In Search Of...

As a mom, I go through several emotions about my little guys growing up. I love the little guy stage, big hugs and smooches. They aren't embarrassed to say I love you Mommy in public yet. Or come running across the nursery at church saying "Hi Mommy, thats my mommy!" But on the other hand I get anxious for some of the milestones that are literally on months away from happening. Like school. Now, because of my oldest sons birthday being in December, he will be one of those older kids in class, the one who is a little bit older than the other kids. Because he can't start VPK until he is 4. But not in the middle of the year. And he is SOOOOO ready to go to school. He loves school buses, although I don't have the heart to tell him I doubt he will ever ride on regularly to school. We plan on sending our kids to Private Christian Schools. He talks about going to school and having friends. He wants to take Piano lessons! And because I am so very concerned with my kids getting the best education they can, to have all the advantages of quality teachers, I am now looking for a preschool. I want him to start in the fall of this year for alot of reasons. One, he is ready! Two, I believe it is so important to start the learning process young, when they can absorb so much more than when they get older. Three, My DH will be going out on deployment for 6 months in October and we will have a new baby in August. And it would be helpful to have one child in school, especially since I also have my own business. Thankfully I can control how many new clients I take on, and I plan on using that time to really focus on my EZine.
I have a couple picked out to go and tour, one is a little much, and only 2 days a week, but he would be taught a foreign language. Most of the 3/4 year olds at this preschool are being taught to read. The other one we are looking at seriously is a Christian day school that is down the street. They go from Pk3 through High School with an average of 70% of their graduates recieving either athletic or academic scholarships. It is an intense college prep school. Prices are supposedly a lot more reasonable. So I know which direction Damon will be leaning in. If I had the time and the patience I would love to be able to homeschool them, but I do what I can, and I know when it is time to give them over to someone much more capable than I!
So now comes the fun part, rearranging things to make it possible with out it pinching our budget. Our main goal for this year is to get out of debt, I know we won't be able to do it all this year, but we are working towards being as debt free as possible so that when we move in 2008, we can buy our first house. We have only just in the past 6 months really begun trying to budget and live beneath our means. So my goal for this month is to cut our cell phone bill back down. We tried it once before a couple months back, and failed miserably! Most of my clients call my cell which I have designated my business line. And I was using it for all my business calls, including looking for quotes and estimates. But the reason behind this was because in an attempt to save money I had switched from DSL to dial-up. But with the advent of my EZINE, I need to be able to download quickly! So we upgraded again, and hopefully we can keep our minutes down and I can get a smaller plan. That will save us some money! Now if I could only get on top of clipping coupons and following the ads! I forget every Sunday to pick up the paper and cut the coupons, should I actually remember, I then forget to take the coupons with me and use them! I wish I knew the tricks to living frugally!! So anyone with tips and hints, or you want to outright share your knowledge with me..... Feel free!!!
I read these posts and stories of women who can use coupons at the store and get $300 worth of groceries for like $60. How do they do that??? If I could do that, I would be out of debt and sending my kid to the expensive preschool in 3 months!

Here are my goals:
1. Learn to shop from the ads
2. Remember to clip coupons, use them and menu plan with them!
3. Be tighter with my wallet (this is a tough one because Damon and I are horrid impulse shoppers!
4. Go back to being the energy gestapo! I did this when we first moved, and our electric and water bills were really low, I need to get back into the habit!
5. Lower our cell bill

New Vacuum Details

The vacuum is a Eureka Altima! And it is awesome, I don't usually get excited over cleaning supplies, but this is a great buy! A few more details on it...
Extra Wide Track 15 inches
Edger on the side so you can vacuum as close to the wall as you can get
12 amps (I am told this is a good thing!)
The usual attachements, as well as a Power Paw to vacuum the stairs, and probably things like furniture
Easy to empty bagless thingy (sorry I am having a brain moment!)
HEPA filter washable

And it has an extra long power cord, which I love because sometimes our plugins are in rather random places!

Menu Plan Monday

I strayed quite a bit last week from my menu plan! Cravings would kick in and I was useless to resist! Wednesday I had planned on the Chicken Strips I think, but I really wanted Baked Potato soup. So I had seen several recipes on it, and a friend of mine had given me a quick run down of how she made hers. I combined the recipes, added my own touches and came up with a really tasty soup, that will probably be a regular on our menus! I did eventually make the Sesame Chicken Strips yesterday, they were great! Only my picky oldest wouldn't touch them, which was as to be expected. So he just ate lots of rice! And the Confetti Spaghetti was a huge hit as well! I would add a little more spice to both recipes, but thats just because anything even slightly bland tends to annoy me right now!
Most of this week will be from last week, that we just didn't get to!

Monday:grilled cheese and tomato soup (Duty Day)
Tuesday: Amish Meatloaf with Mashed Potato and salad
Wednesday: Chicken Pesto Pasta and Garlic Bread
Thursday: Sausage with Datil Dew Sauce and oven roasted seasoned red potatoes
Friday: grilled chicken sandwiches with vermont white cheddar , peaches
Saturday: Pizza cheese and a pepperoni, sausage, and pineapple

I had another ultrasound on Friday, everything looks great! Little one is growing and I am excited for August. Which I know is a long way off. But time seems to be moving quickly and I know it will be here before I know it!

My vacuum cleaner of 6 years finally bit the dust Friday as well. The rotator brush on the bottom stopped spinning and it just didn't suck the way it used to. So Sunday we went to Target! I, of course, wanted a Dyson, but just couldn't justify spending $500 on a vacuum cleaner. Yeah, yeah, I know it will never lose its suction, but for that much I should have someone who will come and vacuum for me! I had put aside about$200 for a new vacuum, but found my second choice for much less. Oddly enough I saw it online at Walmart for a whole lot more. Thats right everyone, Target ROCKS!! Heres a pic of my new vacuum!


The little yellow thing on the side is a duster, it has a telescopic pole thingy and after you dust, you stick it in the holder for it, flip a switch and it SUCKS all the dust off of it! I am so excited about it. I already vacuumed my dining room area, and it works amazingly!

I also got to have a girls night out Friday night with my friend Kiki, we went and got pedicures. I really needed the pampering. She brought my boys the cutest thing ever! And they have been playing with it since Friday.





So anyways, if you participated in Menu Plan Monday, let me know!

Helpful Tip for Fleas (I hope!)

We have the sweetest, for the most part, cat. Damon gave her to me for my birthday last year. We lived in base housing at that point and had terrazo floors. Tile. I hated them because ouor little guys would fall and cut their lips and get horrible bumps and bruises. The only good thing about not having carpet was that we were FLEA FREE!! That is until we moved. I was so sick of the base, we were out of the way for all our friends and far from most things in town. Since we aren't here that much longer, we didn't want to invest in a house and then not be able to sell it when it was time to leave. So we found a lovely nice sized apartment in a good area. And now our cat is infested with fleas. We have treated her several times, taken her to the vet, and tried just about everything out there at the pet store. None of it has even seemed to make a dent in it. We thought seriously about giving her to a shelter, but the process is daunting. And its is based on whether or not they deem her acceptable. If they do, we could still have her for the next 6 months until they placed her. I doubt that with her flea issues, and that she has scratched the boys and when they bug her, they get nipped, they would consider taking her at all. She is a loving cat, she wants to be petted. Its just the fleas that cause us to hold back on our affection for her.
I did a little more research this afternoon, and have found several natural remedies that I think may work. Lemon juice, or Citrus juice of some sort, sprayed on her, and on the carpet is supposed to kill them. Putting salt on the carpet and letting it sit overnight is supposed to dry up the eggs. I would much rather use these remedies that the insecticides that are so dangerous.
I actually have pure Key Lime juice that I have mixed with a bit of water in a spray bottle. I have treated my area rugs, and bath mats this morning. I plan on spraying her down when Damon comes home so he can hold her. I will let you all know how this goes! Has anyone had any experience with any of these natural rememdies? DO you know of something else that might work?

Recipes Requested

The Sesame Chicken Recipe was posted a little bit down this page. I have no idea how to link to it, so until I can figure it out, please just scroll down! Unless someone can explain how to do it...

I will include the recipe for Confetti Spaghetti here.

Confetti Spaghetti

1 pck. (12 oz.) spaghetti
1 1/2 lb. ground beef
1 medium green pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can (14 1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
1 T. light brown sugar
1 t. salt
1 t. chili powder
1/2 t. pepper
1/4 t. garlic powder
1/8 t. cayenne pepper
3/4 c. shredded Cheddar cheese

Cook spaghetti according to directions (or 2 minutes less if you
like it al dente). Meanwhile in a large skillet, cook beef, green
pepper and onion over medium heat til meat is no longer pink. Drain.
Stir in tomatoes, tomato sauce and brown sugar; stir. Add remaining
ingredients, except cheese, and stir. Drain spaghetti and add.

Transfer to a greased (9x13 inch) baking dish (you can freeze the
dish at this point for up to a month to cook at a later time).

Cover and bake 350° for 30 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with cheese
and bake, uncovered, for 5 more minutes or til cheese is melted. If
you have frozen it for later use, thaw for a day in the refrigerator
before baking or allow about 10 more minutes to bake.

Serves 5-8

I left out the Chili Pepper because I was out, and I didn't think I would like that much of a spicy kick! And it turned out really well, I would add a little more salt, as it was a little bland, but it was still pretty yummy, and my husband LOVED it as well as my two year old!

Menu Plan Monday (One day late...)

I meant to get this up yesterday, but I have been having issues with my DSL for a couple of days now. I sat on the phone yesterday for like an hour with the Bellsouth tech. I actually put my menu together on Sunday.

Monday: Leftovers of Confetti Spaghetti
Tuesday: something easy, its Damons duty day
Wednesday: Sesame Chicken Strips, baked garlic/onion red potatoes
Thursday: grilled cheese and tomato soup Damon out overnight
Friday: Chicken Pesto Pasta and garlic bread
Saturday: Sausage in Datil' Dew sauce and Rice with Cheese
Sunday:Amish Meatloaf and mashed potatoes with Sourdough Bread

I will check out all yours! I have gotten some great ideas from Menu Plan Monday, and I know I am definitely getting the book about meals for 30 days, I think it will make life a lot more simple!

The Scoop on My Dad

I talked to my Dad the other night, after he had gone in and gotten his results from the bone scan they did last week. He had been having problems with his knee initially, which isn't anything too odd since he has had bad knees for years. They scanned both legs, and found nothing to be concerned about in his left leg. Which was the one causing problems. But now there is something in the scan of the right leg. My Dad had injured his left knee while he was at a work, so all of these visits and tests run were Workers Comp. His right leg was not injured at work, nor is it injured in any way. However, because its not a work injury, he has to start the process all over again with his regular doctor. Which means, he will have to schedule to go in with the scan, have his leg examined and probably have his doctor order another scan and then wait for those results. And so we pray! My Dad has a great attitude about all this, he has great faith, and knows God will take care of him! His comment? "Apparently I was not specific enough when I asked God that the doctor wouldn't find anything in my LEFT leg, should have remembered the right!"

Update!

Emma is going home! Heather just posted over at her site that she is going home with a couple of antibiotics for her sinus infection. God is AMAZING!!!

God is Amazing

I know most of you who read this, also read especiallyheather.com and know the situation with Emma right now. For those of you who may not know, Emma is a special little girl who happens to have had a heart transplant when she was about 6 weeks old. She is 5 now, and has been doing great this past year. She started kindergarten, in a special class, and is very active! Barney is her all time favorite, and according to her mom has tons of them! She is finally talking more and letting her needs be known. She is a miracle to say the least. Her mom, has spent a lot of time in prayer and advocating for this precious little girl. She is a strong Christian woman who loves her family. And has inspired me and pushed me to become stronger in my faith, as well as grow as a person. So the gist of this, is that Emma is once again back in ICU. Things are not as bad as some of the times she has been in, in the past. Although, I have to say that reading her posts from the past couple of days have gone from very scary to things are looking not as terrible! And I know that while all her doctors and nurses are providing the best care possible for her, God is the one responsible for her well being. His hand is definitely on this little girl. I know a lot of us have spent time in prayer, crying out for her healing. Her family notwithstanding, I am not ready for Emma to go Home to her Saviour. We have seen her come back so many times from what looked like the edge of forever. Her little life, while so fragile, is incredibly resilient. The phrase "What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger" embodies her very being. In spite of her illness, she is the strongest little girl I have ever met.
So please, continue to lift Emma and her family in prayer. Pray for healing, pray for Emma to allow the doctors to run the tests they need to, pray for strength and encouragement for her family. Pray for wisdom for the Transplant Cardiologist, I know a lot of people are joining together in prayer, if you haven't yet, please join us now.

Sesame Chicken Strips with Sweet Sauce, by request!

I found this on http://www.allrecipes.com
Ingredients: 1c mayo, 2 tsp. dried mince onions, 2 tsp. dry mustard, 1 c crushed buttery round cracker crumbs, 1/2 c sesame seeds, 2 lbs. skinless boneless chicken breasts or tenderloins
Sauce: 1 c mayo, 2 tblsp honey
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a shallow bowl or plate combine 1st 3 ingredients, Mix together, set aside. In a separate shallow bowl combing cracker crumbs and sesame seeds. If using breasts, cut chicken lengthwise into 1/4 inch strips. dip chicken strips in mayo mix, then in cracker/sesame to coat. Place coated strips in a single layer on a lightly greased cookie sheet.
Bake in preheated oven for 15 - 18 minutes or until juices run clear. Mix 1 c mayo with honey in a small bowl and serve with chicken strips!

I can't wait to make mine! Let me know how yours turn out if you make them!

Menu Plan Monday

I think I did fairly well last week following my menu plan, although I have to say there has to be some room to improvise as I am pregnant and my tastes can change in minutes! Some things I am saving for this week simply because my hubby had to go out last Thursday and he won't be back until this Thursday. So I am with the Organizing Junkie with the simple meals until he comes home!
Monday: Pizza, probably a Digiornio, or a boboli crust with choice of toppings half cheese and half pepperoni and pineapple
Tuesday: Tomato soup and grilled cheese
Wednesday: pick up something on the way home from visiting DH on the ship
Thursday: Frito Pie
Friday: sesame chicken strips and rice and salad (I haven't figured out how to link yet, so if you want the recipe ask and I will post it!)
Saturday: Spaghetti and salad and Garlic Bread
Sunday: Usually whatever we can find!

I am excited about the sesame chicken strips, I found the recipe last night online and it sounded so yummy! I will let you know how they turn out!
Let me know if you did a MPM!

Update

Thanks everyone for your prayers for my dad. I talked to him yesterday and he won't know what the deal is until he goes back in on Wednesday. He has an appointment with his Specialist to go over the scan. Hopefully we will know more after that. Please keep praying, I know it can make a difference!

I might just get there after all!

Can I just say that Craigslist can be a great thing? I have been pricing the Macromedia Dreamweaver 8.0. And for the most part I have found it to be pretty pricey. Upwards of $300. Much more than I want to spend at this time. I looked on Ebay (I know that was everyone next questions :) ) and I only found a couple, most priced at more than the $300 along with a LOT of tutorials. So my next stop was Craigslist. I didn't see anything in the Computer section of the for sale area. Instead I posted in the Wanted about how I really needed this software. I got a response from a guy here in town who offered to either burn me a CD of it, or send a rar file for a fraction of the regular price. You can only imagine how fast I jumped on that one! He sent the file as promised, although I have had to download winrar as well as a speedier downloading program. And as I have mentioned before, I am rather internet challenged. You don't find these things out until you think you know what you are doing. I can surf with the best of them, I am a wiz at finding great deals on items, specifically Ebay. Ask anyone! I have a Delonghi Coffee pot that was brand new for .15 cents. And a great Oriental rug for like 2 bucks! I can even fumble through my Macromedia Fireworks program to crop photos and put together VERY simple graphics. But try and tell me how to download and extract (What??) a RAR file, as if its as easy as writing an email, and well, my eyes tend to glaze over and my brain begins to shut down. Confusion doesn't even come close to explaining it. Not to mention that it is taking FOREVER to download it. So when that is done, hopefully I can figure out this RAR extraction program and open up this sucker. It would appear that anyone that might be able to help me is "unavailable" So the Lord and I will muddle through it. I may end up asking the guy to burn me a CD after all, I am sure that will be an easy fix. However I am a DO IT NOW type of a person. If there is a possiblity, even if it is only a glimmer, I will jump on it.
Maybe my next goal should be to ask God to help me be more patient!
I do think I have come up with a name for my e-zine: Simply Celebrate
Let me know what you think! Are any of you technologically challenged in some way? Share your stories and then link me!

before I head to bed....

I usually talk to my parents a couple of times a week depending upon how busy I get, or how tired I am. I am glad I called tonight, even though it meant missing one of my favorite shows (Greys Anatomy!) my dad has been having knee problems off and on for years. But lately one of his knees has been bothering him again. He went in and got an MRI on it last week I think and they didn't see anything really that would cause the pain. Chalk it up to old age I guess. However they did see in the scan, some spots in his bone. Very tiny, the tech caught them, his Dr couldn't really see them. But to be safe and to rule out the dreaded "C" word, they are doing a bone scan tomorrow. Not that I am worried, I am sure there is nothing there, but there is just the smallest bit of doubt that I know Satan is trying to plant in my brain. I can't allow that. Because I know my God is much bigger than the tiniest speck on a MRI. So, if you are visiting, or read regularly, please say a prayer for my dad. It would probably be a very rough thing if this came to be something, I am so far away from my family right now, and we can't afford for any unplanned cross country trips. And I can only travel for so long.
Thanks for the prayers everyone!!

Wordless Wednesday

This is our new little ones first baby picture! 11 weeks old

Cravings

Being new to the whole Blogger World, I had no idea there was a National De-Lurking Week! How funny, they should have one over at myspace too.... So if you are stopping by for the first time, or have been by before, please say Hi! I won't bite, I promise!

Being pregnant with our third child has its ups and downs. I am just coming up on the second trimester and hoping the nauseous-ness goes away soon! My first two were born only 14 months apart. I had midwifes for the first pregnancy which was an incredible experience. I love the whole natural approach, that child birth is a natural thing, and should not be treated like an emergency. The only bad thing I think, was that they did not regulate my weight at all. I was allowed to eat whatever I wanted and wasn't told I could only gain so much. After my son was born, and the initial 6 weeks passed, I began walking and working out to lose the weight. Well, I was really beginning to see some difference when suddenly I found myself pregnant with our second son. Thats right, my oldest was only 4 months old. I was so discouraged, because I would have to stop my weight loss. I was more careful that time, as I was in the care of an OBGYN at that point because we were military and as hard as I tried, I couldn't get out of the Naval Hospital. Let me tell you, the birth was a COMPLETELY different experience. The atmosphere was more rushed, tense. I could feel it from the beginning of my care. I was very unhappy with my birth there.
So now as I am on my third, I am trying to keep my weight gain down. I had lost all the weight finally this past summer. But with CRAZY cravings, I know its going to be tough. I am usually a fairly health conscious person, I don't like to eat a lot of fast food. Well, I want pizza almost all the time, and onion rings with zesty sauce from of all places BK. I found myself eating Spicy Sweet Chili flavored Doritos crumbled up on ice cream. And then I ate a few more chips with a glass of milk. My poor Dh, looked at me and said "Are you really eating spicy Doritos with milk?" I said "Yep. Why" All I got was a grin.
In the hopes of balancing what I am eating, I ordered a prenatal workout video last night on Amazon.com. It is called Prenatal Fitness Fix, and according to all the reviews this is supposed to be a really intense toning and aerobic workout that is safe for pregnancy. I am so excited to get this DVD! And then I got an email saying it had shipped this morning. I will let you know how it goes when I recieve it!
I also have my first Dr's visit tomorrow afternoon. I am such a worry wart, and even though I know better, I imagine the worst. I have been praying, and God keeps reminding me in that still small voice, that I just need to trust Him. I always worry until I hear the little heart beat for the first time. I think part of it is that there is so much going on this year, and having a new little one is going to be slightly stressful. But we prayed about whether we should try to get pregnant, we both felt like God was telling us to, and so we did. In the worlds perspective, you should wait until the perfect time. Financially stable, in a house, further along in your career. But if you are following Christ and His will, His time is the only perfect time. So while my business is picking up quickly, and my husband is going to be in and out a lot with his ship and the deployed for six months in October, we knew this was the perfect time to add to our little family. I guess that leads me back to the trusting in Him issue. Please pray that all is well!

First Menu Monday

I stumbled across the Organizing Junkie at www.orgjunkie.blogspot.com and her Menu Monday! Which I thought was a great idea. I am in need of some organizing as a mom of 2 little guys, another one on the way, and a business! I am terrible about birthdays, and keeping track of files. I will admit I get behind on laundry sometimes and I get caught up in spending time with my family when I am not busy with clients! So yesterday I made a menu for the week, which I haven't done since before the holidays!
Monday: Leftover Taco Pie from Sunday
Tuesday: Grilled chunky chicken and cheese sandwiches
Wednesday: corn dogs and peaches for the boys, sandwich for me (its DH Duty day on the ship)
Thursday: Enchirrito's
Friday: Spaghetti with salad and garlic bread
Saturday: Frito Pie

So that is my menu for the week, now sometimes we change our minds and have one days meal on a different day. But I like this idea!

Stuck!

As some of you know, I am putting together an online magazine for my business and website. I think I am a bit overly ambitious at times though! I have taken on the task of designing the cover and being the editor. Editing won't be a problem. Its the rest of it! I created one cover in a program I have called Print Shop Pro from a template. It was ok, but I didn't really feel like it was truly what I was looking for. It looked too much like a newsletter. Which is what the template was for. Then I opened up my Macromedia Fireworks program. Now, a friend of mine installed this on my computer, should I ever decide to do web design. At the time, I was kind of like, yeah... thats not gonna happen anytime soon, but thanks! It works well for resizing photos and thats about all I had been able to do. So I pulled it up last night and started messing around with some stock photos to give the cover that slick magazine-y feel. I like how it looks, I need to work on the wording and the color of the text, but I think it looks pretty good. However, I was wide awake at about 3am this morning, which seems to be the usual hour I am kept awake by something I need to figure out! All I could think about was, "How would it work online? I don't know how to create links, or coding or anything like that!" I have mock titles on the cover, but I want the recipient of the e-zine to be able to click on the titles of the articles and be taken to each one. HOW ON EARTH DO YOU DO THAT????
So I am stuck. I have vendors offering to write articles, thats great! I can edit, and write myself. Another good thing! But in order to get it up and running, I NEED HELP! I know this is not the most widely read blog out there, but if you are reading this, and you just so happen to know HOW to do this of which I speak..... or you know someone who can, could you please leave a comment and a way to get a hold of you??? I would greatly appreciate it!

Oh, and for the record, I ordered Adobe Pagemill 2.0 last night. It is supposed to be an easy web page building program, that operates on drag and drop. Supposedly it can hyperlink, create links and put things in HTML for you. But I won't have it until probably next Wednesday, and I am not sure that I will know exactly what to do with it when I get it!
TIA!

Fear Not

This was in an e-mail a friend sent me this morning. It really touched my heart so I thought I would share it with all of you! And as the author says, Be Blessed!

hey ladies, i don't know why, but for some reason as we have begun this new year, i have been a bit fearful and uncertain about what is to come in the near future. i know thatGod is in control, and that He is guiding everyone'sfootsteps- and bringing everyone into His perfect will and plan. however, this is and has been in the past, a very real struggle for me. just to simply have faith, not to fear, and to rest in Him, rather than wrestle with all my questions and uncertainty.anyways, i got this devotions in my email thismorning, and it spoke directly to my heart and my spirit. i thought that i would share with yall, in hopes that it will be a blessing to you as well, if any of you are going through the same things as me. be blessed ladies! you are all strong, beautiful,mighty women of God, who are called to awesome things!
in His Name,lindsey v*
------------------------------------------------------January 3, 2007Encouragement for Today:
“No Need to Fear”
Micca Campbell, Proverbs 31 Ministries Speaker andAuthor, Director of Outreach Key

Verse:Romans 8:15, “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father.” (NKJ)

Devotion:Five-year old Johnny was in the kitchen as his mother made supper. She asked him to go into the pantry and get her a can of tomato soup, but he didn't want to go in alone. "It's dark in there and I'm scared." She asked again, and he persisted. Finally she said, "It's OK--Jesus will be in there with you." Johnny walked hesitantly to the door and slowly opened it. He peeked inside, saw it was dark, and started to leave when all at once an idea came, and he said, "Jesus, if You're in there, would You hand me that can of tomato soup?" Fear is a paralyzing emotion. It keeps us from many things. Fear can prevent us from using our gifts andtalents. It can keep us from doing our jobs. Fear causes us to worry about getting sick. It makes us suspicious of others. Fear can stop us from pursuing relationships or unfulfilled dreams. It causes us to worry unnecessarily about loved ones or doubt our parenting skills. Fear isolates us from our family and friends. It can keep us up at night and shut us down during the day. Like Johnny, we’d be less fearful if we knew for sure Jesus was there to hand us our can of soup instead of having to get it alone. The truth is we don’t have to go it alone. Jesus has promised to never leave us nor forsake us. That gives us reason not to fear. Did you know that the phrase, “fear not,” is writtenin the Bible 365 times? That’s one “fear not” for every day of the year! As a result of that truth, you and I can move forward into the New Year with confidence.
Each day God’s message is the same:
“Fear not that job interview, I am with you.”
“Fear not becoming a new mom, I will help you.”
“Fear not in college, for I am there.”
“Fear not in decision making, I will guide you.”
“Fear not for your children, I love them more.”
“Fear not death, I am the resurrected One.”
“Fear not being alone, I will never leave you.”
“Fear not serving in that area, I have placed you there.”
“Fear not what others think, I think you’re special.”
“Fear not____________, I am always with you even until the ends of the Earth.”

Do you think God is sending a message to His children?Those who live a life of sin, indeed, fear death and judgment, and rightly so. However, the Spirit of adoption helps us realize the rich reality that Christ conquered death and sin. “What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31. What more is there to fear? Whatever you and I face throughout the year, we need not worry. God has broken the spirit of fear and given us the assurance that nothing can snatch us from His hand. As God’s children, we can go to Him without hesitation and cry out, “Abba, Father,” which means daddy, confident that He will hear and answer our cries. …And if need be, hand us a can of soup.

My Prayer for Today:Dear Lord, thank you that because I’m Your child I have nothing to fear. Teach me to live in Your presence so when fear comes knocking, You can answer the door, in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

My TO DO LIST for the day

This week is shaping up to be fairly busy. My goal for yesterday was to get all the Christmas Decorations taken down and put away. Mainly because Damon was home to help. But you try and motivate a man who takes NO interest in putting up Christmas decorations. Apparently taking them down is on the same level as putting them up. He opted instead to put up the wallies in our boys room. Wallies are similar to wallpaper I guess. Only they are cutouts of different shapes or little pictures. The other day we had picked up some at Target. They are trains, planes, tractors, fire trucks and something I think is a concrete mixing truck? My youngest calls it a dump truck. Sure. And needless to say the Christmas decorations are still up. I did manage to get down an evergreen garland.
The decorations top my list of Things TO DO today.
The rest is as follows:
Finalize time for vendor meeting tomorrow afternoon
Work on Posh Project
finish up laundry and fold clothes/put away
vacuum house
sweep kitchen floor
change sheets on beds
find Valentines Day decorations and put those up
find my sisters new address
find time to take a REST!! (before bedtime)

Now I may or may not accomplish all that. But now it is out there, and I am more likely to work hard on it. Although I am hoping my challenge partner will read this, pop up on me and ask me how I am doing....
I am NOT taking down the tree, and I am NOT taking apart the crib, Damon can do those tomorrow!! That is HIS TO DO LIST!!
Whats on yours?