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Emerson Publications
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The Family First
Newsletter In this issue:
Simplifying Halloween Examining Happiness I’ve Never Seen a Coupon for a Tomato Recipe
for Italian Beef
Good morning!
It's 6:46 am as I'm putting the finishing touches on the newsletter and it is still dark outside! The air is cool and brisk this time of morning, even in Houston, Texas! Time to wrap this up and go for my morning walk.
Last week I heard a talk
about recording the evidences of God in your life.
The speaker suggested that you take time at the end
of every day to reflect the activities for that day
and then write down the thoughts that come to mind.
It doesn't have to be a long journal entry, but just
a line or two that shows you that God is not only
aware of you, but that He is an active part of your
life. The exercise allows you to uncover
answers to prayers that might have been missed.
It also allows you to reflect on the blessings in
your life.
I'd like to encourage you to take some time each day and reflect on the blessings in your life. Depending on what you're going through at this time, they might be hard to see, but if you are willing to spend the time, I know you'll find them.
Please forward this to someone who might be in need of uncovering their blessings.
P.S. Be sure to visit our sponsors!
Simplifying Halloween Has anyone else noticed that we've taken another holiday to the extreme? Houses decorated so much they look like haunted houses. Lawn ornaments that howl. Elaborate Halloween or Harvest parties. Expensive costumes that are only used a few times. Halloween cookies, cakes, pies, and graveyard pudding. 6 display aisles at Target, not including the candy. And every kind of candy is repackaged into orange foil. The expectations for Halloween or harvest time have grown unbelievably. When I was growing up, I loved Halloween. Rummaging my parent's clothes drawer to come up with a costume. None of my friend's parents put together their costumes for them and only rarely were any bought. I did have a plastic I Dream of Jeannie costume at one point. Not exactly expensive. Our decorations consisted of pumpkins we carved clumsily as a family without stencils and special pumpkin carving tools. They were ugly, but they were ours. Only a few people went all out on decorations - usually because they had fun decorating, not to win some perceived neighborhood competition. And we had fun trick-or-treating with our pillowcases (much sturdier than the new special trick or treating bags). I don't recall ever thinking, "Is this all there is?" about Halloween. Why does it need to be so much bigger now? We are busier than many of our parents were, yet many feel pressure to pull off yet another magazine perfect holiday. Here are a few tips to simplify your Halloween or Harvest season: - Put away most of your decorations or give them away. We have pumpkins, gourds, and a couple harvest candleholders out. The less decorations, the less you need to clean around them and the more space you have. If your house is already cluttered, putting out more decorations is not going to help. - Buy costumes online or let the kids rummage through your closets to make up a costume. My son wore a suit with different paraphernalia three years in a row to become a stockbroker, a spy and an FBI Agent. - Don't host a party, unless you love to host parties. This season is busy enough. - Don't drive around for hours trick or treating. Most kids get plenty of candy in the first hour or two. - You don't need to make all the different treats that are out this season. - Enjoy cider and ready made donuts (preferably from a local cider mill). - Cut pumpkins the old fashioned way. If it is warm enough - carving outside is less messy. - If you choose not to do Halloween for religious reasons, don't go overboard on creating another excessive holiday. - Ask your kids what they like about Halloween. You might be surprised. - Stay away from the horror films - no one needs those images in their heads. I don't even like the commercials. - Is it really necessary to send Halloween cards? - Stop yourself when you start feeling inferior and want to whip up a gingerbread haunted house. You are choosing to simplify your holiday. Other people may choose to stay overwhelmed. Now, I want to be clear that I am not against the fun of Halloween. I've been known to take the kids trick or treating as a gypsy and go overboard putting together a costume. Some people revel in their creativity providing their spooky atmosphere. And I say keep doing what you love! What I am against in the over commercialization of what used to be mainly a homemade holiday. Instead of buying an expensive family holiday, create and have fun together. Instead of having an excessive, huge holiday simplify and enjoy. Beth Dargis works with overwhelmed women to create saner, simpler lives. Simplify your life this year with the free Declutter Calendar: http://www.encouragingcoach.com Beth Dargis may be contacted at http://www.encouragingcoach.com or bethd@encouragingcoach.com
Would it
excite you to know that your success is very predictable?
Examining Happiness Do you know what makes you happy? This knowledge could be the most important discovery in your life. "What is happiness?" a young child asked. For a moment I was a bit taken aback. Then I thought, 'Happiness' is a really complicated sensory thing - a bit like an onion. As you peel away the outer layers, according to your experience, you expose the deeper, more intimate layers, one by one, until you get to the core - inner peace and contentment, which is the essence of happiness. Happiness has been described as beatitude, blessedness, bliss, cheerfulness, child-like innocent contentment, delight, ecstasy, felicity, being light-hearted, feeling carefree, good-humoured, fun-loving, being joyful, rapturous, merriment, tranquillity, or enjoying inner peace. I know that inner peace is a necessary prerequisite of happiness. To be happy you must accept yourself, as you are now, not yesterday, or perhaps, tomorrow. You must eliminate that carping inner voice, which is always criticising you, putting down and minimising your achievements. Do this by accepting who and where you are, right now. I believe happiness is about appreciating small things and simple experiences: the kind of things that leave lasting, enjoyable memories. Happiness is not about over-the-top, expensive, "Gee whizz!" extravaganzas. They may look great, but the happy buzz you experience; doesn't last beyond the moment. The novelty factor evaporates, like steam escaping from a kettle's spout, leaving nothing behind. For happiness, you need something to do, someone to love, and something to look forward to. Do note that: it's someone to love - not someone to love you. It's something you do for others that brings you lasting happiness. Giving love to others and knowing it's reciprocated, brings a new dimension of happiness into your life. Love is the food on which our happiness is based; yet so many people block this essential emotion, feeling that it brings unnecessary complications to their lives and makes them vulnerable. Pure love does not imply sexuality but deep, spiritual warmth that touches your soul, radiating feelings of great joy, when you share it with others. Saying the words "I Love You" is so important in all your relationships; yet how frequently do we forget to say them to those closest to us. Telling your family and friends, "I Love You," costs you nothing and brings so much joy and warmth into your life. Try it today! A wonderful friend recently sent me a card, saying, "Don't postpone joy." How wise he is. Life is not a rehearsal. There are no re-runs! You only get one opportunity to live. As my friend, says: "Don't postpone the joy." Our lives are full of joyful experiences, yet many folk don't value them as they should. So, often people put off the things that will make them happy, until they have achieved a set goal; but then - having reached that goal - there is always another reason why they cannot enjoy a state of bliss. Procrastination is a bad habit. Whatever you want to do in life, do it now - don't procrastinate and put off starting. Between your dream and the fulfilment of it, life lies waiting. The important thing about happiness is your attitude towards life. The secret is to look outwards - not inwards. It's a positive mental attitude that is a pre-requisite for happiness. It is not what happens to you, but your reaction to it that is important. You can accept what has happened and deal with it, so you can move ahead; or stay negatively stuck in the moment, in denial. Acceptance of life's challenges is vital to your happiness. There are important lessons to be learned there; buried treasure waiting to be mined. A doctor, speaking to a group of burned-out geriatric carers, told them of a person who was unable to speak, feed herself, was fully incontinent, and although usually of sunny disposition, often at night, she would scream for long periods of time. She was unable to sit up unsupported, and couldn't walk. He asked the group, "Who would be willing to care for this person?" There was a totally unenthusiastic response. He then said, "My wife and I are delighted to have this person in our household. She's our three-month-old baby daughter." This provoked a huge wave of laughter among the carers. His point was clearly made - that of attitude. The baby was regarded as a delight to care for - but the prospect of caring for a geriatric with the same needs - a burden. A positive attitude is essential to your happiness. Do you know what makes you happy? This knowledge could be the most important discovery in your life. Get a sheet of paper and list, ten things happy things from today. Start a Happy Book and write these things, every day, and look back on Blue days, when you need to find happiness.
Helen F McKay is author of "Links to your Happiness". Helen's other published books are "About Storytelling" - "Riotous Riddles" and "Gadi Mirabooka". Details of Helen McKay's latest book are at www.happinesslinks.com Helen McKay may be contacted at http://www.helenmckay.com or stories@helenmckay.com Bill Gates is the richest American, according to Forbes Magazine. If you add up the five kids who are heirs to the Sam Walton fortune, they are worth even morethan Bill. Instead of making Sam Walton's kids rich, put some of that money back in your pocket. Request more information here: http://joyce.momsmakemore.com
I’ve Never Seen a Coupon for a Tomato Today 83% of U.S. consumers clip coupons. But are we really saving money? We view coupons as a way to save. Businesses, on the other hand, view coupons as a means to increase their profit by getting more of our money away from us. So how does this work for them? The first coupon was introduced in 1894 by a druggist who wished to know what customers thought of a new product: Coca Cola. The coupon allowed consumers to sample the product for free. The following year, Post issued a coupon for their new health cereal "Grape Nuts." To this day, coupons are still frequently used to introduce new products or "improved products to consumers. They are also used to introduce existing products to new customers, enticing those customers away from brand loyalty to a rival company's comparable product. If you go through the coupon section of your Sunday paper, you will notice how most coupons are issued for highly processed food products. Many of the coupons are even for rather bizarre products with low nutritional value, like sugary cereals. You may be thinking as you leaf through the ads, "Only $1.99 for a 13oz bag of potato chips, that's excellent!" Well, that is excellent if you are only comparing potato chips to each other, but compare that to what $1.99 would buy in unprocessed potatoes - about ten pounds - 20 servings, and more than twelve times the weight in chips - and you will see another way that food companies are making profit and digging deeper into your pockets. There is more profit for them to use only one twelfth of the potatoes, process them, and market them to you than it does for them to sell you a potato. Coupon production and redemption, advertizing, product development, processing, packaging, and distribution of products, however, do cost manufacturers money, and they will most certainly pass on their expenses to the consumer. Generic products which do not have coupons, advertise as heavily, are not continually "improved" by the company selling them, and have simpler packaging, are often identical to brand names and come off the same assembly line, but cost less because the company I not spending as much to bring it to market. They make their profit by offering their products at a lower price. Does this mean you should avoid using all coupons? No. But in most cases there will be significantly cheaper alternatives for you in whole foods and generic products than using brand name products with their coupons. Use unprocessed foods as much as possible, and keep a price book to compare prices for everything, and you will soon win the food budget game and be amazed at how your food costs go down. In your own diet you may find that there are particular processed products that you like to use, and these are the ones to look for coupons, but don't forget to compare the brand name + coupon price to a generic version.
Social network users, click for myspace comments such as compliments, cool comments, love, flirty, birthday, holidays, religion, funny, cute, etc. You can also use myspace graphics in topics like birthday graphics, comment graphics, holidays, daily fun, love, expressions and friendship. If you love glitter graphics, click glitter graphics to send to your friends and add to your profile.
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Italian Beef The great
thing about this recipe, besides the
taste, is that you can do all the
preparation ahead of time and put it in
the freezer. Just pull it out the
night before you need it, and put it in
the crock pot. 4 lb
Chuck Roast Support Family First
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