A Great Find!!

I have recently found an amazing online store. They sell quality toys that are "old-fashion", use your imagination, hold up to many children kind of toys. They have a great selection of family resources for everything from homemaking to leading a family. They sell Christian books, an awesome audio series that teaches Creation in a fun way, and some great exploring equipment for that active boy in your life.

And for the Christmas season they are having a great sale with free shipping!! Please head over and check out Vision Forum and prepare to be impressed! I haven't seen quality toys like this in a long time.

Help.

I have heard from a couple people that are having trouble leaving comments on this blog. I am wondering how far spread this is so I am asking your help. If you have just a minute could you try to leave a comment on one of my recent posts or even just this one. It doesn't have to be long just HI is fine. I just want to see how many of you can leave a comment. If you can't leave me a comment please email, facebook, or twitter me and let me know of your problem. Thanks!!!

And to make this post much more fun and cute here is one of the shots that I took yesterday of my children. I'm trying to update the frames on the wall and it is proving challenging!!

Sikes family 2011

Merry Christmas!

Just so you know....

During this season of Thanksgiving I wanted to take a moment and tel you, my readers how thankful I am that you take time out of your busy days to read my little space on the web. I love to read your comments, I and enjoy getting to know you more. So, I wish you a

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Also, if you are interested in creative ways to teach your children grattitude all year long check out my latest post over at Happily Domestic. It has several ideas that will help your family realize how blessed we are.

True Service

Josiah "serving" my Dad.

True Christian service takes place outside of the church, not only within its walls.

This is a quote from the message yesterday that has been resounding in my heart and head ever since. How many times do we mentally check off service for God as teaching a class, bringing food to a dinner, giving an offering, or even just attending every service? Many times in my life at least.

But this quote has challenged that way of thinking. While Jesus Christ walked this earth He didn't stay within the "church" walls to preach and to minister. He walked about visiting the invalid, teaching the poor, healing the sick, ministering to the hurting and going to where the people were.

We as Christians should take lesson from this and become more Christ-like in our way of viewing service. When was the last time we as modern day church members blessed a momma that was struggling with a phone call? Or mailed the lonely older couple of the church some cards our children had made? Or do we even know our brothers and sisters in Christ well enough to grab their favorite treat next time we are at the store and deliver to their door? If you found a great sale at the grocery store would you think of blessing someone through it?

True service from the heart touches lives in ways that words cannot describe! When someone knows that you think about them even when you are not at church it speaks volumes to them. So, today I challenge you to think of your fellow church members, your pastor, and those lost around you. Start a mission to get to know your church family well enough that you can bless them in tangible ways. And be an example of true Christian service.

 How do you practice true Christian service outside of your church walls? Have you ever been blessed by someone that thought of you outside of the church building? (My family and I were just this month when a couple of wonerful families blessed us with some grocery gift cards. Such a great way to bless any family!! Who can't use help with the cost of food now days?)


Share your heart, please!!

Speaking Peace

Oh how our children copy what they hear!! From the saying in their favorite movie to the way we mommas talk to them every day, the mimic and learn from every word that is spoken. So, it only makes sense that our children will talk and sound most like the people they are with every day. And for many children, that is their mother.

I have started to make a HUGE effort to soften my words. To stop what I am doing and get down to my three year old's to give instructions so that she understands and can be held accountable the first time instead of me yelling at her after she still hasn't put shoes on after the third command.

Proverbs 15:1
A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.

Soft words by momma make peace with in the home. I am training my children to speak peace, to offer patience, and to be long suffering. It is better to stop and take a few extra seconds to look someone in the eye and speak to them firmly but softly then to yell across the house and then get mad when they don't respond.

So, to create peace in my home I am speaking softly and taking the time to speak to directly to my children instead of yelling our orders. And you know what? It is working!! Obedience is growing, their words to each other are softening and peace is being created every day in our home.

I love you dear sisters and I pray that you are blessed by sacrificing your time to read my humble thoughts. Thank you for stopping by.

Amanda

Creating Peace.

Is your house filled with yelling children, loud talk, spiteful words, and hasty action. Does choas reign within your walls and make you want to hide in the bathroom? I am on a journey to create peace within my home. I want my home to be a relaxing place for people to come. Not place where they have to go into therapy for stress rehab when they leave.

Psalm 34:14
Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.

Now my home is occupied by five young children so I know there are times when the running, giggling, screaming choas will fill these walls. But as I want my children to learn a good work ethic, I want them to learn the discipline of knowing when it is appropriate to be loud and wild and when we need to "seek peace and pursue it". If we are truly striving to create peace within our homes we must be "at peace" in our hearts. True peace can only come with true contentment.

But as I have been focusing on creating peace I have realized a few things. Most of which are not encouraging to this journey toward a peace-filled home. The first of which seems the most obvious and yet we sometimes don't take it into account. It is the fact that our homes are filled with sinners!!! And that makes our homes unperfect and everyone within our walls will have bad days. We must train our children to mature to the point that they can rise above these days but just as we mommas have bad days so do our children. Also, our children mimic what they see and hear. So if we cram our days so full or "stuff" with no organization and not enough time to accomplish the daily  needs in our home WE are feeding the choas. If children hear constant barking of orders, hurry ups, and frustrated sighs, that is how they will deal with their siblings. Which does not sound peaceful when multiplied by five children.

So, my first step in creating peace has been to creat peace within myself. I have been trying to be more organized so that we are not so stressed and rushed when trying to prepare a meal or clean up the house before Daddy gets home. I want those memories to be peaceful ones of my children and I working together and when you remove the stress of unorganization and bad planning, we can play some music, work together and enjoy it. If I am not organized and have waited until the last minute then I am barking orders faster than the children can move and creating chaos as we all run from one thing to the next with no order.

I have also been focusing on finding joy and contentment no matter what life brings. If I had outdoor plans and wake to a rainy, cloudy day I am striving to be peaceful in that. So instead of an outing to the park we play playdough, bake some cookies, or make some cards.

Will you join me on my journey to creating peace with in my home? Next I will be focusing on words. How do our simple spoken words create peace or chaos?

How do you create peace within your home?

It's my Party!!

Let the fun begin!!

I like what I see!!

This boy love love loves books!! He actually squealed in delight.

The paper was the best part of unwrapping!

My birthday outfit (there will be "official" pictures coming soon!)

The cake

I. Can't. Believe. It. One. Year!!!

He was so excited all night. It was great!

He did not disappoint in the "messy cake picture" area!

He dove into it and stuffed it in with both hands!!

Oh the memories!

Ready and waiting. Praying for a calm day!

I knew within two minutes of birth it wasn't good. He was retracting on the table so badly I could see it around the room. And though the nurses kept saying it's just taking some time but he would be fine.

My momma's heart already knew what was coming.

It isn't the most happy or the prettiest birth story, but it is his and so I share it.

Happy Birthday Baby Boy!!!