Doing the Next Thing

Jesus said, "I came that they may have life and have it abundantly." John 10:10b Our citizenship is in Heaven. This world is full of sin and brokenness. And yet, Jesus promises abundant life here . Food for thought.

Ok, let's do this in spurts. If I wait until I have the time to write one big post about all the chore principles & methods, successes & failures in the Next Thing house - well, it will just never get done! So part one is an overview of our family's basic principles and some resources we have found helpful. And remember, I never claimed to be perfect. *wink* There are dozens of good books, ideas, and methods out there. This is just a sampling of what we've liked and used. There are two resources that influenced me more than any other in the early years of chore training in our family: The Heart of the Home cd set (well, my original was cassette tapes!) and a book titled The Managers of Their Homes . Heart of the Home is a 5-cd set by Sue Jakes and Priscilla Stewart that is a wealth of encouragement on many topics relating to a biblical view of motherhood. I really can't recommend this product strongly enough! It was originally a gift from my mother-in-law in 1

The kiddos around here are full of constant chatter, keeping their father and me in stitches. Problem is, I don't record most of it and now I've forgotten! Oh, well, that's okay, though, because each day they come up with new sayings to make me smile. Today we are going to a small, local arts center that has hands-on activities for kids. The Littles are very excited and have a lot to say about it. Here are some samples from this morning: "Mom, when can we go to da art wees-mees-um?" 3yo K., eager to get this party started (nearly-5-yo A was at my bedside this am before my eyes were open, asking when we were going to leave) "Mom, when are we going to leave?" "After we eat breakfast, do our chores, and get ready." "Ok, I'm going to do my chore fishies now." And off he went to start on his chores while I dragged myself out of bed and to the shower. Later he reappeared. "Mom, look! I made two new fish. One for eating breakfast,

I want to start off by saying, "I did it!!" On July 4, I ran the Peachtree Road Race 10K with about 50,000 of my closest friends! ha ha In truth, a dear friend and encourager ran with me and was truly the wind beneath my wings all the way to the finish line! If you had told me a year ago I would run a 10K, in July heat, in Atlanta, I would have thought you were crazy! But by God's grace I did it! I owe a lot to Kate, and to Janice who ran with me in training, and to the "Wonder Women" of the 5K in March. I also owe a lot to a couple of you out there in the blogsphere who were "virtual encouragers." So thanks and props to all of you! And of course I couldn't have done it without the Lord. I'm so grateful that He has blessed me with the health and ability to run. Ok, now on to "3.4 miles - unplugged." As a novice runner, I have been using my iP*d as a crutch to keep me going -- fast-paced (and often loud) music that makes my feet move f