Finding Joy in Your Home

Pssst: The men's reading challenge is here!! Jason put together the 2018 Christian Reading Challenge for Men and it's fantastic! 

A great idea is to do this challenge together with your husband or share with a man in your life looking for new books to read. 

When I released my first reading challenge last year, I was excited! I love reading and I was excited to share some great picks for the year. What I didn't anticipate was how incredibly popular this reading challenge would be! 

So this year, Jason and I got it all together early so you can jump into the new year with this challenge (or pick this up anytime during the year if you find this later)! Plus we had our baby girl, Magnolia on January 20, 2017 so it was hard to keep up on things. 

THIS YEAR - not only do we have the 2018 reading challenges for both men and women, we also have a new podcast launching about reading AND something incredible exciting revolving around reading coming out in January 2018. So stay tuned...it's going to be a FUN YEAR!

Listen to the Podcast:

Listen in to my podcast episode from this week to find out more about why I developed this reading plan, tips for following along, and the reasoning behind the books and categories I chose. Or skip the podcast and head down below for all the info ?

And don’t forget to subscribe to my podcast in iTunes. 

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

We wanted to make this year's reading challenge even more accessible. So we changed up some of the categories and all books in the challenge are brand new to this year - no repeats! However, we do have categories down below if you want to pick other books to read - or feel free to swap out and put your own books in the categories. 

I’m ALL for broadening my reading horizon, which is why I was so excited about this new reading challenge. I think we often reach for the same kinds of books over and over again. But I want to stretch you and challenge you to reach out and pick up books you wouldn't normally. 

Plus, doing a challenge like this will make you read more throughout the year. So wanna join us?!?

Grab the Toolkit: 

The very best and easiest way to follow along is to grab my toolkit right here! The toolkit includes the full reading challenge for 2018 (for both men and women) as well as tips for finding more time to read (even when you are super busy) and how to find more books for free or cheap. 

Grabbing this toolkit will also "flag" you as a "reader" in my email system so you will get a lot of fun additional reading goodies this year :D HINT HINT: You will WANT to be on this list!!

2018 Christian Reading Challenge for Women

Here’s how it works: 

I have given you category suggestions for each book as well as my book recommendation. I personally recommend all of these books and tried to think about the very best books I recommend all women read. If you’ve already read that book or simply want a different suggestion, scroll down and you will find more book recommendations for each category (OR feel free to choose any of your own books). 

Then download and/or print off the reading list to follow along. 

A note about fiction: This list does not include any fiction. I LOVE reading fiction and read many fiction books throughout the year. However, since this is for entertainment and relaxation for me, I don’t need to add these in as reading goals. When we are on vacation, or I have more down time (like during Christmas), I read a lot more fiction. But I’m already prone to being lazy and reaching for a fiction book more than a book to help my spiritual growth or draw closer to the Lord, so I don’t need any extra reading goals to re-inforce that habit ?

This week I was able to sit down with one of my favorite authors and we had a great conversation! Jen shares my passion for encouraging women to dive deep into God's Word and I can't wait for you to listen in. 

Listen to the Podcast:

We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both 

And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes.

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

I've been a long time fan of Jen because she brings a no-nonsense approach to Scripture and yet she's very encouraging and practical! I loved getting to chat with her. Here's what we discussed today on the podcast: 

1) The tagline of your book Women of the Word, is "How to study the bible with both our hearts and our minds." Why do you think it's so important for women today to remember that we need to engage our hearts in study, but also our minds?

2) I love throughout your books that you point women back to Christ as the foundation and cornerstone of our lives. To that wife, that mom, and that women who is deep in the trenches of everyday life, whose feeling overwhelmed and burnt out....can you give her some encouragement on how Christ can give us this hope we are so desperately seeking? It can feel SO overwhelming to add in one more thing, so how will drawing into consistent study of God's Word help when we are already feeling so overwhelmed with everything on our to-do list?

3) I asked my community what questions they had for you. And Megan asked, "What are some of the difficulties she faced when she first began studying the Bible this way? Did she just read and reread looking for repeated words & phrases? What commentaries does she use?" Basically, I think Megan wants to know: How do you get started when you've never studied the Bible on a deeper level?

4) Ruby wants to know, "I would love to know how to be bold about the faith with other women. Jen is so good at staying away from the fluffy feely--what so many like to believe is women's ministry but is so far from the gospel--and I find myself wanting to be bold about getting to the TRUTH but I don't know where to start." Any advice or encouragement on how we can all be more bold with handling God's truth?

5) Okay and finally, the ladies want to know "What study is she working on now??"

Links & Resources Mentioned Today: 

Life Change Series by Nav Press

 Video and audio resources from Jen at her church

JenWilkin.net

Book recommendation: Women of the Word by Jen Wilkin

Book recommendation: None Like Him by Jen Wilkin

Preorder: In His Image coming out in May 2018! 

Preorder: God of Creation - Jen's new Bible study through Genesis releases in January 2018! 

Looking for an affordable planner?

I’ve got an affordable, Christian homemaking planner to introduce you to today! Welcome to our brand new sponsor to our podcast: The Homemaker’s Friend Daily Planner! I’ve used this planner for years and there are several things I love about this planner! 

1) It’s very affordable! 2) It’s spiral bound so it lays flat. 3)It’s made BY a homemaker FOR homemakers. 4) It includes a very easy weekly layout format. and 5) It includes tear our shopping lists!! BONUS: It’s super cute ? 

If you are looking for an affordable planner that you can take with you on the go, you need to check out The Homemaker’s Friend Daily Planner!

PLUS the creator Sue, is offering you a FREE 16-page downloadable Meal Planning kit! All you have to do is head over and download it for free. ? 

Check out the awesome planner here

It's so easy in the hustle and bustle of busy life to get overwhelmed. To feel defeated. To feel like you are drowning with every day chores and work. So when I got an email from a reader expressed feeling some of this herself, I knew I could identify! 

So today's episode is all about that: How do we survive when we feel like we are drowning! 

Listen to the Podcast:

We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both 

And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes.

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

Here's the question I got this week: 

"I work outside of the home 40-42 hours a week. I have three kids. I leave early and don't get home until 5-5:30pm. Basically my question is do you have any ideas, tips, tricks, etc on how I can squeeze 10 hours (not really but it feels like it) of home chores into 2 hours? Once I get home it's time to fix supper, then spend an hour with the kids in the floor playing, load the dishwasher and maybe throw in a load of laundry. Bed time for my 2 littles is 8pm. I have to be in bed by 9-930 because I'm up at 5am every morning. I feel like I'm drowning!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

I get it. I have totally been there. And working outside the home throws a whole other element into the mix. So here are some suggestions or ideas to work through: 

Freezer Cooking & Simple Meals 

I discovered freezer cooking when I was working full time outside the home and it radically changed the way I approach my kitchen. Now, several years later, I still do routine batches of freezer cooking. 

Here are some resources for freezer cooking & simple meals: 

An Introduction to Freezer Cooking

My Postpartum Freezer Cooking Plan

Freezer Cooking Methods

A VERY easy meal planning method using PrepDish (Get TWO weeks free through that link!)

Prep/meal plan on Sunday evenings

Along with simplifying my meal planning and freezer cooking, I usually do a quick prep/meal plan meeting on Sunday nights. I'll quickly review my week, see if I need to stop at the grocery store, etc. 

This is the concept that PrepDish does so well! They do all the work for you and then just tell you what to prepare each week!

Have kids do the after dinner clean up

I hear from a lot of moms who get overwhelmed with dinner and clean up. It's easy to let this get out of control and for it to take several hours each day for dinner time and clean up. 

If you don't already, get your kids to help or DO the after dinner clean up. If you have older kids you can assign them the tasks of cleaning the kitchen after dinner. Even 2-year-olds can take their plate and fork to the sink or dishwasher. 4-year-olds can do the same, help unload the dishwasher, wipe down the kitchen table, etc. It's all about training them young to help and participate! 

Creating a weekly cleaning list - move through different target areas per day 

I love this concept for keeping up on the deep cleaning chores of your house when you don't have a lot of time! You can easily assign different tasks or areas in your home to different days. I.e. Monday is bathrooms, Tuesday is mirros and windows, etc. 

Marci from Thankful Homemaker has some great examples of this for weekly, monthly, and yearly cleaning plans! 

Getting a solid night time routine down

I think the nighttime routine is one of the MOST important routines you can establish. If you establish a solid evening routine, your morning will be set up so much better and will flow into the rest of the day.

I personally aim for a few things in my evening routine: 

Find out how to enter to win the Christ-Centered Christmas Kit below! 

I've been doing a lot reading lately that has been helping me point back to the Gospel more in my home. In today's episode, we are going to be chatting about what happens when the Gospel becomes your primary focus.

Listen to the Podcast:

We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both 

And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes.

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

Today I want to talk about two books I read this year that have had a great impact on me. The first is In Christ Alone by Sinclair Furgeson. The second is Glory in the Ordinary by Courtney Reissig. 

Finding Glory in the Mundane Moments

You see, I struggle sometimes with finding worth in the mundane. I struggle finding glory in the ordinary. I sometimes struggle knowing how the second load of dishes or sweeping the sidewalk is worth anything. 

Do you ever struggle with this? Do you ever struggle knowing how our work in the home matters to God? Both of these books this year have helped with that. 

I feel like I've gone on a similar journey as the author has in Glory in the Ordinary. I love how she's open about her struggle with this as well:

"Like all major changes, my early days as a stay-at-home mom rocked me to the core. I had gone from days filled with fruitful conversations to days filled with crying and blank stares from two needy babies. Over time I began to see that being home had inherent value, but what I couldn't immediately see was how the work at home had value as well. It was not merely about staying home to take care of the children (which made sense to my exhausted brain); I had to learn there was value in the laundry and cleaning too." - Glory in the Ordinary page 25

This is the impactful part, she goes on to say: 

"What I've learned is that God is glorified in the mundane work as much as he is in the magnificent. In fact, it is in the mundane moments, the moments where we live each and every day, where we come to see the true greatness of God and his love for us." - Glory in the Ordinary page 25

Life is lived out in these tiny moments. I may not always have the mental capacity to remember and realize that I am doing big, grand work, even when I'm scrubbing toilets, but that doesn't mean it isn't true. 

Something that I love throughout her book is this concept of how our culture views work in the home versus how God does. Our culture views work as simply a means to an end. We work just enough to be able to afford leisure time. And we look down on those blue collar jobs or work that seem to have little worth, such as workingMcDonald's.

 

We value big important jobs. We admire people who are in charge of large ministries who are making changes in the world. That's not a bad thing to admire those people, but we tend to put all our value into these jobs or those people. 

So we tend to think then, even if we don't say it out loud, that our work doesn't matter if we are not accomplishing something big. 

And then we apply that to life in the home. When I'm caring for these five souls that God has entrusted to my care, it's easier for me to see the worth. I can glimpse the Gospel-work that I am doing, even if I don't always verbalize it or even remember it. But when I can take a step back, I can more easily see that the work I do with my kids, is big and important. 

But scrubbing the toilets? Cleaning out the garbage can so it stops smelling? Pulling a red crayon out of the dryer which has now stained an entire load of laundry? How are these moments important when they don't seem to a...

I've been doing some great reading the last couple of months. Two of the books that stand out in particular have sparked some great discussion around starting new family traditions - both with the holidays coming up and just life in general. 

The two books I read recently and LOVED were: The Tech-Wise Family by Andy Crouch and The Lifegiving Table by Sally Clarkson. 

Listen to the Podcast:

We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both 

And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes.

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

So here's what we are working on now:

1) Intentional media breaks

Inside the book, The Tech Wise Family he has a really interesting idea for limiting your family's media use. His family reserves one hour a day, one day a week, and one week a year as media-free time! So we've started implementing this idea into the regular rhythms of our family life. 

We want to get more intentional about these breaks where we limit or shut off media and technology all together. 

1 hour a day

This isn't a very hard one for me to work on. I have multiple hours in my day where the kids and I have no media access. But I did recently take off Facebook and email from my phone. And turned off ALL notifications, it's been wonderful! 

1 day a week 

This was probably the hardest of the three to choose. But we chose for our media-free day a week to be Sundays. This works well since we want to use that day to rest and think about the Lord anyway! We want to spend more time reading, playing board games, doing a picnic outside, practicing hospitality, etc. 

I love this idea from The Tech-Wise Family

"One of our treasured family traditions is Sunday afternoon tea, a custom loosely borrowed from our British ancestors that is easier to prepare than a full Sunday dinner. Our daughter makes place cards and hand letters a menu. We slice up fruit, bake cookies and bread, make little sandwiches, brew a pot of tea (and maybe pour some still or sparkling wine along the way, too) - and many Sundays we invite friends or neighbors to join us. The adults love the lack of pressure to deliver (or clean up after) a hot meal, the children love a meal composed entirely of snacks, and we all love the conviviality of passing simple, tasty treats around the table, and around again." 

1 week a year

We have an annual trip to the lake each year and this seems like a perfect time to implement this. We are in a cabin by the lake, so we don't have access to a ton of media. But we do still have our phones and we bring our laptops in case we need to check in with work. 

So this year on our trip we want to be more intentional with the time, how much we are on our phones, etc! The one exception this is that we do a lot of reading on our Kindles, so this doesn't count as media ;) 

2) More candlelight dinners

 This is something that both books recommended and anytime we've done it, it has been so special. So I want to start doing once a week of eating by candlelight. The boys think it's super special and it's a fun way to make dinner a little special when it's normally so chaotic. 

I also want to do more special candlelit dinners with Jason after the kids go to bed. I think a goal of couple times a month would be fun! This way we can sit, chat, connect, and have a nice less chaotic dinner. 

3) Being more intentional about Sunday mornings

This was an idea that was very interesting fromThe Lifegiving Table. At first I thought it was impractical, but the more I thought about it,