When we think about homemaking and the skill of being a homemaker, we often find that it's a skill that is quickly disappearing.  It's almost frowned upon in certain circles, because as homemakers we are looked as just being lazy, not wanting to work, being dependent on a man and so forth.

My hope is that through this series, we can eliminate that stigma or at the very least, teach our daughters, nieces, sisters, friends, that a homemaker's job is just as important as any other job.

So when did I become a homemaker and why did I choose to be one.

I can tell you that I've been homemaking long before I was married.  I guess I was born with the yearning to care for a family, to be a wife and a mother and to have my very own home to potter around in.

Growing up, I would watch my greatgrandmother, grandmother and stepmother, go about their day, and I felt jealous.  I couldn't wait to be grown up and just like them.  Where other girls were dreaming about careers, I was dreaming about the day I would go to the supermarket to get groceries, and then cook a meal for my family.  I dreamed about cleaning the house, I would take all my dolls and pretend they were my children and then line them up and give them baths, put them to bed and pretend I had to go clean.  It truly was where I was the happiest, in those imaginative moments.

I was blessed to have grown up in an era where Home Economics was offered in school.  I learned about nutrition, sewing, crochet and knitting, managing a home, cooking and so many other things.

Tools that I wish my daughter had been offered in her school years.

That is one of the reasons for this whole Homemaker Series.  To be able to help, or at the very least, encourage women to embrace their family, their lives, their homes.  Whether you are a single young woman, or married and struggling with homemaking, whether you are a working mom, or a en empty nester, this series is for you, for us.

First and foremost, I want you to understand that I know homemaking can at times be a daunting, never ending role.  It can feel like you are being taken for granted, or that no one thanks you for what you do.  Believe me, I understand that feeling, and for the first year or two of my marriage, I struggled with it, until I made the decision to look at homemaking through a fresh set of eyes, and to do it with purpose in my heart and love for my family.

It is after all an honor to be a homemaker, and a blessing bestowed to us by the Lord.

I'm doing it for my family, or my husband, for my children and even for myself.  My husband has always made it very clear to me and anyone who listens, that my job is extremely important and that I'm the glue that holds it all together, the one who keeps the home fires going, and the provider of a safe, happy, and calm space for them all.

But again, it IS easy to forget all of that, especially when you're doing your 3rd load of dishes, or switching clothes from the washer to the dryer for what seems like the millionth time.  In those moments, I turn to the Lord and Scripture, because as always, He is right there providing me with the encouragement I need.



Psalm 128:3

“Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
In the very heart of your house,
Your children like olive plants
All around your table.“



Proverbs 31:21

“She is not afraid of snow for her household,
For all her household is clothed with scarlet.“



Proverbs 19:14

“Houses and riches are an inheritance from fathers,
But a prudent wife is from the Lord.“


There are so many verses in the Bible to inspire us in what we do.  Here are some you can go through in your own time......Proverbs 31: 10-31, Phillipians 4:8, Colossians 3:23.

Along with encouragement from the Bible, there are so many wonderful resources out there for homemakers.  I want you to go over to Revive Our Hearts, one of my absolute favorite sites on the net, and take a listen to these podcasts on homemaking.  The Joy of Generous Hospitality, The Home that Reflects God's Grace.


There is another wonderful series on Revive Our Hearts, called God's Beautiful Design for Women, and on Day 35, Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth talks about how God Himself is a homemaker, how God the Son talked about going to prepare a place for you.

Psalm 90:1 talks about God being "our dwelling place in all generations." He is our home.
Psalm 68:5 says "a father of the fatherless and a judge for the widows is God in His holy habitation."

I tell you, I heard every single word Nancy said and nodded my head vehemently, because it all made incredible sense.  Everything that I've been feeling, and thinking, about being a homemaker, all put into words in a way that makes you go "Oh my goodness, YES, that's it."

See homemaking is not just about making a home for my family and myself, but it's about making a home that reflects the wonderful God we serve.


So my beautiful friends, whatever stage of a homemaker you are at, loving it, hating it, not understanding the need for it, feeling overwhelmed or intimidated by what being a homemaker really is. 

I want you to stop right now, stop what you're doing, stop what you're thinking, and make a conscious decision to start tomorrow with a fresh heart, with renewed purposed and knowing that when you're doing laundry, dishes, cooking, even cleaning the toilet, that you're doing something important, and something worthy and to be proud of. 

I promise, the minute you do that, you will experience contentment like never before :)

Coming up in the Homemaker Series:

Basic Homemaking Skills
Daily Cleaning Routine
Menu Planning
Weekly Home Blessing
Recipes
Making time for ourselves
Time with the Lord

I may end up adding more the list, but these are for sure posts I'll be doing. Also, all the posts will be linked to the Linkbar up above the Header, so you won't have to miss anything.


Remember that the heart of the home IS your very own heart.  You are the heart of your home, and just like the heart in our bodies, if it is not working at it's full capacity, everything else around it starts falling apart. :)

Hello everyone, hope this post finds you all well :)

Oh my word, I've missed sitting down and typing from the heart, just whatever comes to mind and mostly sharing my life.  These kind of posts are always so much fun to do, and it's great to have a look back on what I was doing a few months from now.


Tomorrow I have another post for the Homemaker Series, I kind of want a kind of schedule for these posts but I know that life always gets in the way, so they will come as often as I can get them up.

By the way, if you have anything specific you would like me to talk about or post about let me know, I'm always open to new ideas :)

Alright let's get going, grab a cup of coffee or tea and enjoy.

6AM - Wake up and make coffee for the hubby and I.....

I usually sit and have my coffee and watch some youtube vlogs.  Then I move into the kitchen, empty the dishwasher and reload with any dishes in the sink from the night before.

Make some breakfast, and then go and get myself ready for the day.

The first thing I do every morning, after I'm dressed, is to open all the blinds and curtains in my bedroom, and then make my bed.

Not always the easiest thing to do with this dude on the bed.  He is so cute but I spend my whole time moving him off, and trying to maneuver around all 70 plus pounds of him.  Next I vacuum.

That's the bedroom done.  Today I had to clean the bathroom and closet, so I vacuumed the closet, tidied up the clothes in there, and then gave the bathroom a good clean, sweep and mop.

I don't always do this, but I also had to give the office a quick clean and tidy.  Hubby has so many things hanging around, and he is currently working on putting it all away, so the shelves are overflowing with all sorts of things.  We will be organizing the office this weekend though.  And I just realized that I don't think I ever showed you our office, so I'll have to do that. 

From there I move into the living rooms, and as always they need vacuuming because Marley pulls the fluff out of all his toys and is currently teething so chews anything he gets hold of.

It was almost lunch time by the time I was done with the bedroom, office, master bathroom and living rooms, so I quickly washed the breakfast dishes by hand, and got started on lunch for the kids and I.

We had ham and cheese grilled tortilla wraps.  Super easy and the kids love it.  I wanted to show you this beautiful little tablecloth I got from my sweet friend Rhonda, for my birthday.  She is just the sweetest lady :)

Story of my life in these next pictures.  He is such a sweetheart and loves being where I am and watching what I'm doing.  You would think for such a big puppy he would be overbearing or scary, but he is sweet, and soft hearted and a big cuddly bear.

Bear in mind that he is not even a year old, and just look at his size.  I adore him :)   After my housework is done, I sit to have my lunch and then enjoy a bit of crochet, watch some more vlogs or whatever show I'm currently watching.

One of Marley's favorite things to do is walk with me to get the mail.   I have this habit of turning on all my scent warmers in the afternoon, it is like an end to the major cleaning done and setting the house to rest for the afternoon.

A cup of hot tea in the afternoon is one of MY habits, and I enjoy sipping on that while I read through whatever book I'm working on for a review.  Pretty soon it's time to start getting dinner preparations underway, setting the table and getting ready to bring the day to an end.

My days are very similar, unless there's an appointment or something going on that requires a change in my routine, but for the most part, this is how I spend my days, and I truly wouldn't have it any other way.

I really am a Happy Homemaker :)

Hey everyone, come on in and sit real quick.  I have a great book to share with you today, one that I'm sure many of you will find interesting and a must have.

I do have a Day in the Life post going up after this book, so don't leave, stick around and be sure to check that out too :)

Alright, so I was asked if I would like a copy of Jane Stoller's book "Organizing for your Lifestyle" and if I would be willing to talk about it on my blog.

You all know that I love books, and I also love organizing and such, so of course I said yes.

 I have been super busy the past few months, so I read this book here and there, a Chapter in between others, while waiting at the doctor's office or even waiting for dinner to cook.

Jane starts by telling us a bit about herself, she's single, she doesn't have children and she has lived all over Europe.  She specifically says that while her book may be more geared towards people who live a similar lifestyle to hers, we all can learn from how to organize our homes to make it easier to live in.

In the beginning of the book are 2 questions for you to answer in order to better understand what and why you want to organize your home.  Immediately after is a little quiz with a few questions to uncover your organizing style.

I took the quiz and my results were these:

You are organized but there is still room to improve.  Your current habits enable you to find mostly everything, and minimize your stress.  Although for the most part, everything has it's place, sometimes you wish you could just go that extra mile, and get even more organized.  

Yes, yes, and yes!!!!!



One thing I loved about the book is that it's not huge, so it makes it perfect for reading on a busy day.  It has become my go to for organizing.  I remembered reading about hangers, and when I was organizing my closet last week, I picked it back up and quickly read through it all again.

Jane gives some really good tips on organizing with what you already have on hand.

I had a good chuckle when I saw what she had to say about wire hangers, because I've hated them for so long, but my husband holds on to some on his side of the closet.  He says they're better, and I've been telling him that they're not for years.  I actually grabbed the book and made him read the first few sentences of that section just to prove my point.  Hahah


With Chapters for the Bathroom, Kitchen, Closet, Books and even Travel, it is filled with interesting information and really good tips on how to get things organized. 

I found the sock folding quite interesting because as a Portuguese woman, I grew up folding socks, but when I moved to the States I found that not many fold them the correct way, or even at all.  Not that it matters, everyone is free to fold or unfold their socks, but for me it was neat seeing someone folding socks the way I and many other people in Portugal fold theirs.  Guess it's an European thing.

The Chapter I found most interesting and thought provoking was the first one.  It is all about the Science behind organization and stress, and Jane talks about how less clutter can help you stay on a budget, how to be a minimalist, how to buy less and de-clutter etc.

Like I said above, it's become my go to Organizational Manual when I need an idea on how to store or organize a certain item. 

Thank you so much Jane for giving me this opportunity to read your book, absolutely love it :)


I have an extra copy to giveaway, so if this is something you would be interested in, this book is for you.

Giveaway is open to US only.  

Please let a comment down below letting me know all about your organizational skills.  Are you a neat and tidy, everything in it's place person, or do you need help getting things organized.  Also if you win the book will you use it yourself or give it to someone specific as a gift????

Also, make sure there is an email where I can contact you, it's not always easy to find the winner through Google accounts.  

Good luck :)

 

About The Sworn Virgin

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks (August 8, 2017)

Dukes's gripping historical novel tells the tale of a desperate Albanian woman who will do whatever it takes to keep her independence and seize control of her future...even if it means swearing to remain a virgin for her entire life.

When eighteen-year-old Eleanora’s father is shot dead on the cobblestone streets of 1910 Albania, Eleanora must abandon her dream of studying art in Italy as she struggles to survive in a remote mountain village with her stepmother Meria.

Nearing starvation, Meria secretly sells Eleanora into marriage with the cruel heir of a powerful clan. Intent on keeping her freedom, Eleanora takes an oath to remain a virgin for the rest of her life—a tradition that gives her the right to live as a man: she is now head of her household and can work for a living as well as carry a gun. Eleanora can also participate in the vengeful blood feuds that consume the mountain tribes, but she may not be killed—unless she forsakes her vow, which she has no intention of ever doing.

But when an injured stranger stumbles into her life, Eleanora nurses him back to health, saving his life—yet risking her own as she falls in love with him...

“It’s hard to believe that the culture Dukes describes was ever real, but the amount of research she put into this book definitely shines through. The story remains fascinating throughout; readers will definitely find it difficult to put this novel down.”—San Francisco Book Review

Purchase Links

HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Photo ©2017 by Matt Jacobson

About Kristopher Dukes

Kristopher Dukes was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She has been a nationally published writer since she was in high school. Her work has been featured in the bestselling book series Written in the Dirt and fashion bible WWD. She has been profiled in Vogue.fr, NY Times.com, Fast Company, Forbes.com, and WWD. The Sworn Virgin is her debut novel. She lives in Manhattan Beach, California, with her husband, Matt, and Doberman, Xena.

Connect with her on Facebook.

My Thoughts:

 I've been so lucky with the books I've been reading lately, truly some of the best stories ever.  And if there's one thing I like about a book, is reading about places I've never been or customs I have never heard of.

The Sworn Virgins of Albania is definitely something I had never heard of.  I was fascinated with the concept that women could dress as men and declare themselves men and thereby reap all the benefits that came with that.  They carried guns, they were allowed to kill other men for honor.  It was just such an interesting way of life that I really enjoyed being transported to Albania and the beautiful rich culture it is made of.

As I've found with some books as well, the beginning was a bit slow, and I understand the need to establish the setting and give us the background on the culture and characters, but it just drug out a bit for me.  It wasn't a huge deal, once the story got going, I enjoyed every single second of it.

The journey Eleanora was on, was jam packed, from an 18 year old trying to make her way through life, to her meeting Cheremi, to falling in love and eventually making the transition into womanhood and a wife.

I still really love my historical fictions and this one didn't disappoint.

 

About Beneath Copper Falls

Series: Rock Harbor Series
Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (July 11, 2017)

Dana has already learned that love isn’t safe . . . but could it be different in Rock Harbor?
As a 911 dispatcher, Dana Newell takes pride in being calm in tough circumstances. In addition to her emotionally-charged career, she’s faced enough emergencies in her own life. She recently escaped her abusive fiancé to move to tranquil Rock Harbor where she hopes life will be more peaceful.

But the idyllic town hides more danger and secrets than it first appeared. Dana is continually drawn to her new friend Boone, who has scars inside and out. Then she answers a call at her job only to hear a friend’s desperate screams on the other end. Soon the pain in her past collides with the mysteries of her new home—and threatens to keep her from the future she’s always wanted.

Purchase Links

Amazon | Books-A-Million | Barnes & Noble

 

About Colleen Coble

USA TODAY bestselling author Colleen Coble’s novels have won or finaled in awards ranging from the Best Books of Indiana, the ACFW Carol Award, the Romance Writers of America RITA, the Holt Medallion, the Daphne du Maurier, National Readers’ Choice, and the Booksellers Best. She has over 2 million books in print and writes romantic mysteries because she loves to see justice prevail. Colleen is CEO of American Christian Fiction Writers. She lives with her husband Dave in Indiana.
.

Connect with Colleen

Website | Facebook | Twitter

My Thoughts:

Holy moly, this was a fantastic book.  The very first page, and I'm not kidding you, the very first page had me at the edge of my seat.  I was hooked and could not put the book down.

I have not yet read a Colleen Coble book before but I think she may have just zipped right to the top of my new favorite mystery and suspense writer.

Dana was in a relationship with a super creepy and quite scary guy.  I mean, he was twisted as all get out.   She moves to Rock Harbor, in the hopes of escaping his clutches.  She gets back into old habits, meets new people, reconnects with old friends and even starts falling in love with a new man.  It's not easy for her after what she's been through but she's really trying.

The whole book is a huge bubble of mystery and suspense, and if you think you know who the bad guy is, you have NO clue.  It took me by surprised but it truly made the book that more interesting to me.

I can't say enough about how good the story was and how much I loved it.  I'm now on the hunt for the other books in the Rock Harbor series.  I have got to read them.

If you love mystery, suspense, who dunnit and lots of twists and turns, you are going to need to add this one to your list.

Hi friends, I sure hope you are all doing well.  I've been great, just busy as always.  We've had insane storms around here lately, so my house seems to be in a constant state of quiet, dark, glowy goodness.  And I'm not complaining......I like it this way :)

But back to where I've been the past few days, well It's quite funny actually, I used to think that life was moving so slow at times, and some days would drag on.  I've often also said that as my children have grown older and become more self sufficient, my days will no doubt slow down, but to be completely honest, it feels like the opposite.  I'm busier than ever.

Summer is over, school has started again for us.  I now have just one child in school and it feels bitter sweet.  My little boy started High School, can you imagine?  Little Nicholas is now in 9th Grade, and my little Jasmine is graduated and looking for a job.  Life is crazy.

I thought I would come in and do a little catch up, show you what I've been up to, my birthday gifts and a quick peek at a great organizing book I'll be sharing with you on Thursday.

Last week Thursday was my birthday, but because it fell between paychecks, we didn't do anything, we waited until the weekend to celebrate, also because Saturday was my 19th wedding Anniversary too.

I got some pretty cool gifts and I'm gonna jump right in and show you.


One of the things I got was this free Sephora makeup bag, filled with little goodies.



My husband bought me these lashes.  As the years have gone by, my own lashes have gotten weaker, fallen out and are just not as good as they used to be.  I've been trying to give them a break from mascara, so once in a while I will pop on some fake lashes.


However, I am not a fan of the huge bulky lashes, I like them to look pretty but natural, so I love the plume lashes from Sephora.

I am a member of the Sephora Club, or the Beauty Insider.  Every year on your birthday month, you can pick something for free.  It's usually either a little make up set or skin care.   Since I'm 43 years old, and have enough makeup I figured that I would rather have the skin cream, so this set from Caudalie is what I chose.


Inside it is a Moisturizing Sorbet and a Radiance Serum.


Then I had 210 points to spend, so I got the two products above.  The first is from Tarte and it's the Rainforest of the Sea Deep Dive Cleansing Gel and the Make Up For Ever Artist Liquid Matte lipstick.


Now the next few things were all inside the make up bag.  I thought it was just the bag, but the girl quickly opened it up to show me that there were a few samples in there.  I was so excited!!!

So Rose Face Mask which smells phenomenal.  Boscia Charcoal Makeup Melter and the Kat Von D Setting Powder.


A Sephora Cream Lip Stain in red, and though I don't usually wear red lipstick, I will definitely give this one a try.  Stila Stay all Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner.


And last but not least, the Bumble and Bumble Repair Blow Dry and the Make Up For Ever Skin Booster.

I honestly can't wait to play with all of that.

Clothes wise, I really need new clothes, mainly just needed a new pair of jeans and a lot of tops.  As I've gotten older my taste has shifted and I'm finding that I'm not really liking the tank tops and tight fitting clothes look, I'm more into looser fitting but still cute, longish tops.

Lucky for me, my local Bealls was having a HUGE summer sale.  Tons and tons of racks with clothes for $4.99.  My amazing husband told me to just go on in and get whatever I wanted.  He had already bought me a pair of jeans at JC Penney, and I'll tell you I don't like buying expensive jeans, I just can't, I'm not one to spend tons of money on clothes.  But yeah he got me some really nice jeans, they fit so well and they feel amazing.

Anyway, Jasmine and I grabbed my sister in law and we all headed up to Bealls to see what they had.  I ended up getting 4 tops for Jasmine, and 7 for me.


All marked down, the cheapest was $40 and the most expensive was $80.  I mean, oh my word.

But yeah, got some really pretty tops and saved a ton of money.  I paid $50 for it all, that's for the 7 tops for me and the 4 for Jasmine.  We actually saved over $450.  Can't get any better than that right?

I got one last thing that my husband actually made for me.  He wanted me to have something on my birth day, and he had come up with an idea and kinda just ran with it.  He was so worried that I wouldn't like it, but I loved it, to the point where I started crying when he gave it to me.

For some it may not seem like anything special but it means so much to me, and I think it's by far the sweetest gift I have ever received.

As you can see, it is filled with pennies, that he had been collecting and polishing.  He made sure he had one from 1974 when I was born and all the way to 2017.  How sweet is that?


He's still working on it, and cleaning it all up and such, but I grabbed it to take a photo for the blog.  He asked me to wait until it was finished but I couldn't.  Sorry honey.

I'll definitely be treasuring this gift for many years.

Aside, from birthday, we had our Anniversary, and went out to lunch together at our favorite Mexican place.  It was so good, we ended up going back last night and taking the kids too.  Had a wonderful family dinner, lots of laughs and jokes and just enjoyed spending time together.

I'm now working on two book reviews for tomorrow, and then Thursday I have another book that I want to share with you and it's all about Organizing.  I've actually had this one for quite a while but I've had so many other reviews to get through first, and I'm now finally getting to it.  I think it's a book you all will enjoy too.



Well friends, there you have it, summer is over, we're back to a normal school routine, and I'll tell you all about the classes Nick is taking this year in another post.

We have a family reunion coming up over Labor Day weekend, so we'll be at the Lake for that.  Looking forward to seeing everyone, eating good food, getting some fresh air and just relaxing a bit.

I'm off to start dinner, it will be a yummy chicken curry tonight.

I hope you all have a fantastic rest of Tuesday and that your week is going well so far.  See you all tomorrow.  :)