Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Kitchen blessing

I have been married for over 10 years now and am just now finding the joy (and actually attaining success) in managing my home. I never knew before, first, how much work it is to actually keep a home in good order day to day, and second, that it is actually possible. Any child who is reared in such a home and learns the habits of work and care for one's own living area has a wonderful blessing.

Current schedule? Sure, here it is:

7a-make kids a whole-foods breakfast while they get themselves ready and lunches made (again, as healthy as I can get - still learning about healthy eating) and Ryan does Rebecca's AM treatment.
7:30a-Breakfast, then last minute clean-up/getting out the door.
9a-Start cleaning. Everyday things like dishes and laundry first, then checking over/cleaning surfaces and floors with my four year old working right there beside me.
11a-Work on my inbox. (To Do lists/calendar items, etc...)
12p-Make lunch
1p-Put my 1 year old and 4 year old down for 'nap' and 'quiet time' respectively. Depending on if I slept, take a nap. Getting sufficient sleep is an absolute necessity with fibromyalgia. Additional 'to-do' items.
3p-Pick up the kids and start the evening schedule (which varies day to day and is still needing some tweaking.)

Other things like exercise, also a must with fibro, homework, yard work, scripture study, prayer, time to fulfill callings, etc. are also getting worked in, but aren't set in stone yet - well, prayer is, it's as soon as I get up. Scripture reading too - but not scripture study - which I consider very different. Dr.'s appointments - which we have a lot of lately with all four kids having CF, and one so far having ADHD and going through further testing for some other things, and grocery shopping/other shopping are morning items that will have to move daily cleaning to the next day. I am learning that I just can't do it all, or at least do it all 'today' - and that's okay.

Now, today I read the following, and in conjunction with some of the lessons I am learning right now, I was extremely touched by it. It was part of a post found here by Sharon Kaufman, a fellow blogger and follower of Christ. Like so many I appreciate and learn from, she is not 'of my faith', but our faith shares the same focus. The context of the original post is fantastic and ends with this thought: "Nourishing others with physical food from our kitchens opens to us the opportunity to nourish them spiritually as well. And that, my dear sisters, is what our kitchens are all about."

A kitchen blessing:

Feeding Others

Bless my little kitchen, Lord;
I love its every nook.
And bless me as I do my work,
Wash pots and pans and cook.

May the meals that I prepare
Be seasoned from above
With Your blessing and Your grace,
But most of all Your love.

As we partake of earthly food
The table You have spread,
We'll not forget to thank You, Lord,
For all our daily bread.

Please bless my little kitchen, Lord
And those who enter here;
May they find Your joy and peace,
Through Christ the Savior dear
For what I offer on each plate
Can only gratify
The temporary need one has -
T'will never satisfy.

But Jesus is the Bread of Life;
It is the soul He feeds.
He gives to every hungering heart
Himself, to meet the need.
In a day when women everywhere are pressured to find fulfillment outside of the home, the emphasis on the importance of the work in the home is refreshing and so worthwhile!

4 comments:

  1. What a wonderful post! I had no idea you are also dealing with fibromyalgia and a child with ADHD...you have a full plate! And you are still smiling...bless your heart!

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  2. I haven't been 'officially diagnosed' with fibromyalgia - I've just always been in pain. My mom has it and our symptoms are almost identical, so that is what I assume it is. When we first started trying to go to doctors for it, they didn't have any kind of a test and it was still mostly thought of as a mental thing.

    The ADHD is a new discovery - just in the last month or so, although it answers alot of questions we've had for years about how she processes things and some of her struggles.

    Smiling? Yep. I think it's a classic case of 'we would never want the trials others have to deal with'. I am amazed at how women overcome the challenges they are given. You included. :)Thanks.

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  3. So, with all this healthy eating going on, does Hubby still get to eat those ginormous corn dogs? If not, it would be karma for all his mocking of my tiny corn soydogs. :-P

    As for some tips on foods that have less of a chance to trigger ADHD, check feingold.org.

    On goodeatsfanpage.com/GEFP you can find links to Good Eats videos. This show gives great recipes, and even more importantly, teaches HOW to cook. He uses cheesy props to help teach the scary science behind cooking. There is an index by ingredient, if you happen to have some spare peas and need some ideas.

    Last of all, kudos on your success around the home. In theory, I know what I need to do to be a good 'house mom', but in practice, success isn't a word that even enters the picture. If you've found joy AND success, I await your publication of _Home and Family for Dummies_. The world needs it!

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  4. We actually all had corn dogs the other day. Oi! That was desperation.

    Thanks for the sites - the Good Eats sounds like something I could use. I always need ideas on how to incorporate healthier foods. The 5 recipes I've gotten down are needing a break!

    Thanks for the vote of confidence. ;) You ever see that book - let me know. I need it!

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