Heavenly Homemakers

Have I ever told you that I have a great dad? Not a perfect dad, but a great one.

He spent hours with me in our shed, in our yard, and at the gym trying to help me figure out how to shoot a free throw and for Pete’s sake how to serve a volleyball over the net. That took a lot of patience on his part…because let’s just say I’m not a natural athlete. (I’m not any kind of athlete, really.)  I have fond memories of him running beside me at every track meet while I was warming up to run the half mile race. He would always come straight from working in the field, so his pliers would still be in his pocket. As he ran beside me and gave me a pep talk before the race, his pliers would bounce up and down on his belt. I can still hear the sound of his pliers while he jogged beside me.

My dad taught me a lot about the Bible…how to talk to people…how to see people’s needs and try to meet them.

Here’s what I’m realizing:  My dad has always been great at giving advice.

You want to know the greatest advice my dad ever gave me? When I was playing “the dating game” in college and getting so frustrated with the whole thing, I asked him, “Dad, are my expectations just too high? Am I looking for a guy who just doesn’t exist?”

He told me this, “Laura, you aren’t the kind of girl that boys want to date. You’re the kind of girl that they want to marry.  Don’t compromise on the kind of man you’re looking for. Don’t ever compromise. There is someone out there that is exactly what you want.”

I loved the advice, but still didn’t really think that there was anyone out there in this whole wide world that would meet my expectations for a husband. Still, I held onto my dad’s advice not to compromise. I didn’t want to date around anymore feeling like, “Well, this guy is great, except for (fill in the blank).”

It wasn’t long before Matt and I began dating. I could tell from the beginning of our relationship that he was different. And…it didn’t take long to realize that he was the definition of “exactly what I wanted in a husband.” With no compromising.

When my dad walked me down the aisle on my wedding day and handed me over to Matt, I know he did it with confidence. Not only did I find just what I’d been looking for in a husband, my dad found exactly what he’d been looking for in a son-in-law.

Not compromising was the best advice I ever took.
—————————————-

Share what you’re grateful for!! Blog about it and come link up here! If you don’t have a blog, leave a comment letting us know what you’re grateful for!

Apparently it doesn’t take much to make me giddy and excited. Take me to a strawberry patch…and I’m like a kid in a candy store. A STRAWBERRY candy store!

Last week, we had the opportunity to go to a farm and pick strawberries (in trade for some homemade bread and other goodies)!! I had been out there one time last year, but I had forgotten how BIG this patch was and how BEAUTIFUL the strawberries are!! 

I could not stop saying, “Thank you God!!!” and “Oh this is SO cool!” for about ten minutes after we arrived. It is the greatest strawberry patch. I had a couple boys who didn’t feel well that morning, so Asa stayed home with them. This meant that Justus and I were on a strawberry picking date. He was just as excited as I was and a super trooper. He worked so hard with me! We chattered the whole time together and talked about bugs and berries and God’s goodness. It will be a date with my boy that I will remember forever. 

Somehow, Justus got a picture of me picking strawberries in quite an interesting way. It was like this:  my feet were in a good spot and there were strawberries ALL over the place..and I didn’t want to trample any berries or plants…so I just left my feet there and saw how far I could reach and how many strawberries I could pick without changing foot positions. No WONDER I was sore afterward!!

Look at these beauties!!

I’m so thankful for the generosity of my friend who let me come have a party in her strawberry patch. I’m thankful for all the yummy berries we’ve been eating. I’m thankful for all the berries I’ve been able to put into my freezer for slushies and smoothies.

And…I’m thankful for the sweet memory I made with my handsome date. Now that everyone is feeling better, I think I need to make plans to take several more handsome dates back to the patch!
————————————————

What are you grateful for?! Join us for Gratituesday! Read the details here, then come link up with us. If you don’t have a blog, leave a comment letting us know what you’re thankful for!