BE IN THE WORLD BUT NOT OF IT

Romans: 12:2 (King James Version)

2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

We are taught to be in the world but not of it. To me, this is a very difficult thing to do. When we arrived home from the spiritual environment which we were in and came back to jobs, which we had been able to put aside for a few days, it became very difficult for me to not want to bury my head in the sand. It had felt so could being clothed in the spirit that I wanted to continue that.

So, today, I stayed at home and relished a bit more in the spirit before exposing myself to the world once again. I read some Ensign talks and watched some stories of interest on the BYU channel. Tonight, I read from Abraham 3, and I prayed. DH went back to work—back to the normal grind.

I now have additional goals to add to my list, as I NEED my Heavenly Father to help me in my feeble attempts at this crazy thing we call life. I have prayed; I have studied; I now go forward in faith.

I pray that you may find some inspiration for yourselves to also go forward, even in hard times, having faith that our Heavenly Father will guide you through.

Have a blessed and organized Tuesday, All!

THE BLESSINGS OF WORK

SCORES FOR WEEK OF MARCH 29, 2010...

There are six days in the week…I have decided not to do anything...Even putting out my laundry on Sundays…(I may do it but am not requiring it of myself)…It is the day of rest…

There are three chores a day…Morning tidying of bedroom…Specified Evening chore…And...Night-time tidying of living room…

There are a total of 18 chores a week…

This week, I got 15 out of 18 of them done for a total of 83%...I have noticed that with such low numbers...

I can only miss one chore a week to be able to obtain a 90%...There is not much room for error there!

I actually did Thursday’s Night chore on Friday, so with that figured in, I did a total of 16 out of the 18 for a total percentage of 89%.

It helps to keep a running daily tally, as I can see where I did well, as above, and where I need to improve the next week…

This week’s improvements will be in eating more healthy and exercising.



Today, I will be focusing on working women…Since I must do it, I am spending some time on it here…

Work days are indeed busy…The pace of the day…The pace of the world is quite unlike that of the housekeeper or housewife who can make her own schedule…



I am lucky in that I have two different jobs, each of which requires a different attire…

At one, I wear tennis/working-on-your-feet-all-day shoes…



At the other, I dress up…



I am so thankful that I don’t have to work in a sweat shop…

And that I get paid more than these poor workers do…(Something to think about when I am bemoaning the fact that I have to work)…



It is, indeed, a fine art combining Fashion and Work…



With taking care of the Animals and Housework…

AND…Making time for Family, Exercise, and the like…





Many women enjoy working…

It is invigorating for them, after previous decades of repression…



Some women like to work…

To get them out of the “drudgery”, as they see it, of house…



A few women have to work…

Disabled husbands, deep debt, and other maladies...

Or...

Just an unwillingness to live below a certain standard of living…Drive these women into the work-force…



Regardless of the reason, there are many of us out there fighting our way up the ladder, battling the female jealousy (And believe me…There is a LOT of that), and trying to keep some semblance of normalcy to our lives and pride in ourselves…

There are perks for sure…

When I worked at the Estee’ Lauder sales counter, my makeup closet was filled to the brim!

All sorts of lipsticks and creams adorned my dressing table…We were sent to school every few months and given free products…

And...Who doesn't like free stuff?!



Uniforms were supplied…And I ALWAYS smelled pretty for my husband!

Their products really were divine, and Estee’ Lauder herself was quite the woman…



As we were placed at the front of every store (a requirement of Estee' Lauder) and amid the other cosmetic and perfume counters, there was opportunity for goodies of all kinds…



The Hospital...

Working at the hospital…I have been able to get Free Health Screenings…Gifts…

And most importantly…Free advice ala immersion…

I hear so much from the experts just by being around them, that my knowledge has exponentially increased over the years…Now THAT is a Benny!



My other job...

At my other job, I am fortunate enough to get free textbooks and am able to learn an unlimited amount on the human body, it’s anatomy, and physiology, and pathophysiology…

Being able to do this and to share it with others is a GREAT advantage that I am blessed with…



Next week, one of the students will be having a cyst removed from her lung and has asked the surgeon if I may attend the surgery to video tape it…I am quite excited about the prospect and am praying that he will agree…

So…As they say…(Whoever “they” is)…

There is a GOOD SIDE to everything…Even work!

Have a wonderful and organized Tuesday!

SMALL VICTORIES (PART TWO), CLOTHES PINS, AND AN EASTER STORY

It seems like the longer we put things off, the more daunting they seem…

I had made such a big deal of the insurance paper work that I put it off for…well, a very long time. Once I finally did it yesterday, I chastised myself, as it was really quite simple. My husband, on the other hand, is ultra efficient. I am STILL learning from him…It’s just too bad that it’s taking so long!

One thing that I absolutely love about this new Organizational Goal that I have is that it makes life so much simpler! For instance, tonight, DD and I hosted a Lia Sophia jewelry party. Generally, whenever I have something at my house, I dread the getting-ready part. You know…the cleaning and setting up, etc.





Well, since I have been following my program, my living room was already clean, my bathroom was already clean, and all I had to do was to set up some extra chairs, which Hubby had gotten down from the attic for me. It really was a snap!

My cute niece, Ryanne, showing the jewelry...





My beautiful mother (left) and mother-in-law (right)...



Nieces Ryanne and Shannda...



Lovely niece Kylie...



So…Hard work really does pay off, and small victories really turn into large accomplishments! I still struggle with keeping up, but I am getting better and better, and by the end of the year (or sooner), I will be quite efficient.



As I love to hang out my laundry, I have wanted a clothes line for a long time…

And…Since I haven’t had one in years, my clothes pin supply was gone…

I decided to make due for now with a cable we had originally strung for the dog…It can’t hold much, but a little is better than nothing…

So, without pins, I tucked the ends of the two sheets under the blanket on either side…We had such strong winds that day that by the evening when I went out to get the laundry, I was down to ONE sheet and the blanket…

The other sheet has never been found! :/

Needless to say, among today’s purchases was a package of clothes pins… ;)





I had the little people over the other day and wanted to combine some fun with the real reason for Easter…

I had some little eggs, which when opened, contained a little chick…



When put in water over a couple of days...



They will grow…



While they were playing with the chicks, I read them this book…

Let’s Celebrate Jesus on Easter…



It is sad to me that Easter is just one more commercialized holiday where baskets, candy, and now even gifts are bought…

We do the baskets and the egg hunt, but I really like to teach the little people the real reason for Easter…

After the story, we went down and watched He is Risen…

This was put out by Living Scriptures…They have a wonderful way of telling the scriptures that keep the children's attention...When my children were young, I collected all of these animated videos...







Little people are so very very special that we HAVE to teach them and we need to love them…

May we all realize the blessings of Easter this weekend...

SMALL VICTORIES...PART ONE

I have found over time that when I REALLY don’t want to do something (or anything), if I can force myself to just do one thing, it will snowball…







As small victories often do, they lend themselves to a sense of accomplishment and a greater self-esteem…

Things that seem daunting to me are often small…

Figuring my bills…
Filling out insurance or Flex paperwork…

OR…

Cleaning the bathroom…



These things seem pretty insignificant when I think about them, but for some reason, at times I can mole hills into mountains…

By, first of all, MAKING A LIST, you set yourself up for success…

By, second of all, CROSSING OFF your to-do list one at a time, you set the cement for success…



It somehow gives a great sense of accomplishment when it is WRITTEN IN INK (instead of just in your mind) and then crossed off!



Coming up with new systems can sometimes take some of the burden away…

Within the last few months…(and after having my credit card number stolen)…I have found a safe way to pay my bills online through my bank…This is so much easier than figuring the bills, going to the bank to withdraw money, going to the store to purchase money orders, filling out all the money orders, addressing and stamping all the envelopes, and then going to the post office box to mail them…

So, even though I still dislike taking any time to do the drudgery of bill paying, I just tell myself that with my new system, it really won’t take much time at all…I just have to get on my computer, type out what I want to pay, and then, when I have finished, I cross that item off, and I’m on to the next!



To be continued…

THE SEASON'S CHALLENGES

I don’t recall whether or not I have written about the coming season and my feelings toward it…If I have, please bear with me…

First of all, I would like to thank anyone who takes the time to read my ramblings…I appreciate the take you take to stop by and visit…

I pray that you may find peace in life as you go through each day, and I hope that I may inspire you, in some small way, as I am inspired by my friends in blog land…

For isn’t that why we are all here…To help one another…?

Back to the new season…

SPRING…

It is such a beautiful fresh time of year!



At the same time…I feel very overwhelmed.

One of the biggest challenges in my life is SUCCESSFULLY melding work outside of home with work at home…

Thus, the Organizational Challenge that I am accomplishing this year…

So, as I consider both of those (work outside and work at home) full-time jobs, it’s a lot of work…And, now I am forced to add another job…The Yard!



While Hubby takes care of all of the mowing and weed eating and shares in the watering, I still put a lot of hours into watering (we have poor soil) and also have flower beds to tend to and a small garden to grow, weed, and care for…

I shouldn’t complain, as we DO NOT have a large or extravagant yard…But…

Each year, I spend quite a bit of money on flowers that die…One bed is on the West and right against the house, so it is like an oven that is constantly on broil…The other bed is on the North AND in the shade of two trees, so I struggle with getting plants to grow there as well…

On top of that, one of the trees on that side of the house has beetles that come each year and eat everything in sight…We keep trying to control them, but have never been successful in eradicating them…

Each year, it’s the stress of trial and error as far as which plants to buy and which pest controllers to use…Nothing is plain and simple maintenance…

And…

Bob Dog likes to run THROUGH the flower beds, eat plants, AND dig holes… :/ He also joys in hopping into the container gardens, eating the plants, and pulling out the dividers… :/



This causes the stress of deciding how to alleviate these issues, which kind of fencing to use (if I decide to go that route), and how to keep it from looking junky…

All of this takes a lot of time…



“Is it really worth it?”, I ask myself? “How can I streamline it, and is there anything I can cut out or am WILLING to cut out? (I tend to be an I-want-to-do-it-all person…Not always good).

And so…while my PLAN is not yet formulated, I am definitely going to MAKE one before the season fully upon me…

I am always open to other's thoughts if you have something that works for you...



Otherwise, I will stress myself out, and who needs more stress, right? ;)