Ah- the middle of the week. Before, when it felt like the weekend was different than every other day of my life, I used to look forward to this time of the week. And now with Tom working the weekends, I don't even have that to make the weekends look good.
This week has been especially busy. Classes resumed this week after a week-long spring break and Shelby started a new job, which has put Lindsay & I on more babysitting patrol than usual. Jalen is a pretty good little guy and we have had great weather this week, so he has been pretty content to just ride his little tryke on the deck while we schooled and worked.
I eventually hope to get a daily theme going with this blog, but for now, I am going to include a potpouri of things in each post. I have been interested for almost a year now in making a transition to eating/cooking more healthy and with real foods as opposed to those that the typical doctor tries to tell us is good for us. To that end, I have found a source for my raw milk and also a source for my raw cheese. We are all loving both of those things! So much so that we have even been tossing around the idea of buying our own dairy cow. We won't be able to act on that idea too soon, but it is definitely something we are mulling over. One of the things we are getting ready to venture out on is making our own mozzarella cheese. We have heard from many that there is nothing better and once you make it you won't go back to store bought again.We are excited to try our hand at it.
I think it is amazing to realize that no matter how great "progress" has been for our country, the reality is that we are also a more sicker people than we used to be also. Granted, with the discovery of antibiotics, we have been able to prevent a lot of serious illnesses, and I am grateful for that, but I think we still have a long way to go (or get back to) before we can really be healthy people.
I do plan to take pics of our experiments and test drives as we try out new foods and share about our likes/dislikes as we work on this transition. I hope you will check back often for updates as I sincerely hope to keep this momentum going.
Till the next post!
Donna
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Sunday Wrap Up
Well, here we are at the end of the weekend and almost the end of the month of March. Time, as usual, is flying by. It feels like we just finished celebrating Christmas and now Easter is upon us.
Several new things are happening in our home/family. Kayla passed one of her final nursing class tests and sent a text messsage telling us to order the cake as she was for sure graduating. LOL As if we ever doubted that. LOL Shelby passed her GED test and starts a new job tomorrow. Tom is slated to return to work in the oil field in May. We are still making the slow transition to get off processed foods and we have found a raw milk supplier as well as a raw cheese supplier. And I am still struggling to adjust to college at the age of 40+. :)
It is still my desire to blog regularly, though I don't know how/if that will ever become reality. Too much of my life seems to be lived in "reaction" rather than "proaction", but I am trying.
Something that a missionary said last week at our church really inspired me. He said "sometimes the road forward is found by going backwards". It is something I have really been pondering on. There are many things that I used to do much better than I do now and I think it was a timely word from the Lord for me to hear that.
So, here's to the end of March and the beginning of April, the end of the weekend and the beginning of a new week. Let's all be and do everything God has for us to do.
Several new things are happening in our home/family. Kayla passed one of her final nursing class tests and sent a text messsage telling us to order the cake as she was for sure graduating. LOL As if we ever doubted that. LOL Shelby passed her GED test and starts a new job tomorrow. Tom is slated to return to work in the oil field in May. We are still making the slow transition to get off processed foods and we have found a raw milk supplier as well as a raw cheese supplier. And I am still struggling to adjust to college at the age of 40+. :)
It is still my desire to blog regularly, though I don't know how/if that will ever become reality. Too much of my life seems to be lived in "reaction" rather than "proaction", but I am trying.
Something that a missionary said last week at our church really inspired me. He said "sometimes the road forward is found by going backwards". It is something I have really been pondering on. There are many things that I used to do much better than I do now and I think it was a timely word from the Lord for me to hear that.
So, here's to the end of March and the beginning of April, the end of the weekend and the beginning of a new week. Let's all be and do everything God has for us to do.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
A Possible Phoenix????
Could it be possible that like a Phoenix, I too could rise from the ashes and have new life? My last post was very depressing was it not? I very much felt at the end of my rope and could not see the hope of anything good in my life again. Of course, that is seldom ever true. Life is always changing and nothing ever stays the same. The bad times always make way for better times and yes, even the better times fade into darker times, but that is just natural. I know that, but when it happens to me, I always tend to forget.
In the past month the Lord has shown me in more ways than one just how very much He is for me and not against me as I sometimes am wont to think. My biggest struggle continues to be putting into practice what I know to do. That is an issue in almost every area of my life too, not just one or two areas. I sometimes feel like I will never get on top of it and really become the person God wants me to be. I struggle with feeling overwhelmed on an almost constant basis and when I know there are specific things He wants me to do, I find myself procrastinating or making excuses for why I don't need to do it "right now". But I really don't want to reach the end of my life and realize that there is no time left to do the things that I had always thought I would get around to doing, you know?
So, how does one go about getting their life on track and getting back on track when they fall off? I should know - I have a bookshelf full of books on organization and prioritizing, etc. I remember someone once saying that they had adopted the Nike slogan for their life motto - "Just Do It". And a wonderful friend of mine told me once that I shouldn't look at the whole picture, just do the "next thing". I think that is what I will start doing - the next thing. It sure sounds good anyway.
Again, I apologize to any who read my last post. I really want to rise above the circumstances of my life and use them instead as stepping stones to get me to the place God has called me to. I know that God has not given up on me and He never will. Even if I give up on myself occassionally, He will always stay with me and pull me from the ashes so to speak and give me new life again to move ahead, ever onward and upward.
To better days ahead!!!!!
In the past month the Lord has shown me in more ways than one just how very much He is for me and not against me as I sometimes am wont to think. My biggest struggle continues to be putting into practice what I know to do. That is an issue in almost every area of my life too, not just one or two areas. I sometimes feel like I will never get on top of it and really become the person God wants me to be. I struggle with feeling overwhelmed on an almost constant basis and when I know there are specific things He wants me to do, I find myself procrastinating or making excuses for why I don't need to do it "right now". But I really don't want to reach the end of my life and realize that there is no time left to do the things that I had always thought I would get around to doing, you know?
So, how does one go about getting their life on track and getting back on track when they fall off? I should know - I have a bookshelf full of books on organization and prioritizing, etc. I remember someone once saying that they had adopted the Nike slogan for their life motto - "Just Do It". And a wonderful friend of mine told me once that I shouldn't look at the whole picture, just do the "next thing". I think that is what I will start doing - the next thing. It sure sounds good anyway.
Again, I apologize to any who read my last post. I really want to rise above the circumstances of my life and use them instead as stepping stones to get me to the place God has called me to. I know that God has not given up on me and He never will. Even if I give up on myself occassionally, He will always stay with me and pull me from the ashes so to speak and give me new life again to move ahead, ever onward and upward.
To better days ahead!!!!!
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Why Blog?
I have always enjoyed reading blogs. Always so neat to see how other people live their lives, what habits they have, and getting a glimpse of their walk with the Lord is usually so inspiring. So, I thought I would start a blog. From day 1, I just haven't had much to say, and certainly nothing on a consistent basis. Then I realized why my attempts at blogging were so dismal - the cold, honest truth is that for the most part, all my life consists of are broken promises, wishful thinking and all those shoulda's, coulda's, woulda's.
I have been married almost 22 years and have 3 daughters and 1 grandchild and so the fruit of what I did during the first 15-20 years of my marriage has now sprung forth and is evident for all to see. It really is true that what you sow you will reap. The sad thing about that is that by the time you start to reap, you can't stop and replant. The seeds are already sown.
Now to my children, when they hear me say something like that, they instantly take it personally, and think I don't like them. Well, I guess they would be right at times about that. I don't like everything they have done in their lives, but I love them. I guess though that even though the oldest one is almost 21, none of them are old enough yet to understand that there is a difference between liking what they do and loving their person.
I had hopes that after such a rough year in 2009, that 2010 would be better. I really didn't think it could get much worse, but how naive was that??? And true, things could still be a whole lot worse than what they are, but where I am walking right now, it is a very dark and sad place.
I do not plan to blog anymore. It is a total waste of space and of anyone's time who has read it. If you learn anything from my life, let it be what NOT to do.
I have been married almost 22 years and have 3 daughters and 1 grandchild and so the fruit of what I did during the first 15-20 years of my marriage has now sprung forth and is evident for all to see. It really is true that what you sow you will reap. The sad thing about that is that by the time you start to reap, you can't stop and replant. The seeds are already sown.
Now to my children, when they hear me say something like that, they instantly take it personally, and think I don't like them. Well, I guess they would be right at times about that. I don't like everything they have done in their lives, but I love them. I guess though that even though the oldest one is almost 21, none of them are old enough yet to understand that there is a difference between liking what they do and loving their person.
I had hopes that after such a rough year in 2009, that 2010 would be better. I really didn't think it could get much worse, but how naive was that??? And true, things could still be a whole lot worse than what they are, but where I am walking right now, it is a very dark and sad place.
I do not plan to blog anymore. It is a total waste of space and of anyone's time who has read it. If you learn anything from my life, let it be what NOT to do.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Half Gone
Well half of the first month of the new year is already gone and I am just now getting around to blogging. Seems that some things just never change. LOL
I have had a very rocky start to this new year. I kind of had a feeling getting ready for 2010 that things wouldn't be great right off the bat, but little did I know just exactly what kind of things I would get hit with. This past week was probably the roughest for me in that I really let it all overwhelm me and I was having a very hard time struggling to get beyond that, but this morning I awoke determined to not let it beat me down anymore. Sure, times are hard and probably gonna get harder. I can either choose to focus on wondering how I will survive the harder times that are sure to come or I can choose to focus on my relationship with Christ who will be the one holding my hand and seeing me through the hard times that come.
I know every year most people set goals or resolutions for that year and I am just like everyone else. I write them down and dream big, but generally by the time the year rolls to an end I find I did not accomplish even one of the lofty goals I had and actually for the past few years I haven't even bothered to write them down new - I just recycle the ones from the previous year. How sad is that??? So this year I have decided that I am just going to pick a few things I want to work on (no more than 3 I think) and focus on those. Something I am just starting to learn is that it is not about how "much" one accomplishes, it is about what you learn in the process of accomplishing, if that makes sense?
So, to anyone who stumbles across this blog post, I challenge you to just pick no more than 3 things to work on this year and just focus on those and see just how much working on those 3 things changes multiple things about your life.
I have had a very rocky start to this new year. I kind of had a feeling getting ready for 2010 that things wouldn't be great right off the bat, but little did I know just exactly what kind of things I would get hit with. This past week was probably the roughest for me in that I really let it all overwhelm me and I was having a very hard time struggling to get beyond that, but this morning I awoke determined to not let it beat me down anymore. Sure, times are hard and probably gonna get harder. I can either choose to focus on wondering how I will survive the harder times that are sure to come or I can choose to focus on my relationship with Christ who will be the one holding my hand and seeing me through the hard times that come.
I know every year most people set goals or resolutions for that year and I am just like everyone else. I write them down and dream big, but generally by the time the year rolls to an end I find I did not accomplish even one of the lofty goals I had and actually for the past few years I haven't even bothered to write them down new - I just recycle the ones from the previous year. How sad is that??? So this year I have decided that I am just going to pick a few things I want to work on (no more than 3 I think) and focus on those. Something I am just starting to learn is that it is not about how "much" one accomplishes, it is about what you learn in the process of accomplishing, if that makes sense?
So, to anyone who stumbles across this blog post, I challenge you to just pick no more than 3 things to work on this year and just focus on those and see just how much working on those 3 things changes multiple things about your life.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Terrific Tuesday
Well, Tuesday nights is our usual bible study fellowship night, but we decided to combine it with a New Year's Eve party this year, so we moved it to Thursday night this week. Thought that would give me a night off of major cooking, but then Shelby called inviting her and the family to come eat with us. LOL That's okay - that just meant I got time with the grand younguns! Super fun time!
The Lord never ceases to amaze me. The work I do from home gets pretty slim through the holidays and for the past several days I have had no work at all to do. I was stressing about how pitiful my check was going to be and so after logging in this morning and getting the "no jobs available" message, I was a little frantic and threw up a short prayer that went something like, "God, I NEED work!" and then decided to reply to some emails. About 30 minutes later, I decided to check for work again and one came to my queue! I was elated, so I typed it, then got another one, and then another. I was afraid to take a break in case the work would run out. LOL I had a goal of 1000 lines today and after 5 hours of typing I had reached 972 lines and THEN I got the message, "no jobs available." God has a sense of humor, doesn't He? I was so very thankful for the work today. Of course, coming off of a week of severe back pain, all that sitting did not do me much good in that department, but the song in my heart knowing that God heard my cry for work and answered me so quickly made the back pain much more tolerable. So much so that I am asking God for the same miracle tomorrow and Thursday, which is the last day of the pay period.
We really do serve an awesome God and even if He hadn't chosen to answer my prayer and send work my way (and that has happened a lot too), He is still worthy of my praise and adoration. It is not because of what He does that makes me want to serve Him, but it is because of Who He Is!
The year 2009 has been a very difficult one for us financially and honestly, from my perspective, no change seems evident on the horizon of 2010, but you know what, whether or not we find financial stability again or not, I serve a God who is stable and who will never fail me and I am humbled to know He loves me enough to die for me and cover all my sins with his shed blood. Truly now, THAT is an amazing God!
The Lord never ceases to amaze me. The work I do from home gets pretty slim through the holidays and for the past several days I have had no work at all to do. I was stressing about how pitiful my check was going to be and so after logging in this morning and getting the "no jobs available" message, I was a little frantic and threw up a short prayer that went something like, "God, I NEED work!" and then decided to reply to some emails. About 30 minutes later, I decided to check for work again and one came to my queue! I was elated, so I typed it, then got another one, and then another. I was afraid to take a break in case the work would run out. LOL I had a goal of 1000 lines today and after 5 hours of typing I had reached 972 lines and THEN I got the message, "no jobs available." God has a sense of humor, doesn't He? I was so very thankful for the work today. Of course, coming off of a week of severe back pain, all that sitting did not do me much good in that department, but the song in my heart knowing that God heard my cry for work and answered me so quickly made the back pain much more tolerable. So much so that I am asking God for the same miracle tomorrow and Thursday, which is the last day of the pay period.
We really do serve an awesome God and even if He hadn't chosen to answer my prayer and send work my way (and that has happened a lot too), He is still worthy of my praise and adoration. It is not because of what He does that makes me want to serve Him, but it is because of Who He Is!
The year 2009 has been a very difficult one for us financially and honestly, from my perspective, no change seems evident on the horizon of 2010, but you know what, whether or not we find financial stability again or not, I serve a God who is stable and who will never fail me and I am humbled to know He loves me enough to die for me and cover all my sins with his shed blood. Truly now, THAT is an amazing God!
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Prepping for the week ahead
It is Sunday night and my house is all quiet. Lindsay is spending the night with her sister at my parents' house and Jalen is in bed with his Papa. Not so sure that is the best idea since Papa Bear is sick, but I guess he has been exposed already so we'll see what happens.
My mind has been on the coming new year a lot. I guess it is the "season" to do some serious thinking about one's life and one's goals, but in reality, we can set goals for our life anytime we desire to do so. So, when February rolls around and you find yourself already behind in your "goals", you can just take a deep breath and remind yourself that a goal can be set anytime and you can always start fresh anytime.
My goals tend to be the same each year with only a small percentage gained on most of them. As we close out 2009 and look towards 2010, I do realize that there is one area of my life that I have improved upon a lot and that is my spiritual life. Now before you start thinking I am bragging or puffing myself up higher than I ought to, I will also say that no matter how far I have come I still have a very long ways to go and I am very well aware of that fact. However, it is nice to be able to look back and see where you once were and see that you are no longer there, but have in fact moved ahead a bit. It is encouraging to see growth in our lives and it also helps keep us motivated to continue growing.
As I ponder on these thoughts, my hope for the last few days of 2009, is that I can work on getting better organized and setting up a plan to maintain that for the year 2010. For those who think organizing is unnecessary, let me just say that if you want to be an effective person, you have to be organized. No, you don't have to be OCD about it, but general organization is critical to being successful in any area of our lives. It is what I will be working on in the coming year because there are many things I long to be effective in this next year.
So, as I finish up this blog entry, the last Sunday of 2009, I just want to remind you to look back at where you were and see where you are today and use that to motivate you to keep on keeping on.
My mind has been on the coming new year a lot. I guess it is the "season" to do some serious thinking about one's life and one's goals, but in reality, we can set goals for our life anytime we desire to do so. So, when February rolls around and you find yourself already behind in your "goals", you can just take a deep breath and remind yourself that a goal can be set anytime and you can always start fresh anytime.
My goals tend to be the same each year with only a small percentage gained on most of them. As we close out 2009 and look towards 2010, I do realize that there is one area of my life that I have improved upon a lot and that is my spiritual life. Now before you start thinking I am bragging or puffing myself up higher than I ought to, I will also say that no matter how far I have come I still have a very long ways to go and I am very well aware of that fact. However, it is nice to be able to look back and see where you once were and see that you are no longer there, but have in fact moved ahead a bit. It is encouraging to see growth in our lives and it also helps keep us motivated to continue growing.
As I ponder on these thoughts, my hope for the last few days of 2009, is that I can work on getting better organized and setting up a plan to maintain that for the year 2010. For those who think organizing is unnecessary, let me just say that if you want to be an effective person, you have to be organized. No, you don't have to be OCD about it, but general organization is critical to being successful in any area of our lives. It is what I will be working on in the coming year because there are many things I long to be effective in this next year.
So, as I finish up this blog entry, the last Sunday of 2009, I just want to remind you to look back at where you were and see where you are today and use that to motivate you to keep on keeping on.
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