Troy & I at restaurant

Now onto the weeks schedule...

“Monday Meanderings“ does not have to be my 5 focal points each week, you can list any 5 things that will better prepare you for the week and bless your home and your family! To learn more about  "Monday Meanderings” please go HERE!

Bible Study/ Devotions ~ Reading my study Bible Chronologically along with studying Bible heroes, verses and devos with the boys. Doing a Devo with Troy

"Must Do"~ (Not the “To Do” list but the “Must Do” list!)

This week I Must ...

• Dr Apt with Micah for a very weird rash
  
• Work out and make a new meal plan
  
• Bake bread, its been ages

Homekeeping ~ Zone 1~ Time to get back into my Zones, the home has been a wrech since we launched THL and now that we have help and things are leveling off its time to get my house back in order. I will be working on one zone a month, not a week, a MONTH! lol I will share my progress each week!

Train Them Up~ We will be going over our new summer schedule (that I am still working on) I am going to try to incorporate MFW K with MFW 2nd starting this week. Say a prayer for me!

Menu

Monday ~ chicken enchiladas

Tuesday~ corn chowder

Wednesday~ Picnic dinner

Thursday~ Turkey burgers with the trimmings and baked fries

Friday~ Chicken Caesar salad

Saturday~ Leftovers

Sunday~ Supper at Troy’s parents

To view more menus for MPM hop on over to Laura's blog !

If you are participating in "Monday Meanderings" or "Menu Plan Monday" be sure to leave a link on Mister Linky, so we can visit you!

Please add any prayer requests to your post so we can pray for you!

The craft project I just finished is a tile mosaic table top.  It was something I’d wanted to do for a long time and finally had the opportunity when this particular table was given to me by a cousin.  The green color scheme on the table didn’t work with anything else we had so I decided to try my hand at doing the tile work. 

I browsed through the idea books that I could find at the library and got the basic tips I needed to make my ideas workable.  Here is the list of equipment that you will need for this project.

MATERIALS NEEDED

Table or other flat surface

Sharpie marker

Design idea

Wall tiles in your choice of colors

Hammer

Newspapers

Mastic (tile adhesive)

Grout mix kit in your choice of color

Rubber grouting trowel

Tile nippers

First give the surface you will be covering a good cleaning and allow to dry completely.  Take your marker and draw the design you want to make.  Since this was my first project, I chose to go with only two colors and a bold/large design.  For this design, I took a small salad plate upside down on the table and drew around it in four places.  I then took the marker and drew wavy lines going from edge to edge to make it look like loops of ribbon.

The tile will need to be broken and that is why you must choose the thinner wall tiles versus the thicker floor tiles.  I was surprised by the lack of color choices available at my local Lowe’s and Home Depot stores, just the white, black and cream/natural colors were carried.  I already had the blue tiles as we removed them from the counter backsplash in the kitchen during a recent remodel project in there.  The amount of tiles you will need will be determined by the size of the surface you plan to cover.  Since most tiles measure 4” x 4”, you can take a measurement of your table and see about how many would cover it if you left them intact.  You may end up with a few more than you need, but that’s better than not enough.  Begin by laying the tile in-between several layers of newspapers then smack with a hammer a few times to get it broken then dump them into a box that is large enough to easily sort through the pieces.  Use one box for each color tile.

Start with the main design by merely laying the tiles on the table until you like the way they fit together.  Leave small gaps between the tiles for the grout, then adhere these pieces first using the mastic and some sort of spatula; I used a large popsicle/craft stick.  After you get the main part done, start with the remaining ones.  I started with the tiles in the middle of the circles then worked around them like I was outlining them.  After you are happy with so many, adhere them with mastic and keep working with the rest.  After doing the outline then I started around the edge of the table.  Once all the tile was used that had been broken with the hammer you’ll need to use the tile nippers to get the pieces in just the right size and shape to fill in all the little gaps.

Let all this dry for about 24 hours or whatever it says on the mastic container.  Look over the tile and make sure no mastic is sticking up over the tiles and not mastic is smeared on the tops of any.  It’s easy to clean up and easier when it is totally dry.  Mix up the grout according to the manufactures directions, the kit should come with everything you need except for the rubber trowel.  I actually forgot to buy that trowel and used the fake credit cards that come in the junk mail and they worked wonderfully and just tossed when finished.  Do this in a well ventilated place, and wear the gloves that come in the kit.  Also, since the tile is now in smaller pieces, plan on using about 3 times the amount of grout the container says you will need for a wall the same size.  After you’ve applied the grout, let set for 20 to 30 minutes then using the kit’s sponge, and a bucket of water mixed with a splash of vinegar, use some elbow grease and get the grout off the top of the tiles before it dries hard as cement. 

That’s it, you now have a finished mosaic tile table top that you did yourself! 

I often fall into the mindset, "It's all up to me", even in how I relate to God. I become anxious about wanting to go deeper in my relationship with God and then strive to figure out how to do just that. The striving takes my eyes off the One I'm seeking and turns them to the enormity of the task of trying to relate to a God who's invisible.  Distractions, busyness, noise, and emotions are but a few of the daily challenges that interfere with my attempts at connecting.

People all over the globe from the beginning of time have attempted all kinds of means of getting the gods to pay attention. Some crawl on their knees for hundreds of miles. Others pierce their bodies and drag heavy weights. In ancient days many sacrificed infants in an attempt to relate to a god they believed to be out there somewhere.

If it were all up to me, I wouldn't know where to begin to seek God. How to break through the barrier of the physical world into the spiritual. To bridge the gap between what can be seen and what is concealed. To reach out like a "Who" down in "Who-ville" to a giant Horton. To shout at the top of my voice amidst the racket of the hustle and bustle of planet earth and hope to be heard by the Cosmic Source of Life. (I wonder what it sounds like from up there?)

But, it's not all up to me. The Creator of the Universe seeks a relationship with me. Oh, wonder of wonders! He looks for me. He hears me. He speaks. He shows up in unexpected places. He loves. He abides. He is nearer than near - Christ within me. The thought would send me into the realm of dreams and  fairytales if I didn't believe that it were true down into the depths of my being.