Merry Christmas!!!

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas.  I sure did.  I really enjoyed being surrounded by family.  We were even invited to a wedding on Christmas.  I will have pictures and a story on that next week.  I found a quiet moment and thought I would drop in to say hello and ask you our Q of the Week. 

Was there a moment on Christmas day, that you felt Holy Spirit goose bumps because you realized the importance of that day?

Jeannie-Mine was during our Christmas service at my Mom's husband's church.  He is the pastor and did a nice little message about the joy in the world, when you have Christ.

Wrapped up in a Title

I was just reading in my bible study and the woman said, when we are in ministry of any kind we need to focus on the people and not on the task or title. That soooo applies to motherhood and keeping a home. We get wrapped up in a task that we are doing, when a child runs in or our husband comes home, we feel interrupted because we weren't done. This week let’s all remember who it is that we are doing all of this for. It doesn't mean that we can't expect to get things done, it just means we need to watch our attitudes when we are interrupted.
As far as that title goes, motherhood can actually take on a negative feel.  Many of us have felt the sting of the phrase “just a mom”.  Let me remind you and myself also that we are doing the hardest, most important job in the world.  Without us where would the world be.  Actually, many moms have left their post and we see the effects of that in our society today.  We play a vital role in forming the leaders of the future.   Keep up the good work and pass on this message to another mom to encourage her.
Jeannie

Our Month of Birthdays

In our house we have 4 birthdays between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  It makes life just crazy and expensive.  For our two little ones this year we decided to have a friend party in February because it is so crazy.  Here is a peek at our birthday celebrations.

This is little guys cake, made by the lovely and talented Allie.  She is such an artist.  She did this free-hand.

Here we have Mr. 16.  He wanted a Brownie Trifle for his cake, layers of brownie and pudding.  Yummmm!!!  He had a sleepover, hold the sleep.

This belongs to Bella.  She turned 7.  Allie did this cake too.  Bella wanted a Tinkerbell/Gingerbread house cake and that is what she got. 

And I got a surprise party from my daughter and best friend Melissa.  They had me till I started questioning Melissa’s husband’s ploy to get us over there.  Oh really you got a new snow blower and I care why?  BTW (teen talk for by the way.  I try my best to stay with it)  I turned 28 again!!  Ok,Ok  40.
Jeannie

After God’s own Heart

I'm doing a study on David right now and they were comparing David and Saul, asking what made David more of a man after God's own heart. Both Saul and David committed great sins against God (you can read about both men in I and II Samuel). The difference is that Saul's heart had hardened against God in his sin and David sincerely repented to God of his sin. The condition of our heart prepares the path of our lives. We are all going to mess up in parenting and in marriage. The way you handle those mess ups determines the way God is going to help you. Spouses and children are awfully important to us, just as Israel was to David. We need to follow his example of seeking God for wisdom and being obedient. If we are not obedient we need to repent ASAP.
So, If you lost it with your husband or children today and spouted off horrible things to them, you have not damaged them for life or ruined you marriage. Just ask the forgiveness of God and of them and God will bless that which you have been so richly blessed.
Jeannie

Q of the Week.

How many days a week do you eat dinner at the table as a family?

Jeannie-I would say that we eat at the table about 4 days a week and once at the coffee table.  Whenever we have a snack night or pizza we watch a movie with dinner.

Little Things

This week, I want you to take one of your children into your lap and measure your hand to theirs. Really study it for a moment. There are 2 things we can learn from doing this. First, it gives us perspective when we are frustrated with our small ones that just aren't getting it.(Why do you keep pulling your sisters hair, after 10 time outs).   They have only been here on this earth for a few short years. It takes time to master this thing called life.
The next thing we can learn from doing this is, that this is how our heavenly Father sees us. In our faith and our knowledge of Him we are just small children, who just don't get it so much of the time. We have a Father with endless patience and love for us because he knows we are still trying to master this thing called life.
Jeannie

Take up your weapons while you build!

I have been reading in Nehemiah lately.  It was one of those times when I was done with a Bible study and needed something to read.  So I said, “alright Lord what book of the Bible do you want me to read?”  I heard him say, "Nehemiah", which I have never read or even thought of.  So, I flipped there and started reading. 

 What a great book.  It is about a cupbearer for the King of the land that had taken them over.  He was a Hebrew and heard that the wall of Jerusalam needed rebuilt so he asked the King if he could go there to help them do that.  He must have had great favor from the King because he let him go. 

I won’t get into any more about the story but you have to read it, it has such great truths in there that we really need to look at for our world today.

The Big thing that I want to tell you of today is what I gained from Chapter 4.

As mothers we have so much to do in the process of serving as builders of our homes.  But we have an enemy that seeks to devour us.  If he can destroy the builder he can totally stop the building process and then he has won. 
In Nehemiah, as they were rebuilding the walls of the city, Nehemiah instructed the ones that brought in materials to carry the materials with one hand and with the other hand carry a weapon.  As for the builders they wore their sword by their sides as they worked. 

What does the Bible say that our Weapon is?  We are to use “the sword of the spirit which is the word of God” Ephesians 6:17.  If you read on a little from there it says “And pray in the Spirit in all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.”

If we aren’t armed with our weapon we can be attacked by Satan our enemy. I don’t mean carrying your Bible as your weapon.  I mean having God’s word in your heart from studying it.
If you would spend just 20-30 minutes a day with the Lord, reading His word and praying, then you are arming yourself with the most powerful weapon known to man.  Try reading Nehemiah.  It's in the Old Testament.
God Bless
Jeannie

Goals For December

Considering this is so late getting in here, I would say getting organized should be top priority. First, let’s see if I accomplished something last month.  It sure does not seem like it but sometimes if you look at a list you can see for sure.
Home-

• Organize my kitchen cupboards (ugh!) X
  
• Finish my meal planning for November(better get that done quick, so we can eat) X
  
• I am going to actually plan this year’s Thanksgiving beforehand.  X
  
• Start planning Christmas (when I figure out what that means I will share it with you)  Still in the works, but I did start.

Homeschooling-

• Finish putting together new calendar set up for classroom. X

Blogging-

• Write more inspirational posts I actually slowed down on posts sorry.
  
• Start writing a Bible study This is half done
  
• Write an article or two for other sources.  Nope

Well I would say I accomplished about half of what I wanted to.   So here we go…
December’s goals:
Home:

• More efficient meal planning.
• Sticking to the meal planning.
• Keeping paper work/school work papers under control.
• Take a look at Flylady.net and try it out (Melissa is trying it and loves it.
• Have healthier snack choices for my family.

Homeschooling-

• Better scheduling of work.
• Planning ahead a little more.
• Getting everything done before Christmas break.

Blogging-

• Get things ready for a great series we have planned for January.
• Better planning.

Thank you for listening.  You know I list all of this to inspire you and keep me accountable.  Hope it helps.  Here is my inspiration.

Jeannie

I just love to watch them learn.

We have been homeschooling for about a year and a half.  I feel so blessed to be able to teach my own children.
Above Gigi is using a Read, Spell, Write mat that I down loaded on Homeschool Creations go on over and check out all of the great things she has.  Even if you don’t homeschool, I promise you will find something you will love.

Here Franklin is counting frogs to match with the numbers.  I can not remember where I got these from.  There is so much on the internet to help you teach your children, whether you homeschool or just love to teach watch you kids learn.  Hope this inspires you to check around for some things that you can use with your kids.
Jeannie

Just a reminder…

See this gross light switch.  I saw this the other day and started to get irritated but then the Lord reminded me that there will be a day before I know it when my home will stay clean and will be quiet and empty.  Those reminders give me more patience.
To my husband’s irritation I left this like this for about a week to save the memory.  This also reminded me of the paintings that my children created with this paint. 
Hope the next time you see a mess, you will look at it with loving eyes and think about it enough to sear the memory in your mind for future days.
Jeannie

Mom’s Organizer

A couple of years ago I discovered this calander tool called Cozi.com.  I tried using it but I was not much of a computer person.  I still struggle with using the internet for all of the great purposes it has but I am getting better.



Anyway, I just rediscover Cozi.com and I absolutely love at least one of the features.  They have a meal planning section where you enter your recipes and the plan you have for the week.  I know there are millions like that but, this one you can cut and paste recipes from anywhere on the internet and then it will make a grocery list for you or even just add it to your meal planning schedule.


I have never wanted to get into having a place online for all of my recipes until now.  Really just about any recipe you have, you can find on allrecipes.com.  Then you just cut and paste and it is in your box.


 Kraft.com and Tasteofhome.com are 2 of my other favorites.  These two have simple everyday family food and great ideas. 


Cozi.com is also has a calender, a to do list maker (for everyone in the family), shopping list maker and it also has a place where you can keep a family journal.  Then all of this can be linked to Facebook if you want.  I should really be asking for advertising dollars from them don’t you think.  But really I just thought it was cool and I may actually keep up with this one.  Check it out!

How Do You Do a Word Study From your Bible?

• This is one of my favorite ways of studying the Bible and also one of the simplest.
• Either in the back of your study Bible ( a study Bible will specifically say study Bible on the front.  It has paragraphs of explanations of the verses on every page.  Very cool!  If you do not have one I would highly recommend getting your hands on one.) or in a Concordance( a Bible concordance has every word used in the bible and every place that word is used and the scripture references of where to find them.  Another cool thing to have.)
• Look for your word.  You could study the word HOPE if you need some, or PATIENCE if you need that(You’re a mom why would you need that?)
• Once you find the word you are looking for look up each verse that is listed.
• As you do this take notes, or even write out each of the verses.  I have found that writing them out helps me to really read them so that they sink into my brain and my heart. 
• When you are done with the study, especially if you use an Exhaustive Concordance, you will know everything that the Bible has to say about that topic.
•   Don’t forget too that as Isaiah 55:11 says God’s word will not return to Him empty and will accomplish what he desires and achieve the purpose for which He sends it.  In other words you will be blessed!

Jeannie

Wishing you a…

Happy Thanksgiving !!!


Jeannie

Q of the Week?

Alright, tomorrow is the big day.  What is your favorite dish that you will either eat or make on Thanksgiving day?

Jeannie- Mine has to be homemade noodles with turkey gravy that my grandma and mom made for years and now my daughter and I make every year.  Yummy!

Melissa-My answer would be not the food… but I look forward to the table all decorated... I love seeing the table set with china and it looking beautiful. It reminds me of when I was little and seeing my mom work hard all morning to provide this awesome meal for the family. It created anticipation seeing that table set so early in the day while all the food was cooking.

Although… if I must give a food… it would be my mother-in-laws “sweet potatoes with apples”. It is a delicious recipe that was able to get me, who typically did NOT like sweet potatoes, to eat this vegetable. My kids love this side dish. I will have to put it on the website for all to try. It is super yummy!!

How about you?

Is Marriage Really Worth All Of The Work?

Our marriage has had some incredible strains over the years.  We have dealt with death, illness, financial trouble (some self inflicted,some not), moves and all of the other stresses that are involved in being married.  I have been sick of being married and I know that he has.  I have grown when he hasn’t.   I was a believer when he wasn’t.  I  have questioned why I married him. 
Was it worth fighting through all of those things?  Oh yes! 
Because of all of those issues, not despite them, we are closer than I ever thought two people could be.  I live with, eat with, sleep with and raise children with my very best friend.  Oh yes! It is so worth the fight.
Praise the Lord He taught us to stick it out.

This is a saying that is just above our bed.
Jeannie

First Time Obedience

 When our oldest son was about 7, his teacher was having trouble keeping him on task in the classroom. Her first thought was "he must have ADD". Well, as a mom I knew better but we were having discipline problems at home as well. So, we went to a pastor at our church for advice. He was very well respected for his family and parenting wisdom.
The pastor suggested that we begin to practice "first time obedience" with our son. He went on to tell us that what that involves is expecting your child to obey your requests the first time you ask. For example, you ask your child to pick the wrapper from the granola bar up off of the floor.(I know that most children thoughtfully throw wrappers away, but you know.) When you come back 5 minutes later and it is still sitting on the floor, you need to discipline them in a way that you had previously discussed with them.
To some of you this may seem very extreme. You know what, it does seem extreme when you look at it from our cultures perspective. Take a look back in history or better yet take a look at what the Bible has to say about this. Proverbs 19:18 says, "Discipline your son, for in that there is hope;do not be a willing party to his death".  Proverbs 23:13-14 says, ”Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish him with the rod, he will not die. Punish him with the rod and save his soul from death”. Wow! Death, that sounds extreme. Is it? Not disciplining your child will lead to them not being respectful of you or any other authority. Not being respectful of authority means teachers, the law and God. I can see how not having respect for those leaders can lead to death, even the death of your soul.
I know a lot of families have a problem with spanking "the rod". You can find other methods. Many other methods work for many children. Some will not obey under any other punishment than spanking. You and your husband have to decide beforehand, how you will discipline.
With our son, we sat down and discussed the consequences of not obeying us when we ask, the first time. It didn't take long for him to realize what was going on, and it also affected his behavior in the classroom. He needed to understand the idea that when a respected grownup in his life asks him to follow the rules he needs to follow through and obey, the first time.
When our next two children were around one year old,  we started practicing first time obedience. There are a few things to keep in mind. Remember your child's age and what they are physically capable of doing. Also, be sure to lay down the rules and consequences ahead of time. Don't forget to be merciful, we don't want to be a push over but, we also don't need to lord over our children making them fearful.
Lastly and most important, seek the Lord on this issue. He loves your children and knows what they need even more than you or your husband. Here are a few more scriptures involving parenting that you can look up. Ephesians 6:2, Exodus 20:12, Proverbs 22:6. I'll be praying also for God to give you guidance.
God Bless.

Are you wasting your life?

 I just read such an inspirational post at Heart of the Matter blog.  I have felt at times that staying at home and not "contributing to society" is such a waste of my time and talents.  After reading this article, this is the fourth time this week I have heard "NO, I am not wasting my time or talents".

• Why would I ever think that raising 4 children is a waste of my time?  Someone needs to raise them, they can't raise themselves, I know and love them better than anyone (except DAD of course). 
• The Bible says that we are to pass our heritage (our faith) onto our children and talk about our faith:
• when we rise 
• when we walk along the road  
• as we lay down. 
• I want to be the one walking along the road with them.

If you need a reminder that you and all that you do is so very important to our society, go to the heartofthematter.com and read and be inspired.  You are raising the next leaders of our country.

Jeannie

Mini Meatloaves from 2 savvy gals

I am not a big meatloaf fan.  Something about that big hunk of meat.  But, these were just so stinkin cute!  I might just have to try them.  Stacy is my friend and I know she is a great cook so I feel I can present them to you with out having tried them.  They just won me over on the cute factor.

Here is what she used:

And here is where to find the recipe: 2Savvygals.blogspot.com
You try them and I will try them and then let’s get back together and share.
Jeannie

A New Use For A Freebie.

A little while ago Johnson and Johnson had a coupon for $1 off a first aid item.  They also have this little first aid kit that is just $1.  Free! 

The container for this first aid kit is very sturdy and I just couldn’t throw it away.  We have a few pencil sharpeners that are manual and the kids leave the shavings everywhere. 

We put the sharpener into the box and close it up till needed and then the kids leave the shavings in the box. 
Plus, this box is bigger than the actual sharpener so we don’t lose it.  If you have any great repurposing ideas leave a comment and tell us about it.

Jeannie

First We Must Pray For Our Husband’s wife- Us

In the book, Power of a Praying Wife this week, Stormie said, (unfortunately), in order to effectively pray for our husbands we need to start with that girl in the mirror, with her attitude and agenda.
Instead of always praying “Change him, Lord”, we need to first pray “Lord, change ME”.  Dying to self can be painful but as Matthew 10:39 says “He who loses his life for My sake will find it”.

The other subtitle that struck me was “Shut up and Pray”.  In other words, when we have an issue with our husband, we need to start with prayer and wait for the Lord to lead us to speak or to stay silent and continue to pray. 
This chapter was so full that I will bring you more tomorrow.  Be in prayer for the Lord to lead my words and for the hearts of the readers to be open to God’s truth.
Jeannie

The Power

In this first chapter titled The Power , the author honestly talks first about how she did not rely on prayer as a source in her marriage. 

The next thing she talks about, that I had never thought of, is that praying for your children is much easier than praying for your husband.  Your children are born into this world looking so cute and having no ill will towards you.  You and your husband may have a rocky past/present and this may make it difficult for you to pray blessings over him.

She said a great blessing came when God revealed to her that her husband was unable to be different than he was because he was caught in a web from his past.  But, through the power of prayer God could use her as the instrument for his deliverance.  If she would consent.  She said that she would have to confess her own hardness of heart.

I was in this same place years ago.  Once I realized this, things didn’t change in him right away but they were changing in me.  When things were bad I would come to him in peace and ask him if everything was ok, or I would pray that God would reveal to me what was wrong or what I could do.
She also asks us not to write off our marriages.  As long as one of us is praying for the marriage to be restored there is hope for that restoration.
Lastly she urges us to find a prayer partner or two that we can confide in and draw strength from. 
Next chapter is titled His Wife.  Yep! She means us. First we need to pray for ourselves.
Jeannie

Learning through fun.

I have two kids learning about letters right now.  My preschoolers is learning what they look like and how to write them.  My 1st grader is learning the sounds of letters and sometimes needs a break for the books and worksheets. 
So, we found some shaving cream and started having some fun!

I just spread some of the shaving cream  ( the cheapest you can find) onto a cookie sheet and let them first just mess around because that is what they are going to want to do anyway, you may as well let them have at it.

After a few minutes show them how to write a particular letter or number with their finger.  You could put up cards with letter on them for the kids to copy as well.

Be ready for some clean up but remember it is basically soap and cleans up easy.

Have fun!!
Jeannie

My Mom on the Radio!

Just wanted to share with all of you that my mom and post editor is going to be on the radio, giving her testimony along with her husband.  The program is called Words to live by.  You can go here to hear the recording that will air soon.  She is such a blessing to me and so many others that I wanted to share a little bit of her with you.  I hope that you are blessed.

Jeannie

Power of a Praying Wife.

My husband and I are in a small group. We just started reading both, Power of a Praying Wife and Power of a Praying Husband by Stormie Omartian.  He is reading the one for husbands and I am of course, reading the one for wives.  I am so excited to see what God does in our lives through this, because I know that praying this way has great power. 

Ten years ago I read this book and prayed these prayers. Now, I have the kind of husband that will actually be willing to join a small group, read a Christian book and pray for me.  For the first part of our marriage, my husband would have said he was a Christian but, he was really lacking in the fruit department.  He was very much like Stormie’s husband was.  He was easily angered and could be insensitive toward the kids and me.  After reading the beginning of this book, I realized that as a wife, I was not helping him, but hurting our marriage, by fighting back.  Through this book God was able to show me my faults and show me how I could build our marriage up instead of tear it down.

I soon started to pray the prayers in this book for my husband.  At about the half way through the book, we were looking a new church.  We found the one the Lord wanted us to go to.  This church had a basketball league (we didn’t pick it because of the basketball).  The men who played were good, godly men who showed my husband that having a relationship with the Lord can be exciting and rewarding.  Now, this was all a set up by God, because within 6 months the kids and I were going to be baptized.  However, my husband thought that it was not necessary for him.  But, here is the set up, two days before the baptism we went to see The Passion of the Christ at the movies.  God used  this to show him what was missing in his life and he was baptized with us on Sunday.  You may have your own beliefs about baptism.  I don’t believe that you have to be baptized to be saved, I just believe that it is a public display of your faith which I think gives power to that faith.

So, here we are 10 years later, and I have a different husband than I married.  He is still the man I love, but now he is the man that I am joined together with in Christ.
I am going to share with you as I go through this book.  I will also let you know if my husband has any comments about his book as we go through them. 
I will have more tomorrow on the first chapter of the book.
Jeannie

Recipe Storage

I have four ways that I keep my recipes handy.  It seems like there are just so many yummy recipes and you have to keep track of them somehow.  Here are a few of my favorite ways:

• Inside the kitchen cabinet door- these are some of my most frequently used recipes.
• Inside a photo album- my mom gave this to me for Christmas one year.  They are all great family recipes. I love it.  Need a Christmas gift idea!
• In file folders- these are all of the recipes that friends give to me and also recipes that I tear out of magazines.  I have them categorized so that I can find them quickly.
• In a cabinet of their own- all of the recipe books that I have been given over the years (most of them from my husband should I be offended) are all stored together in a cabinet so that I don’t clutter up my counter top and so that I don’t lose them.

You can see pictures below of all of the ways I store them.
In the kitchen cabinet door:


In the photo album:

In the file folders:

In the recipe book cabinet:

Hope you find this helpful in organizing you recipes. Of course, I  am a paper person so I like this.  Some of you are more high tech and may prefer a online recipe site.  I find that I don’t have the time or desire to transfer all of my recipes.  You may love that so go for it.
Jeannie

French Toast Strata -Yummy!

For Breakfast this morning I made this yummy recipe I got from my sister-in-law.  She made it for us when we went to visit.  I won’t waste anymore time with details here it is.


French Toast Strata
(great for holidays, potluck brunches)
Bring to boil in small saucepan
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup



Pour into a 9" x 13" pan, tilting it to coat evenly.
 
My kids don’t care for nuts.  We skipped that part.
Sprinkle 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts on top then allow to cool.
Slice Challah or Brioche or Vienna or Sourdough (any crusty bread, we've tried them all) into 1 1/2" slices. Arrange bread in pan on top of syrup.

Whisk together then pour over bread:
8 eggs (can use Egg Beaters)
1 1/2 cup milk
1 Tbs. brown sugar
2 tsp. vanilla

Refrigerate covered overnight. Bake uncovered at 350 for 40 min. or until brown and puffy.

Here it is this morning.  It was funny, it came out of the oven with a giant bubble on the top.  You can kind of see it here. So, I poked a hole into the top and it deflated by the time it was time to serve.  Everyone loved it.  I love when I can find a recipe that the whole family will eat.
Jeannie

Praising the Lord from the Corner!

The other day little Franklin was being naughty and was standing in the corner in our kitchen as punishment.  I don’t remember the reason he was there.  It must have been a minor offense.  I was talking to my mom on the phone when this happened and started to do some laundry.  From the kitchen corner I heard the sweetest thing.  Franklin was singing at the top of his lungs.  “He came from heaven to earth to show the way.  From the earth to the Cross. From the Cross to the grave.  From the grave to the sky. Lord, I lift Your name on high”.  I just cracked up and held the phone up for my mom to hear. 

Franklin and his best buddy Max

How wonderful to be in the middle of a punishment and still finding the joy to sing to the Lord.  I need to learn a lesson from this little guy.  We need to continually praise the Lord in all circumstances, not allowing the storms or discipline of life steal our joy.  I Thessalonians 5:17-18 says “Pray continually.  Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Jeannie

Q of the Week

Our Question of the Week is:

What's for Dinner at your house?
I have a neighbor that always asks me that question when I see her.  I love that because talking to her about this always gives me good ideas for future dinners.  So let us know what is for dinner at your house.

At Jeannie's house they are having Spaghetti and Homemade meatballs (so easy) and of course my super simple homemade bread.

At Melissa's they are having leftover chili that Melissa made a few weeks ago and then froze.  Smart thinking!

What about all of you?

What is Happiness and Do We Deserve It?

A friend of mine called me today and asked me if we deserve happiness.  She knew what I would say because we had talked about this before, but she has a close friend of hers who she has been counseling in marital trouble.  The friends main trouble in her marriage is that she is not happy.  This is such a common reason for divorce, so many marriages split because they are not happy with each other and grow out of love for each other.  I am going to be blunt here and say that if you leave a marriage for that reason you are being selfish. 
Back to the title question, What is Happiness? Happiness is circumstantial. It is based on the circumstances that come into our lives.  Do we deserve it?  No.  One hundred years ago people did not think that they deserved to be happy.  If you had a great day or had a special thing happen to you that made you smile, then you were happy and you had much to be thankful for. Now keep on reading before you get mad at me.  The thought before that until now, was, as Jesus says himself in John 16:33, “In this life you will have trouble…”. True, but in the next, if you know the Lord, you will know no trouble. That entire verse says “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace.  In this life you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have overcome the world.” 


Joy!  Now joy is different.  Joy is a state of mind, a contentment in all circumstances.  Joy is what gets you through the tough days.  Have you ever run into a friend who tells you about many of the things going on in her life and you think “Wow, how did you even get out of bed today?”.  Yet, that person is still peaceful and full of joy.  If you can lay down the idea of being happy and pick up the idea of joy and contentment in all circumstances then you can be this way too. 
How and where do you get this kind of joy?  First, by inviting Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior.  Second, accepting His gift of joy to you.  Nehemiah 8:10 says “…Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”  I challenge you to do a word study on the word JOY.  After this study you will have a very good understanding of this gift of joy that your God has given you.  Start today by searching out His joy.  This is another way that you can add that third strand to your life.  Invite God as your third strand in all the circumstances of your life.
Jeannie

Sorry I didn't know

Apparently, our comments we set wrong and so if you wanted to leave a comment it would ask you for to much info.  But thanks to Melissa that is now fixed and you can leave comments very easily now.  Sorry this is completely my fault but it was just a lack of know how on my part.  Thank you for being patient while we learn and grow into this blogging world.
Jeannie

I wanted to let you know that Courtney over at Womanlivingwell.org is having a blog bash.  Bloggers can link-up with other bloggers and share ideas and inspiration.  Also, check out the website itself it is full of inspiring content. 

Melissa and I are new in the blogging world but are enjoying the ablility to share with others the gift we have found in weaving God, our third strand into everything that we do. 

I hope you get a chance to go over to womanlivingwell.org and if you have come here from there WELCOME!! 

Jeannie

Mission for November:

I ran across a blog called Mama-Jenn.blogspot.com.  She has great homeschooling ideas. One of the things  I liked best was she has a mission of the month.  This is when she shares with her fellow bloggers her mission or goals for the month.  This inspired me and so here are my goals for the month of November:
Home-

• Organize my kitchen cupboards (ugh!)
• Finish my meal planning for November(better get that done quick, so we can eat) 
• I am going to actually plan this year’s Thanksgiving beforehand
• Start planning Christmas (when I figure out what that means I will share it with you)

Homeschooling-

• Finish putting together new calendar set up for classroom.

Blogging-

• Write more inspirational posts
• Start writing a Bible study
• Write an article or two for other sources

Okay, there they are out there for the world to see.  Not all of you can actually see if I stick to it but some of you who know me well can.  I would say that Melissa put hers out their for us too.  Thank you for Jenn for your inspiration.





Jeannie

Easiest Meal Planning ever!

So for all you busy moms out there, whether you work outside the home or not, I have found the easiest meal planning resource to help! It is called 5 dinners in One Hour! It has opened our taste buds to good home cooked meals that are healthy and delicious! It has helped me get away from my typical spaghetti and tator tot hot dishes. My kids are trying new things. Their favorite right now - Tuna melts or the meatloaf cupcakes - yummy! I encourage you all to check it out.

For $15 dollars you get 3 months worth of meals. The format is five meals in one week, comes with a grocery list and instructions. The goal for this format is that over the weekend you prepare the five meals.  It should only take one hour. I don’t know if I am explaining this very well, but for all you moms out there looking for resources and options check out her website. 

I have been doing this since around March and it has been so much fun trying new things. It has been so nice to be organized during the night and to have my meals planned. When I come home from work we are not looking through cupboards and the fridge looking for something quick or doing the next best thing - ordering pizza. Now because of 5 dinners in One Hour I am able to provide great home cooked meals every night!

Have a wonderful Week!

Melissa

So I have fallen off the wagon….

And it is about time I hop back on it. When I went back to work, I promised myself and my family one thing - to keep them my priority.  For one example, I was going to provide the evenings with routine and home cooked meals. Well, over the last month I have failed in that department. I have let my priorities at work, school and our crazy home schedule catch up to me and consume my thoughts and my time.

To be honest, this goes much further than the evening routines.  I haven’t been feeling much like the Proverbs 31 wife much at all, which is something I strive to be.  As a working mother, is it realistic to be this wife of noble character?  There are times when I say YES and I feel like God has prepared me to handle this crazy schedule I have signed up for. Other times, I say NO, it is just too much to for me. 

Today was our first weekend with no plans as a family and I must say the time spent doing nothing (ok, some cleaning was involved) was awesome! I have come to realize this weekend I need to return my attention to my Lord and Savior and my family. I feel a renewed energy as I take on this coming week.  So here I go again, back up on the wagon.

Working outside the home is manageable, after all, the noble wife did look for ways to bring in some income to the home. My source just happens to mean working outside the home. Moving forward I am reminded that it may take some extra effort and some extra planning to provide for my family. But with a renewed faith, I know that God has blessed me and I will do my best to take care of all that God has given me. Read below for an excerpt of the Proverbs 31.

Proverbs 31:15- 18 ¹⁵“She gets up while it is still night; she provides food for her family and portions for her female servants. ¹⁶ She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard. ¹⁷ She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. ¹⁸ She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night.

Why do I share this with you all? I am hoping that by sharing this with you all and knowing that some of you are working moms just like me, that you have a renewed focus and  are guided to be that Noble wife that we all strive to be. We love our families and we love our God. So, if by all this, it means I have to be that much more committed to meal planning (more to come on that topic) and to be that much more organized with my time, then so be it. I will do this with joy and enthusiasm.

Have a wonderful Week!

Melissa

Homemade Waffles

We have been making these waffles in our house for years.  You know really you have to mix up waffle and pancake mix anyway, why not just make it homemade.
I love making things homemade because then we always have the supplies on hand.  Even if you don’t have pancake mix in the pantry you always have flour, milk and those other basics.

Here is the recipe I use.  This makes quite a bit but it keeps well in the fridge for a few days later or you can cook all of them and then package them and freeze them for next week.
1 3/4 cup flour- you can use any amount of wheat here.
2 Tablespoons Sugar
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
2 Eggs
1 3/4 cup Milk
1/2 cup Veg. Oil
1 Teaspoon vanilla
Just mix together the dry ingredients and then add the wet ingredients to it and mix very well until all incorporated.
You can add mini chocolate chips to the mix after you pour the batter onto the iron before you put the top down.  Have fun with other add ins and toppings.
Jeannie

Football with Girls?

Two weeks ago my son had a game in another town.  As we sat on the home side (because it was so stinkin windy) we noticed on the other teams line up, one of the players had a ponytail.  And “he” looked a little curvier than most.  “He” was a she. She stood on the side for a while, then she went in - on the line of all places.  Guess where our guy played.  Yes, he was matched up with her. 

I know you are all thinking, "Well, why shouldn’t a girl be able to play football if she is qualified?".  As the mother of a daughter, who may really want to do this, I would think  I would want to support her.  But as the mother of a son, I have to say that I hated it.  From a very young age we have taught our son not only to NOT hit girls, but also that girls/woman are meant to be treated gently and cherished.

Now, he is being told “slam her to the ground man”.  What is up? How can we send these mixed messages?  Is this even a good message to send to our daughters? 

I really have no answers at all except that my gut tells me maybe there are some things  girls can do, but maybe shouldn’t do.  What do all of you think?

P.S. If you want to leave a comment but are unable to get it to work, please send us a message on Facebook to let us know.  We think we are having trouble with the comments.  Please help us know if we are. Thank You!!

Jeannie

Fall! I love this time of year.

Here are Gigi and Franklin, my two little ones.  I call them these names after each of their favorite books.  Gigi is from the book by Sheila Walsh called Gigi God’s little princess.  Franklin is after our favorite series of Franklin books with the cute little turtle that we love.  Plus, they just remind me of those characters.

This is our annual jump in the leaves picture. This tradition is highly recommended. It helps you see their growth and is just a fun thing to do.

I love the one below, except for the fact that I had to endure getting plastered by leaves in order to get the shot.

 

Happy Fall ! !

Jeannie

Gooey Chocolate Cookies

These are what we call The Bomb Diggity, a little phrase we picked up from Scooby Doo.  I got this recipe from my friend Beth. 
You have to try these:


Now I know these look like your typical chocolate cookies but look at the ingredients below.
1 pkg. Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1t. Vanilla
1 pkg. (18 1/4 Oz.) Chocolate cake mix

• In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg and vanilla.  Add cake mix and mix well (dough will be sticky).  Cover and refrigerate for 2 hrs.
• Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls.  Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets.  Bake at 350 for 9-11 min. or until tops are cracked.  Cool for 2 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Hope you enjoy these as much as we did.  You notice I said "did", they disappeared in one day.  We did have our daughter and her friend home from college but still.  I did tell you they were the Bomb Diggity.
Jeannie

Pumpkin Jars

I found this idea in the Family Fun Magazine last month. We had a lot a fun doing these and I thought I would show you.

Do you see the little peeper behind the jars?

To do this, all we did was put masking tape on the jars where we wanted the light to come through, then painted the entire jar orange. These are just old spaghetti sauce jars. Then we put a little tea light inside. Light and enjoy!!

Jeannie

There Is Something More Painful Than Giving Birth!

Our first born was a beautiful 9 pound baby girl.  She was huge and two weeks early.  This being our first and me only being 5’3” it was painful.  Plus, you know on your first you want to be heroic, so no drugs for me.  Ouch, for me and her, she broke her collar bone on the way out.  But that was 18 years ago and I think I have experience a pain much worse.  Not to long ago we dropped her off at college.  It is not that I am scared for her, I know she will be just great.  When I gave birth to her the pain was worth it and forgotten quickly when I saw that beautiful face.  Then I got to take her home.  This pain stinks because there is no gain for me in the end of it, or is there?  For 18 years we have raised her in the best way that we knew and raised her to know her heavenly Father as well.  It is time to release her into the world to use the wings that we have groomed for flight.  In the Book of Proverbs in chapter 31 the word tell us of a woman that we can model ourselves from if we are to be a woman of noble character.  In that chapter at the end of the list of all that the woman does it says that her children will rise up and call her blessed.  This our reward for all of the thankless jobs and hours that a mother puts in and seeing your child fly on their own and succeed is where we are blessed.  She is only at the beginning of this flight but her faith is strong, our bond is strong and she is following her Lord and Savior.  I know that even if she does fall she won’t get too bruised up.   I on the other hand feel like a piece of me has been torn away.  I pray to be strong and courageous  right now.  If you know a family with one going off to college now you know how to pray for them and so do I now.

 

Love you Honey!!