Drawing Water

Its Been A While

2011-10-20T07:35:00.001-05:00

Thank you so much for your encouragement since I have been away. Life has become a whirlwind and recent events have pulled me away from blogging.

While I am not one to boo-hoo on the blogosphere I feel that i must share how God touched our lives this July.

I found out I was pregnant with blessing number 3 in May. We were so excited! But I knew something wasn't right - very little morning sickness. Yes, I know each pregnancy can be different but still, it just never set well with me. Week 10 - the midwife couldn't find a heartbeat. But we didn't worry too much because they couldn't find one with Mikey either at 10 weeks. It is a doppler afterall and the little stinkers like to hide from it.
On the night of July 4th I was 12 weeks and started bleeding. I was shocked. I was terrified. And Jason was out on call. I hurriedly called him- no answer. Odd. Again and again I called, sobbing now and fearing the worst. Jason always answered his phone, why not tonight? I felt lost and alone. I put the kids to bed and then, only then, did I fall to my knees and asked God "Please don't let this be happening!"

But there was my mistake. Running to my husband is not bad in itself, but where I should have ran first was the cross.

I can't accurately describe what I felt as I prayed. It was like a wave of calm washed over me, a peace. It was like God told my heart "I love you, you are losing this baby, don't be afraid". And I knew, I knew the baby was already gone. I trusted God, not because I wanted to, but because the Holy Spirit led me to. I opened my bible and listened to hymns. First one that came up was "You Are My Hiding Place" by Selah. I wept.

And then...Jason got my messages and called me back and then rushed home. I have no doubt that this was orchestrated by God, wanting me to learn to lean on Him.

Wanting to know what had happened I called my midwife the next day and an ultrasound was scheduled. A horrible experience. The tech, after performing the ultrasound, informs us that she can't tell us anything, that we would have to wait for the doctor to tell us. But we knew.

All day we wait, but the process has already begun I am in physical pain, but the worst is my heart. My heart aches.

That evening we find out that the baby was lost at 6 weeks, my body was just now catching up and that they couldn't rule out the possibility of it being an ectopic pregnancy.

Closure.

We named her (of course assuming she was a she). It felt wrong not to. She was a life, afterall. So we named her after my late grandmother who was very dear. Vada Ann Holder.

It seems like it happened so long ago. Jason was my wonderful supporter during that time, I am so blessed to have him and love him so. I thank God for him and our wonderful church family, many who have been in similar circumstances. They were there with hugs and prayers, how amazing is the body of Christ!

And we remain strong in our belief to trust God in this area. Who are we to think we can control life?

We are trusting God, He is the Author and Finisher of life. May this bring Glory to His Name.

What to do?

2011-08-09T10:13:00.000-05:00

What to do with difficult people? (by this I mean non-believers who are hateful, spiteful or otherwise "difficult" to converse with or be around)

I know the first thing is to pray, which I have been doing with fervor. But how do you deal with them, I mean day to day, the nitty-gritty stuff.

I know that we aren't to call non-believers our friends or socialize with them. 2 Corinthians 6:14
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?
But what about when its a family member? One that you are obligated to take of, not by simple morality but by Timothy 5:8.
But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

I know that I can not know someone's heart, I cannot know if someone is saved. But God's word tells us we will be able to tell a believer by their works (not to say they are saved by works, they are saved by faith, but works are a fruit of their salvation).

I try to separate all other bad influences from our household. Most come to us via entertainment but some through people that we no longer cultivate friendships with. My question is: Am I required by God's law to cultivate a relationship with a person, even though they are not a true Christian (as far as we can tell) and are not what we would consider a good influence for our family IF they are a relative whom we must care for?
Or, are we obligated, as we currently believe, to tend to their earthly needs as best we can while fervently praying for their salvation and God's mercy for their deeds?

This questions sounds simple but then you complicate it with: Do you take this person to church with you? Even though you do not relegate yourself or your family to spending that much time with the person because of their actions any other time? Is this a point where you "die to self" and take them as a ministry to the lost? What if they have an alternate place of worship that they may attend (however worldly, useless it may seem)?

Can you sense my exasperation?

If asked what we feel led to do the choice is clear. I will be certain that person is cared for, that all of their needs are met. But do not feel "led" in anyway to have them near my children or self again. Prayer I believe is our biggest tool in this situation.

And although I should not care what the outside world thinks of the situation, it worries me that our fellow believers in Christ may see our distancing, our unwillingness to participate in worship with this person (even though their worship is a farce) as a deliberate act of selfishness on our part.

So, my question is : what to do?

Today

2011-07-22T09:42:00.000-05:00

Today I am tomato staking.
Today I am praying instead of getting angry when I have to separate a fight for the 100th time.
Today I am reading the Bible and praying over Jacob when he loses his temper and when Mikey is determined not to obey.
Today I won't cry when I repack my maternity clothes. God saw fit to take her home and I can't begrudge him for that.
Today I won't waste my time reading about how other housewives can do it better when I should be taking care of my own.
Today I will have everything done my husband has asked me to do.
Today I will consider deleting my blog.
God is helping me today because He knows I need it. Today I am clinging to the cross.

I have no title....

2011-03-22T08:17:00.000-05:00

I really don't......all the creativity I once had has left me.

First, I thought I would include a link to Konbit Sante, due to a request I had. In my last post I talked about getting together with some ladies and making birth kits for Haitian women. It was an amazing opportunity to give babies and mommies a healthy delivery. The website it was featured on is Craft Hope, a very interesting organization, all you crafters out there should check it out!

I am very happy to report that the tomatoes are in the ground and are flourishing. It just took us moving back into the city to be able to plant a garden....go figure. I went a little plant crazy but was careful when choosing which varieties would do best and Jacob is such a big helper now he helps me water everything.

I feel a little like this person when I think of spring....

I never thought I would be excited about spring cleaning but I am so ready to start on it next week! I'll do another post about that, but would love to know y'alls tips on spring/thorough cleaning. : )

This week has been spent recooperating from my parents visit. Does anybody know what I'm talking about?
The visit went really well though, we all had fun and enjoyed it. My parents even went to church with us...again. That is the second time I remember my parents going to church...ever. Glory be to God for His amazing works!

Getting back in the groove of things since Sickness 2011 hit us for 3 weeks. I am LOVING my new routine, so much so that I've had no problem sticking with it, a post will be coming tomorrow on that. : )

And finally, I'll leave you with this picture as we say good-bye to winter and hello to spring!

February 2011

God Bless,

Why I Haven't Been Here

2011-03-02T13:25:00.000-06:00

Otherwise entitled: My List of Excuses.

1)We all got sick with a horrible virus (except my husband who waited on us and took care of the house, I love that man!)

2) have been going to routine Dr. checkups with my grandmother. Kind of creepy since I haven't been to a Dr. since Jacob was about 6 months.

3) Trying to get a solid routine set in place, and let me tell you ITS NOT WORKING! Its amazing how much being in a different house can throw you off.

4) We've been spring cleaning/organizing a garage sale. This should only take us, I don't know, until next summer.....

5)Jacob and I have been doing "tot school". Because a bored Jacob morphs into Tasmanian Devil Jacob. We've been making letter crafts and reading library books. It all feels very "homeschool like" and I am enjoying it.

5) Jason and I had a talk this past Sunday because I was having a "bad morning" and threw a temper tantrum. As embarrassing as it is to admit that, I think its important that I do. So now, My husband has said that Saturday is officially "Get Ready for Sunday-Day" so future melt-down, hissy fits can be avoided. Ahem.

6) I was involved in a charity project to make birth kits for midwives in Haiti. I had some friends over and everyone pitched in. We made 18 kits! I thoroughly enjoyed having people over and hope to do so again soon.

So there are my excuses, and now for my goals.

- Jason wants to go to church Wednesday and attend Sunday School as well as service on Sunday........every week. Yes, I know I only have 2 kids (3 if you count my grandmother!) but it is hard work especially since I have no idea what I'm doing. So I will be planning how to make that go more smoothly.

- Exercise. Ick. I know I'll never look like 130 lb me but I would like to work on being more healthy.

-Working on meek and gentle spirit, controlling anger and thinking joyful thoughts. Man, that's work all on its own.

-Implementing another bedtime routine. We get the kids on one and then jason goes on call and everything goes to pot. *sigh* i will be in charge of keeping up with the new routine while Jason's away....no pressure there huh?

Thats all for now, sorry for the rambling. But if I don't write it down it stays in my head and nothing else will fit. : )

God Bless,

A Calling

2011-01-21T07:59:00.000-06:00

The circumstances behind my grandmother coming to live with us seem unimportant now. Suffice it to say that her current living arrangements with her son and daughter-in-law (my parents) was not working out.

I would like to say that it was my grand idea, that I willingly chose to be the good granddaughter and offer her a place to stay. But it wasn't me.

It was God.

How do I know that it was God?

Because I am a sinful creature and therefore far too selfish to willingly sacrifice my time and room in my house for someone, let alone the grandmother who I had never really been able to get along with. If I had been thinking clearly I would have helped find her a nice little room in a nursing home somewhere where she wouldn't be a bother. That's what I would have done. But this was God.

When God calls you to do something--- you do it. I mean, whose to argue. So when the idea popped into my head and my husband agreed fervently that this was in fact "the best thing to do", I thought:

"Hey! This will be easy! Everything will be smooth sailing from here because if was God's plan"

THAT is where I really messed up.

When things started to unravel from my marvelous plan on how things were going to go I remember crying out to God.

"I thought you wanted me to do this! Why is it so hard?"

And immediately in my heart, a small voice:

"I TOLD YOU WHAT TO DO, I DIDN'T SAY IT WAS GOING TO BE EASY"

Because sometimes God calls us to do messy things. Don't believe me? Pick a Bible story, any Bible story. Joseph and his being sold into slavery, Esther and her calling to be a queen.....Christ. The Bible is full of sacrifice. Sacrifice of time, energy, money, family and sometimes their lives; all to fulfill God's glorious plan.

Who was I to question?

People often compliment me on how nice I am to take care of my grandmother, that I am a wonderful person. I appreciate it but I know its not true. I am not wonderful, kind or even patient.....but HE is. And I know this because I, in my fallen nature, would not have willingly chosen this path.....it was chosen for me.

"I can do all things through HIM who strengthens me"

Phillipians 4:13 NASB

I would love to write more on this that I have been called to do. I also want to let people know that "YES!" keeping your loved one at home to care for them is possible and, in my opinion, the best option. But for now, I have breakfast to prepare, toys to find and a pill keeper to fill, in my BLESSED life.

New Year, New House, New...everything

2011-01-20T10:28:00.000-06:00

Last year was just plain crazy.....

Mikey was born in January

We moved out in the country in April

Found a wonderful church in June

My grandmother had moved in with us in October.

We were baptized in November and became members of the church.

I started babysitting a one year old little boy that goes to our church in December.

Whew....I'm tired just reading that list. But I also feel so very very blessed.

And this year looks to have the same sort of excitement.

January 2011 we BOUGHT a house! yay! ( I know I said bought but technically we are "buying" the house, but its still a step up from renting, eh?)

The move went amazingly well and I'll tell you why:

We have the most wonderful church family in the world!

A usual move for Jason and I consists of many, many, MANY trips with just me and him moving ALL of our belongings. And of course we have to be crazy reptile people so some of those belongings are huge, heavy display cabinets and aquariums. Not to mention, the world's heaviest entertainment center crafted by my dad, rustic carpenter extraordinaire.

When Jason and I move it takes a month easy. It took a grand total of 4 HOURS. That is loading everything and unloading everything. Yeah, I know, impressive huh?

We did have a few hiccups in the moving process, ie. transferring utilities. As you probably know calling customer service is equivalent to gouging your eyeball out. But everything eventually got turned on.......and we did finally get a trashcan 3 WEEKS AFTER ORDERING IT. Ahem. I'm still a little upset over that one, can't you tell?

On the personal aspect of moving, Jacob transitioned beautifully, this is officially our "new house" to him. Mikey wasn't sure at first, but has learned his way around. Jason and I are in LOVE with it and praise God every day for making this possible for us. My grandmother? At 100 you would think the move would be a strain on her but it doesn't seem so. The only difficulty we had is making sure we located all of her stuff pronto. And she remembers....every.single.thing. *sigh*

Isn't it adorable?

The house by the way, is a 3 bedroom ONE BATH. No, one bathroom isn't a problem for us, as in Jason, myself and the kids. But you add my grandmother into the mix and you might as well order a Porta-Potty for the backyard. But I digress.....

It's in the city, something we didn't think we wanted until we found our church home. It became difficult to attend anything because of the drive and trying to keep my grandmother and kids on some semblance of a schedule. Being in town, we believe, will allow us to not only attend Wednesday service and Sunday school more regularly, but will also make it possible for us to help the people of our church more. I believe God helped us get this house for a reason, HIS REASON, therefore, we desire to bring him Glory through it.

So goodbye country roads, hello city livin'.....again. But its not as bad as it sounds. Our neighborhood is excellent, and what I mean by excellent is full of little old people. The most excitement I see is 2 old men racing each other on their electric scooters, headed for dollar general.

Yet, I can see HEB from my house. Hip, Hip Hooray! Of course there are also restaurants everywhere, so fighting that temptation will be difficult. But its 8 minutes from church and Jason's work. Can we say, "Hallelujah"? I think we can.

Our giant dogs seem to be doing okay and we did keep 5 hens for eggs. City law says hens are okay but roosters are a no-no. How more annoying can a rooster crowing be than the neighbors yappin' chihuahua?

The house was built in 1950 so it still has old house charm in the way of original hardwoods and glass door knobs. "SQUEEL!!"..

Originally a 2 bed 1 bath, at some point they added on a huge (15 x 18) den with a fireplace and a closet. THAT is what we converted into our room. I'll save details and pictures for another post. : ) Okay maybe just one picture but its not very good:

There is storage all in the house, closets, cabinets....you name it, I've got space for it : ) Also there is a nice shop and carport outside. LOVE that, but not as much as Jason. He's like a kid in a candy store when he goes in there and starts laying out his tools. I'm sure he's happy about not having to rebuild his make-due tent/shed every week after the wind would destroy it out in the country. : )

Anywho, gotta get back to unpacking and chasing rugrats (Now 2 one year olds and a 3 year old, man, I gotta give it up to you "moms of many" out there)

Guess what??

2011-01-14T13:47:00.000-06:00

Yeah, you guessed it, we did end up moving. So now you understand why I've been absent on here as of late. A lot of changes for the new year and tons of things to blog about. Yet, there is so much life to be lived its hard to stop to blog about it. : )

Hope to "see" you all again soon!

Moving?

2010-12-18T08:38:00.000-06:00

So, What's new with you?

We may be moving. Again. (((insert stress-filled sobs here)))

We moved out to our current rental property in April. We had to move quickly because our previous landlords had sold 1/2 the land we were renting....the 1/2 with out storage shed and chicken coop on it.
We were blessed to find what we wanted (or thought we wanted), 10 acres with a creek and a 3 bed 2 bath mobile home. I LOVE the trailer we live in. However, we discovered soon after moving that the land is useless. Not only do the contents of our septic system spray over the entire back area through sprinklers but it was also the location of a junk yard. So goodbye beautiful garden and small collection of livestock we had envisioned. : (

There are other things like the landlords being lazy but we're finding that's more the rule than the exception. When you fix more of your rental property than the landlords.....be worried.

Anyways, I knew Jason wasn't content with renting but he's pretty laid back and we were just waiting it out until an opportunity to buy a place came up. With our credit we're looking at oh, 10 years? (Hey, we were young and stupid, what can we say?)

We did an estimate on our tax return however and saw that Uncle Sam was going to look kindly again on us this year. : D Even more than last year because now we have tax deduction #2, otherwise known as Mikey. hahaha

So we were planning out the best use of the money we would have at out disposal and then one of us said it.....

"Hey! It would make a nice down payment on a house"

I can't remember which one of us said it, but I remember the look on my husbands face and I knew we were moving.

My husband and I mesh so well together we honestly don't know where one stops and one begins. However our personality types differ. I get excited over things, go overboard, plan everything, and my ideas kind of take on a life of their own. When this happens I have blinders on and don't really think reasonably. My husband is different. He has no blinders. He can see and weigh possibilities and outcomes. He also does not usually get excited about anything. But sometimes, like in this for instance, he does. And boy did he.

So, in the last 3 days we have looked at 5 or 6 houses.

And we think we've decided what we're looking for.

And its completely different than what we thought we wanted.

But the main goal is: to own our own house.

It's my husbands vision. And though I don't want to move, my job is to help my husband lead our family where he sees fit. I may not do it perfectly, but I'm going to try my hardest. I'll keep y'all updated. ; )

For Today: The Simple Womans Daybook

2010-12-08T10:59:00.000-06:00

Have always wanted to do this, what a good way to keep memories!

FOR TODAY: December 7th, 2010

Outside my window...a few remaining chickens. Ginger, our great Pyrenees/German shepherd mix, massacred most of them over the past few months.

I am thinking...about Christmas.

I am thankful for...my husband who passed his license test for work, he works so hard to make a good life for us.

From the learning rooms...Jacob is learning his lower case alphabet now.

From the kitchen...blueberry crisp and bean and cheese burritos.

I am wearing...a blue jean jumper with a red shirt underneath. yeah, I wear jumpers, what of it? lol

I am creating...lesson plans for tutoring a girl in English this next semester.

I am going...to take Jason to see a movie in celebration of passing his test.

I am reading..."The Unquenchable Flame" about the Reformation.

I am hoping...everyone can get along while they are at our house for Christmas.

I am hearing...Jacob watching Flushed Away.

Around the house...red bows and evergreen branches everywhere.

One of my favorite things...cuddling with my 2 boys on the couch in the morning.

A few plans for the rest of the week: Cross our fingers to see if Jason got a promotion. Grocery shopping, church and tutoring.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing..


Jacob looks tired after helping us decorate the Christmas tree. : )

Hope y'all have a blessed day!

Potty Training Update

2010-12-01T10:25:00.000-06:00

Okay, so right after I wrote this post about Jacob being late in potty training according to society.....he potty trained in one day. grrrrr.

One Day.

It took 1 day of me setting the timer and making him go in there every 30 minutes.It took a lot of juice and patience and some underwear. It also took some discipline when he refused to listen and follow directions. And I went through a lot of skittles when he did go.

One stinkin' day.

*sigh*

So since then he has stayed dry every night except twice, and that was because I gave him juice right before bed. oops.
He is still not wanting to sit and go potty but he's got the standing thing down.

And now, I'm kind of sad. Sounds silly but to me this was the last milestone of being a baby....he's no longer a baby. **tear**

Now for my second one, he love the toilet.....he loves splashing in it, tries to play with the toilet brush and toilet paper....he should potty train easy right?

The New Routine

2010-12-01T07:31:00.000-06:00

I think someone's had a little too much coffee, don't you?

You know the routine I've been meaning to start and update y'all on?

I've tried several since then, but all failed (read I failed ). When Jason and I decided to invite my Memaw to come live with us I knew that a routine was an absolute must. So, I did something I hadn't tried yet, I talked it over with Jason. I asked him what was most important to him as far as a clean house. He gave me a list of 2 things that greatly helped.

1) The walkways clear. No toys to step over or to stab into the bottom of your bare feet.

2) The kitchen clean. Not that I ever leave dishes in the sink or anything but.......

This gave me a starting point so, on those days when everything goes wrong, when Jacob has been knocking little Michael around and Michael has been trying to eat things off the floor I know what would make my husband happy when he gets home.

From there we talked about how Memaw would fit into our regular weekly routine, how time I needed to spend with the boys (not just near them, but with them) and how we would spend time together.

I have always struggled with keeping the house clean. I had the awful habit of ignoring messes and laundry until we had to do a complete house overhaul. I know this frustrates Jason so I was set to do better.

We decided Memaw wouldn't change much about our routines. I'll post more about her care and role in the family life later on.

We made some goals for the children including potty training, regular meal times, less tv more one on one play.

Then we turned to the house and after giving me his input Jason left me to figure it out over the next week or so.

So here's the breakdown of our day:

5:30- we're both up and crawling to the coffee pot
We talk and get ready for the day until 6:30 when Jason heads off for work.
6:30- I start laundry, make my bed and layout what we'll have for supper.
I usually have some time to myself for Bible reading etc until around 7:30 when the tornado known as Jacob wakes from his slumber.
8:00 we all have breakfast and then I wash the dishes
I get the boys cleaned up, teeth brushed and dressed.
Jacob helps me wipe down the guest bathroom (the most often used one) and then helps me advance the laundry.
About 9:00 I am starting our weekly chores and Jacob watches PBS while Mikey terrorizes everything.
**See weekly chores below**
12:00- lunch and clean up
Michael goes down for a nap, Jacob goes outside to play.
1:00 Jacob comes in and we work on ABC flash cards, coloring, puzzles etc together.
When Mikey wakes up we all read books together.
In the afternoon I finish up weekly chores, laundry etc.

I start supper early, around 4:00. We pick the house up at 5:00. I re-clean and re-clothe the boys, usually by this time they are dirty and 1/2 naked, don't ask me how. It's one of life's mysteries when living with boys.

I try to freshen up and greet Jason at the door, because at this point I look like, well, like I've been at home with 2 small boys whose mission is to make me pull my hair out.
We eat supper at 6:00 and talk for a while.
Family Worship is at 8:00 with bedtime following soon after.

Weekly chores- I have concentration areas where we clean top to bottom. Next week I'll post every day what exactly I clean and how I get it done with the youngin's. This will keep me accountable : )

Sunday- The Lord's Day
Monday- Family Day (Jason is off) Errands and Shopping
Tuesday- Living Room and Jason's uniforms
Wednesday- Kitchen and cleaning cloths + regular clothing
Thursday- Bedrooms and sheets, kids clothes
Friday- Bathrooms and towels, whites
Saturday- Chores outside/inside, clean van etc

I'm sure to read that was just thrilling but I figure if I put it down it will help and I need all the help I can get!

Happy Wednesday Everyone!

Being Thankful That Thanksgiving Wasn't Worse

2010-11-30T12:03:00.001-06:00

I could enthrall you with this wonderful tale of visiting family and paint you a beautiful picture of an exquisite Thanksgiving feast. But it would be a lie. Norman Rockwell did not have my family in mind when he painted that picture.

On the other hand I could whine about how things didn't go as planned and the family feud that has been going on continues to plague us. But I won't do that either.

Instead we've chosen to be thankful that our Thanksgiving holiday wasn't worse. Because often times we forget that yes, it could be worse.

I am thakful:

1) That we had a safe trip

2) That Jacobs potty training went smoothly even with long car rides and strange surroundings.

3) That my grandmother's niece was happy to take care of her while we stayed at my parents.

4) That Jason's family enjoyed having Thanksgiving at the state park we reserved.

5) For a wonderful understanding husband who sticks beside me in hairy situations.

6) That putting up a Christmas tree with your husband and kids can bring you right out of the grumps.

7) For the FOOD. That we will be eating for at least a few more days : )

8) For 2 precious boys who can put smiles on peoples faces even when they are sad or angry.

9) For bloggs where I can read and write and shut out the worlds problems for a few minutes

10) But most of all I am thankful for a Savior who died for me and my family so that even though we are sinners we may have new life.

This year we are celebrating Advent with the resource found on this lovely blog. We are choosing this year to count down to what really counts. We are anxiously looking forward to Christ's coming not the coming of presents.

Dear Lord, Help me remember to cling to You in times of trouble. Help me to be more Christ-like in my actions. For this coming season, help me teach my children the true importance of Christmas and thank you for giving us your Son, a true Miracle. In Jesus' name, Amen.

The Devil Doesn't Like Baptisms

2010-11-23T12:24:00.000-06:00

We believe that a person's actual salvation does not occur within the waters of the baptistery.

MAR 1:8  I baptize you with water, but he will baptize

you with the Holy Spirit.

We believe that God draws people to him and they are saved by the blood of his Son, Jesus Christ.

ROM 6:3  Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized

into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?

4  We were therefore buried with him through baptism into

death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the

 dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

We believe that to be baptized is an act of submission to Christs command. We also believe it is a public declaration of our new path with God.

Mathew 28:19  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,

baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and

of the Holy Spirit

But although the water doesn't hold any spiritual significance in itself the Devil still does not want baptisms carried out. I know this because almost everything that could go wrong did the morning of our baptism.

The night before: I managed to burn 3 pie crusts in an attempt to make a pie for church fellowship. The children would NOT go to sleep. And though I had everything laid out for the morning 1/2 of it walked away. Do things without legs run off in your house too? If you have a toddler just nod "yes".

1) Jason, being the good hearted man he is, took a call for someone who was trying to get home for Thanksgiving. So he was out from 8:30 Saturday night to 3:30 Sunday morning.

2) Sunday morning was one disaster after another: breakfast not happening as planned, couldn't find shoes (even though I had laid everything out the night before), the kids were being difficult to say the least. Everyone was running behind so we missed Sunday School.

3) Jason wakes up around 9. I had let him sleep in because his late night. He woke up sick. A stomach virus. Bless his heart, I fill him full of medicine and let him take a shower while I wrestle 2 boys into their church clothes and prod my grandmother to hurry. Jason emerges from the shower and looks.....terrible. I feel inconvenienced and aggravated. I check myself, why such a hateful attitude on such a glorious day?

I think of Jesus's words "Get behind me Satan.You are a stumbling block to me...." Mathew 16:23

"Your not whispering in my ear anymore," I say out loud to an empty room.

4) We get in the van, I think to myself that this would be the morning we blow a tire. No, the tires are fine but the low fuel light comes on as we leave the drive way. Jason always keeps the van filled but who wants to stop at a gas station at 3 am after working all night? No time for gas now, so we creep to church and promise to fill up on the way home.

Does anyone besides us drive carefully after the fuel light comes on? Like its going to help.

But anyway, I digress.

So we get to church, late for Sunday School but early for service to find out that the tank ( I don't know what its called) was not filled the day before and had had no time to warm up. Can we say "brrrr"?

Jason and I just looked at each other. We were thinking the same thing. The devil was working overtime.

Jason mustered his way through everything sick as a dog and exhausted. I was so nervous I didn't even think the water was cold, now that's nervous people.

But nothing could keep that moment from being wonderful. We were surrounded by our church family who feel like just that: a family. We feel like we've known them for years but have only been attending this church since June.
We sang Hallelujah. What a Savior!----(that song gives me goose bumps every time.)
We were publicly and symbolically washed of our sins a representation of what had already occurred in our hearts.
We took part in the Lord's Supper for the first time.
We sang Amazing Grace and I tried not to cry.
We had sweet fellowship with our family.
Jason, though sick, was so very happy, as was I.

An incredible day in all. We have many things to be thankful for this week.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

God Bless,

Sola dei Gloria--Glory to God Alone

2010-11-21T21:26:00.000-06:00

Baptism

2010-11-16T14:14:00.000-06:00

So this Sunday is it...... Jason and I will be Baptized at 25 almost 26 years old.

Excited? YES

Nervous? YES

But completely and totally in awe of where God has brought us in our lives.

We are ready to declare publicly what we already know in our hearts: we are children of God, bought with the precious blood of Jesus Christ in order to live for His Glory. Sola dei Gloria.

Psalm 127 Part 2

2010-11-12T07:00:00.001-06:00

Michael and me when he was 2 weeks old

So after my heart was changed and I began seeing children as the blessing they are, we felt God calling us to have another child. Jason came in from work one day and almost immediately brought up the subject, while I had been thinking about it all that week.

I became pregnant with Mikey about a month later.

Mikey was due on this day.....but didn't come until almost 2 weeks later.

While I was pregnant with him God continued to work in our lives and hearts. We discovered may families, both personally and in blogland, that had many children and welcomed more. We learned from their example that there was more than just seeing children as a blessing. We were being called to be "fruitful and multiply" to fill our "quivers".

We had been willing to give our whole lives to God, every little detail.......except for this one. We foolishly questioned him:

Do we have the money, the room, the experience? Shouldn't we space them out?

It wasn't until a few months ago that we submitted to God's will and let him have power over this matter. I can't say it was an easy decision, we are doubting sinners, often unwilling to trust in God's planning, in his divine wisdom.

Children are a heritage from the LORD,
   offspring a reward from him.
⁴ Like arrows in the hands of a warrior
   are children born in one’s youth.
⁵ Blessed is the man
   whose quiver is full of them.
They will not be put to shame
   when they contend with their opponents in court. Psalm 127:3-5

Now, I am often surprised at myself, how much I am looking forward to another pregnancy, even so soon, even with the memory of birth kind of fresh on my mind : )

---------------------------------------------------------

You probably noticed I did not use the term "quiverfull". Currently (and this may change as we grow in the word) we believe this is a man made term for a biblical principle. We don't need a catchy term for following God's will in any other circumstance and we don't believe this is an exception. Also, the theme of bearing children for the glory of God is echoed throughout the Bible again and again, we must look at it all as a whole, not just one well known verse.

Let me also say that I don't judge. Are you "quiverfull", awesome! Are you not? Okay : ) I believe that I am a sinner and although I have been saved by the blood of Christ and we (my husband and I) have the responsibility to make decisions in light of scripture, we DO NOT have the foresight, divine knowledge etc to judge anyone's choice. To do so, we believe, would be foolish. So while I'll debate the issue with you on why we feel its a biblical matter, We won't dare tell you your way is wrong. (Except in the case of abortion, and then oh, believe me, I Will tell you).

I write this here for ourselves, to look back and see where God led us, not to make anyone feel bad. I hope that if anything its an encouragement : )

Psalm 127 Part 1

2010-11-11T09:19:00.000-06:00

Jason and I had discussed having children before we were married and we decided that we wanted to have a few but only when we were "ready". What is that? How can you be "ready" for children?

We had been married a year and had our own house when I found out I was pregnant with Jacob, most of our family and friends were less than thrilled.

"Can y'all afford a baby? Their so expensive!"

"You've only been married a year!" "You need more time to get to know each other"

"You'll never finish college now"

"You've ruined your life"

Now, we weren't unmarried teenagers mind you. We were married 21 year old adults with a house and good jobs. They acted as if I had been diagnosed with cancer, there was no hallmark brand happy tears and excitement. We had committed a serious mistake, according to them, by becoming pregnant before the age of 30.

Feathers became ruffled again when I did in fact quit my job and school to stay home. But we promised that we wouldn't let "the kid" get in the way of anything else.

I would like to say that when Jacob was born I fell immediately in love and overwhelmed with joy but while I was happy, I didn't find joy in my Son until he was almost 18 months. Because I chose to see him as the world did, a mistake, a hindrance, a burden. A tax write off, but nothing more.

When God started working in my heart I saw what I was doing, I was ashamed and I sought forgiveness; from God, from my husband and from Jacob.

My life is so full now. Full of joy and happiness, and although there are hard times, I remember that my children were gifts. Gifts that I should never take for granted. More tomorrow.

EMERGENCY: AMAZON BOYCOTT

2010-11-10T14:15:00.001-06:00

****UPDATE*** November 11, 2010, they had removed this book. Yay! But there are others, click on this link for more info

I didn't want to believe it when I heard it but I looked it up and its true.

Amazon.com is allowing the sale of a book called:
"The Pedophiles Guide to Love and Pleasure"

(I won't dare link to it from my blog, but you can do a search for it if you need confirmation)

I am in still in shock, yet seething with anger. Adventure of a Somewhat Crunchy Mama is calling for a boycott and I am right behind her.

PLEASE take the time to let Amazon know what you think of this. We MUST protect our children, we Must take a stand.

Just Random Thoughts

2010-11-10T11:52:00.000-06:00

I never thought I would enjoy mopping or any type of housekeeping. BUT I DO.

Looking forward to Thanksgiving in the Monahans Sandhills. Soooo excited that everyone else liked the idea too. : ) Sure sliding down a sand dune on a huge frisbee may seem out of the ordinary for Thanksgiving but it beats the afternoon of football, turkey and naps that we have to look forward to usually.

I ~~want~~ need this book. Taking donations now. LOL Just kidding.......sort of.

I have been putting off trying this recipe but I am determined to do it today. Should have done it yesterday since it was Tomato Tuesday (more on that later) but ya know.......life happens.

Jacob was punished after he hit Michael with a toy and caused a small gash beside his eye yesterday. Mikey was not amused, there were tears.......but then he wanted to wrestle Jacob. *sigh* Am I right to assume this will be a regular occurrence?

Is leaving a potty chair in the living room when company comes a faux pas? I mean we are potty training right now.

Promise I'll post something more worthwhile tomorrow but this is all I had in me for today. : )

God Bless,

Shhhhh! Don't tell the Potty Police.....

2010-11-09T13:08:00.000-06:00

Sorry Danny, the peer pressure isn't working, we are not done with diapers.

but my 3 YEAR OLD ISN'T POTTY TRAINED YET!!!!

Jacob turned 3 in September and I awaited that birthday with fear. Why? Because he was not yet using the potty on a regular basis, he was still in diapers.

I felt ashamed.

How awful of a mother was I if I couldn't even potty train him? I mean they all say that that is the magical cut off point for potty training right? I know some of them say 2 years and some even 1 year, but I had already passed those dates. What would they think?

His 3rd birthday arrived and I felt as if the Potty Police would show up at any moment. I had concocted them in my head, can't you see them too? Little black and white squad cars with toilets painted on the side. They would show up and tsk- tsk me for not being more diligent, for not using the right methods, for not buying the right Car undies so Jacob would feel like going.

But the day of his birthday came and went. There were no Potty Police at my door and they were strangely silent.

It got me to thinking how important potty training by a certain age is in respect to the whole of life. Hmmm.

Am I the only one who has noticed that the world does not come crashing down when your child doesn't crawl by this time or feed themselves by that time. They keep living, things keep moving and eventually most children reach their milestones in their own good time.

And before you think I am naive let me assure you that I do realize sometimes a child can be so sheltered and, quite frankly spoiled, that they don't reach milestones because they aren't allowed to. But that is not what I am talking about here.

I am talking about how we feel so pressured to do things by the book, because Dr. Phil said, because that doctor in that magazine says to get your child checked out immediately if they can't clap by 6 months or whatever it is. Are we seriously training our children by their standards??

I would have loved Jacob to be potty trained as soon as he could walk, and I don't doubt that his trouble in this area was a combination of his development and my training.

So he's still wearing diapers at 3 years old..........what of it? He does go to the potty quite frequently and even manages by himself most of the time. I see progress, but I also see forgetfulness, both on his part and mine.

So to all who are afraid of the Potty Police or the Binky Brigade or whoever, remember how insignificant most of these things really are. Concentrate on the important things like the health and well-being of your family. Where is your child's heart? Does he/she realize how amazing God is? THAT is an important question. .
Read Generation Cedars amazing article here on that subject

PSSSSTTTT.....Have any potty training tips, tricks, hints......want to come do it for me?? I Heart Comments!

God Bless,

Discipline

2010-11-05T08:14:00.000-05:00

In my last post I talked about how we don't discipline Jacob for "bouncing off the walls" because we thought we we were frustrating him. After reading back over the post I was afraid that I made it sound as if we don't discipline him at all and oh, its just the opposite. However, we realize that leaving him idle creates problems.

Our beliefs on the subject:
1) We believe that children are born sinful. Anyone who has watched a toddler for very long should realize this!
2) We believe that God has entrusted us with raising our children to know His word and to worship him.
3) We believe in not sparing the rod. But we also understand that we must consider "their frame" in this.

Background information: We listened to the world when deciding how to train and discipline Jacob, instead of trusting in God and his clear outline for it in the Bible. We didn't adopt a biblical view of child training and discipline until Jacob was 2. That is toooo late! It's more work to start when they first become defiant but we can already see the fruit of our efforts in our youngest.

So, I could go on about methods and what works but seeing as how we are behind in this I would rather point you to the resources that helped us get our feet firmly planted in biblical discipline, child training, and discipleship.

1) The Bible

2)Great series on child training. She has 4 youngins' and an outlook on child training taken directly from        God's word. There are 8 parts so be sure to start at Part 1.

3) On training babies. http://inashoe.com - Search for Blanket Training

4) Taking babies AND children into church. For those who attend a family integrated, for those who don't read this about WHY family integrated is a good choice for the family.

5) Books
      Shepherding a Childs Heart by Ted Tripp
      Standing on the Promises by Douglas Wilson
Christian Living in the Home by Jay E. Adams

6) This video/audio series is great.

I hope that these links help anyone who is struggling in this area. Also, if y'all know of any good resources feel free to leave me a comment. I will take all the help I can get!

God Bless,

Children and Chores

2010-11-03T15:12:00.000-05:00

Doing the Laundry early in the morning, doesn't he look excited? lol

It wasn't long before I realized I had to do something about Jacob. More specifically his ability to turn into a wild-eyed heathen at the first sign of boredom. And no I didn't medicate him, don't even get me started on that topic.

I tried to entertain him, which was my first mistake. I would pull out all the stops; toys, games and yes even TV, (SHHHH.....don't tell anyone!) all in the name of me being able to get some housework done and dinner on the table.

Without, what I would call, formal child training, as in my mother teaching me or having the advantage of younger siblings or babysitting, I was at whits end. Discipline didn't seem to be effective; Jason and I felt that we were only discouraging him.

Then, one day ,in the middle of a bout of morning sickness, while cleaning the bathroom and trying to keep Jacob from literally bouncing off the walls I handed him the toilet brush, "Scrub!" I said. He looked at me and smiled as if he held in his hand the most wonderful thing in the world. He was 18 months when he found joy in scrubbing the toilet with the toilet brush.

The merits of this were 3 fold:
1) It kept him "entertained" or busy. Idle hands for Jacob lead to mischief LOTS of mischief.

2) It gave him a sense of satisfaction that you would not believe. He bragged for days about cleaning that toilet! He wanted to clean it everyday.

3) My toilet stayed clean : ) Seriously, it was a huge help to have him so willing and able to do this small task when I spent my time laying on the couch in morning sickness agony.

His list of things he "could do" grew. By the time he was 2 1/2 he was helping with more house and yard work than most teenagers I knew.

Doing dishes. More like playing int he bubbles. : )

Currently at the age of 3 he successfully completes the following tasks:

Daily
-Meal time
- sets dishes and silverware on table
- helps clear table and wipes it down
-occasionally helps wash dishes
-Laundry
     -brings the laundry basket (clothes are sorted into different baskets)
     -loads the washer and pours in the soap I've measured up for him
     -Starts the washer (i set the dial for him)
     - when the washer is through I toss the wet clothes onto the dryer door and he pushes them inside, adds
        a dryer sheet and hits the on button.
- Living Areas
     - dusts everything with a feather duster
     - vacuums couch and carpet in bedrooms
-Picks up all of his toys and puts them up properly
-helps me make the beds
- throws things away
-picks up the yard
With his dad
-feeds the dogs and chickens and collects eggs (this is one we are currently working on)
- helps take out trash
-hands Daddy tools and puts them back etc

(I believe there are more, I just can't think of them right now, its become like second nature)

Hmmmm.....it sounds like he does everything doesn't it? Honestly he only does one major chore a day and then we work on everything else together. (I.E. I'm cleaning the bathroom mirrors while he wipes down the counters) And trust me, I don't make him do it really. He volunteers, begs and pleads. He was made to work, to accomplish, to conquer, as are all boys I believe.

When I wanted him to hep me with something I start by showing him how I do it. Then, I let him help with one small part of it. For example, to start with the would only push the clothes into the dryer, the next time I let him do that and add the dryer sheet, the next time he pushed the button. If he has difficulty I gently guide him, but I am lucky in the fact that he picks new skills up relatively easy like his Father.

If he didn't seem interested I would go ahead and start the task and he would come running over to help. Very few times has he done this, he usually has to remind me to advance the laundry. : )

I hope that I am teaching him responsibility and life skills he can use. I hope that he is feeling accomplished in a job well done. I hope that I am teaching him that as a family we all work together to help each other and it is not all about "me, me, me!" as our culture would have us believe.

I plan to continue with this practice for my second youngin' Michael. I believe this will also help develop teamwork skills and camaraderie when brothers begin to work side by side.

This is a great link I found of a list of chores by age. I can pretty much check off everything for the 3 year old category.

So, in closing, don't feel discouraged when you feel like the toys need to be put away and your toddler, YES your TODDLER, should help you with something. It may take you twice as long but the rewards are enormous. Especially, if you have a ball of boy dynamite on your hands : )

After a hard morning, nothing like crackers, puzzles and a nap

So, what IS going on with us?

2010-11-02T08:47:00.000-05:00

*Sorry about the really long post, I'll have some shorter ones coming up : )*

My grandmother on my Dad's side, Memaw, lived BY HERSELF from the time she divorced in the 50's until she was about 97 when she moved in with my parents. She had taken ill and was sent to a hospital where they said she was too old to operate on and we were pretty much told just to wait for her to die.

My dad and I went and picked her up and brought her to their house. Since my husband and I lived next door and I had experience in the area, I cared for her. She was bedridden, diabetic and on a liquid diet. It was hard and I am ashamed of how much I complained now, not to her but to everyone else. But to the amazement of us, the aide I hired to help and especially the "experts" my grandmother became well again. She now walks, unassisted, waits on herself and generally requires little to no help for daily tasks. Everything looked good as the aide took over all responsibility and my husband and I moved here to Waco.

There was a lot of emotional turmoil, building back home, which I conveniently ignored. Old family rifts began to widen and I felt no real need to step in. Memaw and I had never been close. I shamefully admit, I turned away from what was going on instead of trying to help.

The problems grew. It was no longer a matter of hurt feelings but of dangerous actions almost 3 years later when I finally realized on a visit that something had to be done, but what?

A nursing home is a last option in our family, not the first. And while they are sometimes needed they are often overused. Much like our government run schools and daycares, nursing homes are where we seem to place our "burdens" when they are an inconvenience for us.

With my Dad being an only child we were out of options. And that is when God said, " YOU". It just popped into my head one day, I had always skirted around the possibility. I had excuses: I have 2 children to care for, I live too far away, I wouldn't know what to do......blah blah blah. Jonah had excuses too, but God didn't want to hear them either.

I went to the word:

But if a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God. 1 Timothy 5: 4

But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. 1 Timothy 5:8

It was like I knew that everything would work out, at least for a time. That this is what I had to do, at least for now.

I mean, I had taken care of a paralyzed diabetic man my junior and senior year of high school. I had take care of her when she was in far worse shape. I had received my Certified Nurse Training the summer before my senior year.We had the space for her, and I had the time, I'm really not that busy in the day.

I tentatively brought the subject up to my husband and after careful thought and consideration decided it was the best thing we could do, without nagging or pushing from me. He said "It's not the easy thing but its the right thing". I love my husband : )

I asked Memaw about it, she said yes she would move in with us but.......it would cause problems in the family. And boy did it.

I won't go into all of the details, this is far too public of a venue for such conversations. Suffice it to say I came out of the discussion with my mother broken hearted, it took almost a month to fully deal with what was said, and I'll never "get over it". But I have found forgiveness for her and pray, that's all we can do in a difficult situation, right? PRAY.

My dad agreed to move her down here so 1 week later she arrived with a flatbed trailer full of furniture, keepsakes and clothing.

Before their arrival I spent the time busily preparing her room. I moved the boys into the smaller room since all they do is sleep in their bedroom and this way she could have the large room at the end of the house. I used my old bed from my childhood and fixed it up with bedding and a window treatment. I picked a shower chair and sprayer up for her and my husband set them up along with building a hand rail on our rental house. We set up a TV service, a phone line and a medical alarm for her.

When the flurry of moving had come and gone our every day routines resumed and my dad went home. She attended church for really the first time in 3 years that Sunday with us. And even though she is Methodist and we are Reformed Baptist she LOVED it.

So shortly after Memaw moved in with us she celebrated her 100th birthday on October 6th. What a blessing.

It's been a little over a month and things have been uneventful, for this I give Thanks. Not only are things going well but we are finding that we are more alike than we had been led to believe.

I know no matter how difficult it may become that God will lead us and though it may not be where we think we ought to be headed The Good Shepherd knows best. Praise be to God.

Camping Trip Recap and Park Review

2010-10-20T08:23:00.000-05:00

Well.....it wasn't the worst camping trip.

My husband and I have decided that we definitely need to go camping more than once a year. We used to love to go camping and seem to keep putting it off. Not only is it good for us but we believe it will create a lasting impression on our boys. They will (hopefully) develop a love of nature and an understanding of why we should preserve God's wonderful creations.

So lets first go over our Camping Style:
We believe if you bring a TV, Satelite Dish or computer, you are NOT camping. However, we are not so basic that we don't enjoy bathrooms within walking distance : ) We usually opt for walk-in tent sites, which are not on the road and do not have electricity. We want great views and wildlife viewing opportunities. Historical markers, buildings or museums are a huge plus. We love to camping in the winter and fall because cold = no bugs or other campers : )

For this trip we decided on Davy Crockett National Forest. We usually choose a state park but we wanted something different and neither of us had ever been through the Piney Woods of Texas. We also wanted a camp fire and National Forest's don't mind you collecting downed wood, the state parks? It's usually a fine just to look at their sticks wrong.

So first, I'll give a review of the park:

Pros:
1) The trees were nice
2) Not crowded
3) ummmmm......

Cons
1) Park service failed to mention that the concession stand was closed that rents the canoes etc

2) Out of envelopes to drop payment, also leaves you with no proof you payed

3) We saw more wildlife in the local gas station bathroom than in the actual park

4) BUSY highway within a stones throw, LOUD trucks going by all night long.....

5) the early 1900's saw mill ruins are surrounded with bathrooms, roads, a playground and a highway. It kind of loses the feel that way.

The cons were accompanied by our lack of practice in camping to make a worse experience. We only brought one lantern. ONE. What were we thinking? And though you are allowed to gather firewood in the park its best to do that in daylight. Its very difficult to find adequate firewood with a flashlight. (Mental Note: Arrive at park sooner.)
Also, tip for the park: Don't provide restrooms if you are not going to clean them.

We also had child training issues to work through which as most of you know, is exhausting. More on that later.

Overall, we were let down by the experience so much we opted to drive another hour farther east to take a look at the Angelina National Forest. At the forest's center is the Sam Rayburn Reservoir, which is HUGE. They offer a variety of campsites from plush campsites with boat ramps to backwoods primitive (which is what we like). The areas we were interested in were the Boykin Springs and the Bouton Lake camping areas.

WOW. We decided we are going here next for sure.

- Remote camp sites CHECK. 15 mile drive down a gravel road through wilderness.
- Restrooms close by CHECK.
- Wildlife CHECK
- Beautiful views CHECK.
- Historical sites. CHECK CHECK. Early 1900's sawmill, mostly still intact (though its' covered in graffiti)

And its only 3 hours from our home. A close by town, Lufkin even has a little zoo.

So now we're looking at going about every other month on a little weekend excursion. Angelina is our first destination but then there are so many State Parks to branch out into, like Fort Boggy, a promising looking one.

So overall I give Davy Crockett National Forrest: * * two stars. But we're optimistic. : )

REVISED The Sabbath

2010-10-12T14:30:00.001-05:00

I found an answer to my struggle with the Sabbath via John MacArthur.I believe I was being a little like the pharisees on the subject, so afraid to not do enough, I was doing to much. Not only that I was misunderstanding it's purpose for us since we have been saved through Christ.

I would encourage everyone to peruse his web page for great biblical insight. Here are the links to his sermon on the subject:

Understanding the Sabbath
Why Sunday is the Lord's Day

"Observe the sabbath day to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you"

Deuteronomy 5:12

So, Jason and I have been discussing the Sabbath lately. The topic really took center stage this past Sunday when 3 out of 5 of us were not feeling well and we missed attending church. The question was.....So what do we do now? It was still the sabbath, a holy day, shouldn't we do something ...special?

We turned to the bible starting with the ten commandments and then as we were reading Isaiah, where we are doing our daily readings, we discovered the following:

¹³^(A) "If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath,
   from doing your pleasure^[a] on my holy day,
and call the Sabbath a delight
   and the holy day of the LORD honorable;
if you honor it, not going your own ways,
   or seeking^(B) your own pleasure,^[b] or talking idly;^[c]
¹⁴then you shall take delight in the LORD,
   ^(C) and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;^[d]
^(D) I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,
   ^(E) for the mouth of the LORD has spoken." Isaiah 58:13-14

This verse spoke volumes to us about the importance of keeping Sunday holy in faith to God.

But the answer as to how we go about it still eludes us. We set Sunday up as special by having the meals prepared on Saturday and the housework/chores done. And of course we have church and fellowship in the mornings, we've also been wanting to attend Sunday school. But what about when we get home? Or on days we can't make it to church? We have our nightly devotions, so that won't change but what else?

We know that we aren't to work or to do things for ourselves but for the Lord. Besides worship Him and having a day of rest we were thinking we should make a point to perform an act of kindness or generosity. Perhaps we could take a meal to someone, make a call or pay a visit? Another idea we had would be to catch up on our reading of books on theology or listening to sermons from pastors we like.

What do y'all do special on Sunday? Do you have any ideas, or verses in the Bible pertaining to this?

Hope y'all all have a blessed week!

Do You Know What Your Church Stands For?

2010-10-09T10:34:00.000-05:00

If we only follow the Ten Commandments when it is convenient for us, where are we spiritually?

As a culture we’ve already surrounded ourselves with “graven images”, they are plugged in in our living rooms, sitting in our garages, hanging in our closets, filling our bank accounts.

Adultery is accepted if you are lonely, or if your partner doesn’t meet up to your expectations.

Lying and stealing can slide if they are for your benefit.

Honor your father and mother went out the window a long time ago, you only have to walk through wal-mart to see that.

And murder? It’s committed every day in “clinics” because its convenient, its for the health of the mother, to carry on with the “mistake” would look bad to those around us.

And if the world can overlook the commandments why not the church?

The purpose of the church is to not be accepted! Jesus Christ, who we have taken as our Lord and Savior was not accepted. He said we would be hated as followers of him.

18"If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. John 15:18-19

Researching various religions out of curiosity I came upon this website. I won’t name the religion but suffice it to say it is not the one I follow. It states the following on its stance about abortion:

"..we recognize tragic conflicts of life with life that may justify abortion, and in such cases we support the legal option of abortion under proper medical procedures."

‘justify abortion” = justify murder

Those words send chills up my spine. Where is the biblical reference for this? Where did God say “go forth and multiply” unless its not convenient?

I don’t believe there was an asterisk at the end of Thou Shalt Not Murder saying *unless its an unborn child you don’t want.

How arrogant can we be to say that we created that life? We can’t create life any more than we can make our own hearts beat. (That is a partial quote from this video of an ABORTION SURVIVOR)

How can we call ourselves Christian yet spit in the face of Christ himself.

But he was wounded for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his stripes we are healed. Isaiah 53:5

That statement should make your heart ache with guilt.

By turning our backs on the law that God wrote with his own hand, by turning our backs on the vile murder being committed in our own backyards and then allowing the church to support it, we are driving the nails into his hands ourselves.

I encourage you today to read your church covenant and constitution. Read where your church stands on issues such as abortion and homosexuality. Where do they find their biblical proof? Is it single verses taken at random or is it read in the context? Is it pulled out or are they reading into it?

The Big One: Can you account for what you believe to God when you see him?

But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. Mathew 12:36

Tough Topics: Submission Part 3

2010-10-07T12:50:00.000-05:00

I've been putting this post off, unsure of how I should finish it. But any conclusion is better than not having one right? I encourage you to read Created to be His Helpmeet and The Excellent Wife and Passionate Housewives Desperate for God. The authors not only have more experience but can say it a lot better than I ever can.

So, how was I going to put this thing called "submission" into effect? That was the tough question I had to ponder.

First things first, I let my husband be the leader of our family.

Sounds simple enough, but how many of us really do it? I was willing to let my husband "lead" if he was leading the way I thought he should. I was quick to criticize and judge.
I won't lie, this first step, the step of letting go was.......hard.

Everything in my sinful nature screamed, "No! Don't do it! He doesn't know what he's doing! He will take advantage of the situation! You'll be a doormat!"

Doormat. How I hate that term. And I hate it because I've heard it so often.

As in, "She doesn't stand up to her husband. She's just a doormat."

Please don't confuse following your husband's lead with pretending your husband is God. That is not what submission is about. God is God. He is over you and your husband. You must follow God first and then the husband he has given you to follow. In matters that are apparently against God, who do you follow? God, people, you follow God!

Okay, I got off on a little bit of a tangent. Ahem. Sorry, back to your regularly scheduled post............

I believe the problem many of us have with trusting our husbands to lead our family does not lie with our husbands but our seeming inability to trust God. Letting God be Lord over every aspect of your life is something that is not only best for you but required by the Word.

It all boils down to: Do you trust God? The answer can not be "Yes, but......" or "Yes except for...." Not to say that at times it won't be a struggle, I fail at putting all my trust in God quite frequently, but He's always there to remind me that He is Lord.

Do you allow God to be the Lord of your life? That is what submission is all about.

Sorry I rushed through this post, I had imagined something far more detailed. Perhaps I'll revisit the subject with more tips on how to actually show honor to our husbands. Right now my mind is full of other topics: child discipline, elder care, sacrificing for others, and the most wonderful.....baptism. How gracious is the Lord that He called my husband and I to follow him mostly at the same time. how wonderful that we are to be baptized, a physical sign of the washing of our sins by the grace of Jesus Christ. "Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, the od who is our salvation" Psalms 68:19

I'm Back....

2010-09-19T22:38:00.000-05:00

sort of....

I just felt the need to write, felt the need to get it out.

The big news?

My grandmother, who will turn 100 years old October 10th, is coming to live with us.

God slapped me upside the head last week and told me to quit being selfish. (I paraphrase of course).
I believe I am doing what He wants, what He wanted me to do all along. It's amazing how selective our hearing can be, like little children. When God gives us good things we take them readily but when He wants us to take on a tough task or stand for what is right......we start humming and covering our ears.

How often do we turn away from what is right and ignore the wrong for our own comfort? How often do we not approach people in the wrong for fear of hurting their feelings? Or for fear we will sever relationships and be hurt ourselves? I know I am guilty. Most of us are to some degree I'm sure.

Above all else, I hope God's will is done and not my own. (as someone wise reminded me the other day ; )

I'll share more of my story later on. Just wanted to write what was on my mind and heart today.

Thank you so much for all of your comments!

Hold Everything, Stop the Press!

2010-09-14T08:19:00.000-05:00

Here I had a series of posts going and life got in the way!

I went to write another post today and just couldn't, my mind is elsewhere.

I have a feeling the next few days, weeks, months are going to be different. There are decisions to be made for our family (between us and parents and grandparents) that have been put off for far too long. There are things transpiring that will change relationships, change living styles, change everything.

Have you ever felt called to do something?

I have, I believe I was called to have children. I felt and still feel like bearing and raising children for the glory of God is my purpose in life.

This calling I am facing now is different, way different. But none the less the idea has plagued me for almost 2 years, slowly eating away. I would push it to the back of my mind and say "its too hard" and "I can't do that"! But like Jonah, I believe the will of God will be done whether I'm on board willingly or have to be drug, kicking and screaming (or swallowed by a fish) to do it!

I apologize for being so cryptic but I don't want to put the cart before the horse, let the cat out of the bag, etc

Needless to say, posting will probably end for quite a while if this "calling" does come to pass. We have planning, discussing and most importantly, PRAYER to occupy our time. All the while I will have to keep myself in check, be sure that I am putting God's wishes and those of my husband before my own. *sigh*

Side note: I have ABSOLUTELY LOVED all of your comments! So many of you have inspired me through your blogs and your comments to mine. I will miss that and promise to return, just not sure when. Thank you so much for brightening my day, Love you and Lord be with you!

Tough Topics: Submission Part 2

2010-09-13T06:29:00.000-05:00

Often used as a symbol of feminism, poor Rosie.

To recap: I was going over the evils of feminism and how it has affected me as it has many of other women. This is more about my story and some example about how we are choosing to live apart from God's word.

Now, I don't think I ever chose feminism. Until the last year or so I never saw it's subtleties all around us. TV and radio are givens, but what about your church? What about that seemingly harmless "Christian" film you just watched?

"Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." Romans 12: 2

When searching for a church the hardest hurdle we faced as a family was finding a church that stood apart. They all bragged on their extravagant buildings and many programs. None bragged on their close knit fellowship and how they believed in the infallible word of God. None bragged on how they follow the mandates in 1 Timothy on how to find a suitable pastor/elders. What we tended to find in many churches was that they used the bible as sort of a loose guideline.

It was subject to their interpretation and that is dangerous folks.

Afterall, after being barraged with the "values" of the world day in and day out, we believe ourselves to be righteous enough to use the scripture how we see fit?

One of the main examples I would like to point to with this is 1 Timothy: (strangely enough this was part of our pastors message this past Sunday and this post was thought up before then)

Chapter 2 Verse 11-
A woman should learn in quietness and full submission.
I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent.
For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not the one deceived and became a sinner.

I'm not really sure how much more plain this could be. So how is it that women feel they can become preachers, pastors, bishops and ministers? How do we approve of this?

Society tells us to bar women from occupations, even that of pastor, is "wrong". Who should we be listening to? The Word of God of our culture? It's as simple as that to me.

This is just one of the many examples of how we can bring what we have learned outside the church into it.

I like this passage because Paul also gives us the reason we should not teach in the church.
For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not the one deceived and became a sinner. a

I don't know about anyone else but I know in my heart that this one is true. I know that women, including myself, tend to be sinful, manipulative and deceiving. I used to play the feminist part very well--treating my husband as incompetent and manipulating him with my emotions when I could not have my way.

I saw it happen every day in the house I grew up, in the school where I worked. Professing Christian women laying out their game plan on how they were going to deceive their husband into doing something they wanted that weekend. We would all laugh and wait for Monday when we got to hear how it turned out. The woman would return a conquering hero after she used tears or even full blown tantrums to get what she wanted. And then why was it a shock when that woman came crying to us not a year later about her husband filing for divorce?

Every day I thank God that he showed me the error of my ways before I tore down my house with my own hands.

I pushed my husband to move, I begged him to let me spend a little more money to make our business a real success. I cried when he wouldn't let me do something, I gave him the silent treatment when he stood firm. A man can only take so much, and our husbands want to see us happy above all else. So against his better judgment he let me have my way. We went into debt, moved the business..........and failed miserably.

There is no doubt in my mind that God let everything take place so that I could learn my lesson. Sometimes he has to tear us down to build us up. He used this opportunity to open my heart to His Word. Now that I was away from all of the feminist influences telling me to control my husband, to make decisions, I was free to see where God wanted me. Tucked safely under Jason's arm.

My husband is incredibly intelligent and has a great head on his shoulders. He is slow to make decisions but only because he thinks through everything carefully. He got us out of the pickle we were in, he paid our debt, he forgave me in the blink of an eye and has never held it against me.

God was working a change in me and Jason could see it, I wasn't the same. It was as if a blindfold had been removed. It was painfully apparent that I had been lied to by everyone. My family, friends, the media, the few churches I had attended.... they were all telling me the same thing. Not only was I supposedly in charge of my husband, I was in charge of my own life, not God, not the creator. Just me. I was the King of the Hill (or queen rather) and let me tell you, that is a lonely place to be.

Satan's plan was obviously working. Not only in the world, but in each and every woman. The enemy gave us what we wanted, power and vanity. We were ignoring our Father and taking a big ol' bite of the apple. Now, we must face the consequences of our decisions.

So, I could see submission was what God wanted, but I still had questions. How do I go about this? Does this mean I have to be a doormat with out an opinion? What about the husbands out there that aren't good to their wives?

I'll cover what I discovered in the next post:Part 3.

*Along with the Bible, during this time I read many books and blogs that helped. Feel free to check out my sidebar and blog roll for a listing.*

Tough Topics: Submission Part 1

2010-09-11T00:06:00.000-05:00

Okay, lets just put it out there, shall we? If you want to ruffle some feathers at your next dinner party just throw out this statement "Wives submit to your husband's as to the Lord". Eph 5:22 And then duck and run......you will no longer be popular; not just in the local school or at the office, but the church. This will be a series of posts about my background in feminism, the why of submission and ,the hardest part, the how. All my opinions, backed up with what I have read in scripture. Don't take my word for it, BYOB (Bring Your Own Bible).

"Hmmm.....submission....that's a toughie!"

My grandmother will be 100 years old next month and she is the most loyal feminist "Christian" I know. Feminism didn't start at some bra burning, it started long before in a beautiful garden....(Gen 3:4)
Since then the feminist movement raged through history and the word "submit" in relation of a wife to her husband has joined ranks with many other 4 letter words in our culture. The terminology is not cool, politically correct or even accepted as decent.

Why, to reaffirm God's word through Paul by quoting Ephesians 5:22**** will get you everything but a pat on the back. Funny looks, hateful words and such are the least of your problems. Think how many pastors have lost their jobs for simply standing by God on the subject! How sad is it that our culture is dictating what our pastors teach in place of our God. No wonder so many people today (I used to be one of them) think Christianity is phony baloney. When the church resembles the world what's the big deal of getting up early on Sunday morning to watch what you've been looking at all week?

I want to let my stance be known about the topic, because saying you're a follower of Jesus Christ does not mean that you believe in a wife submitting (even though it should). While I may not be as well spoken as most of the anti-feminist bloggers out there (Stacy McDonald, and the many contributors of Ladies Against Feminism, just to name a couple) I will take a stab at it, so let me start with a story....

Once upon a time..I was a feminist. I feel like I am at one of those AA meetings.

"Hello, My name is Melodie Holder and I am (was) a feminist."

I was brought up believing that the key to a woman's happiness was choosing her own path in life. Marriage and children were like a ball and chain dragging you down....slowing your ascent of the corporate ladder. Feminism has two basic principles 1) Women are god's 2) Men are scum.

I was not just a passive feminist, oh-no. I bought the whole bit, hook-line-and sinker. I was pro-choice (read pro-murder), I believed men were dumb and should be manipulated. I believed abstinence was a silly and overrated concept. I believed I was in control of my life because I was a woman.......because some men in suits said I had the right to vote, the right to choose, the right to be free of men.....

Anyone who has walked down this road knows that its is not freedom, this lifestyle-these beliefs are a prison. You are angry at the world because you have been taught that it is against you, that men are out to get you and force you into marriage with the cooking and cleaning and baby raising. The churches (most) echo the culture to pull in more members, more $$$. It's sad but undeniable.

The true, awe-inspiring power of God is that His Word, His Truth cut through all of the politically correct, satan inspired mumbo-jumbo. Through everything wrong that I believed, everything evil that I held dear--His light found me. And I became new again.

Part 2 coming soon

**** Lest you think I am taking this "out of context" please consider the following:
Ephesians 5:22
Corinthians 11:3
Titus 2:5
Genesis 3:16
Feel free to read the entire chapter around those verses, it supports the verse. The verses are not taken our of context. Can you list any more?

Hello?! Is anyone still there? Come on....I didn't scare you off yet did I? : )

I'm done fiddling.....promise.

2010-09-10T16:21:00.000-05:00

I am, really.

I won't mess with my blog anymore.....until after Thanksgiving. : )

I just needed a change. Fall is in the air!

Can't you smell it?

"Over the River and Through the Woods.......

2010-09-09T09:13:00.001-05:00

….To Grandma’s house we go!” Except to get to the grandmas house we have to drive 5 hours, across Texas without an a/c in our van, to a place filled with sand, sparse vegetation and high winds….yuck.


Calling his "GiGi" to let her know we are on our way

This post was written before our trip but I didn't get to post it : ) so now that we're back....here it is.

We will be leaving Friday at around 5:30am, the weather will be nice and cool then. So this week is preparation for our trip. Yes, it takes me that long to get everything organized. We usually follow a set pattern when we are ready to go on an overnight trip and it usually follows these guidelines:

5 days in advance

We get the house ready by doing any monthly maintenance we need to do. Nothing worse than coming back home late one night and having to fix something we should have already done. In the summer this is simple, changing the a/c filter etc. In winter if we miss wrapping pipes etc, we could have a problem on our hands when we get back.

This includes getting things set up for our animals. We feed the reptiles weekly so we bulk them up good at this time and then feed them when we get back. (we’re never gone more than 4-5 days) We set up auto-water systems for chickens and dogs as well, we don’t want them running out of water in the middle of the day.

Then, we meet with the pet sitter. At this house we have kindly neighbors. Where we used to live it was hard to get pet sitting companies to even drive in the neighborhood simply because of the color of the skin of most of the residents (rolling my eyes). People can be so stupid.

If they looked past the neighborhood demographics they wouldn’t step foot in our house. “Don’t worry the 10 foot python is in a locked habitat” “Y’all said you would care for “any animal”. *sigh*

3-4 days in advance

I clean the house. Now that I have implemented my new schedule the house stays pretty clean but I make sure all of the cleaning and laundry is caught up. I also use this time to print out our packing check list, trip itenerary, any maps we need etc. I put everything into a folder for easy access. I also start using my freezer meals at this time. Less cleanup at meal time and little brain power to put a meal together. : )

2 days in advance

I run any last minute errands. I go to the bank, pick up last minute things to take on the trip. Since we are a one car household, I clean out the van on this day since I have it all day after taking my husband to work. I also try to go ahead and put things in the van that I know we’ll need like our ice chest etc. I also refill our “emergency kit” for the kids. This has a change of clothes, diapers, wipes, and an (empty) extra bottle and sippy cup. My husband checks all of the fluids, tire pressures and makes sure the jumper cables and tools are still in there. He also checks our “van kit” which has things like jumper cables, flashlight, fluids etc.

Father and son checking the van...How cute!

The day before

I spend all day packing. With only 2 children taking me all day I can only imagine if we have more! : )

And really it doesn’t have to take all day but I try to take my time and go through checklists ( I LOVE checklists) to make sure we don’t forget anything. After packing everything we go ahead and load the van the night before our trip which saves hassle the next morning. I set the coffee pot up and make breakfast-to-go like muffins or burritos. We keep our toiletry bag in the bathroom so that in the morning, when we’re done brushing our teeth etc, we just toss everything in there and take it to the van.

The boys share a suitcase on wheels for their clothing and then I have their drinks/snacks in a small cooler. ~~Jacob gets to pack 1 small backpack with books and toys~~. That's what we used to do. This trip I implemented yet another "kit" in the way of a box between the boys seats that holds a permanent collection of colors, paper, books and other assorted toys. Both grandmas keep a supply of toys on hand and if we’re going camping etc Jacob busy’s himself with his environment.

My husband usually gets gas after work so we don’t have to start in the morning.

That leaves departure day stress free. We get dressed, throw last minute toiletries into our bag and head out to the van.

While traveling Jacob entertains himself with things in his ~~back pack~~ box or he takes a nap. Lately he’s started talking to us and we have conversations about where we are going and what’s going by outside our windows. Spotting different color cars is a favorite little boy past time.

Mikey sleeps mostly. We stop as little as possible. It seems harder to get them back in the van if we get them out. And leaving so early they sleep a lot and we arrive before lunch.

What do y’all do special to get ready for a trip? How do you pack for or entertain he kids?

Believe me, it took us A LOT of trips to get it down this smooth.

See y’all when we get back!

We had a lovely trip. It couldn't have gone smoother. We were sick the week before but were all well for the trip, the van held out, the pet sitter did a fabulous job, Jacob had a wonderful birthday and there were no knock-down drag-out fights between family members......who could ask for more! Praise God for his many blessings!

My baby boy turns 3 September 18th. My, how time has flown.....

Homemaker Does Not Equal Slave

2010-08-25T11:54:00.000-05:00

."Holy Clean Laundry Batman! That's A Lot of Work!"**

We will be heading home the first weekend of September to visit family and stop off at the school I attended/worked at to see friends and I am nervous...
See, since we moved thing have changed in our lives....I have become a completely different person.

It's very hard to find anything in common with the people I once called friends and now we can see ourselves set apart from our families. It saddens me but at the same time I realize this is what God wants "to leave and cleave" its referred to. And boy did it make a difference in us!

I guess in preparation for the onslaught of probing questions and feminist/cultural ideology I like to kind of dwell on what makes us....us. I found some excellent articles and videos this morning that remind me WHY we do the things we do as a family, WHY we set ourselves apart.

I don't know anything about Dr. Steve Haltzman other than he is an author, but I do like this quote I heard on a clip of the Rachael Ray show. The topic was "1950's housewives" and showcases Courtney who blogs at Women Living Well. (check out her site, its wonderful!)

"..you don't feel like you're slave to a man, you feel like you are the master of your household" Dr. Steve Haltzman.

I really liked his wording and the point he was trying to make. Homemakers like Courtney or I for that matter are NOT SLAVES to our husbands. No where in the Word does God say that we are to be either. We are to be "helpers". It just burns my biscuit when feminists get all frazzled over this Biblical lifestyle and say that we are being "demeaned", "used" that we are "slaves" and "doormats".

Submitting to a husband does not mean that you can't disagree or have an opinion, its all about respect. I KNOW for a fact that I am emotional and fickle, while my husband is level headed and confident. I KNOW that my husband makes wiser decisions that I do, I know that I can be easily misled. "Who says?!" you ask? GOD SAYS, PEOPLE, GOD SAYS. You cannot go over or around the MANY references in scripture pertaining to this God given instruction. SUBMIT.

I feel fulfilled in a homemaker because its my JOB. Just as my husband heads off to work at 6:30 every morning to face long hours filled with toil, I too have a job to do that day. I may not have to punch in and I don't put up with office politics (praise God) but I have a very important job that my husband leaves me to do. I care for our children (read legacy), I run our house and I help build a home and haven so that when he gets done with that job he WANTS to come home.

He does not put me down, order me around or take advantage of me. I feel fulfilled and happy doing the work God has set before me to do.

Wow, I did not realize how worked up over this topic I was...back to our visit.

It's so hard in our society to be a homemaker and not be put down. Especially if you are young and newly married. I feel like homemakers have to be on a constant defensive as to why we chose this as a family and that my husband didn't force me into it. So I will try to be confident during this fun time with family and friends. Most importantly I will lean on my husband and God for support.

How do you tell people when they ask about your decision to stay home? To home school? To not vaccinate? To have home birth?

I feel a series of posts coming on.........

** I usually post photo credits but can't find for the life of me where I got this image, I just know I've had it for a long time.

Pondering Family Worship

2010-08-19T17:42:00.000-05:00

This painting hangs over our dining table

My husband and I have been discussing daily worship and how it should look for our family. So, to tell you what we currently do:

We each read the Bible in the morning separately. He reads his at work during morning break and I read mine before the kids wake up. During this time we read the Proverb of the day (August 1st we read the 1st proverb etc) and then I think it varies daily from that. I also read various books about Biblical womanhood during the week, examples of these are in my sidebar.

We pray at the dinner table. We may pray separately throughout the day but its sporadic to say the least.

At night we re-read the days proverb together and a psalm. We read a Bible story out of “The Jesus Storybook Bible” by Sally Lloyd-Jones. (I LOVE THIS BOOK!) We’ve also been reading a Christian themed golden book or something similar to the children.

After the kids are in bed. Jason and I read aloud to one another from a book we are working on. Right now it’s the 1689 London Baptist confessional and “What is Reformed Theology” by R.C. Sproul. We also read through the Bible, a chapter or so a night. Right now we are in Esther.

Okay, so areas for improvement. WE NEED TO PRAY MORE! I do believe we are praying, quietly to ourselves throughout the day as it says in 1 Thessolonians to “Pray without ceasing.”But we need to be praying together and often.

THIS is where we need the most work.

As new believers, praying out loud is a very humbling experience. A lot of this stems from not knowing what to do.
So where should we turn? God’s word and we'll be doing just that over the next few days in regards to this very topic.

I have recently seen a few posts on a family worship area. You can look at them here and here.

Wow. That’s all I can say.

I can certainly see a place for an area like this in our home, somewhere to go to the Lord with purpose to pray and study his Word. We’ll be discussing this more and praying about it to see how we can implement it.

Second, we are going to start working on the catechism. No, it’s not Catholic, that’s what I thought it was. We’ve been doing it at church and it helps. Anything that will help our children learn the truth of the Lord and “write it on the tablet of their hearts” is good for us!

Many people put music into their family worship…….maybe one day? My toddler hates music for some reason but he seems to be warming up to the hymns and worship songs I listen to in the mornings during chore time. They are my way of daily praise, I feel connected this way.
Now, our whole family doing it? One step at a time …

Does anyone have any Bible study book suggestions? Thoughts?
Did any of you struggle with praying out loud when you became believers? Are we just goobers? Okay, don’t answer the last one.

Anyway, I will leave you with the song I am listening to currently. I heard it for the first time at our church and wow….. Enjoy : )

Our Living Areas: Then and Now

2010-08-19T08:08:00.000-05:00

I am again participating in the 4 Moms, 35 Kids Link up. Be sure to hop on over and take a look at everybody's!

Oh, how I love this living room! My decorating philosophy is along the lines of, "Is it on sale". So I don't even pretend to know what I am doing. And with 4 LARGE reptile enclosures and a giant rat and bird care decorating can be difficult in the least. (I'll cover the pets, with close-ups in another post, promise!)
So y'all come on in and take a look around, then we'll go over the good, the bad and the ugly (our old living room).

If I did have an inspiration piece it would be this:

I LOVE THIS PAINTING! It just speaks to me about trusting God and his plans for us, it tells us that to set ourselves apart from the world is not a bad thing. It was given to me after a woman I worked with at a school took up a collection while I was pregnant with Jacob.

The floor is something my husband just started putting in. When we moved here we discovered the previous renters had dogs. A lot of dogs. And these dogs obviously didn't want to go outside to go potty. Yuck.
The new floor is easy to keep and was pretty easy for my husband to install, however, it doesn't just "snap together" like the ads say....trust me.

All of our furniture is second hand, it came from various consignment, thrift and overall junk stores. I made the decision before my oldest reached toddler hood that this is the way to go.

My dad built the entertainment center and I love the rusitc feel of it. I chose the fabric, which I love, and behind it are really handy drawers filled with vhs, dvd and video games.
The corner shelf holds our Bible and whatever we are working on with family worship. For example right now we are reading "What is Reformed Theology" by R.C. Sproul and the 1689 London Baptist Confessional. It also keeps my camera and phone in a safe place from sticky hands and a supply of diapers and wipes. Our wedding, family and baby albums are on the bottom. The large antique water can holds change.

Note: we do not have t.v. service. We only watch movies or play games on this TV, and we like it that way.

This is Jacob's area. The table has storage where his puzzles, colors, people box and other such things are. This table is junk more or less and is the only piece of furniture that Jacob can "fix" with his plastic hammer and saw. Note the marks on the edge there.

That is my piano from when I was Jacob's age!

This is Michael's area and that is my garage-sale-find basket where I keep my books, crosswords, suduko's, lotion etc etc.

Phew! This is hard work!

I could lie and say the kids book case doesn't always look like this, but for honesty sake I'll tell you that this is it 99% of the time. Hey, at least he got them back on the shelves right? The basket holds the flashlight (you have to have a good flashlight when living in the country!), incoming mail and what have you. The top of the lit display cabinet showcases my wedding bouquet (it was fake), cake topper, Jason's corsage and pictures etc.

Our pets (more on the in another post) and a lovely clock Jason found in Midland, where we used to live, when he worked for the landfill. He used to find the coolest stuff out there. And yes, I cleaned it. ; ) Behind that curtain are more toys, educational things and cobwebs so we won't be peaking under there right now.

Okay, so you have something to compare to, this is our old living room:


3/4 of the living room at Christmas, I was like 15 months pregnant. ; )


Later, Jacob rode his Christmas present through the other 1/4 of our living room.

Impressive? Thought not. What was really cool was when you got 1/2 way across the floor you could slide to the front door because the floor dipped so badly. It was even more fun in socks. ; )

Hope y'all enjoyed, see you next time and don't forget to visit the other moms!

WFMW: Swiffer Refills the Cheap Way

2010-08-18T07:10:00.000-05:00

Ok, I am sure many of you out there in blog land have already thought of this, but I came upon an amazing (at least to me it was) discovery yesterday.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO BUY REFILLS FOR YOUR SWIFFER SWEEPER.

Has anyone noticed how expensive those little over-glorified paper towels are? Yeah, I could make 2 meals for the kind of $$$$ and it takes me 2 or 3 just to get the floor semi- clean after the toddler demolition crew a.k.a. my 3 year old gets done playing.

So after careful inspection of the Swiffer device I came up with the following:

This is a blue shop towel I cut into thirds and attached 1/3 of it to my swiffer. It is thin enough to push down into those little grabber thingys (hey, you try to think of a better term) and its rough enough to really scrub the floor.
I then just sprayed it with a multi-purpose all natural cleaner and away I went. It not only held up better, it cleaned better.
When I was done I just threw it in the laundry. How easy is that?
I plan on making some vinegar/water cleaner to use, but right now, this is what works for me.

Do y'all have any other ideas on how to improve it? Have y'all done this before?

I completely forgot to link up last Wednesday's WFMW so here it is.

Because Of Who You Are

2010-08-14T11:34:00.000-05:00

A friend quoted the following scripture to me (emphasis is mine):

Ephesians 2: 4-10 4But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

It made me think of this song and thought I would post it.

OOPS......Thursday Posting Mix Up

2010-08-12T08:52:00.000-05:00

If you're looking for my Thursday 5 Moms, 35 kids post it is here

http://melodiedrawingwater.blogspot.com/2010/08/our-kitchen-and-dining-then-and-now.html

Blogger and I had a fight, the post got put in the wrong spot......You know how it goes. = )

Re-using Containers

2010-08-11T08:00:00.003-05:00

I've been putting off posting this for a couple of reasons. First, I'm horrible at taking pictures! Second, I was trying to avoid any controversy. So here is my tip and then I'll tell you about the controversy.

I love being able to re-use things! Not only are you recycling and therefore caring for the Earth that God entrusted us with, but you get twice the return on the item. In other words, you've used it once and then you use it again for something else. That equals saving money!

Whenever I empty out a container of any kind I look at it and think........and yes that usually hurts. ; )
I think about the following:

1) Is this container a good sturdy container?
2) Has this container been contaminated so that I need to toss it i.e. been used with raw meet or chemicals?
3) Do I have a foreseeable need for a container of this size and make?

Examples of containers would be laundry detergent boxes, gallon bags used for freezer storage, pringles cans, oatmeal cans, butter tubs (and plastic tubs that are similar) and finally Formula cans.
Okay, so this is where the controversy comes in: I use formula. There I said it.....

Some of you may think I'm silly for thinking that is a big deal, but in certain circles, especially whose blogs I read, Formula = evil. So before we go any further I would like to clear a few things up:
- I am fully aware of the goodness of nursing (better for baby, prevents all kinds of problems with the mom)
- I am aware that formula is not ideal and that its expensive
- I have had problems nursing (I'll post about it sometime) so that is why I use formula
- My babies go on table food and whole milk asap

I know that everyone does things different and that's great! I am feeding my children right? That is the ultimate goal, isn't it? Then we shouldn't quibble over how, when and what.

Okay, now that I've stepped down off of my soapbox. Here are some ideas for these containers.

Oatmeal cans- not only are they great for your kids to play with in their play kitchens but they can hold many items. Jacob has several filled with his play kitchen food. I've used them to hold dry beans and rice.

Butter tubs are great for leftovers but can hold lots of other things as well. Why spend the money on expensive name-brand plastic containers with lids? We are fond of cottage cheese, if you can't tell. = )

Leftovers and premade meals


Pet Rat Food

Last, but not least, is my favorite The Formula Container. They are sturdy, different sizes and seal really well. Just rip off the label and let your imagination run wild. = )


Before and After

toys, especially the kind that seem to get under my feet

Rice/Beans etc

And this is kind of an idea I had for Christmas:


Photo Credit

I'm thinking of wrapping the lid separate than the canister and then adding a nice bow. I could fill it with different Christmas goodies layers with tissue paper? Just an idea I'll have to play around with. = )

This is my list, but their are so many other things you could do with used containers. I'd love to hear your ideas!

God Bless,

Melodie

Our Kitchen and Dining: Then and Now

2010-08-10T12:00:00.031-05:00

I am linking up with the 5 Mom's, 35 Kids open house. I love this series, y'all need to follow along!

So this is our lovely new rent house (it's really a trailer, but I'm not into labels lol). I should have posted this picture last Thursday but I am behind, as usual.

Home Sweet Home

The ducks,geese and chickens are here to greet you!

My "puppy", her paws are on my shoulders

Here is my wonderful, awe-inspiring kitchen. I took a picture on a regular day, you know I'm keeping it real. = ) The 2 aquariums hold geckos and in between them are my cookbooks, household notebook and Jacob's home school basket.

I am so proud of this kitchen/dining area. Its open, full of storage and easy to maintain.

Old Renters left table and hutch, I have mixed feelings.

I even had space for both of my deep freezes that hold our 1/4 of a cow and all of my freezer meals. The large built in hutch makes a fabulous pantry. Oh, look! This dining room came with a baby!

For a comparison and for the future when we look back and laugh. Here is the house we lived in before this one.

Humble? Yes. Structurally sound? Kind of. Our only choice after the business went kaput? Bingo!
But I loved my little house. Who wouldn't after living in a warehouse for 3 months. But God taught me humility and to be truly thankful for even the smallest blessings.

This is my old kitchen, can you see why I am so enthusiastic about my new one?

My egg collector, fought off a goose with that shovel to get that egg, he was proud.

When I say small I mean it, it was the back porch at one time. You can't see the small apartment stove next to the fridge but suffice it to say I couldn't bake a large pizza in it. The counter to your right was the only counter space available. The louvered door was not storage, it was the hot water heater. And I am pressed up against the sink wedged in between the washer and dryer. It was small.

Our old dining room. The door to the left was the coat closet my husband turned into a lovely pantry for me. This is another view of the room .

You can see the door to the kitchen here and the only heater in the house. There is my desk and some more reptile habitats, you can read more about them here. I'm the one that looks like I'll pop out another human being at any second. = )

I show you these old pictures (does 7 months count as old?) because I want everyone to know why I am sooo thankful for what I have now. When my ambition got the best of me God showed me that just because I don't have granite countertops or the newest kitchen gadget I could still be happy. In fact, we were a happier, closer knit family at that house than we ever were before we moved there.

I thank God every day for the blessing he has provided for our family and for the things we have now. I remind myself with these pictures so that I won't fall into the trap of "If I went to work, we could have more stuff" "If we made more money, we would be happier". God taught me a great many lessons, but that one is by far the most poignant in my life.

I'll probably continue posting and linking up with this series. I'll also continue posting more pictures of our old place, it's nice to look back and see where we came from. Hope y'all don't mind?

God Bless,

Melodie

Grocery Shopping and Freezer Cooking

2010-08-10T11:20:00.000-05:00

My Prep Chef and Official Taste Tester

I was doing this month's inventory and making my shopping/meal list and it hit me "I really need to get back into freezer cooking." So of course I hopped on over to Fish Mama's blog and was filled with new love for once a month cooking.

I can't tell you how helpful it was to have meals in the freezer when we had to move suddenly. I can only imagine how helpful they would have been if I had discovered this technique while ~~throwing my guts up~~ facing a serious few months of morning sickness with this last pregnancy.

I've already discussed the way I spread "Freezer Cooking Day" into a Freezer Cooking week so that I am less stressed.With my husband having 4 days off this weekend its the perfect time to get back into bulk cooking. I'm sure he's looking forward to me dragging him through 3-4 stores for our monthly groceries and then watching the kids while I destroy the kitchen, er, I mean cook ahead a bunch of meals. He's a great husband like that = )

Broccoli and Cheese Casserole

I'll do separate posts for my inventory/shopping system and then chronicle the cooking day via pictures etc. If you want a background on my budget and meal planning you can see it here. Some things have changed but overall I stick to what is written there. I'm looking forward to it and can't wait to hear if y'all freezer cook or what other methods you use to get dinner on the table easily. = )

God Bless,

Melodie

Pictures

2010-08-09T09:13:00.000-05:00

Okay, let me preface this post with saying:

I PROMISE that my boys own clothing. In fact that have tons of clothing. But, as you will see in the pictures below, they will usually just walk around in diapers. Why? Because we keep the thermostat set on 80 degrees in our house. This cuts down on electric bills and we're just used to it because at the old house we had one window unit and it was a record breaking summer. However, we are enjoying our new central a/c, promise = )

Want to know how to make it in Texas without any kind of a/c? Check out Kim's tips here. They live near San Antonio (south texas) and have NO air conditioning whatsoever. She is proof that you can get by without a lot of things that you think you need = )

"Look Mama! That baby in the mirror is sooo funny!"

Batman takes everything seriously,

especially cookies and milk!

Sunday morning baths, Jacob always helps out with Mikey.

That's all for now but you can count on more posts of cuteness at a later date. = ) Okay, just 2 more, I call these "Nap Time"

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.........

Y'all have a great day!

An Award... For ME????!

2010-08-06T14:09:00.001-05:00

The sweet lady at Stairstep Boys gave me an award!!!

Ok, now that I have picked me jaw up off the floor, I would like to thank God, my first grade teacher Mrs. Mills, coffee………

Seriously, I think that is so sweet and such an honor that people with such awesome, inspiring blogs take the time to read my scribbles. (Since its electronic are they still scribbles?)

So when you get an award you are supposed to:

1)acknowledge the award
2)tell 7 things about myself
3)and pass it on!

The Seven Things

1)At one time I knew all of the scientific names for every common (and some not so common) reptile pets. Pogona vitteceps, anyone?

2)I never used to wear dresses but I do all the time now, and love it!

3)I almost finished my degree to be a teacher but Hated College

4) I own 2 rifles, and a shotgun and used to be a pretty good shot when I practiced.

5) I never knew how to cook until I got married and taught myself. You can have pity on
my poor husband = (

6) Can’t believe I’m admitting this one but…..I used to dress gothic and was into Wicca in high school. How scary is that?

7)And…..I guess another animal one….When we traveled and sold pets at trade shows I wore an 8 foot albino Burmese python wrapped around me. You can see a picture here of when she was smaller. = )

And now to pass it along.Congrats y'all! Your blogs rock!

Renaissance

Our Meanwhile Ranch

Thy Hand Hath Provided

I Would Like to Thank.....(The books that got me from there to here)

2010-08-05T07:23:00.000-05:00

I was asked recently about what kinds of books I read and in particular, which ones “recovered me from feminism”. (Hi Tess!) = D

And it got me to thinking about it a great deal.

It has been hard for me so far to nail down an exact turning point where I drew the line and said I was going to be “this way” instead of “that way”. I can map out the road that led me to it but the pinnacle of the change eludes me.

Upon careful thought and consideration the only thing that I could come up with was a book. Well, The Book, The Holy Bible. I don’t want to risk sounding cliché but I remember when it happened.

When you read About Me you see that we, or more accurately, I had got us into quite a pickle trying to get our business to work. We lived in our shop, so to lose our business meant we were losing our home. We were devastated. I asked God for help which I had done many times before but this time I opened my heart. And most who are followers of Christ probably know what I mean. As much as our culture doesn’t like the word I submitted myself to God.
Tearfully, I opened the Bible.

For the first time in my life that Bible spoke to me. See, its not just about reading a book, if your heart is open and you have submitted your will to the Lord the Bible will speak to you. The words lept of the pages and into my heart. Everywhere I turned I could see a clear and definite path for my life and I wasn’t on it.
My ambition had gotten me far but I had forgotten to ask for direction and was going the opposite way. It reminds me to ask God daily to give me direction.
The most poignant thing that I gathered from that random Bible reading were the following verses:

Wives, be in subjection unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.
For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, being himself the saviour of the body. But as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives also be to their husbands in everything. (Eph. 5:22-24)

1Pe 3:1 In like manner, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, even if any obey not the word, they may without the word be gained by the behavior of their wives;

Let the husband render unto the wife her due: and likewise also the wife unto the husband. The wife hath not power over her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not power over his own body, but the wife. 1Co 7:3-4

I saw that I was not letting my husband lead me. The good little feminist I was, I was forging ahead and trying to lead him with disastrous results.

The next thing that really changed my outlook and my faith was the following blog:

http://inashoe.com

Especially this article http://inashoe.com/2007/08/patriarchy-is-not-a-bad-word/

I hasten to cite a mere blog as a driving influence but this woman is a Titus 2 woman if I ever saw one. She walks the walk and talks the talk. She convicted me as an anti-feminist as I realized through her example and the examples of others which she provided, that having it “all” would not make me happy. I learned that by submitting the the Lord I must also submit to my husband. And believe me, that was hard to swallow. But more on that in another post.

Through reading this blog and implementing many of the virtues I saw her portray (after looking through the Word and verifying them through scripture), I came upon book references and began to order them from Amazon.

The 1st most important one would be Passionate Housewives, Desperate for God. Beautifully written and full of scripture references, it addresses what the average housewife needs to know about the evils of feminism that we don’t even realize are there.

The 2nd book was The Excellent Wife., another great title about God’s plan for wives and mothers.

And the 3rd book was Becoming God’s True Woman.

We’ve also read the following list:

Family Driven Faith
The Fruit of Her Hands
Standing on the Promises
The Man in the Mirror
Shepherding a Child’s Heart.
Raising Godly Tomatoes.
Christian Living in the Home

There are so many more I would like to read but haven’t gotten around to it, namely the Pearl’s books Created to be His Helpmeet and To Train the Up.

I have hesitated on these because of the large amount of controversy surrounding them. I have heard many good things though and would love to hear y’alls input.

What books have convicted y’all in the ways of patriarchy, anti-feminism, biblical discipline or overall Christian living? I would love to hear!

God Bless,
Melodie

Cleaning Re-Schedule

2010-08-02T13:04:00.000-05:00

Just when I think that I'm getting this housekeeping thing down I have to take apart my schedule and re-organize it. grrrr
So far I do my cleaning in one day and spread my laundry out over a week. The rest of the week I don't do much other than play with the kids. While that's fun and all, I'm really not happy with myself killing myself that one day a week to get the house all spic and span.
Soooo....I've been talking with Jason on what he thinks I need to work on more around the house and how I could better manage my time. I found some great websites to use as well.

Large Family Logistics

Why am I sharing all of this? I NEED YOUR HELP! How do y'all schedule your cleaning. Do you clean everything once a week or break it up by day? Most of the tips on the blogs I read are for large families with able bodied children and I need some tips for when your doing it all by your lonesome. (Jacob does have chores but that's for another post)

Speaking of other posts, I have some neat things to share so those should be coming up soon:
- Ways to recycle things
-Cleaning schedule (if I can figure it out)
- Choosing A pet for your family (from my experience running a pet business)
- Discipline (expect a huge post on this one!)

Can't wait to hear y'alls input!

God Bless,
Melodie

New Church, part 3

2010-07-30T07:00:00.001-05:00

*Okay, this is the last post on this, Promise! I'm just glad to have the whole thing written down so we can look back and remember why we chose the path we did. It's kind of like a religious time capsule, right? Yeah, I know I'm a dork = )*

My checklist for a new church:

-Serious, open-hearted worship without bells, whistles, huge velvet lined sanctuaries and expensive staffs.

-Expository scripture teaching, as in going through the bible chapter by chapter instead of spinning a wheel and picking a verse.

- Children welcome in the sanctuary, not just tolerated. Even rowdy boys that require constant training.

- No laying of hands, funny dancing, convulsions or weird languages (I apologize to those who believe in that stuff, I just can't bring myself to go to a church where people act like that. To me, whatever they have, I don't want to catch it. = )

- No preacher worship. You would be surprised at how many churches that believe that the preacher deserves to be worshiped, as in idolized and waited on. This is ridiculous when there is only One who we should be worshiping.

- SAHM, yes I would like to see a few stay at home moms. When I told people I was a SAHM at the last church they looked at me like I was an alien, the green kind.

- Homeschooling moms would be a plus = )

Then I discovered the concept of Family Integrated Churches. They believe that if family was so important to God, and a main theme in the Bible, why are families being split up into categories in Church? Pretty common sense to me. I searched, there was ONE in the Waco area.

I cannot tell you the difference.

These people are serious about worship! The fellowship was wonderful! We met and got to know more people in our first visit than we did at our old church in the entire year.
The preacher and his Deacon swooped in as soon as we set down to eat and proceeded to sit beside us and talk to us. I was dumbfounded. A preacher who talks with his congregation? I mean, pastors always have their select few who they socialize with but this was different. He acted like a normal person.
We had a very nice conversation on faith and life. It was so refreshing.

Oh and by the way, most of the mothers, including the preachers wife, HOMESCHOOL. Can we say Halelujah?

As far as the kids being in the service, I was nervous. But the pastor and his wife put us at ease . However, we had programmed Jacob without realizing it. Church = play time. Oops. Now how do we fix that?
But surprisingly he only had to be taken out a couple times and the church building has a crying room right behind the sanctuary so it was far easier to discipline and redirecting him simpler that I had thought it would be.
I can see this being an on-going process but it is so worth it to have our family together, worshiping God together, singing together…..
It just feels……..right.

We feel strengthened in our Faith. We spend even more time in the Word at home. We spend our free time reading theological books and articles, referencing everything to the Bible.

It's been a month now and we feel like a spiritual weight has been lifted. NOW, we see whey Christians are encouraged to attend church. It's not just a social get together people! It's a place to fill your cup when it runs dry. It's a place to escape to after battling the secular world for 6 days. It is the Lord's day, and we finally feel like that is how we are spending it, with the Lord.

Praise God for his wisdom and grace.

The New Church, Part 2

2010-07-29T08:00:00.004-05:00

*Okay, now this part of the post is going to sound like venting and that's because that's what it is. What I don't want it to sound like is that "my child is perfect and never does anything wrong" the point I'm trying to make with the following story is that when your children are being taught/cared for by someone else that you run the risk of exposing your children to someone who does not have the same vision as you in discipline/morals etc. We've adopted a rather strict discipline procedure in our home. (See "Shepherding a Childs Heart" and "Raising Godly Tomatoes") I'll be sure to address our specific methods in another post. *

We attended the church for about a year. I had found out I was pregnant 2 days before our first day at church and Mikey was around 6 weeks when we stopped going.

I liked the church, don’t get me wrong. It was very uplifting and a great time. The “offering plate” was a very large dutch oven at the back of the church where you could drop money in and no one would could judge. The music was varied in style but always performed by a guy with a guitar and excellent singing voice. Everyone was nice……

So why did we stop going, you ask? The bottom line was: We needed more. The preaching was basic, good messages but not a lot of depth, with an emphasis on spending time daily in the Word . Jason and I checked that one off our list. At first mention of reading proverbs daily we did it and then expanded our time to include a chapter or two from a book, working through the New Testament. We wanted to know more, we wanted a better understanding of Jesus. It seemed that we were only skimming the top of deep subject matter that needed more consideration.

Issue number 2 was the preacher not liking children. I do believe he was joking when he said “I don’t like kids” in front of the congregation and I took it as: well, everyone has their weaknesses. Afterall, I had never been *good* with kids either.

But it didn’t take us long to realize that children were not welcome. From day one Jacob had gone into the nursery because, well, that’s where children go. They started taking volunteers for said nursery from the congregation, everyone was supposed to have their turn. I got nervous, I didn’t know these people?! We began having problems.

Every day when we would go to pick Jacob up he had done something (i.e. pushed a kid, took a toy away) that required discipline but instead of sending someone for me they would just stick him in time out.

I can just hear his little mind working, “Time out? That’s all you got?” as he laughed to himself and continued his shenanigans every Sunday.

I expressed to them that I needed to punish him when he acted badley but they would tell me not to worry about it “he was just being a boy”.

Hmmmmm. Observations of the nursery and interactions between the caregivers and the tots confirmed that there was more gossip going on than actual caregiving. For those of you with toddlers (or who once had toddlers) you know that if you don’t watch them you can’t train them, that disputes can be stopped before they start, if you’re watching.

The last straw was when one of the lovely ladies brought my son to me (hand clenched around his wrist, his arm fully extended up, her with a bitter expression plastered on her face) and told me he had pushed a “baby” down.

“oh my goodness!” I replied and started to talk to Jacob, he knew that was unacceptable and by placing his hand over his bottom to guard it he knew what was about to happen to him. When the “angry lady” realized that a spanking was about to take place her demeanor changed, smiling she said “It’s okay, just don’t do it again” He was just being “a boy”.

!?!?!

I left chuch that day downright angry, I mean which was it? Was he misbehaving or wasn’t he? Had the incident been an accident? Jason was beside himself and said that if we did go back Jacob would no longer be in the nursery.

After much prayer I realized I only had myself to blame. Whose child was he? He was my child. Why was I letting others train My child? Uuuhhhhhh………

To Be continued, again = )

Speechless

2010-07-29T07:00:00.002-05:00

Because there are no words for this.......

Back to School Materialism

2010-07-28T09:30:00.000-05:00

As I was perusing through the local store ads online for good deals the "Back to School" sales caught my eye. There were all manner of writing implements, papers, folders with funny looking cartoons on them and then......clorox wipes, kleenex, hand disinfectant????

My mother, who works at the school I attended, says that these things are, in fact, on the required school supplies list? So, the tax dollars, including the ones we pay even though we homeschool, aren't enough to buy hand soap and desk cleaner? Now, parents are required to clean the school and provide basic personal hygiene items, while paying to send their children to school!!!

The question is, do we really need all of this stuff to learn? Even when I was in school I questioned the obligatory 2 boxes of kleenex because at years end low and behold the closets would be stuffed full of such kleenex yet it did not deter the teachers from requiring it yet again the next year. Does this really make sense?

While staring at all of the doo-dads and thing-a-ma-jigs that your children "just have to have to be cool" and trying to avoid the stick-thin teenage models in barely-there clothing I noticed another note : "Many students can't afford even the basic school supplies, see how you can help!"

What do they consider basic? Once upon a time a single slate and chalk were basic. But if you send your child to school with merely paper and a pencil not only will the bullies bring out their claws but your children will actually be disciplined for it.

Aren't we missing the point with all this? Why can't people realize that a Hannah Montana folder will not make their child truly happy? Why can't people realize that teachers, or schools rather, do not have you or your child's best interest at heart? (I speak from experience and by saying this I mean "most" teachers, there are a few good souls out there but far fewer than most people think)

This saddens me. It's another nail in the coffin of Christianity. If we can't stop embracing the world and start separating ourselves from it I believe we are to suffer a worse fate than Sodom and Gomorah.

*Disclaimer: I am by no means insinuating that new school supplies = materialistic self centeredness. I too become giddy over the idea of colorful folders and new notebooks. Oh, and the highlighters with sticky notes in them? LOVE! Please take the message as the overall theme and don't nit-pick. = )

The New Church

2010-07-27T07:24:00.000-05:00

I meant to just jot down a little something about finding a new church but when I began writing out came this journal of not only our search for a church but part of our spiritual journey as well. Being so long I will post in segments but I will post it in its entirety so that one year, 5 years, 10 years from now we can look back and see where we were as a family, as Christians.

God bless,

Melodie

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Why Church?

My family and my husbands family didn’t go to church. I mean, Jason and I had been to church……a few times with friends, uncles, grandmas etc.

But neither of us felt that it was necessary much less did we like going.

The churches I went to were like one of those chocolate bunnies you get at Easter. Looks good on the outside, but hollow on the inside. The Casting Crowns song Stained Glass Masquerade comes to mind.

The people were often more worried about what you put in the offering plate than the salvation of your soul. They were always looking for the next building addition, the next shiny doo-dad, the next church bible-camp retreat.

These people weren't serious, so why should I be serious about God? I didn't want to go to church to parade around as if in a fashion show and gossip about my fellow church-goers. I saw the whole thing as a colossal waste of time, I believed there was a God and to me that was enough... for a long time anyway.

Fast forward to our move to Waco, we can skip the tale of losing the business and being heartbroken. You can read more about that in About Me.

I had finally “woke up and smelled the coffee” as my family would say. I had submitted my prideful and ambitious will to God and this time I wasn’t turning from Him when things got all rosy and sunshiny again. It took breaking my spirit to lift it up, I had always been His Reluctant Daughter.

I had discovered (I have no idea how, perhaps God led me?) blogs and articles on the internet promoting “biblical womanhood” and they spoke to my soul. They perfectly described the inward struggles I had had with happiness over the course of my life. They told of how ambition and trying to be head of the house will lead to disaster. They showed a lovely picture of feminine, not feminist, mothers content at home with their families about them. They told that children were blessings, not burdens that childhood wasn't something to just get through. (These blogs are in the sidebar and on my links page)

As I began this complete spiritual and mental overhaul their was always the part of me that yearned for church. Not just any church, mind you, but THE CHURCH.

My husband, Jason, was on board and told me to go ahead and find one. I began to search desperately and at last came upon a “cowboy church” about 20 minutes away. Simple, no frills, basic teaching. So we set off that Sunday, nervous as kids on the first day of school. To be continued.

The Church, Yard Sales and Other News

2010-07-18T00:24:00.000-05:00

I'm currently working on a new post about our decision to change churches where I'll discuss the why, when and how. But suffice it to say that we are now attending a different church Waco Family Baptist Church and feel completely at peace with our decision. We are so excited about what this change may mean for our lives and the spiritual growth of our family!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

I HEART YARD SALES! I have never been an excellent yard-sale-shopper but am absolutely determined to get better. I read a great post on Raising Olives blog and it helped me sort through a lot of the problems I was having. For example, I would drive by a yard sale and see piles of junk on tables, write it off as *junk* and drive away quickly. But now I try to stop. and. look. And low and behold I thought I did pretty well today!

Well, I won't be winning any awards for photography and please excuse the pile of books, coffee cup, unswept floor............
I purchased the following for myself: yellow dress shirt, blue dress shirt, blue floral skirt, red sweater, white sweater, purse and jean jacket with fur collar ( am I going to have to brush that thing regularly?)
For the boys: I found a tigger costume for Jacob (Mikey is going to be Pooh!) and I found 4 dress shirts for little Mikey.
I spent a grand total of $20. Not too shabby in my eyes and way cheaper than goodwill.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In other news......it's hot. Getting over 100 now but I thank God everyday it is not a repeat of last summer with 30 days of 100 and over.

With the help of my mother I have filled my flower beds and pots and added some hanging planters to our new rent house. Her green thumb go me started, if only I can keep my brown thumb from killing them.

Potty training is a disaster. We were doing good for a while and then not so good. *sigh* I try to remind myself that he will learn and he won't wear diapers forever.

Mikey's first two teeth came in last Sunday---during church. I discovered this when he latched down on my finger in the middle of the service. Ouch. The little fella handled it okay and is well on his way to chewing on everything.

I've been reading Family Driven Faith by Voddie Bauchman. I love this book. I am amazed at how technologically behind I am....did you know there were e-books? That there are books that cost less and can be read on your computer? Woah.....this is cool. There will be a post coming on this book for sure.

Well, that's a wrap for now, the kiddos are in bed, the hubby's on call and I am t-i-r-e-d..

God Bless,

Melodie

Having Faith When Those Around You Don't

2010-06-30T13:28:00.004-05:00

“No one lights a lamp and hides it in a jar or puts in under a bed. Instead, he puts it on a stand so that those who come in can see the light.” Luke 8:16.

Once I developed a personal relationship with Jesus Christ I hid it. Isn’t that sad? This amazing discovery, a new chapter of my life and I hid it from everyone except my husband ( who I share EVERYTHING, yes EVERYTHING with).

Fear drove the decision. Fear of being seen as silly, of being made fun of, of being cast out. I hid my feelings in my heart, not following Jesus’ commandment at all.

Every night my husband reads the bible, proverbs, psalms and then a chapter or two in a book we’re working on. We were reading Mathew and he read the following:

“But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.” Mathew 10:33

An arrow of guilt struck me in the heart. Had I not been denying him? Had I not hidden the light he wished for me to shine? For what? To please mere mortals who have no power over my life whatsoever? I slept on it.

I realized the people I was trying most to hide my faith from was my family. While holding a belief in God and baptism my parents never put much stock into attending church or even having prayer/personal Bible time at home. I think this is due to the fact that my parents could not agree on a religion or even the details of their faith.

But, as I see it now, being a Christian is not something that you are only aware of and put on display just on Sundays. Being Christain means always being a Christian. Every action, word and even thought should be formed by your faith and what God has set before us to do.

I remember how it used to annoy me that “bible-thumpers” put God into everything. I can laugh at myself now because I realize how central God is to everything.

One of the most common misconceptions of Christians is that we’re perfect. That is not what Christianity is about. We are decidedly not-perfect. We make mistakes. We have tendancies towards greed, lust and envy just like everyone else. What makes us special? We are forgiven by One who wiped away our sins long ago. We have the perfect model in which to follow in our lives, Jesus.

When this concept becomes clear to you, the world becomes a different place and you a different person. You can’t help but tell people about the amazing things that faith have done in your life. You want to spread the joy and help lift the heavy spiritual burdens those around you carry.

As you glow with the awesome love of Jesus those around you start to whisper. Some will be open books as you start to tell them of this new person you have become, but as I have found, most will not.

In Mathew 10:34, Jesus said

"Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword."

He did not come to bring peace on earth but to divide. Mother agains daughter, father against son. He has called us to draw a line in the sand. While the 5th Comandment says to honor your mother and father the 1st comandment says to honor God.

I don’t believe everyone should run and hide from non believers but we should not let their opinions ruffle us. We are to be a lamp, shining brightly. “No one lights a lamp and hides it”. Therefore, don’t try to hide the fact that you are Christian to make others more comfortable.

That’s what I had been doing.

I know you can’t convert anyone by badgering them but hiding your faith by purposefully leaving it out of any and all conversations will only show one thing---that you are ashamed of Jesus.

If you have guests over and it is in your tradition to pray at the table, then do so. If it is your tradition to read passages in the Bible before bed time, do so. But of the utmost importance, let your words and actions resemble those that Christ would be proud of. We will make mistakes, but if you let Jesus lead your heart, you will follow it in your ways.

The benefits of this way of thinking are 2 fold. Not only are you leading a Christian life to the best of your ability you are showing those around you what a Christian should be. You are a testimony to God’s wonders. Now doesn’t’ that sound nice?

I have had a hard time following these principles, but as I have thought on it and prayed I now know what I must do.

I am a people-pleaser at heart. I want nothing more than for everyone to be happy with me and what I do. I worry about what others think, I stress over things I have done and said and what the consequence may have been. I have been known to change how I am if it makes someone uncomfortable. But I can do this no longer.

While having others feelings in my thoughts and doing for them as I would have them do to me is very important, worrying about what “mere mortals” think of me is not. I have to reveal my lamp and no longer hide it when I feel out of place or scared. The Christian life is not all gumdrops and sunshine, Christ proved that.

It helps to know that I am not alone. So to the mockers and the fools: Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour has my back, who has yours?
And to quote the Sunday school song:

"THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE I'M GOING TO LET IT SHINE."
"LET IT SHINE, LET IT SHINE, LET IT SHINE."

God Bless,

Melodie

2010-06-25T16:03:00.002-05:00

My Family from WiddlyTinks.com

WFMW: Adventures in Potty Training

2010-05-05T08:45:00.000-05:00

Although I started potty training my son before he was 2 we are just now making progress at almost 3. I didn’t push the subject because he gets frustrated easily when he can’t do something and there were many changes in our lives that I figured would set him back such as the addition of his little brother and the move out into the country.

My husband thinks it’s the move that has helped him. I know it has helped me become more organized and have a concrete schedule so perhaps it has helped him as well.
The method I use includes:

1) Regular ol’ diapers – no pull ups etc because, well, their EXPENSIVE. When he can go in the potty without many accidents we will go to the Cars underwear.

2) Tic Tacs for rewards. They don’t have enough of anything in them to be considered candy and I don’t bribe him with them. I try to focus on potty training being a sign that he’s a “big boy” and the tic tacs are just an extra.

3) I set a timer- I am scatter brained and I will forget he needs to go potty so I don’t expect his little toddler brain to remember without a reminder.

4) Punishment only if he tries to hide that he had an accident. Hiding it, to us, is the same as lying. If he comes to me and tells me he had an accident I’m no pleased but there is no consequence, only a reminder to do better next time.

5) Cars potty seat- it can’t hurt right?

I also give him a sippy cup full of juice when we head to the bathroom, I think it helps. And then we clap and cheer when he goes.
We have made real progress is just the past few days!

So that’s what works for me, what about ya’ll? I would love to hear how those with boys do on their potty training!

Ours is sitting down for now, do ya’ll teach ya’lls to stand or sit?
What kind of rewards do you use?
What ages did you start/finish?
I would love any tips, suggestions or questions.

I HEART COMMENTS!

God Bless,

Melodie

By God's Grace

2010-04-23T20:53:00.004-05:00

We moved. I didn’t really want to, I loved my little house but circumstances beyond our control made it a good choice. As in, the land we were renting didn’t even belong to the rental company (!!!!) and the real owner had sold it to the highway department to expand the highway (!!!!!). No, I’m not kidding.

We had a few hiccups while moving such as truck/trailer problems, said truck getting stuck in mud, dogs getting loose while we were gone, chickens being eaten, things being stolen from our old house, utilities not getting connected as ordered and many bumps and bruises from moving everything by ourselves.

But thanks to God’s grace and endless blessings we found an ideal place, began to rent it and had the majority of our belongings moved in 3 days!

Our new place is still a rental property, we’re just not ready for the large down payment to buy and we kind of like the fact that someone else is responsible for the hot water heater etc. = )
It is our dream place really. It’s a 3 bed 2 bath trailer house on 10 acres filled with lush grass, tall trees and a creek running through it. We’re told there is abundant wildlife including: feral hogs, deer, rabbits, opossums, racoons, various birds and , as we found out yesterday, crawfish!?!

The available game coupled with the ability to now raise our own beef and meat chickens and have a LARGE garden plot makes us extrememly happy!

The trailer is nice but needs a little work so I’m busy painting over the ever-lovely color coordinating pink and hunter green wallpaper (yuck!) and will be helping Jason rip up the matching pink carpet and laying down a fake tile the landlords picked out.
I think it will look positively marvelous when we’re done.

On to my favorite part----THE KITCHEN. I’ve never had so much counter and cabinet space in MY LIFE. Its positively inspiring!

My freezer cooking REALLY paid off during this move, no meals to prepare, no dishes to wash. And with this kitchen I can see endless possibilities with continuing this.

The previous renters (who were kind of shady characters) left a large dining table with chairs and a very large hutch behind and the landlords said that we can use them if we want. So my smallish dining table and hutch went into storage and I filled this hutch with our pantry contents. Now, everything is organized and in one place!

Downsides, you ask?

1)Well the front of the property runs along a semi-busy highway but the hosue is set back and acre or so. We can hear the cars but it beats living in the city between 2 highways and by the railroad tracks.

2) Can anyone say fleas??!!!?? I think the previous renters left more behind than some furniture.

3) NO CABLE INTERNET!!!!! = ( The only thing available in this area is dial up, which I’m using out of desperation, or satelite which is EXTREMELY expensive.

So, while moving wasn’t exactly what we had planned, its obviously what God had planned for us and by His Grace everything fell into place. (Hey! That rymed…..I’m such a goober) Thank God for the small things and the big ones too!

God Bless,
Melodie

Absence

2010-04-17T00:26:00.000-05:00

I apologize for the absence from my blog. It turns out that we are moving rather hurriedly to a new house and I am sure you all understand how hectic that can be, especially when we have yet to get internet set up at the new place.

But we're excited and I can't wait to tell you all the changes and catch up on my posts!

God Bless,
Melodie

WFMW: Freezer Cooking Week Instead of Day

2010-04-07T14:51:00.000-05:00

This is my first ever Works-For-Me Wednesday post!!!!! Can you tell I'm excited?!? It's also a little late....oops. = )

I have just recently started freezer cooking and I admit, it was very daunting at first. Although we do not have a large family its is still so much easier to have meals 1/2 way prepared so that we are not tempted to eat junk or worse, eat out.

However, the big day of cooking was not working. I was overwhelmed and my tiny little kitchen could not handle it. And by tiny, I mean its approximately 9 x 6. Yep, it was once a porch that the previous owners re-purposed for a kitchen. I'll be sure to post pictures later = ).

Back on topic, I decided that instead of cramming it into a day I could spread it out over a week. Its still a lot of work but 1 weeks worth of work is a lot better than the grueling task of figuring out what to fix each. and. every. night and undoubtedly not having anything thawed out.

For example, this week I did my planning and shopping on Monday. On Tuesday I made my vegetable dishes: broccoli and cheese casserole and deserts: banana pudding.

Today I made my beef dishes: shepherds pie, Cavatini (to die for!), and browned some extra to toss into spagetti etc later.

Tomorrow I will make my chicken dishes: chicken pot pie, warm chicken salad and extra chicken for other dishes.

And finally, Friday I will make my corn dog muffins (I can't remember where I got this recipe, can anyone help?) and homemade ham and cheese hot pockets. I will also chop up and freeze some onion to have for recipes and make another batch of breakfast burritos, sausage patties and waffles.

While most people like knocking it out in one day, I find that Freezer cooking is best spread out and that's what Works for Me.

$1 Easter Lilly's at HEB and More

2010-04-05T12:01:00.000-05:00

I hit the after-Easter sales today at walmart and HEB. All of the Easter merchandise and candy are 1/2 off at walmart. Beware though, some things are still cheaper if you buy the regular type of candy instead of the "Easter version". I did get a great deal on Resses eggs that are the same as the regular candy.

This sale is especially wonderful because we don't get to celebrate the commercial egg-hunting part of Easter until the 18th. So by waiting until today I got everything I needed for Jacob's Easter for 1/2 off! woohoo!

Another tip: If you wait until next weekend the pickens' will be slim but everything will be 75 percent off or more!

HEB had Easter 6 inch Easter Lilly's for $1! They are a spring flower so I don't think they last long but for a $1? AWESOME.

Hope this helps!

*Thanks for the image:

Giveaway by At the Well

2010-04-05T08:10:00.002-05:00

At the Well has a fabulous giveaway going on this week. They also have a raffle going with some amazing prize packages. For details on entering click here

Baby Food Deal

2010-04-03T16:26:00.000-05:00

I know many of you don't use baby food but if you do I found a great deal at Dollar Tree of all places.

Now Dollar Tree, mind you, is a tricky place. They persuade you into buying things you don't need with their promise of "Everything for $1.00" and often times you can, in fact, get the item cheaper at Walmart. However, they do have some great deals on things like homeschool supplies, picture frames and baby odds and ends.

Today, I found Gerber baby food 3 for $1.00, so roughly .33 cents a piece. I usually pay .60 something-cents for the same at Walmart or H.E.B. I know what your thinking, but don't worry, I checked all of the expiration dates and they're A-okay. The only down side of this deal is the selection. They usually only have cereal and fruit combination's but its a good staple to keep around.

In fact, while feeding my latest addition by 2 1/2 year old has been known to steal bites of the oatmeal/apple sauce/banana. And I know I could make this cheaper but the convenience is hard to beat = )

Know of any good deals? Feel free to share!

*The graphic used came from the site below*

Being Frugal with Food---Grocery Budgeting

2010-04-01T09:26:00.006-05:00

The 4 Moms, 35 Kids post today inspired me to jot down the methods I use when I budget and shop for groceries. Even though we have only have two little ones at the moment I have adopted a lot of these practices in case there are more in our future. Not to mention, its always good to save money, right?

Budgeting

Because we are only a family of 4 our budget doesn't look anything like a lot of families. We a lot $255 every two weeks for expenses. Expenses include: Gas for our van and my husband's truck, feed for the chickens, dogs and menagerie of reptiles and groceries, personal items and household supplies. So out of that I spend approximately $50-$60 a week on actual food, roughly $15 a person weekly or $60 a person monthly. While I don't think that's too shabby, some may think I'm spending too much. It all depends on where you are in life as to how you look at things.

Eating Out

We do not eat out except for special occasions and then I scour the net for coupons and special deals. If we are going to be in town running errands we pack a lunch or we come back home to eat. (We live right on the edge of the city so this isn't too hard). My husband packs his lunch every day and sometimes gets to come home to eat.

Eating Habits

Okay, now with that budget in mind let me also tell you how we eat. We have meat every day of the week and there is not a whole lot of rice but we do love pasta. We do eat fresh fruit and veggies but only what is in season/on sale. We do not eat prepackaged cookies, ice cream, soda etc. I usually make one dessert item a week, such as a pie or cookies. Soda and ice cream are reserved for dining out on special occasions.

The boys eat what we eat.....or they get awful hungry. Of course I keep in mind if they do have severe aversions to certain foods and I be sure to include an alternative if I can, but this doesn't happen often.

Planning

I used to plan a weekly menu around our local grocery ads and coupons. This worked well, but I have found that if I wait for things to go on sale and then buy them in bulk I tend to get a better deal. I then simply base my menu on the stockpile of bought-on-sale items in my freezers and my pantry. This post by Smockity is a good reference on how to grocery shop in your own house.

We only buy things like cheese and some canned goods in bulk. We also find that the produce and meat at places like Sams are both a better deal and often better quality.

I find that the HEB meal deals and sales are often worthwhile and will get most of our other groceries from there.

I hate going into Walmart so I try to avoid it at all costs.

The "day old bread store" is a very frugal place and worth the little extra drive. I usually find wheat bread for .85 cents a loaf so I buy several and freeze them.

The farmers market is a frequent stop in the summer, and this year I plan on freezing some of that great produce so we don't have to rely on non-organic during the winter.

This year we were given a 1/4 of a cow by my parents and intend on purchasing one a year. I believe the beef is still partially corn fed but at least I know where exactly its from and who butchered it.

In a few months we will have some meat chickens to process but until then, if its on sale, we eat it.

Coupons

I do clip/print coupons and pair them with sales but I have some criteria for this.

The item has to be a really good sale.
The item has to be something we will actually eat.

You would be surprised how many over-priced items that people tend to buy just because they have a coupon for it.

Convenience

While we avoid most convenience items such as TV dinners, pre-packaged snacks and soft drinks, there are a few things we indulge (or you could say invest) in.
When considering whether or not to purchase a frozen pizza for example, I consider the following:

What is the cost compared to eating out? Take-out Pizza is outrageous!
What is the cost compared to making it from scratch? I have made pizza from scratch before, but sometimes we are just looking for a quick meal due to busy schedules.
Am I willing to sacrifice a little spending money in order to not to have to cook this item from scratch? This is what it all boils down to: Am I willing to sacrifice money for convenience? Often the answer is no, but some days the answer is a definite YES and I go ahead and make the purchase, keeping in mind I have to pull that money from spending because that purchase was not in the grocery budget.

Where I Am Not Frugal

We buy paper towels. There I said it...whew, such a relief!

We are less frugal on certain things like buying paper towels but there is always room for improvement, right?
**Disclaimer**We do use reusable rags etc for most chores the paper towels are more for "emergencies".

Other things I have not been so frugal on:
-Bottled Green tea- its the only thing my husband asks for.....ever. So we buy it in bulk for his lunches.
-Disposable Diapers- I went back to cloth and then my parents gave us 2 cases of diapers. So I guess technically we are still being frugal.
- Buying bread- although I am getting it cheap, I know that homemade is better and cheaper still. I used to make my own, but right now with a toddler and a baby, its one of those sacrifices I'm willing to make. = )
- 6 oz of chocolates for $10!!!!!!- well, this was because I felt sorry for the 2 little boys that came to sell goodies for their school fundraiser. But being that expensive I'm enjoying them even more....hehe.

Things I want to try in the future:
-Home-made granola instead of cereal
-making my own baby food

Do ya'll have any ideas? How do you keep the budget trim and slim every month?
I would love to hear suggestions and like to answer questions!

God Bless,
Melodie

Garden 2010

2010-03-31T14:40:00.006-05:00

I am so excited I can hardly stay in place!

This past weekend we purchased our plants and seeds for this years garden and I must say I am very optimistic. Of course, every gardener is optimistic at the beginning of the season before the drought and the bugs and the children and puppies dig everything up and.......

But we're not going to think about that right now because it's spring in central Texas and its BEAUTIFUL!

This year we plan to use the Square Foot Gardening Method

It seems that this method is simple and effective. If anyone has used it I would love some input!

I have also been pretty ambitious on my flower bed planning and think that it will be both pretty and useful.

You want a recap of last year you say? Well, the garden started off nicely. We had tons of green beans and tomatoes and okra for us and squash and greens for our critters.

But in May I discovered I was pregnant (yipee!) and my old friend morning sickness soon followed (boo!) Did you know that plants won't survive without water and weeding? Not to mention it was one of the hottest summers on record. Sooooo.....the rest of the summer was spent on the couch or with my head in the toilet while my poor garden whithered away outside. (Beautiful imagery, huh?)
We'll call it a "good trial run" though. = )

So with the future looking bright here is a list of what we hope to plant this year:

cucumber
carrot
onion
lettuce (bibb and looseleaf)
green beans
watermelon
pumpkin (2 types)
heirloom tomatoes
bell peppers
sage
rosemary
yellow squash
collard greens
blackberry bushes (2)

sunflowers
morning glory's
marigolds
petunias
delphiniums
dahlias
campion?

Wish us luck! We'll be posting pictures!

**UPDATE** We didn't even get the flowers planted when our puppy decided to use them as chew toys. So, we have had some losses. = (

Plans Of Things To Come

2010-03-25T11:19:00.005-05:00

Okay....I made a blog, I posted an Intro....now what?

All you ladies with your awe-inspiring blogs make things look easy!

In order to post something and to let you know I'm still here I brainstormed some ideas about future postings:

- Beginning Homeschool
My oldest is 2 1/2 and while I am not committing to a regimented school "curriculum" I have decided to make our "learning time" more concrete and scheduled. I found some great resources that I'll put the links up for.

- Rowdy Boys and Discipline
I figured, why beat around the bush? I'll go ahead and make people mad at me right off the bat by giving my strong opinions on discipline. You can follow us on our current struggle with turning our out-of-control toddler into the blessing we know he can be through bible-based discipline.

- Chickens 2010
Last year we lept fearlessly into the world of poultry raising but this year we have a plan. Lord willing, we will expand our egg layers and have some in the freezer by years end. Follow us through the learning process of processing our own meat.....and pray for us too!

- Submission
Yes ladies, I am going there. Too many young wives have been lured from biblical teachings by the golden calf of feminism. Now that I have found the blessings of being a godly wife I hope I can help others do the same.

I also plan to post a list of book reviews and blog suggestions for ya'll. More pictures are coming, I promise. Suggestions? Questions? I would LOVE to hear them!

God Bless,
Melodie

Introduction Part II

2010-02-22T10:49:00.006-06:00

*Be sure to read Introduction first*

The climax of this story comes when I, the unsatisfiable, decides that we need to move to increase our business opportunities. We found a building in a small town to set up a pet shop. the landlord was a strongly feminist woman, almost to the point of man-hating. Needless to say, I got us in over our heads, buried in a mountain of debt and no where to go, miles from home.

Our stay there was anything but pleasant. I constantly quarreled with my husband, who I had manipulated into doing what I wanted much the way Eve had done Adam. Soon after moving in our landlady (bitterly divorced) saw no reason for my husband and filled my head again with all sorts of worldly ideas under the guise of a Godly sister just trying to help.

Embittered towards my husband, enraged by my plans for a grand business not panning out, worried by debt and depressed by our situation, I finally turned where I should have all along, God.

The proverbial light bulb came on and I immediately saw the error of my ways. I had disregarded my husband as leader of our family and shirked my God-given duties of being a mommy to my little boy. I had been the fool so oft spoken of in Proverbs and I was humbled by this.

I handed my life over to God and told Him to lead the way.

"..and to him who knocks, the door will be opened." Mat 7:7

Soon after, my husband found a job that he enjoyed and we found a rent house that would take us with our bad credit and mengagerie of animals in tow. I had a special feeling about this house; a little dilapidated 1930's 2 bedroom, 1 bath with a large yard and storage shed; it was a perfect fit. I fully believed, and still do, that God led us to this house just as he led my husband to his new job.

Our debt still lingered from my reckless decision, we put everything into paying it off. When our hectic pace brought on by the new transition died down I took stock of everything. We didn't have much, we had given up everything to make the move and our business work. We had to sell most of our animals to pay our debt, our business was officially closed. And yet, we were happy. Truly happy. We had each other, I found a new joy at being able to stay home with my son, making up for time lost. I had trusted God and he led us, its as simple as that.

I set out a new goal, based upon bible reading and the leadership of other anti-feminist Christian women ( many whom you will find in my blog roll). I became joyfully submissive to my husband, prayed daily, sought out a church, tried to think kind thoughts and concentrated on being a helpmeet to my husband and a Godly mother.

For the first time in my life I felt fulfilled. I didn't need to make money to contribute to our family. I realized that every time I made dinner or wiped a nose I was contributing the way I should be. My husband and I began to get along beautifully, everything was clicking into place.

God had already blessed us so much but in April he blessed us a gain and I became pregnant with our second son. Over time I have only grown stronger in my faith, I have improved immensely in housekeeping and find myself having a lot more patience.
God's love is astounding and I owe all of this to Him.

Introduction

2010-02-22T10:32:00.007-06:00

Isn't it funny that the more discouraging our paths in life, the more awe-inspiring the outcomes is?

"But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life.." Mathew 7:13

The path that led me to where I am today was one driven by foolish ambition fueled by feminist and worldly teachings. however, the choices made were truly mine and I hold myself accountable for both the good and the bad.

I was never satisfied. Not with my job, my degree choices (there were many changes), my home or my family. I kept searching for the next thing to make me happy, a better job, a bigger place, a new gadget or more clothes.

I never really knew God until just a few years ago. Before that I only knew of Him as a biblical boogie man who punished those who were bad. my parents had both been discouraged by religion, as I would be after attending a few random services and vacation bible school's.

I am sure God, through his grace, led me to my husband after going through a really bad relationship. But as many of us do, I went to God when I needed him and then turned my back on him when everything was "okay".

-------------------------------------

God helped me find my husband but we quarreled often, if I didn't get my way I would stomp my foot to get what I wanted. (Very embarrassing now that I think about it)
I continued my search for happiness through degree and job changes, even the establishment of a family pet business. And then I became pregnant with my son. "Now I'll be happy" I thought. But pressure came from everywhere that I couldn't be fulfilled staying at home with my baby, why, I wasn't even contributing anything. I had to finish my degree and obtain a high paying job, because money is the goal in life, right?

So my new, all consuming goal was our business. I figured it I was going to stay home I needed to find some way to be productive. So as I immersed myself int he feeding and housing requirements of a 100 reptiles and small animals and chased after the almighty dollar, my son grew up. He was there with me, but I was miles away.

Continued- Introduction: Part II

Drawing Water

Its Been A While

What to do?

Today

I have no title....

Why I Haven't Been Here

A Calling

New Year, New House, New...everything

Guess what??

Moving?

For Today: The Simple Womans Daybook

Potty Training Update

The New Routine

Being Thankful That Thanksgiving Wasn't Worse

The Devil Doesn't Like Baptisms

Sola dei Gloria--Glory to God Alone

Baptism

Psalm 127 Part 2

Psalm 127 Part 1

EMERGENCY: AMAZON BOYCOTT

Just Random Thoughts

Shhhhh! Don't tell the Potty Police.....

Discipline

Children and Chores

So, what IS going on with us?

Camping Trip Recap and Park Review

*REVISED* The Sabbath

Do You Know What Your Church Stands For?

Tough Topics: Submission Part 3

I'm Back....

Hold Everything, Stop the Press!

Tough Topics: Submission Part 2

Tough Topics: Submission Part 1

I'm done fiddling.....promise.

"Over the River and Through the Woods.......

Homemaker Does Not Equal Slave

Pondering Family Worship

Our Living Areas: Then and Now

WFMW: Swiffer Refills the Cheap Way

Because Of Who You Are

OOPS......Thursday Posting Mix Up

Re-using Containers

Our Kitchen and Dining: Then and Now

Grocery Shopping and Freezer Cooking

Pictures

An Award... For ME????!

I Would Like to Thank.....(The books that got me from there to here)

Cleaning Re-Schedule

New Church, part 3

The New Church, Part 2

Speechless

Back to School Materialism

The New Church

The Church, Yard Sales and Other News

Having Faith When Those Around You Don't

WFMW: Adventures in Potty Training

By God's Grace

Absence

WFMW: Freezer Cooking Week Instead of Day

$1 Easter Lilly's at HEB and More

Giveaway by At the Well

Baby Food Deal

Being Frugal with Food---Grocery Budgeting

Garden 2010

Plans Of Things To Come

Introduction Part II

Introduction

REVISED The Sabbath