My Heart My Home

Friday's Fave Five

For more Friday's Fave Fives, go here. Join the fun!!

1. Snow. There is beautiful snow falling today. It doesn't happen often here in southern Oklahoma and we have already had what we called a blizzard back around Christmas. And now a gentle falling of little white flakes today! We're staying in as much as possible but will have to get out later this afternoon and evening. It is very nice to enjoy it all toasty and warm in the house! It's so beautiful.

2. My first proofreading jobs. I got to thinking a while back about jobs that I could do at home. I spent many years doing childcare as well as transcription work from my house, but I'm presently living with my family in a very small house and my wrists aren't what they used to be when it comes to extended typing/transcription work. I remembered how much I love to proof and correct the typewritten word and, lo and behold, a business idea was born. lol. This week a cousin and a friend asked me to help proof an e-book and a news release and I am so excited! My first paying jobs and I'm well on my way to a flourishing business! Or at least enough extra income to buy a Sunday family meal at a sit-down restaurant every once in a while. ha! (And I'm still working on the planner idea, and another one, too...)

3. Good gravy. Several years ago, I used to buy the packaged white gravy mixes to serve my kids with their toast for breakfast and they LOVED it, especially my middle child. I have since rebuked the devil over those packaged mixes (just kidding) and refuse to buy them with all their hard-to-read ingredients pretending to be food fit for human consumption. (Sorry, just a teeny rant. If you love those mixes, don't mind me.) This week, I made some homemade sausage gravy and it was a hit!! We are finally eating gravy again and it feels so good.

4. A coat for my daughter. A friend gifted my daughter with a coat that didn't fit my friend very well this week and what a blessing! My daughter (age 12) has been wearing a hand-me-down coat that was found and unclaimed at my parents' house a couple of years ago and she never really liked wearing it. It was not fashionable for a 12-year-old girl (it might have even originally been a boys' coat), but she is very gracious and non-demanding and just sweet like that, and wore it obediently anyway. The new coat my friend gave her IS fashionable for a 12-year-old girl and we are feeling very, very blessed.

5. The fact that I found 4 good things to put on this list. hehe. It's not been a great week here in the overall scheme of life and I came very close to passing on this week's Fave Five, but as I started thinking, I did remember that the week was not all bad and bleh and boo-hooie.

This post linked to:

Friday's Fave Five at Living to tell the Story

Tuesday Tastiness #10 - Egg Spinach Casserole

I am the master of food clip art and homemade food pics, aren't I? Maybe not. But I should be getting better soon. We can only hope.

I got this recipe from a homeschooling message board a couple of years ago (thanks, Sheryl!) and enjoy making it as a meatless supper once a month or so. You can add bacon or sausage if you wish, but since my purpose for making it is to go meatless and save those dollars, I don't add it in very often.

I make it in an 8 x 8 dish for me, my husband, and oldest son since our other two kids usually just prefer scrambled eggs that night, but you can easily double it for a 9 x 13.

Egg Spinach Casserole

1 10 oz pkg of frozen chopped spinach

2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded (or whatever cheese you like)

1/2 onion, chopped fine

2 T flour

4 eggs, beaten (Free-range, farm-fresh are best if you have them. Delicious and good for you!)

1 cup milk (You know me by now - raw is my preference when I can get it)

salt and pepper to taste

Prepare frozen spinach as directed on package. Squeeze out moisture very well and allow to cool.

Mix together cheese, onion, and flour.

Beat eggs and milk together. Add salt and pepper.

Combine all ingredients and bake in 8 x 8 casserole dish at 350 for approximately 45 minutes or until knife comes out clean when inserted in center.

Simple, easy, and delicious for a quick supper meal. Try it!

This post linked to:

The Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap

 

Works For Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family

Real Food Wednesday at Kelly the Kitchen Kop

 

Looking for Tuesday Tastiness? - Hang On...

Sorry! I need to put off Tuesday Tastiness until tomorrow. I am excited that I have my first proofreading job to work on this evening (!!) and my day today has been just way more crowded than I like.

See you tomorrow!!

Paula

clip art here

Friday's Fave Five

It's Friday again! What a blessing to wake up to a new day this morning.

This has been a week of changes, yet again, for our family. We're making adjustments and having to reassess and re-think. Change is good. Change is good. Change is good...

My five favorite things for this week were:

1. Beginning a new Bible Study. I have teamed up with a friend to do A Heart Like His with Beth Moore. We are watching her on VHS tapes with big hair in a small, intimate room full of women and no hint of high-tech, computer-aided equipment. Just Beth and her Bible. Welcome to the past. lol. But it promises to be a wonderful study and we are very much looking forward to the next few weeks of learning how to obtain A Heart Like His. I can't wait.

2. The end of math. My high school (homeschooling) son has completed all his math requirements as of yesterday. If I'd had a dollar, I would have thrown a party. You have no idea how monumental and freeing that moment was when he closed the math book to never, ever, ever open it again. Our home is calm. There is a new spring to our steps. We are happy, elated, beside ourselves with joy.

3. Beautiful weather. Many areas around the country are experiencing blizzards and all sorts of bad weather conditions. Haiti still lies devastated in the after-effects of an earthquake. But here in south central Oklahoma, we have had near-perfect weather for the past few days, almost Spring-like. I've even had the front door and windows open to let some fresh air blow through the house. I'm sure it will change soon, but this week I am enjoying tweety-birds and sunshine.

4. My heating pad. For some reason my back has been hurting this week. I'm sure it's not because I'm terribly out of shape and have been picking up pecans in my yard or anything. At any rate, I've been sitting with a heating pad on my back and it feels wonderful. I could just sit here forever. Maybe I will. At least until I have to get up and do something more physically constructive than writing a blog post.

5. Raw milk. I'm sure that my preference for raw milk raises some concern for many of my readers. (Did you notice how I slipped in the word "many" as if I actually have "many" readers? It could happen.) I promise to address that concern someday and give explanation as to why it is so important to me to drink milk as God created it rather than milk that has been "improved" by man and technology. But for today's Fave Five, I will simply say YAY! The cow has finally calved (said as if I know what I'm saying) and I'm back to buying my favorite kind of milk.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

This post linked to

Friday's Fave Five at Living to tell the Story

Works For Me Wednesday - My Grocery Shopping List

Even though I am doing what I can to branch out and purchase more of my grocery items from food co-ops, the local farmers market, and health food stores, the sad fact is that many of my purchases still have to be made at the most cost-efficient cheapest place in town, Walmart.

To make my food shopping experience as quick and painless as possible, I have put together my shopping list based on the food products I usually purchase ACCORDING TO STORE AISLE. I place check marks by each item that I need to buy during that shopping trip. After checking off the items I need for each week's menus, I can review my already-typed-list-of-items-usually-purchased and make sure nothing has been forgotten. It can be folded in half with two columns showing on each side and is very convenient to sit on top of my purse in the buggy (the Okie word for "cart").

I love this method of grocery shopping! I can be sure that, for the most part, nothing has been forgotten to add to the list. I never have to review a hand-written list multiple times to make sure I haven't missed something on an aisle I have already been down. I never have to work my way back through the store to grab something I did miss.

It definitely WORKS FOR ME!

This post linked to:

Works For Me Wednesday at We Are THAT Family

Tuesday Tastiness #9 - Kings Ranch Chicken (healthier version)

I love this week's recipe! I modified it from the Ranch House Chicken Casserole recipe I found on Crystal's website. I have thoroughly enjoyed everything I have learned from this homesteading mama as I search for ways to modify my lifestyle and cooking. 

The biggest change from a typical Kings Ranch Chicken recipe is the homemade sauce that replaces the canned "cream of..." soups.  There is very little nutritional value in those little cans, but there is wonderful nutritional value in the homemade sauce below! And it tastes delicious!

Kings Ranch Chicken (healthier version)

2 T olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

1/2 large green pepper, choppped

1/2 chicken (cooked, deboned, and cubed)

5 cups (approx. 1 lb.) shredded cheddar cheese (or whatever you like or have on hand. I use a lot, so you may want to cut yours back to a smaller amount.)

12 corn tortillas (someday I will make my own and see how well they work!)

1 can Rotel (we use mild)

Sauce (see below)

Sauce:

6 T butter (grass-fed raw is best, but use what you have)

6 T whole wheat flour (or whatever you use)

2 T chili powder

1 - 1 1/2 t salt or seasoning salt (depends on whether or not your chicken broth/stock is already salted)

Pepper, to taste

1 cup chicken broth (I use the broth from the pot I cooked the chicken in)

2 1/4 cups milk (I use raw - straight from the cow - when I'm able)

In a frying pan, heat olive oil and saute onions and green pepper until soft. Stir in cooked chicken and set aside.

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add flour, chili powder, salt, and pepper and stir with spoon or whisk until the mixture is smooth. Add chicken broth and milk. Turn up heat if necessary and stir until the sauce is thick and bubbly. Remove from heat.

To assemble, layer half of the chicken mixture on the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish and cover with half the tortillas, half the sauce and half the cheese. Add the rest of the ingredients in the same order. (Make sure the tortillas are completely covered with the sauce to avoid making them tough after cooking.) Cover with Rotel, using about half the liquid.

Bake, uncovered, at 350 for one hour.

Serve with salsa, chips, sour cream, avocado, salad, corn, tomatoes, etc.

Enjoy!

This post linked to

Real Food Wednesday at Cheeseslave

Jesus Calling Devotional

For those of you who have never seen or read the Jesus Calling devotional by Sarah Young, let me just say you are really missing out on a blessing.

I was gifted the book a little over a year ago and it has seen me through many a dark day and night since that time. Short daily devotionals are spoken to you as if they are straight from the mouth of God. Sarah Young knows the voice of God and knows how to convey His words back to her reader in a most beautiful way.

I would never want to infringe on copyright matters, but I will post today's devotional word here simply to let you in on the sweetness that is Jesus Calling...

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January 13

Try to view each day as an adventure, carefully planned out by your Guide. Instead of staring into the day that is ahead of you, attempting to program it according to your will, be attentive to Me and to all that I have prepared for you. Thank Me for this day of life, recognizing that it is a precious, unrepeatable gift. Trust that I am with you each moment, whether you sense My Presence or not. A thankful, trusting attitude helps you to see events in your life from My perspective.

A life lived close to Me will never be dull or predictable. Expect each day to contain surprises! Resist your tendency to search for the easiest route through the day. Be willing to follow wherever I lead. No matter how steep or treacherous the path before you, the safest place to be is by My side.

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Isn't that just beautifully comforting?

And the beauty of the book doesn't stop with the words. The book itself is a treasure and a pleasure to the senses. It feels nice and is soothing to hold and look at and read through.

It is on my amazon sidebar and if you are so inclined to purchase a copy or four, I would be pleased as punch for you to order through my blog. But my main purpose today is not to sell a book but to bless a soul! I hope yours has been blessed today!

This post linked to Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family

Tuesday Tastiness #8 - Honey Applesauce Cake

Well, I'm excited to be posting Tuesday Tastiness recipes again! This week is a cake that I love to make because the only sweetener used is honey and I can use my home-canned pearsauce in place of the applesauce and feel very Laura Ingalls Wilder-ish in my modern-day kitchen. (And if this blog-gig doesn't work out for me, I can always become a food photographer, right?)

Honey Applesauce Cake

1 cup honey (I use local purchased from a beekeeper in our town)

1/2 cup butter, softened (real grass-fed butter is the most healthy!)

3 eggs, beaten (I have used 2 with good results) (farm-fresh, free-range eggs are best!)

1 t. vanilla

1 cup applesauce (I use pearsauce I make and freeze/can from a neighbor's pear trees)

2 cups flour (I use unbleached when I bake. Even fresh-ground  whole-wheat is a little too "earthy" for me in a dessert)

1/2 t. salt

1 t. baking soda

1/2 t. nutmeg

1/4 t. powdered cloves

1 t. cinnamon

1/4 t. powdered ginger

1 cup chopped nuts (I use pecans from our trees!)

Cream honey and butter. Blend in eggs, vanilla, and applesauce. In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients, then stir gradually into creamed mixture and add pecans. Put in a greased 9 x 13 pan and bake at 325 for 35-40 minutes (till a toothpick comes out clean).

I don't put an icing on this cake for my family, but you could sprinkle with powdered sugar if you need that little something extra. Or serve with vanilla ice cream.

Very, very good!

This post linked to

Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap

Real Food Wednesday at Kelly the Kitchen Kop

Free e-Book - Putting the Fun Back in DysFUNction

My cyber-friend, Theresa Lode, has a new e-book out and is offering it for FREE (limited time offer) in exchange for subscribing to her blog. HOW COOL IS THAT??

Go here and check it out!

Friday's Fave Five

I'm back!!

It has been a nice break for me but, boy, does readership go down when you're not blogging! And I didn't have that much to begin with, so now I feel like I'm starting all over. But that's okay! It's the beginning of a new year and I'm ready to come back to the blog world.

1. Christine. Since my blog break, Christine has checked on me several times and I can't tell you how much I appreciate that. I have not even been good at responding to her while I have been on my break and she keeps letting me know that she's thinking of me and praying for me. It is so wonderful to know that a new cyber-friend is there for me and thinking about me. THANK YOU, CHRISTINE!!

2. A nice slow week for catching up at home. This has been a wonderful week for me to spend at home without too many outside commitments. I have so much calling for my attention and when I spend days out and about, I don't feel like I have accomplished very much on my to-do list here at home. This week I have been able to catch up on a few things and organize (mostly in my head) how I'm going to get some other things caught up and finished. I feel like it has been a productive week instead of a harried one full of other commitments and I love that!

3. I'm writing a blog post! I was beginning to wonder if that was over going to happen again! Exciting!

4. I have a "word" for 2010. It is HOPE. I have lost sight of it more and more as the past few years have gone by and I want to do my best to re-gain it this year.

5. I found my original planner pages this week! A few short years ago, I decided I wanted to create and market homeschool planners. I spent countless hours creating planner pages, printing them out, binding them and marketing them. Business was pretty fair considering I didn't have many funds to work with for advertisement, and Facebook and blogging weren't viable marketing options at the time. I gave it up after just a few months when printing off my printer became too big of an expenditure and I couldn't find a good option elsewhere. BUT I decided a few months ago I would like to try it again by marketing e-planners. Send me payment via paypal and I send you a planner via email. Love that! But one small problem. We had gotten a new computer and the original planner pages were on the old one somewhere in the dark recesses of the shed out back. My husband found the old computer for me this week when he took the Christmas decorations back out to the shed. We dusted it off, and prayed that it still worked well enough to find the pages and transfer them to the new computer. After some trial and error and the assistance of our 12-year-old daughter, they have all been successfully transferred over. Now all that is left is taking the pages and combining them into one document (I wasn't too organized apparently during my first business endeavor), updating some areas and making a few changes, creating a pdf document from it, and hopefully selling a few. It may take a while because I have "several" projects and duties lined up in addition to that one, but it will eventually get done and I'm excited about it!

This post is linked to Friday's Fave Five at Living to tell the Story