Living with Less Contest

I am excited to share a fun opportunity with you!

To celebrate the release of Hearts at Home’s newest book: Living With Less So Your Family Has More, by Jill and Mark Savage, the Hearts at Home blog is launching the Living with Less Contest.

Email Hearts at Home a story or money-saving tip that gives a peek into your daily experiences representing the humor, richness, or spiritual aspects of what it’s like to live with less.

Better yet, blog readers will benefit as many of the money-saving entries will be posted on the Heart’s blog throughout the month of February!

For contest details go here!

Where were you ten years ago?

Ten years ago, I was 19, about to turn 20. Wow! How things have changed! So here's a look back....
I've graduated from college, got married, left my hometown, lived in 6 different homes (including our temporary housing), bought and sold two homes, and been blessed with two precious little girls and three angel babies. I've made numerous friends, some who were for a season, and some I'll have for life, though we may not keep in touch as well as we wish.

I've learned a lot of things, some important, some not so important. I traveled out of the country. I've lived in three states. I gave birth with no medication. Three babies passed from my heart into heaven and the arms of Jesus. These are all things I didn't foresee in the year 1999, and they have all changed my life.

I look forward to what the next decade, my thirties, soon, will bring. The last one was good, very good, but I'm sure God will only build upon it. I pray that whatever may come, it will only bring glory to His name, that I will be a vehicle for His love to shine on the lives of others.

A Change will do you good...

Well, things they are a-changing at our house. I am going back to work.

Yep. A full 35 hours a week.

The girls are going to school.

And I'm continually hearing Dave Ramsey chant in my head, "Short term sacrifice for long term gain!"

And my husband, too.

Because we decided this is going to be the year that we become debt free. There are no excuses now. We've been limping along, trying to pay things off, but its just not been working the way we've been doing it. Our budget was just too tight, and something always happened. So I'm going to widen the gap.

And really, its the best situation we could have asked for. I'll be working at the teacher of the Redbirds class at our church. Bella's room will be right across the hallway, as is Bianca's also. And Scott is right upstairs. Since Scott is on staff, we get a discount rate on childcare/school, so that helps us out a lot on childcare costs.

Aside from the huge change that is about to occur, I'm really very excited that I'll finally be putting that college degree to work again! Scott, as my parents like to say, was a very expensive catch:) (we met in college, and while my degree helped in grabbing my first job, it was not a prerequisite, and so I'm technically getting paid $$ for my degree for the first time;) So now he's getting less and less expensive, right?

We did lots of themed curriculum writing in college, so I'll finally be putting all of that to use, since that is how we teach at the school. I'm very excited about that. We've been dragging a couple crates of them around since college, so I'm sure Scott is excited about that too! And I've always had this secret dream of writing theme curriculum. And now I get to!

Its just another way that God is working things out in our lives. And its such a joy to see Him at work!

Winter boredom

Today was one of those days. It lasted FOREVER! Not because girls were arguing or not listening, not because anyone was sick, not because there was nothing to do (because we all know that there can never be nothing to do for a mom of two, especially after moving to a new home!), but mostly, I believe, because we have been holed up in this house without much going on. We just came off of two weeks of visitors, parties, shopping, presents, and food, and this week, we (as in myself and the girls) have not left the house except to take Bella to school. I was gazing out the window longing for warm weather to go outside and enjoy possibly even more than the little ones. I know Bella asked at least three times if she could go outside as she stared at the ice chunks that were dumped out of her sled before Christmas, and watched the wind blow.

So what do you do on these days? Today, the girls had a tea party, I did every piece of laundry imaginable, colored, we played Candy Land, cleaned out the toy room, colored, even play ball in the house, eventually pulled out the play dough, and colored some more! I need some ideas. Because, despite what one news station led me to believe earlier this evening, every other weather forecaster is becoming a broken record. And its getting very old.

I'm dreaming of a trip to someplace very warm, very sunny, very lay on the beach and soak up the sun.

Tomato Pasta

Two days in a row now, I've worked out. I did a little longer workout today, and I'm feeling it! That's good, though, right?! Bianca watched today, and she had a pretty funny look on her face. I'm not sure she knew exactly what was going on! Ha! By they way, I forgot to mention, I got the Biggest Loser for Wii. I don't have a balance board, but I haven't run into any exercises I haven't been able to do (or get credit on the game) without it. Still, add that to my wish list!:)

I've also set a challenge for myself in the kitchen: I'm not going shopping for things other than milk until I absolutely have to. Taking into consideration that we just moved into this house November first, it seems a little challenging to me, but so far, so good. I sent Scott to the store for a few things yesterday, but today starts the no shopping. We tried a new recipe tonight, Tomato Pasta. It was pretty good. Bianca really liked it! I think she ate more than I did. She must be getting close to a growth spurt. Here's the recipe if you want to try it...

Tomato Pasta

3 cp Rotini pasta uncooked (I used penne b/c we were out of rotini)
1 medium onion chopped
2 cloves minced garlic
1/4 cp balsamic vinaigrette dressing or Zesty Italian (again, had neither, so I used sun-dried tomato vinaigrette)
4 cp coarsely chopped tomatoes
1/2 cp chopped fresh basil
1/2 cp Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta and drain. Combine onions, garlic, and dressing in skillet, and cook 2 minutes or until onions are tender. Stir in tomatoes and cook 2 minutes more.
Add to pasta, along with remaining ingredients, and mix lightly.

I honestly have no idea where I got this recipe, or I would give credit where due! It was super easy, taking 20 minutes or so total time (and I had a 2 year old helping me!). Bianca even helped 'chop' a tomato, using her fist to squeeze it when I turned my back. If only there were a video camera running!

Tuesday Cold, Biggest Loser, and Bachelor....

Is it really only Tuesday? It's been so cold here. And I say that knowing that its in the 20s, while where we just moved from is having below zero wind chills! I've been spoiled already:) This cold spell has set me on a mission of finding out how to keep this old farmhouse warm. We did figure out that we should close off the doors to the kitchen, so it stays warmer in there, and keeps the (rest of the) house thermostat more accurate, so we aren't as cold upstairs now. We've already sealed the windows in the girls' with plastic, but we may do another layer, since the first layer has sprung some leaks, thanks to some poky fingers. I'm thinking of also adding liner curtains to them as well. Bella will be getting flannel sheets soon, and Bianca is actually staying covered up more recently (the girl can't stand warm toes!).
In an effort to tone up a little, I took advantage of the sale at Best Buy and got Biggest Loser. For some odd reason, I LOVE to watch that show while eating a bowl of ice cream. Ha! I'm looking forward to the premiere tonight.
Well, Bella thought we were playing a game today while I was doing the workout. It wasn't as bad as I thought, but I'm also doing the lighter workouts to just tone. She tried really hard to do the exercises with me. I'm giving this a shot, since its costly and a little difficult to get to the gym right now.And did you watch the premiere of the Bachelor last night?! There will definitely be high drama this season! I know, I've gotten hooked. But I just can't get into the Bachelorette. Its one of those guilty pleasures. I am interested to see exactly what this 'good' boy image plays out to be. We shall see...

Warning!! Spoiler alert for all you who DVR'd this....

Can you believe he kept Michelle? I could have picked a few others far and above her. Keeping her just guarantees drama when she could hardly handle the first night!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

I've been out of the blogging mood. Even now, I can't think of anything to blog. I'm sure if I would just get started, I would think of lots of things to post, it's the getting started that is the hard part. And there is just SO much to get done still in this house. Have I told you that I am glad its not mine? Because I would be ripping the place down to studs and starting over. There are so many things I would do to this house. But I love that I don't have to worry about that, because its just 'ours' temporarily!

Well, now that our Christmas letters have all arrived (after Christmas, but they went out before!), I thought I would post it here. If I could afford all of the stamps, I would have sent one to you all, so consider this YOUR letter:) Here goes....

Merry Christmas, Friends! We hope that this first Christmas letter from our family finds you resting in His peace and enjoying the season of celebrating Christ’s birth. We, along with our church, have joined in Advent Conspiracy, and are focusing on Worshiping fully, Spending less, Giving more, and Loving all this season. It is allowing us to build on our relationships with one another, spread the love of Christ, and focus on the meaning of Christmas more fully.

This year has been an eventful one in our family, and brought many changes. We began the year enjoying the pregnancy of another baby girl, but she joined our loved ones in heaven before we held her in our arms. While we grieve this loss, we thank God for the happiness and joy she was able to bring to us during the few weeks we were aware of her presence. This third miscarriage took us on a medical journey, and we are hoping that we have found some answers to these losses.

February began a long journey that God is still leading us in. We started feeling Him move in our hearts that He was preparing a new place of ministry for our family. Through many closed doors, and a trip to New Jersey, God led us to Fairview Village Church of the Nazarene in Eagleville, Pennsylvania, about 20 miles northwest of Philadelphia. We felt at home there from the first meeting we had, and Scott agreed to come on staff in late August. Thus began the task of figuring out how to move a family of four across country to a place we’ve only visited once for three days! After packing 160+ boxes, and with the help of many dear friends in Indianapolis, the 26 foot truck was loaded to the hilt and we were headed out of town the last weekend of September. In a miraculous answer to prayer, our house in Indianapolis was on the market for five days, with three showings, and we received two full price offers! We closed on the house, loaded the truck, and headed out of town all in 24 hours time.

We started our time in Eagleville staying with the Executive Pastor, Bryan Heil, and his wife, Linda. We were SO appreciative of their hospitality and willingness to allow us to bring two little girls into their once quiet home! We stayed with them for about 4 weeks before we found a rental home surrounded by horse pastures. Though we are only four miles from the church (about a 10 minute drive!), we feel as though we are out in the middle of nowhere! It is so peaceful here, and was very pretty in the fall, and during the first snow (which melted 3 days later!). We hope to make many memories and start some new traditions in our new home. (Picture above was taken from our bedroom window.)

Isabella is now 4 ½ years old and started preschool at the church three half days per week right after we moved. She is making many friends and enjoys her time in class, and at Children of the Word (COW), while Mommy is at Women of the Word (WOW). Her favorite thing is to play house, whether she is the mommy, sister, baby, or dog, and attempting to play Nintendo Wii with Daddy. Bella is a very girly girl, and wears only dresses. On a rare occasion, she will dawn pants, and we act like we don’t know who she is!

Bianca is now 2 years old, and growing fast! If she keeps up, she and her sister may be sharing clothing soon! She is enjoying her time alone with Mommy for the first time ever. Bianca enjoys playing with Bella, trying to cooperate with her pretend ideas, and helping Mommy. She is very easy going, and very friendly, always smiling. Bianca also likes to try new foods, and really likes to eat Mommy’s food!

We are starting to finally feel settled here in Eagleville, and are learning our way around. The roads are much more confusing than Indy’s grid of streets, but are starting to make sense. With our GPS, we feel as if we could get anywhere! We are looking forward to celebrating Christmas with Scott’s family this year, and will be in Virginia, at his Aunt Carolyn and Uncle Vince Snowbarger’s house on Christmas day, along with the rest of his immediate family. We are thankful for the blessing of having Vince & Carolyn and Scott’s sister and brother-in-law Angie and Travis Sears close by.

We thank God for His many blessings, and especially for His guidance and provision in a time of much transition. We miss you all and hope to catch up with you soon. May you, too, know the peace and love of Christ this advent season!