Monday, November 30, 2009 - The 12 Days of Christmas is coming!!!!
Now, for those of you who may be unfamiliar with this SHMILY Time tradition, The "Twelve Days of Christmas" isn't talkin' about "A Partridge in a Pear Tree. It's a twist that I'm sure your husband will enjoy!
It all started because my husband and I would wind up arguing during the holidays EVERY YEAR because it was so stressful. Spending time and money on friends and family seemed to get out of control no matter how much we tried to "get better" each year and would result in some sort of argument, so A few years ago, I decided I would something different... Twelve days before Christmas just happens to be my husband's birthday, so I surprised him each day, and got us all the way to Christmas day without an argument! I found it really hard to get angry with someone that I was so focused on loving and praying for!
THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS... SHMILY STYLE revolves around the act of love and anything leading up to it. Now, I know this "strikes a chord" with some of you and I know that sex is not the only thing that makes a marriage good... so please don't send me emails or leave comments telling me this. (In fact, if sex is the only thing good in a marriage that's not healthy either.) What I've found to be true however, is how "taboo" sex is, especially in Christian marriages. We don't talk about it or even acknowledge it's importance in our marriages, when the fact is... God created it... and it was His intention that it is good. I understand that we, as a society have ruined that in so many ways, on so many levels... but THAT is not God's fault, nor does it change what He intended for beautiful and fulfilling and to make a husband and wife as one. Because of what sex has become because of premarital sex, pornography, adultry and the like, we have somehow become "scared" to talk about sex in a Christian marriage as if it's "dirty".
Unfortunately, sex is also one of the first things we "take away" or avoid when things get rough in our marriage as well. Let's face it, when you're arguing with your spouse, do you feel like making love?... probably not... and when that happens, the enemy begins his work at destroying our marriage... Think back to when you were falling in love with your spouse... at some point in time, there was a physical attraction... and chances are good it was pretty "intense". Just because you may have been married for awhile, that does not mean that your love making should get boring, or non-existent. It doesn't matter what stage (or state) your marriage is in right now bring the spark back to your marriage, and start with THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS!
Note: If you are in a process of healing in your marriage, or there is a hurt that hasn't been dealth with or forgiven, then please take a moment to pray the SHMILY PRAYER. I realize that some hurts and problems need more time to heal, and so this year may not be the time for THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS... instead, you may want to tuck this idea away and continue to pray for God to restore your marriage, including the act of love making. (The Power of a Praying Wife is also an excellent book to begin praying every day for your husband.)With ALL that being said, THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS involves some planning, so take some time to be thinking about what you can do to begin a year that will hopefully start a life long tradition!
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It begins on December 14th (12 days before Christmas)... and is for 12 DAYS... 12 consecutive days (or nights)! This is especially fun because most people's traveling and visiting relatives is during these days (keeping in mind that this would be especially fun while visiting relatives because only you and husband will know what's going on...)
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This involves an investment in your "drawer of many blessings" drawer as well... and yes, you SHOULD have one of these drawers, so make room (throw out some clothes if you have to... your hubby would rather see you in these anyway!) Start saving money and get your drawer stocked up! You'll be able to "recycle" here so the money you spend here is worth it in the end. You're investing in your marriage and that is never money wasted. (Your size is NOT an excuse either! Please read, "He loves you... quit hiding!" if you're struggling with your outer appearance. Have all your "little blessings" bought by 14th and plan for each day's surprise, along with any evening you might be able to get a sitter and go out (with your "little blessing" on to tell him about over dinner), or a friend to watch the kids so you can stay in (and put your "gift" to use)!
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Make or get a card to give to your husband on the 13th. An idea would be:
- "To celebrate the next twelve days of Christmas I have planned a special "gift" for you each day with only you in mind! Anticipate what each will bring as we celebrate the next twelve days of Christmas... twelve you're sure not to forget!" (Don't forget to sign it, SHMILY!)
For some ideas, on what you can do for your Beloved, check out the SHMILY Time blog and please feel free to email me with more of your ideas to share with others (include your name and/or your blog address if you're willing to share that too!) AND you can sign up to join the SHMILY Time fan page on facebook too or THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS... SHMILY STYLE event on facebook!
Put the spark back into your marriage and tell others about THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS by posting the blinkie on your blog/website! May the Lord be glorified as we seek new ways to put the spark back into our marriage!
Wednesday, November 25, 2009 - Post from the Past: Thanking God for Our Thorns
One of my all time favorite stories I love to read each Thanksgiving... it's worth the read... and please feel free to share what thorns you'll be thankful for this Thanksgiving!
Tuesday, November 24, 2009 - Post from the Past: Things to do for Thanksgiving
For those of you looking for some things to do for Thanksgiving (whether homeschooling or not)... check out some of the following ideas from a post from the past:
FREE Thanksgiving Unit Studies and More!
Please feel free to share any of the ideas or traditions you do in your home for Thanksgiving!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009 - Homeschooling calls for ...
an easy going spirit...
So, yesterday afternoon, I'm chatting with our ES...supervising snack time...keeping an eye on dinner.... DD1 comes back from taking the dog for a walk, and puts the dog away, then goes to the kitchen sink to wash her hands...or so I thought....until......a GIANT FROG starts jumping around the kitchen, accompanied by screaming and laughing kids! She'd found a huge (5 inches long or so, in the body alone!) frog and brought it home to warm up!!
So, we had a quick look at the frog. All the kids got to inspect it. Then we had a lesson on proper hand washing. And then DD1 and I had a discussion about NOT using my tweezers to remove the WORM poking out of the frogs eye....
The frog is now living in the garden, we hope. I can't wait to see what is next.....
Thursday, October 15, 2009 - Amazing TV
Yes, that's right, TV, lol! DD1 and I have been watching "The Amazing Race 15" together, and it's led to some wonderful geography lessons (to be expected of course), but also to some other great history and social studies lessons. Discussions rambling from Vietnam war, POW, terrorism, JFK...poverty, both in 3rd world countries and here in America....religion....it's been wonderful! Each 1 hour episode (ok, 40 minutes after all the commercials, lol) takes us 2 hours or so to watch, with how often we pause it to chat. Gotta love that!
Thursday, October 8, 2009 - Settling in....
Well, we're settling in to a routine finally. I had us WAY overwhelmed for a bit, and drama and chorus hadn't even started! So, we've dialed it back a bunch, and it seems to be working better.
I'm trying to lean more towards unschooling, or at least a looser schooling method. I can't get totally comfortable with unschooling entirely, but I also don't want to be "school at home". I'm encouraging the kids to do more projects, like DD2 decided to make a book on the solar system, and DD1 might be doing one on cavies. Sticking with our math curriculum, light grammar and spelling work....adding in lots more reading time....
DD2 has finally finished Beta MUS, and will move on to Gamma next week. She's VERY proud. DD3 is about 2/3 through Alpha, and flying through. And DD1 is halfway through Zeta.
Nothing really interesting here, I guess, but hopefully I can start keeping up with the blog.
Oct. 2, 2009 - Forgetting
Sometimes I wonder if there will ever be a time (month) where each small cramp or twist of my uterus doesn't make me remember previous miscarriages. I don't relive them as much as before, but I can't help but think how once upon a time, I was feeling these things and knowing I'd soon be miscarrying. It's been 5 years since my last one now.
FarmMom
Thursday, October 1, 2009 - (Trying to) Get my act together for the holidays (again)...
So, in light of trying to "get my act together" ONCE AGAIN during the holidays, as I sit here writing this post, my printer is feverishly at work making my Holiday Planner that will give me some direction and guidance to the holiday season I've always dreamed of... or, at least, that's what I'm hoping for... tee hee...
I posted on this last year... and honestly, I even got some of it done, but "life" got out of control and I didn't do as well as I'd hoped... so, I'm at it again this year... giving it my best shot and another try knowing that if at first you don't succeed... TRY, TRY AGAIN! (Which is probably more of my "life verse"... tee hee)
If you struggle through the holidays, please feel free to join me by buying your own copy of Sheri Graham's Holiday Planner (which includes Ann Voskamp's Jesse Tree Devotional that I LOVE), or stop back here and read how things are going on my blog... maybe through some encouragement, we can make it through the holidays together!
Thursday, September 24, 2009 - 23 days AFTER our move...
We still have a few boxes to take care of... Mike's "office" is in the living room as well as my homeschool boxes and books for everyone (which we had to downsize to only the essentials and the rest went into storage). Other than that, everything is unpacked in the house and functioning! (I will be sharing video soon.)
We have some things in storage that I would like to come into the house (some frames to hang of the kids and stuff) and one day I want to go and organize the storage shed (as things pretty much just got stacked in there since it was dark when we were unloading. That will be a good feeling when that's done and I really know where everything is (I bought hair dye before moving and with all the boxes at home unpacked, we STILL never found them so they MUST be in storage... another disadvantage to unloading a trailer at night... tee hee).
I had a "down day" yesterday, and I 'spose it was just because now that the house is more in order, there's less taking up my time (until we start school in October) and so the reality of knowing no one really set in and I was feeling alone (I know I'm never alone... but that's just how I felt). So, another day... another feeling... and I know it's all just a part of this very big experience we've been called to be a part of here in Detroit Lakes, MN!
The weather has been beautiful (which only adds to being on the lake) and Mike and I are enjoying having tea in the mornings on the deck. We're anxious for the next steps now as we begin to make plans and meet people in the area. Prayers are appreciated for those to come forward who will be a part of our launch team for the church plant.
We are currently working on the church website which will have more info. and keep everyone posted there as well. Thanks so much for all your prayers during our whole packing and moving process! Things are going better and we are all glad to finally be "home"!
You can read more about things in our VERY LATE September newsletter... (wonder what I've been doing? tee hee...)
Wednesday, September 23, 2009 - Day 2: Releasing My Child into God's Hands
MY THOUGHTS on Stormie OMartian's "The Power of a Praying Parent"
Chapter 2: Releasing My Child into God's Hands
As I shared in my thoughts on the previous chapter, I really struggled with worry and fear when I first became a mom. Stormie shares in this chapter, that she too, worried after becoming a mom until she decided to give her son over to God completely:
...whenever I had fear about anything, I immediately took it as a sign to pray until I felt peace. If I didn't have peace right away, the I prayed about it with one or more prayer partners until I did. Daily I released my son to God and asked Him to be in charge of his life. This took the pressure off me and parenting became much more enjoyable. -Stormie OMartian (p.34)We only hinder what God has in store for our children when we "meddle" and try to hold on too tightly to our children. We can do it all "in the name of love"... but that's like saying we don't believe God loves our children more than us and knows what's best for them, even more than we do (which we know better).
We don't want to limit what God can do in our children by clutching them to ourselves and trying to parent them alone. If we're not positive that God is in control of our children's lives, we'll be ruled by fear. And the only way to be sure that God is in control is to surrender our hold and allow Him to full access to their lives. The way to do that is to live according to His Word and His ways and pray to Him about everything. We can trust God to take care of our children even better than we can. -Stormie OMartian (p.35)The reality is this:
We can't be everywhere. But God can. We can't see everything. But God can. We can't know everything. But God can. No matter what age our children are, releasing them into God's hands is a sign of our faith and trust in Him and is the first step toward making a difference in their lives. Prayer for our children begins there. -Stormie OMartian (p.36)Releasing our children may not always be easy... but there is no one we can trust more than the One who created our children in the womb!
Dear Heavenly Father, I give You my children again today. I know You know what's best for them in all circumstances, and even when I don't understand, I know You are always in control. When I cannot be with my children, I know You still are there and I take comfort in knowing that. Lord, please teach me how to pray for each one of my children. Each one is uniquely created by You for a purpose. Please help me to know how to help them grow in the gifts You have given them. I seek You to raise these children instead of listening to what the world may say about parenting. I chose to partner with You and ask that You are at the center of my husband and I as we parent and raise the children You've given us. Help us to raise them in a way that brings honor to You. I pray for parenting to bring joy and happiness instead of fear or worry. I trust You and rest in knowing that You love my children even more than I do. In Jesus' name, Amen.
It's not too late to join us as we pray for our children! You can check out more about it by clicking the following link: S.H.M.I.L.Y. for 30 days of prayer for praying parents... Please share a link to your blog post if you've made one on this chapter!
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