"Enjoy the LITTLE THINGS in life for one day you will look back and realize they were the big things."


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What blog is about Intro

Come on in and sit awhile while I talk about the "Little Things" in life. I will share my journey of everyday life.... homeschooling, raising my children, homesteading, gardening, health and wellness, and real life.

Thursday, November 15, 2012

My Meager Fall Gardening Attempts

I have said it before and I will say it again.  I am not an expert gardener... at all.  But... I attempt it.  I keep trying and have never planted a Fall garden before, so everything I am doing is all just to test it out this year. So, I really got a bit overwhelmed with managing the Spring/Summer garden and I found that some of the large container plantings that I did were much more manageable for me.  So, I started with what I had in place:
  • herbs that were still growing which included basil and parsley
  • various pepper plants that are still producing that were planted in early Spring which include banana peppers, green bell peppers, marciano peppers (red)
  • green onions (some that are in the second year of growth) and some from seed from Spring

In random planters I started the following from seed:
  • green leaf lettuce
  • brocolli
  • cauliflower
  • spinach
  • radishes

I like to let my ducks and chickens free range, but I am learning the hard way that they like to dig up seed that has been planted.  Apparently, they like small freshly growing green leaf lettuce also, since they ate mine up along with some of the brocolli sproutings.  Also, a very sweet little darling that is trying to work with momma at the ripe old age of 19 months is likely to "weed" out all your best lettuce crop you have going.  All these things considered I ended up replanting and we have not had a harvest, yet.  I am watching the weather for frost chances so I can cover my plants in the event of a freeze.  I am hopeful.  Today Savannah and I were outside sampling he spinach and the brocolli leaves.  Both were pretty good.  Savannah even sai the spinach was delicious. That made my hear sing!  And then, when eating the brocolli leaf I expected her to spit it out and she said she could not tell a difference and they were both good.  I could tell a difference.  The brocolli leaves taste similar to cabbage, but I am just happy she liked them both.  Now, we wait... and let them grow. 

Other than keeping the garden safe from the animas I am learning the importance of the right sun levels.  I have some plantings that are in the same general area, but are getting a little more shade and those are just not growing well.  Also, I planted some lettuce under some bell peppers in the same pot.  Although they sprouted up quickly, they seem to have slowed down in growth once they got to the point that the shade of the bell pepper plants was on them.  Another thing that I am realizing is that bigger is not always better. I thought I needed bigger deeper planters, but am finding that some of my smaller shallow containers are doing the job better.  Old wash tubs with drainage holes make really good planters, so I will be on the lookout for more of those.

Pictures won't really show you much right now, but as I get a harvest I will try to make a future post with some pics. 

This what our brocolli plants (left) look like even though these are on my pics.  And my lettuce is not much bigger than the pic in the persons hand (right). 

Friday, November 9, 2012

To Respond or Not To Respond

Sometimes I think it is best not to respond to negative comments on my blog.  It does not mean I do not value the input of others.  What it does mean is that if I have someone come visit my little blog world that I am not familiar with I may mark their comment as "spam" and move on.  My little blog has a "following" of a pretty small group and I have gotten to know many of you and I know the difference between simply "discussing" a topic and someone from the outside that is trying to start a "heated discussion".  I choose to avoid those. 

"Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."  Phillipians 4:8

I also want to say and have stated this in the past on my blog that this is a place for MY thoughts and opinions.  They are not meant to offend.  I am not perfect and if I offend you I am truly sorry.  I will not compromise my faith and will stand for my God and His Word.  I may not always do the best job, but I am a sinner saved by God's grace.  Sometime I find it best to shut my mouth... or not type a reply... than to risk making a poor representation of God. 

"Finally, my brothers and sisters, always think about what is true. Think about what is noble, right and pure. Think about what is lovely and worthy of respect. If anything is excellent or worthy of praise, think about those kinds of things." Phillipians 4:8 NIrV (same verse, different translation)

Wishing you a blessed day!

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Solemn Humbling Day and MY Thoughts

As I sit here today I am humbled.  Who am I to think that change would happen?  Prophecy is prophecy and it must be fulfilled.  Even the most precious Lamb was prophesied to come and die.  That had to happen.  And because of past prophecies we see God's promises kept.  If the rest of prophecy is not ever fulfilled, then there would be no reason to believe in any of God's Word. 

As I sit here today there is a quietness in my world.  Yes, amidst all the noise of five children their is a quietness as I absorb this.  I truly never expected Romney to win the presidency, but in the last few weeks I had a glimmer of hope.  I saw people's hearts changing, but ultimately we are not a people of true repentance.  Our nation is self motivated.  Even if we believe in the sanctity of biblical marriage and that children are a blessing there are those of us that will not let that sway or choices.  Those two things alone are enough to guide my vote, but we live in and are immersed in a culture that wants after our own selfish desires and we don't want anyone making our choices for us; therefore, we don't want to hold to having a say in anyone else's choices.  If they want to have an abortion, then who are we to get in the way of "their choice".   This is so sad because it can not be backed up biblically.  And that is where the problem lies.  True repentance will only come when we are willing to sacrifice our own selfish desires.  We must back up our "choices" with biblical principles.  I learned a while back that if you want to know if you are "hearing the voice of God" one of the ways to know this is that you must be able to back it up with scripture.  Such a simple thing, yet so profound.

When I awoke this morning I turned on the TV in hopes that it were all a bad dream or that some mistake had been made.  No, the bad just got worse as I listened to announcements.  Recreational marijuana usage has now been legalized.  The first woman was elected to the Senate and is openly gay.  The small town next to mine voted in the sale of beer in wine in the restaurants and stores in their town.  Now, I want to say right now that I am not a "hater".  This morning that is what I am hearing... Christians are "haters" and want to impose their beliefs on everyone else.  I for one am not that kind of Christian and I don't think others mean to come off that way.  We are supposed to hate the sin, but not the sinner.  That is my stance on the issues above.... I don't hate homosexuals, but I do not think it should be legalized.  I don't think that a Senator should be allowed to be openly gay either.  This certainly does not mean I have hate in my heart for her.  I just think there could be a better person for the job.  But, all of these issues and many others are a representation of where our country is at.  It saddens me and God's wrath is coming on this country.  It has been prophesize and it will come to pass.

Again.... I am humbled... Who am I to think that God woud not keep his promises and for that I rejoice.  His will be done!

Sunday, November 4, 2012

Frugal AND Matchy! And a bit sideways... Plus Modesty Talk

Well, these pics and this post are OLD and they almost got completely forgotten about.  Why?  Because I accidentally loaded the pictures sideways and I got frustrated and thought I would deal with it later.  Guess what?  I forgot about it.  Now, I am looking through my "draft" posts and remembering I never came back to this.  Ooops!  So, here we go.... my post.... sideways and over 6 months past due....
 
Well, I am frugal, but I love beautiful things!  So, I love it when I can find something I love the beauty of and it be in a price range I am willing to spend money on.  I also love for my kids to be "matchy" when they can be.  I was able to get these sweet little sundresses at Wal-Mart for $5 each... and that was full price.  I love the pattern of the fabric and the colors and the shirred top.  These little dresses were also well made and look as good now (several months later and many wearings) as the day I bought them.  That is a win win all the way around!  I also bought the same style dress in another aqua print that was available. 
 

The great thing about these type little dresses is that they are super versatile, as well.  And you can adapt them for different modesty levels.  Now, I am not super modest for my little girls.  I love the innocence of little children and I think sometimes not making them aware of modesty actually keeps them innocent longer.  I seriously ran around at my house as a child shirtless until I was about nine years old and a neighbor boy told me I should have a shirt on.  I thought he was crazy because I was so innocent about my body.  I did start wearing shirts after that, though.  LOL! 
 
Anyway, if modesty is an issue for you I can share with you a few tips to make this dress style modest:
  1. Always buy a larger size.  Even if you buy two or three sizes larger to get the length you want that is fine with a dress like this.  It might just mean you need to make a few simple stitches to the spaghetti straps to make them shorter for a better fit.
  2. And about those spaghettie straps.... if you are opposed to that part of the dress, then layer the dress.  I will be doing that this winter with these dresses so the girls can wear them on cool days.  I think they will look cute with a black longsleeve shirt or turtleneck under them.  I might add leggings for warmth and style.
  3. And on the topic of leggings... or the legs... that is the other point I want to hit on.  Adding leggings or pantaloons can go a long way in the modesty department.  I love to add pantaloons under my girls dresses to to compensate for the ever shortening skirt lenghth that has invaded the little girls clothing departments in almost all stores.
     


Another great thing about these dresses is that as the children grow it is possible that the dresses can "grow" with my girls.  Often, you can get a lot of wear out of dresses like this because they will fit the child in different was for three years or possibly more.  As they get the the length where they are near the knees they make a great "long shirt" to wear with pantaloons or leggings.  And again, that will vary depending upon your convictions about modesty.  I generally start to really concern myself with modesty during the PRE-puberty stage.  And that will probably vary with each of my girls, but a rough estimate is around the age of eight... maybe a little younger depending on the child.  For example, Savannah is Miss Modesty in many ways, so this has not been a huge area of worry until recently when puberty began to be evident and she is almost 12.  Probably 10 was the magic age for her, but with Sierra it will be different.  Part of that is because she has an older sibling and naturally will be more aware of bodily changes.  Also, Sierra's personality is a little more flamboyount.  She is a bit more drawn to flashy things.  She is eight and I have to set some limits already with her and have been for about a year. 
 

 
And speaking of modesty.... Caden may or may not have shorts on here, but I don't see anything overly revealing since his shirt hangs long.... and he is five in the picture.  My kids love to strip their clothes off throughout the day.  {sigh}  I guess they get it from their Momma... I was known as "The Streak" in my neighborhood as a child.   {double sigh}   BUT I was innocent and so are my kids.  I never thought anything about my body showing.  It just did not cross my mind.  I want that for them (to some degree).  I want them to know that when company comes over they need to wear clothing, but I want them to have an innocence like I had as a child about their body.  Their body's are not "dirty" and I don't want to accidentally put it in their minds that it is.  There will be a time to teach them that their bodies are changing and that it will become necessary to cover some areas up.  Also, it will be necessary as the body changes to be aware of the "fit" and "focus" of what their clothing draws attention to.  An example of this is pants/shorts that have wording across the rear end.  That is not allowed... unless you are under the age of four.  Bloomers are quit cute with silly things on them, but words across a little girls booty that draw the eyes there are not okay at our house.  Likewise, shirts that have writing across the boobs (pardon my wording) will not be allowed.  I don't want my daughter wearing a shirt that says "Hollister" across her chest drawing attention to her boobs no matter how small or large they are. 

So, there you go... frugal, fashion, modesty, silly stories... all wrapped up in one post!  One more thing that you could do with this dress style is "re-purpose" it.  Simply slid this down the waste with the arms out of the spaghetti straps and add a shirt that covers the waist and it can be worn as a SKIRT possibly.  If you use this type dress for a skirt this way you can make the decision to snip off the straps or leave them for different options.  I hope this post blesses someone and inspires you to look at clothing in different ways.  Don't just look at what it is, but rather what the options for it are adn what it CAN be. 


Friday, November 2, 2012

Biblical Worldview & Other Phrases I Had Never Heard Of

I was not raised in church.  I started going to church on my own at the age of 19.  Some time after that I went before the church to make a public profession of faith and was baptized.  Sadly, I don't know the date, so I do not know my age at the time... early twenties... 22-ish.  For years I went to church and attempted to learn as much as I could from the preaching and Sunday School classes.  I thought I was doing this right.  And I really did not know how to do it anyway.  I remember being told the night I went down to make my public profession of faith that the best place to start in reading the Bible was to read one of the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John), but I did not even feel I could really understand the "Bible language".  How was I going to understand it?  I bought a "Rainbow Bible" in the NIV thinking that would help me understand.  I mean, I had really not read much of the Bible.... just random segments of scripture.  And so it kind of continued that way for a long, long time.  I would just learn what I could from preachings and Sunday School and read some random stuff in my Bible and try to figure it out.  Sadly, the problem with that is that for the most part a lot of the teachings from preachers and Sunday School are on the simpler issues or either it is the same sort of thing and nothing too deep. 

About six years ago I attended the first Bible Study outside of regular church services that I had ever attended.  Really!  Yes, that was about 14 years into my church experience.  And when I think of that now I think that is ridiculous, BUT I am sitting here pondering it and I have to say I know part of the reason.  A BIG part of the reason is that even though I had turned to God and the church I still had the mindset in many ways that I just needed to attend the church services... and that all those Bible studies outside of that were a bit strange.  Let me clarify... I admired people that attended those, but I just did not feel comfortable doing that myself.  Part of that would probably really be my own insecurity.  Maybe I felt that was for the "really good and worthy Christians".  In fact, at that time I would not even call myself a Christian because I had heard all my life that calling yourself a "Christian" was a bad thing (because if you could not be sin free you were a hypocrite if you called yourself a "Christian").  I no longer believe that way (just to clarify).

A few months after I began my homeschooling journey I attended a very small homeschool conference and I remember someone saying that all of your "issues" would come out when you start homeschooling.  Boy, did I ever know that.  Having only been doing this homeschool thing for a few months I had learned already that I had "issues".  And the great thing about having "issues" is that you turn to God to figure out the answers.  One thing I did was read all of Teri Maxwell's stuff I could get my hands on and it was wonderful for me because she openly talks about her "issues" in her books.  My favorite thing is "Homeschooling With A Meek and Quiet Spirit" and I began to read it.  All that to say that since beginning homeschooling I personally have had the most spiritual growth of my life. 

Also, our church is a wonderful "teaching" church and we started going to this church a couple of months after we began homeschooling.  Before this time I had only attended one other "Bible Study".  Our church offers many opportunities for Bible Study and specifically, each Fall and each Spring offers a Ladies Study of some sort.  I have had the opportunity to attend Beth Moore studies and Priscilla Shirer studies, etc..  One in particular that had a huge impact on me was about Hearing the Voice of God.  It changed my life really.  Up until that point I felt like I was just grasping for straws about how to know if God was really guiding me or if it was something else.  I learned most importantly that whatever God is "saying" to you it will always be able to be backed up by scripture.  If I ask God if I should "follow my heart" on an issue and I think He is telling me I should, well that is an example of me being decieved because the Bible says the the heart is decietful.  The study also went through the many different ways God speaks to us. 

As we attended more homeschool conferences I began to hear phrases like "Biblical Worldview", "Biblical Womanhood", "Biblical Manhood", etc..  I had NEVER heard talk like this in ANY church or from ANY preacher I had ever sat under.  Once I heard these terms I knew they were at the core of being a Christian.  When we start to filter EVERYTHING in our life through the Word of God... through our Bible we will have a "BIBLICAL Worldview".  I don't know why the terminology seems so odd or hard to understand what it would mean.  Look at the words.... they all start with "Biblical" and that is so simple understand.  Bible!  Yes, the Word of God!  So, those things are simply:
  • Biblical Worldview = having a view of how the the "world" should work should be based on the "Bible"
  • Biblical Manhood = that men should model their lives after the model that God designed for us as laid out in the Bible
  • Biblical Womanhood =  that women should model their lives after the model that God designed for us as laid out in the Bible
That is simple enough to understand, but the wording seems complex at first.  I am so thankful that I have learned about these things now and that I sit under a preacher that just finished a series of sermons he preached on about Biblical Worldview.  A few months before that he did a series on Biblical womanhood and now he is preaching  a series on Biblical voting.  And this is just the tip of the iceberg.  God has opened up so much opportunity for me to learn more lately and improve my marriage, my family, my parenting, and my relationship with Him.  I feel so blessed and I had to share this with you.