The Proverbs 31 Woman

From Chaos to Calm: Day Forty-Five The Eight Laws of Health Scripture Memory: "And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat." Genesis 1:29 Click to Listen In the garden of Eden, before sin, God created Adam and Eve in His image. They were perfectly formed. They were strong and beautiful. And they were vegetarian. Obviously, in a world without sin, nothing would die and no one would eat meat. We will all be vegetarian in heaven! You can download the .pdf version of this article here. The Creation Diet leads to good health, a longer life, and more energy. For instance: - Live 8-10 years longer than meat eaters. - Lower cholesterol. - Decreased risk for Diabetes. - Decreased risk for heart disease – America’s #1 killer. - Less risk for Colon cancer. - And the list goes on and on… The Eight Laws of Health 1. Nutrition – Eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, or even cutting out meat completely, will promote good health, more energy, and a longer life. 2. Exercise – It is so important to get up and get moving! Exercise for 15 – 20 minutes at least 4 times a week to loose weight, strengthen your heart, and have more energy! 3. Water – Your body is made up mostly of water. When you do not take in enough water, your body dries up and cells begin to die. A healthy body is a hydrated body. Water cleanses the body by helping to eliminate waste and toxins. Drink 1 ounce per two pounds of body weight every day. 4. Sunshine – Spend time outside in the sunshine every day. The morning hours or the late afternoon hours are ideal. The sunshine provides needed vitamins and elevates your mood. 5. Temperance – Self control is so important in every area of life. Temperance means having a healthy balance between working, resting, faith, eating and drinking. It also means using self control to choose not to do things that are harmful such as drinking alcohol, doing drugs, or having promiscuous sex. 6. Air – Breathing fresh air is essential to good health. Breathing deeply fills the body with oxygen and can help to relax you when you are tense. 7. Rest –First, sleep is very important to maintain a healthy body. When you are exhausted and run down, you are more likely to get sick. Ideally, adults should get 6 – 8 hours of sleep every night. The hours before midnight are the most beneficial. Second, when God created the world, he sanctified the seventh day as His holy Sabbath. He knew how much we would need that time to rest away from the world and come to spend time with Him. By resting on the Sabbath, you will receive a Sabbath day’s blessing. 8. Trust in God – By trusting in God, we will receive the blessings of God. People of Faith are calmer, happier, and live longer that those who do not trust in God. Ask God today to help you care for your health in a way that is pleasing to him. You will live a longer, happier life!

From Chaos to Calm: Day Forty-Four A Schedule Check-up Scripture Memory: "The LORD will give strength unto his people; the LORD will bless his people with peace." Psalm 29:11 Download the .pdf version of this article. By now you should have your kitchens clean. If you have not had time to finish the kitchen, which was a huge job (I know!) I want to encourage you to set a day this week and complete the project before continuing. Today, I want you to get out your schedule again and let’s look at it. What is working? What isn’t working? What do you think is hindering you the most? When I look back at my own struggles with working out a schedule and sticking to it… I realize that for me, it was often hard to keep a schedule for more than one reason. Reason #1 - A Lack of Self-discipline. For those of you who are not naturally inclined to being organized or who are prone to laziness, this will be your greatest challenge. As you tweak your schedule, don’t overdo the details. You will only frustrate yourself if you try to be detailed in your planning. Begin by setting aside chunks of time for certain tasks, but do not plan in 15 minute intervals. As you make your loose schedule a habit, you can incorporate more details one at a time. Reason #2 - Too Much to Do. This is a hard one. I recently found myself in this position. Actually, I often find myself in this position. As a homeschooling mom, a pastor’s wife, writer, and Director of A Virtuous Woman, it is easy to get overwhelmed by everything I need to accomplish on any given day. My solution is to schedule only the basics and do what I can to work the rest in. I keep my children on a schedule and work around them. When I follow my schedule, I often find myself with small bits of free time to sit and relax during the day! Evaluate your schedule and make changes as needed. You can sit down and do this any time you feel that your schedule is not working well. It is not set in stone. As your life changes, so you will your schedule! If you feel like you’ll never get it right, trust that God will pull you through. If you struggle, if you fall off track, if things go wrong one day or many - just keep picking up where you left off and start over. As we continue to clean the house, make it your priority each day to keep the areas we have covered clean before you go to bed. The kitchen should be your priority. If you are only able to keep the kitchen clean for now, don’t sweat it! Feel proud of yourself as you go to bed each night with that clean kitchen. Thank God for His power that is working in you to create the home of peace and calm you have always wanted.  Click to Listen How is your schedule or daily routine going? What are you struggling with?

From Chaos to Calm: Day Forty-Three Exercise Scripture Memory: "She girdeth her loins with strength, and strengtheneth her arms." Proverbs 31:17 Download the .pdf version of this article. Click to Listen Yesterday, we talked about water and how essential it is to our health. Today we are going to talk about the importance of exercise. Exercising is one of the most important activities we can do to improver our health and the quality of our lives. Knowing that we need to exercise is not the problem. We all know we need to exercise. The problem is our own lack of self-discipline. We have talked about self-discipline over the last few weeks. Exercising, for most of us, is just not on our top ten list of Fun Things to Do With Our Time. I have gone from being a skinny Eat-Anything-I-Want sort of girl to being a Watch-Everything-I-Eat sort of Woman. It has not been a joyful experience. But I have learned a lot about what it means to take care of my health. When I had no issue with my weight, I had no real desire to be fit. (Yes, it is possible to be skinny and in bad shape.) So, whether you are as skinny as a rail or could stand to lose a few pounds, exercising is something you can do for yourself that will really make a difference in your life and maybe even the lives of those around you. So, how do we find the will power or self-discipline we need to get moving 6 days a week? First, we go to God and ask for the strength and the motivation we need. Your Heavenly Father wants you to be healthy. You can trust that He will help you. Each day, as you wake up early and go to your prayer corner for your time with God, ask for help in this area. Add it to your prayer list. Be faithful to pray for yourself! There are a few things you can do to help get motivated: #1 Find a friend to exercise with. Having a partner to experience the joy and the pain of getting fit can really help! If you don’t have a friend who wants to get in shape, advertise! Place an ad in your local paper or post flyers at the park, library, and/or grocery store. #2 Use a program you can enjoy. Join a group or start one! Pilates, Aerobics, or Strollercising are some fun ways to enjoy getting in shape. See what your area has available. #3 Purchase workout clothes that make you happy. I love working out in my good looking yoga pants and matching tops. Instead of looking frumpy in a sweatsuit or sloppy shorts and t-shirts I can look stylish while I workout - even though I workout by myself. Workout clothes that are designed for exercising are comfortable to move in and will keep you cool. Yoga pants stretch and move with you. If you are comfortable and look good you will be more likely to keep it up. #4 Get a puppy. Walking is one of the most effective and easiest forms of exercising. I love walking my Labrador Retriever every morning. He makes it fun! Walking is also a good time to reflect on what God has planned for your day. Enjoy the nature around you! #5 Exercise with your children. My daughters love to exercise with me. They gain a healthy body image and get in shape while developing a good habit that will serve them well as they become adults. Exercising daily should be a priority. It doesn’t have to take long. A 15 minute walk each day is enough to help you lose weight, lower your cholesterol, prevent heart disease and more! We all have 15 minutes. Just schedule it in. Do you struggle with finding time to exercise? Have some tips for the rest of us? Please share!

From Chaos to Calm: Day Forty-Two Living Water Scripture Memory: “Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? …Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” John 4:10-14 Download the .pdf version of this article. Part of being a homemaker is caring for the health of our family. Health is something precious. Often though, we take for granted that we will always be healthy until one day we realize we aren’t. Health, how we take care of ourselves, is an important part of our faith. In the Scripture Memory above, we are told that Jesus is the Living Water. By drinking of Him on a daily basis, our spiritual health will be renewed each day. A major part of this challenge has been making our prayer time a priority each day. Notice again what Christ said, “…the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” When we focus our eyes on Christ; when we drink from His cup everyday, He tells us that it will be like a “well of water springing up” into everlasting life! This spring never dries up! It is always there for us to drink. However, it is up to us to go to the well! Water is essential to life. Just as the Living Water is vital for everlasting life, pure water is essential to our bodies for life on this earth. Without water our bodies dry up and begin to slowly die. Water helps to cleanse our bodies of waste and toxins. It feeds our cells to rejuvenate and moisturize. Drinking water can even help you lose weight! You have heard, I am sure, “drink 8 glasses of water a day.” This is good, but there is an even better formula for discovering how much water you should drink each day. Take your weight and divide the number in half. This is how many ounces your should drink each and every day. For instance, if you weigh 130 pounds, you should drink 65 ounces a day. With this formula you can also figure out how much water your children should drink! A 50 pound child should drink 25 ounces of water each day. When you do not drink water, your body retains water and you actually end up feeling bloated and weighing more than if you drink the proper amount each day. I have known young people who drank only sodas or coffee. It is terrible for your health! Without water, your body is not able to cleanse itself of all the bad stuff it doesn’t need. By drinking water you will reduce and even prevent illnesses. If you are not used to drinking water, or don’t really like the taste of water, you will find that the more you drink, the more you crave. Very much like our morning devotions - the more we pray, the more we look forward to praying! What I like to do is add fresh lemon or lime juice to my water. It makes it so refreshing and I just love the taste! Also, tap water is really not something you want to drink. I suggest purchasing spring water or a water filter. We get our spring water right out of a pipe in the side of the mountain. If you live near a spring in the mountains, check to see if a free source is available. In the morning, a nice ritual to have is Lemon Tea. Simply cut a lemon in half and each half into halves or fourths. Pour almost boiling water over a piece of lemon in a mug. Allow it to steep for about five minutes and drink! This is very beneficial to your kidneys and is cleansing to your body. To help you in your goal, you can get a nice large jug or bottle and put your name on it. Fill it up each day and work toward drinking it all.

Hi Ladies! How are things going for you? I haven't slept hardly at all the last couple of nights which has made functioning at an efficient speed difficult. It's campmeeting time {almost} - just a few weeks away - and I am in the throes of planning my program for the Primary department this year. I love teaching those kids! I can't wait for you to see what we're doing this year! Follow me on Instagram if you are curious! I'll be posting photos as we set up. I am sooo excited! Anyway, because of LIFE, this is late getting up. Now, I'm going to crawl in bed and hope for a good night's sleep tonight. :) I hope you are blessed tomorrow! From Chaos to Calm: Day Forty-One Picky Eaters Scripture Memory: "Take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and spelt; put them in a storage jar and use them to make bread for yourself." Ezekiel 4:9 Download the .pdf version of this article. Oh, the joys of motherhood. Cooking supper in your pretty apron with your hair fixed and a sweet helper washing the dishes as you go… Oh, wait - this is real life! I don’t know about you, but supper time can be stressful. I enjoy cooking for my family. I really work hard to prepare healthy meals that look and taste good. Unfortunately, there is always at least one child who is less than thrilled with the menu. Whether it is Emily’s dislike of broccoli, James’ dislike of eggs and mayonnaise, or Sarah’s dread for coleslaw, it seems out of five kids the only nights everyone is thrilled is when I make spaghetti. Children who are allowed to eat only the foods they really love grow up to be adults who don’t like vegetables. Over the years my children have grown to love greens, salads, spinach, and asparagus. Emily is even beginning to like broccoli! Our taste buds change over time. Not only that, but you can retrain your own taste buds by eating foods you don’t care for on a regular basis. Some foods that my own mother did not serve - which I grew up disliking - were beets, mushrooms, olives, asparagus, sauerkraut, spinach and more. I am happy to report that thanks to my husbands encouragement, I LOVE all of these foods now and cook them frequently. Children should not be allowed to waste food. I can’t count the times I have attended a potluck dinner and watched as children piled their plates high with good food only to throw most of it in the trash minutes later. God is not honored by our waste. Children need to learn that food is a blessing from God. Part of being a good steward is eating the food we are provided and avoiding waste as much as possible. My children know when we go to a potluck or eat at someone else’s home that they are to politely eat what they are served. Teach your children about nutrition. Let them help you choose healthy foods at the grocery store. Tell them why you do not eat certain foods or why some foods should only be eaten in moderation. Teach them how to properly care for their bodies. More importantly show them by your own example. Click to Listen How do you encourage your child to eat his or her veggies?

From Chaos to Calm: Day Forty Setting the Table Scripture Memory: “Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb." Revelation 19:9 Download the .pdf version of this article. I love the verse above! Just imagine the very first time we sit before a feast with Jesus! What a celebration it will be! Just imagine the love and joy you will feel. Now, I want you to think about your own dinner table. What is the atmosphere like when your family sits down to eat? Do you regularly eat together around the table? Or does everyone grab a plate and run for the TV? Perhaps you find yourself to busy to cook and dinner on-the-go or fast food is the standard fare. We have already discussed the importance of eating healthy, well-balanced meals. I want to encourage you to continue planning meals that your family will enjoy and meals that will provide the nutrition you need. I also want to encourage you to slow down and set aside the evening hours for family time if you have not already done so. Sports activities, extra-curricular activities are not always worth the time commitment they require. Children grown up sooo fast. Let your children be children, let them have free time after school for running and playing. And give yourself the treasure of being with your kids. Children who eat at the dinner table with their parents on a regular basis are less likely to get involved with drugs and alcohol less likely to be overweight or struggle with self-esteem issues There is a saying the kitchen is the heart of the home. I would say that the dinner table is where it really happens. Food brings a family together. Memories, priceless memories are created. And the family bond is strengthened. When you sit down together, is your table filled with clutter pushed to the side? Do you avoid sitting together because of clutter? If so, today, I want you to make it your mission to clean up your dining area. If you have more than one area for eating (breakfast nook, dining room, etc.) clean up and clean out these spaces so that only items related to eating are present. I love decorating my table with table cloths. I have a large stash of cloths for every season or occasion. I generally purchase my table cloths on clearance at the end of a season. This way, I never spend more than a few dollars on beautiful cloths. Otherwise, they can be very expensive! Do you have a centerpiece? The options for centerpieces are endless. In my dining room, I currently have a large, beautiful bowl that my sister-in-law had made for me in Italy. It has a fruit theme, and the verse, “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13. In this bowl I have my collection of cloth napkins. You could place a bowl filled with fresh fruit – green apples or lemons are especially pretty. You could place a potted plant in a basket, or pick flowers from your garden. Whatever you choose, make it pretty. Candles add a warm inviting feel to your table. You can change your centerpiece for the season, or for the occasion. What about your dishes? Are they cheap and ugly? Do you serve the children on old plastic plates that are scratched and unsightly? Your family deserves the best you can give them! If you begin to collect tablecloths, don’t save them for special occasions for fear that they will be stained. Use them! Place mats can also provide a fun look to your table. Because place mats and tablecloths are often colorful, I like to use plain white or cream colored plates. You can purchase plain dinner size plates at import stores for only $2 - $3 a piece. Instead of purchasing many sets of dishes, use the plain white dinner plates as your base and then purchase bowls, salad plates, and dessert dishes that you love! By placing a pretty salad plate on top of your white plate when setting the table, you can have an entirely new look without spending hundreds of dollars on new sets of dishes.

From Chaos to Calm: Day Thirty-Nine The Creation Diet Scripture Memory: “And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to yo...

From Chaos to Calm: Day Thirty-Eight Meal Planning and the Grocery Store Scripture Memory: ”She is like the merchants’ ships; she bringeth her food from afar.” Proverbs 31:14 Download the .pdf version of this article. Before you can cook a delicious meal for your family, you will need to have a pantry stocked with good foods. You will be able to prepare a wide variety of recipes if you have the basics already in your cupboard. Grocery shopping with small children in tow is not always fun, so if you are able to do this when your husband is able to watch the children, you will be able to get done faster and probably save more money. Another option would be to trade off grocery shopping days with a friends and watch each other’s children on grocery day. You want to prepare for your shopping trip. A good day to plan your weekly shopping is the day you clean out the refrigerator or perhaps the day after. Plan your meals(2) for the coming week. I typically do this a week ahead of time, but you can do it however you prefer. To shop wisely and save more money, when you are planning your meals, have the weekly sales flyer available and plan as many meals around good deals as you can. Make a shopping list of those items that are missing from your pantry. Make a list of those special things you need to prepare the recipes for each meal. Make a list of other items that you will need to prepare desserts and/ or snacks during the week. When planning snacks, think healthy - dried fruit versus candy, baked chips versus fried… Remember that some foods are wants and other foods are needs. Foods that provide good nutrition are the needs! Try to limit the amount of processed and refined foods that you bring into your home. Whole foods - living foods - will provide the nutrition your family needs. When planning your meals you want to think of colors. If your plate is all one color, you are missing out on important vitamins and minerals. For instance, serving sides of potatoes and corn mean serving foods that are similar - both starches. Instead of serving these in the same meal, try serving a green vegetable, a white vegetable and a yellow/ orange vegetable. It can be fun to read cookbooks to get new ideas. You can learn a lot about what foods and flavors work well together by reading recipes. I love to cook foods from different cultures. By offering a wide variety of foods and flavors to your children when they are young, you will train them to not be picky eaters. I believe that children should be required to eat at least a small portion of everything you serve. When I was young, I didn’t much care for turnip greens, but after years of eating my greens, I grew to love them! It is possible to train - or even retrain - your taste buds! Ever heard the term “acquired taste?” This is because some foods do take a certain level of “getting used to” before you fully enjoy them. When planning your grocery shopping, go through your coupons for bargains on items you regularly purchase or would like to try. Use coupons as much as possible, but always compare prices and brands. Store brands very often are as good a quality as the name brand product. By in bulk those items that you use frequently when they go on sale. You can begin using a price book(3) and track sales and sale prices. Planning, shopping, and preparing meals should be a source of joy, of true contentment in your life. By planning ahead, you will know what you are going to cook each day. You won’t panic at 4:00 when you suddenly realize the dinner hour is approaching. Instead you will have prepared a balance meal. You will know that over the course of a week, your family has benefited from a variety of nutritious foods and that their bodies have been cared for. God has given you the awesome responsibility of feeding your family. Embrace it!  Click to Listen Free Printables for Your Household Notebook Pantry Inventory List

From Chaos to Calm: Day Thirty-Seven Cooking in the Kitchen Scripture Memory: “Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.” Philippians 3:19 (NIV) Download the .pdf version of this article. Do you enjoy cooking? I love to cook. I am always on the hunt for new recipes to try. My favorite shows to watch on TV are on the Food Network! Cooking for my family is very time consuming. Of course, we have five children living at home. The bigger they get the more food they eat. I also regularly feed my step daughter and her family. They live right down the street from us, so we are always asking them to eat with us - sometimes 4 or more times a week! So, there are ten of us regularly around the table. Holidays and other family get-togethers mean cooking for up to twenty– five people! I suppose it is a good thing I enjoy cooking! I think that part of enjoying cooking is knowing how to cook. I mean, it wouldn’t be much fun if I was always ruining a recipe or burning the food. I love to eat, and I know what I like to eat. I am not afraid to change a recipe if I don’t have all of the ingredients. When I left home, years ago, I really didn’t know how to cook very much. I had to learn. If you struggle with preparing food for your family, or if your recipes are the butt of many family jokes, perhaps it is time you really took the time to learn to cook. The foods you prepare and serve to your family - and friends - will leave a lasting impression on them. Food that is lovingly prepared stamps a seal of love on the hearts of those eating it. When people come to my house, they know they will enjoy the food and get plenty to eat. I don’t want anyone to leave hungry! Food is also about tradition. Traditions play such an important role in the day to day interaction of family members. Children thrive on tradition. During the holidays, I always make the same recipes - wonderful cheese crackers, date balls, snowball cookies, spiced pecans, and pumpkin pies. I also incorporate new recipes each year and favorites are repeated. But it is not just during the holidays that your family can enjoy food traditions. Make Saturday night “Taco Night” or invite family and friends over for Dad’s Famous Salsa and Monday Night Football can be a treat. It doesn’t really matter the food or the reason, just that it is familiar and comforting. As a wife and mother, food also plays a vital role in the health of your family. If your children are overweight, if you and your husband are overweight, or even if you were blessed by the “skinny gene,” your heart and health and their heart health is directly related to the foods you choose to serve. If you eat healthy but your husband doesn’t want to, you can greatly improve his health by learning to cook foods he likes in a healthy way. It is possible! Today, I just want to encourage you to really consider what you are preparing for your family every day. It is up to you to teach your children to eat healthy! Whole foods, fresh fruits and vegetables, and whole grains are essential to good health. You want to serve indulgent foods in moderation. Processed foods give very little in the way of good nutrition, and should be avoided as much as possible. I recommend learning to cook as much as possible from scratch. If you are unsure of what to do, get a good basic cookbook. Just start practicing! Schedule time each week to learn a new recipe. List areas that you might need to change: Cooking from scratch Eat more vegetables Eat less fat Eat less food Eat regular meals Cut out snacks Cut out late night eating Now, you may be saying, “This is too hard!” I know. It can be a great challenge to change our patterns of eating. Today, I just want you to begin thinking about it. But for now, just think about it. Pray about it. Ask God to help you overcome any struggles you have with your appetite. Click to Listen

From Chaos to Calm: Day Thirty-Six Mopping the Floor and More Scripture Memory: “Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it? And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbors together, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost. Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” Luke 15:8-10 Download the .pdf version of this article. In the parable of the lost coin, Jesus reminds us that no matter how far we walk away from Him, He is always and will always seek us out. Like the woman who rejoiced when she found her lost coin, all of heaven rejoices when on of God’s children repents and finds his way home. Sometimes, even believers have moments of weakness and regrets. I know how hurt I feel when I realize I was not in line with God’s will. It pains my heart to think of how little my faith can be at times! If it is God’s will for me and you to be keepers at home, caring for, and providing for our families, we are sinning if we are not doing those things we should be doing. I am not talking about those days when nothing goes right or everything seems to work against you. I am talking about day in and day out. God knows what is in our hearts. If we are not keepers at home within our hearts, there is no use in pretending otherwise. We should be rejoicing at the opportunity to serve and minister to our sons and daughters and our husbands. I am sure you have been working hard this week to get your kitchen clean and fresh smelling just as I have. There is nothing like waking up to a clean kitchen in the morning! I want to stress the importance of going to bed with a clean kitchen. It will start your day off right! Today, we will be cleaning the walls, the cabinets, and the floors. If you have children, this is a good day to incorporate them in your tasks. So, get your buckets out, fill them with sudsy water. My favorite all purpose cleaner is Mr. Clean. I use this to mop the floors and scrub walls. If you have wood finishes in your kitchen you will want to use a product such as Murphy’s Oil Soap. Begin with the cabinet doors and the walls. This is a perfect job even for the littlest helper! My favorite product ever for cleaning walls is the Magic Eraser. If you have not yet tried it, you need to! It is even perfect for the two year old who drew crayons on the wall. You can teach a lesson while having your child actually clean the mess! Before mopping the floor you will need to clear the floor of shoes, chairs, baskets, etc. and sweep really well. You can pre-treat stuck on spills with a spray all purpose cleaner. Older children can help mop the floors. The best clean is done on hands and knees. However, you can use a mop. I prefer the Libman mop myself, although, my children often scrub floors for me and I do not let them use the mop. If you are looking for a creative form of discipline try scrubbing floors! The kids will be able to serve their “time” and help with the cleanliness of the house. After each meal, remember to tidy the kitchen. Before you go to bed tonight, put away all clutter, food, and wash any leftover pots, pans, and dishes. Start the dishwasher if it is full. Sanitize your sink and change your dirty kitchen linens for fresh ones. Soak your sponges in the sink with hot water and a little bit of bleach. Make this a part of your nightly routine. If you are new to doing this on a regular basis, you may find you struggle some with making it a habit, but have faith! If you tidy up after each meal, this should only take a few minutes. I have never had to spend more than 15 minutes in the evening preparing the kitchen for the morning if I have kept up with it during the day. If you plan to bake muffins or pancakes or biscuits in the morning,

From Chaos to Calm: Day Thirty-Five Cleaning the Stove Scripture Memory: “So let us celebrate the festival, not by eating the old bread of wickedness and evil, but by eating the new bread of purity and truth.” 1 Corinthians 5:8 (NLT) Download the .pdf version of this article. Cleaning the Stove Top: Daily: 1. Begin cooking with a clean stove. 2. While cooking, wipe up any spills immediately as is safe. Do not try to wipe up spills if you will risk a burn. 3. For baked on food and grease, use a mild abrasive such as Bar Keepers Friend. 4. Always Wipe down the stove top as part of your daily kitchen clean up. * Cooking at high temperatures will cause food to spill and splatter more frequently.* Cleaning the Stove Top: Weekly: 1. Remove electric burners or gas burner grates and burner drip pans. 2. Place grates and drip pans in the sink. Spray with a fume free oven cleaner or other heavy duty cleaner and let soak. 3. Remove any excess food crumbs or spills. 4. Using a mild abrasive such as Bar Keepers Friend, sprinkle powder over baked on grease (often found around drip pan edges). 5. Wet a sponge or other cleaning cloth. 6. Squeeze out most of the moisture so it is not dripping, but leave very damp. 7. Begin scrubbing until the moisture is gone. Rinse and Repeat as needed until the stove top is clean. 8. Using a clean cloth or sponge, wipe down the entire outside of the stove, as well as under knobs. 9. Raise the stove top to clean underneath and proceed in a similar fashion until the underside is clean. 10. Line with aluminum foil, to prevent this step in the future. If you have already been lining your stove with the foil, simply replace with fresh foil. 11. Lower stove top. 12. Using hot sudsy water and your cleaning cloth or sponge, wipe the walls and cabinets around the stove to remove food and grease splatters. 13. Fill sink with hot water and scrub drip pans and/ or gas burner grates. Rinse. 14. After drip pans and/ or are dry, return them to the stove. 15. Wipe electric burners, while cool, with a damp cloth and return to stove. Cleaning the Oven: Weekly: *If you have a self cleaning oven, you should follow the manufacturer’s instructions for cleaning. Do not use commercial cleaning products in these ovens.* 1. For non-self-cleaning ovens, use a good commercial oven cleaner. The fume free ones are more pleasant to use. Be careful not to breathe the fumes, wear a dust mask if you need to. 2. Evenly coat the entire surface of the oven. 3. Allow to soak for the recommended amount of time. 4. Wearing rubber gloves, wipe out the oven using paper towels or an old rag. 5. Using a damp cloth, wipe out the stove to remove leftover residue. Click to Listen Free Printables for Your Household Notebook Our Schedule {Days of the Week} - This is for you folks out there who have a different thing going on each day - like me.

From Chaos to Calm: Day Thirty-Four Cleaning the Kitchen Appliances Scripture Memory: “He maketh the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the LORD.” Psalms 113:9 Download the .pdf version of this article. Cleaning the kitchen appliances. This has to be one of my least favorite jobs! However, it is something that must be done - and done frequently - in order to maintain a sanitary kitchen environment. As part of your weekly routine, schedule a day to scrub and clean the kitchen appliances. Since this involves cleaning out the refrigerator, a good day to schedule this task would be the day before you do your weekly grocery shopping. Some appliances, such as a food processor, a blender, or a juicer should be cleaned and wiped down each time you use them. This prevents the build up of grime and grease. Other appliances are more easily cleaned on a weekly basis. These are the appliances we will be looking at today. The Refrigerator 1. Unplug refrigerator. Manufacturers warn to unplug the refrigerator before washing. Be careful not to splash lights and wires while you are cleaning. 2. Remove food from refrigerator to the counter top. 3. Remove drawers and shelves. 4. Using hot sudsy water, wipe down the inside of the refrigerator. Be sure to clean the walls and inside the gaskets. Work from top to bottom. 5. For nasty stuck on spills, make a paste with water and baking soda. 6. Really hot water may crack glass shelves so be careful. 7. If you have mold or mildew in your refrigerator, use a bleach solution to disinfect. However, using too much bleach will cause the refrigerator to smell like bleach. 3/4 cup bleach to 1 gallon of water. Do not clean and disinfect in one step. Clean first, and then disinfect. 8. Wash the shelves and drawers with hot sudsy water and replace them when finished. 9. Wipe off any sticky food containers before replacing them in the refrigerator. 10. Plug the refrigerator back in when you are done. Microwave 1. Place a mug filled 3/4 with water inside microwave. 2. Heat water for 1 - 2 minutes. Allow the water to stay in microwave for another minute before removing. 3. Carefully remove water from microwave. You may want to use a towel or pot holders to remove the water. Caution is needed. 4. Remove glass plate (turntable) from microwave and place in a sink of hot sudsy water. 5. Use a sponge or damp cloth to wipe out microwave. Rinse as needed. 6. Wash glass plate. Allow to dry and return to microwave. Toaster Oven 1. Unplug toaster oven and remove crumb tray and empty into trash can. 2. Place tray in hot sudsy water and wash. 3. Brush remaining crumbs from bottom of toaster oven. 4. Use glass cleaner to clean outside of toaster over. 5. Return crumb tray. Toaster 1. Unplug toaster. 2. Empty crumb tray over trash can. 3. Use a sponge and all purpose cleaner to wash the outside of the toaster. Can Opener 1. Unplug can opener. 2. Remove can opener blade and wash in hot sudsy water or place in dishwasher. (You may want to clean this at the end of each day.) 3. Wash outside of can opener with a damp sponge and all purpose cleaner. These tasks may seem mundane, tedious, or plain out right drudgery. However, remember that as a virtuous woman seeking God’s will for your life, that whatever task is at hand is a task to be done with a willing spirit, and a cheerful heart. How would you feel if you no longer had a refrigerator to clean and no way to purchase a new one. Your life would be so different! We can praise God for simple things like refrigerators. Tomorrow we will look at how to clean the stove. For now, pour yourself a cup of herbal tea with lemon and sit back and praise God for a job well done! Tip: If you have stainless steel appliances, use baby oil, mineral oil, or olive and a flannel cloth to buff the stainless steel to a shine after cleaning.  Click to Listen Free Printable

Hello Ladies! I hope you are having a blessed day! I have to apologize again about the Spring Clean Challenge. I'm going to try to get it up this evening. Right now, I have to take my daughter to the hematologist. See you tonight! From Chaos to Calm: Day Thirty-Three Begin Cleaning the Kitchen Scripture Memory: “And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.” John 20:7 Download the .pdf version of this article. Perhaps you have never given much thought to the verse above. Jesus, our King and Lord, had just been resurrected. What was the first thing that he did? He folded the burial cloth that He had been wrapped in. Here is the Messiah, the One who has just given His life for our sins, and He takes the time to perform an ordinary task. Why? Our God is a God of order. It would have gone against His nature to leave a mess behind. I am suggesting that neatness begets peace. It demonstrates a deeper meaning. A house that is chaotic is not a house that represents the peace and sanctuary that is found in Him. We have discussed creating a routine for your day and setting up a daily schedule. Today we are going to begin the journey of getting your house in order room by room. We will begin in the kitchen. For this week, you should either set aside an entire day, or set aside a 1 - 2 hours a day depending on your needs. It is important to keep the kitchen sanitized and in good working order. Every surface where food might be placed, should be clean and free of germs. Guests will feel better about eating food that you prepare if it is evident that the kitchen stays clean. 1. The best way to get really organized and clean in the kitchen is to pull everything out of your cupboards. From spices to dishes to pots and pans, take it all out. You can do this in sections if you are satified with the arrangement of your dishes, pantry items, and such. Otherwise, pull it all out at once and carefully arrange the items in another room. Go through all of your belongings and decide what you really need. Some things may be appropriate for giving away or for putting in a yard sale. 2. Fill a dishpan, or the sink with hot water. Add a cleaner, such as Lysol, for really grimey messes. However, if your cabinets are wood, painted or stained, you may want to use a product such as Murphy’s Oil. 3. Wash the inside as well as the outside of your cupboards. If you have not done so before, line the shelves with pretty shelf paper. 4. When deciding how to arrange your dishes, keep these things in mind: Place items used frequently within easy reach. Items used every now and again, place on higher shelves. Place items near the area where they are used. Or, place items near the dishwasher to make putting them away easier. Use storage containers, baskets, or drawers to store plastic containers and lids. 5. Store pantry items where you will be able to easily see what you have in stock. 6. Items such as flour, sugar, cereal, dried fruits, oatmeal, etc. store better in jars. In our house, we store our dry goods in canning jars, or other glass containers. We have a set of pretty plaid lids that dress up the canning jars and make them special. For my flour and other large dry goods, I purchased vintage glass canisters and painted the metal lids to match my kitchen. Make your kitchen pretty where ever you can! 7. Once you have cleaned and reorganized your cabinets, clear everything from your counter tops. Spray with disinfectant and scrub dust, grease, and grime from them. Also, wash the walls between the upper cabinets and the lower cabinets. This assignment may take you several days. That is okay! Tomorrow we will continue in our task of cleaning our kitchens. It will feel invigorating when it is complete! In your prayer journal this week, ask God to help you work with willing hands. Click to Listen Extra Resources

Hi Ladies! I hope you had a good day. We had the funeral service for my father-in-law today. It was really a beautiful service. He was buried at the VA Hospital cemetery in Johnson City, TN. They gave him a 21 gun salute for serving in World War 2. It was a beautiful day... the sun was shining and it was so warm. Anyway, I didn't have time to get to the Spring Clean Challenge today. But it'll be back tomorrow! From Chaos to Calm: Day Thirty-Two The Sabbath Day Scripture Memory: “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Exodus 20:8-11 Download the .pdf version of this article. Today, I want you to reflect again on what God’s holy day means to you. Is it just another day for catching up on chores or do you set aside that time solely for worshiping your Creator? The Sabbath is not just a day for holy convocation. (1) It is a real 24 hour period in which we are called to put aside worldly cares and spend time with God. The fourth commandment begins saying, “Remember the Sabbath to keep it holy.” The fourth commandment in all its beauty is still relevant today! One of the most famous evangelists of all time, D.L. Moody said: “The Sabbath was binding in Eden, and it has been in force ever since. This fourth commandment begins with the word ‘remember,’ showing that the Sabbath already existed when God wrote the law on the tables of stone at Sinai. How can men claim that this one commandment has been done away with when they will admit that the other nine are still binding?” (2) By not setting aside the Sabbath as holy, we as Christians lose a tremendous blessing! There are many ways to keep the Sabbath holy and still enjoy the day. The Sabbath is a perfect day to enjoy being with your family while at the same time helping your children to learn more about God. Some of our favorite activities for Sabbath include: Afternoon walks Going door to door witnessing Visiting a park to enjoy God’s creation Playing games such as Bibleopoly or Bible Trivia Have a picnic and feed the ducks The Sabbath should bring you joy! Make a list of things you would like to do with your family this Sabbath. Or Print out this list of "100 Ideas for Making the Sabbath a Delight" here. “If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.” Isaiah 58:13-14 Footnotes: 1. Leviticus 23:3 tells us: “Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the Sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings.” 2. D.L. MOODY, Weighed and Wanting, page 47. Click to Listen Extra Resources The Preparation Day The Preparation Day: Part Two A Sabbath Day's Rest Jesus and the Sabbath What is Heaven Like? My Sabbath Activity Bag Are you on Pinterest? I love, love, love Pinterest. I currently have {almost} 10,000 pins! Would you follow me on Pinterest? Here are some of my favorite boards I want to share with you: The Proverbs 31 Woman Free Printables The Homemaker's Notebook Recipes to Try Get Organized So, have you been inspired to make the Sabbath a delight?

From Chaos to Calm: Day Thirty-One The Preparation Day: Part Two Scripture Memory: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.” Psalms 51:10-12 Download the .pdf version of this article. Last time I talked about the Preparation Day. I focused mostly on preparing our homes so that we can rest and so that our family is blessed by the specialness of the Sabbath. Today, I want to focus on preparing our hearts for the Sabbath. When God created this world, he saw a need, even in the perfection of the Garden of Eden, to give us the Sabbath. It was more than just a day of rest. It was to be a sign - a memorial, or in other words a weekly reminder of how great, a powerful, and majestic our God, our Creator is! (Exdodus 31:17) Jesus said, “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath.” (Mark 2:27). It was a gift for us. Has the day of worship come to be a regular day of the week, or is it truly a sacred day when the world is left behind and our hearts and our minds are solely focused on HIM? Too often families find themselves catching up on regular weekday activities after church. Lawns need to be mowed. Cars need to be washed. Laundry needs to be done. What happened to the Sabbath being sacred and holy? Is life so busy that we cannot take one day for our Savior? On the Preparation Day, spend time reflecting on what God’s day means to you. Ask God to renew a right spirit within your heart. It is a time of renewal, it is a time to walk away from the cares and the burdens of this sinful world and bask in the light of His face. By creating a mood of celebration in your home on the Sabbath, you will find an even greater blessing on your day of worship. Instead of making the Sabbath a time of B-O-R-I-N-G, make it a joy! We have a basket of special toys, games, and activities that only come out on Sabbath. I keep a special Sabbath bag full of quiet activities my children can do while sitting in church. Things like lace-up boards with nature scenes or of farm animals, a box a special crayons and Bible coloring pages, Bible story books. I periodically change the items for a fresh experience! Have the head of your household prepare a special prayer for the evening Sabbath meal. Light candles, and read a chapter from the Bible. Sing quiet songs of praise together with your children. Little ones especially enjoy this. The Preparation Day is about making your time of worship, extra special, meaningful, and sacred. Let your week revolve around your worship. You will feel very blessed!  Click to Listen Free Printable for your Household Notebook Do you want to keep your memories tucked away in a journal, but the thought of filling up page after page is overwhelming? I have the solution for you! My {Two Lines a Day "This is My Life" Journal}. Just two lines a day. Write down the most memorable part of each day. Two Lines a Day "This is My Life" Journal Could you do me a favor and pin this image {or the one above} to Pinterest or share it on Facebook? Thanks so much! How do you prepare for the Sabbath?