Monday, April 19, 2010

Livin' the SIMPLE life and lovin' it!!

This is my 3rd week of being a stay at home domestic diva and I am loving it!! We have been in our new little abode for a month too and I also love it!! Life is so much simpler it seems. A smaller house means less to clean and organize but also means I have to stay up on it hourly, to insure that it does stay that way, LOL!! But I love it! I am even enjoying cooking more, I am trying some new and different recipes that we are enjoying, I have enjoyed cooking more the last couple of weeks than I ever have, oh the bliss!! I hope it lasts:)
I have not left myself time for my blog and I feel like it is being neglected, but now as I have cubed steak in the oven, potatoes and beans boiling on the stove and I have a few minutes to update!
It is unreal the stress level right now for me, almost at a zero, what a cool blessing!! I recommemd simplifying to anyone who is desiring the low stress life! Its amazing!
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
Come on,  start living the simple life,  give up those things that for years you felt you had to have but are definitely NOT necessary in life, examples(from personal experience): Large house with big mortgage and high taxes, new cars with high car payments, all the name brand clothes (esp for the kiddos), Dining out too much, buying to many unecessary toys for you and the kids,and using credit cards, and  not tracking your spending ect.... you get the just!
We did the Dave Ramsey program a couple of years ago with a small group bible study, it was life changing (in many ways) and as I started to apply his teaching for financial peace it really hit home, that we here living way above our means and would always be in financial bondage if we didn't change our ways and start a major pay down on our ever growing debt!! The stess I was having was so unecessary that we had to change something!
Well we went in head first and started by paying things off that we could- little by little using Dave's plan and the more we payed down the more it made me want to keep going!! It also meant changing the way we did things, like, using credit cards and eating out too much. Having a budget and sticking with it, is also necessary for staying on track. We now even have an emergency fund so if something happens we don't have to go into debt to fix it.  If you don't have the cash to buy it and you don't need it, pass on it. As time went on, I was amazed how we could live and be happy without buying the extra's, in fact, it was more satisfying to cut back and take charge of your spending than buying stuff ever was! Don't get me wrong, I am no expert and every once in awhile I splurge on something I don't need and should have passed on, LOL.
 I never imagined that selling our home, paying off our vehicles (and driving older ones, but hey, we OWN them:)and living with-in our means would be so attainable and so life changing!! I can't give Dave all the credit, without God's guidance and wisdom through prayer, He was the giver of Grace the I so desperately need, with HIM all things are possible!!

Monday, April 5, 2010

Mommy, honey, maid, domestic diva, taxi driver, teacher, cook, ect......

Well its officially here, I am now a proud stay at home mama! For eleven years I have waited patiently for this day in time!! It came upon me so quickly that I didn't even have the time to really think about it ot let it sink in, but its here and I am enjoying EVERY minute of it!! I will have to say that being a stay at home mom is way harder  than any job out there! Way more multi-tasking expected out of you and no room for error or failure, these are your children and hubby you are working for and you want to do your best for them! But we just don't think of it that way, we just wake up in the morning (sometimes a little too early, thanks Marcus) and get right into mommy mode and start the day, everyday brings some kind of different, you just have to ride the ride and enjoy it, there is no way to get off of this type of ride, LOL!! Starting in the fall I will have another job to add to my list, teacher, as I begin homeschooling Jack this year. Do you think I will get a raise then? Kidding;)

It is fall..it is fall, the leaves are falling everywhere!!

It is fall..it is fall, the leaves are falling everywhere!!
Playing in the leaves a few years back

Fall FUn 09

Fall FUn 09
Brotherley Love!

Books I have recently read or reading

  • When You Come Home, by Nancy Cavin Pitts
  • Terri Blackstock's christian fiction
  • Any of the "Patchwork Mystery" series
  • Island of the Blue Dolphin
  • The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling
  • Lisa Whelchel's "So You're Thinking about Homeschooling"
  • The Homeschooling Handbook

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