Keep Smiling

Keep Smiling

Saturday, March 28, 2026

The Simple Life






Do you remember 

when every backyard had a clothesline . . .

and laundry day smelled like sunshine?

🌻🌸🌼🌷🌷🌼🌸🌻




I'm an old soul . . .

that has always been drawn to the

simple pleasures in life.

🌻🌸🌼🌷🌷🌼🌸🌻




Sitting on the porch.




A glass of cold lemonade.






A fresh bouquet picked from the garden.

🌻🌸🌼🌷🌷🌼🌸🌻


The song of a bird.

🌻🌸🌼🌷🌷🌼🌸🌻

 



Give me the simple pleasures

in life . . .

🌻🌸🌼🌷🌷🌼🌸🌻





Relaxing in the evening

with a good book 

or an old movie . . .

feet up, dog beside me,

minding my own business.

Tell me, what is better than that?

🌻🌸🌼🌷🌷🌼🌸🌻




(That's the good life:)

🌻🌸🌼🌷🌷🌼🌸🌻

DO NOT

WORRY

about anything,

PRAY

about

EVERYTHING


PHILIPPIANS 4:6

🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱


So I leave you with this . . .
don't get caught up in the
hustle and bustle of this world.

Relax and let God take care of you.


Until by next post . . .
God bless you & keep you.

Your blogging sister, Connie :)


46 comments:

  1. Those are all such good things. I think appreciating things like that and keeping the Lord in your life gives greater happiness than any amount of money or things.

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    1. I totally agree with you Mari, this life is short but there is a life of eternity with the Lord that we can look forward to. Worrying about the carers of today doesn't make that any less it just puts us in a place of anxiety whereas appreciating what we have, makes life worth living.

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  2. I enjoyed this post so much. And yes, I love sheets especially hung on the clothesline, but I don't have a clothesline at this house. I wish I did. I do miss that. And I love your porch, and all the flowers and relaxing you are doing on your porch and in your house. Tell me, what is the significance of the Vick's Vaporub on your knees in the one picture? Do you have a cold? I love Vicks and keep a jar by my bed so I can breathe it's vapors during the night when I need to because I get stuffed up and can't breathe. It's good stuff!! Happy Springtime to you. Oh, I love those Windmill cookies too!!

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    1. I knew someone would ask. That photo was taken back in the winter and I did have a cold. I find that rubbing Vicks on your feet at night and putting socks on helps my breathing and gets rid of those dry heels at the same time. It's a win-win. Vicks VapoRub might be old fashion but it's good for so many things.
      .

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  3. What a sweet post again, Connie. Yes, we enjoy simple things. I have a clothesline too but with all the rain we get I don't use it enough. I have a very old box of clothespins, 3 dozen in the box with the price still marked. .35 cents. I wonder what year that was!!
    Lovely to see Beulah all curled up πŸ’—.

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    1. I wonder what year that is too. It has certainly been a while. I don't use my clothes line all that much but I like to put sheets on it and when I wash quilts I like to hang those up on it too. Sheet smells so good when you dry them on the line.

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  4. There is nothing better than that Connie - for sure!!! I loved this post & it made me smile. I wish we were neighbors as we would very much like the same things. Your photos are wonderful. Wishing you a peace filled week ahead Connie. xx ♥️

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    1. Thank you so much and wouldn't it be nice if we were neighbors ☺️

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  5. I like the simple life too. In my little town there are still some clothes line to be seen. Mine for one. I always hang my clothes out when I can. I don't even own a clothes dryer. :)

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    1. I'm proud of you. I can't say that I put my clothes on the line, normally not, I normally use it just for sheets and quilts. Nothing is sweeter than crawling into a bed at night where the sheets have been dried in the Sunshine and fresh air.

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  6. I absolutely love your porch. It looks so inviting and those flowers growing there are gorgeous. Relaxing in the evening with your sweet fur baby sounds perfect.

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    1. You know, you have a fur baby too. After a day of working out in the yard or even just cleaning house and puttering around it's always nice in the evening when we put our feet up and relax. Of course you're still young enough that you're holding down a job so evenings are precious times to just kick back.

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  7. Perfect! I echo all your words. Thank you Connie.

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  8. There is NOTHING better than the peace and serenity of my cozy clean home that is full of snacks and books. Literally nothing.

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    1. I love it when people are happy and content with their surroundings.

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  9. I like all of those pictures! The only thing missing from your porch is my wife and I sitting there picking tunes.

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    1. Absolutely, come over and I'll make lemonade and the three of us can pick together ☺️

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  10. Such a lovely calm post, just what we need in these turbulent times. A good book, a loving pet, a hot beverage and something tasty to nibble, and a cozy home, that's what everyone needs and deserves.

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  11. I'm totally with you, Connie! Plants, flowers, homemade food, a small lovely home, a porch to sit on, birds singing, watching a good movie, reading a wonderful book, working with our hands, a furry companion (how I miss mine!)...all some of the best pleasures in life. PS - I don't have a clothesline, but my 85-year old mother has one and still uses it all the time - even in winter! lol

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    1. Oh she's brave to use that clothes line even in the winter, especially if she lives near you. I remember what the winters are like back there.

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  12. Connie.. ah yes, the simple things. We love the same things! My mom always had a clothesline and that was our girls' jobs, to hang out the clothes, or take them down. She did it too, but sometimes out of necessity as they didn't have a clothes dryer for many years. I grew up loving the smell of the fresh sheets after being out drying in the sunshine. I too have had clotheslines in the past, but not for a few years now. I've thought of having a couple of lines put up where I live now! I do so love the smell of those sun dried sheets! Nothing like it. I love your photos of your past yards, bike, flowers, porch, etc. It's everything that I love! I always wanted a nice porch for sitting, and I have it here, and yet I very seldom sit out there! I have two adirondack chairs with cushions and don't know why I don't sit there! They are my cats' chairs mostly! Too cool in the spring to sit out, and then as summer rolls around, the sun as it sets, gets right onto the porch and it's too hot! I want to put up some sort of shade on that side. And I think I need better chairs for sitting. I like your setup with the round table and 2 chairs.. perfect for a friend or neighbor to visit with! Also, my porch is wood floor (unstained) and the rails are that redwood color, and it just doesn't feel "cozy and cottagey" at all. I would love to paint the railings white, but I know that is alot of upkeep. And my floor would be nice gray. I did notice the Vicks too! Funny...... good idea to keep it by my bed, as I too wake up sometimes with a stuffy nose, and maybe it would help. I love your picture of the lemonade jar and cookies! Reminds me when I was little, and my girlfriend and I would always stop at "an old lady's house' (we thought she was old, but probably only in her 40s or 50s!!) and she would serve us lemonade and molasses cookies! I like your words "Relax and let God take care of you". That's what we need in this crazy world these days. I pretty much bury my head in the sand, and just continue to live my little life, in ignorance of what else is going on in the world... enjoying my flowers, cats and the mobile home park where I live. I do miss having more land though, but life is still good with my little patch of lawn, veggie beds and tubs of flowers. Take care.. have a good week! Marilyn

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    1. Your new place is perfect. The thing about a small yard is that it's easy to take care of and leaves you with time to do other things. Sometimes I think my yard totally ties me down. I do love it but it does take a lot of work. Could you put a small table between your two chairs on the porch with an umbrella for shade?

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    2. Connie.. my porch IS covered with that light see-through corrugated plastic, so it's nice and light and I'm mostly sheltered from the rain. I just need to do some rearranging to make it feel cozier and need lighter rugs for the summer I think. I do have a little table between my two chairs.. just never seem to use them. They are low to the ground and hard to get out of!! (my cats love them). My "small" yard still seems like alot of work as it's almost all gravel.. and entails LOTS of weeding all the time. I spray with the safer pet friendly sprays, but they only eradicate the weeds for a couple of weeks, and then they come back again. So I'm continually pulling them out by hand! And then the lawn does need mowing and all my flower pots taken care of. I know.. it's not NEAR the work you have though! Maybe you will plan to pare down some and make things smaller and more "easy care".. if that's possible for your land size! Enjoy this nice warm week! Hugs. Marilyn

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    3. Hi Marilyn, it is always a pleasure to have to stop by . . . I'm sure that you will find a way to make your front porch a haven to enjoy the outside weather. I went thrifting today and found three pretty things to use to decorate the porch. When I can find things at thrift store or yard sale prices I feel like I've hit the jack-pot πŸ’°

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  13. Simple and good things are the best! Your porch looks like such an inviting place to sit and relax after working in the garden, or in your quilting room.
    I do not have a clothesline, but in the summer I have a rack I put out on the patio and dry most of my clothes out there. They smell so fresh!
    Have a wonderful week.

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    1. Thank you, I do enjoy my front porch and hopefully I'll use it more this year. It was hard for a while because Steve and I spent many hours out there sitting together.

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  14. I spend my evenings the same way! I love it. My yard still has a clothes line and it gets used quite often. Nothing like sheets/pillow cases fresh off the line.

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    1. I know, crawling into a bed with sun-dried sheets brings me back to my childhood, when our sheets were always dried in the sunshine. Try as they do they'll never capture that smell.

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  15. I loved reading your post and if I lived nearer I would pop over to sit in your beautiful porch and join you in a glass of cold lemonade. Many houses in the UK have washing lines in the garden and I’ll be using mine a lot more now that spring is here.
    Liz xx

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    1. Liz, I would love to spend time with you out there on the front porch. Getting to know you better and talking blog language ☺️

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  16. Your porch is so pretty and inviting. Such pretty bouquet of flowers you have their to enjoy too. Yes I feel we need to be reminded of the simple joys out there to enjoy.

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    1. Simply pleasures and learning to slow down in a world that's always telling us to move and be busy.

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  17. There is nothing quite like the smell of fresh laundry dried in the sun to make a person feel at peace. Sitting on the porch with a cold glass of lemonade and a good book is truly the best way to spend an afternoon. How is your Monday afternoon shaping up for you? I just shared a new post and would love for you to come by and read it at www.melodyjacob.com.

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    1. Thank you for popping by and I am heading over to see want you've been up to on your blog. Happy Monday ☺️

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  18. I so miss hanging out the laundry, the way the sheets smelled as you crawled into bed. What beautiful thoughts to carry with me today. Love your blog.

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    1. Thank you, I'm delighted that you started out your day reading my blog. In fact I just stripped my bed a half an hour ago and my sheets are in the washer to start a new week with fresh smelling sheets again. We're having a sunny day with a brisk wind so they should dry very fast.
      My goal is to get out and clean up the greenhouse so I can put my little seedlings out there that I've started in the house. Another month and it'll be time to plant outside. I'm so looking forward to my garden this year.
      Have a lovely day my friend and God bless you.

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  19. Connie, this is such a beautiful reminder of how sweet the simple things in life truly are.
    Sunshine on the sheets, a porch to rest on, and God’s peace in our hearts--what more could we ask for?
    Love, love, love this post🌸🌻

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    1. Veronica, I loved reading your comment . . . You get it and I love that♥️

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  20. Thanks for visiting my blog. I'm glad I visited you back.
    This is such a refreshing post. Love the pictures, the reminders of all the simple pleasures that make up a good life, and your prompt--"don't get caught up in the hustle and bustle of this world. Relax and let God take care of you." Amen to that!
    I do remember the clotheslines and the wonderful smell of sun dried sheets, and though I don't have a clothesline or a porch, the thought of relaxing on one with a nice cold glass of lemonade sounds very inviting.

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    1. I wish you lived close by, I would invite you over to sit on the porch with me and listen to the birds sing πŸ¦πŸ•Š️

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  21. Lovely post-Christine cmlk79.blogspot.com

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  22. I still use my washing line on sunny days. There's nothing like that gorgeous scent.

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    1. Fabric softeners as nice as they are, don't even come close to the scent of sunshine dried sheets.

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