Early Rising---Having a Plan

I'm still focused on my Early Rising Experiment even though I haven't had a lot to say about it in the last couple of weeks. I continue to rise with Justus and then put him back down so that I have a little alone time before the rush hits. I had some days of being really bad and going to bed very late and thus I slept in more as a result but for the most part I'm still trying to make early rising a very consistent habit.

One of the biggest things I've noticed is how much a little planning affects one's day. In the excellent book, Shopping for Time, Carolyn Mahaney mentions that 15 minutes of planning can save you 4 hours of time later. This is so true! If I don't set goals for my week and for my day, I seem to accomplish so little and squander hours and forget about things I could be doing or should be doing. If I sit down and plan for a few minutes, whether the night before, or after breakfast while the kids play, or before the family arises it makes a world of difference in motivation and perspective. So, I would challenge you, that even if the early rising thing doesn't work for you in your current situation, at least carve out some time each day to make a few goals and plan out what your week is going to look like. You'll be amazed how much more focused you will be when you take the time to prioritize your to-do list and proactively reach for your goals instead of just letting life happen to you and steal your time away.

Some of Mrs. Jo's Current Favorite Products--Fine Things Indeed

This is one of my new favorite baby products! I never had one for my other children but I sure wish I had! You can chop up fruits and veggies, soft meats, cheese cubes, or even put cheerios in it and it allows baby to feed himself. For someone who does NOT like to spoon-feed babies baby food and get pureed carrots spit in their face, this handy little tool is a Mommy's best friend. Some folks put popsicle or ice chips in it for teething relief too. You can find them in almost any store these days and they cost around $6 for a package of 2 of them. Justus doesn't need it as much anymore as he eats regular food now but I still use it when I want to contain the mess! It's dishwasher safe and fairly easy to clean by hand if you wash it right away.

This travel bag was a gift from my husband a couple of Christmases ago. On my recent weekend trip I was reminded again how much I love the convenience this bag offers! You can buy them from a variety of companies and in various sizes depending on trip length and family size and they make it easy to find everything you need when getting ready for your day. I keep mine fully stocked with travel-size bathroom items so that the only thing I need to add when packing for a trip is a few make-up items and I'm ready to go in a flash!

Travel Bag

This reed diffuser from Pier 1 is my favorite new product for making my home a haven. I recently visited my sweet Aunt Joanie and admired her newly remodeled and decorated living room. She had several of these reed diffusers around the house and I'd never tried them before. They smelled wonderful! In typical Aunt Joanie fashion, she whipped out a brand new one and gave it to me after I said I liked them! All of my moms' sisters are generous to a fault! =) I took mine home and placed it on the shelf above the kitchen sink and now when I'm doing dishes I smell the lovely, invigorating scent of citrus fig. I like these because they look kind of unique and fun and you don't have to remember to light them or blow them out as you do with candles. I haven't tried any other brands yet but this one doesn't smell heavy, toxic, or artificial but very fresh, natural, and light.

Reed Diffusers from Pier 1

For more on The Finer Things in Life visit here.

Monday Morning Bliss

I'm all excited to continue spring cleaning projects this week and read the great articles at Simple Mom on decluttering, decorating, and organizing. I feel a renewed burst of energy to get things done after my weekend away and am ready to tackle the last of my projects. I hope by the end of the week to have:

*Gone through my Tickler File
*Cleaned my closet
*Sorted my important paper file
*Papered my kitchen utensil drawers
*Organized kitchen shelves to make things more efficient
*Straightened my sewing desk drawers


My mom and I went to the "big city" of Cheyenne this weekend for one of my dear friends' weddings. Heather and I have been friends/penpals for 13 years and have shared some of the best times in Christian Youth in Action and Child Evangelism Fellowship work in our teen years. She has always dreamed of marriage and has wanted to be married for years and God wrote her a beautiful love story and an amazing man found her and swept her off her feet! I'm so happy for her, and thankful that I decided to go in spite of the work it was to travel. My mom was feeling kind of sick this week and I had a super busy week and had tons of housework to catch up on and we've had some unexpected expenses come up so I wasn't sure I should spend the time and money to go. But my hubby strongly encouraged me to and said our finances would be fine and my mom and I decided that it would be MORE exhausting to stay home and be bombarded with chores. For a mom of young kids and a schoolteacher in the month of May, sitting in a car for 4-5 hours each way is relaxing!!! We haven't had a lot of time to just visit lately so we talked non-stop the entire way there and back and had a lovely time together at the wedding. It was so nice not to be correcting little ones all the time or to have much responsibility. I went an entire day without hearing whining, crying, fighting, and begging for food and drinks! It was fun to see old CEF friends who are dear to us and to be treated to a wonderful meal at the reception. We found a hotel for $45 and it was very clean and nice and thus we didn't have to try to drive back late into the night, considering we both are horrible night drivers and have night blindness. Justus was his typical angelic self and traveled wonderfully and some friends' parents babysat him for us during the reception since it was an adult-only reception.

I had been feeling overwhelmed with all of the endless household chores a mommy has to do last week and so I had hinted that for Mother's Day, all I wanted was a house that STAYS clean; an impossibility, I know! My hubby decided to bless me bigtime and I returned home to a perfectly spotless, immaculate, straightened, vacuumed and scrubbed home. All the laundry done and folded and put away, all the dishes done and sink scoured, etc. Shiloh would have been proud had she seen it! He also had baked two apple pies from scratch with the kids (said it took 3 hours) and had made me some cute cards for me with the kiddoes. Our lawn had been looking awful all last week and we hadn't had a chance to mow because we had stuff to do every single night of the week. So, when I arrived home the lawn was all trimmed and the weeds and brush were whacked. He had met the neighbors for the first time and worked out a nice agreement with them on lawn mowing details too. My hubby wanted the extra pie to go to bless a mother in need so it was delivered to a Mama who recently lost a baby to premature birth and another baby to miscarriage.


It was quite the dramatic improvement to see all this work done when last week I was feeling like clean and neat was un-attainable!

Because of this marvelous gift from my family, I feel like I have new energy to tackle spring cleaning and now that the usual typical household chores are out of the way, I can spend more time Monday and Tuesday on the things that I never seem to have leftover time for. I must admit, a part of me wonders how King Jo accomplished so much with the little kids around. He's putting me to shame as a homemaker! Either he stayed up half the night cleaning or I'll never measure up to his home-cleaning abilities! I do know he served them PB sandwiches and Ramen, kept them outside a lot and away from the house, and didn't have Justus to care for. Funny thing is that Jer has been wearing undies to church for a few months and has never had an accident in church. The week Daddy is alone with the kids, Jer wet his pants in Sunday School. So King Jo ran home, got him clothes, and came back to church. Then Jer wet them again during the worship service!!! Daddy said being Mr. Mom was fun but he never had a moment's rest!

The Best of COF---How Our Hubbies Got Hooked

My husband helped me figure stuff out so I can paste articles here again from my newsletter The Circle of Friends. So, after a break last week, The Best of COF is back! This published in August of 2006 and was intended for my single readers who were interested in what qualities a godly man is looking for. I share it here today in honor of my friend Heather who is getting married today! We met in Christian Youth in Action teaching 5-Day Clubs together when we were 14 and today her lifelong dream of becoming a bride is coming true!!!

How Our Hubbies Got Hooked

“If you want a model man you must be a model woman.” Kay Arthur

God is definitely in charge of bringing us the right man at the right time. He wants single women to delight in Him first and foremost, not to be chasing after men. Nevertheless, it’s interesting and encouraging for single women to hear what qualities God used to draw these men to the women they are now married to. Circle of Friend’s Reader’s hubbies speak out!

I appreciated her ability to laugh with me and at me! She was easy-going and I found her very beautiful and attractive.
Nathan, MN

I was hooked by my wife's beautiful face, and her good hygiene with an emphasis in nice smell/style.
Sam, MN

Thanks to God's leading, I was looking for certain qualities in a girl, and she happened to embody them. Some of those qualities were her standards like choosing not to date, dressing modestly/discreetly. Another quality I saw was that she had a good relationship with her family, and that she had studied the Bible and understood what a godly wife's role is. I also saw that she was teachable: not obstinate about subjective issues.
Will, ND

"Hands down" the number one reason is that she was an excellent example of Christ-like character. She could also do anything--I guess that means she has confidence, is independent and adventuresome, and has a go-get-'em attitude. She was also in good shape!
Jeff, CA

Desperation is a huge turn-off. I was hooked because my wife wasn’t at all desperate for a man, but was walking closely with the Lord and showed signs of spiritual maturity.
Josiah, WY

What drew me was that she was fun, confident, loved God, loved children, loved her family, took care of herself, was positive overall, and we were generally like-minded spiritually, politically and socially,...she also wasn't a pushover, and didn't bad mouth where she was or those around her, she wasn't negative about her life....
Paul, MT

I was drawn to these qualities:
1. Looks
2. Hard working
3. Bubbly personality
Kevin, MN

Personality, looks, and good hygiene were a few attractions to my wife.
Jay, MN

What attracted me to Laura was her modesty, obvious love for Christ and friendliness. I loved the fact that she wore dresses, it attracted me to her, and made me even more curious about her. Plus, she was very beautiful! And even friends with my sister! It was definitely made to be!
Joshua, MN

The 3 things that hooked me when it comes to my wife:
Natural beauty
Woman that loves the Lord
Fun personality
Brady, UT

I was hooked by her personality and friendliness. It was nice that she liked being active; like going on trips and doing outdoor things with me.
Allen, WY

I appreciated her modest clothing. Also, when we were engaged, I liked how she went around the house singing praise songs, and looked forward to her doing that in our home.
Jacob, MN

What attracted me to Sarah the most is how deeply committed to the Lord she is. I knew that if we were married there would be three people in the relationship: myself, Sarah, and God, and I was very happy about that! Sarah is also a very caring person. This stems from her profession of nursing and extends into every facet of her life. I am so grateful to have a wife with such a big heart. Along with caring, I found out that she could also be firm in her beliefs and able to handle herself well in most any situation. I hope I can be as good at keeping our kids in-line as I believe she will do once we start a family. I am grateful that we share some common interests, and she even takes an interest in some of my hobbies as well. As long as she can put up with the questions of "So, who's your little one?" from inquisitive fans at games, I hope she will continue to attend soccer matches I referee. She even goes as far as to let me watch NASCAR's go round and round in circles on Sunday afternoons during the summer.
Brad, MN

Cleanin' Up

My new little duster (which is so cute that the kiddoes beg me to let them dust) and my microfiber rag, ready to be put to work!!!!

My spring cleaning plans got a little sidetracked this week because of busy times and events but that is why I am taking this process bit by bit and doing what I can do. I'm always trying to organize and more effectively manage our home and yet there is only so much you can get done with 3 little kids. Does anyone else feel like they're just "treading water" constantly with cleaning? Often, I get so overwhelmed with the sheer amount of work looming over me. I've told my husband, "I have 20 hours worth of work to do and only 10 hours to get it done in!"


Since I try to stay on top of things, there aren't enormous messes calling my name but just the day-to-day cleaning, cooking, and laundry is enough to keep me hopping. I'd like to de-clutter my bedroom again, line the kitchen shelves with pretty paper, and shampoo all the carpets before May is over and then I'll feel like "spring cleaning" is over for a while. I also plan to host a yard sale in a few weeks too!



I've so enjoyed the posts at Simple Mom this week and the links she has given to Organizing Your Way. I've also been reading Simplify Your Life, which is a book about home management and organization that Miss Jenny, Ali's teacher, loaned me. Some people would say I'm extremely organized and have very little possessions but I never feel like my home is perfect or as organized as I want it to be. There always seem to be more piles and clutter to deal with! I have tried to imitate my super-clean friends at times and have a home where every room in the whole house is spotless but it is exhausting, overwhelming, and not-attainable for me at this stage of my life with the amount of space we have (or don't have) and the ages of children I have. I'm asking God to provide a dishwasher in the near future if it would be His will. I do what I can and try not to worry about the rest. After all "only God gets His to-do list done every day!!!" (quote from Mahaney).




I have really enjoyed reading "Biblical Productivity" (an online PDF mini-book) by C.J. Mahaney and being reminded to keep my priorities in line. If I'm glorifying God, serving and loving my own husband and kids, and reaching out to others with Christ's love, then that is what counts. It's so easy to get sidetracked from these things even for very good and worthy pursuits. I love what he has to say about roles and goals and redeeming your time so you can be truly productive instead of just busy.


Happy spring cleaning to those of you who are plugging away at it right now too!

Hurray!!!!

Been waiting to hear about our dear friends' new baby? Go to Jesse's blog for an update! We survived the busy day and night and all 5 kids were asleep by 8:30 p.m. Praise the Lord! Carsen, Kennedy, and Ali are off to preschool, and I'm off to the shower before I go meet the little sweetheart. I find it incredibly ironic that Crystal had her baby just 12 minutes before Shiloh! I was excitedly waiting for both of these births this month and they happened on the same day! Crystal was about 7 days overdue and Shiloh was 3 days before her due date.

Busy and Exciting Day!

Mrs. Jo won't be blogging much today even though she has an abundance of post ideas running through her brain. She is occupied with other special things, such as babysitting twins.........=)

Two Year Olds

This is my second round at having a two year old. What have I learned thus far? That I really don't like having a two year old!!! I like him and I love being a mom, and yes, there are some cute things about this age, but overall, toddlerhood is so not my favorite stage!!! While Ali is gradually getting less strong-willed and more fun to be around in her zeal to learn and to do things for herself, Jer is becoming our most difficult child for a season. Now, there is a MAJOR difference in the way they have been/are at age two. It is HARD to have a 2 year old, it is INFINITELY hard to have the strongest-willed kid in the world be two years old!!! Yet, Jeremiah is still a challenge.

Just when I thought we were done potty training we went to Billings and let Jer use a diaper for the car trips. Then he came home with a horrible cold and started having accidents because he didn't feel well. So, though I was very frustrated with the messes, knowing that we had once been past that, we persevered through getting him back to going all the time in the potty. And yet, he'll go through spurts of having accidents and then being really diligent about taking himself to the potty. I know boys are harder to train and that potty-training takes a while, but the whole potty-training stuff is one small part of why toddlerhood is rough on me.

Jer doesn't explore or get into as much as Ali did but he's always moving, always making messes, and always talking. And sometimes Mommy just needs a break. Which is why I'm thankful he's an awesome napper and usually naps 3 hours in the afternoon. If I have the option to leave one kid home on the weekend when going somewhere, I try to leave Jer home since he is the hardest to keep track of these days!

Overall, Jer is still an incredibly tenderhearted little guy. He cries over every reprimand and scolding and lately even if Ali just blows in his face or says, "RAAA!" Of course she can't resist doing this over and over since his reaction is terror and tears. I'm forever telling her to be kind and telling him to toughen up. He cries when Justus cries and when Ali gets disciplined or scolded too. It just dawned on me the other day that he is very appropriately named after the weeping prophet in the Bible since he cries over everything and has always been the sensitive, emotional type.

Jer is fascinated with snakes and bugs and racecars and lions and frontloaders and tractors and fourwheelers. He loves to play outside and do all the typical "boy" things. He is thrilled over the trip we are planning to go to the Denver zoo this summer and talks about it all the time.

Recent cute comments from Jer-Bear:

"Mommy, look at my butt! It's a really big butt!" (Everything needs to be BIG when you are two.)

"Mommy, you are my fwend. I love you!"

"I love you too!" (Even before you say it to him, he will say this to everyone.)

Nowadays he usually says "I don't want that" only to say "I want that" a second later. So, I just roll with it and try not to make everything a fight. Even when he says he doesn't want juice, I start filling his sippy knowing that by the time the top is on, he'll change his mind. And for all the hard stuff that comes with this age, at least my Jerby is always good for a hug and a long cuddle session and he is the most repentant child I've ever seen when he needs to be corrected.

May God give us grace and strength to deal with our toddlers!!!

Spring Cleaning Party!

Our freezer after a little organizing. After a couple of weeks of eating out of the pantry and just buying the basics, not stockpiling, it looks awfully bare!
Our messy, cluttered fridge


Wow! Much easier to find stuff now!

The back area of the pantry was becoming quite the eyesore

Now everything has a place. I hang my extra plastic bags off the window rod. My little sewing desk sits between the large box of recycle-ables and the pantry shelves. Notice my 50# bag of 6-Grain oats there! I got a deal on it through the bulk food club and had no idea how enormous it would be. We'll be baking with this stuff for a couple of years! (It's sitting on a hydrolic jack for those of you who wonder what that is!)

This tiny room doubles as a back entryway, a laundry room, a sewing room, and a pantry!

Are any of you joining the Spring Cleaning party over at Simple Mom? While I'm not following everything exactly like she lays it out, I am planning to read there daily for some added inspiration in sprucing up our house. I've hit some target areas recently so I'm not feeling like there's anything that needs TONS of attention, but there is always a list of never-ending stuff to do when you have a house full of children.

Oddly enough, today my spring cleaning has been working on raking and sweeping the front porch/yard since we haven't gotten around to that since we moved here and it's starting to look awful now that it's spring. Our grass seemed to grow high overnight so I'm hoping my hubby can borrow a mower and work on that tonight. We're going to purchase one in the next couple of weeks but the yard can't wait that long!

Since my friend Mrs. Clean recommended microfiber cloths for cleaning, I was thrilled to find them at Walmart on Saturday in the clearance aisle for $3 for a 12 pack. I've been using them and other then the icky, snaggy feeling on your fingers (I have to put lotion on before I want to touch them) they seem to do an INCREDIBLE job of cleaning!

Three 4 and Under--Holidays and Traditions

I was raised by a Mom who loves parties and celebrating. In fact, this year my mom had us over for St. Patrick's Day supper (even though we are not Irish), and threw a Valentine party for my kids as well as doing the one at school with her students. She always used to have us do May Baskets and big 4th of July picnics, Thanksgiving with all the trimmings, etc. I would love to continue many of those fun traditions with my own kids. I also get inspired by many women in the blog world and there are so many creative ideas to implement.

Yet one thing that became "relaxed" when #3 came into the family was holiday traditions. I mean, when it takes an hour just to get the kids rounded up and ready to go somewhere, I am plenty busy and tired just keeping them fed, dry, and clean let alone thinking up extras to do. Holidays can become so overwhelming because you have to do so many major preparations all at once: Either extra cleaning or packing for a big trip, preparing gifts or clothing, preparing lots of elaborate foods, church programs, etc. If you try to do too much you can easily burn out.

My solution?

In addition to being prepared and organized in advance and simplifying things based on my priorities of what are the most-important goals related to seasonal things, I'm realizing that I don't have to do it all at the same time. I can spread things out. The kids won't care! In fact, they enjoy it all the more! For example:

I really wanted to do a gingerbread house with Ali but didn't get one in December due to moving, having a fairly new baby, and having tons of holiday and church stuff to do and lots of family visits. It worked out WONDERFULLY anyway because I got 2 kits for $5 on after-Christmas clearances and we did one in February on a quiet, non-eventful day and will do one this summer!

I didn't find the princess dress cake until the day after Ali's birthday (of course!) So, instead of waiting another year to make it, I made it for my sister-in-law's bridal shower and she enjoyed watching!

We were going to do a "Celebrate Spring" day on the first day of spring and dye eggs, etc. Instead, we were really busy that day so we ended up having a big egg coloring day closer to Easter and even Daddy and Mommy got in on the fun!

We had planned to do May baskets, but ended up attending a fun hat-making tea party for moms and kids at Ali's preschool. Who's to say we can't do it in mid-May when some of our busiest days are over? The surprise will still be fun!

We didn't plan a huge Easter feast. Instead we ate at Subway after church and then went to my parent's house for a low-key picnic in the evening. I'm not one that absolutely has to have a very formal dinner for every holiday. I've often begged my mom to just order pizza on Thanksgiving to cut down on the stress!

We decided to only do a friends party for the kid's birthdays every other year instead of every year. Ali told all the little girls in her preschool she was having a birthday party so it was tough to tell her she really wasn't but she is excited for next year and she had a blast helping me make moon-themed stuff for her family party with us and Grammy and Boppa.

I thought it would be fun to host a mother/daughter tea around Mother's Day but we have a wedding and a graduation that weekend. So, sometime this summer I will probably get around to it and it will still be just as fun!

I'm not saying we get so lazy and unscheduled that we don't take the Christmas tree down until March or something like that. I'm also not saying that we don't celebrate the major holidays (Easter, Christmas, birthdays) on the actual day and go all out with special food and gifts. My point is that you can't do everything everyone else is doing, or even accomplish a lot of the seasonal things you would like to do. You will kill yourself trying if you do this when you have small children. So, I try to bite off bite-sized chunks these days. When my kids are all older, we will be able to throw fabulous parties and follow traditions more consistently, but for now, we can let some of the less important holidays and traditions slide or spread them out to do them on various days so that Mommy isn't overly tired or overwhelmed.

The Best of COF

I'm having trouble uploading The Best of COF to my blog. Everytime I try to paste my articles in here it shuts down. So, for the past few weeks I've re-typed them. Hopefully next Saturday I will have it figured out and can resume sharing Circle of Friends articles with you!

Ask Mrs. Clean

A couple of weeks ago I interviewed one of my best friends, Shiloh, about how she keeps her house immaculate at all times. But I forgot to encourage the readers to ask her some questions about keeping a clean home. So, here is your chance! Ask Shiloh whatever questions you have regarding cleaning and homemaking and she will do her best to answer as she has opportunity in the next few days. She will be answering in the comments section of this post. However, if she goes into labor, your questions will go unanswered ladies!

Delicious Dinner Recipes

Black Bean Veggie Casserole tastes like a Mexican lasagna

I wasn't going for beautiful folks, but no matter how it looks, it tastes good!
Topped with fresh, homemade salsa, it is unbelievable!!




Here are two of my favorite current recipes!



Black Bean Veggie Casserole

1 T. olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 medium zuchinnis, grated
1 19-ounce can black beans, rinsed
1 14-oz can diced tomatoes, drained
11/2 C. frozen or fresh corn
1 t. ground cumin
1 packet of taco seasoning mix
1/2 t. salt
12 corn tortillas, quartered
1 19-oz can enchilada sauce (green or red, mild or spicy)
11/4 C. shredded cheddar cheese


Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly coat a 9x13 with cooking spray.

I chop my zuchinnis and onion in a food processor to dice them quickly. Once the onion and zuchinnis are diced, heat the oil in a nonstick skillet and add the onion and zuchinni and cook for about 5 minutes until starting to turn brown. Then add beans, tomatoes, corn, cumin and salt and cook, stirring occasionally untilt he veggies are heated through.

Scatter half the tortillas in the baking dish. Top with half the veggies, half the enchilada sauce, and half the cheese. Repeat with one more layer. Cover with foil.
Bake the casserole 15 minutes. Take off foil and continue baking until the casserole is bubbling around the edges and cheese is melted (about 15 more minutes).

Lora's Baked Tomato Spaghetti

Sorry, no photo of this! But I can assure you it is delicious!

1# spaghetti (can use flavored noodles for extra nutrition if desired)

2 28-ounce cans of diced tomatoes (plain or flavored)

8 oz. cheddar cheese, grated

2/3 stick of butter cut into 1/2 inch slices

1. Cook the spaghetti in boiling water until it's a little chewy and drain well. Preheat the oven to 350 and butter a baking dish.

2. Arrange a third of the spaghetti in the baking dish and then top with a third of the tomatoes, a third of the cheese, and a third of the butter. Continue layering with reamining ingredients, ending with the butter.

3.Bake 50 minutes until the top is very well browned and crusty (yum!)

Serve with a salad and bread and you have a simple and frugal meal!

I have not experimented with cutting down on the butter but perhaps you could substitute some olive oil for the butter or cut down on the amount to make it a little healthier!

The Best Goal of the Year

Of all of the goals I made for 2009, the best goal I made by far was to read through the Bible in a year. I had done it once in high school and had gotten through most of it in OT and NT classes in Bible college, but had not done the thru-in-a-year plan since being married and becoming a mom.

I receive the Desiring God blog entries into my e-mail inbox every day (another huge spiritual encouragement) and found out about this plan, which after comparing to other similar plans, looked like a great option for me because it covers 4 sections of Scripture at a time and gives you 5 catch-up days each month, which I really need!

After one month I was blown away by the amount of Scripture covered. I had read as many chapters in a month of the Word as I had digested in the entire year of 2008! Apparently having a plan and committing to it, and publishing it on my blog and telling others about it as a way of staying accountable, really works with my competitive nature!

The reason I feel this goal was hands down the best of the whole year is because it's so easy to get caught up in the unimportant and forget the main thing. So what if I met my goals of having a garden, being frugal, being hospitable, covering academics with my kids if I wasn't being daily renewed and changed by the very words of God? What is truly lasting and eternal? Why haven't I made it a priority in years past?

I'm not writing this here to guilt-trip anyone into thinking they are a bad Christian if they aren't reading through the Bible. I am here to encourage you to try this or at least to make the Word a huge priority in your life even if you are just taking one book at a time. You won't regret it! With my new ESV study Bible, which I LOVE LOVE LOVE I have enjoyed wrestling with and studying some of those hard texts that I had forgotten about because of my tendency in recent years to read my favorite books and stay mainly in the New Testament. My study Bible has cleared up a lot of questions I had on different passages.

A Question of Priority

Some of you may say, "But I don't have time!!!" It often feels that way, especially with little children underfoot all day long. A young mom friend of mine started a month and a half behind, has 3 little kids, homeschools, babysits twin 3 month olds 4 full-days a week, and has suffered through two incredible losses and health issues recently and still makes the time. We were both sharing at our women's study how much our one-year plans have impacted our lives and the other women were saying they felt so convicted, because most of them have no children or grown children and have much more time to do it than we do. Why does my friend make the time? Because when life falls apart, when she is overwhelmed, when she is crushed with grief, when it really boils down to what matters, she clings to the words of God that sustain her and support her. I may have less time to read fiction nowadays, but so what? I'm reading the lifechanging Word of Life! And it really hasn't taken that much extra time to read 5-7 chapters of the Bible a day. We all spend time doing stuff we could cut out each day. And if you don't have any time during the day when the kids aren't awake, then read the chapters aloud to them and you'll both benefit!

How it Pans Out for Me

Another friend of mine has done the one-year plan every year for many years. She's one of my wisest friends! We were talking about it and discussing which is the best method. There are some who go straight through, some who read a chronological Bible, some who break it into 1 OT and 1 NT reading a day and some who do four passages at a time like my plan. Here are the ways I have found for it to fit my own lifestyle:

I don't actually read the 4 portions a day most of the time. This is how it breaks down for me:

Listen to the OT on CD while doing dishes, kitchen cleanup or folding laundry. This is when the kids are in bed and happens 2-3 times a week. I usually listen to 10-20 chapters (1-2 hours) at a time to catch up. I started doing this in Leviticus and Numbers when I was getting hopelessly behind and struggling to read these long and historical parts of Scripture. I make sure that I am paying close attention and if my mind wanders I go back and listen to that chapter again. I have always loved listening to sermons, broadcasts, Adventures in Odyssey, etc. so I do well with auditory learning and get a lot out of it even though I'm not reading. I go back and read portions that caught my attention that I feel I need to study further. This habit has also improved the cleanliness of my house as well! I know I need to get chapters read so I'll clean the kitchen a lot longer than I normally would so I can get my chapters listened to!



The kids often beg me to read from my Bible after Daddy reads their nightime Bible story from The Jesus Storybook Bible. So, I will read my Psalm of the day to them and a chapter of the Gospel I am reading through (Matthew or Mark so far). I also read Genesis and most of Exodus to them at the beginning of the year, which they enjoyed. We also read our chapter of the month nightly that we are working on memorizing. They've memorized Psalm 23 and now we're doing 1 Cor. 13, which is a bit harder and may take longer than a month.



The other segment of the NT (so far I have covered Acts, Romans and 1 Cor.) I cover on my own throughout the day or in the morning when I rise before the kids and have a little time to read and reflect. It's usually only 1 chapter a day.



I enjoy the variety and don't have trouble remembering what was going on in a certain passage but for those of you who want to keep things very simple, reading straight through or reading a chronological Bible may be the way to go. I love the 5 catch-up days where there are no readings scheduled because I often have some chapters to catch up because of busy days where I didn't get much, or any read.

What about Quality over Quantity?

I have heard, and used, the argument that you can study a passage further if you take one chapter a day instead of several. This may be true. However, you lose out on a lot by not examining and becoming familiar with all of Scripture. And then it's all too easy to just get behind or to only read a chapter when you have time to do a huge research process on it, which may end up being never or one day a week! Reading a quantity of Scripture doesn't mean that I don't do in-depth study. I'm part of a Bible Study and both in this study and in church we cover passages in an exegetical way and also when there are passages that I feel I need to understand from my reading I pull out commentaries and books on them. We would all agree that kids need both quality and quantity time with their parents. I think this applies to the Word as well. Just zooming through chapters, letting your mind wander, or doing it to please someone else or feed your pride isn't good, but neglecting it by never reading or having trouble sticking with a plan isn't either. Lots of Scripture combined with very in-depth study of some Scriptures make for a great combo!




The Discipliship Journal Printable Version

I'd love to hear what you have found that works for your lifestyle when it comes to reading God's Word!

The BEST of COF--Penny Pinchin' Tips and Frazzled Mommy Spa

Due to temporary scarcity and rising postage costs, I have ceased sending out my newsletter, The Circle of Friends. But every Saturday I'm sharing some of the best recipes, tips, and contributions from it so you can all enjoy it!

Penny Pinchin' Tips

From thefrugalshopper.com

To stretch shampoo, pour out half into an empty bottle. Fill up both bottles with water and you now have twice as much!

Make your own flexible ice packs. Pour 3/4 C. water and 1/4 C. rubbing alcohol in a ziploc bag and seal. Put in another ziploc bag and seal. Freeze. You now have a slushy bag of ice for whenever you need it.

Nearly everything can be cut in half. A dryer sheet, a cotton ball, and the amount of detergent you use. Try it! You'll likely find there's no difference in using less!

Save plastic milk containers and freeze full of water for camper iceboxes. You can also use them to freeze colored water or juices for adding to punchbowls.

Don't throw out extra coffee. Put in an icecube tray and freeze and then when you just want a cup you can thaw some cubes in the microwave or you can use in mocha slushies on a hot summer day.

Frazzled Mommy Mini-Spa

At the end of an especially hard day, give yourself a mini-spa at home. Fill your baby's bathtub with hot water and bubble bath or Epsom Salts. If you have lots of marbles you can add these in; my friend says they feel really good on the feet. Soak your feet and apply a masque to your face while your feet are soaking. If you don't have a masque cream oatmeal or egg whites work nicely! After you are done, moisturize your face and rub baby oil over your feet. Amazing how a little tender loving care can give you a boost after a long day of serving!

These tips were taken from the June 2006 issue.

Fun With Friends

Jer and Carsen have the same shirt! We didn't realize it until yesterday!

Pulling each other around in the wagon with the fourwheeler

Exploring a stick house

The kids got tons of exercise

Little buddies

Cute Kennedy is anxious to be a big sister. Her mama is due with a little girl in two weeks!

Hey, back off, those Nilla wafers are mine!

Fun Family Pics

Arianna and Alathia play princesses
Look, no hands mom!

We have one set of grandparents always giving our kids candy and one set giving our little children horsepower!!!

Jerby is so proud of himself now that he can ride the fourwheeler by himself. He rides around with a huge smile and tends not to watch where he is going, but instead looks at his parents as if to say, "Look at me! Are you watching me? I'm a big boy!"




My guys

Baby Archer Malachi, at 11 days old. The youngest one at the Clothing Swap! What a darling boy!

Everyone got what they wanted and we ended up with 4 garbage bags for a nearby crisis pregnancy center.

My friend Lora graciously hosted the event since it snowed that day and our house is small.

Justus on his 8 Month Old birthday (April 16th)

Arianna, a friend's daughter whom I babysit once or twice a week, adores Ali and looks up to her.

Surprise Package---Happy Mail Day!!!!!!!!

I find it incredibly ironic that the week I do the poll question about what we would prefer to be blessed with and the poll results say that the majority of folks would like a surprise package, I received a surprise package from a blogging friend, themomma! We were outdoors Monday night after supper and we saw it sitting on the doorstep, something I had overlooked when I checked the mail that afternoon. I have to wonder about the line "our little family." If themomma's family is little, then my family is miniscule! She is the happy homeschooling-on-the-farm momma of 8 blessings, one who's married and expecting, and lives on the other side of the USA. She found my blog through a Frugal Friday post long ago and learned to make ribbon socks and leather shoes.

Lots of green tulle. The kids are quite curious.

Five fancy little packages all wrapped prettily. How did she know I love polkadots?

Ali opens a little dress. It just so happens that a few hours before we got the package, I visited her blog and saw her little girl Lily wearing a dress exactly like this and thought it was so cute!

It's a reversible sundress and the seams are perfect! She's obviously been sewing for a couple of decades! I am anxious to figure out how to make these but having never worked with elastic binding, I'm unsure. I'm hoping themomma will share her secrets with us!

Three sets of lovely earrings for me! How did she know I love dangly earrings like this? I wonder if she made them....

You know you've been reading this blog too much if you see my hubby downtown and say, "Hi King Jo!" It really was cute to see this on the package!

At first he thought it was just an ice-cream tub full of paper shavings. Then he discovered a $5 bill in it!

Someone never stops moving for a pic!

Up the nostrils! Pure joy on this girl's face!

Her hair is always a'flyin'

I wish I could find fabric this cute in our town!

Jeremiah is beyond thrilled to see a couple of new racecars in his package. I don't think he's let them go in the 24 hours since he opened them!

Justus got some little cars too! He loved chewing on them when his brother and sister weren't trying to take them away!

What is this funny green stuff Mom?

Ali wanted to sleep in her sundress. She also proudly wore it to preschool and wanted to tell her teacher about it. Miss Jenny said I'd probably have six sundresses like this made by the end of the night! First I have to figure out how to make them. I've also concluded that you just can't get cute fabric in this town!

It was fun to tell the kids that Miss Tracy who sent the package has two boys named Jeremiah and Josiah. They looked at pics of her family on her blog. She has a sweet new baby, Lexi Faith, who is exactly 3 months old as I'm writing this post and as cute as a button!

I love her post showing all the bright cloth diapers she made hanging out to dry on the clothesline.

You haven't seen beautiful baby girls dresses until you've witnessed the circle skirt dresses Tracy made for Lily and Lexi for Easter this year. Where does she find the time?

Six of her children (even the two little guys) have blogs, as well as her husband and it's clear to see that they are a loving family of faith! I love this post her husband wrote about her, as well as this post he wrote to her to thank her on Mother's Day.

I have been blessed by her wise and positive comments here even when I write really dumb stuff that I later regret. She is like a mentor from afar! Lots of poignant wisdom comes out in her brief posts as she has lots of experience in life. I am glad we met through the blogworld and I want to give a big shout out of "Thank You" to themomma and her wonderful family!!! Thank you Tyler, Tracy, TJ, Tony, Lana, Brandon, Jeremiah, Josiah, Lily and Lexi!