Homemaker Portrait | Naomi Fata

In today’s episode I am talking with In-the-Trenches homemaker, Naomi Fata. She’s been married 16 years and has 3 kids, ages 8 to 13. She homeschools and runs a sewing and alterations business out of her home--she is a very busy lady. We discuss how she has learned/is learning to balance homemaking, schooling and a home business through compromise, firm boundaries and letting go of some expectations. Naomi is passionate about teaching others how sewing can help them make the most of their clothing and home decor resources.

Over the years, Naomi realized that this "stay-at-home dream life" she asked God for does not come with ease. It is challenging to manage it all, but she is learning to differentiate between what God has and has not called her to do in each new day. Whether running a home business or not, this principle applies to all of us as homemakers as we seek to thrive in our calling and not be distracted or overwhelmed by all the possibilities before us. I know you will be encouraged and learn something from Naomi's story of home.

CONNECT WITH NAOMI

• Instagram | @naomifata
• Website | www.naomifata.net
• Book | Beyond Head Knowledge; Knowing Christ Who Satisfies Our Hearts
• Youtube | Naomi Fata Sews

FROM THIS EPISODE

• All links and resources will be available in this week's free newsletter. Click the link below to subscribe. 
• For future reference, check newsletter archive, Season 16 Vol. 7
• Allison's Resource Rec: Safer Home Indoor Fly Trap Plug In

HOMEMAKING RESOURCES

• Free Weekly Newsletter, Homemaker Happy Mail
• Newsletter Archive

HOLIDAY HOMEMAKING RESOURCES

• Advent Devotional Guide
• Holiday Homemaking 2021 & 2022 (enter "holiday homemaking" in search bar)

SUPPORT & CONNECT

•  Review |

Chapters

• 0:00 My Week of Homemaking: Football, Thanksgiving Plans & Resource I'm Loving
• 8:57 Podcast News: Wrapping up Season 16+, New for Holiday Homemaking 2023
• 11:56 Today's Guest: Naomi Fata
• 15:39 Beginnings & Learning Curves
• 22:11 Influences & Expectations
• 29:10 Homemaking with Kids
• 34:19 Priorities; Freezer Meals & Managing Media
• 44:00 Temptations & Challenges: Managing an in home business
• 53:04 Hospitality
• 57:16 Q&A: Homemaking Wins, Fails, Tips & Resources
• 1:02:59 The Art of Home & Titus 2 Advice

Transcript

Allison Weeks: 0:02

Hello Homemakers, welcome to the Art of Home podcast, where we are exploring how Homemakers cultivate a place to belong. I'm your host, allison Weeks. I'm a wife, I am a mom to four grown kids, a granny to one little boy, and I've been practicing the Art of Home for over 31 years. Welcome back to all of our regular listeners and welcome if you are new to the Art of Home. I'm so glad that you found us. And to all of you who are listening today, I just want to thank you for choosing to spend some of your very valuable time with me. I know that you have a lot to do, especially this time of year, as things are ramping up heading into the holiday season, and so I'm very honored that you would choose to spend the next hour or so with me and listening to this fabulous story of home that we're going to listen to today. Before we get to that, I'm going to do what I've been doing here lately is just give you a little update of what happened in my life this past week, in my homemaking, and I'll give you a little bit of pod news, and then I'll tell you a little bit about who we're talking with today. So, first of all I had a big weekend. We got to go up to College Station, texas, which is the home of Texas A&M University. It's one of our largest universities here in Texas and our youngest son goes to school there, and we got to go experience an awesome football game with him and his soon to be bride and her parents. So it was a really fun weekend. And yes, I said bride, we do have another wedding coming up in our family in the spring, and so that also means, as parents of the groom, we get to start thinking about rehearsal supper and planning all of that, and so it will be in the College Station area and that's not where we live, it's a couple of hours away. So we took that opportunity this weekend to go try out some couple of restaurants for the rehearsal supper, to be the place where we host the rehearsal supper. So that was super fun. It's a whole other phase of life as a mom and I'm just really trying to soak all of that in and enjoy that experience. It comes with its own different kinds of stresses and nuances, and but we are, we are along for the ride and it's been a blast.

Allison Weeks: 2:20

So then I got back from the trip to College Station and I realized that Thanksgiving is a week from Thursday. Oh, we also had a birthday in there and my middle son's birthday was on Monday. So I spent Monday preparing one of the kids favorite birthday meals that they often request, which is roast beef, rice and corn. I did a little story on Instagram, if you saw that, and I'm going to have to get that recipe posted up on the blog because I had quite a few of you asking for the recipe. I used to have it on a on an old blog that I used to do, but that's no longer up, so I'm going to have to go dig it up and I'll try to post that soon so you guys can see how I do that. It's from my good standard, my old standard Southern Living Cookbook that I got when I got married in 1992. And it is well loved, with pages torn and ripped out, and it was one of the first pot roasts that I ever made and my family just loves it and it's super easy. So I'll make sure I get that recipe for you guys. So anyway, after the birthday now my brain has turned to Thanksgiving and I'm thinking about the menu and thinking about what we're going to do this year. We have a pretty small crowd this year compared to what we're used to, so we only have let's see, I think there's going to be six of us, six adults and then my little grandson. So that's a small crowd for our family. So I think we're going to take the opportunity with the smaller crowd to try some different things this year.

Allison Weeks: 3:44

If you've heard me talk on the show during the holiday season before, you know I love the food at Thanksgiving, but I call it the brown food holiday because everything on your plate is brown. The dressing or the stuffing is brown, the bird, the turkey's brown, even the green bean casserole is brown, it's all brown. And so I wanted to try to do some variety this year, maybe not go completely off script, try to stick to some of those traditional flavors, but maybe give it a little bit of a different twist. And I feel like I can do that more safely with a smaller group, because there's less pallets to please and the group that I'm going to have with me is they're pretty adventurous eaters. So that's what we're going to do. I will report back and let you know how that goes, and then let's see what else do I have going on Well, thanksgiving, birthday, football. That's pretty much it.

Allison Weeks: 4:37

Oh, I had something I wanted to share with you guys. This is my new favorite resource. I always ask the guests what resource or product homemaking product are you loving right now? And I have one to share with you this week. So I know you guys have seen this floating around the internet and many of you probably already have these, but it's those plug in UV lights with the sticky thing attached that traps the little gnats that you get.

Allison Weeks: 5:04

So for the longest time we thought we were getting we had a major fruit fly problem, because we grew up in Florida and that was a legit issue was you had these little fruit flies. But what I have since learned is these are not, in fact, fruit flies, these are little gnats. What are they called? They're not mold, no, no, no, there's a name for them, but they're. They're coming from my houseplants. So I'm trying to be a good plant mom, which I'm. I'm working on that, but I'm not great at it.

Allison Weeks: 5:32

I have done all the things. I have repotted the plants as soon as I bring them home from the store, put brand new dirt in them. I don't overwater all the things, and I still am overrun with these little maybe fungus gnats I think that's what they're called fungus gnats and invariably these gnats, they fly straight at your face. I don't know why that is and they love my husband. So when he sits in his chair in the morning and he's doing his readings and stuff, he's like having a fit because these gnats are just like dive, bombing him in the face. I don't know if it's because of our, like, the warmth of our breath that attracts them. I'm not sure about the science, but they're really annoying. So I either needed to have I'm going to either have to get rid of all my plants or I got to get this nat situation under control.

Allison Weeks: 6:21

And somebody recently told me that those little sticky traps that are on the plug in UV lights really, really work, because we tried all the vinegar solutions and all that kind of stuff and that's just smelly and I don't want to do that and I don't want to spray bug spray everywhere. So I ordered some from Amazon, plugged them in and let me tell you I was shocked the next day. I think it maybe took like two days for them to really find the light be attracted and start getting their little body stuck to the sticky pad on the back of the light. It works. I'm telling you, these things work and I love them for a couple of reasons. They work, but they are not super finicky about how you use them.

Allison Weeks: 7:08

And because I did get one of those other that's like a little plug in I can't remember the name of it, but it's like a little. It almost looks like a tabletop, you know humidifier or something, and you plug it in and it's the same concept. It has the light, it has a fan, it has a sticky trap on the bottom. But there was all these rules about how you were supposed to use this thing. Like you had to put it in a completely dark room, like turn off every light, that you can make sure the wind of blinds are pulled, don't let any light in, because that's the only way the bugs are going to be attracted to this UV light. And you have to run it at night only and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. I'm like I don't, I don't have time for that. That's just way too high maintenance and so I didn't like that one. And there's no rules with this thing. I mean, obviously it's going to work better in a darker room, but I have found that even with kind of the night lights that I leave on in the kitchen and living room area, plenty of bugs are still attracted to these plug in plug in traps.

Allison Weeks: 8:04

The other thing I love about this one that I got, which I wrote down what it was it's called safe home brand and that's the brand. I'll link it in the show notes. I got it from Amazon. What I love about this plug is it rotates. So if I plug in this thing that is kind of big and it will take up a lot of space around the plug so that I can't really use the other plug. It rotates like 90 degrees so you can plug it into the bottom plug and rotate it to the side and it frees up the top plug so that you can plug something else in there, and I love that feature. So that was really cool. Also, it's easy to change out the pad, the little trap sticky thing, and you can buy the refills and they are very inexpensive. So that's my thing. That's what I have been loving this week. I thought I would share that with you guys. If you have a nat problem because of your plants, you want to check these out.

Allison Weeks: 8:58

Okay, pod news. So this is what's coming up on the podcast. Next week is our final episode of season 16 plus, and then we are going right into holiday home making 2023 the following Wednesday. Now I know next week is the day before Thanksgiving, so for all the listeners in the US I know you're busy in the kitchen. You've got maybe family coming in. I'm hoping that while you're busy in the kitchen, you can pop in your one of your air pods or your earbuds or whatever and just listen to this episode while you bake pies or get some things ready for the big holiday on Thursday. And then next Wednesday, the Wednesday. After that, you'll come right back and we are diving headfirst into holiday stuff.

Allison Weeks: 9:39

So here's what's new for holiday home making this year. We have new artwork, especially for holiday home making 2023 on the art of home, and I can't wait to share it with you guys. I am going to be previewing it to the newsletter audience this week, so make sure that you are on our newsletter mailing list for Homemaker Happy Mail. We have guest writers in the newsletters that will be coming out during the holiday season, so we will continue with Homemaker Happy Mail while we are doing our holiday home making series and each Friday your Homemaker Happy Mail will have all the resources that are shared and there's a lot shared because we have all these ladies sharing their little holiday stories and their tips and ideas and their family recipes. So you're going to get a lot of content in your Homemaker Happy Mail that comes to you during the holiday season and, included with all those resources, I have some guest writers that are coming in to write about the different themes of Advent. So, just like we've always done in the past, each week we will focus on that week's Advent theme and the writers are all familiar people, people that you have heard from on the show before, and so I have invited several ladies who I know love either they're published authors or they just love to write and so I invited several to come and be guest writers for the newsletter and I know you're going to enjoy their pieces that they're contributing to us, and I will also be sharing some practical ideas about all things decorating during the little breaks in the episodes when I'm not doing the segment with the interview for the ladies. So last year I did some special readings from different Christmas scenes and literature. The year before that I did a whole bunch of practical tips and ideas just general holiday stuff, and so this year I thought I'd go back to some of the tips and ideas and tell you about all the tips and resources and things I've learned along the way about all things decorating everything, from how to get started to what to do with it, all of it when you are finished and how to store it properly and in an organized way. So there is a ton of new stuff coming at you, both on the podcast and in the newsletter for the month of December, so make sure that you stay tuned into everything going on with the art of home.

Allison Weeks: 11:56

Now on to today's episode. I am talking today within the trenches, homemaker Naomi Feta. She has been married 16 years and she has three children ages eight to 13. She homeschools and she runs a sewing and alterations business out of her home. So she is a very busy lady and we do talk about that, about how she's learned and is learning to balance her homemaking and the homeschooling and the home business. And I will tell you, and she will tell you, that it does require some compromise. It requires firm boundaries and letting go of some expectations. Naomi has a passion for sewing and for helping others learn how to sew and use that skill to be resourceful with their clothing budget and making the most of what they have. On her Instagram account, which is at Naomi Feta, she's always sharing tips on how to alter clothing to fit better, how to make it last longer and even repurpose for other uses. She just started a YouTube channel and she also has classes on basic sewing that you can purchase on her website, so be sure to follow her and check out all of her resources that she has available, and I'm going to link all of that in the show notes and in this week's newsletter that will come out on Friday.

Allison Weeks: 13:13

The driving force behind Naomi starting her sewing business was this desire that she had to be at home and a one income family situation. Just, it was not going to work for her family, so they had to find a way for her to be able to bring some income in. So God made a way for her to live the life that she wanted to live, but Naomi has learned over the years that she had to let go of the expectation that, just because he made a way for her to live this dream life, it was not always going to be easy. It's not easy, and we discuss this. We talk about how Naomi is learning to differentiate between what God has and has not called her to do in each new day, and whether you, like Naomi, have a side gig or something else that you're doing besides primarily homemaking, or you are primarily a homemaker. This concept applies. We still have to decide what God wants us to say yes to and what God wants us to say no to, in order to keep our priorities in the correct order and keep things from getting out of whack, so that we can stay on mission for what God has called us to do in this great and noble task of making a home.

Allison Weeks: 14:30

So, whatever you are applying your hands to as you listen today, I know you will enjoy Naomi's story of home. Welcome to the art of home. I am here with my new friend, naomi Feta, and Naomi is an in the trenches homemaker and we're gonna go back to the beginning of her story and hear all about that. But before we do, why don't you just introduce yourself to the audience? Naomi, just tell us a little bit about who you are today.

Naomi Fata: 14:55

Hi, thanks so much for having me. So I am a wife. I've been married for 16 years, we have three children, 1311 and 8. I home school and I am a sewing entrepreneur. I've had Alterations and subcover business out of my home since 2007 and I also. I'm a writer, kind of on the side, a God-given passion and those are the predominant things that keep me busy throughout the days and weeks.

Allison Weeks: 15:30

Yeah, that's a lot Okay, and I know we're gonna dive into all of those things as we go through your story here. So let's go back to the beginning. When did you first become a homemaker, and when you did, did you bring any skills with you?

Naomi Fata: 15:45

So I would say that my first actual homemaking experience was really when I got married. I was 23. Before that I had always been living either with my mom or I lived with my husband's godparents for Four to six months before we got married. So I kind of jumped right in at the time of marriage. But I definitely came in knowing a lot about cooking, cleaning and sewing. So I think it was something that was kind of emphasized in my Formative years. So I came in, I think, with the skills that I needed.

Allison Weeks: 16:24

So I'm interested to know how did you learn to sew? So, and when, how we how old were you?

Naomi Fata: 16:31

I was somewhere between eight and ten, I would say, like my memories of really knowing how to sew. So my mom is oldest of 12 children and I was young and I was in some of the weddings and so everybody in that family kind of all the girls knew how to sew and rather than Getting a dress from a store, it was like we'd get melt fabric and a pattern and those were like my first memories. I was like seeing my mom make that pattern. So she, my mom, didn't sew like a lot, a lot, but like she had the skills, she knew how to, and so she would have been my first teacher. Yeah, and after that I just Sowed every school holiday, every chance I got.

Allison Weeks: 17:20

I was okay, I was gonna say when did you realize that you had a passion for sewing and this was your thing?

Naomi Fata: 17:25

I don't even think I realized it, that I just did it and I kept doing it.

Allison Weeks: 17:32

What was the first thing you ever made?

Naomi Fata: 17:34

So that would have been like dresses, and I remember like making Easter dresses. They weren't super complicated, but I was like 10, 11, 12, somewhere you know, and then One. So there was a period of time Actually there was two two separate times. Once we lived with my mom's parents for probably six months to a year and then, at a different point in time, we lived with my dad's parents for a A period of time, and this was at the time when we lived with my dad's parents, my grandmother, I think. We had just moved in and I was like, oh, I want to sew something.

Naomi Fata: 18:12

So she put me in the bedroom with a sewing machine and I was like, I want to make a quilt. So she, like, took all of my grandfather's old shirts and let me just Make a quilt. And I don't even know how. I made like my own pattern of like 12 by 12 squares, and some of them I use diagonal and some like smaller squares, and I it came out, okay, it was, you just figured it out. That's so cool, yeah, so they were always so encouraging To you know, have this the stuff that I needed available?

Allison Weeks: 18:50

Yeah, oh, that's awesome. That's so good. Okay, so how about a skill that you really struggled with, that you had a steep learning curve for?

Naomi Fata: 18:59

So I think that my steepest learning curve would actually be like the interior design and interior decorating, which I think people find Interesting, because I like make sub covers for other people like that.

Naomi Fata: 19:13

Yeah, it's like a whole, unlike the whole thing of like sewing and and Recently, have actually done a little bit of like. I don't know if you call it inner healing on that, but I moved about 20 times before I was 20 and I think that part of it had to do with like we just didn't have a lot of money and so I didn't grow up in an atmosphere where I was Really had the opportunity to create beauty. It was more of like well, I need to just learn to be content with what I have, and so I think even spending money on decorations or decor and also Even the longevity of it. So we actually Just moved about two years ago and we're just starting to hang up pictures and stuff like that, and it takes me a really long time to process when I want things to settle. It's. It's something kind of funny I learned about myself.

Allison Weeks: 20:16

I was like oh, yeah, well, I can imagine moving 20 times before you're 20. It's even if you had the resources. Sometimes you don't want to put the effort into, you know, creating these, these beautiful spaces that you know you're just gonna have to pack up everything and move in six months or whatever. Yes, yeah, yeah, that would that would be hard. Yeah, I can, I can totally understand that. So do you feel like you're maybe getting a little better in that area?

Naomi Fata: 20:44

A lot better and it's not like, yeah, I think like we think of this as like our probably forever home and we were in our last home for about 11 years 10 or 11 years and so but it took me probably the first eight years and finally I was starting to be like I'm gonna take some ownership of what I want on the colors, to be how I want to decorate the bathroom, or it's okay to go buy new towels just so they match the bathroom decor, like I Felt like I had to really give myself permission to do that.

Allison Weeks: 21:21

So you're saying, choosing what you want versus what what the internet says or what you think it ought to be Versus just doing or using what you have.

Naomi Fata: 21:31

Like me, oh, I see. Like yeah, okay, so I have, like maybe I have a closet full of towels and there is like the frugal side of like being like, oh, they don't match, just do I really need new ones. But like I want some, like to create a little more Beauty color scheme and like being Okay with, like balancing that out and being like okay. So like maybe this year I'll budget For, you know, decorating the bathroom, not a bathroom makeover, but just even giving myself permission to like make the towel smash.

Allison Weeks: 22:04

Yeah, that's good. I like that perspective. That's good, okay, well, so who or what would you say has had a big influence on your home making?

Naomi Fata: 22:15

I Would say there's a lot of people. Definitely, my mom was like she cooked, um, she knew she knew how to cook and clean and so and she was home a lot. She did work outside the home for a little bit while I was growing up, but for the most part she was Home. My grandmother, so her mom, had been at home her whole. She was a farmer's wife and had 12, 12 kids, so she was really in the thick of that and and so the household chores were always something that you know they she had to do. It was Took up the fullness of her days. And then even my grandmother on my dad's side. So she, I mean I have great memories canning with her. We, she taught me how to make pie and she was actually a career woman in her, yet she had a real taste for the kitchen and Planting and growing things as well, so I definitely had a lot of influences.

Allison Weeks: 23:17

That's so great. What a blessing. Yes, well, let's talk about expectations for just a little bit. So what are some things that surprised you about home, making either things good or bad, or both I?

Naomi Fata: 23:30

Would say. The first thing that surprised me is that I I kind of expected the interior of the home to be kind of my sphere of like Personality and what I could choose to do with it. My husband is 12 years older than me, so he had been a bachelor for a good chunk of time before we got married and that took me by surprise that he has a lot of opinions the inside of where things go up is. So that was a really interesting Unexpected challenge that I didn't even think. It didn't really cost my mind, yeah.

Allison Weeks: 24:13

I wouldn't have thought that either. I mean, I guess that that makes total sense. Living alone. Were there any other things? Well, maybe we'll talk about that when we get to challenges, but what we can talk about it here, the fact that he was a bachelor for so long Was whether other things that you expected or just things you had to. Maybe this answers the next question what did you kind of have to let go of? Maybe he was set in his ways on certain things.

Naomi Fata: 24:38

I would say that would be more of a Not a marriage thing but in terms of just like very different backgrounds. Like I was raised in a Christian family and he he wasn't. He came to the Lord later in, you know, after he was out of his home and we had a lot of interesting I mean similar backgrounds. He moved a lot when he was younger. His dad also passed away when I don't think I mentioned that yet, but you know, my father passed away when I was young, his father passed away when we were young, and so we both had this us to a certain level, some instability in our formative years and so there were just challenges in that.

Allison Weeks: 25:26

Yeah, yeah, for sure. So was there any other expectation that you had? Let you said, the first one was that he had ideas and thoughts about the space and all of that. So what else?

Naomi Fata: 25:39

So I would say one of the expectations I had to when I, you know, was first maybe not in the first couple of years, but in that area was I thought that I would make everything from scratch and make these like fabulous dinners all the time and I did really good until I, you know, had a baby and then was also working from home and then I was like, oh you know, that kind of went by the wayside and I just so distinctly remember that my nephew was his birthday. I mean invited them all over and I had always been a great baker and I was like he asked for a white cake. So I found this, you know, fabulous from scratch recipe, spent hours and hours on it and was so disappointed that he actually all he wanted was a box cake mix with store bought frosting.

Naomi Fata: 26:36

And I was like, oh, and it was like a wake up call for me because I think I realized like we put pressure, I have put pressure on myself to be like that perfect, like Martha Stewart. Yeah, and you know, it's okay to use a box cake mix and sometimes people are just as happy with that and I can let go of the expectation and I don't need to be slaving over something that like, maybe it's not my season of life or whatever. It's okay to choose a simpler route.

Allison Weeks: 27:07

Oh, yeah, because so often we just we make assumptions about what other people expect, Like, and that was what was happening there. You thought, well, they must expect something really great and grand and homemade and no just the box and the tub of frosting from the store.

Naomi Fata: 27:23

Yeah, no, that's a good, that's a good reminder.

Allison Weeks: 27:26

Yes, that's really good. Okay, any other expectations before we move on? Anything else you had to let go of for the well-being of yourself and your family?

Naomi Fata: 27:36

You know this would come like after I had kids.

Naomi Fata: 27:40

But just you know, as I was in that season of like starting to have kids and working from home and having a business, like I don't know, I think it's because, like I knew, like I started my business so that I could be home with the kids and I think I had like this glamorous idea of it just flowing together and the kids would play and I could work and it would all work out, and remember very distinctly that God really showed me I needed to not expect it to be easy.

Naomi Fata: 28:13

Like there was this expectation of okay, so I'm quote, unquote living what I wanted to live. I'm, like the life that I purpose, that I've worked for, like to build a business so I can work from home and be with my kids, and it wasn't easy, and letting go of that expectation of, like it's not easy, but can I do this? And like, what parts of it has God called me to do? And maybe I'm doing things that I shouldn't be doing and really like that's a whole area of expectation that I really. I mean, I still work through it. It's almost a daily thing. Where is you have to? Like really comment okay, so, like I'm going to come with joy, I know that this is what you've given me to do, but if I come expecting it to be an easy day, then I'm sure to be disappointed.

Allison Weeks: 29:03

Yeah, yes, I want to talk some more when we get to challenges, about how you worked through that and managed all that, but for the first, I would like to talk about parenting and how do you feel like the addition of your children challenged and enriched your home making.

Naomi Fata: 29:22

Really having the kids brought me home. Before that I worked full time outside the home and up until about I think my second child was maybe one. When I was fully came home I had gradually cut down and grown my business and so that kind of really changed my focus. It really what it enriched was friendships and hospitality is because I realized suddenly like being home is lonely and it really caused me to find friends, make play dates and have people over a lot more. And we really had.

Naomi Fata: 30:08

We had a friend from church who had a baby at exactly a month before I had my second, and so then we were sitting in the mother's room at church nursing I mean they were tiny and just saying you know, we need, we moms need to get together and we started a mom's group out of that we would just meet in our homes and they're still great friends to this day and what a beautiful thing. So I think that having kids actually taught me a lot about friendship and you know part of my, because I moved so much I don't have a lot of deep roots in friendship from childhood. My closest friends are actually two friends from my year at Babacolage that were actually still friends 20 years later we still try and see each other, even though we live around the country. But really they enrich that rich that children enrich that area of hospitality and reaching outside and bringing people in, yeah, Any particular challenges that the kids brought Everything.

Naomi Fata: 31:15

Right Everything. They turn your life outside out. I know they turn your and just you know the plan, like I'm such a planner and to have things in order and just learning how to navigate. You know nap times and even I feel like maybe having children turned me in like from just I don't know how to say it from a wife into a household manager, meaning like suddenly you have to. It's not just like budgeting for groceries. Suddenly you have to like plan your day and nap time and what they're going to eat and what's the good nutrition for this baby, and like it just goes on and on.

Naomi Fata: 32:03

And then like there's the task of laundry and cleaning and creating rhythms and systems, and so all of a sudden, I think you know, if you I mean that kind of flows into like actually having a business and raising kids from home is like really learning how to manage that as like a household manager it was. I mean it's a challenge. It's still a challenge, but it grows on you. It grows on you a lot, as you know. One day at a time. One day at a time.

Allison Weeks: 32:34

Right. So how are you encouraging them to come alongside you in your home making and participate with you?

Naomi Fata: 32:40

I love this question because it definitely has been something that we've worked a lot on. So my kids all do their own laundry and we've all. They've always been in the kitchen since they were young, so you know even little things. Whatever it is helping set the table, clean the table, wash the dishes. So they have chores. They have been invested in gardening some and picking those, making the salad and the relish and everything that we make from there. My 11, sort of one daughter she's 11 and she really gets into the planning. She loves to meal plan and help write the grocery lists and find new recipes. So more and more of them trying to incorporate them in that because they think they're able to, and that's been really good.

Allison Weeks: 33:43

Yeah, that's a really good skill, I think, the more you can encourage them to participate in not just prepping the meals but planning the meals too, because that's actually what several people have said to me. When I asked them the question about the steepest learning curve, they were like, yeah, the cooking part I enjoy, but it was getting everything done at the same time and then coming up with new ideas for every day of the week and that was just too much. So I think that's really good to train them in that early for sure.

Naomi Fata: 34:11

Yeah, oh, it's going to say talking about meal planning. I don't know if you want to go on this short rabbit trail, right?

Allison Weeks: 34:19

now? Oh yeah, we can, because we're going to talk about priorities next, and that was one of the questions was like how, how do you, what practical things do you do to keep your priorities in order and all that.

Naomi Fata: 34:30

So one of them, the meal planning. I think by the time I had my second child, I realized that if I was going to survive and thrive I needed some serious work in that area and I would plan out six weeks of freezer meals. I would do a and I would order online for grocery delivery either delivery or pickup and one, and then, as I would set aside time for my schedule and like literally that night for like five hours, perhaps six weeks worth of meals and freeze them and like a lot of it's simple meals, crockpot meals, like, but in order to like have, like, have small children, function with a business, and like it was a life like. I don't even know how I would have done it without doing something like that.

Allison Weeks: 35:33

Wow, that's a huge endeavor. Six weeks worth of meals. So I'm assuming you didn't do set like effort every week for every night of the week. Did you do like five for the week or something like that?

Naomi Fata: 35:45

Yeah, Because I plan for leftovers so we have a leftover night. We typically will do. We have chicken wings and french fries on Sunday night. It's just a thing we have like movie night, family movie night. So then you always know that's on the calendar and this is one that my friends laugh at. They used to laugh at. Now they're used to it. We would have cheese and salad one night, like a big old green salad Really. I'd add another protein and then cheese. But my youngest, when he was asked what he was having for dinner, he'd be like cheese and salad and my friend would be like, are you serious? He's telling me cheese and salad and like that's the part that he was eating, the lettuce and the cheese. And I'm like, well, he has a vegetable and a protein, but like that's a meal. You know you can have a chef's salad for dinner and in order to really make sure we're getting like vegetables in, that worked. We don't really do that as much now. So that was like one night a week for a long time.

Allison Weeks: 36:50

Cool yeah.

Naomi Fata: 36:51

Yeah.

Allison Weeks: 36:51

No, that's good. I love having some sort of standards that you know that you're going to have every week, because then it's daunting to look at a seven day calendar and think, okay, what am we going to have, especially when you're homeschooling, because you're probably cooking three multiple times a day or preparing food multiple times a day because you're always there. So if you already know like we're going to have every Tuesday night, we're going to have tacos, and I know that. So that's one I can check off my list. So that's a good practice. I like that a lot.

Naomi Fata: 37:22

Also I would say a confession or not. I don't make my kids breakfast or lunch. They're totally on their own. It's been like that for I think again, it's just one of those things you fall into like this is survival, it's okay, there's plenty of food. You know how to make my youngest. I still do cook for him his lunch sometimes, but we typically have a lot of frozen homemade waffles, like we'll have a day we'll make a bunch of waffles in the freezer Sometimes my middle daughter will make muffins and then we do. I mean there's granola and cold cereal and bagels and I just, you, just it's okay, like it's going to be okay.

Naomi Fata: 38:09

It's not a super, super healthy breakfast, but it's okay.

Allison Weeks: 38:14

It is okay and you are, and you, as long as you have the components there and they have the skills to put things together and figure it out. No, I totally hear you. We did that a lot too, just because it gets old having to prepare all those meals every single day for all those people. Okay, I had a question for you about the cooking thing again, but I can't remember what it was. I asked you when you do like a crock pot meal, your freezer cooking, did you? Would you like put the components in the in the Ziploc bag, so then you just take it out and throw, throw all of the raw components in the crock pot? Is that what you would typically?

Naomi Fata: 38:50

I found that that was the easiest thing to do, like with the marinade, with the sauce, with whatever, like all in the bag. So it's all frozen together, so you're not having to look at a recipe or anything. Why don't you?

Allison Weeks: 39:03

take it out? Can you just I've yeah, I've never tried doing that before Can you just take, like, the frozen bag out and cut the bag off and just throw the whole lump into the crock pot, or do you have to thaw it first?

Naomi Fata: 39:13

Typically I would thaw them first and like I would even freeze like meatloaf raw in the pan lasagna, and so if I, you have enough pans and I actually probably have quite a few, like I would always seem to have enough pans I would make like omelets, like the like where you have like bread and and eggs and cheese and meat and all of that, sometimes spinach. Those I would freeze them and again you can freeze them raw and they cook really well, rather than drying out, because if you cook them and then freeze them, they get dry. Cook them again. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean I remember even freezing like a big, big ZD. So you cook the noodles, you mix everything together, you can even throw the cheese on top, but the final cooking you're not, you haven't, and those I feel like now I'm trying to remember because I haven't done as much freezer meals as probably in the last five years I think you're probably still defrost it, some in the fridge and then pop it in the oven and yeah, it's delicious, yeah.

Allison Weeks: 40:31

Cool. Those are great tips. Awesome. How do you maintain a healthy relationship with social media and or just media in general? Actually, I need to change this question because I really like to just address media in general. How do you approach that in your home and how are you training your kids in this area to be responsible with this?

Naomi Fata: 40:52

So for myself, I would say I am not a super big like TV or user, or even like a YouTube watcher, but in the business space, so I actually wasn't even super big into Instagram or Facebook until after I started my business and became an author and fighting oh, you're supposed to be more active and make connections. And that was really challenging for me because I think, especially at first, this would be like 10 years ago, I don't know, maybe it was more of a private person and what do you post or what don't you post. And then over the course of business, like being in some mentorship programs, I became more familiar with how to use them. But the time can like just the consuming time that it takes. So I actually have on my phone a 40 minute timer for social media and so it'll notify me if I'm on and it'll lock me out and I have to say, oh, am I gonna choose to like, do I need to finish this post? And you know, sometimes, okay, I'm in the middle of one last thing. Okay, you can say, like ignore for 15 minutes, but I've really like, if I can live within that 40 minute timer, it's much better, like, I feel like that's enough, I don't really need to be on more than that. So my kids we do let that.

Naomi Fata: 42:23

So we said that when they turned 10, we would get them their first electronic device Good or bad like but they never had any kindles or any tablets or anything before that. We were never anti-screen. But the TV doesn't run 24, seven like during the school year. I say no, you can't turn anything on before three. And then even then I don't want you know like we try and set limits. It's all a work in progress.

Naomi Fata: 42:58

But I think as I have grown in business, like I recognize how much they are gonna need to know how to use technology in their careers and in their business. You know, if they become entrepreneurs they need to know how to be tech savvy. So I don't want to keep it from them. But yet trying to find those healthy balances is definitely. You know it's challenging and I also like the good part of it is that you know like any, like you and I, we connect on social media and so like they can connect some with their friends using technology. But it comes it does come with a lot of challenges. So I think that's something we still definitely it's always a work in progress. We're always kind of trying to refine those boundaries, but so we're probably somewhere in the middle as far as yeah.

Allison Weeks: 43:59

Okay, so I want to talk about more, about some specific temptations and challenges, and I always like to ask this question just to see where people land. I'll give you three options and tell me which one is the one that you most identify with, all right Comparison to other women. That's the first one. Number two I am just a homemaker. I am not getting paid for this. It's not a real job. Or the third one is superwoman trying to do all the things.

Naomi Fata: 44:30

I would say that I struggle with comparison the most. I think you know part of that might go back to the interior design element a little bit, just feeling like I never quite feel like it's as pretty as it could be, like I always feel a little like does it feel a little haphazard? Is everything put together right?

Allison Weeks: 44:56

Yeah, that's true, and then Instagram and all that doesn't really help very much.

Naomi Fata: 45:02

Oh, yes, yeah.

Allison Weeks: 45:04

But I will say what my friend, my designer friend Danny, who's been on the show before. She's like just remember she worked for Anthropology in Martha's School. She's like just remember that stuff is not actually real for the most part. They just shoved everything in the corner and they took the picture of the prettiest section of the room. Just keep that in mind. Yes, yeah, okay. Well, let's talk a little bit more about the special challenge of balancing all of your work and your homeschooling and then your homemaking. How did all that come about?

Naomi Fata: 45:43

And you're just, you know, just, let's just talk about that, the unique challenges that brought, I mean, it definitely brings a lot of, I guess, unique challenges in terms of, I think, when you're home, like I felt like I never fell into a certain category, like there's the categories of, like moms that work outside the home and their only home at night, and then definitely a lot of people within my circle weren't working at all, or maybe, like I had one friend that was working like one night a week, so then the rest of their time was completely open, so recognizing well, what are the boundaries that I am going to have, and so when they were young, like I really had to be okay. So like nap time is from like one to three and we can have play dates and we can make sure that like the house is clean and all of that During the day, but from one to three I have to work, and then they have to be in bed by seven, and then I have to work and like having, you know, like having one income for us was not an option. It wasn't like we wouldn't have been in the area that we live in, we wouldn't have been able to afford housing if we didn't have two incomes, and I think that's the thing that I think is really important, and I think that's where some comparison comes in, or even that, like, well, don't expect easy Remembering is because a lot of people, or a lot of moms, would say, oh well, at nap time you can clean the house and you can prep dinner. Well, no, at nap time I have a list of clients and a list of projects that I need to get done. And so really, those time management skills are really important. And I think that's where some comparison comes in, and I think that's where some of the things that I think are important are the projects that I need to get done and so, really, those time management skills of always making sure, well, all the housework had to be done while the kids were awake. So that was something that definitely started early on and just the gradual Evolving Of that.

Naomi Fata: 47:51

Even now I just have lists and planners and I've been working with my business group on just learning how to block schedule even a little bit more, because I think this year for homeschooling I have sort of an eighth grader, a seventh eighth grader, a seventh grader and a third grader. Just there's a little bit more time that I need to devote to that, and I knew that going into this school year but we just started our full-fledged year last week. So though, we're recording in September but we did some schoolwork in August but we didn't start a full. So really starting to try and work out the kinks and that because I'm finding, oh, my time is limited in this, but recognizing like I have to say no, like what am I going to say no to?

Naomi Fata: 48:46

And whether it's a play date or even a field trip with our co-op that maybe I have to drive to, that's like, do I have enough drive time that day? I've never done a lot of like there's always a lot of mom's night out in the evening and I mean I think I've never really said yes to many of them, because I usually work four nights a week, sometimes five, and then I try and have one for my husband and one for, like, relaxing family night, and then you're done. And so, recognizing all those like always some sacrifices for you know, and if this is what you know I've been called to do, I have to be faithful to that and not complain about, oh, I can't go to a mom's night out because it's okay, like I'm getting to live the life that I chose to live and being grateful for that. So that's definitely, you know, definitely an interesting challenge to work in progress.

Allison Weeks: 49:49

Yeah, so do you try to. Is it on your schedule that you work every afternoon because you're working four nights a week? About? You said Um, it's.

Naomi Fata: 50:02

So. I have to say it's one thing I'm really really working on right now is trying to come up with a? Um, a manageable schedule. So even today, realizing that school work took us from about 830 to 130. And I was thinking like that I would have like an extra hour in there.

Naomi Fata: 50:25

But I've also been trying to work on delegating a little bit.

Naomi Fata: 50:30

So we're really working, like in this season I'm starting to be like, oh, we're shifting, because you definitely go through these periods of like, oh, everything figured out and I have the system down pat and a really great rhythm, and so that is my upended a little bit this fall that we're working on.

Naomi Fata: 50:49

But I'm I'm trying to like really navigate that and again, but falling back on those habits and those rhythms that worked before and just constantly like reflecting on it, um, changing it, like, and I think, when we see, well, what do I need to do, what do I need to accomplish, how many hours do I need to work, and moving with that. And you know, one thing I'm even working on now is trying to figure out okay, so how many hours am I going to work in a week and how many hours do I need to work in a week as far as like financial goals or whatever, and if I don't need to work quite as many hours, does it mean that maybe all I have to recognize I'm going to say no to this? I mean, sometimes it's even saying no to to jobs which is okay, like it's okay to say no and just recognizing that. So, whatever season we're in or whatever responsibilities we have, I think that no is something that we all have to work on and rely on?

Allison Weeks: 51:56

Oh, absolutely, yeah, I mean, all of these concepts that you're talking about apply to all of us as homemakers, whether we are juggling a job, another job or not. Um, we're going to talk next year. We're going to dive into our, our third pillar of homemaking, which is rhythms and routines, and one of the key, um, one of the key points about that is it is now, it's always in flux, like just when you think you've got, okay, this is the rhythm that's going to work for us, you know something happens and life changes and you always have to be flexible, always, um, and always, like you said, constantly just reflect and reassess. And after every season and I put that in quotes because that may, that may mean a literal season the fall, the winter, the spring or it may mean a season of life, which could be several months or it could be just a few weeks but you're constantly having to reevaluate.

Allison Weeks: 52:52

Where are we right now? What are our goals for this next season that's ahead, whether that's two weeks or two months or two years, and then plan your rhythms and adjust accordingly, and that I think that applies to all, should apply to all of us. Yeah, yeah, definitely, okay. Well, let's move on, and I would love to talk a little bit about hospitality. Um, what's a practical way that you show hospitality in your home making both to your family members and to people outside of your family?

Naomi Fata: 53:21

So we have, as a family, kind of decided to have an open door policy, which we don't really have too many people sleeping overnight or anything like that, and it's not that we have no boundaries, but we never wanted people to feel like they couldn't stop by. And so I think that you know part of that was with the business like my husband used to joke, it was really revolving door, so people are constantly in and out of your home and then you chat with them and you get to know them. But also, you know, while there'd be the kids friends. So we've always lived in neighborhoods, whether it was our previous home or whether it was here, and like we were up front with the parents when we moved in this neighborhood Listen, if your kids ever want to play, just come ring the doorbell, it's okay. Like if we can't play, we'll say that, but like they're never not welcome to come ring the doorbell and realizing that that can be a foreign concept to people and we've gotten so used to that in our, you know, 10 to 15 years that didn't realize, like how uncomfortable people can be Like. But people have definitely, you know, I think our friends have gotten used to that, recognizing you know. A lot of times they'll text and say, hey, can I just stop by? Which is great, but for the most part people never feel like awkward about asking or saying can I stop by and then. So that would be a pretty practical element and I've always been one.

Naomi Fata: 55:04

But this has been a little more challenging with the deeper work committed to homeschooling, but was always wanting to just say hey, come on over for a cup of coffee. If you need a chat, the kids will play, we'll have a cup of coffee and maybe I'll have something else to eat. Maybe I will. And being okay with like the super simple. I remember, even when the kids were like two and three, we'd have play dates and right, knowing like I need to be done at a certain amount of you know a certain time. So it's okay to have a super simple lunch peanut butter and jelly and box mac and cheese and be okay with like yes, I'm serving this group of play date kit Like there's nothing fancy, it's as simple as you can get because that's how much you know mental, brain space I can take to play on it. But all people wanted, all the moms wanted, was to hang out to have some fellowship and that's all the kids wanted. And recognizing, you know, like peanut butter and jellies. Okay, it's like.

Allison Weeks: 56:07

So some peanut allergies, right, that is true, yes, no, I love that so much because what you're describing is exactly what this section is about, and that's about fostering community. So you know, I often ask people this, this question how does home making help build community? But you have just beautifully described it. You know it's being intentional, about making sure that people know what your boundaries are, and you've chosen to have pretty wide open boundaries. Not everybody will be comfortable with that and that's totally fine, but just make it known, like, if you're cool with people dropping in whenever, make sure people know that. And I love how you went to the neighbors and said hey, your kids can come ring the doorbell and if we are available, we'll be happy to play. That's the thing about community is it definitely takes intentionality and then it takes, like you said, lowering your standards and your expectations just for because mostly what people want is they're lonely and you know they don't want to be alone. They want to be around other people and they want community. So that's a great. That's a great description of that.

Allison Weeks: 57:10

Okay, I want to move on to the rapid fire questions. Make sure we get to everything before we run out of time. So Tell me about your biggest homemaking fail.

Naomi Fata: 57:20

So what I thought of was a gluten-free pie crust from scratch. I was trying to make it for someone and it was one big disaster. Oh no, I don't even remember what kind of flour I used, but I just remember it was a mess.

Allison Weeks: 57:41

Those are tricky. Yeah, it took me quite a lot of years to learn how to make a decent gluten-free pie crust. Honestly, what I do now is Trader Joe's carries them. I don't know if you have Trader Joe's in your area, but they usually have them. I know they have them at Thanksgiving and Christmas time, and so I'll just stock up on several and put them in the freezer. There you go. That's the way to go. Okay, how about a recent homemaking win?

Naomi Fata: 58:12

I think our biggest win this year was we had a garden for the first time in a while and it was just tomatoes, hot peppers, cucumbers, beans and basil, but it went really well. And then I was able to can my own green tomato relish, which is my grandmother's recipe, and I was able to can some hot pepper jelly. So that was felt like a big win because it's something I've always wanted to do a little bit more of and for a lot of years. Because of the business and having small kids, I felt like I didn't have the bandwidth, so it was definitely felt like a big win.

Allison Weeks: 58:49

That is a big win, congratulations. How about a homemaking product or resource that you are loving right now?

Naomi Fata: 58:56

So I recently found in our area at this store it's called the Ozone. It is a bulk store, so it's like you come with your own containers and you oh, I am part of the loving and yeah, it's, and I can get like powdered dish soap. I mean that dish of powdered laundry soap and they have all the dish soaps and the shampoos and the.

Allison Weeks: 59:20

And you just bring your own container.

Naomi Fata: 59:23

And then it's by way, and then they just added a bulk food section. So I am so excited about this store.

Allison Weeks: 59:33

That's awesome, are they? Is that just a local, or are they a chain?

Naomi Fata: 59:37

No, this is a tiny little local place that actually is like perfect for us because it's like in route on our way home from church. So it's still like a 15 minute drive from my house but like it's a great like Sunday afternoon stop for us because it's actually like on the property of a farm, Cool.

Allison Weeks: 59:58

So yeah, that is so cool. I've heard about these stores and I know they're in bigger, some bigger cities have them, and I just wish that that would become a thing, because I would love that too, because I don't ston. You know it takes up a lot. I have to pay to have my recycle picked up and it takes up a lot of space to have all those big laundry containers and all the extra containers. So that is super cool. Okay, how about a homemaking hack or tip?

Naomi Fata: 1:00:29

So I was just going to say just keep going, just keep like tidying up, just keep doing the next thing, and it's not about perfection, it's just about continuing to keeping that rhythm going. I mean, I do probably a lot of laundry every day. Just throw it in when you're doing school and then take care, you know, and it builds into the day, similar with dishes or just having those things available. And I think building the mindset for just can, as you know, what you need to do, whether it's a grocery list or having the resources around, like where am I going to put my grocery list, so that it's always like just a continual flow and you don't feel like you have to set aside a time aside to do certain things. It's just, you know, while you're in the bathroom tidying the bathroom while you're, so then I feel like I don't do as much like deep cleaning, but just keep going, you just keep moving along.

Allison Weeks: 1:01:31

Yeah, great, that's a great tip. Love that. How about your signature dish?

Naomi Fata: 1:01:36

A homemade mac and cheese, really yes. So this is what everyone asks for, especially kids. But it's like made with like a roux, like butter and flour, and then palvita and you mix it all together, and so it's not the healthiest thing but it's very popular.

Allison Weeks: 1:01:59

That sounds so yummy. Is it a secret recipe or can you share it with us?

Naomi Fata: 1:02:03

No, so I have the recipe actually written down somewhere, but I just do it. So it's like half a stick of butter and a bit of flour in a saucepan and you're like mixing it together, you're whisking it together. I can send you the actual recipe if you want.

Allison Weeks: 1:02:24

Yeah, that would be awesome. I can share it with the audience in the newsletter after your episode and I will tell you the more of those kinds of recipes that you can start writing down, because your kids are going to go to college and they're going to call you and they're going to say, mom, how do you make your meatloaf or your mac and cheese? And you're going to be like racking your brain to try to figure out amounts. This is, this is I'm speaking from experience, because I have so many things that I cooked over the years that I didn't have a recipe for and I had to make. I had to come up with recipes that they could cook them after they left home. So just a little tip for you there. Yes, okay, cool. Well, let's talk a little bit about the art of home. How do you see homemaking as an art and where do you find beauty in homemaking?

Naomi Fata: 1:03:11

So I was thinking about this question and I thought to me I think what I think of as home is a place to cultivate the presence of Christ, because a home is like a place of belonging.

Naomi Fata: 1:03:31

And I had seen this Instagram post, I think last year, and it stuck with me so much.

Naomi Fata: 1:03:39

I don't remember any of the context, but it was as the word was dwell and just when we reminded me of like Christ dwelling in us and like as we're dwelling in our homes, and this aspect of like you want our children and the people to come in, to feel a sense of peace, that there's, like it's, a shelter from the anxiety of the world. Not at all that I feel like I've perfected that completely, but something that really has been kind of the center of my vision for my own home for a long time. And I think that's where I would say I see beauty in it, because there is that scripture that talks about I think it's in Psalm 90. It talks about the beauty of the Lord will be upon you, and like that I feel like that's the beauty of our homes is not the external beauty, but what can people feel and experience, or what can I, you know, having a safe place for our children to feel like they can be themselves and they're accepted and loved, and yeah, yeah, that's beautiful.

Allison Weeks: 1:04:56

So what's something about home making that you're thankful for?

Naomi Fata: 1:05:01

I think that opportunity to make that space like. I think so a little part of my story would be that when I was a teenager there was about seven months where we were actually homeless and then, and so I just remember that feeling of like I don't have a place to cultivate space. And then an interesting season was between our two moves when we moved from our previous home into when we moved here. There's a little backstory, but the moves didn't work out as we had anticipated, but we felt like God was calling us to a leap of faith. So for four or five months everything we owned was in pods and we lived at a friend's condo, and so that was in two. It was two years ago, yeah. And so here we are now.

Naomi Fata: 1:06:03

I remember just feeling so broken from that in the sense of just like, feeling like I don't have a place, that I have space to cultivate. That's my own, and it was the weirdest. It was definitely an inner thing, but I think that has made me even more cognizant and thankful of like, having the opportunity and having a place to create space. It's just something I'm super thankful for.

Allison Weeks: 1:06:32

Yeah, oh wow. Seven months Homeless. Oh gosh, Do you talk about that in your book?

Naomi Fata: 1:06:40

I don't remember. That sounds terrible. I do remember like and I think I've talked more about it recently I remember talking about evictions, some, but because there are other people's stories that are part of my own story, I think that I don't dwell on it as much. I think that I have, in recent years, been continuing to learn. Well, how do I share parts of my story authentically without compromising someone else's feelings? That might be part of my story, but I have talked about it in other places or speaking a little bit at a time.

Allison Weeks: 1:07:26

Yeah. So I just was wondering because I mean, your book is kind of like a. I haven't read it, but I was just reading a little bit about what it was about on your website and it sounds like it's sort of your story of how you came to Christ as a teenager. Is that correct?

Naomi Fata: 1:07:39

No, actually it is slightly related to the eviction in this sense. So I was saved when I was quite young, I was four. My dad was a pastor, but recognizing so here I've mentioned some of these life experiences, like my father dying, moving 20 times, being homeless, and I was always in a church, I was always part of a church, but I was always told that Jesus was the answer and I knew that and I believed that. But yet there's a big disconnect between our theology and the emotions and like the mind, will and emotions and what's happening to us. And so the title of my book is called Beyond to Head Knowledge Knowing Christ who Satisfies Our Hearts. And it was really my journey of recognizing, like I have the head knowledge, I was the good girl, but I didn't know the Christ who loved me, who would heal my brokenness, and even coming to the point of recognizing how broken I was, like emotionally and mentally.

Naomi Fata: 1:08:50

And yeah, I kept reading the scripture over and over that we talk about like Jesus being life and giving us life and just wrestling with. Well, what on earth does that mean? Cause I, here I am, I've been a Christian for my whole life and I'm in my early 20s and I think one of the phrases that I write is I don't feel like there's anything life giving flowing out of me. Why would I want someone else to become a Christian if I have no joy and I have no life Like? I believe it in my head that the Bible is real, but what is the life of Christ that's supposed to be flowing out of me?

Naomi Fata: 1:09:29

And I talk about like oh, we were always singing in kids church. Like I've got a river of life flowing out of me, spring up, oh well. But yet when I was really stopped to let myself feel, I was new, that there was nothing life giving, that there was no joy, there was no like. Am I just supposed to wait for heaven or is it for like, where's Jesus now? And so that's really the crux of the book is just coming to grips with like well, what does it mean to kind of not deconstruct but reconstruct my head, knowledge and for all of those verses that were memorized, for them to come to life and really be meaningful for my mental health now and my emotions and meeting Christ as someone that is a friend and a healer now?

Allison Weeks: 1:10:36

Yeah, yeah, kind of that. We talk about that on the show sometimes about the already and not yet of eternal life, that we, if we're in Christ, we have eternal life forever and our home will be eternally with him. But we can be at home with him now and we have that life now that we get to experience. That's already, but there's parts that are not yet, that come later. So that sounds really good. Well, we'll make sure that we link that down in the show notes how to get to your book. But before we close, I would love to talk to some of the other women. Let's talk to the older women first, because you're right in the middle. So how can older women help your generation of homemakers thrive in their practice of the art of home?

Naomi Fata: 1:11:28

So I was gonna say that one of the things I value most from older women is number one I wanna learn from them. But also, would you teach my kids something Like when they invest in the kids? Like because I think in my season of homemaking sometimes we're just exhausted and we feel like we've given so much to our kids. But to have someone else investing in our kids means the world to us, and so I think that that's probably one of the most precious gifts that the older generation can give. This particular season of homemaking is. There's definitely been people that have really invested in different periods of time and my children, and even my mom has been very gracious and she took them for one day a week for the past two school years, and this school year she's some other responsibilities but dropped it down to every other week but just it's such a gift.

Allison Weeks: 1:12:42

Yeah, no, that's great. That's not a lot of people have. I don't know that anybody's answered it that way. That's a really great. I love that. That's a good answer. I totally agree with you. Okay, how about to the younger women? What's the word of advice or encouragement you would give them?

Naomi Fata: 1:12:58

I would say take time to know your story because, coming we've all come out of something and maybe there are some that don't carry the wounds of their past. But recognizing that as we move into homemaking and whether it's homemaking with children especially that if we don't take the time to heal ourselves and our emotions and really whatever it takes to work through our stuff, we don't wanna carry them into our homes long term, like to have a vision for a healthy home and for healthy children and for your own mental and emotional health, yeah, yeah, that's a great word.

Allison Weeks: 1:13:49

I was actually gonna ask you when we were talking about your past there, how you were looking forward to making sure that that was a different story, maybe for your kids. So that answers that question. So that's great. Well, where can people find you online? How can they connect with you?

Naomi Fata: 1:14:09

So I do have a website, just NaomiFetanet. There's links to everything on there. I do have a sewing newsletter that goes out every other week pretty much, and then I have just started a YouTube channel which is NaomiFeta Sews. But my actual time that's spent interacting with people is predominantly on Instagram, which is NaomiFeta.

Allison Weeks: 1:14:37

Okay, so you have a newsletter and does that basically just say what's happening with your different businesses and whatnot, or what is in your newsletter?

Naomi Fata: 1:14:47

So typically I try to have one kind of sewing project tip. It's kind of chatty. It's a little chatty Like. My most recent one was about T-shirts and shortening them and rushing. Sometimes I'll post pictures on there of my latest projects and then I'll have any links to my latest YouTube videos. Sometimes, if I'm launching any courses, I might do a free offer from there, and I also like to have this like news and favorite section where I might be all chat about the latest book that I've read or a recipe or something else that's happening. That's not so sewing related, but just like a fun favorite and like coming up. I'm involved in a collaboration thing, so sometimes there's a link to that. It's different things, so it can be collaborative or it can be, but that's usually what's in it. So what would you say? Your audience?

Allison Weeks: 1:15:56

you're like the audience, who is your content for your sewing content.

Naomi Fata: 1:15:59

So I'm trying to really focus on those in my generation that don't know how to do it, and maybe you're interested but don't really know how. I don't talk a lot about sewing patterns from scratch. It's more about clothing that maybe you have. Maybe it's even textiles like curtains how can we repurpose them or make them fit better. I do also do a bit of slip covers for my business. So, like one of my recent YouTube videos was a little bit of a some footage of my recent slip cover, because I think that slip covers are definitely a way to keep what we have and just make them new for our homes. So that definitely is a little bit next level sewing skill, but all of it is. I just always encourage people just gotta get out there and try it and don't be afraid and you'll get it. It's like everything else You're going to be a newbie for a while and there's things that won't work, but just keep at it, okay.

Allison Weeks: 1:17:10

And your classes that you offer are those. All of that is on your website, yes, and so the ones.

Naomi Fata: 1:17:15

Right now I'm hosting them through Udemy and there's very basic. There's a couple, and so they're on demand classes.

Allison Weeks: 1:17:25

So they're evergreen, like videos that you already did, and they can access them whenever they need.

Naomi Fata: 1:17:31

And there's a couple of PDF tutorial downloads as well that are like rather than take a video class, some people like to read directions, so there's some that are just like printable directions and they're pretty inexpensive. So most of them, I think, are around like the $5 range.

Allison Weeks: 1:17:48

Okay, Good, all right. Well, we will have links for everything in the notes and in the newsletter that comes out after this airs. Thank you, naomi. This has been a really great conversation and I've enjoyed getting to know you.

Naomi Fata: 1:18:00

Yes, thank you so much for having me.

Allison Weeks: 1:18:03

You're welcome. Thank you so much for listening to this in the trenches. Home made portrait of Naomi Feta. I hope you've been encouraged and inspired by Naomi's story and that you've been able to take something away from this story today that you can apply right now in your practice of the art of home. Be sure to follow Naomi over on Instagram at Naomi Feta, check out her YouTube channel, visit her website and sign up for her newsletter and check out all the different resources that she has on offer, including her book and her sewing classes. You can find links to all of those things down in the show notes in the description box of this episode. Don't forget to sign up for Homemaker Happy Mail. That's where you're going to get all the resources that we mentioned today, including Naomi's famous mac and cheese recipe, so you don't want to miss out on that. It's easy to sign up and it's free. Just go over to the artofhomepodcastcom slash subscribe to get your name on our mailing list.

Allison Weeks: 1:19:11

If you have found value in today's episode, would you consider giving us some support in one of the following ways? Share this episode with someone you know who would find this content valuable and encouraging. Number two leave us a rating and a review on your podcast listening app. And number three you can give us a little bit of financial support by leaving us a tip and our virtual tip jar on Buy Me a Coffee. Tips are given in $5 increments. You can give one, two, three, four or 10, or as many coffees as you would like. Just go to buymeacoffeecom. Slash theartofhome. Well, that's it for today's episode. I will be back next Wednesday with our last episode of this season, another Homemaker Portrait of a Listener just like you. Until then, keep practicing your art of making a home. Number one share this episode with someone you know who would benefit from and be encouraged by this kind of content. Number two cars. Oh, and my bugman is singing. That's super helpful. Oh my gosh, can you hear that? Wow, I've completely lost my train of thought now. Hmm, okay, let's start over.