Ellen Senechal's Blog, page 4

Monday Musings // Heidi May

Well, my family just adopted a second kitten, and the best part about it is that she's mine 💜 (yes, I can sense your shock through the screen, and yes, it's true I went from avoiding these four-legged creatures to loving them in the course of two months 😂) My Heidi May is soooo super sweet, very shy, and really tiny. She's currently sleeping in the crook of my right arm, but I'll have to move her to my lap in a moment as it's hard for me to type fast one-handedly 😄
Bringing her home 🥰
The story of how I got Heidi is an interesting one, which I'm sure you're all dying to hear (er, read) 😉My younger sis and I tagged along with Grandma and Pop Pop over the weekend hoping to find a cat for Grandma, but in the end I was the one who came across a kitten I absolutely adored. Mom and Dad had already said I could have a cat, although we certainly didn't think it would be quite so soon! When I returned home, Mom took one look at my face and knew we had to get her. So, we drove back to the pet store that very afternoon (within the hour!) and signed the papers. Mom had said she envisioned me with a black cat, and she was right 😃At the time, my new kitty had already been given the name Wendy, which I initially decided fit her perfectly. But then we brought her home, and, as I got to know her more, I reconsidered it. Her name didn't suit her meek, timid personality or the obsession she seems to have with hiding herself (especially behind doors or in my bookshelves). As I debated new names for her, Mom suggested Heidi. I jumped for it, and not just because it described my kitten well. When Mom was pregnant with me and went for an ultrasound, she couldn't see me. Everyone seemed to think something was wrong, but then, thankfully, they discovered I'd just been hiding. Mom later joked that she wanted to call me "Heidi" 😁 When pressed for a middle name for Heidi, I chose May, my birth month 😊Mom, Dad, and I have a deal, and that is that I do four years of college online (starting next year) and don't court or get married until the end of that time. Now with a cat all my own to love on and take care of, I'm even happier with the arrangement 🙂

Doing schoolwork together 💗
Okay, while Heidi is continuing to sleep comfortably on my lap, I'll finish up this post by listing off a few other important events that have taken place in the last two weeks. We moved Connor into college, and he's doing really well, which we're glad for, although we all miss him a lot. He's been able to call us several times, however, and I chatted with him for almost an hour and a half one night (it was definitely worth staying up till a quarter to midnight 😊)I commenced taking dual enrollment college classes through Regent University on Monday, August 23. It was a little hectic at the beginning, with orientation quizzes and deadlines I hadn't even been aware of, among other things, but I'm feeling better about it now. All my assignments for the week are turned in, right on time. (yay!)
So, how are you all? What have you been up to? Comment below, I'd love to hear!
Blessings,Ellen S. Can you spot the kitty in this picture? 😄

Monday Musings // Changes Ahead

And Monday Musings are BACK! (Well, for this week, anyway 😂)

Over the weekend our church had a "duck race," in which members of the congregation both decorated ducks for a contest AND raced plain plastic ducks in gutters with straws. Afterward, everyone cooled off with a bowl of ice cream and talked. That was lots of fun, even if a storm came upon us suddenly (meaning we had to rush home through rain, wind, and lightning) and my legs got eaten up by bugs. 

I chose to decorate/enter a duck in the "Biblical character" category of the contest. Comment below if you think you know what "Biblical character" my duck is dressed as!
The upcoming two weeks are going to be ones of change. We're moving Connor into college, which is taking a toll on us big time. Lots of packing, planning, and giving into or suppressing emotions. A couple of us, especially, aren't looking forward to saying "good-bye." Prayers for our family (particularly Connor as he embarks on this newest journey, and Mom, who's struggling with giving up her firstborn) would be appreciated. (If you want to know more about the college he's attending, read this post.)

Connor and me . . . buddies since day one.
Love you so much, big bro 💙 
Go be amazing and serve where God calls you!
Next Monday, Lord willing, I'll start dual enrollment college classes through Regent University, and I'm feeling a little nervous about that. *sucks in deep breath* God is teaching me Spirit-reliance instead of self-reliance, but I still have a lot more to learn!

So, just a quick glimpse of what's going on my life right now.
How are you all doing? Also, a head's-up: it appears Feedburner took their "subscribe by email" gadget down from my blog, so I doubt those subscribed will be getting emails for my blog posts anymore. If you want to keep receiving notifications when I post, please contact me at butterflyellenann[at]gmail[dot]com. Have a very blessed week!

Blessings,Ellen S.

Best News Ever

In a world marred by sin, no one seems to know whether most news being released by the media is "fake" or "real." I don't aim to make this blog a political platform, so I won't dive into examples, but I'm sure you're all essentially aware of what I'm referring to. And because of this, lines have been drawn . . . and crossed. America is divided. Families are getting torn apart. Hearts are heavy, and restoration seems a long way off. 

I want to take this opportunity to remind you (and me) of the news that is always real and never-changing - not yesterday, not today, not ever. The news of the Gospel: of Jesus' death and resurrection. Our Savior is alive right here, right now. Nothing fake about it. The cross won the war for our souls; Christ's blood gives us access with confidence into His presence. (Ephesians 3:12, 2:13) Surrounding us are people who can injure or even kill the body . . . but not our souls. We are called to stand firm in this, and not to shrink away. (Hebrews 10:39) The power of Jesus inside us gives us boldness. If we ask, His grace will strengthen us. (2 Timothy 2:1)

Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior? If not, you can make the choice to do that at this very moment. Romans 10:9 says, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." It's as simple as that. No works of your own required; just faith in the work already accomplished at the cross. 

"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." Hebrews 11:1

Interested in knowing more? Shoot me an email at butterflyellenann[at]gmail[dot]com, or drop a comment below. I'd love to converse with you further on this subject that's very near and dear to my heart. 

Our God is a God of divine love beyond human comprehension, and He desires for us to know and experience Him on a whole new level. There is still hope in this world, but not of this world. And that hope is Jesus. <3 (Ephesians 4:4-7)

Not only is this real news, it's also the best. news. ever. 

Praying for you all today. <3
Ellen S.

Thursday Thoughts // More Pictures & a Patio

We tore down our deck way back in May (which you can read about in this post), and last week we filled the empty space in our backyard with a beautiful patio. My whole family (including Juniper) gathered at the windows to watch the workmen pour the concrete and smooth it out. They did a great job! We're all very excited to be able to play/eat/read out there again.

These flowers popped up quite unexpectedly in the dirt patch where our deck used to be/our patio is now. 
Before . . . 
. . . after 😁
We celebrated my sister, Marah's, birthday the following weekend. So thankful for her. 🥰 Of course, I insisted she and I do a photo shoot together. 😄
Timber-r-r!
(Yep, our relationship, which this pic essentially managed to capture, is pretty awesome.)

Love this one 💗

I really like both of these, even if my arm pose isn't exactly what I'd envisioned. It's a hot summer's day, but I appear to be trying to keep warm against a bitter wind or something. 😂
We're attempting to make the most of the time we have remaining before Connor leaves for college and we resume school. There was a reception for the graduates at our church, which was nice. And yesterday Mom loaded us all up in the van and took us on a field trip to the river to walk around, feed the ducks, and admire the jellyfish from a safe distance away, and then to a restaurant to pick up burgers, fries, and chicken nuggets for the drive home. I am so, so blessed. 💜
Ruby and me 😃

Do you have a deck or patio? What's something you enjoy doing with your sibling(s)? Comment below!
Blessings,Ellen S.

Thursday Thoughts // Colds & a Cat

Well, it's been a full week. A cold started in our family earlier this month, and slowly it made its way from person to person till finally everyone had it. Mom and I were the last to get sick. I had a sore throat over the weekend, and now I'm feeling congested and tired. Because of the quarantine last year, none of us really ever caught anything in a while until now. Ruby had never even had a cold before!Thankfully, the worst seems to be behind us, and we're on the road to recovery. But I can't wait for this congestion to let up so I can go jogging again!Those who were well enough helped lug up schoolbooks from the basement and organize them in the main level. We'll be "getting back in the groove of things" in a little over a month, Lord willing - Connor at college, dual enrollment classes for me, and the rest of the kids still in homeschool. There'll definitely be some adjustments, and I'm feeling both excited and nervous about that. Meanwhile, Juniper is continuing to grow and make herself at home! She found her way into another toilet (mine) and has gotten used to the loud noise of the vacuum. The other day she was sitting on the windowsill, and Ruby came up to touch her nose and rub her back. It was the sweetest thing. 😍 I snapped a few pictures, of course. 😉


This naughty kitty seemed very intent on getting to our fish. 😂 We went ahead and moved the poor, unsuspecting victim to the top of a cabinet where Juniper can't reach it.
How has your week been? When does school start up again for your family?
Blessings,Ellen S.

Thursday Thoughts // Kitten Adventures + Family Pictures

An update on our kitten:

As we underwent the process of adopting Juniper, Mom remarked that it felt like we were getting another kid. The rest of us laughed, thinking she was just referring to all the paperwork she had to do and the huge commitment we were making (i.e., that line "till death do you part"). But no. We brought Juniper home, and she quickly settled in so that she did become like "one of the kids." One-year-old Ruby loves to chase her (and take her toys 😂). Yesterday morning I found Juniper hanging over the open toilet (with her head in the bowl) and Ruby standing by, watching. My instant reaction was "Eww, gross!" Later, though, the scene entered my mind again, and I had to laugh. I think our toilet lids will stay down from now on.

We're currently teaching Juniper she has to stay off the counters (where we have our fish, Garrett). The spunky kitten likes to jump on our kitchen stools to reach this high, forbidden area. She also likes to climb into the pantry and curl up in the "snack drawer," away from little hands. 

We had a tornado warning late one night last week that wrenched us all from sleep and dragged us down to the basement for about a half hour. Juniper, of course, came with us. She found a comfy spot on the couch and dozed off, unaffected by the excitement. 

Our attachment to our sweet pet has definitely grown, and some of us are wondering why we didn't get a cat long before now. Mom bought Juniper a stuffed mouse that she carries everywhere (much to Mom's delight). There was a ball in the mouse at one point, but that fell out when Juniper ripped a hole in the mouse's back. 🤣 When she's not playing with her mouse, Juniper is either napping, chasing a laser, running after balls, wrestling for a string, being cuddled/petted by someone, or eating (she's already gained over two pounds!).

*ahem* In other news . . . 

We had family pictures taken a couple weeks ago (before we got Juniper) and just recently saw them for the first time. I thought I'd share a few with you all. 😊

From left to right: me (Ellen), Connor, Malachi, Mom, Sadie, Dad, Ruby, Luke, Hope, Marah, & Lucy
I love our big, crazy family!! 💗

Just us girls 😃 Did you enjoy seeing this update? Have any tips for caring for a kitten? Comment below!
Blessings,Ellen S.

Thursday Thoughts // We Got a Cat?!

A few developments have taken place around the Senechal household . . . one of the biggest being that we adopted a cat, a super sweet 12-week-old kitten named Juniper. We love her a lot! She's cuddly and playful and tons of fun. As I type this post, she's wandering around the bedroom I'm in. Adorable. 😍

Juniper and me.
(Somehow my fear of all creatures on four legs dissipated when I saw this beautiful kitten. But that doesn't mean I'm an animal person. Yet.)

*heart melts*
Juniper is my sister Marah's early birthday present, which basically means she's Marah's responsibility but the rest of us benefit from her 😂
I also have two new "jobs" now, which I'm excited about. One is writing weekly devotions for our church website.  They're generally written, proofread, and posted by Wednesday. I don't feel comfortable with making the link to that website public here on my blog, but if you're interested in reading those devotions, email me and I'll send the link to you privately. 😄My other "job" is a volunteer project I hope to do every Tuesday morning. PLUS, I just signed up for dual enrollment college classes through Regent University starting Monday, August 23.  So, yes, I'll be busy in the upcoming weeks, and I think I'll have to set aside doing Monday Musings posts again for the time being. But never fear! I have no intention of abandoning this blog entirely, and I'm still working on providing an alternative email system to Feedburner. As you can see by the title of this post, I missed Monday but may have just begun a new series of posts called "Thursday Thoughts" instead. We'll see. 😃 Stay tuned!
Blessings,Ellen💗

Attention, Email Subscribers!

On Thursday, July 1, Feedburner is officially going into maintenance mode, which means Ellen's Musings will neither be able to gain new email subscribers nor get emails to those who are already subscribed. I will continue to post after that date (Lord willing), but I'd like to provide an alternative to those following by email. If you want to continue to receive email notifications, please contact me at butterflyellenann@gmail.com. 

Thanks!

Ellen

To My Grandma

To my grandma-

Few people can make me laugh the way you do. There's no one else I'd rather "darling" on the phone or text message with every evening. You hold a special part of my heart, and I love you so, so much.

I know I can count on you to be a strong support for my writing . . . to read my blog posts . . . to make the smoke alarm go off when you cook pizza (and then wave a dishtowel in the air to clear it) 😂 . . . to give me a hug or offer a seat on your deck swing whenever I visit . . . 

In short, you're a pretty cool grandma, and I'm very thankful for you. 💕 HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!Love you FOREVER and ALWAYS.
😘😘😘Ellie

Paid In Full

Soon after getting back from our vacation at the beach, Mom and I went grocery shopping to pick up some essentials. It wasn't long before our cart was piled high with yogurt, bread, milk, and a variety of snack food and fresh fruit and we were heading to checkout. As we unloaded our items onto the belt, we heard a voice say in front of us, "I'm going to pay for their groceries."

I looked up from the container of strawberries I had just placed on the belt, and a wave of shock doused both Mom and me like a bucket of icy water when we realized the person was talking to the cashier about us. I turned to Mom and mouthed, Is she serious?

Mom gaped at the young woman. "Oh no, really, we're fine. I don't think you realize just how much we have."
"We're buying for a family of eleven," I supplied, knowing from experience just how much money our family shopping trips could amount to. 

"And we're able to pay," Mom continued. "Why don't you pay for the man behind us? He only has a few items and--"

"Nope." The woman grinned and leaned on her cart, undaunted. "You were behind me in line. I'm paying for your groceries."

"But--" Mom swallowed and tried again, but the woman wouldn't take no for an answer. No matter how much Mom protested, she didn't budge. 

Dazed, I put the eggs on the belt and nearly tipped them over. Mom was so distracted, she didn't even notice. (Which I suppose is a good thing.)  The cashier bagged the last item and rung up the total, and just as we figured, it was in the hundreds. The woman didn't hesitate, however. She stuck her credit card in the machine and paid for all of it. 

When we asked her why she was doing it, she replied simply, "Because I felt led to."

Mom and I walked back outside to the car absolutely stupefied. Mom was crying, she was so touched. It was like a whisper from God telling us there are still kind people out there, even when the world around us looks dark and broken beyond repair. 

It also reminded me of God's grace, and how my debt has been paid in full - even though I didn't deserve it. He shed His blood for me to become the "once and for all" sacrifice, and I don't have to work for that forgiveness anymore. He's already inserted that perfect "credit card" that covers the price of all my sins and has told me over and over, "It's a gift, Ellen. Accept it."

My friends, we don't have to toil for our salvation . . . God has it ready to hand out to anyone and everyone who asks it of Him. And once He's already put in His "credit card," we would be fools to yank it out and insert our own, wouldn't we? Recognize God's grace for what it is: a gift. Free. Just as alive and active now as it ever has been and ever will be. 

Join me in living fully in His grace today. <3

Blessings,

Ellen S.