Well I have had to postpone my week 4 to some extent. Yet I don't feel behind. That is improvement. :)
My hubby has been home this whole week on vacation. I don't know about you but when my husband is home, my schedule stops, my plans are no longer. I hang out with him instead. So this week has been about our time together. We did some sporadic errands and meetings that we could not miss and he has been working on a retaining wall in our yard.
So I plan on picking back up this next week with the Martha challenges.
I did discover though that my block is in the frustration of the tasks never being done. To not even have a few days of clean. It can be frustrating to clean a bathroom to only have the boy follow me in with muddy hands and throw his stuff off and squirt toothpaste into the clean sink, with muddy foot prints all over the floor.
When I worked outside of the home I could work hard on a task and then step back and know that I accomplished something and move on. At home, I never feel like I can step back and see a final result. So then why bother? I pointed out to my husband one day that I had done dishes 3 times already through out the day and yet my kitchen never looked clean. So my block sets in and says why do it? I want it, I desire it, and I strive for it, but sometimes it is hard to get over the hurdle.
I also discovered that my personality type was the "D" style. So I will be developing habits. Which have always been hard for me. Bad habits, I pick up easy :).
Heading out of town again today. My crazy schedule is coming to an end and I am so ready to get back to normal! I will be closing up the homeschool group this week with our year end party and field day then I will be on summer break. YEAH!! Long needed.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Growing Up
She is my oldest. She is beautiful. She is talented. She is caring. She has hopes and dreams. God made her oh so special and I thank Him daily for this gift that He has shared with us.
While I was sick she went and did all of the shopping. She just finished up with her first time at college. I am blessed to call her daughter!
While I was sick she went and did all of the shopping. She just finished up with her first time at college. I am blessed to call her daughter!
Friday, May 20, 2011
Walking it out.
Limitations, imperfections, fatigued, oh my! I felt as though Sarah Mae was sitting with me this whole week and writing specifically to me.
I hit bed on last Friday evening and was very sick. I did not emerge from that bed until Wednesday of this week. I am still recovering and not completely 100%. With a full calendar, I truly felt my limitations. Letting go and letting His grace cover over all that I could not change or do, was necessary and welcomed.
While sitting on the floor, crying, I came to understand what it truly meant to have a sound mind, a spirit that wanted to go, but a human body that was incapable of doing what I wanted it to do. I was made fully aware of how this body of mine will wear out. Needless to say, I was frustrated and oh so fatigued. Since my fatigue was brought on by illness and then the stress of that illness, the only thing I could do was to get back into bed and remind myself again, to cling to His grace. It is sufficient.
Perfection? Me? I had signed up to make chocolate covered strawberries for my daughters 8th grade graduation. Before I was sick. :) The picture in my head went something like this: Beautiful, put together momma makes said strawberries, while laughing with my children, cleaning as I go, looking hot to my my husband the whole time I'm doing it, and finishing with plenty of time to spare. Ending up with beautiful strawberries, clean kitchen, and great memories for family.
This is really how it went: Feeling so behind and stressed because of being sick, I turned into momma grinch. I burnt the chocolate (twice), had to send hubby to get more, yelled at my kids (more then once), had to apologize multiple times to all involved, and needless to say was finishing up making them 15 min. before the ceremony. My kitchen was a mess and I was not a pleasant momma or wife. I had blown it. I literally told him that by golly my license plate said super mom and I was going to be super mom :). He did quickly inform me that he could easily rip that off of my car.
Today, I am leaving on a camping trip. One that I was not completely ready for, I lacked the energy to get ready. My plan was to do a little every day through out the week. I have had to cram so much into the last two days, my mind won't turn off at night, so I am not sleeping well. At this point in time what is motivating me is spending time with friends. I am looking forward to getting away.
I am struggling with figuring out my "jazzy" and writing a lesson plan. I am praying over these two items and when I know I will share. :)
For the second week in a row, the Mary challenges took center stage. I am comforted by the fact that I had spring cleaned 3 weeks ago. So everything on my living room list had been done. So I didn't beat up on myself. Again, His grace is sufficient. Seems to be my mantra :)
I hit bed on last Friday evening and was very sick. I did not emerge from that bed until Wednesday of this week. I am still recovering and not completely 100%. With a full calendar, I truly felt my limitations. Letting go and letting His grace cover over all that I could not change or do, was necessary and welcomed.
While sitting on the floor, crying, I came to understand what it truly meant to have a sound mind, a spirit that wanted to go, but a human body that was incapable of doing what I wanted it to do. I was made fully aware of how this body of mine will wear out. Needless to say, I was frustrated and oh so fatigued. Since my fatigue was brought on by illness and then the stress of that illness, the only thing I could do was to get back into bed and remind myself again, to cling to His grace. It is sufficient.
Perfection? Me? I had signed up to make chocolate covered strawberries for my daughters 8th grade graduation. Before I was sick. :) The picture in my head went something like this: Beautiful, put together momma makes said strawberries, while laughing with my children, cleaning as I go, looking hot to my my husband the whole time I'm doing it, and finishing with plenty of time to spare. Ending up with beautiful strawberries, clean kitchen, and great memories for family.
This is really how it went: Feeling so behind and stressed because of being sick, I turned into momma grinch. I burnt the chocolate (twice), had to send hubby to get more, yelled at my kids (more then once), had to apologize multiple times to all involved, and needless to say was finishing up making them 15 min. before the ceremony. My kitchen was a mess and I was not a pleasant momma or wife. I had blown it. I literally told him that by golly my license plate said super mom and I was going to be super mom :). He did quickly inform me that he could easily rip that off of my car.
Today, I am leaving on a camping trip. One that I was not completely ready for, I lacked the energy to get ready. My plan was to do a little every day through out the week. I have had to cram so much into the last two days, my mind won't turn off at night, so I am not sleeping well. At this point in time what is motivating me is spending time with friends. I am looking forward to getting away.
I am struggling with figuring out my "jazzy" and writing a lesson plan. I am praying over these two items and when I know I will share. :)
For the second week in a row, the Mary challenges took center stage. I am comforted by the fact that I had spring cleaned 3 weeks ago. So everything on my living room list had been done. So I didn't beat up on myself. Again, His grace is sufficient. Seems to be my mantra :)
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Keep the Prayers Coming
I have been sick. Bed ridden since Friday night. I finally have no fever and my throat no longer burns. Please pray for continued healing....I am suppose to lead bible study tomorrow, my daughter has her 8th grade graduation on Thursday and we are heading to family camp on Friday. I want to desperately participate in all of these things.
Friday, May 13, 2011
Just keeping it real
This week has been one of those weeks where I have just kept my head above water. Where if I was able to get food on the table, keep the kitchen relatively clean, and everyone had clean underwear, then it was a good day.
So, I didn’t accomplish all of my Martha challenges. When I started this, I figured the Martha challenges would be what would get accomplished and the Mary challenges would fall by the wayside. Now, please don’t misunderstand me. I desire to grow closer to Jesus daily! I start my morning off with God, reading the word, praying, then do my bible study homework. So, I figured I may run out of my quiet time before I got to this study. But that hasn’t been the case.
I so love the “doable” chunks of time that the challenges take. I have found it very easy to incorporate it, daily, into my study time. Even the Martha challenges are ‘doable’ tasks. I just haven’t been home much to do them. Which is what has been brought to my attention. I am busy. Not that being busy is a sin but being too busy to be at home to accomplish the task of taking care of my domain, actually home schooling, feeling in control and not overwhelmed, well that could be a sin. If my priority list has been written and those priorities are not being met, then I am off. I am not doing what God has called me to do.
Day 6- I did not ever complete my “top six” list and praise God that I had cleaned out the cabinets just a few weeks ago when we were on spring break. Otherwise, it would not have been done.
Day 7- My hope in the curse? That I am liberated from bondage and given freedom. Again, no organizing for me. This was also done a few weeks ago, so I didn’t feel to bad :)
Day 8- God has been faithful many times throughout my life. So it was very difficult to come up with just one to share. But I felt that I needed to share something that dealt with God’s provision. We use to own and operate our own trucking company and when fuel prices continued to go up and the cost of being in business outweighed the profit that was brought in we prayed and asked God what to do. We had discussed that my husband could go to school to get re-trained. Not knowing what it would cost, my husband stopped by the local college to find out. Needless to say, he walked out of there with a full ride to re-educate himself. God was faithful and we ended up being able to close our business with one bill. He started school a few weeks later. For 3 months we had no income coming in but, again, God was faithful and met our needs the whole time. Not one bill was late, we did not go hungry, gas was in the cars, every need was met. He provided odd jobs, groceries on the doorstep, a check from something that we weren’t expecting. During this time, we sat down and discussed me going to work to provide for the time that hubby was in school. After calculating up everything we settled on an amount that would meet our needs to survive and we prayed. Not sharing this with anyone. The next day I stopped at the church to drop something off and was asked if I had a moment to talk to the pastor. Long story short, he offered me a job that day that would pay me the EXACT amount that we had written down and prayed for. God is good. He cares about everything and knows everything!
Day 9- Will be praying, without ceasing, for a spirit of diligence!!! I stopped by Fresh & Easy and saw the flowers on sale. So I got two bouquets of flowers for $1.25 each. So, I hope more fresh flowers counter balance my dirty floors :)
Day 10- My vision for my home: A nicely decorated home with funky flair, creative, fun, warm and inviting, peace filled, love overflowing, tidy home. Luckily, I have no curtains up in my living room, so I feel pretty confident that I can clean 3 windows. :)
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
How the story goes..
Busy, busy week!! My calendar is full and I am running in and running out. I do not own a 'special' phone or a laptop or any other special device that would allow me to blog on the go. So, sporadic I am.
We bought some more vegies and got them into the ground. I still need to get some more cucumbers and we may need to replace our peppers. Still battling the earwigs, but I think we are making head way. We have been using bottles filled with olive oil and something else, that I can not remember the name of. I also bought some flowers to try some companion planting. I have been reading on how some flowers help keep bugs at bay. I will post some pictures after I get everything planted.
Been researching on our chickens. I believe we will be getting Easter chickens. They seem to be the best for backyards and are listed as being quite, docile, friendly, and handle confinement well. We are only getting 2 and we have a decent back yard, so I don't believe that confinement will be an issue. But I believe that big dogs deserve BIG yards, so I don't want to take chickens and feel bad about confining them to the back yard. We have looked at chicken coop plans and have come up with something that works. So within a few weeks we will have chickens roaming our back yard. Excited!!
We are having our last bowling day and girls club for the homeschool group this week. Always a bittersweet time. I so look forward to our summer off of activities, but I miss the families that we have had the pleasure of getting to know. I can not say enough how blessed I am with this particular homeschool group.
I will be posting my "31 days to clean" all tomorrow. I am doing great on my Mary challenges, not so much on my Martha ones. Which kind of surprised me, but I will get into that more tomorrow.
Clothes are waiting to be folded, dinner must be put away, and a boy needs some attention.
We bought some more vegies and got them into the ground. I still need to get some more cucumbers and we may need to replace our peppers. Still battling the earwigs, but I think we are making head way. We have been using bottles filled with olive oil and something else, that I can not remember the name of. I also bought some flowers to try some companion planting. I have been reading on how some flowers help keep bugs at bay. I will post some pictures after I get everything planted.
Been researching on our chickens. I believe we will be getting Easter chickens. They seem to be the best for backyards and are listed as being quite, docile, friendly, and handle confinement well. We are only getting 2 and we have a decent back yard, so I don't believe that confinement will be an issue. But I believe that big dogs deserve BIG yards, so I don't want to take chickens and feel bad about confining them to the back yard. We have looked at chicken coop plans and have come up with something that works. So within a few weeks we will have chickens roaming our back yard. Excited!!
We are having our last bowling day and girls club for the homeschool group this week. Always a bittersweet time. I so look forward to our summer off of activities, but I miss the families that we have had the pleasure of getting to know. I can not say enough how blessed I am with this particular homeschool group.
I will be posting my "31 days to clean" all tomorrow. I am doing great on my Mary challenges, not so much on my Martha ones. Which kind of surprised me, but I will get into that more tomorrow.
Clothes are waiting to be folded, dinner must be put away, and a boy needs some attention.
Friday, May 6, 2011
31 Days to Clean #3, #4, & 5
While reading day 3, I starred the number of ways that I do give life. I could only claim 2. I will be working hard on implementing the remaining 8. The one main word that resonated with me was grace. I pray that grace will continue to increase in me. Much more of grace and a lot less of me.
I asked the rest of the family how I made them feel loved the most when caring for my home, the kids all shared the comfiness of the home and food. My husband shared that it was my attitude in regards to the home. If he could come home and be greeted with a happy wife regardless of the condition of the home. He expressed that I am much harder on myself and the standards that I set for the cleanliness of the home is much higher then his. Very good insight.
Day 4- This day was spent away from the house helping friends. So, I did not invite anyone over but I did get to read through the challenges and am happy to report that I currently am meeting all 5 ways to create the 'put your feet up' atmosphere.
Some other ways that I add to the atmosphere is by burning my scentsy warmer or boiling some orange peels, vanilla, and cinnamon in a pot. I also like to have some music playing quietly in the background.
Day 5- **Coming soon** I had to go out of town today, so I will be reading my day 5 this evening and will post back tomorrow.
I am behind on 2 of my martha challenges and will be catching up with this as well.
I asked the rest of the family how I made them feel loved the most when caring for my home, the kids all shared the comfiness of the home and food. My husband shared that it was my attitude in regards to the home. If he could come home and be greeted with a happy wife regardless of the condition of the home. He expressed that I am much harder on myself and the standards that I set for the cleanliness of the home is much higher then his. Very good insight.
Day 4- This day was spent away from the house helping friends. So, I did not invite anyone over but I did get to read through the challenges and am happy to report that I currently am meeting all 5 ways to create the 'put your feet up' atmosphere.
Some other ways that I add to the atmosphere is by burning my scentsy warmer or boiling some orange peels, vanilla, and cinnamon in a pot. I also like to have some music playing quietly in the background.
Day 5- **Coming soon** I had to go out of town today, so I will be reading my day 5 this evening and will post back tomorrow.
I am behind on 2 of my martha challenges and will be catching up with this as well.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
31 Days to Clean #2
How to bring life to my home? Add flowers, light a candle.
How to bring life to children? Encourage and teach them.
How to bring life to my husband? To greet him with a warm hug, take him lunch.
How to bring life to my sphere of interest? Encourage.
I found that as I contemplated this more, encourage was in the forefront and extending grace more. I want my home to be grace filled. That whoever enters would leave feeling encouraged.
I also followed through on my Martha challenge. After I cleaned the refrigerator out, it desperately needed to be filled back up. Oh, so empty. :)
How to bring life to children? Encourage and teach them.
How to bring life to my husband? To greet him with a warm hug, take him lunch.
How to bring life to my sphere of interest? Encourage.
I found that as I contemplated this more, encourage was in the forefront and extending grace more. I want my home to be grace filled. That whoever enters would leave feeling encouraged.
I also followed through on my Martha challenge. After I cleaned the refrigerator out, it desperately needed to be filled back up. Oh, so empty. :)
31 Days to Clean #1
Why do I want a clean home?
1. To take care of what God has blessed us with.
2. To be able to minister properly to my family.
3. To be able to spontaneously minister to others.
4. To set the example for my children.
5. To feel peace in my surroundings.
6. To fell less chaotic.
7. To enjoy my home.
Scriptures to motivate me:
1 Corinthians 15:58 (msg) My dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don't hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort.
2 Chronicles 15:7 (NIV) But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded.
Colossians 4:23 (NIV) Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.
1. To take care of what God has blessed us with.
2. To be able to minister properly to my family.
3. To be able to spontaneously minister to others.
4. To set the example for my children.
5. To feel peace in my surroundings.
6. To fell less chaotic.
7. To enjoy my home.
Scriptures to motivate me:
1 Corinthians 15:58 (msg) My dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don't hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort.
2 Chronicles 15:7 (NIV) But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded.
Colossians 4:23 (NIV) Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Feeling like I'm on the spin cycle
I have a feeling that this month is going to be a whirlwind. The calendar is full and the days seem to fly by.
We had a great weekend and started working on our yard. Hubby started the retaining wall, I weed wacked the hill, we waged war on the earwigs (I think we are winning), I worked on the table some more,we went to church, and had family group.
Homeschool- The goal this month is to finish up with the majority of everything. We continue throughout the summer but in a much more scaled down schedule. We will continue with math, nature study, art, some writing, and reading.
We are also wrapping up all of the groups activities this month with our year end field day scheduled at the very beginning of June. And of course I am planning. Planning for the group for this next school year and planning for our own homeschool.
31 Days to Clean- I started the book on Sunday. I am really enjoying this book and the challenge. I go back and forth wether or not to post daily or weekly. I may end up giving this challenge it's very own page and list them there, one by one. I am enjoying the accountability and looking forward to what others are gleaning from this challenge. I keep forgetting to take pictures and I will try to do better with that. Today I am on Day #4.
Well that is it for now. I must grocery shop this morning, we have geography and writing class tomorrow, and the son and I are heading down to visit a friend on Friday. On top of that we will be cleaning and schooling.
We had a great weekend and started working on our yard. Hubby started the retaining wall, I weed wacked the hill, we waged war on the earwigs (I think we are winning), I worked on the table some more,we went to church, and had family group.
Homeschool- The goal this month is to finish up with the majority of everything. We continue throughout the summer but in a much more scaled down schedule. We will continue with math, nature study, art, some writing, and reading.
We are also wrapping up all of the groups activities this month with our year end field day scheduled at the very beginning of June. And of course I am planning. Planning for the group for this next school year and planning for our own homeschool.
31 Days to Clean- I started the book on Sunday. I am really enjoying this book and the challenge. I go back and forth wether or not to post daily or weekly. I may end up giving this challenge it's very own page and list them there, one by one. I am enjoying the accountability and looking forward to what others are gleaning from this challenge. I keep forgetting to take pictures and I will try to do better with that. Today I am on Day #4.
Well that is it for now. I must grocery shop this morning, we have geography and writing class tomorrow, and the son and I are heading down to visit a friend on Friday. On top of that we will be cleaning and schooling.
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