Menu Planning Monday

I thought I'd do something fun and join in on the public announcement of our week's menu plan...

I have a confession....Pinterest is my go-to menu. Most, if not all, of these recipes came from Pinterest. Is that sad? It's just so easy and I have found some keepers! I've even stared a board called "Foods I make on a regular basis!" Follow if you like! :)

(I'm not sure on what the "rules" are for pictures and on sharing other people's pics...and I always forget to take my own or don't feel like messing with it because I am not a photographer...so... sorry for lack of pics and please enjoy the few that I took!) :)

So here is a peak at our menu for this week:

Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken - The whole family LOVES this recipe and the chicken is so addicting! I sometimes double the recipe so that there's enough for lunch the next day! The fried rice recipe in the link is pretty good too!

Taco Pizza - I can't wait to try this one! It looks so good!

Honey Garlic Pork Chops - Also a new recipe that I can't wait to try!

Baked Cream Cheese Spaghetti - This is the only way to make spaghetti now! YUMMY!!!

For dessert today I made a pumpkin chocolate chip bread. It doesn't taste a whole lot like pumpkin bread and wish it did. So...might need to mess around with the recipe. I took a pic after Lincoln and I took a taste test. Lincoln says it passes. But Joe, and the other hand, doesn't like that it doesn't taste like pumpkin bread.

 

On Sunday I didn't go to church because of two little ones with the sniffles, so I made some frozen breakfast burritos. This is a first and I enjoyed the ones that my mom made last week, I had to try myself! I made egg, ham, and cheese burritos and hope to try other kinds in the near future! It's so easy with a quick pop in the microwave and they're ready to go!

Another fun thing to make is baby food! This week I was able to pull out my Sage Spoonfuls box that I won in a twitter party and put it to good use! I had won the "Let's Get Started Package" and after the first try, I LOVE it!!!! 

And so does Beckham! We made some apple puree!!!

Not that you really care what we are eating this week... But if you have a go-to recipe that never fails, or have a fun baby food recipe that you think I should try, please share! If I pick yours, I'll try it and blog about it! :)

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update on kiddos and life

I've missed blogging...These kiddos have kept me busy...

Beckham at 2 weeks

(photo credit: Natalie Grace Photography)

 Beckham with big brother at 14 weeks

It's hard to believe that it's been almost 4 months since Beckham was born. What's even harder to believe is that Lincoln will be 4 in about a month! CRAZY!!! He is growing into such a big boy. A little man really. Some of the things he comes up with cracks me up and I wonder to my self, "what in the world? where did he come up with that?!" I really should write them down. (cuz now I can't come up with any...)

My favorite thing about Lincoln right now is his imagination. From pretending to be Iron Man, playing Blue's Clues (he always makes me Blue...), to building robots. I decided that for his birthday, we will be getting him some big boy Legos! He's doing the best he can with what he's got now, which isn't a whole lot!

I've been trying to do preschool with him. But with baby and house work and lack of motivation....yea...I'm terrible at it...anyways...This is a new week...

Beckham is growing WAY TO FAST!!! I'm thinking he's my last baby and I don't want to let go, miss anything, or make him grow too fast! He's a very smiley baby and LOVES his daddy! He enjoys watching big brother and has just found a new growl/voice thing...it's so cute!

Right now Lincoln are waiting excitedly for Uncle Ken and Aunt RuthAnn to get in. They are moving to Greenville from Colorado and should be here soon! RuthAnn will be traveling with the quartet (that Joe travels with,) playing the piano. We are excited for this opportunity for them and happy to have family in town! With that happening, Joe and I have been looking for a house to buy thinking this might mean we will be here longer. 

so...kids, house hunting, in-laws moving in town, some preschooling, church, and family time...I'll TRY to fit blogging in there. What should I blog about?

Beckham Scott is here! (late update)

Photo credit: Cathy VanLaanen

Beckham Scott arrived on Thursday, June 14, 2012 at 5:29am. He weighed 7lbs. 7oz., and was 18.5 in. long. (not as big as I was predicting) Delivery went smoothly and we are adjusting nicely to being a family of four!

Sorry for not keeping up to date like I did with my pregnancy. I hardly touched my computer in that first week of being home. My parents came in the day after Beckham was born and we stayed busy with trips to downtown, the flee market, and stuff around the house. I felt really good after this delivery, that sitting around while mom and dad were in town didn't make much sense. 

Lincoln enjoying some time with Grandpa!

When Beckham was about two weeks, we took a trip up to Midland, MI to visit Joe's family. It was such a wonderful stay. HOT, but fun times with family and friends! Joe and I really missed Michigan and did not want to leave! :)

photo credit: Natalie Everson

Grandparents and all the grandchildren (minus Beckham) at the Saginaw Zoo!

photo credit: Natalie Everson

Lincoln with his cousin Kevin at the Concert in the Park before the fireworks.

photo credit: Natalie Everson

Lincoln was so excited for the fireworks! But he must have forgotten how loud they can be!

photo credit: RuthAnn Everson

Lincoln and his Aunt RuthAnn!

On our way home we stopped by my sister's in Indiana. Lincoln always loves going to Aunt Brooke's and Uncle Everett's! (He remembers the Christmas presents...)

(photo credit goes to Brooke)
Lincoln and Beckham enjoying their Aunt Brooke!

I'm slowly getting back into the swing of things. It's nice to have my energy back. Even though I'm now getting up for midnight feedings, it's not the same as pregnancy exhaustion. It feels really good to have my body back. Now I'm hoping to start working out soon. I'd like to try running. I've never tried and I've always hated running. I'm interested in giving the Couch to 5K running a try. (Pinterest find) My plan is to start next week as I will then be 5.5 weeks postpartum. I'm also (slowly) reading through the book called 'Move it Mom! How to get your body back after baby.' (previously free kindle book) I REALLY want to commit to some type of work out! I'm SO bad at it. I just don't have enough motivation....BUT...I'm gonna try this time! :) I can use all the encouragement I can get!

For the most part my days consist of nursing, diaper changing, PBS, and Netflix. Adventuring out on my own with a newborn is still scary to me. I did go grocery shopping with both kids last week, but it was a quick trip and Beckham got pretty mad at the end... He won't try a bottle or paci for moments like those. Hopefully he will change his mind soon!

Joe had a little break from traveling on the weekends with the quartet and will be back at it starting this weekend. The schedule looks pretty full all through the fall. I'm not sure how much I'll travel with him this fall.  

photo credit: Natalie Everson

It was really neat to have the quartet sing at our 'home church,' Calvary Baptist in Midland.

Ever since we got back from Midland, Joe's had the artist's itch again and is pumping out some really cool art. You can see what he's been up to here.

I feel that I have so much more to update everyone on...maybe this will get me back into blogging more! You may have noticed that I like to steal people's pictures. That's another thing I want to work on...taking my own pictures so that I have something to show for on my blog! I have ideas and hope to keep you all up to date more than I have been!

So with that, here's one that I LOVE! :)
First signs of Beckham's smile!

Pregnancy Update: 33 weeks and 1 day!

How far along: 33 weeks, 1 day

I hate how my hair is the same style in every shot. I should start taking pics on Sundays. That's when I actually do my hair!

Countdown: 6 weeks, 6 days

Size of baby: Large cantaloupe! (19-22in, 5.5lbs)

Maternity clothes: Anything long and stretchy! Dresses and tanks with bikini top underneath!!! (hot week)

Movement: His kicks, punches, stretches, (whatever he's doing) HURT!!! At times it feels like a heel is stuck up in between my lung and rib cage! I do not remember Lincoln being quite as active as this one! And LOTS of hiccups!!!

What I miss: My body pillow....

Sleep: Can't get comfortable...heartburn and indigestion always starts right before bed.

Symptoms: Like I said, still more heartburn. Clumsy, pregnancy brain, tired, and lazy..... (maybe some of these aren't REALLY pregnancy symptoms...) :-/

Cravings: Anything with chocolate! I've been eating these chocolate covered, peanut butter granola bars from Aldi's....(hence the heartburn probably) oh yum!  

Best moment of the week: my doctor telling me that she's liking the progress, and to keep eating whatever I've been eating! More chocolate granola bars for me!!! :) OH!! and finding a $70 high chair for $17 at Walmart! Woohoo!

What I'm looking forward to: Getting the kid's room finished.

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Let's hear it for the boys Link up at The Mob Society

Day 2 of #21Days4Sons ~ The Importance of Obedience

I'm taking part in the #21Days4Sons over at The MOB Society where we are reading Warrior Prayers for the first 21 days of May.

So far we are in day 2 and I'm really enjoying the challenges, the book, and praying the scripture for my sons.

Today's topic is on Obedience. I was challenged by how important it is for me, as the mother, to teach my son(s) Biblical obedience. I'm the type of person that likes a visual aid, and I love the example that the author gave us on how the teaching of obedience lies a great opportunity in sharing the Gospel message with my son. She used it like this:

“Son, you’re right. You didn’t obey mommy.  God says you must obey mommy and daddy, doesn’t He?  It’s hard to obey, isn’t it?  Everything in you wants your own way!  It’s fun to hit your brother sometimes.  It’s fun to be too loud and sometimes, it makes you feel good about yourself to tell mommy no.  But God, Who made you, says you must obey.  You can’t do it by yourself, can you?  No matter how hard you try to be good and obey mommy, you just can’t get it right all the time.  That’s why we love God so much, Son!  He knew you couldn’t do it by yourself!  He knew you would choose to sin instead of obey!  He knew you would need help!  So He sent His only Son Jesus to die for your sins and take the punishment you deserved.  Then God raised Jesus from the dead and now Jesus is with God in heaven, just waiting for you to confess your sin and ask Him to help you fight the sin in your heart!  Isn’t that great news?  We need Jesus! Let’s pray now and ask Jesus to help you!”

(McGlothlin, Brooke (2011-05-02). Warrior Prayers: Praying the Word for Boys in the Areas They Need it Most (Kindle Locations 318-325).  . Kindle Edition.) 

I'm seeing that I really need to take these opportunities when they come about and teach my son how important it is to obey. I sometimes tend to be a "fly by the seat of my pants" parent mostly because I'm too lazy to get to the heart of the issue. My prayer for myself is that I will have a plan and a renewed vision on the importance of teaching obedience to my son.

"If our boys never learn the importance of obeying and see their inability to obey by themselves, how will they ever recognize their need for a Savior?"

WOW!! I hope and pray that I will set an example of obedience for my son(s)! Today was revealing and I'm looking forward to see what else is ahead in the #21Days4Sons.

Today's Warrior Prayers through the Scripture:

Warrior Prayers for OBEDIENCE

• Whether it is favorable or unfavorable, may Lincoln obey the Lord our God so that it will go well with him (Jeremiah 42:6). 
• May Lincoln obey his parents in the Lord, for this is right (Ephesians 6:1)
• May Lincoln obey his leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over his soul, as those who will have to give an account. Let Lincoln do this with joy and not with groaning (Hebrews 13:17). 
• May Lincoln obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29). 
• May Lincoln return to the Lord his God, and obey with all his heart and all his soul all the commands God has given (Deuteronomy 30:2).
• May Lincoln walk after the Lord his God and fear Him and keep His commandments and obey His voice.  May Lincoln serve Him and hold fast to Him (Deuteronomy 13:4). 
• May Lincoln stop his sinning and begin to obey the Lord his God (Jeremiah 26:13). 
• May Lincoln obey Jesus’ commandments, and remain in His love (John 15:10). 
• May Lincoln show his love for Christ by obeying His commands (John 14:15). 
• May we be full of joy at Lincoln’s obedience (Romans 16:19). 

Warrior Prayers for SUBMISSION TO AUTHORITY

• May Lincoln obey his leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over his soul, as those who will have to give an account.  Let him do this with joy and not with groaning (Hebrews 13:17). 
• May Lincoln submit himself therefore to God.  May he resist the devil, so he will flee from him (James 4:7).
• May Lincoln submit to laborers of the Gospel and to everyone who joins in the work (1 Corinthians 16:16).
• May Lincoln submit to others out of reverence for Christ (Ephesians 5:21).
• May Lincoln be subject to the Father of spirits and live (Hebrews 12:9). 
• May Lincoln agree with God, and be at peace; so good will come to him (Job 22:21). 
• May Lincoln be subject to the governing authorities.  For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God (Romans 13:1).
• May Lincoln submit himself to the Lord (2 Chronicles 30:8).
• May Lincoln, who is younger, be subject to the elders.  May he clothe himself with humility toward others, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (1 Peter 5:5). 
• For freedom Christ has set us free; may Lincoln stand firm therefore, and not submit again to a yoke of slavery (Galatians 5:1). 

If you're interested in joining in and would like to pray along with us for our sons, grandsons, and/or future sons (like sons in-law), go to The MOB Society for more information! I won't be posting everyday, but I do usually tweet some thoughts through out the day on the topic that's given, if you'd like to follow along: follow @bethanyev

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My lesson from my son on parenting and God...

I had this little thought(s) go through my head the other morning as I was trying to start my morning devotions.

As my son is watching his morning cartoons, drinking his chocolate milk, he's constantly talking, asking, replaying the scene he just saw, and is constantly saying, "mom, mom, MOM!!!" 

"WHAT?! WHAT DO YOU WANT, YOUR FINE!!! 

Can you just PLEASE be quiet, and sit still for a little bit as I try to read my Bible?" 

(Now know this: I'm tired...I know that I've been short with him lately, I feel like a horrible mother, the house work is piling up, I just want to be in bed till baby gets here....that's where I'm at... that's why my response is so...fleshy)

My thoughts turned to, how do we sound to God? As His children, does He hear, "God, God, GOD, over here, look, LOOK over here! See?! hey, hey HEY!!! are you paying attention?!" Are we always asking sounding so selfishly for things that we probably don't need or deserve? Do we sound like annoying little children?

But then as I started my morning in Psalm 27 and was reading about God, being our shelter and how he never leaves us, and is always a caring God for His children, I was rebuked by my thinking process from earlier on. God has a concern for His children, He cares. So much more than I ever will for my son. 

So during those times when I'm asking God repeatedly, over and over, with a child like attitude, He actually shows that He's concerned and pays attention to my needs. As a parent I saw how I was not always responding to my son's needs with the right attitude. With CONCERN, with CARE.

Then I read more on how the psalmist has confidence in God. Confidence in God's care and protection and confidence in knowing that God will never forsake him. This made me think of a child like faith. My son, as he's young, has the confidence in me for his protection. In his little mind, I'm never going to leave him, I'll always be there to take care of him. Now as he grows older he'll grow to understand that as humans, this isn't always possible and he'll learn to trust God, but in his mind for now, he's fully confident in me. Am I like that with God? Do I have that kind of faith?

I was not ready for my morning to be (really a lesson from my son) a rebuke on my parenting skills, for the parenting lessons and example of how God is to His children.

So here are some lessons/reminders for me:

• I learned that I need to work on my response and to be more patient with my son and show that I care just as God shows His children
• I learned that I need to be a better example to my son of God's care and concern
• I was reminded of the child like faith and that I too can have confidence in my God just as my son has in me. (But with God it's for oh so much more!)
• In the end I'm praising God for His care over me and that He's concerned and apart of every part in my life. Knowing that I can have confidence over everything because He is with me is such a help in this journey through motherhood!

Our children need to see Christ in our lives, and need to see us live it out on a daily basis. I'm no super Christian by any means and am still growing and stretching like every other Christian. I'm always learning and don't want to stop. I thought that maybe I'd share some of my thoughts as I've enjoyed reading others go through some of the same experiences/lessons. 

Has there been anything that God is teaching/shown you recently? Please share! Thanks for stopping by!

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My bookshelf

I've been in a reading mood lately. Most of my bookshelf contains mothering/parenting books. My problem is that I will start a book, get to a spot that doesn't interest me, I'll take a long break, or something happens like I'm too busy, or I'll find a different book. After a while, I'm half way through 5 different books not being able to retain a whole lot. So, I've been trying to be good, not to rent anything from the library, so that I can give myself time to read what I have at home and actually finish them. I've been picking up books through paperbackswap.com and plan on swapping them back for the others that are on my wishlist! Thought I'd share, I know it's a lot. But I hope to at least read 15 books with in the year! Is that a lot? I've never counted or kept track how many books I've read...This is a first.

Here's where I'll start.
Learning to Live Financially Free by Marybeth & Curt Whalen (started months ago and would really like to finish it this month...)
The Power of a Postive Wife by Karol Ladd (JUST started)
Savoring Living Water by Lara Williams and Katie Orr (click on picture to go to the website)
(Fun read) The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

What's on your bookshelf that you have read or would like to read? I might like to add it myself! Let me know if you've read and recommend any that are on my list!

Shelfari: Book reviews on your book blog

My daily routine (a work in progress)

In my ramblings here and here, I mentioned a few times that I knew things had to change and most of it had to do with my mindset. My mind was going to mush as I was just going through my day with no plan, no goals, and I wasn't really doing anything to help with my relationship with God. As morning sickness was starting to become a thing of the past, and energy was coming back, and a few nesting aspects were settling in, I wanted to start working on my morning/daily schedule. 


But where to start?


Just then I started reading a blog series from Money Saving Mom called: How to Develop a Routine That Works - and Stick With It! 


Crystal had us start out by looking for the "Big Rocks in Life" and what mattered to us most in our routine. She had us ask ourselves: "What are the most important things I want to be prioritizing in my life right now?" I took time to write these down on paper so that I could visually see my "Big Rocks."


Here's the list that I came up with:
1. Alone time with God/prayer life
2. Preschool with my son at home
3. Family time (reducing computer/tv)
4. Housework
5. Couponing/Menu plannin
6. Blogging/social media
7. Exercise 



The next thing we worked on was creating a basic Morning, Afternoon, and Evening Routines. I adapted a routine from Crystal's printouts you can find here. You can download a customizable one if you'd like for free! :)

And that's how I started coming up my goal. (It's just a little goal, but it's something) My goal is to maintain a half way decent routine so that my day wouldn't be so chaotic, lazy and nothing would get done. SOMETHINGS were going to get done!!!!


So...here's a peak at my Daily To Do/cleaning list:


Before Breakfast
Bible/Prayer time
Work out
Shower and Dress
Quick clean up over bathroom
Start load of laundry
School Prep


After Breakfast
Clean up breakfast dishes
Unload & load dishwasher
Wipe kitchen counter tops
Thaw anything needed for dinner
5-minute pick up
Switch load of laundry


After Lunch
Clean up lunch dishes
Load dishwasher
Sweep Kitchen Floor
5-minute pick up
Check something off the Weekly To Do/cleaning list


Before Dinner
Dinner prep
Fold Load of Laundry and put away
5-minute pick up


After Dinner
Clean up dinner dishes
Load dishwasher and run
Pick out tomorrow's clothes


My day does not go like this on a normal basis. I'm lucky if I get a somewhat regular routine done during the day! It used to bother me when I'd start my day thinking I'll have everything crossed off, and by the end I would be no where close to having it all crossed off. So I would get frustrated and end up giving up.


This time I told myself to start slow, try it for a few weeks and see what happens. I can always tweak my schedule to what works best. So far the best thing is just sticking to it, slowly chipping away, not worrying about the stuff that didn't get done, and instead focus on my family more.


These were just the first two steps of the blog series. I'm still working on 3 and 4! 


Later this week I'll blog on how the schedule has been going so far, and list my Weekly to do list for you to see!

Before you go...

What's your daily routine like for you and your family?

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Thoughts on this wife and motherhood thing...and what's helped me along the way.

OK....first things first....HOW DO I EDIT IN BLOGGER?! I just had a nice looking layout, type, and even color. Now NOTHING is working! What am I doing wrong?! *vent*

The following ramblings are thoughts that have been going through my head mainly on my role as a child of God, a wife, and a mother. The main reason for me to write this out is just to clear some thoughts, organize what’s in my head, and serve as a sort of accountability for myself. I encourage you to join in if you have any comments, tips, or ideas. Thanks! :)

I feel that God has been challenging me through so many different avenues with in the last couple weeks. I don't know how or where to put my thoughts down right now. I feel somewhat scattered brained, but also feel the most peace I've ever felt in a long time.

Jn. 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world give do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

Phil. 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication and thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

I don't know if it's the combination of joy and contentment, a renewed spirit and trust, or just sweet reunion and everything wrapped up all together in one. But God has been and IS good at restoring and reveling Himself to me in ways that I've forgotten about, and in ways I've never even considered. He's brought people into my path that has helped me to learn and grow, and He's helped me in reminding me of the others that have been in my life forever and their sweet example that they have or have had in my life.

2 Cor. 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

So please bear with me as I try to explain or share what God is doing in my life. It may seem very simple to some. I've never been someone that could explain what’s in my head. Communicating how I feel or wanting to express something clearly was never my strength. I'm still growing in this process of wife/motherhood and especially in my Christian walk. I like to say I've always had a sweet personal relationship with my Savior, but not till just recently, do I truly feel like I've found that 'sweet spot.' That rekindling, reunion I was talking about. And I think a lot of it had to do with my mindset of who I really am as a wife and mother. I've had to re-think some things through and come to realize my ministry and my calling for the RIGHT NOW in my life. (Which I plan to talk about more in another post.)

Ps. 1:3 He [she] is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in it's season, and it's leaf does not wither. In all that he [she] does, he [she] prospers.

I don’t want to forget this, or lose it. I want this feeling to stay. So as I start going through this process of bearing my thoughts, soul, and feelings to the world, (or the few that read this) maybe this will mainly just help serve as a way to keep me accountable in my walk. Maybe it can be a help as a challenge for all of us to find that sweet relationship we either once had or want to have.

Ps. 1:1 Blessed [happy] is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; bit his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.

As I reintroduced myself back into the blogging world, I dove into the ‘Christian mommy side of things’ and found some really awesome ladies that have really encouraging blogs and topics with awesome resources. I thought I’d list some of the ones that I've personally enjoyed.

DoNotDepart.com has some great bible study topics for moms/women. I really enjoyed going through the names of God under the Scripture Dig section of their website. Just recently I started going through their Winter Bible Study called “Run to Him” where we are exploring Psalms together.

GraceFullMomma.com is going through a series called “Cultivating a Heart for Motherhood.” The series goes through the significance of motherhood, some obstacles in motherhood, anger and patience, and more! I've been blessed through this series and challenged through the printouts provided.

LivingDevotionally.com is a part of DoNotDepart.com (Most of these blogs are somehow connected either by authors, groups, books, etc…). Through this site I found an AWESOME book that has challenged me with my devotions. I’m still reading it and wish I had a hard copy. It just seems harder for me to read a book through my phone or computer. But what I've read so far has been great! It's called: “Savoring Living Water: how to have an effective quiet time”

TheMOBSociety.com For Moms of Boys, by Moms of Boys. A great site on mothering boys. They have some great looking books that I've already purchased for my kindle app, but still haven’t gotten the time to read them. I can’t wait to start!

InspiredToAction.com is where I found a great (free) ebook called, “Maximize Your Mornings.” “This ebook [is] to help busy moms like you create an effective and life giving morning routine.” Through this short book, I was challenged to write out my plan for my morning schedule. (Which, I will be sharing later in another post.)

Because of all these great sites and openness of these Godly women, one of the biggest things that has helped and is such a HUGE encouragement is this: knowing that I’m not alone in this motherhood thing. I’m not alone in wanting to know my God more. We all struggle but desire to be closer to our God more than anything else. And the tighter we cling to Him, the better we can and will be at this wife and mothering thing He has called us in to. Getting up early (my struggle) is not an easy task and it takes time and effort and realizing that we need to fully rely on Him for the grace and strength each day. It just takes coming to Him and asking.

Another thing that God has challenged me was on my prayer life. I like to journal my thoughts, but I felt like I should give praying out scripture a try! I've been really enjoying this. Here are some prayer sheets with Scripture on praying for our kids and husbands each day (and other great resources): http://inspiredtoaction.com/resources/

I can really see God doing a work in my son’s heart. He’s sensitive to and understands the Bible stories and likes to retell the stories after question and answer time. Just this past week we went through the story of sin in the Garden of Eden. I was so cool to see his mind work around the concept of God not allowing disobedience and how there's consequences because of our disobedience. Now, if you just come up to him and ask him to tell you the story, he might say something like "God tricked Eve," or "Satan said the fruit was bad..." Understand, these are new concepts and we're working on it! ;) But it's cute to hear him try!

back on topic....

So through all that, (the finding of resources, encouragement, challenges, and a new sense of my mission as a wife and mommy...)I knew I had to change my morning schedule. That will be my next post. I’ll share my schedule that I’ve created and how it worked out for me this past week. My goal is to stick to it for at least two weeks and see where I will need to go from there.

I hope that you enjoyed reading this post and maybe even found some new resources that will encourage you to grow as it has for me. I felt the need to share because I know how discouraging and hard motherhood can be at times, especially for young moms. I may have it easy now, as I’m only dealing with one set of little eyes, hands, and ears, soon to be two….and I may not have the experience of a mother with 12 children, but I do know that even with just one....

any knowledge of others dealing with the same things helps!

So....

How about you? What has been your greatest challenge as a Christian, wife, and/or mommy? How do you keep you walk consistent? What kind of books, resources, blogs, or websites do you go to for encouragement? Any advice, tips, and/or ideas for young moms who may be discouraged? What helped you to stick with your morning routine/quiet time?

Too many questions?! :)

Silly faces with mommy!

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