The Land Down Under

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On November 6th Dadzoo went to Sydney Australia for 10 days on a business trip.

Two words…

Miss. Him.

That would be why I haven’t posted in a while.  My evening were spent chatting with him on the computer, and my days were spent catching up on everything I neglected the night before.  I was able to follow my schedule, although very loosely, I tried to keep my days full and busy so the time would pass quickly. 

 It was a fun little adventure for the both of us.  I realized how much Dadzoo does around here.  He is a great help with the work, but I missed having HIM here.  I missed our late night chats, evenings when we would walk through the door and fighting the kids for a hug and kiss.  I missed morning devotional, where he reads scripture and prays as the leader in our home.  I missed the special way he holds our baby to settle her down and comfort her.  I missed snuggling up to him at night, knowing we were all safe with him there.  I appreciate him so very much.  I also got very good and converting the time, knowing exactly what time it was in Australia!

Dadzoo, got 10 whole days to himself (besides the hours he was working) and I think he might have missed us just as much as we missed him.  He was able to walk about Sydney (they say “walk about” instead of “talking a walk”) and see all the sights.  He visited the Sydney Opera House, the Harbor Bridge, Royal Botanical Gardens and Sydney Tower.  He said that Sydney is a beautiful city, and if it didn’t take 18 hours to get there, he would want to go back soon.

Now I am off to do a little catch-up and double-up to be ready for this weeks holiday (one of my favorites!).

 

Walking in Truth

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My camera has been taken hostage, to the very ends of the earth in fact, so I have had to put  a couple of scheduled posts on hold until I have it in my hot little hands once more.  So until that day I thought I would share some things I have been thinking about lately. 

A couple of weeks ago I watched a talk give by Bruce Chadwick and Brent Top at BYU’s annual Women’s Conference in 2004.  The title of the talk is “I Have No Greater Joy Than To Hear That My Children Walk in Truth.”  They did a very exhaustive study on teenagers and their thoughts and feelings on religion, and in this talk they presented their finds and offered suggestions to parents on how we can help our teenagers stay true.  If you would like to see the whole talk you can go HERE.

They gave a few suggestions, that I would like to share:

1. Build a Household of Faith
     -Teach the gospel,
      (Have Family Home Evening, family prayers and family scripture study)
     -Encourage youth to have spiritual experiences and get their own testimony
     -Practice what you preach.

2.Render Daily Outpourings of Love
     -Time (quantity equals quality)
     -Words (tell them you love them, daily)
     -Hugs (physical affection)

3. Establish fair, but firm boundaries
     -Keep your eyes wide open, use wisdom and be interested
      Talk with your children
      Check with others (teachers, neighbors, family)
      watch for warning signs
     -If you love them discipline them
       Say what you mean, and mean what you say.
      Lower your voice, don’t yell, people stop listening once the yelling starts.

4. Counsel, but don’t control.
     -Don’t use guilt induction or love withdrawal.
     -Show respect for your children’s opinions and ideas
       (even if you don’t agree, be respectful and listen).
     -Allow your children to be their own person.

5. Don’t give up and don’t lose hope.
     -2 Kings 6:16

While this talk was geared towards raising teenagers, I think these principles should be applied all children, no matter the age.  If we are applying these principles when our children are small, I think the transition into the teenage years will be smoother because we have already established a loving, Christ centered environment, where our children feel free to mature into Chirst centered adults.

Family Logistics, Week 4

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Last week I made three goals for myself (go here to see last weeks goals).  If I were to look at only what I accomplished last week, I would have to say that I failed pretty good, however I don’t feel like I failed at all. 

I am still struggling with a working morning routine, it seems that there is something that comes up every morning, an appointment, a ornery baby or a late night and tired mommy.  So for my morning routine, I am going to make a list of things I would like done by noon, and work on that as opposed to  a strict timed schedule. 

As for my weekly schedule, I am loving that, I feel like I am getting so much done every week.

I have been pondering and praying over my sleeping schedule and that has led me to studying more about food and diet, specifically what the scriptures have said on the subject.  This is still a work in progress, something I am really enjoying.  As for my sleeping habits, I do need to get to bed earlier, but I need to not feel guilty for napping when I need to as well.  I am nursing a baby full time and that takes more energy than normal, and although baby is sleeping through the night, with six kids there is a pretty good chance that at some point in the night my sleep will be interrupted.  Napping is necessary at times, especially at this time in my life.

So for this coming week I am going to set three more goals to work on. 

1. Continue to work my weekly schedule, especially work on my family budget and get our finances in order.

2. Study the scripture in regards to health and nutrition, pray, make a plan.

3. Make a list of chores to be done before noon, prioritise this list, do what needs to be done first so there is some flexiblity. Work my list everyday.

Wish me luck! 🙂

 

Family Logistics, Week 3

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Last week I set for myself three new goals to work on along with the previous weeks goals.  To quickly review, my three new goals were: work on my housekeeping binder, do my weekly schedule and establish a morning routine.  There were a couple bumps in the road, Monday night I had a sick child, so Tuesday was spent caring for my boy and catching up on lost sleep, even though my day wasn’t as ambitious as I had planned I still was able to work on my kitchen getting it cleaned and doing one small extra job.  I found that working my weekly schedule made my days more organised, structured, and  efficent.  I found that as I was going about my tasks, with the order my schedule had created, I found joy and satisfaction in my work. 

 I did find establishing a firm morning routine quite a struggle, my morning hours change so much depending on when the baby wakes up and wants to be fed, I also have a hard time waking  up and getting the energy to get going in the morning.  My inclination is to nap for an hour or so after the big kids get off to school and I struggle with this, at times I feel I really need it, I am nursing a baby after all, but other times I see all the wasted time that I should be getting up and getting about my day.  In pondering on this I have come to see that my late hours are a big part of my problem.  My baby sleeps 12 hours at night, there is plenty of time for me to get my rest, but I find that I enjoy those late night hours when the house is quiet and I get to indulge a little on the things I want, but at the same time I am not rested like I should be….I will be thinking, pondering and praying over this.

My housekeeping binder is organised and ready to go.  I have been using it and loving it! 

So for this next week my three goals will be, along with previous on going goals:

1.  Ponder, study and pray about my sleeping schedules, do I nap in the mornings. or go to bed earlier, which is better for me and my family?

2. Continue to work my weekly schedule and tweak it where needed.

3. Contine to establish a firm moring routine, I think I need to relax my expectations a little in this area.

I have a couple of friends that have joined me in establishing routines in their lives, so they can better live their lives.  If you would like to read what they are doing you can go here: Aimee@ On the Mountainside and Sassy@ Keepin’ it Rural in the US

Chicken Broth Part I

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” Why is chicken soup superior to all the things we have, even more than relaxing “Tylenol”?  It is because chicken soup has a natural ingredient which feeds, repairs and calms the mucous lining in the small intestine.  This inner lining is the beginning or ending of the nervous system.  It is easily pulled away from the intestine through too many laxatives, too many food additives…and parasites.  Chicken soup…heal the nerves, improves digestion reduces allergies, relaxes and gives strength.”
Hanna Kroeger Ageless Remedies from Mother’s Kitchen

 Chicken broth is one of the easiest ways to add nutritious foods to our family’ diet.  Chicken broth when cooked slowly over a few days becomes a super food full of vitamins, enzymes and minerals that nourishes the body, and heal disease.  There is a lot of research about the value of chicken broth that is beyond the scope of this post and blog, but if you would like to research more here are a few good articles about the value of chicken broth:  Here, Here, Here and Here.

I like to make chicken broth in a  big batch and freeze it for quick easy meals.  Of coarse I use chicken broth in soups, but I also use it in  mashed potatoes, casseroles, any where liquid is required and I want a little punch of nutrition and flavor.  Chicken broth is easy to make, but does require time to get the full benefits of the chicken, when I do broth it takes at least three days.

 I start with two chickens and place them with all the pieces (giblets and neck) in a large stock pot.  I add onions, celery, thyme, sage, salt, pepper, garlic and vinegar. I fill the pot with water and bring it to a boil

 

 Once it is boiling hard, reduce the heat so it is lightly simmering and skim the impurities as they rise to the surface.
  You want it to cook very slowly.

 

After a couple hours the chicken will be fully cooked.  At this point take the chicken out, let it cool and little and strip the bones of the meat.  I usually make chicken noodle soup on broth making day!  the cooked chicken can be used for other recipes and also freezes well.

At this point all the bones and skin go back into the pot to simmer slowly for 48 hours…..

(to be continued….)