Maybe I Don't Hate The Beach

We just returned from a few days of visiting Jim's mom and brother at the beach. It was such a good trip! I've always hated the beach, but after this visit, I don't hate it as much as I used to. In fact this time around I mostly enjoyed it (except for sunscreen and sand residue).

I sat on the shore holding Nehemiah and watching the others play in the sand and ocean. I looked out into the vastness of God's creation and for the first time in years I felt a calm and a peace that I haven't felt in years! The song "Oceans" by Hillsong came into my mind. I love this song and looking out at the endless sea the metaphor of that song overtook me. I have lived in those moments of life when the depths of life have overwhelmed me and all I had was my Savior, Jesus, to pull me out of those depths. I was ready to swim it, to go into the ocean where my feet could not touch and feel the depth of God's love for me and the power of His hand in a different sense. At that moment I could have done anything because I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that my God was with me.

And God is still with me, even though life is not in that moment where the water is swirling over my head and I'm waiting for Him to pull me out. But how easy it is to forget. I hope in those moments when I allow the sea around me to overtake my thoughts that I will remember that moment of calm when I felt completely at peace. My Prince of Peace, I need you to fill me!

I have enjoyed the beauty of the beach before, but this time was different. I would still prefer the mountains to the beach for just a vacation, but now I would like to go back to the beach more frequently than I have to be reminded once again of the beauty and grace that comes when we allow God to take us into the deep waters of life where we are reminded all we have is Him and He is enough.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JIM! (Year 33)

Today Jim is 33! It's been a crazy and busy year in our home. It's been such a joy to see Jim grow as a husband and father this year as it's also another year growing in the Lord. Jim has been working hard on day shift for a year now and learning how to balance work and family on a "regular" schedule as well as taking classes to finish his M.Div. It's been a great year of learning for all of us and God has been so gracious in giving us exactly what we need to grow together in Him and to grow Jim as the God-given leader of our family. God has so blessed our family with Jim!

As our family grows Jim is stepping up in leadership and help. I'm so thankful for the man God is growing Jim into. As he learns he teaches us, especially the kids. He loves to play and wrestle with the kids and wants them to know the love of Jesus. What more could you ask for in a dad!

This year was special as just before Jim's birthday we were able to visit Jim's mom. What a special birthday gift for Jim this year! God continues to bless and give.

Thank You, Father, for Jim and how you have blessed him and blessed our family with him. Please continue to grow him in the image and likeness of Jesus. Thank You for giving him a humble and teachable spirit. Thank You for Your continual grace. Please continue to give!

Product Spotlight #4

Getting back to my Top 10 List, I want to share the Envirocloth (p.6) with you today.

The EnviroCloth is great! It is the most versatile cleaning product I have ever used and works wonders on such a variety of surfaces anywhere from the kitchen to the bathroom to the car. Being able to clean with just the cloth and water is wonderful. Don't have to worry about using harmful chemicals and it works great. An added bonus is being able to hand it to the kids and let them go clean without worrying about them using the cleaning products. The Envirocloth has changed the way we clean and has made us more inclined to clean!

I'm also a huge fan because being pregnant often has hindered how much I can clean since most cleaners are not safe for women who are pregnant to use or inhale. I would have to ask others to help and stay clear of the rooms they were cleaning. Now it's not a problem (except for the baby being in the way :) ) I can pick up an Envirocloth, wet it and clean quickly and easily in very little time.

What do you need to clean quickly and easily?

Please Contact me with any questions
Emmie Manor Independent Norwex Consultant
Emmie.reducingchemicals@gmail.com
www.emmiemanor.norwex.biz
Catalog (p. 6)

Little House in the Big Woods

This book is part of our Core A curriculum from Sonlight. The kids really seemed to enjoy this book. They enjoyed the stories and adventures of their Pa and Grandpa. I liked it OK. It's not my favorite, but it was interesting learning more about how people lived back then. I would love to learn some of the skills they use. I also appreciated the Biblical lessons that you can teach from the things that the family goes through.

One of the hard parts with this book was the variation in the chapter lengths. Some drug on a little with detail. There was also a lot of legalistic moralism which is challenging.

I give 3 stars to this book.

Large Family Logistics

A friend from book club recommended this book and seeing that I have a large family, I wanted to give it a read. Thank you to Jo for letting me borrow it!

As a whole, I really enjoyed this book. The beginning is very good and is a great look at the Proverbs 31 woman. Part 1 is about the spiritual elements of keeping a home which I really appreciated. Part 2 was more practical and everyday implementation of homemaking concepts. My family has become very large very quickly, so some of what she had so say was a bit overwhelming. Her kids were spaced out a bit more so some of the systems for me were hard to interpret. But I do think she had great ideas if you are able to take general ideas and personalize them. I hope to use this to grow in that.

I also had some difficulty with some interpretations of ideas. It's not that I think she is wrong per se, but sometimes circumstances don't always fall in cut and dry lines.

I do think this book could be very beneficial for all homemakers whether you're single or have 50 kids. I would recommend this book to anyone.

4.5 stars for this book

Product Spotlight #3

Today I'm taking a pause from my Top 10 list to share about the Norwex Car Wash Mitt (p. 57). This is a two-sided mitt that dose a great job of picking up up dirt and grime

Our family recently got to try out the Car Wash Mitt washing our 12 passenger van and it did a great job! We did not have access to a hose so no pre-rinse like Norwex recommends, and it still cleaned the entire van with one rinse of the mitt during it. I love it!

Jim says:
The car mitt works great and is very easy to use. When we used it, it washed the dirt and road grime off with such ease, even when our 6 year old daughter was using it! It worked wonderfully. I would recommend getting the car cloth to use with it to help keep water spots from forming after you wash your car.  It was great being able to wash the car with just the mitt and water, didn't have to mess with soap or rinsing the car off after we scrubbed it down. Have to love being able to do it all in basically one step!

Do you have a guy in your life that loves washing his car? This is a great month to gift him with a great set of car cleaning equipment!


Please Contact me with any questions
Emmie Manor Independent Norwex Consultant
Emmie.reducingchemicals@gmail.com
www.emmiemanor.norwex.biz
Catalog (p. 57)

Product Spotlight #2

Today I want to share my #2 from my Top 10 Norwex List, the X-Large Bath Towel (p. 53).

This towel is amazing and has been such a blessing to me. I hate feeling wet or damp. One of the things I hate with exiting the shower is not really being able to get dry. With the Norwex X-Large Bath Towel I can get my body dry! No more clothes sticking to my skin or skin drying out from air drying! I actually feel clean when I leave the shower now!

Between the Body Pack and the Bath Towel, showers have completely changed for me. I cannot recommend them enough!

Jim also loves the Bath towel. He says:

"I absolutely love the towel. It is so soft, absorbent, and it dries off very efficiently. It is thin, which is great for storing it, but unlike most thin towels I have used it is still soft and works wonderfully. It is easily one of my favorite products and I highly recommend it!"

What's even better? This month Norwex has a special on the Body Pack and X-Large Towel! Now is the time to get these products and see how wonderful they really are!

Have you tried the bath towel? What are you're impressions? How does it compare to other towels?


Please Contact me with any questions
Emmie Manor Independent Norwex Consultant
Emmie.reducingchemicals@gmail.com
www.emmiemanor.norwex.biz
Catalog (p. 53)