From Family fun – Sandwich cookies turned into flip flops!  How cute!

I still laugh when I remember the very frustrated mother I saw at the amusement park some years ago.  She was hot, exhausted, and at her wits end as she said to her children in a very loud voice, “We came here to have a good time, and we are going to have a good time!” 

It’s every mom’s desire for her kids to enjoy the summer months, but there are days when you get tired and have come to the end of your idea list.  So, how’s your summer going?  Are you needing a few ideas to fill these next four weeks with fun things for your children?  I have seen some really adorable ideas online recently.  It makes me wish I had little ones at home so I could do some of these fun things!

In case you’re needing a few creative activities, I thought I’d share a few I’ve found:

Potted Chocolate Mint Puddings from Martha Stewart

• How Does she? has a list of 100 cheap or free summer activities. 
• From making slime to homemade paints and hot air balloons, Lil’ Luna has some really creative ideas here that were shared from many of her readers. 
• Martha Stewart has a list of 60 ideas including crafts, foods and backyard activities.
• Crystal & Co. has a list of 80 simple and very do-able activities that every child needs to do!!!!
• Here’s another list from The Chirping Moms.  There might be a few that are repeated from another site, but each list has some unique activities no other place has.
• Here’s a Pinterest page of 100 ideas! 

Wow!  Wish I was a kid again!

Who will you do these activities with?  If, like me, you don’t have little ones, perhaps we can adopt some one’s child for an afternoon and have some fun with them, and give their mommy a break!

What’s your favorite summer memory as a child?

Enjoying summer,

Sometimes all it takes is just a little organization to simplify life!  I have an upright freezer in my basement…way in the back of the basement.  I keep all my meats, ice cream, and extra baked goods in there.  When I purchase packages of chicken, I re-package it into smaller bags, and I mark everything with a permanent Sharpie Pen.  But even still, it’s easy to overlook a package of chicken, or forget that you had stocked up on English muffins or pork chops because it was hidden behind the ice cream!  Running downstairs to hunt for things can be frustrating.

A couple weeks ago, my sweet and proficient daughter, Whitney, emailed me a Freezer organization list that she created, and that has really been a blessing!  I keep the list up in my kitchen so I know what I have both downstairs and up in the refrigerator freezer.  When I go shopping and purchase chicken breasts on sale, I package them, mark them, then add it to the Freezer list, marking which freezer it is stored in.  I now know what is stored and where it is.  After I use a piece of meat, I mark it off the list.  No more digging in the arctic tundra trying to find that steak, or wondering if I have enough hamburger for dinner tomorrow night.  Now I just whip out the list and take a look!

Ah!  I feel refreshed!  You can too.  The freezer organization list can be downloaded here.  If the list contains items you don’t buy, you can white out that item and write in what you purchase.  Or, you can email me and I can send you a list that can be edited before you print it. 

Just wait until you see how this organization tool will refresh your life!

See you in church Sunday!

Be refreshed,

People problems.  We face them every day.  I heard a preacher once say,  “The ministry would be great if it weren’t for people!”  The comic strip, Peanuts shows Linus saying, I love mankind; it’s just people I can’t stand!”  That’s ridiculous, of course, because mankind is people.  Ministry is people.  Your job is people.  Your family is people, as well as your neighborhood, and so on.  So, if we all live with people, and people can be frustrating (the person in the mirror is frustrating to others too!), the best thing to do is learn to deal with them biblically! 

Ever have someone tell a lie about you?  It stings, and you feel as helpless to get the truth known as a chicken on its way to the slaughtering house.  Yesterday I was reminded in Proverbs’ simplicity that the truth will always prevail. 

Years ago we had someone tell some horrendous lies about our family.  Our initial response was to shout the truth everywhere we went, but the Lord stopped us from doing so.  We knew these things weren’t true, and the Lord reminded us that He would allow the truth to prevail in His time.  It was hard to wait, but we did.  Eighteen years later the one who had spread the lies, made a long distance trip to see us and ask our forgiveness.  Though that may seem like a very long time to wait, in comparison to eternity, it really isn’t.  Quite frankly, it was worth the wait!  It was a sweet reunion as restitution was made and hugs of forgiveness were exchanged.

Yes, the just are delivered.  Even if it doesn’t happen until eternity, the truth will always prevail.

If you’ve fallen prey to someone’s lies, remind yourself of what God’s Word says about it, and allow the One who is Truth, to bring it into the full light at just the right time.  Let Him be your Deliverer.

With love,

Home maintenance tool!  My Swiffer.

Home maintenance.  It never ends, does it?  With white floors, it seems there is constantly something that needs to be wiped up in the kitchen.  Without daily maintenance there would be spots, crumbs and drips.  In between moppings I find myself stooping over to spot clean here and there if I want to maintain a clean floor.

Yes, they are roses and notes, but in reality, these are marriage maintenance tools!  My sweet husband brought me the red roses yesterday.  He’d gone to Ingles to pick up a few items, and came home with the flowers for me.  There was no occasion; no spat to smooth over – it was just a gesture of love.  I found the note cards at Hobby Lobby.  One side of the card says things like, “I appreciate all you do for me.”  the other side is just a pretty card, ready for my personal note.  I like to leave these in fun places where my husband will find them – by his toothbrush, on his pillow, in his Bible.

Are roses and cards necessary for us to be a married couple?  No.  But they are necessary to maintain a loving relationship.  Life could easily go on without flowers or cards, but the marriage would only exist.  Just like my floor would still be a floor if it wasn’t mopped, but it wouldn’t be a very attractive one, our marriage is much more “attractive” when we think about things we can do for marriage maintenance!

Even if your husband doesn’t bring you red roses for his maintenance contribution, you be on the alert as to what you can do.  The I Corinthians 13 love is kind.  It doesn’t seek its own (though that’s what our sinful heart wants to do!).  Just as home maintenance requires doing little things all day (wiping the counters, emptying the trash, filing the mail) it’s the little things in a marriage that make the difference. 

• Kiss him goodbye, good-night, good morning
• Hold his hand in the car
• Wrap your arms around him
• Leave a note in the car
• Wink at him from across the room or the dinner table
• Buy him a small gift
• Send a love note text
• Pray with him
• Tell him what you admire about him

Next time you get your mop out to do a little maintenance around the house, ask yourself if you’re keeping up with your marriage maintenance.  It just takes a little time, but it will go a LONG way in making a happy home!

From my parsonage windows,

“Anything your father could do, mine could do ten times better!”

This sounds like a war between two grade-school boys, doesn’t it?  It’s not.  It’s talking about our Father in heaven.  God’s ways are far above our ways, and when we follow His directives for our lives, He will also see to it that we will see results that are ten times better than what we could connive.

Just look at Daniel and his three friends in Daniel one.  They refused to defile themselves with the king’s meat.  After the trial of ten days, the prince of the eunuchs found these young men fairer and fatter than those that ate the king’s food. (Daniel 1:15) God’s ways were better!

When the men stood before King Nebuchadnezzar, he found them in all matters of wisdom and understanding ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm. (Daniel 1:20) If you asked Daniel, “How did that happen?”  He wouldn’t pat himself on the back or take a deep bow, he would point upwards to the God of heaven Who granted them the wisdom they needed.

The wisdom you and I need today will not come from our own wits, but from the God Who gives to all men liberally (ten times better).  The ordering of events that we need to take place will be ten times better if we remove our own weak hands and allow God to intervene.  We must do what Daniel did, however; we must be obeying all that we know God has told us to do (after blessing comes obedience).  Then we let God work.  Afterwards, when things turn out ten times better, we must give Him all the praise, for He alone is worthy!

What do you need to see God do?  Trust Him for the “Ten times better” things He is able to do!

With love,