Archive for the ‘Miscellaneous’ Category

Finding the Time to Pray

As busy moms, we use all kind of excuses for not praying.  The most common excuse is that “I just don’t have the time to pray!”.  Does that sound familiar to you? Prayer plays a vital role in our relationship with the Heavenly Father.  When we make excuses not to pray we are telling God He is not that important to us.

1 Thessalonians 5:17 says, “Pray without ceasing.“  Prayers do not have to be long or eloquent in words, but we can certainly see that prayer should be very frequently…as a continual state or attitude of prayer.

Keep in mind that prayer is not just a time to ask God for something, but more importantly, it’s a time to praise and thank God for the things He has done in our lives.  We should also pray for others who have needs.  We can pray constantly throughout our day.   A prayer can be something as quick and simple as, “Thank you God for allowing me to miss that traffic accident on the highway” while we’re driving,  or a simple prayer while cleaning house,  “Thank you, Heavenly Father, for giving me strength to clean up that mess.”

You don’t have to speak out loud to pray. Remember God knows every thought in our minds.  Nothing is hidden from Him.  It is easy to say a quick prayer while getting ready for the day, before meals, while driving, or even at the grocery store.  Stuck in traffic?  Use your time to pray!

While the quick and simple prayers are great, you still need to make sure to spend some quality time with the Lord in your prayer closet.  A number of Christians do this first thing in the morning (we often do our top priorities first, and this is one of our top priorities so you may need to rise a a few minutes earlier than normal if you have a busy schedule ahead).

Another great time for quality prayer is before going to sleep at night.  Set aside a few minutes of prayer and do nothing but pour your heart out to God.  Praise Him, thank Him, ask Him.  You’ll also want to choose your quality times to bring out your prayer journal to remember others in prayer. (I’ll write soon about keeping a prayer journal.)

By continually praying you will see your personal relationship with the Heavenly Father begin to grow.  Prayer can help take worries away, reduce stress, and give you peace.  The Lord Jesus wants to help carry our burdens. Having a regular prayer life with the Lord will change your life.

I want to challenge you this coming week to spend more time in prayer.  Please feel free to share your comments about your own prayer time or share about your own answered prayers.  Let’s encourage each other!

Why Eating Healthy Cost Less

I remember the really hard times we had when my husband and I were young and starting out.  Eating healthy really seemed like the bottom on our list of priorities because just scraping enough money together to put meals on our table for our 3 boys seemed like enough challenge.

I also remember dreading each and every winter because it meant facing a lot of sickness and sleepless nights with a child throwing up or whining of an earache.  I also never thought much about the deterioration of mine own health and that what we ate or didn’t eat was affecting us that much.

While it is true that fresh vegetables and eating wholesome seems to cost more, there’s the other side of the coin to consider that makes you realize how much less it really does cost.

Here’s some points to ponder on why eating healthy cost less:

1. As  you begin to eliminate some of the “fast foods”, “convenience foods” and “processed foods” out of your diet, you end up spending much less. Most of processed foods have additives and unhealthy chemicals that deteriorate your health and actually cause you to crave more junk food.   You can begin to eliminate most of this and save money as well by learning to make your own salad dressings, salsa, pancake syrup, yogurt and other condiments.

You can also make your own snacks and sweet treats which usually cost much less than the store. Plus, you’ll have more control over the amount of sugar that is used.  I was shocked to learn that most of my recipes tasted just as pleasant with less sugar. I realize now that we’ve been consuming way to much sugar in our diet.

The key here is to progress slowly. You can get quite overwhelmed trying to make a huge change over night.  Focus on a couple of new healthy recipes each month and learn to make just one more convenience item on your own.  Then, establish a routine that allows you to keep stocked up on certain items.  For instance, I make salsa every Thursday.  This way, we can use the salsa for nachos on the weekend and any leftover salsa I can use for cooking in my recipes the following week.

2. After your body becomes accustomed to eating healthier, you’ll end up eating a lot less. Once your body becomes “nutritionally satisfied”, you’ll require a lot less food to feel satisfied.  Those cravings to constantly eat will slowly vanish.  How can you not save more money by eating way less?

For example: Snacking a just a small portion of nuts satisfies hunger far longer than potato chips and nuts are better for you nutritionally.   Carrots ward off hunger far better than any candy bar can.

Keep your kids from whining about food by setting limits on when they eat and how much they eat.  Soon, they won’t be thinking about food all the time.  And if your snacks are healthy, you won’t have to keep buying tons of snacks to keep them satisfied.

Popcorn is always a real winner.  Save money by popping your own over the stove.  You’ll be surprised how easy it really is.  You’ll save lots of money eliminating the microwave bags and it’s much healthier for you without all the additives.

3.  Eating healthy means being sick less often. Less visits to the doctor equal less stress, less time wasted in the doctor’s office, less money spent on co-pay and medicine.  The healthier you and your family members are, you’ll reap more benefits that far outweigh the arguments that you can’t afford to eat healthy.

Some extra tips for eating healthy on a budget:

Watch for sales on frozen vegetables. These are healthier than canned vegetables in the long run because they retain their nutrients more, plus you’re not paying for all that extra sodium and water in the canned products.

Buy fruits and vegetables that are in season. You will usually find better sales on seasonal fruits and vegetables; therefore, plan your meals according to the season and what’s available at a decent price.

Buy produce by the bag, not by the piece if available. (Example: apples, grapefruit, onions, oranges, potatoes, etc.)

Don’t put junk food in your shopping cart. Eating junk food only adds to cravings for more junk food which wastes your money on food that doesn’t provide adequate nutrition.  Make your own pudding, cookies and brownies and use less sugar.  Another benefit of not having junk food within reach is that you will more than likely evaluate how bad you really need that sweet treat before you get into the kitchen to start baking since it takes some work.

Plan a few meatless meals during the week. Cut down on the amount of meat you buy.  Most of us eat way more meat than we need to.  Vegetable soups and salads can make terrific meals without meat.   One idea is to cook meat one day and save the juices to flavor a vegetable soup the next day.   To make your salads more hearty, chop up any small leftover meat scraps to toss in with your salad.

Drink water, milk or real juice on sale instead of soft drinks: Drink milk or juice at breakfast and then drink water with the rest of your meals during the day.  Buy real juice instead of sugared drinks so that your body will be nutritionally satisfied from the vitamins in the juice.  You can still enjoy your favorite drinks at a sporting event or night out.

Buy fruits in quantity: When they are in season, buy fruits in quantity and freeze any extras. You can buy several pounds this way, and freeze extras to have them when the fruit goes out of season. Wash the fruit well, remove any spoiled pieces, dry thoroughly, and then freeze in plastic zipper bags.

Choose chicken: Meats are good sources for protein and chicken is priced fairly reasonable.  You can usually get 2 or 3 meals out of one chicken.  Chicken can be mixed with pasta for a meal.  You can also use cold chicken to create chicken salad sandwiches or simply chop some up to toss on a salad.  Use the leftover carcass to create chicken stock to add to soups.

Get creative with beans: You should use beans a substitute for meat frequently. There are several varieties and you can find tons of bean recipes online. You can prepare them in a crock pot; so when you return home, they are ready to consume. The USDA recommends eating beans at least 4 times per week. If you experience gas after eating beans, you should try washing them, covering them with water, bringing the water to a boil. Then drain off the hot water and refill the pot with fresh.

Buy locally. Sometimes you can save money by buying fruits and vegetables locally.  Honey and nuts are a couple of other items to consider buying locally.  If you live in a coastal area or an area where you can fish, make that an integral part of your diet. You can catch them from the ocean, lakes, or rivers; saving money in the process.

Buy peanut butter in bulk. Peanut butter is great for those on a budget as it’s popular with almost everyone and helps ward off hunger. You can use it for sandwiches instead of eating hot dogs. Peanut butter also makes great cookies and goes well in banana shakes, etc.  Bigger containers may need refrigeration since it can last you for weeks.

*Note: you can easily create your own peanut butter by processing peanuts in a food processor.  Check out details and instructions here by click here.

Fill up on foods with high water content. Watch for sales on watermelon which make a great family treat.  Salads and even gelatin are other examples on filling up on foods with extra water content.

Use rice and potatoes as fillers. Rice and potatoes are usually cheap and offer nutrition as well.  Once again, you can utilize the internet to find lots of new recipes for these main ingredients.

Take time to measure. I find that measuring can be sort of an “inconvenience” when you’re in a hurry, but I also realized that I can really stretch my ingredients by taking time to measure.  Figure out what least amount you can get by with on spices and seasonings and use that exact amount.

Be sure to measure items that are more costly.  I measure my frozen blueberries in the morning for my breakfast.  They’re a little costly to begin with, so I don’t want to just thoughtlessly toss them into my bowl in the mornings.  I take time to measure out a small serving and overall this saves money by being cautious about the amount I use.

Plan your menus around the sales. Some people are big on menu planning, but rather than try to plan your menu and then shop for the necessary ingredients try finding out what’s on sale at the local market and then plan your weekly menu around that.

How to Break the Paper Towel Habit

On “Thrifty Thursday” I thought I would address the subject of paper towel waste.  I decided that this was another area where I could save a few more pennies.  Paper towels wipe up small messes and are just tossed into the trash…hence you can just imagine hearing the little “cha-ching” going on at the paper towel manufacturers.

A few weeks ago, I decided to invest in a couple bundles of white wash cloths that were on sale.  I also bought a tall, white, round plastic trash container (the kind with the swinging lid on top) to toss in my cloths and other towels when they were dirty.  To be honest, I still keep paper towels on hand to grease a pan or to use when I want to serve some cookies but don’t want to mess with little dishes.  But overall, I feel better about being less wasteful.

I have found that keeping these white cloths nearby are really handy and just as easy to use as grabbing  a paper towel.  When my napkins for the table are gone, I plan to put some of these in my little square basket that I keep on the table.  My boys can toss them into my container when the poor little white cloths are done being abused from wiping dirty hands and faces.

P.S. ~ Here’s a little video on this very subject that I saw just today…

Keeping Promises

As I young child, I remember being taught the value of keeping one’s promises.  “A man’s only as good as his word,” was the saying I often heard…

Don’t you love the fact, that God keeps ALL of His promises!?!  Still yet we see the rainbow which reminds us of the promise He made after Noah’s flood.

God’s Word assures us…

Titus 1:2, “In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began.”

Matthew 5:18, “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.”

A little personal story…

Just for fun, I wanted to share little personal story from my childhood days.

When I was in second and third grade, I often slept with my Raggedy Ann. During thunder storms, I hugged her tightly. Having no brothers or sisters, it was so comforting to be able to talk to her at night.

After having a man come to our home to demonstrate the value and importance of new smoke detectors in case of fires…and being shown terrifying slides of the devastation that fires can do to one’s home…I began to make solemn promises to my Raggedy Ann that if ever a fire were to take place in our home… I would NOT leave her behind…I would escape with HER tightly in my arms.

Today, I still have her…and she resides in my kitchen. I still smile when I see her and am reminded of those nights that I talked with her as a little girl. I imagine she holds some secrets that never another ear has heard…except my Heavenly Father above.

Spring Break Celebration and Giveaway!

Well, I am really looking forward to spring break soon.  Even if your kids aren’t in school, why not take some sort of break for spring to do some things you’d REALLY like to do.  (In other words, schedule some time in for some spring time fun!)

While we’re on the subject of spring, I want to share with you about a delightful free giveaway: On The Vintage Pearl blog, there is a giveaway for a couple of $50 gift certificates.  (You’ll want to enter the giveaway…their  unique hand-stamped jewelry is so adorable!  You’ll want an item or two, I guarantee!)

Oh, how I would love to win and wear one on Mother’s Day!

For my own entry, I used the word “spring” to make an acronym for my simple plans:

(FYI:  You don’t have to get creative at all to enter, just make a post about your spring break.)

S – Spend extra time with my family laughing, walking to the park, playing monopoly.

P – Plant some flowers (I bought the seeds last week.)

R – Rummage through some junk to haul off in order to prepare for spring cleaning.

I – Indulge in some simple self pleasures such as an afternoon nap, reading a book, watching some home videos, blogging

N -  Nibble on some of my favorite treats such as dark chocolate and one of those Reese’s Peanut Butter Easter Eggs (I eat one each spring…they’re my favorite…so fresh and full of delicious peanut butter. Yum!)

G – Give my hubby some extra needed attention. (Back rub, go on a date, make his favorite cookies.)

By the way, you can share  your plans about your spring break with me as well before you enter.  I’d love to hear what you’ve got in store!

Rambling About My Weekend…and a sneak peek into my normal routine.

Seems like I’ve been awful busy lately coming and going…and planning what’s going to happen next in my kitchen.  I decided to slow down for a moment today and share with you about what’s going on here at the White House.

Thursday evening pre-planning takes place…and a little oops!

I decided to plan early for Friday morning’s breakfast by whipping up a batch of that peanut butter baked oatmeal.  I spread it in my baking pan, covered it and put it in the fridge so that it would be ready to stick into the oven the next morning.

It all actually turned out pretty well….except that I got in a big hurry and left a few spots of baking soda that didn’t get mixed well. (eeeewww!)  Wouldn’t  you know, my hubby and youngest son got those bitter bites in their pieces…and weren’t really thrilled.  Next time, I’ll slow down and mix a little more thoroughly.

Friday morning takes a big curve…

I really planned to relax a little bit and then get busy cleaning a little during the afternoon, but my hubby suggested we take off and travel to Ponca City to do a little shopping.  We try to plan a trip there about once a month to stock up on some supplies.  Unlike most of my past years of being a little “unflexible” with my planned schedule…I decided, Why Not!

So, my schedule quickly changed just like that!  Anyway, I find that being the age of “40 something” is a little thrilling.  Most of the little worries of my 20 & 30′s seem not so important now.  I still worry sometimes about that mess lurking my boys’ rooms…but hey…I guarantee more than likely it’ll still be there tomorrow.  It won’t be crawling anywhere…and if it does…then I’m relieved that I didn’t discover whatever was crawling in there. lol

I did have a great but tiresome day.  When we got back for the evening, I made my pizza dough to get ready for our Friday Pizza Night. (Some routines are a must…and pizza is one of those big “priorities”, you know.)

No worries about Friday’s tasks that didn’t get done…

To keep me from getting too far off course, my schedule organizer notebook is my support pal that makes sure that I get everything done.  I find that just taking time to plan a few priorities to get done everyday keeps my house from falling apart.

Peering back on yesterday’s schedule, I decided I’d better tackle those tasks today (Saturday), so I simply drew a little arrow over to Saturday. (See how easy that is?)  I then added only one other task of cleaning the bathroom so that I could easily get everything done in a timely manner.

Saturday is also the day to use up our leftovers…

For lunch, I grabbed leftover pizza to heat up for my boys and took out our leftover grapes to enjoy on the side. I ate some leftover stir fry. It was still yummy!

For supper, I wanted to use some of my leftover turkey, some homemade salsa, tortilla bits, and a little shredded cheese that I had left in my sandwich drawer in the fridge.

Mission accomplished: I found this recipe online: Tex-Mex Turkey Soup

It was the perfect solution (and quite delicious). I didn’t have sour cream, but I substituted with plain yogurt.

For the topping, I used leftover bits of tortilla chips that I keep in a bag for such an occasion.  Five minutes before serving, I tossed the bits into a little pan and popped them in my toaster oven to crisp them up.  I sprinkled the tortilla bits and cheese over the soup and it really added to the flavor and texture of the soup.

My day is done…almost.  I’m planning to try this recipe tonight for a sweet treat this weekend: “Peanut Butter Bars“.  With chocolate and peanut butter together, I figure I can’t go wrong.

I’m now looking forward to being in the Lord’s House on Sunday!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and please take time to share your weekend by commenting below.