Am I Thankful Enough?

It is nearly 2:30 a.m. I tried going to bed at 11:00 p.m., but only tossed and turned. Tomorrow is a big day (or should I say TODAY is a big day?). It is our Thanksgiving celebration in our new home. We have family and friends who will be coming to enjoy it all with us.

Yet here I sit, not able to sleep. I attribute some of that to forgetting to take my pain medication tonight for my shoulder. It helps immensely in sleep. Fact of the matter is, it knocks me out cold within 2 hours or so of taking it. But I forgot until nearly 11, and once it is that late, I can't take it or I won't be able to wake up in the morning.

Something is nagging at me, but I am not sure what. Money is always an issue as a single parent. I was blessed to get the settlement from workman's compensation (despite the fight it took to get to that point). It will allow us to be on our own. Not without watching every penny, but with Yehovah's grace it will last long enough.

I spent some time today reading the posts of my friends on Facebook. What wonderful people I have in my life! I hope I show them enough how much I truly appreciate them.

My children were a great blessing today, helping me get ready for tomorrow's feast. They cleaned, helped cook, and also helped take care of their 17mos. old nephew. I am so proud of them and hope that I tell them enough.

Enough.....it a word that has a huge impact. If you have too much, you are considered to have "more than enough". If you have just the right amount, you have "just enough". And if you don't have much, you are considered to have "not enough".

But when it comes to Yehovah's love and grace, are you grateful enough? Do you realize that he gave his only son, Yeshua, so that you might have salvation? Could you do that? Give up a child of yours, in order to help all of mankind, with no guarantee that they will appreciate or even accept your gesture? I doubt I could.

But Yehovah could, and did. It was part of His plan. To bring man back to Him. Too often we get caught up in what others will think is enough. I was guilty of this today, in trying to get ready for Thanksgiving. My plans didn't go according to my "to do" list. Rather than stay home and supervise the cleaning and putting things away to make the house look neater, I spent about 2 hours of the day helping my son-in-law get his car fixed (I was his transportation).

Not much got done from my list today. The basics did. But something much more important happened. My son-in-law and I bonded more. He and my daughter both told me how much they appreciated my help.

It wasn't the praise from them that made today enough. It was the fact that I could help someone else. My children. But even if it had been a stranger, I would have gladly done it. Because the boxes of things that make the corner at the end of the hall look cluttered, will still be there on Friday. They aren't going anywhere.

The house is clean, the food is nearly all ready except for the must haves that get cooked tomorrow, my children are happy and excited for family time tomorrow.

Yehovah gives us enough. He provides for our needs. He gives us free will to choose paths in this life, but he is there with His hand on our shoulder the whole time guiding us towards the path he would have us take. Today he guided me towards a broken car, not my mop and broom.

And it is enough. And I am thankful beyond measure for Yehovah's love and grace in my life. It will always be more than enough.

I hope you and your families have a blessed Thanksgiving, and that you have more than enough in Yehovah's embrace.

Our New Home and Our New Pet

We have been very blessed in our new home so far. I am slow but sure getting everything in it's place. It can be both frustrating and exciting to try and figure out how to organize everything so it works for us.

I have, however, decided that I can do only so much with the Thanksgiving holiday coming up. We have my oldest daughter, her husband and my grandbaby coming over that day, as well as my son-in-laws parents. So we will have 10 people for Thanksgiving. Yehovah is so good to me! But, I still have many boxes, while not filled with everyday necessities, still need to be unpacked. So I had the kiddos put them in the storage room for now, and I will get to them once the holidays are over. Lots of pictures to hang, that sort of thing.

I am also very proud to say that we are decluttering as we unpack, taking much to the Salvation Army, and anything that got packed that really is trash is going in the trash. Yeah us! LOL!

I don't have pictures of all the rooms yet, but I thought you might like to see a few of the kid's rooms. So enjoy :)

Tom's room (we still need to find his curtains to hang):

Joe's room (the poles are part of a mast he made to use on Dad's canoe)

Sam's room (she hasn't had as much time as the boys to get her room situated, due to a heavy schedule this past week with Chorus and finishing Driver's Ed, but she is plugging away)

And this weekend we were blessed with a new addition to our home and family...Miss Bella :) She is a very large black lab/newfoundland with a smidge of chow thrown in for good measure. She is an absolute doll, and very well behaved.

I will post more pictures in a few days, as we get the house respectable for Thanksgiving, and I get our workbox system up and running. I need to finish setting it up today sometime, as well as go grocery shopping for the "big meal" later this week.

Be blessed!

Workboxes and Organization

I have read many time over the last year or so about Workboxes, a system created by Sue Patrick for homeschooling organization and accountability. And I have read a few interviews where she balks at using something other than what she recommends in her book (the shelving and plastic containers from Target). But frankly, part of what makes homeschooling GREAT is the fact that you can be inspired by someone, and make it your own. We are individuals.

With that, I have decided to give this system a try. I read the book about 6 months ago, thanks to my local library (don't buy when you can borrow!). I recently put out a request on my Facebook page for organizing tips from my fellow homeschoolers, and they came through amazingly. But I need something that will keep ME accountable. Especially with the recent move, I am lax on school work, because my own "to do" list is so long. And yes, I know we go through seasons in our homeschool....I don't know a homeschool family who doesn't. And I know if we only did schoolwork for 5 months of the entire year, we would still accomplish more than any public school on the planet.

But.....and it is a big But....Yehovah is trying to work in me. He is tapping me on the shoulder to do better, both as mom and as teacher. I need to listen.

So, I will spend the rest of this week setting up our "workbox" system using what I have, expanding file folders in bright colors. I will work through and figure out what I want to put in them for each of the boys for next week. I will get any printables printed out before the weekend is over, so that I am not doing it at the last minute.

I think next week will be the perfect week to test drive this, as it is a short week due to Thanksgiving. And by using the expanding file folders, I will not be spending any money, and if it doesn't work, no loss. Now, if it does work, and I am praying on this very seriously, then I will invest in something more durable such as magazine holders or something along those lines.

Pictures to come on Monday, along with a list of links that have inspired me.

Be blessed :)

Gratitude

This is the time of year that we begin to show our thankfulness for all that we have. I personally try to do this year round, especially giving thanks to Yehovah and Yeshua every single day. I have been so blessed, and I couldn't do it without THEM.

But recently I was awarded two awards by two of my dear online friends, so I thought I should get them posted, and say thank you to these great ladies. (wow, that's a lot of 2's! hehe)

The first is from Laura, at Goose Hill Farm. She gave me this award:


The rules are simple: Post this award with 6 things you probably don't know about me, and then pass along to 6 other friends. So here are my 6 things:

1. I grew up on a mini farm, where for the first 2 years, we had no running water or electricity. We raised all our own animals for food, along with 3 very large gardens each summer. My parents did an amazing job considering they were "city people".

2. I am the only girl in my family. I have two brothers. One older (49) and one younger (40).

3. I am a picky eater. I dislike onions, sweet potatoes and normal veggies like carrots. I do however like "icky" veggies no one else likes: lima beans, brussel sprouts, spinach, etc. My kids dislike most of those, but I cook small portions for myself lol.

4. I am the shortest person in my family. Or I was. My mother has shrunk considerably over the last few years due to spine issues from a car accident 20 years ago. But I have been 5 ft. 3 in. since I was 12. Not a speck more since that time. I will probably in my old age, be closer to 5 ft.

5. I love to bake. Cooking dinner each day is a necessary chore, but I LOVE to bake sweets.

6. All three of my children were overdue when they were born. Sam was 2 weeks overdue and I was induced 6 times before she finally made her appearance. Joe was 3 weeks overdue, and I was induced the day of his birth, because I threatened the doctor (hehe). Tom decided to tease me with labor on and off for 3 weeks, and the last time I went into the hospital with labor, I informed my doctor that I was not leaving until he was born. A week, and many different procedures later to try and induce labor, he was born....2 1/2 weeks late.

Wow, didn't think I could come up with 6 :) I think, rather than trying to choose 6 friends from all the dear people who blog that I love to follow, I will do this: If you are reading this....consider yourself tagged. Add the award to your blog, and list 6 things we don't know about you.


And my second award is from my dear friend, and I sometimes think "kindred spirit", even though we are almost 20 years apart in age, Hannah at Preparing For Our Children's Future. She gave me this award yesterday.

For this one, you are to tell why you love to blog. Hmmmm, this is a bit of a tough one, but I will see what comes to mind.

*I love to "talk", and this is just another form of that
*I am learning more about myself through Yehovah's grace, by blogging.
*I love to share what I learn...whether it be homeschooling, faith based, or anything.
*It gives me an outlet for my passion for writing. I have been writing since I was a little girl.
*It helps me be accountable. I can post something on my blog that I want to accomplish, and I have sweet friends that will check on me, to see how it is going. I need that.

Ok, off to watch some more of Colonial House for history, then get some more unpacking and organizing done for the day. I WILL get those last 2 curtains hung in the livingroom, if it is the ONLY thing I do today lol.

Be blessed!

The Move....

Our move is complete. We couldn't have done it without the support of some fabulous friends (Yvette, Sam's boyfriend and two of his friends). We are in an apartment on the second and third floor, of an old victorian house. I LOVE how much room we have, although until I get all the boxes sorted and unpacked, it is a bit of a maze in some areas.

I have been so blessed by Yehovah! He gave me the means to do this move, and he will give me the means to begin my business. I will be babysitting my grandson and soon-to-be-born granddaughter starting next spring, but I also want to start my own virtual assistant business.

The kids each have their own room. The boys are ecstatic about that since they have shared a room since the day they were born. We also have a nice little room on the third floor for storage. There is no heat or electricity in there, but it will not be "freezing", so should do well for additional food storage too. I am working slowly on building up a pantry of stuff as it goes on sale, or I have a good coupon deal for it. It will take some time, but we will get there. I would love to get a small chest freezer to keep meat in when I find it on sale, but no luck yet.

I will be posting a video walk through later in the week, after I get some more unpacked and make the house more presentable.

Thanks to all my friends for asking where I had been, and the well wishes and prayers for the move. Despite cases of bronchitis the weekend of the move, and the horrid stairs, we made it safe and sound.

Be blessed!

What Is Your Persona?

There is a discussion going on right now at Jacque's blog, concerning transparency in your blog. The comments to Jacque's post have been truly uplifting and inspiring to read, and the scriptural reference has really helped me a lot, to continue to grow in Yehovah's word.

Psalms 25

1 By David: I lift my inner being to you, ADONAI; 2 I trust you, my God. Don't let me be disgraced, don't let my enemies gloat over me. 3 No one waiting for you will be disgraced; disgrace awaits those who break faith for no reason. 4 Make me know your ways, ADONAI, teach me your paths. 5 Guide me in your truth, and teach me; for you are the God who saves me, my hope is in you all day long. 6 Remember your compassion and grace, ADONAI; for these are ages old. 7 Don't remember my youthful sins or transgressions; but remember me according to your grace for the sake of your goodness, ADONAI.

8 ADONAI is good, and he is fair; this is why he teaches sinners the way [to live], 9 leads the humble to do what is right and teaches the humble [to live] his way. 10 All ADONAI's paths are grace and truth to those who keep his covenant and instructions. 11 For the sake of your name, ADONAI, forgive my wickedness, great though it is. 12 Who is the person who fears ADONAI? He will teach him the way to choose. 13 He will remain prosperous, and his descendants will inherit the land. 14 ADONAI relates intimately with those who fear him; he makes them know his covenant.

15 My eyes are always directed toward ADONAI, for he will free my feet from the net. 16 Turn to me, and show me your favor; for I am alone and oppressed. 17 The troubles of my heart are growing and growing; bring me out of my distress. 18 See my affliction and suffering, and take all my sins away. 19 Consider my enemies, how many there are and how cruelly they hate me. 20 Protect me and rescue me; don't let me be disgraced, for I take refuge in you. 21 Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, because my hope is in you. 22 God! Redeem Isra'el from all their troubles!

And Miss Jocelyn talks about this on her blog as well, sharing her pain as she stands true in Yehovah's word and guidance, and loses friends along the way. Most especially hard is the shunning that happens from Christian believers. Not all Christians are like this, but there are many, who pray and attend Sunday service, only to be a totally different person Monday through Friday.

I have found this alot in my own life. Everyone has a different relationship with the people in their lives, whether it is the person you live with (husband, children, mother, father, etc.), or people that you have come to know online. Everyone also has a different relationship with their faith.

It is a struggle each day to know who to trust with your faith, who to share it with, who to protect yourself from. But with Yehovah, I truly believe that all things are possible. He will protect me. I may be shunned by people, but Yehovah will never shun me. He will stand by my side, as will Yeshua, and hold my hand.

I try to be transparent in my blog, and in my life. There are certain things that I do not share in either world, because they are between Yehovah and I. There is no need to share them with the world, because they are not theirs to have. Yet even our Bible tells us that to stand in the truth, even when faced with persecution, is Yehovah's way.

Acts 8:1-4

1 and Sha'ul gave his approval to his murder. Starting with that day, there arose intense persecution against the Messianic Community in Yerushalayim; all but the emissaries were scattered throughout the regions of Y'hudah and Shomron. 2 Some godly men buried Stephen and mourned him deeply. 3 But Sha'ul set out to destroy the Messianic Community - entering house after house, he dragged off both men and women and handed them over to be put in prison. 4 However, those who were scattered announced the Good News of the Word wherever they went.

If Stephen and the other followers of Yeshua could withstand the persection, then why can't we? Have we become too rooted in the World, that what people think of us is more important than what Yehovah and Yeshua tell us is the truth?

Are your personas, in real life and online, truth? Are you being transparent? Or are you hiding who Yehovah wants you to be, in order to conform to the World, and what people think of you?

Be blessed

Changes and a Move!

It has been a roller coaster ride for my children and I the last two years. Starting with my shoulder injury, we have moved, lost our place to live, and lived with family. Through it all, one thing that has stayed forefront for me in the last year or so is that I cannot do anything with Yehovah. I need His love, protection and blessings in order to be the mother that He wants me to be, the daughter He wants me to be, and the person He wants me to be.

This weekend we will be moving again. Yehovah is AMAZING, and has so blessed us! We have found a fabulous apartment to rent, that will again give us a home of our own. It was truly blessed by Yehovah, as it almost didn't happen due to various things. But the entire time I was wanting this apartment, I gave it all to HIM! And I am so glad that I did!!

He has also blessed me with great friends and family who have willingly volunteered to help us move. One down side of the apartment is that it is on the second and third floor. It will be hard moving everything up the stairs, but a blessing down the road for my weight loss goals. I can do several laps on the stairs when the weather is too cold to be outside.

And because the apartment is so large (it is the top two floors of an old Victorian house), I am going to have plenty of storage space, including a room on the third floor to use for stocking up on food supplies. The room has no electricity and no heat, so it will stay nice and cool. I am thinking of ways to keep it cool in the summer, but we will cross that bridge when we come to it ( a portable ac unit maybe?).

Here are some links to share, that I have found or were shared by friends, with information on food storage. I hope they bless you as much as they have blessed me.

National Center for Home Food Preservation - they provide information on everything from canning, freezing, drying, etc. Great guidelines.

Deals to Meals - this is her recipe blog. She also shares on her other site about building up your stockpile of food to get through tough times, or in case of an emergency (we have ice storms in the winter that have caused no power for weeks).

Still Tasty - This site provides the Ultimate Shelf life info on most any food you have.

Molly over at Econobusters has this blog post, of breakfast items that are simple to make and freeze. My boys won't eat them but my daughter will.

A recipe for homemade Pop Tarts. My boys love these for breakfast.

And another for homemade Hot Pockets...another favorite of my daughter and I.

And a blessing yesterday....I don't have a picture unfortunately, as everything is still in bags, ready for this weekend's move....but we went to a local discount store here called Ocean State Job Lots yesterday, and I was able to purchase:

6 containers of baking powder for $1 each
6 bottles of Vanilla extract for $1 each
6 containers of corn starch for $1 each
3 bottles of Dawn dish soap for $2 each (large bottles!)
1 large bottle of Arm & Hammer laundry soap for $2 (this is the only brand we can use due to eczema)

So I am off to a good start, and Yehovah is so good to us! He showed me these deals, he guided it, and it will save us so much money!

Be blessed :)

Faith Is An Exciting Adventure

I am new to my faith. As I have posted about before, I dabbled in my belief in G-d and Yeshua, but didn't take it seriously. That changed about a year ago. I have learned in that year that coming to faith in G-d, and all that embodies, is a constant learning process, and an adventure.

There are times when I can find the answers I am seeking easily in scripture, and other times that I struggle to hear G-d. I am sure that it is because I do not have my heart fully open to HIM.

But in this adventure, I have been introduced to something I had never heard of. Messianic Judaism. What is Messianic Judaism?

From the Family Bible website:

"Messianic Judaism is actually 2,000 years old, dating back to the time of Messiah Yeshua. Yeshua was born into a Jewish home. He was raised in a Jewish family. His parents were Jewish, His brothers and sisters were Jewish. All His uncles, aunts, and cousins were Jewish. He grew up to become a Jewish rabbi who taught Jewish people in a Jewish land—Israel—about the G-d of Avraham, Yitzchak, and Ya`akov (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: the Jewish patriarchs). Yeshua’s Shliachim (Apostles or Emissaries) were all Jewish. The writers of the B'rit Chadasha (Renewed Covenant Scriptures or so-called “New Testament”) were all Jewish, and for a long time (nearly 300 years) “The Faith” was almost exclusively Jewish. There were tens, or perhaps hundreds, of thousands of Jewish people who believed that Yeshua was the Messiah in the first century following His resurrection (see Acts 2:37-42, 4:4, 21:20), and every single one of them died still a Jew."

I learned of Messianic Judaism from my online friend Jacque. I had never heard of it before, and wanting to grow in my faith, along with being a major history fanatic, I want to know more.

The faith I grew up in, modern Christianity, is actually a product of Constantine. He became a convert to Christianity when he was in a war with his brother in law. It is said that he had a vision after praying to G-d for divine providence. While he claimed to believe in Yeshua, he did not get rid of his pagan roots. He is the one who declared the cross a symbol of Christianity. He is the one who dictated what modern Christianity would look like, through the gathering of bishops at the Nicaea Council. These bishops, under the direction of Constantine, decided what would be the beliefs and basis for the Christian faith.

Christianity has undergone many transformations over the centuries. From government involvement, from gross distortion of G-d's word through various church denominations, we have modern Christianity.

I knew all the history behind Constantine. I had learned about it years ago while teaching my children in our homeschool. Why I never made the actual connection to the distortion of what G-d's word actually says, I may never know. What I do know is this:

-Yeshua was a Jew. The pharises were Jews. I know that Yeshua is my Messiah and savior.
-The first followers of Yeshua were Jews. They continued to practice their Judaism, while knowing that Yeshua was their savior.
-Christianity was born of Judaism.
-Somewhere along the way, the practices of Judaism got perverted into the modern Christianity that we have today. Christmas is a product of Constantine, and his need to control and blend paganism with following Christ.
-The more I learn about G-d and Yeshua, the more I want to know. HE is leading me to his word each and every time I have a question. I do not always understand, but that is HIS way. He will reveal the answers to me when HE feels I am ready to know.

My head is swimming with questions, needs and desires to be closer to G-d and Yeshua. It is like a fire in my belly that can't be quenched. There is so much information out there, that I feel like I need to make a plan to study, and learn. Above all, I must turn to his word first. It is the one truth that can be trusted. People are human, and imperfect. It is easy to misunderstand the word of G-d, or as has been done for centuries, distort it to suit your own beliefs. So while I will find many resources to learn more about my faith, both online and off, ultimately the one source that can be trusted above all is G-d's word. I highly recommend this blog post by Jacque. It was laid on her heart to share this, and it is HIS word, put your faith in nothing but the Word. While you are there, sign up to study along with the Dixon family. Also make sure to check Jacque's sidebar, she has some amazing resources listed.

This is an exciting adventure! I cannot wait to see what G-d has in store for me as I follow his narrow path, that he has shown me. I am blessed by HIM beyond measure. He brings people into my life to show me what is true, what is pure, and what is right.

Be blessed!

Wordless Wednesday

You can't know where you are going, until you know where you come from.
Gordon and Jessie Nichols (my grandparents) who are dancing with Yeshua

Music Monday

My friend Hannah joins in on a fun activity each Monday in blog world...Music Monday. I have decided to give it a go, and see how I do.



This song brings memories for me, because my middle child, J14 is a major fan of Beethoven. He watches videos on YouTube of people playing this composers music on the piano or keyboard, and he learns by watching. He nearly has this piece memorized.

When he was first learning to play the keyboard, around the age of 5, I had bought a simple little battery operated keyboard from the toy department at Walmart. He loved it! He spent hours trying out the keys, and coming up with his own little "compositions".

Then we took the plunge...I bought a much larger, more "adult" keyboard at our local music shop, second hand. It cost me $50. I then went to the book store and bought a book on keyboarding. That was all there was....the rest is history.

J14, used that book to get the basics of playing down, but 99% of what he has learned, he learned by listening and watching. He is an ear musician...he can hear a piece a few times and he has it pretty much memorized. He cannot read music. Although that is next on his list, because he wants to write some of his own compositions down now.

I love hearing music that my son plays. God truly gave him a gift.

Be blessed!