• Home Sweet Home - Homemaking - Planner

    Lists Are Tools

    April 2, 2018 - By 

    After writing last week how I dealt with starting out unprepared, my friend wrote about lists I used to have on my walls. So I thought I’d continue on today sharing about lists and how to use them — remembering: lists are tools, they’re simply tools. Again, I wasn’t born organized — I’m not a naturally organized girl, but life as a mother to many children gave me much practice and many opportunities to test the results of being disorganized and being organized. And, believe me, organized was better. It’s still better — and it is for so many reasons…

  • Family - More Slices of Life

    Thousands of Pictures to Sort

    October 30, 2017 - By 

    I’m in the midst of an overwhelming project: I have thousands of pictures to sort. Earlier today I was standing next to a table lined with boxes into which I’m distributing the thousands of pictures.  It never seemed like we took a lot of pictures. At the time. What I remember of the early days was buying film and flash bulbs, taking pictures during special events and occasional pictures of our children’s milestones or accomplishments. And those quick get the camera adorable poses.  We’d get to the end of a roll of film and put the roll (along with the other…

  • Family - Slices of Life - Society

    the subtle shift

    April 29, 2016 - By 

    January 6, 2006 It’s so subtle and is happening so slowly and smoothly that it’s hardly noticeable to some people—the faint shift from day to day to the acceptance of immorality.  Think for a moment about the church growth “movement” of the last decade or two.  Consider the shift from Christ centered to man centered theology and from Biblical principles to marketing strategies for growth.  Then take into account the music that fills the minds and the airwaves… no longer Christcentric but egocentric.   Consider the shift from Bible study to “focus-groups” that address “felt needs” or personal interests or individual…

  • Faith - Family - Motherhood

    The Hard Life of Young Mamas

    April 22, 2016 - By 

    I just read a blog post written by a young mama — a thirty something year old mama.  She wrote about the stage of life that’s hard.  The repetitive dailies that are particular to young motherhood. She’s a great writer, part of a group of mamas who have a website to which they contribute entries.  It’s for encouragement and help for other young moms — I suspect they are helped more themselves by offering the same to others.  I’m so glad I read it (and I hope lots of other young mamas read it, too).   It’s a hard stage of…

  • Faith - Family - my story - THM

    Thanksgiving 2015

    November 25, 2015 - By 

    From me (and my family) to you, Happy Thanksgiving 2015 We celebrate God’s merciful kindness this Thanksgiving! I’m filled with awe and gratitude for the opportunities the Lord has given me and I am thankful to be able to share this blog with you. I sincerely wish you love, peace, joy, hope, contentment and patience. May we all give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good. always only good. May the Lord encourage your heart as you count your many blessings. May He increase your faith as you recall His loving kindness. May your joy be full regardless your…

  • Faith - Family - Homeschooling - Motherhood

    Flee Comparisonitis

    July 23, 2015 - By 

    Maybe you saw my thoughts yesterday where I wrote about Comparisonitis or making comparisons and how easy it is to become ensnared by this.  Comparing ourselves to others, comparing our situations to other’s situations (or our perception of their situations), our accomplishments (or lack thereof) to other’s accomplishments (as we perceive them to be).  Then we spend precious moments or days or years mulling over what we have or haven’t done (right), what we do or don’t have, what we have to deal with — compared to others. [Late edit to add a link to another article I wrote regarding…

  • Family - Homeschooling

    Comparisonitis

    July 22, 2015 - By 

    It sure took me by surprise… hasn’t happened in a long time… and, when it does, it rarely lingers.  Except today.  Today it lingered awhile and I completely caught off guard.  I was busily cleaning an area and reorganizing a bunch of books… I even had a ridiculous Christmas song stuck in my head.  And then, all of a sudden I was overwhelmed thinking of some of my abysmal failings as a mother – a homeschooling mother, specifically.  And I was trying to think of one good thing I’ve done — one really exceptional achievement in which I had even…

  • Devotionals - Faith - Family - Homemaking - Titus2

    Keepers @ Home

    April 28, 2015 - By 

    [cp_dropcaps]I[/cp_dropcaps]n Titus 2.4-5 we read, in part, that younger women are to be taught by older women to be keepers at home, we see that there must be something to this ‘keeping a home’ for it to warrant teaching or knowledge of skills to do the keeping. This home-keeping, something that needs to be studied, or which requires skill, must also be pretty important or noteworthy for it to be contained in the list of imperatives in the book of Titus concerning what ought to be taught through and to women.  I will add that this ‘home-keeping’ be done well…

  • Family - Homeschooling - Parenting

    homeschool conference withdrawal

    April 26, 2015 - By 

     [cp_dropcaps]E[/cp_dropcaps]ach April, for the last ten years, a highlight for us has been the annual Christian Heritage Family Discipleship & Homeschooling Conference—this year, particularly so—for so many reasons. When I awoke this morning, I realized I’d been processing the conference in my dreams all night long.  I wondered how many other’s night’s sleep were filled with screen images, books, papers, faces, admonitions and beautiful music.  Through the day today, I’ve recounted conversations, in addition to important talks given by various teachers, I see and hear, in the theater of my mind, the beautiful performances and music that blessed us all…

  • Essays - Faith - Family - Internet Addiction - my story - Potpourri

    A blogger’s loss & gain

    April 16, 2015 - By 

    [cp_dropcaps]H[/cp_dropcaps]ardly a week goes by that I don’t think (or mutter aloud) that this or that blog or twitter account will have a crash.  In just a matter of time there will be an incident or an avalanche of incidents that will take a blogger to an intersection in her life where she’ll be broadsided some Thursday afternoon and she’ll sit on the floor, head in her hands, crying out to God for His mercy.  But for now, she doesn’t  ask for help because she doesn’t know she needs it.  Yet. Such was the case for me… going to bed…