Wednesday

I felt even better today than yesterday. I expected to get more done today than I did. I started a project that took three times as long as I had anticipated. I did two loads of laundry and mixed up/filled my cleaners. After I unloaded the dishwasher I decided to tackle the kitchen sink. I have been spoiled by having new homes the last two houses we've lived in which meant brand new shiny sinks that I was able to keep that way. There are granite counters here with the sink underneath which is what I had at my last house. I was always very careful to clean around the top edge and it looked just as nice when we moved out two and a half years later. The caulking around the top of the sink here is black and deteriorating. It is nasty. I cleaned it as best as I could even using q-tips. When I was finished I washed a chicken that I had gotten for $.84 a pound and put it in to roast while I started my next project. The bottom cabinets in the kitchen are very deep which makes it hard to see what is in there. My solution was to put large plastic bins that could be filled and then pulled out to find what I need. Almost making them like drawers. I washed the bins and then took everything out of all the cabinets. I checked all of the dates and pulled out anything that expired by the end of next month to put in a special spot so it would be used before it spoils. I reorganized each cabinet and the lazy susan. I am happy with the results, but it took a long time. I had to throw away a few things that had expired recently. When the chicken was done I cut off all of the white meat to make chicken salad with red grapes, apples, and walnuts for sandwiches tomorrow night. Joey and Max need to get hair cuts and Matthew and I will go to CVS. There are several deals this week that I don't want to miss. I didn't get to mixing up the salad so I will need to do that tomorrow. I put the rest of the whole chicken in my large stock pot and boiled it for an hour or so. In the mean time I cut up onion, carrot, celery, purple cabbage, zucchini, and summer squash for the soup. I had marinated a london broil (BOGO this week) last night for Joey to grill tonight. I fixed asparagus sauteed in oil with garlic and herbed couscous to go with it. When the stock was ready and the rest of the meat falling off the bones I took it out to pick it apart. I replaced the meat, added the veggies, rice, diced canned tomatoes, and spices. Not only is soup my favorite thing to make, it's my favorite thing to eat! Dinner was wonderful and the soup turned out absolutely delicious. I almost forgot I also made a shoo fly pie for desert with whipped cream. It was a big hit with everyone. There are a few things that I need to get accomplished tomorrow, but mostly we need to spend a few hours on school work.

Tuesday

I continue to feel better everyday. I feel so blessed to be carrying this baby. Sharing everything. My energy level is still fairly low and I need to take breaks every couple hours.

My to-do list today looked like this:

X 1. stir laundry detergent

X 2. unload dishwasher

X 3. re-load dishwasher

X 4. prep dinner and put in the crock pot

X 5. make sweet tea

X 6. sort/organize/throw away paper clutter in kitchen

X. 7. melt warming hearts

X 8. empty/wash/refill flour jar

X 9. water plants

- 10. mix/refill cleaners

- 11. order filter for vacuum

X 12. check for local baseball

X 13. shower

X 14. Matthew bath

I sliced potatoes, carrots, and celery with chicken broth into the crock pot. I added slices of boneless chicken breast and covered it with cream of chicken soup and rosemary. I had to add some flour to thicken the broth some. It was good, but would be better as a pot pie filling next time. All in all it was a good day and I will just carry the two items I didn't get done over to tomorrow.

Monday

Joey worked all day on Saturday so I spent much of the day in the kitchen. The boys had a netflix to watch in the family room next to me. I had soaked several pounds of pinto beans overnight. I had some bacon grease that I sauteed a large onion in before adding the beans and water. I didn't add any other spices so as not to loose the yummy bacon flavor. I cooked several cups of brown rice to have on hand for the week. I also made corn bread with thawed frozen corn. Note to self..... don't do that again. It threw off the consistency. I also made a few dozen chocolate chip cookies. I seem to be having a problem when I bake with baking soda, it's all I can taste. I am going to first buy some new and see if that makes a difference. It was peaceful and the house smelled so good when Daddy finally got home. We had bowls of rice topped with beans, shredded cheese, and sour cream. The corn bread was just okay. Sunday we had tortillas with rice, beans, cheese, lettuce, and sour cream. I have just started building back up my coupon supply after not getting the newspaper or doing any of the shopping for the past two months while I have been so sick. I was still able to save $108. We made whole wheat english muffin pizzas when we got home. The boys really enjoyed making their own. Joey had mentioned that chili would be good with the pinto beans so on Monday I decided to make some in the crock pot and put it over spaghetti with shredded cheese for dinner. I had left over london broil from Friday night that I ran through the food processor. I started with chopped scallion and the shredded meat in a small amount of oil. I added the beans, diced tomatoes, rotel, cumin, chili powder, nutmeg, and some taco seasoning. It was absolutely delicious. Everyone had two helpings. Matthew sat at the bar and worked on his letters so I could multi-task while Max read a book on Abraham Lincoln. I made a five gallon batch of laundry detergent which should last us a few months. I will make the chili like that again for spaghetti since it went over so well.

Here I Am

I was a joyful homemaker. A wife and mother of two boys. I didn't always look at making my house a home and keeping it that was as a joy. I did it because I felt like I should. It wasn't something I put my heart into. One day I decided I needed to have a better understanding of what God wanted of me as a wife and mother. It was a combination of reading the bible, books, and other women's blogs. There were changes I made right away and others that took a while for me to get the hang of. I learned about modesty, homemaking, frugality, being a respectful wife, a patient mother, a giving woman, a caring woman, and so much more. The more I learned and changed the more joy I felt. I saw how the changes I made effected most of the people in my life in a positive way. Some people it annoyed or there were others that didn't even notice, and that's okay. I knew in Gods eyes I was on the right path and that's what really mattered.

One of the first changes I made was to put on an apron every morning. It was my reminder to myself of the importance of my role in our family. I also turned off the television and restricted my use of the computer. I became very aware of the things that I exposed myself to or spent my time on. If it was not something that supported or encouraged me in the direction I was headed I steered clear of it. I did not turn the television on during the day at all, no exceptions. I began to think of everything I was doing as showering my family with love. That was just the beginning and I worked hard at it, improving everyday.

I had worked my way into a routine that was working so well. My family was happy, my home was a peaceful place, my housework done, our meals well planned, food well stocked, and my budget cut drastically. Not perfect, but really good for us.

In a matter of five days everything changed. My Husband lost his job which also meant his truck and cell phone. The company down sized. That doesn't seem to ease the blow to a man. I felt so sad for him. I tried to support him and encourage him that he would find another job in no time.
Four days later I miscarried the baby we had prayed so long for. I was ten and a half weeks and we were just devastated. I miscarried at home but had such bad bleeding I had to have a D&C.
The roles reversed and Joey had to support me. I tried to have a good attitude about everything, but I was just so sad. I was medicated and also physically quite sore for a while. As a family we were struggling. My children were asking why all of these things were happening to us. I will explain my answer to them later. Both of the boys were playing baseball and had two games a week each. Keeping up with getting them to the fields they needed to be at having only one car and cleaning uniforms seemed daunting for us at the time. Things around the house fell apart. You would think with two adults at home it would be the opposite. There were two adults there that were both feeling very lost in direction. Seemingly before I knew it Joey had gotten a job in New Jersey and we were packing up and moving. Joey spent a month there by himself first. The move was a disaster in every almost every way. That will be another post all of it's own. The one thing that came out of the move that is just amazing is that we are expecting a baby this summer. Not even three months later and I was pregnant again. What a wonderful gift God has given us. I was not sick with my boys. I have been so sick this time that at times I told Joey I thought I am not make it. So here I am........ still surrounded by boxes, with a house that needs a good cleaning, boys that need more organized home schooling, a pantry that needs re-stocking, coupons that need to be built back up, and lots of planning, scheduling, and organizing that need to be done. Most importantly so that we can beginning preparing for our new blessing. I am starting from scratch. From a place I have never been. I have the knowledge and the desire. As I continue to feel better I will be on my journey back to making this new house a home. I hope to be encouraged by watching my own progress and eventually get to the place I may help to encourage someone else as so many women's blogs have encouraged me. Maybe I will even have a daughter to share this with someday.