Let Us Be Thankful - Instilling Gratitude In Our Children

**Farm Hunting Update:  Not much to post today except that the girls and I are the packing ROCK STARS!!!  Check out our before and after pictures!!***

Before



After

Packing Rock Stars!!

Let Us Be Thankful - Instilling Gratitude In Our Children

If you are like most American families, you are looking forward to Thursday's Thanksgiving celebration!  Thanksgiving is a time in which we share a meal...usually a rather LARGE one...with our family and friends and spend time being thankful for all that we have.  Most of us take time to think back over the past year and reflect on everything we have to be thankful for.

Thanksgiving is a great holiday full of fun traditions and has a nice motive behind it, but what about the other 364 days of the year?  What if you don't have family to celebrate with or a home to celebrate in?  Thankfulness always comes easier when our blessings are abundant, but what about when they are not? 

1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us to "give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."  Though we should always be thankful for every blessing that the Lord has given us, whether that is a trip to Disney World or a walk in the park, our thankfulness should not stem from these things.  As Psalm 107:8 says, "Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men!" (italics added) This is not dependant on our "stuff."

How do we, as parents, teach our children to, like the scripture says above, give thanks for His goodness and the works He does in others as opposed to just our possessions and circumstances?

Though our family has not mastered it, these are some things that have helped us:

Pray:  This will always be my number one tip in any parenting adventure!  We may not always know the perfect way to cultivate our children for God's plan, but He does!!  Just ask :)

Demonstrate Thankfulness:  Yuppers, this means you!!  Live your own life in accordance with the scripture that calls us to give thanks in all circumstances.  Is it hard?  Yes.  But also remember scripture  tells us in Philippians 4:13 that "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."  So come on!! You can do it!!

Pray Before Meals:  I know that some of you consider this cliche and I know that it can become a rote exercise. But taking time to thank the Lord for your food is a wonderful habit to have and rote exercise or not, it teaches thankfulness, no matter what is being served.

Teach the Difference Between Needs and Wants:  Teach this concept and teach it early!  It is so easy for children to think that everything they desire is a need. 

Don't Fall Into the "Life is Fair" Trap:  Please don't try and make everything "fair" for each of your children.  This will cause stress and an unnecessary amount of work for you and it teaches your children an unrealistic concept. 

If one child is invited to a birthday party, don't expect them to all be invited.  If one child receives a gift from a grandparent, don't run out and buy something for all of the other children.  We want our children to grow up finding joy in the Lord, not in things.  Teach them to be happy for others.

My two youngest daughters went to a birthday party a couple of months ago and when they got home, they noticed that DD#3's goodie bag had more candy than DD#4's. DD#4 began to complain about hers not having as much, so my husband proceeded to take her goodie bag away, never to be seen by her again.  We, as parents, used this as an opportunity to teach her that life is not fair and the she should be thankful no matter what circumstances she is handed.

Show Them the World Around Them:  It is easy to get caught up in all we have and the way we do things and forget that we are just a tiny part of the beautiful world God created.  There are many ways to do this such as travel, mission trips, volunteer work, etc. 

We volunteered at a downtown crisis center as a family this summer and encountered people from many different ethnic, social and economical backgrounds. I don't want my children to see others with less and think "Oh we are so blessed!  They have so little and we have so much."  I want my children to learn to see others the way Christ sees them and be thankful for them because God made them.

There are people with much more than we have and there are people with much less.  The point is to find our joy not in things, but in the Lord and once you do that, it is easier to give thanks in all circumstances. 

Do Not Allow Unthankful Words:  Our words have power to influence our heart and our heart influences our words.  When words of ungratefulness flow out, it is important to put a stop to them and investigate why they were there in the first place.  Is it a habit they picked up or a heart condition that you need to address?


Too often we fall into the trap of thinking we should teach our children to be thankful because we are so blessed materially, and, we are blessed for the most part.  Though we should be thankful for our material blessing, our thankfulness should not stem from them.  If it does, it becomes too easy to not be thankful when those things are taken away or lost.  We are called to be thankful in everything, in all circumstances. 

 

 

We only have to look around and see the goodness of the Lord in the trees, mountains, sunrise, and the wonderful works he does in others. This is how we can be thankful if we have a home to rest in each night, or a we live in a box.  Our thankfulness does not lie in what WE have or what WE do, but in what HE does!

Menu Monday - Happy Thanksgiving

***Farm Hunting Update - Not much has changed since yesterday :) 





 

 

    Lots of phone calls to make today to get questions answered. We have a lot to wrap up before the Thanksgiving holiday. But.....we searched around and found that boxes are cheaper at Home Depot!!  The packing has begun!!***

              

Menu Monday - Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

It is hard to believe that Thanksgiving is this week!  I am always overwhelmed with the amount of blessings that we have to be thankful for.  We have a home, food, transportation, William has a job, we live in a country and state that allows us to homeschool, we are all healthy, we have family around us, great friends, awesome church, and an abundance of love. 

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving week this week!! 

Here is our menu:

Monday Breakfast - Whole Wheat Banana Muffins/Eggs/Melons
Monday Lunch - We usually meet my mom for lunch on this day!
Monday Dinner - Sandwiches/Fruit (We have deep cleaning as a family after dinner on Mondays. We have found that if we all work together, we can get it done in about 1 1/2 hours and then we have a special "clean house" dessert!!)
Monday Snack - Mix of nuts, seeds and chocolate chips

Tuesday Breakfast - Eggs/Whole Wheat Biscuits/Hash Browns with Peppers/Citrus Fruit
Tuesday Lunch - Spinach and Feta Quesadillas/Apple Slices
Tuesday Dinner - Homemade Chicken Nuggets/Mashed Potatoes/Gravy/Green Peas
Tuesday Snack - Sonic Happy Hour Run for Slushies

Wednesday Breakfast - Whole Wheat Waffles/Peanut Butter/Strawberries
Wednesday Lunch - French Bread/ Peanut Butter/Honey/Raw Veggies/Fruit/Yogurt
Wednesday Dinner - Black Bean Nachos/Homemade Salsa (see below)/Tortilla Chips
Wednesday Snack - Peanut Butter Balls

Thursday Breakfast - Cinnamon Roll Pancakes
Thursday Lunch - Thanksgiving Lunch!!
Thursday Dinner - Leftovers!!
Thursday Snack - Lots of Yummy Thanksgiving Desserts!!

Friday Breakfast - Yogurt/Granola/Fruit/Nuts
Friday Lunch -Turkey Sandwiches (made with leftover turkey)/Zucchini Bites/Chocolate Milk
Friday Dinner - Potato and Cheese Soup (see below)/Homemade Bread
Friday Snack - Popcorn with Fresh Mozzarella

Today I have two EASY recipes for you that are soooo yummy!!!

The first is salsa.  Homemade salsa is very easy and economical to make. Here is how we make it:

Salsa

1 Red Bell Pepper
1 Green Bell Pepper
1 Tomato
1 Bunch of Cilantro
1 Large Onion
2 TBS Minced Garlic (or more if you like a strong garlic flavor)
1 30 oz Can of Crushed Tomatoes
1 - 3 Jalapenos
Juice from Jarred Jalapenos (if you have it and want spicy!)

Chop your peppers, onion and tomato down in order to make it easier for your food processor.  Place the peppers, tomato, cilantro, onion and garlic in food processor and chop on high.  Once that is chopped well, add as much of the crushed tomatoes as you need to in order to bring about desired taste.  We don't like a strong tomato taste, so we usually add about 3/4 of the can. 

Then add however many Jalapenos you like and the jalapeno juice to taste, chop it all again, and you are good to go!  I add no sugar or salt as I usually use the yellow, sweet onions and I think it sweetens it enough and personally I would rather not add the sugar.

Try new things with the recipe!  Add peaches or chipotle sauce one time and see what you think!!


The second recipe is Potato and Cheese Soup.  Now, I must forewarn you that this soup recipe is VERY easy and VERY yummy, but not healthy in any way, shape or form!!  We don't eat it often, but when we do it is a special treat and we all devour it!!

Potato and Cheese Soup

4 Cans of Cream of Potato Soup
2 lbs Velveeta - Chopped into cubes
Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Potatoes
Milk

Boil and cook several potatoes down until they are soft.  The number of potatoes you add is really just a personal choice.  If you like your soup more on the chunky side, add more potatoes.  We like chunky!!  Let them cool and then chop them into cubes.

Pour your cans of soup into a large pot along with the Velveeta and chopped potatoes.  Fill each empty soup can with milk and add to the pot.  Cook on the stove until the Velveeta is melted and add more milk if you like a thinner soup.  Then add sharp cheddar cheese to taste and you are done!!

I usually serve the soup with fresh bacon pieces, sour cream, extra cheese and chives for people to add.

I hope you enjoy the recipes and I pray you have a blessed week this week!!!

Beginning to Let Go

***Farm Hunting Update:  We had the home inspection on Friday and that went really well.  As Dreamer (DD #1) says, it is a real quality house.  The inspector told us that we would be hard pressed to find a better maintained 50 year old home.  The only issue that came up was with the a/c unit in the newer part of the house, but we are asking the present owners to fix the problem. 

 

We are still waiting on the septic inspection. ***

Beginning to Let Go

 

Having lived in our current home for over 13 years, we have a lot of memories here.  Two of my sweet girls were born while we lived in this house and each of the four girls have experienced most, if not all, of their childhood here. 

AcCOWntant Willie and I have spent a majority of our 19 year marriage together here.  We have great friends that live 2 doors down and my brother lives next door (see picture below).  We have had a good life in this home.



Happy birthday welcome in front of my neighbor (Bro!) house

 

When we bought this house we had looked at many, MANY homes.  AcCOWntant walked in the door here and said "this is it!"  I was not thrilled as it was smaller than most of the other ones we had looked at and there was no "Wow" factor here.  But he was certain that this was it, and poof, we were moving in!  In fact, we bought it without even having it inspected!!!

 This has been a great home for us.  In 13 years we have had no major issues with the house.  The a/c has, at times, acted up, but that is it.  And space wise, it has provided for all of our needs.  We love our home.

This past week we went through the storage shed, attic, closets and rooms to try and weed out anything that we do not need to bring with us.  I am pretty good about not hanging on to things we don't need or use, so this was probably a bit easier for us than most, but it was still difficult.



Why does organizing always look so messy??!!

 

What was difficult was not the sorting, organizing, etc.  It was the letting go.  We let go of so much stuff this week through garage sale, donation, trash.  We gave away the first couch that William and I bought (trust me, it was time!!).  We sold part of the first bedroom set we bought together.  I had to say goodbye to baby clothes, baby toys, and Barney movies.  Yes, it was hard, but we knew that it needed to be done.



Moving Sale!



Now we begin the process of letting go of our home.  No, we are not selling it, so we will maintain some part of it, but we won't be living here.  We won't wake up each morning to look out the back window and see the place where many Jedi battles were fought and fairy lands visited.

Baby (DD #4) the Jedi Princess

Bubble (DD #3) the Jedi!

 














We won't see the crack in the wall that has been there since the day we bought the house.  We won't see the playhouse that has been such an integral part of our children's lives. 



Many years ago, some of the girls and our neighbors painting the playhouse!

The spots where we have buried our pets will just become another part of the yard.  Our grapevines will become someone else's harvest.  Our neighbors will become someone else's neighbors.  And our home will become someone else's home. 

As we went through the inspection report on Friday, one of the current owners asked if she could stay and hear the report.  Of course we said that was fine, but the inspector warned her that it could be hard for her to hear someone point out everything that was wrong with the house.  She thought she would be okay with it, so she stayed. 

Each time he pointed out a flaw, she had a story for it!  She shared so much about the home we hope to move into!  Many stories and memories to go along with a broken piece of tile, a stain on the hard-wood floor, even a missing pipe on the hot water heater!!  I realized that they were beginning to let go too and for them, it must be an even harder process since they know that he has a terminal illness and this has been their family home for over 30 years. 

Letting go of things is hard.  But it is necessary.  Letting go of people is harder.  But sometimes we have no choice.  Letting go of life is hardest.  But something we must all face at one time or another. 

But don't fret, because there is an upside! 

Though we let go of some of the things, most of us are blessed to have what we need.  Though we have to let go of people, we don't have to let go of the memories.  And though we must all, at one point or another, let go of this life, we are given the choice of eternal life with God.

Sometimes we have to let go of what we have now, to free our hands up to accept what we have coming.



 

Getting ready to head out.....


 

....on a new....







LIFE ADVENTURE!!!!!

Clothes Vomit!

**Farm Hunting Update:  Well, we have begun the insane paperwork process for the mortgage company!  Stacks upon stacks of paperwork need to be done and of course we have a question about almost every single page.  We are trying to go through all of our belongings and get rid of a lot of stuff.  Tomorrow is garage sale day!!**

Clothes Vomit

Okay, I guess I did not have to use such a gross title, but honestly, that is what we have at our house!!  Clothes everywhere!  I know we have six people in our family and we all need to stay dressed, but REALLY!!  Do my two oldest girls need 26 sweaters?  Ummm.....I think NOT!

Much to some of my children's dismay, we are cleaning up the puke and scrubbing the floors in regards to clothes.  I searched and thought, and thought and searched for a list of clothing that the average child, teen and adult need.  Looking at all I found and thinking about our individual family's needs I came up with the following list:

Clothing List

• 7 pairs of white socks
• 1 pair each of black, brown and navy socks
• 1 pair of play shoes
• 1 pair of tennis shoes
• 1 pair each of dress shoes - black, brown, white and navy
• 1 pair of waterproof slip on shoes (we camp a lot and need these for the showers)
• 1 pair of boots
• 3 pairs of jeans
• 5 pairs of shorts
• 2 casual outfits of choice
• 2 nice outfits for church, meetings, etc.
• 2 pull overs
• 2 sweatshirts
• 7 long sleeve shirts
• 7 short sleeve shirts
• 4 play outfits (2 for warm weather and 2 for cold weather)
• 1 winter coat
• 1 dress coat
• 1 light jacket
• 4 pairs of pj's (2 for warm weather and 2 for cold weather)
• **now we also need undergarments, but my girls would probably take me out and beat me with a wet noodle if I discussed that number with you guys!!! :)**
• Debate Suit (this is for my older girls that compete in debate)
• 2 swimsuits
• 1 cover up

Now we had this great list (well, I thought it was great!!) and we gathered together to go through everything.  Boy howdy did I get a range of reactions.

Daughter #1 is my more practical child and she thought that my list was too long and we really could get by with less.  As she is explaining why, daughter #2 is looking like she is going to pass out at the mere thought of having to part with some of the gazillion outfits she owns!

Daughter #3 could really care less as I have to practically force her to even change clothes!  If it were up to her she would sleep in the clothes that she plays in.  And my baby girl, daughter #4 began to cry at the fact that she would have to try clothes on!!

Oh what great fun we had!!  :) 

So, we now have a list, four miserable daughters, trash bags, and donate and sale boxes.  I told the girls that anything they kept must be in good condition (stain free, no rips, etc.) and must fit well.  No use in wasting space on clothes that make you feel uncomfortable!!  And so we began!

It took stinking HOURS to go through everything!  Oh and to hear them think aloud through their choice process.  I was highly entertained just by sitting back listening to the self-discussions, crying, moaning and so on!  (If you have kids, you will totally get where I am coming from!!)

Finally they are done.  The stack of clothes that are keepers is much smaller than the stacks of non-keepers.  Not one of the children were harmed in this experiment (no matter what #2 says!) and I even took them for ice cream cones when we were done. 

 The final rule is that the clothing number stays the same. So if you get new clothes, you must get rid of old clothes. #4 received a beautiful shirt and sweater yesterday, so she had to choose a shirt and sweater, that she already had, to get rid of. She was happy to do so due to her excitement over her new clothes.  Perfecto!!

What I am left with now are clean dresser drawers and closets, yet heaping piles of clothes in my living room just waiting to either be sold in our garage sale on Saturday or donated to our church clothes closet on Sunday!!  And I, my dear friends, am looking forward to the best benefit of this clothing purge.....LESS LAUNDRY!!!!

Of course, if they stay and play as messy as they are now, we may need some of those extra clothes back!!!  :)

Terrible (Or NOT) Teens

**Farm Hunting Update:  I see progress!  We have signed the contract, locked in the interest rate, scheduled inspections and moved up the closing date to December 13!!  Plus.....we emptied out the attic last night!!  Woohoo!**

Terrible Teens

As a young mother, I heard horror stories of teenagers.  Heck, I remember making my own horror stories as a teen!!  I was told to expect rebellion, pulling away from the family, smart mouths, rolling eyes, and general disobedience.  As I looked at my precious little fat checked baby girls I brushed off the dread thinking that my babies would never even grow up out of preschooldom!!

Well, I have entered the land of the teenager.  My oldest daughter will be 18 in January, followed by her sister who is 15.  Finally, my third little baby girl will turn 11 next month, so she is following close behind!!

As my oldest began to edge toward the dreaded 13th birthday, or otherwise known as the beginning of the end, I would worry about how we would survive the next several years.  I worried how our family dynamic would change and what would become of us!!

Well, lo and behold, she just got better as she got older!  I figured she was a fluke and I began to hold on tight for the ride that my next oldest would bring us on.  Guess what, we enjoyed her even more the older she got too!

Now, I had no idea why this was happening!  You see, I am not super-mom.  I mess up and I mess up a lot.  There is no set of standards that would classify AcCOWntant Willie and I as perfect parents...nope, not one!

So now that we are all in agreement that this teen phenomenon has nothing to do with Willie nor I, let me tell you what I figured out....it has everything to do with God!  When my youngest was a baby, I read every parenting book I could get my hands on.  After reading a few I became frustrated because what sounded like great advice in one would be shot down by the other author and I would be given new advice.  Finally we decided...No more parenting books!!!!  We would simply turn to the ultimate example of a parent and let Him guide us. 

So what I want to share today are some of the guidelines that the Lord gave us for raising our children.  I believe the particular guidelines I will mention today had a direct influence on raising teenagers that we can not only stand being around, but we LOVE being around!!

Okie-dokie, here we go.....

1. Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, mind and soul and love your neighbor as yourself - No commandment is greater than this one and no parenting guideline is either.  Submit to the Lord's will daily and listen!!  Let Him guide you through the situations that will arise
2. Love you husband and keep your marriage strong - When my children were young, I had a hard time going out on dates will my AcCOWntant Willie because I felt bad leaving them.  But the Lord really showed me that taking time to keep your marriage strong is of huge importance to being a successful parent.
3. Capture your child's heart - Capture it early and hold on to it tight!  When you capture your child's heart, they begin to obey not out of fear or duty, but out of trust.  This becomes really important as they become teenagers and you want to influence who they hang out with, what they listen to, watch, etc. (I will post later on steps to help a parent capture their child's heart)
4. Say yes as frequently as possible - This is a big one!  Try to really think about what you say no to.  There are times when we just must say no, but don't let that be the first word out of your mouth.
5. Chores!!!! - They may not love them, but assigning and expecting completion of chores shows your children that they are a functioning part of the family.
6. Be consistent - Follow through on what you say whether it is something they want or if it is a consequence.  This demonstrates your trust-worthiness as a parent.  If you tell your child that they can't do something and you let them whine/talk you into it, you start to become unreliable in their eyes, someone that can be manipulated.  So say what you mean and mean what you say!!
7. Listen to them when they are young - If you breed good communication when they are young, their habit will be to come and talk with you when they are older.  So take the time to listen.
8. Guard their hearts - This is much easier to do when they are young, but guarding their hearts early on is so helpful in teaching them to guard their own hearts when they are older.  (Another thing that I will post more detail on later.)
9. Love, love, love on them!!! - Tell them you love them as often as you can.  Hug them, kiss them, cuddle with them!  Take the time to snuggle up with them in bed and read a story together or just talk.  Show them that they are loved and end each day and each encounter like it is your last.

Again, these guidelines are coming from a pair of imperfect parents with four precious, but imperfect daughters. Every family is different, but I believe that we can all use general guidelines to help us keep our parenting in focus.  Focus on what you might ask??!!

Him!!!!  It is all about Him!!!  Changing diapers, playing dolls together, listening to them talk and talk and talk, helping your teen get dressed for Prom,  it is ALL about Him!!  And that is the best advice I can give you...focus on Him.  The Lord knows your family and the needs of your children.  He knows your past and your future.  You have the ideal parenting guide and advice hot line at your disposal!!!  Use it....it is just a prayer away! :)

And remember, teens are awesome!  They are our future!  Don't put them down or discourage them, build them up, educate them and love on them!!  Your future depends on it :)

Lessons Learned - Debate Tournaments!

**Farm Hunting Update:  Yesterday brought about the scheduling of home inspections, septic inspections and water inspections!  Friday we will meet all of the inspectors and give the house a good once-over.  I am really excited about having this time to look at it more closely and this time I will remember to put the card in my camera so I can take pictures!!  Our closing date is December 17!**

Lessons Learned - Debate Tournaments!

 

 

 

My two oldest girls are involved in debate.  It is something that they have found they really enjoy doing together and they especially have a blast at the tournaments.

This last Saturday they attended a practice tournament (the official season does not begin until January) and they debated ALL DAY LONG!!  It was definitely a very long day, but again, they had a lot of fun, met a lot of friends and had a lot of laughs.

I was able to sit in on their last round of debate and watch.  Before I tell you my opinion of what happened, let me tell you that unfortunately, I tend to lean on the critical side when it comes to my girls and stuff like this.  My mind seems to jump to what they need to do differently instead of what they did correctly.

Anyway, back to Saturday.  They blew me away!  They each spoke so eloquently  yet with authority and they had great evidence and logic to back them up on every point.  The team they debated consistently said things that, in my opinion, were not true.  Some of it I believed was common knowledge and others it was up to the girls to make sure and lead the judge the correct way and they did a great job of doing that.

Out of all of the rounds, they were most sure that they won this one, so imagine the shock when they received the judges ballot at the end and saw that the judge voted for the negative team and left not one single comment on the ballot sheet explaining why this was so.  I must admit that I was pretty shocked myself!

I woke up in the middle of the night that night and my "mom-thinking" kicked in!  I was frustrated for my girls.  They had presented what was "in my eyes" a perfect round of argumentation, refutation, speaking, etc. The judge even ranked both girls as the first and second speakers in the round.

As I lay in bed tossing and turning and thinking, the Lord spoke to me and pointed out that this is an example of life.  In our lives, we each sit ready to judge the winner of the round.  The two speakers in this eternal round are Truth (God) and Lie (Enemy) and it is strictly our call to decide which one we will choose.  Truth stands before us with evidence, logic and eloquent speech and Lie spouts out untruth and attempts to trick us with his words.  We can choose to be deceived and give the win to the Enemy, or we can choose to see truth and give the win, and our lives, to God.

Of course, I am not saying that the other team my girls debated was lying or that the judge was wrong.  Debate is a subjective event.  You learn to present your case to the judge in a way to convince the judge that you are right.  If you lose, you obviously failed to do that.  And there are many things that my girls will and have learned from that last round.  So please don't think I am making a straight comparrison, because I am not.

Moving on.....I began to think about how frustrated I was for my girls and I thought that might be a bit of how God feels when his creation chooses to listen to the other side. 

Then I began to think about my part in this eternal debate.  Since I have already chosen the winner of my debate round and have given my life to Christ, I am now an active participant.  I am to become part of God's evidence and words.  I am here to let His light shine through me and into all of the world, helping all who sit to judge for themselves see the truth.  How am I doing?

Do I take an active role for the Lord in presenting His truth?  Sometimes.  Sometimes I feel the call so strongly that it overwhelms me and I can't help but jump in and shout truth!

Do I take an active role for the Enemy in presenting His lies?  Sometimes.  There are times through my actions that my life screams "Do as I say, not as I do!"  which many times just causes people to turn and run into the enemy's lies.

Do I take an inactive role and just sit in the audience and watch it all go down?  Many times!  How many times to I choose silence and inactivity over participation??!!  Many!!  So many times I get so wrapped up in my own little world that I don't even think about presenting truth.  So many times I get involved in deep thought and just rush past people that are in the middle of judging their debate round without giving them another thought.

I don't want others to go to hell.  I don't want the Enemy to win a round.  I don't want my Lord to feel sad over the loss of one of His creations. 

Now the question is ....Am I going to choose to do anything about it?  Will you?

Menu Monday-Finally Some Cold Weather Food!

**Farm Hunting Update:  We have signed a contract on a farm!!  We received authorization to have two VA loans on Friday, went and looked at the house and property again on Sunday, visited with the couple a bit, signed the paperwork and gave them our earnest money.  The usual processing time is 4 - 6 weeks, but the agent that is working the sale is trying to have them push it through faster due to the man having terminal cancer and wanting to hurry and move.  So our hope and the hope of the seller is that we will be in by Christmas!

Now the daunting task begins of going through 13 years worth of stuff, having a garage sale, packing, cleaning, and preparing our current house for renters.  We are praying, praying, praying for great renters!!**

Menu Monday - Finally Some Cold Weather Food!

We finally have cooler weather this week and I am so excited!  Cooler weather brings snuggling under blankets, lighting fires in the fireplace, hot chocolate and cold weather food!! 

Our breakfasts, some of our lunches and snacks usually stay the same from week to week.  We will occasionally mix things up, but for the most part, I try and keep some consistency.  This saves on money and time.

Monday Breakfast - Whole Wheat Banana Muffins/Eggs/Melons
Monday Lunch - We usually meet my mom for lunch on this day!
Monday Dinner - Sandwiches/Fruit (We have deep cleaning as a family after dinner on Mondays. We have found that if we all work together, we can get it done in about 1 1/2 hours and then we have a special "clean house" dessert!!)
Monday Snack - Mix of nuts, seeds and chocolate chips

Tuesday Breakfast - Eggs/Whole Wheat Biscuits/Hash Browns with Peppers/Citrus Fruit
Tuesday Lunch - Vegetable Soup/Homemade Bread
Tuesday Dinner - Baked Chicken/Brown Rice/Steamed Broccoli/Honey Roasted Carrots
Tuesday Snack - Sonic Happy Hour Run for Slushies

Wednesday Breakfast - Whole Wheat Waffles/Peanut Butter/Strawberries
Wednesday Lunch - Triscuit Crackers/Cheese Cubes/Fruit/Yogurt
Wednesday Dinner - Loaded Baked Potatoes/Leftover Soup From Tuesday's Lunch
Wednesday Snack - Peanut Butter Balls

Thursday Breakfast - Whole Wheat Cinnamon Bread/Cream Cheese/Apples
Thursday Lunch - Sandwich/Fruit (we have speech/debate club all afternoon, so we go easy on Thursday!)
Thursday Dinner - Tomato Cream Soup/Grilled Cheese Sandwiches/Salad
Thursday Snack - Peanut Butter Balls made on Wednesday!! Still good on day #2!

Friday Breakfast - Yogurt/Granola/Fruit/Nuts
Friday Lunch - Cream Cheese Wraps with Strawberries/Mixed Nuts/Red Pepper Stips/Organic Chocolate Bar
Friday Dinner - Lasagna/Roasted Vegetables/Garlic Bread
Friday Snack - Popcorn with Fresh Mozzarella

I hope this helps give you some ideas and, as always, I would love to hear yours!!