Surviving the Government Furlough: Finding Additional Income

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Previous articles in the series:  Intro, Slashing the Budget, and God's Provisions


Now that we have slashed the budget, it's time to look for ways to bring in extra money to supplement what is lost during the furlough.  There are so many ways to bring in extra cash, it just requires a little creativity and willingness!  Some of these suggestions are obvious, but others may spark an idea.  I hope this serves as a valuable resource for you.

Here are some things to keep in mind as you try to find additional income

Pray

As I mentioned in my previous post, begin with prayer.  Ask God to open up opportunities to earn extra money and be ready for Him to answer.  Ask Him to provide during this time, and trust that He will.  Never underestimate the power of prayer!

Family meeting

I know I mentioned this before as well, but come together as a family and brainstorm ways everyone can help out.  Perhaps the kids can pull weeds for the neighbors, or sell ice cream or lemonade to the community.  Older kids can bake and sell their creations.  Again, including the whole family gets everyone on board and makes it a team effort.

Spread the word

If you're looking for work, let people know.  Tell your church family, your community, your family that you're looking to earn extra money to make ends meet.  You'll be amazed by what comes up simply by spreading the word. 

Our neighborhood has a wonderful email loop, so I let our neighbors know that we were looking for work.  God provided, and continues to provide for us right here in our neighborhood.  My husband and oldest son have been providing lawn care services and staining fences.  My daughter and I have been baking and selling bread.  The convenience of staying in the neighborhood has been a blessing! 

Be humble.  No job is too small

My husband is a well respected Fire Inspector.  He has a great job.  He could easily have an arrogant attitude about what jobs he will and will not do.  But thankfully, my husband is more concerned about providing for his family than he is about pride.  All these small jobs have added up to making ends meet.  If we had just sat around waiting for "something better" to come around, we would have missed out on the blessings that have come from the work God has provided, not to mention the income. 

Here are some practical ways to bring in more income

Get a second job

This is a no-brainer, but sometimes people just aren't willing to work longer hours and relax less.  But in hard financial times, it's just necessary!  If your schedule allows, look for a part-time job to supplement your income.  Here are some possibilities...

Freelance writing - writergal.com and textbroker.com are good places to start
Proofreading - freelancer.com offers proofreading jobs
Pizza delivery
Newspaper delivery
Tutoring
Cleaning houses

Become a consultant

If there is a salesperson in you, try your hand at these jobs.  These are feasible jobs for stay-at-home-moms who want to host fun parties while bringing in additional income.

Pampered Chef
Mary Kay
Silpada - sell artisan-made fine sterling silver 
Young Living Essential Oils

Reduce bill payments

If you've got credit card bills, loans, or medial bills, ask to temporarily reduce your payments just until furlough (or your situation) is over.  If you have the money, then make the full payment.  But reducing outgoing money gives you some leeway, and allows for extra income when it's really needed.

Blogging

I'm so amazed at what bloggers can make these days.  If you have a love for writing, or have a special skill or talent, blogging may be a fun way to bring in extra cash.  When we were planning my daughter's wedding, I blogged full force to bring in extra wedding money.  Since then, I've cut way back due to time and other priorities, but I still manage to bring in a little extra money from the blogging I'm able to do.

Here are some resources to help you get started:
Escalate Network-Product or company advertising....earn money per conversions.
Amazon Affiliate-Earn commission on products people buy through your Amazon links or widgets.
Google AdSense-Monetize your blog with ads
Social Spark-Write blog posts for a particular company or product and earn money

Refinance your home

Depending on your current rate, this could add income by lowering your mortgage payment.  We were able to refinance when the rates dropped, helping to reduce our payments by a couple hundred bucks. 

Sell stuff

Anything.  School curriculum, book, clothes, furniture, toys, baby items, extra vehicles, etc.  Look around and find what you don't need or want.  Sell items on Craigslist, Ebay, yard sales, FB yard sale community pages, homeschool co-ops, classifieds, anywhere!  We love to take our gently used clothing to resale shops for store credit or cash.  Try places like Kid to Kid, Uptown Cheapskate, Clothes Mentor, or Plato's Closet.  Check your local area to find out if these, or places similar, exist in your area. 

I recently learned that you can sell scrap metal.  Seriously!  You can take your old appliances and a whole host of other metal items and sell them to recycling centers.  Check your local listings for recycling centers near you.

Sell homemade breads or other goodies

If you enjoy baking bread or other goodies, ask to sell them at church, work, or a co-op group.  When we were raising money for my daughter's mission trip to Africa, our church and homeschool co-op group allowed us to sell bread.  We made a few hundred dollars.  Currently, my daughter and I are selling bread to our neighborhood.  We may offer freezer meals soon. Maybe.

One of my friends, who is also in the midst of furlough, is selling breakfast tacos and freezer meals to her husband's co-workers.  They have brought in quit a bit of money, thus surviving the furlough.  Get creative and don't be shy!

Offer a class

Whether you sew, bake incredible bread, or you're a talented artist, offer classes in your home.  Choose a day of the week and come up with a price (which includes supplies) and spread the word via the Web or flyers.  If you have a special skill, there are others out there willing to pay to learn it!

Mow lawns

Amazingly, this has been our biggest source of additional income during the furlough.  I simply advertised to our neighborhood, and another close by, that my husband was available for lawn care services.  We received multiple calls, three with ongoing weekly service.  My husband and son have enjoyed working together, building their relationship while helping to provide for our family. 

Child care

This is always a good source of additional income.  If you want to provide childcare long term, you may need to check into licensing laws in your state.  But if you want to offer temporary services, give a shout out to your friends and neighbors!

Trade for services

My good friend, Kim, reminded me that trading for services has helped them while her husband is looking for work.  When I was preparing for my second home birth, my wonderful midwife allowed me to do some office work for her to reduce the out-of-pocket expense of a home birth.  This is an area where you can really be creative.  If there is something you want or need, offer a service in return.  You can offer a piano teacher with small children childcare in exchange for lessons, if you have a friend who works on cars, trade house cleaning for car repairs.  Really, sky's the limit on this one.  If you have a talent or skill, offer it in exchange for something you need.

Clinical Trials

Each person will need to decide for themselves whether or not this is an option.  But I do know that you can make a lot of money by participating in clinical trials.  Just be sure they are second round trials or beyond.  Meaning, they have already done at least one round of testing so that you're not a first round guinea pig.  Just Google "clinical trials in (name of city)" to find out if there are any studies in your area.  Here is a sample of studies and money to be made in our area.

Final thoughts to keep in mind

Accept help

Sometimes it's hard to let others know about our struggles.  Trust your friends, family, and church family to help in your time of need.  Graciously accept help when it's offered.  Don't be stubborn or embarrassed.  A true community is one that reaches out and helps one another.  It's the way it's supposed to be.  Sometimes we lose sight of that in our pride and desire to do things in our own strength.

Don't incur new debt 

This bears repeating.  Opening up new credit accounts or maxing out the credit card does not count as additional income.  It's just more debt!  Sometimes it's easier to just charge for your needs rather than working a little harder to earn the money.  I understand that sometimes life just doesn't allow one to go out and earn extra money, but exhaust every other resource before resorting to adding new debt.


Has this been helpful?  If so, please consider sharing on FB, Twitter, or Google+.  What ways have you made additional income?  Please share!

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Surviving the Government Furlough: God's Provisions Already

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We're a couple of weeks into the furlough, and I am bursting at the seams to tell you how God has already been providing for our family.  My next furlough article will talk about some of these things below individually, but as I was thinking about all the ways God has provided already, it needed to be its own post!

Earnings from odd jobs we've completed (no job is too small):

• Fence staining - $200
• Yard work for neighbors - $100, plus two ongoing contracts.
• Baking and selling homemade bread - $10 (so far...more to come)

Savings:

• Grocery savings - $100 - I was able to shave off $100 this shopping trip (I shop twice a month).  If I do it again, I will meet my monthly savings goal of $200.

• Airplane ticket - $100 - I will need to fly back home after dropping my daughter off in TN for school.  A one-way ticket was pretty pricey, so I watched it for several weeks, hoping it would drop.  It did drop finally about $40.  Later that evening, I decided to go ahead and purchase the ticket at the $40 less price.  To my astonishment, it had dropped again.....by $100 from the original price.  I bought that ticket faster than a hummingbird's wings can flap!

Unexpected money:

• Additional scholarship money - $500 - I received an email letting me know that Celeste's school was able to secure $500 more in scholarship money for her.

That's a grand total of $1010 in savings, earnings, and unexpected provision in two weeks! 

Praise God, from Whom ALL blessings Flow!

How has God been providing for your family (whether furloughed or not)?  Please share!

Surviving the Government Furlough: Slashing the Budget

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Read Part 1 here.

The first step in surviving the furlough is to take a look at your budget and see where you can reduce spending.  Our budget is already fairly tight, so this will require even more sacrifice on our part.

Thankfully, the Lord prepared us a bit in advance.  We knew the furlough would eventually catch up to us, so we worked hard to pay off debt.  Currently, we have no car payments and no credit card debt.  Other than our mortgage and typical expenses (food, utilities, gas, insurance, etc.) we only have two fairly large medical bills that we are slowly paying off (portion insurance didn't cover). 

Compared to the average family, we're in pretty good shape I think.  But we're a large family living on one income, so this monthly loss will hit us hard.  In addition, our daughter is leaving for college, so we will have ongoing tuition payments to make.  I realize this will hit other families harder than ours.  Some have lost jobs completely, and some may lose their homes.  My heart aches for them, and we are continually praying for all those affected. 

Every family will face different challenges and have different priorities during the furlough.  Our priority is keeping up with our mortgage, feeding our family, keeping the lights on, and getting Celeste off to school.  Everything else is negotiable. 

Here are the things we have already implemented:

Pray

Pray for God to show you areas in which to cut back.  Some things that we think are necessities really are not.  Depending on your financial position, you may need to dig deep to cut back.  Ask God to show you what is truly needed and what is not.  Ask Him to provide extra work if that is what it will take to stay afloat.

Have a family meeting

Our kids love family meetings.  It's a great way to get all family members on the same page.  Discuss ways that everyone can pitch in to reduce spending.  Perhaps a little one can be in charge of making sure lights have not been left on.  A family meeting also lets the children know that life may look different for a while.  Less activities, less eating out, and whatever else you will need to cut back on.  Including your children will make them feel like they can make a difference, and prepare them for changes.

Get rid of cable

Contrary to what most of the world thinks, cable is not a necessity.  You may think that getting rid of it won't help, but every little bit helps.  We only have basic cable for $19 a month.  However, by the time you add the taxes and fees, and the second box rental fee, $19 has turned into $40.  We will keep Internet, but cable is going bye bye!  We do have Netflix, and plan to keep that for the time being.

If you have one of those deluxe cable plans, you could save big in this area!

Cell phones

Making changes here will depend on whether or not you have a contract.  We have a TracFone, so we only spend about $30 every 2-3 months.  We only turn on our cell phone when we're out of the house, and we don't carry on long conversations on the cell phones.  If you have an expensive plan, try to reduce the plan if possible.  Usually, companies are willing to work with you if you explain your situation.  It's worth a try...you may be able to save here.

Turn up the thermostat two or three degrees

We are already pretty conservative when it comes to the air conditioner.  We are a 78 degree family in the summer.  But due to the furlough, we've cranked it up two more degrees.  Sometimes we feel a little warm, but that's okay.  We can feel a little uncomfortable to reduce our energy bill.  But when you think about it, if it's 95-100 degrees outside (we live in south Texas), 80 degrees inside is not bad.  We're good! 

If you need to conserve energy in the winter, obviously you would want to turn down your thermostat.

Trim the grocery budget

You can really save in this area if you tend to buy a lot of convenience foods or name brand items.  Even though it takes more time, making meals from scratch will save hundreds of dollars.  Create a menu plan and grocery list and stick to it.  Seriously, the amount of pre-made, pre-packaged food I see in people's carts makes me want to take them by the hand and tell them there's a better, less expensive way.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not judging at all!  I buy my kids corn dogs and potato chips.  If you can afford it, have at it.  But so often, folks can't afford it, but just aren't willing to do the leg work required to save money.  If you struggle to get meals on the table, and resort to convenience foods, maybe these tips can help.

If you're a bulk food buyer, be sure you're comparing unit prices.  Sometimes, buying name brand bulk items can be more expensive than buying the generic non-bulk items.  Just because an item is sold in bulk, doesn't mean it will be cheaper.  Check unit prices always!

We spend about $1000 a month on groceries for the 11 of us.  This includes paper products, toiletries, and diapers.  I think I can reduce this by $200 a month.  We have a small emergency stockpile of food that we can pull from, and I can easily cut out some things we don't need.  In fact, I just did our shopping for this two week pay period, and I shaved $100 off the bill.  I shopped from the stockpile first and came up with some of our least expensive meals, and created a new menu.  And then I just passed on some frivolous grocery items that I usually get but don't need. 

Here are some additional grocery saving tips:
Feeding a Large Family on A Budget

Potty train the toddler

This of course will not apply to everyone, but I added it because I had been putting off potty training Amelia.  She's been ready for a while now, but I pretty much just didn't feel like doing it.  Nothing like a furlough to light a fire under me.  And voila!  She's potty trained.  That's 30 bucks a month back in our pockets.  Okay, so maybe our mortgage lender's pocket, but having a roof over our head is sort of important.  Who knew potty training could be so life-changing! ; )

Make less trips in the car

This is another area in which we can really save considering we drive two large, gas-guzzling vehicles.  We try not make frivolous trips as a rule, but now we're more cautious about where we choose to go.  Aside from my husband going to work, piano lessons, and or bi-monthly shopping trips, we're pretty much sticking around the house.  There's plenty to do around here, plus we have a neighborhood pool, so it's all good. 

The best thing you can do is figure out what you're spending on any given trip.  You may be surprised to find you're spending more than the trip is worth.  You can calculate the cost of your drive here.

Reduce payments if possible

As I mentioned above, we have two fairly large medical bills on which we make monthly payments.  My husband contacted the billing departments, told them of our situation, and they reduced our payments by half until furlough is over.  If we are able to make our regular payments, we will.  But this gives us some flexibility if we fall short.

Whatever your bills are, call the companies and tell them your situation.  In most cases they will work with you as long as you are sending something.  Just be aware of your credit card interest rates, making sure they don't increase with that smaller payment.

Don't incur new debt

It's tempting to open up new credit accounts or take on new loans as a means to survive.  Don't do it!  It may save you now, but could put you in a worse position later down the road.  Years ago, we took on a Deed for Contract home.  It sounded like a good thing at first, but we quickly learned it was nothing more than glorified renting with all the responsibilities of home ownership.  So when our house payment skyrocketed and the air conditioning until went out in the brutal heat of August while I was 7 months pregnant, we turned to accepting credit card offers to survive.  It took us YEARS to pay off all that debt.  The blessing was, however, that we have never taken on credit card debt since!

Here are more ways to reduce the budget.  Come on back soon for the next post in the series: Finding Extra Income.

How have you reduced your budget?  Please share any additional tips you may have!

Surviving the Government Furlough and How To Do It

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Last month, my husband was given his official furlough notice at work.  As you may know, approximately 800,000 government employees have been or will be affected by a 20% reduction in pay or job loss due to budget failures issues.  For the average forty-hours-a-week person, this means a four-day work week.  (Which would be really nice if one could afford that.)

 

Since my husband works a sixty hour work week, we were nervous about losing 20% of pay.  That's quite a chunk of change!  Thankfully, it was decided that even the sixty hour employees would  also be cut 8 hours a week instead of 12.  It was still a blow, but not quite as big as we had anticipated. 

 

Eight hours of pay loss is still pretty steep for our large family already living frugally on ONE income.  And the timing of this is quite interesting.  Our daughter is due to leave for college in August.  She will be attending a classical Christian school that does not mingle with the government.  No government scholarships, no grants.  Celeste was granted a small scholarship, but the majority of tuition will be our responsibility.  And early on, we made a commitment NOT to take on student loan debt.  

 

Our mission?

 

To do whatever we can to make up the $800+ per month loss AND get our daughter off to college!

 

Follow along with us as we purpose to reduce the overall (already tight) budget, find ways to bring in additional income, and faithfully trust God to provide over the next three (or so) months in my Surviving the Government Furlough series. 

 

Stay tuned for my next post in the series:  Slashing the Budget

 

Will you please consider sharing this series on Facebook (or other social media)?  Not only could it encourage others struggling to make ends meet, but more traffic around here is potential income for our family.  Also consider shopping Amazon through my Amazon widget on the right.  I make a small commission on each sale.  Thank you so much!

 

Have you or someone you know been affected by the Government Furlough?

Standing for Life in Texas: SB1, HB2, a Car Accident, and a Rally

Sunday night, my friend Donna and I (and Grace) traveled to Austin, Texas to be a part of the historical bill, Senate Bill 1, also called The Fetal Pain Bill.  This bill proposes that abortions cannot be performed after 20 weeks of pregnancy due to the pain the baby would feel during the procedure.  Texas law currently prohibits abortion past 24 weeks unless the life of the mother is in danger (though, we all know how loose that term can be).  The bill also states that abortion clinics must come up to ambulatory surgical center standards, thus making them safer places for women.  Finally, the bill mandates that abortion doctors must have admitting privileges to a hospital within 30 miles of the abortion clinic.  Again, making it safer for women who may be involved in a botched abortion.  This bill not only protects the lives of the unborn, but also protects women....something the pro-choice folks are supposedly fighting for, yet oppose this bill vehemently! 


This photo of Grace and I landed on the Texas Right to Life Facebook page.  I don't usually post unflattering pictures of myself, but the reason behind the photo is more important than my vanity.  My friends Donna, Charity, Lenee, and Grace and I were up early to be in line by 7am so that we could register to testify before Senate, as well as register our position on Senate Bill 1.  We stood in line for two hours before registration began.  This was taken by Texas Right to Life while waiting in line.



Grace's First Pro-Life Event 

It was quite an experience testifying before Senate.  And what a privilege to be heard by the people who have the power to change state law.  We did a LOT of waiting, but when it was finally my turn, I challenged the senators to watch a video I saw years ago called The Silent Scream.  It's an ultrasound video of an abortion being performed on a 12 week baby.  It is the most horrific video you will ever watch.  I won't go into detail here, but as soon as the suction instrument hits the baby, his mouth opens wide to indicate a scream.  The Silent Scream!  This baby was experiencing the pain that so many argue is not possible.  My heart is breaking at this very moment just thinking about it. 

*You can watch the video here, but let me warn you, it is graphic and NOT to be watched by children.  It will change you for sure (especially if you are post-abortive), so proceed with caution!*

You should have heard some of the testimonies from the people who are against this bill.  If you've ever doubted our human depravity, just sit in on an abortion hearing.  Friends, WE. NEED. JESUS!  One young man said that the "sovereignty of his own body was more important than the pain a baby would feel during an abortion."  WE. NEED. JESUS!  Another young woman said that she was thankful that her mother aborted her sibling, because had her mother not done that, she wouldn't be here.  Though I believe this young woman's life certainly has value, how can she possibly believe that HER life was more valuable than the sibling who was aborted?  WE. NEED. JESUS! 

We also heard wonderful testimonies of redemption and grace, and testimonies about how the abortion industry (and it is an industry) hurt women and families.  We heard experts argue the reality that babies can in fact feel pain during an abortion procedure.  Senator Donna Campbell, who is also an ER physician gave powerful evidence to this fact. 

It was wonderful, and heartbreaking, to be involved in the legislative process.

Once we testified, we left the Capitol to head back to the hotel and to grab lunch.  As we were making our way back to the Capitol for the big #Stand4Life Rally, we were involved in a car accident.  Thankfully, no one was hurt, but it did shake us up a bit.  At that point, we had a lot to do to figure things out since we were out of town, and we missed the rally.  Donna's daughter came to pick us up, and we headed home.

Although we missed the rally, we were grateful to have been there to participate in an important aspect of passing this bill.  We heard the rally was a huge success and we're so thankful for the thousands of people who came out to support life.

 

 

House Bill 2 PASSED last night after 10 hours of debate and amendments.  To God be the Glory!  Tomorrow, Thursday, July 11th, it will go before Texas Senate.  Please pray that eyes would be opened and hearts would be softened.  Pray that Senate will pass SB1!

 

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart..."

Jeremiah 1:5

 

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.  I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.  My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."

Psalm 139:13-16

Training Children in Worship

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After posting the article, Dear Parents with Young Children in Church, to my Facebook page, there was some discussion as to how to begin training your little ones to sit still during a worship service.  There was also some discussion about children's church, and how that may be more age appropriate and beneficial for young ones.

There is not much more I can add to encourage parents to include their children in worship, as the author did a beautiful job explaining the importance of having your children in the worship service, and encouraging moms who are already doing this. 

Read the full article, along with training tips, at His Rib.

A Letter From the Mission Field

Today was a long, hard day. There is much work to be done here among the natives. Each day brings a little progress, but then some days, it feels like we’re getting nowhere.

I’m tired. And I’m trying not to grow weary in doing good. But the long, laborious days remind me that I can do none of this in my own strength. Things are messy here, and messes require cleaning up. And the cleaning up seems never-ending.

Read the rest of the letter over at The Marathon Mom.


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We Know! 40 Years of Roe v. Wade

We Know They Are Killing Children-All of Us Know by John Piper

For forty years this has meant that any perceived stress is a legal ground for eliminating the child. We have killed fifty million babies. And what increases our guilt as a nation is that we know what we are doing. Here’s the evidence that we know we are killing children.

Read full article here...

A Heart for Africa

 

Written by my amazing 17 year old daughter, Celeste (pictured above)

 

Dear Family and Friends,

I am so excited to share with you that God has given me the amazing opportunity to go back to Africa!!! I will once again have the privilege of loving on and caring for the children. In March, I will be traveling to Uganda to show the love of God to orphans. I will travel specifically to Kampala to stay and work with Return Ministries, a home for over 300 children.  The team will then travel outside of Kampala to the surrounding Villages and minister to the impoverished families and children that are located there. On the last full day in Uganda, the team will go to My Father's House in Kampala to work with the children there. My Father’s House is a school that serves Kampala and has about 400 children from the surrounding community that attend there.

 

Why do I want to do this again? Last year, as you know, I went on an incredible, life-changing trip to Ethiopia and Uganda! God showed me many things about ministering to other cultures, and what it looks likes to "care for the orphans" on a very personal level, and I must go back! My heart is to serve the sweet children in Africa who have touched my heart deeply in so many ways.

 

I want to tell them about God and how much He loves them. I want them to know that they are loved, even by people in the far reaches of the world. I also want to tangibly meet basic and physical needs. There's nothing more rewarding, and heartbreaking, than feeding a hungry child. Or providing a refrigerator to a woman caring for 14 orphans who didn't previously have one. Or giving a thirsty child a clean drink of water.  In addition, I look forward to visiting the schools, to play with and love on the children, and of course, snuggle babies!

Here's the challenging part (again! lol). Because the team leaves at the end of March, I must have $2000 raised by the 60 day mark. Well, the 60 day mark is Jan 15th. Yes, less than a week to raise $2000 (I have almost reached $1000 so far). That sounds really unlikely, but I know that all things are possible with God. And you all showed that abundantly the last time! So stepping out in faith, and with my parents blessing, I registered for this trip. I'm excited to also be traveling with my same team leader, Faith Sims, who quickly became both my second mom and friend. I look forward to this trip with more confidence and less nervousness because I will be with her.

Here's how you can help. Will you consider sponsoring me? Once I reach $2000, and my airline tickets are purchased, I will work very hard to raise the additional money through fundraisers. The total cost of the trip is from $3400-$3600. I am prepared to work diligently to raise the money. But because time is very short, I must raise $2000 quickly. Even small donations add up and help.

To Donate:

Go to the Visiting Orphans Donate page.  In the "Fund Category", scroll down and click on my trip, called "Sims team March/April Uganda”. Then enter the amount you wish to donate. Next, you will be asked if you'd like to donate toward a specific team member. Click the bubble that says "Team Member or Ministry Name" and enter my name, Celeste Sabo. And then simply enter your billing info. This would be the quickest way to make my initial goal of $2000 by the 15th.  

I also ask you to pray. This will be my second big trip away, and there will be a lot more to learn. But I am ready. Please pray for the team, for travel safety, and especially for the people we meet, that they would feel loved and needs would be met. Please pray that I would be able to raise the money needed to go.

If you have any questions for me, you can reach me via my moms Contact Tab above.

Thank you so much!

With Love,

Celeste 

Raising Teens Part 2

You can read Part 1 here.

In Part 1, I shared with you the joys of raising our teen girls.  I think it's important to talk about the joys of teens because often our culture says that the teen years will be difficult and should be feared.  You've heard it before, "Just wait until they're teens!"  So encouraging to new parents, right? 

If you are parents to little ones, don't be afraid!  Pray that God will give you the wisdom to shepherd your children into God-fearing teens, and then adults.  If you're parents to teens already, enjoy them.  Talk with them and pray for them continually!   If you have a teen who has rebelled, pray that God would turn his/her heart around, and trust that He is in control and has a purpose for their lives.

No matter how perfect we may perceive a family to be, we all have the same thing in common.  It's called our sin nature.  None of us are immune to it, so we can expect some tough spots along the way. 

You can find the rest of the article over at The Marathon Mom.

(After reading the full article, if you have any questions pertaining to specific areas, please feel free to contact me, or leave a comment.)

Raising Teens Part 1

I don't often write about raising teens.  My primary focus at Sacred Mommyhood is encouraging moms with littles.  However, I do have two teens (one of whom is married now...she's 19), and would love to share a bit about our journey through 'teen hood'. 

You can read the rest of the article over at The Marathon Mom.

A Girl Got on a Plane...

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Two Weeks in Africa.....

Tomorrow, my 16 year old daughter, Celeste, will embark on a journey of a lifetime.  She will travel half way around the world to serve and visit orphans in two incredible countries....Ethiopia and Uganda. 

She is traveling with an organization called Visiting Orphans.  They travel to thirteen different countries to fulfill the biblical mandate given in James 1:27 of "visiting orphans" in their distress. 

On this particular trip, Celeste will have the blessing of visiting several orphanages in both countries.  She can't wait to go and love on these children, knowing full well that she will be the one blessed by them!  She will also visit the Fistula Hospital in Addis.  This is pretty exciting because before we even knew about this trip, our family had watched A Walk to Beautiful, a documentary about women who suffer from the medical condition, Fistula.  This hospital was built specifically to treat the condition.  It's a beautiful story, one I highly recommend watching. 

Sisters (Celeste on left)

Celeste and the team will also go to Amazima, the ministry Katie Davis began at the age of 18.  Amazima feeds over 1,600 orphaned and vulnerable children of the Masese community a lunch meal Monday through Friday, and also operate a school for the local children to attend for free.  This is another exciting aspect of the trip.  Again, before we knew about this trip, a friend had recommended a book to us called Kisses from Katie.  We watched this YouTube video and were amazed by this young woman with so much love and compassion.  It was through our visit to the Amazima website that we learned of Visiting Orphans, which led to finding this trip, which included visiting some of the very places we had already been studying as a family.  God had clearly gone before us, and opened this door for Celeste!

The team will be very busy, serving in a different location nearly every day.  I will try to give regular updates on my Facebook page if you would like to keep up with her travels.

I found this video on YouTube of another team that went to Uganda.  I don't know if they were with Visiting Orphans or another organization, but Celeste will visit several of the places in this video.



If you wouldn't mind, please keep our daughter, the team, and the people they will encounter in your prayers.  For Celeste, this will be her first trip away from home by herself.  She's nervous, but even more excited about all they will do and see! 

If you would like to know more about any of these organizations, please visit their sites.  There, you also have the opportunity to sponsor a child and change a life.

Have you or any of your children gone on a mission trip?  Where?  Please share your experience.

California Trip

Snippets of Our Trip to CA

Celeste, Jonathan, and I took a week's long trip to CA. I wish the whole family could have gone, but we had a good time, anyway. It was so special getting to spend time with my grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, and my brother and his sweet family. It was especially exciting for Celeste since she was able to experience her first airplane ride. Here she is with Jonathan just before boarding the plane.

Since our camera has been out of commission, Celeste was our vacation photographer. She really captured some terrific shots. Below is Half Dome, my favorite mountain in the world. Perhaps it is because it's so unique, or just plain breathtaking, or maybe climbing it when I was fifteen has something to do with it. Whatever the draw, I just love it and never tire of seeing it!

We drove up to Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park (one of my favorite places on earth). We made it there just in time to watch the sun set. Breathtaking. This photo below is the Diving Board (left) and Yosemite Falls in the distance. You may have seen a couple of famous photos of the Diving Board involving people. In the old days, people would do handstands on this outcropping; DO NOT ATTEMPT SUCH FOOLHARDY STUNTS! YOU WILL DIE! As a matter of fact, people have died, whether on accident or on purpose.....it's a 3000 ft plunge to the Valley Floor from Glacier Point. OUCH!

We're the handful of family who made the trip. My Aunt Julia is taking the photo. The back row begins with my sweet sister, Angel, and my wonderful dad. In the front, we have little ol' me, my beautiful Celeste, and my awesome Uncle Andy. If you look real hard, you can see the top of Jonathan's head at the bottom. ;-)

Okay, so I know this is hardly an adequate number of photos to come out of a family reunion vacation, but I still need to go through all of them and label them, etc., etc., etc. I'll try to get to that soon since I have loads of free time with nothing to do. ;-)

Remembering the Solas

Something that really intrigues me is the state of the church universal. Spiritually, it varies anywhere from portraying Jesus cool and fun.....to the pendulum swing of reverting back to ceremonial law, making faith the work of the person and not Christ.

I love studying about the great Reformers and the historical Church.....and remembering the solas is a great way in which to measure the state of the modern Church. In my time of study, I came across this article that I thought was worth sharing.

Remembering the Solas
by Ben Merkle

Christians who are concerned for the well being of the Church will readily agree that the modern Church has strayed and is in need of some sort of reformation (notice that this is a reformation with a small r). When this reformation, however, takes the shape of a Reformed movement (now a capital R), it will be characterized no longer by an ambiguous yearning for the good old days, but a defined debate over doctrinal issues. In the latter case, unanimous agreement becomes more difficult to get. Yet both the Reformed movement of today and its counterpart of the sixteenth century address what is needed to reform our Church. Now, if we claim to be reforming the Church, then we must constantly ask ourselves "What does it mean to be Reformed?"

The early Reformers gave us five points for evaluating our Church. These were the five solas. The first of these being sola scriptura, or Scripture alone. In the midst of an increasingly unchecked Papal authority and a Bible that was unavailable to the lower classes, it is easy to see how the sixteenth century was in need of a call to anchor itself again in the Word of God. Our modern church, however, does not see that we are in the same boat. We have created a culture that sees regular Bible study as a pain and not a blessing. We refuse to put effort into our Bible study, insisting on having our Bible studies livened up to entertain us. Instead of regularly reading our Bibles, we take a quick read of the uninspired, inspirational paragraph of our daily devotion book. Our Bibles are marketed by adding footnotes and short stories that are supposed to make the Bible relevant to today's youth, the working mother, or nicotine patch users. Our eschatologies are shaped more by tabloids and TV, than by the study of Scripture. We are bored of our Bibles and truly need to reform our view of Scripture. What a joy it should be to read the Word of our Lord.

The next sola is solus Christus, Christ alone. In recent years the good news of Christ's death has been significantly tampered with. Although the tampering is often well-meaning, it is a destruction of the gospel all the same. The new gospel is not that Christ died to pay the price for our sins, but that He died on the cross in order to give us more meaningful relationships. Life just isn't fulfilling as is, but with the help of Jesus things just seem a lot rosier. If we are preaching a gospel that doesn't teach Christ's death for our sins, we obviously aren't really preaching the gospel. And, if we aren't preaching the gospel, then how can we even feign surprise at the poor state that our Church is in? We need to reform our gospel message.

Next is sola gratia, grace alone. It is by God's grace alone that we are brought to a saving knowledge of Him. Yet, we are continually apologizing for what our God looks like to non-Christians. We try to dress our Lord up to make Him more appealing in the hopes that we might woo an unsuspecting pagan into the kingdom without him ever noticing where he is going. The Bible continually describes the nonbeliever as a God-hater, an enemy of the Lord's, and under His judgment. Why, then, are we distressed when they don't like the looks of our God? If a non-Christian is not frightened by the God we worship, then the God we worship is not the God of the Bible. It is by God's grace alone that anyone comes to a saving knowledge of Him. We are to preach His gospel as it is, not to give Him a make-over.

The fourth sola is sola fide, faith alone. Again, like sola scriptura, we can see the immense need for this sola in the sixteenth-century Church. A works-oriented salvation had become the norm and needed to be rooted out by the Reformation. Salvation by faith alone flew in the face of many in the sixteenth century. Yet, salvation truly by faith alone, and apart from any work or effort of its recipient, still flies in the face of the majority of Christians today. Faith is now redefined so that it becomes a work of the person, not the work of God. As long as we insist on finding the grounds of our salvation within ourselves, we have not submitted to salvation by faith alone and are in desperate need of Reformation.

The last of the five solas is Soli Deo Gloria, to the glory of God alone. Everything a Christian does should be done completely to God's glory. Yet, we have flipped this completely upside down, especially in our worship. Instead of going to worship to glorify God, we often go to glorify ourselves. We require as much fanfare and excitement as possible in order to keep our attention, making the entire service focused on ourselves. Then, when we get ourselves as worked up as possible, we hope that God might take notice of us and somehow feel vicariously glorified. Glorifying God is giving glory to God, not getting ourselves worked up and slipping Christian phrases in, hoping that God will feel the excitement that we've manufactured for our own benefit.

As we consider the issues that the Church has continually muddled, it is interesting to note that our doctrines have not undergone a random decay. The truths we have muddled are crucial to our faith, and are the same ones that have been muddled many times before. It is no accident that we continue to stumble at these points, but it is because they are so crucial that we continue to stumble there. Because of this, it is important to have an historical perspective to our faith. We should be standing on the shoulders of those who went before us, not running to catch up with them.

Photo Credit

Funny Conversation

A Funny Conversation with the Sonic Lady

So I hit Sonic for my much needed large Diet Coke. I pull up to the window where I'm greeted by a woman who "knows" me well. She knew I had been expecting a baby and always asked "how much longer" every time I pulled up. So, today she kindly asks how much longer I have until baby. I reply, "Oh, I had a boy three weeks ago!" Without hesitation, she then exclaims, "And you're driving ALREADY?"

Ummm......okay......perhaps she thought I said three DAYS. Though I'm sure I've probably driven three days after a baby!

So I say a bit louder, "I had him three WEEKS ago", expecting her to say "OHHHH". But no....she continues to be in utter disbelief that I was out driving a mere three weeks after a baby. Confused, I asked her what the big deal was, and she said she did NOTHING for forty days after having a baby. FORTY DAYS? No driving, no sweeping, no HOLDING THE BABY (SAY WHAT???), no nothing! She then proceeds to tell me that they (whomever "they" is) wrapped up her abdomen and chest tightly for two weeks to help the belly go back down. Interesting! Of course, now I'm dying to know how one nurses if the chest is wrapped up. So I ask! She said she didn't nurse!

So by now lots of questions are running through my mind such as.........if you don't hold the baby, how do you care for the baby and BOND? Part of the joy of a new baby is the time spent holding and cuddling this sweet creation. Not to mention.......who's doing all the work when she's on this forty day rest bit? But I refrained from asking.

The funny thing about this conversation, aside from taking place in the drive-thru, was.......I'm thinking how very strange all of this sounded.....but from her reaction, I'm sure she was thinking *I* was the strange one, especially upon hearing that I have eight children. I mean, as much as I'd love to relax for a time after having a baby, there is just too much to be done for me to sit around for too long. Plus, I usually feel great within a few days of giving birth and am ready to get back to my routine.

It was clear this was probably a cultural practice. She was a very nice lady and it was quite interesting to hear a polar opposite mentality than mine. It was just funny how we each reacted surprised over the differences, but especially over the "driving already?" comment.

To each his own, right? ;-)

I couldn't have said it better myself........thanks Jess!

Questions to Consider

Have you ever wondered...

*what life would have been like during your growing up years if 1/5th of the population hadn't been aborted?

*if one of those aborted people would have been your best friend? A co-worker? A pastor in the church down the road? A plumber in your community? The Mayor? A special-ed teacher?

*if our economy would be stronger now with 20% more people contributing ideas, work, taxes, and energy, had they not been aborted?

*how the average Nazi lived with the knowledge that millions were dying in their midst, and then stopped to realize that we're no different?

*if we might end up like the aborted nations of Russia and almost every European nation, with dwindling populations and the death of our culture and nation around the corner?

What would happen if every Christian...

*committed to love and serve pregnant women and their children, no matter the circumstance?

*gave sacrificially of their time and money to support crisis pregnancy clinics and stand as a silent protester and potential counselor for those women walking into baby killing centers?

*publicly loved and welcomed even "the least of these" (those deemed less desirable because of handicaps, learning difficulties, or family situation)?

Everyone knows it's a baby. Just like the Germans who could smell the smoke near the killing centers in WWII, the murder of our brothers and sisters is unthinkable and yet undeniable.

As I type this, my ten-month old son is grizzling as he falls asleep... and I can't help but weep as I think of those babies who will never exercise their lungs with a good healthy cry. Those who have their skin seared by salt solution, administered by a doctor who swore to protect life. Those who have their limbs ripped from their tender bodies in the one place they ought to be completely safe and protected. Those who could have grown up to be your friends, or mine... those who could have grown up.

As I type this, I think of my friends who have had abortions... and I hurt for them. I don't want to increase their pain, but even more, I want to stop other women from ever feeling the pain of having had an abortion, if it is at all within my power.

As I type this, I want to cry out, "Oh, Christian women, be a light in your community! Find ways to ACT on behalf of the unborn among us!"

And merciful Father, give each of us a burning passion to see your glory reflected in each and every individual created by Your wise and sovereign hand. Give us a desire to love the unborn and their mothers with the love that You have... love that bears all things, is kind, shares the truth, and never fails. Help us to rejoice over life, in every shape and form!

Oh, that we would view each birth and new life with the joy that John Powell describes as he for the first time witnessed a baby being delivered:

It was as if my mind were saying, 'Cannot compute! Cannot compute!" What I was witnessing was too big, too beautiful, too sacred to fit easily into my mind...

God had waited from all eternity for that moment of birth. And now, He would show His little boy the adoring face of the mother that had carried him so lovingly. He would show that little boy the magnificent stars He had strung in the sky. He would introduce him to the music of lullabies and the softness of his mother's arms, the gentleness of his father's hands. The "I" of God had been saying to the "Thou" of that small baby: "With an everlasting love I have loved you. This is why with lovingkindness I created you" (from the prophecy of Jeremiah, 31:3).

Cannot compute. Cannot compute. The miracle of life.

HT: Jennifer

Slow Fade

Slow Fade

Our sermon today was from Genesis 19: 30-38. Although Scripture refers to Lot as a righteous man, we're reminded of how easy it can be to slip into a life of sin and not realize how it took root! As our pastor exhorted, we must guard ourselves against sin. It can creep in slowly and gain a foothold in our lives if we're not careful. While driving home, and discussing the sermon, we were reminded of these lyrics.......thought they were quite fitting!

Be careful little eyes what you see
It's the second glance that ties your hands as darkness pulls the strings
Be careful little feet where you go
For it's the little feet behind you that are sure to follow

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day
It's a slow fade, it's a slow fade

Be careful little ears what you hear
When flattery leads to compromise, the end is always near
Be careful little lips what you say
For empty words and promises lead broken hearts astray

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day

The journey from your mind to your hands
Is shorter than you're thinking
Be careful if you think you stand
You just might be sinking

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day
Daddies never crumble in a day
Families never crumble in a day

Oh be careful little eyes what see
Oh be careful little eyes what you see
For the Father up above is looking down in love
Oh be careful little eyes what you see

Hope you're having a restful Lord's Day!

Walk For Life

Walk For Life

For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.
Psalm 139:13-16

The Agape Pregnancy Help Center will be hosting our annual Walk For Life Fundraiser this Saturday in San Antonio. Please join us in our efforts to save the lives of precious babies by raising the necessary funds to keep our centers open. There are several ways in which to offer support. You can walk, run or crawl along with us, you can sponsor me as I walk for life, or you can simply donate to the Agape Pregnancy Center online. If you'd like to walk or donate, visit www.agapeprolife.org to get a sponsor form or to donate. If you'd so graciously like to sponsor me, email me at gsabo1@sbcglobal.net with your donation amount, your name, address and phone number.

Whether we want to think about it or not, the fact is, millions of babies are being killed each year due to abortion and we can't sit idly by and ignore it. Here are some of the ugly statistics:

UNITED STATES

Number of abortions per year: 1.37 Million (1996)Number of abortions per day: Approximately 3,700

Who's having abortions (age)? 52% of women obtaining abortions in the U.S. are younger than 25: Women aged 20-24 obtain 32% of all abortions; Teenagers obtain 20% and girls under 15 account for 1.2%.

Who's having abortions (race)? While white women obtain 60% of all abortions, their abortion rate is well below that of minority women. Black women are more than 3 times as likely as white women to have an abortion, and Hispanic women are roughly 2 times as likely.

Who's having abortions (marital status)? 64.4% of all abortions are performed on never-married women; Married women account for 18.4% of all abortions and divorced women obtain 9.4%.

Who's having abortions (religion)? Women identifying themselves as Protestants obtain 37.4% of all abortions in the U.S.; Catholic women account for 31.3%, Jewish women account for 1.3%, and women with no religious affiliation obtain 23.7% of all abortions. 18% of all abortions are performed on women who identify themselves as "Born-again/Evangelical".

Who's having abortions (income)? Women with family incomes less than $15,000 obtain 28.7% of all abortions; Women with family incomes between $15,000 and $29,999 obtain 19.5%; Women with family incomes between $30,000 and $59,999 obtain 38.0%; Women with family incomes over $60,000 obtain 13.8%.

Why women have abortions: 1% of all abortions occur because of rape or incest; 6% of abortions occur because of potential health problems regarding either the mother or child, and 93% of all abortions occur for social reasons (i.e. the child is unwanted or inconvenient).

At what gestational ages are abortions performed: 52% of all abortions occur before the 9th week of pregnancy, 25% happen between the 9th & 10th week, 12% happen between the 11th and 12th week, 6% happen between the 13th & 15th week, 4% happen between the 16th & 20th week, and 1% of all abortions (16,450/yr.) happen after the 20th week of pregnancy.

Likelihood of abortion: An estimated 43% of all women will have at least 1 abortion by the time they are 45 years old. 47% of all abortions are performed on women who have had at least one previous abortion.

Abortion coverage: 48% of all abortion facilities provide services after the 12th week of pregnancy. 9 in 10 managed care plans routinely cover abortion or provide limited coverage.

About 14% of all abortions in the United States are paid for with public funds, virtually all of which are state funds. 16 states (CA, CT, HI, ED, IL, MA , MD, MD, MN, MT, NJ, NM, NY, OR, VT, WA and WV) pay for abortions for some poor women.
Statistical resource: http://www.abortionno.org/Resources/fastfacts.html

Other resources: http://www.all.org/imnew.php , http://www.lovelife139.blogspot.com/ , http://www.nrlc.org/ .

A Change of Heart

Our Journey to Many Children


I am no stranger to large families. My mother is the sixth of fourteen children, my dad is the oldest of five, and I am the second of four. Even the generations before, there were many children in our family line. I grew up surrounded by lots of family and LOVED the chaos of family gatherings and reunions. My husband, however, is an only child, and so is his mother. You'd think that I was already signed up to have many children and that my husband would lean towards one or two. Well, that wasn't the case....


When Greg and I were engaged, I don't think we necessarily talked about a specific number of children, but I knew my husband was in the "I want 20 camp"......I just laughed, as in "yeah right"! Three months after we were married, we found out that we were expecting our first child. We were thrilled. Until.....I began death-like morning sickness! I was so sick for seven months. Continuous vomitting, dehydration, etc. After this, I KNEW I would not be in a hurry to do it again. Our daughter was born and we were very happy first-time parents. Yet, the memories of how sick I was haunted me. About two years later, I began feeling suspiciously sick and took a test. It was positive. Although I welcomed the "idea" of another baby, I was terrified of going through such agony again. And how would I do it now with a toddler? And to make matters worse, we were moving back to the states from England in just a few months. How am I going to handle a major move, plane rides, and a toddler?


The morning sickness intensified and I just took it one day at a time. Our little two year old spent most of her days watching children's videos and I cringed each time she said she was hungry. It was difficult to get up and prepare food. Greg was working 24 hour shifts, so when he was at work, he was gone ALL DAY!


It came time to move. I left England a month before Greg so that I could spend more time with my family before heading to our next base. I was four months pregnant, still sick, and was now going to travel back to the states with our daughter, by myself. UGH! Sixteen hours and three plane changes later, I made it home. Barely! That night, my dad offered to go get me something to eat and food actually sounded good. The next morning, I woke up and felt great! God was good and faithful and allowed morning sickness to last only four months instead of seven! Our second daughter was born and we were the honored parents of two little girls. I was content.


I think I immediately felt like two was enough for us, although I knew my husband wanted more. He never pressured or asked, but I knew his heart welcomed more children. As time went on and the girls got bigger, I began to enjoy the independence and the freedoms of having children out of baby stage. I also began planning my future which included finishing school and possibly a career in the future. I had all kinds of ambitions, goals and aspirations. And now that the girls were getting older, I could finally work toward these goals. By this time, we were moving again. Greg was getting out of the Air Force and we were moving back home. As soon as we were settled, I enrolled in school. Oddly enough, it was during this period of life that I began to question all of my reasons for only wanting two children. This was strange to me! I loved school, I loved the girls being older and I was set on being able to afford to send these girls to college. How would we afford more children? And, do I want to go through morning sickness again?

Nonetheless, my heart was being pulled in another direction. I questioned why I only wanted to have two children when I have a wonderful husband who wants more? Was God not faithful in getting me through morning sickness? Will He not provide for more children? Is pursuing a career what I really want to do? And is it God's plan for all of our children to even attend college? All these questions ate at my core until finally it was clear! God had turned my heart to welcome more children. Greg was elated!


We were living in CA at the time and getting ready to move back to Texas. We agreed that as soon as we got back to Texas we would try for another baby. The first thing we did when we arrived was shop for a hospital. Once we picked our place of birth (which didn't end up being the one we chose), and upon a friend's recommendation of a fertility book, we began charting and trying. ;-) To our amazement, two months later we were pregnant with our third child.

Yep, sick again. I survived and we welcomed our third child, a son, SIX years later! Seven months later, to our SHOCK, we were pregnant again! Fortunately, my good friend was pregnant too, so it made it a little less scary. Sick again, still nursing baby #3, survived again and welcomed our fourth child, another girl.


Okay, at this point, I'm not sure what our "plan" is now. We still hadn't come to the point of welcoming "any and all" children, but we weren't saying we were done either. So what we did was continue to chart. I would chart until I felt "ready" to be pregnant again. By now, I knew that God would get me through morning sickness, we knew He would continue to provide, and we were thankful for our four children.

Our fourth child was about 13 months old when we "put the charts away". Soon after, we were pregnant again. Yep, sick again and now living in a tiny rental home. Five kids, three very small bedrooms, no problem. Our fifth, another girl, was born and we were thrilled!


God continued to do a work in both of us concerning our view of children and what scripture says about children. Over and over, scripture calls children a blessing, a heritage! Although I think most people would have agreed that our quiver was certainly full and probably overflowing, we weren't content with that. Don't get me wrong, we were content with our five children, just not content with deciding five was "it".

During this time, I was at a HOPE meeting (our home school group), when a dear friend , the wonderful woman who leads our studies, shared with us her journey to having nine children. As a matter of fact, it looked (the age gap) and sounded a lot like ours. She shared of how Hannah, the mother of Samuel, prayed fervently for a child. She went on to say that she realized there were ONLY examples of women in the Bible praying FOR children! There is not one example that God gives us of a woman (or man) praying NOT to have children. Yet, we see in the Bible that there were many varied sizes of families! And being that we know modern birth control did not exist (although we know the story of Onan "spilling his seed", and God was not pleased), we can assume that God was in control of family sizes! This, in conjunction with God's Word referring to children as blessings, arrows and a heritage, was HUGE for me. God used my sweet friend's own story to continue writing ours! Thankfully, my husband shared the same conviction and we went on to have two more children. No charting, no worrying, just freedom. You see, for us it really is freedom. Since we welcome any child God is willing to entrust us with, there are no worries about getting pregnant. We just enjoy our love for one another and welcome "the fruits of our passion", as my husband so sweetly puts it! ;-)


We don't know what the future holds, but we do know we built our six bedroom home with the hopes of filling every bedroom with children. Yeah, I know, crazy huh? Definitely God! I thank Him almost daily for changing my heart, for my husband's loving patience, for friends who share a similar conviction, and for seven beautiful blessings.

If you know me, you know that I am NO supermom. I struggle daily just like every other mom does. I have days when I want to string these little blessings up by their toes or run away to a tropical island. But this I know......God is faithful, God has provided for our every need and then some, God has helped me not to fear morning sickness....too much, and God has freed me from the worldview ideals I held all those years ago. We couldn't be happier. There's nothing I'd rather be doing than raising and growing our heritage.


So, to end this story, I would like to happily announce the blessing of our eighth child......to arrive in June!

 Also, congratulations to Tiffany, Shannon, Janelle, Blair, and Stephanie G. who are also expecting in June! And to Stephanie C. who is due in May! Soli Deo Gloria!

UPDATE:  On April 20, 2015, we welcomed our 11th child....another precious girl.  We now have 8 girls and 3 boys.  I am 42 years old, so we'll see what God has in store for the future.  :)