Anti-Procrastination Day!

Today on Biblical Womanhood, it’s Anti-Procrastination Day! I needed this today! My camera is on the blink, so I don’t have pictures, but here’s what I did.

*Finally started sewing a new diaper bag. I’ve had the fabric for months and I really need a new diaper bag! I’ve got it all done but the handles, which are cut out, I just have to attach them. I even did a pocket on the inside, which was an accomplishment, because I’ve had trouble with pockets for some reason.

*Replaced a light bulb in the closet. This may sound small, but because I have a toddler it’s a pain to do, especially since I have to stand on a chair to do it. We’ve been putting it off for over a week. Unfortunately, there is some kind of wiring problem, so we still don’t have light in the closet. Luckily for us, though, my dad is an electrician, so this can be fixed soon.

*Fixed a stopped up drain in the shower. Well, actually Curly Haired Husband did this, but it still got done. It’s been slow running for a while, so this was really needed!

*Cleaned up the yard and trimmed some shrubs. Also treated the ant beds in the yard.

This might not sound like a lot, but it’s all stuff we’ve been putting off, so I’m glad to get it done!

Modesty Monday–a review and some sites

Welcome to the second week of Modesty Monday! Today, I’ll review “Girls Gone Mild” by Wendy Shalit, and also link to some modest clothing sites. Got any to add? Put it in the comments!

I enjoyed “Girls Gone Mild” but, I’ll warn you, it was pretty graphic. I read a lot and I’m not usually taken aback by what I read, but some of this was very graphic. I would not recommend it for teenagers to read, but I think it might be worth the shock value for parents to read, especially those that don’t think there’s a problem with modesty today.

That may have been Shalit’s intention with this book, as it was more intense than her earlier book “A Return to Modesty.” It was interesting to read how the public responded to her first book, both good and bad. To me, this book was an easier read than her first book. It was hard to put it down.

Here is a list of some clothing sites that carry modest, but not frumpy clothes. I didn’t have time to make these links look pretty. Sorry.

http://www.christa-taylor.com/

www.chadwicks.com

http://www.mikarose.com/

http://www.greatlengthsshorts.com/

http://www.sakurarose.com/index.html

http://www.sierrabrooke.com/

http://www.devorafashions.com/index.html

Dresses? Not at church!

I am tired of being the only woman at church on Sunday in a dress. Lately, it seems every other female at church is wearing pants. Now I’m not dresses only, but I do think a dress or skirt is more feminine. It’s more ladylike. So why am I the only one wearing one?

I’m not saying it’s sinful to wear pants to church, but it’s not dressy. It’s not as feminine. God designed us to be male and female. What better place to show those differences? I wonder if it’s not pants so much that are the issue, but the lack of “dressing up” at church now. I realize that there are people who are wearing the best they can. If jeans and a t-shirt are the best you can, wear it and don’t be ashamed. But those are not the people I’m talking to. Why are we treating church as some other thing we do, like going to the mall or the grocery store? Shouldn’t we dress up a little to show some respect? It’s not like going to the mall or the grocery store. It’s a place of worship. I think it’s great to be comfortable at church, but we should never forget we’re in the house of God. Do we want God to see us dressed in ratty shorts and a t-shirt in His house, when we know we could do better? Yes, God looks at the inside, but man looks at the outside. Man sees us dressed inappropriately and thinks Christianity is no different that any other religion.

I know some will say casual dress at church makes seekers feel more welcome and not worry about standing out. I understand that. But if you’re a Christian, you are called to be different from the world, not to make the world feel better about themselves. I don’t think we should make anyone feel bad about not being dressed properly. But if we’re Christians, we ourselves do need to dress properly. I’m tired of seeing women who have nice, expensive clothes in their closets wearing ratty jeans and a t-shirt at church. They’d dress up to go to a wedding. Why not the house of the Lord?

Maybe we’re just too casual in everything. Maybe it’s not just church. Look at the average person you see anywhere–even the grocery store or mall. Very few people are dressed appropriately. I have a kid. I know it’s hard to get out the door looking decent at times. Sometimes it’s impossible. But this is a trend, not something you see every now and then. I think it goes back to the lack of modesty in general. While shorts may be appropriate at the gym, they’re not a good way to set an example of modesty at church.

At a church we attended a few years ago, there was a huge controversy over swimsuits in the service. Yes, swimsuits. The youth group was on their way to a water park that afternoon and many of the kids were wearing swimsuits (with shorts over them) in the morning service. I’m glad the youth were there. I’m glad they were in the service. But they shouldn’t have been wearing swimsuits. (And I’m not sure a mixed group of youth at a water park is such a good idea, either–call me crazy, but I’ve been a youth, too. Parents would be shocked if they knew what was going on on most youth trips.)

This can be a controversial issue. But I think we need to take a closer look at the message we’re actually sending by dressing down at church. It may not be the message we’re intending to send.

Captain Feathersword

Curly Haired Baby is generally pretty fearless. Nothing scares her. She loves the vacuum. She gets excited when I use the hair dryer. Things that terrify other kids make her laugh. Then she saw Captain Feathersword from “The Wiggles.”

She’s terrified of Captain Feathersword! It’s weird. (Okay, so he scares me a little, too, but not for the same reason.) She goes hysterical whenever he comes on. We just bought her a “Wiggles” dvd, but I think we’re going to have to sell it or something. I guess I could just skip every song with Captain Feathersword in it.

I don’t understand how she can love toys that scare other kids, but she’s afraid of something from “The Wiggles.”

Quiet time with kids

One thing I’ve struggled with since having Curly Haired Baby is quiet time. Before I could find a few minutes in the morning to read and study the Bible, or at night if I missed it in the morning. Now that’s a lot more challenging!

Here is a link to a guest post on Biblicalwomanhood about this very subject. It’s excellent.

And here is Stacy McDonald’s take on it. I think she has it right!

Personally, what I do for quiet time can vary a lot. Curly Haired Husband often works a swing shift, so the days he is up and eating breakfast when we are, he and I usually have our study time together during breakfast. This is my favorite because we can read and discuss it together. Curly Haired Baby either eats or sits with us, too. (Usually…) On other days, I’ll try to read during my breakfast. Often I’ll put in a Praise Baby dvd for Curly Haired Baby while I’m studying. That way, she’s at least hearing Christian music. She’ll usually recognize the songs when she hears them at church later. If none of this works, I’ll try to read at night. I really prefer to start my day off reading the Bible, but when I read at night, it’s a nice ending to the day, too.

Corner Gas

Does anyone else love “Corner Gas”? This show is hilarious! And it’s surprisingly “clean.” I don’t watch a lot of TV, but this show is worth watching. It does have some language, but it’s much better than most sitcoms.

Financial Shape in 2008 Check-in

 

 

 

I thought I’d check in for Financial Shape in 2008. This is sponsored by Money Saving Mom.

We had a goal to save money for a new-to-us vehicle. We want to pay in cash, if possible. We did get some savings put away and we also didn’t have to use any savings. None of it was earmarked for a car, but we did get a little put away.

Another goal was to get some health insurance. We got this accomplished. Yay! It does take quite a chunk out of Curly Haired Husband’s check, but at least we’re not without health insurance anymore.

We also wanted to start an IRA for Curly Haired Husband. We didn’t get this done yet.

And we wanted to work on some upgrades and repairs to the house. We were very blessed to be able to find closeout sales and floor models at very cheap prices! We now have a working dishwasher and a rocker-recliner. Before we had no seating other than our couch, so this was something we really wanted. We also haven’t had a working dishwasher in a year, so I’m very thankful for that!

All in all, I’d say it was a good month! Next month, I hope to get some more savings put away for a car or emergencies.  

WFMW–Eating more fruit

I’m always trying to incorporate more fruits and veggies into our diet, but honestly, I don’t like a lot of different fruits. So I found a painless way to do it–freeze them. Grapes and berries taste great frozen. It’s like a little treat. I don’t particularly like blueberries, for example, but they’re great frozen. Try it–It works for me!

Where’s Miss Stevens?

Yesterday at church, when I dropped my daughter off in the nursery, her usual teachers weren’t there. There was a sub. She seemed nice and competent (and was) and Curly Haired Baby ran off to play. I went on my class.

A few minutes later, I heard her distinct screams. I waited it out, but she got louder. I was so far down the hall from the nursery that I knew she was loud for me to hear her. I couldn’t stand it and  went to check on her. She and another little girl were upset, they weren’t sure why. So I stayed and figured I might as well help out while I was there. I work in the nursery once a month during the service, so some of the kids are comfortable with me. One little girl in particular, who’s older than Curly Haired Baby and can actually talk so you can understand her, kept asking me tearfully, “Where Miss Stevens? Where Miss Stevens?” Miss Stevens is the usual teacher.

I started thinking about it and I wondered if that’s why Curly Haired Baby and her friend got upset. They wanted their usual teacher. Yes, the sub was great, but she wasn’t Miss Stevens. That lead to me thinking about daycares. At most daycares, the workers have a high turnover. (You would too, if you’re paid the way most of them are.) This has got to be confusing and distressing to the kids. If kids get upset about a new teacher they only see once a week, the constant turnover at daily daycare has to be scary. Only most of them are too young to be able to verbalize it.

This is the part that frustrates me about being a SAHM. I’m supposed to turn my precious little one over to a revolving door of strangers who are considered more “expert” than me to care for my own child. Yes, there are good daycares. I’m not totally against other people caring for your child (I wouldn’t utilize the church nursery if I was), but all day, every day is a bit much. I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating. Why are we pretending? Why are we trying to convince ourselves that daycare is good for our kids? Yes, at times it may indeed be necessary, but that’s not the ideal. Why can’t we just admit that?

I realize we don’t live in a world where everyone can be a SAHM. But I do believe that a lot of working moms here in America can cut back at work, take a job with fewer hours, or even quit entirely. Not every mom. But most. At least consider it while your kids are preschool age. And for the record, we’re not rolling in dough ourselves. We have a hard time living on one salary, especially when Curly Haired Husband lost his job last year and was out of work for 7 months. But it’s important enough to us to have me at home that we’ve cut out things most families today take for granted. (That’s why it took me a year to get a working dishwasher.) Cars and toys and clothes are temporary. Kids are not.

Did I make you mad? Check out this site.

Modesty Monday

I’ve decided to make Mondays Modesty Day here on my blog. (If there’s already a Modesty Monday somewhere, sorry, I’m not stealing your idea, I just don’t have time to Google.) So today I thought I’d share some general sites on modesty. (And no, technically it’s not Monday yet. Deal with it.)

This is Wendy Shalit’s site for “Girls Gone Mild”, which I hope to be reviewing soon. It’s an excellent look at the “modesty movement” in our culture. Shalit also wrote “A Return to Modesty”, also a great read. This site is geared more towards older (high school) girls and college-age women.

Here, a post on whether modesty today is actually do-able. The blogger also has an interesting list of dress requirements from Bob Jones University. I’ve heard many times how strict Bob Jones is, but, like the blogger, I actually thought these were pretty reasonable.

That will have to do it for now. Hopefully, I’ll have more time next week to put together more resources!  The first words of each sentence is the link. For some reason, it doesn’t look clickable, but it is!