Dresses 4 Missions Event

My biggest fan (my mom) has her own agenda in the sewing world! She absolutely loves making dresses to give to missionaries in impoverished countries that are handed out to the local girls. These dresses are simple but so pretty, and she is teaching others how to make them.

Breakfast with Grandma

I think my grandmother is the best cook I've known so far. She was the master of the pressure cooker and could make the best pie crusts without ever looking at a recipe. When I would go to her house to stay overnight as a kid, she would whip up french toast for us for breakfast. I miss her but fortunately for me, she told me a few things about what she did to make them so tasty. Here's my take on her french toast.

She would scramble an egg, add milk, a pinch of salt, some cinnamon and nutmeg, and a little sugar. The sugar made it "special" because it would give a slight glaze to the toast. Dip the bread and cook on a hot pan. She may have used cast iron, I don't remember for sure. I made these her way for years. But since we must eat cleaner then ever, my recipes get modified to make them work for us.  

This is my grandma's cleaned up french toast!

Scramble egg whites with vanilla almond milk (plain almond milk works great too just add a pinch of sugar), cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Quickly dip both sides of your choice of bread in the egg mixture, do not soak it, and place on a hot, non-stick pan. Cook until browned and bread is a little firm again. Serve with fresh berries and a drizzle of real maple syrup. 

Fresh juiced carrot and orange goes great with this! Delicious. And I think of her fondly whenever I make them. Thanks for the wonderful memories, Gram!

No one makes you eat right; you have to choose to do it. And you can start with the next meal.

Old Fashioned Love

I was at my in-laws' house the other day and my MIL mentioned her "antique quilt" that she was handed down to her and had just packed away so it wouldn't get ruined. I was intrigued at her comment, not recalling seeing any such thing in her house over all the years I've been there. She mentioned it having small spots that needed repairing and she didn't want it to get any worse.

She continued to chatter away about how it was a white top with little pieces set around in a circular shape with the back being a light purple color. I thought it may be the Dresden Plate pattern, from the way she described it. I've never made a Dresden Plate but I do have a pattern for it and would like to try it one day.

Then she continued to say that she thought it was all hand pieced and a hand stitched quilt and was probably from the 30's or maybe as late as the 40's. I had to ask about more of it's history and she said that her step mother's mother made it. She was from Nebraska and there were two quilts that survived the years, this being one of them.

Mom

There are so many things I can say about my mom. She is an amazing example of a fantastic woman, wife, mother, friend. I feel so blessed to be able to say that she is a part of my life. I could go on about what all of her attributes are, but I know I won't think of everything. All I can say to my Mom is "thank you" for so many things and "I love you so much".

I'm not the only one who has a great mom. But not everyone can say this. Mother's day is an emotional day. It is a celebration of a woman who gave you life. An appreciation of all she does for you. A day devoted to give back expressions of love. What do you do when that is over? A day like today becomes a reminder that mom is not just a phone call away.

What about those among us who have a troubled family? I know people who want nothing to do with celebrating mom because of abuse and hurt and anger. A day like today is a reminder of feeling left out of an enjoyment that so many can experience.

And then there are us "DINK"s. I am not a mom, in the literal sense of the definition. I have not given birth to any children. I do have a home and a family of my own. I don't have little ones making my breakfast or giving me gifts or presenting coupons to do the dishes for me.

I choose to not dwell in the things I am missing out on by comparing myself to others. I do give thanks for today; thanks for the goodness I have been granted. I can be glad to be who I am because of where I came from. And best of all, I can share who I am with everyone around me. Happy mother's day to every woman in whatever scenario you are in today. You are celebrated!

Stephen Patrick

I got a call from my mom today that her brother, known by us all as Uncle Stevie, passed away last night. He was 93.

This is what was happening in his birth year, 1915:
-income ranged from $200 - $3400 a year
-Ellis Island was stop #1 for immigrants
-a postage stamp was 2 cents
-World War I had been going on for a year
-there was no effective shot for a tetanus infection
-Woodrow Wilson was president
-a call from NYC to San Francisco takes 23 minutes to go through and costs $20.70
-the Klan was on the uprise
-most phone calls spanning more than 40 miles are still inaudible
-the first stone for the Lincoln Memorial was set in place
-Babe Ruth hits his first career home run
-Japan develops the x-ray tube, which will bring radios to the world in 1919
-Fox starts a film company
-The RMS Lusitania is sunk by a sub, killing almost 1,200
-a proposal for women's right to vote is rejected
-the millionth Ford automobile is made
-Frank Sinatra was born
-Booker T Washington died

Uncle Stevie served in WW2, married, settled in New Jersey, had children. My mom described him as a likeable man. Unfortunately, I never had the opportunity to get to know him. In my opinion, he lived during the most amazing years of time. It would have been interesting to hear of his memories. Even though I did not know him personally, I feel some sense of loss. Good bye, Uncle Stevie.

Never to late to be thankful

Even though Thanksgiving is behind us and we are all Christmas minded, the question was posed by my Pastor as to what relationships and people you are thankful for. One thing we don't do enough is let people know our thoughts of love and appreciation we have for them. It makes us feel funny or could cause an awkward, uncomfortable moment to arise. I heard it said on a TV show once that "things like that (they were referring to saying I love you) don't need to be said - it's a given" but I cannot agree with that statement.

So here is what I wrote in response to that question:

I am ever grateful for my husband. There are too many reasons to list on that, but I especially cherish is his desire seek out and find truth. He loves me so much and encourages me to be a person of honor. Thank you!

I appreciate the musicians and the growing relationships with them. They love Vince and I like we are family. Thank you!

I am thankful for NC and for my Pastor. He has been given such a great gift to communicate. I can remember so many messages from the last two years and can find new ways to apply Godly principles in my life. I have become more thirsty for the Word. Thank you!

Lastly, I am grateful for my parents. They started this journey to follow Christ when no one else wanted to hear about it and chalked them up as crazy. Their 180 degree turn in life to follow Jesus spoke mountains to me. They planted good seeds in my young heart and trusted the water from the Word to bring them to life. Well, Mom and Dad, it worked. Thank you!

This is a wonderful twist to add to the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. Who are you thankful for? How can you/what can you do to share your appreciation with them?

Happy - happy - happy

Thanksgiving everyone!

Birthdays and anniversaries

Today is the big day! The family's October events celebration. We have SEVEN birthdays or anniversaries to party over. Yes, SEVEN. That's the equivalent of someone being born or married every 4.3 days during the month! But next year it will be EIGHT events, since one baby was just born this year, but he will have to wait to join in on this party.

So here is my post of joy to all you October people..........
Mar. Happy birthday! Sorry my present was so late!
Norm. Happy birthday, BIL!
Renee. Happy birthday! Half way there to baby time!
Laura & Nick. Happy anniversary! I still have to get over to see your house!
Dad. Happy birthday! You are the best; I love you so much!
Bob & Melissa. Happy anniversary! Love you guys!
Bob. Happy birthday, my brother!
and last, but not least.......
Ethan. Welcome to this world! See you at Christmas.

Now it's time to make a pie for the party. ttfn

Check it out

My niece, Laura, has just started up her own blog. Fun! She claims that reading my blog had something to do with her wanting to start one. Wow!

So, check it out. Her blog is in my list of favorites as Laura's Thoughts. Let's welcome Laura to blog-land!!!

My sisters

I have the best sisters. We are different yet so similar. The three of us were together last night for a while at our parents' house. We sat and talked and laughed and just enjoyed each other.

When I went home, I thought about the people who cannot relate to this blessing. There are broken homes with families who just cannot get along. Personalities that won't blend. Words and thoughts that hurt. Don't get me wrong, we've had our share of misunderstandings and said things that shouldn't have been said over the years. But we are able talk about it. Work through it. Restore and move on. When no one else wanted a part of my life, they were there. When things were going great, they were there. If I needed a place to go, their home was mine. The bonds of friendship only go so far. Family truly is for life.

I love my sisters. We have a bond, by blood and in Christ. I am so thankful to have them woven throughout the tapestry of my life.

3 weeks old.

I can't believe that little Landon is 3 weeks old already! Everyone is doing just great. He is a cutie pie!

How can I talk about a baby . . .

and not show a picture?

This is little Landon. All together now.... awwwwww.

He is 5 days old today. I got to meet him for the first time this afternoon. He was rather busy moving his arms and yawning and crying and stuff like that. Fortunately, I arrived only moments after the poopy diaper was changed and he was done spitting up and burping. Good timing means everything when it comes to dodging poopy diapers.

The stories started flying about the time in the hospital, who was in the delivery room, contractions, dialations, most effective pushing procedures, epidurals..... None of which are exactly my area of expertise and normally I get woozy thinking about hospitals. I would rather go to the dentist, and we know how I feel about that! Nevertheless, they were Sarah's stories, and I was interested in hearing them.

As Landon became cute and quiet, I was offered a moment to "hold the baby". Again, not a task that I am totally comfortable with, but I said I would take him. The moment he was placed in my arms, he started to cry. Go figure. I guess babies can just tell that I am a cat and small dog person.

Twelve

What does the number 12 remind you of? Here's what came to my mind:

12 inches in a foot

12 tribes of Israel

12 months in a year

12 disciples

12 hours on a clock

12 string guitar

12 notes in an octave

12 items in a dozen

12 gears on a mountain bike

12 days of Christmas

But the most important one is:

12 years married this weekend. I love you Vince! Thanks for the best twelve years and we're still going strong!

Welcome, baby Landon

For those of you who know Sarah, she finally went to the hospital yesterday morning. She was a week overdue and was SO ready to be done being pregnant. After an entire day of waiting, I finally got the call that mommy and baby were fine.

Landon Mark arrived at 10:38 p.m. and weighed in at 9 pounds and 12 ounces. Sarah was hoping to have him on the day of the 14th, since her and her brother's birthdays landed on the 14th as well (but in different months).

We are so happy for you, Sarah and Jeremy! Welcome, baby Landon!

It's a busy weekend

Ah..... Mother's day weekend is upon us.

I tried to start early and went to see my Mom last night after work. I put Sparkie and the humongous hanging basket of blooming fuscias in my car and zipped over to spend some time with her and to give her a head start on the Mother's Day celebrations. The basket was promptly hung on their front porch for maximum viewing pleasure.

After that, had four stores to go to before getting home to make dinner so I couldn't stay as long as I would have liked. Fortunately, I was able to get two things accomplished in one store, which saved me about 20 - 30 minutes of additional driving, parking, walking, hunting, finding, purchasing, walking, and driving again. Gotta love the little things when they come your way!

Today, I have to get all the supplies ready for the Stampin' Up party that I am directing on Monday night. Also have to go over the songs for church tonite and tomorrow morning. Rehearsal is at 3:30 but since we are early birds, we will be there around 3:00.

Tomorrow, we will be home by 1:30. I have to make gluten free brownies, which are heavy and rich like fudge and super fabulous with milk or coffee. Then, with brownies in hand, at 5:30 we are going to a wedding. It is for my oldest nephew and will be a small, family only event. Best of everything to you, Scott and Ethel!

Then there is the possibility that my oldest niece will go into labor this weekend too. She was due last Wednesday so their little baby boy, Landon, should be here any day now. Just waiting for that phone call!

So this is way more than your typical Mother's Day weekend. It is like a musical, artsy, expectant, culinary Mother's day with a wedding on top. Should be one for the books!

Hey Scott

Happy birthday to you....

Happy birthday to you....

Happy birthday dear Scott.....

Happy birthday to you...... and many more.

Hope all is well for you. Looking forward to seeing you when you come to visit in May.