Of Grace And Pearls

Sweetness

2012-01-04T13:57:00.000-06:00

I had a major Senior Moment! HaHa- I forgot to post some of the pictures from our Girls Day Out in my last Saga Episode. Julia and I found a Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory that we both JUMPED at the chance to visit...I guess I can excuse my lapse because I took the pictures on my iphone instead of with my new camera, and when I uploaded from my camera to the computer, they weren't included in the batch. HOW COULD I FORGET THE CHOCOLATE?!!!

so many decisions!

Chocolate makes us happy!

Just look at this beautiful display of

carameled and candied apples...

But can we really believe the sign? (share...)

These apples were really HUGE

AND while I'm sharing sweet stuff pictures, I might as well show you the dessert I enjoyed when my husband and I celebrated our anniversary, at Charleston's...It was a bread pudding! I love bread pudding- since childhood...

I didn't want to overstuff myself at the restaurant, so after about 5 delicious mouthfuls I boxed the pudding up to take home and enjoy later. Actually, it lasted about 3 dessert times at home! I'm telling you, the original serving was HUGE.

Have a Sweet New Year!

Episode 5 - The Continuing Saga

2011-12-31T18:17:00.000-06:00

Welcome to Episode 5 of The Continuing Saga of OUR NEW LIFE.

Today is the last day of the year- 2011. So many changes in the space of one year- - due to prior priorities this program is slightly behind schedule...but we will try to bring you up to date now!

Chapter 1- Thanksgiving 2011
We had a very quiet Thanksgiving this year- just a few loved ones got to meet out at the Farm. While the menfolk went hoghunting, the ladies stayed indoors and put together a Thomas Kincaid puzzle.

My DIL Diana,

at the kitchen table with the puzzle beginnings

My daughter Julia,

trying out the new tea I brought to share

My dear MIL, Nina

Later in the evening, the children wanted to play Twister with their Daddy, and Diana called the positions

This is one game I cannot play! I'm too clumsy...

My son Ben sharpened knives in the meanwhile...

I've never seen him with this much facial hair!!!

Chapter 2

My mother came to live a while with us back in September- I had thought it would be a permanent thing, but she wanted to go back to her home in the South...We had her with us for 3 months. Right before Christmas, a longtime family friend passed away back in her hometown, and we decided to go to the funeral and at the same time fix her up back in her house. So she did not get to share Christmas with us...I sent her home some presents and some homemade goodies to enjoy. A longtime friend and her husband will stay with my mother until my oldest brother moves in to live with her. Also, my mother has some exceptional neighbors that have volunteered to look in on her...she lives in a very friendly little area. And my mother never meets a stranger!

Chapter 3

Christmas Eve 2011- back at the Farm with the whole Kelly clan- except my son Ben and his wife Diana, who went to Florida for a week to meet her parents that live in Peru! They were calling it their honeymoon also, since they did not get one when they got married a little over a year ago.

Me and my Big Girl

and here with her Daddy

the dessert table

Julia helping herself to the fresh veggies...

it's a very crowded buffet-type line!

It takes 3 tables to seat everyone!

Here's the table of teenagers/young adults...

A wedding will be coming up soon!

Here on the end is Olivia, who is engaged to

my nephew Kelly Bock, in the plaid shirt

The youngest kids got relegated

to the utility room to eat-

Andrea, Tamara, David, Sabrina, and Julia

My SIL Angela, busy with food prep

Julia with a baby calf that had fallen into a mud-puddle and couldn't get up. Grandpa brought it into the house to get it warmed up. Hopefully, the calf will survive

My niece Karissa and my daughter Alison

You never know what these menfolk will bring home when they go hunting! This is my nephew, Kyle, with a coyote he shot and was skinning. Aunt Irene had said she would pay any of the boys $50.00 for any coyote they could shoot. Kyle will take the skin back home to Louisiana where he hopes to sell it, also.

After our Christmas meal and before we opened presents, we all gathered together to sing Christmas carols. My BIL Brent, holding the book, led us all in several songs. My husband got up on a chair in the rear to see the music!

This was a just-for-fun gift I brought for Alison

My son David

My niece Tamara with Julia

Chapter 4

Christmas Day 2011- at home with our 2 little ones...Julia and David are exclaiming over a new computer game that she got- she is a big Nancy Drew game player.

here David is perched with his Daddy

and a modest pile of presents...

Chapter 5

Another year-end celebration! My husband and I have made it to our 27th Wedding Anniversary! No pictures taken to share, but we had a very nice dinner in Oklahoma City at an upscale restaurant, Charleston's. We did this a day early, to accomodate my husband's work...he had a particular job order scheduled for the exact date of our anniversary, and I didn't mind doing it this way. Actually, the job got cancelled, and Julia and I decided to do a Girls Day Out and went to Stillwater to have lunch and go shopping! Galen and David spent the day together also, running wells and eating out at Mazzio's pizza.

Julia and I experienced a mexican restaurant named Palomino's.

Here she is on the wooden bench outside the restaurant- she is a horse lover. The restaurant had a fountain inside, and many horsey things around. We shared a plate and she enjoyed it. I had told her I would take her wherever she wanted to go- within reason! She had been asking to have a Girls Day Out for a long time.

This is actually the ceiling-

I turned the picture a little.

It's a painting of two fighting cocks

Closing Note of Episode

The old year is swiftly ending! I spent the afternoon making cookies etc for the children to take to our neighbors to wish them a Happy New Year! Here they are, all set to spread good cheer...

So ends this Episode, and this year...May the new year 2012 find us all following the Prince of Peace, whose Advent we have just celebrated!

Fa La La La La

2011-12-27T18:10:00.000-06:00

Fast Away The Old Year Passes
Fa La La La LAAA La La La La
Hail The NEW, Ye Lads And Lasses
Fa La La La LAAA La La La La

As we face the unknown, we KNOW that God is already there, and is still here with us, and we hold to His unchanging hand to guide us .

Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room

2011-12-24T00:19:00.000-06:00

Enjoy this beautiful version of 'Thou Didst Leave Thy Throne' !

Yes! Amen! Oh Come to my heart, Lord Jesus! There is room in my heart for Thee!

Cooking with Julia (my)Child- Episode 4

2011-12-17T15:51:00.000-06:00

"I sure do love those Christmas cookies, Sugar..."

Julia takes a break! For today's post Little Brother David will take the stage! We are making things to put in the treat bags at Church this Sunday. This is David's first attempt at making cookies by himself (practically by himself anyway- I am right at his elbow)

Julia (my Child) is going to make sure

that David is doing it right, also!

She's a little overseer

Wow! this recipe only makes about 30 cookies,

but calls for 2 sticks of butter!

Gonna be rich...

climbing up to find the measuring cups-

Julia: "That's the wrong cabinet, David!"

David got to use my hand mixer-

and enjoyed using his man-muscles

to make the mixture mix!

The flour was added last.

OOPS! Just noticed now that he has the knife

upside down!

Can't make it level THAT way LOL!

Well actually, the M&Ms were added last!

They are making the packaging tougher

these days...notice his set lip!

A nice, colorful cookie dough to work with

Let's sit at the table to fill the cookie sheet...

notice our fireplace in the background...

After dropping the dough-balls, David will roll them by hand

and they're ready for the oven!

Julia makes another appearance-

SOME-body's got to lick the spatula!

All this intense effort makes a body thirsty!

Julia pronounces David's first attempt a success!

Good job, little brother!

A Favorite Christmas Carol

2011-12-16T00:24:00.000-06:00

I first heard this song several years ago, and never knew who was singing until just a few years ago- I was so excited when I found out it was Roger Whittaker! I bought the cd and last year my kiddies asked to hear the cd again and again. This Christmas season, David came to me and said, "Can we hear that cd of that man that has a good voice?" It took me a while to figure it out, but this is one of my children's favorites, too. It almost moves me to tears to hear Roger Whittaker sing "Ding Dong Merrily On High" Thanks to the one who put this on Youtube!

Bearing Gifts

2011-12-16T00:11:00.000-06:00

Once again, our pastor and his wife have blessed our evening with their...presence and "presents" too, this time! Sister Sylvia called me early Thursday to say they wanted to come up and see my mother again, and that she would bring supper to us! We very much enjoyed our time together. The menu was Turkey Noodle Soup, a layered salad, and Apple Cider.

We had fresh pineapple for dessert!

After the meal, Brother Leslie wanted to bring a Bible to the table while we were all sitting around it, and he began to read in Hebrews chapter 11. David has been learning a large portion of this chapter in his Bible class, and he wanted to read the selected verses instead! Our pastor and his wife had a song on their minds for us to sing out of the hymnal, so we found several books and harmonized together in our dining room/kitchen...

The children weren't intimidated, seems like...

I was reminded of the Christmas carol, WE THREE KINGS and the part about "bearing gifts, we travel afar"...It was quite a jaunt for them to come see us all, and we are humbly grateful for the delicious meal and sweet fellowship that they brought to our home.

"...Whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many." Matthew 20:26-28, KJV

Victorian Soup For Supper

2011-12-12T20:50:00.000-06:00

Once upon a time, I enjoyed lunch in a tea room in Louisiana with my mother, and she ordered Cock-a-leekie Soup for her entree. I had never heard of this before, but it turned out to be delicious. This tea room is a place I enjoyed visiting practically every time I went "home" to see my folks. I eventually bought their cookbook.

Sharon McCullar, the owner of the Glenwood Village Tearoom, says in her cookbook that her restaurant specializes in Victorian Era recipes dating from 1860 to 1903. The recipes, or receipts as the Victorians called them, are slightly altered so that we may reproduce them in a modern kitchen. I had purchased some leeks for another occasion, an all-day meeting with dinner-on-the-grounds at our church, and I forgot to use the leeks in the dish I cooked for that! So I needed to use them up...Tonight for supper I decided to try to replicate this interestingly-named soup at my home. I started early in the afternoon, preparing the chicken. I had to take my daughter to her piano lesson and let the chicken boil while we were gone. I also cut up the leeks in advance, so I could quickly prepare the soup when we returned home from her lesson.

Simmering the leeks in butter produces a Delicious, mouth-watering aroma!

In looking online for other recipes, I found out that this is a Scottish contribution to the cooking world. There are many variations on the basic recipe, but the original seems to call for prunes! The Glenwood recipe I used called for prunes cut into strips- - instead of playing around with the recipe, I followed it as precisely as possible and added the prunes, hoping for the best!

Sure enough, when we began to eat our supper, my husband said, "What's this in here? Is it PRUNES??!" But they did not ruin the flavor- they must add some subtle thing because I could not pick their taste out of the whole. It was very delicious- all of us enjoyed it, even the children. So the prunes go in next time, too!

Here's a link to the Glenwood Tea Room- - by the way, it is for sale! Sharon will give six months of on-site consultation to the right buyer...
http://www.glenwoodvillagetearoom.com/

An Oldie! Song

2011-12-10T22:02:00.002-06:00

Here's a smile-bringer! An old recording of Tennessee Ernie Ford...It'll make you laugh even! I guess this can be considered a Christmas song...see what you think!

100th Day of School

2011-12-09T13:34:00.001-06:00

Happy 100th Day of School to my little chick-a-dee-dee-dees! Have I mentioned here that this year we are homeschooling? We started a month early, so if we get behind in something we will have time to catch up before being too late into the summer. Today is our 100th Lesson! We are following the A Beka Academy DVD Program this year.

Click on this link for Joan Holub's 100th Day of School Celebration Ideas!
http://www.joanholub.com/100thDay.html
(The following info is from the above link)

What is the 100th Day of School? It’s a fun way to teach basic math concepts to children including counting, sorting, measuring, sequencing, graphing, classifying, etc. It’s celebrated at many different grade levels, but most commonly in grades K-2. Anticipation builds from the very first day as classrooms count each day they attend school, one by one, until they reach the 100th day. Then it's time to celebrate!

When is the 100th Day of School? The date of the 100th day varies since different schools begin their year on different days. Unexpected days off such as snow days may also affect the date. Celebrations typically take place on a date somewhere from mid-January to mid-February.

Who originated the idea of 100th day? Two possibilities have been suggested: 1) that Lynn Taylor introduced the celebration for kindergarten in the 1981-82 Newsletter of the Center for Innovation in Education; 2) that the idea came from Mary Baratta-Lorton, originator of Math Their Way.

Who is Joan Holub? author of over 130 books for children (www.joanholub.com) and the illustrator of
The 100th Day of School by Angela Shelf Medearis,
which has sold well over a million copies.

An Evening In December

2011-12-08T22:09:00.003-06:00

Christmas party time is here! Tonight was our first Christmas party - graciously hosted by Sooner Hot Oil and Well Services at The Rusty Barrell Supper Club!

Great steaks...

And a great company!

We got home earlier than we usually do after a "function", and found Julia had made - ALL BY HERSELF - some chocolate chip cookes! (with pecans too!) Okay, little brother helped SOME, and Grandmama gave some advice, but only when it was asked for by our enterprising little cook! We were very proud of her, and she was justifiably proud of herself ! She crowed a little- "Maybe someday I'll be a famous cook, and I'll make cookies..." She used our tried and true favorite recipe from Toll House...

Now to close out our Evening In December, the real thing- a song that's LOVELY LUSCIOUS.

Enjoy!

My enterprising little cook-

70 Years Ago

2011-12-07T10:03:00.001-06:00

Seventy years ago today was the day that will forever "live in infamy." On December 7th, 1941, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor.

When Americans of all stripes see veterans, the initial reaction is to appropriately tell them "thank you, and welcome home." Yet with World War II veterans, the passion is even greater. They are overwhelmingly regarded as heroes.

The World War II generation is the "Greatest Generation." American soldiers defeated Nazism and Fascism. Winston Churchill was right when he said that "Americans can be counted on to do the right thing, after they have exhausted all other options."

After World War I, a war-weary American public wanted to retreat into isolationism. The rest of the world had other ideas. Once Pearl Harbor was bombed, the entire world changed. America quickly went to war, and they did so with unrelenting force. The only acceptable outcome was total and complete victory.

Americans were united. Politics stopped at the water's edge. Republicans lined up and supported Democratic President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Four years later Republicans loyally supported Democratic President Harry S. Truman ...

for the whole of this article, see http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/tygrrrr-express/2011/dec/7/pearl-harbor-70-day-infamy/

Do you have any WW II survivors in your family? If you have never asked them about their memories, now might be a good time...I have my mother on tape talking about those days... Thanks to the "Greatest Generation"

P.S. In posting about this day of our history, I am not trying to resurrect past hatreds or injustices- I am just bringing to mind the lost men and women of that time and honoring the people who lived through it. May God help us all to come under the dominion of the Prince of Peace.

Happy Birthday Jesus -song

2011-12-05T21:01:00.001-06:00

A Christmas Song for You

2011-12-04T00:42:00.001-06:00

Cooking With Julia (my)Child- Episode 3

2011-12-03T22:35:00.001-06:00

My two little children spent Thanksgiving week out at The Farm with their grandparents. Julia had said she wanted Grandmother to teach her to cook sometime. They must have done something together because- well, you will see later in this episode.

Hubby told Julia today, "Why don't you make me some oatmeal cookies?" A good project for a Saturday! She told me this time, "I want to do most of it myself!" I said, ok....We got everything out in preparation...

OOPS! There was not enough brown sugar for the recipe! The little sugar bear was practically alone!

If you don't know what this is, it is a little terra cotta bear,

useful to keep your brown sugar from getting clumps.

It's supposed to absorb any moisture in the sugar.

We told Daddy, "Not enough sugar to make the recipe!" He said he had to go in to Lowe's for some electrical fittings, so I decided to go in with him to buy some sugar so we could enjoy some homebaked cookies TONIGHT! I told Julia she could mix all the dry ingredients while we were gone, but not to add the liquids until I got back. "And go ahead and take your Saturday night bath while we're away?" (My mother is here with them so that's okay..)

This counter-top mixer is JUST LIKE the one my mother had when I was growing up. I found it at a thrift store in near-perfect condition. I have been wanting a Kitchenaid one, but had to get this for memory's sake.

Julia wanted to make sure that she did not miss any of the dry ingredients, so made a check-mark by each one! She does things very thoroughly...

We made it safely back from the stores, and Julia had taken her bath, so now she is in her robe with her freshly shampoo-ed hair down, ready to add the liquid ingredients! These eggs are from my husband's aunt, who raises banty chickens- free eggs for us, and organic eggs from free-range chickens at that!

This is when I found out that Julia and her grandmother must have done some cooking together, because Julia informed me, "Grandmother says, crack each egg separately in a bowl and add each egg one at a time to your mix, so you will be sure not to get any eggshells in!" ( I knew that...in fact I think I have told her that myself...LOL)

Now we can turn on the electric mixer and get this cookie dough ready in a hurry!

My aunt's husband told us that when you use banty eggs in a recipe, you always double the amount that is called for since they are so small.

Look at that face of intense concentration!

Lastly, fold in the oatmeal and raisins by hand- makes a stiff dough for a little girl to handle! She allowed me to finish this part of the task.

Now to bring out the cookie sheet-

the oven is preheated and ready

Putting the cookie dough on the cookie sheet is always fun

if you have a handy little gadget like this!

But this is the best part of all!-

getting to lick the beaters!

Even little brother gets to enjoy one...

Typical Girl! While the cookies are baking in the oven,

one MUST talk on one's cell phone!

Actually that's Mom's phone...

I had to call her several times when the timer went off to get her to come back to the kitchen to take the cookies out of the oven! "Get off that phone right now!"

Ok Mom-

oooooo- this oven is HOT!

The cookies are pronounced a success! Of course- Julia had no doubt they would be delicious!

Little brother agrees, they are good!

Hope you enjoyed this episode of Cooking with Julia (my)Child ! Remember, as the real Julia Child said...

Stay tuned for our next episode...

Christmas Season 2011

2011-12-03T16:33:00.001-06:00

A very merry Christmas season to all my blog readers! Here's the latest effort with my new camera, and with my computer editing...

By the way, I only have ONE more gift to go shopping for! Yippee! Finally, one year my shopping is done early!

Homework Sweet Homework Part 3

2011-12-01T08:50:00.000-06:00

Once again, Julia has come up with a comfortable way to do homework- this time snuggled with her daddy in his papa-bear chair! He was trying to get a nap...

They were enjoying the heat from our new wood stove-

it was pretty cold outside

This is a stock photo of the stove we just got-

we do have this brown color, but

I have not taken a good picture of ours yet.

We have white-painted bricks on our wall and hearth.

New Taste Sensation

2011-11-23T23:25:00.000-06:00

Just this week I went in to our local small-town bookstore that has a coffee/tea bar, and picked up some new flavors of tea and hot cocoa to try! The tea I picked out was Cranberry Blood Orange, by The Republic of Tea.

I really, REALLY like this! I did not add any sugar before I tasted it, and to my great surprise and delight I found that it did not NEED any sugar added! Woohoo! This will definitely be in my "tea caddy" now!

I also found a gift box of Bellagio Gourmet Hot Cocoa mixes and decided to buy it to try the 3 flavors (there's 2 of each flavor, making 6 packets of cocoa). The ladies in my husband's family usually try to do a tea party at Christmas, and I thought these cocoa flavors would be something to introduce to everyone then, IF I liked them!

That first evening, after I had bought my goodies, I tried the Holiday Spice cocoa- - it is a pretty strong spice-y flavor, but it is nice for a holiday treat. I wouldn't want it very often though- just for "the season".

Tonight after supper I opened one packet of White Chocolate cocoa- - it is a nice, creamy chocolate-y taste! Definitely one chocolate lovers will enjoy!

So, tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and we plan to go to The Farm, and there will only be about 4 of us ladies there this holiday, and I am down to 4 packages of cocoa! I know I said I was thinking of trying these out for Christmas, but since there will be so few of us tomorrow, I'm going to take what's left of my Collection and maybe we can have a Hot Cocoa Party! I haven't tried the Peppermint Truffle cocoa yet, so that will have to be the one I have on Thanksgiving! (even though this is decidedly a Christmas flavor)

Happy Thanksgiving to all, and to all a good time with your loved ones! "Be thankful unto HIM, and bless HIS name" My friends, I am truly, TRULY thankful...

Mouse In The House

2011-11-21T10:07:00.000-06:00

Remember the story of The Flopsy Bunnies by Beatrix Potter? Benjamin Bunny's children fell asleep in Mr. MacGregor's garden and he caught them and tied them in a brown paper bag and went to put away his mowing machine. While he was gone, Thomasina Tittlemouse came along and nibbled a hole in the sack so they could escape. Ms Potter said, "Thomasina Tittlemouse was a resourceful person- she nibbled a hole in the bottom of the sack. The little rabbits were pulled out, and pinched to wake them..."

WELL!!! I do not like resourceful mice! I try to keep my flour etc in bins so no unwanted bugs or mice can get to them, but we recently had a - resourceful - mouse in the house...it tried to chew into a thick plastic container of self-rising flour inside my cabinet!

That's a little TOO resourceful for me! We got resourceful ourselves and finally caught it with a sticky-trap!
Have you noticed- mice in real life are never as "cute" as in the stories...

My Latest Crafty Project

2011-11-19T13:28:00.001-06:00

A recycle! In our old country home, over 10 years ago, I had in our master bedroom a lot of battenburg lace accessories- like a bedskirt, pillow shams, valance...I have had them in storage all this time and finally decided how to use some of them in our NEW country home.

Believe it or not, this window treatment is made from just my old bedskirt! I cut two sides of the bedskirt in half to make the panels, and then sewed them together with white entredeux that I had left over from my many christening gown projects.

The valance is what was left of the battenburg-edged piece of bedskirt.

I decided something was missing- maybe something like a sheer panel? I decided to order a full battenburg lace panel to finish up my window treatment- I did have a full lace valance to recycle. I just added the new panel to my old valance to get the proper length for this big window in our dining room. What do you think?!!

Friday- Date Night!

2011-11-18T23:10:00.006-06:00

What a treat! Went for a drive WAAAAYYYY out in the country to find a fabulous place to eat!

My husband had heard of this place in Burlington, OK that had "the best steak in the country" and wanted to surprise me- he told me to be ready to go out on a date Friday night, but did not tell me where we were going. It took us about an hour and a half to do the drive- but it was worth it! It's called The Vintage House, and it's an old house that has been fixed up on the inside to look Victorian- there are only 4 rooms to dine in and you must make reservations well in advance. I took my new camera, so some of the shots are not the greatest because I haven't got it all figured out yet, but they will give you an idea of what to expect from this little restaurant. FYI- I think the population of the whole town is less than 200 !

The Vintage House restaurant

Burlington, Oklahoma

I know you can't tell much from this photo,

but there is a HUGE old tree out front,

and these are old-time streetlights at the walkway

This is closer to the actual level of light that we experienced-

I just adjusted the other photos so you could see more details!

Cheesy potato soup topped with

bacon and snipped chives

...and here's the happy diners!

We'll give this restaurant as many stars as are possible! All the food was superb and the steaks luscious, but that means it wasn't cheap! This was probably the most expensive meal we've ever had in all our 27 years of marriage, including our honeymoon...but it does make for a romantic, special evening.

I found a video that features The Vintage House.You'll enjoy the little tour captured by the interviewer. It's in the post right below this one! You'll have to click on the link- do take the time! The name of the post is TravelOK.com video.

TravelOK.com Video

2011-11-18T23:10:00.000-06:00

TravelOK.com Video

Basic Training Graduation

2011-11-17T17:34:00.000-06:00

Back in October, my Big Girl and I went to San Antonio, TX for the graduation of a good friend from Air Force Basic Training.

Kody is the paleface out in front!

Here's the proud family and friends,

waiting for the Airmen's Run to start on Thursday morning

And there's the man of the hour,

in the very back, the tallest one of all!

a little later, in the stands...

waiting for the Presentation Ceremony to begin

(Thursday)

we had an early continental breakfast at the motel, and I got really hungry before lunchtime rolled around. I got a pretzel with cheese sauce for "second breakfast" but it was SO SALTY...this picture is me with my daughter, and one of Kody's best friends, Josh- acting himself I guess HaHA...

At last! Here they come!

(Kody's in the rear, tallest one)

Kody was dorm leader of his flight

We were all proud of his fulfillment of this

responsible position!

with Little Sister and Mom

Look how tight she is holding to his hand!

She would hardly let go of her big brother all the day long! You can tell they must really be close...after the Presentation of the Airman's coin, all the visitors got to go onto the field to congratulate the new Airmen/women- mom, dad, and little sister were all teary-eyed at seeing their loved one again after 8 weeks...

the coveted prize-

proof of surviving basic training!

After Thursday's ceremonies in the morning, the Airmen were free to travel around only on Base , with their family/friends. We decided to go to the bowling alley for lunch and to pass the afternoon.

I have never bowled before in my entire life! I was content to watch everyone else...this provided an outlet for pent-up energy, and also for space to talk...Kody had lots to tell us all, as you can imagine!

"Here's how you stand at attention, Dad!"

Me with the Man Of The Hour

Friday morning we were up very early to go to the Graduation Field...and for all the early arriving, we could hardly find seats all together! Had to crawl up over people way up in the bleachers...it was a beautiful day-a little cloudy, not too hot or windy...perfect weather for an outdoor ceremony.

Proud Mom making sure to get some good shots!

In review past the stands...

this is my favorite memory, with all the flags in the background

And the Tall One stands out again!

Aren't telephoto lenses nice?

Immediately after the graduation, all the families in attendance were invited to tour the barracks with their Airman. Kody's mom was especially interested in seeing this. Some families arrived too late and were not given permission to enter- she was so happy she had not missed out! Kody had been in charge of his flight and told us all about the regulations etc that they had to live up to.

Line those boots up!!

Garments in the locker must be precisely separated...

Sign on the wall of one of the "classrooms"

Celebration lunch at Olive Garden

one of Kody's favorite restaurants.

An obliging waitress took this picture of our table.

Center of attention!

We wish you all the best, Kody!

What's for dessert?

2011-11-17T13:37:00.000-06:00

Although we had no apples to put up from our tree this year, we are still enjoying the harvest from last year, thanks to our freezer! Apple pie for supper! with ice cream...I cooked the pie in a bright red pottery pie plate I bought at Target one Thanksgiving when I ran out of pie dishes for our family get-together. It doesn't make the pie taste any better, but it does give eye appeal!

Wonderfully Abnormal

2011-11-16T11:48:00.000-06:00

"I have come to a firm conviction that I don't WANT my kids to be normal!

A Christian should never be 'normal'. Normal means- conforming, adhering to, or constituting a usual or typical pattern. This sounds like the opposite of the call on Christians to not be conformed to the patterns of this world, from Romans 12:2. Jesus calls all of us to a narrow path that few find (Matthew 7:13-14). If we are walking that narrow path, we have NO CHANCE of fitting in with the crowd on the broad path to destruction.

If I can raise unselfish, kind, generous children who love (others), I have no doubt (they) will make an impact for Christ even while they are young. These characteristics are so rare that they will shine like stars in "the midst of a crooked and perverse nation". (Philippians 2:15-16)

How do I raise my kids to be wonderfully abnormal? First, I pray for them. In our natural state, all human beings are destined to selfishness. So I pray that God will enable my kids to repent and to believe in Jesus and that He will give them hearts that long to know God. Second, they are taught God's standards of behavior from His Word, and we try to uphold those standards in our household. Another thing, *and this will be an eye-brow raiser* is to limit the amount of time our children spend with other children. (This allows) my family to work at breaking out of society's mold and figure out who God wants us to be. The children are not influenced by youth culture because they are not exposed. Being relieved of the constant battle with our godless culture allows us to develop a culture centered on Christ. One more thing- we carefully screen and limit the media in our home. At the same time we are filtering the bad, we try to give positive examples of others who walk the road less traveled."

The above comments are from "I Don't Want My Kids to be Normal!" by Cindy Puhek. I condensed and edited her article that appeared in a 2007 magazine. For your interest and information, she has a BS and MA in chemistry and has taught college and high school science classes.

Thank you, Cindy Puhek

I totally agree with you,

even though that DOES mark me as ABNORMAL!

We should say, 'welcome to the NEW normal' I guess!

Sunday Playtime

2011-11-14T20:48:00.000-06:00

My husband rarely gets a day off, I mean one where he does not have to check at least ONE well, even on Sunday! We usually have to leave early for church because he has to send in a report every day at 9am, and occasionally we have to go by one well on the way home from church also...we drive 70 miles one way to go to church, so this can make for a very long day. One Sunday recently when we had to drive by a well on our return trip in the afternoon, he dropped me and the children off at a little smalltown park so they could play a few minutes while he went on to the site. Here are some pictures of them playing- Julia is in her Sunday clothes but David just happened to bring some play clothes to change into this week...

Queen of the monkey bars!

There were no other children at the park this day-

it was just a little cool, but not uncomfortable.

AND NOT WINDY!!!!

that was a change for Oklahoma...

I always wished I could have an old

railroad car or caboose to play with

in my own yard!

climbing up to the top!

The windows and doors were all locked

These photos were taken with my phone...

glad I can capture the memories

It's Apple Time But...

2011-11-12T16:47:00.000-06:00

I just love the fall of the year! But this time, we won't have apples running all over the kitchen like we did last year...our big apple tree was full of blossoms this spring, but a killing frost took practically all the buds. We did have THREE apples this year! hahaha

WalMart has a new apple variety in (new to me anyway) that is pretty AND delicious! It's called Empire- I bought a brown bag full for 99 cents a pound. They are WONDERFUL! Here is a picture I took of one of them outside my home; the apple is on a glass-topped table, and the leaves are from my own apple-less tree...

Don't you just love the beautiful color of this apple? and the inside is a bright white flesh...I wonder where this variety originates...

Veteran's Day 2011

2011-11-11T12:04:00.001-06:00

Thank you American Vets! Here are two pictures of my son and my daughter...

I pray for our Military-

May God help us every one

A Pumpkin Post

2011-10-25T22:49:00.000-05:00

We've got a lot of mileage out of the huge pumpkin that David was carving on the other day...

David's artwork

It was so big that Julia got to carve another face on the OTHER side!

Julia's artwork

This past Sunday we had our special 4th Sunday get-together at church, with 'dinner on the grounds' and an afternoon service, and no evening service. I made a casserole out of some of this big pumpkin, using a sweet potato casserole recipe that had brown sugar in it, and not using very much of the typical pumpkin-type seasoning.(I don't like a spicy pumpkin pie- I like my pumpkin pies to be pretty mild) I also froze a lot of the cooked pumpkin to use this winter for recipes like pumpkin muffins, pumpkin bread, pie, what-have-you. Julia helped me cut up and peel and get the seeds out of this monster- she doesn't complain about helping me in the kitchen. We saved the seeds. A friend had told my husband that she "fries" her pumpkin seeds in olive oil...I decided to do mine in butter. I had dried them a little in the oven before putting them in the skillet. When they were getting done, they began to POP like firecrackers!!! Out of the pan, across the counter...I quickly removed them from the hot butter and salted them, and when they were just a little cool I got to taste them! They make a nice snack, but every now and then one will be bitter.

For our supper dessert, tonight we had pumpkin bread, made with pecans and raisins. Does everyone really realize the tremendous amount of time it takes to shell and pick out pecans?!! I have several brown grocery bags in my deepfreeze that need to be 'processed'...today I cut up probably 3 cups ENTIRELY BY HAND. I can never find a nut chopper that does anything but make a coarse flour out of the pecan meats hahaha.

(this photo is from

http://eatingetc.blogspot.com/2009/12/pumpkin-bread-with-brown-sugar-cinnamon.html)

The recipe I used makes 2 loaves- - - and we practically ate one whole loaf tonight! David said, "I can't look at (the other loaf left), because then I'll want to sneak back and eat it when Mom says I can't!"

October Sun

2011-10-21T17:11:00.001-05:00

My mother is living with us now- it was nice and warm today so I put her out on our front porch to sit in the sun a while...but it didn't last long! She said she was tired and needed to lie down- - - but still, it has been a lovely autumn day.

Her hair is not really that white- it's just the sun

shining through!

My camera needs to be adjusted I guess,

the white balance seems to be off.

The grass is not really this yellow!

David is outside carving on some of our pumpkins that we grew in the garden...

Sorry- this picture uploaded sideways

Julia is sitting under the apple tree at a wrought iron table with a glass top that I got at the Salvation Army Thrift Store for $13.00, working on her homework! She really doesn't have that much, it just takes her a long time to do it because she is very thorough.

Happy Fall, Y'all!

The Luxury of A Walk

2011-10-16T02:17:00.001-05:00

Here is a little Christian devotional from my treasured book, Devotions for Women At Home by Martha Meister Kiely, published in 1959. You will be able to tell from the content (and from the publishing date!) that this was written quite a while ago, but the message/content is still very applicable for today! I enjoyed it and wanted to share!

The Luxury of a Walk
"And when it was day He departed and went into a lonely place." Luke 4:42

Today I permitted myself the luxury of a long walk home from downtown. I usually develop such a case of baby-sitter jitters that I hop on the first bus and am at my door in a jiffy. But today I demonstrated my extragavance by sauntering home in the glistening snow.

As I kicked the white puffs ahead of me, I reveled in the sheer pleasure of health and a pain-free existence. One by one I snared the little worries that were scattered about my brain and aired them in the frosty breeze. Most of them blew away, and then there was room for the remembrance of blessings. God was closer than the snowflakes that melted on my face and more real than the people I passed on the sidewalk.

When I have thought of Jesus at prayer, I have pictured him withdrawn to a lonely place- the desert, a high mountain, the wilderness- and kneeling there in prayer. This afternoon it occurred to me that He must also have enjoyed long walks involved in those communing experiences and that He doubtless talked with His Father all along the way.

Today treat yourself to a walk.

"My Lord, to walk with Thee is such pure pleasure! As I plan my day, I will remember that 'getting there is half the fun,' and I will use my walking moments for fellowship with Thee. Amen"

I have posted about walking and talking with God before- - really it's something that I cannot help but do when I go out for a walk. Remember the song "My God And I" ? Here's a few of the lyrics:

My God and I walk through the fields together

We walk and talk as good friends should and do

We clasp our hands, our voices ring with laughter

My God and I walk through the meadow's dew.

I know, you don't always think of laughter when you are talking with God...but this expresses the relationship we have with our Heavenly Father- one of sharing everything, good and bad! Not all burdens and troubles, but happiness and joys too.

May YOU walk with God today...

Homework Sweet Homework Part 2

2011-10-04T10:51:00.000-05:00

And...... my resourceful little Julia has come up with another relaxing way to do homework! This will only work on a calm Fall afternoon...

She is laying on our trampoline!

Pleasant Company

2011-09-30T22:50:00.000-05:00

This evening, we were blessed with a wonderful visit from our pastor and his wife, Leslie and Sylvia Busbee. This is the first time they've seen our home since we've been here for a little over a year now. Also, my mother is staying with us , and may end up living here permanently. Brother Leslie and Sister Sylvia have been our friends "time out of mind" and they came especially to pay her a visit. You know, I really feel sorry for my church friends who have not been privileged to be under their pastorate! For most of our married life, they have ministered to us in the Enid, Ok congregation- they have been such a blessing to our children, both sets! We had 2 children and then waited 9 years before we had two more, and Brother Leslie especially loves to work with children. And children everywhere respond to him! Before they went home, we all gathered in our family room and Bro.Leslie played the piano and sang, and all sang too, except me! I wanted to capture it on camera, and I just enjoyed listening to everyone else.

Julia insisted on making a face in every picture!

(that's my mother's walker )

Mother really did good tonight...

if I didn't know any better, I would've thought

she was perfectly well (she's singing here)

Sister Sylvia was letting our dog Pepy

give her a kiss

It really made me feel good to see and hear

David singing loudly when Brother Leslie

played "Onward Christian Soldiers"

here's a fuller shot- David is lying on top

of a toy chest that his Grandpa made around 20 years ago

for our first son, Benjamin

(you can see the clutter in the background-

that's my worktable piled high with mending to do!)

Julia wasn't mad, just...picture-shy?

(My husband is leaning on the loveseat)

Here, Brother Leslie is reading a little story especially for the children

that happened 125 years ago-

an intriguing "tract" about an angel visiting

several children while their parents

were away from home

Whenever they visit, we always have prayer together and he always asks God to bless us all. We sent them on their way with 2 cantaloupe from our garden( and some green tomatoes! )

Praise to God for these times of PLEASANT COMPANY

Saturday Kids Workshop

2011-09-28T09:39:00.000-05:00

Our children enjoy the free Saturday workshops at Lowe's- this past Saturday they made firetrucks, complete with sirens!

The pre-fab kits come with easy, detailed instructions

This makes it easy for the children to put together,

and they also learn to EXACTLY

follow the steps

Julia, hammering the little nails in

David adding the finishing touch-stickers!

It was such a nice morning that the workshop

was held outside the store.

These children's kits can also be purchased

if you ever miss one of the free workshops.

Homework Sweet Homework

2011-09-27T14:01:00.000-05:00

Here's Julia, demonstrating the proper way to do homework...

Sorry Folks

2011-09-18T18:29:00.000-05:00

Well, I made a boo-boo...I deleted a picture from my stash and now my signature rose ending photo has disappeared from most of my blog! I don't know if I want to go back ALL the way through and re-do it...

but here it is for TODAY anyway! hahahahahahahahaha

Sorry about that...

Constitution Day

2011-09-16T22:20:00.000-05:00

September 17, 2011 is the 224th birthday of the United States Constitution!

http://www.constitutionday.com/index.html

http://constitutioncenter.org/ncc_progs_Constitution_Day.aspx

Applauding PayPal

2011-09-16T11:19:00.000-05:00

Thanks to PayPal for not caving in to pressure from homosexual activists to drop the accounts of ministries and charities that do not endorse homosexuality. For a full article, click on this link
http://www.citizenlink.com/2011/09/15/paypal-won%E2%80%99t-concede-to-gay-activist-pressure-to-close-faith-groups%E2%80%99-accounts/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Citizenlink+%28CitizenLink%29

A PayPal spokesperson said, "We take into account the rights of free speech and freedom of religion. Balancing these conflicting rights is often difficult." PayPal bans porn and gambling sites from using its services.
You may express your thanks to PayPal for standing up for free speech and religious freedom by calling their customer service number 1-888-221-1161

The information in this post was found at CitizenLink.com.

Oopsie Daisy

2011-09-15T10:50:00.002-05:00

Back at the Farm on Labor Day weekend, everyone went to "the canyons' for a picnic. As the name implies, you have to hike a little ways down into this place...My husband's mother had been sick for a few weeks previous and was just getting back on her feet again. She didn't want to miss out on the picnic so she went, but of course climbing out of a canyon is harder than going into one! A grandson and son-in-law rigged up a sort of coolie-chair to tote her back out. One of the rods twisted in transit, and Mom had a Fall! Luckily no one, especially her, was hurt. She was a good sport and kept a smile the whole time- even a laugh! Here is a photo sequence...

Here's David kicking up sand...

10 Years Later

2011-09-10T22:03:00.000-05:00

Meat Markets-Nice Folks

2011-09-09T19:02:00.000-05:00

We just had our PIG processed locally- we took it in "on the hoof" to Osage Country Meat Market and now have everything in nice packages in our freezer. The folks at Osage gave us a discount, I think because we were trying their sausage seasoning for the first time. It's a good blend and we are looking forward to enjoying the regular pork chop cuts this winter, too! We are fans of "fresh side" also- David had never had it before and he's been asking for it for breakfast every day since! So no cured bacon, just fresh side. We had them do two hams for us and took the other two to Head Country, along with the ribs, to see how THEIR smoked hams tasted. Ponca City is the homeplace of Head Country Barbeque which is touted as the best sauce around. We haven't tried the sauce from Osage Country yet...

The folks at Head Country gave us a great deal, too- NO CHARGE! When my husband picked up the hams and ribs today, they told him 'no charge' and he said ' I didn't pay for it in advance' ...got the manager and he said, "NO CHARGE". Isn't that great?! Got the hams smoked AND sliced- no bones to deal with! And the famous seasoning on the ribs- How's that for some NICE people!

2011-09-08T21:30:00.000-05:00

Cutting and pasting today from CitizenLink

http://www.citizenlink.com/2011/09/08/evangelicals-to-hold-911-prayer-event-saturday/

September 8, 2011

Evangelicals To Hold 9/11 Prayer Event Saturday

by Karla Dial

Evangelical Christians won a key victory Thursday when the New York City police and parks department gave them permission to hold a prayer service at Ground Zero on the eve of the tenth anniversary of the terrorist attacks.

The Family Research Council (FRC) delivered 62,000 petition signatures this morning to Mayor Michael Bloomberg, asking him to reconsider his decision to exclude clergy, first responders, prayer and public expressions of faith from the Ground Zero 9/11 memorial event Sunday. At the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., there will be prayer — but none from evangelicals, who were not invited. Instead, the “Call to Compassion” service will feature some mainline denominations, a Jewish rabbi, a Buddhist nun, a Hindu priest, the president of the Islamic Society of North America and a Muslim musician.

Though Bloomberg gave no indication of changing his mind, the Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Coalition, told CitizenLink the city’s police department has no problem with public prayer at Ground Zero.

“For the last two days, we’ve been working with city officials to do that, and we just got the green light,” he said. “It will be the only public prayer service at the 9/11 (site). Mayor Bloomberg does not represent the feeling of most people in the country — who, though they may not agree with us on all issues, agree it was faith that sustained people through 9/11 and for the last ten years.”

Approximately 50 people will meet in front of St. Paul’s Chapel in lower Manhattan at 10 a.m. EDT Saturday, then walk to Ground Zero.

“We have to keep it small. That was one of the conditions, because traffic is going to be quite heavy,” Mahoney said. “But we have a feeling that once we initiate the prayer service, people will just spontaneously join us. So we’re working that out with the police right now.”

In a press conference at City Hall, FRC spokeswoman Cathy Ruse said “the nation needs prayer more than politics.” The group collected its petition signatures from all over the country in one week.

“When our country was attacked, Americans didn’t say, ‘Oh, Great Politicians, please hold a press conference!’ ” she said. “No, they turned to God for help and solace. It was and is their natural response to a great tragedy.”

Saddleback Church will be hosting a webcast of a prayer service held at a church near Ground Zero on Sunday.

Birthday Girl

2011-09-06T23:33:00.001-05:00

Today was Julia's 11th birthday!

She got to go fishing this evening with her daddy and little brother- they caught a nice batch, or 'mess'- in fact we just got in from cleaning them.(11:15pm)

I asked her what she wanted for supper- she chose pizza and Dr Pepper! I also had salad- I can hardly eat pizza without it- and made some Chocolate Lava Cookies for dessert, served with ice cream.

Julia with her pizza, pop, and Lava cookie!

a candle in the ice cream

and some presents on the side...

fixing to blow out that candle!

can you see the smoke from the blown-out candle?

Happy Birthday to our little Julia-Joy!

P.S. Here's some more fun stuff! Julia's cousin Tamara had her 12th birthday 3 days before Julia- they got to be together on that Saturday, and celebrated with Koolaid Pies! Here are some pix of them from out at the Kelly family farm on Labor Day weekend. (I didn't get to go-my Big Girl took these pictures)

T.T.F.N. !

(Ta Ta For Now)

Dark Horse News

2011-09-05T11:09:00.001-05:00

http://digitaledition.qwinc.com/publication/?i=77175&p=39

Click the above link to go to the VFW September 2011 issue, online reading.

This contains an article about the unit my son was in- he would have been with his buddies if he had been deployed. No way of knowing what the outcome would have been for him...I have not shared this with him yet because he is still struggling with it all...not being with the ones he trained and bonded with, and yet thankful to be at home...it's a difficult, difficult road that he has to travel, but probably not any more so than these others...He may already know this information but I hesitate to bring it to his attention. I know at one time he was keeping up with the lists of casualties, but lately I haven't been asking him any questions. He volunteered some information just recently about dreams that were troubling him... Would you please pray for him?

P.S. On a happier note, here is a picture of my son taken the first time he met the woman he ended up marrying! My daughter is also in the picture...this was taken less than a month after he got his discharge.

'Bye for now!

Devotional- Dr Bob Cook

2011-09-05T09:48:00.001-05:00

Here is today's e-devotional from Walk With The King, the ministry of the late Dr. Bob Cook.

Ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God. (1 Thes. 4:1)

The question of one's morality needs to be examined, not from the viewpoint of "What will people say?" or even "What will the church think?" One's concern, rather, ought to be how to live each day in a way that pleases God. That is the true basis for Christian morality.

How do you please God? Here are a few ideas from 1 Thessalonians 4. First, a clean sex life. This means not only fleeing immorality, but also ordering your life apart from the usual, "I want what I want when I want it." We live in a day when moral permissiveness is the rule rather than the exception. Make sure your heart attitude and relationships with the opposite sex are above reproach. Second, you can please God by showing an awareness that you have been called, not to uncleanness, but to holiness. Third, you can please God by being quiet, industrious, and honest. And finally you can please God by having the upward look, waiting expectantly for His coming.

Small thought here
Notice what 1 Thessalonians 4 says about pleasing God: it starts with the inward look, ends with the upward look, and in between is the lordship of Jesus Christ in every step of life. Look in, look up, and in between look to our blessed Lord.

Walk With the King, Inc.

http://www.walkwiththeking.org/

John 1:5

2011-09-01T18:27:00.000-05:00

Great news from the Bible!- in several different versions
John 1:5

New Living Translation (©2007)
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.

English Standard Version (©2001)
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

GOD'S WORD® Translation (©1995)
The light shines in the dark, and the dark has never extinguished it.

King James Bible
And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

Bible in Basic EnglishAnd the light goes on shining in the dark; it is not overcome by the dark.

Weymouth New Testament

The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overpowered it.

And let me go on record as saying, "The darkness can NEVER put out the Light!"

I, for one, am not going to be conquered by darkness!

Chance Encounters On A Country Road

2011-08-31T23:29:00.000-05:00

Or Close Encounters Of A Country Kind! While taking my walks down our country road, I get to experience many interesting sights. Some nice, some not so nice...my latest close encounter was with a cicada! I went for my walk in the late morning, and on our neighbor's fence post one was "singing" with all his might...

...I went a few feet on down the road, and one came zinging up and hit me right in the eye! Good thing I was wearing my glasses or that would have hurt! BTW- growing up we always called these 'locusts'- I never heard the word 'cicada' until I had been married several years. (and it is pronounced 'si-cay-da')

My scariest encounter was with a skunk! This time I was walking in late evening, not twilight but practically. He was in the ditch about 30 feet off the road- when I saw him I was startled of course and didn't know whether to turn around or keep going! I decided to keep going, and I don't think he ever saw me until I had already passed him. I turned my head when I was past, and he was LOOKING at me...but nothing ever happened. Whew! or that would have been PHEW!!!

In the spring I was beside a wheat field that was still green, and I startled a pheasant out of the shade of the wheat...

Once, while I was on the homebound part of my walk, up the road in front of our house I saw a deer standing in the middle of the road. I was still a long way off, but she suddenly took off running right beside the fence of our property, right past our horse in his pasture, (on the inside of the fence) who never turned his head to look after her! I thought that was funny...

I also have to share the road with a tractor every now and then! Some of these are pretty small machines, but once a HUGE one came by that took up both lanes of the road- I had to step off into the grass.

One of our neighbors has an old Great Dane that is pretty ugly- spotted grey, white, and black, and with red, rheumy eyes. But he is a nice, calm dog- he will come up to me without a sound and let me say hello. He goes out of his yard to do his "dirty work" and does it right on the pavement... Another neighbor has a fenced in yard with a German Shepherd that barkbarkbarks at me and sounds very ferocious, but everyone says he is really a friendly dog- just likes to bark. My neighbors call me "the lady that walks". I've been at it all summer and since it has been such a hot one, sometimes I have ended up going after dark, with a little handheld halogen light that I turn on if a car comes down the road. I really don't like to be out when it is totally dark but I don't like to miss my walking either- it's so easy for me to get out of the habit if I don't do it EVERY day. Sometimes the children will accompany me on their bicycles or scooters. I have worked up just the past two weeks to 4 miles a day! That is, 2 miles in the morning and 2 in the evening, and that has not been EVERY day, but I have done it several times. That's the goal anyway...

(pictures in this post are from flickr.com and google images)

Celebrating Me

2011-08-23T23:41:00.000-05:00

Today has been my birthday!

Backing up a little, I was in Louisiana with Julia over the weekend, and Sunday afternoon I went out to eat- to celebrate my birthday- with my brother, his wife, and their two youngest sons at Red Lobster!

My favorite meal here is Shrimp Scampi, and don't you just love their trademark garlic biscuits?!

Here we are around the table...

my brother Jonathan...

my sister-in-law Cindy and my daughter Julia...

my nephew Colin...

and my nephew Regan with me!

Today, on the really and truly birthday, I had a headache most of the day, so my husband called at lunchtime and asked what I wanted him to bring home for us to eat- I chose Taco Bell! I like their crunchy tacos...

Finally by suppertime I was feeling practically normal so we all got to really go out to eat. We went to a nice Italian restaurant named Zino's- they have wonderful bread and just wonderful Italian food. When we drove up- this is located downtown on one of the brick-paved streets- I thought at first they were closed, because all the cars were parked on a side street. But happily the restaurant was open with just a few patrons, which helps for a quiet meal, which I enjoy! They play big band music, or easy jazz sometimes- it's a relaxing atmosphere. And I got a free treat since it was my birthday!

This was called "cannoli"

It's a crunchy pastry roll filled with

some sort of sweetened creamy cheese and chocolate bits.

The lettering on the plate is

raspberry syrup.

If you're ever in Ponca City,

be sure to experience this fine dining establishment!

What Not To Do On A Hot Summer Day

2011-08-17T16:46:00.001-05:00

In July, in the hottest time of the year, in the hottest part of the day - - - DO NOT TRY TO POUR CONCRETE!

We tried...

Actually, my husband ordered the concrete early in the morning, but things happened to delay the job. We should have been finished around 10 am but were still at it after 1 pm! So miserably hot, we were keeping the water hose on ourselves, not just on the concrete, to keep it from drying out too soon. At one point, hubby thought he'd be going down in a heat stroke...but thankfully none of us did. This is one thing we'll never do again- at least that's what he said!!!

At lunchtime we had to stop and take a break even though you should not stop when in the middle of a job- he sat under the umbrella with Julia- see how beet red her face is! We all got very sunburned- hubby had his hat on the whole time, but the kids waited a little too long to begin wearing theirs.

hamburgers from Burger King

I had no energy to go inside and cook

So take it from us- and don't try it unless you can control the outcome better than we did. But isn't that the way things happen? If something can go wrong, it probably will! ( I didn't get any pictures of David with his red face...) Actually, don't try to pour concrete with only your wife and 2 little children to help you! Hahaha

Great Recipe for Zucchini

2011-08-13T22:22:00.000-05:00

I have found a great recipe for my collection- for using zucchini of course! It comes from allrecipes.com and was submitted by DebiMcG. I have made it twice now, each time tweaking for my own needs. This is really a winner.
Zucchini Herb Casserole

Ingredients

1/3 cup uncooked long grain white rice
2/3 cup water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 pounds zucchini, cubed
1 cup sliced green onions
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/4 teaspoons garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 1/2 cups seeded, chopped tomatoes
2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided

Directions

Combine the rice and water in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 20 minutes, until rice is tender.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a shallow 1 1/2 quart casserole dish.
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat, and cook the zucchini, green onions, and garlic 5 minutes, or until tender. Season with garlic salt, basil, paprika, and oregano. Mix in the cooked rice, tomatoes, and 1 cup cheese. Continue to cook and stir until heated through. Transfer to the prepared casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese.
Bake uncovered 20 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

(this photo is one that another recipe reader submitted at the original site)

Here is the original link

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/zucchini-herb-casserole/detail.aspx

The first time I used this recipe, I used brown rice instead of white, and instead of tomatoes, a pasta sauce. The second time, I used minute rice, and no tomatoes of any sort, and just did it on the stovetop. I liked my first results better, with the tomato-y pasta sauce, and baked in the oven, so the cheese gets browned.

YUMMY!

Summer Tea Party

2011-08-11T22:16:00.000-05:00

Back in July, my sister-in-law Angela hosted a tea party at her 100-year-old home in Missouri! Most of the family on her side were attending the national campmeeting of our church that was held in her locale. It was VERY HOT and the coolness of her home was so refreshing...She has decorated a lot with white and I just love old houses anyway. Only one of the sisters-in-law and her girls missed out.

Here are pictures of the table setting...

Our Hostess!

with Julia...

choosing our goodies...

From left to right, here is Kim, Kathy, Mom,

Cousin Vesta, Aunt Bula Ann, Hostess Angela,

Aunt Erona, Aunt Irene, and ME!

Here's Julia at the overflow table...

...sitting with her cousin Karissa

and her big sister Alison

(this picture is almost too grainy to post,

but I can do no better)

This was a COLD soup,

Chilled Summer Squash Bisque

and it was DELICIOUS!

I had never had a cold soup but I liked it so much

that I got the recipe, and tried it on my husband.

He liked it too, so that says a lot!!!

Angela served several kinds of iced tea, and here is what she had to say about one of the libations...

"I am not a huge sweet tea fan, but this one I LOVE!!! In years past I have gone to Lake Texoma with Kelly O’Dell. This is her grandma’s recipe! Grandma O’Dell is a really good cook! I think she majored in cooking in college!"

We all enjoyed this special mint-infused tea, and requested the recipe! Angela went on to say that the mint she used was started from a cutting she obtained from her husband's cousin Susan, who got THAT cutting from our Grandma Classen's sister, Aunt Anna, which was Cousin Vesta's mother! So we were remembering several grandmas that day! Here is the recipe from Angela for you to try...

Grandma O'Dell's Southern Oklahoma Lemon Mint Sweet Tea

4 Family Tea Bags (I use Luzianne brand.)

12 Sprigs of Fresh Mint

1 Bottle Minute Maid Lemon Concentrate, Thawed (In frozen juice section at grocery store.)

2 C. Sugar

Boil half a tea pot of water. Place 12 Sprigs of Fresh Mint and 4 Family Tea Bags in a glass heat proof bowl. Remove water from heat and pour over Tea Bags and Fresh Mint. Poke as much mint under the water as you can. Cover bowl with lid or plate to steep. (15 min.) While tea is steeping, put sugar and thawed lemon concentrate in pitcher. After tea has steeped, pour on top of lemon sugar mixture and stir until sugar has dissolved. Add enough water to make 1 gallon of tea. Chill and serve.

And here is the cold soup recipe, which comes from the Williams-Sonoma Soup Cookbook.

Chilled Summer Squash Bisque

6 TBSP Olive Oil

3 Leeks, Including Tender Green Parts, Finely Chopped

6 Summer Squash, Trimmed and Thinly Sliced (I used 1 Lg. Zuke and 1 Large Yellow instead of the tiny stuff like in the photo of this cookbook. It says that pattypan are good too.)

4 Cloves Garlic

8 C. Chicken Stock or Broth

2 C. Buttermilk

8 TBSP Fresh Basil, Chopped

4 TBSP Fresh Chives, Chopped

2 TBSP Fresh Lemon Juice

Salt and Pepper to Taste

Warm oil in large pot. Add the leeks and sauté until softened, 5-7 minutes. Add the squash and sauté until brown, about 5 minutes. (Mine did not get brown!) Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer.

Add the stock, cover and cook until the squash slices are tender, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat.

In a blender or food processor, puree the soup in batches until smooth. Transfer soup to serving bowl. Let cool to room temperature and cover and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 4 hours.

Just before serving, stir in the buttermilk, basil, chives and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serves 12

From Williams-Sonoma “Soup” Cookbook

When I made the soup, I cut the recipe at least in half. IT IS VERY GOOD! If you decide to try it, please leave a comment and tell me if you enjoyed it! It's a great way to use up some ZUCCHINI! I used all zucchini when I followed the recipe.

I Prayed!

2011-08-07T17:07:00.000-05:00

Here's one Christian-based news article about The Response USA Prayer Rally that happened yesterday (Saturday August 6) I am cutting and pasting from http://www.onenewsnow.com/Culture/Default.aspx?id=1406832

Thousands gather, thousands pray

Russ Jones - OneNewsNow - 8/6/2011 6:50:00 PM

HOUSTON, TX - According to some estimates, more than 50,000 people ascended on Reliant Stadium in Houston Saturday for the anticipated "The Response" prayer rally. And as expected, various groups were on hand to protest the event.

Inside the stadium, believers sang with arms outstretched in prayer -- and some wept -- as worship music was played and prayers were lifted up. Various speakers led in prayer, among them Dr. James Dobson and his wife Shirley, American Family Association founder Dr. Donald Wildmon, and Texas Governor Rick Perry, who initiated the solemn gathering.

During his time of prayer, Perry said: "Father, our heart breaks for America. We see discord at home. We see fear in the marketplace. We see anger in the halls of government. And as a nation, we have forgotten who made us, who protects us, who blesses us."

"We pray for our nation's leaders, Lord, for parents, for pastors, for the generals, for governors, that you would inspire them in these difficult times," he added.

Just outside Reliant Stadium, however, were several groups protesting the event, including pro-"gay marriage" groups and organizations like the Freedom From Religion Foundation. Ever since Governor Perry had announced the rally, liberal organizations have cried foul.

Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-founder of FFRF, told OneNewsNow that the American Family Association -- a sponsor of "The Response" -- should do its own work and not ask the state to promote its views.

"We said it would be fine if you came here in an individual capacity," she said of the governor, "but he was misusing his public office to promote sectarian religion and a particular agenda of a sectarian Christian organization -- and that is a constitutional no-no."

But Jim Garlow, lead pastor of Skyline Wesleyan Church in San Diego and a member of the leadership team for "The Response," contends Perry has the same rights as any other citizen.

"Well, it's intriguing to me. The Constitution nowhere says that when you run for office you lose your right of freedom of speech or freedom of religious expression, freedom of religion," Garlow stated. "He has that as much as any private citizen; he can call anyone to prayer if he wants to."

A Houston judge evidently agreed, ruling recently against the Freedom From Religion Foundation, which tried to block Governor Perry from participating in the event.

Some Good News!

2011-07-29T23:28:00.000-05:00

Copying and pasting from CitizenLink.com

Good News: Texas Governor, Prayer Rally Win Legal Challenge

by Catherine Snow

The U.S. District Court in Houston threw out a lawsuit on Thursday filed by the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), which sought to bar Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s involvement in a national prayer event.

Citing FFRF’s lack of legal standing and a 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in favor of the National Day of Prayer, Judge Gray Miller readily dismissed the case.

FFRF said it plans to keep fighting by either appealing to the 5th Circuit or reconfigure the case to be heard again.

The suit had asked the court to declare as unconstitutional Perry’s proclamation and involvement in “The Response,” an Aug. 6 privately organized — but open to the public — prayer event to be held at Reliant Stadium in Houston.

Eric Bearse, spokesman for event said, “This is a tremendous victory for the First Amendment, and the right of any and all Americans to assemble and pray without interference from forces hostile to faith.”

“The swiftness of the court’s decision shows how ridiculous this case is,” Tim Wildmon, president the American Family Association, said. “AFA is very thankful for Liberty Institute for handling this case and championing religious freedom for America.”

Liberty Institute’s President and CEO Kelly Shackelford said the ruling was a “complete and total victory for freedom and the First Amendment.”

“This was an attack on the First Amendment rights of every American,” he added, “and it failed miserably.”

http://www.citizenlink.com/2011/07/29/good-news-texas-governor-prayer-rally-win-legal-challenge/

This IS still America, my home sweet home- I am praying against the spiritual wickedness in high places! God defend the right! (and I'm not talking about the 'political right', but the plain old R I G H T.)

Even More About Zucchini

2011-07-29T18:44:00.000-05:00

Here's another great recipe for zucchini that I found- this time by following up some interesting recipes in our Oklahoma Living news/mag from the electric co-op. I tore out the recipe page of this month's issue because it was about grilling. Laura Araujo writes this and I saw the link to her webpage, Manna And Quail. I thought- hey that's from the Bible -and decided to look it up online. http://mannaandquail.wordpress.com/ She has a nice-looking site and some neat-sounding recipes! I'm glad I found out about it.

So this recipe is called Low-Carb Lasagna! Instead of the pasta noodles, use zucchini cut the long way!

I tried this a couple of days ago and was extremely pleased with the results! So I recommend it to YOU, dear reader! LOL
http://mannaandquail.wordpress.com/2011/05/31/low-carb-lasagna/

Low-carb Lasagna

3 large zucchini
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
1 pound mushrooms (optional)
1 pound turkey sausage
15 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese
1 egg
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Marinara sauce
8 ounces shredded mozzarella

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Cut the zucchini lengthwise into 1/8 inch thick slices. Place the slices on baking sheets, drizzle them with olive oil and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Roast the zucchini until it’s tender, 15-20 minutes. Slice the mushrooms and saute them in a large skillet over high heat in a little bit of olive oil. (Pre-cooking the mushrooms will prevent them from giving off water inside the lasagna.) Cook the mushrooms until they’re browned. Remove them from the pan and use the skillet to brown the turkey sausage. In a small bowl, mix the ricotta cheese, the egg, the herbs, the black pepper and the Parmesan cheese together.

To assemble the lasagna, coat the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking pan with a thin layer of the marinara sauce. Cover the marina with a third of the zucchini “noodles.” Spread half of the ricotta over the zucchini, cover with half of the turkey sausage, half of the mushrooms and cover with marinara sauce. Repeat this process with a second layer. Finish with a layer of zucchini covered with marinara and topped with mozzarella. Bake the lasagna until it’s heated through and the cheese is browned, about 30 minutes. Allow the lasagna to stand for 15 minutes before serving to give it time to set up.

In browsing Laura's site, I found another VERY INTERESTING item- - -she titled it 30 Ice Creams for my 30th birthday. Does that grab your attention like it did mine? ! Here's what she says:

"The count down has begun! In less than a month, I will be turning the big 3-0!

I had been trying to think of something fun to do to celebrate the milestone. Since ice cream is my favorite food, I decided that over the next month, I will make 30 flavors of homemade ice cream. On my birthday, we’re going to have homemade pizza and do an ice cream tasting to rate our favorites."

How fun is that!!!! I'd like to do that, too!

http://mannaandquail.wordpress.com/2011/06/27/30-ice-creams-for-my-30th-birthday/

I'm glad I took the time to look up Laura's page-I will visit again!

Cooking with Julia (my)Child-Episode 2

2011-07-26T16:06:00.000-05:00

ZucchiniZucchiniZucchiniZucchiniZucchini...you get the idea.

Julia and I decided to try another new recipe for zucchini- this one comes from Martha Stewart. http://www.marthastewart.com/314971/lemon-zucchini-cornmeal-cookies Yes these have cornmeal, zucchini, powdered sugar, butter- -reminds me of a cookie you might serve with hot or iced tea! They turned out tasty, a nice new way to use up the ZUKES.

Julia would hardly let me do anything for her this time!

"MOM, let ME do it!"

adding the butter...

...powdered sugar...

again, this is a recipe mixed entirely by hand

we substituted lemon flavoring

for the lemon zest

now for the finely grated zucchini...

HMMMMM.....

the recipe makes a very soft dough

TA-DAAA!

Here's the recipe from Martha Stewart

Lemon-Zucchini Cornmeal Cookies

(yields about 25)

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon packed lemon zest

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup flour

1/2 cup cornmeal

1 medium zucchini, finely grated

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

In a large bowl, mix butter and sugar with a (wooden) spoon until pale and fluffy. Stir in vanilla, lemon zest, and salt. Add flour and cornmeal and mix until crumbly. Add zucchini and stir until dough forms.

Drop by rounded tablespoons 2 inches apart on two parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until cookies are light golden brown at edges, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool completely on wire racks.

I think this cookie would not be harmed by adding a thin icing glaze.

The apron Julia is wearing came from my mother's mother, and is probably over 50 years old...

It's Raining!!!

2011-07-24T19:47:00.000-05:00

Praise the Lord it's raining here!

After sooooo long!

Shall we go dance in it?!!!

(this picture from Google Images)

Respond to The Response!

2011-07-24T16:23:00.001-05:00

for more information, visit

http://theresponseusa.com/

Praying In America

2011-07-19T00:07:00.000-05:00

Here's a "READ" that I have to pass on to my blogging buddies- I am copying and pasting and you can also go to the link for yourself.

Texas Governor Doing What the Founding Fathers Did- and Getting Sued For It

July 14, 2011

Texas Governor Rick Perry has called all state governors as well as President Obama to join him in declaring August 6, 2011 as a Day of Prayer and Fasting for our Nation to seek God’s guidance and wisdom in addressing the issues facing our communities states and nation. A statement on the Governor’s website reads:

"Given the trials that beset our nation and world, from the global economic downturn to natural disasters, the lingering danger of terrorism and continued debasement of our culture, I believe it is time to convene the leaders from each of our United States in a day of prayer and fasting, like that described in the book of Joel," Gov. Perry said. "I urge all Americans of faith to pray on that day for the healing of our country, the rebuilding of our communities and the restoration of enduring values as our guiding force."

Not to let any good deed go unpunished, the Freedom from Religion Foundation has filed a federal lawsuit challenging the governor’s proclamation violates the Establishment clause of the US Constitution by showing preference to evangelical Christian religious beliefs.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/07/13/religious-freedom-group-sues-gov-perry-over-planned-all-day-prayer-event/#ixzz1S6vjRWnq While agreeing that the Governor has invited “all citizens” to the event, Freedom from Religion co-director Dan Barker states the event is “deeply offensive to many citizens, as well as to our secular government.”

Our Founding Fathers would tend to disagree with Mr. Barker:

AS the safety and prosperity of nations ultimately and essentially depend on the protection and blessing of Almighty God; and the national acknowledgment of this truth is not only an indispensable duty which the people owe to Him, but a duty whose natural influence is favorable to the promotion of that morality and piety, without which social happiness cannot exist, nor the blessings of a free government be enjoyed;… I HAVE therefore thought it fit to recommend, that Wednesday, the 9th day of May next be observed throughout the United States, as a day of Solemn Humiliation, Fasting and Prayer; That the citizens of these states, abstaining on that day from their customary worldly occupations, offer their devout addresses to the Father of Mercies, agreeably to those forms or methods which they have severally adopted as the most suitable and becoming:

John Adams, Second President of the United States in a National Declaration on 03/23/1798

Whereas the Congress of the United States, by a joint resolution of the two Houses, have signified a request, that a day may be recommended, to be observed by the People of the United States, with religious solemnity, as a day of pubic Humiliation, and Prayer; and whereas such a recommendation will enable the several religious denominations and societies so disposed, to offer, at one and the same time, their common vows and adorations to Almighty God…

James Madison, Fourth President of the United States in a National Declaration on 07/09/1812

It is therefore recommended to the several states to set apart the THIRTEENTH day of DECEMBER next, to be religiously observed as a day of THANKSGIVING and PRAYER; that all the people may assemble on that day with grateful hearts to celebrate the praises of our glorious Benefactor, to confess our manifold sins, to offer up our most fervent supplications to the God of all grace that it may please Him to pardon our offense, and incline our hearts for the future…

Thomas McKean, President of Congress, signer of Declaration of Independence, 10/26/1781

WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; and whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me "to recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness."

George Washington, First President of the United States in a National Declaration 10/3/1789

The Founding Fathers were so emphatic in their belief that that prayer was to be an integral part of daily public life and public service that by 1815 they had called the people to pray 1,400 times!

The next time someone claims that “prayer and fasting is an ineffectual use of government resources”, feel free to remind them that originally Congress thought it was such an effectual use of time that they began every session with two continuous hours of prayer. And be thankful for people such as Governor Perry who shrug off frivolous lawsuits such as this stating “The pending litigation will not affect plans for the prayer event.”

We would like to thank our friends at Wall Builders for the above resources. If you would like more information on the principles of religious freedom upon which our nation was founded, please take a moment to view the original documents on their website.

http://manhattandeclaration.org/the-movement/blog/11-07-14/Texas_Governor_Doing_What_the_Founding_Fathers_Did-_and_Getting_Sued_For_It.aspx

More About Zucchini

2011-07-14T19:25:00.001-05:00

Practically every day, the children ask, "What's for lunch (or supper) ?" My standard reply is, "Well, we're having zucchini and ..." I've been trying out new and different recipes for all this garden bounty, and researching whether or not I should try freezing some of it. I happened on a tip from the REAL Julia Child at this website http://www.suite101.com/content/freeze-zucchini-successfully-a144254 So this evening I am following the directions given, and NOT COOKING ANY FOR SUPPER TODAY!!!

Julia Child

My Aunt Alma was a great cook and she followed Julia Child- I just recently listened to a book-on-tape about Julia and the background of writing her book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Quite Interesting!

BTW- do you know how to grow a baseball bat? Just leave your zucchini alone for a couple of days, and you can pick one right in your back yard!

Here's some fun pictures of a huge zucchini I found at http://growingchefs.blogspot.com/2007/08/worlds-largest-zucchini.html

Thanks for these fun pictures, Annie!

growingchefsblogspot.com

Oh yes...we fed our monster zucchini to the horse...

Butterfly Girl

2011-07-14T08:53:00.000-05:00

Julia caught a beautiful butterfly in her net...she brought it inside the house to show me! I was surprised that it did not try to fly away while we had it indoors...

Apology and Praise

2011-07-09T21:28:00.000-05:00

A few posts ago, I mentioned that my son and I had to go to six stores before we found a pair of suitable Sunday shoes...I realize that may have sounded like I was complaining! (Actually I was) and I must retract that to say,,, "I am thankful that in America I have the privilege to go to so many stores freely...I'm thankful for the availability of goods! I'm thankful for all the opportunities here! "

This evening at 7:30 pm it was 107 degrees F outside- our grass is the color of wheat stubble. But our oldest son and his wife were with us last night and today until lunchtime! They brought us a watermelon and it is cooling in the 'fridge right now! We had grilled hamburgers and crinkly potato fries for supper...then early this morning Ben and my husband and 2 little ones went fishing at the neighbors' pond again- they had a little more success this time! Breakfast was pancakes and little sausage links and oranges! For lunch we had cold sandwiches and HOMEMADE ice cream and cherry pie! I did not take any pictures but here is one of Ben and Diana from last summer, taken just a week after they got married. They still look just the same! LOL In just a little over a month, they will celebrate their First Anniversary!!!

Some more things I'm thankful for!! -- good, safe water! even though we are on the rural water system and have to pay for all the usage, when I hear about how most of the world does not have access to safe drinking water, I am happy to be able to pay for ours. Watering our garden has made our bill go up considerably, and we can't afford to water the lawn, but still... I'm thankful. And AIR CONDITIONING! I thank the Lord nearly every day for our cool air! and the means to pay for it...So thankful my husband is not out of work, and that even though he has to have an outdoors-type job, he is strong and healthy and blessed to provide for our family- - and WILLING to do so, even! So thankful that God has turned our "fortunes" around after almost 10 years of barely making it financially- even though we have a ways to go in this area, God is providing after we had to wait on Him- He did come through! It's hard to be patient, isn't it? But we are always glad when we persevere in trusting God. "After you have suffered a little..." I praise God for the hope and LIFE in JESUS CHRIST.

Looking forward to some Cold Watermelon!!!

This cute photo is from

http://www.momecentric.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/watermelon.jpg