We’ve been studying Paul in Bible study so far this year and we’ve just finished going through 1 Corinthians.  This verse never ceases to step on my toes…do I really do everything for the glory of God? or is it about me?  In my head I know that it is not about me…but my stubborn flesh doesn’t want to give up. I am thankful for God’s patience as He continues to work with me on this lesson.  Daily…moment by moment, I pray that it would all be to His glory!

On sale in the shop this week for $8.

How about you…how do you keep your focus on “doing all for the glory of God” and off of self?

Yesterday after lunch we had a chance to just walk around outside on our property with the kiddos and take stock…such a beautiful time!  The weather was gorgeous…just enough nip in the air to make long sleeves enjoyable.  We walked down to the bottom of our land to check on a few things and the kids and puppies had a blast…on the way back up, Walker found him a good climbing tree and got a few pointers from Papa and then we spent a little time around the playground and trampoline.  Don’t think working from home and living in the country will ever grow old!

We have the verse in two font layouts in two different sizes this week – the 15×23” size is on sale for $4! 

On sale in the shop this week for $12 {shipping included}.  Happy Monday!

Now the boards simply slip together and the friction & design lock them together for easy transport.  They’re about 1/2 the overall thickness they were before and weigh less too!  They’re still regulation size, now they’re just easier to handle. 

Go here to see our sets!  We’re always open to custom designs & orders as well.

A few details:
we will endeavor to ship every order (USA only) received on or before Weds, December 7th at midnight such that it will be received in time for Christmas.  However, please understand that we cannot control nor are we responsible for the USPS.  The post office says that First Class mail shipped by 12/20 and Priority Mail shipped by 12/21 are on time for Christmas delivery – we plan to ship by 12/19 (first class) and 12/20 (priority).  Unfortunately we can’t make any promises for international orders as packages can get stuck at customs.

Please check & update your Paypal shipping address as that is the address we ship to.  When submitting your order, please ensure that we have all the necessary information to complete your order {colors, name, address, etc} as lack of information will slow down your order and possibly prevent on-time delivery.

For a limited amount of time after Dec. 7th, we will accept CHRISTMAS RUSH orders with rush fees beginning at $10 for decals and $15 for signs – our workload will be monitored daily and rush fees adjusted accordingly to ensure that we can keep up with the workflow without killing ourselves or our family.

Thank you for your part in supporting our family this Christmas season!

No, no…we haven’t fallen off the face of the earth over on the back40…we’ve just taken this past week to rest and recuperate from the crazy that has been our lives for the past couple of months…which is the perfect segue into today’s topic…don’t be afraid to choose your family over blog world and the internet!!  It’s okay to sometimes take a step back and not keep up your online presence in order to take care of and love on your family {or protect your sanity!}  Not keeping up with Facebook, Twitter, blogs {even yours}, etc., etc. is absolutely okay – and sometimes essential!

We’ve had one deadline after another come down the pike in our business recently, culminating with my sister getting married last weekend {yea!} – we crashed hard Saturday night and all day Sunday and started to dig out a bit Monday and Tuesday…and it’s been heavenly to just take a bit of a break this week and slowly get our lives back to normal.  I’m planning to fill in the days I missed, but there’s just no rush to do so…and that’s okay.

Don’t ever fall for the lie that you have to do it all – you don’t and you can’t!  Be intentional and choose what is best for your family and fit the rest in when & if you can…I promise, life will go on!  I think too many of us believe that if we just do all the *right* things online we can be “famous” and known in blog world and beyond…but at the end of the day, that’s really not what it’s all about…and even so, Jesus is the one in charge of those decisions, so leave that up to Him. 

Take care of your family…love on the ones who *matter*…the rest will sort itself out…and your life will be much richer and fuller for it!

image via pinterest

If you are married, like it or not, you are part of a team…don’t fight it – embrace your team and reap the rewards!  The old adage says that marriage is a 50/50 proposition…malarkey!  I say marriage is a 110/110 proposition…some days it’s easy and some days it’s just plain hard.  But fight for your team…work hard for your team…cheer for your team…enjoy your team…life will be all the better for it!

Today was a rough day for us – Brad has been working hard all week to put together a big sign order and has done a fabulous job…I’ve been working to hold down the fort, get decal orders out and get goodies ready for my sister’s wedding on Saturday…busy, busy, busy!  Through a crazy series of events, today I needed to drop what I was doing and throw on a paint apron and help out…it wasn’t in my plan, but it was the best thing for our team…and that was all that mattered!

A great exercise in living intentionally is to put your spouse above yourself – seek to serve them instead of desiring to be served – what a difference it will make!

photo via pinterest

I have to confess, this is a painful post for me to write {and one my early-riser husband will get a kick out of}…I am not by nature an early riser, and would WAY rather stay up LATE than get up early…but alas, the older I get, the more value I see in getting up early…an sadly, it is still a struggle for me.  I do know that on the days I get up early, I get far more done, have a much more balanced, focused day and am able to operate with purpose and a plan.  The biggest, most important part of getting up early for me, is to get in bed at a decent hour.  I strive for 7-8 hours of sleep each night, which means if I want to be up at 6, I can’t be watching TV or surfing til 11…it just doesn’t work.

Brad is wonderfully patient with me and lets me sleep in when I need it and doesn’t give me too hard of a time, but without a doubt, this is an area I need to work harder on, for my life is far better and more enjoyable when I get up and get the day started before my two precious ones are awake and ready to go!

One brilliant tip that I recently read was to put a digital alarm clock in your little ones’ rooms (she recommended starting at age 3) and put tape over the minutes numbers and write a 7 on top of the masking tape.  Courtney said she teaches her kids not to come out of their rooms until the number on the clock matches the 7 on the tape…brilliant! and something I must try.  It’s not often that either kiddo comes out of their room before 7, but it definitely does happen from time-to-time.

Take a little time first thing in the morning to spend time with the Lord, to gather your thoughts and put together a plan for the day…it will put you on the path to living a more intentional life and I can promise, you’ll never regret it!

How about you…do you rise easily in the morning or is it a struggle for you?

Why is it so hard to just say no?  Far too often we bend and succumb to the whims of other people, never thinking about how it affects our plan, goals and vision for our life…and oftentimes that leaves us feeling pulled in every direction without making any progress.  Give yourself permission to not answer immediately when someone else asks something of you…your time is sacred and maybe more importantly limited.  Take a moment {maybe more} to reflect, to discuss with your spouse how this option or request impacts your world…even if it’s a close friend or family member.  Don’t feel obligated just because.  {Obviously there are times of emergency that need an immediate YES!…but those are hopefully few and far between…}

Once you know what your family’s priorities are, you can use them as a ruler against which you measure the many requests and options that come into your life.  Is it bad to play soccer or join the girl scouts or take a musical lesson?  of course not…but it may not be the best course for your family right now.  In a perfect world, would you attend every dinner, family function and opportunity that comes along?  Of course!  But we don’t live in a perfect world…and sometimes for your sanity, you just need to say no…even if that hurts someone’s feelings.

Brad and I decided long ago, after a Christmas Eve & Day of spending more time in the car than visiting with anybody that we weren’t doing that again…something had to give.  We realized that we could make everybody else happy at holidays and us end up miserable…or we could act in the best interest of our family and not see everyone on Christmas Day proper…and that’s what we’ve done in subsequent years and had far better holidays.  We’ve tried to explain to our families in non-stressful moments that it’s not that we don’t love them and want to spend as much time as possible with them, but at the end of the day, we have to protect the sanctity of our family unit…and sometimes that simply means saying no.  We now come up with a plan together, for our individual family and then work to coordinate that with everybody else…and the two of us {and thus our kiddos} are much happier for it.  And interestingly enough, it usually results in us spending way more time with everybody at the holidays…we just spread it out a little longer than 2 days…big win in my book!

Am I saying to be rude and never care about others’ feelings?  absolutely not!  Just that it’s okay to not let that be the single deciding factor and react out of guilt and obligation instead of joy and true desire.  It’s okay not to let your child play every sport out there or be a part of every club…concentrate on what is important in the overall scheme of your family and then plan accordingly.  Your schedule will be much freer and you can take time to slow down and enjoy life…and oh, is that wonderful!

What things do you need to contemplate chopping from your family schedule?