Be Encouraged

In today's troubling times, it's easy to want to throw your hands up in the air and give up. I certainly felt that way yesterday. Discouraged, I sought inspiration and encouragement through Connie's writing about Frugal Housewifery. I could feel determination and moxie rising up in my spirit. I determined right then and there that I would not give up. Instead, I would fight tooth and nail to live a beautiful life within our means.

Make a home for your family with your hands. Learn the skills of homemaking. Learn to make something out of nothing. ~ Connie Hultquist

The best way to let go of worry and find peace is for me to get busy in my homemaking. While I am busy cooking and baking to make a full pantry, cleaning and puttering, stitching, or working in the yard - I am able to release the worries that threaten to weigh me down. Creative ideas often come to me during this time that I am able to use within my home or solve the current problem.

Fear comes in as folks have no plans for what they will do in an emergency. If Mother is happy & content, the rest of the family will follow. Mother makes the home a place of rest. And if the family sees Mother making a game of it or taking it in stride, then they will, too. We just have to pray and ask the Lord what to do. ~ Connie Hultquist

So this is my plan:

~ Stay in the Word, pray without ceasing, and obey God in all things - big or small.

~ Get deeply into my homemaking & keep the homefires burning.

~ Make as much as I can from scratch.

~ Be content with what I have.

~ Save, save, save.

~ Walk in love.

It's okay to be poor. It ain't a sin - it's just uncomfortable. ~ Connie Hultquist

 

Happy Homemaker Giveaway

Mrs. White from The Legacy of Home is having a fabulous giveaway on her blog! Run over there and check it out.

Go now!

*smile*

 

Simple Days at Home

Life has been wonderfully good and simple. I have been puttering around the house cleaning and tidying up. I cook and wash dishes several times each day. I have made time for reading, journaling, and Bible reading. I bought a skein of yarn and have been practicing crocheting. I sewed a button on a pair of Alfred's work pants. I sit outside and enjoy the sunshine and refreshing breeze while watching the birds and squirrels.

One of my rose bushes has exploded in bright beautiful blooms. It has been cooler in the mornings the past couple of days. I take advantage of it by opening all the windows and leaving the air conditioner off. It stays pretty comfortable in the house.

The girls made sock puppets and have been playing outdoors in the afternoons after their lessons are done. We have recently learned about bees, reflexes, skin, weather, and frogs in addition to our math, handwriting/copywork, and reading. We will start a new read aloud today: Charlotte's Web by E.B. White. I loved that book a child and dreamed of living on a farm with cute little pig of my own.

I'll make a list of meals and plan my grocery shopping around what's on sale at the market this week. I think I'll bake a cake today. Chocolate, of course! These are the things that make up my life. A life built of simple days at home. 

Gather the crumbs of happiness and they will make you a loaf of contentment. ~Author Unknown

 

Life as Art

It has been said that homemaking is an art. Do you believe that to be true? Well, it is true indeed. All one needs is a little open-mindedness and the ability to see things in new ways.

Can you create a fabulous meal using basic ingredients?

Do you have a green thumb resulting in a lush flower garden? Or are home-grown vegetables your specialty?

Is your home comforting and full of charm though you accept hand-me-down furniture, shop secondhand, thrift, and/or dollar stores?

Do you sew, stitch, embroider, sketch, paint, or craft with paper, beading, felt or any number of other materials?

Do you dress comfortably and yet maintain a sense of style?

Well then, my dears, you are an artist and your life is your canvas! There are a myrid more ways thaty we can create a beautiful lives and express our creativity. I believe Edith Shaeffer said it best in her book "The Hidden Art of Homemaking":

"I would define 'Hidden Art' as the art which is found in the 'minor' areas of life. By 'minor' I mean what is involved in the 'everyday' of anyone's life, rather than his career or profession.Each person, I believe, has some talent which is unfulfilled in some 'hidden area' of his being, and which could be expressed ansd developed."

What are your talents and how can you incorporate those talents into your everyday life?

 

Gratitude

This week, I am thankful for:

~ A good rain that began Friday night and lasted throughout the day on Saturday. It has been a very dry Spring here so far, so we needed the rain to help wash away the pollen and water the earth.

~ When cooking burritos the other night, I made more than was needed for dinner which allowed me to make extras to put into the freezer for lunches and snacks during the week.

~ Seeing a oppossum a few mornings ago while Alfred and I sat on the front porch. He came waddling across the street and into our yard. I was so surprised to see a oppossum in the middle of town!

~ My Yorkie, Mr. Cheeky, has begun taking naps with me. He's also been very sassy lately - wanting to get our attention and play. His favorite game is "Gimme that Toy"....we tell him that and he takes off running with his toy. He is a funny little dog and brings a lot of laughter to our lives.

{Mr. Cheeky thinks he is part cat. Here he is on the back of the couch in the sunroom}

~ Taking time out of each day to do things I enjoy, such as reading, writing, stitching, and crafting. I come away feeling happier and rejuvenated.

What are you thankful for this week?

 

Home Work

As a homemaker, the care and keeping of our home largely falls to me. There are many tasks to be done each day to keep things running smoothly. I personally like to tackle the tasks I don't like very much fisrt, leaving the more enjoyable tasks to be done afterwards - almost like a reward of sorts.

Most of the tasks we tend to avoid, in reality, do not take long at all to complete. By dreading these things and procrastinating, a dark cloudy mood settles over the home and this trickles down from Mama, affecting the rest of the family. We only prolong our misery. How nuch better it is to tackle the less than lovely tasks head on!

We may not enjoy each and every task, but we can enjoy the end result - a home that is cozy, warm, welcoming, as well as neat and fresh-smelling. This is a gift we give both to ourselves as well as our family and those we invite into our homes.

Every house where love abides

And friendship is a guest,

Is surely home, and home sweet home

For there the heart can rest.

~Henry Van Dyke

 

A Quote for You

Just living is not enough. One must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower. ~Hans Christian Anderson

Painted Bunting

While sitting out on the front porch early this morning, Alfred and I saw this beautiful Painted Bunting! A first for us both. How I wish I could have watched him longer but Clover the Cat was in hot pursuit. But have no fear - Mr. Bunting escaped with relative ease. What a precious gift and on Earth Day, too!

Choices

At times I feel make life too complicated. I am always searching for the missing piece of the puzzle to, what I believe, will make my life complete. And thus, the endless cycle ensues and the never-ending search continues.

Until today.

Today I am choosing to focus on joy. I chose to marry and have children. This is the life I chose and it's up to me to make the most of it. Instead of chasing the wind of something more, I am embracing what is. There is joy in the journey, but I miss out on so much when I fail to see the beauty of the life I am living here and now!

Life is never perfect. Sometimes it can be downright messy. But we wouldn't appreciate the rainbows in life if we hadn't been through the storms.

From My Yard

Instead of complaining that the rosebush is full of thorns, be happy that the thorn bush has roses. ~Proverb

The first rose to bloom!

When I go out into the countryside and see the sun and the green and everything flowering, I say to myself Yes indeed, all that belongs to me! ~Henri Rousseau

Flowers are the sweetest things God ever made, and forgot to put a soul into. ~Henry Beecher, Life Thoughts, 1858

The best place to seek God is in a garden. You can dig for him there. ~George Bernard Shaw

Necessity is the Mother of Invention

The girls had a birthday party to attend on Sunday. The gift had been purchased, but I neglected to buy a gift bag or wrapping paper knowing I had gift bags at home. Well so much for knowing! All of my gift bags were Christmas themed which would simply not do for a little girl's birthday. So I did the only thing I could do. I created my own bag!

I used the directions from Homeliving, but I had to tweak them to use what I had on hand.

I started off with a Reese's Puffs cereal box. I cut the top of it and took it out to spray paint white. Kenzie did not think it would work, but she was surprised. After it dried, I brought it in and cut out the handles. I then glued on the cute stationary I found online and had printed out. The flowers have sweet childrens faces in the centers. Then I took glitter glue and outlined the handle cut outs.

Not too shabby, eh?

Home Sweet Home

I love my comfy couch! The throw pillows have floral pillowcases wrapped around them to give it a fresh look for Spring.

I draped a rose printed sheet over the chair and added a pink blanket. I still need to paint the chairs in the background and recover the seats. Soon!

Another angle of the living room. You can see the front door and coat closet.

I changed the display atop my tv. I now do this every month. It's such fun!

The toy chest turned coffee table. The scarf of the Japanese girl was made for me by my Mama when I was a child.

In the picture window, I placed my sweet birdies with their nests.

Off to the kitchen again....Dishes are washed and there is a sink full of hot, soapy water waiting for more. I had pork chops out to thaw for dinner that night.

I love the pink I Love Lucy sign!

This is our bedroom.

Pretty pictures on the wall...

My side of the bed....filled with books and magazines, of course!

The frilly sign is one I bought from Etsy. It says "Believe".

Alfred side of the bed. Kinda bare and the far wall needs painting. I haven't decided what color yet. Perhaps a Robin Egg Blue?

Thanks for visiting our home!

Gratitude

This week I am thankful for:

~ Further expanding my cooking/baking skills to provide filling, tasty, nutritious meals and treats for my family on a budget.

~ Having gotten around to weeding the raised vegetable bed, noticing the pole beans planted by the previous owners are growing, and looking forward to fresh homegrown organic produce in the near future.

~ The rose bushes are beginning to bloom! Oh, how I love roses! They are my favorite flower.

~ My sweet honey rubbing aloe on my back to ease the sunburn since I can't reach it.

~ The way the outside kitties follow me around the yard. They are so cute!

What are you thankful for this week?