Review: Molly Saves in the Family Room

September is here, and it is back to school for the kids, and families are getting back into their routines.  The schedules are getting full with various activities and it will take more effort to gather together as a family.  This issue of Molly’s Money Saving Digest is all about the Family Room.  It’s the room where we all spend time together.  In this issue, there are some great ideas for everyone, but my absolute favorite is the Tightwad Training Camp. 

Each month, I flip forward to this section of the newsletter to see what Molly has to help us in teaching our kids about “how to manage” money.  This is a priority for me and my husband, because we are always looking for ways to help our boys understand that money doesn’t grow on trees and sometimes you have to sacrifice “wants” to supply for your needs.  This is something that is hard to convey to them in this era of “entitlement”.  I think just this section is worth the monthly cost* for the Molly digest because the information is great!  This month it is all about budgeting your “Fun Money”.  There are great tips for everyone in this section, not just the kids.  My favorite is how to save by making your own iced coffee at home.

There are other great features this month:

·    Décor & More: How to repurpose and reuse old items and make them into something new.

·    Great Book Review: The Reluctant Entertainer by Sandy Coughlin

·    Creating Frugal Family Traditions

·    Great Recipes in both the Begin with the Basics section and Meal of the Month. 

I can’t wait to try the “Honey Lime Chicken” recipe featured in the Meal of the Month section.  I’m always looking for another way to cook chicken! 

I hope this review was helpful to you and encourages you to check out this months Molly Digest, or better yet try a Molly Membership for the next year.  Whatever you do this month, make sure you set aside time to get together as a family and come up with a fun new tradition together!

*Purchase Molly Saves in the Family Room for $4.95 or Sign up as a Molly Member and get each issue for $3.95 per month.

* I was provided the Molly Money Saving Digest in exchange for my personal and honest review. 

The joy in homeschooling

It is such a privilege to be able to teach my children at home.  Besides the “reasons” we homeschool, the best is that I get to actually see the joy when my child first learns how to do something. 

Yesterday, my 5 year old completed the first level in his Hooked on Phonics reading program.  To see how excited he was when he finished was a true “delight” to my heart!  He did it!  He pushed me to let him keep going on and he pushed himself and tried so very hard, and he did it!  I’m proud of him and excited that the more he learns to read, the closer he is to being able to read God’s Word on his own.  I think I just may bawl my eyes out when I hear him read his bible for the first time!

"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it."    

Proverbs 22:6

Molly Saves in the Closet

The August Molly’s Digest is out and it is all about “the closet”.  Perfect timing as usual, since I am in the midst of organizing items that have gotten out of hand; items to put in my kids portfolios, purging smaller sized clothes for my boys and replenishing them with “hand-me-downs” or determining what I need to buy, purging clutter that has seemed to collect and is causing us to be unproductive and a little stressed. 

In this issue, there are so many great ideas to help you organize, repurpose old items into something new, and get your closets in order.  When I saw the office that Eleanor Joyce created in a closet, I was amazed!  It was well organized and everything fit into a small space.   Molly gives great advice for how we can keep our closets uncluttered and provides links to items that help with many areas that have an impact on our closets.  She covers areas of contentment all the way to the places to shop for clothes. 

Love the Meal of the Month for August, because Kerry Ann shares how to make your own taco seasoning.  This is great for our family, because we can’t purchase the packets because of special dietary restrictions, besides they are really expensive.  I am also going to try and convert the vanilla pudding recipe to meet my son’s special dietary restrictions. 

It is a great resource for only 3.95 a month!

* I was provided the Molly Money Saving Digest in exchange for my personal and honest review. 

Book Review-"Notes to Aspiring Writers:Your Dream, God's Plan"

Are you an aspiring writer? Do you have dreams of one day being published? If you would have asked me these questions a year ago, I would have told you “no”. However, in the last year something has been brewing and I do have a dream that I hope will come to pass one day…if it is what the Lord desires too.

I just had the wonderful opportunity to review the e-book Notes to Aspiring Writers: Your Dream, God's Plan by Brooke McGlothlin.  What makes it so wonderful is the tender heart with which it is written.  Brooke is an example of a woman, wife, mother, writer and more importantly a devoted child of God who shares her testimony in various areas which all lead back to glorifying the Lord.

While the book is not a “how-to” type of a book, it is in my opinion the most important part of the believers writing process.  Is our writing and work what we want, or what He wants?  Brooke shares her testimony of the heart change that she went through as she continued to pursue her dreams…of writing.  I found myself relating to her on many levels, but it was more than just writing, it was other dreams and aspirations that I have. She challenged me through her testimony, thought provoking questions to ask myself and scripture to make sure that my writing lines up with what the Lord desires from me and my writing. 

While this book is directed toward writers, the principles that she outlines in this e-book apply to all the dreams and aspirations that you may be hiding in your heart.  I know that the message she is giving to us and the process which she encourages us to take is more than worth the $2.99.  You can get a copy on Amazon today.

*I was provided a copy of Notes to Aspiring Writers:Your Dream, God's Plan for my honest review.

Molly Saves in the Nursery

Molly’s Money Saving Digest for July is all about saving in the nursery.  While I don’t have a baby anymore… (Sigh), I just found out that several ladies in my life are going to have newborns in the next 6 months (smile).  I’m so excited to meet these little bundles and it is so fun to have these great money saving ideas to use in preparing for their arrival.  This digest isn’t just for new Moms, but all those mothers, aunts, grandmothers and friends who are going to be celebrating the new arrivals in their life.  

Having a baby can be so expensive, and I personally believe, after having two, we parents really just need the basics.  Some of the topics she covers in this issue are:

·    Great organizing tips and projects

·   “DIY” projects for making the furniture you need or repurposing something you already have to meet your needs. 

·    Cloth diapers: the article describes cloth diapers in detail and gives you the pros and cons of each type so you can make an educated decision.

·    Recipes for homemade wipes.

·    Making a child’s lap desk out of “Nursery cast-offs”

·    Review of the book “Baby and Toddler Meals for Dummies”

·    Blender basics

·    5 Moms share frugal decorating tips for the nursery.

I would have loved the “fold away changing table” link she has provided, because our home has very limited space.  We used a dresser top for our changing table and just had to get the changing pad to sit on top.  It worked great and we were able to store all the necessities in the drawers and had ample space to make that task manageable. If you can sew, crochet or knit, there are some links to great projects you can make for the baby.  She also includes many great ideas for blessing “Mom”.  After the baby arrives, it is a very hectic time getting use to the new baby and trying to function on little sleep. 

Molly introduces KerryAnn Foster of Cooking Traditional Foods who will be providing the Meal of the Month section of the digest.  She has great recipes and she specializes in traditional food recipes with changes that can be made for families who have to allow for food allergies and intolerances.  This is great for our family! Her recipes this month would be great to make and take to a family who has a newborn, so they can have a warm home cooked meal.

In this month’s digest you get all this great information on Saving in the Nursery along with all her regular features: Pet Care for Pennies, Tightwad Training Camp, Forms, Printables and Links.  The Molly Money Saving Digests are very reasonable and you can get a lot of frugal ideas for only $3.95 a month.  To find out more, jump over to Econobusters and sign up today. 

* I was provided the Molly Money Saving Digest in exchange for my personal and honest review. 

Warrior Prayers: Day 21 "Humility"

"Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." ~Ephesians 4:2

I can hardly believe that our 21 days has come to an end.  WOW!  How the time flew by.  I want to thank all who have followed this blog in an effort to pray for your special needs boys.

I want to encourage you to continue on in prayer for your boys.  I believe that the Lord, the one who created this place and each of our precious boys has a plan for them, and He can heal them and help them to be all HE wants them to be.  I know how hard it is sometimes when we focus on our son’s  “diagnosis” and lose sight of them as “(name of your son)”.  We can become overwhelmed, discouraged and fearful at times when dealing with the needs that they have.  These are works of the enemy that chooses to draw us away from the Living God and get us stuck in the mire of this world and its problems.  Let us rise above it and place our sons in the palm of the Almighty and TRUST in Him for our beautiful sons.

The scripture that started this blog and that gets me through many days is Phil 4:8

"Whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, it there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy meditate on these things." 

Bless you dear sister in the Lord!

Denise

Encouragement from Brooke

It's day twenty-one.

The LAST day of your prayer challenge. Are you a mixture of relieved and sad all at the same time? What an accomplishment! (What an amazing amount of work!) If you're finishing today you deserve a pat on the back! Think of all the work that has been done on behalf of your sons! Congrats mom!

You might've noticed that there are actually twenty-two prayers in the Warrior Prayers eBook. I chose humility as our last day's topic because it is such an amazing posture of the heart. Scripture just seems to scream God's favor over those who are humble in heart.

· James 4:10 says that if we're humble before the Lord, He will lift us up.

· 1 Peter 5:6 says that if we humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God He will exalt us.

· Most importantly, in Psalm 149:4 we find that it is the humble who are adorned with salvation.

Do you see that? A humble heart is required for salvation. Just as Jesus humbled Himself unto the cross, we must admit that we're sinners, admit that our own way isn't the right way, and humbly ask for forgiveness before salvation comes.

Do you show humility before your sons? Do you always have to be right? Always have to win? Pray and ask the Lord for specific ways you can show humility today so that when the time comes, your sons will know how to show it too.

Goal for Today:

1.   Commit to praying the ten prayers in the humility chapter during day twenty-one.

2.  Thank the Lord for what He has done and consider continuing on in praying specifically for your son’s.

Humility

May__________humble himself before the Lord, and be exalted (James 4:10).

May__________humble himself, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt him (1 Peter 5:6).

May God give grace to__________as he humbles himself (James 4:6).

If__________who is called by My Name humbles himself, and prays and seeks My Face and turns from his wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive this sin and heal his land (2 Chronicles 7:14).

Lord, lead the humble in what is right, and teach__________Your way (Psalm 25:9).

May__________have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind (1 Peter 3:8).

May__________take God’s yoke upon him, and learn from Him, for He is gentle and lowly in heart, and__________will find rest for his soul (Matthew 11:29).

May the LORD take pleasure in__________, and adorn the humble with salvation (Psalm 149:4).

May__________have all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with others in love (Ephesians 4:2).

May__________be subject to the elders. May he clothe himself with humility toward others, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (1 Peter 5:5).

Warrior Prayers: Day 20 "Heart Change"

"The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks." ~Luke 6:45

The encouragement from Brooke today is so good, and so TRUE!  Bad stuff in the heart? Bad stuff comes out. Good stuff in the heart? Good stuff comes out.  This is why we need to apply scripture when we are living our lives and raising our sons.  We have the instruction manual…it is the B-I-B-L-E. 

However, we need to be in the Word, so that what is coming out of us is good rather than bad.

Do you feel like I do when you have not been in the Word and spent time with the Lord, that you are more irritable?  Do you find yourself reacting to your son’s behavior in a negative way by yelling, or lashing out in anger?  Do you find yourself letting them “get away” with something because you just are too tired to deal with it?  I know that I have. 

I think if you have a child with emotional and cognitive issues, you can get so exhausted or you just are at the end of your rope and nothing seems to work.  At these times, may I suggest that you find more time to be in the Word, pray and tell the Lord how you feel, and ask Him to take control of the situation and give you the wisdom and strength to deal with it and get through it.  I know the Lord will be with you, and He will guide you.

It is important that we spend time in the Word together with our sons, and when they do sin, that we take them back to the Word and teach them why it is wrong, and help the apply the scripture to their life.  Even very little ones can understand. 

There are many resources from Doorposts and another one by a fellow Mom I know that put together the “Childs Training Bible”.  You can see it in an earlier post on my  blog. http://3dreflections.blogspot.com/2011/03/parenting-resource.html

My pre-teen told me today “Mom, that is what teenagers do”.  I quickly told him “No, that is not what a teenager who is following Christ does”.  I gave him some examples of teenagers that he described and other teenagers who followed Christ.  I will be looking to the Word on the topic we are dealing with to help him to understand what is right. Then I will pray that the Holy Spirit will water that seed and my son will understand and choose the right path. 

Blessings to you dear sister in the Lord as you move along on your journey to raise up godly men! 

Encouragement from Brooke
The most foundational thing we can ask God for in the lives of our sons is heart change. The Word says that what's in the heart eventually comes out. Bad stuff in the heart? Bad stuff comes out. Good stuff in the heart? Good stuff comes out.

I heard an illustration of this concept once from a pastor friend. He held up a Styrofoam cup with a little water inside and proceeded to ram his hand against the cup so that the water splattered everywhere. Then he asked this question:

"Why did water come out of the cup?"

So what do you think? Did the water come out of the cup because he rammed his hand up against it? Certainly a possible answer. But consider this: could it be that the water came out of the cup because there was water IN the cup?

Think about it … if the cup had been empty when he rammed it, nothing would have come out.

And so it is with our hearts. Life has a funny way of ramming up against us. People pull out in front of you when you're in a hurry.  The neighbor's dog won't stop yapping through the night when all you need is a few hours of sleep.  Your children pick the day after your favorite relative dies to be little horrors … somehow sensing that mom is frazzled.

Stuff happens.

We get hit. Probably every day. But our response to the hits comes from what's in our cup...or hearts. Bad stuff in the heart? Bad stuff comes out. Good stuff in the heart? Good stuff comes out.


Goal for Today:

1.     Commit to praying the ten prayers in thon Honesty in “The Power of Forgiveness” chapter during day twenty.

2.    Consider this? What comes out of your heart when you get hit? Our response matters to God and it matters to the people watching and learning from us along the way.

Honesty

May__________speak the truth, giving honest evidence, and not be a false witness uttering deceit (Proverbs 12:17).

May__________have nothing to do with a false charge and not put an innocent or honest person to death (Exodus 23:7).

May__________live such a good life among the pagans that, though they accuse him of doing wrong, they may see his good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us (1 Peter 2:12).

May__________repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all (Romans 12:17).

May__________'s conduct be holy and righteous and blameless toward other believers (1 Thessalonians 2:10).

We pray to God that__________may not do wrong—not that we may appear to have met the test, but that he may do what is right, though we may seem to have failed (2 Corinthians 13:7).

May__________be trustworthy with a little, so he can also be trusted with much (Luke 16:10).

May__________be hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined (Titus 1:8).

May__________renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and live a self-controlled, upright, and godly life in the present age (Titus 2:12).

May__________'s lips be free from deceit (Psalm 17:1).