Upcoming Girlfriends Events

Stampin' Sisters meeting Thursday, April 22, at 5:30-9:00 PM in the large Adult Sunday school room downstairs of the church. This month's theme: Spring Fling, cheery pick-me-up cards and Thinking of you.

Stampin' Sisters is a Girlfriends Group who enjoy getting together to create and stamp greeting cards. No experience or special tools necessary. Snacks are provided. Contact: Sharon Woods 329-0502.



Beth Moore Simulcast: So Long, Insecurity. April 24, 10:00 AM -4:00 PM at Centerpoint Church, Kalamazoo. Tickets are $20 per person. Register online at www.centerpointkzoo.org

Upcoming Girlfriends Events

Women of all ages are invited to attend:

Stampin Sisters January 28, 5:30 to 9:00 PM. This month's theme: Cards of Heart, come stamp and create anniversary, wedding, and Valentine's day cards with Sharon Woods and girlfriends.

Scrapbooking with Michele - February 12 at 6:00 PM in the large Sunday school room 112.

Richland Bible Church is hosting a one day seminar for women only, Divine Design for Sex. February 6, 2010. 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. $30.00. Register at www.richlandbible.org.
Do you ever think, "What's the big deal about sex?" Do you ever wonder why God made men and women so different? Do you want God to transform your marriage into the beautiful and passionate relationship He intended? If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, this seminar is for you. The seminar presents a Biblical view of the married relationship, designed to impact women positively in their sexual relationships with their husbands.

Sewing and fellowship with the girls. A fun evening of intro to quilting, embroidering, and sewing is being planned by Jan Bigley, Diane Horn and Brenda Urness to be held at Jan Bigley's home in Schoolcraft. Stay tuned for more details to come.

Also if you are interested in learning how to knit, please email me pfmcgirlfriends@sbcglobal.net. Celeste Hettinger is interested in starting a knitting club and would like to know who will join her.

Winter Bible Study

New women's Bible study to start January 19.
Two time options for you to choose from:
Tuesday mornings, 9:30 AM to 11:00 AM leader: Christa Hauke
Tuesday evenings, 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM leader: Vicki Van Allsburg

We will be studying Kay Arthur's book Lord, Teach Me to Pray in 28 Days. Book is $10.
Hope to see you there!

Christa Hauke
353-4415
gchauke@sbcglobal.net

Girlfriends fall Bible study 2009

We will be studying Believing God by Beth Moore. Do you believe God, or simply believe in Him? Whether you are revisiting this question or addressing it for the first time, join us—along with Beth—and discover the blessings that can come with Believing God.

There are two options for you this fall, Tuesday mornings 9:30 am—11:45 am and Tuesday evenings 6:15 pm—9:00 pm. Please complete the registration form at the Girlfriends Podium during the next three Sunday's and submit $20 for the workbook fee.

The study will begin September 15 and should be finished by Thanksgiving. Can't wait to see you all there!

Laundry Soap and Window Cleaner recipes

Here it is the long awaited laundry soap and glass cleaner recipes from girlfriend Sandy Scott. If you have any questions please contact Sandy. Also, if you have any other "cleaning" recipes please leave them as comments to this post. Thank you and enjoy!





Homemade Laundry Soap

1/3 Bar Fels Naptha soap
½ Cup Washing Soda
½ Cup Borax Powder
2 gallon size bucket

Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan.
Add 6 Cups hot water and heat it until the soap melts.
Add the Washing Soda and the Borax and stir until it is dissolved.
Remove from heat.
Pour 4 Cups hot water into the bucket.
Add soap mixture and stir.
Add 1 gallon plus 6 Cups of water and stir.
Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel.
Use ½ cup per load.

A Few Notes About this Laundry Soap
* All ingredients can be found at Hardings. The Washing Soda and Borax are in the laundry soap aisle. The Fels Naptha is on the bottom shelf where the bath soap is.
* You can use your food processor to grate the soap bar. I measure and bag up all the ingredients so I have it ready when I need to make laundry soap.
* I start with 6 cups of boiling water to melt the soap and let it slow boil until all the soaps melt/dissolve. This has given a better consistency.
* The finished soap will not be a solid gel. It will be more of a watery gel that has been described as an “egg noodle soup” look.
* If you want to store the laundry soap in old laundry soap containers, pour it in after making, and before it begins to gel.
* The soap is a low sudsing soap. If you don’t see suds, that is ok. Suds are not what do the cleaning; it is the ingredients in the soap.



Window Cleaner

1 Pint Alcohol (2 Cups)
1 Tablespoons Dishwashing Detergent
2 Tablespoons Ammonia

Pour above ingredients in a gallon jug, top off with distilled water.

Girlfriends Retreat 2009

Finally...I have wanted to post pictures of our Girlfriends Retreat 2009 but I just didn't no where to do it. Well ta-da! I have a forum now. So lets see if this works. I'm going to post it as a movie. I hope you all enjoy!

We had a fantastic time at Girlfriends Retreat 2009 at Miracle Camp in Lawton. Our theme was the Chocolate Boutique, Taste and See that the Lord is Good! We laughed, we cried, we even played American Idol! (Make sure your volumn is on!)

Welcome!

Congratulations you have reached the newly formed blog for the Portage Free Methodist Girlfriends.

Why Girlfriends?
When was the last time you gave yourself permission to giggle and gab with girlfriends? Girlfriends are the hot fudge sundaes in life! Every woman wants them, but we don’t always allow ourselves to have them. Where can you go to splurge on friendships? PFMC Girlfriends is that safe place for women to belong, get connected, and do life together. As women, we all need other women in our lives for emotional support, encouragement, and prayer.

What Is PFMC Girlfriends?
This is not an exclusive club or group! It is open to all women and it exists as a fresh approach for women’s ministry in reaching out to women inside and outside the church walls. It is all about relationships!

What Does PFMC Girlfriends Offer?

• Shared Interest Clubs (G! Groups)
We also offer a variety of shared interest groups called G! Groups, which give women an opportunity to connect with other women who share the same interests. We could have a Hiking Club, Quilting Club, Craft Club, Book Club, Gaming Club and more. Of course, these are not their real names as that would be too ordinary. You’ll see the Hiker Chicks, Cuisine Queens, Patterns of Grace, Gamin’ Gals, Lit ‘n’ Latte’s! We always try to mix in the fun element (even in the name!) whenever possible. Best part about it? You can decide what group there should be and when. G! Clubs are coming, please check back soon to see a G! Group that fits you!

• More Than Fun
Don’t mistake that PFMC Girlfriends is just about the fun! We believe that women who laugh and giggle together also feel more free to share their hearts with one another and open up if they want. Our ultimate goal is to lead women to a relationship with Jesus Christ and encourage a deeper relationship with him for those who already know him. It is all about the relationships in life: with each other and with Jesus! We will still offer the Women’s Bible Studies. You can choose between morning or evening sessions. Catch us in the fall with a new study!