Entrepruneurial Sewing

I am excited about a new family business adventure. My sis-in-law is opening a children's consignment/boutique which will open the last week in March. (Looks like I am not the only one.) She has invited me to make little A-line dresses to sell in her shop. They are very cute and I am annoyingly excited about the possibilities that this could open for our family.

I have been praying for God to give me a business opportunity that I could do without leaving my children or compromising the care I give them and my husband. Something that could supplement our family income would be a bonus; and if it builds an entrepruneruial spirit and character in my children... well, that would make it all worthwhile.


I have been patiently waiting for about a year now on the right adventure then suddenly *kurplump*, this has fallen in my lap. It is an open door and it is hard to ignore as it is beckoning me to enter.

God has already provided two sewing machines and I will be soon getting a serging machine. I have cleaned up my sewing space, and I am ready to go... Okay, here I go!

Apollos, Making Momma Proud

Acts 18

24Now a Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, came to Ephesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures.

25This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John;

26and he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately...

27b he greatly helped those who had believed through grace,

28for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating by the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.

Can you imagine the delight of this man's mother as she receives updates on her son's activity and testimony? What bliss it would be to find my son (only have one now) "accurately" and "boldly... demonstrating by the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ."

Christian Mothers, if we truly want to serve our Savior then we should drop the fruitless activities, and get to the business of God's work-- training our little men to become big men of God, equipping them with the ability to witness to the lost by sharing Christ with wisdom. This takes no less than a well-nourished relationship with God through Christ that has been thoroughly dipped, soaked and SATURATED in His liberating Truths.

Let's grab our day planners to evaluate/change our schedules and habits so that our daily pursuits are focused on teaching God's Word to our children, talking of his love and precepts while sitting in the house, walking by the way, lying down, rising up. (Deut. 6:7)

Dear Lord,

How my heart would leap with praises to You if I could someday hear the words of Act 18 spoken of my Aaron?!? Am I willing to give of myself what it takes to raise up a godly group of ladies and men? Help me discipline my life in a way that looks toward my children's future, not being influenced by present patterns or distracted by worldly stuff, but rather uplift me so that I can see Your point-of-view. Uphold me with strength and discipline and strip away my selfish nature so I can find the lasting joy that only comes when serving You through the capacity of motherhood. With Your aide, it is my desire to use these mothering days to their fullest focusing on leading my children toward worshiping You, delighting in Your law, and meditating on it both day and night. (Psalms 1:2)

As I change my baby's diaper, nourish him with my best milk, and gently correct his selfish nature... show me Apollos!

The Project are Coming!!

What is that I hear?...
The sound of school books slamming shut, the children are scurrying about gathering their projects while chanting "Do hard things, do hard things!"

STOP!!!!!

A side explanation for school parents: I am not dreaming this stuff up. This did happen in our home today, and similar events happen frequently in the homes of home-educated families across the nation. You need to know this!

Okay back to my story...

I AM very happy to hear this type of chanting, but I'll have to admit it makes me feel panicky inside because it means the projects are coming out of their closets and drawers. This is scary to a momma who likes to be neat and organized.

With all of this creative ingenuity brewing and stewing around here, mostly in the form of child-led PROJECTS, comes a need for table space.

Being the aesthetically sensitive and dreadfully frugal person that I am, thrift store stalking has been my main strategy for finding attractive and affordable tables to fill the bill. Months have passed by and I have not found what is needed. Plan B--which should have been Plan A--was to look around in our garage for ideas. Here is what we came up with:

This is a plastic foldaway table that my sister-in-law gave me. It is 48X24, the perfect size for this corner in my kitchen. A great spot for Alexey to decorate cakes or for other cooking projects. I plan to make a skirt it soon, and should transform to look something like this:

This is another 48X24 plastic table. I really like this size. I made a table skirt equipped with velcro so that it is detachable. I LOVE that it hides a wash tin which I use to give Aaron baths so the kitchen looks less cluttered. He likes to get under it and play, so it entertains him while I do kitchen work. I use this table to keep produce and homemade baked good out for the kids to snack on. It is also a great spot for my picnic basket filled with cloth napkins and bibs. A real multi-tasker! Cute, too!

This is in our library, and it is where the girls do a good deal of their school work. Looks like Catherine is putting a model covered wagon together. Here I took a large plastic folding table and covered it with some of our maps. I then covered it with a clear shower curtain and voila. They are learning more geography than ever, too. Oh, look... Catherine's glue stick is staking its claim in Oklahoma.

I threw this photo in for kicks. This little fellow loves when the girls rock him in this cradle even though he is too big for it.

Follow Your Heart?

Follow your heart.

Have you ever received this advice? This is probably the most frequent and WORST advice ever given!

One of my favorite statements in the movie Fireproof, one made by Caleb's friend at work, was that we should not be led by our heart, but rather we should LEAD our heart.

Don't listen to me or an actor in a movie. What does God say?

Jer 17:9 "The heart [is] deceitful above all [things], And desperately wicked; Who can know it?"

According to God, we must not be led by the feelings of our hearts. Our hearts are wicked and WILL lead us astray. If you feel that you are on a road to nowhere, and you never make any ground toward your dreams and goals, perhaps it is because you are following your heart.

Let us try instead to follow God's heart which is perfect and true.

Fireproof Your Marriage

My most excellent, wonderful, extraordinary, deer-slaying, funny-man husband who I love more than life itself, my one and only, bought the Fireproof movie for me last night. He wants me to add that he best daddy our kids could ever have. P.S. He is hungry. (He helped me write this first paragraph, and doesn't think I will post it. I'll show him!)

The movie is excellent! It is packed with many truths about marriage! Hubby and I were this couple in the years 1996 and 1997. It was great to watch a movie testify our own personal experience. We had forgotten how blessed we are that Christ would work in our lives as he has.

Although we did not have the advice of our parents like Caleb Holt, we DID seek a good Bible-teaching church that led us in the right direction. Thank-you, Cropwell Baptist! This church was such a great resource of positive influence for us. Here, we were taught that Christ is the ONLY way, and it is true! If you are having trouble in your marriage, and you do not have the support of Christian influence, please seek a Christ-centered church that can help you! And PLEASE get this movie!

I think you can get the Love Dare book too. - http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?item_no=448856&netp_id=553299&event=ESRCN&item_code=WW&view=covers

We will have it soon!

Let Us Have an Eye to Eye

Here is something in my life that needs improvement.

Often my children come to me when I am cooking, cleaning, reading, blogging, and I never take my eyes off of my project while I communicate with them. The Lord has convicted me about this. I will stop what I am doing and afford them my full attention with my eyes, hears and my heart.

Psa 32:8	I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.
Psa 33:18	Behold, the eye of the LORD [is] upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy.

Apparently, the Lord likes to keep His eye on us as well.

Oh look... here comes a little one now. Time to practice!

Who is the first and best of beings?

This is the first question we are answering in our catechism. Before I read the answer, I like to try to answer it, testing myself on how well I know the doctrine of the Scriptures. This one is easy.

Answer: God is the first and best of beings.

Scripture proofs: Isaiah 44:6; Psalm 8:1; 96:4; 97:9, 1 Samuel 2:2

Teach these to your children. These Scriptures are powerful. Knowing exactly who God is can give children a great sense of peace, and bring this into a state of praise and awe for over their Creator. Children praising the Lord gives Satan a first class beating!