Creative Counterpart

First picture on google images under 'wisdom teeth enchiladas'

I love wordpress. It lets me see just what search terms people are typing in to land on my blog. But I was cracking up this evening when I saw how one unsuspecting individual came across my little place on the web.

‘Wisdom Teeth Enchiladas’ – kinda intriquing isn’t it? I wonder if this person is really contemplating eating some enchiladas after they just had their wisdom teeth extracted. If so, DON’T DO IT! PLEASE? It won’t be pleasant.

At any rate, I know why that search term brought them here. You see, I have one post about getting my wisdom teeth removed, and another completely unrelated post about making the BEST enchiladas. Google couldn’t find anything on that poor person’s search topic, and didn’t have the heart to tell them, so Google mashed my lovely posts together. Voila! We have Wisdom Teeth Enchiladas…

On second thought, I really hope there isn’t some strange recipes lying around….

~

Moms! Do You Want to Earn Money With Your Blog?

So, I’ve been contemplating the last couple of days whether to creat a new blog @ blogger.com. I Like the name creative counterpart and all, it’s just that I feel like I need something fresh, and something a little more catching and “me”. I’m a little frustrated with Wordpress (unhosted). I havn’t a way to host my blog at the moment (unless I talk up a friend of mine into letting me borrow some hosting space).

I just feel restricted here. I also know that I want to share my heart more on my blog. I want my theme to reflect who I am and what I have to share, that is why I feel so stuck.

Any Ideas?

……

I tried Tae-Bo for the first time today. Oh my goodness! I couldn’t even finish the first workout video. I was sweating like a banshee. Maybe it’s just the thing I need to whip myself into shape. My weight loss to date is 21 lbs! Weight watchers is really working for me. I just have to keep up the work and stay away from the junk.

It is no secret, our household is on a tight budget. With cutbacks in hours at my husband’s job and the recent purchase of our home, we’ve been forced to scale down on luxeries and get creative with our money. It’s a good thing I stumbled upon a copy of the Tightwad Gazette at the local library, and have been devouring it ever since.

Here are thirteen tightwad things we plan to try:

1. Cut back the cell phone plan. Last month I did some looking at the minutes we were using on our cell phone plan and determined we were paying for way more than we need. My husband called the company this evening and reduced our plan. We’ll keep track of the minutes we’ve used mid-month and save around $30 a month.
2. Check freecycle, craigslist, & our local partyline often. All of these are sources of free and cheap stuff.
3. Bake our own Bread. I am currently trying to “start” my own sourdough starter. You can, too with Candy’s easy instructions.
4. Make homemade deoderant, dishwashing detergent, & laundry detergent. Candy has great recipes for these as well.
5. Start a price book. I’ve been meaning to do this for awhile now. If anyone has good ideas for a less tedious method, let me know!
6. Line dry clothes. My husband is in the process of making me an indoor clothesline in our mudroom. A perfect spot because the windows can b opened to let a breeze in, and I can even line dry in the winter. I plan to dry blanket, towels, etc on the line.
7. Ditch cable/sattelite TV. I haven’t convinced my husband yet. I’ll admit it, we’re spoiled.
8. Use cloth diapers. We have been users of Miracle diapers on and off in the past, and plan to use it again. Hopefully any future babies will have a nice stash to call their own.
9. Plan ahead by making homemade gifts for Christmas this year. You and I will both be glad we did.
10. Save everything and find a use for it. Tubs from butter, sour cream, etc can be used as tupperware. Ziploc bags can be washed and reused. Milk jugs can become anything from a pooper scooper to a scoop game for kids. Have fun coming up with new uses for everyday items. You’ll wonder why you ever wasted money throwing those things away!
11. Cut out Convenience foods. Substitute with homemade cookies, muffins, jello, pudding, etc.
12. Scrutinize spending and use what we have. This one’s tough, but essential to a tightwad lifestyle. We’re more content to do this when we find a way to achieve the same result with things we already have. Creativity is the key.
13. “Put out the word”  If you are in need of something or just casually looking, let people know! “Hey Jan, if you know of anyone that has a stroller they don’t use, let them know I”m looking for one.” That person might have been waiting to find someone who could put it to good use.

I’m going to cheat and add #14. I think the most important thing to living a frugal lifestyle is trusting in God. It’s easy to become bitter in tough times if we are not relying on the Lord for our strength and to meet our needs. He is sufficient and he is able.

—Psalm 37:3-6

I am delighted. A friend of mine @ But First, We Have Coffee , has nominated me for one of her ‘Sweetest Friend Awards’ . The award originated with Evening Shade Morning Latte.

The award is as follows: “These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find & be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated.”

The rules of the award are as follows: Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to 8 bloggers that then need to choose 8 bloggers of their own to pass the award to. Include the following text depicting the award…“Each of the following ladies, I simply love. They each have faced their own challenges in their lives & the way they encapsulate their expierences endears them greatly to my heart.”

So, I am handing out my 8 awards to the following…

• Aadel , my sister, @ “Hi, I’m (insert name here)”
• Jules @ Everyday Mommy or SolaMom
• Kristine @ Mama Archer
• Amy @ Raising Arrows
• Amy @ Blessed Motherhood
• Kim @ Life in a Shoe
• Star @ Joyful Junction
• Shelly @ Shelly’s Scroll

Congrats Ladies! And have fun picking out those blogging ladies that have been an influence in your life.

Hopefully he’s here to stay, lol. Visit him at The Christian Husband.

Some of his latest post…

First off I would like to apologize to all those who have faithfully read my blog and have wondered where I have been these last few months and what I’ve been doing.

I took a break from the blog to deal with some issues that have arisen. God has been working in my life on certain issues. One of these issues has been what to believe in regarding the Calvinist viewpoint versus the Arminianist view and where do my beliefs fit in the spectrum. I have been struggling with this issue for the last 6 months to a year. Just a few months ago however after much study, meditation and discussion with my wife, I decided that I cannot let my pride, or self-centered nature prohibit me from knowing God’s true nature and His will. I could no longer deny the truth about God’s grace and my depravity, nor could I deny His electon of me into The Kingdom of Heaven.

This has been the hardest thing to come to terms with that I have encountered since being changed forever by Christ. For the longest time I held fast to the belief that somehow my “free will” either stood on equal grounds with God’s will or that somehow I could choose God. I had to come to a realization that we do have a will of our own however that will was tainted when Adam fell into sin. I also had to come to a realization that God foreknew me and predestined me to be one of His children, not based upon anything I did or didn’t do. Since then I have had an amazingly clear perspective on my life, on God, and His word, and His sovereign will in my life and the world in general. I’ve also had an even more amazing sense of gratitude since this realization than when I first believed. Everyday I wake up feeling so blessed that He chose me.

My inspiration for the day: Miconceptions of a Happy Mama

a teaser:

I had the chance to tell someone recently why we want more children. It’s not because children are our passion (though each child we have we quickly become passionate about!). It’s not because we sat down and thought “what is our life missing?” And it’s not because we felt like we should seek to be more responsible and maybe even grow up some and thought a child or two would do the trick.

We want children because God says children are desirable. He says they are blessings. And we trust His perception better than our own.

So…. I have decided. I need a banner promptly so that I may give them to all of my friends and blogging buddies to put on their blogs. I am not sure yet who would want to do that, but I thought it was a nice idea since that seems to be the trend these days. The problem is that I am lacking creative ability at the moment. I really wanted to make my own, as not to burden anyone else.. but it’s just not working very well at the moment. Let me know if you have any ideas or if you can help *sigh*.

I did attempt one… let me know if it’s a total flop. I really don’t think it represents my blog well, but maybe I am wrong. It seems too…. i dunno…. hip and cool, when my blog is more calm?

And now it’s time for my contribution to kick off The Ultimate Blog Party ‘08. It seems the goal of this party is to meet new bloggers and have some fun, so let’s get started!

My name is Vanessa and I am a wife to my blogging husband Adam and my toddler Gregory. We also have one little blessing being knit together in my womb who is expected to join us in August! I am a stay at home mother who seeks to put Christ first in my life, followed closely by my family.

Grab a cup of tea and stay awhile! My blogging ranges greatly from my personal joys and experiences, to my struggles and pains. I will also blog about anything I am passionate about including creation science, homeschooling, cooking and crafts, the Christian life, frugality, home economics, and anything else that seems to inspire me.

Did I mention I live in Nebraska? And here is a video that says it all:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttPE_l2Y5LU]

And here some strange videos to kick off our party!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCEDjEp60aE]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjatRkpSa5U]

One of my favorite meals ready to eat, prepared by me Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Corn, and Biscuits… with homemade gravy of course!