Karis turned 7 months old yesterday and definitely has such a sweet personality! She loves people! Yesterday, while I was nursing her upstairs, the door bell rings. As soon as she heard other voices downstairs, she sprang off and started looking curiously around. She knew someone was here other than her mommy and daddy. From then on she was so distracted. You can just assume we didn’t get a good feeding in that time. It was hopeless! I put my nursing cover on and everything, but to no avail!
She also began sitting up on her own this week. It is so precious to see her learn how to balance herself. We have had a few minor accidents with her falling over, but she seems to be brave enough to handle the pain at this stage of the game.
She joined us at the table as well. Her high chair attaches to one of the table chairs, so she is at the same level as Daddy and I. Boy does she enjoy it! Bananas have been her first food and she is very petite and modest in her eating habits. No wide open mouth here, but she still daintily enjoys it. I tried adding squash, but she wasn’t too interested in that. Alas! We’ll stick to the banana for now.
God really has done a good work in me as of late. I am so thankful for this long process, 6 months in fact, of pruning me in regards to my overly passionate desire to have my baby on a perfect schedule. Being inclined to be more organized in my giftings, this has been a significant struggle for me. I have been frustrated, stressed, tearful and overwhelmed by my little one because she wouldn’t adjust to fitting into my schedule and when I wished for her to take a nap and for how long she would rest. I wasn’t too strick about it, but I wanted consistency!!!!! I wanted it too much. The perfect schedule for eating and naps was non-existent or only lasting a few days before it was thrown through a loop again.
I have come to realize that this approach was not strengthening my relationship with my girl, nor was I loving and meeting her needs the way I should. Thank God for His sustaining grace!
Flexibility is not my forte. God has been teaching me to let it go, lay down my desires at His feet, don’t worry about her naps, giving it up! She’ll take a nap when she needs it. If she wakes up earlier than I hoped, than she’ll probably take a longer nap later. Maybe I struggled with the belief that if I carried her in the front pack for her nap, she would get spoiled and never take a nap in her bed. I was believing a lie.
She is my daughter and my priority! She needs my nurturing love and affection. I may not have my hands in as many things as before, but at least I am not missing out on putting my baby before myself. It’s all a part of serving the Master by serving my child!
So I have come from being consumed with the scheduling approach to being more flexible and allowing the Lord to reign in our home. Some of those scheduling books put way to much pressure on the mommy that it has to be done a certain way or else. Praise God for freedom in Christ! I am so much more at peace and joyful now. It’s funny too…as soon as I started letting go, things started going more smoothly. It is amazing how much better we are both doing now than this whole last month. It allows my home to be more of a haven for my husband too since I am removing that gloomy and depressed attitude! Praise God!
There is so much more peace where God reigns and not me!
Is there an area of your life that you need to surrender to the Lord today?
Isn’t she a cutie? I guess I am a little biased. I think she is getting my curly hair! 
So I am off and rolling today on Day 3 of the Making our Home a Haven Challenge. It is so refreshing to think how I might make our home more of a haven for my husband and our family. I definitely believe it starts with my heart and attitude. If I am gloomy and depressed, my home is no longer a haven. I have had this wrong attitude as of late, as I have struggled with some baby challenges, but the Lord is doing a good work in my heart. I want my husband to delight to be around me, because I am a joyful wife! Once the joy leaves my face, he will loose desire to be around me, although he strives his best to be sensitive and meet my needs. I want him to be refreshed after a long day at work, so it is important to set my heart in the right place from the off set of the day. I am so thankful for this good work! Read about this change in my heart in the next post.
So today I began again on my 5 turning to 8 steps to begin my day. I refreshed my soul in the Word while nursing the babe, then I proceeded to make myself look presentable, picked up those areas that needed attention, looked at the dinner menu and am preparing stir fry for dinner tonight, and now I am proceeding to eat my breakfast and make my list of to-do’s for the day.
I am so glad Day 3 is focused on the laundry room. I was thinking yesterday that it needed my attention. Although it is rather small, it definitely can accumulate piles of things! So here is my list for the day:
1. Laundry room
-Organize shelves – DONE!
-Finish laundry – DONE!
-wipe down washer and dryer – DONE!
-Sweep & mop floor – DONE!
-Wash sheets – DONE!
-Iron clothing – DONE!
2. Assemble the mission insert for the church bulletin this week (Aaron & I lead the mission group in our church and issue a monthly insert with updates and info, so I must assemble and complete that today).
3. Write out one thank you and one encouragement note
DONE!
4. Give Karis bath – DONE! (She happened to go potty while I was getting her dressed for the day, so that was easy enough to just throw her in the bathtub)
Here’s my pictures: My laundry room is kind of small, so it is hard to see, but hey it is cleaner than before! I put away all the laundry, folded, and ironed the clothes, wiped down the appliances and cleaned the floor (something that hasn’t been done since we moving in!).
If you haven’t tried Sue Gregg’s waffle/pancake recipe, you need to asap! This is an awesome healthy and nutritious recipe that can be nicely catered to meet your needs (if you have allergies that is). We have this any Sunday when we have guests over and it is always a hit! I had another request for the recipe recently, so that is why I decided to post it today. These can be easily frozen (2 weeks max). I have written some alternative variations at the end. This recipe uses the benefits of soaking the grains to receive all the nutrient value, but you can also substitute the grain for flour (1 cup grain =approximately 1 1/2 cups flour). If we are having it on Sunday, I simply soak them on Saturday night, and throw the remaining ingredients together before they arrive. Easy company dinner and oh so much fun. My husband loves this recipe as pancakes on Saturday mornings. We top with peanut butter and maple syrup. They are very flavorful! Enjoy!
Blender Waffles/Pancakes
Amount: 2 (2 1/2-3 waffles) or 4 (4-5 waffles) or 20-24 pancakes
1. Place in blender; blend at highest speed for 3 minutes.
(3/4) 1 1/2 – 1 3/4 cups buttermilk or kefir (or non-dairy alternative)
(1) 2 Tbls olive oil
(1/2) 1 tsp vanilla extract
(2/3) 1 1/2 cups brown rice or uncooked rolled oats (or other grain variations, see below) 2/3 cup grain = 1 cup flour or 1 1/2 cups grain =2 cups flour
The batter should always swirl about a vortex in the blender. If it doesn’t, slowly add more liquid until the hole reappears. This is the secret to light and tender waffles. Batter for pancakes may be thicker, but keep batter relatively thin and keep it churning.
2. Cover blender; let stand at room temperature overnight or 12-24 hours.
3. Preheat waffle iron at highest temperature, or griddle on medium high.
4. Just before baking, add and reblend on highest speed for 1 minute:
1 egg, optional additional liquid (if batter needs thinning for vortex or churning)
5. Blend in thoroughly, but briefly (assisted with rubber spatula, if needed):
(1) 2 tsp baking powder
(1/4) 1/2 tsp. baking soda
(1/2) 1 tsp salt, to taste
6. Pour batter onto hot waffle iron, sprayed with olive oil. Bake about 3 1/2 to 4 minutes in waffle iron until crispy.
GRAIN VARIATIONS
brown rice or millet – equal parts of each grain
kamut, spelt, wheat - kamut is a favorite! Combining with kamut and oats is our favorite!
buckwheat – reduce to 1 cup (4 servings). It expands.
barley -hulled, not pearled. Reduce to 1 cup (for 4 servings). It expands
Quinoa - Thoroughly rinse quinoa in strainer the night before 1-2 minutes; let stand in bowl of water overnight; drain and rinse about 1 more minute. This removes bitter flavor. Batter will be very thin. Fill waffle iron almost completely to the edges.
Oats - uncooked rolled oats or oat groats
I use oats in combination with other grains. I use 1/2 cup (in recipe for 4) oats, and 1 cup kamut, or half and half in serving 2.
Other additions - throw in some flax seeds!
Today is day 2 of the challenge of making our home a haven! (Read more about the challenge here) Today we focus on fulfilling our 5 steps to begin the day (which I wrote out yesterday and posted on my frig!) followed by refreshing up the living room of your home. My 5 steps were completed, but only between changing a diaper, putting in a load of laundry, changing activities for a crying baby, etc. I was wanting to open my computer before completing these tasks, but then I was reminded…no, no, Lindsay. Get your 5 steps done! Computers can be very distracting to me, unfortunately. But it is amazing what you can get done when you put your mind to it and you have others out there keeping you accountable and inspired! I finally got to cleaning that crock pot that has been sitting on my counter the last 2 days calling my name (Don’t you hate that!).
My 5 steps grew a little today as I thought of a few others things that I need to just get done at the beginning of each day before other things distract me. So here is my refreshed and updated list:
1. Devotions
2. Prepare myself for the day (do my hair, put a little make-up on, hopefully!)
3. Prepare breakfast
4. Quick house pick-up (this included cleaning up the entry like I was talking about yesterday. For even last night after returning home from a meeting, we piled up some more coats, shoes, books, etc. Time to get the entry way looking clean! Maintenance is the key!)
5. Make dinner preparations (making hamburgers for dinner, so I pulled out some hamburger meat from the freezer)
6. Put in a load of laundry (if needed) - (I try to do all my laundry on one day, but sometimes it doesn’t always work that well)
7. Fill up my water bottle! (I need to be drinking more water, but if I don’t have it near, I don’t drink it. So I am trying to be more purposeful in filling it up in the morning and having it with me)
8. Take 5 min and plan (I keep several small notepads around the house for this purpose. I just write down a few things I need to get done for the day. I keep it to no more than 3-4 things. I have a master list for the week that I aim to write out on Sunday night and then each day I try to check 3-4 items off that list. Not to0 consistent with this yet, but I am working on it )
MY LIST TODAY
Sweep & mop entryway – DONE!
Vacuum stairs (after setting up our tree and decor on Saturday, there are pine needles everywhere! These are things I did not get to yesterday when we were focusing on the entryway.) – DONE!
Clean living room windows (since today was to focus on the living room, I looked around to see what needed to be done. The sun was shining through the windows and I could see a lot of dirt and smudges everywhere! SO that is what I am doing today! One little thing!) -DONE!
Bake bread – DONE!
Empty trashcans – DONE!
I better get to it before Karis destroys my list by eating it as she is now!
Following Crystal’s Day 1 of the Making our Homes a Haven challenge to make our homes a blessing to our families and guests, these are my steps to improve my home for day 1. The first step is to take time to spend with the Lord each day followed by making a purposeful plan for this. This definitely falls in line with the starting place of Shopping for Time by Carolyn Mahaney as I learned from previously.
First 5 steps for each day
This is a routine I wrote on my frig awhile back, and it has been so helpful in getting me off on the right foot each day. This challenge has renewed me afresh in walking it out each morning before starting my day.
1. Morning devotions
2. Make myself look presentable for the day (to please and bless my hubby! Gives me a little boost too for the day)
3. Prepare breakfast
4. Quick house pick up (this is definitely not in-depth cleaning, just picking up from the day before to start afresh! Pick up the entry, clean up any dishes leftover, etc.)
5. Make dinner preparations (This means I just pull out of the freezer any ingredients I need for the meal, or soak some ingredients, etc. This helps keep me on track, so I am not stressing at the end of the day, when I am tired no less, and need to make dinner. I thought ahead to save me the stress!)
Secondly, she encourages everyone to start with organizing one thing a day. Today it is the entryway, the first place our guests enter in and see. With this in mind, I have realized the importance of keeping my stairway cleared of clutter, being that that is a focal point in my entryway. The bottom of the stairs always seems to accumulate clutter, such as mail, things hailed in from the car, jackets, shoes, etc. If I can be purposeful in just keeping this cleaned and organized my entry way looks 100% improved. That is my first goal for making my home a haven!
Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.Give thanks to the God of gods, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.Give thanks to the Lord of Lords for His lovingkindness is everlasting.
~Ps. 136:1-3
Give thanks…To Him who is the Lord and Sovereign over my life, for His lovingkindness nevers ceases.
Give thanks…To Him who is a strong tower of protection and refuge for the righteous, for His lovingkindness never faids.
Give thanks…Even when dark clouds encompass me, for His lovingkindness never ends.
Give thanks…Even when my body is weak and tired, under ailment or stress, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.
Give thanks…even when my child is cranky and needing attention, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.
Give thanks…even when my house is a mess and needing attention, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.
Give thanks…when moodiness and depression traps my soul, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.
Give thanks…to Him who has grants forgiveness again after my many stumblings, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.
Give thanks…to Him who never leaves me nor forsakes me, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.
Give thanks…To Him who gave Himself for an undeserving wretch, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.
“Who redeemed us from our low estate, for His lovingkindness is everlasting. And has rescued us from our adversaries, for His lovingkindness is everlasting. Who gives food to all flesh, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.Give thanks to the God of heaven, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.”
Ps. 136:23-26
Stay tuned for some helpful information (hopefully!) in a new series, titled Natural Living On A Budget. I will be posting on topics such as meal planning, housecleaning, decorating, eating healthy, etc. every Friday for awhile. I have been learning a ton in the process of preparing these posts. If you care to join me as I seek to become a better steward of our resources for the glory of God and supplying our bodies with the nutrients we need without excessive spending….Frugal Fridays here we come! Contributions are always welcome!
From the start let me state my position on frugality. Frugality is something that all woman, it seems, love! Almost to an extreme sometime. We must guard against raising the saving of every penny to a pedestal of idolatry in our lives. Personally, it became an idol in my life due to a lack of contentment in the resources I had to work with and an unthankful spirit for the hard work my husband was doing to provide for us. I realized other areas in my life and home were lacking proper attention because I was overly focused on saving my pennies. It caused stress, worry and anxiety which did not allow for peace and joy to enter in my home, for they were running out the window! We cannot serve God and money; therefore, saving money should always come after strengthening our relationship with the Lord, serving our husbands, and families. I began asking myself: Am I causing more stress in my family by my overly focused attention on frugality? Is my household lacking peace and attention because I am fretting about money or the lack of it? Am I too focused on saving money over serving the needs and desires of my husband?
On the other hand, we are called to be good stewards of the resources God has entrusted to us. There must be a proper balance. Fretting will get us nowhere…but purposeful planning will take us far, and keeping Christ the center will promise us success! My goal with this blog has been to keep a proper balance between seeking to edify and encourage my sisters in godliness as well as being wise frugal homemakers. But please don’t allow this topic to become a point of stress and frustration for you. Seek to do your best, do what you can, but don’t become consumed to the point that you have no peace or contentment because you are always worried about where the next dollar is going. We serve a mighty God who will provide all of our needs according to His riches and glory in Christ Jesus! If he provides every need of the sparrow, how much more will He provide for your every need!
If you would like to suggest an additional topic to be covered in this series, please comment below. Look forward to growing in frugality with you all!
NEW NOTE: I thought I would add one last thing…I have learned that I need to allow my husband to take the leadership in our finances. I must set aside my worrying and allow him to make the final call. When I was managing the books up till a month or so ago, I knew where the money was going and he did not. It didn’t work! I fretted and would get frustrated when he wanted to buy this or that. Don’t you know we don’t have the money for that! I thought. This was a burden I should not be carrying. Let the men do it! They don’t worry like we do!
Northern Essence is a wonderful online store for all your natural body care needs, including facial, scrubs, soaps, baby products, pregnant mommy items, etc. Northern Essence is re-opening their doors today after a two month transition while moving. I have been anticipating this greatly as I am completely out of my products!
They make the best natural diaper rash salve I have tried! It is an excellent combination of fresh beeswax, calendula infused olive oil, avacado oil, emu oil, cocoa butter, shea butter, tea tree & lavender essential oils. I love the sweet smell that it provides for my girl’s little bum. She had been plagued since birth with repeated diaper rashes, and this creme has been the only one to solve that problem completely! Being a cloth diaper mommy, I was having to use disposables at night just to keep the rashes away. I tried many others cremes including desitin, meleda, nature’s gate, and vasaline. I love the texture of it too. No more sticky, 
hard to scrub off, white stuff. It is a clear and fragrant salve. Now I can’t give any guarantees, as every baby might be different, but this salve is well worth the try! Safe with cloth diapers as well. Plus one 2oz container ($4.95) lasted around 3 months for us. For more reviews click here.
By the way, if you are concerned about the lavender oil for your little guy, you can also purchase a version without this addition.
For my fellow cloth diapering mommy’s, I have also really enjoyed the diaper wipe solution. I have made my own in the past without much success. Karis’ little bum was always reacting to them. I tried this product out and was pleasantly surprised.
Lylah over at Money Making Mamas shares this highly recommended soup recipe from Nourishing Traditions. I like hearing her review and will definitely be trying it now. The recipe and her notes are included below.
Squash and Sun Dried Tomato Soup serves 6
1 butternut squash
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
3 TB butter
1 cup sun dried tomatoes, packed in oil. I only had sun dried tomatoes in a bag, so, I added a bit of olive oil to the cup and let it sit for a tad.
1 quart chicken stock (I used Trader Joes Chicken Broth and actually I used more than what it called for – it seemed to need to be more brothy.)
1/4 tsp. red chili flakes
2 Tb finely chopped basil (I used fresh from my garden.)Cut squash in half lengthwise and place, cut sides down, in a glass baking pan with about 1/2 inch of water. I chose to liberally douse my squash with olive oil instead. Bake at 350 degrees until tender, about 1 hour.Meanwhile, sauté onions gently in butter until tender. Add tomatoes, broth and chili flakes. Bring to a boil and skim. Scoop squash out of skin and add to the soup. Simmer for about 1/2 hour. Puree soup with a handheld blender. I didn’t do this – I chose to leave it as it was. Thin with water (I added more chicken broth.) Add basil and season to taste. Simmer gently about 5 minutes, ladle into heated bowls.