Dec 28, 2006

Bread, Neighbors and....?

The flour mill my mom bought me for my birthday last year, finally got a work out.  The children and I all took turns grinding.  DD2 did the most.  She's my fitness buff.  She ground at least 8 cups, which is quite a workout with this mill.  I was able to make 4 loaves of bread and 2 of banana bread, with enough flour left for another 6 loaves.


 


My neighbor stopped by for a visit.  I've met her once before, and she had promised to drop by.  She was good to her word.  Nice lady.  She weaves rugs and has four knitting machines!  I was looking for somewhere to buy some new rugs to replace the ones my great-grandma wove.  They're getting rather worn.  Neighbors here are so neighborly!  I enjoy this.  I hope that I can learn from them to be neighborly too.  They help each other out continuously.  They have helped us out a lot already and we've only lived here 5 months.


 


On a different note, we're having a kind of spiritual war going on with our children.  We have a blended family and all four children spend time with the other parent every other week-end.  This has an effect on their behavior.  When they visit there they are in the midst of adulterous relationships, drinking, drugs, etc. and I wonder if living in this every other week-end will make them complacent.  I want them to love their parents, how do they love them and not accept what they do?  Does this make any sense?  Will my 15 year old think it's okay to live with her boyfriend because her dad lives with his girlfriend?  Even though we teach her differently, what is our responsibility?  What should we expect from her?  Should she let her dad know where she stands in Christ or is that too hard for a child to do?  And what about the younger two?  Do the older teens have a responsibility to walk in their faith during these week-ends to help the younger ones, so they don't get confused?  I could go on and on, but it's something I'm trying to work out.  Lord help me.


 


Well, off we go.  We get to go to the dump today.  Not my favorite trip, but DS loves it.


God bless your day,


From Glory Farm

5 comments:

BlueApple said...

How wonderful that you have great neighbors. My neighbors keep to themselves mostly, but I was thinking that maybe I'm the one that needs to change that by being neighborly. Thanks for the idea!

Julia

homesteadinthemaking said...

I have some of the same issues, not with parents. However, my sister is divorced and remarried and has a child out of wedlock. Her children go to the other parents every other weekend. My mom is also divorcced and has a boyfriend. I am saying all of this to say... I teach my children that I and them should love these family members. However, Ecclesiastes 11:9 says whatever foolish things we do know will come into judgement. So I can't judge my mom, my sister, and so on but God will. All he calls us to do is Love One Another. I would still tell them regularly what God's word says about divorce, adultery and drinking. I would tell them that not one of these sins is greater than another and all can be forgiven by repentence. We deal with this also just with extended family. I'm sure in today's world everyone does in one way or another.

Blessings,

Trixi

sweetie said...

The walk for them is difficult. The Holy Spirit will help build within them what is right. As our own blended family faces the same, we see our 13 year old struggle with Dad's ways...but I personally do not want them to feel it is their job to confront dad, for the Holy Spirit will...when they were little though, we did take a stand legally about visitation with g/f and b/f in the house when they were there....at 10 and 13 though, the laws will no longer support that.

I will pray with you on their situation!

hugs

Sweetie

justme said...

I feel for you :( I only have BIL and his girl friends to deal with. The kids have come up with calling the girls cousins, sisters, and what not. It makes me mad especially since some of them are very nice.


We have told BIL that he sould keep his girls away from the kids. It is way to hard on the kids.


You can always talk to the kids about how they feel about what their other parent does. I have a friend who grew up with a mother who did drugs and what not. My friend as a gorw-up goes to church, doesn't drink or do durgs. There is hope

HeMarriedMedusa said...

First I wanted to thank you for posting on my blog. It was a blessing that I need to thank you for because when I came to read your blog (and a post on the games the children got for Christmas) I all of a sudden realized that a present was 'missing' from under our tree for my 'bumblebee'. The game 'Sorry'. Santa had to wrap it and hide it at the Front Door and run..albeit a couple days late. So I thank you.

Small town neighbors are usually the finest I have found in the few small towns I have lived in. It is true they can be blessings. As for 'moral issues' and the examples of extended families. We are not blended (but I grew up in one) we do have extended family and have friends that do other things. We teach our children what we believe are God's 'correct principles' and ask that they follow them to the best of their abilities no matter where they are and they will receive blessings. We also teach them it is not for us to judge and that all of God's children (no matter how old) have their 'free agency' to choose for themselves who(m) (grammar?) they will follow and we hope that our children will choose the 'straight and narrow' path, because ultimately they will have to choose for themselves, as God has allowed us to do. We talk about setting examples for others through our own actions. We also discuss the health hazards of drugs and intimacy outside of marriage (I won't embarass by saying the other word and hope I didn't say anything wrong already). Too bad our sons couldn't play a game of battleship together - so I guess it's a 'miss' this time *smile*

Dec 28, 2006

Bread, Neighbors and....?

The flour mill my mom bought me for my birthday last year, finally got a work out.  The children and I all took turns grinding.  DD2 did the most.  She's my fitness buff.  She ground at least 8 cups, which is quite a workout with this mill.  I was able to make 4 loaves of bread and 2 of banana bread, with enough flour left for another 6 loaves.


 


My neighbor stopped by for a visit.  I've met her once before, and she had promised to drop by.  She was good to her word.  Nice lady.  She weaves rugs and has four knitting machines!  I was looking for somewhere to buy some new rugs to replace the ones my great-grandma wove.  They're getting rather worn.  Neighbors here are so neighborly!  I enjoy this.  I hope that I can learn from them to be neighborly too.  They help each other out continuously.  They have helped us out a lot already and we've only lived here 5 months.


 


On a different note, we're having a kind of spiritual war going on with our children.  We have a blended family and all four children spend time with the other parent every other week-end.  This has an effect on their behavior.  When they visit there they are in the midst of adulterous relationships, drinking, drugs, etc. and I wonder if living in this every other week-end will make them complacent.  I want them to love their parents, how do they love them and not accept what they do?  Does this make any sense?  Will my 15 year old think it's okay to live with her boyfriend because her dad lives with his girlfriend?  Even though we teach her differently, what is our responsibility?  What should we expect from her?  Should she let her dad know where she stands in Christ or is that too hard for a child to do?  And what about the younger two?  Do the older teens have a responsibility to walk in their faith during these week-ends to help the younger ones, so they don't get confused?  I could go on and on, but it's something I'm trying to work out.  Lord help me.


 


Well, off we go.  We get to go to the dump today.  Not my favorite trip, but DS loves it.


God bless your day,


From Glory Farm

5 comments:

BlueApple said...

How wonderful that you have great neighbors. My neighbors keep to themselves mostly, but I was thinking that maybe I'm the one that needs to change that by being neighborly. Thanks for the idea!

Julia

homesteadinthemaking said...

I have some of the same issues, not with parents. However, my sister is divorced and remarried and has a child out of wedlock. Her children go to the other parents every other weekend. My mom is also divorcced and has a boyfriend. I am saying all of this to say... I teach my children that I and them should love these family members. However, Ecclesiastes 11:9 says whatever foolish things we do know will come into judgement. So I can't judge my mom, my sister, and so on but God will. All he calls us to do is Love One Another. I would still tell them regularly what God's word says about divorce, adultery and drinking. I would tell them that not one of these sins is greater than another and all can be forgiven by repentence. We deal with this also just with extended family. I'm sure in today's world everyone does in one way or another.

Blessings,

Trixi

sweetie said...

The walk for them is difficult. The Holy Spirit will help build within them what is right. As our own blended family faces the same, we see our 13 year old struggle with Dad's ways...but I personally do not want them to feel it is their job to confront dad, for the Holy Spirit will...when they were little though, we did take a stand legally about visitation with g/f and b/f in the house when they were there....at 10 and 13 though, the laws will no longer support that.

I will pray with you on their situation!

hugs

Sweetie

justme said...

I feel for you :( I only have BIL and his girl friends to deal with. The kids have come up with calling the girls cousins, sisters, and what not. It makes me mad especially since some of them are very nice.


We have told BIL that he sould keep his girls away from the kids. It is way to hard on the kids.


You can always talk to the kids about how they feel about what their other parent does. I have a friend who grew up with a mother who did drugs and what not. My friend as a gorw-up goes to church, doesn't drink or do durgs. There is hope

HeMarriedMedusa said...

First I wanted to thank you for posting on my blog. It was a blessing that I need to thank you for because when I came to read your blog (and a post on the games the children got for Christmas) I all of a sudden realized that a present was 'missing' from under our tree for my 'bumblebee'. The game 'Sorry'. Santa had to wrap it and hide it at the Front Door and run..albeit a couple days late. So I thank you.

Small town neighbors are usually the finest I have found in the few small towns I have lived in. It is true they can be blessings. As for 'moral issues' and the examples of extended families. We are not blended (but I grew up in one) we do have extended family and have friends that do other things. We teach our children what we believe are God's 'correct principles' and ask that they follow them to the best of their abilities no matter where they are and they will receive blessings. We also teach them it is not for us to judge and that all of God's children (no matter how old) have their 'free agency' to choose for themselves who(m) (grammar?) they will follow and we hope that our children will choose the 'straight and narrow' path, because ultimately they will have to choose for themselves, as God has allowed us to do. We talk about setting examples for others through our own actions. We also discuss the health hazards of drugs and intimacy outside of marriage (I won't embarass by saying the other word and hope I didn't say anything wrong already). Too bad our sons couldn't play a game of battleship together - so I guess it's a 'miss' this time *smile*