Well, more were lost today...

Here’s a before picture…
Isn’t she the cutest thing you’ve ever seen?!?    I bet she is unless you have one at home!!!  LOL!!  She’s an !!  Hahaha!!  Not really but we sure do love her!!! 

Oh, I almost forgot, here’s the after picture….
Yep, she’s only 5 and has lost 2 teeth.   Well, she had a little help…her dentist.  About 3 years ago, she fell and hit her mouth (right below her nose actually) and it messed up the root of one of her front teeth.  That tooth (you can see it in the first picture) has turned a little dark over the years.  Well, I noticed on Saturday that her permanant tooth was nearly coming in…up above her gum line.    So, I called the dentist and got an appointment.  She said it needed to come out, along with the one beside it.    So, my "baby" girl has lost 2 teeth now.  I may be a little  about it but my daughter is very !!!  The tooth fairy came too…
Blessings!!!

Momys Zoo Gathering

Our family met with other Momys’ families at the zoo today!!  We had such a great time.    We just all love the fellowship.  There is nothing like being around other like-minded people.  You know, other people with large families!!!   It’s like we can just "let our hair down" and be ourselves.  All my children had others their age to play with and enjoy.  Lanie got to enjoy time spent with other girls,   and she really loved that.  Houston had some one-on-one time with a boy that is a little older than he is.  He really enjoyed that too.  I got to hold some babies!!!  You know I loved that and Scott held one of the little babies too.  He enjoyed that!!   He loves babies as much as I do!!!   Hmmmm…..   LOL!!!   All the kids loved the zoo.  We got a family membership so hopefully the Momys will be able to meet there once a month, even during the winter.  We had 5 Momys families there, with about 25 or so people.  What a blessing!!  Thanks Momys for coming and fellowshipping with us!!  Here’s Christian enjoying the zoo….

May the Lord bless and hold each of you today and in the future!!!

I did it...no, GOD did it!!!

First and foremost, God has been working on me. Showing me what I should be…  

In my Sunday School study this week, He is again showing me that I am His, body and soul, inside and outside!!!  Just listen to this…

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship.  Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.                Romans 12:1-2  (NIV)

Wow!!!  As I have said in past bloggings, I dedicate myself to Him each morning, praying that my actions, thoughts, and feelings will glorify Him.  I am realizing more and more that as I am "transformed by the renewing" of my mind, that I can "see" His will so much more clearly.  PTL!!!  I can hear the Holy Spirit speaking to me on so many different things; sometimes I am being chastised, other times I am being uplifted by my choices.  But, always, I feel His guidance and involvement in my life, minute by minute. 

As I grow daily in Him, I enjoy listening for His guidance.  I have been getting an email update each morning on the 40 Days for Life campaign that has been going on here in the US.  It is basically prayer vigils outside of abortion clinics around the US, not protests in the extreme sense of the word but peaceful and dedicated praying for all the unborn babies.  My husband and I are very concerned and saddened by all the abortions going on around the world.  😭 This is one of the utmost issues for us in the upcoming election, regarding who will be placed on the Supreme Court in the next 4 years.  

I told my husband one evening last week as we were driving home from church that if there was a clinic near us that did abortions, I would go and be a part of the prayer vigil. Well, the Holy Spirit prompted me and I had the thought that there was one in Lufkin so I searched and searched online to find it, but I couldn’t. The next day, I got an email from David with 40 Days for Life and he encouraged us to read his blog.  I did and I found the Lufkin location of Planned Parenthood. They do not do surgical abortions but they give the Morning After Pill, IUD’s and birth control pills.  I contacted the lady in Lufkin that was the contact person for 40 Days for Life.  And……………on Friday, I meet with her in front of PP for a prayer vigil!!!!!!  I took Houston and Delanie with me.  We prayed, the kids sang "Jesus loves me" and we read the Bible together.  It was the most wonderful experience!!

I spoke Sunday at church during the morning service, telling others my experience.  Bro. Randy has said so often that "this isn’t the service (Sunday morning preaching), your service begins when you walk through those doors as you leave…"   He is so right.  I hope that this blog will be an encouragement to each of you to dedicate yourself to God’s will.  Get involved where He guides you!!!  We must stop being a passive Christian body, we must stand up for His will each and everyday!!!

May the Lord bless you all today as you go about doing His will!!!

Such fun at Hallow Him!

Ok, we don’t like Halloween so we don’t "do" it.  But, we did go to our church fesitval, Hallow Him.  We had such fun!!  Here’s some pictures…
Lanie is a queen, Mason is a spider and Christian is a power ranger.

Then, we have Houston as a pirate.  Scott was a pirate too but I don’t have a picture of him.


I have NO clue what I am but here’s a picture with my sister.  She’s a goof too, I guess.


Here’s another picture of our youngest in his spider costume.  He had such a good time….

We all had a good time fellowshipping with others!!  It’s so much work to do this though.  All the set up and preparation time.  But, it was fun anyway!!  We were so tired though we felt like zombies at church the next day!
Blessings!!

Something smells yummy....

….it’s Cinnamon Rolls!!!!

  We hadn’t had these forever so I decided to mix up a batch, well actually I had to double the recipe!! The whole family loves these so much that I have to make a double batch.   These are so yummy but they aren’t your typical cinnamon rolls.  They are more like Cinnamon "biscuit" rolls!!  Imagine a southern "baking powder" biscuit, but rolled up with cinnamon and sugar in it and topped with a cream cheese and powdered sugar glaze.  Yuummmmmm!!!  Here’s the recipe if you are interested…

Cinnamon Rolls by Nelda Robinson (Homemade Memories cookbook)

• 2 cups flour
• 3 tsp. baking powder
• 1/3 tsp. salt
• 2 Tbs. butter
• 2/3 cup milk
• 2 Tbs. sugar
• 1 Tbs. cinnamon
• Nuts or raisins, if desired

Mix flour, salt and baking powder.  Add in butter and milk.  Mix.  Roll out to 1/2 inch thickness.  Brush with additional softened butter.  Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.  Roll up like a jellyroll.  Cut in pieces 3/4 inch thick.  Place in buttered tins and bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes until browned.  Makes about a dozen rolls.

Now, I don’t measure the softened butter that I brush on the rolled out dough, nor do I measure the sugar and cinnamon.  I just "eye" it.   I don’t add the nuts or raisins but I’m sure it would be good with those too.  I top these with a cream cheese and powdered sugar glaze.  I don’t measure that either but I use about 1/3 cup cream cheese and 2 Tbs. butter, creamed together.  I then add a cup or so of powdered sugar.  After that I add a little milk (Tbs. or so) to thin it a little bit.  You might want to look up a real recipe for a cream cheese and powdered sugar glaze.

These are so yummy though.  And, very different from your normal cinnamon rolls.  I’m sure you noticed that this doesn’t have yeast in it, hence the cinnamon "biscuit" roll. 

Never a dull moment around here...

It was another beautiful fall day here this morning so I had the kids go outside and play.  I was keeping watch but doing some cleaning.  Lanie ran in to me and said, "My foot is hurt!"  I look down and sure enough, blood is dripping (running) off her toes…  …all over my carpet too.  Scott was in school so I’m the only one here.   I pick her up quickly and take her into the kitchen to the sink so I can  "access" the gravity of the situation.  It’s bad.    She has cut her foot and it’s bleeding like crazy, over an inch deep and about an inch long.  Right at the "pad" of her foot and up between her 2nd and 3rd toes.  So, my mom comes over to hold it together and put pressure on it while I get dressed.  I take her to the clinic.  They only put in 4 stitches b/c it must heal from the inside out so the stitches just basically hold the skin together on the outside.   Here’s a picture of her foot….

You can’t tell a whole lot but that gives you an idea.  Poor baby.  It will take over a week to heal.    What a pain!!!  She cut it on a mason jar that our son forgot and left outside and then another son dropped and broke and left it there…   And, he didn’t come tell mom either.    Lanie isn’t very happy about being cooped up and not being allowed to run around…see….

Hopefully it will heal well w/o any infection or anything!

I've been tagged! What are MY quirks?

I have been asked by Misty at http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/MistyKrasawski/

to share 6 unspectacular, quirky things about myself.  Ok, this is going to take some thought.  I’m pretty boring I think!! But, here goes…

1)     I cannot touch cotton balls. 😫 It gives me the same feeling that so many people get when they hear finger nails being scraped down a chalkboard.  UUUuuggghhh!!

2)     I do not like anyone to mess with my hair. 😩 Drives me nuts!

3)     I MUST sleep with 3 pillows and they can ONLY be MY pillows.  I carry them around wherever I go if we are going to be gone over night.  What a pain!!!😏

4)     I CANNOT stand June bugs!!! 😵 I’m “scared” to death of them and go nuts if they are flying around.  (Yes, I KNOW they can’t hurt me but I just can’t wrap my mind around that one as they are flying around.)

5)     I WILL NOT drink milk out of a plastic glass and I WILL NOT eat cereal (with milk) out of a plastic bowl.

6)     I have only 1 plastic cup (for iced tea) and 1 coffee cup that I use.

Ummmm…now that I read that list, I’m beginning to think I’m pretty weird!!!! 😜

Spring (oh, I mean Fall) Cleaning

I am staying very busy today.  The Lord has me on a Spring cleaning (in the Fall) mission.  I had been praying that the Lord would help my days be filled with joy.  As John 10:10 (KJV) says, "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy:  I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."  I know that Satan is here, ready at every moment, to suck the joy right out of my day.  But, I want to be joyful!  I chose to be joyful!!   I chose to live life more abundantly.  In order for me to do this, the Lord has shown me that I must purge my life of anything that "sucks the joy" from it.  For me, that is clutter.    I can’t stand clutter.  And, He’s also shown me that I will live life more abundantly and joyful if I will keep up with my cleaning/organizing.  So, for the past 2 weeks, I have been cleaning and organizing and de-cluttering like mad!  Trying to find any and everything I can to keep up with all the day to day "must do’s".  I’ve gotten my weekly chore lists updated and now I’m down to the de-cluttering.   

I’ve also found joy in this verse, "Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands…" 1 Thessalonians 4:11 (NIV)

I see work now as a way I can glorify God.  I know without a doubt that the Lord wants me to work diligently taking care of my children, my husband and my home.  How blessed I am to have a home to clean and de-clutter.  How blessed I am to have children and a husband to take care of and love.    It also helps when I listen to praise music as I do my "chores".  This helps me to use the time for praising God and realizing all the blessings He has brought to my life. 

So, today I praise the Lord that He has shown me how to do all these things more abundantly through Him.  I chose to glorify Him by working with my hands as I de-clutter!   What a great way to begin finding that extra joy in my life!

Yummmmm...Taco Soup

Oh we had such a great day last week!  It was a cooler fall day and I couldn’t resist the urge to make soup.  I’ve been craving Taco soup for weeks but just hadn’t taken the time to make it. But, the weather was perfect and I decided it was time!!  So, we all had a yummy bowl of soup (or two 😋)…
 

All the kids just love this soup!!! 😁 Which is kind of surprising, as normally it’s difficult to find a meal that everyone loves. Here’s Mason enjoying his bowl of soup….

Can’t you tell that he just loves it!?! He doesn’t normally eat soup either.  I thought I’d give you all the recipe too.  It is so easy and quick.  I got this recipe from a Mary, a lady at my previous church, but I’m not sure where she got it.

Taco Soup

• 1 lb.  – hamburger meat, browned
• 1 – small onion, finely chopped
• 1 – Taco Seasoning packet
• 1 – Ranch Dressing packet
• 1 can - Rotel tomatoes (milder?) 
• 1 can – whole corn
• 1 can – carrots (or mixed veggies)
• Chicken broth
• Grated cheese
• Tortilla chips/strips

Brown hamburger meat with onion, drain well.  In boiler, add Taco Seasoning packet and ranch packet to the hamburger mixture.  Add canned corn, carrots (or the mixed veggies) and Rotel tomatoes, including the liquid in the cans.  Then, add just enough chicken broth to cover the mixture well.  Heat this on med-high until beginning to boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for at least 30 minutes to an hour.  In individual bowls, top with tortilla strips and cheese.  Yum!!
I make my own tortilla strips by frying corn tortillas in a very small amount of oil until crisp.   Uuggghhh…bad for us! So, next time I’m going to try baking the tortilla strips in the oven! Enjoy!!!

This is so yummy on a cool fall day.  I know you could make this in the crockpot but I haven’t done that yet.  I probably will though, because I just love my crockpot!!!  I have tried it both ways, with carrots and with mixed veggies.  It is delicious either way but my kids like it better with the carrots.  I know, it sounds like it would be weird with the veggies but it isn’t.

May God bless and hold each of you today!!!