Join Me for 31 Days of Imperfect Homemaking!
Are you easily overwhelmed with all that you need to do?
Between taking care of the house, loving on your husband and kids, and caring for your own health and well-being, you just don't know where to start, so you don't start anywhere. Am I right?
But, you see, you miss out on so much by saying you don't have time, when in reality you could accomplish a lot of if you just stopped staring at it all and got to work! You may not be able to reach your lofty ideals, but getting things done, even imperfectly, is better than doing nothing at all, isn't it?
Each day in October I will be posting a daily challenge to help you OVERCOME YOUR OVERWHELM.
I'll give you a job to do regarding your house, your family, your health, or your spiritual growth, and you will do it. The point is not to spend hours doing these things perfectly, but just to get something done! At the end of the month, you will be amazed and refreshed to see how much you've accomplished!
Ready to join me? Sign up below and select which categories you'd like to receive in your inbox. (For this series, anything having to do with loving on your kids will go into the homeschooling category, so select that if you want kid-related challenges.)
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Don't forget to open the confirmation email after subscribing or you won't receive any emails!
Join me on Instagram throughout the challenge by using the hashtag #imperfecthomemaker. I'd love to see pictures of your progress!
13 Amazing (Real Food) Apple Recipes
It's apple season! I just got myself a bushel of apples over the weekend, and no doubt I'll be getting more before the season is over. I normally just use most of them to make applesauce (using this handy little applesauce grinder – one of my favorite kitchen tools ever!)
But I thought it would be nice to do something a little more interesting with the apples. I'm not the greatest at coming up with recipes. (When I do it's monumental, and they definitely turn into a blog post!)
But even if I'm not that great at creating recipes, I know exactly where to look to find them!
I simply ask around to my blogging colleagues, and they never fail me! Their stunning photography and their knack for creating amazing food from real, whole ingredients is just delightful!
Here are some of my top picks of their apple recipes:
Main Dishes
Pork, Apples, and Brussels Sprouts Skillet
Side Dishes
Sweet Potato, Bacon, and Apple Hash
Breakfast
Awesome Apple Cinnamon Pancakes (gluten free)
Snacks
Gluten Free Applesauce Oat Bars
Desserts
Gluten free Apple Raspberry Pie
I'm not sure which one to try first! Which one looks the best to you?
Why You Need P.E. in Your Home School
I had the privilege to attend a Christian school through 5th grade. I loved every minute of it and I think my attendance there played a large part in shaping who I am today.
I especially enjoyed the opportunities for active play with my friends, and I had plans to play on the basketball team as soon as I got into junior high. I even won the award for “Most Athletic” one year. Just thinking about myself now as “Most Athletic” now seems laughable.
I have moved all of my homeschooling posts to christianhomeschoolfamily.com. You can go here to read this post at the new site.
You can go here to read this post at the new site.
The No-Coupon Way To Save Big On Your Grocery Bill
If you've been a long-time reader, or if you've done a bit of poking around on my site, you may know that I used to be quite the coupon clipper. When we cut out most processed foods (we thought we weren't eating processed foods, but we were wrong! If it's in a box, bag, or can on the grocery store shelf, it's processed food.) we found that real, whole foods were costing us much more than I had been paying for all the coupon deals. The thing is, healthy food costs more when you've been used to getting stuff for pennies or even free with coupons. But it's worth it! However, as a penny-pincher, I simply can't stand spending more on anything than is absolutely necessary, so I've spent much time trying to find the best prices on things. I was so excited when I saw Shannon's new eCourse, Grocery Savings Made Simple.
Shannon also feeds her family real, whole foods, so I knew this course was not going to be based on coupon-clipping and circular comparison. In fact the course description says the following:
In this 4-week eCourse, you’ll learn how to cut your grocery budget, yet…
- Never clip a coupon
- Never look at store circulars or pay attention to sales
- Save money by cooking-from-scratch with minimal extra kitchen time
- Pay less for the healthy foods your family enjoys (no unhealthy or beans-only diets)
In each lesson, you’ll learn how to get the maximum savings with minimum effort because you’re busy and you have other things you’d rather be doing than worrying about your grocery budget.
Maximum savings with minimum effort is exactly what every homemaker wants! The course is only $37, and when you consider the fact that Shannon saved over $2000 on her grocery bill last year with this system, your $37 will pay for itself very quickly!
If you're in need of some personalized help and hand-holding with navigating through the waters of this healthy eating stuff without going broke, I recommend you give her course a try. I think you will be pleased!
I Will Never Forget! (Or Will I?)
Guest post by Imperfect Homemaker contributor Ellen.
Let us Never Forget!
We see this phrase over and over when September 11th comes around.
Today, on September 11th, I have been praying for the Lord to protect our country and to restrain wickedness. I am praying for God’s continued mercy on us. Oh how merciful He is! As I remember His mercy toward me over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over … again, I stand amazed! It is no wonder that the Psalmist in Chapter 136 repeats this in every verse:
· V1-3 O Give Thanks for His mercy endures forever
· V4-9 God is The Almighty, The All Powerful, The One and Only God, The Deliverer for His mercy endures forever
· V23-25 God remembers us, is mindful of us, redeems us, feeds us, for His mercy endures forever
· V26 He is the God of Heaven – Let us thank Him, for His mercy endures forever
Yes, I will never forget, but will my grandchildren? They really don’t have a clue unless I rehearse these events in their ears. I want them to know all about America and that it was founded on Christian principles. I want them to know God’s multiple blessings on us, and now where our wickedness has brought us. But they won’t know it, if I don’t keep repeating it. They won’t love God if I don’t keep repeating His Word, His love, His redemption, His worthiness, and then living it before them. It is no wonder that God told Israel to teach these things diligently to their children and to beware lest they forget (Deut. 6). And how easily they did forget (and how easily I forget!)
America has forgotten! Praise the Lord that God is still merciful, but for how long? True, I will never forget 9/11 in one sense. I remember it well, where I was, the time of day, watching the horrific event unfold before my very eyes on the television! But if I don’t remind myself of God’s mercy and deliverance over and over, then in one sense I actually do forget.
I forget:
- Who is ultimately in control
- Who has given us our freedoms all along
- Who can save our children and grandchildren and our nation
Often from day to day I go right on living in my own state of worldliness.
May God have mercy on us another day!
· May we remember that He is the God of all gods who delivers us from our enemies.
· May we remember that great USA, that HE made for us and the freedoms that HE gave us.
· May we use those freedoms to proclaim Him, and the name of His Son Jesus to a lost and dying World for those freedoms are quickly being snatched from us.
· May we teach His commandments diligently to our children and grandchildren so that when they ask us “What does all this mean?” we can say, “We were bondmen and the Lord gave our country freedom, but our wickedness is driving us back into bondage. We are bondmen to sin, but the Lord has made a way of redemption through the Lord Jesus Christ and His shed blood on the cross.”
Deuteronomy 6:25 And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the LORD our God, as he hath commanded us.
LET US NEVER FORGET!
5 Ways to Boost Your Child’s Immune System
As the weather changes and as people spend more time indoors together, the propensity for colds, flu, and other illnesses to spread from person to person increases. Natural remedies are wonderful when your child is sick, but boosting their immune system to try to prevent them from catching any illness in the first place is even better!
So what are some natural ways you can boost your child's immune system?
1. First of all, there is no substitute for a nutrient-dense diet. Nutritional deficiencies make your child much more susceptible to viruses and bacteria. Additionally, additives and sugar found in processed foods not only do nothing to strengthen the immune system, they actually suppress it. Keep your child off packaged food with added ingredients and cook whole foods for them. (Need help planning a healthy menu? I like using Build a Menu.)
2. Herbs – there are several herbs with immune boosting properties. I'm honestly not very knowledgeable about herbs — yet! I am working my way through the Making Herbs Simple course from Bulk Herb Store . I'm really excited about learning! I purchased some pre-made formulas and they worked so well when my little guy was sick last week!
3. Non-toxic environment – exposure to chemicals on a regular basis can damage the immune system. I try to use only natural cleaning and beauty products and we do not use antibacterial soap as it kills all bacteria, not just the bad. When any resistant bacteria emerge, there are no good bacteria to fight them.
4. Sleep – Children and adults alike need sleep in order to give their body time to regenerate cells and repair itself. If your child does not get enough sleep, his body does not have time to rebuild itself from the damage of the day and will eventually succumb to whatever bacteria or viruses are attacking his system.
5. Probiotics – probiotics are the friendly bacteria that naturally occur in the gut. One of their jobs is to protect the body from bacteria and viruses. When the balance of beneficial bacteria to unfriendly bacteria is incorrect, your child will be much more susceptible to illness. Supplementing with probiotics will help your child's body naturally protect itself. One enjoyable way for your child to consume enough probiotics is to feed them yogurt or fermented foods like sourdough. You can also get powdered probiotics to add to their food or drink. I buy mine at Vitacost. I get the Garden of Life Raw Probiotics for Kids. (Sign up through this link and you will get a coupon for $10 off your first purchase.)
6. Oral Hygiene – Oral health has an incredible impact on your overall health! To make a long story short, bacteria from improper brushing and flossing habits move into the bloodstream and create system-wide imflammation, which sets the stage for any number of illnesses. Proper dental hygiene is a must for healthy children!
(Did anybody notice that was actually 6 ways? Evidently I can't count!)
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