And the winners are......

Thank you to everyone who commented and participated in my first give away! I enjoyed reading all of your comments and appreciate all of you who take time to read Housewifery. Now that you know that it doesn't hurt when you leave a comment, please keep commenting and adding your thoughts to what I post! I really do love to see what you are making or what God is teaching you!

I put everyone's name into a hat (some of you twice!) and had Evan and Addie each pull out a name.

And the winners are.....
Evan drew the name........Grandma Marian!
Addie drew the name.......Bryant!

Way to go Grandma and Bryant! I'll be sending out a towel to each of you sometime this week.

Give Away!

This is my 100th post! I can't believe I have stuck with this blog thing. I'm usually really faithful at things (exercise, discipline plans, new year's resolutions, etc.) for about a whole week and then I lose interest or come up with reasons why I shouldn't do it anymore. But blogging has been great for me! I set out wanting it to help me get organized with meal planning, keeping distant family updated on the Cooper's goings-ons, and to help me memorize scripture. It has done all of that for me and as an added bonus (and probably even more exciting for me) is that you guys share through your comments about your life. Thank you so much! I love reading what you have to say, so please keep the comments coming!

In appreciation of your readership, I would like to give away a gift to 2 lucky commenters.
These handy-dandy, hand-embroidered dish towels!


There's a few ways you can be entered in the drawing:

1. Leave a comment below about what you enjoy about this blog.

example: "I really enjoy seeing how you label each post."

Try to come up with something more exciting than that, but if that's truly what you enjoy, then.....go for it!

2. Tell a friend about Housewifery. For each person you tell, your name will be entered again. Just leave a new comment for each person you told.

example: "Enter me again! I told my sister about your blog."
or: "Hey, I'm commenting again because I just told my mom to check out your blog so she could win the dish towels for me."

3. If you are new to this blog, just leave a comment saying you are new.

example: "I'm new to your blog. Heard about it from my brother's sister's mom."

*Don't forget to leave your email so I can contact you if you are one of the lucky winners!

example: heidi at visi dot com

Entries will be accepted until midnight on Sunday, May 10th.
Sometime on Monday I will randomly pick the 2 winners. And a dish towel will be coming your way! So get your comments in!

If I don't cry, a rock will cry out!

In Luke 19, Jesus is making his triumphant entry into Jerusalem. The people begin praising God for all the miracles they had seen Jesus do. The Pharisees didn't like it and told Jesus to rebuke them. Jesus tells the Pharisees, "if they were silent, the very stones would cry out"!
In other words: God is going to be praised, if not from your lips then from the rocks and trees and rivers.
We don't determine when God can be praised. It's happening whether we participate or not. And someday, even the Pharisees and their like will worship God. Romans 14:10-12 says,

For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; ¹¹for it is written,

"As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall confess to God."

¹²So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.

I don't want to stand before God and have Him tell me that the rock in my wood chips did a better job praising him. Oh, that I wouldn't be ashamed to give You praise!

The thought for this post comes from a song written by my brother. Take a listen.

If I Don't Cry, A Rock Will Cr...

If I don't cry, a rock will cry out.
Praise will happen whether 'not you hear this man shout!
But, if I don't howl, then let it be heard,
"Foul!" from the creature, every boulder and bird.

Cry out! Cry out! Brother won't you?
Are you not affected when the Lord rides through?
Cry out! Cry out! Sister, what say?
Will the pebble beat your lips to Jesus today?

If I won't yell, well, what's there to fear?
"Hell's not a heater that you dare stand near.
If you won't wail, brother, angels still say,
'Hail to the Holy, Holy, Holy this day!'"

If you don't groan, still it should be known:
Man does not determine when the Lord's on His throne.
If you won't weep, then of you 'twill be said:
"The field stone's wiser than the rock in his head."

Mango Salsa

Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone!
In honor of my Spanish heritage (my Norwegian grandpa's name was Carlos), I thought I would post this yummy mango salsa recipe that I found over here at Good Things Catered. She has a lovely food blog that I enjoy perusing.

Mango Salsa
adapted from Good Things Catered

2 large ripened mangoes, peeled and flesh cut into 1/2 inch dice
1 small jalapeno, seeded and diced extra fine
1/2 medium red onion, diced fine
1 tomato diced
juice of 1 lime
1/4 c cilantro, chopped
sea salt

Menu Monday

Yeah! It's May! Summertime is just around the corner. Grilling season is upon us.
Here's what's cookin' this week.

curry chicken/rice/carrots
grilled Mediterranean chicken/pitas/veggies
soup/salad
spaghetti/meatballs/garlic bread (didn't get to this last week)
hamburgers/corn/fruit

Nachos Supreme

I love mexican food. I could eat it every night. This really isn't a recipe. Just set out a bunch of stuff to load up on chips and let everyone build their own.

Here's some topping ideas:

seasoned beef or chicken
cilantro-lime rice
cheese
sour cream
lettuce
salsa
beans
peppers
onions
guacamole
cilantro
avocado
tomatoes

I spy.......God!

Psalm 19:1

The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

I love looking up into the sky on a clear night and seeing the vast number of stars. It's instantly awe inspiring. It's breathtaking. No words are needed. You can stare at it for hours and not be bored. You can see the work of God in it.

God created the stars, and planets, and the moon to give light to the earth at night (Genesis 1:14-19). And they do it. They do it faithfully. They declare the glory of God night after night. They don't boast in themselves and say, "look how beautiful I am!" When I see the beautiful night sky I don't feel the need to thank the stars for being awesome, I feel the need to praise God for His handiwork in creating something beautiful! The heaven declare the glory of God. And it's done without words and it can be witnessed by all languages and cultures.
¹ The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

² Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they display knowledge.

³ There is no speech or language
where their voice is not heard.

⁴ Their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.

Not only has God created the heavens to declare His glory, he has also created us to declare His glory. The heavens are doing a pretty good job at it.

Am I?

What was I made to do? What gifts has God given me? I'm a mother and a wife. When I do my jobs rightly (i.e. help my husband, raise my kids, etc.) it should point others to God.

Also, do I recognize God's handiwork in my life, in my world around me? Am I giving glory to the created or to the Creator? For instance, when I smell the aroma of a newly opened package of coffee beans......long sniff.......eyes closed.....mmmm....! I love that smell! Is that where it stops? It shouldn't! If we truly want to give God glory in everything it should be, "Oh! Thank you God for creating the coffee plant, for causing someone to figure out they should roast it, for creating in us a sense of smell, and pleasure, and letting us enjoy it anytime we want!" Maybe not necessarily in those words, but in that moment of enjoyment are you giving God the credit for His creation? Or are you giving Dunn Bros. the credit? Or are you thinking, "Are you kidding me? You're rambling on about a coffee bean!?"

My point is this: Are you seeing God in your everyday life? Are you giving Him the credit He deserves? Do you realize how BIG God is? Or is He just for church, or when you're in trouble?

The heavens are declaring the glory of God, are you?

Lord, show Yourself to me today in everday things. May I give You the credit You deserve. Help me to see the goodness in Your creations. Thank You for rain, and sun, and green grass, and flowers, and seasons, and shelter, and family, and food, and beds, and blankets, and stars, and quiet, and music, and words, and touch, and babies, and chocolate, and friends, and tears, and love, and birds, and colors, and berries, and puppies, and neighbors, and so much more! May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight! (Psalms 19:14)