Giving Thanks

I'm giggling with excitement! Everything is ready for tomorrow. My table is set. My side dishes are waiting in the fridge. When we wake up the coffee will be ready. Oh give Thanks to the Lord for He is Good!

Now, for the real life... My cheesecake is cracked, my side dishes are not a la Food Network. My doggie barks at every fruit fly that passes her way.

Sometimes you just have to be put in the mood to give thanks!

I'm excited, and Thankful anyway :-)

Sourdough Starter

I have a very good friend who is also my mentor in all things regarding home keeping, budgeting, gardening etc. Recently we have started down the road of sourdough bread making. We have already been making 5 minute Artisan Bread and have made many "converts" along the way. Not to be content in a good thing, my mentor and I are trying out a sourdough method that would produce a great bread with the same "5 minute" method of mixing. I cannot even consider myself in her league at this stage of the game. She (Susan) has the ingredients down to a science. All I know is ~~ I am producing a loaf of bread with minimal effort and maximum return in flavor for the cost of a couple cups of flour. "We" continue to tweak the recipe to come up with the exact amounts, temperature and moisture needed to produce a great loaf. Meanwhile ~~ our families are enjoying great loaves of bread!

The Frost is on the Pumpkin

The first year we moved to Lake County someone mentioned as she breezed through the Kitchen that "The frost was on the pumpkin"

That was the first time I had ever heard the saying but ever since, it has marked the wonderful season of Fall.

Oh, She was immune to the daily toil, schedule and jobs that needed to be done to make sure that the pumpkin would bring blessings. After all these years, the simple proclamation of the frost on the pumpkin brings peace. Dear loved ones have passed away and as is the promise of God..."All things have become new."

Boiling Point

Tyler and Jordan have an assignment regarding "boiling point." We put a gallon of water on the stove to boil our noodles. They had to document each phase of the process. (See above)
More documenting. Pictures, writing, details, more documenting...
Did you know there is an evaporation stage? That small bubbles become larger
bubbles? This is all very scientific!


Dinner is ready!! Chicken, noodles (scientific experiment) corn and much discussion.
Thank you Mrs. Thorley!

Birthday Surprise

Lizzie and her family surprised me with an E-Card for my birthday with a picture of my present. When I was a little girl my Nana had a glass cabinet with china figurines in it that she purchased every time she went to Canada. This has always been one of my favorites.

Nana passed away several years ago 6 months before her 100th birthday. It won't be the same as looking into the cabinet through the eyes of a shy 7 year old ~~ no it will be so much sweeter because Lizzie has always remembered the stories of my childhood and has memories of her own, looking into the cabinet with wonderment and choosing her favorite.

Thank you Lizzie, Trey and Blake!

Going Through the Motions

Ever since I started back to work I've been streamlining my schedule in order to get everything done. I cook once -- for two dinners, freeze items that I can buy on sale to cut down on trips to the store, etc.

One of my favorite things to do is to have a binder with tabs set up for all areas of life and follow all the "do ahead" suggestions such as buy cards ahead of time, buy Christmas gifts all year so I don't fall into the craziness around the Holidays and just try to keep the household running as smoothly as I can.

One thing I refuse to do is sign and address my Christmas cards now. I don't want to "Go Through the Motions" as Matthew West sings of. I enjoy praying over my cards each year asking God to bless the families I am sending cards to. If I do all this right now, I'll miss out on the blessing of the unexpected one that God impresses on my heart. No, I plan to put on Christmas music, fix something warm to drink and just spend time sending my love to you.

Ty's Friends

Motley Crew?? No...Members of our Youth Group
And just friends having a good time!

Happy Birthday Tyler!