Decisions, Decisions...

It won't come as any surprise to you reading this that Mr. Goodneedle and I are huge DIY'ers. If there's a way to do it ourselves, we'll check it out and much more likely than not, we'll go for it. There's a need to replace the sling backs/seats in out formerly outdoor (now porch) dining set. The current fabric on there has seen way too much weather over the past ten years or so, it had always been out in the elements until now. I found an online rehab company for this purpose and ordered some samples, they arrived last week. The hardest part for us is making decisions; I don't know why. We could see the pros and cons of each sample and went back and forth.

I was looking for something to blend with the cushioned furniture in the same space, ultimately, we chose this one and we're NOT looking back. 😉

Once replaced, these new chair slings will appear lighter, brighter, and hopefully will work to coordinate the entire space; that's our thinking. The whole truth, however, is that we're not replacing them only for aesthetic reasons. 

No, we're replacing them for safety reasons! 😲 Wish us luck, we've never tried this before.

I received the most glorious Mother's Day bouquet from my daughter in the Capital City, I forgot to share this photo earlier.

Equally pretty: fresh, local farm-picked strawberries are still abundant and incredibly sweet and delicious!

We're not the only one faced with decisions these days. We've begun eating dinner every evening on the screened porch. Hannes hangs out there with us for a short while and then, he gets up and sits in the doorway; he can't decide where he wants to be! I've brought his bed out so that he'll be comfortable but he barely even touches down in it before he's up, pacing, and ends up cak in the doorway, staring at us! Changes are hard, especially as we get older, I just know that he's thinking: "Mom, Dad- we never did this before, why don't you come inside and eat in the kitchen the way we always did before?!?"

Adapting in an upside-down🙃 world: Following along with the decision-making theme today, it's not easy for any of us to know what's right and what isn't as far as getting back out in the world, there's no manual for this, it's uncharted territory. The "new normal" for you might look completely different than it looks for me, there are simply too many variables depending on where you live, your age, your health and so on. Today I am going to the dentist to have stitches removed from my mouth that have been in place since the oral surgery that I had on March 12! Up until now I haven't felt comfortable submitting to this simple, 5-minute, procedure. Faith has to triumph over fear, and today I'm ready! I have faith in the dentist's office and all of their practices and procedures to keep me safe, it will be a relief to have these removed; they've seemingly grown disproportionately larger each and every day, lurking back in the recesses of my mouth! I will be supremely cautious, staying safe and vigilant about germs and surfaces; that's my new normal. I cannot, nor will I, become a prisoner to fear! And so, I've decided what's right for me, given all of the information that I have. Let's all keep each other in mind too, everyone is on their own sliding-scale for comfort. That's perfectly okay, we can't decide what's right for anyone other than ourselves; but, we can decide to be kind and understanding to each other, we're all walking this path together, figuring it out for ourselves one step at a time! 

How can you cultivate peace 

and put your own faith ahead of fear?

"But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep,

that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope."  -1 Thessalonians 4:13

Life is Good!