Sabbath Stories

I hope that all of you will take the time to read the comments from the post asking for Sabbath stories. So many of you had inspiring stories to share.
Several people sent me their story via e-mail, and I wanted to share a few over the next few days. Here's some of what Christine from Michigan shared with me. If you think you can't do Sabbath with small children, you need to read her story:

Hi Keri - Ever since I read your book Breathe a year ago, we have been trying to practice the Sabbath.
We do not call it Sabbath, rather family day. We spend the day going to church and Sunday School in the morning, and the rest of the day is family activities. I love asking the kids, who are now 5 and 6 years old, "What do you want to do today?" That makes them feel so special.

Some days are restful, with walks in a nearby parks and reading, other days we may go to the movies. It is our day to spend as a family, without doing projects and running around. Some weekends are hard, and we are not perfect, and we may end up having to go to the grocery store. But, we don't give up and look for another day. It is getting easier for me as a mom to do.

At first it was very difficult, as I have the worker mom personality - when I sit down, I think of everything else I should be doing, the laundry, cleaning, packing lunches, email, etc. I just need to remember the fun as a family we are having, the renewal of keeping God in the center of our lives, and the memories we are building.

The busier we get as a family, the more important it is to remember to always keep God in the center of our lives.

In your Breathe book you wrote about not having your children in every activity. This made a major impact on me. We have turned down competitive gymnastics for our kids, as they are so young. By keeping your priorities as a family in line, (family meal time and discussions, daily reading of the Bible) it helps to free up family and spiritual growth time. Now that I have reduced some kid activities, I have begun to look at my life and look to where I can cut back church and school volunteer commitments.


My kids' favorite activity on this day is go to a nearby nature park. We take a long 2 mile walk through fields and over a bridge in the woods, with adventures all the way. Finding fish off the dock, throwing stones, taking pictures, and enjoying all that God has made. It really renews your spirit and gets you ready for the upcoming week. We generally pack snacks, and on the way back we take the path by a huge hill. We all climb to the top, see how far we can see, and have a race to the bottom.


Thank you for your inspiration for you have giving me the tools and ideas to change my life to a more relaxed walk with God and with my family.

Sincerely,
Christine

Supper Swapping

Trish Berg, whose book The Great American Supper Swap I reviewed previously on this blog, will be talking about her book on TV today.
Catch her on The Harvest Show on Direct TV Channel 321 THIS TUESDAY August 7th at 9:00 am (replays 2 other times as well).

If you don’t have DirectTV, you can also watch online at www.harvest-tv.com if you wish.
Tune in if you can. Then visit Trish's website for some great tips on simplifying motherhood!

Simplifying Supper

Starting today, Fridays will feature interviews with other writers. Today, we’re part of author Trish Berg’s “Blog Tour.” She’s visiting Deep Breathing for the Soul to tell us how we can simplify our lives, save on our grocery bill and feel peaceful instead of panicky about getting dinner on the table.

Eating together is good for families, but getting a meal on the table can be a stressful chore.
Trish's new book, The Great American Supper Swap, offers practical help. It’s full of funny stories, recipes, practical tips, even prayers. You can get a copy on amazon, or if you would like an autographed copy, order from Trish’s website.
Trish is all about simplifying motherhood. She publishes a weekly newsletter on that topic, and she understands what it means to be busy! As a mom of four young kids, Trish used supper swapping to simplify life with little ones underfoot. But her ideas are easy to adapt to any life stage. If you have older children, you could have them make some of the meals. If you are single, do this with a group of friends!

So, here's our interview with Trish.

So tell us: what IS supper swapping?

Supper swapping is really a simple solution to that ever present “What’s for dinner,” question.

Supper swapping is women helping women by sharing the cooking responsibility for their families. You cook in bulk then swap meals during the workweek.

What does your supper swap group looks like?

Right now we have 3 families in our group, though I have swapped with 4 families in the past as well.

Our typical week looks like this:
Monday – Nann delivers supper to us at 5:30, hot and ready to eat.
Tuesday – Kelly delivers her meal at noon, prepared but not cooked. At supper time, I throw it in the oven and voila!
Wednesday – Our day off. We eat leftovers from Mon and Tues.
Thursday – My cooking day. I prepare my meal Wednesday evening, and deliver it Thursday around noon, prepared but not cooked.
Friday – Since we have had larger meals already, it’s easy on Fridays to make something simple like spaghetti, sandwiches or grilled burgers.

Each group can decide what constitutes a meal. We only swap one main dish and one side dish, and each family adds salad, bread or vegetables on their own to complete teach meal.

We usually plan 3 months at a time. (Print FREE meal calendars at http://www.trishberg.com/)

Why is the family meal so important to our kids?

Eating dinner together as a family opens communication, helps children to eat healthier, feel more connected to their parents, feel loved and cherished. These benefits have a lifelong impact on our children.

According to research from Columbia University, children who eat dinner with their family on a regular basis are 60% less likely to smoke cigarettes, 50% less likely to use drugs, and 66% less likely to drink alcohol. The family meal has a lifelong impact on our kids!

In your book, you also mention saving money through supper swapping.

Supper swapping can save families up to $4000 a year or more as they buy groceries more in bulk, shop with a plan wasting less food, and reduce their expenditures on fast food and pizza.

For example:

Ordering pizza or take out costs around $25 for a family of 6. If you are now ordering pizza or buying take out 3 times a week:

$25 * 3 = $75 a week
$75 * 4.5 weeks a month = $337.50 per month
$337.50 * 12 months = $4,050 per year

You could save over $4000 a year on that alone, and that’s not even counting the money you’ll save buying in bulk and shopping with a plan!

With so many other dinner options out there, why do you think supper swapping is becoming a hot trend?

Today’s families run at a fast pace unheard of 30 years ago. Usually, dinner is fast food, on the go grab bag, or relegated to pizza, take out or frozen quick fix meals. These meals are unhealthy and expensive.

Supper swapping cuts the time you spend cooking by up to 80%. For about 1-2 hours of meal preparation and 15-30 minutes or less of meal delivery one day a week, you get a week’s worth of hot, fresh, homemade dinners.

What do you hope families gain from The Great American Supper Swap?

Supper swapping can save families $4000 a year or more, reduce cooking by 80%, create a greater sense of community by adding deeper faith and friendships, and help families eat healthier food.

BUT MOST OF ALL – it gathers families around their dinner table together. That’s my mission. A return to the family meal.
For more information on The Great American Supper Swap or Trish Berg, go to http://www.trishberg.com/.

Family meals

I'm blogging on www.boomerbabesrock.com/blog today, talking about a strategy for family meals. Check it out.