Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Gratituesday: Time to Listen

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A couple of Gratituesdays ago, I wrote that I was giving myself permission to rest. Part of that is because several in my family (including myself) had come down with the flu – the fever, body ache, coughing kind of flu. And the other part? After a busy month in March, finishing and introducing my new book, plus traveling three out of four weekends of the month – I found myself completely exhausted.

For the past two weeks, I have only done bare minimum each day. I haven’t done loads of intense writing. I have rested and moved slowly as I’ve put together simple meals for my family. I’ve let my body heal from being sick. I’ve hardly left the house. (Except yes, I have gone to several of my boys’ soccer games. I needed the sunshine, and I really wanted to be with my family.)

While I still feel somewhat tired and need extra sleep each day (that flu is nasty, I tell ya), I am now starting to feel more like myself. I am beginning to feel refreshed. I have enjoyed my family in ways I haven’t taken the time to enjoy them for a while. And most importantly, I have been able to learn a lesson or two from God that I believe He has been waiting for me to hear. Apparently, it took knocking me down for a few days of feverish chills for me to listen.

While being sick hasn’t been fun, I have truly been thankful for the time to reflect and pray. These past two weeks have really made me aware of my weaknesses, and how God’s strength is made perfect through those weaknesses. I’ve learned that setting boundaries in all aspects of my life isn’t just necessary – it’s godly. 

God doesn’t expect me to be all things for all people. He’s already got that covered.  My focus is simply to be godly. In doing so, I will be able to accomplish everything He needs me to accomplish!

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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Gratituesday: So Busy!

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It’s so easy to whine and complain about being busy. When people ask, “How are you?” one of the first responses for many of us is often, “Good. Just really, really busy.” And sometimes, I think we can get into an “I’m busier than you are” competition – as if the person with the busiest, most difficult-to-keep schedule wins some sort of prize. (The pass-out-from-exhaustion-prize, maybe?)

I’m often guilty of being too busy, and I’m guilty of complaining about “how much I have to do!” Truly, it’s not good to be so busy that you can’t love on people, that you can’t care for your family, or that you can’t get enough rest and take care of yourself. If we’re that busy, even with good activities, something needs to give. 

But trusting that we are busy doing good, that we are busy ministering to others as God has called us to do, that we are busy being productive with our time – how about instead of complaining, we take the time to be grateful that we are busy?

To be busy means that God is using you! To be busy means that you are healthy. To be busy means that you have plenty of work to do. To be busy means that you are serving others. To be busy means that you have been given wonderful opportunities. 

I am thankful to be busy. And I’m equally thankful for the quiet time God gives me each day to spend with Him, just listening and learning. 

Never forget, we are all too busy to skip out on time with God each day. Being busy without Him means that we’re just…busy. 

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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What Are The Gifts You Received Today?

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I know we focus on being thankful each Gratituesday around here. But hey, we can focus again on it later in the week, right?!

I am currently reading through Ann Voskamp’s book, One Thousand Gifts. It’s an amazing (and challenging) read, and I highly encourage this book. I am realizing the need tonight to focus on the blessings and gifts of today. Will you join me? 

Some of my gifts today…

~ We got to eat lots of veggies!! Always wonderful after traveling. ;)

~ I was blessed to have a most encouraging telephone conversation with my Aunt Millie this morning. Oh how I love, need, and am inspired by that woman. She is a beautiful woman of God. She begins chemo treatments tomorrow. And there she was encouraging me…

~  Prayer. What would we do without it?

~  It’s the first day of spring! It is still cold here, but today, the sunshine busted through the windows, giving us just a hint of what is to come.

~  I got to be sharpened in Ladies Bible Class tonight. I am surrounded there by godly women. 

~  We have enough food in our fridge for leftovers at lunchtime tomorrow. Hooray for the thirteen peas!

~  I got to squeeze in a work-out today. It was just what I needed after sitting in the van (and eating cheesecake) yesterday.

~  Since I was able to keep up with laundry at our lodge in Branson, by tonight, I only have one load left to do from our trip. 

~  There were casseroles in the freezer for us to warm up and eat today so that I didn’t have to stop working to cook. 

~  You. I am blessed by each of you who choose to read my thoughts and ideas here on this blog. I appreciate you.

~  Made-up songs. My boys come up with them daily. Today was no exception. Sometimes they even rhyme. And they are always ridiculously funny. 

~  Crashing in my own bed. That ranks right up there with eating veggies after returning home from vacation. :)

What about you? Share the gifts of today. What comes to mind? In what ways are you blessed?

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Gratituesday: Almost Finished!!!!!!!!!!!! (And My For Real Confessions)

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I have the best editors, the best designer, the best friends, and the best family ever. My new book is almost finished – only because of the wonderful people in my life who have encouraged me, helped me, and spent countless hours working with me. My book would be pitiful without them, and that’s no exaggeration.

And let’s just be real, because that’s what we do around here, and because that’s what this book is all about:  The real me – when under pressure, when feeling the stress of a deadline, when seeing the light at the end of a tunnel too many miles away, when short on sleep – is not pretty. Sometimes I didn’t even like being around myself. (And unfortunately, I have found that getting away from myself has been extremely difficult.)

Let’s not even talk about what my house looks like. Okay, fine – let’s do talk about it. Can I admit to you that aside from basic laundry and dishes, I haven’t cleaned anything in my house for several weeks? (Eek!)  The boys have kept up with their bathroom, bedroom, and living room chores, so that has helped tremendously. But do not ask to see my desk, my bedroom, or the kitchen floor. I could write my name in the dust on the piano (and on the hardwood floor in our office). It’s scary.

But hey – the book is almost finished. ;)  Maybe I’ll celebrate by having a party with my mop bucket. 

Messy self and messy house aside – I have to share how thankful I am for all of your encouragement about this book. Your enthusiasm as you wait for its arrival has kept me going. My family has been awesome and then some. When I’ve told the kids, “Just go warm up leftovers again.” – they haven’t complained. I can’t even begin to tell you how much Matt has done to make this book happen. I am so thankful for him!

Now that we’re so close to being finished, I am so excited that I still might not sleep! When a project this big comes together – it’s hard not to jump and scream throughout the house. Shucks, I should really use that energy to wash the butter splatters off the mirror in my kitchen. 

God is good. He has made this book come together. It doesn’t get any more real than that.

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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Gratituesday: The Thirteen Year Old “Manly Trip”

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Our second son, Justus, turned 13 last Friday. As he did with Asa two years ago on his 13th birthday, Matt took Justus on an out of town day trip to spend some one-on-one time with him.

What did they do on this trip? They spent a lot of time having great conversations. Road trips are good for that. :)   Before the trip, Matt had talked to three godly men that Justus respects. While on the road, each of the guys called and gave some words of wisdom to Justus. We are so blessed to have these men (and so many more!) in our lives to enourage our sons.

Once they reached their destination, Matt and Justus stopped at a park and kicked around a soccer ball. They went to Cabela’s. They ate a manly meal of BBQ meat. Then, they got to do what Justus was so excited about – they went to a Tim Hawkins show!

 Ever seen Tim Hawkin’s Chick Fil a clip? So fun!

I am so thankful to have another awesome teenager in our house. And I’m so grateful that Matt is so diligent about training our sons to be godly. 

Oh, and while they were having their fun day away, the other three boys and I got to go to a Mother-Son banquet put on by our church. A great day all around for our sons!

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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Gratituesday: Godly Mentors

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I’ve spent many of my 15,840+ days on this earth having no clue what to do, making mistakes, and learning as I go. 

As a teenager, I muddled my way through each day, trying to figure out who in the world I was. (Thank you, God, that I never have to be a seventh grader again.) 

I began college with vigor, only to be met with the shocking realization that as a young adult, I needed to claim my own faith, keep up with my own laundry, study my heart out, and make my own doctor appointments.

When I first got married, I excitedly poured my heart into making a home, while serving my new husband many burnt grilled cheese sandwiches and underdone, doughy pancakes.

When our oldest son was born, I found myself totally in love with my newborn who quickly turned into a toddler. But I wore a “deer in the headlights” look for much of the time. Changing a diaper was easy enough, but where was the handbook on how to properly get a stubborn three year old to obey without having a melt-down in the middle of aisle nine? (Take your pick on who was having the melt-down…me or the three year old.)

In a few short years, three more baby boys were added to our family. I now had to learn to manage sibling squabbles, synchronize nap schedules, and deal with having too few hands to keep up with active little boys who didn’t care to sit quietly in a church pew.

There were wiggly teeth and ER visits for stitches. There were illnesses. There was death. There was pain and grieving. There were job changes. There was confusion. There were new adventures. There was more blessing than we could have ever dreamed or imagined.

And now? Now there are teenagers and preteens and a closet full of soccer cleats, work gloves, and basketballs. There are savings accounts, algebra lessons, odd jobs, hobbies, overloaded schedules, learner’s permits, and cute girls. Right around the corner there will be transcripts, scholarship applications, senior pictures, and ACT scores. 

Somehow I did make it through those uncertain baby and preschool years. This gives me hope that somehow, I will also make it through these deep voice changing, independent, cut-the-apron-string years too, even though I often feel utterly incompetent.

As unprepared as I sometimes feel, I take comfort knowing that I’ve never had to do any of this alone. Obviously God has been my ultimate guide, and Matt is a solid rock of a teammate. But what I’ve appreciated more than words can express are the women God has put in my life to walk me through each stage. Women who have “been there, done that”. Women who care. Women who don’t mind that I ask thirteen to three hundred questions. Women who love me for who I am and empower me to be what God has called me to be.

I’m not alone. And neither are you. There’s nothing new under the sun, and nothing you or I are going through hasn’t already been dealt with by someone else. Thank you, God, for wise mentors and for friends who offer encouragement.

Now if I can just refrain from purposely giving my boys bad hair cuts in an effort to ward off the cute girls.  I kid.  (I think.)

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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Gratituesday: All the Seasons

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This afternoon, leaving my fifteen year old and almost thirteen year old at home to finish school work, I packed up my eleven year old and eight year old, and we headed over to visit our friend who has a three year old, a two year old, and a newborn. The hope was that while my boys played with her little ones and I held the baby, our friend could get a few things done, or maybe just put her feet up for a while!

This really was an “everyone wins” situation. It was great for my boys to play the “big kid” role. The two and three year olds had fun playing with the big kids. In between feeding times, their mama cleaned out her freezer, got caught up on phone calls and paper work, and did a variety of other tasks that were on “the list”. And I think it goes without saying that I loved having a chance to snuggle a newborn for a good long while. ;)

Back in the day when all my boys were tiny, we had a family friend who would invite me to drop my boys off at her house every so often, just so that I could go to the store (or go home and take a nap) by myself. She insisted that someone had done that for her when her kids were little, and that the way I could repay her was to do the same for others when my kids were older and I had a chance. I’ve never forgotten the blessing that friend was to me during that season.

I could say all kinds of goo-goo stuff about how I miss those days of little bitty ones because truly, some days I do. There is something so precious about silly two year old lingo, sticky kisses, and the “I do it myself!” phase. And there is something equally precious about having an eleven year old who can entertain a two year old well enough to produce belly laughs for a good fifteen minutes. (I should have recorded it.)

Every stage has beauty of its own. Every season is a blessing. And no day is perfect – no matter what season you’re in. I don’t miss everything about having babies and toddlers, nor do I love everything about having independent big kids. But I relish the memories and I embrace the day to day. That’s a whole lot better than living with an “if only”, or “I wish”, or the “I can’t wait until” mentality.

Give thanks for today – no matter what season you are in! And if your season will allow it, go let the mama of little ones take a nap or to do something that doesn’t require wiping a nose or a bottom. If you are that tired mama of little ones, ask a friend for some help. I promise – everyone wins! (Spoken by someone who got a wonderful, squishy baby fix today.)  :)

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.

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

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Gratituesday: Food is Fun!

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I decided to let my Gratituesday post become my “here’s what we ate on Monday post”. Why? Because feeding my family is fun for me. Because I think it’s important to be grateful for all of the “little” things in life – like food – that we don’t typically give much thought to each day. And because I’m thankful for all of the variety God has provided. (Let’s all give a big hooray for the fact that we don’t have to eat a diet exclusively of manna and quail for 40 years straight, eh?)  So here we go:

I was the first one awake this morning (as is typical) and was ready to get started making blueberry pancakes when Elias, usually the first boy of the house to wake up, joined me in the kitchen. He had received a “Snacks on a Stick Maker” for Christmas, which has been so much fun to play with. Since we hadn’t tried pancakes on a stick yet, he asked if we could try it this morning. Sure? Why not. ;)  (By the way, I didn’t have any fresh blueberries so decided to use freeze dried berries that I’d bought from Vitacost. These worked great!)

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Well, the “pancakes on a stick” turned out to be a big hit with the whole family. However, making breakfast this morning took approximately two hundred hours. The machine only makes six at a time, and the boys could all eat about that many per minute. I cranked them out as fast as I could, while reading Bible to the boys and getting them started on their other assignments for the morning.

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Check out our mis-matched drinking glasses. Being the same would be so boring, don’t you think?

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I thought the blueberry pancakes on a stick turned out especially pretty.

After a morning filled with world history, math, laundry, and answering a few emails – I started making our lunch of Chicken and Noodles with carrots. While it was cooking, I mixed up the Bbq meatballs which were to be our dinner. I was also planning to take dinner to our friends who just had a baby! Four pounds of hamburger later, our meatballs were put into the fridge, ready to bake at dinner time. (My meatball recipe is in this ebook.)

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I finished up our lunch, “cheating” just a little bit by using purchased whole wheat fettuccini noodles. Ya can’t make noodles without eggs – and I had used the last of mine in the meatballs. :)  I also rewarmed some homemade cabbage rolls (recipe coming to you soon) to help make the soup stretch a little farther.

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To help clean out the fridge, and to add more nutrients, I threw some leftover peas into my soup. Yum!

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Not surprisingly, we still needed to stretch our lunch to fill the boys. A jar of this summer’s applesauce to the rescue!

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After lunch I got out a few frozen cookie dough balls I had made a while ago and baked them to take to our friends tonight. 

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Apparently this move was a little bit cruel since I only made enough cookies to take to our friends, and didn’t make enough for our kids. (The poor little dears had to settle for the leftover fudge brownies I had made a few days ago.)

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Sometime mid-afternoon as the boys were wrapping up their school work for the day, I had them head into the kitchen to take turns scrubbing potatoes for dinner. Elias and I left to pick up a few things at the store – including jeans for his ever-growing long legs. 

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In the meantime, Matt got the meatballs and potatoes into the oven to bake for dinner. When we got home, all the boys unloaded the van while I made green beans and packed up the food to deliver to our friends. I was blessed to have a wonderful visit with them while I held their new baby. Bliss!

When I got home, we sat down to eat our own dinner. Not only had Matt baked the potatoes and meatballs for me, he had put a spaghetti squash into the oven. What a great addition to our meal!

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And there you have it. I mostly followed my meal plan, with several additions and adaptations to round everything out and to fill up the boys. Plus, why make pancakes when you can make pancakes on a stick (and kill two hundred hours of your morning)?! :) 

God is good. Food is fun. Thanks for letting me share!

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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Gratituesday: Oranges!

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We just got back from a long, long drive to and from California to visit Matt’s family. One of the best parts of the trip (besides seeing loved ones, obviously!) is that we got to bring home two big sacks full of fresh oranges from Matt’s uncle’s tree.

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Wow, they taste good. I see a lot of Creamy Orange Coolers in our future, as well as simply lots and lots of sliced up oranges with our meals and snacks.

It is amazing how much better these oranges taste compared to store bought oranges. And, because they were given to us by beloved family members, we remember to pray for them each time we eat one. Such a tasty reminder! :)

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.

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

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Gratituesday: Beyond Blessed

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It has occurred to me recently, as I’ve talked about making Gingerbread Houses, creating Gifts in a Jar, and especially doing much of my shopping online to find special gifts on sale through Amazon…

We are beyond blessed. 

I have been reflecting about this anyway during the Thanksgiving and Christmas season, but I was especially “pricked in the heart” as I was looking into Trades of Hope and learning more about the women in those countries. These families are doing everything they can just to protect themselves, put food on the table, and educate their children. And here I am, in my very comfortable home with plenty of food – and not just the beans and rice kind of food, but treat kinds of food like Hot Cocoa and Muffins. We have shelves and shelves of books to read and learn from. We have too many toys to play with, which is evident by how they are spilling out onto the floor where they don’t belong.

And I’m sitting at my nice computer shopping for presents??? 

Sure, I am being practical as I choose our gifts. Sure, I am being responsible with our spending, even using more gift cards I’ve earned through Swagbucks than actual money for our purchases and finding good deals and discounted prices. But the very fact that we are able to buy our kids (and extended family) gifts that they need or want – I cannot take that for granted.

Need I feel guilty that we have so much when others have so little? No. But I do feel called to be responsible, to be generous, and to continue to pray for wisdom as we make decisions each day about how to spend our money, energy, and time.

I’ll just say it again. We are beyond blessed. And I am so, so grateful.

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.

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!