Respite Care

Respite care: (according to wikipedia) is the provision of short-term, temporary relief.

    do you have a retreat? do you have a need for a retreat? i know i sure do. in our house, when the tough gets going, i go to the bathroom - haahaah! not what your thinking! it's the only place i can go to for a solid 5 minutes of peace, quick prayer and a regrouping. (sometimes not a solid 5 minutes, but just enough time lol!) 

    a few weeks ago the kids and i decided to try our hand at creating an "out door room" with some random stuff that has been cluttering up our garage. all this stemmed from trying our hands at making a tee pee. looooong story, but the tee pee didn't ever come to be.

here is the before picture:

here are some after pictures with our sweet gracie gal given 'er a test drive =) :

this little respite site gets shade from early morning until about 1:30 p.m. in which case i'm inside cleaning up from the first half of the day and getting ready for the second half to begin. in other words, nap time. around 2:45 the shade moves back over from another tree and it's stays shady until night fall - or should i say, the next afternoon =) 

here's the great view:

and when my eyes start to focus inward and refreshment is in need:

i get a good clear view of the Son in which my eyes should not tarry from:

it's a wonderful spot to start my day, coffee in hand, bible on, yes - pop eye the sailor man sheets from my childhood. 'cuz aren't we supposed to have a childlike faith? haahhaah! i know - i know, but hey, i thought it was a cute reminder =)

but seriously? this is a spot i can easily watch the kids play, while i rest shortly, feel the breeze - a sweet gift from the Lord, and take a moment to just ...be in the moment - God's moments.

it's a great spot for the kids to have morning and afternoon prayer and devotions - because we all need to be refreshed.

it's a great spot to have coffee with my husband when he gets home from work.

it's a great spot to sit and roast marsh mellows in the evening with friends, and a great place to gaze at God's stars. here's what our respite care site looks like at night with lanterns lit:

 see the moon above?

luke 5:16 but Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. 

thanks for taking a moment to pop in and visit us. might you consider creating for yourself your very own respite care? do you have a place to retreat? please feel free to share it here.

may you Know Love