Preschool Activity - Bird Treats

Get ready...

1. Take all your little preschoolers outside and gather up some big pine cones.

Get set...

2. Come inside, and tie string to the top of each pine cone. Pour some bird seed into a jelly roll pan, and place pine cones and birdseed on the table. Put out a small cup of peanut butter for each child, as well as a butter knife to spread it with.

Go for it!

3. Have the kids (feel free to do it too - this project is even fun for big people :) coat a layer of peanut butter on their pine cone, then sprinkle heavily with bird seed. Repeat, repeat and repeat until your pine cones run out!

4. Hang the bird treats on some tree branches by a window, preferably one your preschoolers can easily see out of. Wait for the birds to find them, then watch them (and your preschoolers) enjoy your fun and tasty preschool project!

Homemade "Superman" Capes

Remember how I told you about the gifts for Hanukkah I was giving? Well, here they are!



These cape costumes were a hit! All the children loved them, and still do. I learned a lot by sewing the "outfits", since I was still a bit unsteady at my sewing skills (not that I'm anywhere near perfect now!), and can't wait to start another project.

On the day after Halloween, my mom and I shopped the sale-throwing fabric stores, and that's when I found all this sparkly material...and came up with the idea to sew capes for gifts. I didn't exactly know how I was going to make them, but estimated how much material I would need for each child's cape, and went ahead and bought it.

It wasn't until December I started, as I had no clue how to make a cape, but once I did everything went fine. As you can see, I made head and wrist bands to go with the capes, and sewed metallic ric-rac on the cape and head piece to make it more costume-like.

Here are a few more photos snapped of my siblings in their garb:

Have a blessed day!

A Young Maiden's Daybook - My First Entry

Today…

the evening of January 12, 2009

Outside my window…

I see the lights of cars going down our street.

I am thinking…

that this is a fun meme!

I am thankful for…

rest.

I am wearing…

a jean skirt, pink shirt and blue hoodie.

I am reading…

Leviticus, Psalms and Step to the Stars by Lester Del Rey (a great sci-fi book!)

I am creating…

an embroidered pillowcase

One of my favorite things…

reading.

For education this week…

I'm a kind of dreading math. It's not one of my strongest subjects!

A keeper at home skill I am using/learning...

knitting.

A spiritual lesson I’m learning...

cheerfulness.

A godly character trait I plan to work on…

doing tasks because I love the one I'm doing them for, not because I have to.

Scripture I am memorizing…

Isaiah 64:8 "But now, O Lord, Thou art our father; we are the clay, and Thou our potter; we are the work of Thy hand."

I am praying for…

my Great Great Aunt Ruth who is very sick with cancer.

For the rest of the week…

I am hoping to get better from my cold, will buy a gift for a friend and take it to the post office so it can get to her in time for her birthday and am using "Our Senses" as my theme for preschool time.

A picture I'd like to share...

In a fierce game of Monopoly, my Uncle Rusty was down to ten dollars and a mortgaged property. But, what do you know, in the he landed on the biggest Free Parking jackpot known in the history of our family.

Would you like to participate in A Young Maiden's Daybook? Sign up at Ally's blog, Firmly Fixed on the Father.

Is it ok to Have a Crush?

How many times have you asked yourself that question? To be honest, until recently I have never thought about if it was necessarily "wrong" or "right". For the past few days I have been seriously thinking about what my opinions are on the topic, due to a question a friend recently asked me: "Is it ok to think a guy is cute?"


Here's what Vanessa says over at Maiden of Purity in her post about crushes...

"Now, there are many definitions to this word, but the one which fits best to
what I'm looking for is, "temporary love of an adolescent." Temporary means,
"lasting, existing, serving, or effective for a time only; not permanent." Does
that already explain a lot to you? This is what I'm getting from it. Why start a
crush, when they are ALL practically just temporary."

Exactly. Why have a crush when it's going to end anyway, probably with regrets and maybe even some hurt feelings? We should save our affection for our future husbands, who will greatly appreciate it. Our affection will be so much more precious to give after saving it for him, just as a present would be so much nicer to give if we didn't give away any pieces before presenting it to the intended person.

"Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you by the gazelles and by the does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires." Song of Solomon 3:5

While thinking someone is cute and having a crush are very different things, I believe that "thinking a guy is cute" can very easily develop into a mild crush. Especially for girls. Just like guys struggle with looking inappropriately at ladies, girls struggle in having inappropriate thoughts about boys. Since God has designed us ladies to easily get infatuated with a guy (something that is intended for, and should be saved, for our husbands), we really need to guard our heart...as well as our minds.

"Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." Proverbs 4:23

Having a crush all starts in our mind. It's not about "love at first sight" or "we instantly bonded", it's about what we have allowed ourselves to think about.

Whenever I find myself thinking about a guy, whether inappropriately or appropriately, I ask myself, "Would I want my future husband thinking about another girl in this way?" That always helps me easily catch any inappropriate thoughts that are infiltrating into a place I would much rather be using to glorify God, not disappoint or sadden Him.


"Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things [are] honest, whatsoever things [are] just, whatsoever things [are] pure, whatsoever things [are] lovely, whatsoever things [are] of good report; if [there be] any virtue, and if [there be] any praise, think on these things." Philippians 4:8


Another way I keep my thoughts pure is by frequently praying for my future husband. Not when I'm struggling with temptation, as that could lead to more impure thoughts (i.e.: "Please bless my future husband ~hmm...I wonder if Fred is the one?~ while he is going about his day today ~he's probably going to church...I bet he'll look good all dressed up...~), but while I'm doing every day things, or while already praying. My favorite time to pray for him is at night when I'm in bed. I like to take a few minutes to specifically ask God to help him grow in certain areas, such as knowing the Bible or having a good work ethic, and to bless him the next day, making it a good day for him and helping him to guard his heart, mind and eyes...something that I hope he is praying for me too!

We've also got to think about the younger girls who are watching us. When you were nine or ten, I'm sure any girl you knew who was thirteen or older, you wanted to copy her every move exactly. If she had a purple bedroom, you wanted a purple bedroom. If she liked white hot chocolate, suddenly your favorite drink was white hot chocolate. And, chances are, if she had any boyfriends or crushes, you wanted to have them too.


So, if you are in that "thirteen and older position", use it for good. Keep conversations with younger ladies positive, and don't bring up the "he likes me, I like him" topic all together. We want to encourage, not hinder.


"Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity." 1 Timothy 4:12


One other thing Maiden of Purity said in her post was to pray Psalm 51 when you find yourself struggling with impure thoughts. I like that a lot! Psalm 51 was the psalm David composed after realizing he was wrong in committing adultery with Bathsheba. While having a crush and thinking about a boy in an impure way isn't exactly committing adultery, it certainly can be connected if you thought of it as sort of committing adultery using your emotions, instead of your body. Something to think about!

In closing, I would like to encourage you to guard your heart against having any "crushes". Also, keep guard and fight against any thoughts that could lead to them. Once you're married you can think "mushy" thoughts about your husband as much as you want to...so save them till then!

What about you? How do you guard and fight against impure thoughts about boys? I would love to hear them. Or, maybe you have a different opinion on this topic. I'd like to hear that too.

Blessings!

WANTED: Advice From You

For the past couple of years I have enjoyed getting the American Girl magazine. Sadly, I recently noticed it doesn't seem as interesting and exciting as it used to be when I was younger. Also, sadly Disney has taken over American Girl, so it is slowly getting that "magical" touch...something that is a little too "Disneyfied" for me.

Does anyone know of any good, wholesome magazines put out for young ladies? There's got to be some out there somewhere, although I have never seen any before. I really enjoy getting magazines in the mail (Above Rubies and Better Homes and Gardens are some of my favorites!), and getting one specifically for young ladies would be a great encouragement. Thanks for the help!

Ever grateful,

Fresh Thoughts Challenge

My mom, over at Fresh Thoughts From the Laundry Room, is hosting a 30 day challenge. Basically, she challenges everyone to take 30 days to do a little cleaning up of their lives. Like she mentions in her post, these 30 days will pass whether we are doing something to improve our lives or not. So I thought, "Hey, why not give it a try? It certainly wouldn't hurt!"

After much pondering, I've decided that for the next 30 days I would like to be in bed, with the lights off, by 10 PM. For the past few weeks I've been going to bed at very irregular times, resulting in crankiness in more evenings than I'd like, and tiredness from just not going to bed at a steady time, and getting up at 7 AM regardless. Not to mention, I've noticed I don't look too good with dark bags under my eyes.

There will be one exception, however. Since Saturday morning is my sleep in morning (Shabbat Shalom!), I would like to have Friday night as a time to stay up without a set bedtime. However, I will try to use that unset bedtime in moderation!

What about you? Do you have any New Year's resolutions that haven't been put into gear, or something you know that you really should be doing...but just haven't gotten around to consistently doing it yet? If so (and I know everyone has something), I'd like to encourage you to commit to doing it for at least 30 days. Join me in the Fresh Thoughts Challenge 2009!

*Update: Mom is now having a giveaway for all who sign up for her challenge. On January 18th she will randomly choose a name to win a large stack of magazines focused on dieting, exercising and meeting dietary goals. I have personally poured over these magazines for hours and have enjoyed the tips, all though I am not dieting. Here's another reason to do a little life pickup!*

Hyper-Blogging

Well...I'm back! Right after I posted about Hanukkah (I think it was even that same day), our computer shut down. But, Praise the Lord, after much contemplation and research by my parents, we all went down to Wal-Mart today and bought a new computer.

Everything seems so high-tech! Our huge, flat monitor makes me think of a TV screen, and I can't believe how small the computer is! When my Dad was setting up everything, I asked him what that box was on the desk, and I was so surprised when he told me it was the computer. Our old one was much, much bigger and sat on the floor.

I'm so used to everything being so sloooow (it was so slow that we had a little pile of books on the desk to read while we were waiting for the computer to change pages) that now it's almost a surprise when I click, and the computer instantly does exactly what I want it to do. I love it!

You want to know another thing I like about this computer? Pictures download in seconds! Literally! Our old computer was so bogged down that it would shut off whenever we tried to upload pictures from our camera. With this computer it's no big deal. We had 200 something pictures on our camera, and still they were almost instantly ready to use. Look - I just got my picture taken, and here it is! See how fast that was?

As you've probably guessed, I haven't used a "high-tech" computer in a while. All our computers we've gotten have been older (used), never new, so this is like heaven! Just thought you might enjoy sharing in the excitement. :)

I'm exited to be back in the bloggy world, so you'll be hearing much more from me in the next few days. Stay tuned!