Finding Joy in Your Home

When I started my healthy living journey, I was so overwhelmed. It felt like there were so many areas I wanted to work on from diving into non-toxic products in my home, to healthy cooking, to figuring out healthy hormones and more. So today's episode is all about working through that overwhelm and figuring out how to set realistic healthy living goals. Let's jump in! Listen to the Podcast: You can find the notes for this episode down below. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Our Sponsor: Jenny Life - check it out to get a free quote for life insurance! Our sponsor: HelloFresh.com/Homemaking80 and use coupon code: homemaking80 to get $8o off your first month plus free shipping on your first box! Join our brand new healthy living conference! Today we are kicking off the Crafting a Healthy Home Online Conference. Today's episode is the first session from this action packed conference. You can get immediate access (with lifetime access) to the conference right now! Check it out and grab your ticket here!

I'm taking a stand this year. 2020 is the year of directing my family back to Christ and making a Gospel Centered, Christ focused atmosphere in my home. In this episode I share 7 resources we've been enjoying for helping in that regard! Listen to the Podcast: You can find the notes for this episode down below. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. 1. Parenting by Paul David Tripp This is a fantastic parenting book for all Christian parents to read! "God hasn't just sent you to do his work in the lives of your children; he will use the lives of your children to advance his work in you." "So your hope as a parent is not found in your power, your wisdom, your character, your experience, or your success, but in this one thing alone: the presence of your Lord. The Creator, Savior, Almighty, Sovereign King is with you. Let your heart rest. You are not in this parenting drama alone. Your potential is greater than the size of your weaknesses, because the One who is without weakness is with you, and he does his best work through those who admit that they are weak but in weakness still heed his call." 2. Read Aloud Family by Sarah MacKenzie Drawing close together as a family is hard work! But it's more important than ever that I'm making the time in my day to connect with my kids and all of us together as a family. Reading together is a beautiful way to do this! The Read Aloud Family is a great book that helps with that (it even has booklists)! Her podcast The Read Aloud Revival is also a great resource. "No one will ever say, no matter how good a parent he or she was, "I think I spent too much time with my children when they were young." "When my head hits the pillow each night, I want to know that I have done the one most important thing: I have fostered warm, happy memories and created lifelong bonds with my kids—even when the rest of life feels hard." 3. Courageous Parenting Podcast by Isaac & Angie Tolpin Courageous Parenting is a weekly podcast for Christian parents who want to equip confident Christian kids in an uncertain world. As parents of 8 kids, they know how important and hard it is to focus on Christ in your everyday and in marriage and parenting. I love their commitment to Christ centered parenting and I love to see the team they make in this. Angie is also a very encouraging person to follow on instagram. 4. Faithful Life Podcast by Matt & Lisa Jacobson Matt and Lisa are another couple I love getting advice from. They especially shine for me when it comes to marriage advice. Their podcast is a terrific resource! "What does it mean to be a biblical Christian in Marriage, Parenting, Church, and Culture? Each episode takes on a vital issue and explores what The Word says about it – topics like sex, purity, growing in oneness as a married couple, difficult parenting issues, being a biblical Christian in a fallen world and much more, including practical steps for real success and deep growth in these areas. . . we laugh a lot, too!" 5. The Duties of Parents by J.C. Ryle This is a book I have't read yet. But Jason says it's the best book on parenting he's ever read! It's next on my to read list. It's a quick short book but an excellent one! 6. Minno Did you cancel Netflix this month? Or are you struggling in knowing what shows are safe (and encouraging) for your kids? Minno (use to be Jelly Telly) is a streaming service for kids. Basically it's like a Christian Netflix for kids shows and we are huge fans of it!! Go to Gominno.com and use coupon code HOMEMAKING for 7 day free trial. While you check out that free trial, try out our favorite shows: Theo, Owlegories, 3, 2, 1 Penguins, and of course the classic veggie tales! 7. Drawing together in our marriage This last one isn't really a resource, but it's an important one right now! With everyone going on in the world today (and having a 4 mo...

I've talked about morning baskets here on the podcast before, but usually when we talk about them, we are referring to reading more with your kids and/or homeschooling. But today we are going to chat about this morning basket concept and how everyone can use one. Listen to the Podcast: You can find the notes for this episode down below. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. A morning basket is simply a basket or container of some sort that contains the books/resources to help facilitate a goal. We have 3 kinds we are going to discuss today. Create a kids basket This can be extremely helpful if you are homeschooling, but you can also just use it as a reading basket with your kids who do a different form of school. For homeschool, your morning basket time is usually how you will open your homeschool day. It's an excellent way to kick off your homeschool day and to fit in extra subjects. Here's how we use ours (you can listen to this podcast episode for more info) We start off singing a few hymns, read our current devotional, and/or Bible study book. Then we move into reading different kinds of books to hit other subjects. We like to always have a poetry book, you can add in Shakespeare, art study, and cycle through different topics such as history, geography, social studies, etc. People will add in flash cards and other fun stuff to this time as well. We cover a lot of these topics now in our new unit studies we do. You can read about them here. For non-homeschoolers: You can also create a reading basket for the current books you are reading with your kids. You can use this for Saturday mornings or even each night before bed! Create a Bible basket for yourself This is what I am excited about! After talking about it for a long time, I finally have my own morning basket time. It's simple but it's a cute little crochet basket I found on Amazon. Right now it just contains my journaling Bible, my spiritual disciplines notebook, and the current spiritual/theological book I'm reading. I leave it right out on my desk by my computer. I see it multiple times a day and makes it more likely I'll dive into it! Create a hobby/fun basket Since we've done church at time so much this year, I've been inspired to keep a few things by me for easy reach. Now I like this idea of making a little hobby basket for my self or even for some of my kids. Things like: Coloring books, a tin of colored pencils, crochet, etc. Hop over on instagram and share any ideas YOU have for these baskets!! ? Check out our sponsor! Prepdish makes your life simple with incredible meal planning help! Their step by step systems shows you how to make an entire week's worth of healthy meals in just a few hours! Sign up for your very own 14 day free trial: Prepdish.com/homemaking

In the last episode I jumped right into sharing new habits & routines I've been working on for this new season. In this episode we go back to the beginning of HOW do we figure out what these new habits and routines should be. It all starts with the baby steps of creating new goals. Let's dive in! Listen to the Podcast: You can find the notes for this episode down below. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Our sponsor: Varsitytutors.com/home Our sponsor: Magicspoon.com/home and use promo code home for free shipping!

I am in a season of building routines and finding a good rhythm. Slowly, things are coming together as we head into the rest of the year. In this episode, I'm going to share some tips on building out a good routine and what is working well for us in this current season which is very full! Listen to the Podcast: You can find the notes for this episode down below. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Looking for a new planner? Check out my Joy Filled Home Planning system here Our sponsor: magicspoon.com/HOME Our Sponsor: PlushCare.com/home

In the last episode, we discussed what it means to meditate upon God's Word (and why this practice is so important)! In this episode, we are going to get practical and look at HOW we mediate and incorporate it into daily life. Listen in! Listen to the Podcast: You can find important links & info below. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Listen to the first episode: God's Battleplan for the Mind Our sponsor: Get your waived registration fee from LaurelSprings.com/Foundation Our sponsor: Get 25% off each of your first 3 months of TakeCareOf.com/home25 Book recommendation: God's Battle Plan for the Mind by David W. Saxton Trusting the Promises of God podcast episode Practical Ways to Grow in Trust & Peace podcast episode Reclaiming Joy in an Uncertain World podcast episode

Are you struggling with a good perspective right now? Are you letting fear or anxiety crowd your mind? In this episode we are going to look to the puritans to give us a fresh perspective on meditation and creating a battle plan for the mind! Listen in: Listen to the Podcast: You can find important links & info below. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: God's Battle Plan for the Mind by David W. Saxton Trusting the Promises of God podcast episode Practical Ways to Grow in Trust & Peace podcast episode Reclaiming Joy in an Uncertain World podcast episode

We have been living in a renovated 32 foot travel trailer as we travel full time around the United States. While it's been amazing, it has also come with it's own challenges in living tiny. In today's epsiode I'm going to share some of the important lessons I've learned about homemaking and housekeeping that I'll be carrying with me back into a home one day. Listen in! Listen to the Podcast: You can find important links & info below. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Our sponsor: Get TWO weeks of free meal plans from Prepdish.com/homemaking Follow our RV adventures over at Instagram.com/Wanderingnotlostfamily

Are you struggling to find joy and peace in your life right now? Me too! In this episode we will break down some practical ways we can learn to grow in the Lord when it comes to trust and peace! Listen in: Listen to the Podcast: You can find important links & info below. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Book recommendation: Trusting God by Jerry Bridges Book recommendation: Praying the Bible by Donald Whitney Our sponsor: LaurelSprings.com/Foundation Our sponsor: HelloFresh.com/Foundation80 coupon code: Foundation80 NOTES for this episode: It takes discipline and obedience to actively place our faith and trust: "We must not allow our emotions to hold sway over our minds. Rather, we must seek to let the truth of God rule our minds. Our emotions must become subservient to the truth." - Trusting God 1. Start off your day with GOD not social media Before you check your email, hop on FB or turn on the news...first turn to the Lord. 2. End your day with GOD not social media 3. Surround yourself with the things of God more Listen to sermons when cooking or out for a drive Listen to Gospel Centered books that will help you have a better mindset Listen to hymns and other good worship songs SING those worship songs throughout your day Talk to your kids constantly about the hope we have in Christ 4. PRAY. Pray all the time. Daily. Hourly. Minute by minute. Feeling crushed and defeated? Stop. Open your Bible to the psalms and pray through them. When you feel like you have nothing to pray, let the psalms direct you. WHY pray scripture? "And when prayer is boring, we don't feel like praying. And when we don't feel like praying, it's hard to make ourselves pray. Even five or six minutes of prayer can feel like an eternity. Our mind wanders half the time. We'll suddenly come to ourselves and think, "Now where was I? I haven't been thinking of God for the last several minutes." And we'll return to that mental script we've repeated countless times. But almost immediately our minds begin to wander again because we've said the same old things about the same old things so many times." - Praying the Bible HOW to pray scripture: "To pray the Bible, you simply go through the passage line by line, talking to God about whatever comes to mind as you read the text." "So basically what you are doing is taking words that originated in the heart and mind of God and circulating them through your heart and mind back to God. By this means his words become the wings of your prayers." -Praying the Bible

Are you struggling this year to trust in the Lord? Are you wrestling with fear and anxiety? Today we are going to look to Scripture to see how we can learn how to trust in the promises of God. Listen in: Listen to the Podcast: You can find important links & info below. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer. Links & Resources: Book recommendation: Trusting God by Jerry Bridges Our sponsor for today's episode: For 25% off each of your first 3 months of Care/of, go to TakeCareOf.com/home25 and enter code home25 Passages we covered today: TRUSTING is not passive: "Trust is not a passive state of mind. It is a vigorous act of the soul by which we choose to lay hold on the promises of God and cling to them despite the adversity that at times seeks to overwhelms us." - Trusting God Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. - Hebrews 10:23 Learning to trust: "God's plan and His ways of working out His plan are frequently beyond our ability to fathom and understand. We must learn to trust when we don't understand." - Trusting God "Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God[a] is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation." - Isaiah 12:2 "If we are going to learn to trust God in adversity, we must believe God will allow nothing to subvert His glory so He will allow nothing to spoil the good He is working out in us and for us." - Trusting God "God's guidance is almost always step-by-step; He does not show us our life's plan all at once. Sometimes our anxiousness to know the will of God comes from a desire to peer over God's shoulder to see what His plan is. What we need to do is learn to trust Him to guide us." - Trusting God Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock. - Isaiah 26:4 "Prayer is the most tangible expression of trust in God. If we would trust God for our persecuted brothers and sisters in other countries, we must be diligent in prayer for their rulers. If we would trust God when decisions of government in our own country go against our best interests, we must pray for His working in the hearts of those officials and legislators who make those decisions. The truth that the king's heart is in the hand of the Lord is meant to be a stimulus to prayer, not a stimulus to a fatalistic attitude." - Trusting God Trusting him when times get tough: "In the arena of adversity, the Scriptures teach us three essential truths about God—truths we must believe if we are to trust Him in adversity. They are: • God is completely sovereign. • God is infinite in wisdom. • God is perfect in love. Someone has expressed these three truths as they relate to us in this way: "God in His love always wills what is best for us. In His wisdom He always knows what is best, and in His sovereignty He has the power to bring it about." - Trusting God "God does not willingly bring affliction or grief to us. He does not delight in causing us to experience pain or heartache. He always has a purpose for the grief He brings or allows to come into our lives. Most often we do not know what that purpose is, but it is enough to know that His infinite wisdom and perfect love have determined that the particular sorrow is best for us. God never wastes pain. He always uses is to accomplish His purpose. And His purpose is for His glory and our good. Therefore, we can trust Him when our hearts are aching or our bodies are racked with pain."- Trusting God Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." - Joshua 1:9 We need to trust in the Lord, not in man The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe. - Proverbs 29:25