ve been perusing recipes.
Playing
We’re hosting Thanksgiving, so this is no time for play, this is no time for fun, this is no time for games…there is work to be done.In the midst of my hosting and baking and cleaning, however, I do want to stop and say how grateful I am for you taking time today to stop by and read this. Thank you. And Happy Thanksgiving.
Learning
I learned last year how important it is to plan ahead for Advent when I failed to secure a set of Advent candles and wasted a lot of time searching for a last-minute solution.This year, I avoided that fruitless candle search by driving straight to our local Family Christian Store and grabbing a box of candles from the clearly labeled Advent section. So easy. Within a few minutes I had paid and could head home knowing we had what was needed for week one of Advent.I am officially ready to…well…wait.
Reacting
About two months ago, I unexpectedly pulled up the carpet in our living room without any plan for what to put down in its place. So we just lived with the raw sub-floor.Since we moved into the house 12 or 13 years ago, I dreamed of replacing that carpet with hardwood floors, but hardwood is expensive, and we’re generally pretty cheap. We kept putting it off, living with the worn carpet, talking ourselves in and out of hardwood.But ripping out that carpet forced a decision.Just a couple of weeks ago, it hit us: We were about to host a house full of guests for Thanksgiving week and people would have to walk across a splinter-producing sub-floor. One evening, with this heavy on our minds, we drove to Lowes and stood in front of the hardwood floor samples, staring at the choices. I pointed to the four options I would be perfectly thrilled with, and then we surprised ourselves by taking the plunge. We, who wait years to take action on home improvement projects, made a spontaneous decision.
Yes, sirree, we just gave the Lowes salesman the room dimensions and ordered it. And my husband committed to something he’s never done before…installing it.He rented a floor nailer, borrowed a compressor, convinced a friend to drop by and help out, and after two long days, working side-by-side, they did it.
Plank by plank, that dear friend and he transformed the room. The Belgian Wonder had to consult with two other guys more experienced with floor installation; they walked him through some tricky spots, but he and that friend did most of the work.The sliding door needs work and the porch needs cleaning, but the floor? Oh, the floor gleams.
Writing
I invite you to visit The High Calling today and read about Thanksgiving at our house two years ago, “When Africa Stopped By.”
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Credits:Photos: All images by Ann Kroeker. All rights reserved.
When I click on the Africa article it tells me Access Denied. And I want to read it!
BTW, I am still enjoying Luci Shaw’s book Breath for the Bones that you recommended in a Curiosity Journal several months ago. I have mentioned it in three of my own blog posts:
http://virginiaknowles.blogspot.com/2011/09/is-my-head-in-clouds-and-notes-on.html
http://virginiaknowles.blogspot.com/2011/11/ivory-and-gray-wedding-poem.html
http://virginiaknowles.blogspot.com/2011/11/end-beginning-and-in-between.html
Try again! I updated the link.
The floor looks stunning, Ann. Heading over to THC. Happy Thanksgiving to you, the Belgian Wonder, and your entire family. Blessings.
I love that floor. Great look! I’m doing a tile floor in the kitchen right now. Actually, redoing a tile floor. The first attempt failed because I didnt read the instructions. Doh!
Your new floor is gorgeous, Ann. I hope you and yours enjoy it for a long, long time.
Michelle DeRusha wrote about Thanksgiving prettifying, but it feels very different over at her place.
That’s one of the reasons I love you both. Different perspectives help me learn to see better.
Happy, Happy Thanksgiving.
Proud of you, Ann – sometimes impulse leads to good, good things! Your floor is warm and inviting – and you will love it for as long as you live in the house. When we re-did our kitchen four years ago (which turned out to be a major, major project) we took the plunge and put wood everywhere. Never been sorry – brings us and our family and our guest pleasure regularly. And somehow, wood flooring speaks to me of creation and beauty and all kinds of reminders of the God who claims us and names us. Have a lovely day tomorrow!
Congratulations on your hardwood floor! I love them–so much easier to clean than carpet, and like Diana said, they speak to my soul.
The idea of getting “ready to wait” cracked me up, but I know what you mean. My son is being very strict about lighting the Advent wreath each evening, and I’m glad we had it ready to go on time.