Lies Women Believe and the Truth That Sets Them Free

I have led a women's book study this summer using this book and I highly recommend it!  It is astounding to me the deceptions that I believe and DIDN'T KNOW I believe....  lies about God, lies about myself, lies about sin, lies about priorities, lies about marriage, lies about children, lies about emotions and lies about circumstances.  We live in a fallen world full of lies and we are in bondage from them.  How do you fight lies and deception from the enemy when you aren't even aware that you are believing them?  This book has opened my eyes and now I can pray specifically about those areas where I need God's TRUTH to set me free.  And there are many.  Praise God that He has the weapon to fight
 the lies.... His WORD.

Cooking Tip #1

I have read many books on meal planning, buying in bulk, cooking many meals at one time, cutting costs on your grocery bill etc.  (It's a hobby!)  One of the best things I've done as far as saving time and money is to buy meat (chicken or ground beef) when it is on sale and then cook large quantities of it (at one time) and then freeze it in 2 cup portions in ziploc bags.  I will brown the ground beef with chopped onions and then the meat is good for spaghetti, lasagna, tacos, chili, soups etc.  I either sautee the chicken breasts ( my hubby will eat pretty much anything in the world except.... yogurt, crab and dark chicken meat) in olive oil or butter, or I boil them in chicken broth, or cook them in my crock pot with chicken broth.  Once they are done cooking, I shred them and put them in the freezer.  These are good for egg rolls, soup, chicken salad, adding to pasta or salad, quesadillas etc. 
This helps save TONS of time.  If you didn't plan or stick to the plan you made, you can pull out the already cooked meat and quickly make a simple meal. 

Menu Planning

It's the beginning of spring and time to change my menu.  Gone is the desire to eat heavy soups and stews, now I want salads, food from the grill and sandwiches.  I started menu planning about 5 years ago and it has been very beneficial.  It helps me know what I need to buy at the store, instead of wandering the aisles trying to anticipate every food I might need.  Thus it cuts down on our grocery bill as well. Also, by planning ahead what I will make for dinner I am able to use my time wisely and start prepping in the morning or the night ahead .  Menu planning takes the pressure off because when 5:00 hits I am not sitting there in a panic wondering how I'm going to get a meal prepared when I haven't thawed anything.  Oh, there is one more financial benefit...we don't grab something out at the last minute because I haven't prepared dinner.

Here is how I menu plan:

1.  I make a list of all of our favorite meals:
spaghetti                                        
tacos                                              
chef salad                                      
salad pizza                                    
stuffed baked potatoes                 
BLT pizza                                     
pasta salad                                    
 grilled shrimp                              
grilled chicken teriyaki
egg rolls
grilled hamburgers
pecan crusted tilapia
shrimp linguine
garlic shrimp
fajitas
chicken or beef enchiladas
taco salad
meatball subs
 BBQ chicken salad
Italian Bread Salad
broccoli macaroni and cheese
homemade chicken nuggets

That is a list of 22 meals.

2.  Then I take a blank calendar (our realtor sends us one every year that sticks on the side of our fridge) and I fill in the days of the month with this list.  I take into account what days we have commitments near dinner time and I'll plan an easy to prepare meal or leftovers for that night.  I look at any days where we might be going somewhere else for dinner and if there aren't any then I build in a few "take out nights"  or frozen pizza nights or breakfast for dinner nights.  I make sure to not eat any one food type several days in a row.  I also try to space out the foods that my kids don't love.

Now I have a month of meals planned!  It takes me an hour to write it all in and then write my first week's grocery list and I'm saving myself money, time and discouragement!  YAY!

What are some of your family's favorite meals?

A word of encouragement

Hi friends,
I just wanted to encourage all of you that have children in your home to teach them how to cook, clean, sew, garden, build, repair and all other skills that you know. It is hard to teach children sometimes.  It requires patience and repeated practice before they master a skill that you mastered a long time ago and can do in your sleep.  I can be tempted to think " I don't have time to teach that today, we're in a hurry" or " I just want some peace and quiet, I've taught all day, I just don't feel like teaching anything else today."  Time flies by as you all well know, and before you know it that eager learner will have grown up and left your home.  It will BLESS you beyond belief when your child takes over a task that you used to have to do and does it well.  As I type, my 13 year old daughter is making cookies for a co op that I'm teaching tomorrow.  It's late, I'm wiped out and I was going to scrap my cookie plans and do something else, when she eagerly offered to cook them because she LOVES to cook.  I've spent years teaching her how to cook and how to clean up after herself and now I'm reaping what I've sown.  Those early years of having her just pour in the flour or just stirring the batter progressed into teaching her "cooking language", reading recipes, planning menus and cooking the whole thing from start to finish and I don't even have to be in the room!  What a blessing!  So..... I encourage all of you to teach your children any life skills that you have mastered and also ask family members and friends to teach your children their skills/hobbies. 

CALLED

Are you a Christian?  If you are, you are because God called you. Why did God call YOU?  Because HE LOVES YOU.  Are you aware of that truth? Are you living in that truth?  Are you grateful daily because He loves you and called you?  What did He save you from?  Where would you be without HIM?  Have you ever thought about that?  Have you thought about these truths lately? 

I'm prone to take my salvation for granted, even though I was saved only 7 years ago.   I'm prone to be grumpy at times, discontent (see other post on that subject) (and then this one) and frustrated/stressed.  I love Jesus and I try to follow His paths for my life, I teach my kids about Him,  I spend time with Him daily, (some days I'm praying for His grace minute by minute), but I don't live in the truth that without His love and calling I'd be wallowing in sin without hope!  (Remember, just because we are saved doesn't mean we are without sin.... oh no, I have a fresh awareness of my sins daily!)  I know what He saved me from, I know that He has been working in me, changing me from the inside out.  I don't want to be back from where I came!  So I should be joyful, grateful, exuberant!  Yet I struggle......

I want to be GRATEFUL, I want to be JOYFUL, I want to be fully aware every day of what Jesus did for me.  Why He died for me, why He loved me, why He called me. 

If you are struggling, or if you are aware of but not living in the truth of Jesus' sacrificial love for you, or if you are discontent or joyless, I encourage you to open your Bible and read one of the least known books in it... Jude.  For some excellent teaching on this,  I found this podcast from the amazingly gifted speaker/author/pastor CJ Mahaney and it resonated deep in my heart and soul and has taught me some foundational truths.  You may already know all of these, but I promise it will awaken  your soul and make you newly grateful for your salvation.


*** once you click on my link to the podcast list, click on "CALLED".  You can listen to it here on your computer or you can download it to  your Ipod from Itunes for free.  There is also a 2nd message in this series called "CONTEND" which is right above "CALLED".

Creative Easter Activities and Printables

If you have a preschooler or toddler in your life you have got to go to Confessions of a Homeschooler and get her Easter printables!  She is very talented and has made the cutest Easter bingo cards, puzzles, lacing card, coloring sheets, number games, matching games, and one to one correspondence sheets etc.  Click here to see her Easter printables!

It's ALIVE!!!!!

I have no idea why my blog sent out a list of all those previous blog posts!  I DID NOT DO THAT!  (I don't even know HOW to do that!)

 I went through my blog yesterday and erased all of the kids pictures and posts with the kids pictures and then this morning I see that everyone got an email from my blog.  Interesting!

Several friends and my hubby suggested that I keep the blog going and just take the kids pics off.  I'm still praying about it.  So, you'll either start getting NEW posts from me or I'll just quietly disappear off the blog radar. 

Have a blessed day!