Rummage sale...

This last weekend we had the biggest rummage sale we've ever had at our house. We had two other families put their unwanted things up for sale with us, and we were all amazed as to how many people were out rummage sale-ing on Friday. It was busy ALL day. By Saturday evening there wasn't much left to go through and figure out what we wanted to do - craigslist, ebay, used bookstore, keep, donate. Each pile was relatively small, which was a great feeling, because we had had a LOT to sell! I was even more excited about what our garage looks like now after all of our unwanted stuff is gone! We even have room inside our garage for our grill, which used to sit on our front stoop - now I can put a chair there and maybe some plants to enjoy!

Today I am off to getting caught up on household chores and getting a schedule plan done for the kids' school. We have been taking a break now since the first week of August, and that's the longest the kids have had time off in several years since we started doing year-round homeschool. They've enjoyed the time off while we helped our friends move and get resettled and finished the rummage sale, but I think we're all just about ready for some normalcy around here. I can't believe our summer is just about gone, however! One more camping trip and then it's time to shut down the camper for the winter...oh to start dreaming already of next year's trips!

Everything

I wanted to share this video today. I have seen it several times and every time it makes me cry. I hope you enjoy it. It's by Lifehouse, called Everything.

I haven't disappeared!

Yep, I'm still here! Just been very busy and not home for more than a day here or there over the last week and a half. I'll explain more on that later.

It's been a crazy two weeks (make that summer!), and it's not over yet. I am taking part of the day today to catch up on life, and then I dig headfirst into prepping for a rummage sale I'm having with friends in a week and a half. I'm looking forward to seeing extra stuff gone from our house and a little more breathing room. Things feel so cluttered right now, and I would love to see more room and less things! Then it's school time again. The kids got a few extra weeks off due to our helping friends with an unexpected move they had to make (hence our being gone over the last couple of weeks), so now we'll have to do some catch-up to make up for that time. They have learned a lot of life lessons during this time off, however, so I know that time wasn't without learning experiences. I am just so thankful that the Lord saw to it that I would have the strength and energy to help our friends.

I surprisingly was still able to get a bit of shopping done in the last week, and had a great trip to Walgreens. Our savings for the month of August is almost as much as our out-of-pocket, so I think I can say I have officially cut our grocery/household bill in half. It has taken almost 3 months to do it, but that really isn't very long at all! I have set a new goal for myself to keep my spending per week under $100. I did it this last week, so I'm hoping the trend can continue. It will be fun to try!

Walgreen's trip

I did pretty well at Walgreen's tonight with Jeff's help. I had him purchase most of the items that had register rewards first, and then I purchased the other non RR stuff afterwards and used the register rewards. Here's what I got - $117.28 worth of items for $40.13! I didn't realize the rice krispie treats also had a register reward on them until Jeff had paid for his purchases already, so I also have another $5 reward to use on my next purchase. That would have made it $35.13 OOP. I think that was pretty good!

The mundane things really aren't mundane.

As I sat at my desk this evening feeling overwhelmed by everything that went on over the last few days, my mind was spinning as I felt I accomplished nothing today. Then a fellow blogger reminded me of a promise that I made to myself not long ago to bring the glorious into the mundane. How easy it is to forget.

I did a lot today. I did a lot yesterday after we got home from camping and my uncle's funeral (who passed away young of cancer). I did a lot the days before we went camping over the weekend...but it was all mundane stuff. Nothing out of the ordinary, just things I do to prepare for and after every camping trip, and every day that we're home during the week. Homeschool. Planning shopping lists. Making meals. Planning for the next week. Making menus. Laundry. Mowing the lawn. You know, just the normal, every day stuff. After I gave myself a bit of time to ponder the post from that blog page, I have begun to realize the importance once again of not forgetting God in these things. He is with me always, and yet I keep forgetting to acknowledge Him throughout my day, and be thankful I have these mundane things to do.

I also don't want to take the great things for granted, either. The Lord laid it upon my heart heavily yesterday as I talked with my aunt after the funeral. I mentioned to her we came directly from camping to the funeral, and she started crying, and said that's one thing she'll never get to do again. I asked her if her kids would take her camping, and she replied, "it just wouldn't be the same". How precious her marriage was to her, and her husband. I pray that I will never take my husband for granted, nor my children. And that's one of the main earthly reasons to always bring the glorious into the mundane, because in the mundane we serve our families and our Lord more than we could ever know.

WHEN PEOPLE ARE BIG and God is small...

I just started reading this book again for the second time. I had forgotten how powerful it is. I highly recommend it for anyone who has a relationship with Jesus Christ but finds themselves struggling with the ways of the world. Here are some reviews from the back of the book:

"Need people less. Love people more. That's the author's challenge...He's talking about a tendency to hold other people in awe, to be controlled and mastered by them, to depend on them for what God alone can give...[Welch] proposes an antidote: the fear of God...the believer's response to God's power, majesty and not least His mercy." -Dallas Morning News

"...refreshingly biblical...brimming with helpful, readable, practical insight." -John F. MacArthur Jr.

"Readable and refreshing...goes to the heart of an issue immobilizing the church. Exposes and repudiates the trivia of therapeutic theology with wisdom and compassion." -Susan Hunt

If you're looking for a good read and great insight on how to make God big in your life, I recommend this book.

Camping Menu

I am setting up our menu plan for our next camping trip, and thought I'd share!

FRIDAY (set up day)
Dinner
sloppy joes (I typically make it ahead of time and just have to warm it up after we're done setting up camp)
pistachio salad (pistachio pudding, marshmallows, cool whip, and canned mandarin oranges)
chips

later in the evening each night we have s'mores or tonka toast (pie filling inside pieces of bread using a iron toaster over the fire)

SATURDAY
Breakfast
tonka toast breakfast (scrambled eggs, sausage, cheese inside bread cooked over the fire in the iron toaster)
fruit
juice

Lunch
hot dogs/brats
baked beans
chips
milk

Dinner
spaghetti
dinner rolls
veggie
milk

SUNDAY
Breakfast
morning skillet (eggs, diced potatoes, sausage, cheese)
fruit
juice

Lunch
chili (made ahead of time)
corn chips
saltines
garden salad
milk

Dinner
steak
roasted potatoes
veggie
jello
milk

MONDAY (packing up day - light, quick meals)
Breakfast
cereal
banana bread
fruit
juice

lunch
sandwiches
fruit/veggies
chips
milk

I also usually make up some cookies or a pan of bars to enjoy throughout our camping trip as well, and keep a stocked 'snack bin' on hand with granola bars and other fun treats.

Some of our other fun meals we have when camping are hobo dinners (mini meatloaves placed inside wrapped aluminum foil along with cut up potatoes, carrots, sweet potatoes, or squash), and bagged omelettes (scrambled eggs, ham, and cheese 'scrambled' together in a ziploc bag and boiled in water until they are done - spray the bag with pam first, and they slide right out!).

What kinds of fun foods do you have when you're camping?