Embracing Love Even When It’s Hard

This month’s theme has been LOVE. We’ve had a lot of changes in our family, and I will say that sometimes LIFE has been HARD and we lose our FOCUS. This means that sometimes we lose sight of needing to show LOVE to people who are being difficult.

A Love That Never Fails Devotional

And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise. – Luke 6:31

We should always treat others the way we want to be treated. We give respect to get respect, we are kind and expect kindness in return, but what happens when the other person isn’t being respectful or kind? It is easy to start going tit for tat and treating them the way they are treating you, but is that what we are really supposed to be doing?

And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. – Matthew 22:39

Hmm… ouch! The BIBLE never says that we are to LOVE them differently, but we are to love them as we LOVE ourselves… even when it’s HARD!

Continue reading “Embracing Love Even When It’s Hard”

Love with Limits: Essential Screen Time Rules for Kids

The title might sound a little contradictory, but I promise that it is possible to show LOVE with limits, especially when it comes to raising children. If we just let our kids run wild all the time, then they may never learn to be the respectful, fair, and caring citizens that we would like them to be.

One way that we do this is with some limits on their electronics. The world is FULL of not-so-nice people and bullies, and it is our job, as parents, to protect our children in whatever ways we can. While not allowing access to screens would prevent a lot of potential issues, we want them to learn to make good choices when it comes to electronics and screen time.

As we learned in our science lesson today, PREVENTION is the number one key to keeping diseases away. This goes for gardening, health, and habits. It is also the best way to PROTECT our children and show them that we LOVE them. Boundaries are an important part of our PREVENTION PLAN. We need them to learn to make responsible decisions even when we aren’t around. We also need them to let us know when there is a problem and if something is making them uncomfortable.

Another thing that our children learn, from early on, is that SCREEN TIME is a PRIVILEGE and if they are not responsible, then it CAN and WILL be taken away! I don’t remind them of the rules, as they have all had plenty of time to learn them at this point. If we see that they have not finished their chores, used more time than allowed, or not followed the rules in one way or another, then they will LOSE their SCREEN TIME for a designated amount of time.

The rules that we have are to ensure that they develop other interests, stay responsible around the house, and keep EVERYONE SAFE! I don’t need to tell you how DANGEROUS the internet can be. We don’t always allow them online, and they are only allowed online with supervision. They generally are not allowed in chats unless a known adult is in the same chat group or right there with them.

Continue reading “Love with Limits: Essential Screen Time Rules for Kids”

Achieve Your Goals with Simple Habit Trackers

I know Lent is fast approaching, and many people will be setting some goals for the season. Whether it be for fasting or anything else, I have made some simple habit trackers to help you meet those goals.

The 40 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter are known as LENT. Sundays are not included in this count. These are used as a time to remember when Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness. Many people choose to abstain from certain foods or items for the 40 days. This time is also dedicated to prayer and doing good. More information can be found here:

What to Give Up For Lent in 2026: Practical Fasting Ideas for Lent

These can be used any way you like it… You can keep track of how many days you have kept to your goal. You can also use this to track objects, like with the 40 bags in 40 days challenge that many people do during this time of year.

There is some science behind the 30 days to make a habit, and this little sheet could help you meet more goals. There are lots of new habit ideas in this blog post HERE.

I am also reading through the 30-Day Sabbath Challenge in hopes that it will help me observe the Sabbath in a more Biblical manner.


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God Bless!

I made a couple more printables that go along with this post, so here they are:

Blank Challenge List/Tracker

Goal Setting Lists with Ideas for new habits and decluttering

Special Holiday Meals: Dr. Seuss’s Birthday Week Menu Ideas

Oh, foods you could make… these are just a few ideas of Dr. Suess-Themed foods you could make. You can also have a stack of Dr. Suess’s books on hand to read through during this week. You can choose to celebrate just his birthday (March 2nd) or the whole week.

Dr. Suess Birthday Week Menu Ideas 

BREAKFAST 

Green Eggs & Ham on Green Tortillas or Breakfast Sandwiches,  

Horton’s Hash Brown Casserole, 

Green Waffles/Pancakes w/Grinch Grapes, 

Daisy-Head Mayzie Dutch Puff, 

Hunches in Bunches Munches

Foona Lagoona Baboona Bread 

Continue reading “Special Holiday Meals: Dr. Seuss’s Birthday Week Menu Ideas”

Special Holiday Meals: Apple Themed Holidays

There are several holidays that revolve around apples, so I have made a list of our favorite recipes here:

Apple Fun Facts

Beverages:

Ms. Shirley’s Hot Apple Cider

Breads:

Chocolate Chip Applesauce Muffins

Jams/Jellies/Sauces

Apple Butter

Apple Pie Filling For Canning

Crockpot Applesauce

Easy Crockpot Apple Butter

Cakes:

Angel Food Cake

Apple Dapple Cake

Applesauce Cake

Apple Sonker

Desserts

Apple Crisp in a Crockpot

Apple pie filling

Apple Sonker

Easy Apple Dumplings

Fried Apple Pies

Perfect Apple Pies

There are so many ways to use apples, but they are also a great snack just as they are!