A Woman's Place

A Woman's Place is in the House...and in the Senate.
As we celebrate Women's History month, did you know that Kansas is the only state to have a woman governor, senator and representative at the same time? (Joan Finney, Nancy Landon Kassebaum, and I can't remember who was in the House of Representatives--does anyone know?) Women have made an impact not only in our state, but everywhere. Think of the women who have influenced your life--they may not have been famous, but they left their mark on your corner of the world.
We can all point to a special woman who helped us develop a character trait, spiritual insight, work habit, or skill set that has enriched our life and in turn, the lives of others. My mother was the oldest of six and helped take care of the others plus worked and attended college part-time in Missouri. Her dream was to attend Kansas State University, to major in Home Economics. It took her 9 years of saving money, but she did it! Due to this, I definitely viewed attending college as a priviledge with the responsibility to learn and make the most of the opportunity. (I had plenty of fun,too!) My mom taught me perserverence and optimism. She taught me practical skills that have saved me and my family tons of money over the years--how to sew my own clothes, mend, cook and preserve food. (I have fond memories of stemming strawberries or blackberries to freeze while watching The Johnny Carson Show and actually, I only learned how to bake--I was usually helping my Dad with farm work so didn't help in the kitchen much!)I learned how to garden, refinish furniture, paint rooms and houses. My Mom also taught me that faith was very important and that Jesus loved me. She worked with my sister and our friends in Girl Scouts, 4-H, and church and I was impressed by how much she wanted to help other kids achieve--something that I care about also. My Aunt Sue modeled hospitality and is the person I know who best exemplifies being the hands and feet of Jesus in her service to others. I can think of teachers who taught me about self-discipline and to aim for excellence. Some of the women who impacted my world (and still do) are real life women I read about. My heroes(heroines?) are women who, through their faith in God, kept their families and others going in tough times. (See the Caring for Kids and Others blog for more)
Leaving a Legacy
What will we be remembered for? What impact are we having on the lives of others--in our home? In our community? (Dream big-- we can impact our country and world, too!) I have pretty quilts and recipes from my grandmothers, flowers from my Mom and aunt, but memories of their faith and forbearance are of most value to me. I often wonder what am I modeling for my children and others?
It all begins at home --what do we model? Do we do our tasks at home with excellence and work hard? Do we show our appreciation for what God has given us by taking good care of it?(Stewardship) Do we complete our tasks in a timely manner?(the laundry is my downfall) Do we handle life's frustrations with patience and good humor? The tough thing about being a Mom or even a Christian is that we know what behaviors/traits we'd like to see in our kids and others, but we also know that we fall pretty short of the mark ourselves. Sigh.
This is when we get to model honesty, making a Plan B, laughing at goof-ups, apologizing and asking for forgiveness. Just for starters--do your kids see you reading your Bible, praying, organizing your day, learning and trying new things? We have to walk the talk , or we'll be a "Do as I say, not what I do" kind of person, which is not a legacy we want to leave!

On the Home front...time for a Spring Fling!
One of the things we can model in our home is order and peace. Make room for the things that matter and improve your life by getting rid of those that don't.
Give Me Five
This idea comes from the book, The Art Of Home, by Hannah Keeley. Grab a trash bag and throw 5 things away everyday. ( Establilsh a give away bag, as well) If you get everyone in the family doing this, you can de-clutter a lot over several weeks. You can require everyone to do this little exercise and even offer small incentives...be sure to check kids' throw away bags and make it clear that they can only bag up their own stuff, not someone else's! Teach your kids that stuff is only stuff and God doesn't want us to love stuff more than Him. Some things are important and need to be taken care of, such as family memory pieces or equipment. Getting rid of stuff also teaches us that stuff can't make us happy and actually can make us unhappy when we have to pay for it, clean it, and store it. Let It Go!
See some Spring Break/Spring Cleaning ideas inthe Kids and Others Blog.

On the financial front
(Did you know the first woman cabinet member was Francis Perkins, Secretary of the Treasury for Franklin D.Roosevelt, from Kansas?) As I was de-cluttering, I was purely disgusted with myself for the money I had spent on knickknacks, magazines,and other things that I'm now getting rid of. Slap my hands if you see me near anything like that. Notice I left out books. Books are my addiction. I have been donating many, but have a gazillion still. (I do read them again, andmany are children's books I enjoy reading to young visitors) Even when I buy them at library sales, too many is too many! When you de-clutter, make note of what your spending downfalls are and try to steer clear in the future.
The Power of Women
If you go to Flylady.com, look for last March in the Archives. They had a challenge for women to pay an extra $16 off their credit card bills. Their goal was to pay off about 2 million. When the month was over, an amazing $9 million of debt had been paid--wow! Setting financial goals is important and even small amouunts paid to retire debt or to save can make a big difference.

A Woman's words to remember...
These words from Martha Washington are on a large poster hanging on one of our high school teacher's classroom door--they provide a good lesson for all of us.

"I am determined to be cheerful and happy, in whatever situation I may be; for I have learned from experience that a greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances."

(This is the equivalent to the apostle Paul's statement that he had learned to be content in whatever circumstances he was in--even in jail for preaching about Christ. And one of my favorite bible verses urges us to..." be content with such things as you have for He himself has said, "I will never leave you, nor forsake You.")