12 Days of Christmas

Woohoo! We're done with schoolwork until after the Holidays!

This morning the kids completed their lapbooks on the spiritual symbolism behind "The Twelve Days of Christmas." It was a fun project for all of us....except the Rayray who is anti-craft. She did enjoy learning the meanings behind each day, though.

In the Middle Ages, Christians were persecuted for their beliefs. So parents made up the 12 Days of Christmas song to teach their children the basics of the Christian faith and about the Bible. How grateful I am today that we don't have to hide our beliefs behind a child's Christmas counting song!

I got the Hands of a Child unit free from Old Schoolhouse Magazine...So grateful for that! The lapbooks turned out great and a normally annoying Christmas song now has deeper meaning for us.

He Never Lets Go

This evening, our darling son, Butter, got into a boatload of trouble with his Daddy. This is NOT a normal occurence. After he got into trouble, he cried it out in his room. His Daddy waited until he had settled himself down, then went to Butter to assure him of his sure and steady love for him, no matter what.

Relationship restored.

Butter spent the rest of the evening not only obedient, respectful, sweet and helpful...but his countenance and his entire demeanor radiated joy. He was over-the-top happy to be alive and his cheerfulness oozed out onto the rest of us.

Pure joy.

Later, I mulled over the evening. And it struck me that while his obedience and respect may have been from the discipline, Butter's sheer joy was from the restoration of his broken relationship with his Dad.

What a picture of how we are with our Heavenly Dad!

We turn from Him and choose to disobey...even sometimes using the same lame excuse as our son did..."Because I didn't want to..." And then WE turn from our relationship with Father. HE never leaves us...He never lets go. We are the ones who choose to disobey because of our selfishness. But our Heavenly Dad loves us beyond measure, never walks away, never turns His back, never lets go. He always longs for us to come back to Him, always loves us, always cherishes, always waits.

And when our relationship with Father is restored, grows and flourishes, there is a joy in our hearts that can't be explained....every aspect of our lives is lived with joy.

Sheer, boundless joy.

Christmas Soap

I made more soap this weekend...

Star of Wonder

Honey and glycerine soap, scented with Frankincense and Myrrh

Peppermint Frost

and Cranberry Frost

Two different scents....same look.

Goat milk and glycerin soap.

Chocolate Cake in a Cup?!?! Hush Up!

After reading this emailed recipe, we wondered if it'd really work.

The Rayray decided there was only one way to find out!

Enjoy her photo essay:

5 Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

4 T Flour
4 T Sugar
2 T Cocoa
1 egg
3T milk
3T oil
3T choc chips (optional)
small splash vanilla extract
1 large coffee mug

The ingredients

Add dry ingredients to mug and mix well.

Add the egg and mix thoroughly.

Pour in the milk and oil and mix well.

Add chocolate chips and vanilla, mix well.

Looks doubtful to me....

Put the mug in the microwave,

cook on high for 3 minutes.

The cake may rise over the top of the mug,

but that's ok. Allow it to cool for a few minutes,

and dump out onto a plate.

The finished product...looks yummy.

Add ice cream...or Kool Whip...

Or keep it simple with a big ol' glass of milk.

Rayray, acting like Paula Deen

What did we think? Was it any good?

The Rayray said it's better than some

homemade, baked-in-the oven

chocolate cakes she's had.

I thought it was a little spongy but tasted brownie-ish....

and I LOVE brownies.

We didn't have choc chips, but

we think it'd be divine with some ooeygooey

choc morsels mixed in.

The bottom line?

Perfect for a quick afternoon snack,

And the kids can fix it themselves!

Now, you try it and tell us what you think.

Attention Panera Bread!

If you're from 'round here, you might not recognize this box. It's a Panera Bread Bagel Gift Box and it's in my kitchen at this very moment filled to the rim with the most delectable, deliriously delicious bagels I have ever, EVUH, put in my MOUTH! Hear me when I say, you will find nothing more savory than a Panera Bread toasted Asiago Cheese Bagel with cream cheese.

She swoons.

My heartsister, who is married to my cousin, brought us back this divine box of carbs from her trip to Pittsburgh. She spoils us so.

PANERA BREAD, IF YOU ARE READING THIS....Southwest Georgia needs you. We are over an hour away from your nearest location. Please...please...have sympathy for this deprived corner of the south and bring your delectable goodies our way!!!

Meanwhile......I hear Cinnamon Crunch calling my name....

All By Myself....

I bought this little cute light up snowman for our yard

at my neighbor's yard sale for $2.00.

The Hero decided to cement, yet again, our image of

odd, redneck homeschoolers by putting said

tiny snowman in the front yard

all alone.......

With the price tag still taped on.

I got this random text forward from Tutu in Florida.

Her sister who lives here sent her this:

"Tell PajamaMama her one tiny snowman

in her yard looks lonely."

And when C10 passes by,

she thinks she's so funny singing:

All by myself,

Don't wanna be

All by myself,

Anymore.

I'm happy to report he was joined last night by his new friends.

O. Christmas Tree, Little Buck and Big Mama Doe.

As usual, we are so happy to add a little Holiday

amusement to the otherwise dull neighborhood.

Decking the Halls

The kids in front of our new free fake tree. It turned out really pretty!

Yesterday was The Day. The day when our little family decks the halls of our home. We NORMALLY begin the festivities by tromping around the nearest Christmas tree farm with saw in hand. But this year, we have a FAKE tree. Yes, you read right. But..it was a free and very pretty fake tree from Hero's mom. Free is good....even if it's fake free. Or free fake.

On Christmas Tree Decorating Day each year, we have our first chili of the season, dubbed "Christmas Tree Chili." The Appledoodle helped me make it yesterday morning to make sure I wasn't really putting Christmas tree needles in Christmas Tree Chili.

The day started out wonderfully with a surprise visit from my Happy Home friend and her 2 yr old and new baby. Nothing is more wonderful than cuddling a new baby first thing in the morning. Then, the chili. Then the assembly line from the attic to the kitchen where we passed 427 boxes. Then the unpacking of the boxes which no one is allowed to do but The Mama. I unpack the boxes...mainly bc I love to hear the squeals and the aaahs and oohs from the kids as they see the next decoration for the first time in a year. It doesn't seem like we did it just "last week" to them like it does me.

We made a quick visit to my neighbor's to preview by invitation only ;) their yard sale/flea market items. I got some great new-in-package stocking stuffers for next to nothing. They ended up coming home with me and sharing a bowl of chili for dinner. Sometimes impromptu throws me for a loop and sometimes it's a blast. Last night, a blast.

The table all set for Christmas Tree Chili.

The tree did get decorated somewhere in all that, and we ended the evening eating Dump Cake and ice cream with JellyBean and twinkling Christmas lights aglow. We watched a great new holiday dvd together...Noelle. Some homeschoolers starred in and produced the movie. (Note: The movie is PG and part of the storyline deals with pregnancy outside of marriage. This fact went over the head of our two littles. The storyline, though, was one of redemption and forgiveness...don't miss it. )

We had a great trip to NC last week for Thanksgiving. But it was more Christmas than Thanksgiving...since that's our only visit this season. I was even coerced into shopping Black Friday sales, which included a 48 minute wait in a Kohl's line. But it was worth it...the deals! The deals! More importantly, we spend some wonderful time with Hero's family and so enjoyed that. Once a year just doesn't seem like enough, even if it is a 9 hour drive.

Happy Thanksgiving, Y'all!

What'd You Do This Weekend?

I don't know about you but I don't think I stopped all weekend....Even now, I'm waiting on two more loads of clothes to finish so I can fold them and FINALLY go to bed! My back is KILLING me!

Why so busy? We're headed to NC to visit the Hero's family for Thanksgiving. Since it's our only holiday visit, there's MUCH to be done before we leave, besides packing for 5. To help me get in the Christmas spirit, I've been playing Christmas music all weekend. This has not been a welcome sound to the Hero who insists on waiting until the day after Thanksgiving for Bing Crosby.

Saturday, I made soap.

(Sounds so easy but that included

the wrapping, tags, ribbons, bows.)

Today, I tackled the laundry. 8 loads.

We have to pack it all up tomorrow.

In between laundry loads,
the girls and I were in the kitchen..for hours.
We made 4 makings of
Paula Deen's Gooey Butter Cakes
in two flavors: butter pecan and pumpkin.
Once cool, I packed them in containers to take to NC.
I can't tell you how disappointed I was that the
bottoms got too brown. No time to redo.
The relatives can just scrape off the bottoms...

I also made brown rice casserole for 50
to take to our church's Thanksgiving dinner tonight.

We had a baby blessing for our
friend's newborn baby boy tonight, as well.
I was researching the meaning of his name,
and found out that the pygmy (whatever that is) meaning of his name is
beautiful psychopath.
That totally cracked me up!!!
Hebrew meaning is "gift from God" which is more suitable!

Well, I won't be posting anymore blogs this week.

I hope you have a blessed Thanksgiving,
whatever your plans may be.

I hope you are able to take some time this week
and reflect on all that there is to be grateful and thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Bubbly Treats from Vermont

Look what came in the mail today!!!! The other day, my blogger friend, Heather at Twin Birch, announced I had won a pretty bar of Peace. That would be... Peace soap. With a very pretty dove on it and a lovely scent. It's actually a relief, really, that true peace doesn't come from a bar that you rub all over. Nonetheless, I was in need of a little pick me up that week and it was fun to be expecting something in the mail.

Today, my package arrived and Heather just plain outdid herself! Look at all the goodies she included! I must say I was squealing like it was Christmas morning! I think my love language has something to do with yummy bath products and maybe bedroom slippers.

Heather has some wonderful products for sale on her Etsy page. Check them out!

And to my sweet Vermonty friend, thank you so much! You're awesome!

Time For a Cool Cool Change

Do you see that?!?! That's what sitting in my refrigerator at this very moment. Silk Chocolate Soy Milk. I feel like I'm cheating on so many sweet little holstein cows. I was raised on a dairy farm, y'all! SOY and MILK aren't allowed in the same phrase. But there it sits...right beside the real-live milk...acting all big and bad.

Why does PJMama need to stoop to this anti-bovine behavior, you ask?

Well, it seems that when I turned 40 earlier this year, my body mistook 40 for 50 and then said,"It's time for a cool Change. I know that it's time for a cool cool Change." (Little River Band)

I might tweak the words to "cruel" change. There's nothing cool about The Change...more like an 895 degree farenheit furnace change or a -895 degrees celsius icy freeze.

Because I google everything, I of course, have been googling this situation for days bc it is not something I planned to deal with in my 40s... so I wasn't exactly "prepared" for it. Apparently, soy items contain phytoestrogen which might just be beneficial for 895 degree furnace-type episodes. And hopefully the bone-chilling icy ones as well. And when one frequently flashes back and forth between incinerator heat and artic freeze, one will try just about anything to make it stop, for Pete's sake.

To my sweet holstein dairy cows, your milk will always be my first true love. I hope you will forgive me for my straying heart, but I'm sure you understand my plight.

Divinely Favored

I haven't posted for 47-evers. I know, I know. Life going on.

Last night we watched the last of a movie that the dh and I like (and would like a whole heap better if the language was tamed a bit.) The movie is a Tyler Perry movie called "Madea's Family Reunion."

Cicely Tyson plays Aunt Myrtle and has one of the best lines in the movie. It touches my heart when I hear it bc I feel this way. This very same way....

"God has blessed me to share time and space with a man He designed Himself for me. I've not only been blessed but divinely favored."

Weekend At the Beach Update

We met Beachmama and her girls at the beach for a Mommy/Daughter Weekend. We planned it spontaneously at the beginning of the week. It's one of those things that all just fell into place from the timing to the beautiful weather.

Guess who we got to meet FINALLY??!!?!?! Isn't she beautiful?

We took the girls trick/treating at a nearby mall. Em wasn't sure about the whole dressing up thing...but she soon figured out the free candy idea. She and her squeaky shoes had a blast with the two Cinderella's.

All Rayray and I can do is gaze at her and marvel at His wondrous hand in the lives of our sweet friends.

Busy but AWESOME Day!

It's been a busy day!

Our homeschool group spent the day

at Westville, an 1850 village.

We enjoyed everything from fresh gingerbread

to candle dipping, cane grinding, and blacksmithing.

We got home at 5pm, threw on some dress-up garb and visited my cousin's house..

Then...the highlight of the day. We picked up JellyBean and drove 30 minutes to visit this perfectly beautiful brand new bundle of joy. Isn't he a perfect angel? Mommy (over at HappyHome) and baby are doing great. I got to change his little diaper and put on his little yellow ducky gown. I felt like sending the daddy on home and staying with my sweet friend so I could hold the baby all night long! He is a perfect, content, sweet little doll!

After a hot bath, I'm calling it a day. A very long but glorious day. Nothing like the miracle of a new baby to remind us of how Great our God is.

Happy Birthday to My Hero

We celebrated My Hero's birthday in the beautiful North Georgia mountains with family. It was great fun, beautiful weather and gorgeous Fall colors.

(Numero Uno. Actually we let him win at Phase 10...right KayKay and Rayray?)

Do You Love Me...

Do you, surfer girl?

Surfer girl, my little surfer girl...

Once we finished our new master suite,

we started on Rayray's beachy room.

She loves it and we are so thrilled for her

to finally have space of her own.

BFS: Have It Your Way

Assignment: Tell us all about how your have “your” relaxing time, more especially how during the cooler months you take time to curl up with your favorite movie, book, Bible study, and what your favorite warm drink would be. Share a picture of your favorite spot in the house or your favorite warm beverage, your favorite movie or book; possibly even your favorite Bible Study or maybe your women’s Bible group.


Since it doesn't get unbearably cool in the mornings or evenings here in the Fall, I love to sit in my chair on my porch with a nice hot cup of coffee in my comfy pj's. But since we've finished our new master bedroom "suite", my new favorite spot to relax and unwind is in my new deep-soaking bathtub.

I blogged about my recent first long soaking bath in my new bathtub here. Candlelight, ipod playing relaxing music, luxurious bath bomb and a good book....together with a tub full of hot water equals total relaxation.

What are the PajamaMama's bathtub books for this week?

1. "Do You Think I'm Beautiful" by Angela Thomas
2. Karen Kingsbury's latest "Sunset"
3. "Under the Tuscan Sun"

My favorite spot on the porch and my long soaks in the bath all pale in comparison to my most favorite warm, snuggly place of all......

In the arms of My Hero....

BFS: Fun Fall Food

Intro: M’m M’m Good (Campbell’s Soup)The fall is such a wonderful time of year. The beautiful foliage and cool, crisp morning air is such a wonderful change from the hot summer. I also love the M’m M’m good smell of fall cooking and baking. The wonderful fall veggies, fruits and Thanksgiving foods.
Assignment: Post your favorite fall recipe/recipes to share.

There's no doubt about it! Fall not only brings cooler temps (if you call 85 cooler) but its own array of autumn flavors. My daddy's boiled peanuts are at the tippity top of the list of my favorite Fall foods. Anything with apples from North Georgia is on my list...and don't forget that first pot of chili!

My Hero loves buffalo wings....And I love a good hot cheesy dip. Every fall, I make this Buffalo Chicken Dip in my crockpot and we dig in with Fritos scoops, Ritz or Tostitos. As a matter of fact, we're past due for a batch!

Enjoy!

Buffalo Chicken Dip

2 (10 ounce) cans chunk chicken, drained
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup Ranch dressing
3/4 cup pepper sauce, such as Franks® Red Hot® (Check out their version of the dip recipe...)
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

I normally dump it all into the crockpot and stir it off and on as it heats up and melts together. Some recipes have directions for the oven and stove top, as well. We prefer the crock pot although it takes a few hours. Yumyum!

I'm a Fake!

"Ok! Now, you can erase the chalkboard," I said as we finished AppleDumplin's math work this morning.

"That's ok, you can do it," she replied. "I'm too tired."

Now, we're talking about a small chalkboard here that might have taken 3 swipes with an eraser. And she's just so tired from expending so much mental energy learning 3+2 and counting to 100.

I said, "When I was a teacher at school, the kids in my class would beg for a turn to erase the board! It was a privilege...."

She turned to me with eyes wide and a shocked look on her face and said, "You used to be a REAL teacher?!?!?!?!"

So.....I guess that makes me a FAKE teacher now, huh?

Bistro Babes

Me, The Twins, and Sweet Cousin

My precious Aunt Ro is in town this week....Sweet Cousin called today to see if I could slip away from our normal homeschooling routine and join them and Mama for lunch at a local bistro.

I guess so...if you insist.....just when I was looking forward to my noodles in a cup. heehee.

After a delicious salad, we walked around some of the downtown quaint shops...something I rarely actually get to do! I found Karen Kingsbury's last installment of the Baxter family at The Bookstore and reluctantly bought it.

(I say reluctantly because I don't want the Baxter series to end...but that's a whole-nother post for a whole-nother day. )

Anyway, my midday excursion was a nice diversion.

Tutu's Tribute to Fall in South Georgia

I have been planning on writing a blog post that attempts to explain the sights and smells of Fall in South Georgia. Yes, I said smells.

My sweet sister-friend Tutu came home for a visit last weekend and blogged on just that....from her perspective.

I couldn't word it any more beautifully than she did.

If you have a minute, please read her heartfelt post entitled "Smells Like Home."

I've been tagged.....!!!

I'm it!!!

Here are the rules:

Link to the person who tagged you.
Post the rules on your blog.
Write six random things about yourself.
Tag six people at the end of your post.
Let each person know he or she has been tagged.
Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

Only six random things about me? I've already posted about how I can't bear naked lips at anytime during the day or night....so that one can't be added. You already know I love to make soap (when I'm not in the middle of remodeling projects.)

OK. Here goes:

1. I don't like feet. If you are a baby or toddler, I have no problem with your feet. But please don't touch me with your feet otherwise. You want to cuddle? Fine. Just no feet, por favor.

2. I don't like dark meat chicken. The bone area grosses me out. Rayray took after me in that department.

3. My dh makes coffee for me every single solitary morning and I don't function properly without it. And I love flavored creamers...but not as much as I love the one who makes my coffee.

4. Sitting on my porch in my favorite chair on a cool morning and drinking said coffee while doing my Bible study invigorates me. As of late, my new "spot" by my new window in my new bedroom is quickly catching up in the Favorite Spot race with the porch...! The bedroom spot is perfect for mornings when weather is not conducive to sitting on the porch.

5. I've never flown on an airplane.

6. I don't really wear pajamas all day....although on cold winter days, all 5 of them, I might be tempted to stay in my fuzzy robe. The point is ...I CAN if I WANT to.

Now I get to spread the joy to 6 people:

Tutu's Party of Five, One Life, River Whispers, My Treasure, Rayray's Room, and Happy Home (who is moving and about to birth a baby so prob won't get to be random anytime soon.)

BFS: Never Leave Home Without It

Intro: Never Leave Home Without It (Marketing Credit: American Express) Diapers, bottles, wipes, bibs, pacifiers, extra clothing, cell phone, PDA, ipod, iphone, credit or debit cards … what would you never leave home without?

Don't take this wrong, y'all, bc I lovelovelove my babies, but I'm happy to say that I CAN actually leave the house without the kids now!!! Rayray is a great sister-sitter.

But what can I NOT leave home without? Besides the normal keys, wallet, cell phone, I HAVE to have a water bottle....esp in this heat. Gum is also a necessity.

But the most important thing of all.......Burt's Bees Lip Shimmer in Watermelon. I have this "thing" where I have to have something on my lips all the time and Burt's Bees Lip Shimmer in Watermelon (and sometimes Rhubarb) is the daytime balm of choice. It's not watermelon flavored. That is just the color name. It has peppermint oil in it...and I just adore it and can't leave home without it.

Our little Appledumpin' went through a stage where she never left home without her AG Bitty Baby. That sweet baby doll has been everywhere from WalMart to tennis lessons to church to the mountains to Disneyworld. It made me sad earlier this summer when she started leaving Joy behind occasionally and choosing instead to take a purse. I think it's safe to say the child has a purse fetish. She's her Mema's grandchild, for sure! ;)

Our Fun Fall Day!

We had a great day today. We went with our sweet friends to a nearby pumpkin patch where we made fun pictures, went on a hayride, ate boiled peanuts....and of course picked out a pumpkin. After pizza at Mellow Mushroom, we went to our friends house to "play" for the rest of the afternoon, which included the moms swinging on the swing and enjoying our time together!

Wacky Fall Fun Family Night

This is WACKY WEEK here at Blogger Friend School! Everything is wacky fun! This week YOU, the student, get to share something of your choice that is little “Wacky”!!!

To know PajamaMama is to know that "wacky" is my middle name. PajamaWackyMama? I blog on our wacky crazy all the time.

The topic for this week reminded me of something we...as in, just our family... did about a year ago. It was hilarious! If the neighbors were peeking, they'd just shake their heads and roll their eyes.

Read more here...and maybe you'll be inspired to try Fall Family Fun Night at YOUR house!!

We might make it our new Fall Family Tradition!

Spray It On!

My sweet Mama stopped by the other day and asked if I'd help her do something. And she whipped out a tall spray can.

She said, "I want you to spray this on my hair to cover my roots."

My first thought..."Oh no! She's being sucked in by infomercials now!!"

But, she said WC sold it to her....her renowned hair stylist. That helped my feelings a little.

It's a temporary shampoo-out colored hair spray that you spray on your roots in between colorings. I personally had never ever heard of such...EXCEPT for the pink, green, and blue versions you often see at Halloween and college football games. So, it wasn't completely a foreign concept.

I ran to grab something from my "old" bedroom...and had The Can in my hands. So, while nobody was looking, I decided to see what it'd look like on MY hair....in the event that I, you know, color my hair and just so happened to need a root touch-up or something like that.

Well. I didn't exactly expect it to come out of the can with the strength of a category 5 hurricane.

And I didn't exactly have The Can aimed right, evidenced by the fact that the entire left side of my face was spray painted light brown, including my eye glass lens.

It didn't help matters that I screamed...Ok...I hollered. And the eldest dd came running, quickly, and there was no hiding it. I was a pretty sad mess. No, I didn't take a picture and no, I will not recreate the event for the sake of a picture, either.

I will say that it actually worked beautifully on my mom's hair. It covered her roots and blended with her hair color! And I didn't get it all over her face, thanks in part to a towel she had plastered to her face, near'bout smothering herself.

As for me, I think I'll stick with my current hair care plan....

My First Luxurious Bath!!!

I have been waiting for this moment for 6 weeks.

Or maybe I should say 10 years since it's been that long since I have had a tub to call "my own" that doesn't include Star Wars men, mermaids, and ducks floating around.

My first bath in my new bathroom in my new deep-soaking tub.

Ahhhhhhh, the bliss.

I had my ipod playing, a candle lit, a soft and fluffy towel, and Me! Bath Icecream....chock full of skin-softening oils and a delightful scent.

The tub was filled with yumminess and my heart was filled with gratefulness.

Father provided for us. And my Hero put in a lot of hard work and he did it out of love for me.

I am truly blessed.

We Slept In the Garage Last Night.....

OH, WAIT!
It's not a garage anymore!!!!

It's our new Master Bedroom!!!

Being Grateful....Even In the Mundane (BFS Post)

My BFS Assignment for this week:

Intro: It keeps going, and going, and going…. (Marketing credit: Energizer)

Housekeeping: that household mess, it keeps going and going and going. It’s a perpetual chore that we diligently need to keep going on to stay on top it. We all have different ways of keeping ourselves energized..........This week tell us how You diligently keep going with your housekeeping chores.

Yesterday, my sweet and very pregnant friend came over with her two littles to check out the progress in the new room.

After walking through the den and into the kitchen, she exclaimed,"Look how clean your house is!!!"

To which I responded, "WHAT?!?!" Then I walked her around the corner and showed her this:



This is the current state of our school/computer room and I can't believe I'm putting it online for the world to see. It was organized and neat as a pin when we started up our school year last month. No, I don't have digi proof for you...just take my word for it.

To our defense, we ARE in the middle of adding a new master bedroom, which is almost done. Then the kids bedrooms will be juggled about, and desks and toys that are in the school room currently will be dispersed throughout the house. So in about two months, maybe I can post an updated pic of the neat and tidy school room.

Even under normal, non-remodeling circumstances, the housework is neverending. We live here 24/7. We get the house clean and enjoy it for about 2 minutes and 37 seconds...and then, back to reality.

With the ages of our kids now, we've entered a new season. They are able to help carry the load and lift the burden. We don't follow a cleaning schedule or have a chore chart. But they begin their training as soon as they can walk. In my opinion, it's as much about teamwork and being a part of the family as it is learning responsibility and being able to take care of their own homes one day.

One thing I struggled with especially as a young mom with kids in diapers, was dying to self and living in Christ (Gal 2:20), abiding in Him and He in me (John 15:5). I am a practical minded person and needed these scriptures to become more than nice, spiritual ideas but to come home, to settle into my heart and become reality in my life. But what on earth does that look like in MY life, in MY house, with MY family, MY messy house, dirty dishes and laundry, stinky bathrooms?

This was and is a huge help for me: "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.....Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward." Col. 3:17,23-24

Housework, cooking, laundry will always be there and is a part of our lives but should not overtake our lives or steal our joy. Giving thanks is the key to putting housework into perspective.

Being grateful for a husband who loves the Lord and shares the vision for our family.

Giving thanks to Father for the three priceless treasures he's given us to raise.

Being thankful for His provision to enable me to stay at home, even when it doesn't work out on paper.

Even when I'm cleaning the chocolate milk spill off the sofa, scrubbing the toilet, or sweeping the kitchen for the third time that day, I'm giving thanks, whispering praises, and I'm dying to self, abiding in Him.

".....In view of God's mercy, offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship." Rom 12:1

And...We Have A Floor!

TaaaDaaa!

Hey, Mikey! You'll Like It!

Our Assignment This Week: Try it, you’ll like it! (Life Cereal)
When everyone else was afraid to try Life Cereal, they called on Mikey. Sometimes stepping out of our comfort zone is just too scary. Have you felt God gently (or maybe not so gently) nudging you to do something for someone else? You know that it needs to be done, but you keep putting it off because it is outside of your comfort zone? Well ladies, this week we are taking a step outside of our comfort zones.

My dh has a job that takes him in and out of homes and businesses every day. Most of the time, he just does what he has to do and leaves. But then there are THOSE times...those God-ordained appointments. He lives his life being keenly aware of what Father's up to and is willing to join Him. Many times, he has come home and asked for our help to minister to the ones he's met.

A willing heart. That's all we need. Saying "yes" to His plans for the day as soon as our feet hit the floor.

Sometimes, it's a one time thing. An email, a phone call, a letter, a card.
Sometimes, the relationship might last for years.
Sometimes, it's easy and convenient.
Sometimes, it's terribly difficult, heart-wrenching, and time-consuming.

But Father just needs our willing hearts. He's not going to call us to something and then leave us! He gives us everything we need for the task....courage, grace, mercy, patience, long-suffering, wisdom, etc.

Homeschool moms tend to guard our school time with a passion. It has to be something mighty important for us to lay school aside and GO! There is a line, though, between guarding learning time or family time and having a heart that says Yes to God. It's different for every family, of course. The Father has shown me that there are blessings that not just I am missing, but that my kids are missing as well when I let my "schedule" get in the way to what He's asking of me.

I trust Him. I trust His heart. I know that when He calls us to minister in any way, that WE are the ones who are truly blessed in the end.

Tar-jay'? No Way!

Look at this gorgeous tv stand that we did NOT buy

at an expensive upscale furniture store!

This beauty for our new bedroom came from Target.
Do we HEART Target or WHAT!?!?

Books and Chocolate

Books and Chocolate? Are you kidding me? How fabulous! Two of my favorite things!

Our local library people had a stroke of near genius when they started the Books and Chocolate event a few years back. They load up all of their books they don't need on their shelves anymore, donated books, duplicate copies of books, etc. and set them up in a fabulous location in town. Then, they have people donate absolutely decadent plates and platters of chocolate confections...anything from chocolate chip cheesecake, to mint iced brownies to ooeygooey fudge.

The event is free. Yes, free. Today was the day, and a stunning local bed and breakfast was the chosen location.

My Lovely friend and I took our kids....Aren't they cute in the pic?

There were books everywhere. On tables all around the wraparound porch and in three large rooms inside. We looked at books and nibbled chocolate divineness for a solid hour!

I left with two bags packed full of books. There is no charge for the books. We are just asked to give a donation for what we think the books are worth. How cool is that?!?!

Check out some of the fun books we brought home!!

We Artichoked!

Behold!
Sherwin Williams "Artichoke"

Thank you to my models Rayray and Chunji.

I painted doors "after hours" all week. ("After hours" is AFTER homeschooling all day, laundry, feeding hungry people, dishes, shuttling kids here and yon, cleaning up, etc. etc.etc.)

About those doors...there are 5 of them. Fronts and backs needed painting, two coats each. That's 20 doors, total. Let's just say I was thrilled to put the last of the paint on door number 5, coat 20 last night!

Tonight and tomorrow is the tedious process of trim painting. The Hero had the delightful task of painting the windows.

By tomorrow evening, the floors will be going down!!!

Stay tuned for more updates!

Stuffed Meatloaf

First of all, I am not a culinary artist as you can tell by the picture. Secondly, I've never been able to make a great meatloaf....until now.

Behold! Meatloaf that could actually be fed to dinner guests with no remorse!

Here's the recipe, which I tweaked a bit and it still worked.


Stuffed Meatloaf

1/2 cup chopped onion, cooked (I didn't cook mine...)
1/2 cup finely chopped roasted red bell pepper from a jar. (No, none of that to be found in SmallTown, GA and we didn't miss it...wonder if pimientos would work..)
1-2 tsp Adobo seasoning
2 large eggs, beaten
3/4 cup bread crumbs
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
3/4 t freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 cups fresh baby spinach (yes, you read right)
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (I used round slices of provolone instead.)
20 very thin slices of Genoa Salami (about 4 oz). (This time, I used salami in the sandwich meat dept bc it was BOGO...and it was the same size as the provolone and just worked perfectly...but I did not use 20 slices.)

So, here's what you do. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients except the spinach, cheese and salami. Take your rings off and squish it all up really good. Then, you press it out into a 17x8 inch rectangle on wax paper. Yes, I actually got a ruler out and measured to make sure I was doing it just right.

Next, layer spinach, then cheese, then salami on top. Using wax paper to start (but not rolling it into the loaf, please), roll up meatloaf jelly roll style into an 8" log. Lift into loaf pan. (Some say it bakes nicely in a stoneware loaf pan...)

Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a meat therm in the center says 160. I don't have time for all that meat thermomertering...so I added a few minutes to be on the safe side.

Let cool 10 minutes before removing from pan and slicing. Arrange on a pretty platter, and Behold! Be prepared for much adoration....And the kids won't even know you snuck in the spinach!

Let me know if you try it! The recipe came from Menus4Moms.com.

Somewhere Over The Celery

Because doing the celery experiment
with only one color is boring....

The mad scientist thought it'd be more scientifically
theoretical to try a rainbow of colors.

And here's the result:

Ok. So the colored rainbow celery
doesn't show up so great on digi,
but the blue worked best.
Take my word for it.

Plop, Plop, Fizz, Fizz

Oh, what a relief it is! This week's assignment is to "tell about something you’ve struggled with and how God’s mercies gave you the strength to get past it. Also, share any curriculum/homeschool methods that have been a relief to you, i.e., a particular Teacher’s Manual or Homeschooling method that’s been easier for your family. Talk about how you felt when the burden was lifted."

In my last assignment, I blogged on my thoughts about our Butter's struggle with reading and what Father keeps reminding me, daily. Earlier this year, my friend Beachmama excitedly shared a "find" to help one of her sons who had some similar issues.

The program is called the Barton Reading and Spelling System. It is based on the Orton-Gillingham method of teaching children who struggle with dyslexia and other reading issues. It's written so the instructor doesn't have to go through weeks and months of classes in order to tutor a child with it. In other words, the average mom (me) can watch the training dvd, then turn around and tutor the child.

When I researched the program, it sounded like just what we needed. But the price was way more than we could afford. As it turned out, Beachmama graciously offered to lend us the program level by level as they complete them. You can imagine what a Godsend that has been!!! The plop, the fizz, the relief all rolled into one!!!

For our oldest daughter Rayray, I have another plop and fizz to mention. For several years, she did Saxon math. But she hated math. She was very good at it.....but could find no joy at all in it. It was her most dreaded subject. Saxon was a thorough program but was not a good fit for her. I read about Teaching Textbooks and we decided to take the plunge. It has been incredible. She loves the program (especially when her kitty feels the need to help her out a bit, see pic.). I just can't say enough good things about TT.

Both Barton and Teaching Textbooks were answers to specific prayers on my behalf. Don't let anyone ever say that any detail is too small for our Heavenly Father. He has called us to homeschool, so he certainly won't leave us in the dark about how to teach our children, what to teach our children, when to teach our children.

"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you and watch over you."
Psalm 32:8