Do me a favor...

      Tomorrow we will have three new children coming.  I would be lying if I said that i  wasn't a little bit scared...

      Some people, after finding out that I am a foster mom say "Wow! That's so admirable!" Others say "wow! I could never do that!" and still others have said things like "Why would you do that to your own children?" Once someone said "Oh I would never do that with MY children in the house because MY children need to know that they come first!"  As if inviting an orphan into our home is going to ruin the childhood of my biological children. As if we are letting monsters into our home...

      Let me tell you a little story...

      My daughter, who turns 10 next week has her own room.  She decorates it just so and has all of her things in place.  She has a cute frilly pink throw pillow with the saying "put your big girl panties on and deal with it" sewn onto it right smack dab in the middle of her bed.  This week, after learning of the children that would be joining our family, she excitedly decided she wanted to share her room and immediately began preparing for her new foster sister to join her.  After a while she came down and said, "Mom, you know the pillow that grandma gave me? Well I think I'm just going to put that away for now.  If i was in that situation, i probably would like to see that." 
      Could I have a more proud mama moment? I gave her a hug and encouraged her sensitivity and compassion.  What a blessing of a child.
      This is only one recent example of one of my children demonstrating Jesus' love to another, but there have been many.  You see, this ministry... this is not ruining my children.  It is giving them people to share life with. To share blessings with.  To make memories with and create lifelong relationships with.  Not everyone will understand why we do this, but we still will.  Not everyone will see the ins and outs of life...the victories and accomplishments...the seeds sown.  Not everyone will see and understand the heartbreak that comes with being a foster family.  But they will also not see the magnificent fruit.  The way that God can weave broken lives together to make a beautiful masterpiece...And He does...

     Do me a favor....

      When you hear the horror stories, remember us.  When you hear someone say "Oh I know someone who did foster care.  What a mess." remember us.  Remember that unconditional love is possible.  Remember that we are all in this world together and sometimes a child just needs someone to care, and love.  Like Jesus does.

      Please don't think of me as super mom.  Please don't think I am "tooting my own horn"  or portraying some kind of superhuman image of love.  I am human.  I fail.  I could sit here and tell you just as many stories of times that i didn't love like Jesus does.  Times I've given up.  Times I'm not proud of.  It's life.  It happens.  But I will keep on keeping on, because I understand redemption. And I know that God is not finished with us yet.  He is making our lives a masterpiece.  A beautifully brutal and broken masterpiece that is full of love and grace.  Grace restores hearts, and love, well, the greatest thing you could ever do is love.

do not be discouraged, mama

I remember coming home from the hospital with my son when he was born.  He was my heart's delight.  For him I prayed so many times, and my deepest longing for another child had finally come to reality.  Those first few days were rough though. I remember being up with him almost all night the first night he came home. He cried and cried and I thought to myself, "What if this lasts 6 months...or even worse..? What am i going to do?" it was like a sudden dread. All he wanted was to be held and oh how I wanted to sleep.   But then in the wee hours, after i had rocked and sung, bounced and shhhhed; in the still of the night The voice of the Lord came upon my heart and said "this is your time to be with me. Draw near to me, my child, while you rock your baby.  Rest in ME, lean on ME, come to ME.

 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  Matthew 11:28-30

My children are still young and I have a lot to learn about life and motherhood, but in these past few years, if nothing else, I have learned that He is there.  He is with me.  He is with me when I am pleading for forgiveness for not spending time with him today and now I am just. too. tired.

When I have lost my temper, He is there, not giving up on me.  When I am praying as I fold the laundry and feeling guilty because I am being a multitasking prayer, He is there reminding me that He loves my company.  When devotions with my kids are not feeling enjoyable because they are arguing over who gets to pray first, and I am like "seriously?" He is there, reminding me of the victory that they actually want to do the praying.  And when I am sitting still in His presence with my coffee in the morning,( just how I would love to be every morning, but let's face it moms, that's pretty much impossible) I am so thankful.  I am reminded that HE IS THERE.  And I have so much to be thankful for. 

And I have come to realize that when my heart is focused on HIM, I can not help but smile and be thankful, because He is with me. And oh how He loves me.

Tonight as I was putting my toddler to bed, I layed there on the floor next to his bed thinking of all the other things i could be doing with this forty five minutes, (because that's where we are in the bedtime battles) and  that still small voice of the Lord said..."Come to Me, draw near to me, talk with me..." And once again, my heart calmed and filled with so much gratitude.  not for all I have, but for who He is.  I forgot about the work that needed to be done and just talked with my Jesus...

 "Come near to God and he will come near to you." James 4:8

He knows our hearts.  He knows we are busy and tired and overwhelmed.  But He is right there with us. So come to Him, no matter where you are, and let your heart fill with His joy and peace.  We can find it in this crazy thing called motherhood....

2014...the hardest year yet...

Wow! did 2013 REALLY go by THAT fast?? Yes, I believe it did.  It must be that I am getting older and all that stuff that "old" people used to say about time flying is becoming true! YIKES!

I have been contemplating this new year, and like most everyone else I have some things on my heart and mind that make up what I think 2014 will look like....

Well, I was trying to find a "life verse" for the new year...something really profound...something I had never noticed before...something new.  but as I prayed, God brought me back to the most basic verse that probably every christian knows and has quoted at some point or another.  It's Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."  I didn't wonder  why He brought this to my heart.  I already know. 2014 is going to be hard.  it is going to be full of change, tears, what ifs, what might have been's....

You see, we have had the same two fosters for a week shy of a year.  We have been through some rough times, crazy times, wonderful times...growth, joy, sadness, disappointments, holiday memories, family court, therapy and lots and lots of love.  Lots of sticktoitness (if that's even a word).  Not giving up.  Trying to show these two what Jesus' never stopping love looks like. YES, I will love you when you punch me in the face! YES, I will love you if you spit on me! YES, I will love you when you break my things, tell me you hate me, scream at the top of your lungs, throw fits in public, and be completely thankless for my hard work.  YES, I will love you when you tell people all of the horrible things about me and none of the nice things, when you complain about the gift I give you that wasn't really what you wanted...I will still love you.  I will yell at you, and then apologize for yelling at you because I don't think that's what Jesus would want from me.  I will try my hardest and do my best to be the comfort that you need but don't think you need.  Even when I tell you for a year every night that I love you and you never say it back...I will still love you.  I will not be perfect for you, but I will love you, and I will not give up on you.

We have only been a foster family for a few years, but I can tell you that children do not stay in care forever.  So this year either they will go home to their mother, or we will adopt them.  It is hard to say right now which way it will go, So I wait on the Lord.  But either way, it will be difficult.  But the Lord has been working on my heart.  Reminding me that these children, along with my own are only lent to us.  His plan is so gloriously grander than my thoughts, and no matter what, He will take care of them. And us.

He will give patience when needed, mend the broken hearts,  give me the words to say when none of mine come out right, walk with us along this path and continue to carry us to our purpose.  He will use me, an ordinary person; us, an ordinary family, to do BIG things.  Like let two little children, who were given up on and kicked out, know that there is a God that loves them and people that love them.  And no matter where 2014 takes us, I can know with every ounce of my being Psalm 73:25-26.  "Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides You.  My heart and my flesh may fail; but GOD is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."

So this year I throw out MY goals....my "I want to eat right and read more books goals." Just give me Jesus.  This year I will wake up every morning and say "good morning, God.  Where are we going today? Who will we love without limits today? How will we be your hands and feet today?" 

Just give me Jesus.

Because I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

Today...

Today I took time to enjoy my kids. it doesn't always come naturally.  Some days I am running around like a frantic lunatic to get everything on my to-do list done.  Some days I am so irritable that if one of my kids so much as chews too loudly in my ear...

But not today.

Today we did not go anywhere.  We stayed home.  Actually I had three of my friends' kids over so I guess on paper i should have been a bit frantic. but I wasn't.  It was nice.  So what was different about today?

I didn't have a to-do list, for starters.
And I just felt thankful.

Me and Waylon played in the back yard and looked for tomatoes in the garden...I made cardboard creations with my kids (ones which they played with all day! go figure!) We had sherbert with sprinkles, and when the girls were done with their showers I brushed and blow dried their hair (which is not an every night thing).  We read our devotional and talked about how to show God's love at school tomorrow.

But the best part about today....

Tonight as I told Hailie (my foster daughter) how special she was and how much I loved her, she looked up at me, fighting back tears.  They were welling up in her eyes and I could tell that her walls were falling down but she just didn't know how to let them.  She said nothing to me, just hugged me real tight.  But I know she heard me.  It might take some more time, but one day I hope she trusts me enough to believe me.

Lord, don't ever let me get too busy that I forget the importance of encouragement.

 ^"whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away."  James 4:14

Hope

2 Chronicles 7:14

if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Back in Noah's day it must have gotten pretty bad.  I mean, God decided to flood the entire earth because of all of the sin and evil in the world.  Noah was faithful.  He trusted God no matter what.  He did what he knew was right despite all of the negativity he received from his community. 

How bad does it have to get before Jesus will come back for us?  Look at us.  We've had slavery, the holocast, over 50 million babies killed in abortions and the latest news of doctors delivering babies alive and beheading them!  We have grown men who believe God made them to love little boys, little girls being sold as sex slaves, porn addiction at an all time high, drugs and violence in schools, and governments who are taking God out of their practices.  How can we possibly be asking God to bless this?  the world is filled with broken hearts.

These thoughts come to me at a time when I am questioning the path that I am on and where God wants me to be.  My life is His and I want to glorify Him, but I am struggling with being content as a foster mom because it is soooo hard at times.  But today it came to me...

The world needs Jesus.  And it doesn't have to come in the form of a big to do.  It's got to be grass roots style.  It will start in the hearts of our children.  I have seen such growth in my foster kids in the three short months they have been with us.  How could I give up now?  The love of Jesus can move mountains, and it can move hearts. It can change the world...If we let it.

If God has you on a rough road, hang in there.  Look for opportunities to share His love with someone.  Jesus is coming no matter what...our gifts to Him will be those times we served Him.

I will leave you with Colossians 4:2

"Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving"

2013...and my thoughts on the new year

Well it's a new year and like everyone else I have some things I would like to do differently this year...Some "new years resolutions", and yes of course on that list is to eat better and exercise more.  But everyone puts that on their list right? Every year right?  Well this is my year for that...haha...i mean it!  I'm pushing 32 and I just can't eat chocolate cake like I used to!  But as I have approached the new year I really have had some things on my heart that I would like to change and I have to get them down on virtual paper (aka my blog) because if i don't see them I will most likely forget what my original intentions were!  SO scatterbrained!  (and yes, accepting that part of me is on that list too!)

I started this blog a few years ago when we lived on a farm in Richmond Kentucky.  Our house was probably over a hundred years old and was falling apart and we lived on 175 beautiful acres with not a neighbor in sight.  We moved out there to get away from the city.  It was so simple on the farm.  I did not frequent walmart.  We ate what was in the garden.  I made dinner from scratch and new clothes from old clothes.  We hung out under the pear tree and hiked around the property.  we burned our trash and hung our clothes on the line.  I loved it there.

When we moved off of the farm, things changed.  We became a foster family, we had another baby.  Life got busier.  I slipped slowly into the routine of consumerism...more than i would have liked to.  

fast forward to today.

I realize more and more that my kids are growing up too quickly, God has given us foster kids, and before we know it they will be grown.  This year I vow to never take for granted my family.  They mean everything to me.  I vow to play with them more and prioritize that over cleaning the house.  the house will always be messy no matter how much i clean...that's just life with little kids.

This is the year of simplicity for me.

I will not get too busy to spend time with God every day. (I had a cup of coffee with Jesus this morning...i want that every day)

I will REALLY enjoy my kids (even the teenagers!)

I will prioritize my life (which means more reading and less facebook)
 
I want to write more, spend time with the people I love, accept myself and love myself for who God made me to be....to not be so worried about what others think of me, to really pursue God's will for my life, to make homemade tea like i used to, and to really just enjoy the little things.  This may seem like a long list but it is all integrated in my scattered brain and it makes sense to me.

God has been working in my heart a lot lately and I truly believe that this year HE is going to do big things through me.  But only if I abide in HIM...and that I will <3 font="font">

"They delight in doing everything the Lord wants; day and night they think about His law.  They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season without fail.  Their leaves never wither, and in all they do they prosper."  Psalm 1:2-3

Happy New Year! The best IS yet to come!!! 

Seasons and contentment

I have been in prayer a lot these past few days.  Praying that God will use me, to show me where He wants me, to reach those that He wants me to reach.  You see, sometimes, as a stay at home mom, I feel like my task at home is preventing me from reaching people out in the world.  I lose sight of the fact that my home is my first ministry.   I am a mom to a little girl and a baby boy, and a foster mom to many kids who come and go.  My prayer is always that God uses me in their lives...that seeds are planted here and then watered later on down the road.  But a lot of times I have a longing in my heart to do more...

Today God showed me something...He showed me that I need to trust where He has me...

The kids and I were on our way home from walmart this afternoon, the last stop to a very long and busy day.  In a shaded area of the parking lot sat a family of three.  A mother, a father and a little boy who looked to be about four or five.  The man held a sign that read "hungry and homeless".   Emily asked what they were doing so I told her what their sign said.  Then God laid it on my heart to be compassionate towards them and to provide for them.  I remembered James 2:15 which reads "If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food and one of you says to them 'Depart in peace be warmed and filled' but do not give them anything, what does that profit?...Faith without works is dead".  I felt it heavy on my heart that I needed to show Emily what faith in action looked liked.  

We live not a mile from walmart so I looked back at her in the back seat and said "how about we go home and make them some peanut butter sandwiches?"  she got excited and replied "ya mom that's a great idea!"  I told her I thought that would make Jesus happy.  So we hurried home and packed a little sack lunch with sandwiches and chips, candy for the little boy and a brand new pack of crayons along with a new notebook that we had laying around.  Oh and a little flyer from our church with the service times on it.  We drove back to the same spot where they were and lo and behold they were not there anymore.  We looked around the parking lot for them but could not find them anywhere.  I explained to Emily why  now we needed to pray for them. And we did pray for them, around the dinner table.

If God laid it on my heart to provide for that family, knowing that they would not be there when we went back, then why did want me to do that?  He wanted me to do that to show my daughter what Jesus' love in action looked like.  He wanted me to show her what it looks like to live when you love Jesus.  And He did it to remind me that my ministry, my main ministry anyway, is at home, teaching my children.

I love how God has a way of showing himself to me.  And today I am content in knowing that I don't have to be out there saving the world to put a smile on his face.  I am in this season of life.  This season is sweet.   My kids are young and I know that in the blink of an eye they will be grown.  And in this season I am planting seeds, seeds that when watered and tended will produce a plentiful harvest.  I have nothing but gratitude for my God who loves me and guides me to his sweet contentment, and pure JOY <3 p="p">

a little lesson in gardening...

Sunday was a lovely afternoon to tackle the out of control rose bush in my side yard.  It was huge! A huge mangled mess of branches and thorns.  Nothing beautiful about it.  Nothing like my Nana's rosebushes that I remember from my childhood.  Now SHE knew how to keep her rosebushes beautiful! She planted them in the spot where they would get the perfect amount of sun, watered them with care, and pruned them every year so that the blooms would come back every year even more lovely than the last.
As I pruned back the twisted branches I thought of the scripture I had been reading the night before... John 15:2.."...Every branch that bear fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit."  When i clipped a branch, it didn't just fall to the ground.  It had to be tugged and pulled to break free from the mess of dead branches. The thorns dug into my hands causing scratches, and some had to be cut in several places in order to be separated.  It was  a lot of work, and after I had finished, it was not a beautiful rosebush....not yet...it looked like a stick bush.  Nothing more than a bunch of green thorny sticks growing out of the ground.
     How often I pray to be a fruit bearing christian!! But not often enough do I remember the pruning process.  So often I try to figure out God's plan before it's time, and when I can't figure it out I decide that I am just not able to be used by Him.  I have too much "Junk".  I am not gentle spirited enough, not wise enough, not respectful enough of a wife, or patient enough of a mom.  "I am just useless" I will think to myself.  Why is it that I feel the need to see all of God's plan to feel that He is using me?
    So I remember the rose bush.  It was ghastly looking in the beginning, but with Loving care, I, the gardener cut away those gnarly branches, and shaped it into the stick bush so that in due time it will produce it's fruit.  This time next year it will have many beautiful roses and the year after that it will have even more...and so on it goes...
    I may look like a stick bush (so to speak) at this point in my life, but budding season is coming.  I may look like a beautiful rosebush at this point in my life, but pruning season is coming.  Either way, the christian life is not  a life of just beautiful rosebushes (because those are only plastic).  Sometimes it hurts, sometimes it is uncomfortable, sometimes it is ugly.....but when I allow God to work on me, when I allow him to prune where needed, when I trust Him as master gardener in my life, I can expect the outcome to be nothing less than beautiful.

To be well-

I love herbs. I believe they are God's medicine~ after all, why would He put all of these amazing medicinal plants on earth but to be used. These two herbal remedies have been the saving grace for my little one this week. I ventured out to the nutrition center for the herbs (Oh, how I love their bulk herb section!) The tea recipe comes from "herbs for health and healing" by Kathi Keville

For the tea:
1/2 teaspoon of each
*peppermint leaves
*echinacea root
*hyssop leaves
*yarrow leaves
*elder flowers
*shizandra berries (which i could not find so I did without)

combine herbs and steep for 20 minutes in one quart of boiling water.

I put mine in the fridge and reheat as needed...the taste is not too strong and with a little honey, my little girl drinks it right up!

For the cough syrup:
1/4 cup of horehound herb
steep herb in about half to two thirds coffee cup of boiling water for 15-20 minutes.
use about half of the tea and add honey to taste. Be careful not to get pieces of the herb in the syrup. I use about 3 ounces of tea to five ounces of honey as horehound is a very bitter herb and I would have no chance of my child taking a dose without a good helping of honey. I give it several times daily and once before bed. Horehound is great for loosening phlegm. It is not a cough suppressant, but it will help clear the junk and get it out of your body.

This picture is from a "compassion" magazine. It has been photocopied and taped to a piece of construction paper with the scripture above reading "do all things without complaining" and that scripture comes from Philippians 2:14. This picture is of some children and mothers walking along a dirt road, carrying jugs of water. Some of the children are not wearing shoes. And look at the child on the far left; the one carrying the white jug. He cant be much older than my daughter, who is three years old.

This was used in a lesson that I taught to my Sunday school class of fourth graders. That was about two and a half years ago. The lesson was more or less about being thankful for the lives that they lived, and to show them how some children around the world lived. I had each student take a photocopy and tape it to a colorful piece of construction paper with the instruction to hang it where they would see it everyday. I wanted my precious little students to remember to not take their life for granted. I, too, made myself a copy to be hung in my laundry room, which was where I endured my least favorite chore. Two houses later, it still hangs in my laundry room....only when I made this, I had a "normal" laundry room. A nice space that was temperature controlled, with some cabinets overhead for storage, and nice tile floors. These days my laundry room is a space separate from the house, very cold in the winter~sometimes the water lines freeze and it is unusable, no cabinets, and no dryer. Only a funky washer that, at times overflows if I don't keep my eye on it, and plywood floors.
Notice this scripture does not say: "Do all things without complaining, unless its really bad, then you can complain, after all you deserve to have a decent laundry room (or fill in your own blank)"

No...It says "do all things without complaining and disputing" Philippians 2:14

Sometimes its not easy to do things without complaining...but God continually works on my heart. His grace is sufficient for me. And how dare I complain about the blessings I have been given....How dare I complain about this when people are living like the ones in this photo....

So I have learned to be content....and perhaps one day I will again be blessed with an ideal laundry room....but i don't need that to be happy. And if i live the rest of my life this way~ I will thank God for the clothes that need to be washed...for the day that it takes me to wash and dry at the laundromat....for the child I have to clothe....and for the husband that pays this water bill!

Yes I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content....I know how to be abased and I know how to abound.....I can do ALL things through CHRIST who strengthens me.

Sweet Cornbread (the best ever!!)

MMMMM This cornbread will make ya want to move to the south!

2/3 cup butter (soft)
1 cup Sugar
3 eggs
1& 2/3 cup milk
2& 1/3 cup flour
1 cup cornmeal
4&1/2 tsp baking POWDER
1 tsp salt

cream the butter and sugar
add the eggs
blend
add all other ingredients

AND THIS IS HOW YOU MAKE IT EXTRA DELICIOUS...

Pour into a cast iron skillet

bake at 400 degrees for 25~30 minutes

Yum! My family loves this recipe!

Homemade Granola

This is a quick recipe that i wanted to share...

to make this granola you will need:

Quick oats
Raw organic honey
organic brown sugar
almonds

1) In a large bowl mix about 4 cups of quick oats with 1 cup of brown sugar, almonds to taste and enough honey to make everything moist ( don't measure, i just squeeze the bottle until the mixture is moist)

2) Spread evenly on a baking sheet

3) bake at 350 for about 15 minutes or a little longer if you like it crunchier (stir it around a little when its about half way done)

this is so yummy, super cheap, and much better for you than store bought granola...and its an easy one for kids!!

My daughter loves to help with this and then eat it mixed with organic vanilla yogurt!!

i like it in a bowl with milk...mmmmm

Enjoy!!

My husband requested that I keep my driving to a minimum due to the rising gas prices. After all, he is the one bringin' home the bacon...I have a lot of respect for that man. At first i wondered if i could do it. I mean, I go to the store if i need "a few things", I go to playdates or storytime or whatever else i feel like doing during the week. But i knew i needed to make an honest effort to respect my husband's wishes (still working on that proverbs 31 thing, and how can I be a virtuous wife who has worth more than rubies if i cant even cut down my driving when he asks me to, right?)

So, the week began. We went nowhere. were we bored to death? did i get "cabin fever"? did we just sit and sit and sit? NO WAY! Emily and I had the best week we have had in a long time! we had time for playing dress up and having tea parties, and snuggling together reading books and watching movies. We had time for hot breakfasts and hot chocolate. But best of all, We had more time for God. We had more time in the morning for prayer and devotionals, more time for crafts and learning, more time to grow together in the Lord. And although yes, I teach Emily about faith, She teaches me also. The Bible says in Matthew 10:14, 15 “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. ¹⁵ Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” The innocence of a child is the best teacher when it comes to faith. Emily dances around the house singing songs about Jesus that she makes up. Songs about how much He loves us and how He is so good. When was the last time i did that? I guess when we have hectic lives it is easy to lose our child like faith in the rush.

As a mother I must remember that my number one ministry is my child. It is my job to raise her up in the Christian faith. Teach her about God's love and pray that in time, she will accept Jesus' salvation. In the book i am currently reading, "A mom after God's own heart", I read something that really struck me. She said that our mindset as mothers should be this : "If i do nothing else today, I must teach My child about Jesus" And then My pastor today preached about families and he asked "how is success defined in your home?" Well in our home, success is not how much money you make, what kind of home you own or how much cool stuff you have. it is defined by how you live for Christ. Loving Christ and serving others is the foundation for our home. It is our faith in action. It is the most important thing that our child and future children must learn.

So on this Sunday evening (well, late night actually, but when else can a mom blog?) I am thankful. I am thankful for my frugal, gas saving husband. I am thankful that God convicts me to submit to that frugal husband of mine, and I am thankful for the blessings it brings. I am looking so forward to Monday. More learning, fun, and building Christ's character in my little one:)

another fabulous fall recipe that my husband couldnt get enough of!

~Pumpkin Bread with Cream cheese frosting~

Pumpkin bread~

1 1/2 cups fresh pureed pumpkin
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
2 1/3 cups and 1 tbs all purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1heaping tsp cinnamon
1 heaping tsp nutmeg


preheat oven to 350 degrees. grease and flour 3 9x5" loaf pans.
mix pumpkin, sugar, oil, eggs. combine dry ingredients and mix until smooth. divide batter between the loaf pans. bake for 45 minutes or so, until a toothpick comes out clean...


cream cheese frosting~

2 8oz pkg cream cheese (softened)
1/2 cup butter (softened)
2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

cream together cream cheese and butter~ mix in vanilla~gradually mix in sugar~

~now for the fun part~

I cut the loaf of pumkin bread lengthwise and spread frosting on the bottom loaf~you can sprinkle the frosting with nuts if you like~i prefer walnuts or pecans~replace the top half, dollop with frosting and a nut, and voila...fall in a pan!

FALL...how I love thee...let me count the ways....I love your cool breeze on my face, I love your beautiful colors that dance on the leaves.....i love your harvest of sweet......and most of all...i love those harvest of sweets in some yummy, delicious, fill my home with the smell of fall recipes!!

Oat Bars~~warm and delicious for breakfast, or cut into squares, individually wrapped, and refrigerated for a homemade afternoon snack~

1 cup butter (softened)
1 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 cup quick oats
1 1/2 cup wheat flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
10 oz fresh homemade preserves
1/4 cup flaxseed

preheat oven to 400 degrees

cream together butter and sugar

combine oats, flour, salt, baking soda and flaxseed.

press half of the mixture into the pan. spread on preserves. press remaining mixture on top (and/or sprinkle for a more crumble top)

bake 20-25 minutes

the photo is homemade blackberry jam with fresh blueberries as well....sooooo good!

Sooooo....goodbye farm life..hello nieghborhood...for now... :( I guess God has a different plan for us right now which I am completely open to, but workin on that contentment thing is a struggle at times....oh how I miss that farm!! Its hard to get used to having neighbors again...

So since we had to leave our newly planted garden behind...*sniff, sniff* we hit up the farmers market for fresh homegrown goodness, and we have some wonderful friends that share their harvest with us (who knew you could make so many yummy things with zucchini!) Here is some of our goodies from the local farmers market here in Richmond KY...Those blackberries became jam, although i was trying to make syrup......in any case, the jam is yummy and organic and way better for my family than what you buy in the store loaded with preservatives.....and those peaches got chopped and frozen so that I can make a delicious peach cobbler for my husband when he gets home...the tomatoes are eaten like apples in this family, and organic ground beef...mmmmm...so worth the extra $ per pound!!

Hopefully i can inspire some folks to eat and live more naturally and simply even if you dont live on a farm....there is still a bounty of fresh homegrown, homemade deliciousness to be had! In time I will post recipes of my favorite things (and pictures when i get my new USB cord) My daughter loves to cook with me and I love taking her to the market, teaching her to support local farmers, and eat the healthy goodness that God put on the earth for us to enjoy:) There is something about the farmers market that you just dont get at the grocery stores...you can stand around and shoot the breeze and share recipes and let peach nectar drip down your chin while doing it! :) Its nostalgic...the memories will stick....what a great life!


Genesis 1:11,12...
Then God said, “Let the land sprout with vegetation—every sort of seed-bearing plant, and trees that grow seed-bearing fruit. These seeds will then produce the kinds of plants and trees from which they came.” And that is what happened. ¹² The land produced vegetation—all sorts of seed-bearing plants, and trees with seed-bearing fruit. Their seeds produced plants and trees of the same kind. And God saw that it was good.

While cleaning out the chicken coop to get it ready for spiring's chicks, i discovered this little birds nest in one of the little cubbies...I wish i would've taken more pictures from start to finish because when I first saw it, it was a nest full of tiny little eggs....every time we went into the coop we would check on our little bird family until one day the eggs were tiny little baby birds with transparent eyelids and bare skin....after a while I saw a nest full of grown birds (which is the picture) I want sure if these were the babies or other birds that sought this nest for refuge from the massive rains we were getting, but in any case it was great to be able to show my little girl the cycle of life...from egg to baby to adult bird....God's design is so amazing, and it's in nature that you see the fullness of His creation. although His purpose for birds is much different than His purpose for people, the whole experience brings these scriptures to mind..." Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;
Before you were born I sanctified you..." Jeremiah 1:5
For You formed my inward parts;
You covered me in my mother’s womb.
I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made..."Psalm 139:13,14

He makes us and grows us in our mother's wombs... just like the eggs...until one day....we become part of this outside world, Born to fullfill God's purpose to glorify Him and expand His kingdom of heaven....Oh what LoVe!!

So it all started with a vacation to kentucky...just us two...we wanted to see if it was a place we'd like to move to. We loved it!! And even though some people thought we were CRAZY, we sold everything we owned and moved to the farm...175 acres of green grass, tall trees, Gods country, peace and quiet....1700 miles away from home....over the last 10 months we have been busy chopping wood, picking pears from the enormous tree out front, making pear butter, tarts and other goodies, going to festivals, starting a garden, and even got some baby chicks which will give us fresh eggs in due time...We love this organic homespun life....I hang the wash on the line and wash dishes by hand, and its not always easy, but its simple and I like that....

Last night I took a break from all of the stress and packing that comes along with moving to make this little recipe box! nothing too fancy, I know but it makes me happy because number 1~its a recycled half n half and number 2~ magazine picture collage stuff is a great pastime of mine from the good ole high school years. Just like THIS 94cent composition book:) (whoa pictures! lol...im new at this)

I have been wanting to start this blog for months but in this adventure in motherhood and farm living the blog starting has been waaaayyyy at the bottom of the priority list....but at this point, I figure its now or never! I would like to recap on the last 10 months that we have been living this country bumpkin life. It has not been the easiest of lifestyles living in a house thats over 100 yrs old...with a funky water system, spiders and pests, and A LOT of wood chopping and hauling over the winter months, and the many other obstacles that come along. It has however, made me a stronger woman (a Pioneer as mama pam calls me) and it has grown my faith and yes i have learned to be content in all circumstances:) ok the contentment part takes time sometimes....but it is a growing process...and I am so blessed!