Simple Resolutions

I told you I'm a New Year's Resolution maker.  I thought I'd take a few of them and share them with you in the next few days.  I'd love to let you know what God has laid on our hearts around here for twenty ten.  Maybe I'm telling you so you can offer some encouragement...or maybe because if I speak the words out loud in writing, then I have to follow through.  :)  Either way, thanks for letting me share. 

In two thousand nine, Crystal offered much inspiration to me in the ways of frugal living.  I'm so thankful I found her blog! She has been a true blessing. In this post, she talked about how she and her husband saved up cash to buy their first house this next year.  She started out 2009 with 33% saved.  And ended the year with 100% saved.  Amazing!  So she inspired me and got me to thinking....

It's been awhile since I posted about our debt payoff journey.  The last time I posted (in June), we were at 64% to our goal.  Since that time, we have had some major set-backs financially.  My husband's job became 100% full-commission, as he is trying to build a business in a recession.  That scared me.  But it didn't scare God.  It didn't even make Him flinch. 

I could recount time after time of God's faithfulness to our family during the past several months.  No, we haven't received an official paycheck since September, but we've not missed one payment thus far, not put anything on a credit card, not missed a meal and had a beautiful, sweet Christmas.  God is so faithful! 

And looking back, it is amazing.  Since the last post, we have even moved from 64% to 74% of our goal!  How is that even possible?!  God is so good. 

So...the number one resolution in this house for this year is:  DEBT PAYOFF. 
This is it.  There is a line drawn in the sand. 

My personal theme for this year as well is SIMPLIFY.  This should be easy in the realm of our financial goals.  Life can't get too complicated and busy when you have to say "NO" a lot.  We will have one more year of participating in less, so we can walk out of twenty ten debt free, by the grace of God!

In future posts, I will share with you some of the ways we plan to make that happen this year.  I also eagerly anticipate God showing up~again~in big and small ways.

Do you have any goals this next year relating to finances in particular?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Wow...can you believe it?  Twenty-ten is here.  Two thousand nine is past.

Looking back on 2009, I see milestones of growth....huge financial obstacles to overcome, a new church, enormous spiritual growth, deep new friendships formed, a death in our family, blessings upon blessings to our family by the generosity of others and potty-training nightmares challenges. We were blessed with great relationships, health, and a rich family life.  I am thankful to God for His provision, care and protection.

I am so excited about twenty ten!  Are you someone who likes to make resolutions?  I so am.  I'm a list maker. I'm a freak for keeping track of life on paper.  (Which explains why we have a minor paper organization problem in our house...I make sub lists for my lists.)

I have chosen a theme for myself in twenty ten.  Believe it or not....it is S-I-M-P-L-I-F-Y.  Yes, I know that is hard to believe.  How often have I talked about it this past year?  I did actually begin the process of simplifying our life around here in two thousand nine...but that is my THEME for this coming year.  I hope to help make life for our family as sweet, simple, non-complicated and faith/family focused as possible!  I can't wait to share the process with you. 

We have had a low key New Year's Day around here.  I have a sicky little one...he has a cold.

He has a low-grade fever, a horrendous cough, a pillow around his neck, due to a crick...AND a nasty bruise on his forehead from a slamming door last night.  Happy New Year, baby doll!  May it only go uphill from here! 

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Did you have your black-eyed peas today???  We had our favorite black-eyed pea soup.   

OK...so it doesn't take the best pictures...but YUM!!!!

BLACK-EYED PEA SOUP

16 -ozs. dried black-eyed peas

1/2 medium onion, chopped

1 T minced garlic

1 small green bell pepper, diced

1 celery stalk, diced

1 T olive oil

6 cups water

32-ozs. can chopped tomatoes, undrained

3 cups chicken broth

1 T chicken bouillon granules

2 jalapeno peppers, unseeded and chopped

1 T salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

Bring peas and water to cover to a boil in a Dutch oven; cook 10 minutes.  Remove from heat; cover and let stand 1 hour.  Drain and remove from Dutch oven.

Saute onion and next 3 ingredients in hot oil in Dutch oven until tender.  Add peas, 6 cups water and remaining ingredients; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, and simmer, stirring occasinally, 1 hour or until peas are tender.  Yield:  10 cups

May twenty ten be a blessed year for you!  I look forward to all God has in store for us.

'Tis the Season

Well, I actually had some great Thanksgiving pictures.  I attached my camera to the computer, transferred the pictues to the computer, and then deleted them from my camera....only to find out they vanished into thin air somewhere on my computer!  Seriously?  I mean really.

So, I'll move on.

What has been heavy on my heart, rolling into this Christmas season, is that my boys truly get what Christmas is about.  Let me tell you (in case you didn't already know!) that a 3 1/2 and 5-year-old can be quite narcissistic.  I'm just saying.

So of course, Christmas all around us has become primarily about Rudolph and "what more, more, more can I get, get, get!?!"  It sickens me a little.  But really, my kids are exactly where we all were at their age....and quite honestly, exactly where they should be...developmentally speaking. 

But how can I at least begin to hide in their hearts that, without Christmas, we wouldn't have a Savior?

So, here's my plan this year:

(1)  Pray.  Pray with them.  Let them hear us thank the Father for the gift of his Son Jesus this Christmas.
Pray for them.  Without ceasing.  That they will understand the beauty of this season...and it's not because of what Santa is bringing down the chimney.

(2)  Speak Truth into their lives.  Talk about Christmas.  Remind them of why we celebrate.  Why we give gifts to one another.  Who we worship during this amazing time of the year.

(3)  Then, lastly, I incorporated a new tradition into our home.  We're on Day 3...and so far, it's a sweet addition to our day, our time together and our time with the Lord.  First of all, I'm really not that creative....but I'm an EXCELLENT copy-cat!  I read about this tradition in another family on someone else's blog last year and thought it was a wonderful idea that we, too, must do.  So, at the after-Christmas sales last year, I went looking for this:

I worked to fill each day with two sheets of paper (because, of course, I have two kids who each must have the same thing as the other!)  The first sheet of paper is an Advent reading.  I got these daily readings from Focus on the Family .  I explained to the boys that we would be reading out of the "grown-up" Bible (they each have their own kid's Bible) and that they would not understand it all right now, but that one day they would. 

I believe God's Word with all my heart...and in it He says His Word will not return void!  And He cannot lie.  So I trust, that every time I read His Word to them, it will plant seeds of Truth in their hearts. 

We read the daily reading...and then we answer a question or two...or have a discussion based on what we just read.  I'm actually amazed that they are engaging in this as well as they are. 

The second sheet of paper is an activity for the day.  This is the fun part (seeing as they are, in fact, 3 and 5).  Some of the activities were copied from the other blog I read last year....but I mostly had to make up my own, since my kids are much younger than the other blogger's.  Here are our days so far:

So, tonight we laughed and enjoyed being together as we played Chutes and Ladders and CandyLand.  I hate to admit it...but I won both games.  OK, so I really like to admit it..... I can be vicious.

I'll keep you in the loop on our holiday festivities around here. Keep it simple...and worship the King.

Mr. Almost-5!!!!

I can't stop him.

He just keeps getting older....

His actual birthday is on Thanksgiving.

But now that he is reaching the age of 5, I can now no longer get away with "celebrating his birthday at our family Thanksgiving".  I don't blame him.  He gets rooked every time. 

So, we had a party today.

Can you guess our theme??

We had the party at a local park.  The awesome Richardson Fire Department showed up at the park today for nine little 3,4 and 5-year-old boys.  It was fun.

Even little brother enjoyed hanging with the big firemen!

We had lots of little chiefs today.

When they left the park, they did it with lights and loud sirens.  The boys (and the adults!) thought it was cool.

We had lots of cupcakes (which I think is the absolute easiest way to do a cake for a 5-year-old)  It looks like Spidey is about to karate chop the cake, doesn't it?!

We had friends come play....young and old(er).

Then we did an obstacle course.  Dad was trying to explain the rules....

Run across the bridge.  Slide down the fireman pole.

Grab the wagon.  Run over here to the tunnel.  Throw the balls in the tunnel to "put out the fire".  Climb in the tunnel and rescue the animals.  Slide down the slide and put the animals in the fire wagon and pull them to safety.  Got that straight, all of you?? 

[crickets]

Blake finally got to dig in to cupcakes and unwrap lots of fun toys.

What a blessed day, full of friends and fun!

Excuse me....I'm gonna go cry now...

I can't believe he is turning 5! 

The days can be so long, but the years are so short.

Thank you, Lord, for the blessing of this child!

Every good and perfect gift is from above...

James 1:17

Can you pass me the NyQuil, please?

Well, the CRUD has made it's way around our house....


First my sweet husband had it...major sniffles and slight cough.   
Then it escalated a bit as the littlest man in my home had what his Daddy had...plus a relatively low-grade fever for a couple of days.
Then WHAMMO!!!  Mommy got it.  Worse than anyone. 


Sniffling.  Sneezing.  Coughing.  Aching.  Stuffy head.  Fever.....
You got it.  I have downed this for 2 days.

Yesterday I began to feel a tad better, but decided to lay low.  Today I woke up and YUCK...I felt like my body was a lead weight!  Was I still sick?  Or have I had too much NyQuil??


My sweet husband....oh, what a prince he has been these past couple of days.  He has completely kept the boys out of my hair and given me lots of recovering space and time.  He is amazing.  He has spent many hours since late Friday afternoon being a mostly single dad.  This morning, he took them to church by himself so I could continue to rest. 

I was sitting in my bed when the 3 of them pulled into the driveway after church and I could vaguely hear the conversation outside.  All I can tell you is that it was becoming obvious that the testerone in my house has had too much togetherness!   I knew right then.....Momma is going to have to get it together...and fast! 


My youngest also doesn't like it when Mom is "unavailable" when we are home together, but since he can't seem to put words to his feelings, he tends to "punish" me with less than desirable behavior and then clings to his Daddy (and doesn't want anything to do with me). 

My time "off" these past couple of days just confirmed in me that a Momma's job is NEVER done.  There are no sick days where we are completely off duty.  This is a never-ending job with long hours, many thankless tasks, but full of many benefits (which I will again appreciate much more fully when I feel back to normal)!

So, I thank God:
~that I was sick on the weekend when Daddy could easily be home and rescue me.
~that I am blessed with a husband who can and will take over with the kids when needed.
~that the worst of this sickness is over.
~that He will sustain me as I now get back in the game of being Mommy~even while not at 100%.


I believe the saying goes something like this....
The Show Must Go On!

The formative period for building character for eternity is in the nursery. The mother is queen of that realm and sways a scepter more potent than that of kings or priests. ~Author Unknown

We're lovin' fall!!!

You are observing special days and months and seasons and years! 

Galatians 4:10

Whew...I'm behind! But not with what REALLY matters....

OK...I know, I know....

most of you have moved on past Halloween a long time ago. 

Us....um, I'm just now getting these pictures off my camera. 

Normally around this time of year, I am trying hard to be "Super Mom".  I am making sure I do all the right "holiday" activities.  I wouldn't, after all, want my child to get to college thinking, "my Mom didn't carve my pumpkin or make my spider cupcakes when I was 4...and I remember it!  I was robbed..."

Well, this year I took the pressure off myself.  I convinced myself that I probably won't get ousted by my kids for not doing the right "Mom stuff" this particular year.  And I'm fairly certain they will survive it.  If they do actually hold me to the fire many years later for not doing enough this year, then I will pay for their therapy! 

We did make our way to a couple of Halloween functions.  There was pumpkin painting, trick-or-treating, being with friends, more candy and sweets than should be humanly possible to consume.  But, there was no stress!

We didn't bake.  We didn't really decorate.  We slapped a hay bale on the porch and called it a day.

We had grandparents in for a great weekend.  We had close family friends join us for the activities of the evening.  And we joined friends for a picnic at the park prior to trick-or-treating.  It was easy.  Low key.  And stress free.

I enjoyed the costumes of others!  Have you ever felt like this???  I so couldn't relate.

We've eaten lots and lots of yummy candy.  Including Tootsie Rolls.  We love how it makes us look toothless!

But amidst all the holiday hub-bub, we mainly focus on Christ...and growing up these boys to walk the walk He has for their lives. 

I love this pumpkin Braden brought home from school.  He glued the face on. 

But mainly, I LOVE the prayer on the back.  You'll see why.

My motto for this holiday season is SIMPLICITY.  FAMILY.  FAITH. 

I look forward to a different kind of holiday.  One that isn't about impressing others.  One that isn't about how much STUFF my kids can get or go to.  Or how decorated my house is.  Or how cute my family is on a photo that we send out.  Or how many parties I can go to. 

Don't get me wrong...those things are all good.  And they, too, are gifts from the Lord.  But my striving this season is about being QUIET in my heart and head...and enjoying God's blessings of simplicity.  I choose to be intentional and worshipful this season, going into Thanksgiving and Christmas.

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Well, we've closed out another year of costumes around here.  We have enough candy to last us well into 2010 (that is even weird to type!)  My boys have been filled with abundant energy and sugar! 

I can't show you the full pictures, so let me just paint you a  picture in your mind....

I am inside, doing laundry.  The boys have decided to play outside.  I hear them laughing within a few minutes...they have decided to pour a cup of dirt on top of Braden's head...and a cup of dirt into Blake's pants.  Then, within a minute, I hear them laughing hysterically.  They have proceeded to make mud in the dirt, strip naked, and put mud all over their entire bodies..and run around in the back yard, playing "Mud Men", Superheroes.  I'm quite sure I've never heard of those guys before...until now.

Life is good.  Mud is dirty.  Water can clean it.  They had a ball. 

That's all that matters.

How are you doing with what REALLY matters??

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