The Herbs

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You know what?  Last week I got another exciting package from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.  Oh, I could hardly wait to tear into it!  And you know what?  They included another free packet of sunflower seeds.  I could NEVER have too many sunflowers, but I'm not sure we would have bought any this year because we are trying to build up our edible and money-saving plants. 

So I was overjoyed with not only the first, but also the SECOND package of sunflowers.  Those folks over at Baker Creek really know how to make a girl happy.  (Visit them at www.rare seeds.com)

Here's the list of seeds we ordered.

Chives
Common Thyme
Dill Vierling
Emily Basil
Genovese Basil
Lavender
Parsley:  Giant of Italy
Sage Broad Leaf
Slo Bolt Cilantro
Wild Zaatar Oregano

Some of the ones planted I side already (some wait until we can plant them straight outside) are already coming up.  I love to see their tiny pin-prick green!

One thing I didn't find was Rosemary seeds.  I'll be looking around for other heirloom suppliers for those.  Any suggestions?

And I'm thinking a friend promised me some mint roots when she cleans hers out this spring.  I'll have to check with her again in spring.  Then I'll need to be taught how to make that delicious mint chutney I've had at Indian restaurants.

First Things

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First leaves are out, on this little thorn bush, as well as some tiniest of the tiny leaves on the willow trees.  Is that not a happy thing?

Out With the Old

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This morning, my Sabbath school lesson sent me to those familiar verses in Ezekiel 36:26, 27.  They struck me to the core with the beautiful love and creative power of our Savior.  Will you read them with me today?

"A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you..."

Wait a minute.  Have you ever been tempted to think that your desires for things that aren't good for you, aren't what God wants for you, will never go away?  That the struggle against temptations will not only never go away, but also never get easier?

But what if we really accept this promised new heart by faith?  Will our desires change then?  Or do we fight so much because we like to live from the heart we've always had, the one that always gets us into selfish messes of trouble?

"...and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh..."

How many times do we joyfully take the new heart, but keep the stony heart right near by?  It's deathly, to be sure, to have a physical heart as hard as stone, but even more so a spiritual heart as hard as the rocks you don't want in your garden.  We're accustomed to it, though, and we like familiarity.  We don't let God take away the stony heart.

But think for a second if we did....What would be the result?  What would it be like to let Jesus take away that stony heart, to start living out of the new one He makes for us?  Do you think maybe our desires would even begin to change?

"And I will put My Spirit in you, and cause you to walk in My statutes, and ye shall keep My judgments, and do them."

You see, the God I serve not only expects amazing things from my life, but also make double provision for me to make a success of right and glorious living.  As if an entirely new heart and spirit (think attitude) were not enough, He also gives HIS Spirit, to make sure that new heart and spirit He puts within me are still working properly.

Because He wants me to live well.  He wants me to live happily without devastating things in my life like becoming a murderer or a thief (think His law).  He wants me to be a beautiful and joyful success story in my life sphere in this world, and be prepared to desire the absolute perfection of the mansion He's preparing for me.

(I know I just posted a photo of a daffodil recently.  But THESE are new and beautiful and I couldn't resist.)

Soon I Will Need...

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Although things are still ok now, I will soon need a couple of clothing items.  In the process of thinking through what those would be (something pink to go with skirt? denim jacket? pants of some kind?), I have stumbled upon some wardrobe and style resources I have found to be helpful.

1.  Building a Remixable Wardrobe

One girl's take on building a wardrobe with variety in it.  Which if you look at the photos below, you'll notice I don't have.  See all the green and blue?  And blue and green?  And maybe like two things that are pink? I know my mom says there's nothing boring about beautiful....but maybe next time I go shopping, I'll go for something that's not blue or green.  Maybe that's why I don't have exactly the right pink thing to go with the skirt that showed up in my mailbox last spring, although I do have a green and a blue that work. (Thanks, Mom!)

And this first one was so helpful, because it covered everything from colored bottoms to different ways to wear the same shirt to what to do with belts to layering button up shirts to keeping your options open when all you can find in the store are immodest tops.  (Really?  All I needed was enough of the right shells to go underneath?)

2.  Fresh Modesty

This girl wears mostly skirts.  While I don't necessarily see myself going all- or mostly-skirts, I do find her approach to be a good one, and I've been enjoying her every-day styles that seem like they would work for casual settings as well.  And she gives good hints and tips about really important things.  Like where to find shells/camis with high enough neck lines.  (Thank you!)  I'm also intrigued by her e-book on sewing denim.  Can't wait to get that sewing machine fixed!

3.  The Modest Mom Blog

While I've only looked on this blog a couple of times so far, I like some of her ideas on having a feminine look even when you're having a casual day.  And she has a weekly link party, so I can scroll down and see what other people are putting together, too.  (I liked this example of wide-leg pants.)

Back to Life

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Last summer in our move, we nearly lost my jade plant, which was a gift from my grandmother in the fall of 2002.  My husband saved one set of two leaves and one lone leaf, and kept watering them all fall and winter.

Here is the result:  each original leaf or set now has two new sets of leaves.

Which brings me to a beautiful Sabbath thought:  While there is life, there is hope.  (I've been searching for the EGW book and page for this quote.  I will update the post later when I find it, or when one of you reminds me where it is.)

Sometimes it may seem like there is hardly any life left, like with my plant.  But take courage!  Even one or two "leaves" with life still in them can be miraculously rebuilt in a human life by the same God who designed plant propagation.

Anyone Can Memorize, Part 2

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Since this goes right along with the theme from an earlier post this week, I thought I would share an except from our family worship reading yesterday.

"Let the more important passages of Scripture connected with the lesson [weekly Sabbath School lesson] be committed to memory, not as a task, but as a privilege.  Though at first the memory be defective, it will gain strength by exercise, so that after a time you will delight thus to treasure up the words of truth.  And the habit will prove a most valuable aid to spiritual growth."

White, Ellen G.  Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students, p. 137, 138.  Mountain View, CA:  Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1943.

The Tomatillos are Starting to Grow

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So are a few of the peppers and tomatoes, but I didn't take their photos.

Are you excited with me?

I constantly marvel at how strong a little baby plant has to be to push through dirt, break through a seed-case, and sometimes even shove aside a large piece of bark or a rock to get to the light, which of course essential for it to grow.

Growth isn't for the fearful little plant, the plant who says it just can't see past a piece of bark to the light.  It's for the plant that pushes and stretches through the darkness into the marvelous light, finally throwing aside the bark that seemed to keep it enslaved.

Maybe Jesus meant that kind of strength when He compared faith to a mustard seed's growth.  The kind of strength that keeps on past all the cumbersome trials, pressing through the soil--indeed, nourished by it--as it gets ready to bear a heavy crop.