As a family, we support many monasteries, abbeys, and convents through purchases and donations.  They pray through the work of their hands.  Whether it be baking breads, making fudge, or roasting coffee, they are in service to the Lord.  I should look at my work at home the same way.  It might be folding laundry, running the dishwasher, or making lunch, but it all should be done for the Lord.  I often forget that it is not meaningless, but meaningful.  I am even blessed enough to be the main caregiver of my beautiful boy.  As others look upon my situation, they may act as though I am wasting my talents, but every moment Linus is putting my skills to the test.  I have found places inside me and become someone I never would have imagined.  Though I still have many of the same faults, I also have grown in other ways.

Being a wife and mother are my vocations, just like the monks in the monasteries have their vocations.  By praying through my work, I am a living prayer.  My work is more closely knit to God’s will, and the little tasks are seen more vividly as blessings of time.  I do not always remember this and may get off track, but I hope to work on this aspect to become more holy in life.

-Tanya

Read more Complete
Prayer through Good Works

Everyday we watch the clock, counting down the minutes to 5:00 p.m. Friday.  Why do we wish away the precious time we have here on earth?  We so willingly let time pass by watching too much TV, playing video games, or searching the internet.  Slowing down is difficult in this world.  We are naturally put on a fast track and expected to do the unfeasible.  We are not super heroes, we cannot do superhuman things; we are lowly servants of the Lord.  Through humility we find our way home.  God does not expect great things of us, but only our hearts.  He wants us to please him as a child would his father. 

Even while I was writing this post, it got erased.  God was telling me to start again.  I had to humble myself and begin again with him working through me.  Just as I have to take time out during my day of work to nurse or comfort my toddler.  He keeps me real and taking breaks to nurse him is a blessing for my type A personality.  I am reminded of my humanity through my weaknesses.  Feeling defeated at the end of the day makes me feel worthless.  Continually I have to drive into my head that I am not Super Woman, but a wife, mother, and child of God.  My high expectations are more than he would ask of me. 

I push myself too hard and end up feeling less than a person.  My feelings get in the way of seeing time as a gift and not a curse.  In a way, I set myself up for failure.  If I plan to fail, then I will feel like a failure.  If I plan to use my time through God, then he will rejoice with me.

-Tanya

Read more Complete
Watching the Clock

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.“
-Henry David Thoreau

Ironically, this quote is what I chose to be listed under my senior picture in the high school yearbook.  I am only scraping the surface and finally discovering what this quote means for me.  The more I actively I live my life, the more deliberate it becomes.  By planning, life becomes less chaotic and more focused.  I always thought planning would make life too constricted, but the truth is, without a plan I was committing myself to failure.  There was never an end to the chores, and there was never time for what I wanted to do.  Deliberately making some type of schedule allows for flexibility and a more accomplished feeling.  I can choose to get the laundry done today, and then if there is time, do the vacuuming.  But as long as the laundry is done, I will feel like today’s work is complete.  These thoughts are what I try to tell myself now.  The nagging of chores is less overpowering when there is an end to today’s list and a new list for tomorrow.  

By living for today, I waste less time and energy worrying about the things to come.  Now, is all that matters.  I am more in control of the day and my life, instead of just following the current and letting life push me along.  This is my life, and I need to start living it.

-Tanya

Read more Complete
Life Quote

I have finally decided, splurging is good for mental health.  It has been a rough road for me to come to this conclusion.  But the important part is to plan for splurges to make them more meaningful.  By deciding what means more to you, a weekly coffee date at Starbucks, or saving for a big TV, either way the little bit of waiting will make it worth it.  Since I spend less time buying and shopping for groceries I don’t need, I save that time and money to enjoy myself at Starbucks or give back to small businesses.  I recently decided that our family snow day tradition would be donut holes from our local donut shop, The Sugar Shack.  Their prices, service, and products are better than a certain chain donut shop.  I bought a big box and froze the leftovers for future snow days, because that way it comes out a little cheaper.  We can only have them if there is no school for our town, or maybe for delays too, I haven’t decided on that yet.  If I think we will have too many leftovers at the end of the season, I will find other excuses to treat us.

Also, I have enjoyed spending my Great Harvest Bread Company gift card that my husband got me back in October as a birthday gift.  I made it last longer by finding coupons in local papers.  Buying bread from this bakery will also become a monthly tradition for our family as a wholesome treat.  I love baking my own bread, but I enjoy their bread as well and it gives me unique ideas to try at home.  I like how they give out sample slices to taste.

My family deserves to have little treats in life and I like finding a way to support local businesses and small chains in the process.  My time and money goes to more important things and hopefully will create traditions for us to enjoy in the long run.

-Tanya 

Read more Complete
Giving Back

Most of the time, I don’t see myself as a person.  I tend to treat others better than myself, which leaves me lacking in self-care and self-esteem.  Drained and exhausted, I hobble through life not really living.  Weakened, I let others define me and control my decisions.  But God is the only one in control and the best confidant.  When I turn to him, he comforts me where others just add stress.  I forget that they too are human.  I need to rely more on God and less on the emotions of others.  Being a sensitive person, I focus too much on what other people think and want of me.  They are not me, and this is not their life.  I put too much weight on how others will react to my decisions.  Simplifying my decisions to God, myself, and my immediate family will hopefully help me act more, and react less, giving me more power as an individual and person in Christ.

-Tanya

Read more Complete
Not a Person