Praying for Our Children

My silly boys

In November, I shared a resource for items that we can pray for our children.  I intended to post one request each month as a reminder, but the 25 Days of Christmas got me sidetracked!  I am getting back in the swing of things so here is January's request and scripture!


Boldly speak about Jesus and become a leader and standard-bearer for the cause of Christ rather for causes of the world 


"May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." Galatians 6:14


"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment." 1 Timothy 6:17

I write the verse on the picture above Brooks' changing table ... how do you remind yourself to pray for your children?

5:46 PM

Happy Birthday Daddy!

This Week's Menu Plan (January 7th-14th)

Menu Plan

This week I got started on one of my goals for the year.  For the last several years, I have been planning our dinners out for the week, but my goal is to take it a step further by planning all 3 meals each day.  I am also trying to make sure that we are including leftovers in the plan.  Once I get rolling, I am hoping to do this for two weeks at a time to cut down on the number of trips to Kroger!  Fewer trips to Kroger and having a plan will hopefully help us keep the grocery bill down.


I used this menu plan format from Desiring Virtue.  There are tons of resources like this out there and I am going to try several until I find what works for us.  I like that this format has a shopping list.  After we got home, I put it on the fridge to remind me what we were doing all week!

Grilled Pineapple Chicken w/ Pineapple Salsa

We are still working on eating more "whole" foods and less processed stuff around here.  I found a resource on The Better Mom that has provided me with a ton of recipes.  Several of the recipes linked below are from The Nourishing Home.


Saturday
Breakfast: Daddy & D date for donuts
Lunch: Eat Out
Dinner: Burgers w/ Green Beans & Roasted Potatoes


Sunday
Breakfast: Sausage Roll from the freezer (Ramsey family recipe I will have to share soon)
Lunch: Grilled Cheese
Dinner: Grilled Pineapple Chicken & Pineapple salsa w/ Quinoa and salad

Monday

Breakfast: Eggs w/ bacon

Lunch: Leftover hamburgers and Veggies

Dinner:  Beef Drip sandwiches & chips (BCS National Championship party)

Tuesday

Breakfast:  English Muffins w/ Peanut Butter & apple

Lunch: Leftover Beef Drip (L&H)/ MMO (D)

Dinner: Lemon Garlic Chicken w/ Green Beans and Salad

Wednesday

Breakfast: Cliff Bar/Luna Bar

Lunch: Cafeteria (H) Salad (L)/ Chicken & Veggies (D)

Dinner: Veggie Turkey Chili

Thursday

Breakfast: English Muffin w/ Peanut Butter & banana

Lunch: Leftover Turkey Chili (H&L)/ MMO (D)

Dinner: Grilled Cheese sandwiches & Salad

Friday

Breakfast: Eggs w/ Toast

Lunch: Peanut Butter and Jelly, veggies, and fruit

Dinner: Turkey Taco Salad

Saturday

Breakfast: Pancakes, turkey bacon, & fruit

Lunch: Grilled Cheese & other leftovers

Dinner: Eat Out

Do you use a menu plan?  How do you keep your meals organized?

10:18 AM

Had to laugh at my choice of books to elevate our large nativity scene on the mantle ... quite appropriate!  (Notice I never fixed poor Mary's hand!)

Winter Snow

I was talking to a friend last week and I asked her the common, "Did you guys have a good Christmas?"  Her response, "The best ever."  The simple answer stopped me in my tracks and I thought ... me too!  It really was a great holiday season.  Maybe for the first time ever, I feel like I really worshipped the Savior.  I thought more about what it meant that the CREATOR of the universe came as a baby with ten tiny fingers and ten tiny toes.  I had always thought about the humility that it took for Him to endure the cross, but never the humility that it took for Him to come as a babe. The first time I heard this song below, I was overwhelmed with the grace and majesty of Jesus.  

I took down most of our decorations yesterday.  I must admit that normally I am ready to get everything back in the box and get back to "normal."  But this year was different!  I didn't want to pull down the Christmas Cards from my kitchen cabinets and putting our gingerbread nativity in the trash was not easy. I have loved having these ever visible reminders of the season all around my house, but as I carried the last box to the garage, I reminded myself that the worship of who Jesus is doesn't stop now that the boxes are put away!  This year I am challenged to experience the same feeling of worship January through November.

What lessons did you learn this Christmas season?

2:32 PM

My dryer went out just before we left on Christmas Day for Arkansas and we were just able to get it fixed today ... the result is this mass of laundry. I am SO grateful for working appliances. :)

Well Hello 2012...

Hello 2012 ... It seems like you came so fast.  The month of December flew by and before I knew it, January 1st was staring me in the face.  December was a month of blogging rest for me. While I love blogging and sharing my heart and my walk with you, it does take time!  And it seems lately that it has taken time away from my most important responsibilities of being a wife and mother, so instead of trying to blog 5 or more days a week, I am going to be blogging 3-4 times each week.  I am also praying about sharing the blogging load with a few women who I know can encourage and challenge you.

I have never really been one to set resolutions and I am pretty sure I have never stuck with any that I set, but this year is different.  There are several things that I really feel the LORD is asking me to work on.

1. Meal Planning: I have been so encouraged by so many of the posts that I read out there in the blog world about meal planning.  I am working planning our meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in two week increments.  This will help me plan my day and what I need to do to get meals ready as well as cut back on our grocery bill. We are also continuing our quest to eat more whole foods and less processed items.  We are working on riding our diet of a lot of the processed items like crackers, breads, etc. 
2. 5:30 Appointment: In the fall of last year, I started getting up between 5:30 and 6:00 to start my day.  For this lover of sleep, getting out of bed early has been so hard, but  it honestly has made a HUGE difference in our day.  I start with reading my Bible and usually doing my BSF lesson and then spend some time journalling my prayers.  After that I try to get the dishwasher unloaded and then it is usually tim to get my early risers up and going and get Hal’s breakfast and lunch ready for him to head out!
3. Time Management: As I shared above in regards to the time I spend on Rubies and Rewards, I am working on my time management. As wives and mothers, we have a lot that needs to get done each day and I am constantly working on making sure that I am using my time effectively.

These are a few of the “goals” I have for this year and I will be sharing more with you in the weeks to come.

Happy New Year, my friends!  I pray that 2012 is a year of spiritual growth for all of us!