Joyfully at Home: Chapter Two

Check it out.

Here is an excerpt from the second chapter in the book, Joyfully at Home, by Jasmine Bacham...

Becoming a Good Daughter to Your Mother

.....Our mama's are all less than perfect, because we're all fallible humans. There is an old saying, "Familiarity breeds contempt." Although few of us would say that we feel contempt for either of our parents, many of us are so used to concentrating on our mother's faults (on things we dislike about her, on the pet-peeves we have cultivated, on the daily annoyances we can so easily become hung up on, on the character flaws we have grown up noticing, etc.). We tend to be far less patient with our mothers than we ought to be; however, as we show forbearance and as we learn to focus, not on all the flaws we see in our mothers, but instead, on their virtues, many of us will realize that we are living with Proverbs 31 women that we have not even learned to appreciate.....

it's this girl's birthday.

Yup. Another birthday at our house! ;D

This week is definitely a party week around our place.


My sister is.....

...the biggest Lightening McQueen fan you have ever met.

....a lover of really fast rides.

....a perfect model whenever I am in the mood for a photo shoot.

...my second head....seriously, the majority of the pictures of the two of us, we are joined at the head. ;D

...my bestest friend...ever.

...my co-teacher for the classes we teach on Sunday mornings

.

....a mentor and inspiration to all...especially her young girlfriends.

Memory, Just in case you don't know already...I love you!!!

Let's eat lots of birthday cake today, okay?

it's this boy's birthday.



Brother and fiance, India



Today, this boy turns 22.
Yeah, I don't feel old enough (or is it young enough? ;D) to have a brother that is 22.
Anyways...

Have I ever told you how amazing he is? Well, he is.

Have I ever told you what great taste he has in picking out a wife? Well, he does.

Have I ever told you that he is the best "Mater" (off the movie Cars) impersonater that ever lived? Well, he is.

Have I ever told you how much I love this older-brother-man of mine? To the moon and back 20,000,000,000,000 times.

Now, for a few pics of the birthday boy....



Always being a clown.




Playing the shooting game at Bass Pro Shops.
He saw a raccoon hat for sale, grabbed it, and put it on....just randomly like that.
Hey, it might have made him play a little better....or something. ;D

  

Yup, that's my brother.



Joyfully at Home: Chapter One

Check it out!

This book is amazing. I highly recommend it.

For the next couple of weeks, please allow me to share some excerpts from the pages of this magnificent book, written by 20-something-year-old Jasmine. 

Becoming a Good Daughter for Your Heavenly Father

Before we can learn about being good daughters or good sisters--before we can talk about becoming good wives or training to be godly mothers--before we can talk about using our gifts, talents, and abilities to bless those in the amazing sphere of the home...

We have to understand that, as believers, the chief end of all of these pursuits--and of every other pursuit we could think to undertake--is the same: Man's primary purpose is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.

It doesn't take much searching to realize that, in our post-modern culture, and because of our sin-natures (Psalm 51:5), making decisions for the glory of God and not for the gratification of our flesh is not an easy task. But because we have been redeemed by the blood of Christ (2 Cor. 5:17), and because we have a flawless road map in the Word of God (2 Tim. 3:16-17), we are capable of taking the road less traveled (Matt. 7:13-14) and re-examining our presuppositions based on the wisdom of God's Word.

The book you hold in your hands only has merit insofar as it encourages you to delve deeper into the Word of God as you grow into the young woman that he has called you to be.

However, knowing where to start can be daunting. Knowing which voices to listen to in the din of conflicting opinions can be confusing! If we want to get a solid grasp on biblical womanhood, where do we start?...

Friday's Letters (#3)...

Dear Lads to Leaders/Leaderettes Convention,
Thank you for always being so great. You are a highlight to everybody's year.

Dear Nerds candy,
Thank you for being part of my Easter surprise. You, along with the Reese's eggs, were the cherry on top.

Dear Instagram,
Thank you for coming into my life. You are totally fun.

Dear Accounting test,
Thank you for letting me make a 100% on you.

Dear checkbook,
Thank you for balancing again.

Dear tax peoples,
I sure hope you are happy, because I joined all of the millions of first-timers in paying taxes this week.

Still That Girl

Will you be one of "those girls" who will help change the world?

*Scroll down and pause the playlist at the bottom of the blog...:)

I love these girls.

Just thought I'd tell you how much I love these two.

My sister.

and

Melissa.

The first time I met my sister:

The day she came home from the hospital. I was two. I couldn't hold her due to having an incredible case of the chicken pox. I bawled because I couldn't hold her. I went through torture just being allowed to look at my sister through a glass window, not being able to hold her. When I was finallly able to hold my baby sister, my two-year-old-self cried....

The first time I met Melissa:

The day I followed her blog. We had mutual friends. I was nineteen. We became friends through the bloggy world and I looked forward to the day when I could meet her in person. Fast forward a few months later...I was in a modesty fashion show with other young ladies. One of them seemed to know who I was, yet I didn't know who she was. I read her name tag....the rest is history.

Yup, I love them.

A bunch of high school grads.

Yup. And I was given the opportunity to shoot them with my camera. Hehe!

My family is part of a smaller homeschool group and there is only 5 graduates in the class of 2012. (Actually, this is a large class...my brother and I were the only graduates the years we graduated from high school!. ;)

We had tons of fun and I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for these wonderful people's future.

Do you recognize any of the graduates? One just so happens to be my sister. You know, Memory, who blogs over here. Go check out her pretty sweet blog....pretty please. :)

Anyways, here are a few shots out of the 700-something that I took...

No, seriously. I did take that many. Yeah, I was trigger happy...

Notice the antler in Shelton's pocket? Well, living in the country you could find anything while you're strolling in a lush green pasture...including a 5-point deer antler. ;) I love living in the country!...

But then one of the graduates had to leave....

So we carried on without her...

That's all folks! =)

Insta.

1. The Easter bunny came!
2. The m&m sisters...Marli and Memory
3. Cute, huh? =)
4. A Sunday afternoon photo shoot
5. Shopping with the pepper, sister, and friend
6. It was a great weekend....

Follow me: purposelyathome

What about that bikini?

A dear friend of mine shared this video with me the other day and I could not agree with it more. I wish every single young lady in the universe could watch this short 4 minute video.

Believe it or not, ladies, it is possible to find modest swimwear. You may have to spend a little bit more denero for it, but believe me, it is definitely worth it. :) There is a link on the left sidebar of my blog (it is kind of toward the bottom :) to a modest swimwear website. Or, you could use the handy dandy search engine Google and find boocoodles of sites. ;)

Just a thought before you watch this amazing video...(and I say this with love) Wouldn't you rather help your fellow Christian brothers get to heaven rather than making them sin by lusting after your body?

I pray that you will be able to make the right choice on this issue of modesty.....the choice that God would want you to make....I love you dearly and pray for the best for you....

What are your thoughts? Do you agree with Jason? Why or why not?

A beautiful bride-to-be and her cute shower.

As most of you know, my brother will be getting married on July 7th. We are beyond excited for him to be marrying her.

My brother is too cute. Every morning, he lets us know how many more days are left until his and India's big day. Like, today is 95 more days..... ;D

Anyways, our church hosted her a wedding shower a few Sundays ago. It was an all girlie's shower. So, the groom-to-be was impatiently waiting in the other building until the festivities were over to eat the leftover cake see his bride. =P

The cute lil' cake.

Great food to go around...

Mothers of the bride and groom....;D

The quilt that India's mom made for her..."Awwww!"

Riley, India's niece.

India and a college friend

Mom, Me, Mem, India, and Ashley (cousin's fiance)

"Where is she? Where is she?"

The happy couple. ;)