Ellen Senechal's Blog, page 5
June 21, 2021
Monday Musings // Photo Dump
Sadie and "Mama Ellie" 😍
My family and I spent a week vacationing at the beach!
Mom and me. 💕
Horseshoe crab!
🤩🤩🤩
I shared a bedroom with four of my sisters in the condo we rented. 😄
I went to take a picture of Ruby playing in the sand just as Sadie walked by with a shovel full of water. 😂
Sand creatures!
Body boarding! 
Yummy. 😋
I loved getting up early every morning to see the sunrise!
S'mores.
"How precious to me are Your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand." -Psalm 139:17-18
Sisters. 💗
Reading on the beach! 
While on vacation, my siblings and I played mini golf for the first time. (The course had an underwater theme.) 😁 
More of the golf course. It felt like we'd walked into a scene from the Wizard of Oz movie. 😂 I told Connor (my older bro), "We're not in Kansas anymore!" and he quipped back, "Well, we're not underwater anymore!"
Yep, you guessed it. We had to get our ball inside the clam's mouth (which was steadily opening and closing) in one hit. None of us made it, but it was fun to try.Aaaand, that's it for the photo dump! Hope you enjoyed. 😄 Comment below what picture was your favorite!
Also, just want to give y'all a head's-up that Feedburner (the service I use to get emails to my subscribers) is shutting down in July. I'm on the lookout for an alternative, but until then you won't be able to get emails when I post. (Sorry, Grandma. 😢) If anyone has an email service they'd recommend, please let me know.
Blessings,Ellen S.
May 24, 2021
Monday Musings // Life Update + Photo Dump
These past few weeks of May have been marvelous . . . and busy! It's time for a brief recap. 😄
SOME HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE MONTH:
*The kids and Dad worked together to tear down our deck, then Pop Pop came by to pick up the rotten wood and take it to the dump. The ground in our back yard looks very bare now (especially since having a deck up for so long killed the grass)
*We attended a new church and had the pastor's family over for dinner*My sweeet friend from the UK, Sandrina, and I Skyped for over an hour one Friday afternoon 😁*My family picked strawberries and made plenty of jam 😋*We celebrated my birthday 😃 A few pictures from that day:
Mom and me 💗
As a special treat, I had my fingernails painted for the first time in years! The polish stayed on for a total of three days after my birthday (not very practical, but so pretty!).
Although I chose not to eat any of these fun cupcakes (due to food allergies/stomach problems), I still got to blow out the candle and watch the kids enjoy them. 🥰*Fruit is back in season, which means fresh fruit salad!
*We scheduled our last day of school for Friday, May 28! After that, we get the summer off before I have to start dual enrollment college classes in the fall (I'm hoping to do four years of college online, starting in 2022, and earn my English degree) 😄*There was sister bonding time with Ruby Jane (she does math with me, comes along on my walks, and shares some of my favorite food) 💕
*ahem* Well, I guess Algebra helped put her to sleep 😂*I discovered I LOVE hand boilers!!
(Picture taken from online. I own the blue, orange, and green boilers in slightly different designs.)*And finally, my mom recorded my speech and put it on YouTube! (Check out her channel and my video HERE)
How has your month been? Do you like hand boilers? Comment below!
Blessings,Ellen S.
May 20, 2021
The Need to Evangelize // My First YouTube Video!
I've recently been taking a speech course for school called Secrets of Great Communicators by Jeff Myers, and tonight video-taped for the first time my full-length speech focusing on the NEED TO EVANGELIZE (with my family as the audience). I'm so excited to be able to share it with you all on my mom's brand-new YouTube channel! Enjoy. 😄
Blessings,Ellen S.
May 3, 2021
Monday Musings // Strawberries!
In early celebration of Mother's Day (which is this upcoming Sunday), my family and I trekked to a local strawberry patch where we picked and purchased over twenty pounds of the round, red, juicy berries. It was a lot fun! And the house smelled so good while Mom canned jars upon jars of fresh, homemade strawberry jam. (if I could've bottled up the smell and saved it for later, I would've!) 😋
Strawberry shortcakes. Yum!Anyways, just a quick update to let you know I'm still alive over here. 😄 With Feedburner (the service I use to get emails to my subscribers) shutting down in July, the final days of school approaching, and my having to get ready to do dual enrollment college classes in the fall (!!!), I'm not sure how active I'll be on the blogosphere this spring/summer. I still hope to hop on and post occasionally, though. Please bear with me! 😂
Do you like homemade jam? What have you been doing recently? Comment below!
Blessings,Ellen S.
April 24, 2021
Winners!
Congratulations to Martha Abilene and Libby Powell, the two winners of my book birthday giveaway! 🥰🥳😃 Please send me your mailing information ASAP via my email address (found in the comments below). I can't wait to get your prizes shipped out!!
Thanks to everyone who participated in the giveaway! I enjoyed seeing all your entries. 😀 And an extra-special shout-out to all who not only took the time to read but also review my book over the past year. Your support has meant a lot. 💗
Keep shining for Him, my friends!
Blessings,
Ellen S.
April 21, 2021
April 21, 2021 // Book Birthday Giveaway!
I can't believe it's been a whole year since I published my book, The Whispers God Gives, on Amazon! I've loved seeing how God has used this devotional in my life and others' . . . even allowing me to give out copies around my neighborhood as a way to witness for Him. <33
Picture taken from a recent photo shoot w/ my sweet sister, Ruby Jane. =)It's time to celebrate with another giveaway! After all, what's a book birthday without presents?!
Full credit for this image goes to Sawyer Marie.There'll be two winners in this giveaway, each receiving a signed copy of The Whispers God Gives. Enter simply by dropping a favorite Bible verse in the comments below; one verse = one entry, and you can earn up to a maximum of three (3) entries total. Please note that international friends are welcome to participate in this giveaway, although if they win they'll get the PDF version instead of paperback. Winners announced this Saturday, Lord willing. Have fun!
Blessings,Ellen S.
April 5, 2021
Monday Musings // Time to Catch Up!
Hello again friends!! Happy Easter! (a little late, I know.) What did you guys do to celebrate? We were planning on having a home church service and then a big lunch, but that all changed when one of my brothers complained of a sharp pain in his stomach the evening before. Dad took him to the hospital, and we learned soon after midnight that he had appendicitis. He became the first of us nine kids to have an operation, and it was definitely a trying time for everyone. Thankfully, however, just as He always does, God provided. Even with all the COVID restrictions, Mom and Dad were both allowed to be with my brother before and after surgery, and things went smoothly enough that he was able to come home that night. 😄 We ended up doing church and food the next day (Monday), which doesn't matter too much, considering Christ is just as much risen now as He was on Sunday. 🥰
*ahem* In other news . . . My time away from the Internet proved to be very fruitful for several reasons.
1. I didn't do as much writing as I'd hoped, but I felt God working through me in other ways . . . like pressing people on my heart to witness to with a copy of my book and a tract or two. I learned that stepping out in faith isn't always easy, but very rewarding. 💗
2. I started listening to more audiobooks and enjoying them.
3. I focused more on school and different priorities.
4. I felt motivated to use my free time in doing chores and cleaning up around the house (my closet especially).
5. I grew closer to my siblings.
. . . and so on. There were a handful of highlights too, like receiving my copy of the 2021 Circle C contest book, finding a modest dress at Old Navy, and spending time outside in beautiful, 60+ degree weather. Oh, and taking a speech course for school. 😀
I don't plan on returning to posting regularly, although with April 21st (the day a year ago I published The Whispers God Gives) drawing near, there may just be a fun giveaway in store. So, stay tuned!
Let's talk in the comments! What have you been up to?
Blessings,
Ellen S.
March 8, 2021
Taking a Break
Blessings,Ellen S.
March 1, 2021
Monday Musings // Warm Weather At Last!!
After experiencing three weekends of snow and many days with ice covering the roads and sidewalks, God blessed us with almost a whole week of beautiful, warm, sunshiny weather. Perfect for jogging and biking in capris without a coat on. Oh, and bringing Ruby outside in a onesie. It was great. 😄
Morning ^^^ . . .
. . . and afternoon ^^^I've also been busy with school, proofreading the latest Circle C contest book, enjoying time out with Mom at Trader Joe's and Joann's, beginning Alex and Brett Harris' Do Hard Things for the first time (and already loving it!) . . . and witnessing one of the absolute CUTEST things ever. 😍I typically have Ruby with me in the morning while I do math, and sometimes I'll take a break from my work to put lotion on her legs and feet. After doing exactly that this past Monday, I settled her on the floor and returned to the algebraic equations I was solving. Next time I looked up, Ruby had the lotion bottle in hand and was pretending to use it just like I had. Talk about 100%, breath-catching ADORABLENESS. I managed to grab my phone and film the moment, so please humor my sisterly pride and enjoy this forty-eight second video. 🥰How's the weather where you live? What's a super cute thing your sister (or brother) has done that made you smile? Let's talk in the comments below!
Blessings,Ellen S.
February 22, 2021
Q&A with Abby!
I just did my first-ever author Q&A!! Many thanks to Abby for having me on her blog. 😄 To check that out and see a devotion from my book, click the image below. Enjoy! 😘
Blessings,Ellen S.
