Dinner · Family life · memories

Making the Most of Suppertime

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stovea

Mealtimes as a family are important.  It helps you connect, teach, relate, understand, regroup, rest, refresh, encourage, and be nourished physically, spiritually and emotionally as a family.  It takes lots of effort to make it happen, doesn’t it?  So while you’ve got everyone there, let’s make the most of it!!

Last Sunday night at church my husband finished a series on the home.  He ended the message by giving suggestions and taking responses from the congregation about how to make the most of suppertime and after the meal-time.  Here’s the list I compiled in my notebook.  These are great ideas!

  1. Create conversation.
    1. Talk about God’s Word
    2. Talk about answered prayer
    3. Talk about what God is doing in your life!
  2. Play a board game afterward.
  3. Read a book together.  You could use missionary biographies, fictional fun books, or devotional books.
  4. Take a family walk in the neighborhood.
  5. Call meal time a “No Phone Zone.”  No phones at the table.
  6. Lay a puzzle out on the cleared table and assemble it together.
  7. Walk the dog as a family.
  8. Eat in the dining room with cloth napkins, candles and a centerpiece.  Make it happen at a regular time and shoot for 5 x’s a week.
  9. Occasionally eat together at a “fancy” restaurant so you can give your children the experience and training (and also the treat!) of a nicer place out.  Your preparations at home will have them ready and you won’t have to “sweat it out!”
  10. Sing after the meal.

I love having my family gathered around the dinner table – even if it’s just my husband and me!  It’s a special time of day and we need to do all we can to maximize that time!

Tell me:  What do you do to make the most of mealtime?

Lovingly,

breakfast

An Ocean of Waffles

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Waffles 2a

Breakfast cravings can be difficult to deliver.  It’s early, you’re busy.  Who has time to make waffles on a regular workday?  My solution to this is to find a day that’s not as busy and make up a whole recipe of waffles and freeze them for those busy days!  I know, I know, you’re saying, “You can buy these in the store already frozen!”  But it’s hard to beat a homemade waffle that has egg whites beaten into it that make them light and fluffy!

This recipe is one I’ve made for years; it’s our very favorite.  My husband will even eat them plain!  They’re that good!  This made up an ocean of waffles; about 20 individual squares.  They smell so good you might have a hard time saving some for the freezer, but try to resist!  

Everyday Waffles

  • 1 3⁄4cups all purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 3 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1 3⁄4cups milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1⁄2 cup cooking oil (I used 1/4)
  • 2 egg whites, beaten stiff

DIRECTIONS

  1. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture.
  2. In another bowl, beat the egg yolks, slightly; stir in the milk, oil and the vanilla.
  3. Add the egg mixture all at once to the flour mixture. Stir until just moistened (the batter should still be slightly lumpy).
  4. Beat 2 egg whites until stiff.  Fold into batter, leaving some fluffs of egg.
  5. Pour 1 to 1 1/4 cups batter onto the grids of a preheated, lightly greased waffle iron . Close the lid quickly and do not open until done.
  6. When done lift the waffles of the iron with a fork.
  7. Repeat the procedure with the remaining batter.
waffles 1
A whole tray of Golden Waffles ready for the freezer!
strawberries
Fresh Strawberries came in the right time!
Waffles 2
This breakfast is possible even on a busy day!  Pop a prepared waffle into the toaster to warm it up and top it with fresh strawberries and a little syrup!  Yum!

Layer these in Freezer bags with waxed paper in-between.  You’ll be able to take out one or two at a time without them sticking together!

Refresh your breakfast with homemade waffles!

With love from my country kitchen,

accessories

Using Pinterest To Help Your Closet

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I’ve mentioned this idea before but I wonder, how often do you feel frustrated about what to wear?  I’m right there with you.  I feel like I can get into a boring routine of wearing the same things together.  Whenever I feel that way, I open up my PInterest account and find just the help and inspiration I need!  Let me expand the idea I’ve shared a couple years ago.   Here’s what I do:

  • In the search engine, I type in the main component of the wardrobe I want to wear, such as blue seersucker skirt.
  • I also add whether I need a casual outfit or dressy and add that to my search.
  • I hit “enter” and then scroll through its findings:

Salmon Pink Top:

:

red pencil skirt outfits | pencil skirt, red cardigan, leopard print pumps and denim shirt outfit:

 

seersucker summer | styleatacertainage:

The pictures above are ones I would click on because they’re my style.  I pin it onto my wardrobe board, then though I don’t have the exact components for each of these outfits, I may find something that’s similar in my own closet.

The other things that helpful in these Pinterest pictures are the accessories that go well with the outfit.  It may give a different color or style of shoe that I’ve never thought of before!  It changes things up and makes getting dressed fun!

Keep your wardrobe refreshed by letting your Pinterest account come to your aid!  It’s like having a personal assistant for your closet!

Refresh your heart this weekend by attending all the services at your Bible believing church!

Stay refreshed,

Uncategorized

Today Is A New Day

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This morning when I looked down at my phone it said,

You have memories from April 26, want to see?

I clicked, “Yes” and it showed a photo gallery of photos that I had snapped while my husband and I rode bikes on Monday.  It was really neat.  It zoomed in on some pictures and let me remember the fun we’d had.

When you and I look back to our yesterday or the day before that,, or the weekend, we may smile and rejoice over wonderful things that took place.  Or our heart may swing to the other side of the pendulum and cause us to choke back grief over a memory that broke our hearts.  But no matter the memory, we all need to remember that

Today is a new day!

When you remember your yesterday, smile at the memory of victories won!  Wipe away the tears from its sorrows, then let’s grab God’s Word and arm ourselves for this day. Let’s walk with Him today.

This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it!  

Yep, not yesterday’s joys or pain, but today’s wonder!  Let’s ask, “What will God do today??”  Now we must look expectantly for His work and join Him today!

Lovingly,

Uncategorized

Unworthy Servants

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I’m truly amazed at the opportunity God gives us to serve Him.  He doesn’t need people to accomplish His purposes, yet He gives us the privilege to be used of Him!  What a privilege and honor to do anything for the God who made me, saved me and keeps me secure!  I owe Him everything and am so thankful to have the chance to obey His call!

This past weekend that call led me to The Wilds in North Carolina to speak at the Ladies’ Retreat. So much prayer had gone into this weekend and  He answered so many of those requests.  Even now I’m continuing to see, hear and understand His hand and how He answered in every area.

  • We had prayed for 30 ladies from our church to go.  I believe the final count was 32!
  • The weather was supposed to be rainy for the entire weekend.  When we started out it was sprinkling.  By the time we made it to camp, I had to put on my sunglasses.  It was beautiful the rest of the weekend!
  • I’ve NEVER done a retreat without dealing with a migraine.  I did not have one at all while I was speaking!!
  • I had asked the Lord for recall of passages of Scripture.  He answered.
  • I prayed for remembrance of names.  He heard.
  • I desired to see decisions made for Christ.  I just learned yesterday afternoon about lives being surrendered while at camp!  To God be the glory!!

A retreat is such a blessing because it allows us to really focus on the Lord, His Word and what He wants to do to change us!  All the distractions are removed and we hear God’s voice clearer and stronger.  If you were at this retreat, or if you’ve attended a retreat recently, can I encourage you about how to maximize your time there?  I wrote this post last year about how to get the most out of your time away and make the most of those very fast 24 hours.

Thank you to all of you who prayed for me!  God heard those prayers and helped me in such special ways!  I doubt there’s ever been a speaker who had as much support present!  “My ladies” were so precious to encourage me in really, really special ways!  I love each of you dearly and thank the Lord for the ways you lifted my arms up as I served Him!

Here are some pictures of our time away:

160426_174503_collage-1.jpg

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Sweets, sisters, Spouse, support, sacrifice and surrender are the summary of these pictures!!!

Were you at The Wilds?  What is a memory you have of the weekend?

Lovingly,