A Funny Comment

First, just a note - I may take a little breather from the blogging world for a few weeks. My mom is here visiting and we don't see her often. She's here for about 2 weeks, and I may try to stay off the computer during that time.

As for the funny comment, my daughter had said something to her brother that wasn't very nice because she said she was angry at him. I had asked her if Jesus got angry at people... My exact question was this. "Did Jesus get angry when people did things He didn't like? What would Jesus do?" Her answer, "He flooded the earth!" as she stomped her foot.

Then I said that God flooded the earth because of all the evil, and she retorted with, "Mom, Jesus and God and the Holy Spirit are all one, so Jesus DID flood the earth because he was Angry at all the evil." as said with her hands on her hips and her foot stomping.

I had to walk away. I was in tears laughing. Teaching moment lost! :-)

One Christian Mom

Tuesday's Tip

Today's tip is recommended reading for women only. Men, this is your last warning, we are going to be talking about feminine issues here. Are they all gone yet? Ok, let's get to talkin'. :-)

Today's tip is about cloth. Pads, that is. As you may know, I started my journey into frugality and eco-friendliness with a foray into cloth diapering. I didn't realize when I started that it was better for baby, too! Well, the same goes for women.

Did you know they apparently put chemicals into feminine products that can increase bleeding and cramps? And if you use tampons, I have read that they can contain irritants that keep the walls bleeding even after the cycle has stopped.

Is any of this true? I will let you research for yourself. Google chemicals in maxi pads or tampons and read some of the pages that come up. I like to come to my own conclusions, and I will let you do the same. However, it stands to reason that if making your own food (and growing, for that matter) is healthier than prepackaged, it stands to reason that making your own pads would be healthier as well.

Now, I don't make my own. I am not good with a sewing machine yet, and I put it off until I had gone three cycles and had to purchase more products from the store before I broke down and bought some handmade ones from a mama on the diaper boards.

It's a simple product. Get the idea of rags out of your heads! :-) I remember my mom telling me I was setting her back 50 years when I started using them, she can remember the bucket in the bathroom as a teenager when she had to rinse her "cloths" before putting them into the wash. They are nothing like the cloths of yesteryear. It actually is just like a disposable one, without the prospect of wasting money on a throwaway product.

So let's review... they are cheaper in the long run, healthier for you, healthier for the earth - what more is there to say? :-D Go ahead and google cloth pads or mama cloth and see what you can find. :)

One Christian Mom

Volunteering

I recently realized that now is the age to get my daughter involved in volunteer work. If she is immersed from an early age, it won't be a struggle for her as it is for me. Only one problem... my sons are still considered "too young" to volunteer for much of anything. Most of our church volunteer opportunities are age 5 and up, and the local food pantries and the like are adult only.

Recently we heard about our church's thanksgiving food drive. I have one or two small things to offer, however I just don't have the ability to give anything of "value", such as a 32 oz box of potatoes or a 15 lb turkey. So, what I have decided to do is volunteer us to put together the packages. It will be just myself and the coordinator, so it's of no consequence that I will bring the boys. I will bring a few toys, and some coloring books/crayons to keep them occupied while my daughter, the coordinator and I sort through the food given and divvy it up between the families in need of receiving the packages. Then, we will put the boxes in the back of the van and distribute them.

I am excited, this is the first time I am volunteering with the kids, and I think it will be a good experience for my daughter. How have you included volunteer work in with your littles?

God Bless, and I pray you have a restful weekend!
One Christian Mom

WHEN YOU THOUGHT I WASN'T LOOKING

I don't know the origins of this, but I received it in my inbox today and couldn't help but share! :-) If anyone knows the origins, I would be glad to post them.

A message every adult should read because children are watching you and doing as you do, not as you say.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you hang my first painting on the refrigerator, and I immediately wanted to paint another one.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you feed a stray cat, and I learned that it was good to be kind to animals.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make my favorite cake for me, and I learned that the little things can be the special things in life.

When you thought I wasn't looking I heard you say a prayer, and I knew that there is a God I could always talk to, and I learned to trust in Him.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make a meal and take it to a friend who was sick, and I learned that we all have to help take care of each other.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you take care of our house and everyone in it, and I learned we have to take care of what we are given.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw how you handled your responsibilities, even when you didn't feel good, and I learned that I would have to be responsible when I grow up.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw tears come from your eyes, and I learned that sometimes things hurt, but it's all right to cry.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw that you cared, and I wanted to be everything that I could be.

When you thought I wasn't looking I learned most of life's lessons that I need to know to be a good and productive person when I grow up.

A Lesson Learned, and a question

I am learning (albeit slowly) ;) the necessity of controlling my tongue and my typing fingers... If not conviction, I don't know what has befallen me lately. First my little outburst here, then one at my recovery meeting at church. A wise woman online, and also one in my church both "pulled me aside" as it were and explained to me in a most loving way that my tongue needed to be bridled. Actually, I have to say it was probably some of the most loving things anyone had ever said to me, because it is helping me not only in my relationships with my family, with my church family, and my friends, but also with the Lord. He cringes when he hears this stuff come out of my mouth, when all I am doing is "venting".

Then within the next few days, I saw Joyce Meyer on TV talking about how her tongue got her in a good amount of trouble in her early days of ministry, how and why she learned to rein it in, and what good it's done in her life.

Then... as if that wasn't enough, there was a Focus on the Family podcast about the same thing regarding marriages. Is that conviction of the spirit? If not, I don't know what it is. Maybe the Lord was teaching me something through repetition, as we so often do with our children.

So now the question. What do you all do when you feel the need to "vent"? Does this happen to you, when you are angry, upset, sad, mad - any of those negative emotions and you just need to tell someone?

When something good happens (revolving around the good emotions, happy, excited, etc.) and we tell it, it's called a praise report, a testimony, a joy report, etc. When something negative happens, we are supposed to pray and keep our mouths closed. As you know I have a hard time with this. Is there something you all do that helps you "bridle" your tongues, or do you not even have the desire to blab?

Thank you again for your continued prayers, I am again keeping up with all of your blogs and am praying over you as well.

With God's Continual Blessing for your Families,
One Christian Mom

"Mommy, Why Are All Dinosaurs....."

This is a question posed to me today by my 4 year old son while discussing that God made the dinosaurs... "Mommy, why are all dinosaurs always naked?" :-) I love kids!

Tuesday's Tip

I have decided to start doing a tip a week. It might be any kind of tip, from a frugality tip to a laundry tip, to a cooking tip - just depends on the kind of things I have been doing this week :) Let me know if you like it! I know this blog was started for personal reasons, and posting about my walk is important to me, but I can't do that everyday, and I need something to fill in the rest. Some of these will be auto-posts, I will do them as I think of them, and set them to post for the next Tuesday. If you think of something you would like a tip on that I might know, let me know and I will post it :)

So this week's Tuesday Tip is about money. Or more importantly how to control it. It's a simple tip, and one many of you might already use. It's called the "envelope system." I will not even begin to take credit for this one, I have heard it so many times over the years from places like Money Matters and Dave Ramsey, however it was something I had never put into practice until I needed to.

It's fairly simple, as I said. Basically you take your budget (you have one, right?) and look at your non-bill money expenditures such as gas, groceries, clothing allowance and entertainment (or any combination of what you spend. I don't actually have a clothing allowance or entertainment budget, but I know many of you do). Then, every week, two weeks, bi-monthly - however often your family gets paid - go to the bank and take out EXACTLY that much money.

So for example, say you get paid weekly to keep this simple. Say you spend $50/week on groceries, $30/week on gas, and on average $5/week on clothing. The clothing one is a bit tricky, rarely is it people buy clothes weekly, but it does need to be budgeted so that when it does come up, you have the money for it. For us, except for shoes, we don't have to buy clothes - there are kids in line just above mine who seem to outgrow their clothes just as my kids need more. And being a SAHM, I can wear just about anything that is modest and in good condition, so occasionally I will go to the salvation army with leftover money from other budgeted areas, but mostly I have been blessed with clothing gifted to me by others (either used or new, it doesn't matter to me :) So anyway, back to the budget....

When you go to the bank, take out (for this example) $85. Put the money in designated envelopes, then put the checkbook and the mac card in your desk drawer. (Or hide it in your wallet - the idea is out of site, out of mind, but be mindful of emergencies such as needing a tow truck or some other such hassle). As for the envelopes, you should mark them with what they are for - food, gas, entertainment, etc. If you get paid every other week and you took out two week's worth of money, have 2 sets of envelopes, and each one has either week 1 food or week 2 food. You get the idea. Some might accumulate, such as the clothing - you won't buy anything for $5, however by next season you will have enough for a few new (or new-to-you) items. Some might be drained weekly...

Now the hard part. Once the money in any envelope is gone, that is it. No more spending in that category. If you use up all your gas money by Thursday and still have somewhere to go, you have to pull money out of clothing or food, etc in order to get there. It helps keep you accountable for your spending limits. I find it necessary to take a calculator to the grocery store to keep to my limit - it's embarrassing to get to the checkout just to say, "I can't pay for this, this, this and that, can you please take them back?" :-) When I get to my limit on my calculator, I decide if what is left on the list is a necessity. If it is, I go through the cart to decide what has to go back. NEVER has it happened that I didn't have the money for what was necessary, but needs and wants rarely meet.

One very important part of the envelope system that doesn't seem obvious is PRAYER! Pray over your monetary situation!!! :) We pray over everything else, don't we? When we give at church, don't we ask God to multiply our money to do it's greatest good for His kingdom? Why shouldn't you pray over your envelopes? "God, please grant this money the ability to do all it needs to through You. Let the food money be enough to fill our bellies, let our gas not run out, and let us be clothed in attire fitting our representation of You. In Your precious Son's name we pray. Amen"

It doesn't have to be elaborate to work. That goes for the money system as well as the prayer! :)

Be Blessed.
One Christian Mom