The Titus 2 Homemaker

With all of this moving stuff going on, my mom came across a new (to us) source of classifieds.  It’s at Walmart.com.  If you go to their main page, and look for “classifieds” in the menu on the left, it will take you to some listings similar to Craigslist.  Whether you’re looking to buy a used bed for your baby who is graduating from the crib, sell a pair of home theater sconces you no longer need, or find a new job, you can find the appropriate type of listings here.  And, unlike Craigslist, you can search within a certain radius of a particular location.

I managed to miss the fact that Works for Me Wednesday has a special theme this week (recipes with five ingredients or fewer).  So…I am going to give you my originally-scheduled idea and a recipe.

My daughter is constantly writing letters to, and drawing pictures for, her grandma.  I didn’t want to discourage this, but we could about have funded a few luxury vacations with what we would have spent on postage to mail them all!   Well, maybe not quite, but, wow, does that postage add up!  Instead, I bought a package of manila envelopes, and we tuck her drawings and letters in there throughout the month.  At the end of each month, we can send one large envelope to Grandma’s house, which is a lot cheaper.

Now, a recipe.

CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

(I never measure this stuff; I just dump some in.)

chicken broth (from a can, or you can freeze some, or you can use water and broth powder)
cooked, shredded chicken (I freeze this, too.)
All-Purpose seasoning
whole wheat noodles (I use alphabet noodles.)
chopped carrots (I also freeze these. )

Dump it all in the pot, put it on the stove, turn on the burner, and let it cook until everything is thawed/melted and hot, and the noodles are cooked.  (You can add other stuff to this, but this is my basic recipe.)

Sorry I’ve been kind of scarce over the past few weeks.   We’ve had a lot going on, in the sense of being kept busy, but not much going, in the sense of stuff worth talking about!  Until this week.  My dad recently got a (very cool!) new job in Northern Virginia, so they are moving.  It looks like we will probably be moving with them.  I can’t really say much else at this point, just because nothing is really settled, so I have no details.  But something is happening!

Is it just me, or do clothing manufacturers/retailers seem to need a megadose of reality and common sense?  I do not get their thinking where sizing is concerned.

I tried on a pair of American Eagle Outfitters shorts at the thrift store the other day.  Size 0.  They were too big.  As in, huge.  Now, I am, admittedly, pretty small, but I have never been too small for a size 0.  And these were not just a tad too large.  So what’s up?  I think, based on my experience, and some chatter I’ve heard around the ‘net, that manufacturers are changing their size numbering so that women wear “smaller” sizes, so that big women will “feel better” about themselves.  Um, okay.  If you’re fat, you’re fat, regardless of whether the label in your shorts says 6 or 16.  If you’re big-boned, you needn’t feel bad about wearing a large size - you’re just built for that size!  (If you aren’t fat, chances are, no one thinks you are.  Except, perhaps, you.  Don’t be silly!)  And if you happen to be really small like me, this new sizing just means that they run out of numbers before they get to your size.  Manufacturers, take note: the smallest size you intend to create should not be counted as smaller than the smallest number you have available.  Duh.  (What size are we small women supposed to wear now?  Minus-two???)

And on the same basic subject, what is with lingerie/sexy swimwear manufacturers selling lingerie or swimsuits that are “one size fits all”?? Who are they kidding?  They sell plus sizes, for heavens sakes, along with extra-smalls.  It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that the same form-fitting garment will not fit a ninety-five-pound woman and a two-hundred-pound woman.  What were they thinking?!

The writer of one of the blogs I read was challenged by the author of one of her favorite blogs (who is recently widowed) to write this week about her husband.  I have chosen to take up the challenge, as well.

From the title, most of you are probably thinking I’m going to talk about Michael’s faithfulness to me.  Although he is faithful to me, that isn’t really what this post is about.

Our life, since our marriage, has been very hard.  We have suffered a good deal of persecution - not the burn-you-at-the-stake or tar-and-feather-you type, but the ostracize-you-and-refuse-you-all-friendship-fellowship-or-a-job variety - because of hard decisions we’ve made.  For the past several years, finances have been a real struggle, because principles have prevented Michael from getting a job that pays well.  It has often felt as if God has hidden us away out here in the woods to rot, and we might have appreciated some digital signage - blinking lights that spell out something to the effect of:

Rameys, go here.  Do this.  Try that.

(Bear with me; I really am going somewhere with this, and it really does have something to do with my husband!)

Despite all the hardship, I am so immensely blessed to be married to a man who is so faithful - not just to me, but to the Lord.  I am married to a man who is committed to serving the Lord Yahweh at any cost.  A brief foray through the Bible quickly shows that this is no small thing.  King Solomon was gifted with greater wisdom than any man before or after him, and tremendous riches, as well.  The Queen of Sheba didn’t even believe the reports about him, they were so amazing, and had to visit him to check it out in person.  Her conclusion?  “Blessed be Yahweh!” because He had so greatly endowed Solomon with wisdom and prosperity.  And yet, even after such tremendous blessing, Solomon did not remain faithful to Yahweh.  Instead, he was drawn into idolatry by his wives, serving Asherah, Molech, and others.

I praise the Lord that my husband is willing to endure all the “junk” we’ve dealt with over these past eight years (and particularly over the past four), to remain faithful to Yahweh and His Word!