Friday Afternoon

Whew.  We just got back from taking our doggie friends for a walk.  A brisk walk.  I don't know how those little, short legs can go so fast.  : o

The only organizational job that got done today was from my husband.  He has a small workshop area down in the basement, but we realized the importance of having a few things on hand upstairs - hammer, nails, hooks, measuring tape, etc., so once again, we have a plastic box under the bed for those items.  Well, naturally, that plastic box became a catch-all for all kinds of little doodads.  So much so that the lid couldn't snap into place.  So, this morning, at my request, he went through everything and cleaned things out and took some back downstairs.  No before picture, but this is the after:

much, much, better.  A least the lid fits again.  : )

I pretty much spent the day finishing piecing the quilt square.  I wanted so much to at least get the sewing done so that I can begin embellishing (that's the fun part for me).  Like I've said in past posts, I am NOT a quilter (though I would love to become one).  I just cut the fabric out and piece it together to form something.  My crafting table is next to my computer, so I had watched episodes of "Sewing With Nancy."  If you've never heard of her, you have to watch.  She has been on public television for YEARS!  She knows everything about sewing and quilting and other projects as well.  And she also has guests on her program who are experts in the field of sewing all kinds of things.  A lot of the programs are only 5 minutes long but most are about 25 minutes.  While sewing, I watched several episodes on quilting.  If quilting isn't regarded as an art form, it definitely should be!  The quilts the women made are extremely gorgeous.  The talent they have for taking fabric and making it into something amazing has always fascinated me.

I did finish my piece:

now it's going to take a bit of thought in how I would like to decorate it.  It's in Fall colors, so that narrows it down a little.  I also want it to be framed so that narrows it down even more.  : )

Well, tomorrow is July.  Here are the to-do's for July (we didn't even get around to all the June to-do's - but that's okay):

*Wax the cars - clean the inside thoroughly.

*Sealcoat the driveway.

*Dispose of old paint cans/other flammables (find the nearest appropriate drop-off site).

*Replace washing machine hoses.

*Rotate vehicle tires.

*Spot check for mildew in the house - I just noticed some this morning on the shower curtain - in the wash it went with bleach.

*Do any indoor painting.

*And, I know this sounds bizarre, but begin thinking about Christmas gift giving.  You don't have to have it all figured out, but maybe start by writing ideas down.  If you're a seamstress or crafter, you might want to think about what kind of gifts you can begin to work on now so that it doesn't become so stressful.

There.  I think that's all I had to say for today.  : )  Thank you for dropping by - have a wonderful upcoming weekend.  God bless.

Waffle Recipe

I didn't take time yesterday to post the waffle recipe we made, but I did want to share it with you today.  The recipe is from my son's future mother-in-law and my friend and I hope you like it as much as we did.  : )

WHOLE WHEAT WAFFLES

2 eggs, separated

2 cups buttermilk

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 cups whole wheat flour (I used whole wheat pastry flour)

1 tsp. baking soda

Regular milk

Mix egg yolks with buttermilk, oil, flour, and baking soda.  Once mixed, add a little regular milk as needed to get desired thickness.  While mixing this batter, put egg whites into a standing mixer and whip until pretty stiff.  Once main mixture is ready, fold in gently the egg whites, but don't overmix - you want to keep it light.  Ready to pour into the waffle maker and serve!  

And I know I've posted the homemade syrup recipe at least a couple of times, but I'll add it again.  : )

HOMEMADE MAPLE SYRUP

2 cups brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

1 1/3 cups water

2 tsp. maple extract

Combine sugars and water in saucepan over medium high heat; bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and add extract.  Pour into clean canning jar and refrigerate.  When I pour this into a serving dish to have at the table, I usually microwave on "reheat" for just a minute or two to warm it up.

It has been a different kind of day.  No organizing, but getting to other "little" things that have been on the list.  Such as:

*trying a new banana bread recipe with overripe bananas - this one has peanut butter, oatmeal, and flaxseed in it - if we like it, I'll share the recipe.  : )

*used part of the morning for correspondence - a couple of "thank you's", a "thinking of you", and a "just because."

*made granola for our upcoming morning breakfasts.

*did three loads of laundry

*in between these to-do's, I'm sewing on my little quilt piece

*and last, but not least, looking after:

our little doggie friends.  I guess they told their owners that they liked us best, so they got to come back for a few days.  : )

That's it for this day.  Thanks so much for stopping by once again.  God bless you in your homemaking efforts!

Celebrating a Golden Birthday

Turning 28 years old on the 28th of June.  The Golden Birthday.  I can't believe that 28 years ago at 6:32 in the evening our son came into the world.  Where did the years go?   For me, who was told I would never be able to have children, he has been a miracle to us.  : )

His fiance' came over early this dark and rainy morning, to help make a birthday breakfast that we could enjoy together.  Plenty of:

waffles.

And plenty of:

bacon.

With fresh fruit, orange juice, milk, and hot coffee to top it off with.  : )  What a wonderful way to begin the day.

After lounging around afterwards, with full tummies, and a bit on the tired side, I finally did get moving to jump into some more organizing.  There were three projects that I was especially excited to get done.  The first was to get all of our 1st aid supplies all together in one place.  We had a large empty plastic drawer that fits perfectly under the bed and so now, instead of things being in a couple of different places they are in there:

I know a lot of organizational books say to not put things under the bed, but in this tiny house, I need to use whatever space I have, so under the bed it went!  

The next area that REALLY needed a good cleaning out was the closet at the end of our hallway. WAY too much stuff in there and it totally got out of control.  It was fun to toss some things, and putting some things into a bag for the thrift store, and then other things in a bag to relocate down in the basement.  Now - all jars have a lid.  All plastic containers have their lids.  All the batteries are together.  All the extension cords are together.  Just simple things like this feels so much better.

Mucho better.  : )

A few years ago, we used to get ants in this area (ick), but I read that by putting whole cloves -

around, it would help.  And it does.  We haven't had a problem since.  Plus it smells really good when we slide the door open.  : )

And then the last project was to clean out a junk drawer.  We all have them don't we?  Again, this one was out of control.  The reason I don't take before pictures is because I'm too embarrassed of what these areas looked like.  Seriously.  But now, this drawer looks like this:

I can actually see at a glance what's in there.  No more digging!  : )

My list continues to shrink, but so much more to do.  I have lots of plans for the other areas so I'm looking forward to staying with it.  When I see progress, it just motivates me to keep it up.  

That's it for today!  Thank you SO much for dropping by.  You, dear readers, are also a wonderful motivator for me.  I love it when you visit.  God bless.

Easy Meal

I knew today was going to be a busy day and that I wouldn't have much energy left for cooking at the end of the day so I planned the oh-so-easy French Dip sandwiches.  I've made them twice now and the guys really like them.  

This is a pantry meal so there is little prep.  I started after the lunch hour by pouring into a small crockpot, two cans of French Onion soup and 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce.  I then added two packages of thinly sliced roast beef sandwich meat.  Make sure the meat is nicely covered by the soup.  Put it on High to get it going and then on Low for the rest of the afternoon.

When ready to serve, I use Brat buns that I cut open and then put about 3 slices of meat in each one along with cheese (I used Provolone because it's what I had in the fridge).  Wrap them in foil and bake for about 10-15 minutes until heated and the cheese is melty.   Divide the dipping juice into ramekins or little bowls.  I made 8 sandwiches with this, but if you like your sandwiches a bit more meaty, maybe that would be 6.

We served them with pickle spears, chips, and sliced watermelon.

SO quick and easy to put together and it really is very good.  Hope you can try it!  : )

Last Sunday in June

Our daily visitor.  : )

The looking back on the days, weeks and months always teaches me something new or reminds of things lost or forgotten for a time.  And, because I am a follower of Jesus, I truly believe that is the Holy Spirit that captures my attention.

The Holy Spirit is God's gift to us.  Some people call it "conscience" but I call it conviction.  It's not coincidental that someone comes to mind throughout the day.  It's not coincidence that I feel pressure on an issue that has not been resolved.  Feeling convicted about something comes to us at a specific time and for a specific reason.  And there will be no peace about it until we come to terms with it. That's not to say that we will handle everything with grace.  The humanness in us wants to sometimes take the bull by the horns and force the issue before it's ready to be dealt with.  It's at that time we need to pray.  To ask God what it is exactly that He is trying to teach us, trying to get through to us, and then how do we move forward with it.  And then it comes time for patience.  Oh.......that is SO hard.

I've been wondering lately where my "need to be heard" comes from and I think way back to my growing up years where I felt as if I was thrown in with groups of people who never gave you room to say what you wanted to say or feel the way you really felt and most of the time I felt so......invisible.  I still do.  And it's as frustrating to me now as when I was young.  And it's in those vulnerable moments where I do tend to take things into my own hands (without praying about it), and then ending up with regret.  

I, then, come to my Father in Heaven (once again), to ask for forgiveness and for help.  And. He. Does.  And sometimes the help is not without pain.  But that is as it should be.  

I'm seeing a society of people who are acting in ways and saying things in ways where they truly think they have the right to act that way and say those things.  Without consequence.  Uh, no.  There are very few gray areas in this life.  And when you read the Bible, God points out that if you go this way, you will pay for it, but if you go another way (the ONLY way), Jesus paid for it.  He gave everything.  

Sometimes when I'm doing my work here at home, and someone or something is bothering me, I will have certain thoughts about it.  And I find myself saying "Lord, you KNOW my thoughts, so please help me with this."  I can't hide anything from Him.  He knows my every step, my every word, my every thought, my every intention and I feel like society is the way it is is because they have not been taught that important concept.  Do you ever watch the news and see how many shootings take place under the cloak of darkness?  How many sins are committed in private?  When we think that no one is watching so therefore we will not be caught, the thought should come into our minds that yes, indeed, someone IS watching.  Always.

The sad part of our society is the flaunting of sin in public.  But no one has the courage to call it sin. It's called free speech, freedom of the press, exercising our rights, being tolerant. The television programs, the movies, the commercials, the news, the magazines, the books, the so-called "art", the plays and musicals, the music videos, concerts.  We're bombarded by the "in-your-face, I don't care if you like it or not" mentality.  

I heard a while ago that what we need today is:

*the compassion of Christ

*the outrage of Christ

There are situations that call for us to have empathy, sympathy, compassion, and understanding.  But there are also situations that call for us to be outraged at what we see and hear.  A time to stand up and say that there still is right and wrong.  If anyone is confused about that, I beg of you to open God's word (the Bible) and read it.  It's specific.  You won't have any questions as to the standards by which we should live.  Our kids are growing up thinking that everyone is right.  I'm right.  You're right.  It's whatever you feel.  Seriously?  How's that working for us?  If there is no right or wrong, why is there chaos like we've never seen before?   The bumper stickers that say "co-exist" or "all roads lead to God" may give someone a temporary good feeling or a little relief to their "conscience" but it's false teaching.   We can't co-exist without the One who created us.  All roads do not lead to God - only Jesus does.  

If today's post has an edgy feel to it today, I guess I meant it to be that way.  The old Hymn "Stand up, stand up, for Jesus" comes to mind.  We REALLY need to stand up for Jesus.  It may not be politically correct, but I don't care.  Jesus didn't care about being politically correct, He only cared what His Father in Heaven wanted.  And what the Father in Heaven wants is for people to believe in His Son - The One who was sent to give His life so that we have life - eternal.

May God our Father call you, may Jesus draw you near, and may the Holy Spirit convict.  Blessings on your Sabbath.

I Got Busy!

The past couple of days have been a couple of the most motivating days I've had in quite a while.  After finding the list of organizing our things into certain categories and thinking through how we use them, I have been taking one thing at a time and re-working it to better fit our needs.

Thursday, as you know, was spent in going through all our cleaning supplies and writing down what I need for that, cleaning off shelves and organizing them and then today I will make the laundry detergent to store in the pantry.

Yesterday, I got all my correspondence (letter and card writing) items together in one place.  I love doing almost everything at our dining room table, so I found myself going into a separate room and taking a box of this and another box of that and then having to put it all back again when finished.  Well, I now have them all in one tidy briefcase that sits nicely under a bench in the dining room.

It now holds all those items that I had to retrieve from other places - postage stamps, address book, pens, labels, rubber stamps, cards, stationery, stickers, etc.  SO much easier to just pull out, sit down, and correspond!  : )

The other thing I worked on is a sewing basket.  Again, I find myself doing a lot of my sewing at the dining room table and, again, I would go into other rooms to gather what I needed and then put it all back again.  Now I have a variety of different sewing items in one wicker basket that is also stored under the bench in the dining room to pull out when working on something.

This holds a variety of thread, pins, needles, scissors, ruler, darning egg, seam ripper, etc.  And it has room on top to hold whatever I'm working on at the time - hemming something, or darning socks, or embroidery, etc.  SO much nicer to have everything in one spot.

Correspondence and sewing items under the bench ready to use.  : )

I then went on to putting my hair supplies - blow dryer, brushes, combs, curlers, etc. in one plastic storage box that can just easily slide under the bed.

After that, I went through all my makeup and found a box with a top on it so that it will all be hidden yet can sit out on the table in front of my makeup mirror.

And, lastly, towards the end of the day, I worked on our "office" area.  THAT wasn't a good idea. There is SO much in an office area to go through that I only got to the point of moving things around and cleaning.  It looks a LOT better than it did, but I wrote down on my list that I need to go through the file cabinets and office supply boxes to organize those.  I just didn't have it in me after a long day to do that.  But I am looking forward to moving forward with it.

The wonderful thing about doing these projects is that, while going through everything, I got rid of a lot that was old or that we didn't need anymore or use anymore which cuts down on the amount of stuff in the house.  Everything I went through yesterday is now cut down to what we actually need and use.  SUCH a good feeling!!!!  : )

The other side affect of working hard all day and getting things done that are satisfying is help in sleeping well at night.  : )  I woke up this morning feeling refreshed and am ready for a new day and hopefully tackle the new list that I already have hanging up in the kitchen (Lord willing).  

But, in order to do that, I had better get off this chair and end my visit with you.  Thank you SO much for stopping by.  I hope and pray that your day will be a day that you can look back on and be satisfied with.  God bless you in your homemaking.  

I Gotta Get Busy!

It was a wonderfully rainy day today, so as in past posts I have mentioned that every once in a while I find the need to just sit and write lists, and look things up, and think about what I need to be concentrating on and what needs to be done.  I took advantage of the rainy day and did just that.  : )

My first admission was that I'm getting lazy.  I look back and think of how much work I used to get done during the day and I compare it to how much I don't get now nowadays.  And I don't like that feeling.  I do understand that not every day needs to have this push to get everything done, but there is something very satisfying to me at night while I'm laying in bed looking back at the day and know I did my best.

I had to think back as to when this lack of getting things done happened, and I think it's when my husband retired last Fall.   I have heard this from other women - how different it is once your husband is home full time.  I kind of lost my momentum along the way.  But today I was determined to get it back if I could.

The other thing I have become lazy about is buying convenience things instead of making them myself.  I still cook from scratch so I don't depend on convenience food, but I'm thinking of laundry soap and other cleaning products.  Whenever I made lists before shopping, I would check my lists to see if there were any products that I could make instead of buy which would greatly save money. That fell by the wayside too.  So, my "job" today was to sit down and go through all my notes and "recipes" for homemade products, check my stock of ingredients, and write down what I don't have so that I can go and purchase them.

One thing that we really enjoy using are the Swiffer cloths for the floors (wet and dry both) and I used to use homemade cloths that I would just through in the wash after using them.  Well....I got out of that habit and starting buying them.  That can be expensive and after buying them (once again) yesterday, I was convicted to stop and reconsider what I used to do.

I have a small area that I keep our cleaning supplies and for the past few months I have just been stuffing rags in there - no sense of order whatsoever.   That had to stop.  This morning, I took everything out of that area and went through all those rags tossing some really bad ones and folding the better ones and in the midst of all that mess were the homemade Swiffer cloths that I made a couple years ago.  They are all folded now: 

All I did was buy flannel cloth and cut them into 11" x 11" pieces with a pinking shears (although they still fray a bit).  They fit the Swiffer mop perfectly.  And to damp mop the floor just mix a solution of water, vinegar, and a little dish soap and soak a cloth in the solution, squeezing some of the excess water out and attaching it to the mop.  It works very well.

Everything is back into the closet in order now and looking SO much better.  Now, I'm excited about getting back to making my laundry detergent (both dry and liquid), my own fabric softener, the 100% wool dryer balls, and liquid hand soap.  As you know, all of these supplies cost a pretty penny and they are things that we buy on a regular basis.  Making them yourself still requires going out and buying the "ingredients" needed to make these things, but they make such big batches that it goes a lot further than store-bought.  When I was into making these products and going through what I already had for my list, I found that I still had a lot left, so I will only need to buy a couple of items.

So glad I did this.  I was feeling kind of out of control and I really wanted to curb the spending in areas that I can have control over.  If you don't know where to begin in this area of making your home products, just going on-line will give you all kinds of ideas and help!!!  Hope you can give it a try if you're not already doing it.  : )

The other thing I did was go through old notes that I tucked away into my Homemaking Notebook and came across an organizational list that I found to be very helpful and something I really want to work on for the rest of the year.  My goal is to really get organized.  I love the way being organized feels and it's such a time saver and money saver as well so I don't keep buying things that we already have.  Here is what the list looked like - do you have an area for:

*Adult clothing - cold and warm weather

*Children's clothing - again, cold and warm weather

*Perfume and vanity items

*Cosmetics

*Brushes and hair supplies

*Vitamins and medicines

*Spices and seasonings

*Cake and cookie decorating supplies

*Baking pans

*Baking dishes

*Toys

*Books

*CD's, DVD's, etc.

*Board games and playing cards

*Craft pantry

*Gift pantry

*Party pantry

*Wrapping center

*Letter writing 

*Hostess pantry

*Everyday dishes

*Linens

*Office space

*File cabinets

*Main household calendar, personal calendars

*Sports stuff

*Tools and hardware

*Food pantry

*Plastic containers and lids

*Everyday cups and mugs and drinking glasses

*Tablecloths

*Christmas decorations

*Seasonal and other holiday decorations

I can say "yes" to a few of these things, but I can do much better on the others.  Since we live in a little house that I call a cottage, being organized is a big deal to me.  But, again, I've been lazy in maintaining it all.   I'm determined to make this happen!!!  Actually, this is what I consider fun - a little strange, I know.  I love it when a house works.  When I don't have to rifle through everything just to get a pretty bowl for a party.  A place for everything, and everything in it's place.  It's time.  : )

God bless all of you in your homemaking efforts.  It's important work!!  

The Kitchen

We have all heard it said that the kitchen is the most important room in the house.  I agree with that. It is where we nourish our friends and families with good food.  It's where good smells come from. It's where holiday meals are made.  Even in my closet size kitchen, there have been MANY memories made over the years and I hope there are many more.

I think a kitchen should be looked at as a workshop, an experimental lab, and schoolroom.  As a man has a workshop with all the right tools to use for whatever he's working on at the time, so a kitchen should be.  And the only way you will know what you need is by working in the kitchen every day. Of course you should start out with the basics - a good set of pots and pans, utensils, etc., but it's only until you start to cook and bake that you will find out rather quickly what you need.   Making a list of what you need (not necessarily what you want), saving up for it, and eventually purchasing it, helps in furnishing the kitchen for what could be a very satisfying time.

It's an experimental lab in that once you are comfortable with a few tried-and-true recipes, you will want to branch out and try new things - experiment with different herbs and spices, a different venue, a different method.  Keeping a kitchen notebook is a huge help in this area.  Every time you try something you will be able to write down whether or not it worked.  Did everyone enjoy it?  Was it time consuming?

And then, lastly, schoolroom.  If you are new to cooking and/or baking, go back to school so to speak.  Purchase a really good cookbook with all the basics that will teach you the terminology that goes into preparing food - blanch, white sauce, saute', etc.  Find recipes that include things that you don't already know and try it.  And try it again until you feel comfortable with it.  Then go onto something else that's new.  I think we tend to get into a rut when it comes to cooking (I know I definitely do).  So, trying something new can be exciting and it will add to your skills.  The other way that I'm thinking of the kitchen being a schoolroom is that if you still have children at home, or you have grandkids that come and visit, let them see you cook/bake.  Invite them to help you.  It's been shown that when kids help in the kitchen, they become better eaters.  They are less picky because they have had a hand in preparing it.  Of course, only you know what level they would be able to handle knives for chopping, etc., but definitely let them do something.

I guess I got the idea for this post because I have spent most of this day in the kitchen and did a lot of thinking about it.  : )  So, I hope you can look at your kitchen with fresh eyes and new motivation.  

Some of the things I did today:

Thank goodness I am cleaning out and using things up in the freezer because this frozen cinnamon roll dough had fallen to the bottom.  On Wednesdays, it has become a routine in the mid-afternoon to sit with a cup of coffee (or glass of milk for my husband) and have a sweet treat.  Only on Wednesdays though!  : )

This is our dessert for supper.  Just make a graham cracker crust and bake it.  While baking, whip some cream with a little sugar and vanilla until stiff and fold in a couple of ripe mashed bananas.  Pour into crust and refrigerate.  Such a quick and easy idea - I found it in a vintage cookbook under the "thrifty" cooking section.  : )

Granola for breakfast.  In the morning, we will just add our raisins to it.

And, for the first full day of summer, our meal for supper this evening will be BBQ'd baby back ribs, baked potatoes with butter, sour cream, and shredded cheddar cheese, along with sliced watermelon, and the above pie for dessert.  : )

That's it for this day.  Thank you SO much for dropping by.  God bless.

A Beautiful June Day

A Sunday afternoon walk.

I worked like a little beaver all morning so that I could get out into the beautiful weather we had today.  A bit breezy to keep the mosquitoes away, some clouds, some sun, and cool.  

Today's doings:

*laundry 

*light cleaning - vacuuming, bathroom

*pulled lots of weeds - I let it go way too long

*made this oh-so-yummy pie for our supper:

This is from one of my friend's mom.  She gave it to me at Easter because I wanted something new and different, but never got around to making it and I've had it up on my kitchen bulletin board ever since.  Today was the day.  : )

ANGEL PIE

Beat 4 egg whites until frothy.  Add 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar.  Add 1 cup of granulated sugar gradually and beat until stiff and glossy.  Pour into a lightly greased pie pan.  Bake at 240 degrees for 20 minutes and then 40 minutes more at 280 degrees.  Turn oven off and let sit till cooled (even overnight).  When cool, fill with the lemon filling - beat 4 egg yolks in a bowl over a pan of water until smooth.  Add 1/2 cup sugar and stir until incorporated.  Add the juice of one lemon.  Cook and stir until thicken.  Cool.  Pour into meringue crust and top with fresh whipped topping.

The crust after it's baked.

The filling after it's cooked.

The fresh whipped topping.

The final product.

Oh. My. Goodness.  This is SO good!!!!  We had a meal of Spicy Beef and Noodles and this light, cool, and creamy pie went perfectly with it.  Thank you my friend for giving this recipe to me!!!!!!  It's a keeper.  : )

Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home.

From my home to yours, God bless.

A Sunday in June

Half way through June.  It seems so unreal that the year is almost half over already.  Time just keeps marching on and we press on through it.

If you are celebrating today because of a dad in your life, I do hope that it will be a fine day for you and that you can honor that man with something special.  Like I said in a past post, this day can be a very difficult one for those of us without a dad.  Whether he was a "good" dad or not, whether he was there for us or not, he was still dad.    

My husband and I were talking the other day about how television has cast the role of dad in such a negative light compared to the old programs of the 1960's.  Remember Ward Cleaver from "Leave it to Beaver"?  Steven Douglas from "My Three Sons"?  Andy Taylor from the "Andy Griffith Show"? or  Lucas McCain in "The Rifleman"?  Wise. Strong. Provider.  Then came the 70's - let's see......Archie Bunker comes to mind.  The 80's - (can't remember his first name, but his last name I believe was Bundy) from "Married With Children."  And the 90's we all watched Tim, the tool man, Taylor on "Home Improvement."  Buffoons. Odd. Complacent. Ignorant.  What have we done with dads?

Now, I grew up in the 1960's.  And I did not have a Ward Cleaver or Steven Douglas or Lucas McCain as a dad.  But, fortunately, I didn't have an Archie Bunker or Tim Taylor either. My dad was very unpredictable.  I would have to watch him very carefully in the morning to see whether or not he was approachable.  Kind of a "walk-on-eggshells" kind of person.  I never knew who I was going to get.  But he was dad.  He was the kind of dad he was because he had the same kind of dad.  I didn't know that until MUCH later in life and because of that information I was able to understand and have empathy.  Having said that, I wish I would have known all that while under the same roof with him.   Or would it have mattered?  Would I have been able (at that age) to extend the grace he needed?  I wonder.

Sometimes time does heal.  Change happens.  And you thank God that it wasn't too late.  My dad came to the Lord about 10 years before he died and he became softer.  Not all the rough edges were gone, but enough to get through.  So, I can look back to my growing up years and wish they would have been different and get silly about not forgiving, or I can choose to be thankful that he even came to the Lord and so glad that we had 10 years of catching up.  I chose the latter.  : )

God bless your day.

A Saturday in June

Last night, we went for a late evening walk around the neighborhood and this is what the Lord provided for us to look at.  : )  And more:

In this goofy, crazy, mixed-up world that we live in, we all need to purposely look for the beauty in it - whether it's in the clouds, or the flowers, or the trees - it's there.  It's still there.  God created all of it for our pleasure.  Just take the time to notice it.  : )

It was pretty much a typical Saturday with watching a few cooking shows in the morning, doing some light housekeeping, a load of laundry, an errand.  And just a little time in the kitchen.  I had "make pudding mixes for the pantry" on my list for quite a while, so I made those too.  I will share them with you as well.

Again, it's so nice to have these homemade mixes on the shelves so we don't have to make a special trip to the store.  I always have the ingredients on hand and it takes no time at all to put together.  I know that having pudding mixes in the pantry doesn't sound like a big deal, but there have been times when I read a recipe and it called for pudding.  It's just one more thing to build the pantry with and to me that's a good thing.  : )

HOMEMADE VANILLA PUDDING

Mix in a ziplock bag - 1/3 cup sugar, 2 Tbsp. cornstarch, 1/8 tsp. salt

When it comes time to prepare the pudding, pour the mix in a 2 qt. saucepan.  Add 2 beaten eggs, and slowly stir in 2 cups milk until combined.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, till the mixture thickens and boils.  Boil and stir 1 minute.  Remove from heat and stir in 2 Tbsp. butter and 2 tsp. vanilla.  Cool slightly and pour into dessert dishes and chill.  Serves 4-6.

CHOCOLATE PUDDING MIX

Same as above for the dry mix only add 3 Tbsp. cocoa powder into the bag.  Continue with cooking instructions.

BUTTERSCOTCH PUDDING MIX

Same as original dry mix above, only substitute 2/3 cup packed brown sugar for the white sugar, and decrease the vanilla to 1 tsp.  To cook, follow the rest of the instructions.

Such a good thing to have on hand when you just feel like a quick dessert or when the grandkids come over and you want a homemade snack.

Thanks SO much for stopping by for a little visit - I do appreciate it.  Remember to worship the Lord tomorrow!  : )  God bless.

Summertime Pasta Salad

Pure beauty.  : )

The recipe I'm sharing with you screams summer.  Again, it is a favorite of ours.  It goes well with absolutely anything - chicken ribs, hamburgers, hotdogs, steaks - whatever you choose.  And I hope you can give it a try!   I'm sorry I didn't take step-by-step photos, but the finished product is at the end of the recipe.

PASTA VEGETABLE SALAD

1, 7 oz. package macaroni rings

1/2 cup finely diced cucumber

1 Tbsp. finely diced onion

2 cups finely chopped cabbage

1/2 cup finely diced green pepper

Prepare macaroni and rinse under cold water; drain well.  Pour into serving bowl and add all the vegetables.

1 cup Miracle Whip salad dressing

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup white vinegar

Combine well and pour over the pasta and vegetables.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Cool.  Creamy.  Summery.  Hope you like it.  : )

It was a good day.   The morning was spent in getting little things done that kept getting put off so that's always a good feeling to get to that.  Part of the afternoon was spent with a friend who is excellent at painting china and she is patiently showing me how to do it too.  Here is what I'm working on:

this is what it looked like before adding a couple more colors to it

then I added the blue and the green today.

Now it will be fired again and then I will add a second coat of every color.  Don't look too closely though!  This is definitely out of my comfort zone - I'm not a painter, but it is an interesting process. I also tried to keep the theme of a "quilt block" pattern.  : )  So, when I'm totally finished with it, I'll try to remember to show it to you (if it's worthy of showing).

That has been my day.  Thank you for stopping by for a little visit.  I do appreciate it.  God bless.