Family Dinner Resumes and Some Talk of Retirement

 Happy Wednesday, Friends! I can't believe it's already the middle of the week. 

We finally resumed our family dinner last night, after taking about 3 weeks off. My oldest son was traveling on Tuesdays for a worship conference, so we had a nice break. But it felt good to have the family back over, after being sick and not seeing everyone in a while. It always feels much longer, but I think it was actually just over a week 😅 

I made an old recipe that's been around our house for years...Chicken and Ritz Casserole. We had a salad, pinto beans and apple pie with ice cream on top, in addition to the casserole. Everything was delicious.

As you can see in the picture, I also put this jar of cucumbers on the table. I may have shared this before, but this is how my mom kept cucumbers when I was growing up. She would slice them, put them in vinegar and water, add salt and pepper, and keep them in the fridge. Yum!

Our family nights are getting wilder! Asa and Calem are 2 and 1 1/2 (5 months apart) and are running and playing with toys. The girls are back and forth, down the hall and back, showing us their art work, dressing up, and chasing the boys (or running from them). It's total chaos for a few hours, but David and I love it so much. We realize how blessed we are to have our kids and grandkids so close. The minute they are gone, we can't wait to see them again. 

David and I were talking about this house and how small it is when the family is gathered. We were reminiscing about our grandparents and the houses they lived in. That generation would have never considered moving to a bigger house, as the family grew. The family would just spread out to various rooms, the porches and the yard, and the family would make do with what it had. 

Have you noticed how much emphasis is put on houses these days? People will go into massive debt to buy huge houses and then work their lives away trying to pay for that house. We've decided we will not be those people.

Our little house is big enough for cozy family gatherings and it will get some upgrades over the next few years (hopefully more family room space), but we will work to pay it off and be mortgage free before David retires. 

We've been talking about that a lot too...retirement. It's still years away, but we are talking about plans to get there and what kind of financial shape we want to be in when it's finally time. Of course, God makes the plans and we just follow along, don't we? But it doesn't hurt to have goals and a general direction, to keep you motivated.

Well, today is going to consist of a bit of housework, going to the library for a new book, and maybe hitting the Dollar Tree for a few inexpensive garden items. I've also got to make a plan for Millie Day tomorrow. I think the rain will keep us inside and I'll have 3 active little girls to keep busy. 

I hope your Wednesday is blessed and all that you hope it will be. 

Until Next Time...

Blessings!