Preparing for Winter Comfort

Fall is right around the corner. I can feel and smell it in the early morning air. My thoughts are beginning to turn from the busyness of harvesting our small summer garden and fruit trees to preparing our home for the cold winter months ahead. I've learned over the past 30 plus years of 'keeping a home' that it's not wise to put off these preparations until the last minute otherwise my family suffers the consequences.

My husband and I were talking about just this very thing on the way to church. This coming winter will be a bit more challenging since all of my household items are not under one roof. Since we are temporarily living on my aunt's property in a small studio I have many of our household items stored in her sheds. It will mean much less work for me if I can prepare now while the weather is mild instead of waiting until a storm hits to start searching for extra blankets or running into town for medicine. I'll also save money if I can prepare ahead of time while watching for the sales on medicine.

Here is my winter checklist.

• Oil lamps: I only have room for 1 oil lamp in our little place. It sits on my kitchen counter. It is full of oil and ready for use with a lighter sitting next to it. 
• Flashlights: I have a flashlight sitting on my end table next to my bed, next to my husband's chair in the 'living room' and one on the kitchen counter hidden behind the oil lamp. I've learned the hard way that when you live in the country it gets VERY dark (think 'no street lights') when the electricity goes out. That is NOT the time to try and find a flashlight. When we lived in a larger home I had a flashlight in every major room.  I need to check the batteries and purchase more batteries for backup. 
• Extra blankets: I'll be pulling these out to see if they need to be washed. 
• Electric blankets: The electric blankets will need to be plugged in to make sure they are still working.  My daughter found one on sale last year so I purchased it for a backup. They are horribly expensive if you buy them in the middle of winter so I try to purchase ahead of time at the lowest price. The heat helps lessen the pain in my husband's back so I always want to have an extra one on hand. 
• Heating pad 
• Small room heaters need to be located and cleaned. We do not have central heat and air.
• Winter clothes need to be pulled out of storage and washed. I need to take inventory of what we have and what we may need to purchase. I think we probably have enough clothes and coats to get us through another winter without any purchases. I've been picking up a few winter tops at the thrift store through the summer when I see them on sale. I just purchased 2 long sleeve blouses for less than a $1.00 each. 
• Cold and flu medicine: I'll be taking inventory of what we have on hand, checking expiration dates and then watching the ads for 'free' products through the drug stores. We had our first round of flu and colds this past month. I was thankful to have cold medicine I had received free last year. 
• I'm researching a few herbal remedies I want to try this coming year. One is an herbal tea recipe for colds and I'm also hoping to make cough drops. 
• Soup: I made some wonderful, rich chicken broth that is waiting in the freezer to be made into chicken soup. I'll also be watching the sales for Campbell's Chicken Soup, just in case I'm the one who gets sick so my dear husband just has to open a can. I always try to keep a couple of extra meals in the freezer .. just in case. 

I love being able to make our home warm and comfortable. I remember how much satisfaction I felt when I used to tuck my children into a warm, clean bed at night. I miss those days but I find that same since of satisfaction knowing my husband's needs are met and he is warm and comfortable.

 She has no fear of winter for her household, 

for everyone has warm clothes. (NLT)

That's my beginning list. I'd love to know what you do in your households to prepare for the winter.

A little this and that...

My honey is on the mend from his cold (still coughing) and it looks like I won't be escaping the nasty little bug. So, I tried to take it easy the past few days. Our church is having our Sunday service at the river for baptisms. We'll have a pot blessing after service. I'm so hoping I will be well by then.

So.. let's see.. what did I do today? In between resting and coughing I roasted the Poblano peppers from our garden. I used some for Chile Rellenos. Since I wasn't feeling well I did the Rellenos in stages. I don't have a dishwasher so I roasted the chile's early and washed those dishes. Then a few hours later I peeled the skins off of them. Then later I made the sauce and washed those dishes. That left with me with just a few skillets and our plates and silverware after dinner. I wasn't up to washing a sink full of dishes. The older I get the easier it is to work in stages. I find it much easier to break big jobs down into smaller portions.

Our garden is in full production. Yesterday (in between coughing spells) I canned 8 quarts of apples.  Last week (did I already tell you this?) I pressure canned a batch of homemade tomato sauce and another batch of whole tomatoes plus one pint of pickled beets and a batch of salsa.  I'm growing the wrong kind of tomatoes for canning. I should be growing Roma's. If we are still living here next summer then I'll plant Roma's (Lord willing).  I've made several huge batches of salsa and still have tomatoes coming out our ears. I think I'll make some spaghetti sauce next and use it with the zucchini.

I spent some time gathering scriptures on a biblical communication and a wife's tongue for a friend and then rested while listening to Hinds Feet on High Places.

All in all it was a very nice day!

Cheap deodorant this week at Walgreens

Walgreens 8/15-8/21

The best deal I found this week were (supposed to be) free deodorants. I had 3 coupons (buy 1 get 1 free). Remember that when the stores offer a B1G1 free and you have a B1G1 free manufacturer coupon you end up with both items free.  But, this B1G1 free coupon had a limit which was .50 cents less than the sale price. So, I basically ended up paying .50 plus tax for the Right Guard deodorant which is still a great price.  I shouldn't have to buy deodorant for quite a few months.

The Command to be Hospitable (regardless of where you live)

I thought when we downsized (to a home that was smaller than our last garage) my 'hospitality' days would be over. Our previous homes housed many family gatherings over the years and I loved it!  I really did! I loved the preparations and I loved cooking and baking for my family and friends.

It's obvious due to the size of our new little bungalow that we won't be gathering 30 plus loved ones into our home for the holidays. But, we are still given the command to be hospitable in Romans 12:13 no matter what the condition or size of our dwelling.  It's not a suggestion or an option.. it's a command for a follower of Jesus Christ. So with that command the Lord gives His grace and as always makes it very possible.

Trying to obey the command to be hospitable while living in a barn has revealed some interesting things about myself that I didn't know or didn't want to face.  I never thought of myself as a materialistic person.  I never thought material things were important to me or that I tied material things to my reputation. We lived most of our married life in older homes and from paycheck to paycheck. It's only been the last 15 years that things changed for us financially.  We lived in several nice homes but I never imagined that pride had set in due to what we owned.  It wasn't until we moved into a barn that I began to see my pride surface.   Our situation has brought this sin to the surface and for that I am grateful because it clearly is opposite of everything Christ represented. (He was born in a barn! *Smile*)

Recently this sweet lady wanted to come by our home to take care of some business. I had been to her house and it was a big and beautiful. I found excuses to delay her stopping by  for several times until I realized what I was doing. I finally just got it out in the open and said, "we live in a barn". Whew! I felt so much better not pretending we were something that we were not. Now that the pretense is gone I can just focus on making her feel comfortable when she visits. 

I think learning to be content with your present situation involves embracing it as directly from God's hand. We are thankful for our little place. It's a great blessing to be rent free while we wait for a determination from Social Security. I want to thrive where God has placed us... not hide in embarrassment. God promises to withhold no good thing from those who are His and I believe He has fulfilled that promise in this provision. I've reminded myself often that 'this' and all it entails is a GOOD THING.. a precious gift given from the hand of God.

Lord willing, I will write soon about the practical things I'm  learning concerning hospitality in a small place.

My friend Pam came for lunch.

(Kevin said something silly and made us laugh!)

I'm so content...

Everything has changed ... yet nothing has changed!

That is what I was thinking this afternoon at the end of a full day of work in my little home. Yes, my surroundings have changed... my space is smaller.. much smaller!  I am still doing many of the duties I did in a home ten times this size.. just on a smaller scale. There are still dishes to be done daily, furniture to be dusted, a bed to be made and a floor to be cleaned.

The 'fun' part is that I can finish my housework lickity split! I love that! Since we moved into our small space I'm able to spend more time studying God's Word, reading good books, ministering to His people and studying areas that interest me in God's Word. I hope I don't ever have to give that up for a big home again.

I'm content... happy as a bug in a rug... thank you Lord for this wonderful gift of time and freedom!

The end of saving is ...

"But, in inculcating economy, we must be careful not to drive the mind into covetousness; hence it is of consequence, that with all our endeavours to cherish frugality, we should be no less assiduous to encourage generosity; and to impress them the idea, that the end of saving, is not to hoard, but to distribute to the wants of others."



A Help to Domestic Happiness by James

Summer Update: It was a long winter!

Many of you read our testimony to God's faithfulness over the past 5 years through the loss of our business, homes and my husband's present physical disability. At the beginning of this year we settled into a little bungalow in my aunt's barn which is nestled amongst her 10 acres of almonds. The winter months were difficult for my husband physically while his body adjusted to many new medications. Several of the medications that were prescribed to relieve pain had horrible side effects which brought their own host of serious problems. The colder temperatures also brought more pain. We spent many of our days at doctor appointments and tests with a few trips to the E.R. I'll be honest and share my very heart with you ... some of those days felt very 'dark' and I struggled at times emotionally as I watched my husband suffer knowing I could do nothing to relieve his pain. Yet, through the myriad of trials we're experiencing a richer walk with the Lord as He teaches us more about Himself. Some of these lessons involve dying to dreams that have long been a part of us. These lessons, although painful, are proving in the long run to bring a deeper joy than we've ever known in our Christian walk.




I am finding a greater need to daily rest in the knowledge of God's sovereignty. I'm slowly learning the lessons of what Amy Carmichael once shared in her poem, "In Acceptance Lieth Peace". I am convinced that Scripture teaches a loving God has 'assigned my portion' for each day (Psalms 16:5). Some of that portion may involve suffering, some may involve sorrow. He is the 'blessed controller' of all things (1 Timothy 6:15). What that means to me personally is that even my husband's pain is not out of His control.



Elisabeth Elliot once wrote, "I know of no greater simplifier for all of life. Whatever happens is assigned. Does the intellect balk at that? Can we say that there are things that happen to us that do not belong to our lovingly assigned "portion." ("This belongs to it, that does not")? Are some things, then, out of the control of the Almighty? Every assignment is measured and controlled for my eternal good. As I accept the given portion other options are canceled. Decisions become much easier, directions clearer, and hence my heart becomes inexpressibly quieter. A quiet heart is content with what God gives."



I cannot live in the past of what my husband and I had hoped our future would look like. I cannot live in the fantasy of what we 'thought' our future should be. I especially will not mourn the loss of 'things' that with time would only rust and be left behind on this earth. I choose to rest in the security of knowing an all loving and all-powerful God has not left His throne but is masterfully in control of each intricate detail of our lives. We seeing His plan unfolding each day and are witnessing His skillful craftsmanship as He weaves all of our circumstances into a pattern for good.. even the painfully, hard ones! I pray His lessons will continue to change us and be used to conform us into the image of His Son Jesus Christ. (Romans 8:28,29)



You know.. the amusing thing is that the ideals we had for our future were no way as glorious as what we are experiencing today.... even in the midst of the painful times. Our 'imagined' goals focused on the temporary things of this world and how we would live financially in our old age. We labored to that end. A very small portion of our imaginations for the future had to do with God's kingdom. These days my husband and I talk much about the Lord's kingdom and how we hope to serve more. God is teaching us to 'seek first His kingdom' and we're finding a huge portion of joy as our focus becomes set more on the eternal things rather than the temporal.











(I have a small window (possibly) of opportunity to share lessons we are learning while my husband's physical state is temporarily stabilized and my help is less needed. I hope to share more in a later post... Lord willing.)