Hummingbird Homemaking

How to be a Good Wife

2012-02-01T09:47:00.000-07:00

Image Credit: epSos.de

Being a Better Wife
Sometimes I read sites or blogs that tell you how to be a better wife. Unfortunately for my husband those sites have the opposite effect on me. It seems as if a lot of well meaning people pull bits and pieces from the Bible to tell us what it looks like to be a good wife, but they rarely tell you to take care of yourself first.

For example, I was reading Philippians this morning. Phil 2:3 says "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. " I've seen that passage pulled into blog posts to support what the person writes about how to be a better wife. If you continue reading Philippians, verse 2:4 says "Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others."

The Bible ASSUMES that we'll take care of ourselves. In real life, I don't see that happening very often...I see burned out, exhausted women who are TIRED. So tired that they can't even begin to think of blessing themselves with some quiet time. How can we change this?

Keep the End in Mind
Jesus died on the cross for ME...miraculously three days later He rose from the dead. Did you catch that? He died on the cross for ME.

Yes, He died for all of us, but do you ever look in the mirror and make John 3:16 a personal message to yourself?

"For God so loved _______ {insert your name here} that He gave His one and only Son...because _________ {insert your name here} believes in Him she shall not perish, but have eternal life."

He did that for me....He did that for you. YOU COME FIRST. He created you before He created your marriage, before He gave you a family....YOU COME FIRST. What does this look like in "real life".

Real Life
You need to find time by yourself - nobody is going to give you this time, you have to take it. Right now it might mean 5 minutes alone, hopefully in the future it will be a lot more time than that.

You need to have time to shut off your brain and be thankful for all God has done for you. It might mean reading your Bible - I'm not talking about speed reading your Bible in a year, I'm talking about reading the one sentence over and over that keeps jumping out at you. If you allow yourself to have this time you will be blessed. Once you are blessed, you can't help but pour out that love on others.

How does this translate to being a better wife?

You'll have the energy to think about your spouse in a positive light. Today I was reading TheGenerousWife. Here is a snippet of what she wrote:

"For the most part, there is time to bless others and still have your needs met. It is not an either/or situation."

I used to feel soooo guilty for putting myself first. After I studied the Bible (not other self help books) I realized that for a lot of women it's natural to put others first...it's NOT natural to take care of yourself.

Now that I put myself first,

my marriage is much stronger

than it ever has been.

Menu Plan / Routine How To Jan 30

2012-01-30T06:00:00.046-07:00

Before I get into my boring menu plan and routine you have got to read this story at My Life and Kids...it made me laugh so hard! Even if I had that story I wouldn't have been able to tell it like she did.

Need a place for your menu? How about the fridge - check out ThisTreasuredLife!

Menu Plan AKA Menu Routine

Breakfast Menu Plan
Lunch - leftovers or whatever for me (kids eat school lunch and they typically provide lunch for my husband at work)

Dinners (we eat a primalish /paleoish diet - limited grains/sugar).

I wrote more about menu planning over at my blog WeeklyGroceryShopping.Com...here it is in action:

1. Outside Activities
What will conflict with supper preparations this week?

3 basketball games - woo hoo! All games are at home this week; not really sure what we ate last week it's a blur with so many nights away from home!

2. Pantry
What's in my cupboards, fridge and freezer?

1 hunk o' salmon
Pork Chops
Hamburger
Roasts
Rice
Frozen veggies and fruit

3. Ideas for Dinner

What can I make that my son loves?
What can I make that my daughter loves?
What can I make that my husband loves?
What can I make that I love?
What recipes have I found online that I want to try?

4. Make a Plan

KISS night (keep it simple silly - same thing every week). Chef salads: spinach, romaine, chicken, bacon, thawed peas, cheese, green olives and hard boiled eggs .
Bball game 1 - Cheesy Chowder (lots of primal / paleo changes)
Asian Beef serve with salad
Qdoba's steak - SimplyRecipes and sweet potato fries
Bball game 2 - eating it at the game...lunch meat slices in romaine lettuce wrappers and hard boiled eggs.
Chicken in Cream Sauce (using pork chops possibly) and roasted veggies or out to eat.
Hubby cooks (Salmon ?)

MUST TRY THIS WEEK - bad habit of not trying new things!
Salt and Vinegar Chickpeas
Primal Chocolate Mousse

Tried and true recipes:
Josie's Shepherd Pie, Comfort Roast and Horseradish Sauce,

Check out other menu plans at:

Orgjunkie
11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven always has a lot of homemaking posts to read as well!

Homemaking: Your Job Part 2

2012-01-26T12:02:00.000-07:00

I've worked myself out of a job.

On October 6, 2009 I wrote a post called "Tightwad Tuesday Tip - the Second Income"

In that post I wrote:

Your job is to manage your home. If you do it correctly it will take up most of the day while your children are at school.

Today, that is no longer the case.

I don't spend HOURS and HOURS in the kitchen like I used to when I made homemade pasta, breads, snacks, etc.
I've simplified what we eat so it doesn't take me an hour to create a menu plan.
I have routines in place (thanks to Flylady) so my house seems to clean it self. Nope, it's never perfect, but it's usually presentable (disregard the dirty socks on my kitchen island please.)
I've changed my standards...just because I'm home all day long doesn't mean that my home needs to be spotless.

Previously, I believed that I had to work constantly in my home in order to prove that I had value as a homemaker. It's a common theme in the world today...the busier you are, the more productive you are, the more value you add to the world.

I disagree.

Yesterday I read a blog post over at JenniferDawnMcLucas.com where she wrote:

"...without him I might forget that my life is about my relationships first and my responsibilities second."

How do you add value to the world?

Relationships

I can choose to shovel my elderly neighbor's driveway or work on my blog. I can choose to chat with the man who is fixing my car or I can choose to put my nose in a book. I can choose to chat with the lady at the park or keep walking by.

I'll be the first to admit that I often make the wrong choice. Or if I make the right choice I do it with resentment.

Today I choose to spend time writing in my eBook, researching health issues, going for long walks by myself, etc. Tomorrow I hope to engage people in conversations. Enjoy life WITH people in real life and get out of my home.

Being a homemaker is just a small part of what I DO. It does not define who I am. No job should define you. It may be how you occupy your time, but it doesn't define who you are.

Image Credit: Flickr by o5com

Menu Plan / Routine How To Jan 23

2012-01-23T07:55:00.116-07:00

EBook giveaway: Fun Fun Fun!!! Once again I was reminded why I began blogging. I thought I might be able to help someone in this crazy life as a homemaker where there isn't an instruction manual.

The price of the eBook "Feed Your Family: 7 Steps to Success" is now $2.99 ~ I bet that you'll save more than that if you follow the steps in it!

Menu Plan AKA Menu Routine

2 basketball games
1 friend spending the night
1 basketball game that I'm not going to, but need to send some food with my daughter

2. Pantry
What's in my cupboards, fridge and freezer?

1 hunk o' salmon
Pork Chops
Hamburger
3 pounds of cooked burger...add some taco seasonings to 1 1/2 pounds
pinto beans - add to taco meat
Stew Meat
Roasts
Rice
Frozen veggies and fruit

3. Ideas for Dinner

What can I make that my son loves?
What can I make that my daughter loves?
What can I make that my husband loves?
What can I make that I love?
What recipes have I found online that I want to try?

4. Make a Plan

KISS night (keep it simple silly - same thing every week). Chef salads: spinach, romaine, chicken, bacon, thawed peas, cheese, green olives and hard boiled eggs .
Tacos and salad (friend spending the night)
Bball game 1 - leftovers or out to eat
Asian Beef or salmon serve with salad and sweet potato fries
Bball game 2 - eating it at the game...lunch meat slices in romaine lettuce wrappers and hard boiled eggs.
Popper Potatoes, with burgers or pork chops and roasted veggies
Hubby cooks - I always try to have meat on hand and he's great at whipping stuff up. Last week he made German brats and variety of leftover veggies. Kids had take out pizza. Football day!

Other recipes I want to make soon/tried and true recipes:
Qdoba's steak - SimplyRecipes , Cheesy Chowder,Italian Cream Cheese Chicken, Whiskey BBQ Sliders, Chicken in Cream Sauce, Josie's Shepherd Pie, Comfort Roast and Horseradish Sauce

Check out my cute purchases for the area above my kitchen cupboards:

Disclaimer ~ I am not a decorator at all. In our home I don't like to have many decorations out, but I saw a post over at ThriftyDecorChick a long while back and I couldn't resist buying the cute little step stool. No idea what I'm going to do with that or the big fish bowl thingie, but I have visions of mini Christmas ornaments in the big fish bowl thingie.

I probably should have checked the prices before I bought them, but I try not to look at prices when I'm shopping at the consignment store. Seems like I've bought waaaaay too many items simply because they were cheap. Thankfully my total was $9.00 and I had a credit of $88! Whooo hoooo!

Can anyone help this decorating doofka? That is my daughter's word for idiot...I'm sure she meant that in the nicest way when I asked her what another word for idiot would be. What do I put in the fish bowl thingie right now? I'm loving the area above my cupboards right now, but soon I'll have to take down the pine branch garland and put up my step stool ladder with ???? hmmmm the fish bowl thingie?

Check out other menu plans at:

Orgjunkie
11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven always has a lot of homemaking posts to read as well!

Free eBook Giveaway EXTENDED

2012-01-21T01:00:00.008-07:00

Update!!!

Due to the technical issues I had yesterday in giving away the eBook ~ I've extended the free offer through the weekend.

I've updated my blog WeeklyGroceryShopping.com with the link to the eBook.

If you have ANY problems please send an email to:

jaebroeder @ yahoo . com

Free eBook "Feed Your Family: 7 Steps to Success"

2012-01-20T02:00:00.029-07:00

Update!!!

So apparently there is a limit on e-Junkie that you can only give away 100 eBooks. YIKES!!!

I've updated my blog WeeklyGroceryShopping.com with the link to the eBook. Crystal at MoneySavingMom was kind enough to upload it to her site as well.

If you have ANY problems please send an email to:

jaebroeder @ yahoo . com

What a fun day this will be! For details please read the post I wrote on Wednesday.

Free eBook Giveaway on January 20, 2012

2012-01-18T09:09:00.004-07:00

Update!!!

So apparently there is a limit on e-Junkie that you can only give away 100 eBooks. YIKES!!! So sorry folks, blond moment on my part - didn't even think about there being a max! Please check out my post at WeeklyGroceryShopping.Com so you can download the free eBook.

If you have any questions/comments/concerns please send an email to:

jaebroeder @ yahoo . com

I'll email you the file as soon as I can!!!

Original email....why I'm doing this:

January 20th is the birthday of a very special lady...my Mom. In honor of her birthday I'm giving away free copies of my eBook Feed Your Family: 7 Steps to Success.

On January 20, 1998 we had a surprise 50th birthday party for my mom. My sister and I flew from Denver to Montana so we could enjoy this special day with her. Little did I know, that would be the last birthday I'd get to celebrate with her. In February my mom flew from Montana to California to attend my uncle's funeral. She decided to stay in Denver for a bit. She had been having a lot of back pain so we took her to the doctor.

Lung Cancer

We both sat in shock staring at the doctor as he kept talking about a mass. I kept thinking....a mass? what is a mass? you mean like cancer?

She lost her fight with cancer in November of 1998. My life was changed forever.

I thought I knew what I wanted out of life. I was going to work full time, have 2.3 kids, make a lot of money...blah blah blah. After she died I knew nothing...I couldn't figure anything out.

In January 2000 I had a 9 month old baby and a 3 year old. I was exhausted and probably depressed. I "happened" to stop at a book store and the book Getting a Life: Strategies for Simple Living Based on the Revolutionary Program for Financial Freedom, "Your Money or Your Life" jumped off of the shelf and into my hands. This question was asked:

"What changes would you make in your life

if you didn't have to work for a living."

All I wanted to do was quit my job and stay at home with my babies. I knew there was NO way I could do it, but I figured I didn't have anything to lose at that point. We paid off debt, I learned how to cook and clean, we learned how to save money instead of make more money.

I've been at home full time since 2002 with no plans to go back and get a "real job." It is my hope that my eBook can change just one person's life.

There is no catch to this eBook giveaway. Anyone who wants a copy of it can get it free on Friday January 20th. Here is what you will need to do:

Go to my other blog WeeklyGroceryShopping.Com and follow the directions.

You do not have to subscribe to my blog to get the free eBook. However, if you feel there is any value in it, will you please pass it along to others?

They say that time eases the pain of losing a loved one...I believe that the pain is still there, but we have clearer memories of the good times rather than the bad.

** This post contains an affiliate link. Thanks for supporting my blog!

Menu Plan / Routine How To

2012-01-16T07:40:00.002-07:00

Menu Plan AKA Menu Routine

Breakfast Menu Plan
Lunch - leftovers or whatever for me (kids eat school lunch and they typically provide lunch for my husband at work)

Dinners (we eat a primalish /paleoish diet - limited grains/sugar).

I wrote more about this step over at my blog WeeklyGroceryShopping.Com...here it is in action:

1. Outside Activities
What will conflict with supper preparations this week?

3 basketball games

2. Pantry

What's in my cupboards, fridge and freezer?

Leftover Mexican chicken and chicken broth = Mexican Chicken Soup
1 ham bone from Christmas and cooked pinto beans from last week = Ham and Bean Soup
Hamburger = Tacos
Stew Meat
Roasts
Frozen veggies and fruit

3. Ideas for Dinner

What can I make that my son loves?
What can I make that my daughter loves?
What can I make that my husband loves?
What can I make that I love?
What recipes have I found online that I want to try?

4. Make a Plan

KISS night (keep it simple silly - same thing every week). Chef salads: spinach, romaine, chicken, bacon, thawed peas, cheese, green olives and hard boiled eggs .
Tacos in rice wrappers and sweet potato fries
Bball game 1 - put in crockpot: Mexican Chicken Soup
Josie's Shepherd Pie serve with salad and roasted veggies
Bball game 2 - eating it at the game...lunch meat slices in romaine lettuce wrappers and hard boiled eggs.
Bball game 3 - Popper Potatoes, with burgers or Asian Beef or Comfort Roast and Horseradish Sauce {make earlier in the day}
Hubby cooks - I always try to have meat on hand and he's great at whipping stuff up. Last week he made salads with a bunch of leftovers.

Other recipes I want to try:
Qdoba's steak - SimplyRecipes , Cheesy Chowder,Italian Cream Cheese Chicken, Whiskey BBQ Sliders

Check out other menu plans at:

Orgjunkie
11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven always has a lot of homemaking posts to read as well!

My Favorite Gift

2012-01-11T09:54:00.000-07:00

Photo Credit

I mentioned in a few different posts that I received a wonderful gift for Christmas. It's a gift that I want to reciprocate to others. It's a simple gift, yet not always an easy gift to give.

While I love the gifts that I received from my family, I loved this gift even more. Guess how much it cost?

$0.00

A bit of TIME

Don't get me wrong...I really really like the kindle that my hubs bought for me. I cannot even believe that I like it let alone enjoy using it as much as I have. I'm so happy that the Perfect Health Diet: Four Steps to Renewed Health, Youthful Vitality, and Long Life was only $9.99 instead of $24.99. Although I really like the book, I just didn't want to part with $25.00.

My favorite gift was from Donna in the form of an email that I received regarding my eBook "Feed Your Family: 7 Steps to Success":

I really like the format and worksheets. It is clearly written and easy to follow. You brought up some ideas even this old pro had not thought of, lol. I also enjoyed the Dave Ramsey quotes and use of actual receipts in the book. This is a must have for the newbie and the seasoned thrifter.

The gift of time and words. Oh what a gift indeed.

This post has been linked to WeAreTHATFamily.

This post contains an affiliate links. Thanks for supporting my blog.

Homemaking and Multitasking

2012-01-10T06:00:00.003-07:00

Doing many things,

but not doing anything well.

Menu Plan Jan 9, 2012

2012-01-09T09:36:00.000-07:00

Photo Credit

I wrote a little bit about the pantry principle over at my other blog WeeklyGroceryShopping.Com last week.

I am having a hard time getting back into the routine of things after the past month of flying by the seat of my pants. I have to admit it's been kind of fun! This week we have 4 nights of basketball so I'm not sure how the meals will work out.

This is my easiest meal:

Put a frozen roast in the oven at 250
6 hours later it's tender
I put it in the fridge and people can re-heat it whenever they want. When I'm really on the ball I have a salad ready to go with it ~ otherwise we eat baby carrots. Works for me! I'm loving this primal / paleo way of life.

Note: I don't think it turns out as well when using the crockpot, but I seem to have texture issues.

Menu Plan

Breakfast Menu Plan
Lunch - leftovers or whatever for me (kids eat school lunch and they typically provide lunch for my husband at work)

Dinners (we eat a primalish /paleoish diet - limited grains/sugar):

KISS night (keep it simple silly - same thing every week). Chef salads: spinach, romaine, chicken, bacon, thawed peas, cheese, green olives and hard boiled eggs .
Comfort Roast and Horseradish Sauce
Leftover Mexican food over rice with salad.
Josie's Shepherd Pie serve with salad
Roast beef, mashed potatoes and roasted veggies
Popper Potatoes, with burgers and sweet potato fries
Hubby cooks - I always try to have meat on hand and he's great at whipping stuff up. Last week he made a mountain of Mexican food so I didn't have to cook on Monday.

Other recipes I want to try:
Qdoba's steak - SimplyRecipes , Cheesy Chowder,Italian Cream Cheese Chicken, Asian Beef

Check out other menu plans at:

Orgjunkie
11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven always has a lot of homemaking posts to read as well!

Grocery Shopping Trip and Tip: Pantry Principle

2012-01-06T10:11:00.000-07:00

Posted on my other blog WeeklyGroceryShopping.com.

Cute cute cute handbag giveaway {enter by January 9} over at NakedMoxie

Hope you are all having a fun week ~ I hope to be back to my routines next week!

Homemaking: Your Job

2012-01-03T09:19:00.000-07:00

Image Credit

Your job as a homemaker is NOT to do all of the work.

Your job is to manage your home.

My kids, ages 12 and 15, are old enough to wash their own clothes. When they are not in sports or other outside activities, they need to wash their own laundry {I usually wash their clothes when they are busy.}

Unfortunately I often fall into the trap of thinking "they are washing their laundry to help me out." No no no....they are doing their laundry for a few reasons:

They need to know how to do this when they move out.
They have a bad habit of throwing clean clothes in their laundry basket. Miraculously when they have to do their own laundry they don't have as many clothes to wash.
They are a part of this family therefore they should be doing their part to manage the home.

I realized the other day that my kids have figured this out...right before Christmas when they were both busy with outside activities they said to me:

"Thanks Mom for doing my laundry."

My laundry routine today looks much different than it did when they were younger. When my kids need their clothes washed, they bring down their laundry basket. In the morning I'll put their clothes in the washer. 15 minutes before they get home, I'll put them into the dryer and SET THE TIMER so I remember when they are going to be dry!!!

Occasionally I'll help them fold their clothes.

I guess to some people it wouldn't look like they are washing their own laundry, but this works for me because I like the timing of my routine.

Check out other hints and tricks over at We are THAT Family.

Homemaking and Your Spouse

2011-12-29T09:00:00.000-07:00

Please please please read this post over at Jennifer's blog JenniferDawnMcLucas:

A Master's in Marriage

Homemaking

2011-12-28T07:36:00.000-07:00

Are you making your home a better place for your immediate family?

Are you making your home a better place for yourself?

Are you making your home a better place for others?

Staycation
Today I was going to round up some old posts that I wrote in 2011. Then I decided to tell you what my favorite Christmas gift was, but I'm going to make you keep on guessing about that {nope, it wasn't the loaf of bread from my funny son and it wasn't the fluorescent green duck tape. It wasn't the ivory soap or the listerine....}

Then I read a guest post over at BloggingWithAmy. Laura wrote {click over and read the whole post for it to make sense}:

Blogging is only worth my while when I take myself to my own office hours, ask hard questions, and formulate some answers. This means, my blog is an avenue to personal growth – not to money, fame, or power.

As I was reading that post I kept thinking that you could replace blogging and insert homemaking. So right now I'm asking myself some hard questions:

What on earth am I a homemaker for?
Why don't I want to have an easier job?
Why don't I want to enter the workforce again?

Honestly this is the hardest job I've ever had. Sometimes I long for the days that I would walk in the door at work and everyone would yell at me - THE COMPUTER SYSTEM IS DOWN {you know back in the day of mainframe computer systems where hundreds of people couldn't work if the computer system was down.}

Sometimes I want my paycheck back. Sometimes I want to quit being responsible and go out to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner. Sometimes I want to run to the grocery store and buy whatever I want for dinner.

You know what? Even if I had "real job" {you know what I mean....outside the home} I would still be a homemaker. The grass isn't ALWAYS greener on the other side. I have figured out a few things along the way.....mainly this:

If you don't take care of yourself, it is almost impossible to make your home a happy place.

Choose yourself first! If you don't know how to take care of your home and it's a wreck - start following FLYlady. She will show you how to get your house in order {not perfect} AND take care of yourself.

Occasionally when I read other homemaking blogs I get totally exhausted. There's NO way I could do everything they do and still be happy. Then I have to remember...when you read my blog, you only see a glimpse of my life. The put together part. You don't see the unmopped floor, the crabby mom that yells at her kids, the crumbs all over the floor or the laundry piling up.

You don't see the Starburst on the counter or the ice cream in the freezer. So when I talk about the primal or paleo diet please know that we eat junk food all too often, but a LOT less than we used to!

Sometimes I have to quit reading other blogs and focus on ME!

My kids are out of school this week so I'm going to continue on with my staycation. I'll be back posting after the new year...you will NOT read any New Years Resolutions here...you might see a New Years Non-Resolution though!

Go ask yourself some hard questions!

This post has been linked to We are THAT Family.

Just When I Think I Should QUIT Blogging ...

2011-12-20T06:00:00.026-07:00

someone sends me an email thanking me for my blog. With tears in my eyes I think "okay...one more post."

Give a blogger a gift today ~

Leave a thoughtful comment on a blog post or send an email to them {not me, someone else.} After you leave a comment share one of their blog posts with 5 friends.

Pick 5 smaller blogs that you love and give them some encouragement.

Homemaking: Primal Eating

2011-12-18T09:34:00.000-07:00

Image Credit

Primal Eating {primal "ish"}

This success story found at the PerfectHealthDiet made me re-think my decision not to buy the book "Perfect Health Diet". I was going to wait for a while, but when I found the Kindle version for $10 I think I might be getting an early Christmas present. Of course I don't own a Kindle {LOL!} but there is a free reader you can download. I might put it on my daughter's kindle and borrow hers.

The idea of adding rice and potatoes to our primal diet makes sense to me, but I'd like to read more about it in their book.

Here was the closing statement from the story regarding how he lost 80 pounds in about 8 months:

During the middle of my weight loss, I was at a restaurant eating a salad with balsamic vinegar and olive oil dressing, 8 oz steak, and a baked potato with butter and sour cream and some water with lemon, but without a dinner roll. I paused and proclaimed, “I can’t believe I’m eating this and still losing weight! This is the BEST DIET EVER!”

I started reading some of Dr. Kruse's blog last week. Fascinating info. Is he right? Who knows, but once again knowledge is powerful. He wrote this:

When you change for the better, the people around you will be inspired to change also….but only after doing their best to make you stop.

Wowzers!!!

Not sure what is going to be on the menu plan this week. Except check out these two things:
Christmas morning quiche and Roasted Veggie Salad ~ YUMMY!

Please note this post includes affiliate links - thanks for supporting my blog!

Jesus is NOT the Reason for the Season

2011-12-13T10:24:00.001-07:00

Unless of course the season you are referring to is your life here on earth.

When you are dealing with someone like me who is a total "rule follower" these are the questions I ask myself when I believe Jesus is the reason for the season:

Was he really born on December 25?
What about time zones....sometimes it's Dec. 25th here but Dec. 26th elsewhere
So I can't have an X-mas tree unless I can somehow tie it to Jesus
Oh wait, God gets mad if I say X-mas?
So I can't give my kids and family members gifts unless I justify it and follow certain rules?
I can't say Happy Holidays to someone who has different beliefs than I do? Okay, I better get rid of that stamp then!

I could spend some time trying to research all of these answers, but why? Is Jesus really the reason for just this season?

No!

I believe the Bible to be true and applicable today. I believe the Bible has a beginning, climax and an ending...Jesus died on the cross for me {JOHNLYN}... ME....really?!? me...the one who messes up ALL.THE.TIME...He died on the cross for ME! Christ then rose from the dead.

GRACE = even though you are a mess up, if you believe in the death and resurrection of Christ you get to go to heaven.

So why should I focus on the birth of Christ only in December?

Some things are amoral...money....getting a dog....shooting down a Christmas tree....owning and displaying a nativity set. Of course our actions could be immoral, but the THINGS are amoral.

Do you know why people use an X? It's an interesting reason, but regardless do you think that God gets angry because we don't write CHRISTmas instead of X-mas? You know the God whose plan it was for his Son to DIE on the cross? Seriously people....don't get stressed about this. Celebrate the love of Jesus every day, not just during the season.

SANTA
Santa is MAGICAL to me....no one will EVER take Santa away from me. I told my husband when we got married 19 years ago {GULP!} that I will ALWAYS getting a stocking full of stuff. No, the stuff doesn't have to cost much, but it will be filled {either by him or me!} Good thing the man loves me and does this for me! Does it take away my appreciation of all that Christ as done for me? How could it? It's a symbol of everything my MOM sacrificed for me while trying to raise 3 kids on a secretary's salary (or piddly paycheck I should say.)

Christmas is not about Christ for me...it's about traditions, family, fun foods, SANTA, gifts, symbols, SANTA, etc.

Every day life (including December 25th, but not limited to December 25th) is about Jesus. EVERY.SINGLE.DAY. Jesus Christ ~ NOT one day a year, not one month and not one season.

If you are new to my blog please note that I very rarely post anything about religion or politics. Feel free to skip over this rant or leave a comment about how crazy I am...either way I'm glad you are here!

This works for me! Find other ideas over at We are THAT Family.

Homemaking: Menu Plan and Intentional Living 12/12/11

2011-12-12T09:10:00.000-07:00

Getting a Christmas tree.

Winner of the giveaway ~ Sarah!
Sarah - I sent you an e-mail with more information. Let me know if you don't get it. Using my very complicated system {see picture below} I grabbed information from three places for this giveaway. I've heard that random.org doesn't ever let person #1 win so I decided to do it the old fashioned way by cutting up pieces of paper and having my son pick a winner. You would never know that I have a degree in computers based on this giveaway.

Primal Eating {primal "ish"}

WOW! You should check out this primal eating Success Story from MDA, truly an amazing transformation.

One more success story for you...scroll down to barefooter's post (about half way down on my screen):

I was right at 300 pounds at my heaviest, though these photos are probably around 270s. In 2003, I lost 110 pounds (exercising and counting calories with a SAD) and then dropped another 40 in 2007 (giving up refined sugar, but not carbs in general). Two and half months ago, I started PB and experienced a redistribution of weight. I am still 150 pounds, but my clothes fit as if I were 5-10 pounds lighter.

How cool is that - her story and pictures brings tears to my eyes!

Last week I made Asian Beef and while it was good (the sauce was really good) I think I'll try a different cut of meat next time or let it cook on low a long long time. I would try this with ground beef as well. I didn't use the sugar either. After I posted my menu plan last week I immediately changed it. You'll see a lot of the same things posted this week.

Last week I bought a lot of things I shouldn't have. However, the tip I mentioned in my post "re-write the grocery list" is good for all of you to do ~ you know, do as I say, not as I do!

Menu Plan

KISS night (keep it simple silly - same thing every week). Chef salads: spinach, romaine, chicken, bacon, thawed peas, cheese, green olives and hard boiled eggs .
Qdoba's steak - SimplyRecipes over rice with salad.
Josie's Shepherd Pie with sweet potato fries.
Roast beef, mashed potatoes and roasted veggies
Fried potatoes w/ leftover roast beef (flop a fried egg on top) serve with green beans.

Cheesy Chowder with some kind of meat added {will be using arrowroot to thicken}
Hubby cooks - I always try to have meat on hand and he's great at whipping stuff up. Last week he bought pizza!!!

Hmmmm...there are a lot of potatoes on this menu plan so I may end up changing things out.

Other recipes I want to try:
Italian Cream Cheese Chicken, Popper Potatoes,

Homemaking Plan

Goal Setting posts:

My "one word" goal this week:

Resolutions

Actually my goal is for you today. Resolve not to make any New Year's resolutions this year {I don't make resolutions}. Whatever you are putting off, decide to start now.

Want to be healthier? Read my post about all of the controversies. Don't have time to do that? Stop eating sugar. Go for a short walk...just around the block. Pass on the soda. It doesn't have to be a huge life changing thing. You just have to make different choices.

Small changes over time = great improvement.

Speaking of time...read my review of "Tell Your Time". No time for that? Decide to let go.

A few pictures from our Christmas tree hunt yesterday. It takes us about 15 minutes to get into the Black Hills so we can cut down a Christmas tree. Every year we talk about getting an artificial tree and every year we don't do it. The permit costs $10 and it helps keep our area safe by clearing out a few trees.

The tree is ginormous!!!
My husband is 6 feet tall. I think the tree must be 10 feet tall.

My son taking a running leap.

I really don't know what the word red neck means,
does shooting down your Christmas tree count?

When that doesn't work, use the hacksaw.

Our 2011 family picture.

Check out other menu plans at:

Orgjunkie

11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven always has a lot of homemaking posts to read as well!

Weekly Grocery Shopping 12/8/11 Trip and Tip

2011-12-09T06:00:00.003-07:00

Be sure to sign up for the Discover Gift Card giveaway over at my blog WeeklyGroceryShopping.Com.

My weekly grocery shopping trip and frugal tip has been posted over at my blog WeeklyGroceryShopping.

Homemaking: Letting Go!!!

2011-12-07T06:00:00.069-07:00

My 15 year old daughter "playing" Santa.

Be sure to sign up for the Discover Gift Card giveaway over at my blog WeeklyGroceryShopping.Com.

I wrote a post a couple of years ago titled "Don't Do It." While re-reading that post this sentence jumped out at me:

If something is taking the joy from your Christmas season, then stop doing whatever that "thing" is!

On my homemaking post on Monday I wrote that my intentional living goal this week is Letting Go.

What if you quit some of your holiday traditions?
What if you stopped baking so many goodies?
What if you you let go of your perfectionism and enjoyed your company instead of having the perfect house for your company?

What if?

I started writing this post yesterday and then I saw this over at SarahMarkley.

My family helped decorate my house. Would I prefer they help or would I prefer a perfect house? Helping means time together, laughter, fun...perfect means a crabby mom if someone messes something up...You can see what I chose by the following pictures {click to enlarge}:

Let go...it'll be okay.

Letting go Works for Me! Check out other ideas we WeAreThatFamily. If you want some cute decorating ideas check out ThriftyDecorChick.

Giveaway!!!

2011-12-06T07:50:00.002-07:00

This giveaway is closed. Thanks so much for entering ~ the winner is Sarah!!!

Check out WeeklyGroceryShopping.com for information about the giveaway for my readers/subscribers.

Thanks for supporting me - I appreciate it very much {note: the giveaway ends at 10:00PM on Sunday, December 11, 2011.}

Johnlyn

Homemaking: Menu Plan and Intentional Living 12/5/11

2011-12-05T06:00:00.126-07:00

Tomorrow (12/6/11) I will post the details about a $20 Discover Card giveaway over at my blog: WeeklyGroceryShopping.Com

Photo Credit

FYI - My homemaking goal is listed below my Menu Plan.

Last week I wrote a post at WeeklyGroceryShopping.Com about creating a perpetual weekly grocery list based on the foods you want to serve your family. Weekly grocery shopping is much much easier now.

I made the Comfort Roast and Horseradish Sauce from OnlyPenniesAPlate. The horseradish sauce - TO DIE FOR!!! Seriously, it was very very good. The roast - it is sooooo very close to almost perfect. I'm not sure if I had a bad roast or what but it wasn't very tender so I cooked it longer than I was supposed to. Then of course I overcooked it. The texture was INCREDIBLE. I will definitely be trying that recipe again soon.

Menu Plan

KISS night (keep it simple silly - same thing every week). Chef salads: spinach, romaine, chicken, bacon, thawed peas, cheese, green olives and hard boiled eggs .
Asian Beef over rice with sweet potato fries and peas.
Josie's Shepherd Pie serve with salads
Roast beef, mashed potatoes and roasted veggies
Fried potatoes w/ leftover roast beef (flop a fried egg on top) serve with green beans.

??? Popper Potatoes, burgers, meat/beans and rice or chili from the freezer
Hubby cooks - I always try to have meat on hand and he's great at whipping stuff up. Last week he made BBQ chicken.

Other recipes I want to try:
Qdoba's steak - SimplyRecipes , Cheesy Chowder,Italian Cream Cheese Chicken

Homemaking Plan

Goal Setting posts:

My "one word" goal this week:

Letting Go

What what your holiday season be like if you just "let go"?

Yes, that's a lobster and he's part of our holiday decorating...
more on that craziness this week.

Check out other menu plans at:

Orgjunkie
11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven always has a lot of homemaking posts to read as well!

Grocery Shopping: The Perpetual Grocery List

2011-12-02T10:27:00.000-07:00

Having a perpetual grocery list will make your life so much easier! New post over at WeeklyGroceryShopping.Com.

Have a fabulous weekend!

Homemaking: Making FLYlady Work for You

2011-12-01T06:00:00.025-07:00

Once you get rid of the clutter.

Once you have some routines in place.

You too will have time to water a plant,

give a plant a "leaf cut" and dust a plant.

The zone yesterday was the living room. I spent 15 minutes working on my plant and the area around my plant. I guarantee you that until I started following FLYlady , that wasn't possible.

I know some people get overwhelmed by the emails that are sent out by her, but just take it one step at a time. When I look at pictures from years ago I cringe at the clutter we had everywhere. Now that the kids are older we don't have the clutter anymore because they are so neat and tidy.

NOT!!!

Just this morning I found 10 items of my son's laying around. I've got to get him back in the habit of cleaning up after himself. But you know what else I noticed....MY clutter laying around. HMMMM wonder where he gets it from?

Mental note: Get rid of clutter!