My name is Sarah I’m an Air Force Wife and the mother to a rambunctious 2 year old son. I love cooking and baking with only having a dud every once in a while! I believe that life is an open book and I live life to enjoy every bite.

How to Find a Babysitter:

1.Utilize the People in Your Community.
Find the best people in your area by visiting sites like www.care.com and www.sittercity.com (Sitter City is free for military families). Get to know people at your church (church nursery workers are a good place to start!), and in your neighborhood. Look for local area Facebook groups and websites that may have trained sitters and post an ad of what you are looking for. Look for babysitting co-ops in your area or ask friends if they are willing to trade services. Utilize the people in your community, they are out there you just have to find them!

2. Interview, Interview, Interview!
Babysitting is a job and just like any other job, people should have to interview for the opportunity to work with your family. Once you have found some people you think you might like to work with, invite them over for an interview. If you are not comfortable having someone you don’t know at your house, ask them if they would be willing to meet your family or just you and your husband at a public place – maybe a coffee shop or bookstore, or even a play place or park if you have the children with you.

In in the interview, get to know the sitter being interviewed. Find out about their experience, be up front about hourly rates, and ask for references from previous families they have worked with. References are important, as these are the families that have worked with your sitter in the past and can give you insight into how well they work with children. Have them meet the kids and see how they react and play with them if you are comfortable. Remember to find out if they are certified in CPR and any other things you may want as well.

3. Invite the Sitter Over for a Test-Run!
Once you have found someone you think you would like to work with, invite them over to watch the kids while you are at home. This way you can see them in action, keep an eye on them, and see how well they do with your kids. They can get used to your family and your family can get to know them! Take this time to get some much needed housework done, relax, or do something else around the house.

Once you do the test-run, and are still comfortable about everything, then you now have a new sitter! You can start out slowly for as long as you want to leave your kids with them, or you can go all out, it’s up to you and how comfortable you are. If you have to work up to it, that’s ok too! This process has worked for me to find numerous babysitters for my child and also for me as I worked to find babysitting jobs in the past. Good luck in your babysitter hunt. I hope you find as many good ones as I have!

What about YOU? What are some ways you use to find a good sitter?

Calm My Anxious Heart

The first night of class was in the first week of June. I got there early and sat there waiting to hear more about what this class was about. I was confused and shocked when I heard it was about contentment.

Contentment? I thought. What does contentment have to do with anxiety?  I seriously had no clue. But as I sat through the next hour of that class I started to realize something very important: Contentment is the exact opposite of anxiety.

Over the next week as I let what I learned from the first class sink in and as I read several chapters in the book, I realized that so many of my issues – the sins in my life came from having a discontent heart. I was so convicted, but yet so challenged to change! My hope is that in sharing what I am learning in each class, that you too can be encouraged and learn to live a life of contentment! I hope that this will be a series that will speak to you and that you may even purchase the book and follow along with me.

Chapter 1#

In the beginning of the chapter, Linda Dillow speaks of two different people,- one woman was always negative. It showed on her face, in her posture and even throughout her family. She had much to be thankful for – a good family, a nice home, and more, but she couldn’t see it through her heart of discontent. “She was like a horse with blinders on, only seeing the dirty road straight ahead. She never raised her gaze upward to God or counted her blessings. She had a blurred perspective, an unholy habit of discontent.”

The other woman was a missionary who had been through many hardships. She had left her country and her family to go to live to the primitive country of Africa. This woman’s attitude through her hardships was one of contentment and we find her prescription for contentment in the book.

Prescription for Contentment:

• “Never allow yourself to complain about anything – not even the weather.”
• “Never picture yourself in any other circumstances or someplace else.”
• “Never compare your lot with another’s.”
• “Never allow yourself to wish this or that had been otherwise.”
• “Never dwell on tomorrow – remember that tomorrow is God’s not ours.”

Now, I don’t know about you, but sitting there hearing this – I kept thinking in my mind, this is impossible… this is impossible. Can you even imagine a life where we all follow this prescription and even though we aren’t perfect that when we fall on maybe one or two of these that we get back up and continue with where we should be again? I couldn’t at first… but the more I read about this life of contentment and realize that all or most of my anxieties can be laid to rest through this little prescription, my mind began to still and I decided I wanted to change.

 ”What made this missionary woman’s everyday focus so different from the first woman’s? The secret is in the last statement. Her eyes were fixed on eternity. Her tomorrows belonged to God. She had given them to Him. And because all her tomorrow’s were nestled in God’s strong arms, she was free to live today. One day at a time she could make the right choices and grow to possess the holy habits of contentment.”

As I read of the above list – the prescription, I think about how these apply to my life. How often do I complain? How often do I compare to those I see on Facebook, those in my family and to those who are my friends? I realize that not only does this comparing lead to a life of discontent, but also to a life of envy and jealousy – something I often struggle with. How often do I wish that my circumstances were different, that God had given me different circumstances? How often do I dwell on the cares of tomorrow instead of taking care of the matters of today?

Maybe the answers for you are different than the answers I came up with. But if not, I encourage you to follow along with my journey and especially with my next post as I write about learning to be content. Because no one is perfect, and contentment is something that must be learned.

What is YOUR journey to contentment? Do you have an internal perspective or an eternal perspective?

Used with permission from: facebook.com/KaylasSimplePhotography

About a month ago a sermon my pastor preached really made me think. It was about God’s will and knowing you are in God’s will. So I thought about it:

Am I in God’s will?

And the answer I came up with was definitely, yes. There was no doubt in my mind.  I was in God’s will when I married my husband four and half years ago. I was in God’s will in becoming a military wife, and I know this because I prayed about these things constantly and made sure to seek Him and other family and friends before making these decisions. I believe I am in God’s will right now, doing what we are doing – the every day in’s and out’s of being a stay-at-home mom to a special needs little boy.

So if that’s true and if I really believe that – which I do, then why am I so angry at God? And before I could even ask myself that question I came to the realization that yes, I am angry at God. I am angry that His will is that I have an autistic little boy that struggles and I am angry that our lives our so stressful because of it, and I am angry that no on understands, and I am angry that I feel so alone so many times.

There is no road map for what you are supposed to do if you feel this way. You are not supposed to be angry at God. And even as I thought about it I was waiting for lightening to come down and strike me. But it didn’t. All I was reminded of was His love. But things haven’t felt like they were orchestrated by love and that is what I am struggling with. How can I trust a God who gives me more than I feel capable of handling most days? How?

I read the Bible verses about those who endured through much worse trials than even I could ever imagine. I read about those who persevered and I wonder what is wrong with me? Why can’t I be like that? Why can’t I have the happy-go-lucky attitude that all the Christians are telling me that I am supposed to have.

Be postive. I hear. Rejoice in your trials. It is preached. God doesn’t give you more than you can handle. I have heard more times than I can count. But what if you are just not strong enough for all that? What if I am not perfect enough to be that way?

“Cease from anger, and forsake wrath…” – Psalm 37:8

God’s will is that I have a very sweet and dear autistic boy. I know that to be true. And I am so thankful for him, we really do love him so much. Is it fun to watch him struggle and be different from other kids? No. But does God have a plan in all this? Yes. And the thing is I have to learn to accept that.

So that is what I have been struggling with the past month. Learning to accept that this life is God’s will, and that yes, He loves me and yes, He has a plan. It’s not going to happen overnight. It’s going to take more time for me to see it, but I know in time I will accept this as God’s perfect and sovereign will.

……………..

A lot of my quietness on my blog has been from the above. Thinking. Praying. Accepting. Struggling. I have also been having severe fatigue and bad headaches for the past few weeks and it’s starting to take it’s toll. I have little energy left over at the end of the day for blogging and most weekends have been spend in bed sleeping due to being exhausted. Not sure if it’s just my crazy schedule with Adam or being pregnant or a little of both, but it makes me feel guilty. I hate to miss church and I hate that the house is a mess most of the time, and the piles of laundry are getting taller with each passing day.

I feel that the commitments I have made at church – nursery and singing in the choir have fallen to the wayside and I am upset about that because I have little energy left at the end of the week due to running Adam all over town for therapies and dealing with other issues as well. I wonder how many people are judging me because I haven’t been to church in weeks and how many people actually care. I watch all the people on Facebook have friends over on the weekends and all the good things that are happening and I just wonder how we got left at the bottom of all that. Is it because no one wants to have us over because our son is autistic? Sometimes I believe that is the case.

My husband and I worked in nursery twice this past Sunday and it was good to be in the same nursery as Adam and to see how he was doing. I was shocked to watch the interactions and learn that every single child in that nursery was petrified of my child. No one liked him. Some kids told their parents so. Some would hide from him if he came near them. And it just broke my heart in pieces.

Yes, my son is different. Yes, he does not understand how to interact with kids appropriately in a social setting. But he is learning and we are trying so hard to teach him. He gets up in kid’s faces because he doesn’t understand personal space, he gets over excited in a large setting like that, he tickles kids, but the other kid’s don’t understand that, they are just scared of him. He loves other kids, he is so excited to play with them, but he doesn’t understand personal space yet. It’s sad that he doesn’t have any friends because not many people want to have him over or because people don’t take the time to understand or explain to their kids that it’s ok he just wants to play.

I am grateful for my friend Kayla who is willing to do play dates whenever we can fit them in our schedule and because of that Adam is able to learn how to share and how to act better in a setting like that. Yes, he still acts out and gets over excited, but I am there to stop it and teach him not to do that.

It’s been a long month. Dealt with feeling sick a lot, dealing with multiple stresses, got a letter from a family member I have not talked to in several years which was upsetting, and learning to adjust our budget as we were not doing very well with it this month. All these have been huge stressors in my life and things I have been struggling with. I hope that June will be better and I can get back to blogging more. It has been a  nice break to focus on the family and God, and I hope to continue that as well. As always thanks for reading.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Parent’s Choice Overnight Baby Diapers.

Over the past few months as my son has neared age 3, we have had more and more problems with him wetting the bed. And not just the bed, but his PJ’s too! My poor little guy wakes up almost every morning soaked and crying for mommy to come change him!

We decided that the use of some overnight diapers were a must and tried the Parent’s Choice overnight baby diapers from Walmart. We were very happy with the results and how they fit my son. He no longer woke up wet in the morning and the diapers seemed to hold a lot!

We also loved that my son was comfortable in them, as he autistic and very picky as to what touches his skin. The diapers are hypoallergenic and have vitamin E and aloe which makes them soft and great for the skin! As you can see below my son was thrilled to be in his overnight diaper and you can see what they look like inside and outside!

Overnight baby diapers are a really great idea as your child grows older and Parent’s Choice offers diapers in sizes 3-6 to help with that! The cool thing about these diapers is that they don’t have to be for just overnight, but also for long trips where longer protection is needed. If you are a family that travels a lot these would be a perfect choice for you!

Worried about the price of having to buy more diapers? No worries, because Parent’s Choice is all about value! As a low-income military family I was surprised at how well these diapers worked and how many I could get for the price. I would definitely be able to get these diapers for my son on a regular basis and not have to worry about breaking the budget, which makes me a very happy mom!

What about YOU? Why is night time protection for your little ones important? Would you be willing to try Parent’s Choice overnight baby diapers?

Night time protection for babies is an important consideration for parents as their little one grows. Ordinary diapers may not have enough absorbent capacity to handle multiple voids over long periods of time with older babies. When wet mornings become the norm, parents start looking for more protection to guard against overnight leaks.

Parent’s Choice Overnight Baby Diapers are super absorbent for overnight and long-trip protection. This is an overnight diaper at prices that everyone can afford!

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Parent’s Choice Overnight Baby Diapers.

8 weeks, 3 days

Well I have finally reached the second trimester! I am 14 weeks today and I am very happy to leave the first trimester behind!

The first trimester began with a trip to the ER which I told you about in the previous post: I’m Pregnant. I was having shortness of breath, chest pain and dizziness, which led to me finding out I was pregnant. I also found out that the shortness of breath is pretty normal for the beginning of pregnant and that it’s called: Physiologic Dyspnea of Pregnancy. That lasted a few weeks and was pretty annoying, but it thankfully went away and hasn’t returned!

Soon after the morning sickness started… Or should I say “all day sickness?” I am pretty sure the name needs to be officially changed to “pregnancy sickness” since most people are sick all day and not just in the morning. I am not really sure how long I was sick for, but I was definitely more sick this pregnancy than the last one.

I was so sick this one morning, that after getting sick I looked in the mirror and was shocked to find that my face looked like I had been beaten up. Apparently, I had popped all the blood vessels in my face and neck from getting sick so hard. After freaking out and calling my doctor, I found out it is normal and is called Petechia. Thankfully, it didn’t happen again after that one time and after that it was just the horrible nausea that kept plaguing me all day long.

Needless to say, I am thankful the first trimester is finally over. I am feeling much better and so glad to be past all that sickness!

12 weeks, 4 days

We have been asked what gender we want this time around and since we already have a little boy, we both want a little girl. My husband is a little nervous about having a little girl, and in his words: “What will I do with a little girl?” But I am praying and praying and praying that I get my little girl as we are done having children after this. I am just dying to have a little girl to dress in cute pink dresses and bows! Of course I will love the baby no matter what, but a little girl would just be the topping on the cake!

We do already have names picked out, which will be revealed after we find out the gender. And speaking of gender we are going to be having a gender reveal party! I am so excited and have been saving tons of ideas on my Pinterest board already! We are not sure we can wait until the party to find out so we are debating just having the party for family and friends and us already knowing or us not knowing. Have any of you ever done it that way? We should be finding out the gender toward the end of June or beginning of July and depending on when family can come the party will be soon after!

Sadly, I have not heard the baby’s heartbeat yet, as the first appointment was a ultrasound and the second appointment did not go as planned. When I went in there a few weeks ago, the nurse could not find the baby’s heartbeat. She assured me it was normal and told me the doctor would come in and try. Well the doctor couldn’t find it either and by this time, my heart is in my throat. They were still assuring me everything was fine, but they wanted to do an ultrasound to make sure.

I was happy to get a second ultrasound so soon, but even more happy to see the heartbeat and be assured everything was normal and the baby was doing great! Never had a problem with that in my first pregnancy, so it definitely made me nervous. It’s been quite a ride this first trimester and will be interesting to see what the second trimester brings!

Photo by: facebook.com/KaylasSimplePhotography

Have you ever experienced words said to you that just crushed you from the inside out? Maybe it was said by a family member or maybe a friend. For me, it was from someone I thought was a friend. When you hear words that are so disheartening, so mean, and so hurtful, it can be hard to forget about them and move on.

There are times where I still can hear the words said to me. They sometimes play over and over in my head and it’s then that I realize that I while I may not be able to forget the things that were said to me, I have to stop dwelling on them and remember that I am loved by God and am valuable to Him no matter what!

So what can we do to move past words that crush? Here are a few ideas!

1. Pray for the person who said the hurtful words to you.
It can be very very hard to pray for someone who has hurt you badly. But giving up that bitterness and finally saying a prayer for them is the key to moving past that hurt. It took me a long time to want to pray for the person who hurt me. I didn’t feel like they deserved it. But God worked in my heart and now if their words come to mind or if I see them, then I try to pray for them before their hurtful words come to mind or before I think hurtful things about them.

2. Realize that you can forgive that person, but that doesn’t mean you still have to have a relationship with them.
Forgiveness doesn’t mean that you have to let that person keep hurting you. It doesn’t mean you are being hateful or unforgiving if you decide to step back from a hurtful relationship. It’s actually good because it means you realize that having that person in your life is not healthy and that it is not a healthy relationship.

3. Don’t dwell on what was said, dwell on what God’s Word says instead.
It’s easy for hurtful and crushing words to play over and over in our heads. Especially as women, since we can be emotional at times. At times I have to physically stop myself from dwelling or thinking about these words said to me in the past. I have to remember that these words are not true words, that God’s Word tells me otherwise. At times like these, it’s a great idea to take out God’s Word and read about His promises to us. He does not view us in the way that other people may, He loves us no matter what. Dwell less on the hurtful words of others and more on the Words God says!

How about YOU? What do you do to get past words that crush?

So we meet again. You would think I would be prepared for you after the 6th deployment. Our family has only had 7 months together since we were reunited from the last time you were here. You really caught us off guard this time! Over the last 14 years you have walked in and out of my life, leaving me with heartache and pain. You have also taught me a lot about myself in the process. You really tested my strength. I didn’t realize how strong I was until that was the only choice I had left.

This deployment has been the toughest yet. Our children are older now, and they now know the heartache that you cause. You have tested the relationships in our family. Yeah, you may have gotten the best of us at times.  However, we are stronger than you thought. You have shown us how important communication really is when we are apart. Our children know what it is to appreciate the little things in life.  Most of all, we know that as a family we can get through anything together.

I know God chooses the strongest of us to become Military families. I also know there are lessons God wants to teach us along the way. Through all the heartache and tears you have caused us, there is one thing you will never take  ”Our Faith”. I want to thank you Deployment for everything you have taught my family. Somehow you have been a blessing in disguise.

Sincerely,

Tara

My name is Tara. My husband has been in the Navy for 15 years. We have 3 beautiful children. Our family has endured 7 deployments. We welcomed our Sailor home a couple weeks ago after 8 long months. We are so happy and blessed to have our family together again!

 

 

 

 

 

*If you are interested in being a part of this series please see instructions here: Dear Deployment Blog Feature or email me at singingthroughtherain(at)gmail.com. Thanks!*

This small New Testament is the perfect little Bible for the military wife! It includes:

• “Special devotions by Jocelyn Green: 60 devotions focus on a specific passage with relevance to life as a military spouse.”

• “Home front heroes: 30 devotional stories illustrate key biblical principles by the lives of heroes on the American home front.”

• “Hymns: lyrics to hymns of faith provide words of encouragement, truth, valor, and comfort.”

• “Basic training: 10 study features guide deeper into God’s word.”

Description:

“When your husband serves in the military, you’re required to sacrifice as well, adding a level of strain to everyday life that most people can’t understand. Frequent moves, unpredictable schedules, extended deployments, reintegration—and, in some cases, caregiving—all make a military spouse like you hungry for the stability and peace found in God’s Word.

This special New Testament with Psalms and Proverbs is designed to address your unique needs, hopes, fears, struggles, and insecurities. And since no one can speak to you as you journey through this unique situation like someone who has gone through it, this New Testament with Psalms and Proverbs includes 90 special devotions written by military wives and edited by Jocelyn Green, a former military wife who actively ministers to women in your situation. Let her words of help and hope, alongside God’s Word, encourage you as you serve our country in your own way.”

My Review:
I don’t usually prefer the NIV version, but  I think this is the perfect little Bible to read through during a deployment or even during other times too! I was really impressed with how much they were able to fit into this little book. It’s perfect because you have devotionals and the Word all in one book! It would be easy to take on the go or to share with someone else. This Bible is the perfect encouragement to help through a deployment or tough time, and I am excited to take the time to read through this during our next deployment!

Buy 1 Give 1 Free!
With every purchase of the NIV Military Wives’ New Testament with Psalms and Proverbs, you will receive an additional copy to share with a friend for free!

To get your free copy:

• Visit www.churchsource.com and create an account
• Add 2 copies of NIV Military Wives’ New Testament with Psalms and Proverbs (9780310421078) to your cart
• Enter promo code BD5W11 at checkout

Offer Valid: 5/1/2013 through 5/31/2013

Giveaway:

I would love for one of my readers to win one of these Bibles! See details below and enter to win! Giveaway ends May 20th, and winner will be contacted by email.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

• “I don’t want to leave my kids.”
• “I can’t find a babysitter.”
• “Our marriage is fine.”
• “We don’t have enough money.”
• “My husband things date nights are cheesy.”

While these are valid reasons, I still feel there are so many ways around them. A “date night” does not have to be super fancy – it can be as simple as sitting on the couch or even laying in bed talking or discussing things with your spouse! While I know there are other reasons that it may be hard to date your spouse – ie: deployment, work schedules, etc. I feel there are still plenty of ways around the other reasons I listed above!

• “I don’t want to leave my kids.” - You don’t have to! You can have a date night right at home! One night a week or even one night a month put the kids to be bed early. This is YOUR time, and an early bedtime once and awhile won’t hurt!
• “I can’t find a babysitter.” – There are plenty of ways to find a new sitter. My suggestion is to start asking around for recommendations. Then interview a few and have them come to the house and play with the kids while you are there so you can get to know them and see how they do with the kids. Work your way up to trusting someone new! And if you still can’t find someone, you can put the kids to bed early and do something together at home.
• “Our marriage is fine.” - I don’t know of any marriage that can’t use a little spice! Giving a little time to your marriage every once and while shows that you care about it and you want it to grow!
• “We don’t have enough money.” – This is a tough one we have had to deal with on occasion as well. But spending a lot of money is not a must for date night. A date night can be as simple as sitting down for coffee, or walking through a bookstore together. And if you still don’t have money for that then stay home and do a date night at home!
• “My husband things date nights are cheesy.” - I hear this one a lot, but really it doesn’t have to be that way. Find something that your husband wants to do. If he doesn’t like the name “date night” then call it something else, like  “You and Me Time.” You both may have to compromise a little, but that’s ok that’s what marriage is all about – a little give and take!

What is a “Date Night”?
To me a date night is doing something together (not sitting in front of the tv) that brings you closer together. Whether it’s doing an activity together, talking together, or just being together, a date night should make you feel closer to your spouse in some way (emotionally or physically) when it’s over.

Some of you may wonder why I say no tv. I say no tv because although watching tv together is fun, I don’t think that doing that brings you closer together. For my husband and I we watch tv together on the couch almost every night. For us it’s nothing special or out of the ordinary it’s just life. So for me, watching tv together doesn’t bring me closer to him, but doing something different with him would.

Here are all kinds of ideas to help you with YOUR date night so you never have another reason NOT to date your spouse!

Date Night Ideas:

• Date Night Tips
• Date Night Jar
• Date Night Gift
• The Bookstore Date
• Date Night in a Bag
• Can of Dates
• A Few Favorite Things
• Romantic Dinner at Home
• 30 Ideas for a Date Night at Home
• 101 Things to do With Your Spouse
• 5 Summer Dates
• Let’s Get Lost
• Two Minutes in Heaven
• Couple’s Cafe
• How to Date Your Spouse
• The 15 Minute Date
• 40 Free Date Ideas
• 52 Date Nights
• A Cheap Date Night
• The Spouse Sleepover Date
• Top 50 Date Ideas of All Time
• Beyond Movie Night: 10 at Home Date Night Ideas
• Two Player Games to Play With Your Spouse
• 32 Stay at Home Date Ideas
• 148 Romantic Date Ideas
• 70 Cheap or Free Date Ideas
• Write Your Story Date
• 100 Ways to Date Your Spouse

Websites with Date Ideas:

• Love Actually: Romance on a Budget
• The Dating Divas: Strengthening Marriage One Date at a Time
• Never a Dull Date: Answering: What Should We Do Tonight?
• Nifty Date Ideas: Creative Things to do on a Date
• Datevitation.com: Have Fun Together

Date Night Questions:

• 5o Questions to Ask Your Spouse on a Date Night
• 100 Date Night Questions
• 30 Fun Date Night Questions

Looking to PIN some of these “date” ideas? See my board full of date night ideas here:  DATE NIGHT IDEAS