Never again attempt the following:
Tuesday – Complete Day 1 of the One hundred push ups training plan.
Wednesday AM – Wake up sore.
Wednesday PM – Knead dough for a loaf of bread and then vacuum the entire apartment.
My arms hurt!
No garage sales? No problem!
God has blessed our willingness to sacrifice some of our possessions. I have been leaning toward an attitude of “less is more” ever since I started being a housewife. Fewer possessions mean less maintenance, less time wasted, and less cleaning. This time of unemployment has prompted us to sell some things to raise money for paying bills. Jeff has been out of work for 7 weeks and we have not yet missed a payment.
I wanted to mention two ways that we’ve been selling things.
Craigslist – This website has been hit or miss, depending on the item being sold. Our Wii was snapped up very quickly, but I haven’t had any luck selling clothes. We’ve made $335 on Craigslist.
Half.com – An Ebay affiliate, Half.com is an incredibly easy website to use if you already have an Ebay account. The website hosts a virtual yard sale for books, movies, music, and video games. All you do is enter the ISBN of the items you are selling, list the item’s condition, and select a price. When the seller buys an item, you are notified immediately and mail out the item. Half.com reimburses you for a set shipping amount, takes a small commission, and deposits the balance into your bank account. In the last 24 hours, we sold four video games and one DVD for a total of $104.65!
Happy birthday, little bro!!
Today is my brother’s 24th birthday. I cannot believe that he is already 24. Seems like yesterday that he was 8, helping me create a town full of Legos, Barbie dolls, and Hot Wheels cars. 😉 Now he’s on the other side of the world, spending his birthday working!
Josh, we’re sorry you’re not here today, but we celebrated on your behalf. We splurged and bought a half gallon of mint chocolate chip ice cream and tipped our spoons to you.
Happy birthday, brother!!
Cornbread!
Today, I tested out a cornbread recipe. Hubby says it’s a keeper, but I think I might test out a couple more cornbread recipes before deeming this recipe a favorite. It was good, but not sweet enough. I like my cornbread sweet, with butter and honey drizzled over the top.
Are titles necessary? :)
I had grandiose plans of posting pictures and links to our new favorite pizza crust! We already found a favorite sauce recipe but couldn’t find a good pizza crust. Well, that post will probably be written Sunday or Monday.
Instead, I spent a good deal of time today working around the apartment. I’m proud of myself, in a humble way of course! I made pizza, washed dishes after each meal, vacuumed the entire apartment, swept the kitchen and bathroom floors, emptied the cat boxes, cleaned the vacuum filter, and washed/folded/put away two loads of laundry.
Whew! I’m happy and tired. Now I just need to keep it up. I have ideas for implementing a housework schedule, but that is also going to be a separate post. For now, I’m going to watch Master and Commander with my hubby.
Love to all, and have a happy Sabbath!
Looking to the future
Now that our unemployment claim has been approved, I’ve been thinking about the immediate future. Our claim won’t cover many bills, but it will cover the rent and enable us to purchase groceries. Hubby is still looking for a job, but I have a feeling something will happen soon.
For a long time, my desire has been to be a wife, a homemaker and a mother. Hubby won’t offer me an idea of when he thinks we can start a family, but I am already a housewife. Even though we’ve prayed about returning to work full time, we believe that God intends for me to stay home.
Over the past month or so, I’ve been struggling with motivation. It’s hard to develop a routine, create goals, and settle into being a housewife when you don’t know if you are going to be living in the same state next week. I’ve been selling some of our possessions to cover a couple bills. I spend most of my time helping hubby with his job search and writing/editing cover letters. The rest of my housewife duties, goals, and aspirations have fallen by the wayside. I’m lucky if I even stay on top of dishes.
I really need to dedicate myself to being a homemaker. Even if we move next week, keeping the kitchen clean, laundry washed, and the house picked up now will create a more friendly home environment. I believe the home is important, and if I’m not performing this duty to the best of my ability, what is the point in me staying home? I will not neglect my duties of helping hubby with job searching, but I will shift my priorities so that I can both aid him and be a keeper at home.
Titus 2:4, 5 says that young women are “to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.” Regardless of where we live next week, I still have an obligation and a desire to fulfill this counsel.
Proverbs 31 also contains an excellent model for wives:
Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.
The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil.
She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life.
She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.
She is like the merchants’ ships; she bringeth her food from afar.
She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens.
She considereth a field, and buyeth it: with the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard.
She girdeth her loins with strength, and strengtheneth her arms.
She perceiveth that her merchandise is good: her candle goeth not out by night.
She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff.
She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy.
She is not afraid of the snow for her household: for all her household are clothed with scarlet.
She maketh herself coverings of tapestry; her clothing is silk and purple.
Her husband is known in the gates, when he sitteth among the elders of the land.
She maketh fine linen, and selleth it; and delivereth girdles unto the merchant.
Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.
She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness.
She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness.
Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.
Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all.
Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised.
Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.
I want to be this woman. I want to look well to the ways of my household, honor my husband, and most importantly, honor God.
Blessings – God is so good!
God is so very good!
“O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him” (Psalm 34:8).
On Friday, we decided to wait on the Lord. We’re going to stay in Phoenix until we’re offered a job. If the job offer is local, we’ll be renewing our lease. If the job is out of state, we’ll be moving immediately. Ever since deciding to wait for a direct answer from the Lord, we’ve been at peace. I feel peace for the first time since Jeff lost his job. And God has been blessing us greatly over the past few days. My contract job has provided a few hours of work, with more to come after another training call tomorrow. Jeff had a phone interview this morning and is waiting to hear back on several jobs. Our unemployment claim was finally approved, after much delay. The state authorized payment for the past four weeks of claims.
“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5, 6).
Praise the Lord!