Oct. 19, 2009 - My new favorite thing for skin!

About two weeks ago, little Eden got a burn from a space heater.  Yes, I know it shouldn't have been on with a baby about.  I could go into all that happened that led up to her burn, but I won't.  It happened, I felt awful about it and still do.  But sometimes you have to move on.

Anyway, I took care of her blister properly and it healed well and new skin formed.  Of course it happened when we didn't have much money, so I had to make due a bit with how I treated it.  Once the new skin formed I applied A&D Ointment to it at each diaper change, massaging it into the scarred skin.  I wasn't seeing any improvement though. 

I was running errands this past weekend and made a stop at Whole Foods Market.  I rarely get to make a trip there, but I needed a cloth diaper friendly diaper rash ointment available there.  I ordered some online but needed some now for sweet baby's bum.  While there I discovered this salve stick, Hemp Baby Salve by the Merry Hempsters.  I applies dome to Miss Eden's scar while putting her in her car seat.  Instantly some of the angry red went away.  I was excited and wanted to see what would happen with continued use.  I applied it several more times during that day and by the evening the rough out skin of the scar was sloughing off.  Now, a few days later the skin is just as soft as all the skin surrounding it.  It is still a bit pink but I'll just keep applying the salve until the pinkness is gone.  I am so impressed by this product because I was seeing no improvement in that rough scar skin with the other ointments that I tried.

I plan to keep one of these on hand in my medicine cabinet now.  And it was only about $4.50.  It says it can be used for diaper rash too.  I would love to try that in the future, because it is no mess application.

A second product that I tried this weekend and I really like is California Baby's Diaper Area Wash.  It smells "clean" and works really well.  I wish I had known of these products years ago with my first baby.  Better late than never though.

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Apr. 28, 2009 - Crisis Cleaning and other things....

Today I am crisis cleaning.  Now, I don't mean cleaning like crazy because I'm in a personal crisis and need the therapy, lol.  I mean my house is in a crisis and it needs therapy, lol.  The reason my house is in crisis mode is because after I had the baby I spent the next  months enjoying her and dumping stuff like crazy in our "extra" room.  Then when I went to start to clean that room the stuff ended up spreading all over the rest of the house creating a "crisis".  So, now every room needs serious help and because I tend to be housework ADD, I am using Flylady's crisis cleaning method.  Which works wonderfully and yields a nice clean home most of the time

Here is the method in short:

1.  Clean 3 different rooms or areas for 15 minutes each.
2.  Take a 15 minute break.
3.  Repeat until your home is livable again

So, while we are doing crisis cleaning, school will be put aside.  Or should I say the children are having home ec/life skills training for school today, lol.

Oh, and part of the disaster is the seasonal clothing switch.  Washing/sorting/storing the winter clothes, and sorting and washing the summer clothes.  Yes, I'm weird.  Even though I washed the clothes before storing them last fall, I'm washing again before putting them away in the children's bins.  I'm really not a super neat-freak, but on some things I'm kind of wacky.


Oh, and here is a tip for today:
Use a spiral bound index card thingy as your prayer journal.  You can write individual requests on the cards and they will stay together.  Then when one is answered you can write how, remove it and put it in an index card box to read later when feeling discouraged, or like your prayers aren't being heard.  You can also use one for your memory verses to keep them together for easy review.

Well, my 15 minute break is up so I get to go make a dent in my mess again.

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Apr. 15, 2009 - Laundry tip for today....

I have a front loading washing machine.  This is actually my second one.  My first one had the notorious mold problem that front load machines are known for.  So for this one I decided to take preventative measures.  Last night before bed I popped in an Affresh tablet and ran a normal cycle on hot.  My machine smells fresh and clean this morning.  It didn't smell moldy before but it was beginning to get that washer smell.....you know the one they get after repeated use?  Now it smells just like new again.

I highly recommend   using this product or something comparable regularly in your machine if you have a front loading machine.

And my second tip for today.....always put away your clean laundry.  If you happen to leave it on your bed to put away later at a more convenient time you might be sorry.  For instance, I put a folded load of laundry on my bed and then plopped the baby down on my bed to change her later that day.  I finished fastening her clean diaper up and looked up into her adorable face only to discover that she was chewing on a clean pair of unmentionables

So, if you really need to leave your laundry until later to put away....don't change your baby's diaper next to the pile, lol.  Ummm, and also don't let your little ones climb up rambunctiously onto your bed and destroy all those beautiful piles.  Unless of course you really enjoy folding laundry

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Sep. 28, 2008 - We had fun today!

My oldest daughter, who is 8, went with me today to dry all the baby things at the laundromat.  We had 4 large loads of baby blankets, washcloths, diapers, clothes and the diaper bag and some misc items.  I washed them all at home and then we went to have "alone time" as she calls it.  She was such a great help and really enjoyed it.  She folded diapers and washcloths and I folded the blankets and clothes.

It only took us about 30 minutes and then we went to McDonald's to get a hot fudge sundae as a treat, lol.

So, even though we still don't have a dryer, I honestly don't feel like it's a big deal.  Even if I go to the laundromat to dry every couple days in the winter it will be fine.  And if I take only one child at a time, they will all get to enjoy some "alone time" with mommy.

So, what could be bad about that?

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Aug. 24, 2008 - My messy, stinky cat box solution

I enjoy having cats.  My children enjoy having cats.  My husband enjoys not having mice because of the cats.  But, I dont' enjoy cat litter boxes.  No matter the litter it's either tracked everywhere or smells bad.  So you have to scoop it regularly, which isn't happening while I'm pregnant, sweep constantly, also not happening or buy an expensive litter box set up.  I did have a top entry box that I loved for keeping the dog from snacking and containing the litter, but it smelled soooo bad and so had to be scrubbed and bleached regularly.  Which is another thing that isn't happening while I'm pregnant.

So, desperation drove me to find an affordable solution.....or at least a workable solution.  There is no way I was going to buy a $100-200 cat litter system.  Ummm, these are cats, it's waste products, and well my family likes to eat and be clothed.  So I had to get more creative.  As I would shop I kept seeing these disposable cat boxes that I used to spurn in disgust.  I mean who would use one of those?  Well, over time I decided to research them a bit, and found only good reviews on them.  Hmmmm, would they work for me?

I bought a package of these disposable litter boxes.  My original concern was that urine would soak through the box and it would be a huge mess.  But I wanted to try them.  I opened my package (came in package of two for $6-7 at Walmart) and plopped a box down on the floor.  Then I filled it with scoopable cat litter, just the cheapie kind.  I plopped a cat into it to see the response.  Kitties get excited about fresh boxes, lol.  My two cats loved it.  It completely stopped the odor, lasting for over a week before needing to be replaced.  It didn't soak through and I didn't have to scoop my box!  Amazing!  There was one problem though, the litter had a tendency (like every use) to fly out of the box, ick.  Not all of it, just enough to make the floor constantly messy.  I loved not having the smell, but the mess was driving me nuts.

My solution to that problem was to buy a large Sterilite bin with a lid and place the disposable box inside it.  I then had dh cut around the edge of the lid leaving a lip on it all the way around to make it easier for the kitties to jump in and out.  This has two benefits, doggie can't help himself to "treats" icky, icky, icky, and the kitties can paw the litter as energetically as they like and it stays inside the large bin.  The children just have to take the large bin outside, remove the disposable box, dump any stray litter inside the large bin, then put in a new disposable box and litter. 

The one thing is that most likely without doggie helping to scoop out solid waste the children will have to scoop midweek, but that is not a big deal at all.

So, if you want a solution to the smelly/messy cat box dilema then I really suggest a system like this.  Nice and tidy.......and fresh smelling.

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Aug. 18, 2008 - How I currently plan menus/shopping

As a member of Momys, I get to benefit from the wisdom of many other mothers of many children.  Instead of struggling through certain areas on my own, I am blessed to be able to ask others that have gone before me and have had victory.  One very special Momy shared her menu/shopping system and I have latched onto it and it has saved me much sanity.

Here it is, have a repeating weekly menu that you use over and over.  Making the same basic things over and over takes the stress off, helps to get you into a predictable routine and makes shopping loads easier.  So I made a master menu and put it into my household binder, and I made a master shopping list for that menu, also in my binder.  I also took the recipes needed for the menu and put them in my binder for easy access.  Now, you may be thinking, isn't that boring?  But honestly it isn't for me.  It frees me up, by knowing that I have everything I need to make meals for the next two weeks.  Also, because I buy staples, I have the freedom to change things up a bit if I want to.  For instance, I don't always have to make the same type of pizza or cook the chicken in the same way.  But I know we'll be having pizza or chicken.

Here is my menu:

	Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner
Mon	Eggs, Hashbrowns	Peanut Butter Sandwiches	Potato Soup, Bread
Tue	Oatmeal	Grilled Cheese Sandwiches	Mushroom Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Corn on the Cob
Wed	Rice with Cinnamon/Sugar	Peanut Butter Sandwiches	Bean Soup, Cornbread
Thu	Oatmeal	Grilled Cheese Sandwiches	Bean & Cheese Burritos, Mexican Rice
Fri	Rice with Cinnamon/Sugar	Peanut Butter Sandwiches	Chicken Soup, Bread
Sat	Waffles, Hashbrowns	Grilled Cheese Sandwiches	Pizza, Salad
Sun	Eggs, Hashbrowns	Peanut Butter Sandwiches	Leftovers

 

I just grab a list from my binder and highlight anything I am out of and write in any extra things that I don't buy regularly.  This has saved me a lot of time.  And I'm hoping to be able to eventually do my main shopping once a month and then just buy produce once a week.  But so far I haven't been able to swing it financially.  Hopefully soon.

So, this is how I am currently dealing with meals here.  Next year, I will re-write the menu and shopping list and we will have a different set, but the same system.

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Aug. 1, 2008 - My tip for today...

If you are struggling with serious fatigue as currently I am.  Then here is my tip for tackling your chore list or any mountain of a task you need to do.  Set your timer for 3-5 minutes (I can currently only do 3 minutes) and work diligently until the timer goes off.  Then take your timer, sit down somewhere to rest and set your timer for 15-25 minutes, whatever you think you need to recouperate.  I use 20 minutes.  After the timer goes off again, get up and work for another 3-5 minutes.  Do this until your chore list is complete or the project you need to do or all day whichever comes first, lol.

This helped me to tackle a mountain of a job yesterday and nearly complete it.  Today I will complete it and something extra I hope.

Just because you are suffering from something that knocks you down physically doesn't mean that the home still cannot be taken care of.  This something I'm learning as I walk through this exhaustion.  I have never in my life felt as awful as I do now, but God is good and He carries us through it and directs our steps.  Even in the midst of the fatigue He is teaching me to run my home.

The Lord is teaching me:

She watches over the affairs of her household
       and does not eat the bread of idleness. Proverbs 31:27

Even in the midst of health issues, I can still watch over my household and I don't have to be idle.

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Jul. 29, 2008 - Trying to get back into the swing of things

This pregnancy the morning sickness totally knocked me down.  I could barely function....I didn't cook and the children did most of the cleaning.  I kept enough clean laundry to keep everyone clothed.  I'm sure it was worse because of being anemic, but I didn't know that until the nausea was past.

Anyway, this past month I have gotten back into the swing of things as far as cooking and getting some laundry done daily, and getting school done.  But as far a my regular cleaning routine, I haven't gotten back into that yet.

So, this week I have a schedule written up and I'm bound and determined to follow it.  Each day has it's chores and menu planned out.  Now if I can stay awake (my iron pills have wandered off again...where DID I put them??), and keep my hands from getting bogged down in my crafts then I will be able to accomplish this.  I will be totally exhausted during the transition though, as it takes barely anything to wipe me out lately.

So, if you think of me this week, say a quick prayer that I will be able to be strong for my tasks and get myself back into a chore routine that will keep our home much more liveable, lol.

And I will remind myself that:

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 2 Corinthians 9:8

I will abound in every good work

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Jul. 9, 2008 - Homemade dishwasher detergent

I ran out of dishwasher detergent so I mixed up a batch of homemade to try.  I'm hoping that it works well because it will save us money.  But if it doesn't it will only be for a week until payday when I do big shopping again.

Here is the recipe I used:

1 cup Borax

1-1/4 cup Washing Soda

1/2 cup salt (I used kosher, it's all I had)

1/2 cup Oxy-Clean 

 

I made my own dry laundry detergent that works really well.  I only use a Tablespoon in each load yet my laundry gets nice and clean.  And if I have a particularly nasty load of laundry I do a prewash with a second Tbs of detergent and an extra rinse.  My clothes come out really well.

The recipe for that is:

1 cup Borax

1 cup Washing Soda

1 cup Zote-grated

1 cup Oxy-Clean

Mix it up and store it in a container.

 

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Jun. 24, 2008 - My method to dig out of the pit...

The past months while I have been so ill with morning sickness my home has become a filthy mess.  I'm embarrassed and humbled by it.  To get things back together I have come up with a method that I will follow.  The reason I have chosen this method is because I'm a bit anemic and the iron isn't helping yet, I have very limited energy still and tire easily.  Plus, I don't know if you have ever looked into a room so messy that you were at a loss as to where to even start, but that is how several areas of my home are.  Sad to say, sigh.

So, I have a plan now that I can at least think clearly, lol.  I am going to take a spiral notebook and make a list of everything that needs to be done in one area for it to be clean.  Each part of the list will done with small doable jobs.  For instance, I won't put organize the bookcase.  Instead I will put organize two shelves on bookcase.  Small jobs that I can accomplish one or two of a day along with several loads of laundry, meals and daily lessons.  This way I will systematically be getting an area cleaned and organized while at the same time keeping up with my regular daily activities.  And I won't fail because I'm working with the amount of energy that I actually currently have.  Not my mental ideal.

I know it doesn't sound like much.  But this is only my third week of cooking meals again, and doing daily school with the children.   We took a break of about 4 weeks while I was so bad off.  Early summer vacation, lol.

If I was brave I would post before/after pics of my messy rooms.  But I'm not all that brave I guess, lol.

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Dec. 9, 2007 -

I have been super busy painting, priming, patching etc.  But I have made progress.  My hallway is now finished.  And that was with patching new holes added after I had already patched and priming a second time after little hands covered in paint touched my walls in 5 places, lol.  I have also primed my bathroom and my kitchen and dining room.  Today I will paint those rooms.  This leaves only my living room to do before our Christmas party. 

Then I hope to get my wood floors glossy again.  We'll see, but I really hope I can.  I haven't gotten my gift wrapping done because I have been busy with the walls.  And everything is in a jumble because of things being moved out of the way.  But there is hope.  Soon all will be finished, and I will be able to sit back and smile at a job well done.

Now, in all this I forgot to pay the utility bills.  If you could all just pray that we don't get anything shut off, because that would be a real mess.  And the utility companies here seem super eager to shut people off.  I don't have any shut off notices at all, but I learned the hard way one year that that doesn't mean a thing.  The water company is particularly prone to it.  So say a quick prayer, that nothing will get shut off for us here.  Thank you all so much.

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Dec. 1, 2007 - My new planner page

Recently I realized that my planning system wasn't working for me.  I had switched to a small chore booklet that I printed up every two weeks.  But, unfortunately I kept misplacing it.  I loved having it pocket size, but pocket size also meant losing size for me.  So, back to the drawing board.  I created a new form to use with a clip board.  I can hang the clip board so it won't get lost.  My new form has my routines on it with check marks, a M-F place to write specific things in, a menu planner, check marks for zone work, a section to write in projects I'm working on.  That is side one.  The flip side has an itemized shopping list so that I can just highlight what I need from the store.  A small one month calendar, currently December.  And it has my zone breakdown and a place for notes.  It's a very nice form, lol.  Oh, the daily place also has daily check marks for WW points I'm allowed to have.  I put 29 for each day, because I'm allowed 24 plus a weekly bonus of 35.  So, I just made it 29 a day for simplicity.

I am really looking forward to using this form to help keep me on track in running my home.

I have this form here in MS Word format for any that might want to check it out.  I left it Word in case anyone might want to edit it for themselves to make it personal.

Well, I'm off to follow my list for today.  Have a wonderful day today :)

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Nov. 25, 2007 - I don't mind the painting....

But the prep work is exhausting.  We have a hallway that is about 20 feet long.  Today I have been scraping the walls of the chipping paint, which is turning out to be about half the paint on the walls.  Then I am patching the holes.  Right now I'm taking a little break because I'm tired, lol.  The children are behaving which is wonderful!  I'm trying to get my hallway at least primed so I can't paint it next weekend.  I can't lift the 5 gallon paint buckets to pour it out to use it when dh isn't here so I'll have to do this while he is off.  I have about 2/3 of the hallway scraped and patched.  I will finish the last 1/3 and then give it a little time to dry.  Then I will sand it and wipe it down.  Hopefully by late this afternoon, I can paint the primer on it.  It really depends on drying time for the patch.  Oh, and I will have to texture a couple spots too, so that plays into it too.

On top of that, my kitty decided to use the laundry in my room, and the girls room as a cat box so I have to clean and sanitize those areas today.  I know I should be mad at the kitty, but I didn't get the box cleaned on schedule, and he has become particular.  I can't really blame him, I wouldn't want to go in a dirty cat box, ewww. 

And then there is the normal everyday larger than average size family work to do.  Meals to prepare etc.  I really wish I had enough money to just fast food it right now.  I know that's awful for our health, but I am buried under a mountain of work and lightening the load any way would be wonderful.  For instance, I have about 6 loads of laundry on the couch waiting for the children and I to fold and put them away.  All of the floors need to be swept.  The children's bathroom looks like a bomb went off and it was filled with toilet paper and wet towels with little bits of hardened toothpaste thrown in as shrapnel.

Hmmm, maybe I am being to honest here.  Let me switch gears.  My home is sparkly clean right now.  The children are taking over all of my normal duties while I work on the painting project.  They are sweeping and mopping, cooking and doing laundry, all while being blissfully happy and content.  Well, in my dreams anyway.

 

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Jul. 15, 2007 - We finished them!

Yippee!  We finished the triple bunkbeds.  They aren't perfect, we have never built anything like this before.  But they look good, are sturdy and fit all three boys.  We still need to do some finishing touches on them, but they are ready to go and the boys have their new bedding on them and they are using them tonight.  My youngest son Noah, said that it's just like Christmas.  How fun to have the boys love and be excited about something that we worked so hard on.  And this seems to be having a pleasant side effect.  My middle son Moses, who doesn't normally read much, eagerly hunted up a good book to keep on his bunk to read.  Woohoo!

We had a bit of a problem tightening up the bolts while we were making them.  They just wouldn't tighten up.  I was near tears, it was awful.  Funny how exhaustion makes tears so much more likely to happen.  I guess that never changes as you grow up, lol.  My oldest son Elijah and I, bowed our heads to pray and ask the Lord to help us and to make the way straight for us.  We opened our eyes and our little terrier Waggles was standing on her hind legs and she looked like she was praying with us.  It was too cute.  And when we went back into the room right after praying to help out again, it was tightening up just fine.  Isn't God good!!! 

I'm sorry I won't be posting any pics tonight though.  I am so sore and tired, that I don't have the energy to even snap a picture.  And I still have to feed everyone dinner.  Well, I had better get dinner going for my hungry family.  Have a lovely evening all.

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Jul. 14, 2007 - When building....

When building triple bunkbeds when you live 50 miles to the closest Home Depot that carries the tinted stain that you are using, MAKE SURE YOU BOUGHT ENOUGH THE FIRST TIME!  Wonderful lessons I am learning as we build this.  I got to drive 50 miles approximately one way to get more stain today.  It took me a couple hours that I could have used doing the actual staining.  Boy did I groan when I realized I had to make that trip.  On the brighter side, I must have lost weight on the drive because we don't have any air conditioning in the car, lol.

Another thing I have learned is to make sure that we are both on the page as far as a time table goes.  We both plan on finishing these tomorrow, but we haven't seemed to get on the same page as to how that will happen, lol.  Dh is now having a nap, which of course he has earned.  But this delay, along with the delay of buying the stain means that to have these beds up tomorrow we will be putting them up into the evening.  Bummer, eh?  Ah well, such is life.  Unfortunately two of my sons are stuck sleeping on the couch until said beds are finished.  It is such a blessing to have a large couch right now.

Since my house is a disaster because I have been working outside and not directing inside, I really should be cleaning right now.  But I am hot and sweaty and tired.  I am saving my energy because I suspect that I wll be up in the wee hours in the morning working on this project to get it done.  We have to drill the holes in 18 boards, doesn't sound like much does it?  That is roughly 96 holes to be measured and drilled.  And then those 18 boards will need to be finish sanded and stained. That is 1-1/2 to 3 hours just in sanding and then 3 to -4 hours in staining.  I have a good 6-8 hours of work ahead of me before we can assemble them.  Assembly I estimate will take 2-3 hours.  So, you can see why I am a bit unsettled by all this time lost.  I am suspecting, but not wanting to admit that these won't be finished until NEXT weekend GROAN.  Ummm, can you tell that patience is not one of my strong points?  Hmmm, maybe that is why we are having these delays.  I better learn patience quick.

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Jul. 13, 2007 - The bunkbeds are coming along

I just finished sanding all but two of the boards needed for the beds.  Well, except the plywood sheets that are the bunkie boards.  I will do those last while the stain is drying on the cosmetic boards.  I just applied wood putty to the last two boards, and now they are drying.  When they are dry I will sand those two.  Then my sweet husband will drill all the holes and I will sand and stain them all.  Then we can assemble them.  I am SO excited. 

In case anyone is curiouse, this is where I bought the plans and hardware for the triple bunkbeds that we are making:  http://bunkbedsunlimited.com/   I will post pictures after they are finished.  I should have taken pictures as I went along, then you could get a good laugh on all the pics of me covered in sawdust.  I have never blown my nose so many times in my life.

We have our swamp cooler up now.  It feels wonderful to not have to hide in one room all day.  What a relief it is to have a home cool enough to function in.  It really opens my eyes to how spoiled and pampered I am.

Have a lovely day everyone.

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Dec. 1, 2006 - Busy, busy, busy

Today is going to be so busy.  First shopping with all the little darlings.  I'm spoiled, normally I only take one or two with me.  Then coming home and finishing the laundry so that I can make sure everyone has their best clothes for tomorrow.  Tomorrow we are going to be in a Christmas parade to represent the homeschool community.  So we don't want to look sloppy and ignorant, lol.  Then there will be the mad dash through the house to make sure all the children have their best shoes.  Somehow they always seem to disappear when we need them.  I almost think we will find them today and set them aside and in the morning they will be missing again!  I think I will put curlers in my two oldest girls hair for tomorrow since it's so special.  That means I have to buy them, since I don't own any, lol.  And I'm trying to knit ear warmer headbands for the girls and I, but I don't think I will get them done in time.  Oh well, we can use them on park days.

 

Well, I better stop fooling around today.  I still need to pay the bills and make out my shopping list.  I'm just a bit behind.

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Aug. 14, 2006 - My Method of Housecleaning

I have an interesting method of housecleaning. 

 

First I start cleaning in one room.  I find something interesting and immediately go and either put it away or start using it.  If I put it away, I tend to find something to clean up in the room I put it away in, which causes me to forget the project I was working on.  If I start using it, well, that causes me to forget what I was working on too.

 

Also, I will get an interruption by one of my children and completely and totally forget what I was working on.  I bet you can imagine what my home looks like right now.  It's  a jumble of half finished projects and partially cleaned rooms.

 

My method isn't working.

 

So, I reworked my method with a lovely schedule.  I assigned cleaning jobs to certain days and times.  This will allow me to know what needs to be done and to not go off on my rabbit trails nearly so often.  I think it will work nicely. 

 

Now, I have written many schedules before, but I never really have followed them very well.  I almost have seemed to resent them.  But my current one is a work of art.  It's beautiful.  I respect this schedule.  And the Lord has really been dealing with me about being faithful with my time and talents.  Not that cleaning is really a talent of mine.  But it must become an aquired talent.

 

So, I have a new goal.  My new goal is to be faithful, and stick to my plan.  I also have the goal of having a home that anyone can drop in and see me in and I won't want to crawl under a rock from embarrassment.

 

I know I can do it.  When I had three less children, I did do it.  I kept a reasonably clean home.  But somewhere along the way I gave up.  I lost hope. 

 

I am not going to give up anymore.  You know why?  Because my God says that I can do all things through Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:13).  And He also says that when I grow weary I will run (Isaiah 40:31).  And I believe what my God says.

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Jul. 1, 2006 - Playing catch up

I have let things slide, and although I am caught up in my kitchen work and in my laundry now, the rest of the house needs some tlc.  So today will be my crisis cleaning day.  I will spend 15 minutes each in three rooms, and then take a 15 minute break.  This is the Flylady method, and it works for me well.  With all of the children pitching in, it shouldn't take that long at all to whip this house into shape. 

 

Then I can on to things that are more fun, like crocheting, and planning lessons.  Yes, I actually enjoy planning lessons, lol!  And I really need to start planning my Christmas gift list, and what projects I will make.  I need to get started working on them so that I can enjoy the process and not have to rush through everything.

 

And tonight we are hoping to go to the drive-in theatre to watch a movie as a family.  It really depends on how I am feeling physically.  But I think it should be doable.

 

Today I was blessed to realize that not only does my Father have a plan for the loss of our baby, but He also mourns with me.  I realized this when I thought of Lazurus this morning.  Jesus knew that He was going to raise Lazurus from the dead, but He still wept, He still mourned.  He knew the plan, but mourned with those that mourned.  It was such a comfort for me to realize the Jesus is grieving right along with me.  The He mourns with me, even though He knows the purpose and the plan.

 

Well, I had better get going with my cleaning.  I hope all of you have a wonderful day!

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Apr. 8, 2006 - My New Devotional Binder

I just made a new devotional binder for my quiet time.  I like things neat and orderly, so I am excited about this.

 

 

I made it out of a small 6x9" binder and some tabs I found at Walmart.  The back of the binder has two verses from my favorite chapter in the bible, Philippians 4:8,9.

 

These are my tabs:

• Daily Bible (this is for my morning bible reading time)
• Prayer Requests
• One Year Bible (this is for my evening bible reading time)
• Book Study (for the book I am currently working on)
• Study Notes
• Blog Entries (for those times when my study prompts a blog entry, I can jot my notes and thoughts here)

I made the lined sheets in my Word program, cut them in half and 3 hole punched them.  I just couldn't see spending $3 on a small package of small notebook paper, my tightwad tendencies are showing, lol!

 

I am also going to put my bibles, pens, this binder etc in a small basket.  This way I will just be able to grab it and go where I need to go for some quiet.  It will be so nice to have this all organized, I am so looking forward to it.

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