I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with many happy memories. Of course, with it being Thanksgiving week, I've spent a lot of time reflecting on the things I have to be thankful for. There are many. The older I get, the more I notice that the things that make me the happiest are the simple things in life.
Yesterday was such a beautiful day! After stuffing ourselves, we spent the afternoon relaxing with family and friends. We played yahtzee. My dice were not cooperating with me but I didn't care. We went for a walk down the drive. It was absolutely gorgeous out there. The leaves are changing colors right now and it was so beautiful and peaceful. It was as if God was taking a stroll with us. :-)
Today we decided to teach our youngest son how to play Go Fish. Oh my goodness! He is so cute trying to hold cards. Then my husband wanted to teach me to play Texas Hold 'Em. Let's just say professional poker playing is not in my future. I had so much fun though.
I've caught myself several times in this last week watching my boys playing together, talking, wrestling, snuggling . It doesn't matter how old they are getting, I will never tire of watching them. This time is so precious.
The holidays are bittersweet for me. I know for many it is a difficult time of year. I think of all those that are no longer here, wishing they were here to share this time with us. But I am so grateful for the years we had together. We will see them again some day.
This has been a pretty difficult year for us in many respects. But even with that, I still think of the many, many blessings that we have been given. I am so grateful for all that God has entrusted to me. So whether I'm singing hymns with our sweet, sweet church family or sitting in my recliner crocheting while my hubby is watching the football game or watching my little one picking wildflowers and adding to his rock collection, or watching my oldest salivate over homemade pumpkin bread, I choose to rejoice. Life is good, God is great and I am one very blessed individual. :-)
God bless!
Carrie
Pumpkin Bread(my mama's recipe)
3 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons nutmeg
3 cups sugar
Mix all these together. Then add:
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup oil
2/3 cup water
2 cups pumpkin
Mix together and then bake at 350degrees for 1 hour and 10-15 minutes. (I bake mine in a bundt pan).
This is so good. It's very moist and one of our family favorites. I hope you enjoy it!
Friday, November 23, 2012
Monday, November 12, 2012
Free Books
Thank you to all of our military past and present and their families for their service to our country and the sacrifices they have made. Happy Veteran's Day!
I promised some info on free books the other day so here you go....I love to read! I love free stuff! So when Micah told me about a program he had signed up for where you get free books, I thought this sounds too good to be true. It's not though. It's free to sign up. The only requirement is that once you read the book you have to write a review of it and post it. :-) Don't fret about the reviews either. There is nothing to them. You don't have to write it a specific way. There are no special requirements that you must have in the review. You just have to put a note at the end that you received the book for free in exchange for writing the review. They don't care if your review is favorable or not. You could hate the book and write about that. LOL!
If you like to read, I definitely suggest checking out these programs. You even get to pick out which book you receive. There are all varieties of books. My favorite is Christian Fiction. Once you've submitted your review to them, then you can sign up to get another free book. I'm going to sign up myself now that I have my own blog. (Until now, I've been doing it for Micah's blog. :-)
Here are the links for the free programs:
http://booksneeze.com/
http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/bloggingforbooks/
http://www.dorrancebookstore.com/doborete.html
I thought I'd post a copy of one of my reviews here to give you an idea of what they're like. But I want to emphasize there is no right or wrong. Do your own thing with it. :-) Hope you check out this program. I've gotten several books now and have totally enjoyed it!
This book was Whispers in the Wind by Lauraine Snelling.
Twenty year old Cassie Lockwood has been the star of a Wild West Show since she was very young. Traveling from place to place with the other people in the show has given her a sense of family, especially after her parents deaths. The show is all she has, that is until she finds out that it is bankrupt. Her “uncle” has been managing the money, but failed to mention to anyone that things were not going so well. His announcement that they were breaking up the show and all going their separate ways was a shock to all.
Cassie does the only thing she knows to do. She gathers her belongings and along with two close friends from the show, Chief, and Micah, sets out to find the valley her father had always talked about. It had been her father's dream to settle there some day and raise horses.
After many days journeying, and many lessons on how to fend for herself, Cassie and her party arrive in the valley, with animals and wagon and one additional person, Runs Like a Deer, that they picked up along the way, with them. Imagine her surprise to find a family already living on the land. Mavis Engstrom, her daughter and two grown sons have been living in the valley for years now and developed the land into a working ranch. Cassie's arrival creates a difficult situation for Mavis and forces her to uncover some long buried secrets. Between the distrust from Mavis's eldest son and the tension in town towards Cassie's Indian friends, she's uncertain what she should do. She learns though, that God has a way of working things out in His timing. We just have to listen to the Whispers in the Wind for they will guide us each step of the way.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through a book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
I hope you all have a blessed week!
Carrie
I promised some info on free books the other day so here you go....I love to read! I love free stuff! So when Micah told me about a program he had signed up for where you get free books, I thought this sounds too good to be true. It's not though. It's free to sign up. The only requirement is that once you read the book you have to write a review of it and post it. :-) Don't fret about the reviews either. There is nothing to them. You don't have to write it a specific way. There are no special requirements that you must have in the review. You just have to put a note at the end that you received the book for free in exchange for writing the review. They don't care if your review is favorable or not. You could hate the book and write about that. LOL!
If you like to read, I definitely suggest checking out these programs. You even get to pick out which book you receive. There are all varieties of books. My favorite is Christian Fiction. Once you've submitted your review to them, then you can sign up to get another free book. I'm going to sign up myself now that I have my own blog. (Until now, I've been doing it for Micah's blog. :-)
Here are the links for the free programs:
http://booksneeze.com/
http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/bloggingforbooks/
http://www.dorrancebookstore.com/doborete.html
I thought I'd post a copy of one of my reviews here to give you an idea of what they're like. But I want to emphasize there is no right or wrong. Do your own thing with it. :-) Hope you check out this program. I've gotten several books now and have totally enjoyed it!
This book was Whispers in the Wind by Lauraine Snelling.
Twenty year old Cassie Lockwood has been the star of a Wild West Show since she was very young. Traveling from place to place with the other people in the show has given her a sense of family, especially after her parents deaths. The show is all she has, that is until she finds out that it is bankrupt. Her “uncle” has been managing the money, but failed to mention to anyone that things were not going so well. His announcement that they were breaking up the show and all going their separate ways was a shock to all.
Cassie does the only thing she knows to do. She gathers her belongings and along with two close friends from the show, Chief, and Micah, sets out to find the valley her father had always talked about. It had been her father's dream to settle there some day and raise horses.
After many days journeying, and many lessons on how to fend for herself, Cassie and her party arrive in the valley, with animals and wagon and one additional person, Runs Like a Deer, that they picked up along the way, with them. Imagine her surprise to find a family already living on the land. Mavis Engstrom, her daughter and two grown sons have been living in the valley for years now and developed the land into a working ranch. Cassie's arrival creates a difficult situation for Mavis and forces her to uncover some long buried secrets. Between the distrust from Mavis's eldest son and the tension in town towards Cassie's Indian friends, she's uncertain what she should do. She learns though, that God has a way of working things out in His timing. We just have to listen to the Whispers in the Wind for they will guide us each step of the way.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through a book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
I hope you all have a blessed week!
Carrie
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Two Favorite Recipes
Sorry I haven't been keeping up lately. It's been a busy couple of weeks. I thought I'd share a couple of our favorite recipes. If you're like us, we get tired of the same 'ol, same 'ol. Because of that, I'm always looking for new recipes and I love getting a new cookbook to try new things. :-) I have the boys rank recipes from one to ten(ten being great). I write it on the top so I can remember how much we like a new one. I have gotten some of my best recipes from sharing with friends and family and them with me. I've never understood people who want to keep ingredients secret. If we find one that we think is awesome, I love to share. Anyway, with that being said, here are two of our favorites.
This first one is a new favorite for us that we tried the other day. It is another one that I found in the recipes from my grandmother's recipe box. I have no idea if she ever fixed this, but it was in her stuff. LOL! If she was like I am, I have a lot of recipes that I haven't tried yet. Hopefully, she did make this one because it is a definite keeper for our family! I had thought when reading the ingredients that it would be similar to a homemade hamburger helper. WRONG!!!! It makes hamburger helper look like dog food. Micah hates hamburger helper and he loved this! Hope you do too!
Chili Mac
2 lbs. ground beef(or half beef and half pork sausage)(I did half of each)
1 large green pepper, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, undrained
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cumin
Dash of cayenne pepper
2 cups of elbow macaroni, cooked acc. to package directions(wait about twenty minutes after starting the chili part before cooking the noodles)
shredded cheddar or jack cheese
In a large kettle or Dutch oven, brown the meat, green pepper, onion and garlic. Drain excess fat. Add tomatoes, kidney beans, tomato paste, water, chili powder, salt, cumin and cayenne. Cover and simmer on low heat 30 minutes; stirring occasionally. Prepare elbow macaroni according to package directions. Drain. Stir macaroni into chili. Serve in bowls; garnish with shredded cheese. Yields: 10-12 servings.
The second recipe that I want to share is one I got out of an old Taste of Home magazine. Years ago I used to have a subscription and have several favorites from that time. :-) This is one of the quickest, simplest and tastiest recipes I've ever gotten from a magazine. Just a note about this one...it is not pretty looking. The only thing of color in it is the green onions. But do not let that fool you! This has an incredible flavor to it that I think you will love.
Hurry Up Ham and Noodles
5-6 cups egg noodles, cooked acc. to package directions and drain
1/4 cup butter
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 cup cooked ham, diced
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup green onions, chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
In a skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Stir in the whipping cream and bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Add the ham, Parmesan cheese, green onions, salt and pepper; heat through. Add the noodles and the sauce/ ham mixture together and heat through.
I hope you enjoy these two recipes as much as we have. I have a couple recipes from other days if you're interested, check them out too.
I hope to post some info tomorrow on how you can get free books. It's rare to find something that is really free anymore. We came across a program that gives you free books and all you have to do is write a review about it after you've read it. You get to pick which books you want to review too. But enough about that for now. Tune in tomorrow and I'll give you all the details. :-)
Blessings to you all,
Carrie
This first one is a new favorite for us that we tried the other day. It is another one that I found in the recipes from my grandmother's recipe box. I have no idea if she ever fixed this, but it was in her stuff. LOL! If she was like I am, I have a lot of recipes that I haven't tried yet. Hopefully, she did make this one because it is a definite keeper for our family! I had thought when reading the ingredients that it would be similar to a homemade hamburger helper. WRONG!!!! It makes hamburger helper look like dog food. Micah hates hamburger helper and he loved this! Hope you do too!
Chili Mac
2 lbs. ground beef(or half beef and half pork sausage)(I did half of each)
1 large green pepper, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, undrained
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cumin
Dash of cayenne pepper
2 cups of elbow macaroni, cooked acc. to package directions(wait about twenty minutes after starting the chili part before cooking the noodles)
shredded cheddar or jack cheese
In a large kettle or Dutch oven, brown the meat, green pepper, onion and garlic. Drain excess fat. Add tomatoes, kidney beans, tomato paste, water, chili powder, salt, cumin and cayenne. Cover and simmer on low heat 30 minutes; stirring occasionally. Prepare elbow macaroni according to package directions. Drain. Stir macaroni into chili. Serve in bowls; garnish with shredded cheese. Yields: 10-12 servings.
The second recipe that I want to share is one I got out of an old Taste of Home magazine. Years ago I used to have a subscription and have several favorites from that time. :-) This is one of the quickest, simplest and tastiest recipes I've ever gotten from a magazine. Just a note about this one...it is not pretty looking. The only thing of color in it is the green onions. But do not let that fool you! This has an incredible flavor to it that I think you will love.
Hurry Up Ham and Noodles
5-6 cups egg noodles, cooked acc. to package directions and drain
1/4 cup butter
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 cup cooked ham, diced
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup green onions, chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
In a skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Stir in the whipping cream and bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Add the ham, Parmesan cheese, green onions, salt and pepper; heat through. Add the noodles and the sauce/ ham mixture together and heat through.
I hope you enjoy these two recipes as much as we have. I have a couple recipes from other days if you're interested, check them out too.
I hope to post some info tomorrow on how you can get free books. It's rare to find something that is really free anymore. We came across a program that gives you free books and all you have to do is write a review about it after you've read it. You get to pick which books you want to review too. But enough about that for now. Tune in tomorrow and I'll give you all the details. :-)
Blessings to you all,
Carrie
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