Tuesday, December 15, 2009 - Latest baby updates on facebook...
Just to let you know... I will be giving the latest updates on our new facebook group... so feel free to join and hear the latest on when the newest addition (who WAS due the 13th) will FINALLY decide to enter the world! :)
Click on the following link: THE VERLENNICH BABY'S COMIN'!
Sunday, December 13, 2009 - Post from the Past: free SHMILY time ideas
Some of you have written asking for some ideas at little or no cost for The 12 Days of Christmas. I understand COMPLETELY what it's like to be "strapped for cash", especially this time of year as gift giving is in full swing.
Here are some FREE ideas for you to love on your hubby...
- Massages are a great gift to give! You could even make a coupon to give to him in the morning (so he would be looking forward to it all day) or mail it to him at work. To take it a step further, you could even make this a gift for the entire 12 days, picking a different body part to focus on each night (uh... I don't have to tell you what to save for last right?) A good massage is at least 30 minutes. Sometimes it may seem longer to you than it really is, so be sure to look at the clock by your bed before you begin so you don't cut your sweet husband short!
- Breakfast in bed with a smile (and nothing else but a smile).
- Making coffee every morning and greeting your hubby with a cheerful "good morning". How we start our husband's mornings have a HUGE effect on the rest of their day, as well as how eager they are to come back. (I know that I wouldn't want to come home to me some days!) Make it your goal to be cheerful each day for the 12 days. Start his morning with a happy wife. If you work outside of the home and leave before him, then having the coffee pot with coffee and a sweet note would be a thought too.
- Pray for him each day. You could use The Power of a Praying Wife for this as well. Whatever you choose, and regardless if your husband prays with you or not, get out of bed each day with your knees hitting the floor before your feet do. Pray for the man God has blessed you with. Thank Him for your husband. Even if you're struggling in your marriage, ask God to give you the strength to get through the 12 days with love and compassion and to renew your marriage. You might be surprised what happens when he finds out that you're praying for him every day. Cover your husband in prayer each day... it may seem crazy, but YOU will become a better woman for it.
- Hmmm... this next one... well, it's REALLY simple and may get one of the biggest reactions from your sweetie... but if you can't afford to get some "blessings" to wear... you can always do what God intended from the beginning! That's right... NO panties. Be sure to whisper it in his ear at the grocery store, church, or before he leaves for work.
- One of my personal favorites (and my Beloved's)... Clean Lovin'.
- Take a marker and write SHMILY somewhere on your body for him to search for.
- Find out what he really likes by having him fill out the "I Feel Loved by You When You..." sheet... and then do it!
- Ice cream in bed together naked... one spoon. For the ice cream lover, you could get the pints of ice cream and have ice cream in bed every night. Don't worry about the diet... this is only 12 days... get fat on each other's love!
- Some "Christmas socks" you wear... and that's it!
- 12 pair of sexy panties... one for each day.
- Mistletoe (need I say more?) You could used this throughout the 12 days as well by having it show up in various places in the house... or various times... and it could mean more than just kissing. Write up a note and let your hubby know... you may want to even make it a "treasure hunt" by hiding it in various (obvious) places... and then follow through when he finds it!
- Three bows (or other wrapping ribbons for all over your body and hair) and place strategically on your body for him to "unwrap".
Dec. 10, 2009 - Metzger Family Christmas Newsletter!
HERE is our new Family Christmas Newsletter! Merry Christmas!
~ Mark and Lisa Metzger
Dec. 10, 2009 - Metzger Family Christmas Newsletter!
HERE is our new Family Christmas Newsletter! Merry Christmas!
~ Mark and Lisa Metzger
Dec. 10, 2009 - Do you really share God's view of children?
Dec. 10, 2009 - It's the Friends that Count - Why Having Godly Peer Realtionships are Important!
This came today from Nancy Campbell! This is so true, parents. WATCH whom your children are friends with. They influence your childen for good or for bad. Choose and help choose wise friends for your children. Explain to your children WHY this is so important. Congratulate them when they chose the wise friends and reject the company of the foolish ones. ~ Lisa Metzger
Deuteronomy 30:2, "Return to the Lord your God and obey His voice, according to all that I command you today, you and your children, with all your heart and with all your soul.
I talked to a girl yesterday who was homeschooled in a lovely Christian home. She became rebellious and got into smoking, drinking, and sex. How on earth did this happen? She said she got into bad company in her homeschool and church youth group! Help! Yes, bad company can be found anywhere. We cannot expect that our children will be in good company just because they are in a church youth group or even a homeschool group. We need to constantly check out their friends. We must always know where they are and who they are with.
I believe it is important to establish good friendships for your children even before they hit the teenage years. If they establish solid friendships with those who are a good influence before they are teens, they will be off to a good start. How can you do this? One of the greatest blessings Colin and I found as we raised our children was to have loads of hospitality. We invited families to our home with children of similar ages to our children. We encouraged the good influences. Their boys would stay with our boys. Our boys would stay with them. The girls' friends would stay with our girls and vice versa. We did not allow this carelessly, but only with the children and teens we could trust and knew their families inside out. We knew what went on in their homes because we were in and out of their homes ourselves.
It is a fact that the more functions and gatherings you can have in your home that includes other "good influencing" young people, the more blessed your teens will be. They love fun and loads of people around.
This was one of the complaints of the girl I talked to yesterday. She said her parents didn't like to have people to their home and therefore she missed out on the joy of company of other young people through the ministry of hospitality. Because of her own experience she says that when she raises her family that she will freely show hospitality in order to provide friendships for her children.
When our boys were young they started making go-karts and racing them. They then got into Moto-cross riding. Now they are in their mid-forties, they still enjoy getting out on their Moto-cross bikes to relax and burn off some speed! But when they were young, they did this with their friends who we also loved and trusted. They enjoyed doing the "real guy" stuff, but they did it in good company. That was the secret.
When children get to the teen years, they feel the need for company. They love to hang out with friends. Therefore they need to be hanging out with the right friends--the wise ones! They will be steered by the company they keep. The other night the young people in our home spent the evening with another family in our fellowship who also has young people. They through they may watch a movie but they didn't even get to it. The mother of the home asked a question and they got talking--and they kept talking until 3.00 am in the morning--and they were still asking and answering questions on the way home! They talked about real things, the qualities they desire in a husband and wife and about the principles of marriage. They didn't do this on their own but in the company of the parents of the home. They couldn't stop talking about how they enjoyed the evening and how they learned so much. As they hung out together with "wise" friends, they became wiser. Read Proverbs 13:20.
We love to talk about "life" subjects around our dinner table in the evenings and it is more fun the more young people who surround to the table.
Love from NANCY CAMPBELL, Above Rubies
Many women like to save these devotions. They print them out and keep them in a folder to read over and over again. Some print them out and pin them on the fridge with a magnet to read through the week. If you are printing this devotion and need it to be smaller, highlight and change to a smaller font.
If you know others who would be blessed by these devotions, you are welcome to forward them or let them know they can subscribe by sending a blank email to subscribers-on@aboverubies.org
Dec. 8, 2009 - testing pictures again :-)
Hi everybody - I know I've been absent for ages again, but in theory I'd really like to get going with little updates here and there, if nothing else. Latest update: I'm pregnant! I happen to be feeling wretched with this particular pregnancy, so that doesn't really tend toward helping me blog consistently. Nonetheless, I'm trying to figure out a better picture system again, and think I may have one. Please let me know if you can see either or both of these pictures! Thanks, and happy Advent to you all!
Sunday, December 6, 2009 - Maintaining excitement throughout THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
QUESTION: "Amy, how do you maintain excitement for 12 days of Christmas Shmily time? I tried it last year and frankly it was hard! Hubby was feeling special but honestly I just wanted to be left alone and sleep. Help me get mentally straightened out to try again!" - JessicaI have to be honest... I struggle EVERY year with this whole thing, to some extent. Now, don't get me wrong, it's so much better than it used to be BEFORE I started the "12 days of Christmas" with my hubby... but that doesn't mean it doesn't go off without some trials, and I honestly believe that the more women that I tell about the 12 days of Christmas in order to bless their marriages... well, do you think that satan is just gonna sit back and watch my marriage flourish? Absolutely not!
I honestly hesitated this year when I realized when THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS was going to be and when the baby was due... I am literally due the day before I normally start this whole thing (which is my hubby's birthday) and so not only did I realize I was going to have the "normal" struggles of prior years... but having a baby at some point before the 12 days is up certainly means I'm gonna need to get a LITTLE... uh... creative... Not only will hormones be in full swing... but I will have a new little one "sucking the life out of me" (I nurse my babies) and that can be draining as well.
But the more I thought about "canceling" the whole thing... the more I knew I needed to do it... not just for my sweet Beloved... but because I needed to look forward to it as well. I needed to remind myself of all those reasons I fell in love with my husband... and the many more that I've fallen in love with since then.
I think we all know that by doing this... we certainly are blessing our husbands and our marriages... but I realized how I've really taken the whole thing for granted by thinking that I'm doing my husband some great big favor... when, in reality... I am equally blessed by these very special 12 days each year. By focusing on the good things about my husband, I "fall in love" all over again with the man I married... but there is still more...
I GET to serve my husband more intentionally then I normally do. Sure, I wash his clothes, make meals for him (although I don't know if he'd say that's a blessing or not considering the cook HE is), make sure his closet is full of clothing that fits and shoes to wear... but I can so easily fall into the routine of being his wife, that I forget the privilege of being so much more... a servant who acts out of love, expecting nothing in return... THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS makes me focus on my husband's wants, needs, and desires more than ever before and I find myself truly loving making him smile. It's no longer about what he's done for me... what I might get in return... or why he isn't do this or that... my focus is not on ME... and honestly women, that's right where God wants me as a wife all the time.
So, while I know 12 days IS hard to keep the excitement alive... I want to challenge you to really focus on your husband and not yourself... push yourself to go a little further when you feel like throwing in the towel... go the distance because in the end... it will not only be your husband that will be blessed... but you as well.
FYI: I made a booklet to encourage your husband for 30 weeks... in it there are a few things that might help you to stay focused on your hubby as you prepare for the 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS... and to help you stay that way throughout. You can find the booklet by clicking the following link: 30-week Husband Encouragement Challenge.
Dec. 3, 2009 - Great Advent Adventure and Devotional! Jotham's Journey - Great for the ENTIRE family!
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December 2, 2009 - Christmas Cards Made Quick and Easy!!
This year I'm on top of things for my Christmas cards. I am so excited because I should have all 200 of my cards mailed by the end of this week. You may be wondering how I'm doing it...since I didn't start until last weekend.
I uploaded our family pics, wrote our Christmas letter, stuffed, addressed, stamped, and mailed it as a tri-fold, personalized, color Christmas card...in less than 1 hour....all from the comfort of my own home :-) . . . and for less than $1 a card, including the pictures.
So...how did I do it?
Last week, I received a video that shows how you can get your cards done quickly & easily, too. The video is only 4 minutes long. Take a minute right now and watch it.
http://www.soccoach.com/sendcards/
Then, send a free card to someone you care about...
http://budurl.com/ChristmasCards
***There's a "SEND CARD" banner to get you started. BTW...here's the timeline I gave to some of my associates. You can follow it, too!
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1. Set my budget for cards & gifts (today)
2. Take our family pictures and create my card - by Sun, Dec 5
3. Start collecting addresses and put them in my Contact Manager in my Christmas card group- by Fri, Dec 11 4. Set up my Christmas card campaign and mail - on Sat, Dec 12
5. You can add a gift to any card by editing it before midnight the day you create it. If you want to send a gift to a few people on your list, click Main Menu and "search" on the left grey box.
And...you NEVER left your warm, cozy home!
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You're DONE! and if you followed my schedule, you have 13 more days until Christmas to enjoy receiving Christmas cards from your friends and family.
Blessings,
Kerry Beck
P.S. Your family & friends will be so excited to hear from you BEFORE Christmas :-)
P.P.S. If you know someone who wants to send their Christmas cards, quickly and easily, tell them they can send a free card, too.
http://budurl.com/ChristmasCards
______________________
Copyright Kerry Beck, 2009
You have permission to reprint this article as long as you don't make any changes and include the bio below.
Kerry Beck gives free Advent calendars with daily Christmas projects to prepare you for Christmas. You will discover lots about the Christmas season with her projects.
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