My priorities are my relationship with God. So I try to begin and end my day with Him—to pray for and about my other priorities as I worship Him. I read my Bible, my devotional (Every Day Begins with Jesus by Shawn Franco –right now), a small segment from a Christian book (The Holy Spirit by Billy Graham), and a chapter in my Bible (right now I am camped out in Matthew 5).
After God my priority is my husband. I want to intentionally love him, respect him, support him, and do him only good. He is painting the interior of our home. I cannot work to his standards—so I support him by putting the rooms back together as he finishes them, stay close at hand to help as needed, and prepare the areas he is working toward. We are having to compromise. I am trying to be wise in my comments, and to be encouraging. He is doing an excellent job. Roy and I are very different people and it’s challenging to move from his way and my way to our way. I pray for him and I pray for us.
My children and grandchildren are right behind Roy in my priorities. We pick up Brayden from play practice each day. I try to stay in touch with my grandchildren with occasional texts. They are all growing up way too fast for me but I try to be available to help as I can. I encourage my children to get their children to church. I try to live my faith before them with integrity. I do not always succeed but I will not quit.
After these first priorities, I try to serve the people God has placed me among in my church and my community. Being a good friend and neighbor is important to me. I share the bread I bake and do whatever God places in front of me.
This week, Roy will be painting our bedroom so we will be staying in the guest bedroom and using the family bathroom. I will be working in the back bedroom that Brayden considers to be his but I use as my workroom/craft room. I iron in that room. All my craft supplies are there. When I take clothes out of my closet, they stay in one of the closets in that room until I am ready to get rid of them. Our overflow from our coat closet are kept in the closet during the summer. I hang my tablecloths on hangers in one of the closets in that room. I have asked Roy to take his time in our room and bathroom so I can go through everything in that room. I bought some more white boxes to divide and conquer the pictures and memorabilia stored in there.
Each day I make sure the dishes are done, the laundry is up to date, and the house is in good general order. I sweep and mop as needed but dusting is almost a lost cause because every time I dust, Roy sands some of the walls and dust appears everywhere. I am going to do a major dusting when this project is finished in a couple of weeks. In other words, I am keeping our home in order but I am off my routine. I still pay attention to each area but in making myself available to help Roy I am not on automatic pilot.
What We Need in Our Kitchens
Around thirty-four years ago when I decided to get organized I began to read any and every book I could find on the subject. Some books, I have purchased more than once as I have passed them on to other people. I don’t believe in reinventing the wheel. If I can point you in a direction that works and to someone who is better than I am in an area—it’s best for both of us.
The two books I really like that cover cooking and your are by Leanne Ely:
Saving Dinner: The Menus, Recipes, and Shopping Lists to Bring Your Family Back to the Table
Saving Dinner Basics: How to Cook Even If You Don’t Know How
The menus and recipes with the weekly shopping lists are family friendly.
I don’t want you to rely on me. I want help you get started and learn to work on your own. This should be your goal for your children.
- Show them what you do.
- Tell them why you do it.
- Help them to master the skills.
- Turn them loose.
As our work in our home and the Lord allows I will post each day but just as in your life sometimes our time is not our own. Be faithful to get what needs to be done first, while enjoying the people God has placed you among, and then enjoy the extra time you have to enjoy them. Time is one thing that once it’s wasted cannot be recycled. Make good use of it.
Hugs,
Mary
My Heart is at Home 