RISK!

     What is the risk in Risk? It's just a board game. Although some people take winning very seriously, it's just a game that soon after game night is over no one remembers who wins and who loses. Technically it's the same for life, right? But that is a little too deep a subject for this blog. I just want to talk about the strategy I learned from playing the game of Risk. Of course, that was years before it was HALO WARS Risk but things haven't changed much. The Risk of not using the Risk Strategy is to remain in chaos and miss out on the freedom from stress that conquering the clutter in your life at home can bring.

     Instead of conquering the purple continent of Australia in the lower right hand corner on the original Risk board, my new strategy would

The Day After

Happy Birthday, Baby!

    Twenty five years ago my daughter missed her first Christmas and blessed us with her birth the day after. She was due on December 13, 1986 and was showing promising signs of coming early on Thanksgiving Day. We had plans to take our two week old baby to Kansas City and celebrate her first Christmas with family and friends. We had her "Baby's First Christmas" stocking hung next to mom and dad's and her big brother's. She had gifts under the tree and Santa had her on his list.
   December 13th came and went and soon it was apparent that a trip to Kansas City was not going to be possible. I still held out hope that she would be here before Christmas and then

Getting the Jump on 2012

Got Two Legs Will Use Them

     As your preparations for the big day wind down, why not get a jump on changing your unproductive habits in 2012. Formally known as New Year's Resolutions, I like to the think of them as my 2012 Lifestyle Changes. Like with any goal setting, you need to be specific and put these lifestyle changes in writing. However, in order to actually acheive and sustain changes in your life you need focus. Too many changes at one time or goals that don't really fit your values and beliefs will be a distraction and keep you from achieving the things you really want to achieve.      
        Expand to narrow. Begin free writing everything you want to achieve, to be, to see, or to do in 2012. Get whacky

Day seven: This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus

 ^"This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus." 1 Thess 5: 18b (Good News Translation).  This is "Be joyful always, pray at all times, be thankful in all circumstances." 1 Thess 5:16-18a.

 As you reflected on these verses over the last seven days I hope that God has revealed many wonderful things to you about his deep and unending love for you. This is what he wants for each of us: That we are Joyful always, that we are close to him in prayer, and that we have much to be grateful for. Assuredly you can not always muster up a Joyful heart on your own, so God gave us Hope. God gave us the priviledge of contacting him 24/7 through prayer. Because of his great love for us God gives us something to be thankful in all circumstances. Why? Because this is what God wants from us and for us: Joy, Relationship, and Thankfulness.
  He gives us Joy, Relationship, and Thankfulness in our life through our union with Christ Jesus. Jesus is the Hope of the world for which we can rejoice ALWAYS. Prayer is our personal direct cell phone link to God. Because our life is in union with Jesus Christ, we can look around in every circumstance and see God working together all things for the good of those who love him. We love him because he loved us first and gave us all these good things.
   "Be Joyful Always, pray at all times, be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in uion with Christ Jesus." 1 Thess 5:16-18

Day six: Be Joyful always, pray at all times, be thankful in all circumstances

To Do Today

• Be Joyful Always
• Pray at All Times
• Be Thankful in All Circumstances

Day five: In your life in union with Christ Jesus

    Yesterday we reflected on the bit of scripture, "This is what God wants from you in your life..." The second half of that sentence clarifies the life God desires for you. "... in your life in union with Christ Jesus." In union with Christ. So God desires a life for you in union with Christ Jesus.
    A union is a joining together with. What changes in your life when you begin to think of your life joined together with Christ?

Day four: This is what God wants from you in your life

      How many times have you asked yourself, "What is the purpose that God has for my life?" I absolutely love this bit of scripture. "This is what God wants from you in your life..." Doesn't that just perk your ears to hear what comes next? What is this that God wants from you in your life? However, in this case I think we just read what he wants from us; to be joyful always, to pray at all times, and to be thankful in all circumstances.
      I think sometimes we make this so much harder than it is. God gave us the desires  in our hearts to lead us back to him. the skies proclaim the work of his hands. (Psalm 19:1)" God's purpose for our life is simple: rejoice in what he has done, make a relationship with him through prayer your priority, and be grateful. 

Day Three: Be Thankful in All Circumstances

      Similar to being joyful always, is being thankful in all circumstances. It is more clear as we meditate on this bit of scripture, "Be Thankful in All Circumstances," that being joyful always is in reference to our Hope. We rejoice in our Hope not necessarily in our circumstance and therefore we can rejoice always for our Hope is with us at all times. Similarly, being thankful in all circumstances is not the same as being thankful for all circumstances.  
      Day Three: Be Thankful in all circumstances
      A good example of this is when my husband died. I don't think God expected me to be thankful for that circumstance, even Jesus grieved when people died. I believe that Jesus was grieving with me but there was so much to be thankful in that circumstance. I was flooded with the love of family and friends like I had never felt in all of my life. I was hugged more, fed more, and check in on more than at any other time I can remember. A lot of that love came from a church that Mike and I had only been a part of for three years. Many of the people who shared in my grief could not believe they had only known Mike for that short of time because we had become so close. In that, I was truly thankful, God prepared a loving family for us to help endure this loss. 
      In all of our circumstances, good and bad if we take the time to notice- God is there. That is something worth being thankful for. In all of our circumstances, good and bad, it is finding what God is working out for good in that situation that causes our spirit to give thanks. God grows us in difficult situations, at times he makes us step out boldly into unknown territories. I know I went into single parenthood kicking and screaming but every time I cried out to God he answered. I acknowledged his presence, whether it was a gift of people he put in my life at the time or things he had me go through in the past to prepare me for this time, I was thankful. God knew I was not happy about being called in single parenthood, he graciously listened to my protests, but he also knew my heart of gratitude for all the help he gave me to stand up to the challenge. That is being Thankful in a situation you are not thankful to be in. 

Day Two: Pray At All Times

     Even in a large crowd of people, you can feel all alone. Ever been at a gathering of friends or family and felt like no one would notice if you were not there. Maybe you spoke but no one acknowledged.

     Prayer is a spiritual conversation between you and God. The good news is that God notices you all the time. If you talk to him, he will hear you. He says to pray at all times so that you will never have to feel alone. When you speak to him, he hears you. When you approach him, he notices. Even in a large crowd, God knows  you individually, personally, and intimately.

Day One: Be Joyful Always

     This time of year is always a great time to reconnect with the spiritual nature of mankind. I guess that is what holidays, especially Christmas, are really about. They are about taking a time out from the hum drum of daily living and reflecting in a more spiritual way about our lives and our place in time and space. Many of you will be contemplating your place in your families, who will you spend this time with, who will you visit or  remember with cards and gifts, and who will you miss. Amidst the heightened spirituality of the season, I thought I would share some thoughts around the seven days of meditation I shared in my last post. Feel free share anything that inspires you as you meditate on each days' bit of scripture by posting a comment to the appropriate post.
   What is mankind that we make such connections, such relationships in families and in close friendships?

Thankful for a Life in Union with Christ Jesus

 "Be joyful always, pray at all times, be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus."1Thess 16-18

The Holy Spirit is a powerfilled counselor and a gift from God to remind us of all the things Jesus taught us. As you give thanks today and this week for all the wonderful blessings in your life, think on these words. "Be Thankful in all circumstances". Thank God for some of the circumstances that might not have made the cut in your Thanksgiving day citation of thanks.

Dances With Horses

Leading by Example

     You may think that having horses is a luxury. Maybe you think spending hard earned money on a child's riding lessons is an excessive expenditure. Money perhaps better donated to your church or given to a worthy cause. As God called me into this adventure, I never once pondered the religious legalities of indulging such a passion that would drain purses, pay checks, and bank accounts at such an alarming rate. Never thought about it. God gave me a vision of a heart, my sister showed me the heart on the right side of a horse, and I confirmed that was the heart God showed me and bought that horse.
    The first thing I learned about that horse was that God put me on the other end of her lead rope for a reason.

Worth The Wait

It is November and Floors: Phase One is just now complete. I purposely limited my major project list this year so that I could spend my time horsing around and writing. That didn't work out as I planned. Today, all I can say is I am so grateful to be back in our family room even if we are five months behind on phase two.
I walk through the house ignoring the other floors; a mix of bare subfloors and half removed tile or ancient linoleum we found when we ripped up the carpet. I make a b-line for the family room, my now favorite room in the house. I have floors! And it was worth the wait.
We started this project at the begining of the summer. What took so long? Ever have a goal and it seems like all you do is hit obstacles?

The Third Place Ribbon

     I wasn't first but I wasn't last which is a great place to be when you are first starting out. If your first time out you get first place you have a good chance of coming away thinking you are better than you are. However, after you have walked out of the show ring a couple times without a ribbon at all it can be very discouraging.

     I never had the desire to enter the show ring. I was always content watching my daughter, my neice, and my sister and our students. However,  lately I have been considering taking new horses into dressage schooling shows. I felt the show experience would be good before I started doing schooling tests where I was in the ring all by myself in front of a judge.

Stuck in the House

  "The sun did not shine.  It was too wet to play.  So we sat in the house all that cold, cold, wet day...Too wet to go out and too cold to play ball.  So we sat in the house.  We did nothing at all." excerpted from The Cat In The Hat by Dr. Suess.

   Well this is obviously a little outdated since kids enjoy sitting in the house these days and they don't need a Cat in the Hat to find things to do. They have Thing 1, the Playstation, and Thing 2, the Xbox, and they have the internet and the DVD player. Raining or not, some kids prefer to be stuck in the house. Some adults are also known to cancel social outtings in preference of trending toward hermit.
   In our house,

Pick Up

      I have a single-mom home. It looks pretty much the same way as any other family home. We have the garage disaster that my son inherited from his father and carries on the messy garage tradition. We have dinner times and home cooked meals along with evidence of such on nights when we are too tired to clean up. We have messy kid bathrooms and piles of laundry. Of course, living in the country you can add the occasional messes of several animals of varying species. What I love about my home though is that it is perfectly comfortable for us and can clean up quite nice when I want to entertain.

My House Rules, Your Room Drools

     Ever let your child know, "This is my house. I make the rules." If that is true, then the kids don't really have a house. Does that make them homeless? The balance between making kids feel at home and retaining authority over your home is a slippery slope. But parents, this may come as a shock, you are in charge of your household.
     That being said, I expect my children to help out and help out cheerfully.

Amazed Admiration

They all want to come play!

Sometimes God overwhelms my soul with his creation. Caught in the moment of a sunrise or sunset on a far away horizon, can flood one's spirit with amazed admiration. Witnessing the power in a roaring river or the might of a crashing wave, reminds us of how weak we are in the great scheme of things. I experienced one moment like that right here on the ranch.

Forward Focus

     A black and white photo of a person tipping over on a tractor is stuck on the dashboard of my tractor. This mental image keeps me highly aware that tractors do tip over. When I get the slightest hint that the tractor isn't level, I start watching the front tires to make sure they are on the ground. The terrain at the ranch is rugged and rocky and as those front tires bounce along my stomach flipflops as the tractor tipping image comes to mind. The more the tires bounce the more fearful I become.

MOUSE ATTACK!

     Pain shot through my right hand when I gripped the steering wheel after my ten hour shift. I tried to recall why I had clinched the steering wheel with such force. Maybe, I was just getting old and my joints were succumbing to arthritic pain. Maybe it was because we were so busy at work and I had typed a lot more than usual. The pain had retreated overnight but quickly returned the moment I gripped the mouse with my right hand. I quickly realized my pain was not from too much typing but my joints ached from too much pointing and clicking.

What Does Your T-Shirt Mean?

    When I was a teenager, my friends and I used to go up to the custom t-shirt shop in the mall and peruse the selections of custom iron-on art. We could spend hours making the perfect selection to add a touch of our personality to our wardrobe. My favorite was a picture of a butterfly that said "If you love something let it go. If it comes back to you, its yours forever." Today I work in a technical field that doesn't acknowledge the term "business casual." Although we often dress in accordance with wardrobe guidelines outlined in chapter seventeen of  my book, The  30 Day Home Management Project, we work rotating shifts so one's casual Friday could be any day of the week. T-shirts and jeans are as commonly seen on Tuesdays and Wednesdays as they are on Fridays and slightly more common on  Saturday and Sundays.
    A t-shirt is like a walking adverstisement and there is always a lot of talk around the water cooler about one's selection.

First Day Back At School

   My son and I both fight to embrace the back to school theme in the middle of August. When I was growing up, school was always the first weekday after labor day to the first weekday before memorial day. There was no wondering about it. After the neighborhood's labor day picnic we knew the next morning was our first day back to the next grade. Our summers were sacred. Our parents had three months to schedule in the family two week vacation around their work schedules and our summer sports schedules. Every family seemed to take the obligatory two week vacation and our first assignment each year was telling the class where we went. I never recall a "stay-cation report." There was an adequate break to rotate all the kids through summer camps and plenty of  time to enjoy our summers of freedom spent mostly getting dropped off at the pool at noon and picked up in time for dinner.

The 30 Day Home Management Project

 <Click book to order>

     It's not hard to feel overwhelmed with the ongoing demands of managing a home and family. Even the cleanest and well-organized home may need some tuning  up in functionality. Is your family over or under involved in outside projects? Are you spending all your time organizing and cleaning and missing out on enjoying your home? Have you invited Jesus to hang out during the week or do you just go visit on Sunday? Who rules the roost? Are the chicks in charge?

Project Management

Do you fall asleep counting home improvement projects instead of sheep? If you do, you may have a million ideas but can't seem to make a lot of progress on any of them. Here are the key steps in knocking those projects off your dream list so you can start enjoying them during waking hours.

1. Start an idea list. If you are familiar with brainstorming this would be the list that captures all your ideas, uninhibited great and small. I use a spiral notebook reserved just for ideas. Don't spend a lot of time analyzing these ideas just get them jotted down in the book as they come to you whether you think you would ever have the money or really want it done. Maybe you just saw it at a friend's house and thought it would be cool.

10 Things You Can Do with Burnt Pizza

1- frame it
2- date it
3- chuck it
4- frisbee toss it
5- use it as a stadium seat
6- use it as a hot plate
7- see if the dogs want to play with it
8- take a picture of it and call it creative art
9- pretend it isn't burnt and see if the kids notice
10- return it to Walmart

Yep, I fell asleep with the pizza in the oven after work last night. I didn't hear the kitchen timer and completely forgot I had a pizza in the oven when I woke up from my hour and a half catnap. That pizza was so burnt you couldn't even guess what kind of pizza it was.  Apparently yesterday was a little more stressful than I thought. Luckily I had frozen Chimichanga's in the freezer for a quick back up.

To Make the Bed or Not To

    There is nothing like walking in the door after a busy day out and finding the floor has been vacuumed, the bathroom has been cleaned and supplied with fresh clean, white towels, and the bed has been made with fresh sheets and fluffed pillows. You may think that pampered feeling only happnes for $100 a night at a nice hotel. But you can have that pampered feeling if you take a few extra minutes and make the bed in the morning. Seems like a lot in the morning, but it is such a nice surprise when you walk in the bedroom door at night.

One Small Thing

  Walking in the door, we head for seperate corners. My son's first stop is his room where everything gets dumped on his bed, mine is the counter between the kitchen and family room. Whatever is in my hands; my keys, the mail, my purse, and my day planner;  all get set on the counter and I pull up a stool and start sorting and planning. I sort the pile of mail and then open my planner. Pondering the dinner choices I make the final decisions about our evening meal. Will we eat at the counter or the dining room table? How soon shall I begin cooking? Soon I'll clear the counter and carry out my plan.

Back At Home

Welcome to Back At Home, my blog about Homes. Home, defined as a house, a domicile, or a base of operations, is more passionately defined by Webster as "the center of one's domestic affections." There is nothing like returning home after a long trail ride, an extended vacation, or just a hard day at work or school. Busy folks have a challenging task ahead of them to keep a house ready to welcome them back home. This blog is all about the trials, successes, and ideas that go into keeping up and finding peace and joy at home.
      Hope you'll join us and share your experiences creating a home fit to Welcome the King. Feel free to share what works, what didn't work, and areas that you are successful or struggling in. Please help create an encouraging atmosphere where we can help each other on this journey of faith til we reach our perfect home prepared for us in heaven.