Posted in Faith
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This is a double post from my wordpress blog. I am posting there about my spiritual journey and my daily spiritual walk with God. But this post is part one of a series that shows how God lifted me from the miry pit and placed me on the rock of His Word. Part 1 Psalm 40:2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. Almost fifteen years have passed since the most wayward time in my life. Those fifteen years have been filled with the birth of babies, death of friends and family, broken relationships, homeschooling triumphs, marriage celebrations, frustrations of everyday life, the injury of my beloved husband, the excitement of sharing learning with my children, the joy of the grubby hands and messy home of sharing your life with children, deep, meaningful friendships. But the undercurrent of these last fifteen years has been indescribable agony. An agony I pray you, dear reader, will avoid. It is the weight of guilt, the burden of my sinfulness as I trampled underfoot the blood of Christ Jesus. Now, I know Christ bore my sins and punishment on the cross. And yet, I can still feel that pain, the kind that makes me feel separate from every other human being and even God Himself. Let my life, my experience be a cautionary tale to you. Growing up in a Christian home, I was always searching for the quiet confidence in Christ I was told about in church. By the time I was in high school, the desperation to live a life pleasing to God consumed me- even though I was chasing sin and pleasure, too. Nothing too terrible, mind you, but I was serving myself not God. I was easily swayed by friends, liberal teachers, and even my own desires. In my sophomore year of high school, I enrolled in a Christian school to get out of the worldliness of the public school. I thought I would finally be around people who desired godliness. My hope perished as I watched hypocrisy of the student body, of the teachers, of even the very workings of the disciplinary actions of the school. People were flawed: teachers had favorites, girls were having sex, there were cliques and backbiting. In short, it was identical to the public school I had attended with one exception- it had Christ’s name attached to it. The school condemned dancing, smoking, premarital sex, etc. Outwardly, it had the morality of Christianity. Yet it did not have Christ’s heart. One girl got pregnant and sought the leadership of the school for help with a repentant heart. She was promptly expelled. I began to doubt the sincerity of Christians. At the same time, I struggled with my own salvation. How did I know I was saved? I formed some relationships with sincere Christian friends. These students invited me to their youth groups where we had moral fun together. They encouraged me to pray, read the Word. I was told that the ONE thing I had to KNOW was if I was saved. I felt a new intensity within myself to KNOW. I didn’t want to love God because He saved me but because of who He was. That became my goal. These all seem like lofty ideals now. How good and appropriate it was for me to desire God. Yet the truth was, I was still going to hell. No one else worried about me. My parents, my teachers thought I was the perfect Christian student. But I was worried. I feared death and hell. I knew something was wrong with me. A young teacher took me under her wing. She seemed less religious and more real. Did I want to go to Heaven? Yes! Did I want to know for sure that I would go there when I died? Yes! I prayed the prayer for the 50th time and felt like something clicked this time. I really wanted a relationship with God so I gave my life to Jesus. I experienced new understanding and a desire for reading the Word. I no longer felt alone and lonely. I prayed easily without ceasing. The weight of my sin had been lifted! I was forgiven! But without any mentoring by an older, mature Christian, without really understanding how Christ’s death paid my debt, my relief was short-lived. And then began a year long downward spiral of sinfulness and searching, questioning and doubting, experimenting and basically losing my religion. Although, I still thought I was a saved believer. I had just backslidden and would find a way to rectify my searching with the Christ of the Bible- even if it meant interpreting God’s Word differently than I had been raised to believe. |
Posted in Faith
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Please take the time to watch the Paul Washer video I put on the right. It is THE BEST preaching to youth I have ever heard. If only I had heard it when I was young. Please share this video with those you care about............ In Christ Alone. |
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RZVw3no2A4 I've heard this explained before on a radio show but this video provides factual evidence of who is responible for our failing economy. If you don't believe what it says, research it for yourself! And vote accordingly!!! |
Posted in Recipes
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My kids love crackers. And I just could never find any with healthy oils and soaked grains. Previously, I made crackers in the past (think tried once YEARS AGO!). But they were not well received. Well, I love my sourdough started and stumbled across this recipe online. It is AMAZING! Like a really delicious wheat thin. Well, much better actually. So I am sharing this recipe with you all! Thank you, Jessica Prentice, for this great recipe! 1 cup Sourdough, fed with whole grain flour, such as wheat, spelt or kamut flour 1/4 cup Lard rendered from local, free range pork fat, or coconut oil (I used the coconut oil) 1/4 cup Sprouted spelt flour or unbleached white flour, or as much as you need to make a stiff dough + extra for rolling (I just used regular spelt and a little white. Mine did take quite a bit more flour than this but it was damp here yesterday) 1/2 tsp Sea salt 1/4 tsp Baking soda Olive oil for brushing Coarse salt (such as kosher salt) for sprinkling on top (I just brushed with more coconut oil and used more pink salt) In a large bowl, combine sourdough and the lard and mix thoroughly. (I melted my coconut oil before mixing). Mix the salt and baking soda in with the 1/4 cup flour and add to the sourdough mixture. Knead it all together in the bowl, adding as much flour as necessary to make a stiff dough. All the dough to rest for about 10 minutes. Preheat the oven tho 350 degrees and line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Take a small portion of the dough (about 1/4 cup) and roll it out on a floured board using a rolling pin, adding flour if it's too sticky, until it is very thin. (I just rolled my 1/4 of the dough out onto a greased silpat mat and cut with a pizza cutter. I like my crackers thin, and I didn't want to have to move them!) Cut into cracker shapes using a dough cutter or a sharp knife. Transert he crackers to the sheet pan adn bursh with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Repeat with another 1/4 cup of dough until the sheet pan in filled with crackers. Bake crackers in batches as necessary for 15-20 minutes or until just golden brown. Copy right Jessica Prentice 2005 If you want healthy crackers, please try this recipe! It was easy and delicious. I am already planning all sorts of variations. If you can make cut-out cookies, you can make these crackers. They really are good!
Eat well! Live well! ~Mel |
Posted in Faith
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I was waiting for my milk to heat up to make yogurt while all the house is asleep (except for one reading nightowl upstairs!), and I thought, I actually could blog right now. So here I am! My favorite hymn is by William Cowper and titled "There is a Fountain." I love it because of the words and also because of a quote I read by Cowper once. It read, "There is no stain so deep the blood of Christ cannot remove." That may be a paraphrase but I still love that quote. Here are the words: There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel’s veins; The dying thief rejoiced to see that fountain in his day; Dear dying Lamb, Thy precious blood shall never lose its power E’er since, by faith, I saw the stream Thy flowing wounds supply, Then in a nobler, sweeter song, I’ll sing Thy power to save, Lord, I believe Thou hast prepared, unworthy though I be, And here is my favorite version (without the video- a word to the wise, the video is graphic and just is NOT necessary to appreciate the depth of beauty of the song. Just my 2 cents!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6sXbHuATvo If you enjoy this version, too, check out more music at Red Mountain Church. (They rearrange old hymns to new music. Truly lovely.) I hope you have experienced the depth of love and mercy of the forgiveness of the blood of Christ. May the Holy Spirit remind us all of how great is His love that we may love Him all the more! |
Posted in Recipes
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My two youngest and I caught obnoxious colds last weekend and are still a bit under the weather. So our menu has been reduced to sandwiches and chicken soup and whatever my older two can scrounge up for Daddy. So if you are so inclined (or are ill as well!) here's a recipe for chicken soup from Jordan Rubin that will hopefully speed up the healing process! COLD and FLU Bustin' Spicy Chicken Soup Ingredients: 1 whole organic, free range chicken 2-4 chicken feet (optional) 3-4 quarts cold filtered water 1 T raw apple cider vinegar 4 medium sized, coarsely chopped onions 8 medium carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped 6 celery stalks, coarsely chopped 2-4 chopped zuchinis 4-6 T extra virgin coconut oil 1 bunch parsley 5 garlic cloves 4 inches grated ginger 2-4 T Celtic Sea Salt 1/4-1/2 t cayenne pepper Directions: If you are unsing a whole chicken, remove fat glands and the gizzards from the cavity. GBy all means, use chicken feet if you can find them. Place chicken or chicken pieces in a large stainless steel pot with the water, vinegar, and all the vegetables except parsley. Let stand for ten minutes before heating. Brind to a boil and remove scum that rises to the top. Cover and cook for twelve to twenty-four hours. The longer you cook the stock, the more healing it will be. About fifteen minutes before finishing the stock, add parsley. This will impart additional mineral ions to the broth. Remove from heat and take out chicken and the chicken feet. Let it cool and remove chicken meat fromthe carcass, discarding the bones and the feet. Drop the meat back into the soup. (This recipe is from The Great Physician's Rx for Colds and Flu by Jordan Rubin with Joseph Brasco, M.D.) |
Posted in Faith
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"I have the most animating confidence that the present noble struggle for liberty will terminate gloriously for America. And let us play the man for our God, and for the cities of our God; while we are using the means in our power, let us humbly commit our righteous cause to the great Lord of the universe, who loveth righteousness and hateth iniquity. And, having secured the approbation of our hearts by a faithful and unwearied discharge of our duty to our country, let us joyfully leave our concerns in the hands of Him who raiseth up and putteth down the empires and kingdoms of the world with all their power and greatness as He pleases." -John Hancock |
Posted in Daily Life
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MONDAY Breakfast- Chocolate chip banana muffins, kefir Lunch- BIG salad, pears, cheese and leftover muffins Dinner- Having lasagne at a friend's house!!! YUM! TUESDAY Breakfast- Sourdough Monkey bread, oranges Lunch- walking salad, trail mix Dinner- Greek chicken with potatoes, salad, sourdough bread WEDNESDAY Breakfast- Waffles, kiwi Lunch- yogurt with fruit, granola bars, carrots and celery Dinner- tacos, mexi-rice, salad, corn, refried beans THURSDAY Breakfast- hot creamed rice cereal with dried blueberries and cream Lunch- sandwiches (tuna or cashew butter), chips with cultured salsa, carrots, kiwi Dinner- slow cooker pulled pork sandwiches, sweet potato and regular potato wedges, broccoli FRIDAY Breakfast- chocolate chip pancakes (can you tell we LOVE chocolate?!), berries with cream Lunch- baked potato tacos or broccoli and chees potato, fruit salad Dinner- Pizzas: one with spinach, bacon and kefir cheese; one half just cheese, half pepperoni, salad SATURDAY Breakfast- orange julius kefir smoothie Lunch- leftover pizza and salad Dinner- Italian vegetable soup, cut up cheese and meat, fruit with yogurt dip SUNDAY Breakfast- Southern breakfast (it is our Sunday treat!) Lunch- Berry pancake and yogurt cheese roll-ups, mint green veggie juice (from juicer) Dinner- slow cooker venison roast with potatoes, carrots, celery and onions, raw applesauce, broccoli
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Posted in Faith
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I first read this on http://middings.blogspot.com All I want to say is THANK YOU, MARSHA! (And R.C. Sproul, too, of course!) This was the perfect thing for me to read as I struggle with contentment and thankfulness in all my circumstances. God is truly good. And His timing is PERFECT. Seek Ye First |
Posted in Daily Life
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On another blog, someone posted their entire weekly menu on Monday. I really like that idea so here is my first one! MONDAY breakfast- chocolate chip zuchini muffins, juice lunch- cheese quesadillas with cultured salsa, strawberries with kefir cheese dip, carrots, apricot balls dinner- chinese (from local restaurant! ;)) TUESDAY breakfast- toast with cheese or cashew butter, oranges lunch- hot ham and cheese on sourdough, pickles, 4 friends salad, apples dinner- porcupine meatballs, broccoli, salad, applesauce WEDNESDAY breakfast- waffles, oranges lunch- walking salad, carrots, leftover zuchini chocolate chip muffins dinner- potato soup, pastrami rolls, salad THURSDAY breakfast- baked oatmeal with raisins and chopped apples lunch- (brown bagging day) turkey sandwiches on sourdough bread, apples, pretzels, pickles, sugar snap peas, apricot balls dinner- slow cooker meatloaf, sloppy potatoes, broccoli, spinach salad, applesauce FRIDAY breakfast- flapjacks with hot apple topping lunch- venison summer sausage, cheese cubes, crackers, sliced pickles, carrots, pears dinner- homemade pizza, salad, marinated mushrooms SATURDAY breakfast- smoothies lunch- meatloaf sandwiches on sourdough, chips with cultured salsa, kiwi fruit with kefir cheese dip, carrots dinner- tuna burgers, fried potato slices, sugar snap peas, salad SUNDAY breakfast- southern breakfast (biscuits with gravy, sausage, eggs), oranges lunch- leftovers dinner- ham, baked sweet potatoes, potatoes Anna, broccoli, applesauce We follow a "traditional foods" way of eating such as is recommended by the Weston Price Foundation and found in Nourishing Traditions, The Maker's Diet, and other whole foods books. Most of the food on our menu is organic. Each meal is accompanied by raw milk or kefir unless juice is mentioned. We use raw milk, butter and cheese on a daily basis and soak or ferment the grains in our diet. The cultured salsa and pickles in this week's menu are fermented raw foods. I make all my meals from scratch according to this way of eating for my family's optimal nutrition. For more information, please check out the Weston Price Foundation's website at www.westonaprice.org |
Posted in Family and Friends
Here is USAPUPPY's (my oldest's) first fondant covered cake!!!!!! She made it for her brother's 11th birthday (note the "no. 11" in the top right hand corner of the cake). She loves watching Ace of Cakes and loves baking and decorating. She made mints with fondant for St. Patrick's Day, but this is the first time she has covered a cake with it. Since she is only 13, I am VERY proud of her. I think it was a pretty ambitious undertaking. (I have yet to work with fondant myself!) She hopes to have a career as a pastry chef someday. Or maybe a Nutritionist. Or an interior decorator. Who knows!? She is only 13! Hope you all enjoyed seeing her cake! Go Pack! :) |
Posted in Recipes
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This is too good to be healthy! But it is! It makes it so easy to get your daily dose of coconut oil. I've been reading Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon and Mary Enig. And this recipe is definitely NT even if it's not found in the book! I love cooking healthy- soaking my grains, making sourdough, experimenting with fermented foods. I made some delicious honey-kefir cheese this morning for toast. Sooo good on sourdough! Anyway, that is what I have been up to lately- reading nutrition books! I just started Sweet Deception by Dr. Mercola. Now, my daughter is reading it, too! And faster than I am, I might add! We are using these books as part of our health curriculum. They are really opening our eyes to good nutrition! Sooooo! Without further ado, the FUDGE RECIPE! Mix 1 cup coconut oil with 1 cup cocoa or carob powder. Heat gently in a double boiler or in a metal bowl over a simmering pan of water. Add 1/2 cup raw honey
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TAG #1 Rules: Okay, my book is The Sword, the Ring, and the Parchment by Ed Dunlop. Here are the 3 sentences: " 'In face, every person here used to dwell in the Village of Dedication.' Josiah looked at him in astonishment. 'The village by the Castle of Faith?' "
Six non-important facts/quirks about me???? Hmmmm..............
Okay. Now who to tag?
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Posted in Daily Life
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Have you ever been defeated by socks? Or even piles of dirty laundry? Dirty dishes in your sink? What about bits and pieces of toys, scrapbooking materials, or (this one hurts!) legoes laying all over the floor? Is your desk so messy you can't even think about school????? For me, at this moment, the socks have me in a corner up against the wall. And about to climb it! You see, yesterday afternoon my kids decided to go play outside. Bluesky came in with wet feet, threw his socks onto the pile of boots by the door, and began searching for new ones to cover his red, clammy feet. Alas, the socks had picked that moment to revolt and not a single one was recovered. (Now, before all you Southerners begin to balk at this battle, remember, we are up NORTH. It has been below 0 almost consistently this week so going sockless is NOT an option!) I decided to assist my son in his sock relocation program. We began digging furiously through the baskets of clean laundry, badly in need of folding, in the living room. Not one sock showed its little head. Hmmm........... I took the hunt upstairs (known to those who are closest to our family as THE KID ZONE) sure laundry had found its way magically up the stairs, folded itself, and gone to sleep wearily in the proper dresser drawers. I was mistaken. Not only were no socks to be found but many drawers were completely bare!!!!! Son and I resigned to defeat and he put on his cozy acorn slippers. Fast forward to today, the sock battle had long since been forgotten. (Mostly because I don't do laundry at night!) As children scurried to get ready to attend gym, I was So where are the rebels now? Well, I was able to pull together a covert operation. We successfully eradicated some from their hiding places.......... But we have evidence there are many more still out there, watching us, waiting for another chance to attack when we least expect it. Morale in our company has improved as we finally moved the captured socks from the washer to the dryer. (Have you ever seen a load of JUST socks??!!) As soon as they are ready to submit to our authority, we will be placing them on our feet and heading to the health food store. Our only hope is tobe able to locate 6 matching pairs in 6 different sizes! (JUST FYI- I have started my own secret spy organization to infiltrate the rebel socks. Somehow, though most of our other clothing, bedding and towels ended up getting washed yesterday, the socks were able to escape capture until this morning. I've got a really uncomfortable pair of nylons hanging out in one of the drawers they are known to occupy. I'll keep you posted............) But on a serious note, I've noticed that when my house is chaotic and out of control, other things in my life seem to follow suit. It seems I can't think clearly in a messy house. Now, I'm not saying things need to be perfect BUT when I can't see the computer screen because webkinz are blocking the way or we have no clean socks, something is really out of balance. I know I haven't been home much this week. And I even have plans to escape my home today. But if I don't want to be here, maybe my kids don't either..... Maybe they are affected- not by the mess- but by the lack of comfort my house provides when the mess of life gets the better of my motivation. Somedays, I just let too many things go and then, voila! I am overwhelmed and just want to escape the mess. Sometimes, we do too many outside activies, we visit and shop too much. Our house becomes a drop off, giant CLOSET not a cozy home where family memories are made, where relationships and learning are allowed to flourish. There has to be a fine line drawn between chaos and comfort. Everyone knows their own level of tolerance for each. My prayer today is that we all find that line for our families. So love and mercy and faithfulness can be practiced and chaos is not allowed to reign. |
Posted in Homeschool
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Well, my oldest son (CatfishOn) got a betta- a Siamese Fighting Fish- last summer. For some reason, about a week ago, he decided he wanted to breed bettas. Those who know him know what an understatement it is to say he is obsessed with breeding his betta! He has read 2 fish breeding books- no small feat for the boy who only wants to read about Brett Favre or the Green Bay Packers! He also has scoured the internet finding out every obscure fact about the fish known to man! Needless to say, his enthusiasm has been contagious and now USAPUPPY (daughter) and BlueSky (2nd youngest son) are owners of bettas and are chatting constantly about how many babies they will have, how many bowls we'll need, how many babies they'll have to "cull," etc. Whew! I'm overwhelmed just thinking about the 100+ Siamese Fighting Fish each needing its own bowl so it won't kill its sibling or get eaten by its parents! Talk about a disfunctional family! So now we are adding this to our unit on oceanography....... which we are supposed to be finishing this week with a trip to the Discovery World Aquarium. Today's virtual fish dissection was not attended with much enthusiasm. I guess it just hit too close to their heartstrings! But now they are even more eager to observe their bettas, label their fins, and discuss their eating habits! Their excitement is almost too much to bear! You can only imagine the trepidation as CatfishOn waited with bated breath for his beautiful male betta to start hiding in his new cave rock. The poor fish had no time to get used to this new, strange object in his tank. He was expected to go inside and take a nap! Aaah! We are also learning lessons in patience! Now seems like a good time to review how we are to be "fishers of men" utilizing patience and perserverance in presenting the Word to the lost. Hope you are all having a lovely homeschool Monday! We are! (Despite the snow!!!!!!!!!) |
Posted in Faith
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Have any of you or your children read the Elsie Dinsmore series? I am reading and crying my way through book 1, and I am absolutely amazed at how much I am affected by the example of little 8 year old Elsie! Her humility and obedience and self control are almost an exact foil to my pride, rebellion, and emotion-controlled living! Ah! To have sought the life of Christ as a young child! But the real beauty of the book is how it inspires me to seek Christ, to pray for His aid as I battle the wickedness of my own heart. It is so easy to forget that He will help us by providing us with more faith, more love, more humility, more patience to accomplish the plan He has set before us! 1 John 5:14-15 says "And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him." No matter how impossible it seems, He will equip us to obey Him! Isn't that a wonderful thought! He makes it possible to obey Him! "And Jesus looking upon them saith, WITH MEN IT IS IMPOSSIBLE, BUT NOT WITH GOD: FOR WITH GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE." Mark 10:27 The book also provides wonderful insight to the soul of the child, how fragile and yet resilient it is. The novel and its many characters have given me much to reflect on concerning parenting, as well. I know it is fiction but it truly is an inspirational, spiritually challenging read. I am planning on using it during devotional time as a read aloud even though I have 3 boys! If anyone has had any experience reading these books to boys, I'd love to hear it! I highly reccommend this book to all Christian readers of all ages! In this treasure trove of virtue and life lessons, there is something for everyone to glean! |
Posted in Daily Life
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Please watch this and listen to the words of this song. It is a great reminder to not take the time we have with our children for granted. It applies to boys, too, even though the song was written for Steven Curtis Chapman's daughters. Children grow up so quickly. Each day is truly a gift. Thank you, Steven, for such a beautiful reminder. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4B1XM9jWiLI |
Posted in Nature Study
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This is the strange visitor who interrupted us this morning! It appears to be a red-tailed hawk. We live in town so you can just imagine the excitement around here when my daughter spotted this large bird in our backyard! I'm surprised he didn't take off because of all the yelling! Everyone had to report to our schoolroom, STAT! Daddy got the camera and a few pictures. Then, we got to see him fly a few times and he seemed to be carrying his breakfast in his talons. Bluesky (2nd youngest son) is VERY interested in birds of prey and animal rehabilitation, so this was like an early Christmas present for him! I am amazed at how good God is! We have now had visits from a mallard couple, a pheasant, an opposum, and many lovely songbirds. And we live in town!!! This is such a blessing since we spent hours each week in the mountains before our move from WV, and we do miss it soooooo much. God seems to know what we need! And just when we need it, too! What a wonderful educational opportunity we had this morning researching about and identifying this bird! |
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A TEENAGER'S VIEW OF HEAVEN 17-year-old Brian Moore had only a short time to write something for a class. The subject was what Heaven was like. 'I wowed 'em,' he later told his father, Bruce. 'It's a killer. It's the bomb. It's the best thing I ever wrote..' It also was the last. Brian Moore died May 27, 1997, the day after Memorial Day. He was driving home from a friend's house when his car went off Bulen-Pierce Road in Pickaway County and struck a utility pole. He emerged from the wreck unharmed but stepped on a downed power line and was electrocuted. The Moores framed a copy of Brian's essay and hung it among the family portraits in the living room. 'I think God used him to make a point. I think we were meant to find it and make something out of it,' Mrs. Moore said of the essay. She and her husband want to share their son's vision of life after death. 'I'm happy for Brian. I know he's in heaven. I know I'll see him.'
small index card files. They were like the ones in libraries that list titles by author or subject in alphabetical order. But these files, which stretched from floor to ceiling and seemingly endless in either direction, had very different headings. As I drew near the wall of response. And in the moments I could bring myself to look at His face, I saw
As we spend this Thanksgiving holiday with our loved ones, let us not forget to share with them the One who died to pay for the sins of all. May you share Jesus this Thanksgiving and celebrate His gift with thanksgiving! |
Posted in Family and Friends
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My daughter made her first bread- all by herself!!! Here is a picture of one of the three loaves she made today. I think it is amazing! I only started making bread myself a few years ago, and here she is just a young thing and making bread from scratch by herself! (Can you tell I'm proud!?) And all this baking occured while I was out of town at a dentist appointment. So she didn't have me watching over her shoulder making sure everything was done right! She just followed the recipe and made beautiful bread! So I just had to share! Way to go, USAPUPPY! You make me proud everyday! For those interested, USAPUPPY used the recipe for overnight bread from the Hillbilly Housewife found here: http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/familybread.htm The recipe is located at the top of the page. Scroll down the page to adapt the recipe for the low-yeast, overnight method. I've had excellent results with whole wheat and other hearty grains rising this way. Also, this method is great for beginners, in my experience. So try it and see what you think! i hope you and your family enjoy this bread as much as we do! |










Here is USAPUPPY's (my oldest's) first fondant covered cake!!!!!! She made it for her brother's 11th birthday (note the "no. 11" in the top right hand corner of the cake). She loves watching Ace of Cakes and loves baking and decorating. She made mints with fondant for St. Patrick's Day, but this is the first time she has covered a cake with it. Since she is only 13, I am VERY proud of her. I think it was a pretty ambitious undertaking. (I have yet to work with fondant myself!) She hopes to have a career as a pastry chef someday. Or maybe a Nutritionist. Or an interior decorator. Who knows!? She is only 13! Hope you all enjoyed seeing her cake! Go Pack! :)

