My New Home

Head on over to my new location: allthingsholdtogether.com.

I'll see you there!

And, please, update your bookmarks.

Where Have I Been All Day?

I have been trying to set up my new web host server!

I am moving over to AllThingsHoldTogether.com. (You do not need to type the caps.)

I am still working on it, but all of the content from here is over there, except this post.

What's better, I was able to import all of the posts from my old homeschool blog, Crafty Mama's Homeschool, and my old crafting blog, Crafty Mama.

Now my blog accurately reflects that I have been blogging since Feb 2006, and I have all of my posts in one place. I still get hits on those two old blogs from Google searches, so I wanted to include them.

Template Change Time

I updated my template. It's time to say goodbye to Christmas decorations this weekend. I wanted to do a winter theme, but I decided to go season-neutral. I am not sure how I feel about it yet.

Update: 01/01/2008 - I changed the template again. This one I do like.

Checking In

Sorry for the lack of posts this week. I have been feeling really run down. I also have been busy working on something special that I plan to unveil next week when I announce the bloggy giveaway that I am doing for Fall Y'all.

I am hoping to get some posts up later today, and then blog regularly.

Thanks for stopping by!

Fall Y'all!

Have you heard about the Fall Y'all bloggy giveaway being hosted by Rocks in My Dryer the week of October 29?

Be sure to check back here then to see what I am giving away!

And don't forget to go there for links to lots and lots of bloggy giveaways, y'all.

Just Checking In

Updated!

I didn't do a Frugal Fridays post this week - even though I had one all planned out - because I am feeling like my head is going to explode. (And the little boys playing with action figures and making VERY LOUD sound effects right next to me are not helping.)

Still, you should check out the other Frugal Fridays posts and Crystal's yummy sounding recipe. (I am going to make this to try as a yogurt topping.)

Updated: Man this is how out of it I am. This is the link to this week's Frugal Fridays. The link above, with the granola recipe, is an old one. The link came from another blog (In a Shoe I think) and was mentioned in a collection of recipe links. Okay, sometimes when I read from my Google Reader, I am not paying attention, I guess. Hopefully it is just the cold. Okay, now I am going to lie down!

Coming up on ATHT:
A post about how I do menu planning and shopping (this is half done).
A review of "The Story of the World."
A post about our new mice.
A post about our friends that moved to Seattle and the amazing things God is doing in their lives.

As you can see, I have a lot to post about, so hopefully I will feel better soon!

So Much to Post, So Little Ability to Sit Upright

I have so much that I want to blog about, but I have a head cold and I have exceeded the amount of time that I can sit upright without the pressure buildup being intolerable.

Hopefully, I will get a chance to post later.

I was wondering, though, how do you like the shortened posts on the front page, with the link to full post? Is that a pain, or does it make finding things that interest you easier? Or does it make no difference?

I would love to know.

Have a blessed day!
But then, isn't that redundant? Every day is a blessing! :-)

Template Tweak

I added some code to my blog template to make it so that I can show only part of the post here and the reader has to click on the link to read the full post.

(Read full post)

Sometimes I write long posts about things that some people might not care about.

Like if someone stops by to check out my homeschooling posts, that person might not want to read my faith posts.

Also, if someone wants to just check in once and a while, it will be nice for that reader to be able to just scan the posts and just read the ones of interest.

This is basically a test post to see how it works.

Here goes.

Previously on "All Things Hold Together"...

Laura at Writing Thoughts tagged me with a meme. One of the rules is to link to the blog post that originated the meme. What a cool idea! It was neat to see how this meme came to be.

The point of this meme is to list ten or fewer posts that give the reader the gist of what the blog is about. Sort of like the re-cap at the beginning of a TV show.

What great timing! I was just thinking about where I am going with this blog, and the fact that I need to write some sort of "mission statement" to keep me focused. So, here goes.

All Things Hold Together is, first and foremost, my personal space. This is the place I come to talk about what is going on with me, like in this post, Friday Photo-blogging (which is not a wordless photo-post). I usually post these under "My Things."

This is also my place to post about my family, like our trip to the Ben & Jerry's factory or the squirrel that visits our porch (and a funny thing Little E said about it). These posts are filed under "Our Family Things."

This is also a homeschooling blog, since that is an inextricable part of our lives. Under the category "Homeschooling Things," you will find my own thoughts and struggles around homeschooling (Being a Good Homeschooler), posts about things we do in our homeschool (Homeschool Biology Class), posts wherein I share homeschooling links I think others might enjoy (Free Ed Stuff), and my reviews of curriculum we have used (Curriculum Review: Saxon Math 2 and 3).

Since I love to cook, I also love to share my recipes and tips with my readers, such as this recipe for Homemade Granola Bars. You'll find those under "Cooking Things."

Another part of what I want to do with this blog is to share some of my other homemaking and frugal living tips. I have been trying to participate in Works-for-me Wednesday and Frugal Friday, and hope to make that a regular thing.

And being a crafty mama, I also want to share some of my "Crafty Things," though up to now, I have only done this one about a Nice, But Easy Gift Craft.

As you can see, there are a lot of things in my life and this blog is where I like to share all of those things. But it is not this blog that holds them all together. No, it is my faith in the Lord that holds all of these things together. "He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." -Colossians 1:17

That is why the last, but not least, thing I want to share in this list of posts is one from my "Faith Things," called, "Walking By Faith."

So, that is what this blog is all about. Thank you for stopping by and I hope you will again.

Oh, I almost forgot. I have to tag five people and tell them the meme rules.

1. Please try to limit your post to 10 items or less
2. Tag 5 people
   
3. Take your time. Do some digging in the archives and find the perfect ones.
4. Please link to the post that you were tagged in (that would be this one you are reading) and to the post where the meme originated (this one).
   
5. The people you tag, please let them know, so the meme can keep going.
   

I am going to tag some blogs I recently started reading and don't know much about yet: Rocks in My Dryer, Life From My Laptop, Consent of the Governed, and "Bizzy" House with Peaceful Hearts.

I am also tagging Dana at Principled Discovery because if it wasn't for her having Laura Spencer guest post on her blog, I wouldn't have found Laura's blog to get tagged there.

And if you haven't seen Laura's guests posts on Principled Discovery about earning money though freelance writing (I and II), I highly recommend you do. (If you're into that sort of thing.)

Blogs, Blogs, Blogs

I added a few more blogs to the blog roll.

First up, Venomous Kate's softer side, I Think Therefore I Blog, is under Homeschool Blogroll, although I am not sure whether it belongs there because I haven't been reading it long.

Homeschool Hacks is also new under HS Blogroll. PHAT Mommy says that the next Carnival of Homeschooling will be there.

Speaking of PHAT Mommy, she is also in the blog roll now under "Other Blogs I Read Regularly." I decided to put it there instead of under HS blogs, but don't ask me why. I don't really have a reason. Probably because Homeschool Hacks is her HS blog.

Last, but not least, I added O'Donnell Web. I do not know why I didn't add that sooner, since it is one of my favorite blogs. Chris reminds me of my husband, with all the Linux geekiness posts.

That blog is also under "Other" instead of HS blogs because, as the header says, "This is not a homeschooling blog" - even though my bookmark clearly says, "O'DonnellWeb: Homeschooling/Baseball/Techno..."

Happy reading!

New Template, Again

After days of re-designing template after template with my own graphics and special touches, only to decide that it wasn't quite right, I have my new template.

I like it, but I am not the one reading, so if you actually visit the blog, let me know how you like it.

U Comment, I Follow

I decided to turn off the "no follow" feature in my comments, so that - if I did it right - when you leave a comment, your link will get picked up by the powers that be on the internets.

This is some sort of movement, I guess. You can read about it here.

I don't really do much in the way of traffic generation for this site, but I know some people live and die by those numbers, so I figured I would do my part to show them love.

New Template

I'm not sure how I like it, but I don't think I could go back to my old one after this. It looks too bland to me now.

Let me know what you think.

Links Added to Side Bar

I finally added some blogs to the "Other Blogs I Read" area of my side bar.

I find Dave Barry's blog to be very funny. It is definitely geared toward a certain type of sense of humor, though. I especially liked his "24" updates, when that show was on.

I also added Electric Venom. I've been reading this blog daily for a while now. Even though Venomous Kate homeschools, I decided not to add it to my homeschool blog roll because the blog is not so much about homeschooling.

And finally, Bible Girl - the religion column from the Dallas Observer blog.

The current column answers the question: "Does God really care about our sex lives?" And answers it well.

Here's a taste:

Sexual sins, Paul teaches, are uniquely damaging to the human soul. They pollute the core of our being as men and women created in God’s image. God takes sexual sin so seriously concerning his people, his Bride, that we are not even to eat with those who call themselves believers in Jesus Christ but engage in sexual immorality. Those plainly outside the church, however, we are not to judge.

And I love this line, just because it is so in-your-face and sarcastic: If you ignore God’s standard for sexual purity, I’ll ignore your claim that you’re a Christian. Deal?

It's kind of an eclectic mix, but I kind of have eclectic tastes. So there you have it.

New Categories

I have a half-dozen posts I want to do, but since I am not feeling very motivated right now, I decided it would be more fun to play with my blog. I am going to try to do something a little more creative with my categories.

Since my blog is called, "All things Hold Together," my new categories are all "Things."

I know; it's not the most incredibly creative thing in the world, but it will have to do.

I will also have "Cooking Things" and "Crafty Things" just as soon as I actually get some crafty or cooking posts up. I might have a "Homemaking Things" category too, but I am not sure that I will actually ever post that type of stuff. We shall see.

Blog Note

I am not sure if I will have a chance to write any in-depth posts this week. I am completely restructuring our homeschool approach. It is going to take me hours and hours of planning work (which I am supposed to be starting right now!) and the kids are probably going to need a lot of help getting used to our new approach because it is going to require a lot more from them.

I will definitely post more details about this because I have a feeling that it will be one of the defining moments in our homeschooling/parenting experience. One that I will want to share with others.

I will probably be posting lightly the rest of the week.

I was hoping to start the new blog off with a bang, but life happens.

Claiming my blog on Technorati

This post is to claim my blog on Technorati. Just ignore it. It really serves no purpose for you. :)

Technorati Profile

Categories

I was thinking about how to set up the categories for this blog. I decided to make them pretty general, so that readers who are only interested in a particular topic can just click on the category that interests them. I don't know if anyone actually does that, but I think it can be a useful feature.

I will probably do the technorati tags if I want to get hits on the specific post topics.

The categories I have decided on so far are:

Blog Carnivals and Links
Blog-keeping
Craftiness
Current Events
Faith
Family Life
Homeschooling
Politics (at large)
Politics (Burlington/Vermont)
Recipe Box
Religion

I might add reviews, too, if I do any.

Finally, the template is ready

I finally finished the template for the new blog. Whew. That took forever!

It's kind of sad to be moving on from She's Right. That blog has been such a part of my life for so long now. I know that many of my regular readers will not be interested in the new blog's format and I will lose some readers. I also know that I will gain some new readers. Most of all, I know that it is time for me to move on from that project.

New things are always scary. I am starting a new business soon and I have been reading a book on entrepreneurship to get me excited about it.

The book's (non-Christian) author stressed how important it is to have some sense of something out side of ourselves that we can lean on and turn to for strength.

That's what all things hold together is about for me. I know that when my life feels like it is falling apart, in Him all things hold together. Colossians 1:17

And I know that there is really no other way they would.

New Blog

If you are reading this, this blog in in a serious state of not ready to be read.
Check out my current blogs in my profile.