Today is the start of new week in the honor your husband challenge that Christine at Fruit in Season is hosting. I think I did very well last week, up until the weekend. And I did not do bad over the weekend, I just found I was working much harder to be nice and honor my husband. I did catch myself getting "snippy" with him on 2 occassions. But I did redeem myself by calling and saying nice things about him (instead of complaining) to my mom and a friend.

I am going to continue to work on my goals from last week, which I have listed below:

• To be kind and loving towards my husband when he comes home from work. I understand he's had a hard day and to not make things harder on him by being a grump and rude when he comes home.
• Not be short with him. Watch how I talk towards him. Don't take the troubles of the day out on him.
• Speak openly with him about what is bothering me, but talk nicely and not be so harsh.

But I am also going to work on these for this week:

• Get the office cleaned up and organized. It's a diseaster and he has made comments about wanting to get it cleaned up.
• Don't complain. Not only to him or about him. But no complaining in general. I feel as though I have become a negative person and that's not who I am.

Have a wonderful and blessed week.

Wendy

Farmers Market Friday

It's Friday and in our house that means we get up and head out for the morning. The boys and I had our breakfast of cereal and then loaded into the van and stopped by the library. We are participating in the Mission to Read program. Today we returned their books, turned in their reading logs and then picked out new books for the week. This week I chose for their prize Free admission to the Dupage Children's Museum .

After our library visit we headed to the Farmers Market that takes place on Fridays from 8a-2p from June until September. Here are some of the goodies we picked up today:

Cheddar Garlic Bread from The Great Harvest Bread Co.,

Sugar Snap Peas and New Potatoes from a local grower.

We are having these goodies with dinner.

Our next stop was by a local gardener/greenhouse. We picked up 3 bunches of flowers for what I would consider a steal at $12. She offers them $5 a bouquet or 3 for $12. Well, I was going to purchase 2 and figured it was worth the extra $2 to have a third bouquet to place somewhere in the house. I have placed one bouquet in our bedroom, one on the kitchen table and one in the family room.

The boys then had to have popcorn from the Sweettooth Corner. Today they chose Cheddar Popcorn, which turned their hands and faces orange. After our finds, we took a walk down to the river front to see if their were any boats that needed to pass through the bridges. None today, so we walked back to our car.

There were more vendors today. I stopped by a vendor called Moon and Stars Soaps. They sell handmade bars of soap in scents and flavors I had never even imagined. They gave me a sample to try to make sure that I was not sensitive to it before I purchase any.

We won't get to go to the Market next Friday because VBS starts on Monday. But I'll be anxiously awaiting going the next Friday.

Thankful Thursday

This is my first attempt at Thankful Thursday. But I feel blessed this week to participate for I have several things that I am am thankful for:

• I am thankful for the patience that God has bestowed upon me this week. The week does not seem to have been as hard as past weeks.

• I am thankful that I am able to work on my crafts in my spare time. I find that these are very relaxing to me and they help to pay for the fun things the kids and I enjoy doing.

• I am thankful for my husband, whom has given me 3 beautiful little boys. And the opportunity to be home with them.

• I am thankful for Michael. What a blessing he has been. And for him always asking, read me a story mommy.

• I am thankful for Trevor. Our no fear child. Let's climb on the rocks and see how far we can go before mom gets worried. And for, mommy one story before bed.

• I am thankful for Ethan. For his laughs, his carefree, kindred spirit and the hugs I get when he 1st gets up in the morning.
• I am thankful for the flowers that are blooming and the vegetables (only 2 tomato plants) that are growing in my yard.
• I am thankful for my dear friend Kristi, although we are miles apart and we always near in heart. She was the blessing in my life that I needed and am so glad to have.
• I am thankful for my cousin Nancy and her beautiful new daughter Zettie. I became a godmother this weekend.
• I am thankful that in August, I will be flying to Florida to meet Kristi and Nancy for a week long trip.
• The chance to honor my husband honor my husband . And be held accountable for honoring him.

These are a few things that I am thankful for. Thank you Iris at Sting My Heart for the opportunity to participate.

Wendy

What nots for Wednesday

Today is going to be a mish mash of things I have come across while cleaning this morning.  A few things I just need to remember and a few things I found ironic. 

First of all, I only read my horoscope when my husband leaves the newspaper at home.  Since he's been out of town this week, I've read my few sections of the newspaper and one just so happens to be my horoscope.  I found yesterdays and today to be a sign.

• June 19, 2007 - You'll think of yourself as the crafts person you're becoming.  This is not something you can fake.  It'll be genuine and authentic.


• June 20, 2007 - You'll be more comfortable at home for
  the next few weeks.  That may seem impossible now.  First, get the
  place cleaned up.

Why a sign?  Yesterday, prior to reading my horoscope, I worked on our craft projects for VBS next week.  And then spent the afternoon working on the crayon bags I have sold.  I read my horoscope and laughed.  Last night, as I sat and wrote my blog entry, I put down some challenges for myself on getting my house organized and my routines back in place.  After my shower this morning, I cleaned the bathroom and then worked on cleaning our bedroom before the kids woke up.  I read the Tempo section and as I came to my horoscope and read it again I laughed.  This is a sign!  Right in my face.  Thank you, I needed that.

Next on my list of what not's.  I'm getting rid of clutter and came across an article in the
Good Eating section that I found interesting and would like to do.  As much as I love crafts, I cannot seem to get into scrapbooking.  But this project looks like fun and even perhaps would make great Christmas gifts.  The article talks about Windy City Scrapbooking and if I get a free chance or make it into the City, I may stop by and browse around her store.  (Yeah, a piece of clutter gone). 

Another piece of clutter going to be gone.  I read an article in the Home & Garden Section.  And found that I can make my own
pots to start my plants.  How intriguing.  I am going to plan on
doing this next spring.  I am also going to attempt to make a
rain barrel.  Why?  For many reasons, but my two main ones are that I am a cheapskate and don't like paying the city for water to maintain my plants and the second is environmental. 

An update on my challenges for today, my bedroom is cleaned.  I am washing my pillows, which takes time.  But the rest of the room is clean, surface clean. I will work on the closet and the bathroom cabinets and the drawers later in the month as another challenge. I'm going to go upstairs and do the front porch and entry. 

I'm also going to make a card to welcome my husband home.  And use a template found here and
how to make the card found at The
Homespun Heart here . 

That's it for my what not's for right now. 

 

How do you keep control?

How do I keep up? I don't. I have to be very honest when I say that I have really let my house go. I found the Flylady in 2003 in a Woman's Day article. It talked about how to get ready for Christmas and to view the holiday season as a though you were going on a cruise. You could cruise through the holidays. And that year I did for the most part. I stuck with the system got my house in order, had a routine for myself and for my kids (including the little girl that I baby sat for part time). I did really good, even after baby #3 arrived. That is until we moved back to Plainfield.

I would really like to blame it on the house, the house is too big. But we need the space. Do we really need the space? If I would get back into the groove and take the babysteps to get my house in order and de-clutter. Purge, get rid of broken toys, get rid of toys that are not played with, get rid of the clothes that are to small and that can not be worn because they are beyond conventional stain removal methods. I would be okay.

Starting tomorrow...that is Wednesday. I am going to get back on track. I have committed to the 30-Day Honoring and Respecting our Husband Challenge hosted by Fruit in Season and I think to respect my husband I must get my house in order. I also feel that by getting my house in order my husband will respect me more. I love him very much and I want him to feel the love when he walks in the door and has a house that welcomes him home. I also feel that I will respect myself more if I get my house in order. I'm not saying, crazy, perfectionist order, but just a bit more order. No more clutter!

Challenge for Wednesday:

• Zone 4 - Master Bedroom - I found this article and am going to work in our bedroom tomorrow. Now the article says to do it for yourself and for no one else. I am going to do it for my husband as well. He has allergies and one of his allergies is to dust, so I am
  going to clean all surfaces and clear the dressers off.
• Zone 2 - Kitchen - Sweep and polish the floors. I say polish because they are laminate floors, you really can't "mop" the floors. But I will be mopping the tile in the entry way.
• Zone 1 - Entry - Sweep the porch and sidewalk. Make it more appealing when you walk up.
• Control Journal - Start one that I can keep. I always thought, I don't need one. But I think it is pretty obvious that I do.

Feel free to check on me to make sure that I am still rolling. The support and motivation will help me out as I get my house in order. Babysteps!

Wendy

A challenge

It's a new day, a new week and a new outlook on my daily life. I have decided to participate with Christine at Fruit in Season in honoring and respecting our husband's for 30 days. The full article is at her website and there is another challenge going on that is a 30-day challenge for encouraging your husband and it can be found here.
I am going to use the two together to help me to be a better wife to my husband. I am currently reading The Power of a Praying Wife and am really finding that it is not my husband that I should try to change but it is me. That is very powerful for me. My goals for this week are:

• To be kind and loving towards my husband when he comes home from work. I understand he's had a hard day and to not make things harder on him by being a grump and rude when he comes home.


• Not to be short with him. Watch how I talk towards him. Don't take the troubles of the day out on him.


• Speak openly with him about what is bothering me, but talk nicely and not be so harsh.

Wow, reading that makes me sound like I speak harshly and meanly to my husband on a daily basis. I just place more blame on him than I should. It's not his fault that the kids spilled yogurt on the new chair, or it's not his fault that the kids let the dogs in the basement and it's not his fault that I'm in a bad mood but I take those things out on him and I shouldn't. I'm going to work this next 30 days on making sure that I love, honor and respect him.

I have to learn to respect myself for the role that I am playing in our marriage now. When we were married in October 2001 we both worked. I was in a career that I loved, climbing the ladder of success. My husband took on a position with a different company after our 1st son was born, we were relocated when he was 8 months old. I had to leave a job that I loved and a company that I loved working for and a career that I had spent a big portion of my life working my way up. I looked for a job, but unfortunately the market that we moved to was not a big market for my job. The job I was offered, would not have covered the cost of daycare for my son. It was at that point that we decided for me to stay home. I thought I would love it and I did at first. Then baby #2 came along and things were still good, I just had to figure out my new routine and schedule and then once I had it figured out, we were relocated again. I thought for sure that since we were moving to a bigger market that I could go back to work and work towards that career goal again. Boy was I wrong, I had been out of my field of work for just long enough that the response was "we're looking for someone with current experience". I resented the move, my husband and my kids. And then along came baby #3. No reason to go back to work now. I just needed to figure out how to respect my new "job". And I did, I learned to love my "job" and loved being with my kids and keeping my house up and chatting with my neighbors. Just as I became comfortable in my house, my life and my "job" we were relocated again, this time back "home". The last 15 months have been a real struggle for me and I have placed a lot of the blame on my husband. I need to stop doing that. I need to get back to the place I was where I was comfortable and I know that this 30-day challenge is going to help get me there.

Wendy

What's on the Menu...

What's on the menu for the rest of this week...

Wednesday

• Breakfast - Peach, bran flakes, milk
• Lunch - Egg salad sandwich, cucumber & carrot sticks, radishes, Activia yogurt, cantaloupe
• Dinner - Beef Stuffed Peppers, baked potato, steamed zucchini
• Snack - chocolate pudding, graham crackers

Thursday

• Breakfast - Plums, cottage cheese, 1 slice of toast
• Lunch - leftovers, Activia yogurt
• Dinner - Chicken Alfredo Pasta, cantaloupe w/ raspberry poppy seed dressing
• Snack -

Friday

• Breakfast - Oatmeal, peach, milk
• Lunch - Ham sandwich, celery, carrots, apple, activia yogurt
• Dinner - Italian Pot Roast, Salad, biscuits, and potato
• Snack - pudding

Saturday - I will be out of town for my goddaughters baptism.

Sunday - Since it's father's day, I will be making for dinner Sweet Pepper Steak and I will have to figure out what else to make. I'll also plan next week out on Friday and will post an update.

Weight Struggles...

I have to do something. Something that I have to do....I have been struggling with my weight for years, as long as I can remember. I look at pictures from when I was young and realize that when school dismissed one year and when we returned the following year, puberty had hit and I started my current weight struggle.

I am currently doing Weight Watchers, but I find that it is hard. I have also found that I am a stress eater, a boredom eater and well I just eat because it's there. I planned my menu out for the week, breakfast, lunch and dinner. But to no avail, I have still found ways to snack and eat what I shouldn't eat and go over in points. My clothes don't fit and I'm not happy with who I am. I am currently trying to hand my worries over to God and pray for his help and guidance. I believe that placing my trust in him on this issue will help. But it's finding a way to say okay, help me change.

I look at my wedding pictures and cringe. The happiest day of my life and I am disappointed in the way I looked. The one picture that I truly love and felt happy in was in December of 2004 I still had weight to lose but at least it was coming off and I was happy and you could see it in the pictures. Now I don't like to have my picture taken, I don't like looking in my closet and trying to decide what to wear because well, I don't want to get discouraged because something doesn't fit.

This to shall pass. I will overcome this hurdle, I just have to put my trust in God on this issue (as I have with many others) and believe that he will help me and guide me with how to overcome this problem.

From the mouth of Michael....

So last night there was a VBS training meeting at church that I needed to attend (mostly to pick up supplies), Shannon had class and would not be home. Since the training was only an hour I thought the boys would behave long enough to take them with me. I used ice cream as a bribe, in hopes that it would help them in being good. No luck, they were rotten. As we are driving home this was the conversation that Michael and I had:

Michael: Where do you work, mommy?

me: Where do I work Michael?

Michael: You do stuff for Mrs. Dawn.

me: That's right I do work for Mrs. Dawn and what else do I do?

Michael: You make us cerealk (this is not a typo that is how he says cereal) for breakfast.

me: That's right and what else do I do?

Michael: You make us snacks.

me: That's right and what else do I do?

Michael: You make us lunch.

me: That's right and do I wash your clothes and make them smell good and read you stories and play with you and make sure you are okay?

Michael: Yes.

me: So what is mommy's job.

Michael: Taking care of us.

me: I said that's right and does mommy like her job.

Michael: Nope

me: I said you don't think mommy likes her job?

Michael: No, you like your job mommy, I was just kidding.

That conversation ended with a phone call to both grandmas last night and both of them were laughing.

Opening shop soon...

Just a quick update...thank you to The Homespun Heart for recommending Etsy to me. And to Sting my Heart for recommending Cafe-Press. I have decided that for the time being since I have a PayPal business account set up to use that and post some pictures of items on a separate blog called Simple Snow Stitches Market. Over the course of the next few weeks I will be adding items that I currently have made up that are for sale or that orders can be placed. This is just one item that I can mark off of my list of To Do's.

Wendy

Twelve for Tuesday

12 Random thoughts on things I would like to do or need to do

1. I would like to go to Italy. All of my friends and family are aware of this and I have set a goal that in 10 years I will go to Italy. In 2017 I plan on travelling with my family to Italy and if my family does not want to go, then I guess I will go by myself or ask some friends to go.
2. With that being said, I am learning Italian. It's a slow process, much slower that I would like for it to be. Mostly because I don't take the time to do my lessons as much as I should.
3. Start my own business...what kind of business I don't know. I bake for friends and family. I sew and I design and sell the bags and stuff that I make. I have envisioned a Bed & Breakfast with a tea room that we could have afternoon teas with the exquisite little desserts for our guests or others that heard about it.
4. Have the outside of the house painted, trim, fascia, etc. (that just needs to be done)
5. Plant a butterfly garden.
6. Have a vegetable garden. I had a vegetable garden when we lived in Erie, IL. But while we lived in TX, I didn't have the energy. But now that we are back home, I would like to have one. I think if we are going to stay in our house for a while. I could extend the fence up on one side of the house by 6ft and plant a small vegetable garden there.
7. Paint the foyer.
8. I need to plan our next family vacation which takes place in July and we are going to the Poconos.
9. Look up some fun stuff to do while in West Palm Beach with my friends in August.
10. Sew, I have 6 bags that I have sold that need to be made and then enough for 6 more to do.
11. Find out how much www.etsy.com is and open up and link a shop back to here.
12. Make sure to take time for me everyday!!

Home from vacation

We are home from vacation, well we arrived home on Saturday evening. The boys did very well on vacation, but now that we are home they are back to their usual selves. I have some beautiful pictures of the Smokey Mountains and the sites that we saw while we vacationed. I would have been happying hiking everyday, however, the kids did not handle one day of hiking to a waterfall on a paved trail. I'm sure had we tried to take them on a non-paved trail they would have complained even more.

My blog is a work in process. I figure that it will have bits and pieces of different things that I have interests in or that I am working on at any given moment. I plan to post pictures of the kids, sewing projects (if you see anything you like, feel free to contact me for more information), knitting projects (my own patterns and others I have come across), baking (I'll share more information on that later), my faith and whatever else comes to mind.

I'll post some pics later of our trip.

Wendy