Creative Counterpart

What does it mean to be quiverfull?

The Quiverfull lifestyle is a movement among conservative evangelical Protestant Christians. Roman Catholics and some others might refer to the Quiverfull position as Providentialism. Those who hold this position do so not in an attempt to simply have large families but to leave in the hands of the Lord God Almighty His sovereignty and authority over the womb. The distinguishing viewpoint is to eagerly receive children as blessings from God, abandoning all forms of contraception, including natural family planning and sterilization.

The subject of natural family planning in being quiverfull is debatable, but nonetheless… My husband and I have chosen this as God’s will for our family.

I came across a wonderful compilation of Quiverfull testimonies @ MamaArcher’s Blog that I would love to share with you.

Check it out here!

We found out Wednesday, in a round-about way, that we are finally licensed foster parents. We received a call to do respite for twin 2 year olds. Later that evening I received a phone call from the foster mother to set up the dates and times, and make sure that I was up to the task. One of the twin boys has several behavioral and social problems. They think he may be autistic, but he is not diagnosed as of yet. We will be providing respite care for them one night a week, as well as overnight on some weekends. Meanwhile, we could get a call at anytime for a placement within our home. We are very excited and very nervous at the same time! I just praise the Lord that we are finally at that point, and we know that his timing has been perfect every step of the way.

After speaking with my husband and semi-deciding to give cloth diapering another try with the new baby, I started thinking of things I could possibly make and sell just to make a little extra money or trade with other moms for diapers and other work at home mom goods. If anything, I might think up a few good ideas of things to make for myself and the new baby.

Here are some things I want to try making:  Baby booties (for newborns), Soft sole baby shoes, Moby wraps, etc.

Drop a comment below if you make and/or sell anything to other moms I would be interested in hearing what other moms do in their spare time.

 Today I happened upon a couple of links that changed my mind about who I was looking at as candidates for the Presidency. It’s worth the time if you have it to look into the following.

Huckabee Not the Best for Homeschoolers

Christian Candidate Comparison

I am really looking forward to this evening. We are going to our friends house for dinner. Their youngest son is my son’s best buddy in the nursery at church. She is making a turkey I guess, which sounds really good!

Today we began our work in the nursery “full time”. I will be in the nursery during first service every Sunday now. They wanted a couple of people that would be consistent in the nursery, and also do all of the little extras that need to be done. We didn’t have too many kids in the nursery today, so I disinfected many toys and took care of any diapers that needed to be changed. I really do feel right at home in the nursery. It touches my heart to be able to care for the littlest ones and get to know the families of those little ones as well. I can finally say now, that we feel as if the church is our family. There are so many people with such big hearts, willing to go out of their way to minister in any way they know how.

Yesterday we had the wonderful opportunity to attend a Children’s Ministry Magazine Life Conference. It was based on creating a welcoming environment for children on the truth about who they are, that plans for their unique developmental needs, and that nurtures kids’ faith in effective ways. We learned tons of new and fun ways to lead children’s ministry, as well as tackling the top four obstacles to discipline and we got eight practical discipline tips. Our church is currently looking at a curriculum that focuses on supporting the family by having all age groups learning the same lesson at the same time, at different levels. We know that the bible says that faith and instruction of the Lord should be family based and church supported (not the other way around).

After the conference, my son and I headed out for a 1 hour drive with my mom to a 2nd birthday party for my cousin. Gregory and her are pretty good buddies. They hug and kiss each other, it is so cute. When we go home, I didn’t have much time before I needed to be at church again to assist with childcare for Celebrate Recovery (a substance abuse recovery program). All in all we were very busy yesterday!

I made this pumpkin bread in a Zojirushi bread machine, but it should work with any standard size bread machine with a cake or quick bread cycle. I mix the ingredients in a bowl first to make sure they’re well combined.

PREPARATION:

Spray bread machine pan with nonstick cooking spray. In a bowl, mix first 4 ingredients together until well blended; stir in the baking powder, soda, salt, spices, and flour just until mixed. Pour mixture into the prepared pan and set on the cake or quick bread cycle.

Add chopped nuts at the beep, if using. Carefully loosen the loaf and turn out onto a rack to cool.

Having a doctor’s appointment on Monday set the ground running for a busy week. Tuesday we had another foster care home visit. I was kept busy getting the house tidied up and things in order. Tuesday evening I went to my pregnancy fitness class for the first time during this pregnancy. Every other Wednesday I clean my mom’s house in the morning, and we spent time together as a family for the rest of the day. Today I had a MOPS meeting to attend, which was quite fun. We got to soak our feet and have a “spa” day with all of the other moms. It was only for a couple of hours, but it was nice.

This afternoon I felt quite energetic and decided to bake some bread. I started off by making a loaf of Sally Lunn Bread, which is my husband’s favorite. After supper I decided I would use up some of the pumpkin I had frozen in October to make Pumpkin Bread. I have not tried the Pumpkin Bread but It sure smells delicious.

Sally Lunn Bread:

Pumpkin Bread:

I also decided to start a Master Grocery List to go in my Home Management Binder this evening. It’s mostly finished now. I also need to finish my menu and grocery list for the next two weeks. I will post the Sally Lunn Bread and Pumpkin Bread recipes as soon as I can.

Well, I was hoping to hear the baby’s heartbeat at the doctor’s office today. No such luck. He even brought out the ultrasound machine, but I had just gone to the bathroom and he couldn’t get a clear picture. He said he thought he could make out the heart but couldn’t measure it. It’s possible that I’m earlier than i had calculated, but I doubt it. I think we’ll be able to hear it at my next appointment, hopefully.  My nausea is finally starting to subside, YAY! My husband is happy and his stomach is as well. He was really deprived of my cooking. I’m not back up to full speed but I’m getting there.

I made the decision earlier today that I would work on my Home Management Binder this evening. I haven’t been using it much lately, but wanted to put it back into good use. I updated my schedules and cleaning sections, disposed of some things, and added a homeschool section. You can read more about making a Home Management Binder here.

This afternoon my son was growing bored, so I decided to make him his first play dough. He was quite amused by this new stuff as I showed him what things he could do with it. We made this recipe, and I placed him in his booster seat with a dough mat on the table for his work area. It brings back so many fond memories of my sister and I playing with play dough as children.

Bored? Stuck inside? Need something to entertain the kids? Make play dough!

Mister Rogers’ Easy Play Dough 

• 2 cups flour
  
• 1 cup water
  

Mix together well. You can put dry Kool-Aid or Jell-O in the mix if you want colored dough.

Find more play dough recipes here.

Praise God. I have just surfaced from a bit of a spiritual drought in my life. It felt as if one thing kept coming after the other, and my time with the Lord dwindled to almost nothing each day.

This Christmas was difficult for me. It was our first Christmas as Christians, and we struggled with every aspect of buying presents and sharing our true celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ in the midst of such worldly greed and selfishness. Just before Christmas, we found out that we were expecting another blessing in our family. I have been overjoyed; But, the joy is swiftly overshadowed, at least temporarily, by morning sickness and fatigue. I felt that by the end of the day I had not energy to spend time with my Lord. I still feel that way, but it’s getting better.

I slip into this drought, my lips are parched because I have not been drinking from the living water, and my soul is hungry for my daily bread. I know what I need, but the more I stay away from HIM the more I hesitate to come into his presence again. When I do the tears start to fly as I confess, repent, pray, and pour out my heart to the Lord. It’s miraculous the difference that just prayer and time spent with God can make.  It is amazing what he can do when I let him do it.

During that drought my marriage, family, emotions, mental stability, and relationships with any and all people suffered. When I am with the Lord, and walking side by side with him, relying on him for every step and every need, my life begins to see joy again. It’s a refreshment that none can describe to someone who has never experienced it. It’s a refreshment that only those who know the Lord can relate to. They have experienced it.

My bible tells me to give others a reason for the joy that is within me. This is my joy, it is my Lord Jesus Christ.