This new year is proving to be a great one already. My husband and I are newlyweds and our wedding just a few months ago was everything we both wanted. A great time with family, good food, and most importantly celebrating our union before God. Now that all the planning and stressing about the wedding is over, it’s time for me to shift my focus from being a fiance to a wife. It’s finally time that I step into the role that I know I’m called for, but no homemaker inherits all her skills the moment she says ‘I do’. It takes dedication and lots of patience to get up everyday and choose to serve God in this way. The art of building a christian home is one of the most important skills to have, and now that my husband and I are living together, I have to begin learning and putting to action that skill now!
When my husband and I were engaged, were able to slowly accumulate things for our home beforehand like furniture and appliances and have it all set-up once we moved in. Every chance we got we were organizing, building, and personalizing our space, which to me was such a fun thing to experience together. Creating a routine and finding a groove for our day-to-day lives has been such a treat. I always imagined what our days would be like as a married couple, but now I get to live it out everyday. Being a wife gives me a more sincere effort when it comes to making meals, cleaning my home, being generous towards others, and most of all serving the Lord. These things can all be done with great intentions when you’re single, but having that sense of duty and purpose as a wife for me makes these tasks so much more enjoyable, and to be honest, more honoring. I didn’t think it would feel so good to get my mail everyday, and take out our trash, but it does. I feel good when I can welcome someone into my home and have the means to make them a full meal whether it’s made from scratch or not. I love being able to clean my kitchen or bedroom because it’s the space my husband and I are in. Reading my Bible is much more fruitful, going to church gets more exciting every week, in all, being married is the best thing ever.
Getting Started
So far in my homemaking journey I have been doing good with meal planning and budgeting. I haven’t developed a solid cleaning/chore routine yet, besides making sure to at least clean the kitchen in the morning or at night, and making our bed everyday along with other tasks sprinkled in between. It’s been so fun to cook meals in our home that we haven’t been out to eat very much since we have been married. This means my pantry often needs to be restocked, and my refrigerator can get disorganized easily. That’s why getting a chore routine has been important for me and making sure I am on top of all areas of my home.
Since my husband has celiac disease, I also have been experimenting more with making different kinds of gluten free loaves. GF cooking comes pretty easy to me since we eat mostly the basics like meat, dairy, and produce, but GF baking is a different story. I did a lot of practice before we were married but I didn’t have the patience to really learn GF bread making specifically. Right now I am testing a few recipes and hopefully will get to show you some of my final products in the future. But I know these things take time. Even though there are so many projects and things to start working on, I am taking homemaking slowly. Getting overwhelmed in the beginning is not worth it if I don’t have the motivation to take on projects for my home, help my family, or contribute to my church. Managing my time and filling it with things that are productive has been a good place to start for me. Since working full time takes a huge chunk out of my day, working on my chore routine will make me feel more on top of my house.
Looking Forward
Being married is by far the best thing I have done in life and I am just getting started. I am so excited to document and share my experiences and be able to look back and see my progression. Homemaking and stewarding my home well is all I think about. I strive to put God at the forefront of my mind when beginning my foundations as a wife/homemaker. There is no other foundation as firm as Jesus, and if I keep myself, my home and my marriage rooted in Him, there isn’t anything else I will need.
Growing up I was able to get a lot of practice in the kitchen and have the freedom to experiment with recipes and other household tasks. But now the pressure is on since I am starting fresh in my own home. I realize that although I may have some homemaking skills already, there is more knowledge to gain. Through Graceful Roots I am hoping to not only share a few tips with you, but share my journey on building a christian home so that I can inspire you to learn with me. This blog is even for the young women in this day and age who are wanting to become keepers of the home, but don’t have anyone to guide them or learn with. Not only will we learn together, but I am hopeful that other homemakers reading/watching will be encouraged to share some wisdom about their experiences as a new wife and what they know about the art form of homemaking.
This topic is featured in my Youtube video if you would like to watch me make Sunday Breakfast and chit chat about Homemaking!