Life as Mrs. Emerson

Hiding in the Light by Rifqa Bary:  This book was phenomenal and I simply could not put it down.  I was gripped by Rifqa's story and the amount of suffering she endured simply for becoming a Christian.  It really helped me to better understand Islam and what is means for a Muslim woman to come to faith in Jesus Christ.  I loved hearing Rifqa speak about her deep relationship with the Savior and her gratefulness for all that He has done f.  I cried with her as I read her story and watched as numerous obstacles continued to bombard her from seemingly every direction.  This book was so inspiring and I can't recommend it enough. The Out of Synch Child by Carol Stark Kranowitz: One of my daughter's occupational therapists recommended this book to me and I am so glad I got around to reading it in July.  It really helped me to more fully understand the extent of Evangeline's sensory needs.  This book was so easy to read and did not read like a textbook at all.  The au

Happy Tuesday!  Whenever I am late to share my list of goals for the week it either means I have been traveling or my week is not going according to plan.  Unfortunately it is the latter.  I'm suffering from some serious back pain which started at church on Sunday morning.  I've been to the doctor and the majority of my week will be spent walking and taking it easy.  No gardening and no deep de-cluttering like I had originally hoped.  I'm hoping to spend time sufficiently resting this week and catching up on some computer work.   Last Week's Goals Marriage, Mothering, & Family 1.  Enjoy taking the children to the bike rodeo in town.  I'm still not entirely sure what we have signed up for but I am sure it will be fun.  I had never even heard of a "bike rodeo" before I saw the flyer!   It was pretty fun and both of the children had a blast!  They learned about bike safety and rode their bicycles through a number of obstacles.  Eli was thrille

Happy Monday!  I'm starting to feel the end of summer time crunch.  Has it hit you yet?  Where we live school starts in just a few short weeks!  We have enjoyed a fantastic summer so far but I will still be a wee bit sad to watch it end.  Now I am coming face to face with my lovely summer to do list.  (It's always overly ambitious.)  There are still quite a few cleaning items on that summer list that I really do need to finish in the next three weeks.  Last week was a full week of re-adjusting to home life after our week away but I'm happy with how my goals turned out.  Here's a few of the things I hope to accomplish this week while we squeeze as much fun out of summer as we possibly can.   Last Week's Goals Marriage, Mothering, & Family   1.  Eva has a therapy appointment and a GI appt this week. 2.  Enjoy an at home date with the happy hubby.   We had a great time watching "The Finest Hours" together after the children went to bed.  We've

Here is what I have been reading this past month.  I actually only made it through three of these books this month.  Do I get credit for reading through three teacher guides for Vacation Bible School? :)  Ha, ha!   God's Guidance: a Slow and Certain Light by Elisabeth Elliot: I absolutely adore Elisabeth Elliot and have been incredibly blessed by each and everyone of her books.  This book is no different.  Every summer I try to spend time reflecting on my life.  What a great book to read this past month while I contemplate the many hats that I currently wear.  Elliot is such a kindred spirit and honestly shares many of the same questions that I have wrestled with. Head in the Clouds by Karen Witemeyer: This light read came highly recommended by my friend Kelly.  It was the perfect accompaniment for our most recent road trip.  (I read the entire book on the way there.)  :)  I absolutely loved the protagonist Adelaide Proctor.  She is girly, quirky, and tough when she needs to

Hello friends!  As I mentioned in this week’s goals , we spent the majority of our week in Arkansas visiting with extended family.  Here’s a few of the things I did to save money even while spending most of the week out of town.   We drove the ten hour trip to Arkansas in lieu of flying.  I still prefer flying any day over a long road trip but as the years go by we are definitely perfecting our road tripping skills.  The cheapest flights available would cost us about $1000 vs. the $100 it (currently) costs to drive.  Even if you include another $100 for meals there and back we have stilled saved a ton of money.    We packed a cooler for our road trip.  This took care of two meals and numerous snacks.  We did opt to stop at a restaurant with a play place during both legs of our trip.  (If you are really looking to save money you could stop at a park or a local elementary school playground instead.) My sister-in-law and I took our children to play at the Arkansas State Museu

Happy Monday!  I hope that your week is off to an excellent start.  We actually spent the majority of last week visiting family in Arkansas.  It was so fun spending time with cousins and Brandon's side of the family.  The picture above includes my children, three of my nieces who live in Arkansas, and their great grandmother Meme.  Not only does Meme have 13 grandchildren but she also has 17 great-grandchildren so far with one more on the way!  She is one of my favorite people and I am so blessed we were also able to spend the weekend with her.  This week I will be primarily focusing on recovering from our trip.  :)  Here is how my goals from my last week turned out and what I am working on this week.   Last Week's Goals Marriage, Mothering, & Family 1.  Enjoy a date with the happy hubby.   We went out to one of our favorite restaurants in Arkansas and then went shoe shopping. It was so much fun!  I actually had running shoes fitted and they feel amazing!  I'

Happy Summer!  I hope you are soaking up lots of sun and managing to save some money in the process.  Here is what we did to save money this week.   We harvested mint, Romaine lettuce (Freckles variety), and a pepper from our garden.  Next week I anticipate picking some squash! Our entire family enjoyed Vacation Bible School at our church.  VBS is one of the highlights of our summer and we honestly plan our entire summer around the week of VBS.  They learned so much about the Gospel and had an absolute blast.  We even enjoyed an inflatable water slide on Thursday evening! The children and I had a fantastic time meeting friends at the park for a play date.  Since the weather has started to really heat up here, we met a little earlier which worked out great.  When Eli was a baby the park near our house only had metal slides which would get really hot.  My solution was to wake up, grab breakfast, and head to the park before the slides heated up.  This way we were still able to en

Happy 4th of July!  I hope your day was filled with family, fun, and celebration.  Here's a recap of last week and the ten goals I have planned for this week.   Last Week's Goals Marriage, Mothering, & Family 1.  Take my children to Vacation Bible School at our church every evening.   It was pure awesomeness.   2.  Finish rowing "Madeline" and begin our next book.   We had a blast rowing Madeline and I am SO excited about doing Five in a Row for the next few months.  We just started The Rag Coat.   3.  Evangeline has two therapy appointments this week.   Check. We actually had a really difficult therapy session on Thursday and Friday.  I am thankful for the encouragement of Eva's therapists and try to remind myself of the incredible progress she has made in the past 11 months.   Homemaking 4.  Sew a skirt for Evangeline.  (The skirt is cut out and sitting on top of my sewing machine.  I just need about 20 minutes to sew it together.)   It's rid

Earlier in June we embarked on a new adventure.  TENT CAMPING!   Two summers ago we enjoyed a wonderful time camping in a borrowed pop-up camper but this was our first experience sleeping in a tent as a family.  We loaded up our very full van and headed to Land Between the Lakes in Western Kentucky for a new adventure.  It was wonderful.   One of the neatest aspects of our trip was the fact that Nina & Poppy Steve (Brandon's parents) were able to meet up with us!  (They live a good 10 hours away from us so this was a real treat.)  We had so much spending time with them.  We stayed at  Hillman Ferry Campground  and I would definitely stay there again.   Hillman Ferry Campground has a lovely beach with an area roped off for swimming.  The kids enjoyed playing in the sand and I even took them swimming in the lake.  I have been swimming many times in a lake but I think this was my children's first real time swimming in a lake.  (The closest lake to us no longer