A Fresh Cup of Coffee

Monday, August 31, 2026

Share Four Somethings - August 2026

Each month we're each invited to share things in these categories: something we loved, something that sustained us, something we're carrying forward from this month to the next, and something we're making space for. I usually like to include a little bit of a bonus: Some Things I Read and a little of What's Coming Up Soon.

Some Things I Loved:

Well, the month of August kicks off with our wedding anniversary, and I love celebrating that! This year we went up to Huron, Ohio, on Lake Erie with our son and his family. Hubby and I wanted Lake Erie perch for our anniversary dinner, so we made it a fun family day and included some time at the beach for our granddaughter. We had a lot of fun, and the perch was delicious!

Anniversary photo - 39 years!

I loved this surprise - Naked Lady Lilies popped up along the fence in our backyard. I think these unusual flowers are really neat, and we had no idea what is planted or will volunteer in our yard until it shows up. I'll be interested to see if any surprises like tulips or daffodils will pop up in the spring.

I love crows so this was a pleasant little surprise one morning - at least half a dozen crows having some kind of loud discussion in the neighborhood. It seemed like a pretty friendly debate, but I don't know what about. They were up on the rooftops of my house and a couple of neighboring houses. This wouldn't make everyone happy, I guess, but I happen to like crows so it was a fun start to my morning. Sort of related, we saw an owl fly into our backyard and settle into one of the treetops on Friday night. Not sure if that's home for him, but how great would that be! We didn't get a good enough look to be sure what kind of owl so hopefully we'll spot him again. By the way, I'm also very happy that we have bats up in those trees doing their best to eat all the bugs. (Though they missed a bunch of mosquitoes that left their mark on my ankles on Friday. I do NOT love the itching that is currently driving me nuts!) I love that even though we still live in the city and have a small yard, there are still birds and bats and katydids and fireflies, and that it was even dark enough to see the lunar eclipse.

I loved meeting our son's new dog, Delilah, a couple weeks ago. She's not quite a year old and seems really sweet and well-behaved. They're working on getting her used to how things work at their house, but she is already very much loved. And yes, this is her preferred resting position!

Something That Sustained Me:

It was helpful to me to have some deadlines coming up to work towards. We decided it was time to start entertaining at the house, whether we're completely finished with the finer details of settling in or not. So we had friends over for pizza and a fireside chat on Friday night, which forced me to finish up with my project of organizing the kitchen island.

Next up, we are heading to Maryland for the upcoming long weekend, so that's a sustaining thing to look forward to. Also some decisions will be made about what we will move from the Maryland house to Ohio, and some things that can be given away or trashed.

We will have family coming in October for a few nights, so that is my deadline for getting the guest room set up. I like having a concrete deadline that motivates me to get a project done rather than wait "until I have time". Sometimes I need to MAKE the time.

Something I'm Carrying Forward:

I had a list of small decluttering and organizing tasks I thought I could knock out during August, but I didn't finish. I did quite a few of them, but not all. So I'm looking at which of those need to carry forward to my September to-do list.

I still have some things on my home improvement shopping list that I'm carrying forward and can hopefully find and acquire in September. A screen door and a large umbrella for the deck are on the list. At this point I would be okay with it if the umbrella doesn't happen until spring, but I think the screen door is important.

Something I'm Making Space For:

I love how spacious the kitchen looks when it's clean and now that I have the island and the little table at the window organized. I made space in one shelf of the island for my wine rack and I'm really happy with it.

Don't know how far we'll get on the project this week, but I have to make space in the office to move the fold-out sofa into. The fold-out sofa is currently in the guest bedroom as it was functioning as the spare bed. Once it's moved, we'll have space to set up the new bedframe, which is still in boxes. We did make space in the living room by moving these boxes into the guest bedroom. The mattress we need for it is not in stock at our local store for a couple more weeks, but the goal is to have the bed completely set up so all we have to do is plunk the mattress on it and add some bed linens and we'll be ready for company. I'm super excited - I've never had a dedicated guest bedroom before!

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Some Things I Read:

Right now I'm reading Decluttering at the Speed of Life by Dana K White. I'm reading pretty quickly, because there's not much that's new information to me, but it's helpful to see it in a new way while I'm still in the start-up process of organizing closets and such. Why would I waste time organizing spaces for things that I really don't need to keep in the first place?

Normally my reading news is at Just A Second if you're interested. But there's nothing new there now because I've been on a reading break this summer, for the most part, and have been neglecting the blog as a result.

What's Coming Up Soon?

As mentioned, the next thing coming up is the Labor Day weekend trip to Maryland. That trip and the necessary home projects are top of mind in the coming up category at present.

Share something in the comments, or share four somethings with the rest of us in the link party!

This post will be linked at My Joyful Life in the Share Four Somethings link party.

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Sunday, August 30, 2026

Scripture and a Snapshot - Righteousness Will Be At Home

Moreover, dear friends, do not ignore this: with the Lord, one day is like a thusand years and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some people think of slowness; on the contrary, he is patient with you; for it is not his purpose that anyone should be destroyed, but that everyone should turn from his sins.

. . . but we, following along with his promise, wait for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness will be at home. Therefore, dear friends, as you look for these things, do everything you can to be found by him without spot or defect and at peace.

~II Peter 3:8-9~

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Saturday, August 29, 2026

Monthly Musings - A Little Housekeeping

Patty at Good Better Best hosts this monthly sharing of tips, tricks, and conversation starters. I had my contribution to this month's discussion about cleaning and related life hacks just about ready to share yesterday but didn't quite finish. Then I forgot this morning and we were out most of the day. Anyway, for what it's worth, here are my answers to these housekeeping queries.

1. Are you Good at managing the weekly laundry at your house or do you need help? Share tips if you are Good at this.

Most of the time I'm pretty good at managing the laundry, but it is just the two of us so it's not a huge undertaking. My husband will sometimes just go ahead and put in a load or switch the load that's in the washer to the dryer. The only thing that is a problem is folding and putting away, because I don't always fold immediately so sometimes we're hunting for socks or pants in the jumbled basket of clean laundry. I also procrastinate on ironing because there are so few things that really need it. Although I'm pretty good at this, I can't think of any tips! Thinking back to when I had a houseful of kids, I did give responsibility for their own laundry to the kids at about age thirteen. I was fine with adding their laundry to a load I was doing but they had to bring it to me and let me know what they needed.

2. Best tips for containing the kitchen and dishes chaos.

Share the work! Again, when it was a houseful, kitchen cleanup was a shared responsibility. I didn't think it was right that I should clean up by myself if everyone else used dishes, especially if I was the one who made the meal. These days, my husband almsot does the handwashing of dishes. I don't like washing and he doesn't mind, so what doesn't go in the dishwasher can usually be looked after in pretty short order. He washes, and I dry and put away. I wish I was better at keeping the counters clutter-free but that is a work in progress for me. What I've found is that if there are fewer things on the counter, it's quicker to clear up and keep it tidy. So things like the toaster or slow cooker are not supposed to stay on the counter - they get put back in the cupboard or wherever when we're not actively using them. The coffeemaker is the obvious exception!

(I finally finished clearing the top of the island counter and the little kitchen table so I have to show it off. It looks more like we've truly moved in now, at least in the kitchen!)

3. What grocery items do you always have on hand to make a quick meal? Feel free to share the recipe.

When I need to get something that resembles a meal ready sort of at the last minute, that's when I'll turn to basic prepackaged stuff. I almost always have boxed pasta (mac and cheese, or pasta-roni type), instant and canned potatoes, lunchmeats, cheeses, eggs, and tins of corned beef or tuna on hand. That gives me a few options for a simple light meal of mac and cheese or corned beef hash or even grilled cheese sandwiches. Now if it's just me, I'll happily eat a bowl of cereal for dinner, but my husband would rather have something a little closer to meat and potatoes!

4. Best tips for saving money on groceries.

Don't buy it just because it's an awesome deal. If you're not going to eat it and enjoy it during the next week, it might not be as good a deal as you think. This is especially true if it has a short shelf life like produce or dairy.

I don't have time in my life to compare prices from one store to another and hunt up what's on sale and what clipless coupons are available and all of that. Of the stores convenient to me, I know which ones generally have the better price on basics that I buy regularly, like milk and eggs and lunchmeat; and which ones carry the particular coffee or humus or almond milk I prefer. I choose which store I'm stopping at for this week's groceries based on what's most important on my list and which store is most convenient. Then I shop from the list and limit myself to only one or two impulse buys, such as "oh that is a fantastic price for salmon so let's have that for dinner tomorrow" or something along that line. We no longer live right near the BJs so I plan my BJs shopping trip more carefully so that I don't have to go as often. Time is money and money is time, and I'm in a season where saving time is slightly more important!

5. Cleaning service, DIY or is house cleaning overrated?

I have never had a cleaning service so I can't compare. In a way I think it would be wonderful to have someone come in and do some of the jobs I find overwhelming - like washing windows or deep cleaning - but I've never really considered it. Pretty sure I'll stick to doing it myself unless or until I actually can't any more.

6. Favorite cleaning products?

I don't really have specific favorites. When I can get less chemical-y products like Mrs Meyers or Seventh Generation at a good price, I like those, but I'm not very picky or brand loyal in this category.

7. Do you try to use 'green' products in your house?

Yes, where convenient and affordable. I don't go out of my way or spend much extra, but I prefer natural to chemical as much as possible. Turns out that a lot of things don't need a chemical cleaning every day or every week, as long as they are regularly wiped down. Castille soap is a good all-purpose cleaner for many household uses, but I tend to forget I have it.

8. Do you schedule certain tasks for certain days of the week?

I have tried to do this but I am not at all reliable at sticking to my schedule. For the most part I do laundry on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. I try to spend some time on Tuesday evening focusing on getting the kitchen and dining area in order, and Thursday is supposed to be bathroom and bedroom cleaning day. That's the very loose schedule, but in reality it just gets done whenever.

9. What is the most overwhelming part of your week that you think you need help with right now?

Making dinner on weeknights. I almost said meal planning, but honestly even if I have a good meal planned, I don't feel at all like putting it together when I get home from work. I find it frustrating to come up with menus that are good meals that we both like but that don't require much work or time to put together.

10. What part of your week do you think you excel at?

I think I have a pretty good thing going with the morning routine. The coffee starts brewing on a timer, so it's ready by the time we get to the kitchen. The bed gets made and I get the lunches put together and my husband leaves for work, then I have time to finish getting ready and usually have time to do a chore or two (put in a load of laundry, or bring up the laundry that's dry; maybe finish loading the dishwasher; that type of thing) as well as have a bit of quiet time at the computer enjoying my first cup of coffee.

I've tried having my morning cup on the deck but
regrettably I don't do it regularly at all

What are your best housecleaning tips? Leave a comment and let me know!

I'm linking up with Monthly Musings hosted by Patty at Good Better Best.

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Thursday, August 27, 2026

Everyday Images #95

Welcome to my ongoing challenge and reminder to myself to take photos somewhat regularly. I'm not a photographer, but I enjoy taking everyday photos of things I find interesting or want to remember later, and I'm more likely to notice interesting things when I'm intentionally watching for them. Having some prompts that are open to interpretation has helped me pay a little more attention to what's around me. Here's how it works: Every two weeks I have a few words and phrases to focus on, and I try to find opportunities to take pictures of these things each week. The link-up post will be here every other Thursday, sharing my photos and offering a link-up for participants to share theirs. Right below the link-up is where you'll find the next set of prompts.

August Prompts - Everyday Images #95

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double

at home (monthly)

yellow

mistake

heart

clock

current project (quarterly)

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double - it's almost time for hockey!

at home (monthly) - finally got around to working on the kitchen island. When I took this photo there was still stuff on top that doesn't belong there, and the rolling cart at the side needs cleaned out as well.

yellow

mistake - clumsy would probably be a better descriptor, but I definitely made a mistake in accidentally dumping this box of cotton swabs. Of course it was when I was in a hurry too!

heart - anniversary card from our son still displayed on my dresser

clock - I have to use the zoom and light of my phone camera to make the numbers on my coffeemaker big enough to see when I'm setting the clock, as I had to do after a power outage. And I accidentally snapped the photo, but it turned out to be okay for this prompt!

current project (quarterly) - the boxes contain the bedframe for the guest room, which is the next project we need to work on

And a few bonus photos:

There was definitely something going on in the neighborhood one morning, if the crows were to be believed. There were at least half a dozen arguing from rooftops across the street from each other.

We went to the Bark Bash with our son and his family, and met their new dog, Delilah.

Also visited Homestead Metro Park that day, where the butterflies and goldfinches were busy. It was really hard to capture a photo of a goldfinch, or that might have been my "yellow" choice.

I am sharing my photos every other Thursday, along with my prompts for the next two weeks. You can use all or some of the prompts for your own photo posts, or none of the prompts and just link up a post featuring your photos. Simple rules: Your posts must be family-friendly; the photos must be your own; and the post must be mostly photos. If you do share I'd appreciate a mention and link to A Fresh Cup of Coffee on your post.

The Everyday Images link-up is posted every other Thursday, and is open for two weeks.

August/September Prompts - Everyday Images #96

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sunrise/sunset

plants

reflection

Monday motivation

smoke

supplies

neighborhood spot (quarterly)

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This post is shared at the current link party hosted by Life Captured - Linky Tools Blog Hop #1

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