Tasty!

Ali made her first cake the other day, and I think she was pretty proud of herself. Everyone really liked the cake, and I am sure that boosted her cooking confidence a bit. She did have some help, but only with cooking the pudding. She did all the rest herself. My hope is that my children will all know how to cook when they move out of our home, as well as enjoy cooking, so I am trying to start young with them. If you want the recipe for this delicious Butterscotch Cake, you can find it here.

Our Menu For 7/26/10 Through 8/1/10

Monday~Pot Roast, Mashed Potatoes, Carrots & Onions
Tuesday~Pork Chops, Au Gratin Potatoes and Corn
Wednesday~Poppy Seed Chicken, Bacon Ranch Green Beans, and Applesauce
Thursday~Mustgoes
Friday~My family is on their own for the rest of the week.
Saturday~My mother and I will be at a...
Sunday~Christian retreat!!!

Friday Fill-Ins

1. I feel sweaty and stinky, but that happens when you have been living without air for 5 days. Lord, please help them get that up and running today!

2. I always call my mom when I need to catch up. She has a way of motivating me and pushing through until it is all caught up. She is amazing!

3. Do what needs to be done.

4. I like to think I am completely unique. God made no other just like me!

5. It's hard to know how much more of this heat I can take. I feel it is making me a bit wacky and a whole lot irritable. ;-)

6. When my son starts acting silly, my youngest daughter follows suit.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to hopefully hanging out in my air conditioned home and reading a book, tomorrow my plans include running some errands and relaxing at home and Sunday, I want to go to church and chill with my family!

Thankful Thursday

We have been without air conditioning in our home since Sunday. This has not been fun, since it is a HOT July with a high level of humidity. But you know what? I can still be thankful! Sure, I have griped a ton in the past few days. I can't even count how many times I have simply said, "It is hot!" Still, I have continually been thankful that such a thing as air conditioning does exist. I have been thankful that ours will get fixed, and not only will it be fixed, but we will actually have an all new furnace and air conditioning unit. We have needed that for years, and I am so thankful that we are able to purchase that now.

Thank you, Lord, for providing for us! You are truly an awesome God, and I am thankful that I have you to guide me through life on this Earth. :-)

Thursday Thirteen

Oh how I have missed doing the Thursday Thirteen meme!!! I really need to get my act together and stop taking these bloggy breaks. :-)

My mom, my kiddos, and I recently went to Gatlinburg, Tn., and in honor of our trip here are....

13 Things We Did On Vacation!

1. Josh, Ali and I went horseback riding through a beautiful nature park. Seriously gorgeous!

Of course, before we could go on this ride, we had to wait out a torrential rainfall. I was amazed at how it would rain down something fierce for a short bit and then be sunny again. Whenever it did this we were thankful that the rain cooled down the steamy air.

2. We went swimming. We were blessed to have our own indoor swimming pool at our cabin. My children are now convinced we need a pool at home, which will never happen. Mommy has enough to take care of around here.

3. We took a guided tour through the Forbidden Caverns. This was pretty awesome! We got to see nature at it's finest. An underground crystal-clear stream, amazing formations, and interesting history were all part of this tour.

4. I think one of our most favorite days was spent driving through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We stopped at an area to get a closer look at a stream. The water was absolutely freezing, but that didn't stop us from wading into the waters.

Josh wanted to go into this deeper area so badly, but he insisted someone go before him. That person was me, of course, but I can't say that I minded. We had fun!

While driving through this national park we were stunned by all the beauty. Nothing at all like what we see here in central Illinois.

5. We arrived in the Gatlinburg area a day earlier than we had planned, so we stayed the night at The Inn at Christmas Place. As a holiday lover, and a huge fan of Christmas, I was in my own personal Heaven. The whole place was decorated for Christmas. This little display was sitting outside of the 5th floor elevator.

This Christmas Story display made me smile.

Check this out. Even our bathroom was decorated for Christmas.

They really went all out! This shrub was one of several that were shaped and decorated.

Who do you think we ran into at the Inn? Santa!! We even got to hear him sing later that day. Terrific voice!

6. The Ripley's Aquarium was another place that we got to enjoy. I think my favorite attraction at the aquarium was the moving walkway that went through a glass tunnel. All around you were sharks and fish, and you truly felt like you were swimming with them. Way cool!

We also got to do fun things like touch a Horseshoe Crab, which I am attempting to do in this picture below. It didn't go too well for me, since every time I touched the crab it would move, and then I would jump back. I tried though.

I was just so intrigued by all the different creatures we got to see up close.

7. On vacation, I shared with my family my love of old cemeteries. We visited two or three of them. I don't know why I find them fascinating, but I do, and I thought this marker was picture worthy. The man was born 213 years ago. Wow! My mind couldn't help but conjure up a picture of this couple traveling to this community, which wasn't even a community, to find nothing but trees and hills. They didn't have a store nearby or a restaurant to stop in at for lunch. I find that mind boggling and intriguing all at the same time.

8. One night, after eating at the Hard Rock Cafe, we went to a place that had go carts and rides. My kids were impressed by my mad go carting skillz. (Yes, I do know that I put a z on the end. That is just how cool I am at driving a go cart.) At one point my son was yelling, "That is the second time we have passed them. Woohoo!!"

Meghan didn't enjoy the go carts, but that could be because she didn't get to ride with me. My mom took her, and they crashed before the race even began. Don't ask!

Megs did get to enjoy a safe carousel ride though. :-)

Ali, being my daredevil child, didn't like playing it safe. She enjoyed doing flips and really freaking her mother out.

9. Ali & Josh seemed to enjoy seeing all the crazy, gross, and unbelievable things at Ripley's Believe It Or Not.

10. I would be lying if I said we didn't do any shopping. We did tons of shopping! Here are the kids on a huge rocking chair in front of one of the shops we browsed.

I took a picture of this store because of its name. I happen to know some very fabulous Taylor Girls here in Illinois. :-)

While the Thomas Kinkade store was okay, I was stunned by the beauty outside the store. I loved the look of the fountain, building and brick road.

We brought home tons of goodies...cowboy boots, clothes, belts, Christmas items, cookbooks, scrapbooking supplies, and much, much more. One of the things we got that I really liked was this dolomite rock. We set it in some vinegar and let it form some flowers. Very cool looking!

11. The kids enjoyed the games that were in our cabin.

12. While we were there, we got to enjoy all that Dollywood had to offer. There was beautiful scenery and buildings.

Not to mention fun rides for my daredevil.

Heck, she and my mother both went on a zipline course, which is not something I would have done. No way!! Here is a picture of Ali zipping across the skyline above me.

That was more than I could handle! This mommy was a nervous wreck!!

13. We spent 9 nights in the area, and every day we drove past the Wonderworks building, which easily grabs your attention. So, on our last day there we finally decided to go see what this building had to offer.

I couldn't believe how much there was to do inside that crazy place. All the kids got to dance on a piano, which might have given me a bit of a headache. ;-)

We got to play Mindball. The object of this game is to be more relaxed, and have less brain activity, than your opponent. I suppose it really wasn't fair for me to go up against a three year old, but I did it anyway, and I won! Nanner nanner boo boo!

All three of my kiddos laid on the Bed of Nails, but I was too chicken to give it a try. They said it didn't hurt, but I just wasn't willing to put all my weight on those nails. My kids are braver than their ol' mom.

Josh got to fly in a flight simulator.

And Ali & Josh both got to try to pick up things and move them with a robotic arm.

There was so much more to do at Wonderworks. It was interactive fun all around, and I am glad we didn't dismiss it as just a crazy looking building.

There you have it...13 Things We Did On Vacation! We had a wonderful time, fell in love with Tennessee, but in the end, we were so glad to be home. Happy to sleep in our own beds, eat a home cooked meal, and play with our own toys. Thank you Lord for blessing us with the ability to travel, and thank you even more for a place to call home. :-)

Wordful Wednesday

Here in the Midwest we have a saying, which is "knee high by the 4th of July." A crop that is at least knee high by the 4th of July is expected to turn out well.

This picture was taken on the 5th of July...

My oldest daughter is 4-1/2 feet tall, and this corn comes up much higher than that. I would say that this years corn crop should be pretty decent. ;-)

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Great Video!

This video speaks to me! :-)

Adios, DVR!

The cable guy came today to cut our service back to basic cable. No digital, high-tech cable here. No more DVR to record all the shows that I never want to miss. Did you know that during the school year I DVRd over 10 shows each week? Craziness!

I know we are doing the right thing. How do I know this? Well, for starters, God has led me to this decision, and He will not lead me astray. Also, my daughter has cried over giving up Disney and Nickelodeon, which is so unnecessary. She is already giving too much of her life to television. Plus, my son started crying and screaming as the cable guy left. He yelled, "I don't like that guy! He is mean!" Oh no he isn't! I am mean, Buddy! Mean Mommy says that too much focus on television is dumming us down, taking our sights off of God and things that are Godly, and turning us into lazy, couch potatoes. Yup, we are doing the right thing!

Tonight, instead of watching television, I am going to read a book for my summer Bible Study. It is by Lysa TerKeurst, and it is called Living Life on Purpose. I think I am headed in the right direction. :-)

Fruit Pizza

I am craving this right now! :-)

Ingredients

1 roll of Pillsbury sugar cookie dough
7 ounces of Kraft Marshmallow Creme
8 ounces Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened
Fruit

Directions

Roll out the cookie dough into your desired shape. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cool.

While this is cooling, cream together Marshmallow Creme and softened Cream Cheese. Put a generous layer on the sugar cookie. You will have some remaining, but you can use this as a fruit dip.

Cut up any fruit that you like, and put it on top.

Delicious and Refreshing!!

Our Menu For 7/19/10 Through 7/25/10

Monday~Cheese Quesadillas
Tuesday~Tacos
Wednesday~Pot Roast with Carrots & Onions and Mashed Potatoes
Thursday~Chicken Burgers, Fried Potatoes, and Applesauce
Friday~Mustgoes
Saturday~Pork Chops, Au Gratin Potatoes, and Corn
Sunday~Pizza

Changes Are Ahead

The other day I posted about how I am desiring a simpler life. I keep feeling like God wants me to make some changes in my life. Then today the church sermon was about not storing up treasures here on Earth. It was said that our focus needs to be on God, and treasures often get in our way of focusing on Him.

They mentioned that treasures vary from person to person. I feel my treasures, the things that take my focus off of God, are television, computer, and telephone. It's the constant connection to others that draws my focus away from God, as well as my family.

So, I believe I am being called to make some changes. Right now it looks like those changes will be getting rid of my cellphone when my contract is up in late September and cutting our digital cable back to the bare-bones basic cable. I absolutely can't wrap my head around giving up the Internet, but I also haven't felt the calling to do so like I have with cable and cell service. Maybe God is working on my slowly, or maybe this isn't something I even have to eliminate. Time will tell.

My children aren't excited about these changes, but that is because they enjoy watching Disney and Nickelodeon. I think it is going to be awesome for them not to have those channels. Not that there is anything inherently wrong with them, but it becomes far too easy to become a couch potato. You start watching Wizards of Waverly Place, and the next thing you know you are watching Phineas and Ferb and 2 hours have gone by. I will miss having The Food Network, ABC Family, and many other channels, but I am sure after a short time I won't think twice about not having them. Maybe we will even have more quality family time in this house. This mom can hope! :-)

Maple Syrup Cookies

Ingredients

1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon milk
1 egg
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons shortening
1 cup maple syrup
3 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 (8 ounce) package semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In small cup, dissolve baking soda in milk and set aside. Cream egg, shortening and syrup. Add flour, baking powder, salt, vanilla, and baking soda mixture; blend well. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by teaspoons onto greased cookie sheet and bake for 12 to 15 minutes.

**This recipe is from the Amish Friends Cookbook by Wanda E. Brunstetter.**

I made this recipe for Jeff's birthday yesterday, and they were pretty tasty. I would make a change next time though. Instead of vanilla, I would like to try maple flavoring. They just didn't have enough of a maple flavor, in our opinion.

Head Buried In The Sand

Apparently I have been living with my head buried in the sand. I was at the grocery store, and I saw a Pluot. I had never heard of a Pluot before, so I had to research this fruit. It is a cross between a plum and an apricot, and it has been around since the 1990's! Where have I been? I suppose I will have to buy one and give it a try. Have you heard of a Pluot? Do share!

Friday Fill-Ins

1. This is what life does. It lets you travel down the road learning from every near miss, as well as every crash.

2. Can't my son just appreciate the moment? Whenever we are doing something, he is always thinking about what will happen next.

3. Upon reflection I realized that my past, no matter how crazy and messed up, has served a wonderful purpose in bringing me right where I am.

4. My children have all been potty trained for quite a long time, and I am enjoying that fact. :-)

5. Later, you wake up and realize it was all just a dream.

6. I don't know how to get to the far and boundless sea. I live in Illinois for Pete's sake!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to resting after this busy week, tomorrow my plans include going to the store and Sunday, I want to go to church and hang out at home!

Desiring Simplicity

Lately I have been craving a simpler life. I desire simplicity. Less activity. Less connection to the world around me. I'm not talking about withdrawing from friends and family (& no I am not depressed.) Just less of everything.

In my head I see myself living in a farmhouse with many acres around me. Not a neighbor in sight. I put God first, then my hubby and then my kids. I bake things when I can, instead of buying things filled with preservatives, and I cook healthy dinners for my family most nights. I have a home phone, but I don't have a cell phone. I have a computer with Internet access, but I use this only when I have free time. Life is perfect in the farmhouse in my head.

In reality I live in a quaint middle class neighborhood with only half an acre to my name. I am surrounded by people, traffic and noise. My kids come first, then my hubby and then God. I rarely have time to bake, and I am lucky to cook for my family 3 or 4 nights a week even though I always plan 5 to 6 meals each week. I have a home phone, cell phone, and computer with Internet access, and I use all of these things way too often. I feel like I am constantly on the run.

It is this life of perpetual busyness that makes me crave the simple life. It makes me want to be back in the "Little House on the Prairie" days. The late 1800's and early 1900's hold much appeal to this hectic mom. I'm not saying life was perfect back then. Trust me, I am thankful for, and enjoy, many modern conveniences, and I couldn't imagine life without them. I am just saying it was less busy. Much simpler.

Also, I feel like the focus back then was on God and family. People weren't running here and there and everywhere. They spent time together. The didn't have 4 televisions in their homes. Heck, they didn't even have one. They didn't own video games. Most of them didn't even have their own bedrooms, since homes were smaller. So, at night they were more likely to have time together.

When did we, as a society, drift away from this simpler lifestyle? Why did we think that having bigger homes was better? When did we start to think that our children had to be in many different activities starting at a young age? When did television become such a big part of our culture? How did it get to the point that the majority are to busy to pray or attend church regularly?

I can't answer all of these questions, but I can say that I would like to see us make a change. I would like to see our society focused more on God and family. I can't change everyone, but I can change myself. I don't know what changes I will make yet, but I know some must come soon. I will have to prayerfully consider what changes to make.

Do you relate to the desires that have been put on my heart lately? Do share!

Have To Share

Jeff and I saw this commercial the other day, and we both got a good laugh. It's too cute not to share. I'm a bit jealous, since I drive a minivan and not a "swagger wagon." ;-)

Happy Birthday To Me!!

Today I turn 36. That's right...36! I am not afraid of my age. Actually, most of the time it feels pretty darn good to be my age. I think that is because I am very happy with my life. Today I am wishing for relaxation, fun times, and good kids. That is all I want....especially the good kids part. Surely they will cooperate on "my special day." Right???

My birthday prayer...

Dear Lord, thank you for all that you have done for me in my 36 years. I am so very grateful! Please keep me happy and healthy for another 36 years, and help me to make the most of each and every minute along the way. Thank you, Lord! Amen!

Our Menu For 7/5/10 Through 7/11/10

Monday~Spaghetti with Italian Sausage and Garlic Bread
Tuesday~Chicken Macaroni Casserole, Bread & Butter, and Applesauce
Wednesday~Pork Chops with Hash Brown Potato Casserole
Thursday~Mustgoes
Friday~Tacos
Saturday~Sloppy Joes, Homemade French Fries, and Cottage Cheese with Peaches
Sunday~Pot Roast with Carrots and Onions and Mashed Potatoes