This is a reprint of an article I did on my original Redding Mountain blog. I thought it fit well with my last post. To see the original article click on the link below.
“If mothers could learn to do for themselves what they do for their children when these are overdone, we should have happier households. Let the mother go out to play! If she would have the courage to let everything go when life becomes too tense, and just take a day, or half a day, out in the fields, or with a favourite book, or in a picture gallery looking long and well at just two or three pictures, or in bed, without the children, life would go on far more happily for both children and parents. The mother would then be able to hold herself in “wise passiveness’ and would not fret her children by continual interference even of hand or eye – she would let them be.”
Charlotte Mason
Now if I could learn to play and take time relax maybe I would be a better mother:)
Below is a quote that crossed my path many years ago. I do not know where I first read it.
“Oh that God would give every mother a vision of the glory and splendor of the work that is given to her when a babe is placed in her bosom to be nursed and trained! Could she have but one glimpse into the future of that life as it reaches on into eternity; could she look into its soul to see its possibilities; could she be made to understand her own personal responsibility for the training of this child, for the development of its life, and for its destiny,–she would see that in all God’s world, there is no other work so noble and so worthy of her best powers, and she would commit to no others hands the sacred and holy trust given to her.” -JR Miller
My Greatest Joy
Rearing my children was my greatest joy. My children are all grown and living their own lives now. Some of my children are parents now too.
My purpose was to rear my children to know and love God. I consider this the best thing I have ever done. As I look at the adults they have grown to be, I am proud of the thoughtful, caring people they are. I thoroughly enjoyed my life as a stay-at-home mother.
As the quote above mentions, may God give every mother a vision,I had that vision. It was a gift from God. My greatest desire was to live in such a way that my children would see Jesus. To bring my children up to know and love God.
Reading the Bible and sharing stories of Jesus, serving and praying for the hurting was a big part of our days. Memorizing the scriptures: ABC verses, I Corinthians 13, Psalm 1, 23, 100, etc. Singing songs and playing and reading lots and lots of books! Cooking big meals and eating around our beautiful rustic table built by my father-in-law left a lot of memories imprinted on our hearts. We had lots of road trips and lived in several places. We are thankful for those friends the Lord gave us along the way!
What joy. We had our struggles to overcome, and we had a wonderful life. I thank God for the years I was able to stay home with my children.
Much of my childhood was spent lost in a book. I read the library of my elementary school, worked in my high school library, and participated in summer reading programs after Mrs. Thompson opened the library world to me. As I grew older visits to the Birmingham Public Library were a treat. The architecture was beautiful and the books excited me!
I learned a lot in college but it did nothing for my love of reading. After I married and had my first child, Micah. I realized how much I missed reading. Winford Claiborne came to West Virginia to do a marriage workshop. He ignited my love for reading one again. Having a new born I knew finding reading time would be hard, I decided I could read one book a month.
This week I came across some reading lists of mine. I am sure I did not include all of the books I read. Still this was fun to find. My plan is to keep a list of the books I read and listen to this year. I have started the year off with a biography of George MacDonald my favorite author.
Here are some lists from years past.
2020
Ina May Gaskin’s book on Childbirth
The Doula Book
Captive in Iran
Kisses from Katie
The Historian
Glass Castle
Educated
Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World
2021
A Long Way Gone
The Fountainhead
A Moveable Feast
A Hero of France
Fascism: A Warning
12 Rules for Life
A Woman Makes a Plan
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Beyond Order
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Younger Next Year
Fish Out of Water
Permanent Record
Alexander Campbell children’s book – The Disciple from Bethany
For this year I am switching from the NIV Bible I have used for many years. I decided to read the NKJV for a fresher look at the scriptures. Sometimes it helps me to see the scripture in a different light when I read it in different versions.
There are so many reading plans now! I haven’t settled on a plan yet though in 2023 I want to read through the entire Bible. The important thing is to get started! Read something from the Bible each day! Your life will be better!
Have a reading plan you love? Share it in the comments.
This year I have decided to use the Daily Walk Bible for my quiet time. This last year I really had a hard time keeping my focus on staying in the word. I have ALWAYS received a great benefit from much time spent in the word. I am amazed at how timely God’s word is to my life and situations. Somehow I let myself be distracted from this way too much in 2010.
In the front of this Bible I found an article. Here are some of the highlights.
Seven Benefits from Reading Your Bible
All seven are taken from Psalm 119.
1. The Bible will help keep you from sin. verse 11
2. The Bible will lift your burdens. verse 28
3. The Bible will guide your steps. verse 105
4. The Bible will bring you joy. verse 111
5. The Bible will lead you to wisdom. verse 130
6. The Bible will give you peace. verse 165
7. The Bible will bring you back to God. verse 176
Reading my Bible:
1. makes me a calmer, happier wife and mother.
2. helps me deal more appropriately with the daily trials and temptations which come my way.
3. gives me a rich supply to share from with those who need help and hope in this world.
This year I am focusing on the word for myself and the benefit I will receive from spending time with God. Reading the word alone is not enough but it is a start. I need the word daily and I need a closer relationship with God. This is a desire I am sure God will honor. I am sure he will help me apply the word and grow from it if I am willing.
Here is a great recipe that my family has used for a long time. Tried and True! My daughter Sarah and I had a great time making these and sharing them this week. I thought you might like to try it too! Enjoy!
Chocolate-Covered Peanut Butter Balls
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 sticks of margarine or butter softened
1 lb. powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups finely crushed graham cracker crumbs
1 lb. milk chocolate melts (chocolate coating)
Directions:
Combine the peanut butter, margarine, powdered sugar, and graham cracker crumbs. Shape into small balls and dip in prepared chocolate and place on waxed paper covered plate and refrigerate until glossy.
Or you may want to use a small peanut butter cup mold and put a small amount of melted chocolate in the bottom of each cup and push a peanut butter ball down into the chocolate and top with a small amount of melted chocolate to cover the ball. Let set in the refrigerator a few minutes until glossy.
Gently remove from mold and place in paper cups or on your tray.
Check out my shop for a free download of my ebook, Baking for Profit. This book contains family favorites as well as goodies I sold in my baking business. Check it out.
Have some fun baking with your loved ones this month!
We have come to Malawi again. This is our fourth mission trip to Malawi. We began working here in 2018. The journey here doesn’t get easier with the 30+ hours of traveling, but the rejoicing at the end is worth it all!
Reunion
It is wonderful to reunite with friends and to see those who have become Christians in years past. All the babies have grown and there are new babies added to families. Yet, it is sad to miss those who have gone on to their reward. In just a year so many have passed. We miss their presence.
150 New Baby Christians
It’s good to share together plans to grow the kingdom of God. We’ve had several meetings to catch us up to date on what is going on in some areas of the work. Things that communication long distance fail us in. One big surprise for us was how many new baby Christians there are!!! 150 since our last trip! We’ve visited some new wells, a new church building, new businesses, and 2 new homes.
Healing Hands International Wells Bless Communities
It is so exciting to hear from each group and what is going on in their work. It’s wonderful to see familiar places and to rejoice with communities as they get clean water by receiving a well through the Healing Hands International. This is a huge blessing to communities. I look at babies and know their life will change because of this gift. They will grow up healthier because of something I take for granted every day.
Malawi Time
Life is slower paced here. Most things take a lot of time. Take meal prep. You may have to kill the chicken before preparing it. Almost everything is fresh. You are very close to your food source here. Every day we have rice or nsima, greens (rape, spinach, mustard, pumpkin, turnip), tomatoes made into a soup like sauce or mixed with other vegetables, and some fresh meat.
Transportation is a big deal. If you have a car for transport the roads are rough and sandy and very bumpy so it still takes a lot of time to get anywhere. My pedometer looks good on car days and when walking. You may ride on motorcycles like I did today to the market 3 adults on one motorcycle with rough roads. It takes a while. Or maybe you are on a bicycle. But most likely you will be on foot.
There is a certain peacefulness here, I am touched deeply by these people and their genuine hearts.
Today is Pi Day! Do you know what Pi is? In basic mathematics, pi is used to find the area and circumference of a circle. Have you ever memorized Pi? When my children were at home they had fun trying to memorize the first 100 digits of Pi. Maybe you are like me and prefer to memorize pie recipes. This occupied them for hours.
I am not sure who holds the record in my house but according to the Pi World Ranking List the world record for reciting the most digits of pi belongs to Suresh Kumar Sharma of India, who recited pi to 70,030 decimal places in 2015. It took him 17 hours and 14 minutes! That’s a long day of work.
Do you want to try this with your kids? For fun check out the bottom of the page for the first 100 digits of Pi. Maybe you can make pie while they work on this today. Here’s my signature pie recipe.
Signature Desserts
Another thing we did as a family was eat Blueberry Crunch Pie. Almost any holiday or special occasion called for it! Chances are if you have visited my house you have tasted the yumminess of Blueberry Crunch Pie. This accidentally became my signature dessert. That’s how memories are made many times by accident.
Blueberry Crunch Pie is a quick dessert to make. In fact I can make it in less than 30 minutes. While the crust bakes I mix the filling and then it is all ready to go as soon as the crust is cooled. Sometimes I cheat and put the crust in the fridge or freezer to cool it faster.
Blueberry Crunch Pie
Version 2
A few years ago I made a little change to my recipe. I still use the same ingredients I just tweaked it a bit. Below you will find the Blueberry Crunch Pie Version 2 Recipe. When my children were home I doubled the recipe.
Recipe
Blueberry Crunch Pie Version 2
Ingredients:
1 1/3 cup self rising flour
1 cup nuts (divided – save 1/4 cup to sprinkle on top)
1 stick margarine softened
11 oz cream cheese
1/2 lb. powdered sugar
1 can blueberry pie filling or homemade
Whipped topping 16+ ounces
Instructions:
Layer 1 — Combine flour, nuts and margarine. Press into 13×9 pan, bake until lightly browned about 15 minutes at 350° F or until lightly browned. Let cool.
Layer 2 — Combine cream cheese and powdered sugar. Stir in a cup of the whipped topping. Spread on cooled crust.
Layer 3 — Spread 1 can blueberry pie filling ( or homemade) evenly and gently over layer 2
Layer 4 — Spread with whipped topping
Layer 5 — Sprinkle with nuts.
Do you have a signature dessert? Please share it in the comments or email it to me! I love reading recipes!
Try Memorizing 100 Digits of Pi for Fun!
Here are the first 100 digits in case you want to memorize them today!
Let’s have a gratitude attitude. Can we? Yes! How do I cultivate an attitude of gratitude even when things are not going so well? Or during what I call downtimes? We have had a lot of downtimes with Covid these last two years but there is still lots of room for gratitude.
Count Your Blessings Even When You Don’t Feel Grateful
I need to acknowledge the innumerable things I have to be grateful for each day. Count them, write them down or at least mention them out loud. It lifts my spirits when I confirm the goodness of God. My head knows God’s daily goodness to me but sometimes I may not feel so grateful. So remembering these blessings in a tangible way makes me feel better.
Count Your Blessings
Read Your Bible
Keep this one routine. Read your Bible! If you think you don’t feel like it, deciding to read one verse and thinking about it will help. This one routine will help you stay on track and lead to additional benefits. I just pick a book of the Bible I haven’t read in a while and start working my way through it whether by one verse or several. When I complete a book of the Bible I write the month and year on the title page. I am always glad I did!
Read Good Books
Reading good books helps me insert something positive into my day. When I may not be very motivated to do a lot whether it’s from sickness or the blues I can feed my mind on learning something beneficial. I love to read non-fiction and memoirs as they share the struggles and the best of times. This helps me find perspective in my day when I realize we all have them!
Helping others is great therapy when I am feeling down or struggling with the blues. Get moving! Having a plan for the day instead of sitting helps me to adjust my attitude, I feel better when I am moving. If I can’t bring myself to do much or I am unable to do a lot physically I can give an elderly person, a shut-in, or an old friend a short call just to say hi. I guarantee you will feel better.
Examples of Gratitude
I have two great examples from ladies I have known. One was Eva Lee Smith. She was in her 90s and couldn’t get out much. One day I went to visit the hospital and the lady I was visiting was on the phone with Eva Lee. She couldn’t leave her home but she was checking on others and you know she brightened their day. The second lady, Mrs. Renfro was 86 when I met her at a yard sale. She told me a Bible verse that became one of my favorites, Nehemiah 8:10 “the joy of the Lord is my strength”. She also told me she helped little old ladies and that sure made me smile. What a joy she was, it was obvious she was enjoying life!
What are some things that keep us from having a gratitude attitude? Focusing on our problems. Forgetting to notice the little blessings. Thinking only of myself. Feeding my mind on the wrong things. Having no goals or plans for the day. All of these can steal our joy and keep us from having an attitude of gratitude.
Have a beautiful day full of gratitude! It’s up to you today!
41 years of marriage! Wow! How could I possibly be married that long? Today is NOT my anniversary in case you are wondering. But I have learned a few things after being married for 41 years though not nearly as much as I should have! Today I am going to share just a few things I have learned in 41 years of marriage and who knows maybe another time I will share a few more.
August 12, 1980 We’ve only just begun!
Early Marriage
When I was first married and still a college student at Freed-Hardeman I met a lady. I so wish I had met her more than one time. Monda Alexander introduced me to an older lady who was visiting campus. Unfortunately, I cannot remember her name. She was so excited when she learned that I was a newlywed. As we sat in the booth at the Lion’s Pride, this sweet lady shared some of her wisdom with me and I have never forgotten that meeting.
She told me that the huge love I felt for my husband would one day seem small compared to what it would grow to be. At the time I just couldn’t wrap my mind around it but I believed her. I think of her every few years when I consider how much my love for my husband has grown.
The naive girl is long gone but my love for my husband has only grown more and more as the years pass.
Hawaii 1981
A Few Things I Have Learned in 41 Years of Marriage
Love grows, and grows.
Having a family is a lot of work but gives many opportunities to grow and multiply your love through family. Love for each other and each new addition. There is always more love to go around.
Commit to God and Pray
Commit to God. Marriage is a lot of work even under the best circumstances. Being committed to God and each other is key! Remember to pray for your marriage.
Sometimes there will be misunderstandings and that’s okay. Assume the best motives for each other.
Some seasons are hard but you will grow personally and as a couple through life’s ups and downs.
Don’t give up during the hard times. It will get better!
Hot Air Balloon Ride – Thanks Kids!Crater Lake
Dates
Make time for each other. Sometimes monthly dates or sometimes weekly it depends on your season of life. Maybe just movie nights at home when your kids are little or adding a candle to the dinner table after the littles are down for the night.
First Baby?
During the time we had the most teens at home we had weekly dates which turned into parenting meetings at times. We couldn’t go very far lest there be too much excitement at home. (there are stories). We would go to a little Mexican restaurant on the edge of town. (I was expecting my 10th child). One day the owner asked if this was our first baby. We laughed. After he was born we took the whole family to eat one day and they were a bit surprised or maybe shocked.
Listening and eye contact are important. These things say you are important to me. This applies to everyone not just spouses.
Building a great marriage takes work and dedication. It is worth it!
Study at being a better mate. You can only change you. It’s worth it! When you put in the effort to improve yourself surprising things happen.
Laughter is the Best Medicine
Laughter is the best medicine. Sometimes there is just no other appropriate response. Laugh often! This is one of the big things I appreciate about my husband. He can always bring a smile and a laugh to even tough situations.
Sleep solves a lot of problems. Food doesn’t hurt either.
Overlook some things. One day when you are looking back you will realize some things were not as important as you may have thought at the time. Some not even worth mentioning.
Respect your mate.
Be considerate and kind. It always pays!
Show appreciation. You will notice it comes back to you.
Little things mean so much. A little Hershey’s chocolate bar or Diet Coke can go a long way in showing love or saying I’m sorry or thank you.
Make your mate feel special. Learn what speaks love to him. Learn his love language.
Keep getting to know your mate. Even after all these years I still learn new things about my husband all the time. He still surprises me.
