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“If hardship were any measure of being out of God’s will, Christians would be in trouble; I rather like to think of Paul, and remember that as soon as He answered God’s call on his life, the hardships increased, defeating everything except his faith, which now erects itself as a permanent trophy of victory on which we look and say, ‘I know whom I have believed,and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day’.”

-Kelly Crawford

Today was our 11th wedding anniversary…boy time does fly!  It’s timely that the Lord has been dealing so much with me lately about my role as a wife and the deep need to nurture our marriage.  Great marriages don’t just happen!  They take work.  And I would dare say that a marriage not invested in will likely not last, or at least be a sad place to be.

Nurture it…grow it…it’s often just the little things. 

A smile…

A sincere “thank you” for things we take for granted.

A refrain from complaining about the broken doorknob, replaced with words of thanksgiving for the warm home we have.

An unexpected hug or show of affection.

A little time invested in a meal.

Attention given to create peace and beauty in the home.

It’s worth all those things.

One of my favorite quotes about marriage (and I’m not even sure who said it) is:

 “Marriage is not to make me happy; it’s to make me holy.”

I have such a long way to go!  You’d think eleven years would be long enough to figure it out and yet I feel I’m only just beginning to get it!  “Thank you, Lord, for a patient husband!”

Aaron is truly the most long-suffering man I know, and I am constantly amazed as he demonstrates God’s grace to me through his own.

Thank you, honey, and happy anniversary! 

(Our daughter sent us to a local bed and breakfast where my favorite thing was an instant coffee/cappuchino/hot chocolate-by-the-cup machine that didn’t even require you to open the pack of coffee!  Pick your flavor, snap it in, and presto.  I know, I don’t get out much, but how fun when I do!  It was one of those moments similar to the first time I washed my hands in a public bath with a sensor 😉

This letter from an ex-husband was sent to a well-known marriage advisor about why he left his wife and I thought it was worth posting…though let it be noted, I believe that breaking your marriage vows is not acceptable in most cases, and am not condoning his actions by this post.  Still, the food for thought here is important.

“For years, you behaved as if it didn’t matter whether I came or went, so I went.

For years, you were unsatisfied with the income I brought in, even though it was way more than enough to allow you to stay home with the children. Now you have less, and you get to go to work.

For years, you behaved as if my touch meant nothing to you. Now, it’s gone.

For years, you never complimented me on the household repairs I made, keeping up the lawn and garden, cleaning and organizing the garage and the hundreds of things I did to keep our home balanced and running. Now, you can do them.

For years, you complained I didn’t do enough housework.  Now it’s all yours.

For years, you chose not to attend community and social events that were important to me.  Now they’re not an option.

For years, you expected me to read your mind when you were hurt or upset.  Never could, never will.

For years, you punished me with your silence.  Now you have plenty.

For years, you would not share information about our kids’ schedules, doctor’s appointments and so on.  Now some attorneys will help you polish your communication skills.

For years, I chose to love you, protect you, provide for you, confide in you, and have fun with you.  Now, I don’t.

For years, you behaved as a long-suffering martyr.  Now you can be one.

For years, I chose to raise your son as my own.  Now, he’s hurting.

For years, you treated me as the lesser parent.  Now I am.

For years, our precious young daughter has watched this debacle. What do you think she’s learned?

For years….”

P.S.  I bought and read “The Proper Care and Feeding of Marriage” months ago, and asked my wife to read it with me.  She laughed.”

(Signed)

Still My Kids’ Dad
in Southern California

We made two simple meals this past week, one feeding an extra couple who stayed with us–that was 11 mouths, both meals costing around $4.00 and providing enough for supper with a bit left over for hubby’s lunch.

I should qualify that we did serve bread and salad with these dishes which makes the $4 punch a little bit of a cheat, but it sounds better in the title :-). And, you could always serve the dishes by themselves in a pinch.

I would post the recipes (and I will if you’d like), but they are not uncommon and are versatile as well. Beef Stroganoff (made with homemade white sauce) and Lasagna-type pasta, using what I had on hand were the meals.

Sometimes though, just “thinking cheaply” can help us cut corners. The secret to these budget meals was in the reduction of meat. I have found that buying packs of frozen beef patties are not only cheaper by the pound than a large pack of ground beef, but the convenience of being able to divide them into small quantities for menus helps me use less. To get really specific, it also saves me the cost and time of dividing the meat into plastic bags for freezing and is much less messy.

For the Stroganoff, I also cut the mushrooms into smaller pieces which helps stretch the sauce. Of course having access to fresh cow’s milk helps a bit on the cost, but that’s very minute.

For these dishes, I used 2 hamburger patties and they really didn’t seem skimpy at all. I don’t think anyone noticed. Feel free to share a kitchen tip or recipe you have found to save your family money. ‘Tis one of our many jobs and I’m always on the lookout for suggestions to help me be more resourceful.

A very long time ago, my blog friend, Daja, at Gombojav Tribe tagged me with a *Meme* post…that is, I am supposed to list some of my favorite things–things that express some of who I am (I think that’s what a meme is?? ;-).

Better late than never, here are a few of my favorite things:

This sign hangs near my dining room table–and it means what it says. A friend visiting recently said, “Is your coffee shop really open 24 hours?” “YES!” So we brewed some coffee in the middle of the afternoon.

I love this book shelf. I’ve had it since before I was married, and one of the reasons I love it is because someone donated it to a junk store–thinking it was junk, and I thought the scuffed look was perfect. I bought it for $20.

Coffee…yes I love it. The same family who bought us the sign bought us this cute plaque which I actually serve sugar and cream on. Nothing says “You’re welcome here” better than a cup of coffee.

My piano. It’s usually out of tune a little, but it takes me away when I need to go.

This fence panel was about to ruin in our backyard and I thought it would be perfect on the back wall of our dining room. It’s homey, I think. I love trying to find uses for things that might otherwise be tossed.

Candle. I love candlelight–we all do. And now that my children are into saving money, they think it’s cool to light candles instead of turn on the lights.

Quilts…I just LOVE quilts. And the Lord blessed me with tons of them because both of my husband’s grandmothers quilt and I have been the fortunate recipient of many beautiful heirloom quilts. Perhaps I will learn someday?

An ordinary bedroom, yes, but this is where my children love to pile up with me. The official phrase is…”Mommy, let’s go snuggle on your bed!” I almost always answer with a *yes* because I like it as much as they do 😉

I love turning trash to something beautiful. This old window pane made a great frame for an old quilt I had that was falling apart. There was one salvageable corner, so I framed it.

I’ve posted this picture before, but this is the crib my Daddy made for my first baby, and every baby after has slept in it, beside my bed.

This is a common sight on my computer screen–comments from YOU GUYS!!! And I love it! I love to read comments from you, so the next time you read, go ahead, leave a comment if just say hello!

This will probably be the last “organizational” post for now simply because I don’t want to bore you to death, and I’m looking forward to moving on to some exciting new stuff.

We’ve been working on several areas of the house and I’ve come to believe the most important tip I’ve learned in the process is “less is more”. That’s hard for us frugal gals, but the more I’m able to weed out, the less mess there is to keep organized–simply put.

Our school room still needs a lot of work, but it was nice to get some of it underway. I’m gearing up to start some new school stuff–better records, for example…OK, records period 😉 so I it helps to get a little organizing done.

P.S. I’m serious about needing the decor advice!

I had to chuckle when I realized on the last video I said I’d be sharing “tips”…this is more of a survival-type cleaning rather than a cute little series where an organized mom shares her organizational expertise–I’m so not that woman!

So the tips I do share will likely be tips I *know* to do and doeth them not.

The refrigerator wasn’t the most exciting area, but I figure I’ll slowly desensitize you to the messier parts of my house 😉

My tips for keeping the refrigerator from walking off?

1. Designate one day of the week to do a quick cleaning, instead of waiting until it’s such a major job. This goes for every other area too, but the fridge is a good, small place to start.




2. Have a “left-over” night. This is a frugal tip from the Tightwad Gazette and actually serves to help keep the fridge tidy too. Choose one day of the week that you pull out all the left over bits and make it a meal!




3. If it’s still good but doesn’t fit into the left-over meal category (like chicken broth, maybe), label and freeze it.

By the way, I will NOT be posting the “25 or so more areas” 😉 in case you got nervous.