Wll, I chose to loose the inches! It really wasn’t that difficult. I had to work harder and eat less! There was lots of snow to shovel so that took care of the work-harder part. The eat less idea was the easier part. Here are some things I did!

• No snacking between meals
• Lay down my spoon after every bite during meals
• Put less on my plate
• Pay attention to when I am full and then stop eating
• Do without food from about 5:00 on Saturday until about the same time on Sunday
• Go without breakfast on Thursday morning
• Drink water to the amount of half my body weight converted to ounces every day
• Drink water when I feel like I want a snack
• Busy myself, when I feel hungry, with an activity that was not in the kitchen, realizing that those hunger pains meant that my stomach was shrinking!

Anyone can win the “battle of the bulge”! The best thing about loosing weight this way is that you form lifetime habits without faddish diets. It worked for me also because I have already developed a diet that is healthy but still includes all of the food groups:

1. Fresh fruits & vegetables
2. Instead of pork: venison, salmon, all natural chicken and turkey, farm eggs
3. Only 100% whole wheat bread
4. Other foods high in fiber—granola, oats, nuts, beans, pasta, sesame sticks, prunes soaked in water overnight.
5. Small amounts of cheese
6. Skim milk

I still had dessert on the weekends, salad dressing on my salad (in moderation) and butter & jelly on my bread!

I also continued to eat Michael’s delicious pumpkin pancakes with our maple syrup (thanks to Jonathan!) every Friday morning.

With moderation & common sense my new skirt fit after only two weeks.

My family did not use herbs very much when I was a child, at home, so I’ve had to learn this art from talking with others through the years. Here are some of the questions I asked and the  discoveries  I made.

1. Do I have to use pork in my soup beans to make them taste good?  After all, the less pork you eat the better.

2. What did you put in this stew? Mine always tastes so bland!

3. Can canned green beans taste good without adding oil or butter?

The answers, I’ve found, to each one of these questions involves using the right herbs and spices.

1) When Esther (now age 23) was three months old I found myself in the “nursing mothers’ lounge” in Knoxville while Don and I were attending the home school seminar. I asked one of the ladies, who was also there in the lounge, question number one, and this was her reply: “bay leaf”. She was right! After experimenting a bit, I discovered a very delicious recipe. This recipe is for one pound of dry beans (all kinds of dry beans will work).

Let beans soak overnight. Add one teaspoon of salt, one teaspoon of bouillon, 1 bay leaf, 1/2 cup of onion, and one clove of garlic (minced). Cook until desired softness. We have soft water so they are done after about `1 1/2  hours. Harder water will take 2 1/2 hours.

2) At a covered dish dinner, I tasted the best beef, potatoes, carrots, and onion I had ever eaten. I asked the one who brought it what herbs she used, and she said. “My brother actually made this, but I think he used  ‘rosemary’.” What a revelation! After experimenting a bit, I came up with this recipe for two pounds of stew meat,  two pounds of potatoes, one cup of onion, and three carrots. Add  1/2 teaspoon of rosemary (don’t overdo it–you can get too much!), one bay leaf, one clove of minced garlic, one teaspoon of bouillon, salt & pepper to taste.

3) This one is the best yet. Once, While waiting on our children, another mother and I were talking about menus. I asked her what she liked to fix, and she told me about adding Cajun spice to her green beans! After I warm  up the can of beans, I pour off the water, sprinkle on the Cajun spice, stir it up, and serve. You will have to experiment to see how much you like. I use quite a bit. Cajun tastes great on beans fresh out of the garden too.

One more little tip. If you grow your own herbs, they will usually dry just fine if picked and left on the counter for a few days. Just put them in a glass jar and keep them all winter. I found this out after accidentally leaving some raspberry leaves (for tea) in the car one summer.

“Are you sure you can be here by 5:00?  It is 4:15 right now.”

“No problem, Dad.  I’ll call Evelyn and tell her to be at your house at 5:00 too.”

Where did the time go?  I thought I had all afternoon! How can I  have the promised dessert (rhubarb crunch) ready in 15 minutes?  It would take 40 min. just to bake it.   Hum…  I’m glad Esther had diced some fresh rhubarb and made granola before she left for Virginia.  I will make rhubarb sauce!  We can pour it over ice cream and sprinkle the granola on top!

Here is the rhubarb sauce recipe.  It is also very good on plain yogurt, topped with granola.

Combine 3½ cups of diced rhubarb, 1 cup sugar, and 2 T. of orange juice.  Let stand 10 minutes.  Stir, cover, heat to simmer.  Cook, stirring several times.  Increase heat slightly as juice cooks out, until rhubarb is tender but not mushy.  Serve warm or cold.

We were late for Chris’ program but not because of a late meal!  We ate our supper on time!

Actually, I am not talking about a pumpkin but a “melon squash” or “sweet necked squash.”

Some look at its shape and call it a gourd, but when you cut it open you see a solid orange neck and a hollow bulb full of seeds. We dry the seeds to plant in the spring or eat. Michael started growing these squash when he learned that they were sweet enough to eat raw. However, they are best when cooked and used in recipes which call for pumpkin.  They make perfect pumpkin pies.

One squash goes a long way. I cut up one that was fourteen pounds last week and was able to can five quarts of pumpkin with three cups left over for soup!  They also keep well in the cellar.

In all the pumpkin recipes posted, I have used this squash either fresh or canned. My latest experience with this delicious vegetable has been a pumpkin cake roll.  This is a cake rolled up with cream cheese.  This recipe is going to take some practice!  Does anyone have any pointers about how to make a pumpkin roll? Mine tasted good but did not look “like the picture.” 

“Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgement ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.” Matthew 7:1,2

It was a pleasure to  attend church with  the Van Essen’s on Sunday. The openness and friendly atmosphere made it a special time! We enjoyed a walk and picnic lunch by a lock. Some of us had never  seen one before this vacation. We were fascinated to watch the boats enter the lock from the side of the  waterway where the water level was lower.  The gates closed behind the boats and the lock filled with water up to the level of water on the other side of the lock. The gates opened letting the boats sail out onto the higher water. The whole process took about 15-30 minutes.

Then the Van Essen’s took us to see the highest  hydraulic boat lifts in the world – The Peterborough lift lock.  The difference in water level was so drastic (65 ft) that the boat lifts actually moved up and down like an elevator! They were huge!

But it was more then just  site-seeing because the time spent getting there and back was filled with edifying conversation. What a blessing to spend time with such a spiritually uplifting family.

The first thing I changed was the crust — we like “the real thing” rather than Pillsbury cresent rolls.

The second thing that was more to our liking was replacing the Ranch flavor powder style dressing or dip mix with our own spices and some sour cream or plain yogurt. Tastefully Simple has a very good all natural Fiesta Party dip Mix which makes a very good replacement.

We bake 5 loaves of bread once or twice a week so when we need a pizza crust we just make the crust instead of the loaves of bread: One loaf makes two crusts. After baking it about 6 minutes, the 12″ crusts freeze very nicely in a two gallon plastic zip-lock bag.

Also the vegetables can be cut up ahead of time and kept for as long as a week if covered with water which is changed every day.

Bake one pizza crust and cool
Mix: 1 T. Fiesta Party Dip,
          ¼ c. mayonnaise (real mayonnaise only), and
          ¾ c. sour cream or plain yogurt
Spread on cooled crust
Cut into small pieces:
          Cauliflower
          Broccoli
          Carrots
          Olives
          Celery
          Red/green/yellow peppers
          Whatever raw vegetables preferred (yellow squash, etc)
Top crust with vegetables
Chill well and serve

Enjoy!
 
 

My desire was to please everyone! Everyone being the seven that are under our roof at this time; some of whom say cranberries are not good unless you sweeten them a lot as well as those who say too much sugar is bad for you.

Most of the recipes called for at least 1 1/2 cups of sugar for the 2 cups of cranberries; but one used only 1/2 c. of brown sugar. Finally by combining two recipes I came up with the following:

                Cranberry Casserole

• 3 – 4 cups chopped unpeeled apples
• 2 cups cranberries
• 6 oz apple juice concentrate
• 1 T. flour
• 1/2 stick butter (1/4 cup)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup quick or rolled oats
• 1/2 cup chopped nuts

Place apples and cranberries in 2-quart baking dish with flour and juice concentrate. Melt butter and brown sugar; add oats and nuts. Sprinkle this mixture over apples and cranberries. Bake uncovered, 45 min. at 325 degrees.

We ate it with our meal as a side dish but it would also work for a dessert. These were the comments:

1. Usually I’m tempted to eat dessert too fast but this recipe was good because the slight tartness slowed me down.
2. Can we have seconds?
3. I like the topping (meaning the oats and brown sugar) the best. Less cranberries would be better.
4. I normally don’t like cranberries, but the apples offset their tartness enough to be a very pleasing taste that I enjoyed.

The list of health benefits from cranberries are incredible. Click here for more specifics and be motivated to try this winning recipe!

In the year 2002 my son Robert gave Don and I a book for Christmas entitled “Morning by Morning” by Charles Spurgeon. Finally last year, 2006, I decided to read this devotional guide.

One of these was the entry for Feb. 20th entitled “God, that comforteth those that are cast down” 2 Cor. 7:16. It read “And who comforteth like Him? Go to some poor, melancholy, distressed child of God; tell him sweet promises, and whisper in his ear choice words of comfort; he is like the deaf adder, he listens not to the voice of the charmer, charm he never so wisely… you will bring forth no psalm of praise, no hallelujahs, no joyful sonnets. Be let God come to His child; let Him lift up his countenance, and the mourner’s eyes glisten with hope…Christian, when thou art dry, go to God, ask Him to shed abroad His joy in thy heart, and then thy joy shall be full. Do not go to earthly acquaintances, for you will find them Job’s comforters after all; but go first and foremost to thy “God, that comforteth those that are cast down,” and you will soon say, “In the multitude of my thoughts within me thy comforts delight my soul.”

I had first heard of Charles Spurgeon from my grandfather when I was a girl. Unlike myself, my grandfather read quite a bit and I remember him always having a pile of books beside his chair and more piles in his bedroom, much to my grandmother’s chagrin. I am now, out of curiosity, reading a biography of this incredible “preacher.” Maybe later I can tell you what factors in his life contributed to his literary success.

 

♥ Companions ♥

Companions are those who “break bread”
Who share their lives from day to day
Who know the faults within their head
But love each other anyway.

Companions make a midnight ride
To take a trailer to the city
Even though it’s cold outside
To keep each other company.

Companions shop and shop and shop
To seek the perfect gift indeed
Even though they’re ’bout to drop
To help each other with their need.

Companionship is something real
It’s more than I can understand.
Companionship is when I feel
My life partner is my best friend.

As we meditate on God’s Word
Our spirit will become stronger
Then we’ll grow closer to the Lord
And our spirits to each other.

In heaven – marriage is no more
But companions will surely be
If I may choose a companion sure
My first and finest choice is thee. ♥

My first problem was that the washer & dryer were right in front of the entrance into our house (you know how everyone always comes in the “back way”) so there was no place for the dirty laundry!

My solution was to have all the laundry in the various bedrooms until “laundry day.” There is a laundry basket in the bedroom closet with 4 or 5 plastic grocery bags in each basket. This makes sorting easy (socks in one bag; whites; darks; pants; work clothes). By tying the bags the smell is contained. This means no sorting for me on laundry day!

Also something that is very helpful is to divide it up and do certain people’s laundry on certain days. This makes it easier to sort later. And pinning sock pairs together with safety pins can help solve the ever-present problem of “loners”. Also, combining one older child with a younger child for easy sorting works wonders. The older child can be responsible for his younger siblings clothes before sorting and even doing the washing for both of them (add the bed sheets for full loads).

I find it easier to do the four younger boy’s laundry the same day and then let them watch a favorite video while they sort and fold (It takes longer but everyone is happy and less noisy!)

I hope this helps the laundry blues. Do you have any hints or tips on your laundry days? Your feedback would be appreciated.