Incredible Books

 I read Kerrie's second book Revived over the last week, and it is phenomenal. I can't even describe it -- so I'll let Kerrie's book descriptions tell you about them, but you simply MUST pick up a copy or put it on your Christmas list! If you only choose one for now, I'd pick Revived and start there. Her newest book is out for pre-order, but it won't deliver until February 1st.

Kerrie is my sister's best friend, and just an amazing woman. I've heard her stories, I've been in her home. I've even had the pleasure of having Kerrie pray over me at my nephew's coming home party. To know Kerrie is to love her, and I sincerely hope that I can make it to one of her Revived Conferences at some point in my life.
 

The grace of God can completely transform an ordinary life, for an extraordinary purpose. This is the liberating message found in this book and in Kerrie Oles life and ministry. In Invisible Chains, Kerrie and Olivia wrote the inspiring and encouraging story of Kerrie's own departure from living in the shame of her past to discovering what it means to live a life covered in God's grace. Readers will see: - how being a prisoner to the past can hold them back from a promising future - that discovering the grace of God can set them free from a life of shame This book reveals that the chains of our past weigh us down and keep us from knowing how truly loved we are by God. It is an invitation to receive the grace of God and step into the call on your life. 

You can order your copy here.

Come with me. Let Jesus take your hand. No matter who you are or where you’ve been, you’ve experienced pain in your life. He can heal it, bringing life where there was death. Jesus brought life everywhere he went; it seems he couldn’t help it. And not only did He raise dead bodies, He sought out those who were dead on the inside. He took their hands, and He healed them. He revived them. Let Him take your hand. Let Him pull you to your feet—alive. Revived.

You can order your copy here. This book also has a study guide that you can work through as well that you can order from Kerrie's shop as well.

In For Real, author and sought-after speaker, Kerrie Oles helps us understand how to navigate through the turbulent seas of this life with great faith. She offers life-transforming insights how God will reveal His faithfulness and build our faith through each and every trial.

How do we take an age old story, and make it real to us?

Kerrie Oles, does just that. As she journey’s with a humorous style through her life, others, and the life of Job. Her stories and spiritual wisdom will inspire readers to listen for God and apply His Word and encouragement to their lives.

Job’s story is all of our story. We suffer in this life, but inside each of us is an overcomer, that can grow from hurtful experiences, and be equipped and empowered to help others. And, along the way, to our destination, it will build great faith!

Come with us. Get on board, let’s journey to being-For Real.

Pre-order your copy here. (This is the only one you can get via Amazon)

Where it begins...

So, we've elected a new President. Like it or not, it is finished. All that is left is how you deal with it.

More than that, remember that the children are watching and hearing everything that you are and are not saying. They are picking up on all of it, and learning a lot more than you think they are.

Sadly, we are quickly learning that our issues are much deeper than what they seem on the surface. They are much more than the simplistic labels that are placed on everyone from both sides.

We have taught a whole generation that they are all winners. That everyone gets a trophy, and gets credit for just showing up. That isn't how the world works, and we're learning that people out there don't know how to win or lose graciously.

I see two sides of this going on in America today. I see those that are being horrible winners, and those that are being horrible losers. Fundamentally, America didn't change with the outcome of one election. Some won and some lost -- just as it has been since the very beginning of our system of government. Some will be happy and some will not.

What has changed overtime is that we have lost the ability to deal with opposition.

I believe that in my heart of hearts, we are all the same. We want to be heard. We want to be brought to the table, and given a voice. Somewhere in the middle of all of this - we started putting labels on those of us that are different, and began demonizing the differences.

I learned the hard way how to lose, and how to win. I learned that kindness always wins, no matter the outcome. I won't change that, and in everyday America - things work just fine. I don't see your political views in our everyday exchanges in the grocery store, lines at the Post Office, or anywhere else. I see a fellow human being, and I act accordingly. If I see you struggling, I will help. If I see you in need, I will try to the best of my ability to fill your need. If I see you crying, I will offer a shoulder. If I see you bleeding, I will offer a band-aid.

I happen to be a Christian, that's no secret. The message of that has been lost by some very misguided individuals that are spreading hate in the name of my Lord and savior. I don't believe in that. I believe that we are to love everyone no matter what. We are to reach out and offer our hand in love to people. We are to welcome them in.

Just like all other groups -- there are good and there are extremists that are bad. My vote, doesn't boil down my belief system into one category or another. You don't want me to do that to you, so please don't do that to me.

Ultimately, it all begins at home. We have to live it out -- our beliefs -- outwardly. We have to teach our children what is okay and what is not. We have to be diligent. More than that, we have to act like humans. If you are happy or unhappy with the outcome of the election - take your moment to gather your thoughts, and then start working kindly towards your solution. Spread your message in a way that is kind.

 Remember that we can't all win all of the time. Life will go on... and there will be another election. If you don't like the way it turned out, or even if you do. It is up to you to spread your message without all of the hate that we will be remembered for in 2016.

If you voted for Trump - I love you.

If you voted for Clinton - I love you.

If you voted for Johnson - I love you.

If you voted for Stein - I love you.

If you voted for McMullin - I love you.

If you wrote in a vote - I love you.

If you didn't vote at all - I love you. (we need to talk, but I love you!)

Be the light, friends. Make the world sparkle with your message, instead of spreading darkness.

Scripture and Loving One Another

I've been reading and hearing about the Jen Hatmaker interview for a couple of weeks now, and I have definitely got some thoughts on this.

I don't even really want to go there because I think that her position is just a bit outside of what the Bible commands of us. Ultimately, we all are sinners in every aspect of life... we all fall short of the example of Christ, but that doesn't mean that we as Christ followers need to stay quiet on the subject either.

I think that the Bible commands us to tell someone when they are about to jump off of a bridge, but to do so lovingly and with complete regard for the person's heart. Meaning that the Bible is clear on what is right and wrong, but it is also clear on things like redemption. We all sin differently, and that is what makes us human.

Where we go wrong is how we deliver the message of the Bible. Sometimes it is not an easy message to hear, because we all tend to read it while using the lens making our own sin okay. I feel like some of us are aware of our sins while others tend to say to themselves, "My sin isn't as bad as theirs, so I'm okay." If only it worked that way.

Here is the thing about the Bible... it is the same today as it was thousands of years ago... the base message hasn't changed. So we can't filter it on what society thinks is okay in 2016 -- it is the same message of right and wrong from all those years ago. I shutter to think what some of these incredible biblical figures would say about all of the petty things that we are dealing with in 2016.

The insanity of the whole safe rooms on college campuses and the constantly offended culture we have today is just beyond the imaginable. Why is it that we can't disagree on things today without having a march and tear gas being needed? What happened to the days when we disagreed, and everyone went on about their day without having to scream and yell to defend your opposing viewpoints?

It's okay to disagree. One dear friend of mine and I are at complete odds over the whole Jen Hatmaker saga, but we can still love each other and respect our differing viewpoints.

Ultimately, what the whole Jen Hatmaker deal is about is that you can't change the scripture to fit 2016 society. You can't decide, this is now okay -- even though the Bible says that it is not. The main issue I have with her is that she does so with people knowing she is a Christian writer and speaker, so she has a large audience that has to hold her accountable when her message isn't what we believe to be the truth. Now, how you choose to handle it is completely up to you. You can choose to love all as you would hope that they would love you -- OR -- you can spew hate that makes everyone think that Christians are a bunch of bullies with Bibles.

I personally, choose the former as my point of view. As with any sin, I can't possibly know about someone else and their relationship with Christ. People that go to church on a weekly basis, can just as easily be living a lie as someone that doesn't go to church. You just never know what is in someone's heart -- so it's a dangerous assumption.

You just have to love others as they are part of your family, and know that one day, they will meet their maker too. They alone will deal with the choices they made, and they have to know for themselves where they will end up. It's not for us to judge or even condemn them for.

I just wish that everyone would stop making the opposing view point the villain in their own story, just remember that the people with those opposing view points are people that deserve to be loved too.

The Dream of Writing a Book

I've been kicking this idea around for YEARS. Literally since the moment the story was clear on how it would end in terms of our journey toward being parents. The road toward having our crazy little family was a very long 8 year and 1 month trek through many of life's ups and downs.

We went through a diabetes diagnosis, infertility treatments, almost split up, weight loss surgery, infertility treatments a second time, being told we wouldn't have a child on our own, adoption, finding out you're pregnant the day you bring your newborn home, and so much in between.

In the middle of those last few, I worked through a 13 week bible study reading through the entire New Testament. I wrote a journal every day and took some detailed notes through that study that are just incredible to go back and read today. So I'll be sharing a bit of that...

Some of my old blog posts may come up as well, and just the emotions of everything that we endured while God had us waiting for our parental journey to begin. It's often not until you have crossed to the other side of things and had some time to look back in reflection that you can truly see the beauty and love that Jesus has for us as he shows us how much better his plans are than anything we can think of on our own.

I hope to have an update from the publisher in the next week or so, and I can't wait to share more as I get more written and am able to go through the process toward getting it published.

Menu Monday - 11/7/16

We typically have a big Sunday Night dinner together before the week starts running and none of us get a chance to sit down all together.  I typically sit down with the boys to do their prayers before dinner and also to work on our Turkey on the Table project for November... we've got a Shepherd's Treasure deal coming for next month to go along with our Elf on the Shelf. Our elf, Dash, is pretty tame in his adventures because the boys are just not self controlled enough at this time in their lives for that yet.

Anyway, as soon as our Shepherd's Treasure comes in -- I'll show you all about that -- I know that the company had a limited quantity so you may not be able to get one anymore. (At the time that I added the link, they still appeared to be available)

Our menu for this week:

Sunday: Chicken & Rice with peas
Monday: Pasta e' Fagioli Soup *
Tuesday: Garlic Grilled Chicken *, Chicken Ricearoni, and Salad
Wednesday: Pork Chops, Long Grain & Wild Rice, and Roasted Broccoli
Thursday: Mediterranean Chicken * over Rice
Friday: Baked Chicken Parmesan, Pasta Alfredo, and Salad
Saturday: Stuffed Bell Pepper Casserole

These are freezer meals that I had prepped ahead on the MyFreezeEasy plan. It's a really simple concept of prep and freeze -- no precooking on most of it -- and you can get 10 meals done in about an hour! Who doesn't love that!?

Halloween 2016

We carved our pumpkins last Sunday, we typically wait until the last minute due to the temperatures here being hot and muggy... our pumpkins were already significantly moldy when I tossed them in the trash on Tuesday night. 

Tyler got into helping clean out the pumpkins this year -- he did his fair share of scooping out the "guts." Boys! 

 James was more interested in trying to holding the pumpkins, which of course is a fast track to cracking it when it gets dropped. This almost always happens, but this time it didn't.

Daddy is our chief carver, although, I do try to help out when I'm allowed. In the picture shown, he was trying to work on the Texas A&M pumpkin. 

Tyler's pumpkin didn't show up with the knife in the head when it's lit up in the dark. We put that there because there was a blemish on this pumpkin, so we thought this would be a funny way to make that work with the design.

I put them all on the entry table and did our big glowing pumpkin reveal. We leave them in the house until just before trick or treating, again trying to get as much longevity out of them as we can. It's like 80 degrees here on Halloween -- so you do what you gotta do. Just once, I would love a nice cool Halloween... but this year we were prepared. 

James wore two different costumes this year because we had a homeschool picnic with some trick or treating earlier in the day. All of the kids dressed up and went around to each table for some treats. James was in his dinosaur costume from 2 years ago. This guy... he grows taller, but no bigger in the waist... so I let out the straps and it fit him JUST fine! 

(Clockwise) James, Tyler, Grace, and Kadence... Grace is the first name that comes to mind in our house when you ask, "Who is your best friend?"  I try desperately to explain that their brother is their best friend, and that your brother is the only person that will know all of the craziness that went on with you while growing up... and will still stick up for you. 

For our nightly trick or treating... let me present -- Superman and Darth Vader! Tyler dressed as Darth Vader for the picnic earlier too, but he wore a different shirt and no cape. We had him wear shorts this year for trick or treating and it seemed to be much more successful than his Ninja Turtle costume debacle from last year. He was so hot after going around our block that we had to quit trick or treating and just hand out candy at our house.

 A good time was had by all... I'm so glad that they enjoy all of this -- it's so much fun too see them dressed up and going house to house. Thankfully Daddy was home this year and was able to go around with them while I sat in the driveway to hand out candy to the masses.

I saw the CUTEST baby costume -- they dressed this baby girl up as a Cabbage Patch Doll, and her stroller was decorated as her "box" -- I mean, so cute and clever!

Real Life

I need to deviate  from the planned posts for a minute because sometimes homeschooling is H.A.R.D. - who is with me on this?

I mean, I would love to have a day or two at home alone to get a few things done... or who am I kidding -- I'd at least spend a couple hours on Netflix or something just enjoying watching something other than cartoons on repeat for a while.

Instead, I'm spending extra money to buy curriculum and do it myself. <I'm happy to do this, so follow me here>

Anyway, this week has been a horrible struggle with the guy in the picture at the top. He just flat doesn't want to participate in the short lessons that I'm asking him to get done each day. It's too much to ask him to write a word here or there. It's too hard to follow directions -- I mean y'all -- it's not like I read the whole page and say "here."

I break it down, and our curriculum separates the different areas with different instructions into color coded boxes... so when we talk about the instructions -- I am specific "Go to the red box on page 12, and match the number with the number word" -- easy peasy, right? I mean wow. It saddens me that he gets so ahead of himself that he goes off and does the wrong thing, and spends half of his time in the classroom erasing and redoing the work.

I'm at a loss. I mean we had a real argument over it this week because I lost my patience a bit with it all, but it's the same thing everyday. I tell him -- WAIT for me, but it's like he just can't stop himself. I know he really wants to show me what he can do, but it typically ends with both of us annoyed because of it being wrong.

I know it's just a phase, but seriously -- this stuff isn't easy. Parenting is not for the weak, and Homeschooling is almost like walking out into a loaded battlefield some days. They are lucky that I see them every night when they are sleeping and fall in love with their sweet faces all over again -- and wake up the next day ready to try again. 

Planner Plans for 2017

I've put great thought into what I want to use for 2017 to keep tracking in the right direction toward my goals. I've decided to stick with the planner that I used last year since I've just recently fallen in love with it. It's the Homemaker's Friend Daily Planner, the 2017 version is on sale now, and it comes at a much more affordable price than some of the others that are on the market. I know loads of people that rave about their Erin Condren planners and Plumb Paper planners -- but I just haven't gotten enough use of them in the past to justify the price. 

Introducing some of my ALL time favorite products EVER! These are designed by the amazing ladies from Lara Casey Media. They have so much that just speaks to me. I could literally one one of everything! Cultivate What Matters Shop

I'm ordering this item that is shown below. Today is the first day that it is available, and I can't wait to get my hot little hands on it and get started planning for next year. I've got some big hairy scary goals to accomplish in 2017, and I know that this is the system that will help me get there. (all of these images are links if you see something you want to click on!)

This is the 12 month plan that takes you all the way through 2017 - and it has 176 pages walking you through setting up and deciding what your goals are... then how to break them down in monthly smaller goals to help you reach the larger ones. It has all of the tones of the seasons for the whole year.

She is also coming out with some add on guides for setting goals within your marriage, owning a business, and parenting as well -- those will be out sometime in the spring.


These smaller ones are the 6 month sets that are 110 pages that walk you through the same process as the larger one, just in two separate books. With the 6 month book you'll get to choose between these three cover choices.
I have been a huge fan of the Write the Word Journals from this same shop -- they are amazing! I have the whole set of them, but I believe that they are coming out with some new ones this next spring.
Lara Casey has been an amazing inspiration to me in the later part of this year, and truly - I just think she is outstanding... and she is one Mom that can totally relate to our personal story because she has been living the SAME thing we went through back in 2010 with adoption and having a baby super close together. She also has a weekly Live video session on each Wednesday morning -- and they are incredibly inspirational if you're interested in that as well.

So, I've ordered my Powersheets and an add on book of Stickers -- are you in?