Licking the Shower Door

Last night I had the girls in the shower with me to conserve both my time and energy! Landri started licking the shower door as if it was the biggest lollipop she'd ever seen! Paige just squealed in horror! It was totally detestable to Paige that Landri would do such a thing- oh my!. The more Paige squealed the more Landri licked. Landri would look at Paige and lick the shower in sheer delight. Although, it was disgusting to me as well it was too funny. They are sisters to the core! Have a great day!

Electric Can Openers

"screech...screech..what is going on with the can opener?" "Gosh, can it not work when I need it to?" I readjusted the can and tried again. This time it responded with a quiet notification that it had reached the end of its road. I had a flashback of my mom's old-old electric can opener that is yellow and brown AND still works!

After opening several cans using the manual method it occurred to me that the can openers in my kitchen were wedding gifts - about 8 1/2 years old. What? How can that be?

Could our marriages be like the can openers? Getting a little rusty, motors running out of power? Is it a priority to keep them in good working order? Do we take advantage of our spouse - always thinking that they will "run" they way they did when our marriage was brand new?

So many of our couple friends are approaching their 10-year anniversaries this year. Yeah! It is a testimony to me that marriage does still work today! Just as my electric can-opener bit the dust this morning forcing us into manual mode it reminded me that my marriage with Coley isn't instant joy, bliss and oneness - it is instead more like the manual mode. It takes commitment, trust, prayer, time together and priority in my life. It also takes God - he is the only one that has sustained us!

"Give honor to marriage and remain faithful to one another in marriage." Hebrews 13:4a

Have you seen Fireproof? I haven't but am looking forward to watching it! Happy Thursday!

Baking/Food Prep Day

In my efforts to save us some $$ on groceries I have been re-thinking how I prepare our meals. It is possible to do this and still have healthy, efficient and yummy meals. Since Coley and I got married we have had a "NO HAMBURGER HELPER" rule in our house. How un-American is that? Its disgusting- also we don't eat Spam.:) Anyway - You get my point. So here's a few things that I've done this week to prepare meals for us that are healthy, inexpensive and go-far.
- Designate one afternoon to have a "BAKE/Food Prep" Day. I cut up all of our veggies to take with us when we are on the run like carrots, celery, etc. You can also dice onions, etc. and freeze them.

- Make your own spaghetti and pizza sauce. I bought big cans of tomato sauce and diced tomatoes and added our favorite spices, some brown sugar and let it simmer. So easy and fresh! Plus it doesn't have all of the chemicals and corn syrup in it. Ton of it is going in the freezer.

-Granola - so easy to do! Just make sure that you buy the big containers of Old-Fashioned Oats as the quick-cooking will not work. Use your favorite nuts, dried fruits, etc. Let me know if you need a recipe and I will email it to you. It takes 30 minutes to bake.

- Bread - too easy! They make it sound so hard. I found a super-easy recipe for it using my food processor. You just dump in the ingredients, let it do the work, let it rise and then bake. I also made Foccacia bread. It was more work but tasted great with our tomato basil soup.

-Muffins, Breakfast Breads, Waffles - Make these and freeze them. Then whenever you need a quick breakfast put a waffle in the toaster. Also you can individually wrap the bread slices and muffins and lay them out on the counter the night before. Heat for 10 to 15 seconds in the microwave. (Thanks to Ellie Krieger of Food Network for this tip).

-Put on some good music, warm fuzzy socks and enjoy your time in the kitchen! You are going to be in there anyway(eventually) preparing food for your hungry family.

Frugal Momma!

Is anyone trying to save money? I have become the "frugal mommy" around here. My family is loving it- I think??
Here's a few things that I am trying out and come across:
*www.grocerygame.com - basically they do all the ad shopping and coupon clipping for you for only 1.25 per week. Its great! Once I get the hang of it I will probably do it on my own. They build a grocery list based on the store of your preference and they tell you how much you will save and which coupons to use. So you make your weekly menu off of the list of sale items at the grocery store. Check it out!
*Coupon clipping - Sunday paper - it has tons of them, plus you can print them out online from couponsurfer.com
*Baking my own bread - You read it right! I am going to bake my own bread - huge savings and it is so much better. It was totally enjoyable as well and didn't take long to do. YOU CAN DO IT!
*Only buy milk, cheese, eggs, butter at Sam's or Costco. They are really that much cheaper on these items- however beware they are usually much higher on other stuff. Always check prices first before going to make sure... www.samsclub.com (Got this tip off of Grocery Game)
*Buy whole foods - fruits, veges, meats, cheeses, etc. Don't buy much out of a box -it has lots of extra stuff in it and its usually not as healthy and much more expensive. I make my own granola - such a treat and inexpensive.
*Check out this blog - www.moneysavingmommy.com

I would love to hear your frugal tips!

Planted Where God Has Us

Hola fam and friends!

Its about 11:43 p.m. and this seems to be the time of day when my brain gets to rolling and I have enough quiet time to sit down and write. That is odd isn't it? Currently, all of the fam is tucked safely into bed snoozing and I am up thinking through the week ahead, today's events and some things that God is showing Coley and I.
God is absolutely amazing! I don't think that I will ever truely grasp his holiness completely or why he would allow us in this moment to be apart of something so much bigger than we can see. We have been involved in a church plant over the past 8 months and I still can't believe how God began putting the pieces of the "puzzle" together for us to serve in this body way before he created us. Most amazingly, is seeing the journey God has brought Coley and I through our marriage to this point - people, experiences, children, and I could go on and on. I'm trying to put into words - but really I am in awe of Him. Its amazing!

I'm so in love with Coley and how God is shaping him in so many ways to continue to lead our family spiritually in ways we never imagined! God is leading in Him in so many neat ways and changing Him and our family. Its been so neat to stand beside him and see God work in our lives over the past few months. Its been 8 1/2 years of marriage and although it hasn't all been good times, God's grace has been sufficient through it all. Yeah God!

So what's new?
Well - I am serving as the children's ministry director which has been stretching but great for me as I have had to put my all in Christ to lead and direct me. I didn't have control anyway! ;) He's proven faithful...the answered prayers are abundant, children are being spoken the truth of Jesus Christ and my fellow servants are awe-inspiring and so encouraging to me.

We have a weekly group of 8 to 10 families meeting in our home each Thursday night and they are like our family. God is so good to surround us with these folks as we seek to know him more and build community. Our group is growing so much that we will be forming a new group soon! Yeah God!

The girls are growing so fast. I've been feeling a little sad about Paige's 5th birthday approaching. She is becoming so big and has such a tender heart. She is our cautious child, very sensitive and loving, but also tends to worry and be anxious. She is merciful and wants all to be accepted - I notice her changing and growing all the time. Landri, however, is "miss adventure" and a tad-bit strong willed. :) She called me a "stupid monkey" the other day and I washed her mouth out with soap which didn't phase her a bit. They are about as opposite as they can get. However, they love each other and play well most of the time. They have become a lot closer and I would defintely call them friends!

We are all well! Yeah!!! I didn't post about this - but Landri did have an interesting experience with eating hand-sanitizing gel. We made it through okay after a short period of gel-induced drunkenness. Great way to start off the new year! ;)

Genuine Worship!

Worship? Do I truely worship God or is it more about me? How do I worship? Is it a continuous action or only on Sunday mornings?

Made in China

The girls curiously asked me what the writing said on the bottom of their new ponies they received for Christmas. I read it aloud "Made in China". They laughed and Landri said that was a funny name for her new pony.

Then yesterday afternoon I heard Paige calling to Landri, using her new name "Made in China", across the living room. Too funny. :)

However, it reminded me that sometimes my life looks like I have been "Made in China", a cheap cast of who I really am - instead of resembling the person created by the God of the universe.

Ever feel like you are standing in the middle of chaos being consumed by the world on every side? My prayer is that I would not be eaten up by the things of this world that daily fight for my integrity, hope, peace, and rest. Rather, my focus would be on the maker of my soul reflecting to to my little section of the world "Made by God".