It's coming!

What's coming you ask? The Ultimate Healthy Living Bundle! It goes on sale this coming Monday November 4th! I can't wait for you all to get in on this!

Watch your inbox and My Blessings Homeschool Facebook page for more info on Monday. Have a blessed weekend everyone!

31 Days of Encouragement: How can you encourage someone?

We've made it to the end of October! Can you believe it? Each day this month I've shared with you a variety of ways to find encouragement or encourage others. The best place to look for encouragement is God's word but there are other places around us where we can find it as well, church, music, online or family. 

It's my prayer and my challenge to you that you find ways to stay encouraged in your walk with Jesus. Not only that though but find ways you can encourage those around you! 

A compliment can encourage your spouse. Pointing out something your child did well can encourage them to keep trying. A helping hand to a neighbor or friend, a card in the mail just because or a phone call just to chat. There are so many ways that we can encourage one another. The best part? They'll feel great and so will you! The world is a tough place to be in but if we do as 1 Thessalonians 5:11 says we can lift each other up! 

Photo Cedit

Then Sings My Soul

I've shared with you all several ties this month  about songs that encourage me and I wanted to share a few more with you today.

Brandon Heath's Hands of the Healer

This song talks about worry. The Bible says "Be anxious about nothing" Easier said than done i know. Brandon Heath reminds us though that if we're praying about something, He has it handled and we shouldn't be worrying about it.

You may recognize this song from the movie "Fireproof" This song lifted my spirits so much last year when my husband struggled with depression and anxiety. He wasn't involved or engaged with our family and I was just having a rough time. This song reminded me to keep doing what I knew I should, worship the Creator and praise Him even though things weren't easy and wait for Him to do His work. 

 

One last song. Put it on and sing along! 

Have a blessed day! What songs encourage you? 

Winter is Coming

Winter is coming! Do you find yourself complaining about the cold days to come like I do? Living in Ohio we have long winters. Although not near as long as our friends in the New England states or Canada. I love fall and all the fun that comes with it but I find myself mentioning winter on it's way and then find myself complaining about it. If your kids are like mine they go stir crazy in the winter! Everyone is cooped up so much and all of that energy has no where to escape to. 

Then I have to remind myself of this verse from Genesis 8.

God gave us ALL four seasons of the year for a reason and we should ENJOY them! Yes winter is cold, snowy and we're stuck in doors the majority of the time. BUT think of the good things about winter! We aren't as busy, with the exception of December, so we can slow down and enjoy our families. The Christmas season brings family together that you don't see throughout the year, you can get school accomplished without the kids constantly asking to go outside and winter makes us appreciate the other seasons that much more.

 Once spring comes along I am so very thankful that God brings new life to the Earth each year. Without those winter months I don't think I would appreciate the newness and the warmth as much as I do when it finally does arrive.

So here's my challenge to you today. When you think about winter approaching and catch yourself complaining. Stop, thank God for the seasons for they will always continue in their cycle and then think about the things you are grateful for instead of the negative. 

What do you love most about winter? 

Psalm 23

I  don't know about you but I listen to the radio quite a bit. You've probably noticed that I've posted several songs this month as forms of encouragement. To me that's the best way to lift my spirit. I just put on some praise music and sing away! 

A few days ago when i once again had the radio tuned to a favorite Christian station they had a message that I really liked. The woman read Psalm 23 and had a message for us all.

That message was a reminder to slow down every now and then and take time to enjoy life and relax. It's so very easy to get caught up in the every day hustle and bustle  of work, caring for our families and everything else vying for our attention. But that's not the way God intended us to be.

He wants us to take time to relax and "lie down in green pastures" or lead us by still waters. Now that doesn't mean we have to do exactly those things but it does serve as a reminder that our lives aren't supposed to be the constantly stressful, hectic lives we often lead.

Take a few minutes each day to relax and sit at His feet.

Naturally Healthy Mama Giveaway

Happy Monday! I've teamed up with a bunch of awesome Christian bloggers this week to bring you a great giveaway !  Be sure to check out all of the awesome prizes, enter and share with your friends.

This time of year, Mamas are especially busy, busy, busy with school, the holidays, and nursing their families through the cold and flu season. 

To help, the following group of Christian natural living bloggers teamed up to bless a mama who needs extra attention so she can continue being a blessing to her family.  

Simply Foody
A Mama's Story 
Beauty in the Mess 
Bold Turquoise
The Entwife's Journal
My Blessings Homeschool
Thankful Homemaker
Raising Mighty Arrows
Home with Purpose

A Proverbs 31 Wife
Jill's Home Remedies
Blessed in Homemaking
Raising the Barrs
Good Old Days Farm
Just So
Day 2 Day Joys
For Journey's Sake
Natural Herbal Living
Your Thriving Family
Growing Slower
The Encouraging Home
The Modest Mom
Smithspirations
Little Natural Cottage


These ladies want to provide a mama, expectant mama, and even a woman who hasn't yet been blessed with children, with materials to keep her healthy, strong, and make positive lifestyle choices.

Check out the following fabulous items put together for our winner. :) 

1) A copy of Trim Healthy Mama ($35 value), sponsored by Jill's Home Remedies, Raising Mighty Arrows, For Journey's Sake, and Little Natural Cottage

2) A bottle of Young Living Peppermint Oil ($28.29 value), sponsored by Beauty in the Mess

3) Making Babies DVD Set ($110 value), sponsored by Bulk Herb Store.

4) Two 1 hour long private consultations or classes by a Birth and Postpartum Doula for anything related to pregnancy, birth, postpartum, babies, cloth diapering or attachment parenting. ($50 value), sponsored by Bold Turquoise.

5) Alcohol Free Hand sanitizer, 2 oz., sponsored by Vision Herbs and Gifts ($4.50 value)

6) A Beginner's Guide to Assembling a Natural Medicine Cabinet and 4oz Eden Salve from Bulk Herb Store ($25 value), sponsored by Thankful Homemaker

7) Shea Cream ($15 value), sponsored by Just So.

8) Natural Herbal Living Herb Box ($44 value), sponsored by Natural Herbal Living.

9) Owie Balm ($10 value), sponsored by Your Thriving Family.

10) Natural Birth Stories paperback ($18.95 value), sponsored by Growing Slower.

11) T-Tapp Basic Workout DVD ($35.95 value) Plus Essential Chefs Cookbook ($27 value), sponsored by The Encouraging Home.

12) L'Bri natural skin care and cosmetics: skin care sample kit and Holiday Makeup Compact ($17.95 value), sponsored by The Modest Mom.

13) A bottle of Young Living Thieves Oil ($44.41 value), sponsored by A Mama's Story.

***And a BONUS giveaway for a 2nd winner***

Serene and Peal of Trim Healthy Mama, are generously giving away an e-book version of Trim Healthy Mama!

So enter for your chance to win below and while you're at it, learn about some fabulous natural living bloggers who would be honored for the opportunity to encourage and inspire you on your journey.

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How Can Those Who Have Not Heard Believe?

I taught children's church this morning and since we had a guest speaking about his upcoming missions work I decided to go over a few verses with the children about missionary work. The words from Romans 10 really stuck out in my mind. 

These words are stuck in my mind today which is why I decided to share them with you. 

These verses don't just pertain to those interested in being missionaries though. They are important for US too! How many in your extended family don't know Jesus? how many coworkers, neighbors, friends? For me personally I have many many people in my life whom i could share my Lord and savior with! 

His words also remind me of something that Billy Graham is encouraging Christians to do with My Hope America. They are televising, hosting a web cast and making DVDs of a program to help us as Christians share the gospel with our friends and family.

"Culminating in November 2013, My Hope America is a series of videos designed to clearly present the Gospel with life-changing testimonies & powerful messages from Billy Graham. Share these programs with friends, family, and neighbors today." (from the My Hope America website) 

My encouragement or more so my challenge to you today is to share Jesus with those around you whether in your own way or by using My Hope America to help! We don't have to be in the remotest ends of the Earth to find those who are lost, they are all around us! 

What have you done to share your faith with those around you? 

Weekly School Update 10/21-10/25

Another week down! Here's some things we did this week.We are headign out to a gathering with our homeschool group but I wanted to do a quick update. Mostly pictures this week! Have a wonderful weekend!

Baby Days

Preschool and Kindergarten

We worked on the letter H for horse this week. We watched videos on the letter h and did horse crafts. Hunter and Natalie also did a fall book called "I see fall. Hunter is starting to really get the CVC words down and has asked for reading first thing all week! We are both quite excited about that. 

On Friday we made pancakes and a letter "H" to end the week.

4th Grade

We're in BRAZIL! The kids have all had a lot of fun this week learning about the rain forest animals! We read from our science books, watched You Tube videos and they are all very interested in this climate zone. 

We played the Geography Game from MFW for South America which proved a challenge for Chelsea and we also played the North America board for review.

Things are continuing to go go well with Easy Peasy for reading and math, She really had fun with Friday's game on syllables. 

One Word Update

I'm a little late this month but better late than never. Right? So here we go.Our visitors left shortly after my post last month so it took some time to readjust to it just being the six of us again. We took a week off of school to just de-stress. Here's how I'm doing with my goals.

Reading
Really struggling with this one! I keep finding so many other things to "do" during the day that I'm just not making the time to get it done like I know I should. Time to refocus and figure out a plan of action that i can actually stick to.I did get the Wayfinder's Bible which is pretty neat in that it has Bible reading plans right in it so I may try out one of those.

School
Plugging along and doing pretty well. Hunter is starting to red CVC (consonant, vowel, consonant) words which we are both quite excited about!
We switched up some things for Chelsea which seems to have really helped her mood and attitude toward school.
Natalie just has such a desire for learning and always gets so excited for school! and just eats it up. When we started homeschooling 3 years ago my youngest was 9 months old so it was quite different than having such a little one! We are having fun though and learning to be more flexible with my schedule.

My House
Oh boy, school, 3 month old who loves attention and a tired mama= not the neatest of homes. Trying to keep up has been hard lately. Tiredness from waking up every 3-4 hours is starting to show. The kids help with chores and I just wrote a post tonight about how they pitched in and helped without being asked. We'll get there. Slowly but surely.

I did go and organize the girls room last week! Since the move I haven't really organized the kids rooms. With a newborn I didn't unpack anything. All the amazing helpers we had brought stuff in and my husband unpacked the living room boxes but I'd never organized the kids room so I was on a mission!

How are things going in your neck of the woods? 

Blessed by My Children

Ever have one of those days where you're just tired and overwhelmed? I'm sure you have, any mom will admit she's had days where she just felt like it was all too much to handle.That was me yesterday. Three months of not much sleep, trying to keep up on the house, 3 other kids, pets and homeschooling and I just felt "done', tired and very overwhelmed. 

While I was making dinner later in the day my son decides he's going to go clean the bathroom and my oldest wanted to use her Easy Bake oven so she did the dishes in the kitchen. Now it may not have been done as well as adults would have done but the two of them taking the initiative and helping around the house without being asked was so uplifting and encouraging to me! A hug from my little princess and baby snuggles and I'm feeling much better! 

God knew just what I needed today and he used my children to bless me and encourage me when I needed it most. Remember next time you're feeling discouraged to look for little things in life that will make you smile and lift your spirits.

How have your children blessed you lately? 

A Mother's Love

Last night as I was going to bed and thinking about what I wanted to share with you I checked Facebook from my phone and saw this very sweet story posted by a mom from my church. Her daughter has battled cancer for the past 11 years and always amazes me with her faith and trust in God. I wanted to share the story she posted last night so here you go.

"Saw something beautiful today. A tired mother brought her thirteen year old severely, handicapped daughter into the radiology waiting room for a test. This daughter was dressed so carefully with her hair done beautifully and full of barrettes. The daughter, forever a toddler, was trapped in a big girl body and was fussing because she didn't feel well. That mother was so patient and tender as she took her out of her seat, held that big girl on her lap...rocking and singing to her in the waiting room. She considered it an honor to care for her daughter and continued to smile as she did so. This mother should challenge us all to see that even on the hardest of days your perspective can greatly change your actions...take time to be patient, smile and love on those in your life"


I pray this story touches you the way it did me, as a reminder to love my children with tender kindness and patience no matter what the situation may be. 

Photo via versaday.coom

Count Your Blessings

Proverbs 28:20  " A faithful man shall abound with blessings." 

This past winter my husband bought a few Guy Pinrod CD's If you don't recognize the name he's from the Gaither Homecoming tours. One of the songs on the CD has become a favorite of mine. After hearing it I'm singing it for hours after. 

So often we get so caught up in what's going on in our lives whether big or small that we forget to count the many blessings God has given us. It's important to think about, remember and thank Him for all of the gifts in our lives. 

Take a listen, count your blessings and have a blessed day! 

Struggling with Depression

I've posted about this a little bit before but I found a great resource I want to share with you. I know a lot of people who struggle or have struggled with depression, my mom, grandma, my husband last year and now my best friend. 

I know for me it's hard to understand the thought process that causes depression and anxiety. I had a very hard time being supportive of my husband when he first went through it. Seeing someone struggle with depression isn't fun or easy but I'm sure actually going through it is even harder.

 I was looking for resources for a friend a few weeks back and found this website. Just Joy Ministries. This ministry was founded by a woman who has struggled with depression herself and wants to help other women overcome it with God's help. One resource is a 21 days to Beat Depression.Each day has a Bible verse, some words of encouragement and then a step to take like listing things yo're thankful for. 

My hope and prayer is that if you or someone you know is struggling with depression or anxiety that this would be a  help. My prayer is that you may be a blessing to someone struggling whether by praying for them, sharing this resource with them or whatever other way you can think of. We all struggle with negative thoughts and emotions from time to time but with God's word we realize there is hope no matter what our circumstances.