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Letting go of perfectionism
 This was an excellent article (a big hat-tip to Ladies Against Feminism) and I'd encourage all you perfectionists, recovering perfectionists, or wanna-be perfectionists to go read it. Here's a snippet: Under the best of circumstances, of course I would want to have my home in order with a homemade bread bowl filled with steaming dip made from artichokes I grew in my own organic garden. Who wouldn't? There is nothing wrong with trying my best and taking care of my home. However, when my idea of perfection becomes more important than people it has moved past its proper place in my list of priorities.
Believing I must be perfect before I reach out to others leads to misery of my own making. I've even shied away from friendships because other women seem to "have it all together" while I can’t remember to put on lipstick. It seems this sort of comparison is one of the most difficult things for women to overcome. I do it without realizing it, and in doing so, heap trouble on myself. When I compare my situation to others, I live by the extreme standards of the world and lose sight of what is most important--people. I can't take stuff with me when I leave this earth. Why then should I spend time worrying over things that are not eternal?
Read full article.
This article speaks exactly about what I've been learning the past few months as a recovering perfectionist. I like having a clean, clutter-free and organized home and striving for order as opposed to chaos is a good thing. However, when it means that I am so stressed out about having everything as perfect as possible to the detriment of relationships, I have my priorities way out of order. But I must admit that still struggle a great deal with this. I'm s-l-o-w-l-y learning, but I still have a long way to go. I'd love to hear from those of you who can relate to where I'm at--those who have also struggled with perfectionism and worrying about what other people think more than about how you can minister to other and glorify the Lord: --What has helped you get over perfectionism so you can more-readily minister to others?
--What advice would you have for someone like me who struggles with perfectionism?
--How does one find a God-glorifying balance between having an orderly home and yet letting go of perfectionism?
Graphic from AllPosters.com
Labels: Homemaking
Guest Post: The Importance of Homemaking
 Guest Post from Lynn Bowen WalkerAuthor of Queen of the Castle: 52 Weeks of Encouragement for the Uninspired, Domestically Challenged or Just Plain Tired Homemaker (Come back tomorrow for a chance to win a copy of this book!) "Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ; not by way of eye service, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men..." Ephesians 6:5-7 I've been reading a secular book about the history of women and domesticity. One of the author's points is that the work we do in our homes is undervalued, often not even seen as work. While I agree wholeheartedly with her observations, the conclusions she and I reach diverge wildly. She seems to conclude that the world needs to see and value our work if we are to keep doing it, and to entice the next generation to value the concept of home. I conclude that whether anyone sees and appreciates our work or not, it is still important to keep doing it. While it would be lovely to have one's homemaking efforts valued by the world, the lack of any such recognition does nothing to diminish the work's importance. My children may not appreciate my efforts to get them to eat fruits and vegetables or to put their clean clothes in their drawers, but that doesn't mean I should abandon my efforts. If the work is important, it's important. Period. Whether anyone on the outside gives me acclaim or not. I love the apostle Paul's observations that we are not to be men-pleasers but servants of Christ. He wants us to serve in our callings with good will, also translated as benevolence ("well" plus "mind"). He wants us to do His will from our hearts. The Lord Himself sees and values our work. It is enough. -Lynn Bowen Walker is a Stanford graduate who was trained as a journalist, but who chose instead to dedicate herself to raising a family and building a strong home. In addition to making a mean chocolate chip cookie and having written for many magazines, she has contributed to several books, authored a book of her own, and is raising two sons with her husband, Mark.
Graphic from AllPosters.com
Labels: Homemaking
 "Homemaking--being a full-time wife and mother--is not a destructive drought of uselessness but an overflowing oasis of opportunity; it is not a dreary cell to contain your talents and skills but a brilliant catalyst to channel creativity and energies into meaningful work; it is not a rope for binding your productivity in the marketplace, but reins for guiding your posterity in the home; it is not an oppressive restrain of intellectual prowess for the community, but a release of wise instruction to your own household; it is not the bitter assignment of inferiority to your person, but the bright assurance of the ingenuity of God's plan for complementarity of the sexes, especially as worked out in God's plan for marriage; it is neither limitation of gifts available nor stinginess in distributing the benefits of those gifts, but rather the multiplication of a mother's legacy to the generations to come and the generous bestowal of all God meant a mother to give to those He entrusted to her care."
-Dorothy Kelley Patterson, Where's Mom? The High Calling of Wives and Mothers, pg. 47 (I highly recommend this book--read my review here.) Labels: Homemaking
Making Your Home a Haven Monday: Spring-Cleaning the Master Bedroom
 "Homemaking--if pursued with energy, imagination, and skills--has much challenge and opportunity, success, failure, growth and expansion, perks and incentives as any corporation, plus something no other position offers--working for people you love most and want to please the most!"
-Dorothy Kelley Patterson, Where's Mom? The High Calling of Wives and Mothers, pg. 47 (I highly recommend this book--read my review here.)
I loved the above quote and hope all it encourages all of you who are homemakers, homemakers-in-training, or wanna-be homemakers today! And with that encouragement, today's Making Your Home a Haven assignment is to Spring-Clean your Master Bedroom! Following Monica's lead, I'm planning to: -Pick up and put all out of place items away -Wash all the sheets and bedding -Dust -Spot-clean the walls -Organize my dresser drawers -Vacuum--including underneath our bed -And maybe more if I have enough time! I'll be back later with before and after pictures and some more thoughts on schedules and routines continued from last week.-------------------- Join in the fun! Post about your bedroom cleaning (with before and after pictures!) or share anything else related to making your home a haven and then come back here and leave your link below so we can all be inspired and motivated. Labels: Homemaking, Making Your Home a Haven
Hospitality on a budget: Is there such a thing?
Passionate Housewives on Family Life Today
 Passionate Housewives Desperate for God, will be featured on the FamilyLife Today broadcast on March 13-14, 2008. Hosted by Dennis Rainey and Bob Lepine, FamilyLife Today airs daily on more than 800 Christian radio outlets nationwide. Details on the broadcasts from FamilyLife Today : Home Sweet Home: The Center of Evangelism 03/13/08 (Day 1 of 2)
Does motherhood leave you little time for ministry? If that's what you've thought, you might want to reconsider. On today's broadcast, Jennie Chancey and Stacy McDonald, co-authors of the book Passionate Housewives Desperate for God, tell Dennis Rainey how a woman's home can be her greatest outreach for the gospel, especially when she's training her children or reaching out to friends or neighbors. Redefining Womanhood 03/14/08 (Day 2 of 2)
Mother of eight, Jennie Chancey, and mother of ten, Stacy McDonald, join award-winning author and speaker Dennis Rainey for today's broadcast. Jennie and Stacy, co-authors of the book Passionate Housewives Desperate for God, encourage wives and mothers to remember their high calling and to look forward to the legacy they're leaving behind. If you are unable to catch the broadcast, you can listen online here. If you get a chance to tune in, I'd love to hear what you think! By the way, if you haven't gotten your copy of Passionate Housewives Desperate for God, I heartily encourage you to do so. This book inspired, blessed, and challenged this young mama to not "grow weary in well-doing" but rather to look to the Lord for the courage and strength to fulfill this noble and glorious calling He has called me to--that of wife, mother, and homemaker. Though the world may scoff and accuse me of "wasting my life", I'm making my husband successful, training and nurturing the next generation, and seeking to beautifully depict the Gospel through our home and family. What could be greater than investing my life in those things? Related: Read the preface of this book here.Labels: Confronting Feminism, Homemaking, Marriage, Mothering
Guest Post: "Busy at Home"
 Guest Post by Hope Ware
"Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God."
Titus 2: 3-5, NIV
Scripture says that the older women are to teach the younger women to be "keepers at home" or "busy at home" as the NIV translation words it. I have sometimes wondered what exactly that meant. What should my day look like in order to be glorifying to God?Let us first consider the difference between "busy" and "busyness."If we have a home in perfect order, but a two-year-old that has been begging Mommy all day to read a story, then we are caught in "busyness." If your 10-year-old has to beg you to quit what you are doing on the computer to show him how to do his math equations, then we are caught in "busyness." "Busyness" will allow you to complete your "to do" list so carefully posted on your refrigerator but will not allow you to nurture those to whom the Lord has entrusted you.Being "busy at home" will allow you to feel confident in your God-given roll of homemaker, mother, caregiver, and nurturer. "Busy" gives a feeling of peace and satisfaction. It allows a knowledge of true order--which sometimes scarcely resembles a preconceived day of "things to do."From the phrase "busy at home," I came up with an acrostic to remind me of some things God has taught me about what it means to be "busy at home":
Building relationships
Utilizing your time
Serving others
Yielding yourself
At
Happy
Optimistic
Meek
Enthusiastic
Let's begin with building relationships - One of the primary privileges and responsibilities of a homemaker is to build relationships with those around us. This not only includes our husband and children, but also those with whom we come into contact.
I am a very content "homebody." I really, really like being at my home. We have learned to consider the opportunities that God has given us to build relationships with neighbors. We have older neighbors for whom my older boys mow their yard or take their garbage cans back up to their garage. Believe me, the very fact that you are actually staying at home, not working outside of the home, is a far bigger witness of your commitment to Christ and your family than you could ever imagine! We live in a large city where, as a stay-at-home mother, I am an enigma to most folks.
Utilizing your time - Although I've harped on being chained to a "to do" list, I really do utilize a daily plan. A plan is flexible enough to allow for life to happen. We all know that sometimes life intervenes in even the best of plans. We can react with frustration or accept that the plans have changed. You cannot predict illness in your family or in others. If you are chained to that list, you won't be able to effectively minister. You'll be too stressed out at having to change your personal plans on your list. Serving others - I have found that a primary means of serving others while still being a keeper at home involves planning ahead. I make soup several times a week in my crock pot. About 1/2 a large crock pot will serve our family of 5 (almost 6!). I freeze the other 1/2 of each soup recipe in a large resealable bag. (Freeze it flat and you’ll be able to stack several servings of soup in even a conventional refrigerator freezer.) When one of the neighbors or a church member is sick, we pull out a freezer bag of soup and a serving of fresh baked muffins or homemade bread and take it to them. I find that sometimes God will prompt me to make bread in the middle of the week and then I find that I need that bread to take to someone who is sick. A few years ago, my boys and I prayed that God would grant us a special opportunity to minister to someone in need that week. Two days later, our neighbor mentioned that his wife was very sick. I immediately replied, "Doug, allow me to bring over some soup and homemade bread." I had just made bread that morning. I told him that he had three choices as to the kind of soup. He replied that he didn't want to trouble me. But, I assured him that the soup was all made, in the freezer and just waiting for them. I went inside and told the boys that God had answered our prayers. We prayed a special prayer over the food for our dear neighbor and thanked Him for allowing us to minister to them. Then we all took it across the street. Yielding yourself - When you are a full-time homemaker, you must constantly yield your desires to God and place the wishes of others above your own. You can be a grouch about it, or you can do this with an attitude of joy.
The atmosphere of your home is determined by your attitude. Try it sometime. When you find yourself becoming irritated by being asked the same question for the tenth time, stop and analyze how you are responding to those around you. Then yield to the joy, which only the Holy Spirit can give you. All of a sudden, everyone else's attitude will seem to clear up. Really, it was the act of yielding that allowed the Fruit of the Spirit to manifest itself in your home that changed. 
Have a happy heart - I worked outside of the home in Christian Radio for 12 years (8 of those as a married woman). God did not bless my husband and I with children until we had been married for 8 years! I was 32-years-old before I became a mother for the first time.
We always thought that I would have to return to work even after having a baby. But, as soon as we saw that little "positive" sign on that test, we knew that I would quit my job and never return to the outside workforce again. God graciously granted my husband a new job just weeks before I gave birth to our oldest son that gave us just what we needed financially to meet our needs.
After being at home for a few weeks, my husband found me unusually quiet. (I'm not quiet by nature!) He asked me, "Aren't you happy at home? I thought this was what you wanted." I replied that it was what I wanted, but, I was unprepared for tasks that didn't get done or needed to be done (seemingly) just after you had gotten them done.
What I really liked about the workforce was the satisfaction of being given a project, planning it, executing it, and then sitting back and saying, "It sounds great--just like I envisioned it would." There wasn't a whole lot of that in motherhood--especially in the beginning. I found that what I needed to do was cultivate a happy heart. I learned to give thanks while folding laundry. (Even after all these years I still smile while doing this task.) I would think about each family member while folding little socks and outfits. I gave thanks that all of our needs were met. I gave thanks for a warm house in the winter. I gave thanks for a husband who enjoyed his job and waited to come in the door and spend time with his wife and children in the evening. I gave thanks for a house that, although small, met our every need. I changed my perspective and my heart automatically followed suit. Be optimistic - At one time I was so "bent" on saving every penny that we could, I drove my family insane for an entire year! I set a financial goal that was nearly unattainable to anyone of our income level. But, I was determined that it could be done. I would complain about a quarter here, a dime there, an extra car trip, anything that I considered unnecessary.
At the end of the year, we came within $400 of my goal. I was proud of myself. My family was just grateful that my year of "experimenting" with our tolerances was over. The problem? I was no longer trusting in God to meet our needs and stretch our resources. My optimistic spirit of thanks to God for every little blessing had diminished in my need to prove that I could make this "work."
Ladies, God will find it awfully difficult to bless you supernaturally if you are trying to make a budget "work" in your own strength. An optimistic spirit of believing that God has called you to be at home and He will meet your needs, will allow the windows of heaven to open and for blessings to fall in your home. Practice meekness - I used to think of meek as a weak, but my husband has well described it as "strength under control." A meek woman does not need to "blow her own horn." She will let her gifts and talents flow and allow others to notice not her, but the fruits of her labor: the children who sit quietly in church, the home that is freshly picked up, the yard that is well kept.
I tell my children that we might not have the nicest kitchen floor in town - but at least it will be clean! If you have an atmosphere of love, acceptance, and hospitality in your home, then people won't notice that the furniture doesn't match or that they are eating off of plates that are three different patterns. Keep a smile on your face and show those around you a countenance of joy and love and they will want to keep coming back for more--and so will your husband and children! Be enthusiastic! There is an old saying that "Enthusiasm Sells." Boy, is that the truth! Why else do you think that they have all those "satisfied customers" testify on infomercials? Because nothing sells a product like someone who is enthusiastic in their praise about performance, price, and the durability of any given product.
Well, ladies, enthusiasm sells in the realm of your home, too. My three-year-old recently told me that he doesn't like tomatoes. "Nonsense!" I exclaimed, "Look at that beautiful red tomato. Why God put an incredible powerhouse of disease fighting chemicals in every tomato. It is so sweet, so juicy, so tempting that you won't believe how wonderful it will taste."
You want to really hook him on the idea of eating it? Tell him, "Eat it and your body will fight off germs that try to get into it." Boys are seriously "into" the idea of conquering anything - including germs. The next time you start to feel that your role as a homemaker really is making very little difference, just repeat after me. "Are you kidding? I am raising up a generation of warriors for Christ! I am loving a husband who is leading our family in the ways of the LORD. I am a woman who knows her place in Christ and is in love with being busy at home!" 
-Hope has been married to Larry for nearly 20 years. They are both lifelong residents of Central Illinois and enjoy spending time together as a family. They are homeschooling three boys - ages 11, 9, and 3. Baby number 4 is due at the end of March. Hope enjoys cooking from scratch, budgeting, singing, and writing. (Note from Crystal: If you would be interested in submitting a guest post, please email me for consideration.) Graphics from AllPosters.com
Labels: Homemaking
Guest Post: The Struggle for Contentment
 Guest Post by Kelly at The Barefoot MamaPaint the kitchen cabinets, add some crown molding in the bedroom, look into acrylic tub liners, install new siding out front, and what about a privacy fence in the backyard?
Welcome to just a few of the many thoughts running through my head on any given afternoon. I wish that I could say that my mind is mostly occupied with godly, edifying musings, but my sinful nature has a tendency to lead me down the lane of discontent. We all know what a dangerous road that is. As a stay-at-home mom, I equate our house to my "office". I want it to be both beautiful and functional, maximized for ease of daily living as well as a wonderful haven for entertaining and making cozy memories with my family.
Looking at everything objectively, our house is great and has been a blessing to us, since we bought it right at the time of our marriage when my husband's income was a lot less than it is now. We've never had to struggle to make a mortgage payment for which I am truly thankful. However, the monster of discontent sometimes rears its ugly head and whispers in my ear, "Get out of this place, get something new, grander, perfect...you can afford it, you deserve it, your life will be better!"
We've all had moments of displeasure when the thought of something new or different seems to be just the ticket to remedying our problems. However, the Bible is very clear on the solution to all of our earthly, sinful dilemmas - Jesus is the way! While reading a wonderful book by Donna Otto called The Stay-at-Home Mom, I was both inspired and convicted when Donna shared the following anecdote in a chapter about saving money at home: In 1981, David and I moved into the house we're living in now. The living room and dining room were carpeted with a rather low-quality celery-green carpet. Celery green doesn't go very well with most of our furnishings. But we knew this was the house the Lord wanted for us, so we had to deal with the carpet. It would've been nice to buy new carpet, but it wasn't in the budget. So I immediately called the carpet-man and found that I could have the carpet dyed for about $200. We'd dyed carpets before, so I knew it would stretch the life of the carpet. So we dyed our celery-green carpet charcoal gray. Seven years later our gray carpet was sun-streaked and faded. There were dark spots where the furniture had been sitting. The living room had survived one flood (in Arizona!), and the water-damaged carpet was literally falling apart. We looked at our budget and decided there was no way we could afford to buy new carpet. I was disappointed because the room was a bit of an embarrassment. Yet I was absolutely determined to trust God for my carpetin, and be content with what I had. It wasn't easy. As wives, we put ourselves in a very precarious place. We want so many things, and when we're home all day we tend to see the things we want even more clearly. We are quick to think how nice it would be to have a little piece of fabric for this room or a new chair or a bedspread in the master bedroom. It's easy to become discontent.
I had some of those feelings about my carpet. But I earnestly asked the Lord to give me a heart of contentment and gratitude for the many things He had given me and to help me wait patiently for the opportunity to purchase new carpet. My prayer was answered in a most unusual way. After I had prayed about my carpet for almost 18 months, two decorator friends came to me and asked if they could help me spruce up the house a little by rearranging some of the furniture and moving some wall decorations around. I was delighted. Soon they began moving things around - and not just one or two pieces. Our family room became the dining room, and the dining room is now a library. A sofa was moved from the living room to the master bedroom. Overall, a wonderful new look came over our house without my spending a dime. I was most grateful for this gracious gift. At the same time this was going on, a dear sister in our church family was moving into another home, which happened to be much larger than ours. My decorator friends discovered that she was going to replace the carpet in her new home, a carpet that was in wonderful condition except for a few slight stains. You guessed it. God in His providence allowed this dear sister to give us her used carpet. I discovered the carpet's colo the day it was installed: white - perfect, of course! I was most grateful for God's provision of that carpet. Something else wonderful happened. Kim was a young woman who was living with us for a year as our guest in order to get her finances in order before getting her own place. The last month she lived with us was the month the carpet was installed. She not only saw the answer to my prayer unfold, she was part of it. Her financial counselor told her to make a one-month payment to use before she moved into her new apartment complex to help her adjust her new expenses. The money she gave us paid for the installation of our free carpet and covered most of the cost of cleaning it.
Our out-of-pocket expense for the carpet was just $15. It took nine years to get our carpet, but God is faithful.
How great is our God! Not only because of the steadfast care that He gives to us, but also because we find peace and contentment in knowing that He desires nothing more than to love and provide for us. Kelly Buddenhagen is a joyful wife to her husband Ed and the blessed stay-at-home mother to their eighteen month old daughter, Mary-Grace. She lives in rural Pennsylvania and delights in growing in the Christ-blessed roles of wife, mother and woman. Kelly loves spending time with her family, friends and Lord...and likes to combine these get-togethers with a yummy Dunkin' Donuts iced coffee whenever possible. In addition to these great passions, Kelly is very dedicated to natural living, especially in the kitchen, and being creatively frugal. Visit her blog, The Barefoot Mama, for more encouragement. Graphic from AllPosters.com Labels: Budgeting and Finances, Faith, Homemaking, Making Your Home a Haven
The day Google failed me
I have always been a big fan of Google. In fact, I was pretty sure you could find out just about anything you needed to know with a quick Google search. At least, that had always been the case in the past. Not yesterday, though. I had been baking most of the morning and had inadvertently left the oven on in between baking banana bread and baking whole wheat bread while I took a break to nurse Kaitlynn. Kathrynne was close beside me and I wasn't paying much attention to anything in the kitchen until I heard a strange crackling sound. The crackling continued to get louder so I decided to get up and investigate. It seemed to be coming from the oven so I quickly opened it up to determine what on earth it was. To my surprise, I was met with a little blazing fire inside. Not one to be quick on my feet, I turned off the oven, shut the oven door, and contemplated my options: I could let it be and see if it would burn out, I could try dowsing it with water, or I could call my husband. I decided calling my husband was probably the best option. Six tries later, I realized that he wasn't reachable. Of all days for me to not be able to get through to him through the usual avenues!The fire continued to blaze and thoughts started running through my head about the oven exploding. (I know, I know, call me crazy but I'm a mom so I've had to learn to think in terms of worst case scenario!) I realized maybe I should get the girls out of the kitchen so I took them upstairs and put them both in their beds. At least if this thing explodes they'll be far away from it, I thought. I remembered something that Jesse had said about not throwing water on an electrical fire, but what was it you were supposed to do when it was an electrical fire? I was scratching my brain and coming up empty. Then inspiration struck me: Google! That's it! I can always find the answer by Googling it. So there I sat, Googling "what to do when your oven catches on fire" on my laptop and watching the fire burn up the element in my oven. I had a few fleeting thoughts of newspaper headlines reading, "Woman dies in oven explosion while Googling how to put out the fire." Wouldn't that just make a great story. As much as I love Google, I found out that there are some things which it doesn't have the answers for--things like what to do when your oven is on fire. Apparently most people don't post about putting out their oven fires while the fire is blazing. I guess we're not quite that technologically advanced. Oh well. At least I tried. I finally gave up on Google and just shut the oven door and waited for about 10 minutes. The element was destroyed, but the fire finally went out. And all is well. Labels: Homemaking
This week in books: Week 1
Many months ago, I tried to follow Catherine's example and start doing a "This Week in Books" series. With complications in my pregnancy and then having a newborn, I fell woefully behind on all reading so I abandoned my great intentions. With none of the above excuses now, I am embarking again on this series of highlighting and posting short reviews of what books I read each week. I might also throw in some family-friendly movie reviews every now and then or children's books we've read, or any other types of media our family finds wholesome that week. This week I read through two books - both which I'm excited to tell you about:
 Deceptively Delicious - This cookbook doesn't really count for much actual reading but I wanted to mention it anyway since I enjoyed it so much. Though I'm not fond of the name ( deceiving anyone - even for the sake of getting them to consume vegetables - is not God-honoring) and there's some psycho-babble parenting stuff you'll need to wade through, this book is packed with great recipes and inspiration. The premise of the book is to hide various vegetable purees in everyday foods that your children like and readily - muffins, pancakes, brownies, etc. - and thus boost their nutritional value. Most of the recipes looked not only appetizing, but also quite good for you. I'd probably adjust them somewhat since I'm more a believer in the full-fat, whole-foods approach (ala Nourishing Traditions), but the recipes would be very easy to adjust. Most of all, this book provided inspiration to an already-experimental cook. I wouldn't have ever thought to put pureed beets in pancake batter and make pink pancakes but you bet I'll be trying that now. Or, pureed spinach in brownies? I'm also game. And since I have a knack for finding produce markdowns, my brain is spinning at how I can buy them all up at rock-bottom prices, fill up my freezer with purees, and get way more nutrition into myself and my family than I ever thought about before!  The Busy Mom's Guide to Simple Living - I think I've been living under a rock or something, but I've never seen or heard of this excellent book until I stumbled across it at our local library. I snatched it up and was ever so glad I did! Brimming with wisdom, advice, ideas, and much food for thought, this homeschool mother of seven covers a whole lot of ground in this simple little volume. I was inspired, challenged, convicted, and motivated. I appreciated Jackie's home organization ideas, her heart for ministering to others on a limited budget, her humility and realness, her sage advice to keep it simple and focus on the most important things in life, and her simplistic ideas for baby-stepping your way to better nutrition. Like usual, I didn't agree 100% with everything she said and some of the financial information was outdated, but the overall message of this book is timeless. I especially enjoyed all of the resources and books the author recommended; I added a bunch of them to my ever-growing to-read list. For any mother who feels like she wants to improve as a family nutritionist and home economist, who would like to be stretched in her thinking as far as necessities go, or who could just use some home management ideas, this book is definitely worth your time. What have you been reading recently? Any must-read recommendations for me?Labels: Health and Nutrition, Homemaking, Mothering, Recipes, Reviews
Getting Back on Track: Part 1 - The Schedule
 This week and next, my main focus to help me get back on track with home organization for this new year is our household schedule. Due to recent changes with my husband's job situation, I've tweaked our schedule yet again and am hoping this schedule lasts for at least a few months - though I am learning the art and quality of flexibility at this season of my life! Here's what the tweaked schedule looks like: | Crystal | Kathrynne |
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| Kaitlynn | | Kaitlynn up/Nurse/Quiet Time | Sleep |
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| Nurse | | Exercise | Sleep |
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| Play on floor | | Shower/Dress/Start Laundry (Monday-strip beds) | Sleep |
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| To bed | | Breakfast with Jesse/Make his lunch | Sleep |
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| Sleep | | Switch laundry/Make tea/take vitamins | Sleep |
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| Sleep | | Check email/moderate comments | Sleep |
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| Sleep | | Check deal websites and post on MSM/Computer off | Sleep |
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| Sleep | | Girls up and dressed/Kathrynne potty | Wake up |
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| Wake up | | Kathrynne breakfast/Kaitlynn nurse/Read Genesis 1/ABC verse book/Kathrynne's Bible - one story | Breakfast |
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| Nurse | | Clean up kitchen/Sweep floor | Tracing sheets |
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| Swing or play on floor | | Fold and put away one load of laundry (Monday - make beds) | Potty/Reading video |
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| Watch video with Kaitlynn | | Put Kaitlynn down/Daily Jobs - Listen to sermon online | Help mama |
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| Nap | | Monthly job | Play with Legos or a game |
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| Nap |
Make dinner/lunch | Help mama |
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| Nap |
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|
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| | Extra baking or cleaning/Switch laundry | Play with blocks |
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| Nap | | Pick up/School and lunch ready | Read books |
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| Nap | Kaitlynn up/Nurse/Lunch/Alpha-Phonics/
Numbers chart/ABC cards/Nature story | Lunch/school |
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| Nurse | | Kathrynne to bed - 2 picture books/Nurse Kaitlynn/read | To bed |
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| Nurse | | Kaitlynn to bed/BW Blogging | Nap |
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| Nap | More blogging or website work
| Nap |
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| Nap |
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|
|
| | MSM blogging | Nap |
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| Nap |
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|
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| | Answer emails (MWF) Orders ready (T TH) | Nap |
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| Nap | | Quick Pick up/Get dinner ready | Nap |
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| Nap |
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|
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| | Girls up/Nurse and Work with Kathrynne | Violin (MWF) Sewing (T TH) |
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| Nurse |
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| | Time with Jesse/Sewing | Kathrynne set table/Play with Daddy |
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| Play with daddy |
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| | Dinner | Dinner |
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| Dinner |
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| | Baths and Kitchen clean up | Baths |
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| Baths | | Family worship and reading time - sewing/nurse | Family worship and reading time - sewing |
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| Family worship and reading time/nurse | | Girls to bed/Evening routine | Sleep |
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| Sleep | | Reading/bedtime | Sleep |
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| Sleep | I put in a blank two-hour time slot on the spreadsheet from 1-3 p.m. which you can't see here. I've left this open for either errands we need to run, extra things which come up, or our Friday trip to the library. I'm testing this out to see if this is a help or hindrance. I found with my previous schedules that if we needed to run errands or had something come up, the schedule would end up going out the window for pretty much the entire day. So I decided to plan for these interruptions ahead of time. If we don't have any, then I have two extra hours in my day! Next up in this series: I'll be sharing more about our household cleaning schedule and daily and monthly jobs.
Do you have a schedule or routine at your house? How do you deal with interruptions that come up so that they don't throw your whole day off? I'd especially love to hear suggestions and ideas from seasoned mothers.
Graphic from Art.com
Labels: Getting Back on Track, Homemaking
A new year, a fresh start...
I really like the ending of an old year and the beginning of a new. It feels like a fresh start, a clean slate, and a time for some reflection and goal-setting for the new year. As I wrote last year, I prefer to set goals, not resolutions, for the new year. Resolutions often seem like unattainable propositions which often only last for a few days or weeks. Setting Christ-honoring goals for the year, on the other hand, provides direction and keeps me from aimlessly wandering from year-to-year accomplishing little. My husband and I sat down this morning and made up a list of goals for 2008 - goals for our family, goals for us personally, and goals for our business and finances. It is helpful to make these together so that we are both on the same page for the direction of our family and also so that I can have the input of my husband for what he wants me to focus on for the next year. Here's a quick rundown of some of my goals for 2008:-Read through the Bible. I'm planning to do 3 chapters every day and 6 chapters on Sunday reading straight through the Bible in a year this way. -Get back on track with a disciplined household schedule. I've fallen off the bandwagon with this in the last few months and am determined to get back on track with our household schedule, cleaning schedule, and utilizing my home management binder. (I plan to chronicle this journey in my Getting Back on Track series starting this week.) -Incorporate more educational and spiritual nurturing activities into our schedule. My goals for Kathrynne this year include her learning to recognize all letters and be able to sound out short words, be able to recognize letters 1-20, memorize all the verses in her ABC Bible verse book, and learn one hymn per month. I also plan to read to her for at least 30 minutes every week day and read through one larger book per month. -Read and review at least one book per week. I love to challenge and stimulate my mind by the reading of good books and I hope to share some my reads in reviews here this year.
Those are some of my goals for this next year. What are your goals? I'd love to hear!
Oh and just a random question on a somewhat-related subject that I had to ask: Am I the only person who didn't stay up until midnight last night? I considered it, but then decided that sleep sounded better. Tell me I'm not the only one!
Labels: Faith, Homemaking, Mothering
A practical planner for 2008 at $10 off!
My friend Martha Greene from Marmee Dear contacted me with a really special offer for my blog readers. Through tomorrow, you can get $10 off her 2008 Yearbook for the Homekeeper! If you are looking for a beautiful and practical planner to keep yourself and your family on track this next year, you will love Martha's Yearbook (see sample pages here). Plus, at $10 off, you are getting quite the bargain! Martha told me she's never offered it this low before. Check it out here. Be sure to use coupon code BW2008 when you check out in order to receive the $10 discount. This offer is only good through tomorrow so pick up your copy while you can! Labels: Homemaking
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This was an excellent article (a big hat-tip to Ladies Against Feminism) and I'd encourage all you perfectionists, recovering perfectionists, or wanna-be perfectionists to go read it.
