Favourite Things: April Edition

I have lots of pictures to share this month. I hope you enjoy this peek into what’s been keeping me busy in April.

Non-Fiction Books

During the past month the best books I read were all non-fiction. Have you read any of these?

Now I really need to read a good novel. Any suggestions?

Picture Book

I came across The Great Granny Gang when browsing at the library. What’s not to love about the rhyming story of a gang of grannies who thwart a robbery in progress?

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Food

I’ve had the cookbook Food to Live By for nearly a year and have made some excellent recipes, but this month I made several others for the first time. I especially liked the Homemade Chai, Spanish Egg “Souffle Cake” (below), and Apple Bran Muffins.

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Look at this gorgeous brunch platter!

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Activities

One of the highlights of April was having a very good friend visit from New Brunswick for three days. We did plenty of talking, baking, and eating (see brunch platter above!), and also visited the zoo (where I saw the gorilla baby for the first time) and made some marbled stationery using cheap nail polish.

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Also this month, one of my brothers-in-law had an 18-hour layover en route from Hawaii to Ottawa. It was fascinating to hear about the ethnobotany research he’s been doing in Solomon Islands. (Plus he brought presents! See below.)

A popular activity in our house lately has been playing this Eric Carle ABC game. Yes, it can get a little tedious, but it’s exciting to see how well my three-year-old is learning the alphabet and the names of all the animals. (Thank you, Aunt Emily, for the perfect birthday present!)

I finally went on Kijiji and bought a dresser for the girls, and even repurposed their changing table as storage for clothes they haven’t yet grown into. Thrifty points for using diaper boxes instead of buying plastic bins. 🙂 Organizing things gives me such a sense of accomplishment… I should do it more often.

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Things

My brother-in-law brought these gorgeous coconut wood salad tongs and this woven purse from Solomon Islands.

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The apple tree in our backyard is currently in bloom!

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And a shout out for the small things in life: I take pleasure in having a miniature IKEA pencil by my bedside, so I can write notes on scraps of paper.

Bible Verses

This month I started my Bible reading plan over again, so I’ve been reading through Genesis and Matthew. Great reminders to…

… cling to God’s promises: “Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” (Genesis 28:15)

… be generous: “Please accept my blessing that is brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough.” Thus he urged him, and he took it.” (Genesis 33:11)

… focus on God’s glory: “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)

… stop worrying: “And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” (Matthew 6:27)

I hope you’ll share your April favourites in the comments.

3 thoughts on “Favourite Things: April Edition

  1. Emily says:

    I have been meaning for years to read “The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction.” Were you able to get it from the library? It’s not at mine, but it sounds like it’s worth buying, so maybe I’ll do that.

    I just started reading the Circle trilogy by Ted Dekker. The first one is called “Black.” They are adventurous/psychological, and not something I would normally pick up (someone lent them to me), but I think you might like them! Check it out. 🙂

    I loved all your pictures! I want to try making stationery like that. I love your new salad tongs, too, but I don’t suppose I could get my hands on some of those.

    1. M.E. Bond
      M.E. Bond says:

      I did get The Pleasures of Reading from the library. I think it would be worth owning and rereading. Thanks for the novel recommendation(s)… I’m craving something exciting.

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