Gratituesday Archives | Page 16 of 20

Gratituesday: My Computer is ALIVE!

May 16, 2011 by Laura 20 Comments

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Last week I whined to you that my computer seemed to be on the brink of death. This is quite a big deal for our household as we rely on our computer for many, many things, most importantly the work we do on this website.

Our computer is just over a year old, which should mean that having our computer up and die isn’t something we should have to fear. Yet, for the past couple of months we’ve been experiencing some crazy symptoms and scares. We’ve had it looked at, cleaned up and looked at again.

The guy working on it said he’d never seen anything like it – not a comforting statement from someone who’s been working on computers for many years. To say that I was under a bit of stress last week is quite an understatement. Looking back, I should have handled this better, knowing that God always works everything out. In the big scheme of things, having a dying computer, but having healthy children and a roof over our heads means that truly, all is well.

I won’t go into all of the specific stresses of the week, but let me just tell you a little bit about how God worked through this:

A few weeks ago, my friend Brenda told me about Carbonite, letting me know that it was a great way to back up your computer. We decided to go for it.
On Tuesday, Carbonite completed its back-up of our entire computer, including eBooks I have in the works plus hundreds of pictures we’ve taken.
The VERY next day, the computer refused to boot up. Yeah, the very next day.
After trying many other things, our computer-expert friend had to basically restore our computer to its original self, meaning that everything we had on it was wiped out and our computer came back to us like a brand new computer.

This means two things:

We truly have a wonderfully working, like new computer again. It’s working fantastically.
If we hadn’t just backed up all of our files, we would have lost everything stored on our computer.

I am so thankful that God prompted us to get everything backed up. Carbonite has already restored all of our files back to our computer. Wow.

I am so thankful that our computer is now working wonderfully again. And I am so thankful for friends who helped us out during that time, either by helping fix the computer, offering to help fix the computer or letting us borrow their laptops so we could at least do bare minimum work on the website while we waited to get our computer back. We have such great and helpful friends.

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Gratituesday: We Laughed, We Cried

May 9, 2011 by Laura 22 Comments

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This morning I had the blessed opportunity to go out for breakfast with two very dear friends. We rarely see each other and both were in town for a wedding. Visiting between bites of wedding cake yesterday, we realized we needed more time for chatting. Setting our alarms to go off with the roosters, we squeezed in an early breakfast before they headed out of town this morning.

We pretty much skipped all of the “I like your cute shoes” kind of talk and went right to the heart of life: “How’s your marriage?”, “How’s your spiritual walk?”, “How is God using you?”, “How have you been dealing with the pain from___ since the last time we talked?”

I felt so refreshed and sharpened by our brief but meaningful conversation. These gals know what it is to experience hurt and to let God help them land on their feet. They inspire me to be a better mother, a better wife and to have a stronger relationship with our Lord.

Do you have friends like this? If not, pray for God to provide them. The joy and encouragement from godly friendship is priceless.

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Gratituesday: Making Headway

April 18, 2011 by Laura 22 Comments

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I know, I know…I haven’t posted the storage room pictures (aka freaky-mess-scary pictures) yet. You talked me into at least taking the pictures and they’ve been uploaded and everything. But I just didn’t see how posting my scary storage room pictures would be a good thing to share for Gratituesday.

I am thankful to have a storage room and enough stuff to make it messy, but still, I like keeping Gratituesday a place of refreshment…not a place to make you run screaming away from my site.

And so, I’ll wait a little while longer to post those pictures (but really, they are coming soon). In the meantime, think grateful thoughts and don’t try to imagine how messy my storage room is. It’s Gratituesday, after all.

I will share that while I was getting myself very dirty and having some very productive storage-room-cleaning-out time today, I found a nice stash of big plastic storage containers. I love glass jars best, but for bulk dry ingredients, it’s great to have big ol’ plastic buckets and jugs for storage. I forgot I had these containers, so I was very happy to dump out the dust and dead crickets (told you that room was scary) so that I can use them again!

I got them all washed up, so soon they’ll be ready to be put to good use in my new organizational system for food storage. I’m very excited and feel good about the headway I’ve made so far!!

I also feel very filthy. Yuck, this is a dirty job. :)

In case you were curious, I made this simple Stir Fried Chicken and Veggies for dinner
tonight using the food we have on hand. All the kids love this meal and it is so easy to make!
(And yes, that was really on the menu for tomorrow, but I switched the two night’s dinners.
This is what happens when you’re busy cleaning and forget to put the roast in the crock pot.)

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Gratituesday: The SUN!

April 11, 2011 by Laura 25 Comments

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I think it’s likely that I have and will write a Gratituesday post praising God for sunshine every April on my blog. But I won’t apologize for the redundancy. Or the repetitiveness. Or even for the fact that I have said it over and over again. Because the sun is shining again in Nebraska and I am SO THANKFUL!!!

Winter is lovely. Snow is fun. Sitting around the fireplace is cozy. Soups and stews are comforting. I love that God gives us seasons and all the beautiful changes that come with them. I’ve tried very hard not to be whiny about the cold, cloudy, sunless days that have lasted for several months in these parts. It’s all a part of what God gives us and whining doesn’t help me warm up one bit. :)

But well…I’m ready for a little Vitamin D in my life. I am ready to open up my house and let the sun shine in. And I can’t wait to get my hands in the soil.

Justus (11) brought me in a handful of my favorite lavender wild flowers today. He said, “Remember how I used to do this when I was little?” And then he dumped the wilting, yet beautiful little flowers in my lap. The sweetie.

Spring is here! The sun is shining again! (And I’m prepared for the fact that there may still be a snow storm or two before summertime, but I can deal with it.) I’m so thankful for the refreshing gift of sunshine!

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Gratituesday: Houseful of Teenagers

April 4, 2011 by Laura 25 Comments

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It all started over the weekend when I ran into a friend at the Home School Conference. She’s one of the moms of some boys on Asa’s basketball team. We were talking about how the boys missed each other since basketball season had ended in early March. One thing led to another, and we figured out a time to get her boys over to hang out with Asa.

And then that one thing led to another, and we decided to call more boys on the basketball team.

And to make a long story short…there are seven teenage boys in my house right now.

Since Monday night and Tuesday were the days that worked best for everyone, we all just decided to cram Tuesday’s school work into Monday and Wednesday (ah, the beauty of home schooling!) so that Tuesday can be a big day for hanging out and shooting hoops.

Three lasagnas and four loaves of bread later, I’d say these boys are having a pretty good time…

Seven teenage boys might seem a little intimidating…but I promise you that even I am having a wonderful time. These have GOT to be the most polite boys on the earth. I love them. Our younger boys love them. Their mothers should be proud.

We’ll be having pancakes in the morning. I’m trying to decide how many times I should quadruple this recipe to fill them all. (How’s that for a gluten-filled sentence in the middle of our Gluten Free Recipe Parade week!?) :)

What a blessing for my son to have friends like this in his life. Bring on the hollow legs!

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Gratituesday: Weekend to Remember (+ a Giveaway!!)

March 28, 2011 by Laura 269 Comments

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I’ve been so excited to share with you about our weekend!!! Matt and I were blessed to have a getaway at the Weekend to Remember marriage conference – I cannot recommend this conference highly enough!

We haven’t had a weekend away, just the two of us, since the year two-thousand-and-I-have-no-idea. Yes, it’s been a while. We love being with our kids. Still, having time for just to two of us, time to really focus on our relationship and being the most we can be for God…it was wonderful.

The Weekend to Remember is an incredible ministry of Family Life (maybe you’ve heard of them?). These people are serious about saving marriages, blessing marriages, building strong marriages, preserving God’s design for marriage!

There were over 500 people at the conference this weekend. To see that many people dedicated to making their marriages strong…it was so encouraging. I got teary-eyed seeing one couple at the end of the conference. The last session was over. It was time to pack up and go home. And this couple. They were hugging with a renewed joyand love for one another. Right there with hundreds of other people walking by. You could tell that this couple forgot anyone else existed in the world. They were in each other’s arms and they were at peace. It was beautiful and a blessing to see. (I’m teary-eyed again just thinking about it.)

I loved how the Weekend to Remember speakers and materials are so down to earth and real. They had Matt and I talking about all kinds of things that were good and helpful. Ooh, that was my favorite part of the weekend. Spending time talking and talking and talking to Matt about everything that is important in this life. Hours and hours of talking. When do you ever get that as a couple?

I’m so thankful we had this opportunity. If you have a chance to attend a Weekend to Remember conference…do it! You won’t regret it! Couples have found healing for their marriage relationship…it can be life changing!

Guess what?!! You and your spouse can go to the conference for FREE if you enter and win this giveaway!!! Isn’t that exciting!?!! You can’t put a price on your marriage…so even if you don’t win, I really encourage you to make a way to attend. Your marriage should be a top priority!

There are Weekend to Remember conferences all over the U.S. If you are the winner, you would still be responsible for paying for your own travel expenses, lodging and food. But, your conference fee would be covered!

Leave a comment on this post for a chance to win. AND, have your spouse come leave a comment too!! I’ll allow one for each of you, doubling your chances to win! I’ll draw a random winner on Friday, April 1.

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Gratituesday: The Circus

March 21, 2011 by Laura 21 Comments

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We had exactly one hour and ten minutes to get ready.

This is because when the email came through from our home school group at least one month ago about free circus tickets, I somehow didn’t see the details or didn’t have time to think about it or something goofy like that. And then I forgot. This is why I didn’t sign up for our family to go to the circus for FREE. Many of the home school families in our area who HAD read the email and HAD been responsible enough to sign up on time were making big plans. Therefore, last Friday several of our friends were heading out to the circus with their kids while WE were planning to stay home and clean bathrooms and bedrooms. Not nearly as much fun, huh?

Then, just a little over an hour before departure time, we got a phone call. There were exactly six circus tickets now available…did we want them?

Oh yes, we did want them thank you very much!

Of course, we were still all in our jammies (yes, even though it was after 10 a.m.). And needed to pack a lunch. And make sure the van had gas. And fill some water bottles. And tie up a few other loose ends.

We scrambled, we ran, we threw jammies around not caring where they landed. Eh, we could take care of those later. We were going to the circus!

We made it to Lincoln, found a parking space and ran in to find our seats with exactly three minutes to spare.

The circus was great! We’d never taken our kids to the circus before. In fact, while Matt and I had each been to a circus once when we were little, we didn’t remember much about it. We all had a blast!

Since I’d not been prepared ahead of time, my camera took this picture…then the battery died. :(
At least I got a pic with the fire ring the tigers walked through!

The kids have been talking all about it since Friday. What great memories they got to make! (Although I’m hoping they’ll forget the memory of watching the the stunt motorcyclists riding around in the tiny little circle cage thingy…they don’t need to be getting any ideas.)

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Gratituesday: What’s it Like Having Matt Home?

March 14, 2011 by Laura 38 Comments

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I’ve been asked questions about our “new lifestyle” quite often and thought I might share with you how the past two and a half months have been going for our family. If you recall, Matt resigned from his restaurant management position in December to work from home full-time. Our desire was for Matt to be able to spend more time with our family and in ministries. We were tired of having regrets.

So, how about I do a little bit of Gratituesday “Matt’s Home” FAQ?

If your husband quit his job, how do you have an income?

Our answer to this question has been, “We may not have jobs…but we have work and we have income.” We are self-employed, doing a variety of work that provides income for our family. We’re working very hard…and we get to do most of it side by side. We feel that for us, it has been wise not to “put all of our eggs in one basket”. We have income from several different sources…all of which adds up to enough to meet our family’s needs. We own and rent out storage units; the Heavenly Homemakers site provides income; Matt has a snow-removal business; Matt does odd jobs for people in the community. There isn’t a job, but trust me…God has provided plenty of work. Our needs are always met.

What are your days like?

Each night we discuss what needs to be done the next day. We make lists, we prioritize and we continue to dream and set goals.

Every day is very different depending on what the needs are for the moment. I’m generally home most of the time, just like I was before. If it snows, Matt is gone a good part of the day spending quality time with his snow-blower, or if someone calls on him to help out with something, he heads out to help. If he can, he takes all the boys over to help him with a job someone has called on him to do. Otherwise, he is usually home working on whatever needs to be worked on. We are tag-team teaching the boys, depending on what needs to be done and who is available. Sometimes I have work I need to get done for Heavenly Homemakers, so I go “hide in the office” while Matt jumps in and helps the boys with their work. He loves that he now has the opportunity to take a more active role in their schooling.

Matt is working on getting his Real Estate License (which is another income source he’ll be able to operate mostly from home), so recently he’s been studying and taking tests online. He’s also been working on marketing our Learn your Letters, Learn to Serve pre-school curriculum and other Heavenly Homemakers resources.

Do you get tired of having your husband home all day every day?

Abso-stinkin’-lutely not!!! God has blessed us during this season while we raise our boys to BOTH be home to parent and train and work. I know not everyone might feel this way or work as smoothly as a couple…but for us, this situation is working very well. Matt makes my life and my days easier, not harder. My stress level has gone down a great amount since he’s been home. He’s a huge help, a wonderful encouragement, and a solid provider. We love being together. God has made us into a great team and are so thankful that we get to work daily as teammates.

I’m constantly thankful and do not take this blessing for granted. When I run into him in the kitchen or office at 10:56 in the morning or 2:23 in the afternoon, I can’t help but smile and give a shout out to God that my husband is home. (And I usually steal a kiss, because well…he is just right there and I can’t really help myself.) ;)

What does your future hold?

We really have no idea. We know that God gave us this gift of time together with our family at least for now. Because our schedules are flexible we are able to be open to ministry opportunities God puts on our hearts. We’re really just trying to remain open to whatever it is that God has called us to do right now, and we look forward prayerfully to what God has in mind for our future. There is much to be done for the Kingdom. We’re so grateful that we get to work at it…together.

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Gratituesday: Basketball Tournament

March 7, 2011 by Laura 21 Comments

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I wasn’t sure what to think about the big Home School Basketball Tournament we were headed to last weekend in Kansas. I’d heard it was well run and that there were lots of teams coming from three different states. Well…wow to both! It was very well run and there were basketball players and parents EVERYWHERE! :)

This is our first year to have a child on our local home school basketball team. As you know, we are a complete soccer family. (Well, except for me. I can’t play worth a hoot. I just feed everyone and cheer really loudly.) It has been a great experience for Asa, our oldest, to learn what to do with a ball in his hands instead of at his feet. He’s come a long way this season and he’s been a joy to watch.

Since the tournament was in Kansas, we headed down a few days early to spend some time with our family and friends there. That was an added bonus and blessing (even though my brother’s whole family came down with the flu so we couldn’t spend much time with them…and even though when I went to go visit Amy my website went down so I had to spend several hours of my “vacation” trying to fix it). But other than that…it really was a great weekend!

What I loved most about the tournament…besides spending time with some great families from our community and getting to know more great families from other states…was that the weekend wasn’t just about basketball and trying to win games. Coaches led the teams in prayer together before games started. Team devotionals were held each morning. And on Friday afternoon while all the teams and families were in the big gym together for a little “three-pointer-shoot-out”…we were blessed to hear a short but meaningful message about how the “uniform” you wear shows that you are a part of a certain team. So, how about the “uniform” we wear for Christ? Do our actions show that we are on Christ’s team? Great stuff.

I feel very blessed that our family had the opportunity to be a part of something so beneficial in so many ways. Looks like we’re now a soccer family…and a basketball family. :)

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Gratituesday: Missing Teeth

February 28, 2011 by Laura 25 Comments

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I am continually thankful for our four healthy boys. Health is nothing to take for granted. As I catch myself when my boys whiz by me with their crazy, neverending high levels of energy…and shake my head as they constantly outgrow their jeans and shoes, I am reminded to praise God for the blessing of kids who are doing exactly what He created them to do: grow, learn, change, become stronger and become young men with big appetites and big hearts.

Our youngest lost the first of his wiggly teeth this week. It was bittersweet for me. He was pretty proud of those tiny baby teeth he got to put under his pillow.

This was Malachi’s attempt as smiling and showing the gap
on his bottom row of teeth all at the same time!

I love my boys…and their Daddy, who is doing such a great job of showing them what it means to be a man of God.

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