I brought an old blanket to throw on the table and also a few fall decorations to make it pretty. To keep the soup hot, I put our servings in half pint jars, and popped them into the oven to warm the jars up. I also heated one of those bread warming stones you put into a bread basket, then I wrapped it in a kitchen towel and placed it and the jars into a small cooler. It was piping hot – even after our 35 minute drive to the picnic area!

There was no one around, the leaves were beautiful and the setting was perfect for a great picnic date!

I brought a thermos of tea to drink with the soup, but I knew these cookies call for milk, so I also packed a mason jar of milk for dessert. Mmm!

After our lunch we got to walk along the river a bit before heading back home. It was a lovely get away!

Friday afternoon I put on a pot of Pinto Beans. Whitney and Alli were coming home and Whitney requested Soup Beans and Cornbread for supper – a real southern meal! I always buy a ham bone from Honey Baked Ham to add to the beans. It gives them great flavor. So Friday night we had:

Pinto Beans

Sweet Cornbread & White Cornbread

Fried potatoes

Whitney came home to help me bake cupcakes for her upcoming wedding! She’s opted for cupcakes instead of traditional cake, so we baked up over 100 on Saturday and put them in the freezer until the day before the wedding (December 17th) when I’ll ice them. Do I sound calm? =) Sure I am! How do we know we’ll have enough and not run out? Or will we have them coming out our ears? Will they look presentable? Will they taste good and not taste like the freezer? I’ve done my research, but I’m depending more on prayer!

Saturday was Alli’s choice for supper and she chose chicken stir-fry. She has food prep classes in college, and whatever they’ve been studying is what she gets hungry for, so here is the fulfillment of her request…

Someone asked for my recipe – here it goes:

Stir fry chicken breast pieces in a few tablespoons of oil. When chicken is cooked, remove and add about 3 tablespoons of Hoisin Sauce (or more to taste). Keep chicken warm. Add fresh vegetables and stir fry. I used broccoli, red and yellow peppers, onion, and at the last minute fresh asparagus. When the vegetables are cooked, add the chicken back into the pan. Place on a platter. Top with Cashews or peanuts. Serve with white rice.

Whitney went back to Greenville Saturday evening – wedding dress in tow! She found the dress, as she put it while she was home. I’m thankful we got to be there when the selection was made. Fun times!

Sunday dinner was:

Honey-spice Pork Chops

Cheese grits

Roasted Asparagus

Pear Salad

The Cheese Grits was a new recipe that I tried. I have a more fat-filled version, but this one from Cooking Light is every bit as good! I followed the advice of one person that commented on the recipe and cooked the grits in chicken broth instead of water. That added a lot of flavor. You need to try these – sooooo good!

So, there you have it. It was a busy weekend in the kitchen with lots of good food and for the most part good for you (save the fried potatoes perhaps!). What’s been cooking in your kitchen lately? Tell us about it! Link us up with any good recipes you’ve found!

With love,

WHILE waiting in line at the bank, a man developed a very loud case of hiccups. By the time he reached the teller’s window, the hiccups seemed to have worsened. The teller took the man’s check and proceeded to run a computer verification of his account. After a minute she looked up from her terminal with a frown and said that she would be unable to cash his check.”Why not?” the man asked incredulously.”I’m sorry, sir,” she replied, ” but our computer indicates that you do not have sufficient funds to cover this amount. As a matter of fact,” she continued, “our records show your account overdrawn in excess of $5000.””It can’t be!” he cried. “You have to be kidding!” “Yes, I am,” she answered with a smile, counting out his cash. “But you will notice that your hiccups are gone.”

While we are ever so careful to guard our bank account from being over drawn, I wonder what the records would show on the monthly statement of our marriage? How many withdrawals have you made? Wives need love, affection, attention, compliments, encouragement, dates, pampering, help around the house, a listening ear, a shoulder to cry on… Each one of those represent a withdrawal from our marriage account. Now, think back on this past week – what kind of deposits have you made? Not the monetary kind – but the relational kind.

• Have you shown respect for your husband with your words?
• Have you elevated him in front of others?
• Have you thanked him for being a provider for your family?
• Have you done a thoughtful gesture for him? (Bought his favorite candy bar, written him a note, made his favorite meal, took him out on a special date or created one at home- you get the idea)
• Have you spent time doing something he enjoys even though it might not be your favorite activity?
• Have you done something to lighten his load?

These things (and many others) are ways we make deposits into our marriage. There’s a double blessing here – we’re meeting the needs of our husband and rediscovering what a joy it is to be married. It’s fun! It is God’s plan and He can only do what is good!

Take a thorough check into your “account” and make sure you’re not overdrawn! If it’s been a while since you’ve put something into your marriage, you might surprise your husband so much you’ll scare his hiccups away!

See you in church Sunday!

With love,

1. Prepare
   

   Preparing will keep you from worrying. Put the house to bed at night. Clean up the kitchen, run the dishwasher. Know what you’re having for breakfast. Know what’s happening with the family. Know what’s for dinner tomorrow night. Make lunches for tomorrow. Have the keys in their place and phones charged. Run a load of laundry overnight, then put the clothes in the dryer in the morning. Set the table for the next meal. Plan backwards. Decide what time you need to get up to be the woman God would want you to be. Be the woman who isn’t frazzled; know what you’re going to wear.

   The next morning prepare your heart with the Lord. Spend time in the Word and in prayer. When were are alone with God, taking from God, we receive everything people will be wanting to take from us the rest of the day. If you have something to give, people will come to you. Meet with God quietly and let your life be polished by Him. This is where you get your instructions for the day. We’re all busy, we all have lots to do, but before things get hectic, prepare yourself for your day by time with the Lord. There is no substitute for that.

2. Plan
   

   Have a schedule for the day and also for the long-term things. Be working on getting things done. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Divide up the big jobs into bite-sized pieces so that little by little they get done.

3. Pray
   

   We don’t do anything without praying. Pray over the schedule. This is where you give it to God. We want Him to manage it. Lay it on His altar. This is Plan A. If someone calls and wants you to do something with them and you know it would interfere with what you had planned, graciously ask if there is another time you could do that. Never say no without saying yes. “No I can’t today, but how about tomorrow?” Give God plan A and you’ll know when He interrupts it and changes it to Plan B. It will be best because it will be His plan. Pray over your day and you won’t be frustrated because you’ll be on the lookout to see what God is going to do – answer and act. You won’t be frustrated. You’ll be looking for what He wants you to do. Make sure that you pray – it’s vital.

4. Proceed
   

   It’s easy to plan and prepare. Prayer is a little harder, but then finally it’s time to do something about it all and step into your plan. Don’t be anxious about tomorrow – deal with today. It’s time to step into that day. A day is like a pearl. At the end of each day you want to be able to put your head on your pillow and slip a pearl onto a strand because it was a day that you handled the interruptions; you didn’t get frazzled.

   Every day is a little life. Our whole life is a single day repeated. Even in physical activity, Elizabeth’s challenge is not to look at the whole mountain that needs to be climbed. Take one step at a time. So in our daily lives, we must take one step and proceed into God’s will for this one day. God will provide for us. According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: II Peter 1:3

Charlie Brown in the Peanuts comic strip said, “I used to try to take each day as it came, but my philosophy has changed, I’m down to half a day at a time!” So whether it’s your half day or your whole day, live it for God and let that help you win over worry.

With love,

I happened upon this lovely book/magazine recently at our local Ingles book section. I didn’t buy it (yet), but I have put out a serious hint to my oh-so-thoughtful hubby. =)

I literally “ooohed” and “ahhhed” over every page. It starts out with Thanksgiving decorating ideas, then moves on to Christmas. There are food and decoration ideas. Victoria Magazines are always so special, but this Holiday issue is off the chart exquisite! This is a must see, ladies!

What magazine do you love so much that you can’t wait to get the next issue? Tell us about it and tell us what makes it special on Noteworthy Wednesday.

On my way to Ingles,

Okay, Maybe I should say what was cooking in the parsonage? Sorry I missed posting yesterday, but it was a busy weekend with a migraine added in just for fun, so something had to give.

I didn’t cook on Sunday because we were being spoiled at The Wilds couples’ retreat. The food they serve is unbelievable – I should have had them be my guest blogger! If you’ve never visited The Wilds, you need to put it on your “To Do” list! The retreat was such a blessing. The weather was perfect and the Word of God dug deep into my heart.

I have been cooking though, and I recently made an old favorite, and tried a couple of new things.

This was my own little dressing, but to make a vinaigrette, you generally mix 1/3 part vinegar to 2/3 part oil. I then added in maple syrup for a little sweetening. The salad was a mix of greens, red onion, Craisins, and apple slices.

I tried a new recipe – Pasta with broccoli and peppers. It was a nice side dish from an old Southern Living Cookbook. (Recipe to follow.)

I’ve made these for years – Salmon Sour Cream Puffs. They are really yummy and a step up from traditional salmon patties.

Here are the recipes:

Pasta with Broccoli and Peppers

1 (7.5 oz jar) roasted peppers, drained and cut into strips

2/3 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup olive oil (I used much less!)

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 bunch fresh broccoli

1 12 oz. pkg. small shell pasta – I used what I had on hand!

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/8 tsp pepper

Combine first 4 ingredients in a skillet; cook over medium heat until nuts are golden brown, stirring often.

Trip off large leaves of broccoli, and remove tough ends of lower stalks. Wash broccoli thoroughly, and cut into pieces. Set aside.

Cook pasta according to pkg directions, adding broccoli the last 2 minutes; drain. Add roasted pepper mixture, cheese, and remaining ingredients. Toss and serve immediately.

Salmon Sour Cream Puffs

1 15.5 oz. can Salmon, drained

1 1/2 cups soft bread crumbs

1 8 oz container sour cream

2 eggs, separated

2 Tbl chopped chives

1/4 tsp salt

Dash pepper

1 – 1 1/4 cup finely chopped almonds

Vegetable oil (I used cooking spray)

Lemon wedges

Remove skin and bones from salmon. In large bowl, combine salmon, crumbs, sour cream, egg yolks, chives, salt and pepper; mix well. Beat egg whites until stiff; fold into salmon mixture. On large sheet of wax paper, sprinkle half the almonds. Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of salmon mixture onto almonds; sprinkle remaining almonds over top. In large skillet, heat oil; lift puffs with spatula into skillet. Brown on each side. Serve hot with lemon wedges. Makes 6 servings.

Will you try any of these? What have you been cooking?

With love,