Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Gratituesday: World Cup 2014

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With the exception of the fact that watching soccer games was a perfect Father’s Day gift for Matt, clearly, this week is not a good time for our family to enjoy the World Cup. After all, we’re leaving on a long trip tomorrow. As it turns out, we’ll miss several games while we’re on the road, plus we have a million things to do before we leave. We have to finish packaging up container after container of vanilla to ship out…

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The older boys were at Soul Quest last week, which means there are several loads of laundry to finish up so we can pack. Indeed, we have a huge, long to-do list. World Cup soccer games???

world cup 1 (2)

Yeah. We’re making time.  It’s ridiculous really, how much our family loves soccer. :)  We don’t have cable, so we’re having to go elsewhere to catch games. (The college apartment lobby has been working quite well for us.)  It’s been a fun break in between all the work. When possible, I’ve been throwing together quick meals like fruit and tuna salad to take with us and eat while we watch.

world cup 1 (4)

Ah, family and futbol. It’s too much fun. Laundry, packing, cleaning, vanilla packaging, mowing, gardening, and all the rest? Eh, we’ll get it done. ;)

What would you like to share about this Gratituesday? What are you thankful for?

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Gratituesday: Another Soccer Season Ends

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March, April, and May are the spring months we eat, drink, breathe, and sleep soccer. Matt coaches (2 teams this season); Justus, Elias, and Malachi play on teams – both city league and traveling teams; Asa, Justus, and Elias referee loads of games. Most of our games are right here in town, but a few are an hour or two away.

We love this time of year, but it is full and busy! Game schedules and referee commitment lists cover one entire side of our refrigerator. I don’t even try to keep up – I just look at the fridge each morning to see what the plan is for the day. Then I check the weather.  Which will I need: tank top or winter coat? Ah….spring.

I’m grateful to share that we have once again survived another soccer season. It’s been great (except for the freezing cold and windy games, the games Matt had to coach while on crutches, and the amount of phone calls we’ve had to make because of re-schedules due to bad weather). Indeed, there’s always a lot of crazy going on for us this time of year. But we love our boys and we all love soccer. So bring it on! (Sunshiny game days are preferred though…what can I say?)

elias soccer 2014 spring

Here’s Elias’ traveling team after their final game this weekend. Great kids!

This year, I’m particularly grateful for the relationships I’ve formed with other parents on the side-lines. We’ve traveled, sweated, frozen, screamed, cheered, and encouraged our sons together for weeks. We’ve shared stories, popcorn, recipes, and life experiences. Through bloody noses, twisted knees, disappointing losses, and exciting victories – it’s been a great season to build relationships with parents of these players.

I look forward to doing this all over again in the fall. I look forward to the break in the meantime. I’m pretty sure our family will celebrate the end of this season with a pick-up game of soccer. Or basketball. We just can’t help it. :)

By the way, I’m happy to share that Matt’s foot is much, much better. His injury is healing very nicely and I’m pretty sure it won’t be long until he can join back in our family soccer games. :)

So what are you thankful for? It’s Gratituesday….please share what God is doing in your life!

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Gratituesday: A Change in Seasons

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Now that soccer season is over, our family should now have all kinds of free time on our hands.

Haha, that may be one of the funniest sentences I’ve ever written.

But compared to the busyness of soccer season – now that Matt isn’t scheduling his life around college practices, games, and road trips – and now that our days aren’t dictated by which boy has a game to play or referee at what time – I find myself taking a relaxed sigh of relief.

Some of the projects that have taken a back seat to the soccer schedule can now be pulled out and worked on. Some of the ministries we have felt called to do can now be executed. The people we have wanted to have over and spend time with? We might be able to fit that in a little more easily now.

Soccer season is fantastic – and because of our involvement with soccer in the community and at our local Christian college – we feel that soccer in and of itself is a ministry that our family is blessed to be a part of. We love being able to be around so many families and college students. Matt’s ability to coach young kids and young adults alike  is quite a gift. (I love watching him coach.)

But today Matt was able to help an elderly friend pack his home to move – and since he didn’t have to be back in time for soccer practice – he could stay until the job was finished. Tonight we got to go to the college to support our men and women’s opening basketball games – just because we wanted to. This Sunday, we get to start hosting High School Huddle again.

I love how different seasons provide different opportunities. And I love how the changes bring refreshment. Are we going to be less busy now? Probably not. But our involvement with people will be a little different than it has been during the past few months, and I find myself looking forward to it.

And maybe, just maybe, I am just a little bit relieved not to have to make any more trips out to the soccer complex to drop off, pick up, or cheer on a team…until the spring season starts. Then I’ll be all over it!

Share how God is working in your life on your blog, then come link up with us here. If you don’t have a blog, be sure to leave a comment letting us know what you’re grateful for! Please read through the Gratituesday Guidelines so that you understand what kinds of posts you can link up to share here. Posts that are linked but do not fit our Gratituesday theme will be deleted.

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My “To Do” List As I Prepare for the Fall (And My Plan to Blog My Way Through the Preparations)

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I know it’s only July, but I have to start preparing now if I plan to survive the busy fall season. August through October are always our busiest months of the year, as we start school, freeze and can garden produce, and juggle umpteen soccer practices and games. I love soccer season, and am so excited for it to start I can hardly stand it. My husband helps coach our local York College ladies soccer team (I can’t wait for these gals to get back into town!), three out of four of our boys play on teams, two boys referee, and two boys are on additional traveling teams. There are a lot of schedules to keep up with. 

I’m not complaining. I soooo love it. But at the same time, I’ve started to feel almost panicky about being away from home so much and keeping up with all of my responsibilities. My solution?  I’m praying for peace.  Panicking helps…nothing. Oh yes, I’ve proven that over and over. I’m asking God to help me relax, to use me to bless people, and to help me enjoy the ride this fall. Oh, and I’m also already starting to warn and remind my friends that in a few weeks, I will not be able to formulate cohesive thoughts or finish my sentences. I am so blessed to have friends who continue to put up with me during these busy months.

In addition to spending much time in prayer, I’m doing as much as I can now to make my homemaking and home schooling efforts easier once we’re in “the thick of it”. I decided to share my “to do” list with you, then blog my way through it during the next several days. You do want to watch me prepare for the insanity, don’t you? Yes, that’s what I thought. ;)

First, here are the home projects I’d like to complete by August 5:

  • Clean and organize our “School Room”.
  • Help the boys get their bedroom and the “Lego Room” cleaned and organized.
  • Type up book lists and writing goals for the boys for the year.
  • Take the boys on our traditional “school supply shopping, then eat lunch out” celebration. (They’ll never be too old for this, right?!)

Here are the kitchen projects I’d like to work on so that our fridge, pantry, and freezers are stocked and ready for busy days ahead:

Disclaimer:  All items on these lists are subject to change. I may not be in the mood next week to make calzones. I may instead decide to make Creamy Chicken and Rice Casseroles. Or maybe I’ll make both. Or neither. I will likely think of something in the middle of the night tomorrow that I forgot to add to my list. I’ll be sure to call you at that time so that you are aware that my list has changed. You’re welcome. I may decide that cleaning the Lego Room isn’t even worth it since it’s likely to be a mess thirty seconds after we finish. If produce becomes freezable or cannable during this next week, that will trump all else. (“Cannable” isn’t a word and spell check wants me to change it to “cannibal” but that is obviously not at all related to my plan for next week, so I am leaving it as is. We all know what I mean. I think.)  Regardless, I do plan to take lots of pictures and blog my progress. It may will be messy. Read at your own risk.

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Mother’s Day Cake Update – Finally

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My apologies that it took so long to give you an update on what in the world my family was baking for me while I was shut into my office yesterday afternoon. As soon as the mystery dessert was finished baking, we headed out to play some “Mother’s Day Soccer”. My choice. As in, I actually chose playing soccer over taking a nap. Go figure.

By the way, if you would have told me a year ago that this year I would suggest that we play a family game of soccer in honor of Mother’s Day, I would have laughed. But indeed, now that I’m getting fit and learning to enjoy playing with my kids, I just can’t get enough. Soccer on Mother’s Day just seemed like the perfect idea. And it was.

So back to the dessert you’ve been waiting to hear about.

Oh, but another reason I couldn’t update you on this mystery earlier is because after we played soccer, we had a nacho and movie night – with popcorn. Yes, didn’t you know that it’s always good to have nachos and popcorn together? Eh, it worked and it made everyone happy.

We are pretty good popcorn makers around here, always using coconut oil to make delicious popcorn. But this time, we used a fun new recipe from the Deliciously Organic cookbook. It was fantastic. However, we did have a wild ride in the kitchen while I was making it because I didn’t use a big enough pot. You know what happens when you don’t use a big enough pot when you’re making popcorn on the stovetop? The popcorn just keeps popping, and the lid comes off the pan, and popcorn goes absolutely everywhere. Jen was over hanging out with us, and Matt was in the kitchen too – both of them being very supportive while I was standing at the stove feeling rather helpless while popcorn started overflowing and flying. Matt offered some suggestions. Jen handed me a bowl for the flying popcorn, but with it, I only managed to make a bigger mess. Oh, you should have been there to witness the madness. ;)

This is the popcorn that managed to make it into the bowl.

But really, back to the dessert you’ve been waiting to hear about.

If you can believe it, the dessert recipe they picked wasn’t chocolate. I know, shocking. But wow, was it good.

They picked a “Hot Milk Sponge Cake” recipe from my old, worn out Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. Then, like good children, they figured out how to adapt the recipe to use healthier sugars, fats, and flours. Is that not impressive? More on that in another post.

So apparently that’s what all the beating was about. Sponge cakes take a lot of beating. Thus, the beaters were running for minutes on end. :)

Then, if you can believe it, they made a “Broiled Coconut Topping” to go on top. I’m telling you, they outdid themselves. Talk about tasty!


This cake was delicious. My family is the greatest. And without a doubt, I will look up the recipe, ask them about their adaptations, and post it for you so that your family can make it for you sometime. Or so that you can make it for them. Or whatever. ;)

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I Scored FIVE!!!! (and our Menu Plan for the Week)

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In case I haven’t mentioned it already, you should know that my entire family loves the game of soccer. Five out of six of us play, coach, and/or referee – leaving me to do what is safe and wise:  1) feed them all well  2) try to keep up with the practice/coaching/game/referee schedule as much as is humanly possible 3) cheer loudly from the sidelines and 4) for the love of everyone involved, stay far away from the soccer ball.

This system has worked well for years. But Saturday told a bit of a different story where Mom and soccer were involved. I had done my part that morning of feeding them all well before games, and then cheering loudly from the sidelines. (Although it was really cold, so instead of cheering very loudly, mostly I was focused on keeping my nose from dripping.)

Because an entire morning of soccer games is apparently just not enough, Matt and the boys decided to start a pick-up game on a small field with a few of their young friends. My kind husband then asked if I would like to join them out on the field.

I hesitated briefly, but given the fact that I am determined to get fit and thought that spending that time on the field with my family might actually be fun, I said yes. After all, I was cold. I figured that I could at least play for a couple of minutes so I could get warmed up a little bit.

One hour and fifteen minutes later, we decided to be finished. Yes, for one hour and fifteen minutes, I played soccer.

Perhaps I should clarify.

On-lookers may not call what I did “playing soccer”. It may have appeared to be more like a crazy 38 year old woman stumbling across a soccer field while occasionally making haphazard foot contact with a rolling ball.

But I’ll have you know – I scored five, yes…count them…FIVE goals. Why yes, I did.

I’m not entirely sure how it happened, because during the entire game, even though my brain often knew just what to do, that message usually didn’t quite make it to my feet. Generally, I felt like my feet were made of cast iron and wouldn’t budge or lift or turn the way I was trying to tell them to. But, since I was on my husband’s team, he obviously did a great job feeding the ball right to my foot so that I could force, flick, or otherwise, fling the ball into the net.

FIVE times!!!

Oh, had I told you that number already?

I should also mention that by the end of our game, I was so tired I could barely walk. And yes, today, I do have some bruises and sore muscles. Playing soccer definitely uses quite a different variety of muscles than does walking, jogging, lifting, and doing work-out videos. And the bruises. I definitely learned why shin guards are required for soccer.

But it doesn’t matter, because I scored five!

And now, while I sit here with ice on my knee, I will work on our menu plan for the week…

Sunday, April 22
Oatmeal, clementines
Bbq meatballs, baked potatoes, green beans, sweet corn
High school huddle – Grilled hamburgers and hotdogs, chips, pickles, olives, carrot sticks, butterscotch bars (x3)

Monday, April 23
Whole wheat pancakes, blueberries
Leftovers
Tuna casserole, peas

Tuesday, April 24
Easy breakfast casserole, oranges
Beef and cheese burritos, pineapple
Taco potatoes, tossed salad

Wednesday, April 25
Chocolate chocolate chip muffins, applesauce
Easy noodle stir fry with carrots and broccoli
Barbeque brisket, cream scalloped potatoes, green beans

Thursday, April 26
Warm vanilla soother, cinnamon swirl toast
Tuna salad on crackers, tomatoes, olives
Baked three cheese chicken pasta, tossed salad

Friday, April 27
Whole wheat donuts, apples
Chicken nuggets, ranch potato wedges, peas
Tacos

Saturday, April 28
Applesauce bread, scrambled eggs
Leftovers
Turkey sausage and red bean stew, cornbread muffins

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You Know You’re a Soccer Mom When…

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Fall is the season in which I live at the soccer fields. Our boys play soccer (all on different teams), our two oldest sons referee lots of soccer games, plus our oldest is now helping coach our youngest son’s team. Our sixth grader plays on an additional club team which occasionally plays in tournaments. My husband coaches some of our sons’ teams, plus helps coach our local college women’s team. As much as possible, we go to support both the York College women’s and men’s games. Did you follow all of that? Don’t worry, I can’t keep up either.

I absolutely love soccer and thoroughly enjoy supporting and watching and cheering. I am a soccer mom – it’s what I do. Here is what I’ve discovered about myself:

You know you’re a soccer mom when…you’re watching your six year old’s team get thoroughly creamed. The six year olds don’t seem to care too much about getting beat. They’re just working hard and doing their best. They run. They try to get the ball. They steal it from their own teammate. They kick it the wrong way. You keep cheering. You keep encouraging. And when finally, finally a goal is scored for our team, you find that tears spring into your eyes. What, you’re crying over a six year old soccer goal? Yes, because you’re a soccer mom.

You know you’re a soccer mom when…you decide after being at soccer games for hours and hours that you will just “rest your eyes” while sitting on the bleachers during half time of the fifth game of the day. The sun is shining brilliantly on your face, the music is playing in the back ground and you’re sitting on hard bleachers. As the teams take to the field again and get ready to begin the second half of the game, you realize that you had actually fallen asleep while sitting on hard metal bleachers. And surprisingly, you feel refreshed and ready to watch more soccer.

You know you’re a soccer mom when…that aforementioned brilliantly shining sun fries your face week after week and you have crease lines in your sunburn/tan where you were squinting to look toward the field. It’s cute. And even though you continue to get sunburned week after week, you continue to carry blankets, jackets, gloves and stocking caps in the back of your mini-van because you really just never know when you’re going to need them. You also carry in your purse a nice supply of water bottles, bandaids, kleenexes, and trash – because where else are your kids supposed to put the dirty kleenexes and bandaid wrappers? And yes, you have a big purse.

You know you’re a soccer mom when…you’re on your way to church, but instead of going straight on 14th Street to get to the church building, out of habit, you turn left at Nebraska Avenue and head toward the soccer complex. You finally realize what you’ve done about a block from the complex. You feel ridiculous, but hey, it happens to the best of us. When you repeat the mistake again three days later, you really being to wonder if you’ve lost your mind.

I am, through and through, a soccer mom. Can I get you a bandaid?

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Gratituesday: So Far, So Good

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I always intend to take lots of pictures. I always think it will be fun to document the entire week with its mountains of food, grateful soccer girls, helpful boys, dirty dishes – the whole thing.

But year after year, as I’m feeding the YC ladies soccer team, the pictures never happen. Occasionally I have half a brain and snap a shot, but generally I’m too busy to remember to get out the camera.

So far, I’ve taken exactly one picture. (Brace yourself for the excitement.)  I made eight loaves of Honey Whole Wheat Bread and loaded them (sort of) into my cake container to transport to the church building where we’ve been serving the meals.

The meals have gone wonderfully so far and the YC ladies are so sweet and appreciative. It’s been great to grab hugs from returning students and to get acquainted with new students. I am so thankful that our family has this opportunity to serve the team this way and that Matt is able to help coach. We love being a part of York College (our Alma mater) and being a part of these girls’ lives!

 

What are you thankful for this Gratituesday? Write about it on your blog, then come link up with us here. If you don’t have a blog, be sure to leave a comment letting us know what you’re grateful for!

If you are linking up a blog post for Gratituesday,please copy and paste the following sentence into your post! Thanks!

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

 

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The Two Week Tackle

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We like to begin our home school year at the beginning of August. This just works well for our family. That means I have about two weeks left before we hit the books. I’m really excited about this, and they aren’t admitting it, but deep down, my boys are excited too. ;)

August also brings quite a bit of other “excitement” as our garden will be kicking out lots of produce, which will need to be preserved. Our soccer season also starts in August. Our boys are on teams, but more importantly, the college team my husband helps coach gets underway the second week of August. Three-a-day practices keep him hopping plus, if you’ve been reading here long, you know that I usually feed the soccer team for an entire week before the college classes start. I LOVE doing this – the ladies on the soccer team are a joy to serve. I hear there will be 43 players on the team this year. That’s a lot of food! Stay tuned to hear how all of this goes.

Here’s a big pile of our books – in desperate need of some sorting and organization!

I tell you all of this to say that I have a whoppin’ two weeks to get myself organized before the month of August slaps me in my eager – but full scheduled – face. I’ve spent a good part of the summer working on two new books. Now that they are in the editing stage, to say that my house needs a little bit of love would be an understatement. And there are other areas of life I really need to get organized and prepared for, simply so that the beginning of our school year goes more smoothly.

And so…I have made myself a list. I’m calling it the Two Week Tackle because well – I have two weeks to tackle this list. Can I do it? Who knows?

Want to watch me try? Yes, I figured you might.

Here’s the Two Week Tackle List, which I reserve the right to add to or take away from at any given time as the crazy urges hit:

  • Organize school books and create a schedule for our school year
  • Clean out kitchen cabinets – replace shelf liner
  • Deep clean the entire house
  • Plan and begin to prep soccer meals
  • Make and freeze healthy convenience foods for the month of August
  • Make homemade hand soap and laundry detergent (just because I really want to try)
  • Experiment with homemade white chocolate and butterscotch chips for the Heavenly Homemakers Recipe Challenge
  • Finish creating the Whole Foods Pantry resource list that so many of you have been requesting

Regarding this last bullet point – I will, for at least one week, be taking a break from writing my bulk food posts. Creating the Whole Foods Pantry resource page is a big job to undertake, and the more I write about bulk food, the more it has been brought to my attention that you would really benefit from this list. I’ll pick up with the bulk food series once the Whole Foods Pantry resource page is finished.

And so, during the next two weeks, I’ll be cleaning, organizing, sorting, writing, finishing the books, cooking, and in general, preparing my household for the month of August.

I’ll try to blog my way through the list with some pictures and explanations if I can. There may be times I just hop onto Facebook and give a quick update. If you aren’t already following me on Facebook, you may want to click over to do that now. I’d hate for you to miss any pictures of my insanity. ;)

And now a question for you:

What are you most excited for me to tackle and share with you? Which item should I do first?

If you’d like to join the Two Week Tackle – get your list ready and share it in the comments!

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Gratituesday: Basketball Tournament

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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. :)

What are you thankful for this Gratituesday? Write about it on your blog, then come link up with us here. If you don’t have a blog, be sure to leave a comment letting us know what you’re grateful for!

If you are linking up a blog post for Gratituesday,
please copy and paste the following sentence into your post! Thanks!

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!