O be careful little mouth what you say.....

"When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise." Prov. 10:19

"He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin." Prov. 13:3

"Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing." Prov. 12:18

"A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." Prov. 15:1

"Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones." Prov. 16:24

"Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins." James 4:17


As you can tell, my blog entry has everything to do with words. Over the past couple of weeks, God has really been talking to me about my words, how they affect others, and how they effect my walk with Him. Our words are such a powerful thing. The phrase "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me," is a statement that I totally disagree with. It completely undermines the power of words. There are so many verses in Scripture about the impact that words have on people. God knows that it's something we struggle with and it's something that is so important to Him. As believers, I believe it is our duty to hold a tight rein on our tongues because we are living out the wonderful things God is doing and has done in our lives. We are an example of Christ. People are constantly watching us and our words are a testimony of our faith. The life of Jesus has really spoken to me as I have read and studied about the impact His words had on others. Jesus was a perfect man. He loved the unlovable, He healed the sick, He spent His life telling others about the love of His father. He never did anything wrong, yet people spit on Him. They made fun of Him. They said very unkind things to Him, even while He was dying. Yet, he didn't say anything unkind back. He took it a step further. He asked God, out loud, to forgive the people that were sinning (Luke 23:34). That is true love and true compassion. That kicks me in the pants so much. So often, I feel like I have to stand up for myself and plead my case when I am accused wrongly of something. I tend to make excuses when I am confronted about an offense I have made. When someone doesn't talk to me the way I think they should, I don't react the way Jesus did.
My prayer is that as believers, we focus on our words. Our words tell a lot about what is in our hearts and minds. They can really hurt or help. Unity among believers can be strengthened or broken down. It's amazing how powerful our tongues are. Please ask your Father, who knows that we stuggle with this issue, to open your eyes to your words; to make you more aware to the things you say and how you respond to others. It's easy to let your guard down. Let God's strength fill you in those times. Depend on Him.

It's Berry nice

Here is our roof. It turned out so nice. I had my eye on this color (Berry) ever since we saw samples and I am so glad we picked it. We are planning on doing a green siding with white trim. I think it's going to look great! We are so pleased with how it is going. What do you think of the color?

Natural dyes

It's almost Easter time and for some of you, dyeing eggs has been a family tradition. Here are some different foods you can put in water that add color to your "eggsperience".

Red: red onion skins, pomegranate juice, beets

Green: spinach

Blue: red cabbage

Yellow: yellow mustard, turmeric

Purple: grape juice, blueberries

Pink: cranberry juice, raspberries

Beige: strong brewed coffee

Just add food items to a sauce pan, individually. Add enough water to cover and bring the water to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes to an hour. Strain liquid into another bowl. Add 2-3 tsp white vinegar to every cup of stained liquid.

**Another idea is to wrap rubberbands around the egg in different directions and dye them that way. It makes a fun tie-dye effect.

Do you have other fun ideas you do with eggs?

house pics

It has been a while since I posted some pics of the addition so here are some more. Some more framing has been done, we wrapped the house (nice present!), had some electrical work done, and put in most of the windows. It's really coming together nicely and we are so pleased with it all. We'll be knocking out the existing wall on the inside pretty soon. That will be fun! I will def. post pictures of that.

Wrapped Addition

First window installed

Inside new wall



Rafters

Outside wall

Cute little window installed

Drum Roll......

These are the last few ideas I want to share to simplify your life. As you can see, a lot of it is creative and pretty simplistic. Once you get your creative juices going, it's really fun and beneficial.

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1)Reuse everything you can, from jars and containers to nails to clothing. You will need to buy much less new stuff.

2)Borrow or rent large items that you don’t use often, such as tools, garden equipment and party utensils. You can even rent a car for trips.

3)Don’t fall for the new advertising gimmick using the language of simplicity to sell all kinds of things. Simplicity isn’t about having the right stuff. It isn’t a style. And don’t fall for the idea that you need a lot of special containers, boxes, and so on to organize your stuff and thereby achieve simplicity.

If you and/or your family practice "simple things" in your family, I would love to hear!

Less Waste

Start a compost pile for yard waste and food waste from the kitchen. This may seem less simple than throwing everything into the garbage, but it will help you to waste less food as you become more aware of where it is going, while reducing garbage, which could save money. The side benefit is, of course, a rich soil additive that will make your garden and all your trees and shrubs grow healthier.

Buy products with the least packaging possible. You will save money as well as resources and reduce your garbage.

A few examples of cutting down waste: 1) when purchasing produce, don't use the plastic bags for them. Just place them in your shopping cart/basket 2) use cloth bags instead of plastic at the grocery store 3) use mason jars to store food and leftovers in instead of plastic storage 4) Wash and reuse ziploc bags.

Be creative with it. It can be fun. If you have other ideas, I would love to hear!

Cheaper vacations

Instead of traveling to faraway places for vacation, look closer to home. Explore the place you live. You will save money on travel as well as accommodations and food, which always cost more at popular vacation spots.