Lukewarm and Indifferent. God Replaced with Passion and Concern

Exercise Challenge

I'm seeing some progress!  I lost another half pound this week.  I can live with that.  ;-)  I've mostly cut out sugar.  Not totally, though.  I eat maple syrup on my pancakes, but no desserts until Monday.  Darin is doing the same thing and we've noticed that on Friday nights we hanker hard for some sort of sweet.  What is it about Friday nights that makes us want to eat brownies and ice cream???  I guess it's that whole "it's the weekend thing."  Remember Loverboy?  "Everybody's workin' for the weekend!"  LoL  Ain't it the truth.

I'm getting in a bit more exercise that I have been.....I've started taking Henry and Sophia (and anyone else that wants to tag along)on a walk every morning since it has cooled down a bit.  They love it.  Sophia starts kicking her legs when we start walking out the door.  She's SO precious.  Henry is so full of energy, he runs most of the time so I can get a pretty good clip going.  Otherwise, I'm doing the same ol', same ol'.

I hope you guys are getting some exercise into your days!  Sign-in with Mr. Linky if you have an update and leave a comment so I'll know you were here.  :-)

The Simple Woman's Daybook

For Today...

Outside my Window...temperatures in the high 80’s, and here it is, just two days away from October.  One of the guys who was working on our leak last week told Darin that according to the Farmer’s Almanac, this winter will be the coldest ever.  That seems strange to imagine at this point. 

Well, I couldn’t resist.  I surfed on over to the Farmer’s Almanac site to see what I could find and found this:
As homeowners across the country pray for a mild winter to offset rising energy costs, the world-famous Farmers’ Almanac is warning us to prepare for the worst. “Numb’s the word!” is how the 192-year-old publication is predicting the upcoming winter season.
Go HERE to read more.

I am thinking...that I miss Darin when he has to go to work.

From the learning rooms...Ancient Egypt, Apologia Zoology II, Teaching Textbooks, Sonlight L.A., lapbooking, history pockets.

I am thankful for...the work that God has given me.  My job as a homeschooling Mom is NEVER boring or tedious.  There is never enough hours to fit in all I want to do here at home.  I love it.

From the kitchen...Pumpkin Patch cake for tea this afternoon.  We made this cake four or five times last year for other people because it’s so good and the kids love to make it.  I hope the link works so you can see it and get the recipe!  Let me know if it doesn’t and you want it.

I am reading...WORLD mag, St. Bartholomew’s Eve by Henty with Darin, Ishmael with Ben, The Trojan War with Jack, and various books about cars, planes, trains and trucks with Henry.

I am hoping...that I can keep my cool this week and not let all there is to do become overwhelming.  I want to enjoy every minute – not wig out.  ;-)

I am creating...organization in my bedroom.  Sophia has been sharing our room with us since she was born so there has been little cleaning going on in there since she still takes two naps and goes to bed pretty early.  When she is awake, we’re usually doing one of a million other things we have to do.  This weekend I begged Darin for us to team up and get some deep cleaning done in there.  We had a treadmill that no longer worked in there, and a lot of dust bunnies.  We got about half the room cleaned.  I’ll have to bide my time for next weekend, or try to squeeze in some time for it during the week.

I am hearing...Henry being frustrated.  He's trying to put on a necklace, but can't seem to get it around his neck.  Darin is offering to help him.

Around the house...working on knitting more dishrags, and I badly need to catch-up on ironing.

One of my favorite things...I love to can fruits and veges.  I haven’t had the chance to do any canning for the last few years, but I’m looking forward to a spring garden.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week...hoping to meet with some friends at a local lake this week so the kids can throw rocks and get muddy, update our hymn books that we use for Bible Study.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you...
A fistful of Cheerios.

An Award

Sandpiper over at Journey Through Motherhood gave me this nice award.  So nice!  Thank you! 

You guys go visit Sandpiper.  She is literally DAYS from giving birth to Baby #6, just celebrated her 14th wedding anniversary, and her 2nd blogoversary!  :-)

I get to pass this award on to some of my favorite bloggers.  Here they are:

Sherry at Large Family Mothering is a true Titus 2 woman.  Her blog posts always - ALWAYS encourage me as a wife and mother.  She's always right on the mark.  She posted some tips (I can't find that post now!) and I'm excited to use one of her tips this winter with our 9 month old.  Ya know how socks always fall off our babies' feet?  She says use tights instead!  So simple, I would have never thought of it on my own.  ;-)

De'Etta at Choosing Joy.  First of all, I like the title of her blog.  Isn't it true that we do have to CHOOSE to be joyful through so many things?  Secondly, I love her "slice of life" entries.  Maybe I'm just nosy, but I like to read about what's going on at her house.  Lastly, she's my exercising hero.  She usually gets in 60 minutes at least 5 days a week.  You go, girl.  ;-)

Kelli at There is No Place Like Home.  I love to go look at all the kewl crafty things she makes, the good food she cooks and the nifty way she decorates her home.  I don't have time to do all the fun things she does, but I like to go look anyway.  And I agree....there IS no place like home.

Mayst Thou Live to Know and Fear Him

Lydia and I are making our way through the Elsie Dinsmore series.  I am just as encouraged - if not more! - than Lydia is by these books.  Here's an excerpt that I love from Elsie's Children.

"Dear me, Elsie, how can you take so much trouble with your children?" she said, "You seem to be always training and teaching them in the sweetest, gentlest way; and of course they're good and obedient.  I'm sure I love mine dearly, but I could never have the patience to do all you do."

"My dear friend, how can I do less, when so much of their future welfare, for time and for eternity, depends upon my faithfulness?"

"Yes," said Lucy slowly, "but the mystery to me is, how you can keep that in mind all the time, and how you can contrive always to do the right thing?"

"I wish I did, but it is not so; I make many mistakes."

"I don't see it.  You do wonderfully well anyhow, and I want to know how you manage it."

"I devote most of my time and thoughts to it; I try to study the character of each child, and above all, I pray a great deal for wisdom and for God's blessing on my efforts; not always on my knees, for it is a blessed truth, that we may lift our heart to him at any time and in any place.  Oh, Lucy," she exclaimed with tearful earnestness, "if I can but train my children for God and heaven, what a happy woman shall I be!  The longing desire of my heart for them is that expressed in the stanza of Watts's Crade Hymn:
'Mayst thou live to know and fear Him,
  Trust and love Him all thy days,
Then go dwell forever near Him,
  See His face and sing His praise!' "

Blogger Friend School - #103

Assignment: How do you keep energized so you can get it all done? bouncy music? treat it like a workout? Do you use a schedule?, a housekeeping binder system? luck of the draw system?.. or is this an area where you need encouragement? Do you need God’s help to keep order and beauty in your dwelling place? Take this week to tell us how You diligently keep going with your housekeeping chores.

I am a fairly new mother of five children.  I told a pal the other day that I was still trying to get into a groove with it.  My youngest is 9 months old.  Motherhood makes us holy, right?  Yup.  And it's also very humbling.  I am one of those Born Organized Gals.  I love multi-tasking and everything in its place.  A clean house really contributes to my sanity.  But I've had to call "uncle" at this point in my life because I just can't keep up with everything and it's hard to take.  But I've got an 8th grader, 5th grader, 3rd grader, a 2 year old who is already pressuring me for school (I've been gathering lapbooking stuff for him to do and that kid eats it up!) and that Very Squishable 9 Month Old I've already mentioned. 

This afternoon, the oldest three were out in the backyard pelting each other with acorns and I thought, "I can dust the living room!"  Not!  :-)  Enter that 2 year old, wanting to do "my schoolwork."  As an aside....I spent a good 4 1/2 years as a homeschool support group leader rolling my eyes at ladies who were trying to homeschool their kids at 3.  Really, I still think 2 and 3 is too young to be stressing over "school" but this kid begs for it, and he loves it, and I'm keeping it simple with lapbooks.  SOOOO......I got to dust the living room a little bit, but Henry and I got a lot of coloring done on his blue, red and green car for his transportation lapbook.  We also counted a lot of wheels.  A lot. 

It goes like that for me every day.  Just when I think I'm about to have a sec to fold some laundry, or clean the kitchen floor, something comes up.  Not that our house is completely crunchy.  The thing that saves us is chores.  The three oldest really contribute quite a bit to the cleanliness of our home.  They really are a blessing to me!  And I do set aside time in the morning to complete at least one self-assigned chore before we start with the official business of schoolwork. 

It's difficult.  I'd like everyone to think that I run a tight ship with a perfectly clean house.  It's hard when my neighbors stop in for a chat and the house looks like a tornado swept through leaving all the piles on my desk intact.  ;-)  Very, very humbling.  I have to remind myself that I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing.  Spending time teaching my kids, hanging out with them, developing a relationship....that's my goal.  The clean house will come later - I think?  ;-)

Here's Henry hacking away on a piece of paper.  He could sit and do that all day...

But that picture is to stall the uploading of the other pictures.  Here are my laundry piles that I get to once or twice a week.  Here's the pile in the corner of the living room.

The corner of my bedroom....

And here's the lovely laundry room.

A verse that comforts me when I think about all that I am not getting done is Isaiah 40:11.  "....He gently leads those that have young."  I read on a blog a couple of weeks ago this sentence: "The Lord is being merciful to me."  That one sentence hit my heart hard.  And every day since then, God has recalled that to my memory, and I've been able to look around and see His mercy towards me.  I may not be able to keep up with life the way *I* prefer, but God's way has been much better - especially on those days when I give in to His way, rather than fight it.

To view other Blogger Friend School entries, go HERE.  :-)

Exercise Challenge

I've held on to my 2 1/2 pound loss, but have not gone any further.  S'okay.  :-)  Darin just started a weight loss challenge with a friend at work, so eating better just got that much easier. 

Still with not enough hours in the day to exercise a full hour, but I get in at least 30 minutes.  My goal is to get in those 30 minutes every day.  Right now I'm only getting in 3 or 4 days each week.  This week I'm going to add another day.  It's difficult because it seems there's always papers to correct, papers to file, school schedules to make, laundry to fold, & etc.  I go in spurts with being happy just doing what I can, and spurts where I totally freak out that our house is crunchier than I'd like.  ;-)

If you have an exercise update to share, sign in with Mr. Linky and leave a comment so I'll know you were here!