Yet another use for plain ole' vinegar!

It seems as though vinegar is becoming my new best friend!

Most of us know of the common uses for vinegar - loads of cleaning recipes for the kitchen and bathrooms, it's a great fabric softener, great laundry stain remover and countless other uses that we use vinegar for.

BUT, did you know that vinegar is absolutely the go-to thing for a sting or bite (bee/wasp/ant, etc.)?

How do I know this you might ask?..... Well, I have a 2 year old and we have lots of wasps!

We have guniea wasps (a/k/a paper wasps). I usually don't worry too much about them - they have their hives in the cracks of our retaining wall in between each of the stones (because the stones aren't square it leaves a triangular space in between the stones) and paper wasps are the least aggressive kind. Pretty much, as long as you aren't bothering their hive, they don't sting. Michael has been so busy that he hasn't had time to 'take care of them' yet, but because they aren't typically aggressive, I usually don't worry about the kids getting stung. Until......

The boys were outside playing with their water table a few weeks ago and all of a sudden Eli was screaming. He ran over to me and said something about an owie on his finger and I asked him what happened and he said "lady bug bite me." (Lady bug is his description for all bugs right now!) I knew that the wasps like to hang out around the water table, but usually they fly off when the kids are playing there, so I kept asking him what happened and he kept saying the same thing.... He wasn't screaming that blood curdling, think he's dying kind of scream so I just held him for a few minutes and kept inspecting his finger and in a little while he calmed down and was ready to play again. I really didn't think he had been stung (maybe he pinched it somehow or something) because of how quickly he calmed down so I didn't think much else about it.

Fast forward about a week. I was sitting out on the patio while they were playing and Eli looked at me kind of strangely, then grabbed his thigh and started screaming. This time I KNEW he had been stung. He was playing out by the retaining wall and was swinging his plastic golf clubs around and just the way he looked at me and then grabbed the area where it hurt told me he'd been stung. He then ran over to me and I could see the sting mark, so we went inside and I immediately called my mom because I remembered being stung by a wasp when I was little and she put something on it that took the pain away. She said to soak a paper towel in plain vinegar and apply to the area. The next thing that happened shocked me...

Eli stopped crying in less than a minute - while I was still on the phone with her - and was ready to go back outside to play!!

I am so thankful for a mom that remembers home remedies that her parents and grandma used when she was growing up!

I know this isn't a true kitchen tip, but because this is a common kitchen ingredient I thought it would be good to post on Kitchen Tip Tuesday and maybe someone else will find it helpful.

Menu plan Monday - 8/25

I hope everyone had a wonderful weeked!

I have to say that I'm glad I wrote out my menu plan a few hours ago because I have a terrible headache and Michael had to go back to work this evening - it's end of year crunch (end of fiscal year for the military) and he's (along with everyone else) putting in lots of extra hours, thankfully he doesn't usually put in his extra hours until the late evening, but he will go in most nights from around 8-11 for the next several weeks..... It seems like I never see that man! But I'm planning on him being home for dinner every night, so I'm planning regular meals (at least for this week!).

* Monday: Spaghetti with yeast rolls

* Tuesday: Crockpot whole chicken with steamed veggies and mashed potatoes - I'll freeze the extra chicken and we should get at least 2 more meals out of it

* Wednesday: Breakfast burritos (scrambled eggs, salsa, jalapenos, tomatoes and cheese) for the adults and pancakes for the kids

- Take meat out to thaw for Thursday

* Thursday: Meatloaf with green beans and leftover mashed potatoes

* Friday: Homemade pizza night (philly cheesesteak!!)

- Take meat out to thaw for Saturday

* Saturday: Sloppy joes

* Sunday: Zucchini parmesean (carry over from last week)

Must go now, the headache is getting the better of me and the kids still have 20 minutes before bedtime...

Be sure to check out Laura's site for more wonderful menus for the coming week.

Walgreens money maker!

Last night I was in Walgreens getting my weekly deals and I found a money maker I hadn't noticed before!!

Here's how it worked for me:
- Scrubbing Bubbles Action Scrubber starter kit = $5.79 regular price (I thought this came from All You but it doesn't look like it - maybe it came from the paper.... sorry, wish I could tell you)
- I had a FREE mail-in-rebate form up to $5.69 on one starter kit
- I also had a $1 Q from the recent Right @ Home mailer
- AND Walgreens has an Easy Saver rebate of $1.50 on this product until August 30.

Here's the breakdown:
$6.22 = 5.79 + .43 tax
-$5.69 (MIR)
-$1.00 (Right @ Home Q)
-$1.50 (WG Easy Saver)
$1.97 PROFIT!!! Now that's what I call a good deal!

A little of this and that...

This post will be just totally random stuff that is happening in our lives or just going on in my brain...

* At my 35 week checkup this week Rachael's heart rate was 180..... the nurse said "woo, she's a bit active this morning, eh?" She was doing what felt like cartwheels at that moment!!

* Eli might actually be getting this potty thing afterall! My original goal back when we got pregnant was to have him completely potty trained before the baby arrived. I totally gave up on that after some serious 'unready-ness' on his part and we waited a while before we started trying again. We even bought him his own special little potty to sit on because it turns out he doesn't like the toilet. He likes the little one much more and I like that he can sit on it anywhere! He only wet 2 diapers yesterday and so far, only 1 today!! So, there is hope after all. If I can get him totally trained in the next 3 weeks I will be in heaven! Jacob was 100% daytime trained by 25 months, so I had high hopes early on with Eli, maybe I had my sights set too high.... oh well, this parenting thing is a learning process and every child is different. We were at Walmart this morning and I let him pick out a pack of undies for being such a 'big boy' - he chose Diego! We're going to give it a go after naptime.

* 3 weeks ago Jacob came down with what turned out to be some random virus. It started with a severe (almost debilitating) headache that lasted 3 days and could only be eased by ibuprofen and as soon as that wore off it came back. I ended up taking him to the dr. the 4th day because it's just not right for a 4 year old to have that bad of a headache with no trauma or anything. By the morning I took him in, he also had puffy circles under his eyes and a low grade fever. She diagnosed it as a virus and said he's probably get some other minor symptoms, but it would probably go away in a few days. He did get other symptoms. He got a scratchy throat and ended up almost losing his voice and a smidge of a cough. But, like she said, he was better in a few days.

Fast forward a few days after he was better..... Hubby woke up on a Sunday morning feeling icky with a bit of a sore throat and achy. I made him start guzzling liquid Vitamic C to try to stave it off - to no avail. He ended up sicker than I have ever (in almost 10 years) seen him. He didn't just get a scratchy throat - he got an on fire, swollen, red, inferno throat and also almost lost his voice - he also had horrible headaches, flu-like symptoms of fever, achy muscles, etc. (but it wasn't strep). He went to the Dr. Monday morning and was so bad they put him on quarters (for you non-military peeps, quarters is basically when you're ordered to stay home from work and they can't call you in or 'make' you come in). So, he took almost 2 full days off and slept THE ENTIRE TIME. Must be nice to actually have a day off AND get to sleep!!!

Michael was really sick for almost a week and during the end of it, Eli started getting it. However, I think he got it the easiest - he had a croupy cough for a few days (had to have some saline nebulizer treatments) and a scratchy throat and hoarse voice. He never complained of anything really though.... Eli has been better for about a week and I thought I was in the clear since they all got it so quickly to one another.

WRONG - I have had a scratchy throat since Tuesday with nothing else so I have been praying that would be the extent of it. However, I'm thinking it may not be. Since I got up this morning my throat has gotten progressively worse and now hurts and I can barely squeak out any words. I have no other symptoms though. So, in an attempt to pre-empt a raw and horribly sore throat, I've been drinking lots of hot tea and hot water with lemon and honey and even gargling with salty water - BLECK! I really don't want to be that sick at 35 weeks pregnant and with 2 very noisy kids at home with me. The only good thing to the timing is that it's almost the weekend and I can rest, since Michael will be home, if I do end up getting worse.

* My mother-in-law will be arriving from Oklahoma on September 10!!! Yipee! We haven't seen her since Feb. so the kids will enjoy some time with grandma and we'll enjoy having some extra help with the kids for 8 days. My c-section is scheduled for Sept. 12. It will be nice to have her here to help with looking after the boys while Michael and I get a little rest and I take care of myself and Rachael. She'll also get the added benefit of being at the hospital when Rachael is born (I've already arranged for the boys to be with a friend all day that day) and the first grandparent memeber to see and hold Rachael. The other grandparents all live in Florida or Australia.

I guess that's all the rambling I'll be doing for now. I think I'm going to go be a vegetable since my house is fairly clean and I only have 54 minutes until Eli gets up from his nap.

A call to modesty - Part 2

If you missed my first post in this series, you can find it here.

This post is bound to cause some controversy because I will be discussing the very sensitive topic of what we should be wearing. My prayer is that you will be open to my views and read this post with an open heart and mind, you can disagree as much as you'd like. I will not judge anyone who doesn't see things as I do. Please keep in mind, much of this comes from my own personal conviction and God doing some works in me that require me to be completely obedient to His will in this area of my life before He can open the doors to the things I see coming!!

I will be discussing 2 things today:
* Adornment (jewelry, makeup, etc.)
* Clothing

Adornment:

This is a very difficult subject for most Christians (myself included). I definitely don't want to tell you something that isn't in alignment with God's word and I also don't want to be too careful to be 'politically correct' because following God's word and instruction isn't about pleasing the world (Romans 12:2), it's about being pleasing in God's eye. No one will stand in judgment for my life other than me and all I can do is strive to be what He calls me to be.

I'll try to tackle makeup first:

There aren't any specific references in the Bible where anyone is instructed to wear/not wear makeup. There are several references to painting of faces/eyes, etc. and the references lean to both good and bad.

The Bible does tell us:

3- Don't be concerned about the outward beauty that depends on fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. 4- You should be known for the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. 1 Peter 3:3-4 NLT

No where in that scripture does it give a specific command of do or don't, but it does say don't be concerned. One commentary I read in the Full Life Study Bible - KJV says that "gaudy, showy or expensive adornment is contrary to the spirit of modesty that God desires for the Christian wife." This doesn't mean that we are not to wear makeup at all, it simply says to me that we are to be cautious and not let the significance of looking a certain way overtake the true spirit God intends us to have - one of discretion and meekness.

A woman who is beautiful but lacks discretion is like a gold ring in a pig's snout. Proverbs 11:22 NLT

And when thou art spoiled, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothest thyself
with crimson, though deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rentest
thy face with painting, in vain shalt thou make thyself fair; thy lovers will
despise thee, they will seek thy life. Jeremiah 4:30 KJV

These two passages speak to vain attempts to 'beautify' oneself. What we show on the outside is a direct reflection of what we are on the inside. The old adage 'don't judge a book by it's cover' really doesn't hold true for those of us professing to be believers in God's word because one should be able to tell just by looking at me that I'm different and if I'm modest on the outside, I'm most likely that way on the inside. Again, I have found no direct references to whether we should or should not 'paint our faces', but I have found numerous passages cautioning us to be careful not to do such things in vain attempts to beautify ourselves or our selfserving nature.

For me: I do wear makeup. I do not wear a lot of makeup. I've even cut out a couple of things that I was wearing - over the years I had let myself add too many 'enhancements' to my makeup routine. I personally wear foundation, blush, a tad bit of eyeshadow and mascara. Nothing dramatic.

Jewelry is next....

Again, I find lots of references in the Bible where jewelry is seen as a good thing and then references (usually to LOTS of jewels/pieces) where jewelry is seen as bad. I have the same thought on discretion and vanity as I do of makeup. What is our purpose for wearing jewelry? Obviously wedding bands and watches have a direct purpose, but I'm talking about necklaces, earrings, etc.

The following scriptures are examples of good adornment and examples of our husbands adorning us with whatever he sees fit for us to wear.

And I, John, saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. Revelation 21:2 KJV

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my sould shall be joyful in my god; for
he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the
robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a
bride adorneth herself with her jewels. Isaiah 61:10 KJV

And it came to pass, as teh camels had done drinking, that the man took a
golden earring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten
shekels weight of gold. . . Genesis 24:22 KJV

Ah, so you can see why this is such a conflicting area for most Christians. My prayer would be that you look inside yourself for the reasons why you wear the adornments you do. I cannot tell you personally if what you are doing is correct or pleasing to God because I do not know your heart. I can say for me that I was putting too much emphasis on my jewelry until recently and I now see that even though I wasn't wearing all that much it was definitely for the wrong reasons. Do I still wear jewelry other than my wedding band and watch? It's about 50/50 and really depends on if I think that extra piece of jewelry will call too much attention to me or not. Mostly these days any extra jewelry is a necklace - I haven't changed my earrings in ages and they are very simple small hoops, most days (if my hands aren't swollen - 3rd trimester...) I also wear a ring that was my mother's when she was younger on my right hand.

Clothing

This has actually been a very simple concept for me to grasp. To some it will seem not-so-simple and maybe there are others of you that will come to the same conclusion I have. God convicted me in this area before any of the others and when I started researching everything (to make sure it really was God's will for my life and not the enemy trying to pull me into some trap) it almost seemed like a no brainer for me.

In my last post I discussed what modesty really is and how it pertains to every area of our life. I also discussed some specifics, such as what should be covered, but I didn't really go much further than that.

In my research, I've come to realize that women in "Bible days" wore robes that were long and flowing and were very different from the garments men wore. Here's some research I found on that subject and the difference between the garments men and women wore. It's worth reading the entire post, but if you just want the specifics on the type of garments worn, you'll need to scroll down to the 12th section (they're not numbered, so you'll just have to count them off!!).

From reading the section in the link above you've discovered how different the apparel for men and women was and it's only evolved to what it currently is in the last 60 or so years. Before that, most women would never have dreamed of wearing 'crotched garments' such as shorts or pants because they would be looked at as being in men's clothing.

The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a
man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment; for all that do so are an
abomination unto the Lord thy God. Deuteronomy 22:5 KJV

In my opinion (and for my personal life) that sums it up pretty well for me. Crotched garments (pants, shorts, etc.) are not to be worn by women and this is most likely because they actually show the countours of our body (legs, bottom, crotch area, etc.). It doesn't stop at just wearing a skirt ladies, skirts can be inappropriate also. Remember in my last post where I quoted Matthew 5:28 where it says that any man who looks at a woman lustfully has already comitted adultery.... well, skirts and shirts that are too tight, shirts that are low cut or see through/thin are also out because they give a man ample opportunity to look at you in that lustful way (and only my husband should EVER be privy to those seeing those parts of my body exposed by inappropriate clothing).

My opinion about skirts is that they should be at least knee length and here's why:

2- Take the millstones, and grind meal; uncover thy locks,
make bare the leg, uncover the thigh, pass over the rivers. 3-Thy nakedness
shall be uncovered, yea, thy shame shall be seen: I will take vengeance, and I
will not meet thee as a man. Isaiah 47:2-3 KJV

The thigh being uncovered is likened to nakedness.

Here's the actual definition of the term 'thigh' from http://www.dictionary.com/:
1. the part of the lower limb in humans between the hip and the knee.

To me that explains pretty simply that the thigh extends all the way to the knee and all of it should be covered.

Here's my one dilemma in all of this...

I am currently VERY pregnant and expecting #3 in just over 3 weeks. I own a grand total of 4 skirts that I can wear at this point. One of them is completely casual and mid-calf length and I love it, however, I cannot wear it every day - it does need to be washed occasionally! The other skirts I own are a lot more dressy and come just below my knee cap - still appropriate, only I don't feel comfortable 'dressing up' every day to play around the house with my kids. I would really hate for one of them to get torn or a stain and then be unwearable. And there is absolutely no point in buying any more maternity clothing this late in the game - that would be unwise use of our money because I may never wear them again after this pregnancy (because we do not know yet if it is God's will for us to have any more children).

I have spent much time in prayer over this and feel like God is directing me (at least until I can get back into my regular clothes - of which I have plenty of knee length or longer skirts to choose from) that no matter what, I am NOT to expose anything above the knee and the more 'flowy' (ie. not fitted or exposing countours) the better. I have a couple of pairs of capris and 2 pairs of very skirt-like gaucho pants that I've been wearing until this baby arrives.

Whew...

Ok, I'm going to leave you now with some other resources that I've found - please note that I may not agree with everything in each of these articles/posts but have found them very informative and they have lots of great research in them.

* The Bible's Dress Code

* Modest Dress of Christian Females

* Modesty, A Matter of Heart (there is a box on this page with the links to the actual articles)

* Biblical Modesty

* Jewelry, does the Bible say it's a sin?

* The Christian's Dress and Adornment

Menu Plan Monday - August 17

Ahh, I think I might see the light at the end of my tunnel of life overwhelming me! Since Michael only has softball now (he's taking this term off school since we're having a baby in under 4 weeks!) I feel a smidge better about being able to get myself back to normal - just read the post linked above and you'll understand!


Since our lives have been totally chaotic and Michael was only eating at home a few nights a week, I was just making quick meals for the kids and I so now I'm getting back to making regular meals so he can have leftovers for work rather than scrounging around for something each morning..... I know, I'm a slacker!


Tonight we had navy bean soup (I would have made cornbread to go with it but Michael doesn't eat it....) We've had much cooler weather the last few days (in the 60's) and I thought a nice hearty soup would be just the ticket. And oh my, how wonderful this was! It was incredibly yummy and sooooo easy. I didn't have an onion, so I just added extra carrot and celery, and it was very tasty!! I had enough left to freeze some for when the baby arrives and one lunch for Michael and one lunch for me.

*Monday - Baked tilapia with rice and yeast rolls. I'm also going to try out this recipe for homemade soft pretzels.
*Tuesday - Salad (lettuce, tomatoes and jalapeno's from our garden and whatever other veggies I have on hand to add in) topped with baked chicken
*Wednesday - Zucchini parmesean (if I can get some nice zucchini at the Farmer's Market on Tuesday evening)
*Thursday - I won't be home, so Michael and the kids will have leftovers or something dad-friendly to prepare
*Friday - Shrimp pasta (this is a prepackaged thing, I know - shoot me now!)
* Saturday - Bean and cheese nachos over yellow corn tortilla chips - served with tomatoes/salsa and jalapeno's
* Sunday - More salad, maybe with tuna or more baked chicken


Lunches will be leftovers for Michael, and there's enough navy bean soup to provide one lunch for me, as well. We'll fill in the rest of the days with grilled cheese sandwiches, salad, eggs and turkey sandwiches.

Super Sample Sunday - 8/17

Pretty slow week again this week.

* Cosmopolitan mag
* Domino mag with a free copy of Fashion included
* Playtex Sport tampons
* Gillette body wash

As a side note - I've been saving all my free magazines for several weeks now so I'll have something to read while I'm in the hospital all by myself after having Rachael. I'm sure I'll have a few visitors and either Michael or his mom will be with me most of the time - but I'm sure I'll have some down time, too (and may not always want to sleep.....though I'm sure I'll do a lot of that as well!).