Salisbury Steak and Carrot Cake....

  I know I'm feeling better when I want to get into my kitchen and cook.  Last week the "bug" bit me and I had to have some home baked wheat bread.  I love the smell of the house when it's baking and Cierra and I can't resist eating the heel while it's warm and putting butter and honey on it.  Mmmmm..... This week's bread rose so beautifully and was especially good.  Three loaves are already gone!  (I did share some of it.)
   Then we were going to have company Thursday and I was trying to decide what to fix.  I hadn't made Salisbury Steak with Onion Gravy in a while and we had eaten chicken the first two nights of the week, so everyone was in the mood for something different.  I got this recipe from a Campbells Soup recipe book my mom gave me years ago and we love it.  I double it and have tripled it.  It always turns out wonderful.  When company is coming I make it ahead of time and put it in the crock pot on low and it finishes cooking while I can work on something else!
  So here is the recipe:

Salisbury Steak with Onion Gravy
1 can (10 1/2) oz. condensed onion soup  *(I buy the dry onion soup and make it up for this because it's cheaper and makes plenty if you need to double the recipe.)
1 1/2 lbs. ground beef (or ground venison, which is what I used this week)
1/2 cup fine dry bread crumbs
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/4 tsp. salt
dash pepper
1 T. flour
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup water
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. prepared mustard

  Read the recipe carefully you don't use all the ingredients at once!  In bowl, combine 1/3 cup soup with beef, crumbs, egg, salt, pepper.  Shape into 6 oval patties.  In skillet, brown patties; pour off fat.  Gradually blend remaining soup into flour until smooth.  Add to skillet with remaining ingredients; stir to loosen browned bits.  Cover; cook over low heat 20 min. or until done.  Stir now and then.

  I meant to take a picture of both of these but forgot!  Maybe next time.  It is delicious!

  Our church had a dinner this Sunday and for my dessert I made Carrot Cake.  I usually make it on Easter Sunday but we're going to be gone this year so I decided to make it for the dinner.  My mom gave me this recipe and it is the best I've tasted.

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
1 1/4 cups salad oil
2 cups sugar
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. soda
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
4 eggs
1 cup grated raw carrots
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)
  Bake at 300 degrees for one hour.  (That's all my mom had on the card.  I like to make this into layers and found out the hard way to use three round pans if you do that!  Adjust the time to what kind of cake you are making.  I will not take as long in the layers as a 9x13 pan.)

Frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 stick butter
1 box powdered sugar (4 cups)

  I use 5-6 cups of powdered sugar and mix the above and then add a tiny little bit of milk at a time until it is spreading consistency.  If you use this much powdered sugar you will have plenty for a 3 layer cake.  If it's a 9x13 you probably could get by with 4 cups of the sugar.
  I always associate this cake with the spring for some reason and especially with Easter Sunday.  I also make a torte with a crunchy layer on the bottom, then a cream cheese layer, then a pudding layer and then cool whip on top.  I make butterscotch in the fall, chocolate in the winter, pistachio at Christmas (with maraschino cherries decorating the top), and lemon in the spring and summer.  I think it's wonderful  how we come to associate certain foods we eat with seasons. 
  That's all the recipes for now.  We got cake mixes at our local UGO for 50 cents each and I don't like cake mix cakes, so I've been playing with recipes that doctor them up.  I made a torte with one that was very, very good--I'll post that recipe later.
  I hope everyone is enjoying the beauty of the spring like we are.  Dogwoods, redbuds, birds singing, and life popping up everywhere on trees and in our yards.   Our Designer knows how to make us rejoice in the spring season with all His color and life.  Enjoy!

Our John Robert...

  I always wanted and prayed for a large family.  At least seven children and I actually prayed for eight children.  I often tease my husband that one more will be coming along sooner or later since I prayed for eight!  "Turn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope: even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee;" Zech. 9:12 was the verse I used to ask the Lord to give my husband and I double of the four biological children we had. 
  Each Mother's Day I would pray and tell the Lord I was available to mother more children for Him if He would give them to us.  On July 17, 1991 God gave us our first extra blessing--Asher Obadiah.  His name means "how blessed" and he has been just that to us.  A wonderful bonus blessing!
  Then in 1999 God granted us two more bonus blessings!  We were given Cierra Nichole (who was 3) and John Robert (who was 10 months) straight from the Lord to our arms and love. 
  Tomorrow is John's 12th birthday so I'm going to tell his story.  When we got him he hadn't been held much and he still was basically just on a bottle.  Each night I would put a blanket in the dryer and get it warm and then sit and hold him and rock him.  He hadn't had much physical love and he ate it up!  He would snuggle up to me and just let me hold him and rock him and sing to him.
  When John turned a year old he became very sick.  His health wasn't good when we got him and he seemed to pick up everything that went around.  He ended up in the hospital with rotavirus and e-coli on his very first birthday!  His aunt came to the hospital and offered to watch him so I could go home and take a shower and get a nap.  I snatched the opportunity and headed home.  I had showered and was just settling in for a nap when the phone rang.  The hospital wanted me to come back because he wouldn't quit crying and was very upset.  So I headed back to the hospital.  The minute I picked him up he snuggled into my arms and quit crying.  I can remember calling my husband and saying,  "I'm his mama now.  He knows I'm his mama." 
   John hadn't had much opportunity to move about and so we got him a walker.  He didn't walk in a walker, he ran in a walker!  I had to block doorways so he wouldn't hit the divider and send himself flying!   Once he got the idea of moving around he wasn't happy with holding still!
   After we'd had the children for about a year Gary and I decided to try a getaway for our anniversary with Brian and Niki watching John and Cierra.  On the last day of our getaway Niki called and said she didn't think John was going to make it another day he was so unhappy and fussy.  So we headed back home early.  When we walked in the door he latched on to Gary's leg and when Gary picked him up he kept loving on him.
  That night we decided to let him lay in the bed with us for a while.  As he laid between Gary and I he would take turns kissing Gary's face and then kissing my face.  I don't know who was enjoying it the most--John or us.
  Early on John had a sense of adventure and a love for learning.  He has a mechanical mind and he's a problem solver.  If I can't figure out how something works I hand it to John.  He talked early and would ask the most unusual questions like "Why do refrigerators have wheels under them?"  I mean, what two year old studies on that?
  He loved Batman so we bought him the mask and a little cape.  One day I looked out the kitchen window and he was on the top of the fort (Gary had built it for Asher when he was little) and I could see he was planning on jumping off of it.  I raced out the back door but it was too late.  He had dived off of the fort and was on the ground crying.  I picked him up and checked him out.  He was scratched up but nothing broken.  I said, "John, honey, why did you do that?"  His reply was, "Because I thought I would fly like Batman!"  That's just one of the many scares he's given me with his love for adventure! 
  When he was about five he asked the Lord to be His Savior.  What a joy to put a checkmark by his name in my Bible where I have my children and grandchildren's names claiming their salvation ahead of time.  It is my heart's desire that he will always yield to the Lord in his life and bring glory to God.  It is also my prayer.
  Each year I've watched him grow and seen his personality develop.  He is a natural leader.  He has a sense of humor that I absolutely love.  He is better than tv comedy when he gets in a certain mood!  He loves the Three Stooges and I like to stand back in my room and listen to him belly laugh as he watches them.  He loves Dick Van Dyke and since I love that too we watch it together.  He loves games.  He would play games every night if I would agree.  His favorite is Monopoly.  He loves to fish.  He loves to hunt.  He loves he and I planning something together and then doing it together.  He has always loved planning a little garden and so I gave him a little plot of his own.  This year he's planning on growing vegetables in containers!
   I often think how empty my life would be without Asher, Cierra and John.  What a wonderful blessing they have been to us.
  Twelve years ago his aunt and I sit in a nursery together and it was Easter Sunday.  She told me that her little sister had had a baby that day-a little boy.  I never dreamed that he was going to be my little boy.
  Tomorrow he has requested a lemon cake with filling between the layers that is like the filling in a lemon filled donut.  Then he wants lemon buttercream icing and lemon ice cream.  He made me a list of all his "wishes" for his birthday.  It was typical for a boy his age and some were reasonable and some weren't.  (like rent the skating rink for the entire evening so just our family could skate all evening!)
  He'll be happy with what he's getting.  He's chosen spaghetti with lettuce salad, corn and garlic bread for supper.  That surprised me--I expected homemade chicken nuggets or Chicken Parmagiana.
  So tonight I'm sittting here looking forward to tomorrow when my "baby" is turning twelve and feeling a little sad too.  Wondering how much longer I'll get 55 kisses like I did tonight, or we'll have to pack "Moosie and Rex" in his backpack to travel anywhere in the world, or he'll want to hold my hand in church, or...
  Yet I'm enjoying seeing the adolescent John who insists on helping me with heavy things or getting something down for me that requires a ladder.  The John who  takes off with his dad on a deer hunt (and he got one!), or goes to work with his dad like he did last Saturday and earns himself $28 because he worked like a little man.
  My mother once gave me a vinegar cruet with silk roses in it.  She said, "Tami, this is like life---some bitter and some sweet, but we need to take is all and find joy in it."  So that's how I'm feeling tonight as my son turns twelve--like this is a little bittersweet.  However, I'm finding joy in all of it and am so thankful for my precious son that God hand-picked for us and gave to us.  Happy birthday, to my John!

Love,
Mom

p.s.  I would have pictures on here of our John but had a computer crash last week and am still replacing files that were lost!
  

Spring...

  I love the springtime.  I love the budding trees, the new color showing up everywhere, the way the Lord combines those colors and that everything is coming alive.  I have always loved spring in Tennessee because of the warmth in the air and the sweet smell of the honeysuckle during late April and May. 
  I also love spring because my mind begins running with ideas.  I order seed catalogs (which I usually can't afford to order from) and I pull out my patterns and begin to design clothing for the children on paper and in my head.  I dream of what project I might want to take on to make the house look more cheerful.  I sat the other night and clipped magazines with beautiful spring bouqets and birds on the nest and beautiful downy little chicks.
  This year I am hoping for a clothesline so I can hang my sheets out to dry like I did when we lived at Swan Pond.  Hanging things on a clothesline is some kind of therapy for me.  I love the smell of the sheets after they've been out in the warm sun and summer wind.
  In the spring I begin pulling out my favorite recipes for desserts with strawberries and lemon and other fruit flavors.  I go through my cookbooks looking for lighter fare for our meals and I make a "wish list" of meals to try on my family for spring and summer.  Cierra is now old enough that she and I enjoy sitting together and going through cookbooks and planning what we think would be fun to try.
   As part of my "therapy" for my last real battle physically my husband wanted me to do a sewing project that wasn't because it had to be done but just for fun.  My favorite sewing is for children so I took a 1953 pattern that had never been cut out and made it up.  Because I couldn't physically get out of the house Esther chose the fabric for me by sending photos back and forth via the computer and then buying the one I liked the best.  (Thank you, dear Esther!)
   I'm all done except the buttons.  It truly was good for me to have to plan, design, cut and sew as it kept my mind busy.  Here's the pattern (and the link to where you can buy it on E-bay).

http://cgi.ebay.com/Simplicity-4407-Childs-Jumper-Blouse-Sz-2-UNcut-Patt-/390282736051
   And although I'm not finished with putting the button's on (since I have yet to get back to town!) I'm going to include a picture of how it looks so far.  It has a tied bow in the back that is darling too. 

  Didn't that turn out so precious?  This would have been the type of dress my mother would have made me when I was little.  I have a passion for sewing vintage patterns for children but not much time to indulge in it so this was fun!
   I have a spring sewing list (longer than I can possibly get done.) but just going through my patterns with the little short sleeves or little matching linen coats over the dresses, the little boys rompers, all the beautiful new tote and purse patterns I'm seeing, the twirly skirts for the little girls and the list could go on and on.
  I have to remind myself that they will not all get done and that I need to decide which of my many ideas really matter to me, which are beyond my reach, which would take so much time I would end up neglecting my family, etc. but yet it is still so much fun sitting with pen and paper and planning it all--even if I have to put little astericks beside some of them showing that they are very likely not going to happen and are on the bottom of the list!  That doesn't change the fact that I pray about them and ask the Lord to supply all that I need for that project if it is His will!  (including strength right now!)
  Isn't it wonderful the way the Lord made us to love the changes of the seasons?  When I feel the changes coming for the new season I am so ready for that season.  I pray that you are enjoying that new warmth in the air, the rainy days, the little buds coming out and the tulips pushing their way through the garden soil. 
  I trust that you too have a case of "spring fever" and are enjoying it! 

Love,
Mom

Sustaining Grace...

  This is not the next post I had planned.  I had planned on a post about sweethearts, Valentine's Day, etc.  I always get very tender toward my sweetheart in February because we got married in March and the memories begin to run through my heart of the wonderful years the Lord has given me with my husband of almost 37 years!
  The post I am going to write is difficult because it is one where I am going to be open about my weaknesses and that isn't easy for me.  However, I promised myself that when it comes to being someone in leadership (a pastor's wife) I want to be honest about the fact that I have every battle that every other woman has and that I want to wear no masks.  I am simply an older woman who has been down the road a little further which only has taught me how much I desperately need the Lord--not made me better than anyone else.  I do want to take my experience and help others so that perhaps they have less pain and learn to lean on Him a little sooner in life than I did.
  The post I had planned is not going to be written because  life has taken me down another path than I had in my planned for about a week now.  I battle major health issues since I had C. diff and pancreatitis three years ago.  In the last week or so I've been in what I'd call a major flare-up.  I have decided that until the Lord takes me another direction this is His will for my life and I try my best to make my illness one of the details of my life--not my life.  Every once in a while in takes control however, and we're there.
  I also am a victim of chronic depression.  It is not easy to say that, but God's grace has been so sweet to me in this area of my life.  He has taught me year by year how to manage this illness and I praise His name that He has used my life to help others at times. 
  I always have my lowest point in late January and early February.  I know it's going to come and have to remind myself to keep track of the triggers (and avoid as many as possible), to get my sunlight and make myself take walks when it starts.  If you suffer depression you know that's the very last thing you want to do and I remind my husband to not ask me but tell me what to do during this time of the year.  Because of the things I've learned I go through many winters with only mild symptoms instead of being in the bed in despair as I have in previous years.
   This year something caused the depression to go into a major downswing.  I could list about five possible causes so who's to know which one or if it was a combination of all.  Number one on my list is the downswing in my health.  I fight intense pain and when it gets to the point I want to pace I begin to feel hopeless that it will ever end.  The thought of living the rest of my life like this is not a pleasant one and I have to send that thought away and live one day at a time.
   But that's not what this post is about.  This post is about God's goodness and His sustaining grace.  This week I had a day when my body decided it had to have rest and I literally "crashed" into a deep sleep. (No medication involved in case you're wondering.) When I did rouse my unwelcome "friend" was always there with the despair and hopelessness.  And that's when the Lord had my daughter Alicia call to check on me.  I was half awake/half asleep and we were talking. 
   In the midst of a conversation I can't remember fully she asked "Who created emotions?" 
   My reply was, "God."
  Then she said something like this, "Mom, God created sadness, and fear and other emotions that are negative simply to be used as a springboard to make us see our need for Him." 
  My heart gripped that.  That was exactly what the Lord has been faithfully teaching me and He used my precious daughter to remind me of it when I was literally too ill to even think straight enough to turn my heart and mind toward the truths I knew.  I have no faith, no light, no courage of my own and at a time when my heart is trembling, my flesh is failing me, and my mind and emotions are in turmoil and confusion I only have to look to Him to sustain me and minister Himself to me. 
  Then today-- I ended up with four firetrucks at my house because of a problem with our fireplace insert.  We came very close to having a house fire.  The Lord spared us by allowing it to happen during the day and allowing help to come quickly.  We didn't even have serious smoke damage.  However, my already fragile nerves felt like they were literally shot and I could feel the panic trying to rise in me over all the "little foxes" in our lives right now.
  My oldest daughter Niki called this evening and began to talk to me about the Lord not saying He wouldn't put more on us than we could bear when it came to burdens--that text had to do with temptations. She talked about how He allows the unbearable burdens in our lives so we will turn to Him and let Him be our Burden-bearer and sustain us.  He simply uses the burdens to remind us we need Him and can't go through lives without Him.  The same message again--and just when I needed it.
   As we talked once again I could feel the Holy Spirit ministering the truth to me when my mind and emotions were too weary to even think properly.  Once again the Living Water bubbled up inside of me as I thought of Him right there to sustain me with His grace, to bear me up on His wings, to hold underneath me with His everlasting arms and when I can only look He's there for me.
  How thankful I am He has given me two daughters who can minister to their mother.  There is no greater blessing or greater dividend in life than having children that bring you joy in their spiritual walk being healthy.
So tonight, I want to remind you of His wonderful grace.  If you are too weak, too weary, perhaps you sicken yourself with your inability to trust or be courageous, just fall upon Him and look up at Him and let Him minister His life and righteousness and grace to you.  "My flesh  and my heart faileth : but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion  for ever."  Ps. 73:26  He will not fail you, He promises! 

p.s. If you are Niki's friend on Facebook you can read her wonderful essay on this--http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/notes/niki-neal-lott/more-than-we-can-bear/10150133658690159

   

The Wonderful World of Home-Keeping...

I just returned from a wonderful visit to Idaho.  Three glorious weeks with grandchildren, a son and precious daughter-in-law, cooking, baking, playing games, talking and being a family together.  We spent Christmas together for the first time in years and our bonus gift was a brand new granddaughter born on December 15th.  Better than any gift you could wrap up and put under the tree.  Shaelyn Brianne welcome to the Neal family!

(Look closely at the little dress--her Grandma Tami had a wonderful time designing and sewing it! ;)



   When I came home I was almost overwhelmed with all there was to do!  As nice as it was to get all the Christmas things out for the kids before we left it wasn't fun to come home to all those things to put away.  It gave me the strangest feeling that they had all sat here unused during the Christmas holiday.  I know they're inanimate but I felt sorry for them sitting all alone in Tennessee while we celebrated Christmas in Idaho.

   Along with that I had lots and lots of luggage to unload, (Thank you dear Jennibeth for letting me get all the laundry done before I left so I had clean clothes to unpack!)  a house that needed dusted, decluttered (Christmas goodies), and I was battling a setback with my health. Our computer wouldn't boot up and so we were unable to get Cierra back to school.  My camera wouldn't download pictures when it had worked just fine before we left on our trip.  I needed to buy groceries--the cabinets and fridge were depleted.  I felt overwhelmed to say the least. 

   First, I had to run to the Lord and get some spiritual shoring.  That took about three days.  Just reminding myself of His faithfulness and looking at my problems through Him instead of looking at Him through my problems.  (Thank you, Mr. F.B. Meyer.) 

   Then I had to get my handy-dandy notebook out and begin prioritizing and making a daily plan to tackle all that needed done.  I also had to spend two days on the couch and in the bed.(Unplanned --longggg story and a funny one looking back at it!) 

   I had to quote my own little mantra--"Break all large tasks into managable small ones."  With a piece of paper I divided my week up and took those things that needed done and gave them a day.  Today I'm looking at a house that is back to normal.  Not perfect--just back to normal.

    I had to give my days to the Lord and laugh when an unexpected visit on a day when I was trying to get a lot done got a prayer answered concerning the computer problem! 

   I had to remember to look to Him to meet my every need on a daily basis.  Another wonderful laugh when the Lord sent the neighbor lady with a ham that she said she wasn't begin to eat  by herself so she'd taken off what she wanted and brought us the rest.  We are finishing it off in a big kettle of pinto beans tonight.  It fed us a total of five meals!!  Thank You Lord for the ravens!  Pretty much all we had to buy at the store this week was bread,some vegetables, margarine and milk.

   After seeing the Lord take all my worries and reduce them from mountains to molehills I was able to relax.  So I got out a book that my daughter Niki gave me on Mother's Day of 2006.   I love to read it at the beginning of each year.  It is called "Mrs. Dunwoody's Excellent Instrustions for Homekeeping".  It is written as though a mother of the Civil War period is writing her children with instructions on keeping a home.  

   Her first chapter is about the art of homekeeping.  She discusses  the importance of order and talks about keeping a "homekeeping notebook".  As I've surfed blogland I'm seeing all the talk about organizing.  This book is taken from excerpts from women's notes from the late 1800's and it looks like the talk hasn't changed much!  The sweet thing about this book is that she sees homekeeping as a woman's main duty.
  She says "Order is the mainspring in housework."  Then she gives a domestic calendar to follow.  She was the "Flylady" of her day! :) 
   Her suggestions for "Planning a Superior Day" consist of
1)  "Make a plan for your day."  This doesn't require much explanation.  Fail to plan and you've planned to fail.
2)  "Concentrate."  Basically, keep your mind on the chore at hand and you'll get it done.
3)  "Learn to rest and catch your breath."  Taking a break makes you ready to hit the work again.  Rather it's 15 minutes or taking a day away from it all if you've learned to do this you know it is true.
 4)  "Don't Procrastinate ."  Sometimes the chore we've put off is a chore than only takes a few minutes.  To hit it and get it done takes an emotional load off of us along with the load of the chore.  If you're dreading it move it to the top of the list and get it behind you.
 5)  "Sift and sort."  Prioritize your day!  If it needs immediate attention than do it.  If it can wait till the evening in your chair in the living room put it at the bottom of the list. 
6)Strive for excellence, not perfection. 
7.  "Never lose sight of the big picture."  People are more important than projects.  And as I once heard someone wisely say--"The castle is no more important than the king who lives therein."

  I've just begun making my own laundry detergent and dishwasher detergent but Mrs. Dunwoody has all the cleaning solutions you might want to find in her second chapter along with wonderful advice.  I remember using mostly vinegar and ammonia when Gary first went into full-time service.  I also remember my mother telling me if all I had was warm water to mop my floors anyway because I would know I was using what I had.  Thank you, sweet mother!
   Some of the wonderful advice in her second chapter includes cleaning suggestions, how to miter a sheet corner, getting rid of those unwanted guests (she knew cockroaches didn't like Borax!), and even the advice that mice don't like peppermint extract! 
  Her next chapter is on laundry, mending, etc....lots of good advice!   As a lover of linens I enjoy reading this because you can tell the women of her day loved a table spread with lovely linens.  I love reading a book that makes having them and caring for them seem a wonderful blessing and joy!  These types of books are my friends, my "aged woman" reminding me that homekeeping is a gift-a wonderful, varied career choice that has God's stamp of approval on it for me.
   The next chapter is recipes and kitchen ideas.  One of my favorite things in this chapter is her advice on how to season a cast iron skillet.  Everyone should own one and use one.  It will keep you and your family from being anemic!
   Chapter 5 is on the art of entertaining.  I love the whole chapter.  Diagrams for setting tables for different types of suppers, holiday entertaining, and sage advice on how to "Dine--not to Eat".
  The following chapters are on health and beauty, marriage and family, the garden and final remarks.  The pages have some pithy little statements by Aunt Mary Middle that make you laugh (like "My idea of house cleaning is to sweep the room with a glance.") and excerpts from Godey's Lady's Book from the 1860's that make you wish we still had magazines like that being published for the general public, and other wonderful things that make you glad you're a keeper at home.
  Although I love reading the blogs at this time of year and gleaning new ideas for our home I love my dear friends the books more.  They have sustained me during my marriage years and lifted me up by my bootstraps when I was on a pity party more than once!
  I pray as we enter this new year that you are drawing all your strength from the Lord and looking at 2011 as the year that you are a better child of God, wife, mother, daughter, and woman than you've ever been in your life.  God bless each one of you! 

Christmastide...

 

I truly believe the song line that says "It's the most wonderful time of the year..".  I love the season of Christmas.  I begin celebrating before Thanksgiving but I keep it a secret because my husband doesn't want to hear a peep about Christmas till after Thanksgiving!
  This year I told the children that between the fact that I wasn't even sure where our Christmas decorations were and that we were going to be gone part of the Christmas season we were only going to get out the tree and decorate it and nothing else.
  Well, Gary and the kids brought down the boxes from the attic and as we went through them it was, "Oh, we've got got get out the nativity set, Mom." and "Aren't you going to put the snow village out." and "You know every year you decorate the cabinet." and "Whose going to kill any mice we might get during Christmas if the nutcrackers aren't out?"  Being the very-sentimental woman that I am the next thing you know I had everything out except one box of snowmen I couldn't find!  So much for not getting anything out but the Christmas tree items.  I have to admit when I sit at night and look at it all I'm very glad I didn't listen to myself!
  And what is my personal favorite?  Well, I love the nutcrackers.  Asher loved them when he was little and one at a time they showed up as gifts for him from his grandparents.  The only one that doesn't belong to him is the mouse king.  He showed up on the last day of the pocket calendar as a grand finale a couple years ago. 
  We love the story of the nutcracker and our cartoon version is just about my favorite Christmas movie.  Every year if we get a mouse in the house during the Christmas season it shows up dead at the feet of our nutcrackers--but the nutcrackers are not my favorite Christmas decoration.
  I love the pocket calendar.  It began when the older children were little.  I made a homely little pocket calendar with 25 pockets and each day a little surprise or promise note showed up in the pocket.  It was put there by Ralph our resident Christmas elf.  He has been known to fix toys, hide treats and generally be a true fun friend to have in the house for the month of December.  Alicia was certain when she was little that she saw him moving through  the branches of our Christmas tree.  I really think she still is a firm believer in Ralph! :)  But the pocket calendar isn't my favorite Christmas decoration!
  I also love my Hoosier cabinet decorations.  It started with just a few and grew till the whole cabinet top was filled with Christmas each year.  One year I thought it was a little too much and decided I wasn't going to do the cabinet any more.  Alicia was already married but let me know that it wouldn't be Christmas without the cabinet being decorated-so it still is.  However, the cabinet is not my personal favorite.

   I love the snow village.  It is made up of little houses that are mostly from thrift stores and Big Lots and Dollar General stores.  We have more than one church with little carolers in front of them.  (The ones at the nicer church look a little uppity to me in their choir robes!)  We have a banker stepping out of the bank looking at his watch.  (We call him Jimmy. :)  We have a barn and it front of it are men working on cutting wood and blacksmithing.  We have a toy store, a post office, and a fire house.  We love them all and call it Nealville.  However, the snow village is not my favorite decoration.

   I love all my cozy kitchen decorations.  I have a swag with antique ornaments attached with homespun, lots of cute little snowmen, little children that sit in my kitchen window decorated in red and green, and lots of snowmen but these aren't my favorite Christmas decorations.



  My very, very favorite decoration is our nativity set.  It is composed of cheap, not-so-cheap and Fontanini.  Mary and Joseph have a home made from foam core and Bethlehem's barn is a book given to me when our older children were very little.  However, I love it because it is the theme of the month for me.
  It begins with Nazareth which is in my living room right now behind my chair.  During the move the floor disappeared so this year their home is extremely shabby, but they don't care.  One day a Roman soldier shows up to their little home and leaves a notice from Caesar on their door--they must go to be taxed.  So they put a bedroll on their donkey and begin the long trek across the living room to Bethlehem. (Which is in the kitchen this year.)

  Bethlehem is on the dry sink in the kitchen and is made up of a stable, a large star (that doesn't light up till Christmas Eve), a shop keeper, soldiers, some residents, a palm tree and animals.  The manger is empty and stays that way till Christmas Eve.  Nearby is a hilly area with shepherds watching their sheep by their campfires. 



  I love it when they all end up gathered around the newborn Jesus and the star is shining above it all.  How perfect.  The wise men even show up to worship even though I am fully aware their timing is off when compared to the Bible.  But we can't keep the nativity set out long enough to let them do it accurately!

   So far this Christmas season we've had all our hearts could desire and more.  It has snowed and given us a picture postcard yard for one day, I've been able to bake and play in the kitchen, I've been enjoying creating little gifts for my loved ones, have been able to smock a beautiful new dress for my latest grandchild who is coming to join us December 15th and have even stayed on track in working ahead in school so we're not behind when we come home from our trip!  Thank You Lord for all Your blessings and help!

 

   And just to think--this is just the beginning of this wonderful season!  I am looking forward to the many things we still have to do.   We're taking my mother-in-law to see the lights in Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg and visit Hammers Dept. Store, we're going to be making a trip as a family to see my Idaho grandbabies and our newest little granddaughter, I still have lots of ideas floating around in my head that I hope I have time to carry out, cookies and candies to make, wonderful once-a-year food to cook and Christmas books to read and movies to view. 

  Above all, it's a time to thank the Lord for coming to earth in human form that He might save us from our sins!  Thank You, thank You, thank You!

  I pray that you're having a wonderful holiday season and savoring every sight, smell, future memory, and every moment with your loved ones.  May God bless each one of you and grant you a Christ-filled, joyous holiday season.

With love,

Mom

Thanksgiving is almost here...

  I love the entire holiday season and my husband loves the holiday that is coming up next week-Thanksgiving.   Because he loves it so I love to make Thanksgiving extra special for him.  This Thanksgiving we're going to have our oldest daughter Niki, her husband Brian and their two little ones with us, my dad and  Lela and her daughter Esther and Uncle Mike (Shockley) with us.  I'll love every moment of it.  (Though I wish I could blink and have every child and grandchild gathered into my kitchen.)
   We have the old faithful recipes that we cannot imagine a holiday dinner without---Turkey and dressing, Swiss Medley, Sweet Potato Casserole, Baked Macaroni and Cheese, Cheeseball and crackers, hot rolls, pecan pie and some kind of cheesecake for dessert. (This year is a toss up trying to decide between Pumpkin Praline and Reese Cup Cheesecake.) 
  I also like to try something new each year.  This year I'm trying two new recipes.  My pecan pie is going to be a chocolate pecan pie.  Esther brought me some really, really nice Ghiradelli dark chocolate chips and I decided to use one bag for Thanksgiving and one for Christmas.  So they're going to find their way into a chocolate pecan pie.  Then I found a recipe for some Cranberry Crumb Bars that sounds wonderful and very Thanksgiving-ish so I'm trying them.  Have to make lots of desserts so I can share!
  So how about an old recipe and a new recipe?  For the old I'm going to give you the Sweet Potato Casserole.  I'm sure many of you have had it since it's a Southern recipe, but till I moved south I had only had the sweet potato casserole with marshmallows on top and I took just enough to be polite.  But when I tasted this one I was hooked, begged for the recipe shamelessly and made everyone that came to my house try it if it was on the table.  I've had more than one person that swore they hated sweet potatoes decide they hated sweet potatoes and loved this casserole and had one person tell me that if it wasn't bad manners they'd lick the pan when it was gone!  So here's my sweet potato casserole recipe given to me back in 1987!

SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE
3 cups mashed sweet potatoes
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup margarine
Mix well.  Pour into shallow buttered casserole. (I use a 9x13 pan.)
Topping:
1 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1/3 cup margarine
  Blend flour and sugar well and sprinkle on top.  Mix nuts and butter and sprinkle on top.
  (I mix all of the ingredients into one bowl instead of doing it separately like the recipe says.)  Bake at 350
degrees for 30 minutes.
I usually make this the day ahead and store it in the fridge so all I have to do is pop it in the oven.  I usually set it out in the morning and let it get to room temperature.  If not you have to give it a little extra baking time!

Now for my new recipe this year:

CRANBERRY CRUMB BARS
1 1/2 cups flour
1/3 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup cold margarine
Filling:
1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1 can (14 oz. sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 T. corn starch
1 T. brown sugar
1 can (16 oz.) whole berry cranberry sauce
Topping:
1/3 cup flour
2 T. brown sugar
1/4 cup cold butter or margarine
3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts (I'm going to use pecans.)
  In bowl, combine flour and powdered sugar, cut in the butter until crumbly..  Press in a 9x13 pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until light brown.  Reduce oven heat to 325 degrees.
   In bowl, beat cream cheese till smooth.  Add milk and lemon juice; mix well. Pour over crust.
   In bowl, combine corn starch and brown sugar.  Stir in cranberry sauce till combined.  Spoon over cream cheese layer.
   For topping, combine flour and brown sugar.  Cut in butter.  Fold in nuts.  Sprinkle over filling.
  Bake at 325 degrees for 40-45 minutes till topping is golden brown.  Cool on wire rack.  Cover and chill for 3 hours before cutting.  Yield: 12-15 servings. 
  I think they sound (and they looked) yummy!  If my 55 year old brain can retain this thought, I'll try to post pictures of both of these after Thanksgiving! 
  I am so thankful for the Lord's tender care of me all these years, I'm thankful for the wonderful, wonderful marriage He's given me, the children He gave us and then the bonus children He gave us, for giving me faith to believe Him and to trust His word, for the new truths He gives me every day in His word.
  I've been thinking of other things this last couple weeks...I've thought so much of my children and all they've taught me, for the blessing of seeing my grown children in church and serving the Lord with all their hearts, for the blessing of seeing my grandchildren receive Christ as their Saviour, I've thought of my brother and sisters and how precious they are to me and what wonderful memories I have of my life with them, of my nieces and nephews and just little snippets of memories have come floating back, (like MaryBeth staying with me after my foot surgery to help me), I've thought of so many people that have been used of the Lord to refresh Gary and I spiritually at just the right time, of my parents and my in-laws, of friends who have remained faithful to us through the years and the list could go on and on and on....
  I read aloud to our children at breakfast this week Abraham Lincoln's proclamation http://www.classicallibrary.org/lincoln/thanksgiving.htm   concerning Thanksgiving.  In it he makes sure the people know it is God who they had to thank for their blessings and God who they should fear for His judgment on our nation (the Civil War) for their unfaithfulness to Him. He recommended thanksgiving and repentance as a nation.  My, can you imagine what would happen today if a president made a proclamation like that? 
  It made me want to search my own heart for any idols or any lack of fear and reverence for a very real Almighty God. 
  As we enter Thanksgiving week, I pray that we all will recount our blessings before God and give Him thanks and that we all will search our hearts and ask Him to grant us repentance where we lack giving Him credit and thanks where they are due.  May each and every one of you have a wonderful Christ-honoring Thankgiving Day!
With love,
Mom