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I do hope you and yours had a wonderful and blessed 4th of July! Me and mine had a spectacular time! One of my CHG's, Jessica, opened her home and totally out did herself! There was grilled BBQ chicken and hotdogs with contributed salads of all sorts! The meal was topped off with homemade (handcranked) peach ice cream! Yum! Yum! Her children had games and a costume contest (where everyone won!) planned which were played while the grilling was being done.
After the meal and ice cream it was sparkler time. The children were running around in circles with the sparklers making a beautiful airborn trail of dancing colors. They were having a blast! Then came the bonfire for roasting marshmellows and making smores. The children again were dancing around the bonfire--some in Native American style--some in a style all their own! A couple of the men then handled the little fireworks show. Everyone oooed and ahhed and clapped!! It was fun for children of all ages!!
As the firework show was ending--God decided to show us His light show! A big thunderstorm was on its way, so everyone jumped in and cleaned up. Sadly, the celebrating was coming to an end. It was a magical time for the Beale family--for sure--a very memorable 4th of July!
Now--quite--personally, I feel that summer has begun. Oh, I know this hottest of the four seasons has been here for some time, but after the wonderful party last night, I finally feel the Summer "spirit" has arrived! (Better late than never!) I am ready for summer flowers, water fights, parties and memory making!
It was a very blessed celebration! Thank you, Jessica!!
So it's Day 2 of the 3-day weekend. I love it when Jerm is off work and we can have extra time with him! Today, we are going to his Mamaw and Papaw's to enjoy a nice BBQ with family! I always love going up there to spend time with them, I think of them as my own blood relatives. The kids will get to see their favorite (and only) cousins, which they've been looking forward to all week long. I'm looking forward to BBQ and ice cream...WOOT!
One thing Jerm and I are going to work on in the new year is paying off credit cards. I want to get them all paid off and just keep a couple good ones, and shred the rest! We were never able to use the balance transfers option, probably because our cards never had the option, but we could maybe have saved a little money that way. That's ok though, we will get them paid off and be much better off.
Issac has been having trouble with his allergies/asthma the last few days. Poor thing, he's the most sickly of our kids, and when he gets sick it really hits him. We've all passed a cold around and it seems to have stuck with him the most. I need to remember to take his inhaler with us today.
Well, hope everyone has a wonderful Saturday!
I took the girls to the parade. They decided at the last minute to help with the church's float, so I took them. It's about 30-35 miles from our house, so we got up early and got some chores done then left. The Parade theme this year was REMEMBER WHEN... and our church's float was small (just a pick-up truck with several walkers walking by it). They had signs that said "Wise Men still seek Him" and 3 wise men in the back of the truck with a wooden camel. They got lots of cheers, I guess, through out the parade, so they knew people appreciated the thought. My kids handed out flyers with the rest of the walkers... they has small children's booklets and magazines to hand out and a few adult flyers as well. I just watched from a friend's house which is the very corner the parade starts and while we saw all the floats, many weren't in sync until after the first block.
After the parade, I quickly ran into town with a friend's keys to her store and picked up as many empty boxes as I could fill in our mini van for the BIG FIRE CLEAN UP! I so appreciated the boxes, that means I can start right away (and we did this afternoon), just removing dirty items from the immediate house and have them out of the way for the cleaners. I packed up my cookbooks and then boxed up all the food they told me to throw and I also inventoried it all. My girls packed a few boxes of items they did not want to have messed with when they are away at camp.
We are to record our time cleaning and boxing items and we can work off our deductible. The insurance adjuster told us to keep track of times. He does not have the exact rate we will be paid at, but it will be between $8-10. I figured if we got the rate of $8, we need to work off 132.5 hours. So far, we've logged 16.25 hours. Not much, but it's hard to do much when they say you can't clean until the cleaners come. But some things like laundry and boxing up items we can do (now that we have approval). I have four pages of inventoried items from my spice cupboards. The adjuster said I'd likely have to take a price shop and get some prices on the items and then figure the cost... by how much was left in the packages. Full, half, 1/4, etc. I am really hoping that turning in sheet with prices will be adequate. Rebuying everything right now seems just over my head. First, there is no where to put it, and second, I just want the house clean before I think about restocking the cupboards. I will say however that fried potates with no seasonings aren't as grand as one might think... LOL. I really should buy a little salt and some garlic or a couple seasonings... but then again... maybe I just shouldn't fry anything!!! That's bad for my health anyways!
I am feeling a bit better today. I was thinking about how overwhelming this process is really turning out to be. And yet... I recall that recently I was stunned by the doctor's diagnosis of depression. As I was thinking of the garden... if you are gone 1 week, it takes nearly 3 weeks to catch up with weeding... things just don't stop growing! As I looked at the house and noted my past couple years worth of keeping house (little was done when I was dealing with my daughters illnesses, our hard sheep year, and my depression)... I realized I kept the family areas clean... as clean as say... there wasn't food stuck to the furniture, but dusting was done every couple of months rather than once a week... I had lots to catch up on... and if it worked out like the garden... even though I am getting my energy back, trying to keep up and catch up at the same time was still going to be a lengthy process. Now I am offered help. I was at first mortified that they are cleaning EVERY little piece of my home, but I am beginning to be grateful for this opportunity... I mean how often does one get a full cleaning and professional cleaning help when one does spring cleaning? I simply have to humble myself and just admit that I need help to get back on my feet... and Wow, God already provided that help! Even before I asked. How great is that? God is sooooo good to me sometimes that I know I hardly deserve any of this (I don't deserve any of it!), but oh how grateful I am to be His child!
Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women.
--Ronald Reagan
Freedom prospers when religion is vibrant and the rule of law
under God is acknowledged.
-- Ronald Reagan
But the Day is past. The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. - I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires, and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.
You will think me transported with Enthusiasm but I am not. - I am well aware of the Toil and Blood and Treasure, that it will cost Us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these States. - Yet through all the Gloom I can see the Rays of ravishing Light and Glory. I can see that the End is more than worth all the Means. And that Posterity will tryumph in that Days Transaction, even altho We should rue it, which I trust in God We shall not.
Well, I pray you all are having a wonderful day so far and will continue to do so. I woke up this morning to a nekkid 3 year-old trying to wake me up and a 5 year-old wanting something to drink. So much for sleeping in! Rach spent the night with my parents yet again so she could go swim. We're going to the local Walmart tonight to watch the fireworks, which means if I want to even consider staying awake until 11 then I will most definitely have to take a nap.
I'm not sure if I mentioned it or not, but I found a McRuffy Press 3rd grade phonics kit on eBay last week...WOO! It's normally $75 but with shipping I paid about $40. I may actually start using it with Rach this year because she picks up reading so well...words I have never taught her she see and reads them!
I never heard of McRuffy Press until my cousin told me about it, she actually gave me her Kindergarten kit so that's what I use...I'm hoping it works as well for Issac as it did for Rach. Maybe I should start a market research company...that way I can try a bunch of new stuff! I love being first in line! LOL
I think as soon as I get the kit in the mail that we'll go ahead and start school, I really want to get a head start before Lucas gets here.
Well, I'd better go for now, have a greadt holiday y 'all!
Since I have a seriousness about my personality I thought I would post some information about the Fourth of July.
From David Barton, founder of Wallbuilders, I found this article.
"This year marks 230 years since our Founding Fathers gave us our National Birth Certificate. We continue to be the longest on-going Constitutional Republic in the history of the world. Blessings such as these are not by chance or accidental. They are blessings of God.
On July 2, 1776, Congress voted to approve a complete separation from Great Britain. Two days afterwards – July 4th – the early draft of the Declaration of Independence was signed, albeit by only two individuals at that time: John Hancock, President of Congress, and Charles Thompson, Secretary of Congress. Four days later, on July 8, members of Congress took that document and read it aloud from the steps of Independence Hall, proclaiming it to the city of Philadelphia, after which the Liberty Bell was rung. The inscription around the top of that bell, Leviticus 25:10, was most appropriate for the occasion: “Proclaim liberty throughout the land and to all the inhabitants thereof.”
To see the turmoil in other nations, their struggles and multiple revolutions, and yet to see the stability and blessings that we have here in America, we may ask how has this been achieved? What was the basis of American Independence? John Adams said “The general principles on which the Fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity.” Perhaps the clearest identification of the spirit of the American Revolution was given by John Adams in a letter to Abigail the day after Congress approved the Declaration. He wrote her two letters on that day; the first was short and concise, jubilant that the Declaration had been approved. The second was much longer and more pensive, giving serious consideration to what had been done that day. Adams cautiously noted: “This day will be the most memorable epic in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival.”
It is amazing that on the very day they approved the Declaration, Adams was already foreseeing that their actions would be celebrated by future generations. Adams contemplated whether it would be proper to hold such celebrations, but then concluded that the day should be commemorated – but in a particular manner and with a specific spirit. As he told Abigail: “It ought tobe commemorated as the day of deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty.”
John Adams believed that the Fourth of July should become a religious holiday – a day when we remembered God's hand in deliverance and a day of religious activities when we committed ourselves to Him in “solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty.” Such was the spirit of the American Revolution as seen through the eyes of those who led it, evidenced even further in the words of John Quincy Adams, one who was deeply involved in the activities of the Revolution.
In 1837, when he was 69 years old, he delivered a Fourth of July speech at Newburyport, Massachusetts. He began that address with a question: “Why is it, friends and fellow citizens, that you are here assembled? Why is it that entering on the 62nd year of our national existence you have honored [me] with an invitation to address you. . ?”
The answer was easy: they had asked him to address them because he was old enough to remember what went on; they wanted an eye-witness to tell them of it! He next asked them: “Why is it that, next to the birthday of the Savior of the world, your most joyous and most venerated festival returns on this day [the Fourth of July]?”
An interesting question: why is it that in America the Fourth of July and Christmas were our two top holidays? Note his answer: “Is it not that, in the chain of human events, the birthday of the nation is indissolubly linked with the birthday of the Savior? That it forms a leading event in the progress of the Gospel dispensation? Is it not that the Declaration of Independence first organized the social compact on the foundation of the Redeemer's mission upon earth? That it laid the cornerstone of human government upon the first precepts of Christianity?”
According to John Quincy Adams, Christmas and the Fourth of July were intrinsically connected. On the Fourth of July, the Founders simply took the precepts of Christ which came into the world through His birth (Christmas) and incorporated those principles into civil government.
Have you ever considered what it meant for those 56 men – an eclectic group of ministers, business men, teachers, university professors, sailors, captains, farmers – to sign the Declaration of Independence? This was a contract that began with the reasons for the separation from Great Britain and closed in the final paragraph stating “And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.”
Dr. Benjamin Rush, the father of American Medicine and a signer, recorded that day in his diary. In 1781, he wrote to John Adams “Do you recollect the pensive and awful silence which pervaded the House when we were called up, one after another, to the table of the President of Congress to subscribe to what was believed by many at that time to be our death warrants? The silence and gloom of the morning was interrupted, I well recollect, only for a moment by Colonel Harrison of Virginia (a big guy) who said to Mr. Gerry (small in stature) at the table: 'I shall have a great advantage over you, Mr. Gerry, when we are all hung for what we are now doing... From the size and weight of my body I shall die in a few minutes, but from the lightness of your body you will dance in the air an hour or two before you are dead.' This speech procured a transient smile, but it was soon succeeded by the solemnity with which the whole business was conducted.”
These men took this pledge seriously. Robert Morris of Pennsylvania is an example of the highest level of integrity. He was chosen as the financier of the American Revolution. What an honor, except that there was no bank willing to give any loans to help fund the revolution. It was three years and the Battle of Saratoga before America got any kind of funding at all. After winning that battle, foreign nations like France, Holland, and others decided maybe we weren't such a bad risk and began loaning us money. So where did we get money for the first three years? Congress, at that time, could not have obtained a loan of one thousand dollars, yet Robert Morris effected loans upon his own credit, of tens of thousands. In 1781, George Washington conceived the expedition against Cornwallis, at Yorktown. He asked Judge Peters of Pennsylvania, “What can you do for me?” “With money, everything, without it, nothing,” he replied, at the same time turning with anxious look toward Mr. Morris. “Let me know the sum you desire,” said Mr. Morris; and before noon Washington's plan and estimates were complete. Robert Morris promised him the amount, and he raised it upon his own responsibility. It has been justly remarked, that: “If it were not demonstrable by official records, posterity would hardly be made to believe that the campaign of 1781, which resulted in the capture of Cornwallis, and virtually closed the Revolutionary War, was sustained wholly on the credit of an individual merchant.”America couldn't repay him because there was no money and yet Robert Morris never complained because he had given his word.
You see the same thing in the life of John Hart. He was a strong Christian gentleman and Speaker of the House of Representatives in New Jersey. He promised to help provide them with guidance and leadership. There were three things that were important in his life; his Savior, his family and his farm. Because of his signature on the Declaration, the British were seeking him (and the rest of the signers) to execute as traitors.John Hart fled his home after which his farm was ravaged, his timber destroyed, his cattle and stock butchered for the use of the British army. He did not dare to remain two nights in the same location. After Washington's success at the battle of Trenton, he finally returned home to find that his wife had died and his children scattered. He lost almost everything that was important to him but kept his word.
John Hancock, a very wealthy individual lived in a mansion reflecting his princely fortune – one of the largest in the Province of Massachusetts. During the time the American army besieged Boston to rid it of the British, the American officers proposed the entire destruction of the city. “By the execution of such a plan, the whole fortune of Mr. Hancock would have been sacrificed. Yet he readily acceded to the measure, declaring his willingness to surrender his all, whenever the liberties of his country should require it.” A man of his word, he demonstrated his integrity.
The 16 Congressional proclamations for prayer and fasting throughout the Revolution were not bland (i.e., the acknowledgment of Jesus Christ, the quoting of Romans 14:17, etc.); however, this is not unusual considering the prominent role that many ministers played in the Revolution.
One such example is John Peter Muhlenburg. In a sermon delivered to his Virginia congregation on January 21, 1776, he preached verse by verse from Ecclesiastes 3 – the passage which speaks of a season and a time to every purpose under heaven. Arriving at verse 8, which declares that there is a time of war and a time of peace, Muhlenburg noted that this surely was not the time of peace; this was the time of war. Concluding with a prayer, and while standing in full view of the congregation, he removed his clerical robes to reveal that beneath them he was wearing the uniform of an officer in the Continental army! He marched to the back of the church; ordered the drum to beat for recruits and nearly three hundred men joined him, becoming the Eighth Virginia Brigade. John Peter Muhlenburg finished the Revolution as a Major-General, having been at Valley Forge and having participated in the battles of Brandywine, Germantown, Monmouth, Stonypoint, and Yorktown.
Another minister-leader in the Revolution was the Reverend James Caldwell. His actions during one battle inspired a painting showing him standing with a stack of hymn books in his arms while engaged in the midst of a fierce battle against the British outside a battered Presbyterian church. During the battle, the Americans had developed a serious problem: they had run out of wadding for their guns, which was just as serious as having no ammunition. Reverend Caldwell recognized the perfect solution; he ran inside the church and returned with a stack of Watts Hymnals – one of the strongest doctrinal hymnals of the Christian faith (Isaac Watts authored “O God Our Help In Ages Past,” “Joy to the World,” “Jesus Shall Reign,” and several other classic hymns). Distributing the Watts Hymnals among the soldiers served two purposes: first, its pages would provide the needed wadding; second, the use of the hymnal carried a symbolic message. Reverend Caldwell took that hymn book – the source of great doctrine and spiritual truth – raised it up in the air and shouted to the Americans, “Give 'em Watts, boys!”
The spiritual emphasis manifested so often by the Americans during the Revolution caused one Crown-appointed British governor to write to Great Britain complaining that: “If you ask an American who is his master, he'll tell you he has none. And he has no governor but Jesus Christ.”
Letters like this, and sermons like those preached by the Reverend Peter Powers titled “Jesus Christ the King,” gave rise to a sentiment that has been described as a motto of the American Revolution. Most Americans are unaware that the Revolution might have had mottoes, but many wars do (e.g., in the Texas' war for independence, it was “Remember the Alamo”; in the Union side in the Civil War, it was “In God We Trust”; in World War I, it was “Remember the Lusitania”; in World War II, it was “Remember Pearl Harbor”; etc.). A motto of the American Revolution directed against the tyrant King George III and the theologically discredited doctrine of the Divine Right of Kings (which asserted that when the king spoke, it was the voice of God speaking directly to the people) was simple and direct: “No King but King Jesus!” Another motto (first suggested by Benjamin Franklin and often repeated during the Revolution) was similar in tone: “Rebellion to Tyrants is Obedience to God.”
Preserving American liberty depends first upon our understanding the foundations on which this great country was built and then preserving the principles on which it was founded. Let's not let the purpose for which we were established be forgotten. The Founding Fathers have passed us a torch; let's not let it go out."
I do believe this sets the tone of this most Patriotic of Holidays.
Last week when we went shopping the library was having their annual book sale, it's by donation. I stopped to look and picked out a nice box of children's books! Some of them are for the Before Five in A Row and Five In A Row program we use. I was so excited about that! I also found some nice history story books.
We happened to be back in town a few days latter and they were still having the sale. So I just had to peek again. LOL I found another book to go with the B4FIAR and some nice children's farming books! I'm planning to do a farming unit this fall with the kids. The International Plowing Match will be in our area and we are planning an all day field trip there. Dh is really looking forward to that to. I also picked up some wonderful animal videos for the kids and some documentaries for us. Dh also picked out a encyclopedia set on natural history.
I'm hoping to get to a homeschool book store this weekend. My shopping list has been gone over and over..I'm still tweaking it. So far I'm thinking of getting this:
Christian Liberty Nature Readers 1 & 2
Bob Books #1
Leading Little ones to God
Canadian Colouring book
FIAR Christian supplement
Before FIAR
Canada My Country
Ecoutez! Parlez! (beginner French)
Our plans this year are:
2 year old.
I'm going to use B4FIAR with her at a slow pace. Should be fun!
4 year old PreK
Teach Your Child to Read 100 Easy Lessons
Bob Books
B4FIAR
FIAR
Leading Little Ones To God
6 year old, grade 1
FIAR
Math U See Beta
SOTW 1 (we started this last year and put it on hold for a bit)
God's Design for Science, The plant kingdom and human body
Leading Little Ones To God
Canada My Country
Nature Study
Copy Work
CL Nature Readers
DD6 and 4 will also be starting on some hand crafts, keep working on crochet and maybe simple sewing.
Well I haven't had much posting time or time for anything that is. The crazy weather patterns of baking hot then cold and damp have made the kids sick. Two are ok now, 4 year old is still miserable and baby girl is on the mend. I've been fighting it also, but it's not easy to do when your up all night with sick littles. I sure hope they are all feeling much better soon, it's so hard on a mothers heart when her babies are sick!
When things settle down I have a huge list of to do's. I need to reclaim the house again lol. I was JUST caught up on most things when we all got sick. (sigh) Seems to happen every time LOL. I have a ton of sewing to do. I need nursable maternity clothes. This is the longest into a pregnancy I've ever nursed a baby. So most of my things don't fit. The girls also need new skirts etc. And I need to sew pullups and diapers.
I'm working on a major decluttering and planning our new school year also. I'm thinking of starting that soon to instead of waiting until fall. We mostly school year round, just taking it a bit lighter in the summer. When morning sickness hit bad I scaled down to just reading and math.
Yesterday morning the 2nd cleaning place was here and the adjuster stopped by as well. The cleaning place said they would put their bid in, but we haven't heard what it is as of yet.
The adjuster went on to say basically after looking things over, this is going to take some time. It is going to be like we all are invading your entire life. We however will help you through it and it will be over in a short time, but it will likely seem like an eternity going through it. Having said that, he also says that we need patience. NO CLEANING is to be done until the cleaners come... so much damage can be done by cleaning soot that is irrepairable. I told him that DH had already started because he was embarrassed by the sight of all these cobwebs (which are soot webs, not cobwebs... we learned so much these past couple days!) We notice a couple places where dh had the vacuum stick and hit the tile or something and it actually made skid marks that Dh then tried to get out and couldn't... he likely made it worse. The insurance adjuster just raised his eyebrows, but understood since no one told us what to do... they try to get out the day of or the next morning, but our insurance companies fax wasn't working and once back online... they forgot to call over the weekend and they took a holiday off on Monday... so nothing was told to us until Tuesday. We have been eating food in the cupboards they deemed unsafe and have basically told me to inventory and throw out. We have been living in a house that they are making to sound unliveable until it is cleaned. That has been changed to be you can live there, but you should really be careful what you touch, what you track back and forth and washing dishes before you eat.. .regardless of whether they look dirty or not. I'm like Uh-huh... he knows we have a 3yo and that this goes beyond her comprehension.
The adjuster also said this takes steps. We can replace the stove and hood as soon as we want... that will totally be replaced so we can go ahead and go shopping and turn in the bill. But otherwise, the cleaning needs to be done first. After the cleaning is done, then they will assess the damage. Then we will have to get bids, then approval for work to be done, then the last of the repair work should get completed. The cleaning will take approximately one week... maybe a little longer. They asked what we were willing to clean and we said the microcleaning, which he is happy for. They will clean the big areas, the ceilings, walls, and floors... and the entire kitchen area (washing cupboards, dishes, etc.). That leaves me to pack everything up in the house in boxes and get it out of the way so they can do that... I then will have to wash everything before putting it away again. Steve will help, but he has a full day at work next week and I will likely be alone doing much of the cleaning and trying to entertain Paige in the process.
I am beginning to see the reason of why this happened... and I smile and grimace all at the same time... In one big swoop my house will be cleaned and decluttered all at once. Likely in two weeks... Everything will have been cleaned and sorted and replaced into it's home or taken away to the dump or given away as donations. DONE! For those who have been keeping up on my blog you know my decluttering journey is very slow. I take it one box at a time... and slowly go through items. I recall taking things to the basement last fall and this spring the prized items went upstairs to be sold online... which in all honesty... things are selling. I am going to the post office 1-2 times a week to mail off items. Anyways, I will no longer need to bore you on my decluttering process because... it will be done! (if I stick to it and work with the process... which Dh says he will stick me to it! LOL).
You know... in my last fire post I was trying to figure this out and praying about it because it made no sense to me at all. NONE... so I went to bed with a heavy heart. But in the morning I awoke dreaming about something I only recall the meaning of now... and yet I know it was of giving things away... And I recall sleepily replying to this thought, but LORD, I thought you wanted us to sell it and then give to the poor... and to which I felt a deep need to read my proverbs chapter of the day. I wake up more fully, opening my eyes and I sense the words... The Lord will supply all your needs... and then remembering my dream of giving things away... I then eagerly rushed for my Proverbs book (It is just the book of Proverbs in one little paperback that I use for my daily devotions)... and I read the following...
Proverbs 22:1 ¶A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.
Yes, I know that Lord.
4 ¶By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life.
Ok, I understand what you are saying, but I know you want us to be debt free and to do that, I need to sell some items to pay off our debt... (do you say BUT... to the Lord?)
5 ¶Thorns and snares are in the way of the froward: he that doth keep his soul shall be far from them.
BUT... can be a snare... keeping you in one spot... never being able to let go, never being able to get truly close to Lord, because I am stuck in my snare... Ok... I see.
7 ¶The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.
See... YOU don't want us in debt... I only know a couple ways to get out of debt... WORK...likely out of the home (we've tried at home jobs and the only one that gave us money for debt was daycare)...or selling stuff to pay off debt.
9 ¶He that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor.
Bread is what sustains us... we pray, give us this day our daily bread... give my bread to the poor? Give away all the fluff in our house (our bread, that which will help us get out of debt)... that which will help keep giving us daily bread... I mean our debts will not get paid with nothing, so if it is gone... I have nothing extra to pay towards those debts... I already know our budget is cinched so tight... in fact our current budget allows for all the bills to be paid but absolutely NO MONEY FOR FOOD!... But Steve does get overtime, so I will need to put that overtime money into a food fund... and extra will go to pay off bills if that is even possible. ..the only extra money is our tax refunds which we have always paid unto debt... If that is what you want us to continue to do... OK. I will trust that your timing is perfect... Lord, please help my faith that doing this is what you want us to do...
16 ¶He that oppresseth the poor to increase his riches, and he that giveth to the rich, shall surely come to want.
Am I really trying to increase my riches??? I don't think so... I just want to pay off our debt. Are you saying my heart is eager to increase in riches? Eager to be debt free? Eager to be independent? Ahhh... OK... Eager to be self sufficient! Ok, I am seeing my heart... I want to be free of this burden of debt... and willing to go slowly at it, but have been simply willing to only do it my way? Are you saying that my goal to be debt free can come in the way of helping others? That it can make me avoid YOUR course for my day... because of my plan to sell and get out of debt? I feel that if I do accomplish this goal by my own way of doing things that you are saying I still will not be satisfied... what goal will I pursue next... it is a selfish goal for some in getting out of debt... meaning that we've attained something others haven't... put us into a different category perhaps...I reread...2 ¶The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all. I am beginning to read my own heart. I didn't think I was trying to attain something of earthly value, but I think I was beginning to see that I can take a Biblical value of being debt free and making it a god. It was all I thought of...my days plans were made around this goal... our diet was made around the goal (remember me saying I wouldn't buy fruits and veggies out of season because they cost too much???) Oh, my self-righteous soul!
17 ¶Bow down thine ear, and hear the words of the wise, and apply thine heart unto my knowledge.
18 For it is a pleasant thing if thou keep them within thee; they shall withal be fitted in thy lips.
19 That thy trust may be in the LORD, I have made known to thee this day, even to thee.
Trust.... Ok Lord, help me to trust in YOU alone. Help me give up my own self gratifying ways. Help me Lord in this process that I might humble myself to You and to do Your will in my home. Help me to trust when in my mind it seems so silly to give things away that can be sold and put onto a bill. When nothing makes sense... help me to just know that You can be trusted.
Those were my thoughts yesterday morning. I again sighed as I walked through the house with the adjuster and the cleaner. The cleaner was happy for all the STUFF... more to clean, more money to make! The adjuster on the other hand mentioned we had a lot of STUFF. The amount of books is tremendous, but he understood that and all the school supplies... he said... you need something to teach with... you basically have a school in your home... that is no small feat to try to fit it in. While he said it was ok, I recalled others I've met online that have ONE bookshelf for schoolbooks and supplies. And I'm now feeling remorseful in some ways. I've always thought that having alot of books was helpful... it helped keep library fines down... as we are late often in returning them... And when you return 20 books 5 days late... that can add up to a hefty fine. I tell them I am helping them keep their library stocked with new books... I buy several each year! Anyways, I admitted things had to go... and he smiles and says... well, you can sort as you clean. You don't have to put it back.
Dh has been furiously trying to come up with a plan and the $1000 deductible is not in our pocket book at the moment... so we do not want to buy the stove on credit only to wait to get repaid. So we have decided to wait on those replacement purchases until after we have worked off the deductible so that we can be paid for the stove right away. That means alot more one pan meals. This should keep us on our path to eating leaner! *Ü* Also, Dh had almost decide to let them clean it all... short of me working with the ladies as I could during the days. And doing the areas the cleaners didn't want to do... the bathroom closet, my daughters bedrooms, and our bedroom personal effects. I agreed that would keep me plenty busy. But as the decision for what to clean was made today, Dh said... we will clean all the small stuff... basically everything that has to be taken out, moved out of the way is our responsibility... books, toys, clothes, curtains, nick nacks, pictures, etc. This has increased my load tremendously and while I am willing to do it, I am cringing about doing it all alone. But dh reasoned that if they took books down and put them into boxes and replaced them, they would not go in the order that I would be happy with and I would have to redo it all again anyways... so why not just have me do that from the start. I am a micro cleaner... that is what I do best. My drawers, shelves and such have detailed order that drives others nuts... But the macro cleaning... is something that gets done on a have-to basis. So, he ultimately thought it would save me time in the long run if my duty was to do the micro cleaning... that way when things are put away, they are put away right and three weeks from now I won't be upset pulling a drawer out because it is poorly arranged... and spending an hour arranging it. Ahhh, he knows me well! Dh will be helping with the cleaning as well on his days off... it is not my job alone, but the part he left me to is the part that is best suited for me... I need to go through the items, I need to let go... Dh knows this and if he did it, he knows I would be upset with him... so it is for the best.
So, if anyone has hung through on this post this long... Please feel free to lift me up in prayer, that I might be able to let go with a light heart, not a heavy one. I do not wish to be like Lot's wife, holding onto things that seem to guarantee me some income in some way... Our budget is tight, but the Lord has always provided. I am beginning to look forward to having less. Less things to clean, less clutter to step over... and as DH wistfully says... the house will be CLEAN (uncluttered clean) in two weeks! He is so looking forward to it. (that reminds me that as we were talking of cleaning he says... I'd never clean out the entertainment center and wipe it all down, but here they are going to do it for us... and it will be cleaner than it's been in 19 years!... I wryly replied to that... I clean it out at least twice a year... I guess you never noticed. He said, next time, take a picture so he knows that I did it. He began to feel bad as all his hopeful expectant things to come of the crisis was a clean house... things will be cleaned that never were cleaned... and every thing he mentioned I clean on a regular basis... he just doesn't notice it because likely of the clutter that blocks his view... our house isn't a path house, but it has more clutter than it needs... I call it travelling clutter... I clean out a room and the clutter moves to the next room... I clean that room and the clutter moves to a different room... and so has it gone on for 19 years... yes, I admit I need change. )
Warmly, ~Melissa
ps, I'm not bashing going debt-free... we will continue our journey with that, but now being more open to God's plans in going debt free than my own.
pps, The help can't start until Tuesday and I can't clean until Tuesday... so that gives me a few days to get SS set up and going without having double duty... God is good.
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The crazy weather patterns of baking hot then cold and damp have made the kids sick. Two are ok now, 4 year old is still miserable and baby girl is on the mend. I've been fighting it also, but it's not easy to do when your up all night with sick littles. I sure hope they are all feeling much better soon, it's so hard on a mothers heart when her babies are sick!
