.jpg)
guest book
A good friend of mine has a guest book next to her front door. She also has 4 beautiful daughters, ranging in age from 21 to 15, as well as a 10 year old son. They have lots and lots of visitors. I just love that there’s a book which documents who has been a guest in their home. They are wonderful hosts, good friends and godly people.
Because we don’t live in the middle of the hub bub ~ our home is about 20 minutes north of most of our friends, in more of a country setting (LOL) ~ we don’t have many visitors to our house (unless you count the FedEx and UPS delivery guys, and the postal carrier). Usually we’re the ones who go visiting. Even so, I am considering starting a guest book. Or perhaps I’ll make a “We Were Your Guests” book and have the hosts sign it when we go to someone else’s house. That’s a pretty cool idea, even if I do say so myself!
nothin’ holdin’ me down
I’ve been feeling a little blue lately. Not depressed. Just sort of blue ~ weighed down by circumstances that are out of my control, and people who are less than receptive to help or good advice from others. Admittedly, we probably do things in our family differently than a lot of families do. We believe the way we do things is the way they should be done. I’m not saying we’re perfect ~ not by a long shot. Nor am I suggesting that I’ve got the market cornered on how to “do it right.” Again, not by a long shot. But I do know that we believe what God tells us in His Word is THE Truth. No matter how you spin it or argue with it (or us), God is GOD ~ He is Who He is. God isn’t who we want Him to be or who we wish Him to be or who we throw together from a bunch of different religions, philosophies and trains of thought. He is Who HE is ~ plain and simple.
We all have people in our lives who seem to constantly be bouncing from one drama to another. Or, even worse, constantly creating one drama or another. I don’t know why they do that. Maybe they’re bored and just need something to do? Maybe they think life is a soap opera. I don’t know. What I do know is that my life is NOT a soap opera, and I’m not going to stand on the outskirts of that drama or let it effect me any more.
I’m going to take hold of the promises God has given to us in His Word. I’m going to hold onto what I know to be the truth. I’m NOT going to keep letting those whose dramas want to spill over into my life have that control anymore. Enough is enough. I’m taking my life back.
I’m not writing these drama addicts off. I will continue to be a light ~ the light of Jesus shining in a dark world. My light, however, is no longer shadowed or covered ~ it’s shining brightly, and it will continue to shine brightly.
I know that means the cockroaches, spiders and other nasty things that like to hide in the dark will be exposed, and they’ll come scurrying out looking for a new dark place to hide. But you know what? While they’re all running around looking for another rock to hide under, another boat to crawl under, another life to invade or a new crack in my life where they can try to slip through, I’m going to be sheltering in the wings of my God, THE God, the Creator of the universe who cares for me. That’s all I need to do.
I have officially thrown off the chains that have been weighing me down. Matthew 11:25-28 (ESV) reads:
25At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; 26yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Alleluia and amen!
good things on the horizon
Have you ever wondered just exactly how far away the horizon is? Sometimes it seems to be just over that small rise ahead, and at other times it seems to be hundreds, even thousands, of miles away. And what happens when you get past that small rise that made the horizon look so close? Usually you see there’s another small rise, and again it seems the horizon has moved to a place that is just barely out of your reach.
Those small rises represent the obstacles in my life that take my time and attention, and stand in the way of some lofty goals. Some of the obstacles are well worth the effort it takes to conquer them, and I wouldn’t trade those learning experiences for anything. Then there are some goals, dreams, hopes and desires that just seem so far away as to be unattainable, and the obstacles so large as to be insurmountable.
I admit freely I am not the best manager of time. I like to sit and think, drifting away on my own thoughts, spending hours in what my school teachers used to call daydreams. And when I write, it takes me forever to get my thoughts properly expressed in a way that makes sense once those thoughts are released from the confines of my brain (where they make perfect sense until someone asks me to explain them).
And there are the distractions. Distractions can be good ~ if I get too wrapped up in what I’m doing, sometimes I need a break and don’t realize it. Usually a break will come in the form of a disruption, or distraction, that breaks my concentration on the task at hand. And really, that’s not always a bad thing. But some distractions are simply rabbit trails that suck away my time and attention ~ those are the distractions that have no real purpose that leads to my good or improvement.
Supposedly it’s all about prioritizing. But what if just about everything you want to do is high on the list of things you want to do?? At times frustration abounds, because prioritizing what’s best over what’s best is a really hard thing to do.
This blog started out as a way for me to tell the stories of regular life around our house, and to keep people up to date as to what we’ve been doing. It also became a place for me to express my thoughts and opinions. I’m not sure when it turned into a platform where I had to be careful about what I wrote or what I posted simply because our life became messy. There have been actual court cases where someone’s writings on the internet were used against them. Sad, but true. I have no desire to give anyone ammunition against me or my family just because I posted on my blog how I really felt about something (or someone).
So, I’ve fallen away from posting my thoughts and opinions like I used to here. That makes me sad ~ mainly because I enjoyed having the ability to write whatever I wanted to write, about whatever I wanted to write about, whenever I wanted to write about it.
My life is overwhelmingly full right now ~ overwhelmingly in a good way, not a negative way. My life is so FULL ~ it’s an incredible blessing that I want to be sure to receive completely. That’s mainly where my attention has been focused lately. Enjoying what I’ve been given, receiving the blessings, and learning through the difficulties. Yes, even difficulties can be blessings ~ it just depends on how you handle and what you do with them.
Would I love to tell you every little thing that goes on from day to day? Absolutely. (It would be up to you as to whether you read about them or not. 
) Unfortunately I can’t do that simply because of the ramifications or backlash that might ensue. There’s no reason to give anyone information they don’t need or aren’t willing to make the effort to get first hand (I’m speaking about a personal, “in real life” level here).
As I wrote previously, I have requested a couple of books to review. I love that publishers are willing to send free books to people who are willing to read them and write about them on the internet. Bibliophiles rejoice!
I won’t just be publishing book reviews, though (how boring would that be?!). I will continue to write about the things that are on my heart. They just won’t be as deeply personal in nature as they were when I first started writing this blog.
Now I just need to get my ducks in order, get everything back to its normal smooth sailing, and make the time to blog. I’m still working on that list of all of the good things I want to do ~ getting them in the correct order is challenging. But I think I’m up to it!
getting there, slowly but surely
I’m finally starting to feel that I have a few extra moments in my day ~ and I can use those minutes for blogging! 
I love to read, and I enjoy writing book reviews. I am a member of several book review blog groups, but I’ve not requested a book from any of those groups for quite a while.
That changed today. I requested copies of 2 new books from B&B Media. I’m very excited to receive them and write reviews of them!
How this works is I joined some blog groups that have connections with Christian book publishers (both fiction and non-fiction). Group members receive emails frequently from the group administrator with book titles that are available FREE FROM THE PUBLISHER as long as once you’ve read the book you post a review on your blog. There’s usually a specific date the group members are asked to publish a particular review. And the publishers really like it if you post an additional review on a site like Amazon.com or ChristianBook.com.
Considering the publisher sends me free books, posting a review on my blog and on a book selling site is the least I can do!
Now, please understand that while the book is provided to me for free from the publisher, my personal reviews will never be swayed or skewed either in favor of or against any particular book. When you read my review, you will be reading my honest opinion of that book.
The two books I requested today a non-fiction. I can’t wait to receive them!
poor dog!
Attison was playing fetch with our dog, Jake, but she decided it would be much more fun to run away with the ball and let Jake chase her. It’s a good thing our dog is so sweet ~ I think he actually understood that it was more fun for Atti if he just chased her around…they’d been playing this game for a few minutes before I located the camera and was able to get some video. The quality isn’t very good since I only uploaded it to Picasa, but if your sound is on you’ll be able to hear Attison’s precious laughter as she runs around our house. (click on the picture to be taken to Picasa where the video will play automatically for you)
brief break
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I hope your holidays are blessed with love, laughter, fun, and fellowship. I’m taking a short blogging break, but hope to be able to resume regular posting soon into the new year. Blessings!
right place, right time
Sometimes you’re just in the right place at the right time….
A couple of days ago, I went shopping at Target to finish up my Christmas shopping. The night before, I made a list of the items I still needed (stocking stuffers and things like that), perused the Sunday ads to see which store had the largest number of the items on my list on sale, and went through my coupons and found all of the relevant ones. I found more coupons on Target.com and printed them out. I found some really great deals ~ several of the items I needed were on sale at Target, and I had a manufacturer’s coupon as well as a Target coupon for most of those items. Triple up on the savings ~ that makes it worth the trip.
So, there I was at Target, checking items off my list and concentrating on getting the items I knew I needed to get ~ sticking to the list is usually the best way for me to get in and out of a store without spending more than I intend to spend. But on this day I think God just decided I needed a little extra gift. I was heading towards the electronics department when I passed the clearance rack at the back of the bedding section ~ and that’s where it caught me eye. On one of the clearance shelves was a boxed Simply Shabby Chic white decorative shelf. We’ve been slowly trying to redecorate a few rooms in the house, and one of the things I’ve been on the look-out for are good decorative items. This particular shelf was just the kind of item I had on that mental list. So even though I was on a mission to the electronics department, I stopped at that clearance shelf. And I’m glad I did!
I checked the box over, and there was no damage to it. So I looked at the price tag. Are you ready for this? The regular price was just under $56 ~ and the little red clearance tag read $6.84. WHAT?! There had to be something wrong with it. It had to be a return or something. But for $6.84, I was willing to snag it, take it home and check it out.
I finished my shopping, checked out (where the cashier commented on my adept combining of sale items and coupons, and my clearance shelf find), put everything into the trunk and headed home. I was still a little doubtful that the shelf would turn out to be as good of a deal as I was hoping it would be, but again I was willing to take the chance.
After I got home and put away all of my sale/coupon items, I carried into the house the box containing my “steal” of the day, the decorative shelf. I examined the box again, and still couldn’t find any damage to it. I opened the box, and noted that it did not appear to have been re-packed. You know when you buy something, get it home, take it out of the box, and realize there’s something wrong with it, and no matter how hard you try you absolutely cannot put it back into the packaging and make it look as good as it did coming out of the factory? Yeah, well, that didn’t appear to be the case here. So I carefully sliced the packing tape, opened in inner box, took out the directions, and found the package of hardware needed to put the shelf together. That hardware package contained 8 small packages of groups of hardware. I pulled out each small package and compared it to the individual package contents listed in the book of directions. None of the hardware packages appeared to have been opened, and every single piece of each of those 8 hardware packages appeared to be present in its package.
At this point I thought to myself, “Self, you may have just found the deal of the week!” I took a picture of the box just to show you (because I know how much you love when I share my big savings finds with you) ~ here it is:
I took a couple of pictures of the little red clearance tag that reads $6.84, but they didn’t turn out well. They’re too blurry to read. I’ll try to get a good pic with my better digital camera and post it ~ I need to put a picture of this box with the readable tag in a scrapbook or something! LOL
Despite my intention to be in and out of Target that day, buying only the items on my list, I’m thankful to have noticed this gem of a deal. Now, I haven’t put the whole thing together yet, so there’s still the possibility that the shelf (cabinet) may NOT turn out to be the deal of the week. But you know what? At this point I’ve had my $6.84-worth of pleasure from this item, so if something is wrong with it my heart won’t be broken!
coupons, rebates and savings galore
I am not a fan of the holiday shopping season. A lot of people are, and that’s great if it’s something you enjoy ~ but getting up at 4am the day after a holiday to fight the crowds just to save a couple of dollars is not on my list of fun things to do.
I am, however, a fan of shopping online, and I’m definitely a fan of big savings. Do you know how many web sites there are that will help you save some serious money while doing almost all of your shopping online? About a gazillion. Seriously. A gazillion. Recently I became a member of several of them ~ all free memberships ~ and already they’ve paid off (literally).
I have needed a new mixer for a while now. My in-laws gave us a Sunbeam stand mixer as a wedding present over 20 years ago. Earlier this year I started noticing that electrical smell that small appliances give off when they’re about to quit working. I let Roger know we were going to need to get a new mixer soon, and outlined the benefits of a couple of different brands I was interested in possibly purchasing. I won’t go into the debate over whether a Bosch is better than a Kitchenaid ~ that’s one of those things you’ll have to decide for yourself.
A few nights ago Roger and I were talking about what we would like for Christmas. We’ve been married for a long time now, and quite honestly getting a nice appliance I know I need is no longer offensive to me. Roger spent the first 17 or 18 years of our marriage giving me nice jewelry as gifts, because he knows how much I like pretty, shiny, sparkly things I can wear. He has proven he truly does understand that giving your wife a vacuum cleaner or a mixer for her birthday, anniversary, Valentine’s Day, Christmas, or any other day that it’s conventional to give a gift to one you love is NOT okay. I’ve trained him well.
This year I asked for a new mixer. Roger was a little taken aback by that, and he questioned me over and over to make sure a new mixer really was the thing I wanted for Christmas. I was finally able to assure him that I WANT (not to mention NEED) a new mixer, and that buying me a small appliance for Christmas was not something that would go on the “Hold Against Roger Forever List” (unlike buying a $500 dog ~ that I didn’t even want ~ on our 14th anniversary. Sorry honey, but that is one I don’t intend to ever let you live down!)
I did all of the research, and decided for my purposes a Kitchenaid would be a very good investment. If I were an everyday bread baker I would probably have asked for a Bosch ~ and again, I really don’t want to get into that whole debate ~ but since I bake bread only occasionally, and I’ve never needed to make more than one loaf at a time on any given day, the Kitchenaid has the features I was looking for. The spoiled little girl in me wasn’t willing to settle for the lesser Kitchenaid though. I wanted the big mama of the Kitchenaid family ~ the professional 600 series mixer. Try as I might to get rid of her, that spoiled little girl inside me always seems to reappear. This time, however, I was able to satisfy the spoiled little girl in me AND the grown-up in me who really would like to get the most for my money.
I joined Ebates because I have heard people talking about it and have read quite a number of posts on blogs and Facebook by people who love shopping through Ebates. Then through Ebates I was able to find a store that had the mixer I wanted on sale, and they were offering free shipping with the purchase of $100 or more. I also had a coupon code for that store for an additional 20% off. The store’s page for the mixer had a link to a rebate form I could print out and receive $$ back from Kitchenaid. On that particular day, the store was offering rewards dollars (basically a gift card that can be used at that store for a future purchase), and the cash back value on Ebates on that day was higher than it usually is. Wow.
All told, I bought a mixer that normally sells for $500, and I paid a little over $200 for it. There’s a possibility that if I had continued looking around for a couple more days I may have been able to save a few dollars more, but I’m VERY happy with the deal I got. My time and effort are worth more than the additional $5 or so I might have saved if I’d waited and done a ton more research.
If you’re not a member of Ebates, you really should check it out. The membership form doesn’t take long to fill out, and you don’t have to give them any kind of credit card or bank account information.
If you decide to join Ebates, please use my link. You and I will each earn a $5 credit to our accounts from Ebates just for you signing up and becoming a qualified member! Really it’s a win-win situation. The next time you need to buy something, look it up on Ebates and buy it through their site. Ebates will give you a percentage of your purchase price back ~ so what have you got to lose?!
secret recipe for meatballs
This recipe for meatballs comes from a friend who married into an old Italian family ~ you know, the kind that lives on the east coast and can proudly say they have several generations of policemen and/or fire fighters who have faithfully served the residents of their city. The recipe has been passed down from generation to generation and family legend holds it was brought over “on the boat” by great-great-etc., etc. grandma when she immigrated to the US. This recipe was never to be given to anyone outside the family. Well, never ended when my friend and her old Italian family husband got a divorce. Then my friend couldn’t give it out fast enough or to enough people! Despite the fact that this is more of a revenge recipe than a secret one at this point, it makes the best meatballs I have ever had ~ and it makes a pretty good meatloaf, too!
1 – 1 1/2 lb. ground beef
seasoned bread crumbs (enough to hold consistence)
salt & pepper to taste
1/4c. Romano cheese, shredded
1/4 c. mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 teaspoon each ~ garlic powder, oregano, basil & parsley
2 – 3 eggs
2 handfuls water
Mix all ingredients; shape into balls. Place meatballs in skillet; add ingredients for sauce. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and cover. Cook at light simmer, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour or until meatballs are cooked through.
Of course the original recipe calls for homemade seasoned bread crumbs (made from toasted Italian bread with herbs ~ like the bread you get at Carino’s), freshly grated cheeses, fresh oregano, basil and parsley, and homemade spaghetti sauce. But I’m lazy and cheat by using packaged Italian bread crumbs, packaged grated cheese, dried herbs and spaghetti sauce from a jar. The meatballs still taste amazing.
Enjoy!
Edited later to add: Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I don’t eat pork, so I honestly don’t know how this would taste or do with some Italian sausage thrown in. I’ve only ever made it with beef. Come to think of it, when my friend wrote out the recipe for me it didn’t mention anything about Italian sausage…
thanksgiving dinner
We’re pretty traditional when it comes to Thanksgiving dinner. Roger isn’t a HUGE fan of turkey, so I usually only make it for Thanksgiving. That way it’s still special and unique enough that he’ll eat it and enjoy it.
Our menu generally consists of turkey, dressing, sweet potato casserole, cranberry sauce, gravy, dinner rolls, green beans, green salad and cherry cream cheese pie. I also make sparkling raspberry lemonade and hot cranberry apple cider. At times there are other additions, but these items are always present. This year I’m adding pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting (I got the recipe from a friend on Facebook).
Several years ago I discovered a recipe for a poultry brine that sounded so good I wanted to try it. We loved it, and have used it every year since. It’s a very simple brine: 1 cup kosher salt, 1 lemon cut into wedges, 1 organge cut into wedges, 1 medium white onion cut into wedges, 3 cloves garlic, 4 bay leaves, 1 Tbs. dried thyme, 1 Tbs. black pepper and 1 1/2 gallons (or more if needed) of water. Rub the salt into the turkey, and place remaining salt, lemons, oranges, onion, garlic, bay leaves, thyme and pepper into a large pot. Place turkey in the pot, then fill pot with water. Refrigerate overnight. Discard brine after removing turkey. Do not rinse turkey before raosting.
Another trick to make your turkey moist and flavorful: roast it breast-side down. I know, I know ~ all of the cookbooks and online cooking sites say you should tie up the turkey and roast it breast up. It does make for a pretty turkey, if presentation is what you’re going for. Personally, I don’t care about the presentation. We have always carved up the turkey in the kitchen, put the meat on a platter and put the platter on the dinner table. So presentation is not even in the equation for me. I want moist, flavorful turkey. Even without brining your turkey can be yummy, if you roast it breast-side down. That way all of the juices from the dark meat run down into the breast. You can even get away with NOT basting your turkey if you roast it breast-side down. That makes the turkey a snap ~ I’m all about easy Thanksgiving turkeys! I’m just sayin’…
One more recipe I’ll share today ~ cranberry apple cider. Yuummmm. This is another one of those items I save for the holidays, which only serves to make it all the more yummy! It’s simple, too: 2 quarts apple cider, 2 quarts cranberry juice, 1/2 cup light brown sugar, 4 seedless oranges cut in half, 2 teaspoons whole cloves, 8 cinnamon sticks, 2 teaspoons whole allspice. Mix the apple cider, cranberry juice and brown sugar in a large pot or crock pot. Add the oranges. Put cloves, cinnamon, and allspice in a spice bag and add to juice. Simmer on stovetop for about 30 minutes or warm in crock pot for at least 2 hours (up to 6 hours).
I love to make special foods during the holiday season. My family seems to look forward to them just as much as I do. They’ve become part of our holiday traditions ~ traditions I hope will be passed down through more generations in the years to come.
