Our Jesse Tree

Our Jesse Tree, before the velcro dots were added.

Velcro dots and out first ornament.

Happy Saturday, Friends! I sincerely apologize about bagging on you all for my Wednesday post. (Because I know you were all just on pins and needles waiting for it, right?! ;0) ) Wheels was home for his 3rd day in a row, and I had had to make a 2 am run to the pharmacy for some Benedryl for him. I was a very sleepy Mama with a lot to do around the house because I had a Four Winds class Thursday and worked on Friday. Blogging just didn't fit into the picture, unfortunately!

Anywhoo, I was able to make our Jesse Tree. In previous posts I had mentioned that I wanted to start this tradition, but wasn't sure exactly what I was going to do about making one. Due to time and budget restraints, I went with a poster board Jesse Tree. (Boy, I sound like I work for the government, don't I!) I had the red and green poster board already, and I printed out the ornaments from the computer for free. I have plenty of different colored card stock to back the ornaments. The only thing I had to purchase was some Velcro dots. So for a grand total of $2.47 we have a Jesse Tree!

I folded the green poster board in half length wise, and using a ruler, calculator, pencil and eraser, I measured out an even Christmas tree. (Yes, my Ms. Martha Perfect tendencies were in high gear!!!) Then Wheels used a glue stick to glue it to the red p.b. I measured where the Command strip hooks were on our bedroom door and used a hole punch to make holes to hang it from. Before I punched the holes, I reinforced the area with some clear packing tape on the back so it wouldn't rip easily. Then I counted out 25 Velcro dots, one for each ornament, but it wasn't symmetrical, so I added a 26th dot. I'm going to scale down one of our family photos to use as an ornament for the day after Christmas, because once you have accepted Jesus as your Saviour, you are then a part of His Family Tree! I thought that this would be a meaningful lesson for them.

This is where I got our free printable ornaments from. I really like these because they are all the same size, are paper economical, and easy images for the kids to color. So far, Princess and I have been the only ones interested in coloring the ornaments. Then I cut them out and glue them to a piece of card stock that is slightly larger, so you can see the color, and cover it with clear contact paper. I trim off any excess and add a Velcro dot. The download for the ornaments comes with a chart with Scripture verses for each ornament, but I wanted a little more for our time with the Jesse Tree. My pastor's wife and very dear friend shared this link for a free eBook on how to celebrate Advent with a Jesse Tree. This ebook has devotional readings for 28 days, but we didn't start our Jesse Tree until December 1st, so I'll just skip the "extra" pages. The reason I liked this one was because, first of all, it is free! But secondly, and more importantly, It includes a Scripture reading, a prayer, and a song. I only printed out the pages of the devotional section of the eBook, and managed to print out 2 pages of the eBook onto one piece of paper, then I cut the sheets in half, so I have a compact little devotional.

Well, that's all for now! I hope you all have a lovely evening.
Blessings,
Kelly

Don't Wing It Wednesday #2

O.k., I'm a bit behind due to an emergency subbing job at the school and an impromptu lunch invite, so I'm going to dive right in there today. It's Wednesday, so we're working on our "Don't Wing It" for the holidays.

I've gotten quite a bit of work done for my holiday planner. I was able to make up new versions of my planning pages on my laptop and get them printed. For those of you who don't want to fuss on your own, (I admit to being a control freak when it comes to these things!) I have some links for Thanksgiving planners that are FREE!

One page planning calendar from Ocean Spray

Multi paged plannerOne page check list from Martha Stewart

One sheet calendar for planning from Family Fun- very cute!

A 1 week planner from Family Fun- cute, too!

 Another 1 pager
A Disney 1 pager with pilgrim Mickey and Minnie

As soon as I'm able to, I'm going to try to get my planning sheets into PDF form so that I can share them. If that doesn't work, I'll at least be able to show pics so that you can get an idea of what they look like if you would like to make your own.

Yesterday I was able to play  work on the Thanksgiving lap book. Here are some links that I used for materials, including some actual lap book materials put together for you, all for free.

Nice lap book templates and some decorations

Printable coloring pages and games (I used this site for our Easter Lap book)

Although these resources are for a specific Thanksgiving book, you'll find templates and mini books that will be useful.

The First Thanksgiving mini book

Thanksgiving lap book page from Squidoo.com. Scroll down to get to printable section

Alright, so for our family's Thanksgiving, we actually get 3 (yes, THREE!!) feasts. One on Thurs. with Mama's side of the family, put on by my lovely older sister. Next up is Daddy's side of the family on Friday, which I put on at our home. And then we head up north to my aunt's for my mother's side of the family. (Luckily Aunt Audrey always does a ham in addition to a turkey, because by that time my DH and I are just about sick of turkey!) So I will be making something for each of the feasts we will be attending, plus putting on a meal. I plan on making as much ahead of time as I can. I also usually keep my meal as simple and fuss free as possible. I'll be sharing my actual menu and some tips soon.

For ways to celebrate thankfulness and gratitude, I was going to make a wreath in which we filled with leaves and acorns made of paper that we wrote what we are thankful for on. Then I found this adorable poster. Very cute and simple, it makes this Mama happy! We started a new dinner time tradition, as well. Just before we say grace, I light a tea candle in a pretty holder, the Busy Bear says grace and then thanks the Lord for something that they are thankful for that day. When they are done eating, they get to blow the candle out.

I still have more to share, so be sure to check back soon!

Blessings,

Kelly

Monday Updates

Happy Monday, Friends! And it is a lovely morning here on our hill. The sky is clear, the birds are chirping and the blanket of frost is slowly giving way to the sun's warmth. I don't know about you, but I was very grateful for that extra hour this weekend. I needed the sleep Sunday morning after trekking through the woods with Teddy Bear Saturday morning. Neither of the boys bagged a deer, but they both had chances to take a shot, and actually T.B. did get off a shot. It all happened so quickly, and my DH and I are extremely proud of how calm and collected he was as we watched about 5-6 deer hurdle towards us! Wheels would have been able to shoot but for a communication breakdown between him and Daddy. We're proud of him as well, because he was a good sport about it. They are both looking forward to next weekend, as are DH and I!

As far as home keeping, this weekend it was practically non-existent! I did about the bare minimum, as I was in a lot of pain most of the weekend. I did get the cookies for lunches made, as well as breakfast cookies, and my DH helped out in picking up the kitchen. Mostly I worked on planning and getting my leg/back straightened out.

I'm still working on this week's and next's dinner menu plan because I haven't had a chance to do a freezer inventory. As soon as I have it done, I'll be posting it. I do have a confession to make though: tonight I'm cheating as my DH said to go get KFC for dinner tonight! Who am I to argue with my hubby? ;0)

As I mentioned earlier, I was able to get some planning done, mostly in my Holiday Planner. As soon as I get all of my new pages in, I'll be posting more on that. I've decided to do a Thankful Wreath instead of a tree this year. I'm hoping to get some of the work done so that we can get it started this evening. I'm also going to be making a Thanksgiving lap book for the kiddos. I know that lap books are usually made by the children, but with them in school, they don't have a lot of time. I'm going to be including some games in it, as well as some sheets that they can all do and keep in the lap book. I'll be posting some of the links that I use for that, as well as pics of the finished product soon.

In holiday news, I've also decided on adding a Jesse Tree to our Advent traditions. If your not sure about what a Jesse Tree is, go here for a great explanation.  I'm thinking of making a sort of lap book Jesse Tree to help further the kid's understanding (And mine!) I'll be posting more links on this as we get closer to December.

That's about all for now! I'm not scheduled to work so far this week, so I'm planning on getting some housework and yard work done. I need to finish buttoning up the garden for the winter, and I'd like to get some Christmas lights up before I have to do it in the snow and freezing temps. They won't be turned on until after Thanksgiving, but they'll be ready to go! The kiddos have Friday of, so I'm thinking of doing some Thanksgiving crafts with them.

Have a lovely day, all!
Blessings,
Kelly

Introducing!!!!!

A flock of geese headed south for the colder months.

Happy November !!!!!!! As you may have read before, autumn is my FAVORITE season, but November has to be my favorite month. That love has grown as I became an adult and homeowner. There is no more lawn mowing, weeding, bugs, or gardening to do. Some lawn work to get things hunkered down for winter, but in the crisp, clear air, you can't seem to mind being out and working. You're not sweating or swatting. And Thanksgiving has always been be favorite holiday. Family, food, history and faith all rolled into one beautiful, scrumptious package!

I mentioned in Saturday's post that I had to re-do my dinner menu plan for Thursday, so here is this week's revised menu plan:

MONDAY: Sloppy Joe's and green beans
TUESDAY: Leftovers (mac & cheese, sloppy joe meat filling, chicken)
WEDNESDAY: Breakfast for Dinner- scrambled eggs, sausage, waffles, applesauce
THURSDAY: Individual homemade pizzas, salad, fruit
FRIDAY: Spaghetti, salad, peas, apple sauce
SATURDAY: Pot roast with potatoes & carrots in the crock pot, applesauce, canned mandarin oranges
SUNDAY: Left overs

I'm trying to keep Saturdays as a crock pot day, as I'm on my feet so much with baking, and we have hunting season now, too. Sunday's will start being a designated left-overs day, as I try to keep Sundays easy because of the Sabbath, and I truly need a restful day. I don't like to be legalistic about Sundays, but I like to relish the blessing and gift that it is meant to be, so very little (if any) house work, though I have been known to mow the lawn (riding mower) or putter in the garden.

And now for something I have been working on. I've had the holiday countdowns on my blog page for quite a while now, and as I explained, it's because I like to plan when it comes to the holiday season. So, I am introducing:

DON'T WING IT WEDNESDAYS

Counting today, we have 4 Wednesdays until Thanksgiving, and 7 until Christmas. So, instead of getting frantic about the holidays, lets use this time to plan, plan, plan!!!!!!!! It's been a while since I've posted about planning or planners, but if you've been a long time reader, you know how much I like to plan for the holidays. Last year I put together a Holiday Planner (Read here for an intro. to last year's planner) and found it to be VERY helpful. It organized all of my calendars, planning pages, flyers from school and church, as well as research that I have done on different traditions all in one place. I'll be updating this year's planner, and posting on it as soon as I'm done. I got most of my inspiration from one of my favorite blogs, By Sun and Candlelight. You can also check out Organized Home for more information and inspiration, as well as free printable pages you can use to make your own planner.

So this week's challenge is this:

• Brainstorm!!!!! Think about your usual holiday traditions, what to keep, what to try.
• Start a planner- it doesn't have to be fancy, even if it is just some notebook paper stapled together, keep your brainstorming and info together.
• Are you putting on the Thanksgiving feast? Traveling? Get dates set.
• Looking for crafts to do with the kids or a new recipe to try? Or wonder about why we do some of the things we do? Hop online or get to the library to do some research.

Every Wednesday will be something new to do, and I'll be posting what I'm up to. I have NO IDEA how to link up with other bloggers (If you think you can walk me through it or point me in the right direction, I'd be so grateful!) but you can share by leaving a comment, emailing me at Homespuninpirations@gmail.com or posting on my facebook page.

Have a lovely evening, friends!

Blessings,

Kelly



Homemaking Notebook Updates

Happy Monday, Friends! It's sunny and warm here in the Green Mountain state, however, I'm still feeling under the weather. I can't seem to shake this cold, and am feeling pretty yucky at the moment. I bought some orange juice and seltzer for myself for a boost of vitamin C and have a pot of chicken noodle soup on the stove for my lunches this week. I'm hoping these will help!

Not too much to report on in homesteading business, although my sweet hubby did get the chicken run cleaned out. After all of the rain we've had lately, it was pretty nasty, so he mucked it out and added to the compost pile. He also continued to work on getting the wood shed stocked for the winter.

Saturday was my usual baking day, although I really wasn't "in" to it! It took me all of the morning to make half of what I usually do, but the kids and I have muffins and breakfast cookies for the mornings and there are cookies for the lunch boxes. I also discovered a really great crock pot recipe for an apple pork roast. It wasn't quite as flavorful as I would have liked because I had to skimp on the apples and should have used more herbs, but it was still yummy. When I'm making up a recipe, I don't really measure, so these are educated guesses!

Apple Pork Roast with Onions and Herbs

Boneless pork shoulder roast

6-7 apples (a mix would be nice, I used all mac's)

2 onions

chicken stock (I used homemade)

 about 3 tbsp. garlic (I used jarred)

thyme and sage (I only used about 5 sprigs of thyme and 8 sage leaves, so you'll want more than this if you want to really taste the herbs!)

black pepper

Cut apples into quarters and core them. Cut onions into wedges and place in crock pot with apples, herbs and garlic. Place pork roast on top and add stock until it reaches the top of roast. I cooked mine on high from about 8 am to 3, saw that it was pretty done and turned it down to low. I then ladled out a little over 2 cups of the juices and let set so that the fat would rise to the top. I skimmed off 1/4 cup (or 4 table spoons) and added an equal measure of flour in a small sauce pan. Stir with a whisk over medium heat for a minute or 2, then add the juices, stirring continuously until thickened. I served this over egg noodles with the pork. It would also be good over rice or mashed potatoes.

After I took out the left over pork from the crock pot, I hated to see all the juices go to waste, so I let the crock cool and poured it all into a bowl, using my colander to strain out the onions and apples. then I mashed the solids all through the colander and used a mesh sieve to strain the final product into a quart sized canning jar. After all, it was just chicken stock that was even flavored even more by the pork, onions and apple. So that stock went into today's soup pot. It's almost like recycling!

Yesterday afternoon I finally had a chance to sit down at our old computer and get some new daily routine sheets made up for my homemaking journal. (You can read here  for an over view of what my homemaking notebook looks like.) It's been quite a while since I've really used it, and I needed to adjust my daily routines for this school year, and I realized that some days were just not good choices for the work I had originally assigned them for. Here is my list of "Daily Focuses at a Glance":

• Sunday, The Sabbath
• Monday, grocery shopping, meal prep and Barn Hop blog post
• Tuesday, Laundry day and clean the bathroom
• Wednesday, bedrooms and more laundry if needed
• Thursday, entry ways, laundry area, special projects and volunteer work
• Friday, weekly home blessing, big kitchen clean and getting ready for baking
• Saturday, baking, yard/garden work, Preparedness Challenge blog post

 Some days I don't always get to do the full routine for that day because I have to work, there is a child home sick, or something else comes up, but I try to stick to my routine as best I can. And laundry is nearly a daily task, but I like to get most of it done on one day.

Well, that's all for now! Have a great Monday, and hope to see you soon.

Blessings,

Kelly

. 

Menu Planning and Meal Prep Mondays

Boneless pork sirloin steaks cooking on Saturday night.

Getting everything together for meal prep. work.

Putting up green pepper sticks for the kiddos' lunch boxes.

Happy Monday, Friends! It's sunny and warm here on our hill today, one of those days that (almost) make me wish that it was only July! As you can tell, I've got a new look for fall. I know I may have jumped the gun a bit, but autumn is my FAVORITE time of year! The harvest, the yummy pumpkin and apple goodies, the gorgeous leaves, the cooler temps and gearing up for the holidays. And of course hunting season! I'm looking forward to getting back out with my darling hubby and the boys and hopefully bringing home a freezer full of venison!

(Just a little side note about the countdowns on my blog page; I am NOT rushing for the holidays, however, I do like to plan for them because I usually put on a Thanksgiving and Christmas meal, make some presents and bake practically non-stop from mid November to January! I thought it might be helpful for others that are like minded!)

I'll give a few quick updates, and then get on to our main subject. The kids started school last week and all like their new teachers. Open House was this past Thursday evening, so we went to see their classrooms and meet their teachers. Actually, the only one we didn't know well was Teddy Bear's teacher, because our kiddos seem to get the same teachers as their older sibling did for that grade! We finally put the six "babies "in with the "big girls" in the run. (I'm talking about our chickens!) We do have a broody girl that is taking up the one and only nesting box in the coop (we tried to get them to use a second one, but they just won't budge on this!) so every morning their are squawks from the coop as they squish themselves in with Alice to lay their eggs. Then we have to done a pair of glove so we don't get pecked and pick her up, get the eggs, then put her back down in the nest. I'm hoping she comes out of this soon!

This past Friday night, Princess and I worked in the garden some more and cleaned out the coop. She is becoming quite the little garden buddy! We picked the green beans and added to the compost pile, which I also tried to mix up a little more. In the kitchen, we have a bad case of fruit flies! I have a trap out for them, but with so many, I'm going to have to make another. Also in the insect news, our poor kitty, Merlin, has fleas. I'm dumbfounded as to how she got them because she is an indoor only cat. I first tried a commercial treatment(although I really didn't want to) because I was so far behind with the storm and school starting delay, but it didn't work. So it's on to natural remedies. I'll be posting more on this in a coming post this week. I'm still doing research and trying to get the poor thing to let me get close to her after subjecting her to two hair raising baths.

Mondays are my grocery shopping days. After doing my shopping, I come home and put things away, then get busy washing and cutting veggies and sometimes fruits. Then they all get put in the fridge, ready to use for lunches and dinners, sometimes snacks. I've decided to go one step ahead this school year, by trying to prep things like onions and green peppers that might be used to make dinner. Carrots can be cut up ahead of time, too, for use in soups or just for your veggie one night.

Here are some of the things I cut up ahead of time:

• lettuce- use for salads or tacos
• cucumbers- cut in spears for snacks, or chop them to top salads with
• carrots- cut for soups & stews, a side dish or in sticks for snacks
• onions- for soups and stews, salads, spaghetti sauce, omelette's, tacos
• green peppers- dice for the above ideas, or in sticks to dip for snacks
• celery- snacks, adding to soups and stews
• oranges- keep the peels on and cut for snacks or to have with dinner
• lemons- to add to water, tea or as needed for lemon juice
• cheese- shred for salads, tacos, pizza, baked pasta dishes. cube for snacks or homemade mac & cheese

I'm sure you might be able to come up with more!

In addition to keeping things ready in the fridge, I'm trying to have at least one meal where I cook extra to have planned leftovers. For example, Saturday night I cooked up an entire package of boneless pork sirloin steaks so that tonight I could make an easy casserole for dinner. So this afternoon, all I did was cut up the leftover pork, make my gravy (I cheated and used a package!) and make my stuffing (Stove Top!) and put them in my Pyrex bowl to bake. Now, only Princess, my dear hubby and I will eat this, so for my boys I'm going to make some homemade individual pizzas. I happen to have cheese in the fridge and a packet of yeast. Wheels will eat frozen pizzas, but Teddy Bear won't. TB usually eats what i make, but there are times when he won't and if I don't have leftovers that he likes, we have trouble. I'll have enough homemade pizzas to freeze for later.

Yes, I do make separate meals for my picky eater (Wheels) and my sometimes picky eater(Teddy Bear); however, if they say they will eat something and then turn their noses up at it, they can make a peanut butter sandwich or be hungry. I'm not a short order cook. And I am able to sneak things in that they don't even know about, but that's for another post!

This weeks menu plan is not completely finalized, but so far, this is how it looks:

Monday- Pork and stuffing casserole, salad, green beans, and apple sauce
Tuesday- homemade sloppy Joe's on wheat bulkies, corn, salad, mandarin orange slices
Wednesday- breakfast for dinner, and fruit
Thursday?
Friday- onion chicken, roasted potatoes, salad,
Saturday?
Sunday?

So far, that's all I've got! Need to get going, my chickees need to rounded up so that I can start the pizza dough! See you soon!
Blessings,
Kelly

Ticking Right Along!

Hey all! Hope you've been enjoying your week! It's been more crazy and hectic around here than I would like, but through it all I knew that the Lord was with me and had His hand upon us. A pump for the outside wood boiler (our source for heat and hot water) broke down this morning, so I had to run into town to get that and I had to make another trip in to get the part for the washing machine. With gas prices, I don't like to make multiple trips, but they needed to be fixed TODAY! I'm very blessed with a brother in law that is a plumber, and who is so kind and willing to help us out with work on the boiler. He came right up and fixed it for us, taking nothing for payment but a loaf of chocolate zucchini bread! My darling hubby fixed the washer after dinner, and shortly after I had a load of laundry running!

Today we're headed over to Water Slide World for a "daycation". The kids are really excited and DH and I looking forward to it, too. Before we go, though, I thought I'd let you know how I'm doing on my weekly to-do list.

• Amos and Biscuit are at their new home (Thank you Tim and Stacey!)
• the school supply list has been made easier to check items off of
• I've cleaned out my Homekeeping Notebook of school info from last year and put the new school year calendar in, complete with "no school" dates highlighted.
• I've assessed my daily routine, and I need to reconfigure it- more on that in a future post!
• the run addition is nearly complete- just need gates made and the fencing secured so that we don't have any unwanted critters getting in
• I made 2 nesting boxes for our girls- they're not pretty (the boxes, not the girls!), but they work!

So that's it for now! Hope you all have great day!
Blessings,
Kelly

Planning for the Summer

My Summer planning file.

This was originally supposed to post on Weds. June 2 !

Happy Wednesday! It's very warm, humid and getting windy here on our hill, and I'm taking a break from housework.

 It was a busy Memorial Day weekend for us with a fishing derby, lawn mowing and trimming, garden tilling and planting, and plenty of heat! But it was all time well spent, we had fish for dinner on Saturday, the lawn looks lovely and the garden is planted. It was very satisfying to put out the green pepper plants that I had started back in March! It seemed that we had seedling flats in the living room for forever, then they were on the deck for a couple of weeks. In the garden we also have zucchini, pumpkins, peas and green beans. I forgot about cucumbers, so those need to go out as soon as I get a chance. My darling husband wants to make a raised bed for our herb garden, so I'm hoping we'll get that done soon, as I have basil, oregano, chives, sage, parsley, thyme and catnip started.

My kiddos will be getting out of school on June 16, and my thoughts have turned to what we're going to do with ourselves. In the past, I've been (admittedly!) horrible about having a routine for weekdays, and felt rather distressed by the fly-by-the-seat-of-our-pants-everyday approach. So, this summer, we are going to have a routine with plenty of free time, but also time for chores, learning life skills, (things that my children will need to know how to do when they are on their own), and some "school work". (No, I'm not a meanie, I'll explain soon!)

For planning purposes, I made a file folder to hold the info we get about summer programs, places to visit, summer camps, craft projects and brainstorming notes. The front of the folder has a pocket for important items like our membership cards to the Billings Farm & Museum. Then I went ahead and made some planning pages on my computer (yes, I'm a bit fanatical about planning!). The pages include a to-do list, brainstorming notes, a place to jot down summer camps and dates, skills the kiddos need to learn/work on, summer reading lists and fun themes and dates.

So, back to the school work. I have no intentions of having my children sit down for hours to do school work over the summer; however, I feel strongly that it is in their best interests to keep on top of math and reading skills. I bought some workbooks at out local Dollar Tree and plan on getting some worksheets on line to print out. We'll be taking time everyday to read, so I've stocked up on books for them. I've decided to do a "unit" on tornadoes and other weather extremes. We'll be reading Twister on Tuesday from the Magic Tree House series, and I have the research guide that goes with it. Along with learning about tornadoes, etc. I would like to do a fundraising project with the kids to donate funds to those effected by the tornadoes this past spring.

That is the start of our summer plans. I have some more research to do on "field trips", as well as getting dates for some of the camps that the kiddos have done in the past, but I feel pretty good about the start I've got now.

Have a great day!
Blessings,
Kelly

A New Week, a New Beginning

I know it's a bit early to see bees buzzing around flowers, but I just had to choose this picture for today's post. You see, it's a very busy week for Mama! I'm working at the kids' school, have 2 Four Winds classes, the first of ten sessions of our church's Alpha Course, and the way this week's weather is looking, the sap will be running! Despite all of this busy-ness, I am determined to not get frantic, overwhelmed, grumpy or resentful. Of course, this is not a goal that I can attain on my own. It will take planning, preparation, teamwork on behalf of my family and some rest, peace and quiet with my Lord.

O.k., planning, preparation, rest, peace and quiet with my Lord? How does that help? I know you're asking (or maybe you're not if you're in my women's Bible study:) )how? You see, there are things I am called to do as a child of God, as a wife, as a mother, etc. There may be times when I am called to be very busy, and times when perhaps, not so much. The key to being calm, peaceful, enjoyable to be around, and dare I say, joyful, isn't always in paring down our schedules. This may be needed if you feel chronically overwhelmed, weary and burdened, but more importantly it is how we go about our busy lives. When we take the time to sit at Jesus' feet, to rest in His presence, allow him to carry our burdens and to guide and strengthen us, we need not be the crazy lady that has overtaken your home! If we let our to-do lists and calendars get the best of us, there is nothing left for the Lord, our husbands, our children, our loved ones.

In Joanna Weaver's Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World, she helps us understand how to deal with the craziness that our lives can become and how to take the time to sit at Jesus' feet. I truly recommend reading this book and doing the study guide at the back of the book. Even more helpful is doing it with a group. I have read through it twice before on my own, once without doing the accompanying study guide and once with doing it; however, being with a group of other ladies has been much more enlightening and fruitful for me. This is not a plug to gain any monetary benefit for myself or anyone else. This is an honest to goodness, heartfelt suggestion to any woman feeling overwhelmed, over-anxious and tired.

Along with the recommendation to read the book, I also am a huge believer in planning and prepping. Plan what you can, prepare your family and yourself and allow flexibility. For this week, I planned all of this weeks meals on Sunday after having a look in the freezer Saturday. Then I sat down and charted out the week for myself. I have a sheet that I made up on my computer, but there are other pre-made sheets you can download and print. I have to have everything there right in front of me, or I can get even more panicky! After putting in the definite "have to's", that have a definite time, (work, appointments, volunteer work, etc.) I can schedule in housework, errands and grocery shopping. And of course there are the things we'd like to do; crafts, hobbies, coffee with friends, bubble bath, sleep!

I also suggest that you schedule in time for prayer and Bible study. If you don't have this time for the grounding of your soul and spirit, you're more likely to be knocked over by the demands of life. I try to remember to send up a prayer for patience, wisdom, grace and guidance before I even get out of bed in the morning. Mornings seem to run much smoother when I've taken that time. And when I am starting to stress too much, I meditate on Psalm 23. It never fails to calm and revive me.

Well, it's getting time to put the kiddos to bed. That means Mama gets her "down time"! Many blessings for the evening,
Kelly

A Lovely (if frantic!) Friday!

Happy Friday! So far it is clear skies, and despite the light dusting of snow, it feels more like spring! The birds are singing and some of our feathered friends have returned from their trip south. Monday morning I saw a red winged black bird in one of our trees, Wednesday Princess pointed out 2 robins on the front yard and this morning we saw a small wedge of geese! Winter may still have it's grasp on us, but it's loosening by the day.

Well, Friday at our house means clean bedrooms! The kids strip their beds before going to school  and the washer gets started shortly after so that there are clean linens to put back on! The kiddos also have to have everything picked up off the floor (and hopefully put in the proper place!) so that Mama can dust and vacuum. Some Fridays I spend a few minutes tidying up their bureau drawers, but for the most part, I'm letting them take on the putting away of their own laundry. I usually set the timer for about 15-20 minutes for me to be in each bedroom (the boys share a room) or else I'd spend the whole day upstairs cleaning and organizing! The upstairs hall gets dusted and vacuumed as well. Then on to Mama and Daddy's room. I'm looking forward to warmer temperatures so that pillows and comforters can be aired out on the deck. There is nothing like slipping between sweet smelling sheets on a Friday night, after a long and hectic week.  Unless of course you have a pint of Ben & Jerry's before sleeping off the peaceful sleep!

So, has anyone else put any thought into spring cleaning? I've been thinking of it often, making a mental list of things that need to be done (it would be easier to make a list of things that don't need to done!) and working on revamping my planning system. I was going to dedicate this week to evaluating and planning spring cleaning, but that seemed to get shoved aside when we came under attack of the stomach virus again!

Speaking of revamping my planning system, I've been meaning to finish up my posts on my home keeping notebook, but I have been working on it and re-evaluating it. As soon as it is done, I'll post it. The trick to keeping a home keeping notebook ( or any organization system) is finding what works for you. If it doesn't work, you won't use it and things will fall to chaos once more! Research, put some time into planning and be flexible when it comes to an organization/planning system.

Time to get going! There's laundry to wash, floors to vacuum and errand to run! Wishing you a lovely Friday full of sunshine and birdsong!
Blessings,
Kelly

Planning........Part 2

Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established. Proverbs 16:3 NIV

My Lent, Easter, Holy Week Planner, my Lenten-Easter Journal and 2 books on the season.

Some purple papers, Scripture quotes and a purple candle for our family prayer altar.

Good Monday to you all! We're having nasty weather again, so it's another day off from work and school for Mama and the kiddos. I thought I'd take advantage of the time to share some more thoughts and ideas on planning for the Lenten season.

I was fortunate enough to have a couple of hours to myself yesterday, so I took the time to start planning for the Lenten season. This is only the second Lent that our family had observed, so some of the planning time was spent doing research on the web, looking mostly for family activities and ways to observe and explain the season with children. I decided that I needed a planner for our family plans for the season, so I changed the front cover from my Gardening/Outside planner (it was empty anyway and I have another binder to use!) and placed our An Easter Adventure  book in the binder and made up a cover page. I'll be putting activity pages, research, recipes, a calendar of the Holy days and brainstorming notes in this.

I also worked on my own personal Lenten journal/planner. I had started it last year, but hadn't gotten very far other than writing out some Scripture verses. For this year, I've started by writing out the dates of the Holy days, starting with Ash Wednesday. I wanted to commit to paper what I was "fasting" or giving up for the season. I decided to give up fictional reading material. (This may sound familiar to a friend of mine, who did the same thing last year!) My reasons for this is that I love to read, but tend to escape into my books, living vicariously through the characters. While I tend to read only Christian novels, (and have felt convicted on occasion or had a truth revealed to me) I feel the need to work on my own spirituality. So I will dedicate my reading time to studying in my Bible, reading the two books on Lent and Easter (see the box in the upper left-hand side labeled "Books on My Nightstand") devotional readings and a few other non-fiction books on prayer and other spiritual matters.

In the second pic up top are some papers I'm going to use to make some sort of Lent wall art. For Advent and Christmas I had Scripture quotes from both the Old and New Testaments concerning Jesus' birth that I had framed and flanked either side of another framed picture. I am going to do the same for Lent, only for the middle frame I am not going to use my usual tightwad clearance calendar artwork. I'm brainstorming for ideas. These frames hang above our secretary and I usually have candles there, so I will be putting some purple candles out.

So, there is the beginning of my plans for Lent. If you observe Lent, I encourage you to prayerfully consider making some plans of your own for the season. If you do not observe Lent, then I encourage you to learn more about this season and the Holy day of Easter.
Many blessings,
Kelly

My Homekeeping Notebook Part 1

 Greetings everyone! I hope you are all having a good week. So far, so good here on our hill! I'm finally getting a chance to write about something I've been chomping at the bit to get to. Get comfy, this one could last awhile!

First, I'd like to start with a disclaimer. If you would like to start your own Homekeeping Notebook, DO NOT let mine intimidate you! I'm a crafty perfectionist that REALLY enjoys working on this! I'm sharing this because I feel that having a notebook like this, in it's simplest form and function, can be of benefit to every homemaker and her/his family. I also got a lot of wonderful ideas from "visiting" other blogs that featured their notebooks.

Ooops! Should have been up with the planning sheets!






 The pictures are out of sync, but aren't we all, lol! Anywho, I started with a 3 inch binder with a clear pocket that you can put a picture, etc. in. This is what I happened to have because when shopping for school supplies late this past summer, they were BOGO, and Teddy Bear needed one for school. I like the  3" size because I feel I have enough room for everything. Next I searched for my plastic sheet protectors, hole punch, pockets and fancy paper.  If you are using  your computer, (which I recommend) you can use different fonts, colors and clip art. I also like to use the computer because I can customize the sheets for myself rather than using pre-made ones, and it's more cost efficient. 

For my first section, "Planning and Scheduling" I have a monthly calendar, weekly sheets, daily sheets and the kids' school calendar. I use the weekly sheets, well, for planning things for the week that are outside of my usual routine, such as field trips, doctor appointments, and volunteer work. I only use that daily sheets for those crazy, hectic days when I have tons of errands and appointments. For the most part, the sheets in my "routines" section reminds me of what I need to do for that day.

Divider for my "Routines" Section

In my "routines" section, I have routines for weekday mornings, afternoons and evenings for both the children and I, and daily routines for each day of the week. I've split up my big housekeeping chores according to other commitments I have. For instance, Monday mornings are my women's Bible study, so after that I run any errands in town and then scoot on home to get the kitchen ready for the following day's grocery shopping. Wednesday is my "Weekly Home Blessing" time and big laundry day. (see here for an explanation of "Weekly Home Blessing", although mine looks different.)

This whole idea of having daily and part-of-day routines has made a HUGE difference for me! It can take some juggling and real planning, but I really recommend it. I wouldn't recommend typing up final editions for your daily routines until you have seen what works best for you and your family. For more info on setting up routines, you can go to this site.



My handy zipper pouch, ready to serve!

I need to back track for a minute here for the pic here on the left. This is what you first see when you open up my notebook. A messy pile of papers in the inside pocket (yikes!) and a zipper pouch. I love having this because I can always be sure to have a writing implement when I need it! I also have a single hole punch, a pad of post-its and some gel ink pens for fancy fill ins!

My next section is Menu Planning and Shopping lists. I've been trying REALLY hard to use this section! I have a menu planning calendar for the week in which I plan out everything. Main dish, side dishes, fruits, veggies, even dessert if we've been good or I have time and energy! Usually on Saturdays or Mondays
I try to take a peek at the freezer, fridge and pantry so I can plan my meals. I also like to see what is in that weeks grocery store circulars so I know what is on sale. I have a pocket folder to hold coupons until I can get them filed in my coupon organizer. This helps for when you find a coupon in an unexpected place, too.

Well, that's it for now! I'll get to the rest of my notebook in another posting. In the meantime, I'll post some links below to some of the sites that helped me to build my own. On one site, you can even buy a pre-made one if you don't feel you have the time or talent to do your own. If you're in my neck of the woods, I'd love to give you a personal look at my own and to help you if you'd like! (Did I mention that I REALLY like doing this!) Don't forget to scroll down for the links. For some reason this posting is acting weird with the pics and such, so everything is out of order!



Sample of my daily routines



Tipnut.com search with LOTS of info!

The front cover

The Fly Lady- don't let the name wig you out, it's a wonderful site!

Folder pocket for holding coupons I haven't go through yet.

Here's one that wasn't listed on the Tipnut site.

My daily planning sheet

Blessings,

Kelly

Snowflakes, Cookies and Coupons! Oh my!!

Here in Vermont we are finally getting back the snow that we lost to the usual January thaw this past weekend. I know that some of you cringe at the thought of more snow, but for me, better a blanket of snow than sorry, dried up brown grass covered with dirty patches of snow!

Yesterday my children came home to a blizzard in the dining room. My daughter, mother and I had made coffee filter snowflakes before Christmas and I never had time to hang them up in time. (Imagine, running out of time during Christmas!) Rather then keep them sitting in a pile on my desk, I decided to surprise the kids when they got home and hung them up. They were very excited. So, there are the snowflakes.

 Next is the coupons. This is the coupon organizer that I use. I had one that was similar to this and intended for that purpose, but it fell apart on me during a trip to the grocery store. I searched in my local stores for a replacement, to no avail. So I thought about making one from scratch, how I would bind it, etc. Then I remembered seeing these Medical Records and Pet Records thingies (technical term) at Big Lots and they were only a dollar. They have pockets and are spiral bound.

Long story short, I grabbed one and got home, eager to snip, glue and cover. I used scrap booking paper, a glue stick, double stick tape, a couple of stickers and clear contact paper. The best part is that

it I was able to label the pockets according to the items that I buy for our family. After I got done covering it with the papers, I used my computer to type the pocket labels and a list of things that I usually but at one of the stores that I go to every week. I stuck all of the sheets that were meant for medical information together and pasted my list there. I still have to make a list for the other side for the other stores that I frequent. I covered the front cover with the clear contact paper, but not the pockets. I had the feeling I'd be asking for trouble if I tried wrestling with contact paper that had to go on just perfectly.



Because I had to group some coupons together, I use some large index cards to separate the coupons. For instance in the "Dairy" pocket I have a divider for yogurt so I'm not sifting through a whole pocket for the yogurt coupon.When I make my shopping list for the week, I just paperclip it to the inside cover of the binder and away I go. That's the coupon part.        

Last but not least are the cookies. My kids asked me to make chocolate chip cookies from a recipe out of our families Disney Magic Kitchen Cookbook. I didn't mind because the recipe looks healthier than the usual cookie recipe. It replaces a large part of the butter with plain yogurt and part of the flour with ground, toasted oatmeal. They're not bad. The dough is inedible, (really, it's gross!) but the cookies have a cake-like texture. We'll see what the kids say. They might want me to stick to hanging snowflakes!

Well, the cookie testers (I mean kiddos!) will be home soon and I have to get a jump start on dinner. Prayers for a blessed afternoon and evening! See you soon.

Blessings,

Kelly