Friday, July 25, 2008

The Family Meal Table

"Cheerfully share your homewith those who need a meal or a place to stay for the night."~ 1 Peter 4:9 ~ TLB


Monica, from The Homespun Heart blog posted a wonderful article about opening up our homes to others and being hospitable. I don't know about you, but life gets so busy sometimes that I forget about having company over for a meal. I know my children get very excited when they are helping prepare a meal and it's a great opportunity to teach them how to be hospitable. You can read here: http://thehomespunheart.blogspot.com/2008/07/family-meal-table.html . I haven't ordered the book yet, but thought this was worthy enough to pass on. Hope you are inspired by the article like I was!

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

The Road Ahead

I don't know about you but sometimes I can get really caught up in the "what ifs" about the future. I've found myself getting caught up in the daily news of doom and gloom a few times this summer. I'm thankful for a loving husband who has guided me back to the narrow road of trusting the Lord's plan. God knew what he was doing when he blessed me with a husband that is calm in nature. I admit that there are times when I am not calm about "life". When it all comes down to it, our life and times are in His hands. What better place to be, right?

I wanted to share with you a devotion I received in my emails this morning. It's from the blog called "Alabaster Box" (see link to the right). I am quite impressed with the spiritual maturity of this young woman who is seeking to serve her family and her Father daily. Here's the link to the devotion: http://alabasterboxblog.wordpress.com/2008/07/22/the-road-ahead/ . I don't think I could have said this any better. I pray it will be an encouragement to you.

May the Lord bless your day!

Planning

I've been working on school plans the past few weeks for the upcoming year. I can't believe it's already time to start thinking about school again. Sometimes that causes me to panic as it can be overwhelming at times. I don't know about you, but I can always use help when it comes to planning. I want to share a site with you that I have used for many years. Donna Young has gone out of her way to help us manage our homes and homeschools. Be sure to check out her website for all your planning needs. I'm sure you will find a calendar, a checklist, a planning sheet, something to help you as you work on managing your home. You will be amazed, I promise! Her website is www.donnayoung.org.

Happy planning!

Monday, July 21, 2008

Cool Summer Science Experiments

Summer is the perfect time for outdoor science experiments. You can have cool science experiments delivered right to your email address from Robert Krampf's Experiment of the Week Newsletter - that is absolutely free! Robert looks for experiments that are unusual, safe, dramatic, cheap, and fun! Most are simple enough for very young students, but written to make them fun for adults as well. To start receiving the Experiment of the Week, just send a blank E-mail to:krampf- subscribe@topica.com.

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Here's another Summer Reading Program to add to your list -

A blog reader posted a comment in the Summer Reading Program post below that I wanted to let you know about. She said "Don't forget to check out your local Applebee's. If they are participating in the Applebee's Bookworm Club, they read 10 books and get a free kids meal."

Now that sounds like a program to definitely try out, especially with the price of eating out rising so rapidly these days!

Thanks, Lisa, for sharing that information!

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

For those hot summer days - a recipe to cool you off!










Strawberry Lemonade Slush (serves 3-4)

Ingredients:

- pink lemonade mix
- 1/2 cup of water
- 3 cups of ice cubes
- 1 cup of fresh or frozen strawberries (frozen strawberries will need to thaw first)

Directions: Measure drink mix to 1 quart line in cup (the cup that comes in the drink mix container) Place drink mix, water, ice cubes and strawberries in blender container; cover. Blend on high for 10 seconds. Turn off blender. Stir with spoon; cover. Blend for 5 more seconds.

*Serve immediately. Store any leftover slush in freezer.*

Friday, July 4, 2008

Menus for Moms

I found this site this morning and thought it might be helpful for moms. They have some great tools for menu planning. I try to revamp my menus during the summertime when I have more spare time. I find that if I do that during the summer, I don't have to worry about it during the school year. I think I shared on here that I take a whole calendar and fill in every single block with a menu, then I just start with the first day of the month and make my grocery list from that. Honestly, we can't remember from month to month what we ate when, so it really does help us. It certainly lowers my stress level and helps me keep my brain cells. Ha! I used to do weekly meal planning, but found I just didn't have time during the week to do. So, I spend a good portion of a day meal planning and it's done until summer comes again. I've also been known to do a fall/winter menu and a spring/summer menu. We eat different foods at different times of the year, so that's another idea. If you want to see an idea of one of my menus, scroll down to the very beginning of when I started blogging and you'll find it there. Here's the link:

http://www.menus4moms.com/index.php

Happy meal planning!