If I Only Knew....

I have been known to say....Coulda, woulda shoulda! I realize this is not proper English but it gets the point across. I stop and think about something in the past and how I should have done it different or a decision I could have made differently. I sometimes have thought what if I could have done this or that. Truth is we cant change the past!

If I had only known what a blessing homeschooling is, I would have started with my first born right off the bat. But I cant dwell on that. I must embrace the time I have with them now. The years that the Lord is willing to give me. My prayer everyday is that I am a better mom today then I was yesterday, and that He allows me to see all the blessings He has given me, and that He continues to  give me His grace & mercy to be able to teach & love on my kiddos!

If only I knew that hubby & I really would want more than 4 kids, we would not have made the decision to handle things in our own way & not fully rely on God. Instead I have to thank Him for the wonderful 4 I have & pray about what God has in store for us as parents, and what He wants for our children.

I really wish I had known that the way I was raised to eat, was not the best. Don't get me wrong...my mom did a great job of feeding us well rounded meals and not a lot of junk. But maybe they were a bit too rounded. And the pairing of foods was actually not the best for me. BUT, I have now learned and am thankful for the ladies who have opened my eyes & are teaching me now. I am down 9 pounds, almost 2 dress sizes and still going. (see previous post re: THM)

So the big one...while we are planning our Evan's Birthday party (he will be 8 ,end of the month) I think back thru the years past with all of my kiddos. Birthdays always do that to me, and I think: Have I done everything the way I shoulda, maybe I coulda been a little calmer at times, what if I woulda taken that extra minute and played a little longer? I cant get this past year back...what if?

What I do know is this...I have prayed for my kiddos without ceasing! My husband and my kids are the first ones on my prayer list. I cover them with prayers of peace, protection, mercy, guidance, joy, humbleness, self control etc. Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18  Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.(the Message) 
So for me I really need to just let God have all my coulda, woulda, shouldas, and be Thankful no matter what, and KNOW that God knows the plans He has for us and despite my past, HE is in control! 
God Bless!

Trim Healthy Mama

 

Yesterday I made mention of a new book I have been reading. That book is called "Trim Healthy Mama" written by Serene Allison & Pearl Barrett. (Apologies if I mispronounced them in the video). I decided to do a video post about it so that I could just freely tell you about it & show it to you. Please overlook the sheets, had to film in my bedroom where it was quite. I also want to thank my son Ethan who did the video work for me.

till next time, God Bless!

Well our school year is almost up. It is getting harder to stay focused when the weather is starting to warm up. The little two would live outside if I would let them. Of course they come in absolutely filthy every night. No big deal that's why we have bathtubs!

We have been pretty busy here, not just with school but with life. I am planning on making a video to show everyone what has been happening here. So hopefully that will be soon.
We all helped build the hoop-house. That was fun! My boys have been working hard building the fence around the garden. With hubby's help they are using found tree limbs in the woods as posts. We did buy the actual fencing material but it has been a great experience. We have been working the land & my boys are getting really good at digging. The boys have such a great example to follow. God has blessed our family with are hard working man to lead our family. Mr Evan, age 7; stays right by his daddy's side working his little booty off!  Ethan 14, is really turning into a wonderful young man. He is full of grand ideas & big plans. We pray that God uses him in a mighty way!

The girls have been a huge help with getting all the plants started. We have also learned how to pay closer attention to weather patterns & temperatures! Never thought I would have to do that.

My oldest daughter Ellyssa is 12. She loves to help me in the kitchen & is obsessed with baking. she even took on the task of baking & decorating her little sister Eleah's birthday cake.

Her & I also figured out how to make homemade whipped cream...we are never going back to store bought! Ellyssa is really starting to bloom in the area of homemaker. It is such a blessing to see how the Lord is opening her eyes & heart to the blessings of it all. And Miss Eleah is following right behind. She blessed me the other day by telling me "momma, I love my life"! She is very sure to let everyone know that she is going to be a mommy someday & have a big garden, & she will take care of her family because that is what a mommy does!


I have started on a journey with the help of Trim Healthy Moma. A great book that explains how to eat right, get fit & be a healthy moma. I am a week in and am down 5 lbs so far. I will be writing a post on the book next. So stay tuned!

Well I pray all is well for you & your family. And that you will have a wonderful day!

What are you going to do?

Its been awhile since I have even looked at this blog. Why? Life! I have been preparing for Spring, homeschooling the kiddos, painting the inside of the house, cleaning, helping build the hoophouse, taking care of sick kids, finding a church, going to co-op.....we all have lists like this. Some include more, some less, but we all have things that we need to do. And if we even begin to think of adding "more" to our to-do list we cringe. Stop with me for a minute and think about what it is you really do in a day. I know I waste a lot of time. There are days, being honest, that I really only do the basics. This is the real me, laying it all out. Days that the kids are fed, schooled & clothed and the rest of the day is wasted. Of course this is not frequently but it does happen. And if you are being honest with yourself, you have those days too.

This is life in my home.

What about outside of my home? What about doing things for His Kingdom? Can we be honest with ourselves and really consider what we are doing to make His glory known.

 What are we doing to advance the Kingdom of God. 

I am pretty sure that when we really look at out lives....we are wasting time in this area as well. Notice I used the word "we"!

 I am; in no way doing everything I can.

Recently my husband Eric showed me some numbers. They were the attendance numbers for some churches in a specific denomination. The numbers were amazing. Huge numbers and many of them were from multiple churches in the same state. That is a ton of "Christians" and that is 1 denomination. I cant even begin to imagine what this world would look like if we as Christians were doing ALL we could to make sure everyone is reached with the Gospel & ministered to in the manner in which we are called to. I am not including scriptures in this post. There is an entire Bible, feel free to look some up. We all know they are there. He, God tells us everything we need to know in the scriptures. He tells us what we can do, how to live our lives, what is acceptable for us.

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO?

I put up a new button on the side of this blog... AMAZIMA. Its a wonderful story of a young girl, who at 18 decided to do all she could. I look at her; not putting her on a pedestal, but as an example, realizing that how much she has done in the last few years is so huge. If she can do what she is doing in an entirely different country...what can I do here. What can we do?

 

The Greatest Good!

My kiddos love the movie "The Incredibles". A cute movie about a family of superheros in hiding. One of my favorite parts of the movie is when the character Frozone is asking his wife where his super suit is, because the city is under attack and he is going to help. She begins to respond to his questions with attitude and basically is not going to tell him because they have dinner plans. He then tells her that "it is for the greater good of man kind" which then she replies "I am your wife! I am the greatest good you are ever gonna get!"
Of course there are many things I can talk about in regards to that segment but I want to focus on the greatest good part!
I found the picture above at a web page for a mosaic heart. I know nothing about that page but I love the scripture.
Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
We were created by him for GOOD WORKS. God has prepared us as wives and mothers to be the greatest good for our family. In the book Excellent Wife author Martha Peace writes "the works that God has prepared for you to do include not only what you do in your relationship with your husband, but also your heart's motives or attitude." Her point is that we need to focus on what we as a wife are suppose to be doing and not what are husbands are suppose to be doing". You see we need to be focusing on being "the greatest good" aside from Christ, that our families get! God has equipped us to do good works. The scripture says that He prepared beforehand. Before we said "I DO" he was preparing us to be the wives He requires of us. We need to make sure that; without boasting, we are walking in those works. And I say "without boasting" because it is not something we need to do to  prove we are the greatest good. its not something we need to say to our husbands as in the movie. But it is something we want our husbands to feel & know. As Martha says, Its all about your heart's motives & desires.I desire to be the best wife & mother. With God's help and knowing that he has prepared us, we can do good works for our families!
God Bless

Jesus Loves Me!

Eleah is our amazing, full of energy 5 year old. I love watching this dramatic little Diva sing! She loves to take any one's guitar (no matter how big) and play and sing at the top of her lungs. She has a natural ability to put on a show. She even makes up her own songs, most of which make absolutely no sense. However; she sings them with all she has! Well the other day after sitting through one of her "shows", I made a request. "Could you please sing JESUS LOVES ME?" Sure, sure she said. As she began to sing I realized she did not know the song! She could sing parts of it but kept looking at me for help. Funny thing is, we taught her the song very early on. Its not a difficult song, my other 3 kids can sing it. I guess we just haven't been singing it enough!
The girl can sing any of the worship songs that we sing in church or any of the songs from our Christian stations; but she cant sing that amazing little song that speaks the truth about our God! A song that tells us about why Jesus came to this earth.

 "Jesus loves me He who died, Heavens gates to open wide. He will wash away my sins. Let His little child come in"

Some may think that this is not a big deal, its just a little song; but, when you consider the scheme of eternity I would have to differ. Yes it is a child's song but the message it offers speaks truth. The truth is that

 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that WHOSOEVER believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life" John 3:16

And the other thing is this...Yes Jesus Loves me & you & the world so much that he WILLINGLY gave his life! He only asks that you come to Him, confess & repent of your sins. Then accept Him as your Lord and Savior! That's a big deal. Someone willing to give completely of himself for someone else. Could you do that?

So....guess what song Miss Eleah now knows? You got it. "JESUS LOVES ME"

I wanted to share with you a great newer version of the song. Same words & same message, just a bit upbeat and great for the kids to learn. Please Enjoy!

 





Advent Bible Study!

The women at Good Morning Girls blog are hosting a Bible study called

 "Keeping our Hearts focused on Jesus"

I am so excited to take part in this study. With the hustle & bustle of the season we tend to loose focus. We know that "Jesus is the reason for the Season" but do we take the time to really incorporate HIM into our festivities. I am looking forward to the weekly devotions & the family activities! They also are including a free ebook to go along with the study! 

Take the time to hop on over to the blog and check it out for yourself.

http://www.goodmorninggirls.org/2012/11/our-advent-ebook-has-arrived-free-for-all-subscribers/ 

Lets be sure to not loose focus this year!