Homeschool Hump Day Encouragement

Great homeschooling days begin with daily devotions and regular Bible study time. Even if you accomplish nothing else for the day in the textbooks, workbooks or other curriculum, you can always start your school day with the Word. It is good medicine for the soul and brings knowledge and understanding of things beyond this world.

So, Mom, if you have younger kids and are looking for a great book for Bible studies check out Kelly Pulley's book "Treasury of Bible Stories: Rhythmical Rhymes of Biblical Times." In his book, Pulley brings to life the most told stories from Scripture to entertaining poems for children. Kelly Pulley is the author of The Beginner's Bible, Noah, Good News of Great Joy, and a number of I Can Read books!
This is just one example of a great book for the basis of your homeschool Bible program! You can read more about the book at Amazon.com!!

Blessings!!

TIP TUESDAY: Fall Decorating

Patti and Tawsha passed along this guest blog post from Lauren! In today's tip, she gives us 4 ways to bring nature indoors for fall decorating!

Photo credit by grongar on flickr

1. Make a table centerpiece

2. Make a wreath

3. Create fall artwork

4. Create a fall bunting 

          --Get a long piece of string and carefully attach leaves to the string at intervals, by either threading the leaves through or stapling them to the string. If you’re using bunting bought from a store, then attach leaves to the triangular shapes on either side, by using glue or staples. Hang up, and enjoy!

Read more at Organized Chaos Online!!


Blessings!

Tip Tuesday: Last Big Summer Cookout

Patti from Organized Chaos Online shares tips for making foil meals to be cooked over the grill or in the oven and since this weekend is Labor Day, what better way is there to end the summer?!

"You basically just rip off a piece of heavy duty foil, dump your ingredients in the middle of it and package it up. You can cook them in the oven or throw them on a grill. With little prep, minimal tending, and zero clean up, everybody’s got a customized meal that can be dumped on a paper plate and eaten with plastic silverware."

For more ideas on foil meals, visit: Organized Chaos Online!

Enjoy!!

How Did I Get Here?

Realizing When You've Strayed Off God's Path

I closed my eyes as our pastor began to prompt us to repent for getting off track, off the path and plan God had for each of us. Oh, my gosh! I have strayed off that path! But when did that happen and why didn't I realize it sooner?!
It's true. I know that my calling is to influence woman and encourage, empower and edify them as wives, mothers and homeschoolers. I thought I had done pretty well by keeping up with my daily blog posts. But the reality is (as many of you already know!), I wasn't doing as well as I thought or as I tried to pretend to be. I have gotten behind over the past several months because my focus shifted to something else.
I made a crockpot of homemade vegetable soup the other day. But soon, events of the day took us away from home and the soup sat, simmering on low for the rest of the evening. The next morning I awoke and knew I needed to put the soup in the freezer for another night. But again, the events of that day became hurried and the soup was left yet another day in the crockpot, now set to warm. By the afternoon of the third day, it had turned rancid from neglect and I had to dump it out. A wonderful meal wasted by my own neglect. And that is what happens with our lives sometimes.

Satan likes to take those moments when we are so busy, so overwhelmed to blind us to what is really going on. He tells us lies that make it seem okay to continue even though each time we give more face time to that other thing, we're really pulling ourselves from the one thing God wants us to be doing.
It's alright to stop and re-evaluate where you're at!

• Are you still on the right path? 
• Has something else taken more of your attention, something not part of God's plan for your life right now? 
• Have you stirred and paid more attention to one pot while another sits and sits and gets stale and rancid?

Take the opportunity right now to repent and ask God to forgive you for neglecting the call on your life. As moms and wives, our calling might be to school our children and take care of the home. It's not too late to set yourself back on the path God planned for you in the first place. Get back today!

Blessings!

Tip Tuesday: Controlling the Chaos

Tawsha and Patti over at Organized Chaos Online have come up with 5 steps to help you get control of the chaos in your home!

1. Make a list
2. Organize a small space
3. Write a schedule
4. Complete a chore
5. Spruce up your home

(C) Organized Chaos Online

For more on getting control of your chaos, visit: Organized Chaos Online!!

Blessings!

Defeat is NOT An Option

I really enjoy writing. I've written three books, one that has been published, and plan to write more. I am an independently published author which simply means that I publish my own books. I know I was created to write. It's what is in me to do! A talent that I know is a gift of God and I will write even if I never catch the eye of an agent or publisher. Defeat, not succeeding, failure is not an option.
What is your heart to do? Maybe it's writing. Maybe it's creating a group for young mothers. Maybe it's a mentoring organization for youth. What's stopping you from achieving that goal? Are you listening to the lies Satan is spewing at you? The lies that say, "Who are YOU to think you could do this?" "That idea won't get off the ground. Why are you even bothering?" "No one in your family ever amounted to a hill of beans and you won't either!"
Are you going to continue listening to those things and let them bring you down and take the focus off your goals? NO! So fight back...with the Word of God. What does God say about your idea or goal?

I'm not going to show you the Scripture references for these, but I want you to look them up! You find them, say them, get them in your spirit and don't let Satan into your life to lie to you anymore!

Blessings!

Friday 'Fess Up

My 'Fess up begins with an apology. I MISSED Friday 'Fess Up last week! I'm sorry, but it happens occasionally that I get overwhelmed with our busyness and simply get too tired to write posts.
But today, TODAY I remembered!
My 'Fess Up doesn't end with confessing that life gets in the way. I must confess that I often get fed up with the attitudes of others, especially when they increase stress in my life and add to the chaotic busyness that consumes my days and weeks.
But rather than fighting them or getting an attitude myself, I pray for those who persecute me. That's difficult to make time to do. I wrestle with my flesh-man and want to spout out snarky words. But in my spirit, God speaks to me about what the right thing to do really is:

Blessings!