Joyfull Living

  It doesn't seem like it now, but the weekend leading up to Easter was packed full! Finalizing the end of the work week, participating in a church children's activity, Easter Sunrise Service and finally and Easter lunch gave many opportunities to try new recipes, thoughtfully purchase some gifts and open our home for a family gathering. Our children are grown and no longer interested in Easter Egg Hunts, but it is so much fun watching the small children laugh and love to find the eggs.  There is something sweet about ministering with others during Easter! For our church's Sunrise Service, we follow with a breakfast.  I tried some Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins, which turned out great!   HERE is the recipe. Easter is a great time to practice some creativity.  Although I"m not crafty, a few easy projects turned into sweet Easter gifts. Easter Sunday arrived and we were blessed to celebrate and worship the Lord with our family. ...

When I was a child, my mother was able to stay at home during the day. I was able to be right beside her as she went about her household routines.  Weekly her housecleaning items came out for 'cleaning day'.  She loved to use the same items - for years(!) and the smells of some of these products to this day bring up memories of 'cleaning with mama'.  Pledge furniture polish, Joy dish soap, Scrubbing Bubbles bathroom cleaner and Windex for the glass.  Although I still love those products, I'm not a lifelong faithful user!  Variety is more my speed, new scents, improved versions, different brands and on occasion a do it yourself cleaning product are what keeps my home clean and happy. Here is a nice do it yourself glass cleaner where I can incorporate my love for essential oils! 2 cups water 2 tablespoon white vinegar 2 tablespoon rubbing alcohol 5 drops peppermint essential oil Add ingredients to a spray bottle and shake well. Spray ...

On a recent trip to Sam's Club with sweet hubby, my eyes gravitated towards this charming chalkboard/message center.  It was one of those moments when I just knew this thing belonged in my home and before it made it into the shopping buggy, I knew which wall it would add beauty to. Sweet hubby is a dedicated provider for our family and works a strenuous job. Home decorating is pretty close to the bottom of his to do list so once this little treasure made it home, I knew it would take some patience and no nagging from me until it got done.  Especially when the first attempt to hang it onto the wall would result in a trip to Lowe's for different hardware! Last Saturday, I had to work and guess what I found when I came home?  The message center was up! Not only put up, but with a special touch only sweet hubby could do - a cute drawing of 'me' and 'happy homemaker' written underneath.  Apparently the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree beca...

Breakfast at our home has to be quick!  Some of the favorites with my son are Toaster Strudels, Pop Tarts and things like that.  Not the healthiest options around!  Recently Mr. Food posted a recipe for homemade fruit pockets.  Similar to what my boys like, but EASY!  You use a pie crust and some fruit or jelly or the filling.  I used some pear butter and they turned out delicious!  You can add a glaze or leave them plain.  Here's the recipe! 1 (14.1-ounce) box rolled refrigerated pie crust 1/4 cup strawberry preserves or your favorite flavor 1 cup confectioners' sugar 1 tablespoon milk Decorative sugar for garnish (optional) Instructions 1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray. 2. Unroll one pie crust and using a knife, square the edges. Cut into 12 rectangles 2 inches wide by 3 inches long. Place a teaspoon of preserves in center of 6 rectangles and top with remaining rectangles. Using a fork, ...

Work, work, work....as women most of us are very familiar with work whether at a job or at home (or both), there is always work to do.  Many years ago while working a full time job, raising 2 sons, walking with sweet hubby through some employment challenges the Lord spoke to my heart about making my family my career.  I've highlighted some of the strory in the blog series Visionary Womanhood.  Since that time many years ago it has been a blessing to work part time around the schedule of our sons. That enabled time to put their needs first and still be employed outside the home.  Now, two of our sons are grown and the youngest is in high school. With a bit more freedom as they are much more independent, my part time job has evolved into 3 part time jobs.  Since I am a true lover of variety, this works out great!  But the common thread as a Christian is to do the work as unto the Lord.  I found some wonderful reminders from a Christian standpoi...

Galatians 5:22-23 reads: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control.” These 'fruits" are beautiful and inviting characteristics that true Christians long to have in their lives. Spiritual maturity teaches that it is called 'the fruit of the Spirit', because it is only through the Holy Spirit that these flourish in our lives. Our efforts to produce these can fall flat, but when our prayer is to let these fruits come forth, God equips and guides us and enables these to flow from our hearts. These fruits are to be shared with others and will point others to Jesus and His goodness. For Christian women, God's Word encourages us to teach the younger women.  Let's be reminded that there is always a woman younger than us who we have the privilege of sharing and showing the ways of godliness to. Let's look at how powerful the fruit of the Spirit can work through us in practical ways as...

There is this crazy little part of my morning routine that I love!  Although I'm a little fanatical about making the bed each day, I've read that it is good to air the sheets out instead of immediately making it up. So, each morning when I get up, I pull the covers back and let them air out while I have me coffee and Jesus time.   Later, upon entering the bedroom, the air is sometimes just stale. I drop some essential oils in the diffuser and let it run for a few minutes.  While making the bed, the aroma of the oils brings freshness to the entire room.  The oils remove the staleness and give the entire room  a brand new fresh quality. A freshly made bed and great smelling room get the day off to a great start! One of my favorite oils is a synergy blend called "Hope".   A simple definition for “synergy” as used in aromatherapy is the working together of two essential oils that result in an effect greater than the sum of their individual e...

Have you ever had one of those days (or hours) that brought much productivity?  Usually it begins as a spontaneous event, a task that was started but continued on and on until a great amount of accomplishment came forth.  Wouldn't it be great to have that momentum in our daily routine?  Here are some tips to implement that will move us  toward being more productive.  1. Pick Your Clothes Out the Night Before A key asset to begin the day is mental energy. It drives thought, clarity, focus and so much more. The problem, of course, is that life gets in the way of your mental energy, and if you’re not careful, the thousands of decisions you make in everyday life will suck up your focus, thinking and clarity before you know it. Little decisions being made the night before save that needed mental energy! 2. Follow a Morning Ritual Great leaders and successful people typically do the same thing at the start of each day. They can vary, but from pre-...

Spring has sprung in our area!  Trees are blooming, grass is becoming greener and new life is springing up all over!  I always get garden fever about this time.  The desire to prepare the ground and plant things that will eventually come to harvest and bring a bounty of vegetables to our table starts strong. but once the summer heat comes, my garden fantasies quickly pass.   I found some information that some vegetables may actually regrow themselves from the parts usually thrown away. Imagine, fresh vegetables with no weeds, no hoeing, just quick reproduction from what we already are using! Got to give this a try!   Here is a list I'm excited to try.  CELERY Take the bottom of the celery and place in a shallow saucer in the sun. After about 3 days, transfer to soil. SCALLIONS Take the discarded roots and place them in a glass of water in a well lit room. Watch them grow! GARLIC SPROUTS When the garlic gloves begin to sprout, pl...

A long weekend and a quick trip to North Georgia made for some great family time.  From the quaint town of  Helen to the splendor of several waterfalls to Tallulah Gorge, where it took much exertion to travel up and down over 1000 steps to view the beauty of the gorge.  Rest, relaxation and a little bit of walking and hiking, a great balance! Then of course a stop at our son who moved to the area, because we were 'just in the neighborhood!"