• Be creative!
• Use baskets and trays to corral like items

• Make a list of the activities you do every day in your kitchen and create stations to accomplish that task easily.  Keeping all the coffee items together will make the task of making coffee much simpler.

• Make a basket or tray of your baking supplies.  Put your most used spices out for easy access.  Add your measuring cups and pretty canisters for brown sugar and/or confectionery sugar.
• Use a basket to collect the mail

• Use baskets to store linens
• Get a 2-tiered stand for veggies and fruits

• Use wall space wisely – Use hooks for aprons, towels, or oven mitts.

• Add a bookshelf to your kitchen if you can.  If not, at least create a basket with your most frequently used books.  We all probably use the same ones over and over, so get those out where they’ll be at your fingertips.

• Soften surfaces with little touches
• Greenery in a vase
• Linens 
• Use cloth napkins for valances!
• Place mats
• tablecloths
• runners
• aprons
• Add lighting
• Battery operated candles
• light sticks
• sconces
• hospitality lights

• Add pieces with character

My dad made my stained glass years ago and got me started on my Rooster theme.

• Reading through the Bible in a year
• Memorizing a passage of Scripture
• Doing a Bible study with a group
• Attending a small group study
• Mentoring a younger woman
• Attending church services faithfully

1. Pray before committing to an obligation to seek God’s will. If He leads you to begin it, He will give strength to finish it.
2. Align other priorities around that responsibility.  If you’ve committed to attending a Thursday night study, don’t agree to babysit for a friend that night.  If you’ve committed to attend Sunday school faithfully and your family has planned a reunion for Sunday, tell them you’ll be there after the morning service.  Keep your priorities in line with what the Lord has led you to do.
3. Keep your other activities to a minimum around the time of the real duties.  For example, if you’re seeking to read through the Bible in a year and you’ve decided to read each morning, don’t also plan to meet a friend for coffee at 9:00.  You’ll feel rushed and either not get to it at all, or won’t get anything out of your reading.  If you’ve committed to attending a Bible study on Monday nights, don’t pack Monday full of errands and shopping that drain your energy.  With the energy will go your desire to follow through.  Be wise in planning.
4. Ask someone to make you accountable.  Knowing that you will give a report of your faithfulness to a friend will help you to stay faithful.

We have always talked on my blog about Sunday dinner meals at the parsonage, but I’ve recently been made aware that Sunday breakfast can also pose a real problem. Everyone is rushing around trying to get ready, (or maybe  mom’s the one doing the rushing and everyone else is being pokey) and getting breakfast on the table can be nearly impossible.  Like the Sunday dinner, breakfast has to have some good organization and planning in order to get it accomplished.

Planning ahead is step number one.  Decide what breakfast will consist of.  You decide, Mom.  This is NOT the morning to let everyone put in their order.  Why add more stress to an already busy morning?  The devil would just love to frustrate all family members before you even load up in the car!  You can do a lot to alleviate the problem by deciding the menu.  Make it simple.  Have eggs and bacon or pancakes on Saturday.  Plan something that can be made ahead of time, such as muffins, coffee cake or an egg casserole.

Once the planning is complete, then get it made.  A coffee cake or muffins can be made early in the week and frozen.  An egg casserole or overnight Orange Pecan French toast can be made on Saturday morning and be ready to pop into the oven when you get up on Sunday.

Saturday night preparation

Set a timer for your younger ones.  Tell them when the timer goes off what they are to have accomplished – be dressed, or have bed made.  Then it’s time to come to the breakfast table.  If they’re dawdlers, set the timer to let them know when breakfast needs to be finished so you won’t be late for Sunday school.

A little organization goes a long way to making Sunday morning run smoothly instead of causing you to wish you could crawl back into bed.  Plan ahead and prepare ahead for breakfast.  The same goes for getting dressed.  Make sure the decision of what outfits each one will wear are all made on Saturday so that everything is gathered – all the clothes, socks, both shoes, etc on Saturday evening. No more children running around half naked and screaming because they didn’t want to wear that outfit!  That’s the best way to make everyone hate Sunday morning!

Things won’t always be perfect when you plan ahead, but it will be lots better than if you didn’t!

Sunday morning

Here’s a new coffee cake I tried this weekend from Cooking Light.  It’s very moist and good!    I had overnight guests, so being prepared was helpful so they could eat when they were ready for it and I could get ready and not worry that they were waiting on me.

Buttermilk-Apple Coffee Cake

Cake:
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced & peeled Granny Smith apple
3 tbl brown sugar
1 tbl lemon juice

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1/3 cup sugar
2 tbl butter, softened
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
Cooking spray
2 tbl sliced almonds

Glaze:
1/4 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 tsp low-fat buttermilk
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.  To prepare the cake, combine the first 4 ingredients in a small saucepan over medium-high heat.  Cook for 5 minutes or until syrupy, stirring frequently, and cool.
3.  Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl, stirring well with a whisk.  Combine granulated sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended.  Add egg, 1 tsp vanilla extract and almond extracts, beating well.  Add flour mixture to sugar mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat well after each addition.
4.  Spoon the batter into a 8-inch round cake pan coated with cooking spray.  Arrange apple mixture over cake; top with almonds. (I found that the batter was very thin and the apples sunk into the batter when I placed them on) Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until cake begins to pull away from sides of pan.  Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.  Quickly invert cake onto wire rack.  Then invert onto a serving plate.
5.  To prepare glaze, combine powdered sugar, 1 tsp buttermilk and 1/4 tsp vanilla in a small bowl,stir with a whisk.  Drizzle glaze over cake.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Yield:  8 servings.  185 Calories, 5 g Fat

That’s my plan.  Tell me, how do you make Sunday mornings run smoothly?
With love,

A little boy who was cold, hungry and seeking love watched a man from a distance. The man was a stranger, yet the child admired him.  The boy watched the man carefully and noticed that he was kind.  He was gentle in nature, yet strong – strong enough to be what this little boy wanted from a father.  After watching him for some time the child gathered up the courage to come near the stranger.  

Looking down while he spoke the boy asked, “Hey, mister.  Where do you live?”
“Come with me.  I’ll show you,” the man answered.

The little boy followed him to his home where he found true love and acceptance, truth and real life.   Right here was all he’d ever longed for.  It was so wonderful he stayed all day, all the while just wishing – wishing this could be home – his home, and this man his father.

Who was this child?  It’s you and me.  It’s anyone who has sought the Lord and found that being with Him is better than anything in the world.  In John chapter 1 we read about two disciples who had watched Jesus then came near to ask Him where He dwelt.  He told them to come and see, and proceeded to lead them to His home. Because it was late in the day they didn’t have just a little visit, they “abode with Jesus that day.” 

Just like the little boy in the narrative, we, too, are cold, hungry, and seeking for love.  When we find Jesus we know that we have found all that we need.  It’s after spending time with Him that we know that in His presence is the best place to dwell. 

I’ve asked the Lord to help me to live in His presence today.  All day long I want Him to make me aware that He is there.  Oh, to have my thoughts interrupted to think about Him, what He loves, what He thinks, what He desires for my life.  

No wonder those disciples stayed all night!  They knew what you and I also can know…that there’s no better place to dwell than in His presence all day long!  Where are you living today?

See you in church!

With love,

I had a goosebump moment yesterday.  It came while I was listening to David Jeremiah teach about the men on the road to Emmaus.  You remember the story:

Jesus had died on the cross and now some said He was alive.  These two men didn’t believe it and headed to Emmaus in despair.  While walking, a Stranger joins them and inquires about their sad countenances.  They describe the happenings to this One who questioned as though He had no understanding of what had recently happened.  When they get to the men’s destination, the Stranger is invited to stay. Bread is offered and Jesus does what is unusual for guests to do – He took the bread and broke it, thanked God for it, then gave some to the men.  It was at that moment that their eyes were opened and they now knew this was Jesus.  But how did they suddenly know it was Him?  The Scripture says in Luke 24:30,

And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew him…

 Picture the scene of Jesus taking the bread in His hands.  Now He leans across the table and holds the bread out to them.  What would they have seen as Christ serve them bread?  They saw the nail prints in His hands!  That was their moment of understanding, and then  he vanished out of their sight. (v 31b)  Now they knew Jesus was indeed risen!