It's SNOW...or IS it? White Sands, New Mexico

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

One of the most fascinating places we've been was so intriguing because it really tricked our eyes. What looked like the purest, whitest snow was actually not cold at all! The "snow" was actually sand at White Sands Missile Range and park in New Mexico!

This place is nature's huge playground, being a mixture of playing at the beach and sledding down the humongous, steep dunes! To give you some perspective on the size of these things, here are some people climbing up the side of one:


photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies




And, while we were immensely enjoying ourselves we didn't even have to freeze as you do while having fun in the snow, in spite of bundling up in layers of clothes, coats, gloves and boots-it was warm and windy, and shorts, t-shirts, sunglasses and sunscreen were all that was necessary!


photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

White Sands is another one of those must-see places if you are ever in the vacinity of White Sands, New Mexico! You'll not likely to see a place like it anywhere else!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Magnificent Travel Destination: Carlsbad Caverns

A recent wandering led us to the magnificent Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico.

These photos, as incredible as they are, do not do this place justice!:

Photo Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Imagine a point, the size of the head of a pin...take that point and stick it on the bottom portion of the photos. THAT is about the size a person would be in this picture! Are you starting to get the idea of the magnitude of this place?!

Photo Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

The size of Carlsbad is extraordinary...we walked for several MILES along the route that went from room to gigantic room! You might think of a cave as being cramped and crowded, but that is not true here...the ceiling was stories high and very open in the various rooms, the path we walked was several MILES long! We felt like tiny little specks among the thousands of stalactites and stalagmites.

During certain times of the year there is a bat flight to and from the cave in the morning and evening. We weren't able to see that, but hear that it is also a sight, to see thousands upon thousands of bats leaving or coming back to the cave all at once!

If you ever have a chance to visit Carlsbad Caverns, even if it is out of the way along your journey, you will not regret it!

Have YOU been to Carlsbad Caverns? If so, when? Tell us about your visit!


Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Living on Less and Having Fun Doing So!

My family recently had the opportunity to do without heat for a few days. Where we live we, have a swamp cooler, rather than "refrigerated air", which requires us to choose each season when to call the maintenance man to switch us over from cold to heat. We cannot freely switch back and forth between the two. Now, where we live, we've not yet had freezing temperatures, but we have had a few nights where it's been in the upper 30s at night, but warmer during the day. Those cold nights have taught us a thing or two!

Granted, those nights were cold, but we saw that, with a little effort, we could live comfortably with our thermostat turned down lower in winter! A few extra blankets on the bed, and some sweaters made us quite comfortable. And we actually found that we slept better in the cooler air!

For fun a few months ago, the children and I decided to pretend we live in the days before electricity was discovered. As the sun went down, and it became darker and darker, we sat by the light of one candle, telling stories and enjoying each other's company! No tv or radio, just us! It was fun brushing our teeth and getting ready for bed by candlelight, and we could see how people back then went to bed at sundown and rose with the sun in the morning...it is much more practical. Nevertheless, I was glad when the children went to bed and I could flip on the computer to check my e-mail!

Food is one more area where it can be a challenge to do without. In trying to see how much money I could save, I decided I would not buy it if I could halfway easily make it myself for cheaper! Our grocery bill that week was a lot less, and I had fun finding creative homemade things to substitute for the usual pre-packaged items we usually ate. In this area, there are a whole lot of things we could do without if we had to, and we'd still live quite well with just the basics!

Voluntarily doing without is not so bad, even fun, especially when you know it's temporary! But, it does teach a valuable lesson: we can survive, even thrive, on less if we have to, and we could actually save money by choosing to do so!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Got Love?

In building legacies for our families it's possible to get caught up in chasing after those things that are not eternal, that, to human sight are beautiful and valuable, but in the end will not last. While those things are some of the enjoyments of living here on earth, priority is important. So I thought it might be helpful to mention the most basic of all legacies you'll pass down to your family: Love.



The King James Bible refers to love as "charity". I'm sure you've heard the verses in I Corinthians before, but, this time, really let them speak to you! See just how essential it is to the Lord that we have this basic ingredient as the foundation of all we say and do, and then ask Him to show you the areas that you need to better apply this. Most importantly, ask Him to fill you with this kind of love! If you are a Christian, it is readily available to you upon your asking in faith!:

Though I speak with the tongues of mean and of angels,

and have not charity,

I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

And though I have the gift of prophecy,

and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge;

and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains,

and have not charity,

I am nothing.

and though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor,

and though I give my body to be burned,

and have not charity,

it profiteth me nothing.

Charity suffereth long, and is kind;

Charity envieth not;

charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

Charity never faileth; but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail;

whether there be tongues, they shall cease;

whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away...

And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three;

but the greatest of these is charity.



I Corinthians 13: 1-8, 13

Oh, how many times I've focused on the doing of things for my family...but it was not grounded in charity (love)! My motivations were fulfilling what I ought to do, or being able to check one more thing off my "to do" list! I did these things out of selfishness, not love! It really hit me when I read that I could even be a martyr for my faith, but if I did not do it in LOVE, it would profit me nothing! That's a pretty clear statement that our motives, our drive, is of extreme importance to our Lord!



I pray that each one of you reading Domestic Legacies would have a burning love in your hearts first toward the Lord and that that love would spill over abundantly into your relationships with your husband, your children, and with everyone you meet! I pray that love would translate into action, and not be mere sentiment! THAT is a legacy worth placing at the top of our priority list!



Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Stress-Free Scripture Memory!

If there is one legacy that I want to leave my children, it is that of hiding God's Word in their precious hearts! All the facts and knowledge in the world pale in comparison to knowing Him and His Word, and yet, it is easily forgotten among the other tasks we strive to check off on our already full checklists of things to do! As important as it is, I don't want scripture memory to become a burden, or a stressful, performance-oriented task, which it can quickly become if treated like just another school subject. I want my children to have delight in learning God's Word, don't you?

The Maxwell Family at Titus 2.com recently had a wonderful suggestion for scripture memory that our family has adopted. It is virutally effortless and stress-free! Hanging on the wall of our dining room is a wipe-off marker board on which I put the verse we are currently working on:

photo copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies

Before breakfast and lunch, just after we pray, we recite the memory verse two times before we eat. So, in one day's time, we have reviewed the verse four times. When the verse is new, to aid the children who can't yet read, I break up the verse into small segments and have the children repeat after me. After everyone is getting the hang of the verse, we all say it together two times per meal. The children hear my enthusiasm for the Word as we recite together, and it is contagious!...Remaining reverent ,we use inflection in our voices with excitement, rather than a dull, monotone voice. With little time and effort spent I have to say that THIS REALLY WORKS!! Once we've all memorized the current verses, I put them on an index card and we occasionally review the past verses to keep them fresh in our minds.

I want to stress to you that the verses children of any age are capable of learning do not have to be short and simple! As you see in the picture above, we are memorizing Titus 2: 1-5. The verses we learned a few weeks ago were Proverbs 2: 1-8 Funny thing is, my younger ones are faster at memorizing than I am! It is SO precious to hear them recite by themselves long verses of scripture (with an occasional prompt or two)! My purpose in telling you this is not to boast, but to "raise the bar" for you, so to speak.! The Lord only knows how He might use these verses later in their lives!

I really hope you'll try this method of scripture memory. It's been the fastest and most enjoyable I've found! Let us know what you think!

Copyright 2008 Domestic Legacies