Money Matters!

The Basics of Family Home Storage

* Three - Month Supply

* Drinking Water

*Financial Reserve

*Longer-Term Supply

Financial preparedness is an integral part of provident living and

should be a part of every family's preparedness plan.  This can be 

difficult when it's all we can do to get through the month without

going into the red, but as is the case in most things, small efforts 

can bring large results. It's that "baby steps" principle that I'm so

fond of.

The following are the basics of family finances:

*Pay Tithes and Offerings

   Successful family finances begin with the payment of an honest 

   tithe and giving generously to help others in need.  The Lord has

   promised to open the windows of heaven and pour out great blessings

   upon those who pay tithes and offerings faithfully.  You can read

   more about our experiences in learning this principle here.

*Avoid Debt

  Spending less money than you make is essential to your financial

  security.  Avoid debt like the plague, with the exception of buying

  a modest home or paying for things like an education. Debt is easy

  to acquire.  Everywhere you look someone is trying to sell you 

  something on credit.  We live in a very materialistic world that

  encourages us to buy, buy, buy.  "Buy now, pay later" has become

  the mantra of this generation.  The idea of actually saving to make 

  purchases is foreign to many.  

  Debt is a crushing burden that can destroy your peace and your

  relationships.  Did you know that more marriages end in divorce 

  due to financial difficulties than any other reason?  It's scary and

  can be avoided.  If you already find yourself in debt, work to get 

  out.  Cut up those credit cards.  There are many programs that can

  help.  I especially like Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover. 

  It's good, old fashioned common sense approach works.  Of course

  it only works if you are willing to make the sacrifices required and

  change the way you view and use money. 

  I appreciate having a husband who has always been debt phobic.

  He has done a great job managing our finances in such a way that

  we do not have the strain of debt on our family.  On his fortieth

  birthday, his gift to himself and our family was to be mortgage free.

  He worked hard to make that happen and we have weathered the

  recent economic storms safely because of his foresight. We don't

  know what the future holds, but we know we have a home to live

  in.  That is peace.

•Use a Budget

 Budgeting is a dirty word to many, but can be the tool to help 

 you get out of debt and learn to live within your means.  Learn to

 keep a record of your expenses- write it all down. Once you 

 see where your money is going, challenge yourself to cut back.

 Learn to use cash and the envelope system- it's the basic way

 to budget and when the money is gone, you don't spend anymore.

 When I find that I'm spending too much on certain things (like 

 groceries or going out to eat) I go back to the envelope system 

 and spend cash only.  It's easy to overspend when you just swipe

 a debit card or write out a check- but using cash always reigns me 

 back in.  Budgeting requires discipline and it's good for us!  Dave

 Ramsey's program goes into great depth on how to do this.

* Build a Reserve

  Having some cash on hand is a good idea in any emergency.

  You may not be able to get to a bank or be able to use a debit

  card, so we should always have some cash set back. ( in small

  denominations)

  After paying tithes and offerings, we should pay ourselves before

  we pay anything else.  That money should go into savings and be

  used for emergencies only.  If you save a little money regularly, 

  you will be surprised how it will add up.  We should work until

  we have six months of living expenses in our emergency fund.

  That can seem like a daunting task, but little by little it will grow.

* Teach Family Members

   Teach your family members the principles of financial management.

   Kids need to learn how to make a budget and how to set financial 

   goals before they leave home.  They need to learn the principles of

   hard work, frugality and saving.  They need to know how to balance

   a checkbook and know the dangers of debt.    I wish I could go back

   and do this part over again.  We tried....but I think we could have

   done a better job at preparing them for the real world.

These are the basics of family finances and preparing a financial

reserve.  These thoughts are just the tip of the iceberg and you can

get more information on this at www.providentliving.org. along

with a free online course on family finances.  And check out that

Dave Ramsey program....it's a good one.

*MYOF Goal #18 - Work on monthly storage and preparedness goals.

  

Just Add Water

The Basics of Family Home Storage

* Three - Month Supply

* Drinking Water

*Financial Reserve

*Longer-Term Supply

Water is essential.  A person can go without food for several weeks

(hope I never have to!), but they can only survive for a few days
without water.   Water storage is an important part of our preparedness
plan. Our water supply can be disrupted or polluted at any time.
We get our water from a well.  I love it.  Our water is awesome.  But
we've had to rely on our water storage a number of times.  When we lose
electricity, we lose the ability to pump water into our home.  We've also
had our well run dry on occasion.  Usually within a few days, we are up
and running again, but our water storage has come in handy.

We store water in a couple of different ways.  I buy bottled water when 

it is on sale and keep plenty of this on hand.   The gallon jugs can leak
over time, so I use those first.  We also store water in these large containers.
Each one holds seven gallons.  Two for each person covers the minimum
required amount and then we have the bottled water also. I bought these
at Walmart in the camping section.

Empty plastic bottles from soda and juice can be cleaned and used to

store water.  Milk cartons aren't recommended, because they leak.

If your water comes directly from a good , pretreated source then no
additional purification is necessary.  If you're unsure, then it should be
purified before drinking.  Water can be boiled for 3-5 minutes to kill
most water borne microorganisms.  You can also add 1/8 t. of house
hold bleach to every gallon of water.  Make sure and use plain bleach,
without special fragrances added.  I add bleach to my large water
containers.  If you normally drink well water, you might be able to
detect a faint amount of chlorine in the water.  If you're a city dweller,
you're probably used to that anyway!  Either way- you will be grateful
to have it.

FEMA and other emergency services recommend we have a two week
supply of water in our homes.  Fourteen gallons per person is a good
amount to start with, which seems like a lot until you realize that's only
a gallon a day - for drinking and personal use.  We are spoiled in our
society and are accustomed to an unlimited amount of fresh, clean water.
We may not always have that luxury.

Wouldn't it be a good idea, to make the effort to prepare your
family for an emergency by having some water stored in your home?


*MYOF Goal - #18  Work on monthly storage and preparedness goals.

A Well Stocked Pantry

The Basics of Family Home Storage

* Three - Month Supply

* Drinking Water

*Financial Reserve

*Longer-Term Supply

It's no fun to be half way into the evening's dinner recipe and then realize you

are missing a critical ingredient. You're positive you had a can of corn, but
after scrounging around in all the cabinets you come up empty handed.
This kind of thing makes me crazy!  And I've had to turn off the stove on
more than one occasion and run down to the store to get what I need.

This scenario can be almost completely eliminated with a three month supply
of food.  I say almost, because I still find myself running out of something on
occasion, but that's the exception instead of the rule.  Having a well stocked
pantry is a cook's best friend.  And that's all a three month supply of food is.

Working towards a three month supply begins when you are buying
groceries and instead of picking up a can of beans for your chili recipe,
you pick up three or four - especially if they are on sale.   If it's a killer
sale, buy a case.  Each week as you plan out your menus, (you do that right?)
make a list of what you need and then buy some extras.  Over time, you will
build that supply of food, working towards having three months of food
in your home.  This is the first step to having a food storage.

How do you know how much food your family needs for a three month
supply?  Here's one way to figure it out.

*Plan two weeks of dinner meals that your family would usually eat.
  You would rotate these meals so that you will actually eat each meal
   twice in a month.

  

Menu Examples        

  spaghetti

  chicken noodle soup

  tacos or taco soup

  beans and rice

  chicken pot pie

  shepherd's pie

  bean and burger casserole

*Then take each meal and decide what ingredients would be used to make

  that meal.   For example:   To make Bean and Burger Casserole I need,

  1 lb. hamburger

  1 can pork and beans

  1 can diced tomatoes

  worchestershire sauce

  onions

  2 to 3 strips of bacon 

  shredded cheese

This will make one meal.  But if I want to have the ingredients to make

this meal twice in a month I would double each of these things.  At this 

point I have a month's supply of food for this one meal.  Double it again

and I have two month's supply of food for this meal.  And in order to have

a three month's supply of food for this meal, I need the following:

6 lbs. hamburger

6 cans pork and beans

6 cans diced tomatoes

worchestershire sauce

onions

1 package of bacon

3 packages of shredded cheese

Now, here's the fun part (or not).  You need to do this for each meal. 

Then make up your master grocery list.  

You most likely will not go out and buy all this food at once, unless you 

have a hefty grocery budget.  But each week, buy a few extra  things and

before you know it you will have your own three month supply of food.

And you will love it!

Since these are meals that you will be preparing regularly, as you make
a meal, add to your grocery list each week, to replace the items you have
used.  Put the newly purchased item in the back of your supply, always
rotating to use the oldest first.  

Much of my food is stored in my upright freezer.  It was one of the best 

investments we ever made.  This allows me to store items like butter, cheese, 

fruits and veggies, fresh juice, milk, meats and breads.  This opens up lots
more opportunities for my three month supply.

Even if I don't follow the menu plan exactly each week, it is a good feeling 

to know that without going to the store, I could prepare food for my family

for weeks.  We would run out of some fresh items, but we would not go
hungry!

Another real benefit to having a well stocked pantry is you can buy things
on sale and save a lot of money on your groceries.  I rarely pay full price
for anything.  We are moving into that time of year when all the baking
supplies will be on sale and I'll stock up on everything from nuts, chocolate
chips and coconut, to basics like flour, sugar, salt and spices.  Last year, we
had a shortage in our grocery stores on canned pumpkin, but it didn't affect
me, because I had cans of pumpkin in my three month supply.  I'm telling you,
it's a good feeling to be prepared.

Tonight we had Bean and Burger Casserole for dinner.  It's one of my
family's favorite meals. Years ago,  I ran across this recipe in one of
those  "church ladies" cookbooks.  You know those church ladies know
how to cook some awesome food!  It's so easy and I keep the ingredients
in my three month supply.

I begin by browning a pound of hamburger (from my freezer storage).

After browning, I drain the meat and add a T. or so of Worchestershire sauce.

In a casserole dish ( I doubled the recipe for this large size casserole) place the

seasoned meat on the bottom.

Add a layer of pork and beans(from my pantry) on top of the meat.

Next place a layer of drained, diced tomatoes (from my pantry) on top 

of the beans.

I put chopped onions on top of the tomatoes.  If I have fresh onions, I 

definitely use those, but I keep freeze dried onions in my storage, so 

that I can always have onions for cooking.  They sure come in handy.

Today I used some of the dried onions.  First I reconstituted them in

a bowl of water and then after a few minutes, drained them and squeezed

the water out.

Then you start over again with the layers.

Meat.

Beans.

Tomatoes and onions.

Top with a few slices of bacon.(from my freezer storage. I found it

on sale for $2.99 a package- for organic, thick sliced bacon!  Yes, I 

bought every package they had and put it in the freezer.)

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until the casserole is bubbly and

the bacon has cooked and is crispy on top.  Then add shredded cheese

to the top and return to the oven until cheese melts.

This makes your house smell wonderful while it is cooking and we

love it with mashed potatoes and corn, or broccoli or fried okra (which

is what we had tonight, from my freezer storage).  It's a comfort food

meal and for us it's a food storage meal.  My twenty five year old son

who was here for dinner tonight, said, "Bean and Burger Casserole! 

It's my favorite!"  Now how cute is that?

Start today, make out those menus. And the next time you go grocery

shopping, pick up a few extra items and before you know it, you will

have a three month supply of food.  It's a smart thing to do and will be 

a blessing to your family and quite possibly to others. 

For the next few months, I'm going to take my own advice and work 

on my three month supply.  With adult kids shopping in my storage(that's

part of the reason I have it) and feeding a lot more people than normal, my 

storage has become low and I want to have a full pantry heading into 

the winter months.   My husband informed me this week that we only

had one jar of peanut butter left in storage.  Now, that could be a 

disaster.  Around here, peanut butter is one of the staples of life!

"The ants go marching one by one......to the grocery store."  :)

*MYOF Goal #18 - Work on monthly storage and preparedness goals.

The Ant and the Grasshopper

 

Do you remember the fable about the ant and the grasshopper?  It 

concerns a grasshopper who spends the summer playing music and 

singing while the ants are busy gathering and storing food for the winter.

When the winter is upon him, the grasshopper finds himself starving 

and when he asks the ants for food, he is rebuked for his idleness. 

The story is used to teach the virtues of hard work and saving.  One

of the morals of the story is "To work today is to eat tomorrow." 

In the book of Proverbs we read:

"Go to the ant, you sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise,

 which having no captain, overseer or ruler, provides her supplies

 in the summer, and gathers her food in the harvest." Proverbs 6:6-9

There was a time when a family had to work hard to put up food

for the winter, because they couldn't run out to the store or a restaurant

whenever they got hungry.  Not many of us live this kind of life now,

but the principle of preparing is still essential.  Life as we know it,

could be threatened at any time, and it might become impossible to

"run to the store" for dinner.  And if you could get to the store, you

might be shocked to see the shelves empty.

September has been declared National Preparedness Month by the

Department of Homeland Security.  You can check out FEMA's

site here to learn more about that and here's a few more really good

sites to help you understand how to prepare your family for upcoming

emergencies.

Center of Disease Control 

American Red Cross

In our family, preparation is a part of our life style.  It's not something

we focus on one month a year, because the government thinks it's a 

good idea.  It is a good idea, and I'm glad to see so many people starting

to catch on. But for us, it's part of living providently and something we've

been doing since we were married.

I had the opportunity to teach a basic Home Storage class to some Spanish

speaking members of our church congregation a few weeks ago.  No, I

was not blessed with the gift of tongues on that evening.   I had an

interpreter and he did a great job.  I enjoyed working with them and 

helping them understand how to get started with home storage.

In honor of National Preparedness Month and because none of us want

to be a "grasshopper", right?, I thought I would take the next few posts and 

explain the basics of home storage.  I hope it will be helpful to those who

need to begin a storage program in their own home, for their family.

In an emergency situation, the first thing you want to have is your 72 Hour

Emergency Kit.  You can go here to learn more on how to put this together.

The following plan is for normal, everyday, "ant like" behavior.

The Basics of Family Home Storage

* Three - Month Supply

* Drinking Water

*Financial Reserve

*Longer-Term Supply

Three Month Supply - Build a small supply of food that is part of your

normal, daily diet.  One way to do this is to purchase a few extra items

each week to build a one-week supply of food.  Then you can gradually

increase your supply until it is sufficient for three months.  These items

should be rotated regularly to avoid spoilage.

Drinking Water - Store drinking water for circumstances in which the

water supply may be polluted or disrupted.

Financial Reserve- Establish a financial reserve by saving a little money 

each week and gradually increasing it to a reasonable amount.  

Longer-Term Supply- For longer-term needs, and where permitted,

gradually build a supply of food that will last a long time and that you

can use to stay alive, such as wheat, rice and beans.

More on each of these to come......

*MYOF Goal #18 - Work on monthly storage and preparedness.

Knitting Makes Me Say Bad Words

Knit one, pearl two.  Knit one, pearl two. Knit one, "#@!! "

I don't usually have a problem saying bad words....but this
knitting thing....well, it's testing my resolve.

I've been taking a knitting class with a nice group of  women
and an incredibly patient knitting instructor.

That's Amy on the left end, back row.  She has been knitting for years and is
very talented.  You can check out some of the classes she teaches here.  She's
also working on her own blog spot (more info. on that later). Next week, she
starts another class at BRCC on knitting socks.  She may have room left,
if your interested.

This "New to Knitting" class was supposed to teach us basic knit stitches,
how to purl, yarn and fabric characteristics, needle selection, project
troubleshooting and pattern reading, all while completing the sampler scarf
that Amy designed.  And, all in four two hour sessions.   Too good to be
true?   Well, with my skills (or lack of), it was a little too good to be true.
I think I needed eight classes.  But I did learn some of those items on the
class syllabus.

* First of all - I can "cast on"  like nobody's business!  This is because I kept
   starting over, every time I would mess up.

*I can also do the garter stitch (which I already kinda knew how to do, so
   maybe that doesn't count?).  I've had lots of practice with this and feel
   comfortable with it now.

* I learned there are two methods to do the garter stitch - the English
   method (which is how I learned) and the Continental method.(which
   is what I want to learn- it's a lot faster!)

* I learned how to purl!  That's exciting.  Now I know what it means
   to knit one, purl two, etc.

* I know the difference in needles and why you use certain needles for
   certain yarns.  That was all revelation to me.  I also learned the cute
   little bamboo needles I bought are a hundred times better than the metal
   Walmart variety.  I learned you could spend an awful lot of money on
   pretty yarn and knitting tools.

* I learned about yarn types.  Natural, synthetic and blends and the different
   weights.  I learned how to read a yarn label.Before this class,  I thought you
   just picked a color you liked and something that felt good....

* I leaned knitting vocabulary and how to read a basic pattern.

* I learned about gauge. This is the number of stitches and rows
   per inch. Different yarns knit to different gauges and the same
   yarn knits to different gauges depending on your size of needles.
   Also, different knitters knit the same yarn on the same needles
   at different gauges, depending on their individual stitches.

Amy used these cute socks she's knitting to demonstrate gauge and 

the difference the size of needles makes on your project.

(Doesn't she have pretty hands?)

I'm dying to make some of these socks, but I must stick with this

scarf until it's completed!  That's my goal.

*I learned the stockinette stitch.

*I learned how to "bind off", using a swatch that I had knitted for this purpose.

So you can see, I learned a lot of things.  The only thing I didn't learn
well enough was the section on "project troubleshooting".  This is where
the bad words come in.  When I'm moving right along and having a great
time knitting and then I mess up.  "#@!!"  Because I don't know how to
fix it. And then I'm paralyzed.

Each week, I've been taking my project to Amy and saying, "help!"
In her sweet,calm voice she comforts me by saying, "oh, you just
dropped a stitch and split your yarn."  And then she fixes it for me!
But now the classes are over and I don't have Amy to fix my mess ups.
So I get a little panicked, which seems to bring on those bad words.
But I've noticed this isn't a problem specific to me.  I heard a few little
words slip out of my knitting buddy's mouth too. :)

Isn't she cute?  We had fun learning together. I liked knitting with
Deborah, because we were both true beginners.

Dee, on the other hand, was not a beginner and completed her scarf
in record time. Why she was in this class was beyond me, but it
was nice that someone completed a project.  It gives hope to the
rest of us.  Our little class is considering getting together from time to time
and knitting and it will be nice to have Dee there to answer our questions.

I'm looking forward to finishing my scarf, so I can take another one
of Amy's classes.  I don't know how long it's going to take because
I've got to learn how to fix my mistakes!  Amy said I should knit a
swatch and just keep messing up and fixing it, over and over until
I feel comfortable with it.  The messing up part isn't a problem, it's
the fixing itt, that's got me puzzled.  Thank goodness for U tube
and my Knitting book from class.  I'll hang in there and hopefully
I'll figure it out.

I really want to, 'cause there are all kinds of things I want to make
( first I want to finish this scarf while it's cold weather and I can
wear it) and because I think knitters are some of the nicest people
I've ever met.  They are calm and gentle and, like I said, really nice.
And they don't usually say bad words.   I want to be like that. :)

*MYOF Goals - #7  Meet twelve new people.
                                 #21 Knit a scarf.

Celebrate Autumn

"It's the most wonderful time of the year."

I know that's a Christmas song....but I feel that way about autumn.
Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas, but there's something about
the colors, the weather, the tastes and scents of autumn that just
get me excited. After a busy summer of hard work and play, fall
suggests to me, "slow down and rest a little."  I'm ready! 

Here's some of the things I'm looking forward to this season:
*picking apples at the orchard
      preserving apples, making apple pies and other yummy
      "appley" things
* burning my favorite pumpkin spice candle
* hiking in the woods, hearing the crunch of leaves under feet
* going leaf peeping
* sitting by a crackling fireplace
* carving a pumpkin
* decorating my house for the season
* making and eating lots of soup
* wearing socks and sweaters
* planting fall bulbs
* drinking apple cider
* buying books at the Friends of the Library sale
* collecting colorful leaves
* making pumpkin pies and other yummy "pumpkiny" things
* completing and wearing my knitted scarf
* attending a football game - watch my nephews play
* taking the field trip of a lifetime (Israel)
* going to the Mountain State Fair

What's on your "to do" list this fall?

The Truly Educated Never Graduate

In the "back to school"spirit of things, and because I taught a class
on this subject this weekend, I thought I would share some of my
ideas for lifelong learning.

Remember when you were in school and you were supposed to

go on a field trip?  Weren't those the best days?  Out of the classroom
and into the real world, even those activity buses weren't so bad.
Learning was exciting.  This is how I feel about post graduate education.
Life is a field trip with something new to learn around each corner.

I've been out of the "school" scene for a long time now, but that doesn't
mean I have lost the desire to learn.  At times I toy with the idea of going
back to school.  Who knows, maybe that will be a goal for my year of fifty-one.
I am however, convinced there is a lot of good we can do in the world
without a degree and there are numerous ways to self educate.

The truly educated never graduate.

No matter how old we are, we can be actively learning and growing.

Michelangelo, at age 87, said "Ancora imparo.", which for those of
us who don't speak Latin, means "I am learning still."  Yep!  I'm right
there with you Michelangelo.  Everyday of my life, I am learning.
Some lessons are harder than others.

And here's a prescription for remaining youthful.

"Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. 
    Anyone who keeps learning stays young.       
    The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.”                 
                     Henry Ford

Ten Ideas (+1) for Life Long Learning

1. Hang out with smart people.

    They are everywhere. 

     Also, hang out with people who love to learn.  It's contagious.

2. Ask lots of questions. Be curious.

    Especially when you're with those smart people.   Listen and learn.

3. Try to learn one new thing each day.

    It can be anything from which kind of apple makes the best pies, to

     what kind of bug is eating your lettuce in the garden.  

4.  Do things you are afraid of doing - push yourself out of your

     comfort zone.  

     This is huge and it can require courage, but I find it's always worth it.

   

5.  Write things down.  Write a lot. 

     Even if you think you stink at it. 

     I'm not implying that you stink at writing- but I feel like I do and

      because I can be a bit of a perfectionist, I don't like to do things

      I stink at.   So I have to make myself keep at it.  I'm finding the 

      practice helps.  Journaling and list making and just keeping a 

      "common place" book are all ways to help us learn.

6.  Be reading something all the time. 

     Read newspapers, magazines, blogs, biographies, fiction, nonfiction.

     Even the backs of cereal boxes can be enlightening.

     Join a book club.  Share your thoughts with others. (this is so fun!)

     "You will be the same person in five years as you are today

      except for the books you read and the people you meet."

                                   Charles Jones

      Don't have time to sit down and read a book?  Listen to books on CD

      while you drive or exercise.  You'll be amazed at how many books 

      you can "read" while driving around town doing errands.

7.  Watch worthwhile tv.

      Be very discriminating about what you watch.  There are some really

       good programs out there and there are some awful ones too.  Our

       time is too valuable to waste on junk.   

8.   Travel as much as you can.

      This isn't as easy as it used to be for me (contrary to what our dear

       President says, we are still feeling the recession at our house).

       However,  I love travel experiences so much, that I will budget for

       it before I buy other things.  And when I can't travel to faraway

       places, I can spend time with people who have.  Hey, I'll look at

       your vacation pictures anytime!  

       The distance we travel doesn't always dictate our ability to learn

       something new.  Have you thoroughly explored the area you

       live in?  Sometimes a field trip across town can be a cultural

       experience.  Or for that matter, how about your neighbors?

       Do you know them well enough to be familiar with their interests

       and hobbies?   We can learn from everyone!

9.  Don't be afraid to be around people who are different 

     from you.

     This kinda goes along with stepping out of your comfort zone.

      We tend to enjoy hanging out with people who look like us, live 

       like us and have our same beliefs.  We miss out on so much when

      we do this.  Open your world and enjoy all God's children.

10. Take classes.

     Sign up for some continuing education classes, online classes or

      classes offered in your community.  There are so many talented 

      people who are willing to share their gifts with others.  It's fun to

      take a class and meet new people.

     I've ordered a number of The Great Courses over the years.  

     These are CD's or DVD's with high school and college level

     lectures on every kind of subject you can imagine.  I watch for  

     the sale items and have even put these on my Christmas wish

     list.  

     A most exciting discovery is the website- Academic Earth.

     One of the students in my class Saturday recommended I check

     it out.  I did and I was like a kid in a candy store looking at all the

     offerings of free college courses from Harvard, Yale and other

     universities. Now, it remains to be seen if I can understand any

     of it, but this definitely qualifies for hanging out with smart people.

     I won't really be hanging out with them....but you know what

     I mean.  And did I mention that it was FREE? 

11. Listen to TED talks online.

     These are amazing.  I love the one by Jamie Oliver and I just

      listened to J.K. Rowling give the commencement speech

      at Harvard.  Very, very interesting stuff.

I now find myself in the season of life that lends itself to having

more time for these kinds of pursuits.  But regardless of our 

situations, we can all be learning and growing if we have the

desire to do so.  Remember life is a field trip and if we look for

ways to learn something new, even a visit to the farmer's market

or the hardware store can be an education. 

I would love to hear what you've been learning lately?

Picking Up The Pieces

After a crazy, busy weekend, it's time to pick up the pieces
around here.

Isn't it amazing how quickly everything falls apart, when you just
keep running in and out the door depositing items on the first level
spot you come to?

But it was so worth it.

And now I'm going to get busy......trying to restore order.
Happy Monday!