A Joyful Keeper

I muddled around the house today while dh took the kids to see the footy (Go Roos!!!). It was a lovely day! I had a relax at home and got some things done, and the rest of the family got to watch their team win. I thought I’d share a bit of it with you…

I cleaned the kitchen first up and put one load of washing on. Then I took out my sewing machine and started hemming a table cloth. She was sounding pretty clunky, so I gave her a bit of a clean and some oil. She was much happier after that!

While dh & the kids were watching the Kangaroos play against the Bulldogs, I took a break to say hello to our own kangaroos out my back door. Mr Roo is there in front, and you can barely see her, but Mrs Roo is hiding in the bush behind him.

I kept sewing and then had a break for lunch. For a treat I made myself some cheese and crackers with tomato on top. The tomatoes in the winter aren’t anywhere as nice as our homegrown ones in summer, but I still enjoyed it.

I went and let the chickens and ducks out to free range and found some eggs…

Oh, have a look at where one of them laid the other day:

In the kindling bucket on the front porch! Silly chook!

The load of washing was dry and since the fire was roaring hot, I started to hang it up in front of the heater:

In the meantime, Mr Roo had decided to have a little rest from mowing the lawn and bask in the sun:

Robyn came around and we had tea for two. I hemmed this little cloth just before she came:

I had a little nap, and worked some more on a quilt until the family came home. I enjoyed the day so much!

Part of homesteading is preserving the harvest that I have, or that others might give me. As I said in my last post, two bags of plums have started off my bottling for 2008!

Since my children aren’t keen on stewed plums or plum jam, I thought I would give cordial a go. I tried this recipe many years ago, and it was quite nice, so I thought I’d try it again. It is a recipe from one of the old copies of Above Rubies.

Plum Cordial

Day 1

Dissolve 70g tartaric acid in 4 cups of cold water. Pour over 2.2kg of plums and leave for 24 hours. Strain. Add 3 cups of sugar to each 2 cups of juice. Stir to dissolve and bottle. Keeps for years.

Day 2

Dissolve 56g tartaric acid in 4 cups of cold water. Pour over the same fruit and leave for 24 hours. Strain and add 2 1/2 cups of sugar to each 2 cups of juice. Stir to dissolve and bottle. Keeps 6 months.

Day 3

Dissolve 28g tartaric acid in 4 cups BOILING water. Pour over the same fruit and leave for 24 hours. Strain and add 2 1/2 cups of sugar to each 2 cups of juice. Dissolve and bottle. Keeps 3 months.

To make up: Pour approx 1 inch of cordial in glass and top up with water.

(Above Rubies September 1991 No. 37)

Now the first time I made this, I had no idea what it meant to “bottle”! I just put it in plastic bottles and had my dh freaking out that it would ferment and I would make my 2 year old tipsy! This time I heated the juice and sugar up till it was almost boiling, poured the syrup in hot, sterilized bottles, and put on the lids tightly. You know the bottles have sealed well when you are drinking a cup of tea and you hear… “pop”…. “pop”….!

I took a few photos…. here is some of the fruit I started with sitting in the sink being washed and the yukky bits being cut out:

This is what they looked like after they were subjected to three days of tartaric acid and water, poor things:

And finally, the finished product:

Beautiful bottles all in a row… The bottles on the left are from Day One, the ones on the right placemat are from Day Two. I haven’t taken a photo of the Day Three ones yet. I doubled the recipe, since I had so many plums, and I got lots of bottles of cordial. I must count them. I also have to label them before they get mixed up!

There is something so rewarding to see all those bottles……. it is worth the squished plums under my shoes, the sticky spots on the stove, cupboard, bench top and floor…. the burnt fingers (and tongue from too much taste testing), the yelling at children “No, you CAN’T help me right now - get out of the kitchen before you get red sticky stuff all over you too!” - oh, and not to mention the purple candle falling INTO the pan of plum juice and splashing red spots all over the kitchen wall……… Yes, it is worth it! And it is yummy. I know, because I tried it!

I really enjoy going to my mother-in-law’s house. It hasn’t always been so. There have been many relationship problems in my dh’s family over the years. However, things are much better now-a-days with some of us, so I am thankful that we can go there and enjoy our time with them.

My dmil is born organized. So whenever I go there, I try to watch her and pick up things from her. Her house is always neat and tidy and she seems to be always on top of things. Always? Yes. She really is one of those people who has everything running like a well oiled machine!

I’d like to share some things that I have observed, while I’ve visited her over the years. One thing that really stands out when I go, is that there is no clutter. I don’t mean that her house is bare… there are photos in frames on the walls, and on shelves. There are ornaments on top of the tv and cupboards. But there is no clutter on the table, or on the kitchen counters. Paperwork gets dealt with right away. If it needs attention for another day, it goes into a little rack specially for paper. Now in my house, that rack would get fuller and fuller…. because I don’t file it or throw it away after I deal with it. My dmil deals with the bills, and then puts them away in the filing cabinet. She goes through the filing cabinet regularly (so that she only has one filing cabinet instead of three like we do!), and only keeps what needs to be kept for tax purposes.

My dmil has a “What Not” (like Ma Ingalls!) where she keeps odds and ends. This is in the corner of her dining room and is the only place that could be described as “cluttered”. Here she keeps pens, pencils, needles, scissors, sticky tape, a few tools, and such things. They get put back right after they are used. If anyone leaves something on the dining table, she will pick it up and ask whose it is and then sit it on a little table by the tv in a subtle hint to put it away….! If it doesn’t get put away soon by the person it belongs to, she will look at it again, hint again,… and so on, until the person puts it away! I would imagine that if it were a family member, she would just tell them to put it away and not hint.

I love to watch my dmil in the kitchen. She only has a small one, and not a lot of bench (counter) space. She is very careful with what she leaves out on the bench. Not much is privileged enough to live there! My rule is that if it is used daily, it is allowed to stay out. Not so in my dmil’s house. The toaster is used every morning, the crumbs tipped out in the sink, the top given a wipe, and put back where it belongs in the cupboard. The only permanent things that are left out are the kettle, the cup rack, the big jar of utensils (wooden spoons, etc), and a little flip top bin where she used to put the scraps for the chooks (chickens). Why she still has that there, I am not sure. I think it is because she puts the food scraps in there in a little bag, then in the bigger bin so that it doesn’t smell as much.

Dishes get washed, dried and put away immediately. She has a dishwasher, but only uses it when there are many people there. Even then, she will wash cups in between meals, so that they are always hanging on the cup rack by the kettle. As she talks to us in the dining area, she will regularly pick up her dish cloth and wipe the kitchen sink and bench. Flylady would be proud of her sink! It is always shiny!

Meals are simple, but delicious and healthy. She cleans and tidies and puts away while she cooks. She says she has to do this, because her kitchen is so small. Everything has a neat place in the cupboards - they are not overflowing because she gets rid of anything she doesn’t need. Having said this, she still has times when she can’t find things. She laughingly told us the story about the carrot cake she made in her new ring tin. She thought she had one in her cupboard, but couldn’t see it. She then searched around the shops to find one. Finally she bought one and was horrified that it was so expensive ($25), but she really did want it, so she bought it. Of course, not long after that she looked in an out of the way cupboard in her kitchen and found the one she already had! So that even happens to born organized people… phew! We all laughed with her and encouraged her that she still saved money by buying the tin and baking the cakes instead of buying the cake from the shop. She agreed, because she had seen carrot cake at the supermarket for $5.

Washing is hung on the line as soon as the washing machine is done. When it is dry, she takes it in, folds it, and puts it away immediately. Ironing is left on the back of the chair in the formal dining room and gets done that night before she goes to bed.

There is a theme here…. things get done right away…. there is very little procrastination in my dmil’s life. She is able to easily get rid of excess stuff, and live simply with what she has. She sweeps her floor a few times a day, so there is no need for a huge, mad, cleaning spree! Sometimes her lifestyle might border on the obsessive compulsive, like the two mops she has - one for inside the house, and one just for cleaning the bird droppings on the front veranda. But her house is clean, neat and tidy.

I have such a long way to go to be like her! I look around me and know that I have too much stuff. I know that I don’t deal with things right away. But I also know that I will get there… slowly. I always feel so motivated when I come home from her house to make changes in my own home. This week I will do a few things that I have been putting off, tidy up a few areas that have been a mess for too long. It’s always good to be at my dmil’s home and learn from her, and it is always good to be back in our own home….

Hosted by Biblical Womanhood

Yes, the challenge is on! I’ve been thinking and planning about our financial goals this year. I do not work outside the home, and never have, so my main goals in our finances have been in the area of stretching the income my husband provides. The one area I have most control over is the grocery budget. I used to be really good at this! I can say this because it really is a case of “used to be”!!! Over the past five years or so, I haven’t been as diligent as I used to be, and this year that is going to change.

Now we all know to make very specific goals…. my goal was to spend as little as possible on groceries this year! Not specific enough. I’ve been umming and ahhing about what my goal was going to be. I have $200 a week in our budget, but that was just pulling a number out of the air. I know I can do way better than that. So I thought of $150 a week. But that is not low enough to prove a challenge to me - LOL! So I have come up with $100 a week.

Just in case you think this is another totally random number, let me tell you how I came up with it:

Firstly, I know this is possible to do in Australia because Lightening can do it! Check out her blog for a series of excellent posts on how to reduce your grocery budget.

Secondly, I grow as much as I can myself, which, although it is not much at the moment, still does help. At the moment this is just salad veggies. I hope to soon have chickens so that we can have lovely fresh eggs, and we will also be growing our own lamb soon. At the moment we get our lamb from the in-laws farm, which either costs nothing or very little.

Thirdly, I buy a lot in bulk. A lot of our expenses in the grocery budget over the past years has been from buying ready made things, like cookies, pasta, mixes, etc. With the great prices I get for our bulk staples, and with just a little effort (or a lot!) I KNOW I can reduce my grocery budget drastically.

Last, but not least, it is motivating to set a lower challenge, as long as it is still somewhat realistic. $50 a week would definitely be unrealistic!

With all this in mind, I also plan to make grocery savings part of our whole family life. I want the children involved in this as well. They too easily look at the specials catalogues and say, “Look Mum! Chips are on special! We need some!” (Note the emphasis on NEED!!!) We should all be a part of watching what we spend. I want to teach the children that it is cheaper (and nicer) to bake our own cakes and cookies - from scratch - which will cut down expenses and also the waste that comes with all that packaging.

The grocery budget is the main area where we keepers at home can make a big difference. Do you know how much you have been spending on average on groceries? Will you join with me in setting a goal for 2008 to spend less than last year? The first key in spending less is to set yourself a target amount that you will aim for. Remember the saying, “If you aim at nothing, you will hit it.”

After yesterday’s quiet day, I woke up headache free and raring to go! The baking went well and I even managed to stay on top of the dishes and the kitchen. If you head into my kitchen right now, the dishwasher is full, benches wiped, and only a few things in the sink. Amazing! Pity it doesn’t look like that every day, lol!

I made this Banana Cake with a twist - I used my normal recipe, but added cocoa to half of the mix and poured it into the cake tin. Then I added some chocolate chips to the rest of the mix and poured it on top. It made this fun pattern and the kids just loved it.

Since the chocolate chips were out, I made chocolate chip cookies - always a hit. I only baked half of them, rolled the rest of the dough in between some foil, and put it in the freezer. Now I can just cut off enough to fill a tray if I get unexpected visitors, or when we run out of goodies in the pantry.

I also made a chocolate cake for the freezer so that later in the week when the weather hits the high 30’s (C, not F!) I don’t need to do any baking. The roast lamb I had planned for today was absolutely yummy and there is some left for cold meat - I thought for a moment there it was all going to disappear, it was so popular!

In between baking, I muddled around the house today. I did a few of those little chores that needed doing in the kitchen, like filling the salt shakers, making garlic salt, and filling the flour shaker that I use while kneading bread or other dough. Some of these things, like making the garlic salt, I had been meaning to do for so long now.

This is my simple recipe for garlic salt:

6 tablespoons salt

2 tablespoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon rice flour

Mix it all together….. I use this to flavor nearly everything! LOL! We love garlic! It is better when you dry the garlic yourself and make it into powder. I have some powder from the shop, so I will use that up first. Hopefully once I grow my own garlic I can dry some and keep it aside for when the store bought stuff runs out.

I also tackled the master bedroom today. Ok, I know, it wasn’t on my “must do” list. Well, I just got sick of it being such a mess. All the folded washing got put away. I dragged some shelves in from the shed and filled them with my sewing stuff - fabric, notions, & UFO’s. It is so much nicer to walk in there and have it looking tidy.

Tomorrow I will try to set up my sewing machine and do a bit of sewing. I have some ironing to do as well, but the baking and cooking is all done.

Not all my days run this smoothly, but I am certainly thankful when they do!

Over the years, Laine has been an older woman to me. No, I have never met her in real life! But I have been blessed by her letters that she has written to other women. Here is an old Christmas letter she wrote:

Dear Sisters,
My letter this week will be a little different. I want to give you a Christmas present. This letter, filled with God’s Word, is my Christmas present to you. It is some of the many gleanings that I have taken from the Word of God over the years. My Bibles are so marked up with notes and falling apart that I had to pull notes from here and there putting this all together. But I wanted to help you with the help my beautiful Savior has given me from the beauty of His Word. Without further explanation, would you unwrap the “tissue paper” and look into my present for you? ~Smile~ Each present is individually wrapped, so I will number them for you so that you might open each one in order.

I love you,
Laine

Present #1: Wise women rise early.

“And all the people would get up early in the morning to come to Jesus
in the temple to listen to Him.” Luke 21:38

(Psalm 119:147) (Mark 1: 35) (Matthew 28:1) (Acts 5:21) (1 Samuel 17:20)
(Joshua 3:1) (Exodus 24:4) (Song of Solomon 7:12) (1 Samuel 1 :19) (Luke
24:1&22) (Exodus 9:13) (Proverbs 31:15)

I use to be a late riser. I had a million excuses why I needed to sleep
in. But I can tell you that it didn’t help me any. I was still always
tired. I was still always behind in my work. And I still never had
enough time to read God’s Word. Now I get up early every morning and
spend my first hours with my King. This month will be seven years that I
have risen early to come to Jesus and listen to Him. My life will never
be the same. He has done more with my heart than I could have ever
dreamed possible. Still tired? Sometimes. But the peace, oh, the peace
that passes all understanding is guarding my heart in Christ Jesus now
and it is worth any loss of sleep that I might experience. Still behind
in my work? What mother isn’t? ~Smile~ But the joy, oh, the joy that I
have now as I work here in my home is beyond description. I sit with the
LORD in the morning and He makes me realize anew why it is all worth so
much to Him. Then I go to work in His strength.

Present #2: Wise women slip away to pray.

“But Jesus Himself would often slip away to lonely places and pray.”
Luke 5:16

(Mark 6:31) (Luke 4:42) (1Samuel 12:23) (1 Peter 5:7) (Philippians 4:6-7)

Praying is talking with God. Praying is thanking God. Praying is
praising God. Praying is just about the sweetest communion I know on
this earth. Many times when I try to slip away to pray my children will
follow me. Invariably when I am trying to get alone, they are trying to
find me. But they did the same to Jesus. It was Peter who went hunting
for him one morning when He had slipped away to pray. So that comforts
me. And I continue to slip away to pray. Even if it is a stone’s throw
away from my children. My heart desperately needs those sweet moments in
my day.

Present #3: Wise women ponder God’s Word.

“But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.”
Luke 2:19

(Psalm 119:11) (Luke 2:51) (Proverbs 15:28) (Opposite woman:Proverbs 5:6)

One of the nice things about beginning your day with God is that your
mind tends to dwell on what He shared with you that morning. So while
you’re vacuuming or washing the dishes, your mind will be pondering what
you read earlier. And sometimes when you’re listening to a beautiful
praise song, something will “click” in your mind that He taught you. All
of a sudden you want to shout, “Aha! I get it!” His Word becomes your
treasure. A treasure to be brought out and pondered time and time again
while doing any task. Somehow the pondering makes the task that much
more pleasant.

Present #4: Wise women take time to recline.

“And when the hour had come Jesus reclined at the table and the apostles
with Him.” Luke 22:14

(Luke 12:37) (Luke 24:30) (Matthew 14:19) (Luke 13:29) (John 13:23)

One of the most relaxing times of the day is our dinner hour. Oh, it
didn’t use to be that way. Why? Well, we were involved in a myriad of
sports and music lessons. Busy, busy, busy was our life. Something had
to give. And it did. Our dinner hour. But we all missed it terribly.
Especially my husband and I. So two years later we decided to forgo the
sports and rearrange the music lessons. We brought our dinner hour back.
That wonderful time of the day to recline and enjoy the company of our
family around the dinner table. I think it was one of the wisest things
we could have done. Why? Well, it was there that we led our children to
talk to us. Very often during the dinner hour we have had some of our
most meaningful conversations as a family. Now our older boys will
linger at the table with us. We enjoy their company and they enjoy ours.
It is one of the blessings of “reclining” at the end of the day. Just
like Jesus did with those He loved.

Present #5: Wise Women practice hospitality.

“Be hospitable to one another without complaint.” 1 Peter 4:9

(Romans 12:13) (Hebrews 13:2) (Romans 16:2) (Mark 6:37) (Romans 15:24 &
32 - The definition of hospitality)

I remember when I use to think, “I just don’t have the gift of
hospitality.” What a surprise to learn from the Word of God that
hospitality was not a gift, rather a practice. A practice for every
believer. So I asked the LORD to help me practice hospitality. He sent
the same guest to me five weekends in a row. ~Smile~ A guest on a very
stringent diet. ~Big Smile~ By the fifth weekend, I was definitely
getting in a lot of hospitality practice. And the LORD was breaking into
this old heart of mine to see the value of practicing hospitality. Not
only for the refreshment and encouragement to those He brings my way,
but for the value of serving others to this heart of mine.

Present #6: Wise women teach their children God’s Word.

“Like newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the Word, that by it you
may grow in respect to salvation.” 1Peter 2:2

(Deuteronomy 4:9-10) (Psalm 119:11) (Proverbs 1:8) (Proverbs 6:20)
(Deuteronomy 6:4-7) (Psalm 78:3-4) (Psalm 32:8) (Proverbs 4:20-22)
(Proverbs 4:3-4) (Deuteronomy 32:46-47) (Luke 24:45) (Luke 24:27)

I remember when I first began to teach my children God’s Word. It was so
new to me, too, that I felt kind of funny sitting down with them and
trying to teach them what I was so unsure of myself. And their questions
were so difficult sometimes! But I persevered and I am now on my seventh
year of teaching them the Truths from God’s Word. I can only tell you
that it has resulted in blessing upon blessing upon blessing in our
lives. Even this morning. My heart was bursting as I shared with them
the riches from the book of Luke. The LORD helps me to teach them. I
cannot get over the rich, rich conversations and teachings that come
during those morning devotions with my children. God does the
impossible. He takes an unskilled mom and breathes His Word through her
lips. Then He takes the heart of a child and transforms it through His
Living Word. It is simply the most amazing thing going on in my kitchen.

Present #7: Wise women recognize that their womb is a private place.

“Who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the
will of man, but of God.” John 1:13

(Luke 1:35) (Luke 1:24) (Ruth 4:13) (1Samuel 1: 5, 20) (1 Samuel 2:21)
(Psalm 127:3-5) (Numbers 26:59) (Genesis 46:8-26) (Psalm 127:3) ((Psalm
128:3)

We have so many women in our society who are hurting. Many of them write
to me. They are hurting because they want more children, but their
husbands do not. They are hurting because they cannot physically have
more children. They are hurting because they have no children. The above
verse in John speaks of the physical way children are born. Some are
born of the will of man (or a husband). Some are not born in the same
way due to birth control or an operation to stop conception. This can
cause great pain for some women. But God is the healer of pain. And His
Word is the incredible balm. Over and over again in His Word He tells
the wife that she is under her husband’s authority. That she is to be in
submission to him. He is her head, and she can rest in that truth. It is
no one else’s business but hers and her husband’s under God concerning
her womb. For the womb is a very, very private place.

Likewise, for the women who are blessed with many children. They can be
hurt by insensitive remarks that should never be uttered. It is no one
else’s business how many children God gives to a woman and her husband.
And it is very wrong for another believer to tell a woman how to live
under the authority of her husband. That believer is not her head. That
believer is not the ruler of her womb. That believer is wise to keep
quiet and to pray for her sister in Christ; and to help her whenever she
can. For that woman, as well as the women mentioned above, is raising
children for His Glory. And their wombs are a very, very private place.

What about those women who cannot have children? My heart goes out to
you. My heart goes out to you. May God give you the children that you so
desire. Perhaps it might be through a miracle of God, such as Elizabeth
experienced giving birth to John the Baptist. Perhaps it might be
through adoption. Perhaps it might be that you will be the mother that a
child never really had. For He says in His Word:

“God makes a home for the lonely.” Psalm 68:6a

“He makes the barren woman abide in the house as a joyful mother of
children. Praise the LORD!” Psalms 113:9

I don’t know how He will do it, but our God can do above all that we ask
or even think. It’s the waiting that is hard sometimes. But we have a
faithful God, so we can trust Him faithfully in His time table.

I have another present that I can’t wait for you to open. Hurry, open
the next one!

Present #7: Wise women realize that their grandchildren are their
children, too.

“These are the sons of Rachel, who were born to Jacob, there were
fourteen persons in all.” Genesis 46:22

(Genesis 46:15, 18, 25) (Genesis 46:26 - all the persons were Jacob’s
direct descendants, grandchildren included) (Genesis 48:5) (Leviticus
18:19) (Exodus 31:2 - Names the father and the grandfather with the son)

I will never forget when I realized this wonderful truth from the Word
of God: my grandchildren were my children! Rachel only gave birth to two
sons: Joseph and Benjamin. But Scripture records her as having fourteen
sons! That is because all her grandchildren were considered her children
as well. Look what the neighbors say to Ruth when her first grandson is
born:

“And the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, ‘A son has been born to
Naomi!’ So they named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of
David.” Ruth 4:17

Naomi had her first grandson, but the neighbor women called him her son.
How exciting! That means that my grandchildren will indeed be my
children. I look forward to how many children God will give me. Perhaps
He might even set one of His lonely ones in our home. Motherhood does
indeed go on even after God takes me Home.

Present #8: Wise women refresh their homes.

“Oil and perfume make the heart glad.” Proverbs 27:9a

(Psalm 23:5) (Psalm 141:5) (Psalm 133:2) (Ecclesiastes 9:8) (Matthew
26:7) (Exodus 30:31-35) (1 Samuel 8:13) (Exodus 25:6)

Sometimes I will write to you of what oils I am using for this or for
that. I know that a lot of people are talking about aromatherapy these
days. But I didn’t originally learn about oils through a book. I learned
about them through the Word of God. As I would study the Old Testament
and see the wonderful oils used in the temple of God, I saw the value of
using them in my home and on my person. There are so many wonderful
essential oils, and when I use them I can’t help but praise my Father.
Sometimes I am mopping my floor and the smell of rosemary is wafting up
at me. It is the most beautiful scent. So much so that I look forward to
mopping with it. I love to dab a couple of drops of lavender on my inner
garments. The smell will linger for hours and seems to assail my senses
at just the right time. Yes, oil and perfume do indeed make the heart glad.

Present #9: Wise women see the value of herbs and spices.

“His cheeks are like a bed of balsam, banks of sweet-scented herbs; his
lips are lilies, dripping with liquid myrrh.” Song of Solomon 5:13

(Song of Solomon 4:10, 13-14) (Proverbs 27:25) (Psalm 37:2) (Exodus
12:8)(Proverbs 5:4)

As I study herbs and use them in my home, I cannot get over the
wonderful plants that the LORD has put on this earth for us. They are
truly such a gift. I would imagine that if I studied them all my life, I
would still not barely scratch the surface at the amazing healing
properties of the many herbs God put on our planet. Solomon was one of
the wisest men who ever lived, and he studied herbs. I have found it
very profitable to learn how to use herbs to heal and soothe my family.
I haven’t written a great deal about it, because I am still so new a
student in this field. But I can tell that my studies will be profitable
for my children, so I am teaching them as I learn. We have been sick a
lot this year, but I see it as opportunity. Opportunity to continue
learning how to eat healthier and prevent sickness. And opportunity to
use herbs to heal and to soothe. It was the Bible that convinced me to
begin eating “the finest wheat and honey” rather than white flour and
sugar. My recipes are slowly changing as I learn to cook using some of
the basic ingredients, herbs, and spices so often mentioned in the Bible.

Present #10: Wise women recognize their cycles and prepare beforehand.

“And for the woman who is ill because of menstrual purity…” Leviticus
15:33

(Genesis 31:35)

I will never forget stumbling upon the above verse. I knew I felt sick
every month! It was so nice for the LORD to say it was indeed so. I have
learned that it is so wise to be ready for this time of the month. I
know it is coming. I know how I will be feeling. And it is wise if I get
as much done as possible beforehand, and then realize I am ill and need
to sit a lot during this short time. Is this possible, you’re asking me?
Sit? Sit?! Yes, that is why I included Genesis 31:35. Notice that Rachel
is sitting. Rachel is not even rising for her father. He understood that
when she said, “the manner of women is upon me.” Women sat then. Women
need to sit now. I love what my cousin says, “Laine, pamper yourself
during this time. Take a bath. Have some hot tea.” It is also best if I
try to keep my mouth shut. I am apt to put my foot in it if I do open
it. ~Smile~ It is a good time to sit with my children and enjoy their
antics. Or to do some sort of sitting work. Yes, the house will tend to
get messy. Yes, I will feel pitiful due to swaying emotions. But it is
over before I know it, and I will feel so much better once my body has
purified itself. Oh, and red raspberry tea always helps, too.

Present #11: Wise women walk in The Spirit of God.

Jesus said, “It is the Spirit Who gives life; the flesh profits nothing;
The Words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” John 6:63

(Hebrews 12:9) (John 4:24) (John 4:10 & 14) (John 3:8) (Luke 24:31)
(Luke 21:34-36) (Luke 11:28) (James 1:22)

Very often I will get a question something like this, “Laine, what do
you do on those days when nothing seems to go right?” You know, I have
to tell you, my days have changed immeasurably since I began to pray,
“Behold your maidservant, be it done to me as You will.” I want to have
the lightest touch on my life and the strongest grip on my Savior. I
used to be afraid to give Him my total self. Afraid that He would have
me do something I wouldn’t want to do or give up something that I liked
or loved. Clinging to the things of this world only caused me grief.
Since I gave up everything, His joy has been my strength. So when I do
have days where nothing seems to go right, I lean back against Him and
trust that My Master has it all under control. I am His Servant. And He
takes excellent care of His Servants. I love to see how He will guide
me. Very often at the end of the day I will think, “It was all just so
right.” Not the way I would have planned it, but “just so right.”

Present #12: Wise women are not wise women overnight.

I had to give you one last present before I go. It has been a wonderful
year serving you all. So many of you have written me some of the
sweetest letters imaginable. Truly they have kept me writing many times.
I pray for you all so often. I know that the LORD has each and every one
of you on our list, and I pray that all of you might fall in love with
Jesus and serve Him fully in that love. Since I have fallen in love with
our LORD, my life has been turned upside down and inside out. I cannot
stress enough how important it is for you to have a daily time alone
with God. Wise women still sit at His Feet. I have learned so much these
past seven years. These two verses describe it so much better than I
ever could:

“Then Jesus opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.” Luke 24:45

“And they said to one another, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us
while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the
Scriptures to us?’ ” Luke 24:32

That is exactly what happens in my kitchen in the early morning hour
when I sit at His Feet. He opens my mind to understand the Scriptures,
and time and time again my heart burns within me as He is explaining His
Word to me. Oh, I am so glad I did not give up when His Word was
difficult for me to understand. Oh, I am so glad that I still got up
when I had a nursing baby and three little ones. Oh, I am so glad that I
didn’t miss out on one morning even when I was sick or visiting someone
or had stayed up late the night before. Oh, I am so glad, I am so glad,
I am so glad that I persevered in His Word these past seven years. For
wise women are not wise women overnight. I have a long, long way to go.
But I do know what it is like to have my heart burning within me as He
opens the Scriptures when all is still and quiet in my kitchen. It is
the holiest of places, and I am never sorry for everything it took for
me to get there.

Merry Christmas and May the LORD bless you all this coming year. God
willing, I will be back with you the beginning of January. I look
forward to what God will do!

Love,
Laine

We’ve been here for three weeks now and until today, our gas stove & oven was not connected. I’ve been very inventive with my crockpot, electric frypan and microwave! This afternoon the gas man turned up and connected the stove for me. We don’t have mains gas here, so he needed to put a special fitting on the stove to the two gas bottles outside.

He was quite a friendly man, probably in his early 60’s, and we had a nice chat while he worked. He also has acreage and enjoys a large veggie garden and chooks. After he finished connecting the gas bottles I said,

“I’ll just go inside and see if it works.”

“No, no!” he said, “I’ll do that! I’ll check it all properly.”

So we went in and he checked all the jets to make sure they worked, and the grill as well. He showed me how to light the grill and the oven. Then he said we just had to wait a few minutes to check the temperature of the oven. I was quite surprised because I thought all he was going to do was connect the bottles and leave us to work out the rest. But here was some good old fashioned service.

He set the oven to 180C and while we waited we chatted some more. We discussed ovens and how the old ones (like the one I have now) are often better than the news ones they make now-a-days. He said a lot had changed in kitchens since he first started in the gas fitting business. He used to go into homes at this time of the day (4.30pm) and he would want to stay for dinner because it all smelled so good. Now people just heat things up in the microwave. He also said that some of these same kitchens had 70 year old women who were so good at knowing their ovens that they didn’t even need a thermostat! They just looked at the flame or put their hand in the oven and knew it was the right temperature! How times have changed!

Although the oven was set for 180C, its real temperature turned out to be only 140C! So he fiddled and futzed with it until he got it to the right temp. He said that this oven would never have cooked anything properly, but not many people knew or could be bothered with changing the settings! I am so pleased that he took the time to set it for me, because if it was left the way it was, I would have thought the oven was useless and would have gone to buy another one. I am thankful we don’t need to buy a new one, and the gas man assured me that it was a very good oven, even though it was quite old.

After he left I tried it out and made pizza for dinner. I already had it planned and was going to cook it in the microwave convection oven, but instead I could use my “new” oven! It turned out yummy!

Then I popped some muffins in for dh’s brecky the next few days and I am sooooooo pleased with the results! Now to get my kitchen cupboards a bit more organized……!

The birds woke me up at 5.00 this morning. Instead of going back to sleep I decided to get up and enjoy the quiet in the house. I sat at my kitchen table and caught up on a few of my favorite blogs while I glanced regularly out the kitchen window to see the sun rise. Then I had a lovely chat with a friend from South Africa, on google talk….

When I do manage to get up early, I really enjoy it. I love to spend time reading the Bible and praying while everything is quiet. As my veggie garden grows, I know I will be out there in the early mornings before the heat of the sun, to do some weeding and picking. I used to do this on our other plots of land all the time. It is the best time to harvest veggies. And when we have chooks… well, I remember the first things I got from our last little homestead back in 2003:

Some lettuce, parsley, chives, strawberries and our first egg! I was so excited that I took a photo! Now I can’t wait till I can do this again here, at our new home….

After the early morning start, we had a very productive day. Imagine, I had an extra couple of hours in my day! Robyn had kindly agreed to have the children while I did some Christmas shopping. Elizabeth helped her decorate the cupcakes she made. Don’t they look great?! (And doesn’t Elizabeth look worn out?! LOL!)

I was able to get all the kids’ pressies at one shop - very painless! I had money to spend on them from their grandparents, which is what I did today. I already had a few presents for them, from us, that I picked up on specials throughout the year. It is a blessing since we don’t have a lot of extra money right now, just having bought this house. It is also wonderful to have my main Christmas shopping done so early in the month.

Tiany is hosting a Holiday Open House this week and I will be participating in that later in the week. I’ve also got a surprise planned for everyone this holiday season, so keep coming back here to see what it is! I won’t keep you in suspense for too long….

Off to bed now…. it’s been a long day! But such a lovely one. I wonder if I can get up as early tomorrow….!

Hosted by Biblical Womanhood

Savings in the kitchen can add up to a lot. As I have been looking at the sales catalogues, what has struck me most is they are full of… Yes, the catalogues are full of “specials”. But what are they specials of? Let’s see, things like: packets of lamb stew mix - just add it to your meat, veggies and stock and you have a wonderful casserole. It’s packaged nicely with a beautiful picture…. but all it is are some flavorings in a bag. Frozen lasagne - don’t make it yourself, it’s too much work. Just pop it in the oven and dinner will be ready in no time. Pieces of chicken, covered in breadcrumbs, oven ready. Garlic bread, oven ready….

Most of the specials in the catalogues are convenience foods. The staples like flour and sugar are hardly ever on special. I am not saying we shouldn’t buy any convenience foods. I will sometimes buy a pre-made lasagne (I can count the number I have bought on one hand….) - it is cheaper than take away. I will sometimes buy frozen breaded chicken… But, it is so much cheaper to make these things yourself. Yes, it takes time. But it saves money and is usually healthier.

Why do you think the catalogues are full of processed specials? Because that is where they make their money. I can buy a packet of white sauce mix for a dollar on special, and sometimes I have. That’s not bad, is it? But I can make it myself for less than 10c. If the shops make money on the end product, then I can save money on making things myself.

Yesterday I practiced what I am preaching and Elizabeth and I had a day of baking and making mixes. Elizabeth made her favorite sugar cookies and three batches of hot chocolate mix!

Just for fun, I used my new coffee stencils that a friend and I bought on a shopping trip a while back:

Hot chocolate in a cup with two hearts on top!

I made four batches of white sauce mix. I then measured and bagged the amount I would need for one serving. I don’t like using all those plastic bags, so I tried to see if I could freeze the mix as ice cubes. I’m not sure it will work since the mixture is crumbly, not liquid. I’ll have to see how it goes. Any suggestions? In any case, now I have a freezer drawer full of white sauce mix.

I am doing some of these things now while I have a large kitchen and in preparation for when we move house. I can make a quick Tuna Casserole with the white sauce mix from the freezer. Once we move it will be nice to just sit down in the evening with a hot chocolate, the mix already made and in the pantry.

It saves time to make a double or triple batch of these things while you have all the ingredients out. All the dishes can be done at the one time, you can have a long break from having to do it again, and when you are all done, you feel like you really achieved a lot - not to mention having saved some money in the process!

As things have been so busy the past weeks, I have been thinking about what it is that takes up so much of my time. During this season in my life, I live by three priorities: God first, then my husband and then my children. I have based this on the verses from Titus 2 where the older women are to teach the younger women to love their husbands and children. After this I can reach out into the community. As my children grow older and become more independent, I know I can reach out more, but at this stage of life they take up a huge part of my life, especially since we homeschool.

I have found myself so tired and behind on things in the home these past few weeks, and I have been wondering why this is so. One reason is that it is that time of month, and I need to slow down a bit to take that into account. I have looked at all my activities and weighed them up against my three priorities. One thing I am continuing to cut back on is my time on the computer. It is sooooo easy to visit blogs and join egroups that take up a lot of time. It’s a good thing, if done in moderation. Over the past months I have gone to no mail with some egroups because they were just taking up too much time. This week I again felt God gently prodding me to slow down with my internet use, and spend that time in my home. I know that when we get the farm I will be much busier again. Maybe this is all in preparation….

I have been spending time sewing as well. These past weeks I have sewn some simple bags, two pillow cases to match a bed cover I made for Elizabeth, and I have started on a summer dress for her. In the business of it all I wondered - should I be doing this sewing? Does it fit in with my priorities? Why don’t I just go and buy these things, instead of spending my time on them? I read this post this morning over at Down to Earth:

Living Small

It confirmed to me why I do these things. Why I bake my bread, cakes, cookies. Why I cook from scratch. Why I sew for the children. Why I don’t just go and buy these things from the shop. It all takes time, time that is precious for me. But I am showing my children that we don’t just have to go and buy things - we can do it ourselves. We can use what we have, what God has given us. I have a cupboard full of fabric. I have patterns. I have the knowledge to sew things myself, things that are better quality, fit better, and last longer than what I can buy in the shop. Doing these homemaking things fits into the priority of loving my children. I am teaching them a different way of life.

So I don’t get enough time to blog… so I don’t get enough “me time” (whatever that is!) - I am loving and training my children.

Elizabeth is already learning. Yesterday she made a beautiful dress for her Barbie doll. She has a box full of fabric scraps. She decided they were too wrinkled, so first she ironed them. Then she used them, some ribbon and some velcro to make a dress. She is watching me and learning from me. She has pocket money and could easily use it to buy clothes for her dolls from the shop. But she is enjoying the thrill of making them herself.

My priorities…. God, Hubbie, Children and then everything else….. sometimes it is hard to see that what I am doing is worthwhile, but deep down I know it is.