{ Day 6 of Quarantine/Day 1 of Shelter in Place - Chinese Wisteria }

"Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand."

- Isaiah 41:10 -

I am sitting on my bed, trying to get this post typed up, and struggling to keep my eyes open.

It's been a busy day, a lot of homemaking with multiple loads of laundry, a lot of ironing, gardening, dish washing, cleaning, and organizing.

To say that by 6pm I was exhausted, would have been an understatement.  My feet hurt and so does my lower back, so it's definitely time to get under the covers and go to sleep.

There's something about a beautiful warm day, the sun shining, windows and doors open, and a clean and tidy house.

I worked inside the house, while Curt got busy doing outside jobs.  The temperatures were only about 60 degrees in the morning, so he opted to get all the outside work done before the sun came out and the heat took over.

He mowed all 3 acres, chopped down some dead trees, trimmed and used the weed eater around the front of the house and so one.

Inside I did all of our laundry, including bedding, and changed out all the sheets and comforters/quilts.  I love a freshly made bed, don't you?

Half of the laundry I dried outside, since we had beautiful weather and a slight breeze that helped everything dry in no time at all.

The only thing with drying clothes outside is that they need to be ironed, which I don't mind doing.  Although I had such a huge pile today, it took me quite a while to get through, which I think contributed to my aching lower back and feet.

I made lunch for us today instead of dinner.  We were all up, walking around and I figured that it really doesn't matter whether it was dinner or lunch, our schedules are all over the place at the moment.

Potato salad and some delicious butcher shop bratwurst.

As the quarantines stretch into weeks, it can be easy to start feeling a bit like an animal in a cage, but I urge you to step outside.  You don't have to go beyond your own back yard to get some fresh air, and enjoy spring popping to life around you.

When we moved into this house 5 years ago, we had no clue that it would one day become ours.  Our home, our little corner, a place where we can finally put down roots for our children and grandchildren.

We also weren't aware of the array of plants, fruit trees and flowers we have on the property.  It's 3 acres, 3 acres that to this days we are yet to completely explore.

Every corner we get to, we are met by something new, like these gorgeous Chinese Wisterias.  We have white ones too.  Never noticed them the past few years, so when they started flowering this past week, both Curt and I were shocked.

We took a walk around the property yesterday afternoon, just looking, exploring and it was so absolutely good for our soul. 

How gorgeous is that purple color?  And their aroma?  Wish I could bottle it up.

As we were walking around I was telling Curt that I wish I had these Chinese Wisteria lining my fenced in back yard.  Little did we know that there are already dozens of baby Wisteria trees all along the back fence.  Thank you Jesus!!!

So, again, do yourself a favor, don't be cooped up in your house.  Go into your backyard, read a book, share a meal with your family as the temperatures warm up, or just explore with your children.  Start a veggie garden, plant some flowers, or take photographs.  That fresh air is going to do wonders for your soul.