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Here's what I have for you:
My Granny's (Not So Secret) Recipe by Going Jane--a post on making strawberry freezer jam! I told Jane that I have never had freezer jam. Isn't that sad? This recipe looks so easy that I might be able to have some soon...
It was the combination of the next two posts that got me thinking about motherhood and overworking yourself or playing the martyr. Jessica (a mom of six) said that if she could go back to her early years as a mom she would take a nap every day. Really? Made me stop and think...I have a tendency to just go-go-go and think I can accomplish everything. Which can lead to exhaustion and grumpiness. Soooo, check out these posts:
Martyr Is NOT Spelled M-O-M by Inspired To Action (my new favorite blog this week!).What I Needed to Know When My Son Was One, a guest post on My Blessed Life by Jessica from Life As Mom.
Have an awesome weekend everyone! For good reading material, check out Mandi's Saturday Stumbles and Share Your Faves at It's a Blog Party.
Alicia,
ReplyDeleteAw....thanks for the link love! I'm totally honored!
Um...since you asked in the post about our thoughts on school debt, I thought I'd share my slightly different perspective.
I'm actually thankful for college loans.
My grandparents paid for my education, so I graduated without any debt. But my husband had about $25,000 in loans by the time he finished grad school.
It was one of the best things to happen to our marriage because we started our married life off by living frugally. We were married just before he finished school, so things were tight for several months. Then he got a good paying job and we could have just gone wild.
But we were determined to just keep our standard of living and pay off the loans as quickly as possible.
It created a habit of living well within our means.
We paid off the debt in about a year. We lived in an uncool, cheap apartment. We drove paid off, used and ugly cars. I even drove to work 45 minutes each way. Without air conditioning. In Houston. In the summer. We were serious about paying off the loans.
It united us and was a really exciting goal to achieve. It was an adventure.
And now, 11 years later, we've still never had an argument about money. Because it's never been tight - even when we were poor and ramen was a staple - because we've made a habit of living well within our means.
Of course, I'm not necessarily advocating college debt, I just thought I'd share our story.
Thanks for the link, Alicia!
ReplyDeleteI'll probably be putting up a more detailed post in the next couple of days, but my husband and I just had a long discussion. I told him my thoughts on debt and he told me his thoughts about his future education, and it turns out our goals aren't so far off from each other.
School is a long, hard road, but I KNOW it's going to be worth it!
Ok, since you asked ... yes, most debt is bad & school debt could be bad too (if it's not thought out, planned out, etc.) but in my personal opinion Dave might be a little too extreme for me on this one!
ReplyDeleteOh & I'm checking out that strawberry post now, maybe I can use it for my blueberries!
Thanks for linking up:)
Thanks for the martyr link. While I work hard at not taking that attitude, it randomly creeps up. I can always use a good reminder to keep it in check!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing, ladies!
ReplyDeleteOn the debt issue: I really hate debt. It gives me this trapped sort of feeling, and I clearly remember my parent's struggles with debt when I was growing up.
That said, my husband and I realize that we may have to accumulate as much as $20,000 worth of debt for him to get through his masters program without either of us working. Afterwards, we will buckle down and live as we are now--on a tight budget, and we will pay off the debt as soon as possible.
We definitely see school as an investment, just like we see the fact that I am staying home with our son (and future children) and not working.
In the end, we know this is where God wants us, and that trumps everything else and encourages us. :)
@Tricia: isn't it funny how bad attitudes always seems to "randomly creep up." Believe me, I know what you mean.