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Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done. 1Chronicles 16:8

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.Matthew 6:33

I told you earlier in the year about my “Carolina Girls” beach trip. Well what I didn’t tell you is how I received what I needed to take the trip.

For years now this group of women, I have known ten years +, has been saying we needed to take a girls trip. Finally, one said this year we are doing it. She planned it, and invited the guests. In the planning she asked us if we knew of any places to stay, so I called one of my husband’s family members to see if we could rent their beach house. The first miracle is that the week they had available worked out for all 5 of our schedules! The rental for the house was well phenomenal, it was a tenth of what any other place we could have rented would have been.

So we set the date and made the plan. I trusted by the time it rolled around, surely I would have a few hundred dollars to go. Our only intention was to lie on the beach, so I didn’t need much. I had made plans to be able to save money to go, but in the course of the year both of my grandmothers died, and we had unexpected expenses,etc. which cut into my saving money.

The week before the beach trip, I had no idea how I was going to go. I told my sister I would just back out but it was my husband’s family’s house, plus they were counting on me to go. So my sister said “Angel when we started planning this trip you told me God would provide, now you are just going to have to believe it”. I knew she was right. There are times to be frugal, and there are times when we need to take a break. In this case we had done everything we could to do both.

The Friday rolled around for the other 3 ladies going on the trip, with my sister and I, to arrive in Atlanta. I was praying for Jesus to show me a way to make this work. Friday morning, before we were to leave on Sunday, I received an unexpected check. Three months earlier I had done an interview for a talk show. The week prior they had decided to begin giving their guests a “Thank You” gift, and also decided to make it retro-active to their previous guests that season. Between that and a check I had earned, I had plenty to go on my trip.

That trip was God - ordained. I have not even said this to my girlfriends, but so many things came out of that trip. I was refreshed, and even though embarrassed by all the tears, it changed the course of my decisions these past few months. Each woman that came on that trip had monumental things in their lives they needed God to give breakthrough in their lives for, and each woman had a measure of faith to minister to one another.

God is faithful. You can see that He has not only provided for the big things, but for the small things. Again, this was something God provided for me debt free!

The small desires of my heart. Think about every time the smallest (and the biggest) things in your life has just seemed to “work themselves out”. That is God at work in your life. What has he done for you this year?

This week as I was struggling with my toddler, and having some serious behavior issues I was reminded of a very important tip that I have forgotten: Spending time with your child can hep alleviate behavior issues.

So many times we get busy doing, and going that our children are just another thing to be managed and shuffled around. But when they begin to get to shuffled, they will let you know when they are tired of it, usually in the form of bad behavior. My two year old Anna has been acting out in such a way I was at a loss. She looks at me and says, “I not be a sweet girl today”. She just lets me know up front that she intends to behave badly!

Then about two days ago I was telling her she would be going to school on Friday (Mommy’s Morning Out), and she burst into tears. “I not want to go to school mommy!” This is very unusual because she loves going to Mommy’s Morning Out. So I realized my biggest problem with her was time. I had spent no time with her that wasn’t “to the grocery store, feed her lunch, give her a bath, put her to bed” time, and she was retaliating.

I proceeded to tell her that we were not going to school that day. We were going to hang out and go to reading time. “Would you like that?” She instantly changed her attitude. We went to reading time, just the two of us, and I even took her in the toy store and let her play a bit. (She loved it, and I got some great Christmas ideas) The difference, however, was in the fact that I was not on the phone or distracted with someone. She had my full attention the entire morning.

The rest of the day was beautiful. Even when my older daughter came home they played well together with no fighting. Yesterday was also a great day. She asked me first thing if we were going to “Hang Out”!

So if all the time-outs and spankings and every form of discipline is not working, you may want to evaluate the time being spent with your child. They are very sensitive to that and don’t always have the communication skills to say “Hey mom I need you to spend some time with me. ” The tantrums and attitudes are their way of telling you something is not o.k.

By: Aby Garvey
Whether you love to shop (or dread it) there are a number of other enjoyable ways to spend your time during the holidays than at the shopping mall with swarms of other people. If the thought of battling the crowds has you singing the blues, simplify your shopping by getting it all done in one day. Sound impossible? Here’s the simple plan we use year after year to make holiday shopping a single, fun-filled day.

Find a Shopping Companion
The best case scenario is to shop with your husband or significant other, because, quite simply, they have the same list of people to buy for. What, he hates to shop? Yes, my husband does too. But, I have to tell you, spending a whole day together, alone, without children is a great treat for both of us. Sure we spend some time in the man-dreaded malls, but we also hit his favorite spots like electronics stores and a wine and cheese market. Another great thing about shopping with your honey is that it gives you both a chance to show the other person what’s topping your wish list this year. Clever, eh?

Pick a Day
Select a day that works well for you and your companion. Choosing a weekday or even a Saturday in November is a sure way to avoid large crowds. Consider taking a day off for your shopping marathon, if you work full time and have vacation time left. If this isn’t possible, start your shopping extravaganza early on a Saturday morning before the crowds get too thick. Then take a long, late lunch and finish up your shopping during the dinner hour.

Hire a Baby Sitter
Or dog sitter or any other service provider you need to make it possible to be away from home for an entire day.

Make a List
A key to getting your shopping done in a single day is preplanning and capturing your plans on a simple list.

Column 1: the names of every person you are buying for this year.

Column 2: gift ideas for each person on the list. Be as specific as possible. To get all of your shopping done in one day, make as many buying decisions ahead of time as possible. You can do research on the Internet for great gift ideas or ask your friends and family if they have something special on their wish list this year.

Column 3: store name. Write down where you will purchase each item on your list. Limit the number of stores as much as possible to keep your travel time to a minimum. Remember, your goal is to finish in just one day!

Shop Online First
Once you have your list made up, look for opportunities to purchase items on-line. This is ultra convenient if you’re shopping for out of town friends and relatives, just be sure to shop early and look carefully at the website’s shipping policies and deadlines. Add gift wrap, a nice note and you’re done. How many people can you mark off your list without even leaving your home?

Chart Your Course
Now with your pared-down list in hand, take a look at all of the stores you need to go to. Figure out the most efficient route to get from store to store, and you’re ready to shop! One last thing, try to end your shopping trip very close to your favorite restaurant. Call ahead to make a reservation and you’ll have extra incentive for getting it all done!

Shop!
All that’s left to do is hit the stores. Good luck!!

Aby Garvey is a professional organizer and the owner of simplify 101, inc. Her mission is to help you create time and space for what matters most in your home and life. Aby is the author of the e-book “the happy scrapper - simple solutions to get organized and get scrapping!” Visit the simplify 101 website for organizing ideas and to subscribe to Aby’s organizing email newsletter.

I apologize for not blogging yesterday, there was miscommunication and it did not get published. This was yesterday’s post:

Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done. 1Chronicles 16:8

As Thanksgiving is approaching, only two weeks from this Thursday, I have chosen to dedicate the next few Mondays to make known what God has done for me this year. I hope that it encourages you, and reminds you of God’s Faithfulness. Most importantly, however, I also hope that as you read it sparks the memories of what God has done for you this year. Every small and large thing He has blessed you with.

Last week I shared about my “High School Musical Miracle”. This week I am going to continue sharing about the details God is into:

My daughter is 6 years old. Six years ago, my husband and I decided that we wanted our daughter in private schools. Ben had always attended private schools, and wanted the same for his daughters. Three years ago when we were deciding to buy a house, and where, we chose to move closer to our church. Emily was only three at the time, but we knew we wanted her to attend the preschool and Academy at the church. We had no idea how we were going to afford it, but we moved our life towards that decision.

Two years ago my husband went full time for himself, Emily started Preschool and some how we had the $170 a month to send her to the preschool. (We were worried about how we would afford it right up to the time she started attending, we had made our registration in faith.)

This year, January 2007, it was time to register her for the 2007-2008 school year. I was very nervous about how to afford it. I even looked at Public schools and home schooling. But after it was all said and done, the only peace I had was in the Private School. So we paid the registration fee, and the fee to have her tested. I asked my husband if this was wisdom, as we are just building a business and it is not always the steadiest of income. He said if we decide what God wants, God will provide. We prayed, and we both agreed.

Within a month of paying the non-refundable registration cost, Ben got a phone call from the headmaster at the school. For the six years we have attended Trinity Chapel, the academy has had no plans to add a High School (it ended at eighth grade) because they had a “sister” school that already offered High School and they saw no reason for adding the extra cost. At the end of the school year in spring 2007, they made a sudden decision to add the ninth grade.

The phone call? They needed a multi-media instructor for 2 hours a day. The headmaster had been referred to Ben by someone else. What was not even known was that Ben had taught these same classes at Kennesaw State University before leaving to pursue his own business, making him more than qualified with both teaching and real life experience.

Three months before Emily was to begin the Academy, Ben was handed a job of steady income which more than provided for Emily’s tuition. Plus he has his own classroom, and was given a Mac. laptop as a part of the class. Even this was an answer to prayer because he needed a Mac. laptop and it was on our dream board for him, and he now has one, free!
(Click here to read about Dream Boards.)

He answered several prayers in one phone call! God is the God of More Than Enough!

What is your story, what has God done for you this year that showed you His power, His provision, His Love for you? Please share it with us.

Just a few thoughts I thought were good.

“The wise man in the storm prays to God, not for safety from danger, but for deliverance from fear.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, it is about learning to dance in the rain.” (Unknown)

Ingredients:

 1 - box spice cake mix
1 - 15oz can of pumpkin
1/2 cup - chocolate chips
1/2 cup - water

Directions:

Do not follow the cake recipe for the ingredients, just mix everything
listed above together, fill cupcake liners in a muffin pan, and cook at 350
deg for 20 minutes. Good to add cool whip on the top. If you are doing
weight watchers, they are 2 points each for 24 muffins.

 Tip: Try it  with Butterscotch chips instead of Chocolate.

Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart (Psalm 37:4)
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew6:33)
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. (Phillipians 4:6)

This year has been difficult on my husband and I financially, as it has been on a lot of those I know, specifically my sister and brother-in-law. While God has pulled some real miracles off for us this year, things have been tight and we have not felt like we could do much extra than just “get by”. I will have to chronicle all the miracles God has done for us this year, but for now I want to share one in particular. This one includes my sister who, even more than I, needed to know that God had not forgotten about her.

About a month ago, we knew that “High School Musical On Ice” was coming to town. As we were driving down the road with a friend, Tracy Hurst, we saw a billboard and discussed how we would really like to take the girls to that but knew we would not be able to afford it this month. There was just no way. She stopped us then and there and said “Let’s just pray for it”. She began praying “Father we just thank you that you care for us and the desires of our heart, down to every detail. We pray that you just allow Jo Anna and Angel the opportunity to bless their girls and take them to this event. Lord, do it in a way that they would clearly know that it was from you. In the name of Jesus, Amen” That was it. She said now look for it, it’s coming. (Insert my sister’s sigh ) I did remember a time which Ben’s boss gave us tickets to see Disney on Ice because he and his family could not go. We had not been looking to go, but it was a nice blessing. So I pointed out that we did not have to have the money to go, just the tickets. (This would be better, because when you are tight on money nothing is “extra” money )

This past weekend was the last weekend the show would be in town. I had tried to figure out how we could afford it, but it was just not possible. You must understand this, I would not go if my niece could not go. As it was, neither of the girls really knew about it, but if just Emily went Sydney (my niece) would have been upset. Therefore it had to work out for all 4 of us, or none of us. We gave up and decided to forget about it and move on to what else to do for the weekend. Sunday morning I had a message on my voice mail from the night before. It was a friend I do not talk to on a regular basis, Corrie. She said she wanted me to call her, she wanted to ask me a question. I decided I would call her back after church, around 11 am, to ensure she would be awake. As I was in my car on the way to church she called me to tell me this: “Someone gave us 6 first section tickets to see High School Musical On Ice today at 11 am. I am taking Taylor, and have 4 more. Do you and your sister want to come and bring your two girls?” She even had a free parking pass which meant we walked right into the Arena. These were not just any tickets, we were only about 5 rows from the ice. Even if we had been able to afford tickets we would not have been able to get these tickets. My sister and I cried on the phone together, realizing how good God is.

I know this may seem insignificant to some, but for me it is even more powerful to how much God cares for me than paying my electric bill. Why? Because God cares about all of the desires of my heart, not just my needs. Even the smallest thing like being able to take my daughter to see “High School Musical on Ice”. Because when we seek after God He says all these things will be given to you as well.

To the very last detail, whatever it is you are believing for, God will provide. He does not do it half way either, like we would. He can do it with no debt, and no nose bleeds sections. Believe it today that God wants to bless you the same way, He is no respector of persons.

Here are a few pictures from the event, and you can see just how close we were:

I apologize for not getting the winner up on Friday. I actually worked all day away from home Friday, and was unable to post….The winner for the Pumpkin Patch Winner is TC! This was a random drawing, no way could I choose the “Cutest baby”. I have sent an email, but I ask you to please contact me and let me know your info. so that I may send you your $25 gift certificate to Fandango.com.

Check out some of the cute pictures sent in for the contest.

Thank You to these blogs for getting the word out about the contest!

MomsBlogging.com
TheAngelForever.com
5minutesformom.com
HappyPandaBaby.com

A Movie To See:
This past weekend my husband and I went to see Tyler Perry’s movie “Why Did I Get Married?” As my sister asked, do we really want to know the answer to this question? You do when it is Tyler Perry’s answer.

I laughed until I hurt, just about came out of my seat at how angry I got over how one of the men treated his wife, cried at the pain of some, and then cried at the end when you found the answer to “Why Did I Get Married?”. It certainly did not paint a perfect picture but it reminds us that through it all, for better and worse, we are better to be in it together. Fantastic date movie. And a fantastic girls night out movie, because it also shows the bonds of friendship and how at times the only way to survive is to have friends reminding you why we got married!

While I have loved Tyler Perry’s other movies, my husband is not his biggest fan, but even he loved this one. I think the thing I love about Perry’s movies is that while there is humor, and reality of pain, there is always a message of hope, love, and God. Go see it, I know you won’t regret it.

A Movie Not To See:
I have gotten several emails concerning a Children’s movie coming out this Christmas season, based on a series of books written by Phillip Pullman, “His Dark Materials”. Phillip Pullman is a staunch atheist and his message is clear in this series of children’s books where he hopes to educate children in not believing there is a God.

While I typically would simply not go see the movie and delete the email, I decided to read a little myself. Snopes adds validity to the claim that there is an anti-God agenda to this movie, and the baltimoresun.com says in their column “Critical Mass” said

“According to the New York-based league, the books were “written to promote atheism and denigrate Christianity, especially Roman Catholicism.A press release from the organization, sent out last week, quotes Catholic League President Bill Donohue as saying the problem isn’t so much the film, which is “based on the least offensive of the three books.” “It is clear,” he adds, “that the producers are watering down the most despicable elements — so as to make money and not anger Christians.”
The real problem, he says, is that seeing the movie might prompt youngsters, or their parents, to read the books.

I receive an email devotional from Joel Osteen, and I really liked this one today. So I wanted to share it with you. Have a blessed day, and don’t forget to send in your Pumpkin Patch Pictures, the contest ends Friday

“Keep on asking and it will be given to you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking and the door will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7 AMP).

In Mark, chapter five, there was a woman who had been sick for twelve years. The doctors gave her no hope. But she heard that Jesus was coming through her town. Something deep on the inside said to her, “This is your season. This is your time to get well.” In the natural, when she saw all the people around Him, she thought, “I’ll never get to Him. It’s so crowded and I’m weak. I just don’t think I can do this.” She almost missed her season. But instead of dwelling on those negative thoughts, she started reminding herself, “If I can just get to Jesus, I will be whole.” She made the choice to turn her thoughts in the right direction. She kept pressing her way through the crowd until she got just close enough to Jesus to reach out and touch the edge of His robe. Instantly, she was made whole. Jesus said to her, in Mark 5:34, “Daughter, your faith has made you well.” Notice it’s our faith that activates God’s power. What have you been believing God for? Don’t give up! Press through! Keep praying! Keep asking! Keep seeking! God is faithful! As you press through, He’ll meet your faith with His miraculous power, and you’ll step forward in the victory He has planned for you!