A BRANCH IN THE BEND OF THE ROAD

I was thinking about my life and life in general. How so many things are unexpected and catch you off guard. Take a runner. He has prepared in every way for the race that is set before him. He builds his strength. He feeds his body well. He learns the path in which he will race on. He even finds out a little about the ones he will race with. It seems like he is ready. He feels ready and confident. He has done everything on his part to win or atleast finish well. He starts the race. He paces himself. He has water. He is in the lead. Then, all of a sudden a small branch falls from a tree and as he looks straight ahead he trips over that branch and twists his ankle. You might say, well, he should have been paying better attention. Well, guess what. This was on a bend in the road. There was nothing he could do.

And so is life in Christ. We do all we can do. We feed ourselves on the Word, we build our strength by being around fellow believers in the faith, we know the tricks and tactics of the enemy, and we even know the path in which we race (this world). We feel ready, yet, it only takes that one small branch in the road to make us stumble and fall and even hurt. We knew there was a possibility that something like that could happen, but we didn't think it would happen to us in this race.

Yet, it did and does. So, the runner gets up and finishes the race in last place. He doesn't give up. But, prepares for the next race. He prepares himself as before but determines that no matter what happens in the next race he will finish. He won't give up. He won't stay down.

You see, the branch does not define the the runner. The fall does not define the runner. The scars do not define the runner. What defines the runner is that he is a runner. He got up and he will finish.

You are a Child of God. When you fall, get up and finish the race of life. Do not let the branches of life keep you down or keep you from running and living and loving and knowing God. At the end of my life I don't want to crawl into the arms of God. I want to run. But, I'd rather crawl than not finish at all.

SHERRY'S CROCKPOT TURKEY BREAST

My husband told me never to cook turkey any other way.

It was GREAT!

Place turket breast in crock pot. Add 2 cans chicken broth and one stick of butter and garlic powder. Cook on low for 8 hours. It falls apart and is so moist and juicy.

CANVAS ART

I love canvas. You don't have to be very creative and there are so many things you can do with it. You can even let the kids help. I made this one to hang on the porch.

I'M BACK AND I'VE MISSED EVERYONE!!!

I have missed blogging but just haven't had the time. I have started my transcription business and am just now getting organized and able to think clearly once again.



The good thing is, I have had time to, also, realize some things about the life of busy women which is what this blog is about.



I can't wait to share these things with you and hopefully give you some inspiration and encouragement as you juggle your "busy" life.



Being busy is not a bad thing unless you let it drive you into a frenzy, a panic, or a stressed state.


I will also be sharing some tips from women in my life that live lives that are on the go and yet stay balanced.



My prayer is that your life would be FULL! That you are BUSY, BALANCED and BLESSED!

AND THE WINNER IS........

The winner of my favorite candle is........

ANGELA MCCLINTON CONGRATULATIONS!

THE ONLY WAY TO WIN IS TO BECOME A FOLLOWER OF MY BLOG.

GOO GONE!

For some reason this week I heard three different people talk about Goo Gone. I have used this product to clean tape off of glass, and some sticky stuff off of pants, but that's about it. Well, a friend of mine was telling me she used this product on her wood floors that had a build-up on it from cleaning products (particularly, Orange-glo, DON'T use it!!!). She said it worked! Of course that is tideous but unfortunately that's the only way to clean such a build-up. I also heard that it's great in getting tar off your car bumper and bugs too. It is safe to use on plastic, metal, glass, wood, hardwood, carpet, equipment, tools, brick, ceramic, fiberglass, clothing, firniture, tile, appliances, automobiles, boats, upholstry. Let me know if you've used this product and how!!!

"In the noise and clatter of my kitchen.... I possess God in great tranquility as if I were upon my knees." Brother Lawrence

"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." 1Corinthians 10:31

***Whatever your day consists of, whether it is monotonous, unfulfilling, boring, stressful, or difficult, it is not a waste if you do your best and do it for God. You may be where you are for a season to prepare you for something else. So, make Him proud this week, whatever you find your hands to do! Blessings.

MY HAPPY THINGS!

*Phillipians 4:8 msg says: "You'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious -- the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse." There is enough negatives in all our lives to meditate on, to watch, to listen to. It is in abundance. It comes to easy. The hard part is forcing ourselves to replace the negative with the positive. I like to call it "To Replace". Take inventory of all things negative that surround you, that you allow, and replace it with the positive. I know watching too much news can cause me to fear so I'll replace that by reading God's word. I listen to my kids scream and whine. Replace it with time spent outside in the garden. When you have a negative thought like, "I can't do this." Replace that thought with "I only fail when I quit."


Here are a few of my recommendations of positive things to listen to and things to watch. I call them my Happy Music and Shows!


Happy Music: Jim Brickman, Chris Rice, Classical (especially when it's raining), Disney soundtracks (Come on, you know you love them!), music of the '50s, Elvis, Christian music





Happy Television: Everybody Loves Raymond, According to Jim, King of Queens, I love Lucy, The Andy Griffith Show







Happy Movies: Anything that ends in: "And they lived happily ever after". My fave is EverAfter, The Sound of Music, My Fair Lady, Father of the Bride,

LETTING GO CHALLENGE!

I really would like to blog more often. I'd really like to spend more time with my husband. I'd really like to join a gym. I'd really like to read more. I think we all need to find something today in our life that has no value to ourselves or others and LET IT GO! So think of something and post it as a comment. Tell me what you can let go of and what you will add to it. For example, I will give up spending so much time on facebook games and replace it with exercise. See, I will be replacing my laziness with something that will benefit me all the way around. I probably spend 30 minutes of my day everyday on these games. They help me relax and de-stress but exercise has the same benefits. You may speak negatively. Well, choose to speak more positively. We can all do this. We all have clutter. Time to let some of it go a little at a time.





Quote: "No one can be making much of his life who has not a very definite conception of what he is living for." Harry Drummond






DID YOU KNOW? YOU CAN RECYCLE YOUR COFFEE? Yep. I never finish my whole pot. Add equal parts of water to it and you have a fertilizer you can use for indoor and outdoor plants.

Disappointed!

Life has it's ups and down. If you have hope in anything at all there is a possibility or probability of being disappointed in this life. There are few guarantees outside of the Word of God and even then because God's timing is not our own being disappointed and discouraged once we take our eyes off the promises are inevitable. We hope for something and it doesn't work out like we think it should and disappointed is how we feel. Even if we believe that there is still hope it's hard to get past that punch in the stomach feeling of disappointment. All we can do is look it in the face say "Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen." And turn our back on that feeling. Otherwise we walk on dangerous ground of living in a pit of depression, hopelessness, fear, and self-pity. So just remember that tomorrow is a new day and hope is around the corner. Good things come to those who wait! Encourage yourself.

4th of July Chips and Salsa

1 can dark red kidney beans
1 onion chopped
1 green pepper chopped
1 small jar Catalina dressing
1/2 pound ground beef (optional)
Tostito tortilla chips

These are a few of my favorite things!

I had so much fun being a blessing by giving away cleaning products that I'm going to do one a month. Every month I will give away something that is a "favorite" of mine. This month I will give-away my favorite candle. I call this my reading candle because I love to light it while I'm reading. ALL Tyler candles smell wonderful. This one is called Vignette. If you become a NEW follower from June 20-July 15 you will get your name in twice. All Followers will qualify.

Have you ever "felt" like a failure? The word failure defined is this "a failing to perform a duty or expected action", "a falling short". If you are a little bit of a perfectionist, you might feel this way more than most. I can say this of myself: "I fail to keep the house up, I fail to fulfill all my wife and motherly duties like I would like to, I fail at serving God like I want to, sometimes I even fail to feed and walk my dog." I AM NOT PERFECT! The Bible say, "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23 We will always fall short of perfection. I am accepted and loved by God, just as I am when I come to Him. He doesn't ask me to change or do anything to earn His love and acceptance. Now I ask you! Why should you? Here is something the Lord showed me one day while I was being critical of my son. I was walking up to the Garden Center of WalMart and was drawn to the bright, beutiful yellow marigolds. But the closer I got near them the more I saw all the imperfections it had, the bruises, the dried up blooms, the wilted leaves. And I heard God say. Step back and don't look too hard or closely at the imperfections. Yes, they are there but if you look at them you will miss the beauty that is there when you just step back. So don't get discouraged with others or yourself. We will all fall short in life. We strive for perfection but the only perfect one is the Lord Jesus. One day we will be perfect because we will be like Him. But today remember that you are human and accept yourself with all your failures......God does.

AND THE WINNER IS......

CONGRATULATIONS PATRA BRINYARK!!!

PATRA JUST WON THE BEST CLEANING PRODUCTS I'VE EVER USED!!!!!!!!!

I wanted to share will all you moms a website out there called MOMSTER.COM. It's a site for moms with tweens and teens. You can ask for advice or give advice. They have different groups you can join, for example, Prayer Circles and Frugal Mamas. They even have giveaways. So, go check it out!

I recently read about J.C. Penney (yes, the founder of J.C. Penney stores). Raised as a son of a preacher, he was made to earn the money to buy his own shoes and clothes by age 8. His mother taught him to live by the Golden Rule and faith in God and led by example. J.C. Penney lived a life of integrity and loyalty. But it was later in life and through financial ruin and distress that he turned to God and experienced a true spiritual conversion. BE A MOTHER OF INFLUENCE!

NO TIME TO FEEL BAD!

We all know time is precious. None of us have enough of it. I can make a list, and so can you, about all the things we don't have time for. The best thing you can do is make a list. List everything that you never have time to do. Then choose to purposefully put the time on your calendar or fridge or whatever. Then do it! Don't let anything get in on that time. I don't ever have time to do yardwork. So I choose 1 hour one day a week in the evening to do something in the yard. Don't think you have time to clean your house? Do you have a housekeeper you pay? Don't feel bad about it. If you have to hire someone, to do something you don't have time to do, so you can do something else you would like to do--DO IT! Enjoy life in between all the "must-do's of life. Life is too short!

How to do a basic house-cleaning in 2 hours (3 bd, 2 ba):

1. Dust everything with a Swiffer duster (10 min)
2. Windex all mirrors and glass (except bath) (15 min)
3. Put toilet cleaner in toilets and spray all tubs/showers (5 min)
4. Starting in one bathroom, windex all mirrors/glass, wipe toilet, wipe out tubs/showers, repeat in all bathrooms (30 min)
5. Vaccuum carpets (15 min)
6. Sweep floors (15 min)
7. Mop tiles floors (15 min)
8. Cloth mop/spray wood floors (15 min)
9. Done!

*Now become a FOLLOWER so you can get the best cleaning products I have ever used (and trust me I have used them ALL)!

HOW MUCH DO YOU LOVE ME?

"Do you love me more than these?" John 21:15 This is a question that Jesus asked Peter! This is a question that he also asks us. Matthew 10:37 "He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me." Here's a question for you! If your children turn their backs on God; will you? I have seen this happen many times. Parents who raise their children in the church so that their children have some set of morals. But when they rebel they give up their faith in God. Or when they grow and leave the home they also leave the house of God. The Bible encourages us to examine our selves. To examine our hearts! Make sure that all your faith is in God regardless of any circumstances. That your feet are truly planted on the Solid ROCK!

A WESTERN FRAME CRAFT

BUY AN INEXPENSIVE FLAT FACED FRAME ($1 dollar tree), 2 acrylic paints (dark and light brown), crackle medium, matte varnish, small nails, upholstery tacks (Total Cost $5)

*First paint frame with light color paint and let dry. Then do one coat of crackle medium and let dry 1 hour or dry. Then put one coat of dark paint and let dry. Hammer tacks and nails any way you like.

This and That

Here is a way to take up extra space on a wall. Use different plates and plate hangers and cluster them together. These are sentimental plates to me.

Yes! This is as delish as it looks!!! It is a blueberry kuchen and since your blueberries should soon be picked I am sharing this recipe!

Blueberry Kuchen:

Mix together 1 1/2 c. all pur. flour, 3/4 c. sugar, 2 t. baking powder, 1/2 t. salt. Add 2/3 c. milk, 1 egg, 1 t. vanilla and 1/4 c. melted butter. Pour into greased 9x13 pan. Sprinkle with 2 c. blueberries. In a bowl mix 3/4 c. sugar, 1/2 c. all pur. flour, 1/4 c. melted butter. Toss with a fork until crumbly; sprinkle over blueberries. Bake 350 for 40 mins. P.S. I'm going to try apples tomorrow. Try raspberries, cheesecake, blackberries, peaches..........

EVERYTHING UNDER THE SUN

I've always loved the book of Ecclesiastes. Some think it's depressing. I wouldn't call it that. I would just call it true. It is a picture of life. How everything seems "meaningless". How life is not fair. How life is monotonous. Solomon asked God for wisdom. And he got it (along with power and riches which he didn't ask for)! And in what seems like a "woe is life" book there are tidbits in it like "We should rejoice in or works"; "We should eat, drink and be merry", "Enjoy your days of youthfulness". And in conclusion of a man that understood LIFE he says this: "In conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man." My conclusion of Ecclesiastes is this: Enjoy the life that God has given you; do what is right is God's eyes; Don't take things for granted; Remember that He is God and you are man.

A FEW IDEAS TO ENJOY LIFE

1. COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS EVERY MORNING AND THANK GOD FOR THEM ALL!

2. MAKE A CUP OF COFFEE AND SIT OUTSIDE IN THE MORNING WHILE THE SUN IS COMING UP AND THE BIRDS ARE SINGING.

3. FIND YOUR CALLING (i know that's not easy but look at your gifts, talents and abilities and start there)

4. FIND SOMETHING YOU ENJOY DOING AND DO IT!!!!!

5. GIVE LOTS OF HUGS SO YOU CAN GET SOME BACK!

6. FIND A DAY AND DECIDE TO ENJOY ALL THE SIMPLY THINGS IN LIFE!

TOMORROW! It's a New Day!!!

I remember my days as a teenager thinking many a day "I wish I could start over". "I wish I could move to another school and start over." How many times in our lives have we either thought that or said that? For me it has been more times than I can count. Most of the time it had to do with bad decisions and regret. Now I say "I'll start my diet tomorrow." Or "I'll be a better wife and mother tomorrow." Or "I'll eat healthier tomorrow." Or "I'll get going with that budget tomorrow." Aren't you glad for tomorrows? What would we do without them? I think God knew we would need tomorrows. That's why He says "My mercies are new every morning." Lamentations 3:22-23 and "weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." Psalm 30:5. You don't have to wait until New Year's Day either. Tomorrow is a new day. God has made it possible to Start Over!

Taco Salad Recipe:

1/2 head of lettuce, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 # ground beef, browned w/ a half pack taco season, cool
1/2 c. crushed Doritos
1/4 c. Catalina French Dressing

Mix all together and refrigerate.

THE UNFINISHED CHALLENGE

This weekend I was looking around the house and noticed all of my unfinished projects. So I decided to make a list and challenge myself to finish one a week. So now I am going to challenge you to do the same. We can make it a game. Make a list TODAY! Then when you complete one of your unfinished projects post it as a comment to my blog "The Unfinished Challenge". Maybe this encouragement will help move us to get some things done that we have been putting off. My goal this week is to finish a chair I had re-covered but never finished. What it your unfinished project? Let me know! We are all busy. We can always make an excuse that we don't have time. But this week lets make time, okay? Okay! Best Wishes!!! I will post a picture of the finished project later in the week when I finish it. :)

Easy and Healthy:

Take any boxed rice or pasta meal and add vegies. You can add flavor and nutritional value this way. Example: To chicken rice-a-roni you can add broccoli or sweet peas. To red beand and rice you can add onions and peppers. To Hamburger helper you can add corn, carrots and peas.

LOOK UP!

A couple of weeks ago we all went to the cellular phone store. If you have ever went to a cellular phone store, you know that you could be there for a very long time. Anyway, I decided to avoid the stress and wait in the car. I laid down in the backseat and decided to try and take a nap. As I did, I looked up at the sky. I looked at the bright sunshine. I watched the billowy white clouds floating ever so slowly by (and yes I did try to find pictures in the clouds). And I realized something! I realized just how small I am! We go about our days most of the time looking back, looking ahead, looking side to side and looking down. But how often do we look up? Think about it. If we look up at the vastness of the sky and think about the greatness of the universe we should be humbled. There is no room for pride or arrogance when we remember that we are mortals, created by God. We have been put on this huge planet, set in a solar system, surrounded by the heavens. How can we boast? How can we think that we are powerful? How can we do anything but fear God, humble ourselves, and be in awe of Him who has all the power. Look up daily and be humbled!

*Some ways to save time cooking in the kitchen:
-Crockpot
-Buy frozen meals a couple nights a week
-Make enough one night for leftovers the next and do this all week. You'll find you save money
this way too

The Hardest Job

For all you stay-at-home mommies--GOD BLESS YOU! What a blessing it is to be able to stay home and raise your children. There is nothing greater. No amount of money. No big house. No new car. No title. Can measure up to that great priviledge and honor. If children are a gift from God (and they are), then obviously that is the job he has given to you. "Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it." Proverbs 22:6 No matter what anybody else adds to their life, YOU are their number one role model. You are the one they can trust. You are the one that loves them like no one else can. Children need security and acceptance. They need to know you love them unconditionally. They need to know that you are always there for them. In good times and bad.

MOTHER IS the hardest job there is! But it has the most rewards! So take care of yourself too. Eat right, find time to get some exercise, spend time in the Word of God to find strength. You will need it! Enjoy the journey of motherhood..............................................................................

*Don't think you have time to read the Bible? Set out an open bible on your kitchen counter and evertime you pass it read a verse. It's like snacking all day!

THE PASSION

GOOD FRIDAY! GOOD NEWS!
"FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE HIS ONE AND ONLY SON, THAT WHOSOEVER BELIEVES ON HIM SHOULD NOT PERISH BUT HAVE ETERNAL LIFE. FOR GOD DID NOT SEND HIS SON INTO THE WORLD TO CONDEMN THE WORLD; BUT THAT THE WORLD THROUGH HIM MIGHT BE SAVED." JOHN 3:16

PERSPECTIVE: Don't judge but love. If we are Christ's ambassador's, we must love people like Jesus did. When Jesus talked to the Samaritan woman at the well he did not condemn her. He just made her aware that she was a sinner. He helped her see. Then He told her about living water.

I will not be blogging or on facebook until Monday. I am taking these next few days to remember who I was, what He did, who I am, and where He wants me to be. Have a blessed Easter and tell someone the Good News this Easter Weekend.

Things That End

Ok. No I'm not ending my blog page. But I am talking about when things end. There is a beginning and there is an end to all things. Change is inevitable. You have heard the saying, "All good things must come to an end." There is some truth to that. A day ends. Friendships end. Careers end. Storms end. Sadness ends. Pain ends. War ends. Life in this body ends. But LIFE does not end. We are eternal. The Bible says "God has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end." I like the analogy of a puzzle. That first piece has no meaning to it in its self. The beginning of a puzzle doesn't look like much. But in the end it is exactly what it is supposed to be. A beautiful picture. God knows our beautiful picture. He knows every piece of the puzzle of our life. He was at the beginning of it and He will be at the end of it. Be content in the beginning of new things and the end of old things. God is in control.



*Get a puzzle and pick a day and time to put it together as a family. We did this at Christmas time. Good times together.

Face Fear

You cannot really run from what you fear. Every fear that we don't conquer will come back and we'll have to make a decision to run away from the things we fear again. It is really a never ending scenario. This weekend I went to Six Flags with my family. Although I had every intention of riding the giant roller coasters, as soon as I was faced with one I chickened out! Well, with a lot of coercing from my husband I made the leap. I sat on that stand up roller coaster and buckled in. All of a sudden my heart was racing, my hands were sweaty, and my body was tingling. I was starting to have an anxiety attack and begged my husband to let me off. He wouldn't!!! I was going to face that fear whether I liked it or not. And boy did I like it! I went on every fast, high, twisty one there was. Every time I approached one I remembered the last one and it got better every time. So it is time to face the fears in our life. They are all different. A roller coaster, a microphone, a job change, a move, a sickness, our future, death. Whatever our fear we can face it with God's help. Psalm 91 is my scripture for fear. It covers all the bases. And know that God loves you and cares for you and holds you in His Hands. Period.

PAMPER THYSELF!!!(you deserve it):)

1. Buy yourself a bouquet of flowers for the table
2. Get an inexpensive manicure or pedicure. They do exist.
3. Bubble bath by candlelight
4. Lock yourself away in your room and makeover yourself
5. Treat yourself to lunch
6. Go to a bookstore, find a corner and a cup of coffee
7. Enjoy a sunny day. Grab a lounge chair and look at the sky.

I do one of these once a week. I can't take care of anyone else if I don't take care of myself!

The Clothespin Game

While at a friend's bridal shower we played a game. It was called "The Clothespin Game." There were clothespins on a line and you had to pick them off with one hand behind your back and see how many you could fit in your hand. So when you couldn't hold anymore one would fall out of your hands. The "moral" of the game was: The more things you try to juggle you are bound to let something fall through the cracks. Cute game, huh? But so true. Some women could get alot more pins in their hands then others. Isn't that true for us? I guess I would rather do a couple things with all my heart than many things half-heartedly. We should all look at our lives and see if that's the case. An awesome woman of God once asked me "If it doesn't matter for time and eternity does it really matter?" When we are busy and stressed we can fly through a day and never really do anything that truly matters. We can't ever get that day back. God is giving us just this day. 24 hours. Let's take a look at our priorities. Let's focus on the things that truly matter.


*You can use clothespins to to seal bags of chips

*Make a list of priorities
My List:
1. Spending time with God
2. Spending time and doing things for my husband and children
3. Taking care of me. (Excercise, "me" time)
4. Church Ministry
5. Friends
6. Work
7. Blogging

How my garden grows!

When we bought our house, one of the reasons we loved it so much was the landscaping. The lady who lived here before us landscaped it so there was something blooming all year long. But as the years passed and life got busier I realized I did not enjoy yardwork as much as I thought I would. Plus I don't seem to have much of a green thumb. My grandmother would actually plant artificial flowers in the dirt. I guess that's my horticulture inheritance. The Bible talks alot about planting and sowing seeds and gardens. This is my favorite promise : "As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth; It will not return empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." Isaiah 55:10-11

Here is a great book to help you (and me) plant some of God's beautiful creation but without too much work. It's called "The Ever-Blooming flower garden" by Lee Schneller

Tip: Keep phyllo dough in the freezer and canned pie filling for a quick dessert.

Tip: Get cheap clay pots and paint them yourself. Use stencils

RUNNING THE RACE

Life can be a race. Hurry, Hurry, Rush, Rush. It comes so easy. Even the most organized person, with one interruption in their day, feels rushed. No one likes that feeling, except if you're in a race. In a race, the feeling of being hurried and rushed can move you more quickly to the finish line. Or it can make you feel defeated and you come in last. Maybe it comes down to our motivation. Do we want to win? Is the race worth it? At the end of the race (or at the end of our day) when you lay your head down are you going to feel defeated? I believe the only way not to is to choose every morning to allow every interruption to motivate you. Maybe you needed that interruption. Maybe that interruption needed you. "The steps of a righteous man are ordered of the Lord". Psalm 37:23





*Tip: You can mop all your floors at one time with Murphy's Oil Soap



*Keep a pretty basket in your kitchen for mail and papers. Go through weekly.

Food and Teenagers

Now that my babies are teenagers they seem more on the go than I am. My son is constantly over at his nearby friends house regularly. They have what they call a "shed" (which must have taken over the former treehouses of my day). It is a place they "hang out". They made it themselves. Ok, what does this have to do with food? Well, if you're like me, I miss him now that he is gone so much with his friends. But I have found that food is the key to bringing them all over here (if you want them that is). So, I've decided to always leave my kitchen open to them. I plan to cook enough food for an army. And if they decide not to eat, well, I freeze it and have food when I don't feel like cooking. So really it's a win, win for me. Here's a few ideas of things to keep on hand for those hungry teens.

1. Hot dogs, hot dogs, hot dogs
2. Most love pasta dishes
3. Homemade (or pillsbury) cookie dough
4. Boxed cakes and mixes
5. Being creative. Things they probably don't get at home very much. Mine went crazy over country fried steak, mashed taters, and green beans. (although it did take some time to make)

LIFE'S INTERRUPTIONS

Don't you hate it when you have a plan and then "something happens" to interrupt it? Unexpected company, sickness, your children's plans, someone "needs" you! Those inconveniences in life can really show you alot about yourself. I was thinking about when the cloud of God's presence was with the Israelites and when it moved they moved with it. I'm sure they were never "ready". They were all probably scrambling around waking up their children and gathering their things. If we just remember that God is with us. That whatever change or interruption comes to you, we have His presence. We have His power. We can do all things through Him who gives us the strength.



WHEN CHANGE COMES:

1. Take a deep breath.

2. Say a little prayer

3. Go, rest, help, do, it all with God's presence




Tip: When you run out of laundry detergent you can use 1/4 cup dishwashing liquid for a large
load.

WELCOME!!!

I am so glad you have visited my blog page. I was inspired to blog by a 15 year old friend of my daughter. I am a wife and mother of two teenagers. I have a very busy cleaning business and am planning to start an at-home transcribing business. I am also blessed to coordinate a girls ministry at my church. God gives the ability and strength and energy to do all these things. I don't believe in being idle (Proverbs 31:27 "She does not eat the bread of idleness"). Living a sedintary life was not why we were created. We all have a purpose. Every day God has something for us to do and lives to bless with His love. So, get ready for some encouragement and some great ideas. "However many years a man may live, let him enjoy them all." Ecclesiastes 11:8