Keep It Simple

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, Emilie Barnes has some great, but simple suggestions for celebrations, just for you! 

You don't need to spend a lot of money, or make extravagant plans, to express your love to others.  For a really nice celebration just remember (as Emilie says) to KEEP IT SIMPLE! 

Here are a few of her Valentine's ideas:

For a family Valentine's celebration, plan a family fun night at home.  Make a simple dinner, and just enjoy each others company playing board games.  Instead of gifts, agree to make each other Valentine's ...

Do you have a habit of putting off doing things that you really want and need to do?  Do you let things go until they become huge tasks?  

My daughter and I laughingly, share a common saying ... "I'll do it on Monday!"  This usually refers to dieting, or a major cleaning task, but I can tell you that "Monday" rarely comes around!  Good intentions just don't counteract laziness! 

It's a new year!  Let's start fresh, with some help from Emilie Barnes.  Since most of the tasks we put off are not things we like to do ...

It's hard to believe that another year has gone by and Christmas is almost here again!          The shopping, the decorating, the parties . . . and, the holiday stress!   

Christmas doesn't have to be a stress-filled time.  Emilie Barnes says that if you plan ahead and organize your time you will enjoy the season more. 

Start by taking a calendar and marking off days for activities like decorating, baking, and entertaining.  This helps you to see if you're over-planning, which can be a big part of holiday stress. 

To make shopping easier, Emilie suggests shopping online, buying gift cards, or ...

With Thanksgiving coming up soon, you are no doubt looking forward to spending time with family and friends, and feasting on a lot of wonderful food! (mmm... pumpkin pie!).  

But, it's also the perfect time to reflect on all God has done for us, and to offer Him our prayers of thanks.  

Emilie Barnes suggests giving everyone a special verse and taking turns going around the table sharing them, followed by a prayer of Thanksgiving for all God has provided.  

She says Thanksgiving is the perfect time to teach children the real meaning of "Thanks" giving by talking to ...

Don't you just love the Fall?  I think it's my favorite time of year!  Some of my fondest memories with my family are centered around activities we did every Fall - driving out to the apple farms to go apple picking, and visits to the pumpkin patch to try to find the biggest pumpkin we could!  

Emilie Barnes says that the memories and lessons that come from family traditions are important to children.  It's the reinforcement of love to one another, and creating of values that they can pass down to their own families some day.  

She feels ...

America changed on 9/11/01.  We were shocked and stunned that we weren't invincible, that terrorists could attack us on our soil.  It also made most of us think about our own mortality and our walk with God.  

In commemoration of the 10^th anniversary of that infamous day in our history, Emilie Barnes has dedicated the Keep It Simple program that airs on 9/9 to honor all we lost on 9/11.  She reminds us that the Lord is our comfort and only hope.  

In addition to the 9/11 commemorative program, Emilie has put together ...