Thursday Thoughts

What's on my mind?  This.  I get so tired of the religion debate.  Lutheran, Methodists, Baptists from the west side of town, Baptists from the East side, Catholics, etc.  Whatever.  I mean we're all children of God.  And if we were all living like Christians, truly striving to be Christ-like, we'd follow the advice in this verse from Thessalonians.  We'd live life encouraging each other.  We'd get over ourselves for the sake of furthering the kingdom of God.  We wouldn't compare physical churches and judge each others religions.  That just wouldn't even be an issue.  Right? I am not competitive, and refuse to believe church/religion competitions are healthy. Just love people. Help people. Encourage people. That's all.
"Therefore encourage one another and build each other up" 1 Thessalonians 5:11

Satisfying the Sweet Tooth: Local Honey

 

This little girl of mine has a definite sweet tooth. There is no doubt she got it from her mama.  oops!

 

 While I don't mind enjoying a treat now and then, and believe me I do, I realize how important it is to fill our bodies with real food. 

 

 She and I both like the sweetness of pitted dates, but the other 3 people in the house can't even tolerate them (their loss!).  Honey on the other hand, has never been turned away by any of my little (or big) sweeties.

 

 

We can all agree that there is nothing better than a spoonful of honey.  Except maybe that same spoonful of honey spread on a slice of warm toast, with a smear of our homemade peanut butter.  Oh my word.  Is your mouth watering yet?

The benefits of honey are plentiful.  Here are my top 5 favorite reasons to indulge in the sweet treat:

 

1. It's natural.  Not like the processed foods in the store that are labeled "natural", but loaded full of junk.  This honey is actually pure.

 

2. It's antibacterial and antifungal.  Before you think I'm going overboard, would you let me explain?  I have little kids, some of which put everything in their mouth and touch everything in sight.  I can use all the immune-boosting properties I can get, and so can they!

 

3.  It's a natural cough suppressant and it works far better, and much quicker, than over the counter remedies.  

 

4. It can be used to fight allergies.  Only one of us really suffers here, but the local honey helps immensely!

 

5. It's delicious.  Really that's the only reason I need, the other benefits just help me to enjoy it guilt free.

 

 

This particular bottle of honey was a birthday gift given to my husband from our pastor and his wife. The brand is called Hopp-N-Honey and is available for purchase through them.  Message me if you'd like their contact info.   

 

 

The flavor of this honey compared to other brands I've tried is richer, sweeter, and overall more flavorful than the majority of store-bought honeys that I've sampled.  It's safe to say this is our new favorite. :)

 

 

Home Educator Tip:
I like to tie everything into Home Educating that I can.  When I cracked open the lid on the honey today I also decided we’d watch a show or movie about bees.  We've already watched The Bee Movie over a dozen times, so I wanted something different. I found Reading Rainbow’s “The Life Cycle Of The Honeybee" on Amazon Prime.  It’s episode 8 on Season 1, and free to watch with Amazon Prime, or $1.99 if you don’t have Prime.

 

 

Product Review: Extendable Pocket Roaster From the Winnebago Outdoor Store

Let me be the first to say, I am NOT an avid camper.  But I do love roasting marshmallows, hotdogs, and brats over our dinky little backyard fire pit. 

We've bought several marshmallow roasters from various big box stores, and they work fine, but do not hold up as well, or look as sharp as our new Extendable Pocket Roaster from the Winnebago Outdoor Store.

My husband works at Winnebago, so we occasionally visit the store to pick up new gear now and then (have you seen my hat yet? gahhh I'm in love with it!).

Anyway, I have been pleasantly surprised by the quality and how easily this little thing collapses down for storing. We will be in soon to pick up a couple more of these, now that we know how great they are!
At $5 each we can actually afford to get a few so we can all roast at the same time!  Looooove these! 

Ps.  If you invite us to your summer birthday party- this and s'mores fixings will more than likely be your gift.

Disclaimer:  I purchased this product on my own, and get absolutely no compensation for posting this review (and hopefully I won't be scolded for posting it considering my husband's t-shirt choice this day. haha).  I just love sharing what I love with all of you! 

What are you loving right now?  Leave a comment or message me, I'd love to hear about it!

Fun Friday at The Gynecologist's Office

Okay folks, here it comes... The most awkward post that you will run across all day, or perhaps even all weekend!

Here I am waiting for the doc to come in and do my *ahem* annual lady parts exam.

As uncomfortable as this subject is, and as uncomfortable as I physically am right now (is it hot in here, or is it just me?), I need to let you know that these visits are so important for detecting a variety of conditions.

Oh, and just a friendly word of advice: Ladies, schedule your appointment SOON, before it is 90 degrees out and you're worried that your butt will sweat and stick to this thin film that is supposedly keeping this table sanitary. 
That's all, you can go about your day now.

Godly Sex? For Real? Yes!

God has set some clear guidelines for us when it comes to intimacy in marriage.  Who knew? ;)  I'm constantly in awe of all the verses I find that encourage me in my role as a wife and friend to my husband.

I especially love how these verses make it known that both the husband's and wife's needs/desires are equally important.
That is such a different view than what the world tells us about sexuality, isn't it?
 
I often hear that men want and need sex more, or that it's more for them and us women just put up with it... or fake a headache.

The world makes us believe that if a woman want sex more than the man does, that woman is trashy. 

As a young bride I had a woman I looked up to tell me that she never experienced an orgasm from her husband.  She didn't even enjoy intimacy with him on any level.  It was very matter of fact, and she said she had to do the job herself if she wanted to be pleased too.
Another woman talking with us said orgasms were rare for her too, and also shared her disgust with sex.
I spent quite a few years thinking there was something wrong with me for desiring sex, often times more than my husband did. 
I also assumed that female orgasms were some made up fantasy found only in porn movies and never gave myself completely to my husband in the bedroom.

They were wrong, I was wrong. 

Later in our marriage we began to unpack our baggage and sort through our sexual differences.  Even though I entered our relationship as a young inexperienced virgin, I had mental and emotional insecurities as baggage.  I had narrow minded views, that I felt very strongly about.
My husband had baggage of his own.
When you put our stories together it's no wonder we nearly divorced just into our first year of what should've been "wedded bliss".

Of course things would've been much easier if we would've been open with each other from the start and sought out Godly instruction. 

I often say I'm glad for my struggle so I could find my strength, and that's true here too. 

My advice is pray through your "baggage".   Say it out loud so satin has no hold on it.  Be honest with your spouse.  Seek out help when you begin to feel like you're in over your head.