Making Your Home a Haven Challenge: Day 4
Today's Challenge (Let's hope I do a better job of accomplishing this today!):1) Refresh Your Spirit (5 minutes)
As we've been doing all week, take a few moments to sit down with a cup of tea or coffee and quiet your heart before the Lord. Pray, read Scripture, and just encourage your heart in the Lord.
I encourage you to pick a special verse to meditate on today while you're going about your homemaking tasks and write it down on an index card and put it in a central location as a reminder.
Share with us what verse or verses you are meditating on today.
STOP: Is your morning routine done? Don't move on to #2 unless it is!
2) Take Time to Plan (5 minutes)
In addition to writing out a short to-do list numbered in order of importance today like we did the past few days and thinking ahead to what you'll have for dinner tonight, take a moment to plan some special way to bless your family this weekend. Maybe it will be something like breakfast in bed for your children, or a treat for your husband, or a special family activity. Think of something out-of-the-ordinary which will show your love practically to your family.
Share your to-do list today and tonight's dinner menu, if you have a chance. Also, tell us about how you are going to bless your family this weekend.
3) Do Something! (15 minutes or so)
Today we're going to focus on maintaining the other rooms we have already tackled this week (entryway, living room, laundry room) and our bathrooms. Light a candle, put on your apron, turn on some uplifting music, and get working!
Set your timer for five minutes and do a quick pick up of your entryway, living room, and laundry room. Also, start a load of laundry if you still have some to finish up this week (like me!).
And then let's get busy cleaning the bathrooms. If you have the time, feel free to deep clean them from top to bottom. However, if you are short on time, just pick up and put away anything that's out of place, spray and wipe all surfaces with all-purpose cleaner, and change the towels. A quick-clean like this can take less than three minutes and can make a huge difference!
Post pictures of your shiny clean bathrooms if you'd like. Or, if you're behind on any of the other challenges (like I still am on the laundry room!), feel free to go back and do those and post pictures of those completed challenges as well.
Graphic from Art.com
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Would you like to join us in this "Making Your Home a Haven" Challenge? Just do one or more of the challenges listed above or something else related to "making your home a haven" and post about it on your blog. Come back here and leave your link below so that we can be inspired!
posted by Crystal Paine at 11:31 PM
17 Comments:
Thank you Crystal for challenging us to bless our families by doing what God has called us to do.
Terri
www.backdeck.wordpress.com
Checking your blog has become a regular part of my morning quiet time! Thanks for all the great posts. Today I have the children's doctor's appointments in the morning so that will throw the day a bit off track, but I've got my last load of clothes washing right now (leftover from yesterday) and hope to strip and remake the beds, too. Supper tonight is going to be sloppy joes and salad, so I won't have to do a ton of preparation before hand. I love easy cooking days! Here's my to do list for today:
1. finish laundry, including bedding
2. clean refrigerator
3. finish making last Christmas gift and wrap
4. general pick up of entry way, living room, and kitchen
5. craft time with children (today we are making felt star wreaths!)
6. Cook beef for supper
The verse I'm keeping in mind is the one about "He will keep Thee in perfect peace who's mind is stayed on Thee" from the book of Isaiah. I notice when my mind is busy fretting about all the little "life stuff" I lose focus and my family suffers. It's SO important to keep one's mind on the Lord. I was really encouraged how you freely admit that your days don't always go perfectly as planned. The main thing is to just try and then be content with whatever gets done. I'm looking forward to more pictures, too. Your before shots didn't look bad at all so don't feel like you aren't getting much done! :) I love your decorating style. It's so spacious and clean feeling and not bogged down with a lot of useless knick knacks and clutter. I've been purging my home of unneeded dust collectors, too, and my garage sale box is now overflowing. :)
I was encouraged to set up a little station on my kitchen counter with my household binder and water bottles. As a nursing momma I often forget to keep drinking fluids during the day so this will be great. I like to put lemon juice in my water for extra taste.
What is the difference between 'deep cleaning' a bathroom and 'regular cleaning'? I guess I deep clean mine daily. I do the entire floor, wipe down the floor boards, do the mirror, spray and wipe all surfaces, and the toilet. The only thing I don't do daily is scrub the tub (once a week) or toilet bowl (once/ twice a week)
Is that deep cleaning? If so it does not take that long - maybe 10 minutes!
Crystal,
The challenge is still going great at our house! I'm hoping after this week, that I still wake up with a plan and know what I'm going to accomplish each day..that has helped tremendously! I'm off to cross off something else on my list :) !! Have a great day!!
Christy
www.oursimplelives.wordpress.com/
I haven't been able to do as much as I wanted this week but I did get one room decluttered. Thanks for the push, Crystal.
This challenge is lots of fun! Our place is looking very nice this week!
I had a question. You (Crystal) often mention disinfecting your kitchen, your counters, and your bathroom. Which natural cleaner do you use to disinfect? Is vinegar a disinfectant? I cleaned my bathroom with vinegar in a spray bottle. I'd like to stay with all-natural cleaners, but I also want to make sure those icky germs are killed. Anyone have input?
Thanks so much again Crystal! The challenge is going well over at our home!
Great challenges!
I just found your blog and would love to start participating.
Linda
Just a little aside from an older SAHM: For the past several years, staying on top of the laundry has not been a problem for me. What’s my secret? Something you hear a lot about but we sometimes have a hard time looking beyond today to see: The seasons of our lives and the training of our kids. I have 4 teenagers now who do their own laundry (read that again… and again :)) except my youngest does her clothes with ours (DH and me) and so she helps do our laundry. My point is your time will come too! Every day that your little ones are beside you learning with you how to keep a home will result in ONE day you will watch as your child does his/her first load of laundry all by herself/himself. And you will REJOICE! SING! Maybe DANCE a little too! LOL Same goes for all the other household chores they are learning to do by your side.
I have a sister who was still doing all of her kids’ laundry when they were in high school and working a full time job. That’s not how it has to be! And it won’t be for all of you moms who are teaching your kids how to do a myriad of tasks from early on by keeping them by your side and including them as a vital part of a working cooperative household.
God's Blessings to all And thank you Crystal for such a practical website/blog for any woman in any season of her life!
Who knew that the difference between yesterday and today would be that the laundry basket reached its max? Finished that, maintained the other rooms, and (my favorite part) took some time to meditate on Jesus...
Thank you for the inspiration!
I had a very nice day with the children today. Didn't quite get all of my taks done that I had jotted down this morning, but the main things are taken care of and supper is cooking now so life is good! :) I spent some time on the floor playing and reading with the little ones this afternoon and it was so sweet to enjoy them. Thanks for all the encouragememnt. Now I'm off to light some candles and freshen myself up a bit before hubby comes home. I just love reading this blog and look forward to some more challenges.
Crystal, inspiring me to keep my home with this challenge has me not online at all these past two days and has made me realize my priorities are out of whack. I plan to no longer include blogging in my planning for Wed. Thur. and Fri. (my husband's days off).
Thank you for encouraging me again to turn my heart away from the computer and to my home!
Ok, another day is passed. :)
Crystal, God is so good. He led me to your site through the forums of mytotalmoneymakeover.com. I first visited your moneysavingmom.com site on Tuesday and quickly found this site. You have helped me so much. My husband is in ministry, and I am a stay at home mom. For the very first time, I now see my role as a homemaker in a different light. Thank you for the Making Your Home a Haven Challenge. A family changed, Kristen
This is just what I needed ~~ My home life has been pretty chaotic lately. Thank you and many blessings!
Refresh: Read Psalms 61-70 and Proverbs 13-14. Two verses stuck out to me that I wrote on 3x5 cards and placed in the kitchen.
1)Psalm 61:2, "From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed:lead me to the rock that is higher than I."
2)Proverbs 14:1, "Every wise woman buildeth her house:but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands."
My to Do List:
1)Clean up kitchen.
2)Clean bathroom including shower curtain.
3)Laundry
4)Make Rolls
5)Read aloud
6)School
Menu: Spinach and Rice Casserole & Pumpkin Dinner Rolls (following Crystal's menu)
Our weekend: We have a special outreach this Saturday. We'll be doing it together as a family. We get to sing Christmas carols and pass out tracts, do Christmas crafts and stories at a local Christmas walk. Then we're going to make Christmas goodies to pass out to some of our neighbors that will include a Christmas card and tract. So although it's not something just specially for them, they'll get a blessing by being a blessing to others.
Edwena
Well, I had "one of those days" today :) So I got my post up late, but hey, I did it!!! :D And many, many, MANY other things done today as well. Yay! Now I get to treat myself with encouragement by reading all of you wonderful ladies' posts :)
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