Home's

This evening I asked our Braedon when he was over visiting us to draw the winner for my giveaway. Of course being the gentleman he is he agreed to and provided some light entertainment for us as he did so.
I also would like to say a  very big thank you to Annette for her generous contribution to this, my first ever giveaway.
 Really if you were not lucky enough to win this you should still follow up getting these marvelous books for your home.
Thank you also to all of you who entered and now without further ado the winner is..... the lovely Marqueta.
Congratulations, I just know you will enjoy these as much as I do.

I will be in touch with the details on how to collect the books soon.

Blessings to you and your homes,
 

I have been seriously contemplating this for some time and feel as we are about to move and have a fresh start our selves  that the time is right.
This will be the first in a few give aways that I have planned, so keep in touch!

As I love crafts and seasonal activities with our children  we have over the years gathered many books and ideas and I love browsing through them making plans and collecting ideas.
Sometimes I do feel the need sometime to have a more structured guide for our seasonal ideas with everything in one place.
I have over the years contemplated putting one together in my spare time, but that spare time seems to elude me :) and I feel that at the moment it will stay on the back burner. Perhaps one day in the future.

At the moment I am really looking forward to our move and the start of a new season for us.....Spring.
Would you believe that we start our first day of our new adventure on the first day of Spring.
One of the lesson plans I will be doing with our younger children especially is a topic I did with our older children for a couple of years. We had a Seasons Notebooks and we read stories, drew pictures made crafts in a very deliberate way (they still have those notebooks)

As we really enjoyed this study I am going to start this when we move and start with Spring.
I am going to use Annette's Seasons of Joy ..Spring Book as a guide.

I really really love this series from Seasons of Joy and Annette has graciously offered a complete Season set: that is the four complete seasons to a lucky winner!!

Here is a listing of titles in the Spring Issue:
Introduction
Circle Time
Fairy Tales, Stories, and Extensions
Finger Plays, Songs, and Verses
Watercolor Stories
Handwork
Modeling
Coloring
Playtime
Nature Table
Cooking and Baking
Especially for Babies
Outings
Rhythms and Routines
Resources
Photos

Honestly there are so many ideas in these and all in one place an you will not want to miss out on a chance to win this.

So what do you need to do?

First off for chance number one Become a follower of this blog  and leave a comment saying you are or if you already are just leave a comment letting me know!

Then after chance number one you can then get additional chances by..............

For a second chance why not become a follower of Annette's blog Seasons of Joy and leave a comment back here to let me know

Would you like a third chance follow my facebook page, here and come back and tell me you are a fan or already were.

And for a fourth chance at this great offer, share this giveaway on your blog, facebook or twitter. Come back and leave a comment saying you did so.

Please make sure I can reach you, either through a blogger account of leave an email address.
I will leave this giveaway open all week and draw the winner on .........Friday 7th September

As I have no idea how to do a computer generated win I will do it the old fashioned way.....drawing a name out of the hat.

Please also note that I am posting this as we leave Tasmania and will be off line for a few (depending on internet provider) days I will be taking the comments off comment moderation - until I am back on line. If when I am able to check at a stop over or something and find I am getting lots of spam I will probably put in the' fill in the word box' that we all hate to do.

Until I check in again good luck and see you in the 'new world'

Update: Entries are now closed

Blessings to you and your homes,
 

On Wednesday of last week, we closed on our new house (yay!) and so we're in the thick of packing, arranging appointments with painters, locksmiths, etc., and expecting our crate from Istanbul to (hopefully) be delivered sometime this week (another yay!).  In lieu of my normal sharing of random thoughts or recent Bible studies, I thought I'd link up to all the Making Home posts that have been making their way around Pinterest.  (Here are my Pinterest boards, if you're interested.)

I hope you enjoy looking through these old links; I'm going to be enjoying literally "Making Home" for the first time in a while.  :)

• Sustaining Contentment-- Fighting for joy in hard/difficult/humdrum times
• Biblical Descriptions of Mothers-- I compiled significant/insightful descriptions of mothers found in the Bible
• Get Yourself Dressed!-- Growing more mature as a believer
• Being Sexy For Your Husband-- A 5-part series to encourage you in your marital intimacy
• "Me Time"?-- Examining selfishness, avoiding burnout, and considering Jesus' example
• Let The Words Tumble Out-- Sometimes you just have to start praying and the words will come.
• Seek Wise Counsel-- proactively pursue the advice of more experienced believers!
• Contentment vs. Discontentedness-- Psalm 16 & the opposite of Psalm 16 give a clarifying, convicting picture of what contentment looks like
• Feeding Your Baby the First Week-- My experiences with baby #5
• Make Your Own Baby Wipes-- an easy and economical option
• Tips for Dealing With Mastitis-- a somewhat common malady for breastfeeding moms
• Coaching Your Kids Through Doctor's Visits-- tips to help them cope well
• Is "Mommy Guilt" Normal?-- discerning God's conviction vs. unhelpful guilt
• How Expected Birth Control Use Affects Our Culture-- surprisingly, one of my most popular posts
• My Real-Life Proverbs 31 Friend-- this post about being "busy at home" was a recent one but has already been "pinned" for encouragement on Pinterest.  

Hope you find something encouraging or thought-provoking from this list of oldies.  :)  Have a great week, and I'll see ya when I see ya.

(Today's giveaway is now closed.  Congrats to Jessica B, the winner!  Check back each day this week for more chances to win!)

Perhaps you've been keeping up with my recent "soul care" series... all based on a wonderful book I'm reading by Steven W. Smith called Embracing Soul Care: Making Space For What Matters Most.  I hope it's been an encouragement for you.

Mr. Smith wrote me and offered up FIVE copies of this amazing book for me to give away through Making Home... I'm so jazzed!  Thank you so much to Stephen Smith for this great giveaway!

So many of you have written me, commented, and/or facebooked me, saying what an encouragement these ideas have been to you, and so I can't wait to let FIVE of you get your hands on his amazing book!

Every day this week you will have an opportunity to win this book.  Each day, I'll ask you to answer one question in the comments & leave your name & e-mail information (so that I can get in contact with you if you win)!


TODAY, the question is:


Which phrase would you say BEST DESCRIBES the current state of your physical body/physical health?

1. Used up & spent 
2. Weary but still moving 
3. Mediocre. 
4. Doing pretty good, feeling pretty good 
5. Fantastic!

*** Contest Details: THIS CONTEST HAS ALREADY ENDED.  ***


Don't forget to LEAVE A COMMENT w/ your answer, name, and e-mail address!!!

As discussed last week, I am starting my weekly Shared Posts for as long as others  would like to contribute.

Here are some links to posts I have enjoyed this week:
Felt Christmas Tree -easy craft
Media and Parenting - something to be mindful of
Cinnamon Rolls
Blanket Stitiching
On Creativity - Pondered in My Heart
Party Ideas for All Saints Day
Crafting  A story
Nine Patch Doll quilt
Heart of Advent - Frontier Dreams
True Beauty - Storygirl
New Mass Printable Book - Catholic Icing

Looking forward to all the Shared Posts you may contribute!

Blessings to you and your homes,
 

Like some others in the blogging world I was disappointed  to discover that my lovely little Google Shared Items was not able to be well.....shared anymore.

While not keeping mine as current as some friends I knew it was always there and I could keep tabs of what I was liking about others blogs. Because frankly there are a lot of blogs I like and and are inspired from and I often don't get to comment on a post that has tweaked my interest or encouraged me and I could keep keep it in my thoughts t by putting it in my shared items. Sadly now this is no longer an option and I am looking for  another way to do this.

Now I know also that some are trying out new ways of sharing items and most of these seem a trifle hard and complicated to organise. I also remember suggesting to Erin that we could share on Pinterest, but again it means a more complicated way of doing this.

However after discussion today I am wondering if anyone would be interested in a weekly Shared Items Post that we can leave a comment on or a linky too. Perhaps this is no less complicated than the other versions but I am just thinking out loud here.

So, I would be happy to coordinate if anyone is interested! Let me know if there is a need or interest in this please and I will follow it up.

Or if you have a super easy way to get my sharing happening again let me know.  I just know I am going to hate moving all those blog addresses to another site ☺

Blessings to you and your homes,

Some time ago Eva tagged me for this award and now Vicky has as well. So I had better get on with it!!

One of the requirements is to share 7 things about my self. Now these I am not sure if they need to be 'new things' or things currently known.
I will attempt to share some new information, but I think this is hard as I tend to use this space as a diary of sorts too.

1. I love to dance and sing, but usually at home within our family.
However I have been know to do this in public as if I were at home.

2. I am a fairly quiet spoken person.

3. If 'stirred up' about  a passion of mine I have no hesitation in letting others know, no matter where we are or who is listening.

4. I am from a small family. Parents (step father) and one sister. All my life I wanted a large family (at one time I thought 6 children was large) and so am thankful for this gift.

5. I adore candlelight, fire light, and reading and crafting by these.

6. After my husband, our children are my best friends and I love spending time with them.

7. A role model I have always loved is Ma from the TV series  "Little House on the Prairie"

8. My children believe I am stubborn.,...but I beg to differ!! Oops that is 8 and like Vicky I have no respect for rules that do not support my ideals.

You know I am so thankful for getting these but like so many others I know I am reluctant to pass it on to specific people, so this time I am just going to share the information and ask that anyone who has not done it who visits my blog takes it and uses it, because obviously you are a stylish Blogger if you visit here,☺

Blessings to you and your homes,

When we blog about our homes and life styles we are sharing our lives and our thoughts on many subjects, perhaps of interest to others and then again perhaps not.
We love it when we know people read what we have posted and perhaps even take the time to comment. It is how I have made many wonderful and dear friends.

There seems to be a flip side to this coin however.....
The anonymous nasty commenter!!

Is it necessary for people who don't like your blog to leave nasty and anonymous comments?

I don't think it is!

I follow and read a number of blogs, many of them different, as they appeal to different parts of my life. Faith, homeschooling, homemaking and parenting, craft and mothering. They are all interesting and beautiful blogs, and yet they are their 'own people' so to speak and each is as different from each other as to me.

Now even though I read these I don't always have the time to comment. Even though I would love to let the person know I have read what they have gone to the effort to share and how it affected me. How it made me think, how I was moved to be  a better person or  just that I appreciated the time and effort in sharing their thoughts.

Now in all honesty I don't expect EVERYONE to ALWAYS agree with EVERYTHING  I say!!! And I would be willing to allow you your opinion in a polite and agreeable way.

BUT this is my blog and I reserve the right not to publish just plain nasty comments about me and my family. Hence the use of comment moderation.

So I would like to ask the so called  anonymous KATE with no  profile information available (and others) who constantly leave these comments to stop reading my blog if it offends you so much. I am sure I will not miss you and you obviously are distressed by reading what I have to share.

I think it is a shame that people who have nothing positive to say 'run around' the blogging world and leave these spiteful little darts in our comments. Of course they are usually anonymous or leave a name (like dear Kate) but no profile to access.
I know that it happens to other kindred spirits as they have had to resort the path I now take and actually say something about this.......well, infestation.

So if you would be so kind, if you understand the meaning of the word, just go and find something else to useful to do with your life. You won't miss me.............

And I won't miss you!!

Blessings to you and your homes,

Well not exactly...............
However, I will be offline for  a few days so will not be posting. I do plan on doing some crafting and reading while taking photos of some new sights.

I hope you all have  a wonderful weekend enjoying the gifts the Father has given each of us.

 Blessings to you and your homes,

It's been long enough. I'm a gal who best analyzes and learns and drives home (to my own brain) what I've learned by writing out my thoughts. This break from regularly writing here at Making Home has been necessary-- while I took time off to go intense with Turkish, and then to have Moses... but I need to be back in the habit of writing regularly. My mind gets all random and unfocused when I'm not regularly writing, and for the last couple years, I've been journaling in written form more...

OK, now for this week's 7 Quick Takes... and it's gonna be quick.

Last week, I was privileged to host a giveaway for Mary Ostyn's book (published last year) called, "A Sane Woman's Guide to Raising a Large Family". (Which I HIGHLY recommend. It's full of practical wisdom, helpful tips, and written with a humble but insightful perspective from a mom of ten.)



Thanks to everyone for participating in the giveaway, and be sure to check out Mary's blog, as well as her two books, A Sane Woman's Guide to Raising a Large Family and Family Feasts for $75 a Week.

Blessings to you all!

2009 was a good year for our family; I hope it was for yours. That's not to say it was without difficulty, but we really had some neat experiences:

---> We moved to a new (cheaper, more diverse, more relational) neighborhood
---> I focused in and worked hard on learning Turkish
---> A family trip to Egypt, full of history and beauty, fulfilling a dream I've had since childhood
---> We memorized the first chapter of James together as a family
---> I took a nice, long blogging break (and have found that, in the season I'm in, I really don't miss it that much)
---> Found out we're expecting #5 (who the doc thinks is a little girl, but I'm only 14 weeks so it's a bit early to be certain)
---> My mom came for a visit
---> Doug gave me a sewing machine for Christmas and so I've been loving learning this new skill
---> We had yet another virtually commercialization-free Christmas overseas (this is one huge joy for me in living abroad)

BELOVED BOOKS
As for books, some of you may remember that I laid out a 40-book list goal for myself at the beginning of 2009. I did *almost* read 40 books in 2009, but only about half of them were from the list I put up at the beginning of the year. I am about halfway through 10 others of the list, and 10 others I haven't even started. (Here are all my book reviews for what I *did* read in 2009.) It was an ambitious goal, and perhaps, too, I am a bit too "P" (if you don't know the Myers-Briggs personality types, that means a bit too random/spontaneous) to read solely according to plan. One thing I learned is that I like reading fiction more than I thought I did, and I ended up weaving in more of it than I had planned.

Here are my top reading highlights from 2009:

1. Sacred Marriage-- (Gary Thomas) - This is the least typical, the most challenging, and the most helpful marriage book I've ever read. I highly recommend it. For any Christian, male or female, I believe it will help put marriage in its proper perspective... not as a relationship of getting, or even of "each giving 100%", but as a state of growing more like Christ.
2. What Our Mothers Didn't Tell Us: Why Happiness Eludes the Modern Woman-- (Danielle Crittenden) - I said this on my review page, but I'll say it again... I think this book should be handed to every single woman in America under 40. Those of us who have grown up with feminist principles interwoven into every history lesson, every self-esteem talk, every career day, have more to think about than what's been presented to us. Crittenden offers a balanced, thoughtful, much-needed perspective on approaching life as a woman in this modern world.
3. The Unlikely Disciple-- (Kevin Roose) - Interesting book, this. For anyone who has spent significant time in evangelical Christian circles, this is just the sort of book that can help us reexamine the "furniture" of our lives... the things we take for granted in life that others look at and notice about us. Roose, as a secular journalist major, entered a very conservative Christian university for a semester to examine young evangelical life "from the inside". He offers a surprisingly balanced (for the most part) perspective that I (as a girl who grew up in church and went to a Christian college) found refreshing and insightful.
4. No Graven Image-- (Elisabeth Elliot) - I heard about this book from a friend and was surprised as I read. It's Elliot's only novel, and she doesn't shy away from tackling hard questions about life, God's sovereignty, and many of the gray questions I have wondered about throughout the years. Certainly, it's not an "easy" read as I felt the need to debrief and talk through some of the overarching questions raised in the book... but it is insightful and valuable and a beautiful novel in its own right. I highly enjoyed it... but perhaps more importantly, I walked away thinking, which I imagine was Elliot's aim. It's not still in print, so if you can get your hands on it, it's worth it.
   

Here's hoping that you have a thoughtful, enjoyable year full of growth and joy throughout 2010! Many blessings to you and yours! ~Jess

I used to love the show, Alias. Still do, really, but it went downhill in later seasons. But those first couple of seasons-- wow!-- they were incredible. Aside from the occasional racy outfit, the predicaments and feats of Sydney Bristow were cliff-hangingly delightful.

There must be something about this time of year. This week it hit me that I need to spend time away from this screen for a while. I try other methods (giving myself certain amount of time online, or try to only visit certain sites), but end up frustrated or it just doesn't "stick"... just shutting it off for awhile works better (for me). I've learned that if I do this every so often, I neither overestimate the importance of online activities, nor underestimate the resources, wisdom, and comraderie available here. And if I do this every so often, I don't end up shutting down my blog, only to realize that communicating by writing is a part of how God built me and that I need to get back to it.

Time away helps me to rightly value what's here, and rightly value what's NOT here.

So I'm taking some time away, not sure how long. About six weeks from now, our family is going to Cairo for our family vacation (we found a good deal and quickly snatched it up--YAY, I can't wait to see the Pyramids!!!), so it may be even after that, something like 2 months. We'll just see. And I reserve the right to hop back on, without shame, if there's something that I feel prodded to write about. :) But regardless, I hope you have a delightful summer- full of knowing Christ more, and joyfully loving family and the people around you.


As a parting gift, here are the links I've been storing up since the last Show & Tell (and I'll decorate them with recent pics of my kids):

FEATURED ARTICLE:

• KNOW YOUR BIBLE! Randy Alcorn warns that not knowing the Word of God is a monumental problem in the modern church... and I agree.

CAUSE IT'S INTERESTING:

• Challies explores technology, faith, relationships, distraction, and really knowing God and others: Don't Take Your iPod to Church!
• NEED A GOOD READ THIS SUMMER? Check out my 2009 book reviews for ideas (I'll continue updating through the summer).
• GOSSIP
  
• Mary Kassian writes about the soft strength of womanhood
• I've been listening to this incredible song about God on repeat for the last few days... Josh Harris noticed it too and written about it: Regina Spektor's "Laughing With"
  
• A young mom shares about her journey to becoming a better cook.
  
• Are you crafty? Need ideas? Check out this list.
• Cut out the busyness and spend time with people, says John Piper.
  
• A good word: Feelings are not good (or biblical!) indicators for if something is true or false!
• Books on a budget
• The abortion discussion is changing, says one formerly-pro-choice atheist
  
• Tips for hospitality
• You wouldn't pay 1,000 bucks a week to send your kid to x-box camp for kicks... College as merely "enjoyable" entertainment for young adults
  

RELATIONSHIPS:

• Why the "sexy" part of being a bride should be saved for AFTER the wedding.
• Steps/Counsel for responding to a husband's porn addiction.
• Jenny Sanford strikes me as a woman leaning on the grace of God in the middle of a really yucky situation. As I've watched her responses through her husband's adultery-- something that none of us would like to face-- I've been praying that many people will ask "what is the reason for her hope (grace, kindness, willingness to forgive)?" That kind of character in the face of shame and pain lets God shine through in a big way.
• John Piper recently published this gem: Sexual Intimacy & the Rights Over a Spouse's Body in Marriage
  

LIFE WITH KIDS:

• Jen (a mom who has had 4 kids in 5 years) shares tips for thriving through the newborn/little kids stages
• Ethical issues continue with prenatal tests -- we keep growing in knowledge and "advancements" in science, and yet our society seems more lost than ever.
• Swedish parents conceal child's gender --Yikes, poor kid!
  
• Enjoy your little ones, from a mom of five.
  
• Apparently, through this program, you can host African orphans in your home for a summer. Maybe something to pray about?
• 100 Things to do WITH KIDS in Washington, DC (What a great list! We used to live in DC and I wish we'd have done more while there.)
• "I am not the mother I want to be"-- a friend writes about the beautiful difficulties that come with being a mom of many
  

HOMESCHOOLING:

• New statistics on the growth & "success" of homeschooling
• Homeschooling your preschooler-- great advice here!
  

GOOD FOR A LAUGH:

• The "Upside" of Violent Video Games :)
• A couple of Lego Laughs: The Busstop, and The Decision
  
• The mp3 Experiment! Good, creative fun!