My Heart's Desire

My 2009 Goal List

Several years ago our pastor had a sermon about making goals for the new year and not just making them and writing them down, but to pray about them daily.  Keep them in your heart, reread them daily or at the least, weekly.  Keeping them in mind by reading them often, praying over them, etc. means that in a year, when you look back at your list, you will have accomplished alot more on your list that you ever would have without it!

Here are the items I break my goals into each year, with at least 5 items under each.

Personal:  (myself only)

1.  Take more time for myself

2.  Plan for emergencies

3.  Learn to crochet

4.  Pamper myself weekly

5.  Get healthy!

Physical:

1. Eat more healthy

2. Loose more weight

3.  Goal weight of 130-140

4. Weigh a size 8-9

5. Do more sit ups! 

Financially:

1.  Sell extra car and other things

2.  Put more money into savings

3.  Redo budgets and monthly funds (for Christmas, taxes, etc)

4.  Find more ways to save and make money

5.  Encourage Matthew as he gets his Electrician lisence and works on his own

Spiritually

1.  Do my daily devotions again

2.  Pray with my husband daily

3.  Read and study the Bible more every day

4.  Attend church and Bible Study more regularly

5.  Keep my rpayer journal

Relatiionships (Family and Friends)

1.  Make a calendar of date nights with hubby and stick to it

2.  Spend more one on one time with Noah baking cookies, playing with play doh, etc.

3.  Focus on quality time and not quantity

4.  Keep in touch with new and old friends

5.  Send more birthday letters to friends and family members

Now I must admit I have an item or two that doesn't fit into these catergories, so I will call them Miscellaneous:

1. potty train Noah

2.  keep up with the cleaning scchedule

3.  paint rooms in house and move bedrooms upstairs

4.  plan a vacation with my family

5.  take more pics and videos of Noah and my family and friends

I Hate Balancing the Checking Accounts!!!!!!!!! UGH!

This is one of my jobs in our family as the keeper of the house and finances.  I must say I really hate to balance the accounts.  Thankfully, we have online banking so it isn't that hard, just a job that I honestly can't stand to do. 

This week was no different, and worse than most though.  We got new internet service not long ago, and since then, our bank has frozen our online account (yes we can still get to our money, write checks, etc....but we can't see our online banking at all!) because I signed in with a different IP than usual and this sent a red flag up on our account.  So, another words the bank was trying to protect us, and although I do appreciate that, it is what happened afterwards that makes me upset. 

There was a message on our account saying the names on the account, etc. needed to be verified, but when I called the bank, they said since Matthew is the one who set up the online account, he is the one who needs to call and verify names, etc.  I said, so you mean, I can go uptown today and clear out all of my hubby's money, but I can't access online banking to see if a check I wrote cleared??? LOL  She basically said yes.  LOL  Matthew took time out of his incredibly busy schedule to get this done yesterday.  He was told our online account would be unfrozen, and our password was changed for our protection.  We could sign in under the new password and then change it if we wanted to.  No problem right????

Well, I tried to sign in yesterday with our new password, and it didn't work.  So I waited until today and the same thing.  NOTHING.  I called the bank again, and of course I was told, we can't help you.  You will have to have your hubby call in to deal with this.  (He told them yesterday that I was able to talk to them about this, but they refused to today)  So, I was told I could sign up under my own account and then deal with the banking.  UGH!  LIke I have time to sign up for a new online account with the same stinking information that is on the other one, just because the bank is giving me a run around and not listening to our requests.

So, I did.  It took a while and I had to call the gal at the bank once to figure something out, but it is done.  I was able to finally access all three of our accounts (We have our major checking account, one for online purchases, and then a savings account), balance all accounts, move some money around, etc.  I couldn't pay my bills until I knew where the money situation stood!!!  So, after balancing the accounts, I paid the bills and they are ready to be mailed out tomorrow morning when my mail lady comes by.

Thankfully that job is over.  Now granted, if I do this every week, instead of every 3-4 weeks, I might not have had so much trouble balancing them after I finally accessed them.  LOL  Maybe that should be one of my new year's goals.  To check balances and cleared checks once a week. 

I was still suffering from a bit of a headache today (my migraine from yesterday decided to stay around a little while longer), and now after all the numbers and junk going on in my head from the finances, my headache is at full force again.  Oh well, I can rest easily in knowing all bills for the month are paid (except our taxes, which will have to wait until Matthew gets paid on the 15th of this month).

Seems like forever....

Since I posted a blog on here. I have been terribly busy..  With healing from the car wreck, chasing kids, and finishing up my first semester of college.. That is just the tip of the ice berg for what all has been going on in my part of the world. Oh yes and let's not forget thanksgiving and Josie's b-day.

So Friday night Jacob has invited several boys over to spend the night for his birthday which is Saturday and Joslyn is going to have a couple of girls over for her birthday. Our weekend should be fun.. We are going to make ornaments, homemade pizza's, decorate sugar cookies and have fun....

I am excited and am making out my list to go to the store tomorrow after class and get the last few things I need for the pizzas and such.. Wooohooo..

Well I just wanted to let you all know I am still around and feeling much better than I was a month ago after the car wreck.. I see the dr about my leg again next week along with finals.. I have a tes tomorrow, 2 on Friday 2 on Monday and 1 on Tuesday then I done for the semester..

God Bless,

Mars

Still fighting panic attacks...

   Surprise!  I am actually able to type some.  I am still dealing with the dreaded Panic Attacks!!  They are so crippling that I just want to stay in bed and pray, but I must keep up with Seth's schooling lessons and meals, so I just keep putting one foot in front of the other.  Tonight, I am not experiencing any attacks and it is such a relief! 

   Yesterday, I went and talked with my pastor.  This  was very helpful.  The key word that he used was the word--responsibility-- there are many things in my life that I take full responsibility for and I should not.  So, when something happens that triggers my attacks-I have to figure out if this cause is my responsibility or not.  Usually, the causes are not my responsiblity.  It is kind of hard to understand, but this is helping.  He also suggested a Christian counselor along with the need for a vacation or respite from my environment.  I have been told all this by both friends and family.  I just wish I could be as calm everyday as I am tonight.  (It doesn't hurt that I have Vitamin B, Calcium Mag, and four Shaklee Sleep Aids everyday.  Marianne, I am up to four whole ones a day!)  Anyway, it is nice not to be experiencing the racing heart, sweaty palms, shaking, trembling, tears, sinking feeling in the stomach, chest pain, depression and that constant feeling of dread!  Sitting here quiet and calm is such a gift from God!  Thank you, Father in Heaven.

   So, have I gotten ready for Christmas--NO!!  I should but I really don't have the energy.  We were going to put up the Christmas tree tonight, but it didn't happen, and I am glad.  I just don't want to be bothered.  Maybe-tomorrow.

   Things here are crowded and loud.  Baby William has colic and he is so pitiful when he hurts.  I seem to be the one to calm him down.  Imagine that!  I am the one with panic attacks and my insides are constantly shaking, but I am the one who can calm little William down.  God sure does have a sense of humor.

   Donnie, has been sick.  A sinus infection.  He is doing much better now.  Will-the SIL-is sick now.  He has a cold and Anna, my daughter, has been pumping him full of everything from herbal teas to ZICAM.  She wants him healed!  Seth and I have not gotten anything and I am so thankful for that!  I would be forced to rest then! 

   Anyway, that is it from the Beale Bungalow.  I do want to thank all who have emailed and left comments.  I have not been on the computer for days and days, but I did read them today and I am thanking God for your prayers.  I am not out of the woods, yet, but maybe soon.

                            God Bless!

Our Home For Christmas! *U*

Thank You Jesus For Everything!
I decorated our home before Thanksgiving so now I can enjoy it longer.
Here is our Family Room
If you'd like to see more you may check out my album at

Our Home At Christmas

 http://community.webshots.com/myphotos?action=refreshPhotos&albumID=568905178&security=TdhepO

I must warn you I got carried away! I love taking pictures.

Enjoy your day and have a blessed visit.
Lovingly, rilda

My Two Year Old Knocked Over the Christmas Tree!!!!!

Ok, stop laughing already!  LOL  Ok, it might be a little funny today but let me tell you, this mommy was not too happy when it happened earlier today!!!  UGH!!  But this pretty much explains my day today in a total nutshell.

I think Noah woke up on the wrong side of the bed or something.  He was whiney and grouchy and crabby all day long.  When he is like this he doesn't want to snuggle and calm down, he just PUSHES EVERY BUTTON HE CAN until you bust.  LMSO  So, it started off with the fabric Christmas doll on the back of the couch.  He picked it up, looked at it, hugged it, and then threw it on the floor, and jumped off the couch and pounced on it.  I was shocked because normally he is not like this.

Then started the whining for POP!  We have a few 2 liters left over from our late Sunday Thanksgiving dinner and he saw them in the kitchen and wanted some.  I said no way!!  So, he turned to get the broom (I forgot to put it away last night after breaking a plate and sending shards of glass everywhere) and was using it as an entended limb to turn the light off and on, and hit me in the leg.  The part of using it to turn on the light really impressed me, but I was a little annoyed he was banging me in the leg and I took it away from him and told me to follow me into the living room.  Well he refused!  So he got in trouble.

Then he refused to do something else, stood on toys he knows he is not allowed to stand on, and he climbed up on his little table and stood there looking out the window.  About the time I hollared for him to get down, he reached up and decided to hit my expensive stained glass angel hanging in the window.  (It is huge,a nd I love it so!)  Well, he sat in the chair and had a talking to AGAIN.

FInally about that time, was when I decided I might need to calm down, and get him to calm down for a few minutes before his nap (in about 15 minutes).  I called his dad to check on him and low and behold, while I was picking something up I had dropped, he jumps up from the naughty chair and then BAM.  Down went the tree.  Before I knew it the tree was on the ground and Noah was under it.

After lifting the tree off of him, and accessing the boy for any marks I picked him up and took him directly to bed for his nap.  It was either that or I am afraid I might have lost my cool!!!  So he was upset that I didn't do the naptime routine and I was upset that there was my tree angel laying on the floor in the corner.  I was praying her porcelain face was not broken because my mother gave her to me the last Christmas she was alive.  She was intact and ok!  I put the ornaments that were scattered around the living room floor back on the tree and by then the phone was ringing off the hook.  It was hubby saying, I heard screaming in the phone and then the phone went dead.  He wanted to make sure we were ok.  I told him what happened and we talked for a few minutes before getting back to work.

As I sit here now, looking at the tree, I realize there are still a few "dented" areas in the greenery that need to be fluffed more.  LMSO   Geesh.  Maybe tomorrow will be better.  I didn't get much of my list of items done today either.  I did get some tidying up done, but the dishwasher wasn't set correctly last night for some reason, so when I opened it to unload clean dishes today, they were still dirty!  So I ran them again, and will put them away in a bit when they cool down.  

Projects for Today:

I am not goign to be super busy today, but I do have a few projects in the sewing room I need to get going on!!!

1. Tidy up the house

2. Unload clean dishes and put away

3. Put clean clothing away

4.  Put supper in the crockpot (bbq pork for sandwiches tonight)

5. 

Sewing:

1.  cut and sew a crayon roll (to be hung on the wall even) for a swap

2.  Cut fabric and start sewing new apron (for another swap)

3.  Get all packages ready to be shipped tomorrow

Changing Tastebuds or Forgetfulness??

Since we had our late Thanksgiving dinner with hubby's family on Sunday, last night we had leftovers.  YUMMY and EASY, too!  LOL  So, since most of the family was supposed to go to different celebrations on Thanksgiving Day with traditional foods, I switched our dinner up a little and we had pork loin and potatoes and carrots in the crockpot instead of turkey.  Now, I ahve fixed this before at home, several times in fact because I love it, but hubby has kinda wrinkled his nose at it before.  So, for him, I fixedd a large batch of sweet and sour meatballs for Thanksginving Day.

Last night, we had leftovers and I told hubby I would fix him a dish to take to work if he wanted, and of course he excitedly said yeah!!!  So I asked him what all he wanted me to put in his dish and he said, oh I would be great with just the pork loin and all those yummy vegetables.  I said huh?? He said I really enjoyed them, can we do that again???  LOL  Inside my head I am thinking, who are you and what did you do to my husband?  LOL  I said well hunny, we have plenty of pork loins in the freezer from the hog we had processed a while ago, but usually you wrinkle your nose at that dinner and barely eat it, so I stopped making it for a while.  He said oh, well I liked it this time, maybe my taste buds are changing and then he laughs.  I said, yeah, maybe you forgot you liked it???  Whatever!  LOL

He is so silly sometimes!  So today in his lunch, he is having pork loin with potatoes and carrots, some sweet and sour meatballs and some homemade hotrolls I snuck in for a suprise!  LOL  It is probably enough food ofr at least 2 days (I love the LARGE Tupperware dish we have for hubby to take leftovers in), so he will be well fed for a while!  LOL

Menu for the Week:

Ok, so I am a day late.  LMSO  Oh well.  I was much too busy to even think about this yesterday.  Since we had our late Thnksgiving dinner at our house with hubby's family on Sunday, we simply ate left overs last night. 

Monday: Thanksgiving leftovers

Tuesday: BBQ Pork Sandwiches, cheesy potatoes, pie (all of these are leftovers as well...the pork loin we had Sunday is being turned into BBQ pork for the sandwiches)

Wednesday: Kielbasa, fried potatoes and onions, green beans with bacon (hubby request)

Thursday:  Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese

Friday: Sausage and Pepperoni Pizza, Brownies and Icecream

Saturday: Beef Roast and Vegetables (crock pot)

Sunday: Planned Leftovers

Christmas Shopping

Well the busy shopping season of the year is upon us!  How are you gals coming along on your shopping endeavors???  As you may know from reading it before, I am making ALOT of the presents for my friends and family this year.  I have one thing bought for Matthew and we will both buy one large toy for Noah, but most of it is homemade by myself.  Maybe Matthew will help me wrap them since I will be making them all???!!!

However, on Thanksgiving Day, Matthew's mother reminded me we still needed to do our family shopping.  Matthew's parents give each family (Matthew and his 2 sisters) a certain amount of money to spend.  The best part is, we get to pick out what the money is spent on and can pick it out ourselves!  The rules to this are, we can pick and use the money on anything we want, but we can not have it until Christmas. NO PROBLEM right????  Well, this can work several different ways.  Either Patty (my MIL) will go shopping with us for our things, or we can find them online and she will order them, etc. 

Well, some of you may not know this yet, but I HATE SHOPPING AFTER THANKSGIVING!!!  Each year, I try to get all my Christmas shopping, decorating supplies and yes, even groceries for the month of December shopped for ahead of time.  (If I do need something like milk, bread, etc. Matthew usually gets them for me!  LMSO)  So I told my MIL I would much rather do my shopping for myself and Noah online (Matthew will needd to pick out what he wants and let his mom know whether he wants it ordered online or to go shopping, etc.) because so many companies will offer free shipping on all orders and online specials, etc.

Well, after looking all over last for toys for Noah, I realized that the toy companies, etc. are only offering free shipping on the items they want you to buy like discounted old out of date things (like beach Bum Barney......I kid you not.........they still have Barney junk out there. LMSO)  And the sales and specials....HA!  Almost non-existant.  $5 off here, $2 there, but no big wonderful spectacular sales (and this is the day to get them.....Cyber Monday)  like I found at these same stores last year.  Sad isn't it????

So, as much as I hate shopping this time of year, I think I may end up calling the MIL, and telling her I would rather do some of Noah's shopping for him at Wal-Mart.  I have already taken him down the toy aisles and made mental note of the items he ooohed and ahhhed over, so I know what he wants and yes I approve of them. LMSO

My shopping on the other hand will most likely be done online.  I want some new clothes, and maybe some crafting and sewing books and supplies.  Some may think I am silly about this, but I have become much more practical in years past.  I don't need anything really!!!  And these are things I wouldn't spend my money on myself probably.  Crafting and sewing items will be made into things for my friends, family, and little one.  I am excited to get busy tonight picking things out online that I want.  LMSO 

So, how are all of you doing??? Are you finding out that you are buying more practical items than you were in the past???  Are you spending more or less than you have in the past?  Are you making lots of things this year?