October 2006

Oct. 31, 2006 - How Do You Do It All?

This question was asked recently and here is my response. We don't have it together here! LOL We all can probably say we have unfinished things and really are all at different stages in our lives. I don't have time for crafts right now. I do read or visit here on the computer while nursing or in little spurts, quickly. I think the main thing that has helped me is to have my priorities in my mind---- to have a vision for what I want for our family and household. Also, finding satisfaction in progress is a good motivater to get things done. I have found that getting school done by lunchtime just thrills me! Having the livingroom straight and the countertops cleared gives me a satisfying feeling. On the other hand I really do put off mopping my floors. They only get done every 2-3 weeks right now. I am satisfied with having the laundry washed and put away each day but having a messy computer desk doesn't bother me in the least! What satisfies me might not matter to you and vice versa. I'd suggest starting with small things like having a goal of everyone being dressed by 10 in the morning. Then practice that goal and build up to an earlier time. Then have a goal of picking up the livingroom twice a day and practice that. On and on. Scheduling is great and I really like Managers of Their Homes but I suggest having a skeleton schedule....routines is more of a word for it. Take it one task at a time and take satisfaction in what's accomplished. I know for me that was key. I used to not find satisfaction in washing laundry but yet I was miserable with the piles. I didn't find satisfaction in cleaning the LR but it was depressing having a mess to live in and for my husband to come home to. I think finding satisfaction in our work and calling to be homemakers can make a huge difference.
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Oct. 31, 2006 - Bible Questions

A question was asked on a board I visit about headcoverings and I replied. I wanted to post on here my answer and what I had to say. First thing that I wanted to clear out of the way is that without salvation through our Lord Jesus none of this even matters. If anyone ever has a question of how to accept the salvation offered then please, please, please email me. I will be glad to talk over it anytime. Acceptance of what the Lord has done for us to have eternal life is first and repentance comes next. That is turning away from sin and turning toward our Lord to help us do what's righteous and holy. This is a never ending process. I have not seen in scripture where it talks of freedom to do as self pleases. That's lust of the eyes and flesh and pride of life, which is contrary to scripture. This new, or not so new movement of having liberty to do as one pleases and God doesn't care is wrong. It's simply going against our Bible. I am a fundamentalist, meaning that I believe the Bible is literal. God is not the author of confusion and with all my heart I don't think that He tried to make the Word hard to understand. I also believe that the King James Version is the english version of the inspired Word of God. So that's the version I use. If anyone has any questions on that then please email me as well. I am thrilled to see anyone digging in the Word and has concern that what they are doing is right or wrong. It blesses me that your heart is with the Lord to please Him. For any confused, I Corinthians is not part of the Law. The law is the first five books of the old testament. The law was impossible for people to follow... no one could take care of their sins under the law. Only the blood of Christ could do that. Christ fulfilled the law by being the ultimate sacrifice. I used to have short hair and then I also came across this passage in scripture. I also was wondering what all this meant...to wear a covering until my hair grew to become my covering...to continue with a (separate)covering even though I had a natural covering after my hair was long. I do know one that without a shadow of a doubt. It did say to have long hair, no doubt! The more I meditated and studied on this the more I believed that indeed a separate covering was meant if having short hair. My short hair was as shameful to me as if I had a shaved head. Which during this time of writing I Corinthians was VERY shameful as prostitutes were revealed through shaven heads. I began to feel ashamed in my heart for having short hair. So, I took a very big step and bought coverings to wear until my hair grew to a length I felt was long enough to no longer want to wear a covering...until I no longer felt shame in my heart. This was a VERY big deal at the church we used to attend. That church was very worldly as it was and so you could imagine my concern. The Lord brought a dear sister in Christ to me through our homeschool group. A mennonite of all people here where there are few mennonites around. She helped me have the courage to stand for what I felt in my heart I needed to do. Also, James gave me full blessing to do what I felt was right. I am blessed with a man of God who loves the Lord so much and is willing to step out and be separated...different from this world. So, I wore a covering for three years. Once not wearing them anymore I felt no more shame! I had a covering....my long hair. Oh, may I interject here that I met another dear friend on vacation in NC that is also Mennonite. We are close even though she lives all the way in PA and I am here in SC. Isn't it wonderful how the Lord puts people in place to help minister when needed? Anyway, I wanted to put this article in here to read. I know there are many out there on this subject. I studied them all and researched them all years ago. This one stuck out to me last night in my mind. It may be of help. I won't say that I endorse all said as it's been a while upon reading it but I do enjoy this lady's website and articles. http://www.momof9splace.com/headcoverings.htmlAlso, I don't think that it should be an issue of what kind of covering to wear....how long is long....and other questions that arise in debate. This could cross into legalism instead of a standard of wanting to please the Lord, to show submission and honor to your husband and do what you feel is right in your heart through the Holy Spirit.One more thing; I think that our Lord is the same as He was yesterday and will be the same tomorrow. I believe you have before the law, during the law and after the law...when Christ came to fulfill it. Although the Bible was written long ago I believe the Lord still gives it to us for instruction in righteousness.
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Oct. 20, 2006 - Friday.....Pizza

I am about to get dressed and go to Walmart and the library with the children. I really do not like Walmart at all. I know, that's not the norm but I really don't like the atmosphere. There are a few things that are there that I need though. I think we do pretty good staying out of there but not today. Tonight is movie night, thus the trip to the library. I hope we find something good to see. I don't like picking movies out without James. I like him there to give the "go" or "no go" to the movies. Usually if it "G" he says yes but some aren't rated and I get confused. He says "no" to PG-13 or worse so that's easy to decide. Then to find something he'd like to see might be hard. The children have no problem finding something. I don't like many movies...sometimes old black and whites or documentaries. We have school to get in. Mainly a lot of math as they didn't touch math yesterday. So to get that caught up. One good thing is that James agreed to do the history lessons right before devotions at night so that's less on me. The three Rs are easy to get done as that's workbooks but sometimes I get slack on getting history and science in. As far as chores I need to do the usual 3-4 loads of laundry, dishes, and general pickup. I'd like to work on my bedroom some more and if I do I need to clean off the computer desk. It's cluttered pretty badly. Okay, off to get ready and go. Oh yeah, of course it's pizza night! I did think of maybe some wings to go with...yummo! We'll see.
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Oct. 19, 2006 - BEWARE

Today my dear, sweet, intelligent 12 year old once again was up to her games. While sitting and trying to read (why do I even try that????) she commences to ask me these odd questions like, "Have you ever been to the abyss?". I thought of how odd it was to ask such a thing and so I just replied that I had only in my dreams. Then she asks something like is it safe to allude to that? I was thinking that she was talking in a way that was strange. Then I realize that the child is doing her vocab words and she was trying to use me instead as the dictionary!!! If I responded to her question then it must make sense and so she must have guessed the meaning of the words. This isn't the first time this rascal has tried this! I guess I should be glad of her vigor to get her work done. I explained to her that it's totally up to her as to how long it'll take her to graduate school. I explained this as being one of the beautiful things about homeschooling. She's got this idea she'll be done by the time she's 16. Who knows?


Oct. 19, 2006 - God's Blessings

Lately we have been working on having soft sweet voices toward one another and making sure that the love of the Lord is shown in our countenance. I have seen much improvement. It's a tough battle as I am ashamed to say that I have allowed things to go too far...further than is according to our standards. So with keeping this in mind I have been keeping myself in check as I know that they look after their parents for guidance. Struggles like this is when it's God's grace shown through someone that helps us want to persevere. Yesterday I went to run errands and so was in Goodwill looking for shoes--- no luck. Well, Dalton found two books he wanted and we just browsed a bit. While waiting in a very long line to check out I found a blouse that I liked. When I got to the register the cashier was just beaming with excitement. She talked of how cute Dalton was and how he was a delight. Then she said, "Hello Ma'am, how are you today?" I told her that I was well, thank you. She rang up my blouse, which was $4 and I went to hand her my money and she whipped up a $5 bill from somewhere and said, " A lady that saw you and the children in the store was so happy to see children so well behaved and she thought it was just a joy to watch you all in here. She wanted to pay for your purchase and wanted you to know that you are doing a great job with the children." I about passed out and my jaw hit the floor! She gave me a dollar in return as well! I said, " God is good!" after choking back a tear and she said, "YES He is!!!!".

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Oct. 4, 2006 - Wow What a Wednesday!

Well, I guess it's not all THAT exciting but things are coming around. I am beginning to not feel so post-partumish (is that a word?). I really do feel like we are FINALLY getting back on track with being able to get everything in again. It seemed before I could get in housework, for the most part, or school but not both in the same day. With James beginning his new job it's been great. I know that this has contributed to the efforts. He doesn't even have to be to work until 8:00am and then this week has been home at 5:45pm. This is almost too normal. LOL Things have been getting easier despite Ms. Yes I Have An Attitude and You Will Listen To Me Because I Am So Cute and Precious and Remember You Prayed for Me being on the fussy side. She decided to let my Dr. and his staff see her personality and how "colorful" it is. Anyway, have you ever had an inner fear of becoming preggo soon after having a baby but yet having a fear of never being preggo again? Is that a mental illness? Who knows? Okay, I've been hiding here long enough. Time to fold some sweet smelling laundry before getting ready for mid week worship. Have a great evening!

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Oct. 2, 2006 - Child Training

I had to correct our two year old today for wanting to spit a sibling. My four year old exclaimed that **** doesn't get in trouble for spitting. I explained that while this is so that it doesn't make it acceptable behaviour and that we won't have it in our family. Then our 4YO thinks and says, "so their parents are training her to do this?" I thought about it and said, "well, yes they are but they might not know it". WOW, can you believe that a four year old can be wise enough to understand that in allowing behavior is a type of training and encouraging that behavior? It's so good to know that at least our children can know this stuff before having children instead of learning it while having children....or never learning it. Aahhh to be equipt and ready to fight the battles before the battles begin. What a blessing!



Oct. 2, 2006 - Grocery Budgetting


A lady from a message board I visit asked me how I keep my budget so low for a family our size. Here is my response. I might add that we do have a third that we sometimes put a pullup on to sleep in as well. Also, I do use disposables with the baby right now whenever we go to church and sometimes other places. Also, we try to keep at a minimum any food tossed out and I try to invent different dishes with our leftovers. I am sure that different factors play into my budget being lower. While $400 is my goal monthly I usually go over $20-$30 per month. Also, while we do have eight in our family the baby isn't eating(she nurses) anything yet and we are using cloth diapers with her. We may buy a pack of diapers here and there for her later on for when we are away from home. I do buy disposable night pants for two bed wetters. Also, cost of living may be higher where you live. Yesterday I got 2 1/2 buggies of groceries in between Sam's and Aldi. I really do save so much between these two stores! I spent $183 between the two places. At Sam's I got a big pack of hamburger meat that was price reduced because the date was to go out today. As soon as I got home I fried it up and froze what we didn't use last night. Buying meat that is on sale or reduced for quick sale is usually how I do it. Also, I buy all our cheese at Sam's because it's so much cheaper there. I freeze the 5# bags of grated cheese and get out of the freezer what we need as we need it. I buy a few snacks here and there and once it's ate, that's it until next trip. So I usually hide some back so we can have some later. I might spend $5 on snacks which includes a bag of chips, a few packs of cookies, and some chocolate chips to make cookies later. We are not very picky with name brands. Well, I do like name brand coffee and tea but with most everything else off brands don't bother me. I try to stick to a average limit of $2.50 per breakfast, $2.50 per lunch and $6 per supper. I buy about $20 worth of soda a month and it's consumed with meals like pizza or hot dogs. We really don't have a special diet we go by now so that does help except that I drink soda and tea with sugar substitute in them. When I did the lower carb diet while expecting it was a budget buster and one that couldn't be a constant lifestyle here. I do have a menu on my blog of the last few weeks if you want to see what we have/are ate/eating. I need to update for the next few weeks soon. As far as paper products, the only thing I use paper towels for is to drain grease really. I had been as tight as to drain ground beef or sausage in a collander(sp?) and run water over it outside at the edge of the yard(we live in the country). We don't skimp on toilet paper. I encourage the children to use all they need! LOL We buy off brand or cheaper shampoos, James makes soap or we use soap on sale and I make our laundry soap per Crystal's recipe. I buy $1 window cleaner or make my own by mixing rubbing alcohol and water(50/50). I buy furniture polish maybe once a year as it goes a long way and I like to use lavendar scented Fabuluso(sp?) all purp. cleaner. It smells so good! I like to buy my cleaners at Dollar General as they seem cheaper there. I guess with nonfoods the biggest budget buster is the disposable night pants I have the two bedwetters to wear to bed. This saves on my time having to change and wash sheets and saves my sanity! We try to stay within a budget but yet not too tight as to feel deprived. I know I could make it tighter but don't care to unless I have to. One other thing I'll do is have my list made out that would include what I'd need to make my menus. Then if I am over my budget I look at my menus and see what's taking so much money. Then I try to replace the money hogging meals with cheaper meals or look at the meal and see if I can cheapen it by replacing some ingredients. I tweak the menus until they match my budget. I try to keep powdered milk in the house so if it looks like I might run low on regular milk I can start mixing some powdered for cooking. My children really can detect the difference between powdered and regular milk so I can't trick them into drinking the powdered(hey, they're no dummies!). Like I said, I guess there's several factors that come into having a lower budget. OH yeah another thing is that I limit aluminum foil and plastic wrap use. Also, if I am going to freeze a few meals of hamburger meat I will: take a plastic bread bag and put in enough hamburger for a meal then tie a knot above the meat in the bag then tie another knot and add enough meat for another meal. Keep doing this until you have all your meat separated like this. Then you cut the portions apart in between the knots. Put these separated portions into one big gallon size bag. This helps you to reuse your bread bags and you can keep the same freezer bag to just put your meat in. There's no wasting freezer bags! I use storage containers with lids more than plastic wrap or foil. We also use the frozen juice instead of regular. I just put the frozen juice container in the 'fridge until it's thawed and then mix it up. I could go on forever and this post is already jumbled up so I 'll stop here. You get the idea! Menus 4 Moms has great articles on saving on groceries. There's an article on menus for hard times on there that I printed and keep just in case. I could probably do their plan to feed our family on $45 a week. Blessings in your desire to save!

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