It’s about time I got around to my second installment of my seasonal Homemaker’s Journal. If I had gotten around to it last fall, I would have shared all about how we survived our first season of middle school basketball (this was a boost to my meal planning skills, to be sure).

And maybe I would have included some pictures of holiday food prep.

But that was a busy season and it led straight into a hard season. And that’s what this post is about.

This year our family has suffered a loss, a broken arm, and a broken hand (all three of these separate instances within about six weeks of each other—and in this same time we missed both Christmas and New Years with extended family due to the flu). Since then, we’ve had the upstairs AC go out (still needs replaced), a car break down (was recently replaced), a fender-bender (oops), another vehicle AC failure, another broken-arm scare that thankfully turned out to be a sprain, and a freezer that put itself on defrost voluntarily (recently replaced but some food is still in my MIL’s freezer…).

While there were some tears and confusion in the first part of the year, and for good reason, these later trials have found us a bit incredulous and wondering what it all means…but they’ve also found us laughing.

“Well, ok, Lord. What’s next?”

Even when God’s providence is hard, we know He’s good.

I’ve also joked with Nathaniel that these things are probably all his fault since he suggested that we focus on learning to pray this year. 😉 (Here’s a book we’ve read on the subject: Prayer: The Church’s Great Need.)

Even as we work to fix things, pay medical bills, and budget for multiple major purchases, we’re trusting the Lord that He knows what He’s doing in all of this whether we ever figure it all out or not.

We feel the weight of each of these trials, but there’s a funny, non-congruent peace that comes when you can laugh at it all and look to the Lord with open hands. I think we’re learning contentment.

“It is always possible to be thankful for what is given rather than to complain about what is not given. One or the other becomes a habit of life.”
~~Elisabeth Elliot

Instead of grumbling about the cost, we could give thanks that we had enough savings to get what we needed without going into debt.

We could see the wonderful things growing in our garden despite not having had as much time to dedicate to it as we had planned. (And we can certainly give thanks that our friends helped us start our garden this year for my husband’s birthday since his hand was broken.)

We could praise the Lord that He is indeed teaching us to pray. And not just for things but for hearts more ready to receive whatever it is that He chooses to give.

Now that you know the context of the past several months (or…year), let’s jump in to the things that have been growing despite all-the-things breaking down. Here are some of my cooking and gardening escapades from this past spring:

It’s good to take stock of the good things that are growing and going on even in the midst of a hard season. God’s abundant goodness can be seen all around us if we look for it in faith.

Have you tried anything new lately?