bread and water

This was on my heart last week and I shared it at a ladies Cookie Exchange.   1 Samuel 15:22 "And Samuel said, hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord?   Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice , and to hearken than the fat of rams." This verse implies that both sacrifice and obedience are good, but obedience is better .  As a Mom, I often have to choose between the BEST and the BETTER.  Everyone wants our time and attention and there are always good things calling our name.  However, we MUST prioritize and place the BEST thing at the top of the list to be sure it is done. This reminds me of the passage in Luke 10:40-42 "but Martha was cumbered about much serving (she was busy and burdened and worried and frazzled trying to serve other people) and (Martha) came to him (Jesus) and said, Lord dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone?  Bid her that she help me. ...

Don't you want to give the best gifts for Christmas this year to your friends and family?  You don't want to spend your money on something that is just going to get thrown away, broken or given to Goodwill.  Well, I have the perfect gift idea that gives health and wellness , is unique , smells great , and more than one person can enjoy it ....                                 Young Living Essential Oils!!  And while you're at it, you might as well sign up to be a Distributor so when all your friends and family see the healing power of these oils and want to buy them you can make some money on the side!  (See below how easy this is)   Here are several testimonies from this past week of how my oils have worked...     My friend has a 3 year old daughter who had caught the stomach bu...

I am sad and happy that my BABY just turned two years old on November 1st!   Time goes by so fast.  I don't understand how that happens because when I am in the middle of a chaotic moment with three boys it seems to make for a long day, but yet a short year. I do try to appreciate every moment I have with my kids and I love them oh so much...of course every Mom does!  Here are some pictures of my "Baby John" a day after he turned the big TWO!!                                           He loves to say cheese for the camera!                                    He didn't wanna put down the sucker for the picture...          ...

I recently converted our home school system to work boxes.  I have no idea who came up with the original idea but it is awesome!  I love work boxes!  It seems to be more fun for the kids and they can see their progress throughout the school day.  It makes it easier for me and it's very organized.  I can easily throw the next days work in the different boxes the day (or night) before school.                             Here is a picture of our work boxes in the home school closet. I purchased three of them at Walmart.  (The last three they had).  So that gives Benjamin (my 1st grader) six work boxes and Elijah (my preschooler) three work boxes.   I cut out construction paper and wrote numbers on them and got them laminated.  Then I put magnets on the back of the numbers and on the work boxes.  W...

The Lord always knows when to send encouragement my way.  Yesterday our church gave us a "pounding" .  I don't know if I spelled it right but it's a new term I learned here in Kentucky.  A pounding is when the church members bring canned food items for the preacher as a gift.  October is Pastor appreciation month (and I do hope you remembered to encourage your Pastor this month).  They do a lot for their flock that goes unnoticed at times.  Anyway, our church is so sweet and they surprised my husband with a lunch and pounding after church.  It was nicely decorated with streamers and fall decorations and cards and a banner (in our other  Sunday School building).  We had some good food and good fellowship! Thank you all so very much!  We love you!      

I must confess that I have been very overwhelmed the past few weeks.  There are many reasons why, but I will spare you.  When I get overwhelmed it usually goes back to the fact that I have not put the Lord as my first priority .  When the Lord is not my first priority in the beginning of my day then my other priorities eventually get out of whack too.  I want my priorities (that word is hard to type!) to be:  God , my husband , my children , home school, the house and outside ministry .   Recently my husband and I were talking and he shared with me what he saw my priorities to be.  They were out of order.  Cooking had become my first priority and then cleaning and schooling.  I realized this had happened and I was working on getting them back in order.  After we talked it helped motivate me to quickly get back to first things first. "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added ...

Okay, so yesterday I absolutely LOVED pureeing vegetables and cooking up a storm...but today...not so much!  Ha!  I am one of those women who can love something and then hate it that quick I guess.  (Although I don't do that with things that matter, like my husband and children:)) Anyway, I think my problem was because: I didn't spend time with the Lord in the morning and commit my day to Him I woke up late because I have been going to bed too late I have been out of the house a lot the past couple weeks and am still trying to catch up on everything  We had five people stop by the house while I was cooking (at three different times) I was trying out three new recipes that I'd never made before at one time (I don't recommend this) I was somewhat watching three to five small children on and off (and trying to prevent a fork stabbing throwing fight between my youngest two boys) I was having bad cramps which made me want to be mean:) I am complaining aren...

I wanted to update you on my new adventure in the kitchen...hiding veggies in our food!  I am using the book/cookbook called Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld.  So far I have hidden carrots (pureed) in french toast, cauliflower in mashed potatoes, and carrots in muffins.  Everyone, kids and hubby alike, all said that the french toast tasted the best ever!  The recipe was so yummy and it had carrots in it! Wow!  Who would've thought to put carrots in french toast !?  The cauliflower mashed potatoes were wonderful as well and you could only taste the potatoes!  The muffins has peanut butter and jelly in them as well as carrot puree so they were creamy and I did not let them cool long enough so mine were mushy on the inside (but still good).  After I let the rest of them cool they were more "sturdy".  Here is a picture of the PBJ muffins we had today... It doesn't look the prettiest but I wanted you to see the jelly in the midd...

Today I took ALL three of my boys grocery shopping at Walmart (yes, you read it right, all three).  I had to because my husband could not go for me like he usually does.  He enjoys doing the grocery shopping!  What a blessing!  We used to all go grocery shopping together as a family but John and I would usually end up in an argument over which item to buy, the health of it and the price of it, etc.  So John decided to go alone so I could have time to home school and plan, etc.  However, this time was different because he could not go.  I had to go because we needed food to eat, go figure.  I also had some nonfood items that I needed from Walmart.   I thought about what to do about this scenario.... so, I called a friend to see if she wanted to go with me, but she couldn't,  then I remembered Elijah had a birthday gift card to Walmart, and Benjamin had money to spend too, so I told the boys that if they behaved in Walmart the whole...

We had to make an unexpected trip to Georgia last weekend because my husbands grandmother died.  She was 87 years old.  Her name was Elizabeth Mason.  She lived with my husbands parents for the last 10 months of her life.  Before that she lived in an assisted living home.  I can't imagine what it must be like to grow old.   Today is my birthday and I am only 29...however, all week I have been freaking out about being almost 30!  Then I remind myself that that is NOT old at all, right? ;) I was wondering today how people grow old with grace.  You meet people who grow old and never complain about it.  They are a joy to be around and full of wisdom.  Growing old must be difficult because there are so many changes in every way.  The way you look and feel and sometimes where you live even changes.  I can't imagine having to leave the house that you called home year after year.  And being dependent on other people to help y...

So, I told you about my exciting new vegetable coop in an earlier post.  My husband and I have loved eating the fresh vegetables almost any way I cook them....however, my kids are a different story.  They don't always like to eat their vegetables.  I have to sneak them in their food sometimes so they get the nutrients they need.  One way I do this is by putting pumpkin in chocolate chip muffins (see my recipe on my blog under muffins), or butternut squash in a sweet bread .  I also put kale in smoothies along with flaxseed or coconut oil or whatever healthy thing I have on hand.  I was coming to a road block and needed some new ideas when I saw this cookbook sitting in my living room...   Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld . I bought it at a yard sale cheap and had not read it yet.  I started reading it and it is JUST what I need!  I love when the Lord does that:)  Jessica tells you the importance of feeding your kids vegetabl...

I love essential oils!  Once you become familiar with all the uses and benefits of essential oils they will become ESSENTIAL to you and your home.   I became an Essential Rewards member of Young Living awhile ago and we are reaping the benefits of using these oils daily in our home and in our body!  I am now an Independent Distributor of Young Living products and it is so easy because all I have to do is use their products (which I love) every month and I build up reward points for FREE products to use or share with friends to try.   This week I have been diffusing Cassia ( Cinnamon) Oil throughout my home and rubbing it on the bottom of our feet.  This is good to do if you feel like you are starting to get sick or catch a cold.    I use peppermint oil when I need a quick boost of energy, to help my sinuses, and to help digestion issues. I use lavender oil to calm the kids down and help them fall fast asleep.  Also, if they have...

Last week we had fall break and did not do school for a few days.  It was soooo nice.  But, you can't always stay on break and today was the dreaded MONDAY.  We were back to the daily grind and routine of school and chores and cooking and chasing a toddler and... and.. and.... At one point during the day I was talking to my son trying to get him to finish a worksheet but he kept walking off because he had better things to do that grabbed his attention .   I was silently getting frustrated with him and was thinking to myself, "Ugh, why doesn't he just stop and listen to me!?"    At that moment the Lord spoke gently to my heart and said, " That's how you are with Me.  I want to have your attention all day long but you have "better" things to do that grab your attention"  Oh, the Lord is so soft and tender sometimes when He speaks .  That was all it took for my heart to break over the thought of how I made Jesus feel when I turned asi...

As some of you know, I like to eat healthy as much as possible.  I used to spend a lot of time researching natural health before I had three kids.  I still remember a lot of what I read and I try to stay refreshed through weekly emails from Dr. Mercola (drmercola.com) and reading other material on health and wellness.  I knew that one important thing to do was to eat locally grown organic food.  Well, we moved to Kentucky from Georgia about a year ago so I had to get reacquainted with where the farmer's markets were, etc.  We had been shopping mostly at Kroger and Aldi's and had slacked off on our healthy diet .  As I was pushing my buggy (or grocery cart, whatever you call it)  it was full of "food" from the grocery store that I knew was not the healthy, organic locally grown food we needed.  I said a quick prayer to the Lord asking Him to show me where and how to eat healthier where we lived.   In a week or so we got invited to a healthy...

I love kale!  (the food, not a person).  I just made kale chips with only salt and olive oil (sometimes add a little vinegar) and bake 350 for 10-15 min. I add kale raw to smoothies and the kids don't even notice! I put kale in a quinoa dish a few days ago. You can add it to eggs and omelets too. Greens are soooo good for you.  Add em to your diet this week. Did you know that when you blend up your greens in a smoothie it gives you great nutrients that help your hair not to turn gray as soon!  I told that to my husband when he found two gray hairs but I don't think he believed me... Go eat your greens and feel good:) not gray 

I am so sorry I did not blog in September!  I had some computer trouble but now I will just have to share computers with my hubby!  Stay tuned for more frequent posts!

Let's compare the Proverbs 7 worldly woman with the Proverbs 31 wise woman...                 A Trouble Lady vs A True Lady  A worldly woman is Prov. 7:5 flatters with her words .  Flatter means "to praise too much or without sincerity. A wise woman has kindness and wisdom on her tongue in Prov. 31:26. A worldly woman dresses in the "attire of a harlot" (Prov. 7:10) while a wise woman dresses modestly in 1 Timothy 2:9.  Remember beauty is vain (Prov. 31:30).  Your clothes reflect your heart most of the time. A worldly woman is subtil of heart meaning "shrewd, clever and sly".  The world often extols these characteristics but they are wrong... A wise woman is sober.  Sober means more than just not drinking alcohol.  Sober is defined as "serious in mood or disposition, quiet tone, sedate."  Don't think this means you are to walk around sad and depressed all day....

Who is God?   Creator (Genesis) God (Psalm 46:10) The Word (John 1:1) Father (Romans 8:15) Friend (John 15:15) Savior (John 14:6) Present help in trouble (Psalm 46:1) Refuge (Ps 46:1) Strength (Ps 46:1) Shepherd (Ps 23:1) King of Kings                   Who am I?    New Creation (2 Cor 5:17) Heir of God through Christ (Gal 4:6-7) God’s Child (John 1:12) Adopted Child of King (Romans 8:15) God’s Friend (John 15:15) Justified at peace with God (Rom 5:1) I have access to the Father (Eph 2:18) Joined with the Lord (1 Cor 6:17) We are weak, He’s strong(1 Cor 4:10) Bought with a price (1 Cor 6:19-20) Body of Christ (1 Cor 12:27) I have redemption & forgiveness (Col 1:14) I’m complete in Christ (Col 2:10) I’m free from condemnation (Rom 8:1) I know all things work together for good (Rom 8:28) I can’t be separated fro...