Changes in Attitude

I wrote a post in my old blog, Amazing Adventures, about not having a choice to whether you are living a life of loneliness.  Loss is all around us.  People breeze into our lives and breeze back out. Some friendships are for a season and some are for a lifetime.  Whether it is by choice or not, losing someone you love is difficult. But it is not a sentence to a life of loneliness.
I now believe as long as you have the ability to make a call, an email, get into a car or even walk downtown, loneliness is a choice.  I know there are people everywhere, people that needs a friend.
As long as there is an ability we should try to make a difference. Bake a pie and visit a neighbor, volunteer at a nursing home (that is a place full of lonely people who doesn't have a choice). If it is in your ability see how you could assist at a prison. Call that person that seems super popular...never know, they may spend more time alone than one would guess. Contact the people in your church that appears outside the loop of popular members. Look at your own family.  Does your spouse need attention? Maybe your kids need to talk or would enjoy playing a game with you. How long has it been since you have spoken to parents or siblings.
As a Christian, I believe that even though I long for human companionship, I have my God who loves me and is always present in my life.  I am thankful that I can talk to him anytime I want to. God created us to be relational beings and  I am hoping that my desire for him increases as the world continues to turn around the sun.

Lukewarm

While Jesse and I washed out dishes today I made sure the water was just over lukewarm to protect his tiny hands.  As I went on about my work, I started thinking on a scripture Revelation 3:15,16 (NLT) (15) I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! (16) But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth!

If someone is cold spiritually they can be changed. Cold is something God can work with. God can light a fire under him to make him hot. Restore the Christian to the place where he met his first love.
When someone is hot, he is in love with the Lord. He is sold out, living a pleasing life to God. Has an intimate relationship with him and joyfully goes about his fathers work.
Someone who is lukewarm thinks she is okay.  Not enough fire in the belly to be a spiritual warrior, but knows enough from past experiences and teachings to think she is living a Christian life.  She may no longer feel she needs God anymore or had gotten so busy that she had just forgotten him. It is defiantly hard for Him to reach. Being lukewarm, I feel, is the most dangerous.  Can usually be spotted warming a pew, after all they did their duty and went to service. At home living like the world, keeping only the commandments that are comfortable and they may have lost all sense of who they are. Unproductive and unresponsive to God's call.

I love God's gentle teaching in everyday activities.  I am working on my lukewarmness, I know this is the not Christian I want to be.  I don't want Jesus to vomit me out.  I want to be his, to love him to keep his word in my heart and fan the fire that is still in my belly.  Father please help me be the woman you want me to be.

The Heart of Dixie

picture taken by

Natalie Hollander Hood

I stand in awe this morning as I see the devastation last nights storms did to Alabama. I am very familiar of the cities that were hit.  My mother was raised in Cullman and my dad in Huntsville.  I have extended family on both sides, mostly cousins still living near there.  All that can be done now is pray for the survivors. 

Feeding My Soul

AJ with butterfly

We finally have summerish days. I cannot remember a time I have been happier than the last few days of heat and sunshine. The heat brings me joy and energy. I feel healthier and more vibrant as my pores soaks in the vitamin E.  If we are not outside playing or working in the yard, I'm busy working on the spring cleaning. The windows are wide open and I smell the clean air overtaking the winter's mustiness. In the few acres we claim as our yard, there is enough work to keep me busy all summer and that doesn't include the other 5 acres of woods and field. The more active I am the better I feel and the better I sleep. We are having a great deal of rain, but I can deal with it, I not even very bothered by the muddy yard.
Wyatt joins us as soon as he gets off the school bus he doesn't even go inside. He puts his book bag down and starts to play with us.  AJ pulls in the driveway shortly after Wyatt and hits the house for shorts and meets us in the yard.  Yesterday, AJ had a butterfly land on him three different times.  We have dubbed him the butterfly whisperer. Jesse is very obstinate about coming inside.  He cries and begs to go outside for quite some time. Doug put up Jesse's feeder and we  have been getting constant visits from Capped Neck Chickadees and Sparrows. 
For the first time in a very long time I feel unrestricted  joy. I am productive as well, so I feel I am meeting my standards as a homemaker in caring for my family. I am indeed richly blessed.

My three boys in their butterfly catching stance

Facebook

Facebook can be a lot of fun.  I have all my church friends, some Georgia friends, family and even a couple of my husbands co workers in my friends list.  I can spend all day checking on what everyone is doing, and get feeling pretty lonely when there is no new activity.
I did something bad last night.  I posted about how bad my kids were.  Publicly humiliating them. During Bible study with Wyatt this morning, it was on love,
1 Cor 13:4-7 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

It made me deeply regret my post.  I apologized to them on their pages and posted this verse in my status saying...when I get frustrated with my boys instead of facebooking it, I will remember 1 Cor 13:4-7.  I thank God for my wonderful children. 

Finally a Hot Sunny Day

He never smiles when he says cheese...he is holding a flower from the garden

Nothing makes you appreciate the sun like a Central NY winter and spring.  After months of snow and now weeks of gray skies, we finally received a beautiful day. Jesse and I went out this morning smelling flowers and hunting for bugs.  Our yard is a mud pit, but we didn't care!  Praise God for our sunny day!

Jesse pointing a bird.  He slid in the mud and his little butt was covered

Recession

I know that is not a word a lot of us want to read.  But as we look at America's failing economy what other adjective describes it so well?
I have got to get recession minded (not poverty mentality, but smart).  I have to stop looking beyond today and begin to plan if the worst happens.  We have a modest emergency saving. Probably get us through a month, two if we didn't pay utilities. But if the dollar keeps dropping at the rate it is, it won't matter how much Doug has manged to save.
So what what can I do? As the homemaker it should be my responsibility to use our grocery budget carefully.  I have always known how to cook, but there are times that I want that convenience food.  Days I spend too much time on the computer or playing with our baby and whoops it's time to cook. Growing up I remember eating beans every night. Although I enjoy them occasionally as an adult, I don't want my family to survive on dry beans and cornbread.  I do know how to stretch two hearty meals from one chicken, reuse ham, leftover roast (who am I kidding?) or any other meats.  As I plan to go to the grocery store I need to look for the items that can be used for more than one meal.
An investment in a meat grinder and slicer would be one way to save. One store always has chicken breast and boneless hams for less than two dollars a pound. Ground chicken is better for us than ground beef and slicing our own sandwich meats would save around four dollars a pound verses the grocery deli. Stock piling dry goods when on sale, I feel, is smart.  I like having enough food on hand that I don't have to worry my kids will be hungry if we are short on money.
I need to become a serious gardener. Can and freeze vegetables. I think that is something I need to plan for the next spring.  For now we have a small garden spot for squash and beans.  Tomatoes and cucumbers are grown in pots on the porch. Probably not enough to save, but to eat fresh this summer.
As far as clothing, even if I was a good seamstress I never could make anything for less than buying it. Especially when taking advantage of sales and consignment shops.
I think with a little planning I can be successful.