SRKindredSpirits

Let's just say you have five special dishes from Aunt Susie, five from Great Aunt Betty, and five from Aunt Helen. You have four from Great-Grandma Judith, and two from your next door neighbor. Your mom gave you three, and your sister gave you three more. Now you very seldom use any of those dishes but you can't get rid of them because they are all special, (and what if your sister came to visit and didn't see the dishes she gave you?) , so you have them stacked all together, with all the other dishes in the China hutch - that you seldom use.  But, you are now holding onto 5 + 5 + 5 + 4 + 2 + 3 + 3 = 27 dishes. Maybe each of the dishes are unique in its own way - it might be a special color, or a special pattern, or maybe it has a special memory of Aunt Suzie serving mashed potatoes in that dish..... but here's the thing -  do you really use, and love, and have special memories of all 27 dishes?  You see, when you have 27 special dishes it's really

Our first sofa set we had for 7 years (We actually still have the original love seat, now 11 yrs old in my office.) but 3 years ago we bought a new furniture set.... but after only 3 years our newest set was shot. Actually it was shot after 2 years, it just took us another year to finally do something about it. It was awful to sit on... it felt like you had lumps in your butt and I was embarrassed to have company over. Let me insert here that the hubby and I have always liked the idea of buying a cheap sofa set, use it for 5-7 years and get a new set.... because we have kids who make messes and I like to change my decor and get tired of the same items of furniture. So, that is and has been our plan. We were rather disappointed that after only 3 years we'd have to buy new sofas, but I started researching sofa's online. However, after all the researching, we were worried that we'd sink another $2500 in sofas, only to have them not hold up as well. We real

Happy Easter from the Kindreds.... Easter 2018 I have always loved our great big fireplace since the first day I laid eyes on it. We try to take a family picture in front of it every Easter and Christmas. Some years, we forget, but I thought I'd post our family pictures with all the kids from years past....  So, here's a trip down memory lane.... Easter 2017 2016 2015 Easter 2014 Easter 2013 Easter 2012 Easter 2011 Easter 2010

For those of you who don't know, my daughter, Faith is an amazing writer and is extremely gifted at putting her words down on paper.... so she's guest posting on the blog today.  I love taking personality tests and seeing how people are different by their own types. I  am an introvert and extrovert myself and agree completely with 1 and 2. However, number 5 is completely not me... isn't it interesting how God made each of us uniquely different? Here's what Faith has to say about what introverts want us to know.... As an introvert myself, I really value my alone time. It’s a time to unwind, be myself, and do stupid things without having to worry if anyone’s watching. It’s my “happy place”, my recharge, and I depend on it to get me through life’s hectic situations. Sure, I like spending time with friends, going shopping, and eating out, but honestly, I like my solitude even more. When I try to explain this to certain people, they often don’t get i

I'm not super big into birthdays, but every year, I let my kids pick the birthday supper menu -complete with homemade ice cream, and the cake flavor and design of their choice. I then try my hardest to make the cake exactly what they want. This year my youngest daughter wanted a "cat" cake, so here's what I came up with.... How To Make A Cat Cake . Start with 1, cooled, 9x13 cake. (I only use and love USA pans for my cakes, no spraying, no flour, no sticking..... USA pans are the best!) Cut the cake in half and use a knife to level off both halves. Then stack the halves with icing in the middle to keep them together. Do not icing to the edge. Put the cake into the freezer for 20 min. Then, remove from freezer and start shaping the cake.... Cut the back so that it's rounded, and cut a small half circle out of the front. Save all your pieces of cake. Also, cut a dip out for the cats shoulders, and used the extra pieces to put together t

We took our 7 yr old and 10 yr old to a viewing for the first time today. We explained what to expect before we got there, dressed them in their Sunday best, and went through the line. But when it came time to view and walk by the casket, we let them sit with family instead of going up to it.  I'm a grown-up and I still hate walking by an open casket. (And I used to work at a cemetery doing funerals and filling the grave sites!)   There's always been a debate about whether or not kids should go to viewings and funerals. My hubby and I have lost 6 grandparents between us: four since we've been married. Our oldest daughter was age 9 -14, and we gave her the choice if she wanted to go or not. Our special needs son and youngest was ages 2-7, so we have always had someone watch them. I always figured that they were too young to really understand, and I don't regret waiting until they were older. At one viewing, this pastor came in with four of his grand kids; a

Trade Your Cares for Calm By: Max Lucado I loved this little book! The size, the design, the words.... it did not disappoint! If you’re trembling on a tightrope of fear and worry, get ready for the best trade ever: your cares for God’s calm. What if faith, not fear, could be your default reaction to circumstances? Imagine being able to walk away from worry, conquer the need to control, get rid of guilt, and end if-only thinking. That’s God’s offer. He wants to exchange your burdens for an abundance of mercy, gratitude, and trust. To replace striving and stress with a faith-filled life in which you’ll see God’s goodness, feel calm in chaos, and find peace through prayer. Author Max Lucado understands what it’s like to feel overwhelmed by anxiety. Through unforgettable stories and biblical wisdom, he offers powerful tools and scripture to help you manage your fears and worries and give our cares and anxiety to God. Disclosure: I received this book free fro

Here's our bedroom before we started decluttering.... I never thought of us as being packrats or having a cluttered home until we started going through our house room by room and getting rid of stuff. ... Here's some ideas to help you unclutter your bedroom and make it a beautiful, relaxing space. Closets - clean them out! Get rid of all the clothes , shoes, purses, scarfs, and anything else you don't use reguarly or items that you have more than enough. Get rid of all the fake plants, they only collect dust. I'd like to add a few more live plants in here. Wall decor - less is more! For example: In our room we have four wall decor items. One is a picure fame with our  wedding photo , an old window frame from my Grandpa that I decorated, an old windmill blade and my jewelry holder which I made.  We do have a mirror hanging on the back of the of the bedroom door. Decor items, shelves, display cabinets - get rid of at least 75% of the

It's a brand new year, so how about starting it off right with a simple closet challenge. It's common knowledge that with very few exceptions, it's likely that clothing you haven't worn in three to six months is clothing you will not wear again. It could be donated and used by someone who needs it. Often, we have good intentions on getting rid of clothes that we don't wear, but very seldom do we follow through with the idea. There is usually something that keeps us from completing the task... we don't have time, someday we might fit into them, they remind us about a memory or special time in our past, we don't know where to start, we think we'll do it later..... etc. If you find it hard to let go of clothing even when you never wear it, this is for You!  Take all of your clothes that are on hangers and put them in the closet backward, so that the open end of each hanger now faces you. Set a calendar reminder for three months from no

Stop trying to be something your not! This could be considered useful advise for just about anything.... b ut, today I'm talking about exercising. This time of year you hear of people making New Year Resolutions and the top one for many people is to lose weight. Now I'm not saying weight loss or exercising is bad. What I'm saying is if you have to be something that's not true to who you are to achieve it.... it's simple not worth it! I'm all for losing weight (You can see my getting healthy story here ), exercising, eating healthy , becoming fit, being happy,and changing into the person who you want to be... just don't go about it the wrong way! Let me explain what I mean.... I have always been short (5ft.). As a kid, I hated walking with my mom and sister, because they could walk circles around me... ( short legs don't go fast) . When I was 12, I was ran over with a produce wagon and have had many leg problems since. I have str

Be A Blessing.... Often when someone is in the hospital we want to help, but rarely do we know what to do.... may I suggest a snack basket. Ideas for a snack basket:  Fresh fruit with a pairing knife Plastic silverware, napkins, and paper plates  sweets - candy, cupcakes, trail mix salty - nuts, chips, crackers, popcorn, combos meal/snack bars  cheese sticks  fruit snacks or died fruit bottles of water or other drinks  pudding cups, jello  bread, miracle whip (packets), lunch meat, cheese and chips to make sandwiches  My mom and my mother in law, both brought us in snacks and it made such a difference. Another thing is offer to stop and pick up a meal or a burger and fries, or shake. A pizza tastes better than hospital food any day. We also appreciated an extra $10 or $20 that was gifted to use to use for food or things we needed while we were at the hospital.  I was lucky that there was a hospital across the road that had a nice salad buffet

2017 Year In Review: January - Jekyll Island, Georgia vacation February - finished painting interior trim and doors throughout the house. March - Rhoda 1st. surgery May - Faith high school graduation          -wyatt surgery in hospital stay June - Wyatt 2nd. surgery/ hospital stay July - Wyatt home from the hospital and infusions at home for 3 weeks August - Rhoda 2nd. surgery and 3rd. emergency surgery September - visited College of the Ozarks and the St Louis Arch in Missouri October - Hocking Hills Ohio trip December - Blessed with a new Church family and friends. Stephen - still working at the glass plant and stays busy keeping things looking good around our little farm. Rhoda - busy with our Shaklee business , homeschooling , and being wife, and Mama. ~ Married 12.2 years ~ More in love now than ever! Rented a cabin in  Hocking Hills, Ohio  for our anniversary and enjoyed hiking the rim and gorge trails. We enjoyed the hot tub and the alone

I have many, happy, childhood memories of Christmas caroling.  When I was a kid, we used to go caroling with our church and with my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, every year.  It was a family tradition.   We would all bring cookies and candies, and put together cookie plates to give to those that we went caroling to.  After the plates were made and we all had our caroling books, we would pile into cars and drive to the people's place's that we were caroling for. I loved riding in Grandpa's car or with my best friend Carla.  Growing up in a conservative family, we did not decorate for Christmas or have a Christmas tree. So, as a kid, I loved seeing all the Christmas lights and decorations in the people's homes we visited.  My favorite place to go caroling was our old neighbor lady Adell's house. She doted on us kids and would pass out candy and I loved her C hristmas lights and her singing Santa doll.  After caroling, we all c

I am a christian.... but I haven't been to church regularly for over five years... and it's been over twelve years since I've had a church where I felt loved, needed, and a part of. I used to help on buses, be a nursery worker, do bulletin boards, decorate the church, help with Ladies meetings and loved singing special music. The reason is NOT for a lack of wanting or trying to find a good church. On the contrary... we have visited a lot of churches over the years always hoping we'd find what we were looking for, but always coming up short. My biggest issue with finding a church after what it believes and preaches, is that there are people there that want the same as me in life. Some of my needs in no particular order: (This may be a good time to point out I am conservative and like things rather old fashion.)  Independent, Fundamental, KJV Baptist Church  Home-schoolers - wanting to raise their kids for the Lord  People dress up for church