I don't think anyone's following this blog, but just in case....

I am moving back over to my blog at Blogspot - I removed most of the pictures and personal references and changed it from a private blog into a public one.

www.ajoyfilledheart.blogspot.com

I got this in an email from my dad. I'm not sure who Rita Rucin is, but it's great advice, and I hope she doesn't mind me using it!

Never borrow from the future. If you worry about what may happen tomorrow and it doesn't happen, you have worried in vain. Even if it does happen, you have to worry twice.

1. Pray
2. Go to bed on time.
3. Get up on time so you can start the day unrushed.
4. Say No to projects that won't fit into your time schedule, or that will compromise your mental health

5. Delegate tasks to capable others.
6. Simplify and unclutter your life.
7. Less is more. (Although one is often not enough, two are often too many.)
8. Allow extra time to do things and to get to places

9. Pace yourself. Spread out big changes and difficult projects over time; don't lump the hard things all together.
10. Take one day at a time.
11. Separate worries from concerns . If a situation is a concern, find out what God would have you do and let go of the anxiety If you can't do anything about a situation, forget it.
12. Live within your budget; don't use credit cards for ordinary purchases.

13. Have backups; an extra car key in your wallet, an extra house key buried in the garden, extra stamps, etc.
14. K.M.S. (Keep Mouth Shut). This single piece of advice can prevent an enormous amount of trouble.    
15. Do something for the Kid in You everyday.

16. Carry a Bible with you to read while waiting in line.
17. Get enough rest.
18. Eat right.
19 Get organized so everything has its place.

20. Listen to a tape while driving that can help improve your quality of life.
21. Write down thoughts and inspirations.
22. Every day, find time to be alone.
23. Having problems? Talk to God on the spot. Try to nip small problems in the bud. Don't wait until it's time to go to bed to try and pray.
24. Make friends with Godly people.

25. Keep a folder of favorite scriptures on hand.
26. Remember that the shortest bridge between despair and hope is often a good 'Thank you Jesus .'
27. Laugh.
28. Laugh some more!
29. Take your work seriously, but not yourself at all
30. Develop a forgiving attitude (most people are doing the best they can).

31. Be kind to unkind people (they probably need it the most).
32. Sit on your ego.
33 Talk less; listen more.
34. Slow down.
35. Remind yourself that you are not the general manager of the universe.
36 Every night before bed, think of one thing you're grateful for that you've never been grateful for before. GOD HAS A WAY OF TURNING THINGS AROUND FOR YOU.

'If God is for us, who can be against us?'

(Romans 8:31)

1.. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk,
pray. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.
2. Take 10 minutes to rest quietly each day.                                                                                        3. When you wake up in the morning complete the following
statement, 'My main focus is to __________ today.'
4. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
5. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, energy
vampires, issues of the past, negative thoughts or things
you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the
positive present moment.
6. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
7. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does..
8. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
9. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
10. Don't compare your life to others'. Be content.
11. Choose to be happy in everyday life. Enjoy your blessings.                                                     12. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In
eternity, will this matter?'
13. Forgive everyone for everything.
14. Don't define yourself by what others think. Define yourself by what God thinks.                   15. GOD heals everything.
16. However good or bad a situation is, it will change..
17. Stay in touch with friends and family.                                                                                            18. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
19. Each night before you go to bed complete the following
statements: I am thankful for __________.
Today I accomplished _________.
20. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.

My daughter asked me the other day what my favorite part of church is. It didn't take me very long to answer. I enjoy the music, the greeting, and the beautiful babies that were dedicated this morning stole my heart. But, my favorite part is always when the musicians leave the platform, the children make their way downstairs to their classes, and the Pastor delivers his message for the week.

It was no different today, and I especially enjoyed it after missing the service last week. One particular part of his sermon really stood out at me. He used a story about a haunted house to illustrate his point. When he was a teenager, he used to enjoy scary things, and decided to go to this haunted house in a nearby town. As he was standing in line, he noticed how dark it was, and how everyone coming out seemed terrified. He heard screams and other scary noises. When he got inside, he really was scared.

A few months later, he was going to the movies with a group of friends. He realized that the movie theatre was right next to the haunted house. However, this time when he saw it, it was in broad daylight. It was a community building, so he went inside and he couldn't believe how ordinary it was. Just like a normal building, it had regular walls, lightswitches, etc.

What was the difference? Light. In the darkness, everything was unknown. He had no idea what was coming next. Even the ordinary seemed scary when it was enveloped in darkness. Once light appeared, it conquered the darkness, and eliminated the fear.

I began to think about my own life and the fears that I face as a Christian, and in particular, as a cyberschooler. As our children grow and face new stages in life, it can be a little scary. If our children start behaving in a way that we don't know how to deal with, or have trouble learning something and we don't understand why, or they begin to practice bad habits that we have trouble breaking, it can be frightening. We don't know what to do. We don't know why they are behaving that way. We don't know how to be a good parent at that moment. We are walking in darkness. If we try to manuever our way around in that state, we will knock things over or hurt ourselves or others. In other words, it will be destructive.

The only way to defeat darkness is to shine light. In a battle between light and darkness, light always wins. ALWAYS. Darkness CANNOT consume light. It just can't! If we could shine the light on our problem, defeat the unknown, and chase the darkness away, it wouldn't be so scary then. Wow!

Jesus is the light in the darkness. The Word promises us that if we ask for wisdom, God will give it to us. Through prayer and studying the Word, we can dispel the darkness that hides the truth and tries to prevent us from being good parents and teachers. There is no reason to be afraid, because we have the brightest light of all just waiting to shine down on us so not only can we see the path, but we can enjoy the journey as well.

Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.

Last Friday, I started coming down with a cold. Both Saturday and Sunday I had a lot of things planned, but only did the things I could not put off. Most of Sunday was spent lying on the couch and dozing off and on. On Monday, I was feeling much better (and the kids seemed like they were getting better, too) so we went to our "back to school" picnic. It was a nice day, and we all enjoyed getting out.

Tuesday, I realized I was not over being sick and was feeling even worse than I had over the weekend. I didn't start feeling better until Thursday. We did manage to get most of our school work done, in spite of being ill.

Today, I got up and spent a few hours getting the house in order, and then after lunch we headed to the library for the "American Girl" Club. The girls absolutely love this. Every month they focus on a different doll character and make crafts and have snacks that are related to the time period that the doll represents. We checked out our usual stack of tons of books (which always seems to generate strange looks from the librarian, but I'm not sure if it's real or just paranoia). Then we did our grocery shopping again.

I gave dd10 homework for the first time ever this weekend. She was working on some long multiplication problems and after several hours on Friday, I assigned them as homework over the weekend. She finished them up tonight after requiring some motivation from Dad. Once that was out of the way, she did really great with them.

I'm looking forward to going to church tomorrow. Our friends are having their baby dedicated, so it should be a very special service. I was disappointed that I missed several baptisms last week. I am glad we are all well enough to go tomorrow.

Anyway, for some reason when I was sick I could barely stand being at the computer. Hence, the long blogging absence. Better now!