3 in 30 wrap-up

3 in 30 wrap-up for September and new for October.

Not bad for September

1. Keep reading my bible in 90 days

This has been a bit more of a struggle lately. I am still reading most everyday and pretty much still right on track but having a bit of a struggle trying to find the time. I NEED to find the time more. Make HIS Word more of a priority again. I am not in Mark.

2. Stay with the plan to remain frugal and pay of debt faster.

Ok this was a bit of a struggle this week, However my hubby did work alot this month and we were able to pay more on the card and still buy a new bed (most desperatly needed) and a freezer ( also needed as we are borrowing my sisters and she needs it back). We are also going on a holiday next weekend and we will be able to comfortalby do so.

3. Do some sewing.

This went great this month. I made a rag quilt, made a table cloth, bought and am starting another quilt and finished off a quilt I start gulp 5 years ago. I have plans to finish the new quilt and make another rag quilt for a friends daughters 2nd birthday.

All in all I believe that my goals were decent and met.

October oh how I love thee.

1. Finish reading my bible in 90 days and I am hoping to start again.

I should be done about 3/4 of the way through. I plan to do some small readings for a few days and then start the bible again. It is something that I am finding very rewarding. If I choose not to start up right away my goal is to find another devotional that I can work on.

2. Stay off of glutens.

I am working on seeing if I have a gluten allergy. I have been off for 3 weeks now and I must say it has slowly made a difference. I have not had an upset stomach for 2 weeks. I am hoping that the cravings stop soon and that I get more energy soon. When I researched gluten allergies I found I have a lot of the symptoms and that it takes 8 weeks for it too go out of my systems so I have 5 more weeks.

3. Get more organized again.

I find I work much better on a schedule. I tend to have a love hate relationship with them but really am much more relaxed on them we as a family are better off for them. I have also learned that although we can be on a schedule we also have to be flexable with that. So I plan to work on our schedules more this month, to keep with the menu plan and to declutter some more.

I am looking forward to seeing everyones new goals.

http://3in30.ashleypichea.com/category/weekly-linkup/#

Wordless Wednesday

Truth Tuesday

I have an addiction to food.
Yep, I love it!!! I want it way too much. I use it for comfort. I use it for celebration. I use it for justification. I use food.
I am overweight. Way too much overweight. I makes me sad to look in the mirror and I have become a pro at not actually looking at my body. Instead focusing on my hair or my clothes.
I have dieted in the past to not avail and also exercised in the past. Just when I started to look and feel better I either got sick or my life got busy enough that I neglected that part of me and voila here I am again.
I promise myself that this year will be different. I am going to lose these pounds, these inches. But then something happens and there goes that. I did say I use food as a comfort right?
I often am sick after meals. Not making myself sick but I get diarrhea way too much. So I decided to do some research and find out what could be causing it. After all not necessarily could all the foods be tied together. I would have dairy one time and be sick, the next be perfectly fine. So google I went. I found out that a person could have a gluten allergy without being celiac. When I researched the gluten allergy more, I found I have A LOT of the symptoms. The thing that they suggested I do is quit all my glutens for 8 weeks. Yep you heard right 8 WEEKS!! That is along time when I love my food, all food. (homemade cinnamon buns, pasta, chocolate bars, granola bars, etc) But I decided it was worth a try.
So this is week 3. Other than one time I have not had a reaction. However this is so hard. I miss some things so much. I can not wait for a time for me to stop craving it. Now keep in mind I do not know that I have a gluten allergy for sure, I am just trying to find out.

Wow what a ramble I went on. Sorry. I guess it just goes to show how heavy (pun intended) this is.

Whatever your true struggle has been this week: a cluttered house, yelling at your kids, battling your weight, harbouring resentment towards a sister-in-law, taking out your frustrations on your husband, feeling guilt over the unfinished lists, refusal to forgive, distance in your relationship with God, feeling inadequate, feeding your kids cereal for supper, having unmet expectations, wishing for something you can’t have, not teaching your kids, skipping church, cutting someone off in traffic, being choked by anger, ignoring your responsibilities, wearing dirty socks because there’s no clean laundry… join in the Truth tuesday link up over at Sharla's at Chaos and the Clutter.

Hubby is coming home!!!!

My handsome hubby is coming home tomorrow!!! I am so excited. It will be 23 days since I saw him. I miss him, the kids miss him, I even think Pepper our kitty misses him. LOL
We get him for a whole 6 days before he heads back again but this time only for 4 days and then he is off as we are heading to BC for a wedding!
I feel like running around the house, hubby is coming home, hubby is coming home! Doing a little happy dance!! ( I'll leave my happy dance to your imaginations heeheehee)
Poor guy is going to feel over worked here at home as we have to get the yard and the trailer ready for winter, but the holidays after that will make up for it. :)
I am so pumped up to be held in that man's arms again.
He is my physical strength and emotional support. I would be so empty without him. God most definitely blessed me with that man.

HUBBY IS COMING HOME!

Awe my favorite season!

Ok maybe not my favorite season as I honestly love, spring, summer, fall and winter equally. I know most people think I am a tad nuts but I can honestly find beauty and something I love in each and every season. Since we are currently in beautiful fall I will focus on that one. First off one of the things that I very much dislike about fall is that I get bronchitis every year. This week I got sick. I was very nervous that it was going to develop into something again. I have one of our very best friends wedding to go to in 2 weeks, I could not be still sick. So we had a sick week around here. Sarah also was not feeling great so not alot of schooling got done. I broke down and went out and bought Cold FX. I think it is helping. I am not coughing near as badly and I actually had some energy today. So much in fact that when I picked up Sarah from her youth fall retreat we went and did an improv photo shoot.
Here they are.

Ok I know that this is a lot of pictures and honestly these are just a few of my favorites. But come on I had such a beautiful subject in such a beautiful setting. I am glad my daughter was willing to do this and not get too weirded out. I think I am going to have to do this more. It was a lot of fun and I am learning about different camera angles.
I just love Gods glory in these pictures as well!!

Not tell me how can you not love fall?

Linking up with Michelle's Caffeinated Randomness post at Lost in the Prairies...Found by God.

Truth Tuesday

Hello my name is Sherri and I am a planner. (otherwise know as a tad bit of a control freak)
I like to do things my way. I like to make sure I have all the ducks lined up in a row so that I can be confident about what is going to happen.
For example...My handsome hubby and I are heading to Vancouver Island for Thanksgiving to celebrate the marriage of one of our long time very good friends to his fiance. ( I must insert here that I am so excited about this and am looking very much forward to hubby and me time as well). The problem I am facing right now is our daughter. She is 13 and very much involved in dance. We are supposed to leave Friday and she dances Friday. We were hoping not to be back till like Thursday and She dances Tuesday and Thursday. She also is working at Sunday School on that Sunday. Now some of this should not be a problem as our oldest still lives at home and usually has weekends off so he could drive her to and from church and pick her up from dance as well so she could come home and do her schooling. However how would I get her to dance? (by the way we live 25 minutes away from town, aka the dance studio) Our middle son lives in town but works weird hours and is not always available.
Now back to my planning issues. I do not have all my ducks lined up, in fact they are just floating all over the place, some even in different ponds. This quite honestly is freaking me out. Remember I like to be in control and clearing over this I am not. My hubby is much more relaxed about this.
I know I just need to relax and see what falls in to place closer to the time. Especially regarding my sons' shifts.
Now I can also turn this over to my spiritual life. I like to be in control right? Well this does not work so well with the Lord. I need to turn over control to him. This is very hard and honestly lots of times I fail. The funny part is I know that HIS way is better. I know that HIS  plans are much more sufficient for me than mine can ever be. So why is it that I can not let it go? Fear?
That is my prayer for the day that I learn to let HIM lead me and that I am happy and accepting of that path that HE heads me on.
http://thechaosandtheclutter.com/archives/1026

Happy Sunday!

What a glorious day this was.
Tiring yes,
Exhilarating yes,
Informational yes,

Ok ok I get off topic.
Sarah had some friends stay over last night. I always call it a stay over because I don't believe much sleeping takes place. They decided to sleep in our camper. Did I mention that it is not getting down to like +5 at night. Brrrrr. Somehow they all did it and when I went to go get them this morning for breakfast they were all chipper and not complaining about the night at all.
Then we rush and get ready, the girls go home and S and I take off to church. (like little mad hatters, because no matter what we are always running out the door a 5 minutes late).
 Anyway...we get to church on time and sit down to a fantastic service. I really wish you all could come to my church to listen to my pastor speak. The man has got talent. He challenges you, he turns around on himself, he make His Word real. He makes you laugh, he makes you cry. He is honestly using his talents 100% to share Gods Word with us.
One thing that our church is now doing is Monvee. Does anyone know what that is? In a shortened form it is making a plan to help you grow in your spiritual walk the way that works best for each individual person. I am getting so excited for this. Next week I plan on getting a package and sitting down and working on mine. This is going to be just what the Lord is yelling in my ear about.
Plus something else that our church is now doing is if you have a smart phone you can download an app called the YouVerson bible and follow along during the service. The weekly scripture is there, his points are on there, various links to the church website, plus locations for you to take notes, etc. It is a pretty darn cool app and I enjoyed using it today for the first time.
Our pastor also challenged us today to use our spiritual gifts more. If we were unsure of them there was a link on our website to go to and do an online survey to learn more about what our particular gifts might be.
I learned that mine is mostly showing mercy with a strong follow up to pastor or shepard. Basically what it means is I like to serve other people. I am very empathic and I tend to relate very easy to others. I need to use this gift more I just need to figure out how. I am not a teacher, (well other than being there for my kids and now homeschooling S) However I was a Sunday school teacher assistant and fastly realized that was not the path for me. I love make things so I am guessing that will somehow be the path I take. Whether its making a quilt for a newborn, a shawl, dessert, or a meal. That will be more up my alley and something that I fully believe that I need to work on.

Than I went for lunch with an amazing friend of mine. We actually went to college together. The interesting part (and we were just discussing today how God was at work here) is that we both went as older adults and we took the same course. I was sitting by myself and she came over to see if she could join me. The rest is history. I have always considered her to be one of my great friends. I can talk to her about anything. She is an amazing listener and a strong Christian woman. We have since, through the struggles of everyday, fallen further from each other. This was not intentional but however it did happen. I am so happy that last week we reconnected and again this week. The lunch itself was nothing spectacular but the time with a great friend was cherished.

Then off to the dance shoe swap. Where $316 later, we walked out with 3 pairs of new shoes, a new bodysuit and a bun cover plus one another pair of shoes we purchased was the sample size so we can pick it up tomorrow. It seems like a lot but in reality not actually that much. I drooled over a pair of $230 boots for me yesterday. (never purchased them but drooled) So in the fact that we managed to get 4 pairs of shoes + bodysuit+ bun cover is actually not terrible.

On a sad note one my friends lost his father this week. He was only 57. So if you could pray for him and his family I ( and them) would very much appreciate it.

Wow what a wordy post but I guess I had a lot to say. LOL
I did mention in the beginning what a glorious day it was right. :)

InstaFriday on a Saturday

I have been wanting to do this for a while but I never seem to remember so here goes nothing.

1. Tim Hortons make Saskatchewan Roughrider donuts!!!! I love it!!! As you can probably guess I was born and raised in Saskatchewan.

2. A beautiful rainbow the other night. We had a brief shower of rain and then we were treated to this gorgeous display of God's Word.

3. Yummmm movie popcorn!!!!!!

4. Coffee in the morning. Just what this tired girl needs to wake up before noon. Can you tell I am not a morning person? Hahaha

5. My beautiful girlie first thing in the morning picking up a magazine off the coffee table and checking it out.

6. Some late evening shopping at Wal*Mart.

7. My cuddly kitty. She likes to sleep like a baby upside down in my arms.

8. Some friendship time. My girlfriend and I managed to sneak away today for some time for just us. It was fantastic. I even managed to buy myself a new pair of jeans. One size smaller!!!!

Check out others instaFridays over at http://liferearranged.com/2011/09/instafriday-19/

3 in 30 update

So far so good.
1. Keep reading my Bible in 90 days.
This is still going amazing! I am now in Jeremiah. I will attest that now with the cooler weather getting my butt out of bed before S so I can do my reading has been more of a challenge lately. In fact this week I have read twice while she was doing school work alone. However my goal was to read not necessarily get up before her so goal obtained so far.
In fact my kitty thinks that these mornings are perfect for cuddle time with my while I try to read. Makes it a bit more difficult but I love it. Nothing like a cuddly kitty on a cool morning with the Word of the Lord being absorbed.

2. Stay with the plan to remain frugal and help pay off the debt faster.
Still working with this. I love doing little things like now using vinegar for fabric softener. Not only am I saving money but I am also doing my small part for the environment. I also am buying WAY less groceries. I LOVE menu planning. It takes quite a bit of time once a month but in the long run so worth it. I will admit we tweak as we go. Some days we have alot of leftovers so some meals don't get made but all in all that is alot better than  buying takeout or scrambling around trying to figure out what to buy so paying $30 everyday on groceries plus the regular grocery shop. Now I only go once a week for perishables or if we absolutely need something. Saving tons this way. All the extra mula is going onto bills. We also cut out one cell bill and and at the end of this month another is gone. That is going to help tons!!!!!

3. Do some sewing.
This is going fantastic. If you checked with me last week you will have seen that I made my first ever rag quilt. http://lovelaughterfriendshipandfaith.blogspot.com/2011/09/tad-bit-of-randomness.html  Well this week I made myself a new fall tablecloth.

It is so easy to do. I forgot how much I enjoy it. I hope to make alot more, maybe some Christmas presents?


On a side note I just want to add how excited I am about S's homeschooling so far. On Wednesday she received back her first science test which she received 70% on. Last year she was failing with a 31%. Today she received her first ever home ec assignment back and she received 100%. I am so happy that we made the decision to homeschool. She is on the whole happier and more focused on other activities instead of being frustrated day in and day out. Don't get me wrong it is not all sunshine and rainbow by a long shot. Many time I say to her I am walking away till she calms down or I calm down and we can work again.


Ok so how is everyone else doing on their 3 in 30?

Thankful Thursday

I am so thankful for the ability to use the Internet.
This might seem like such a strange thing to be thankful for but I truly am. I have been able to keep in touch with friends and family via the internet. I have started to blog and meet new blogger friends via the internet and now I am doing a bible study via the internet with a group of ladies that I met while blogging.
I am not very techno savy at all but I spend a fair amount of time between my daughters studies and my 'freetime' on the net. I love the fact that I can meet up with a bunch of like-minded, Christian women whom I have never met in person and have some spiritual time with them.
I am able to share with these ladies my thoughts and learn more about the Word through them.
This is such a blessing.
I could have easily been born in a country that doesn't believe in God or even been punished for my beliefs in Him.
I was not. I was born in Canada. I am free to be able to choose my own religion. I choose God!!!!!
I could also been poverished and not been able to afford internet let alone a computer to use with it. I am also not. Although we are by no means wealthy we are able to afford some extravagances such as a laptop and internet and I also own a iPhone.
I am blessed also that my husband supports me in my endeavors and makes it easy for me to continue to grow in Christ.

What are you thankful for today?
Hop on over to Brandy at the Marathon Mom and see what other bloggers are thankful for.

http://themarathonmom.com/thankful-thursday-sweet-season.htm

Wordless Wednesday

A tad bit of randomness.

I just want to send an update on my 3 in 30.

1. Keep reading my bible in 90 days.
Yep this is going great!! I read every night before bed and again every morning. This is my time in the morning to be able to soak up the Word. Although most mornings my kitty thinks that she should join me and occasionally I need that cup of coffee to clear my mind enough.

2. Stay with the plan to remain frugal and help pay off debt faster.
Yep still working on this. No fancy pic to show you.

3. Do some sewing.
Ok this I am completely and utterly thrilled that I am doing this. I started finishing a quilt that my mom and I had started 6 ( insert embarrassed face here) years ago. I am not quite done it but I need to run to town to get some brown yarn to 'tie' it with.
However today I attempted for the first time ever by myself to make a quilt from scratch and I finished it!!! Whohoooooo! Mind you it is only a crib quilt, but I measured, cut, sewed, stuffed, sewed some more, finished and cut the seams by myself ( ok my daughter helped me my bringing me the blocks to sew together once I laid them out on the floor in the pattern I wanted) .
I am so excited by this. I am giving it as a baby gift tomorrow so I REALLY hope she likes it.

I turned over the edge so you could see the back.

I am thrilled that I am able to do this for a good friend of ours. This was not inexpensive in any means but it is a very heartfelt gift. I think I will do more, I have some more baby gifts to make so thinking about that.

Joining Michelle at Lost in the Prairies for Caffinated Randomness.

Thankful Thursday

I must admit that this morning I was having a hard time being thankful for much. This is the first year I am homeschooling our daughter and today met with some challenges. I was tired to start with and unfortunatley so was my daughter. So now you have two tired ladies with some hormone issues and quite frankly you can possibly get some snapping going on. Words not bodies. Hahahaha
However as the day wore on I became more and more thankful.
Our middle son came out for a visit today. Even though he only lives 25 minutes away he hasn't been home since July. So this was a real treat. I have seen him occasionally but pretty sporatic so just to see him, hug him and talk to him was a blessing all in itself.
Then for an added bonus he drove S into town for dance tonight so I got to have a rare bit of time for myself. I was able to go read some blogs and just relax.
Then I had to head into town and decided on a whim to grab my camera.
These are some of the pics that I managed to take.

This was just as I was leaving town.

This is just on the outskirts of my town.

This is of some of the crops laying in rows after being swathed.
I love this country I live in.
I love fall and the changing of the seasons.
I have lived in many different places and have found something to love everywhere but really I am a farmer's daughter at heart.

http://themarathonmom.com/thankful-thursday-family-time.htm

Wordless wednesday or close to wordless wednesday

I can't really call it wordless wednesday when I am actually typing out words so it is close to wordless wednesday. First of all I am sorry for neglecting here lately. I needed some time with my hubby away from here and some time to think. Alot of things going on that I wanted to process cause that's how I roll.

This is our adorable kitty that we adopted in June. She is now almost 6 months old. Here she was cuddling on the couch with me trying the sitting like a human position. I am not sure she realises she is not human.

Ok how can you not just giggle at that.

So when I saw my girl wearing these 3d glasses reading this comic book I quickly grabbed my phone to snap a pic.

Then she saw me and wanted me to take this one...

How I love this girl growing in a young woman and struggling to find her own identity. Cross between being an young adult and being a child. I love the fact that she can still enjoy the simple things and laugh at herself.

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful that I was so successful last month with my 3 in 30. It was the first time I had done something like that and I managed to it. Even though I had a bit of a kink in it I managed to rally and get caught back up. In fact I am even doing better than I the goals I made for myself. So for this month I decided to do the 3 in 30 again.

So...






1. Keep reading my Bible in 90 days.
I am not in Job and plan to stay on track with this. It has been inspirational for me and I find myself changing more and more everyday for the positive. I am working on making my life reflect Him more and more.

2. Stay with the plan to remain frugal and help pay off our debt.
I did up our monthly menu plan yesterday and it feels great to know I have plans on what to make for supper. That I will not be struggling to figure something at 4:30 and end up either making garbage or take out. Tonight we had bbq'ed salmon, rice and spinach salad. So yummy. Really easy, and made a great healthy meal that I did not have to struggle with deciding what to make.

3.Do some sewing.
I want to do some sewing and quilting. I love to sew and when we were first married with a couple of young ones I sewed quite a bit. I sewed lots of our clothing and some blankets for the boys, tableclothes, etc.. Although I have never attempted to actually make a quilt piece by piece before so looking forward to that. Also I have some baby gifts to give so I figure with my frugal plan combined with my sewing desire I decided to make some baby quilts. I would also like to make some little girl aprons and some homemade napkins.

I am thankful for the desire that God is putting in me to live more to His Word.
I am thankful that my husband is being supportive and loving me with my decisions.
I am thankful that my daughter and I are working on homeschooling. It is not easy but I truely believe that it will be worth it.


I am linking up with both Brandy at Marathon Mom
http://themarathonmom.com/thankful-thursday-the-thing-i-thought-i-never-wanted.htm
and with Sam at Sam's Noggin
http://www.samsnoggin.com/