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Read the rest of my absolute unbelief that my daughter is growing up today at MOD Squad blog.

I often think of my grandmothers. Farm wives who took care of their home and family and anyone else in need. They worked from sunrise until after sunset cleaning, cooking, gardening, ironing everything, babysitting, baking from scratch, quilting, sewing, mending and a million other things I never even noticed. These women accomplished so much more than I do in a day. Yet, they never seemed hurried or stressed. They made it seem easy. I have often wondered how they did it all. Many times I have wished they were still here to tell me their secrets.

Last week, I was switching radio stations and happened upon A Prairie Home Companion radio show with Garrison Keillor. He was reading a piece about living the life you’s been given. As I listened, it hit me. That was their secret! My grandmothers lived the life they had been given – and they did it very well. I never heard them complain about the endless laundry or cooking. I remember my Grandma J smiling as she hung loads of clothes out on the line and humming as she ironed.

These women didn’t try and keep up with Joneses. They were content with what they had. They loved their families and their God. They served both well. There were no unrealistic expectations of themselves to live up to. Their priorities were in order. They didn’t try to live someone else’s life as their own. They lived the life they were given.

image source

We love to be out in the back yard playing ball or just sitting relaxing while the grill is doing the work.  On our grill, you’ll find whatever meat was on special from our local meat market (which stocks fresh, local grown meats with no additives or hormones) and a variety of veggies.

image source MarthaStewart.com

Among our favorite veggies to grill are zucchini, summer squash, mushrooms, peppers, onions, asparagus, and my new favorite……….beets!  Yes, beets!  I’m not a fan of beets on the whole, but grilled beets are awesome.  I just slice them and toss them with olive oil and salt and throw them on the grill until the inside is tender and the outside is slightly crunchy.  Oh my!  They are salty and sweet. Crunchy and soft.  All at the same time.  My kids even like them! Some veggies are just better on the grill.  We would have never eaten beets before. Another veggie that no one in my family will eat unless it’s grilled is asparagus.  My husband won’t even let me cook it in the house. But, my family devours those little stems right off the grill.

image source MyRecipes.com

So, this week, don’t heat up the house and spend all day in the kitchen.  Head out to the backyard with the family. Throw a variety of veggies on the grill.  Try something new. Pair them with your favorite cut of meat.  See what veggies your family will eat grilled.

Don’t know how to grill veggies?  I just toss mine with olive oil and salt and throw them on the grill.  I’m more of a trial and error kind of cook.  If you want more of a how to, here are two guides to help:

• Cooks Illustrated’s Great Grilled Vegetable Guide
• AllRecipes.com Grilling 101

Menu Plan Monday

I’m linking up this week, as usual on Monday’s, to I’m An Organizing Junkie’s Menu Plan Monday. So, I’d better let you in on my menu.  Can you guess what’s on it?  My fridge is stocked with lots of fresh veggies from my parent’s garden.  I plan on grilling peppers and onions and zucchini, along with chicken and ribeyes and pork chops.  I have cucumbers and tomatoes that will go great in a pasta salad.  My basil looks good, so I’ll throw some basil in with some tomatoes, mozzerella and olive oil for a little caprese salad.  The farmer up the road has some sweet corn that I can’t wait to try.  That will pretty much be our meals for the week.  So easy and fresh. And so good!

What does your family like on the grill?

As the back to school ads roll out, the kids’ baseball and softball seasons come to a close and the corn here in the midwest is as tall as the sky, I can feel summer slipping away.  I wait all year long for these few months of heat and humidity, of barefeet and tank tops, and of swimming pools and ballgames.  And here we are.  I can see its end from here.  Part of me wants to be sad and sulk.  The smarter part of me wants to be intentional and make the most of the days of summer we have left.

So, we will swim.

We will run through the sprinklers.

We will eat popsicles in the driveway.

We will go on sunset bike rides.

We will grill almost every meal outside.

We will go to the zoo and the park.

We will have fun and enjoy being a family.

Summers are fleeting.  So are the days with our family.  I will make the most of them.

A Good Foundation

My husband is a home builder. Before he picks out the cabinets or the lighting and before he even starts to frame up the walls and floors, great care is taken to create a good foundation. The soil is tested to see if it can support a house. Ground work is done. The correct type of rock and cement are laid down. Even though no one will see it, a lot of work goes into the foundation. It has to be unshakable or the house will be unstable. It will not stand against weather and time.

How Strong Your Foundation?

I have heard people say that their mom or their best friend or their husband was their “rock” or their “foundation”. While I am happy that they have such a good support in their life, I have to question if people really make the best foundation. What happen when those people don’t agree with you? What if they don’t have the same views and values that you have? What if they die? When those things happen, there goes your foundation. What do you do then?

Other people build their lives on the foundation of education, status, family, name. These might not be bad things, but are they rock solid? Are they unshakable?

The Wise Man vs. The Foolish Man

As I finished my walk last night, I was amazed what a difference stability made in my foot. It totally took away my pain. The stress on my foot was gone. I was able to finish my walk. On my way home, I walked past one of my husband’s building sites where they had just poured the foundation that afternoon. The song that goes with the Bible story that we all learned in Sunday School kept going through my head. “The wise man builds his house upon the rock…” If you remember the story, the wise man built his house on a good, strong foundation and it stood firm. No matter what storms came, the house did not crumble. On the other hand, the foolish man built his house on unstable ground and when the storms clouds gathered his house fell flat.

Our lives need to be built on something strong, immovable, unshakable. Something greater than people or institutions. How else will we weather life’s storms? How else can we discern truth? It’s hard to figure out right from wrong when what you’ve based your life on keeps changing.

God’s word never changes. God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. He loves you and cares for you. He created you. He is the solid rock you can build your life on. He will give you stability in your everyday life. Life is better when you know you can trust what you have built it on. I encourage you that if you are building your life on something less than the Lord of all creation, that you examine your foundation.

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” Matthew 7:24

Do you like to go grocery shopping?  Me either.  I am putting it off this week.  I guess I’ll see how far I can stretch the pantry.  It’s a challenge, but I like it.  There are some chicken breasts in the freezer and I have some fresh veggies from our local CSA and my parents’ garden.  Let’s see what I can come up with.

Meal #1 – I have a good bunch of basil from my little herb garden.  That will make a really good pesto.  Throw it on some pasta and pair it with some bruchetta made with homegrown tomatoes.  Yum!!

Meal #2 – This honey baked chicken is good in the oven or in a foil pack on the grill.  It will go great with some rice and steamed fresh green beans.

Meal #3 – Vegetarian tacos made with refried or black beans instead of meat.  Serve them with some chips, salsa and guacamole.

Meal #4 – Spanish rice (right out of the rice-a-roni box – don’t judge me. it’s good!) and cut-up fresh veggies

Meal #5- Quiche is my favorite way to use up odds and ends veggies.  I just use what ever I have. Chop ‘em up and saute them in a little olive oil. Then, add them to the quiche.

The rest of the week will be leftovers and a pizza night.  I, actually, have all the ingredients for all these meals.  At some point in the week, I might have to go to the store to get something. But, not right away!!  I can even make homemade pancakes or oatmeal for breakfast.

What are you feeding your family this week?

I’m linking up to I’m An Organizing Junkie’s Meal Plan Monday.

One of the key signs of being too busy is stress.  Stress can cause moodiness, a cloudy mind, weigh gain/loss, fatigue…all sorts of negative.  As moms, we can’t afford to be stressed.  There are too many people depending on us.  That is one of the reasons I try so hard to keep the busy out of our lives. I don’t like to be stressed and no one likes me when I am stressed!!

But, what if you are stressed?  What if you have tried getting the busyness out of your life and you still can’t shake it?  This may be the resource for you.

Lisa Byrne from The WellGrounded Life is offering a no-fee 4 week online course called The Stress Cure for Busy Moms beginning July 17.

This course will equip moms to reduce and manage stress in healthy ways using nutrition, triggering the body’s calm response and using restoration techniques that fit into a busy moms lifestyle.

Mismanaged stress keeps women overweight, unhealthy, and exhausted.  If you could benefit from getting a better handle on the stress and overwhelm in your life, this is the perfect course for you.

For more details and to register:  www.wellgroundedlife.com/stresscourse

Check out Lisa’s site, The Well Grounded Life, for more tools and resources.  If you do take this FREE course, let me know.  I’d like to hear what you learned and how you applied it to your life.

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What makes you stressed?  How do you de-stress?  Tell me your secret!!

I am so happy to announce the winner of last week’s giveaway “Healthy Snacks To Go” ebook is reader Amy Jacobs!  Amy said, “I would try the smoothies and then the granola bars. Looks very good! I need Healthy Snacks!!!” Now, she can try them all!  Congratulations, Amy!

Didn’t win?  That’s ok.  Katie is graciously giving Overcoming Busy readers a 25% discount on the purchase of “Healthy Snacks To Go” if ordered by midnight July 13.  Just enter the offer code BUSY25OFF.

Thanks to Katie and all those who entered the contest.  Happy Snacking!!

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In the early days of dating and courtship most all couples yearn to constantly spend time with and learn more about one another.

However, after marriage, new obstacles in life, goals, and obligations in the form of jobs, children and community involvement tend to fill up much of our time. Too little time together could result in a two people drifting apart while getting too wrapped up in other areas of a busy life.

In the new movie “Date Night,” a married couple worries their life is too predictable, that they’re no longer really spouses, but just roommates raising kids.

I’m sure that feeling has rung true for many of us at one time or other in our marriage.

If you want your marriage to thrive and grow, you need to constantly be feeding and nurturing it just like when you were first forming your relationship.

A regular date night is wonderful way to nurture your marriage and maintain a level of closeness and intimacy in your relationship.  It gives couples something to look forward to, a chance to come together to spend some quality time focused just on one another and enjoying each other’s company without being weighed down by the demands of life. It’s a great way to reconnect and to simply have fun.

Studies show that the longer you’re married, the more important having a regular date night is. Dates don’t always have to be a grand event.  It’s more about focusing your time and attention on one another.

A New York Times article I came across several months ago encouraged couples to be on the lookout for ways to inject novelty in your dating in an effort to bring the ’spark’ back into their relationship;

“New experiences activate the brain’s reward system, flooding it with dopamine and norepinephrine. These are the same brain circuits that are ignited in early romantic love, a time of exhilaration and obsessive thoughts about a new partner.

Most studies of love and marriage show that the decline of romantic love over time is inevitable. The butterflies of early romance quickly flutter away and are replaced by familiar, predictable feelings of long-term attachment.

Several experiments show that novelty — simply doing new things together as a couple — may help bring the butterflies back, recreating the chemical surges of early courtship.”

Reading that article inspired me to come up with a years worth of novel dating ideas over at my blog, Wonder Woman Wannabe.  Every Friday I post a ‘Re-Ignite Date Night’ novel date idea.  It’s been so fun and I can honestly say that my husband and I have done most, if not all of the dates I’ve highlighted together at one time or other.  I’ve almost reached my goal, and when I do, I’ll be hosting a fabulous give-away!

If you don’t have very much money at the moment, planning a great date night can be a challenge. That’s where getting creative with your novel dates will help!  You can also make sure dates are a priority by building them into your monthly budget.

A Few Tips to Getting a Date Night Started:

Set a Regular Date Night and Hold to it

Weather your goal is to have a date night once a week, once every two weeks or once a month, make it commitment. Make it promise to your spouse that you’ll be there. It doesn’t have to take place on a weekend.  Just pick a night (or DAY for that matter!) that you’re not busy with your own obligations or children’s activities.  Put it on the calendar and think of it as an obligation just as important as a doctor’s appointment or a work function.

Arrange for Child Care

Try to schedule an ongoing date with a babysitter.  If your date night is every Thursday, book your sitter for every Thursday night for several months at a time.  We once had college roommates that alternated weeks caring for our children.

If you can’t afford a babysitter, arrange a child care trade with a friend or neighbor who also has children. One night a week, you can watch your friend’s children, and on another night on a different week you and your spouse get to go out.

Make Date Nights a Sacred Time

Try to avoid talking about the kids, the house, the bills, and any other issue that you know is a hot spot and may lead to arguments or more serious complicated conversation. Save that for another time; date night is for connecting with your spouse, not contention.

Now, that I have asked and answered the question, I need to act on it.  I really like blogging.  I started it to share my journey to get the busy out of my life and help others do the same.   As I researched how to be an effective blogger, the consensus seems to be that I need to blog as often as possible in order to keep an audience. So, I have been blogging 4-5 days per week, according to what was expected of a good blogger.  This schedule worked for quite a while, but as life changes and new opportunities arise I am starting to see that my goal of blogging 4-5 times per week is not overcoming busy.  It’s making me more busy!  I am not being a very good example!

Inspiration

Meredith at Penelope Loves Lists inspired me a few weeks ago with this post.  She chose to put family first and cut back to 2 days per week and her blog has not lost steam at all…and neither has she!!  She inspired me to make some changes around here. So, I am cutting back my posting frequency, but hopefully increasing the quality.  And just how am I going to do that?

Action Plan

1)  I will be posting Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

2)  Monday will be a Menu Plan Monday post or a food related post like the Healthy Snacks To-Go ebook review and giveaway (that’s still going on!!)

3)  Wednesday and Friday will be tips and resources to help us overcome busy.

4)  Be on the look out for more guest posts from people with great things to share!

I am excited about these changes.  It is my prayer that these help you and I overcome busy and spend time on what really matters!