Archive for the ‘Living Simple’ Category

Great Expectations

Thursday, March 4th, 2010
Getting Dinner on the Table Every Night

(…um, cold cereal doesn’t count.)

For many of us, just as we’re ready to throw in the towel for the day we realize there’s another hurdle to jump: getting dinner on the table. No easy feat when your children are bouncing off the walls, and you’re thinking about joining them.

The cookbook Desperation Dinners! has been a lifesaver for hundreds of families, offering recipes that get dinner done in “20 minutes flat”.  The authors also have a website with fresh menu ideas (including DD recipes), tips on saving time and money, and even entertaining. Check it out here: www.kitchenscoop.com.

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Posted in Anger Management, Family, Home, Living Simple |

New Resolutions, Now? I Don’t Think So…

Thursday, December 31st, 2009 
coun·ter·in·tu·i·tive
Pronunciation: \-in-ˈtü-ə-tiv, -ˈtyü-\
: contrary to what one would intuitively expect

Everybody looks to January 1st as the time to initiate change. I disagree. January’s not the time start something new; it’s time to get back to the three Rs of parenting: routines, routines, routines.

Yep, time to focus, once again, on our family routines, our priorities, our agendas; the elements that make our households run smoothly… (more…)

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Posted in Family, Home, Living Simple |

Just Smile

Saturday, November 7th, 2009

smileWe shall never know all the good that a simple smile can do. ~ Mother Teresa

Let’s remember to smile in the midst of our stress. Really. Not only will we experience a little relief, but we’ll be blessing others along the way.

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Posted in Living Simple |

Not Another New Year’s Resolution

Friday, January 9th, 2009
It’s a good time to rerun this blog. A follow-up blog, “Resources for Praying for Your Children”, can be found in the September archives. Happy New Year to you all!

New Year’s resolutions…it’s amazing how three simple words cause us to shrug and roll our eyes, and maybe even cringe a little at the thought of something so seemingly futile and so powerfully guilt-producing.

We’ve all been there; resolving to lose weight, cook more, eat less, save money, spend more time with family, start exercising, volunteer, etc. There’s not a goal we haven’t strived for, yet there’s a mountain of opportunities we’ve yet to conquer.

As an annual tradition, we stand in the forefront of a new year and ponder, what will it bring? What do I wish for and (more realistically) what will I get? What will I actually do? (more…)

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Posted in Family, Living Simple, Prayer |

365 Days of Praise

Saturday, January 3rd, 2009

one precious thingThis is my plan. Every night, I will jot down something praiseworthy that happened that day. So far I’m two for two.

I know it seems simple; that’s part of the lure for me. It’s something I can do, something I can actually look forward to doing, as opposed to dreading some looming obligation that’s poised and ready to unload a burden of guilt if I don’t follow through.

I imagine this will become a favorite part of my day, and night, as I focus on the good things in my life. I look to the day when I realize I’ve got so many choices that perhaps I’ll get really ambitious and write about two, three or many good things.

So, that’s my plan for 2009. What will you do this year to make it better than the last?

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Posted in Living Simple |

Teaching the Basics

Saturday, October 4th, 2008

Today I watched a handful of first and second graders play a friendly game of basketball. I sat in the bleachers among a scattered group of supportive parents and grandparents while the little ones ran up and down the half-court, dribbling, double-dribbling, traveling, hogging the ball and committing all sorts of other minor infractions. It was all good.

Until, that is, I heard those ugly words, “take the ball” from the opposing coach. What? Did I really hear that? (more…)

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Posted in Family, Living Simple |

Sensory Cue

Monday, September 8th, 2008

The other day the smell of freshly cut grass hung in the air. I was immediately taken back to days of my youth. (more…)

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Posted in Family, Home, Living Simple |

Showing Love Everyday

Monday, September 8th, 2008

I love the winter season for lots of reasons: it’s time for the year’s best holidays, visits with extended family, parties galore, snow (if you’re lucky) and plenty of triggers that remind us to be grateful for our blessings, especially our family and friends.

Valentine’s Day sends us running here and there to lavish our love and attention on a few special people for the duration of just one day. One short day. Imagine how we might brighten lives, change the course of entire days, by sprinkling love more often, in little, yet far-reaching ways: (more…)

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Posted in Family, Friends, Living Simple |

Home-Making: It’s All About Your Family

Monday, September 8th, 2008

When you think about it, the act of “making your house a home” should be as simple as living and loving within your four walls. But somehow, this unassuming version of home-making gets all convoluted as we strive to surround ourselves with the things we love and the things we think we need to be comfortable.

Surely, what you and I deem comfortable could easily be two very different things. (more…)

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Posted in Family, Home, Living Simple |