Home Improvement...Write It Down

So many women say they 'can't write', but actually all women write to some extent. Shopping lists, thank you cards, recording memories in albums or taking notes in church.

This year in Homemakers we are going to focus on our written words as well as our spoken words because I think it makes us think more succinctly when we put our thoughts on paper. If we measure our words when writing, we may measure our words when speaking.

A wise woman measures her words.

Wm Faulkner said, "I never know what I think about something until I read what I've written."

We discover ourselves in our writing.

This weekend for Home Improvement, discover alittle bit more about yourself.

As soon as you have an important thought, write it down. Even if it is on the back of a receipt, write it down. Later transfer that thought into a journal, your Bible or send it in a note. Share it on this blog or tell your husband.

You may find you don't have any thoughts that are worthy of writing down! No worries. If that is the case, spend a few minutes Sunday afternoon and send a thankyou note to someone. Just thank them for being in your life. It will be the start of expressing yourself in a very meaningful way and you will be blessing someone with your written words.

Home Improvement...Check your Priorities

Just this morning, I had to reorganize my priorities when my husband asked me if I would go golfing. His buddy canceled on him. He had the tee time and he was looking forward to a good round.

I was looking forward to a morning to myself.

But my husband had asked me to go golfing.

I have learned to have the word 'sure' on my lips for times like this. I have learned that I will enjoy myself once I am out on the course. I have learned that Dean and I need to capture time together like this...so I have learned to say 'sure'.

I know it sounds selfish that I wouldn't jump at the chance to go golfing with my husband, but last minute invitations usually mean that I have to say 'no' to alot of other plans. That is hard for me to do.

Re-organizing my priorities is a very common exercise for me. Interruptions seem to be an everyday occurrence.

Learning to be flexible and re-organize my priorities has made me good.

Today I was flexible but today my interruption was a game of golf with my husband. Other days my interruptions might not be so fun. If I hesitate to drop everything when my husband asks me to go golfing, you know I have had to work on being flexible for the not-so-fun interruptions.

It's not only moms with small children that need to be flexible and mindful of their priorities.

Any woman who wants to be good...to be better, must work on flexibility and her ability to re-adjust her priorities as needed.

Home Improvement...Choose Wisely

I read an article in the paper this week about 2 sisters in a dispute over a lottery ticket. One sister won $500,000. Years before the 2 sisters had typed up a 4-line agreement which said that they would share in any future winnings from lottery, cards, or bingo. They actually had the agreement notarized.

They used to gamble together frequently, play the same numbers and play the slots. They used to share everything.

Along the way, the two had a disagreement. They haven't spoken to each other since 2004.

The sister who didn't win the $500,000 had her attorney contact the winning sister and demanded half of the money.

The article said the suing sister didn't want to drag her sister into court but she believes she is due a share of the money. "I miss her so much, and I love her...but all I want is what is rightfully mine. All I want is my share, nothing more."

As I read this article, I thought of what I posted earlier in the week...the exercise of listing what we have in our lives that we truly LOVE. I was referring to 'stuff' but this article was a sad reminder that often we can love 'stuff' or 'money to buy stuff' more than we love the people in our lives if we aren't careful with our choices.

For Home Improvement this week, just review the exercises from this week's postings. Realize that to become a wise woman we must be wise in our choices as well as in our actions.

If wisdom comes with age, these 2 sisters should be quite wise...the younger sister that is suing is 83...her older sister is 87.

This article is a great example that growing older sure happens alot easier than growing wiser!

Home Improvement...Learn to be Present

The Bible gives good instruction on how to be present in the moment. How to really live for today:

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

It's simple truth: There is a time for everything...Everything changes

When I realized that my young son would be chattering in my ear for just a few short years, I embraced that time and began to listen. I began to be present in the moment.

For home improvement this weekend, ponder this truth...everything changes; live in the moment this weekend and learn.

Home Improvement...Leaving a Legacy

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

Reflect on the legacy of faith that our founding fathers built this country on.

Share with someone this weekend, one freedom that you are most grateful for that you have because you live in America.

Thank God for that freedom.

Home Improvement...Summer Entertaining

In spite of the overwhelming response to my question, "What does Kate Spade think is the greatest gift you can give your guests when entertaining?"...no one got the right answer:) At least you didn't post it!

"Being gracious when you entertain is perhaps the greatest gift you can give to your guests," she says. "It signals acceptance and patience and a go-with-the-flow style that can accommodate spills...it is also about being generous." She admires hostesses who make her feel welcomed and relaxed in their homes.

"Making your guests feel at home is truly an art and it's one worth cultivating."

These tips are from Kate Spade's book, Occasions. A fun summer read.

"Entertaining begins with a dream--then quickly gets overtaken by reality, like the size of your living room!"

Here's a fun idea to consider; "Buy a white tablecloth. Have it emboidered with the names of your favorite foods or travel destinations."

Here's her suggestion for a Fourth of July party, "On the fourth, Andy and I always make sure we see a parade...the other thing we usually do is host an outdoor summer party. Rather than using basic hardware store coolers for all the beverages, last year Andy bought large blue and red tin tubs at Target. A friend who was staying with us for the weekend made a star stencil and painted a random pattern all over the outside of the tubs using white paint. We filled them with ice and used them to keep everything cold at our picnic."

Use this weekend to bring some beauty and fun into your home. Gear up for a 4th of July celebration or be ready to host an 'un-occasion' some time soon. PLAN to be a gracious hostess even if it is a simple picnic with your kids. HAVE FUN

Home Improvement...Contentment!

Did you dare answer the question of the week, "Are you content?" If you did, did you find abit of discontentment lurking?

This week was really busy for me. I guess I could say that about most of my weeks, but as I was trying to keep my head above water and handle the demands of each day, my mind constantly was reaching for a level of contentment. All my tasks were good things, just too many of them. So often my daily discontent comes from over-commitment. I try to do too many things and please too many people.

Discontentment can have many roots, but for the average woman, I think a busy schedule often triggers discontent.

This weekend, for Home Improvement, can I challenge you to just take a look at your schedule? That's all. No need to search deeply for ultimate contentment. Just see if you have enough 'margin' in your life to enjoy what you are doing.

Do you have time to sit and talk with your husband?

Do you know what you are making with the groceries you purchased, or are you just throwing a dinner together because you just don't have time to look for a good recipe.

Do you check 'caller ID' everytime the phone rings and often you disregard a call from a friend because you are just too busy?

Do you have nothing to wear because it is all in the wash or it needs to be ironed?

Are you spending money on late charges because you can't find the bills you need to pay on your messy desk?

The answers to these questions may be the first place to start when you are seeking contentment.

This weekend, try to build some 'margin' into all that you choose to do. Take time to take a deep breath and enjoy what you are doing.

This is a discipline I have had to come back to often in my life.

"Contentment has everything to do with how you are doing with you." (quote from Finding Contentment by Neil Clark Warren)

If I am not doing well with me, I need some time to get myself back in balance and that takes margin...time to appreciate all that I have. It comes back to having the time to count my blessings.

Home Improvement...

I came home late again tonight and wandered out to my garden. I went to water my flowers but realized it was more than that. I needed to see the colors. I longed to smell the blossoms. I wanted to renew my soul.

Our one year old grandson, Jonathan, had his cleft palate repaired this week. It was a brutal sight to see him after the two and a half hour surgery. His tongue looked like someone had lit it on fire and after it had burned, blew it out and left the inside raw and bloody. It was a thick, crispy mass. He couldn't close his mouth so we had to wipe the blood away as it continued to drain out and over his lips. He couldn't open his wide eyes the first day. He was given morphine and slept with arm restraints.

I walked to my garden to replace those images I had in my head. I drank in the color, inhaled the fragrance and knelt to gently remove a weed. I could finally do something here in my garden. After a day of sitting, I could dig and prune and make my garden abit better. Mostly, I could be renewed as I saw God's handiwork all around me. I could take heart that God was healing Jonathan just as sure as He was growing the seeds I had planted.

If you haven't tried gardening, improve your home this year by digging up a plot of soil. Improve your soul by meeting with God daily in your garden. It doesn't need to be a masterpiece, start small and then sit back and see God at work.
Nothing will restore your soul faster than spending some time appreciating God's creation.

Home Improvement: One question to consider

I read one of Barb's books a couple years back called, "The Best Question Ever" by pastor Andy Stanley.

It is a small, yet very thought-provoking book.

Andy suggests that when we need to make a decision (about ANY area of our lives) we should ask ourselves: What is the wise thing for me to do, in light of my past experience, my present circumstances, and my future hopes and dreams?

This single question, if pondered and seriously considered, can dramatically change the way we make decisions.

What I love most about this question is that it doesn't tell us what to do, it just encourages us to ask, what is the WISE thing to do?

Can you imagine the impact this question could have on our children if we enabled them and taught them to consider the wise thing to do when making decisions? Sometimes we have to set aside our feelings, or our personal preference, or what's easiest or cheapest or makes everyone else the happiest...in order to do what is wise.

Each person has to answer this question for themselves. Only you can determine - based on your past, present and future - what would be the wise thing to do?

I looked up the definition of wise and here is what I found:

wise

[wahyz] Show IPA adjective, wis⋅er, wis⋅est, verb, wised, wis⋅ing.

–adjective

1.having the power of discerning and judging properly as to what is true or right; possessing discernment, judgment, or discretion.

2.characterized by or showing such power; judicious or prudent: a wise decision.

By asking ourselves what the wise thing to do is, we are essentially declaring that we want to be discerning. We want to determine what is true or right or best. We want to be....well wise!

As women 'striving to be wise' this question is one that we should refer to often when encouraging husbands, talking with friends, teaching our children and especially for ourselves. I think it has the potential to change our relationships, our families, our homes, and most of all, us!

This weekend try to use this question just once in your own decision making and encourage one other person to consider it as well.

Happy Memorial Day!

Home Improvement...ENJOY the moments.

"There is, in every child, at every moment, a miracle unfolding."
Erik Erikson, psychologist

Enjoy your children this weekend!

Take photos and have them for you to cherish, but don't make scrapbooking another discipline that 'must' be done.

For every photo put on a page, write a word or two from you, as a mom. Forget the frills and all the clever ornaments if time is an issue and instead write what the moment means to you. Your child will find a double blessing in having his/her photos to remember but also what it meant to you.

"Your words echo down the ages" is a quote I love. Add a word to each photo and call it good.

Simplify the layout and keep reminding yourself of WHO you are preserving these photos for and WHY you are taking the time.

Then, enjoy your miracles!

Home Improvement...Pray for our Children

"Whether you have biological children or not, we are all spiritual mamas to somebody, and we can be praying—single women, childless women, women with a quiver full of children, women who’ve never had any children—God has put us in the position of being true women for children through prayer." (Janet Parshall, talk-show host and speaker)

What a perfect Home Improvement challenge for this weekend. We are all 'spiritual mamas to someone' so on this Mother's Day weekend let's commit to pray for our children.

List the children that God has brought into your life...nieces, nephews, grandkids, sons, daughters, perhaps neighbors or kids of friends. Pray for these children by name every day for the rest of the month of May. Sounds simple, right...so why aren't we doing it on a daily basis all year long?

Time to improve our homes, 'spiritual mamas', and Happy Mother's Day to all!

Spring cleaning...what's your plan?

It's spring here in Minnesota. How about where you live?

It's still cool, but there is a hint of summer in our weather....

I am not one for organizing or cleaning. I have friends who love to do both, but I prefer to bake, read a book or go for a walk!

This time of year though it does one good to dig in and start organizing and decluttering.

Here's my plan of attack:

I'm making a list of house projects that need a little - or a lot! - of attention this spring: organize hall closet, clean out porch, clean and organize our attic (aka dumping ground all winter long), organize my pantry.

Tonight my husband and I are attacking our attic. A friend is coming over next month to help with some other organizing projects (she is giving me her TIME as a birthday gift....isn't that a wonderful present?).

And I bought some bins and I have my label maker ready to go. Out with the winter clothes, in with the summer...er, maternity clothes!

I love my label maker and find such satisfaction in labeling things. Whether it's bins of my clothing, Samuel's clothing and the many different sizes he has, items in the hall closet or kitchen containers, the label maker is one of my favorite tools!

What about you? Are you excited to start the spring cleaning in your home? What's your plan of attack? Who is going to help you? Or who are you going to help? What's your favorite tool to use around the home?

Please share any tips, thoughts or inspiration to motivate us all. And happy cleaning!

Home Improvement--2009 Theme

So we are 3 months into the 'New Year'...not too late to choose your theme for this year. Think about some area in which you would like to grow, make it your theme, and then make an effort each week to add to your theme and review what you are learning about yourself, God and others by focusing on this particular discipline, principle or topic.

Kim has dedicated Thursday to review her theme on her blog:
Check it out at: Kim Weed

What a great way to hold herself accountable.

If you don't have a blog, share your theme with a trusted friend and ask her to hold you accountable to make an effort to grow in this area.

Start this weekend if you haven't already. You won't be disappointed as the year progresses and you see a change in yourself...for the better.

Home Improvement-as a Mom!

Here's are 3 simple questions to ask yourself this weekend...

"Who gets my best--my family or others?"

"Am I more spiritual, more fun, more loving when I am elsewhere?"

Psalm 101:2 says " I will walk in my house with a blameless heart."

Is there room for improvement?

New Year's Resolutions-Home Improvement

In 2008, I focused on the verse in Ps 37:5 that says "Delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart."

That prompted me to think of what my existing desires were?

I desired to be a good wife and know what pleased my husband
I desired to be a listening mom to all of my kids
I desired to be a friend that could be trusted and had truth to share
I desired to be a grandma that really was interested in her grandchildren
I desired to find out what it meant to 'delight in the Lord'!
I desired to keep a nice home
I desired to have energy to get through my days
I desired to keep my wardrobe in good repair
I desired to know more Bible verses by heart

On and on the list went, until I realized that what I had written was really a great list of resolutions, but put in a more energizing way. Rather than telling myself I had to do something in the New Year, I re-phrased it in a way that made the tasks something that I WANTED to do. These were the desires of my heart.

Then I had to back-track and ask myself if God saw that these were His desires for my heart. I was surprised to find out that they probably were! The desires were in line with His Word. I prayed that He would change my desires if He wanted to but otherwise, I was just going to move forward making those desires my 'new-found resolutions'.

I found these 'resolutions' are so user-friendly, because they are really my life-priorities.

So our Home Improvement assignment is this:
Pick a theme for 2009 if you haven't already and make a list of the desires of your heart. Will they become your New Year's Resolutions?

Home Improvement...Serving Others

The woman who serves others is the "person who reaches her hand into the darkness to help another hand out into the light and discovers it is her own!"

I know I need to serve others.

I know I want to serve others.

I just get tired and pulled in so many directions that I often lose the vision I need.

Join me this weekend in Home Improvement...Serving Others, to pray this prayer when our energy is low and the demands on our time and money are great:

O Christ, do not give me tasks equal to my powers,
but give me powers equal to my tasks,
for I want to be stretched by things too great for me.
I want to grow through the greatness of my tasks,
but I shall need your help for the growing. (E.Stanley Jones)

When I 'help another hand out into the light' during this Christmas season, I hope to find my own hand...and that it is stronger.

Home Improvement...Christmas Giving!

Think Outside the Box!

As you prepare for your Christmas celebration and gift giving time, think of ways to share your gifts that make it fun to give rather than receive.

The last few Christmases, we've decided we needed to add some levity to our Christmas morning so we incorporated a TV game to help us distribute the gifts.

One year, we made up our own version of 'Deal or No Deal'. It was the 1st year that program was popular. My husband and I made sheets of paper to represent the suitcases that are popular on the TV show. My husband was the banker and he called my cell phone to offer a 'deal' to whoever was picking a suitcase. The excitement mounted as the deal started at $1.00 and continued to increase to $5, $10 and even $25! It extended our Christmas day and we still talk about the fun.

Last year, we decided to have all the adults bring 5 small gifts to exchange with one another. We put them in a big pile, and then played a 'match game'. We had teams that tried to 'match' family photos that I had blown up and had turned upside down. As matches were made, a gift was opened. After all the gifts were opened, we played the 'dice' game that let us swap gifts away from one another.

The memories we made playing the games have surpassed the gifts that were exchanged.

Improve your family interaction this Christmas and think outside the box. I have a new game I hope to try out this year, share your Christmas gift-giving habits with us.

Home Improvement-for the Holidays!

As you get into 'high-gear' this weekend to finish your decorating or start your shopping, pick up a 3 ring binder and start recording your activities and plans.

In Simplify Your Holidays, Marcia Ramsland recommends 6 tabs to keep you on track:
The Plan
Gifts
Cards & Decorations
Events
December 1-25
Food

Looking back at past Christmases, it would be helpful to have this all written down and it would be such a good reminder of things that went right and also for those areas I needed to improve on.

Check out her website: www.organizingpro.com and click on downloads for a few free hints.

I love this quote from her book:

"Holidays are as much a matter of organization as they are a matter of the heart.
The two work together. Organization during the holidays IS an expression of the heart."

You are going to be putting together a Christmas for your family this year, you might as well start recording it and give yourself direction for the years to come.

Home Improvement...Use Your Money Wisely!

Hopefully, a few of the money-saving tips we shared with you this week sparked an interest to be mindful of your spending/saving habits.

Here's one of the better tips I've heard. Freeze a block of ice in your freezer. Just as it hardens, slip your credit card into the middle of it! If you have more than one card, freeze as many ice blocks as you need. Store them in your freezer for an emergency...then use cash to purchase your necessities.

I am told that freezing the cards will not damage the magnetic strips, so no excuses for not putting your Visa on 'ice' for awhile!

What a great Home Improvement exercise this could be for all of us to eliminate needless spending over the holidays.

Home Improvement...

Every Friday on this blog, we try to challenge our readers with a 'home improvement' tip or new idea to try. This week, how about being mindful of miracles in your life...and also keep Ryan and Stacy in your prayers.

Wednesday they took Samuel to the pediatrician and received a good report on his health.

Thursday they met with a woman who is doing a 'home-study' on Ryan and Stacy and the extended family.

Today, the birthmom will sign papers that will start the clock ticking towards final approval (about Oct 28).

Ryan and Stacy will get finger-printed today and then spend the weekend filling out paperwork.

On Monday, the 'home-study' lady will visit their home. All week and through the weekend, friends and family have been at their house painting and fixing up the baby's room. Note the posting on Sept 30th...there was no shortage of work to be done!

Thanks to all of you who have prayed along with us this week. Make this weekend a time to rejoice and count your own blessings!