milestone monday--move "home" to Indiana

~if you are new to milestones & memories, each (or i should say,) most mondays, i do a post that updates you on how we are doing at accomplishing our family goals/milestones.  here's a complete list if you are interested.  thanks for stopping by~


***milestone:  move "home" to Indiana
while there are no actual plans to move from our current home in the suburbs,
we did visit my family and the home i grew up in this past weekend.

 i have so many wonderful memories of growing up on a farm,
the smell of freshly cut hay,
cold mint tea (from the garden),
riding on the tractor,
being woke up by the sound of a horse's hooves on the back country road,
and hours and hours of exploring our 40 acres.


before i get too old (and forgetful),
i figured it would be a good idea to document some of my fondest childhood memories:

spinning on the tire swing

pulling weeds in mom's garden
(maybe that wasn't one of my fondest memories, but a memory nonetheless)

climbing trees

(and falling out of them---that's a story for another day)

 running around our big yards

(those are great until you are old enough to  mow them)

hayloft + 40 yr old ropes + a slab of wood = 

the most dangerous swing imaginable

(but lots of fun!)

looking for kittens and rocking them to sleep

 chasing, clipping, and showing sheep

climbing this huge rock

and just enjoying the quiet life of the country.

will we ever move back to Indiana?
i don't know....but it sure is fun to see our kids' faces when we pull into the farm.
they appreciate it's awesomeness even more because it is so different from our daily lives.
i am happy where my family is
and wherever God leads......there we'll be.

oh and who's going to be my 50th follower?  go ahead, you know you want to!....
 

milestone monday--planned a family summer vacation

~if you are new to milestones & memories, each (or i should say,) most mondays, i do a post that updates you on how we are doing at accomplishing our family goals/milestones.  here's a complete list if you are interested.  thanks for stopping by~

***milestone:  plan a family summer vacation 
summer vacation?----check
family summer vacation?----not quite

technically, last week was a beach vacation to the outer banks (love!) and there was 
sand, 
sun, 
a private pool, 
great food, 
good company, 
cute kids in bathing suits 
and the smell of sunscreen everywhere. 
but we were missing our complete family, because jon wasn't able to come with us.......booooo, hisssss. 
there was a major event going at his work that he just had to be there to help with 
and he was sad,
we were sad, 
but such is life.  
nevertheless, i took both kids (with the help of some great friends) and drove the 6 hours to have our vacation anyway. 

i learned a few things in the process about beach vacationing and vacationing with children (without a spouse):

1.  go the outer banks before schools are all officially out for the summer---we had NO traffic and it was wonderful!

2.  pack as much food and plan meals to save big money---i spent a total of around a $150.00 dollars for the whole week's meals/snacks, etc.  

3.  buy a wonder wheeler and use it every time you go to the beach---i'd really like to kiss the person who invented it and i already hugged the friend who purchased it for our trip this year :)

source

4.  drag your 2 year old to the beach the first couple of days kicking and screaming, because by the end of the week she will not want to leave.

5.  let your baby eat sand---it's just too cute to resist

6.  take great (and helpful) friends with you to assist in the child corralling and feeding adventures---thanks so much brian and sarah.

7.   drink a lot of coffee and diet coke

8.  put the kids to bed early--they're tired and so are you!

9.  wear a little bit of sunscreen on your back/shoulders even if you think "i don't burn"---note: you do.

10. and thoroughly enjoy every minute (even if you are wishing your husband was there) 

*by the way, kudos to all you single parents or moms/dads with a spouse who is gone often (deployed, traveling for work, etc).  it's really hard work! 

on another milestone note:  
both of my kids are sleeping the same room----
all night long!  
hallelujah, hallelujah!  
i hope i didn't just jinx it.  

happy monday! 

where i've been

anybody missing me, yet? 

i've been meeting a milestone this week (well kind of----more on the technicalities later)

also, can't forget to remind you about tomorrow's photo friday link party~
come on back with any photo/photography-related post to share your work with others and hopefully learn a few things as well.
the topic is iso & shutter speed.
see you tomorrow!

milestone monday--becoming a debt free family (through lowering our grocery budget)

 ~if you are new to milestones & memories, each monday i do a post that updates you on how we are doing at accomplishing our family goals/milestones.  here's a complete list if you are interested.  thanks for stopping by~

these pictures have nothing to do with today's post :)

***milestone:  become a debt free family
A big way we try to tangibly save extra money is through couponing, menu planning, and shopping discount stores like aldi, to lower our monthly grocery budget.

here's the totals for may's grocery trips: 
aldi  $114.33
harris teeter super doubles coupons $28.23
bloom $25.65    $-10.00/25.00 coupon
bloom  $46.01  $-10.00/25.00 coupon
harris teeter  $38.21  triple coupons (would've been $87.61)

Total:   $252.43
* fyi: it includes household items like cleaning supplies but does not include personal toiletries like makeup or contact solution.

this is again almost $100.00 less than our budgeted allotment of $350.00.   
can i get a "woot, woot~!"

and though it's a few days late, i am gladly sharing  my monthly menu guides, etc for june:

here's everything for you to download and adapt for your own family:
click on file-download as--word--save as

june's monthly meal guide 

june's updated meal categories list

what do you do to keep your grocery budget in check?  have you tried any of the recipes and liked them or hated them?  i want to know!  leave me a comment with your tips and i'll give them a try this month!

milestone monday--helping the poor and orphaned #2

 ~if you are new to milestones & memories, each monday i do a post that updates you on how we are doing at accomplishing our family goals/milestones.  here's a complete list if you are interested.  thanks for stopping by~

saturday was our church's all time largest mission event/outreach ever!

i was so excited to be part of it.
and so proud of my friends, evan and stacey, for being a big part in making it all happen.  (check out their blog and adoption story that has really inspired me.  they have exciting things happening in the upcoming week on their journey!) 


that's me on the right but you can only really see my awesome aqua hair net!

and....it was such a tangible way to help orphans and children who are hungry and malnourished.
over 700 volunteers packed 24,000 bags of rice, soy, dried vegetables and vitamins.
they will be sent by the organization Stop Hunger Now to swaziland, africa in the coming months.

 i loved how they let kids of all ages help in the process. they were so excited to be there!

my prayer is that God will use each one of these meals to touch, not only the stomachs, but also the hearts of the precious kids and draw them closer to Himself.



if you would like more information on how to host your own meal-packing event, click here~


have a blessed monday, friends!

milestone monday--plan a family summer vacation

 ~if you are new to milestones & memories, each monday i do a post that updates you on how we are doing at accomplishing our family goals/milestones.  here's a complete list if you are interested.  thanks for stopping by~

yippeeee!  


if you couldn't tell.....
i'm a bit excited.
because we are indeed taking a week-long family vacation this summer!
it was all very touch and go there for awhile.
we thought we would just do a couple of long weekend trips close to home,
because of Jon's summer session, etc.
but as of today, we are officially going to our favorite place for a whole week, and with some of our favorite people, nonetheless!

there will be lots of this going on with these two

besties

want to know the wierdest part of it all?
i'm actually super excited to start to plan the menu and see how low i can get our grocery budget (i know, it's a sickness, i think).  last year, my family went to the beach (5 families/12 people--5 of which are good-eating men) and each family only spent around 80 dollars on groceries for the week!

our house is 700 feet from the beach, has a private pool, hot tub, and separate rooms for the kiddos!

i am so looking forward to a relaxing, calm, cool, and collected week away with our family (now, let's just pray jon's work doesn't rev up just in time for him to not be able to go---eeek!)


on another milestone note:  
i hate to put this in writing, because i know it will jinx it, but.....
i.....think.......Sister...............might.....be.......
POTTY TRAINED!
(ok, or at least close to it with the numero uno~)

i started with undies only on friday at 4:00pm and did it all the time we were home this weekend.
she only peed on the floor twice and all of the rest of the times were successful (she even pooed once!).
i don't know about you, but that's a huge milestone for me that i have been dreading to teach since day 1.
we'll keep trucking along with it and let you know how it's going.

there's been lots of reading on the pot,

 elmo's potty time watching,

and smiley face-drawing.

(i give her a small one for pee and a big one for poo.  she also gets a chocolate chip!)

any words of wisdom from you mommies who have potty training down to an art?  i'd love to hear your suggestions!

milestone monday--creating a cleaner and more organized home: may

for those of you who are new to milestones & memories, every monday i try to do a post on one of my milestones (goals) for the future.

today's milestone is "creating a cleaner and more organized home." 

i started the cleaning/organizing calendar last month and wanted to give an update on how it worked for me:

1.  let's just get this out there......i did NOT do everything on the calendar...i was actually doing well if i got 1-2 extra things done (black words) each week.

2.  i liked the checking off of things....there's my type A coming out again...

3.  i did do the 11 weeks 'til summer challenge tasks and it's really amazing how an organized pantry or clean garage can really make a person feel better......it's almost better than chocolate.....well, i said, "almost!"

junk drawer

 pantry

under sinks

garage

here's may's calendar:  i made a few tweeks and added some Make-Up Days for just getting a bunch of stuff done that didn't get done on the specified days.  (basically, it gives me permission to not follow the calendar)

here is the word document so that you can download it and make changes that work for your own home.  (to download:  click FILE--DOWNLOAD AS--WORD--SAVE FILE, then tweek in Microsoft Word and save into your documents)

the red tasks are things i will do on a weekly basis (like every monday i will do laundry and change our bedding--clean sheets every week make a girl feel better, too.....who knew!!)

the black tasks will be done monthly and can be moved around as my schedule permits.  i will try and get them done sometime during that week though. 

the yellow, highlighted tasks are part of my 11 Weeks 'Til Summer cleaning series.  it focuses on organizing and cleaning those things i probably do only once or twice a year and is my attempt at "spring cleaning." you can still join and link up your spring cleaning projects, here.

if you used the calendar last month or use it this month, let me know how it is working for you!  

milestone monday--updates and real life

so here is how i'm doing on the milestones so far this month:  (some ok, some not so ok, but hey....this is real life, folks).  

at least you'll probably feel better about yourself after reading this :).


major milestones: 

1.  spend time in the Word every day-----update:  i'm not in the Word nearly as much i want to be---like pretty infrequently, actually..........  i have all kinds of excuses why i don't do it---not enough time (though i have time to type this post), too busy, need a structured reading program, too tired, etc, etc.  none of them are good excuses and, honestly, i feel like a failure.  thankfully, i serve a good God who's mercies are new every day and who waits patiently for me to seek Him.


2.  move "home" to Indiana (or at least a lot closer than we are now)----update: does visiting for Easter count? :)

3.  become a debt free family (including paying off a house)---update: our grocery budget is looking good this month, only $220 so far and next week i'm going to try a "use only your pantry to make dinner" challenge.  the extra money will go to jon's school loan!

milestone monday--helping the poor and orphaned #1

  ~if you are new to milestones & memories, each monday i do a post that updates you on how we are doing at accomplishing our family goals/milestones.  here's a complete list if you are interested.  thanks for stopping by~

"do for one what you wish you could do for everyone." 

                                                                                                              --Andy Stanley

milestone monday--helping the poor and orphaned:

wow, what a HUGE milestone/dream/hope!  i obviously know that realistically, i am only one person and won't be able to solve any major world issues, but this quote (above) helps me to not become overwhelmed with the vastness of poverty and suffering and focus on what i can learn, how i can care, and what i can do to help forward the Kingdom and fulfill the "whole gospel."

what i can learn:
i'm currently reading the book pictured above, "the hole in our gospel" by richard stearns (the president of World Vision).  the book highlights biblical truths about how God calls us, as believers, to embrace His people all over the world, including the poor and fatherless in particular.  stearns points out how we, in the US especially, live in a bubble where we are clueless about the reality of how so many people in the world live on less than $2.00 a day.  and when it comes down to it,.......
we don't really want to know.
we don't really want to see.
we don't really want to acknowledge. 
i have to admit, as shameful as it is, that was me for most of my life.  until recently.....i basically have tried to not look at what i know is there.....hurting people, devastation, war, pain, crying and unloved babies, abuse, poverty.....my life is cushiony and comfortable and i like it that way.  this painful picture of the world is "depressing" and "overwhelming" and "not fun."  but the Lord is teaching me, that my first step to helping is to be open to learning about the needs of others.  now, i am praying that "God will break my heart for the things that break His."
(if you'd like the free study guides/synopsis that goes along with the book, click here)


how i can care:
with so much pain, it is easy to become numb to it all and simply become hardened to the needs of the poor and orphaned.  God is bringing me to a point where i want to hear the statistics, see the faces, and pay attention to the stories.......i find myself getting choked up at stories of adoption (watch this, you won't be disappointed you did), my heart is moved when seeing those children's faces, and wondering about each person's suffering.  i can feel a change in my heart and am praying for even more.

what i can do:
1.  pray.....the easiest thing i can do is pray for the hurting people in my neighborhood, my city, my country, and around the world.

2.  i can also give......here is a great resource for ways to provide for tangible and immediate needs.  i am challenging our family to do one of them each month for the rest of this year---starting with #3 Hunger.
**a cool gift idea is to give a specific donation (through World Vision's gift catalog) for somebody's birthday, valentine's, or christmas gift.  i got jon  "2 chickens" as a donation for part of his birthday gift this year.

3.  and donate time........our family is excited to be joining the rest of our church family to provide and package just under 150,000  meals in one day to hungry children in africa.  it's so exciting to see so many of God's people come together for one common purpose and for His glory.   it's only a two hour shift, and that time will be much better spent than my usual saturday morning routine of pancakes and tv. 

http://www.stophungernow.org/site/PageServer

now, after saying all of this....please believe me when i tell you that i am just starting my journey in realizing and acting upon what it is that God calls us all to do concerning the poor and orphaned and i, by no means, think i have anything figured out.  i also, in no way, believe that through doing good works alone i will somehow "earn my way" to heaven.  i believe that is only possible through the grace of God and through a genuine relationship with Jesus Christ and it is through Him and Him alone that I have been forgiven of sin and can spend eternity in His presence.   i'm writing this mostly to keep record of where i'm starting and to encourage us all to begin thinking about this topic a bit differently than perhaps we have before.

may i suggest continuing to think about this topic by listening to andy stanley's message entitled "one, not everyone" (and by reading the book! :)).

do you have a suggestion for something my family and i could be doing to "defend and uphold the poor and orphaned"?  if so, leave a comment and let's keep moving on this journey together!