Marriage

The Best Date that Costs Nothing!

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bookstore ALast Friday night my husband and I went on a date called The Bookstore Date.  Here’s how it goes:

We headed to our local Barnes & Nobles Bookstore with a small list that I’d put on my phone.  We headed to the back of the store where they have little tables and chairs, perfect for two.  I pulled out the list.  The object of the date is to find the suggested books, one at a time, bring them back and read whatever was asked.  Then, you return the book and proceed to the next one until either your date time is up, or you finish the list.  Here are the books we were to find:

  • #1 – Visit the COOKING section & chose a recipe that you would like to make for your spouse.

  • #2 – Visit the MAGAZINE section & find a quiz in a magazine that you and your spouse could do together.

  • #3 – Visit the CHILDREN’S section & find a book that was a favorite when you were a child or that holds a special memory for you…and read them to each other when you meet back up.

  • #4 – Visit the JOKE section and pick out a HI-LA-RI-OUS joke to share with your spouse.

  • #5– Visit the TRAVEL section and find a picture or information on a place you would like to visit someday.

  • #6 – Visit the POEM section and find a poem that describes the way you feel about your spouse.

We were at the bookstore for about an hour and a half and we only finished up to #4.  Why?  Because this date is so much fun and creates so much conversation that you don’t stop at reading just a part of the story, or one joke – you can’t resist reading more and laughing or talking or crying.  If you decide to try this, you could do the first three on one night and the second three another time.

This is the best date, ladies.  It costs nothing.  It creates conversation.  It’s so much fun! It will knit your heart to your husband’s as you spend some really special minutes reading together and to one another. Even non-readers would love this, because it’s not like you have to read a whole book – or even a chapter of anything.  They’re just fun topics that help you to know one another even deeper.

What free date do you and your husband do to create memories and build your relationship?

Lovingly,

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Parenting

Creating a Thankful Heart

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Give thanks

I recently read a story about a man who rescued many people from a freezing lake after their ship had suffered a puncture.  He dove in the icy waters again and again, rescuing victim after victim.  His heroic efforts cost him his own health, forcing him to use a wheel chair for most of his life after the rescues.  Years later, someone asked him what he remembered most about that time.  “Not one person thanked me for saving them.”

My jaw dropped when I read that!  I would imagine that any person would be so overwhelmed with gratitude that they would tell him how grateful they were!  It reminded me of the ten lepers Jesus healed, and that only one returned to give thanks.

It makes me take a look at my own life and wonder if I have gratitude for all God has done for me.  As parents, don’t we desire that our children are thankful?  We say things to them like,

“Tell the nice man thank you for the sticker.”

“What do you say for the candy?”

“Say thank you to your sister for sharing her toys with you.”

We say these things in hopes that they’ll develop  gratitude, but how do we create in them a thankful heart?  Let me suggest:

  1. Model a thankful spirit.  Saying things such as, “I’m so thankful for a beautiful day for our picnic!” Or “”I prayed about that and God answered!  I’m so thankful He hears me!”  Colossians 3:15 As a friend of mine shared yesterday, we should also be thankful for the rainy days, the plans that were changed, or the needs that arise.  From a thankful heart we can say, “God knows what is best, and I’m thankful I can trust in Him for this.”

  2. Remind your children of God’s goodness.  Remind them that everything we have is from God.  James 1:17 – Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above.  Remind them to thank the Lord for the food, the new friend, the good friend at church, the money to purchase new jeans, and the birthday gifts because they are all due to His goodness – not anything we did or deserve.

  3. Point them to thank the people God uses to provide and teach them how to tell them thank you.

    I recently sent some cake home with a friend at church.  The very next service I received a note from each of the school-aged children.  They both wrote to tell me how much they enjoyed it and to say thank you!

    Don’t let a flippant “thanks” be enough – teach your child to say thank you verbally, but also to write their thanks.  The notes I received were great reminders of what a note of thanks should contain:

    1. A brief but specific description of what was done/given.
    2. Why the receiver appreciated it.
    3. Thanks for their kindness.
    4. If you want to go the extra mile, they could add a verse that describes what the giver did!  One of my note writers added a verse to their card, and that was really touching!

Let’s have thankful hearts that our children can emulate.  As followers of Jesus, we were saved from far more than icy waters, and we should have thankful spirits that are evident by our words and actions!

With thanks to you for reading today,

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Dinner · Lunch

Quick Fried Chicken Strips

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Strips

Sometimes when you see a recipe you just know it’s going to be fabulous.  Fried chicken that’s first dipped in Buttermilk, then bread crumbs caught my eye in a recipe from Food Network.  I put it on my menu for last week and I made it on a night when my husband came home very tired and weary from an extremely busy afternoon. When he came in the door, the lights were dimmed, the candles were flickering, soft music was playing and dinner was on the table.  It was my way of saying, “I care about you enough to help you rest when you come home.”  It is my attempt to be a “good thing” to my hard-working husband.  

As I imagined, he was starving. Within minutes of his arrival home, we were praying and then digging in!  I LOOOOVE it when he takes the first bite and says, “MmmMmmm!”  He also added, “That’s a winner!”  Yay!  I had about five strips leftover (hard to believe, because I just used one chicken breast!), so the next day I warmed them in the oven and cut them into pieces and added them to a salad for each of us.  Yummy!  

The Food Network issued this recipe as a lunch for your child’s lunchbox.  They cut the chicken into nuggets.  This would totally make any child’s lunch the best in the school!    If you like fried chicken, you need to make this super fast recipe with chicken strips!

fried chicken a

Panko Fried Chicken Strips

1 large egg
1/3 cup buttermilk – Shake up the buttermilk before pouring!
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces
1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs – I was out of Panko crumbs, but the regular bread crumbs still made a nice crust!
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
Ranch, honey mustard or barbecue sauce for dipping, optional

Directions
Whisk the egg and buttermilk in a medium bowl. Soak chicken pieces in egg mixture while you gather remaining ingredients. Meanwhile, in another shallow bowl combine panko with paprika, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper, to taste. Set a rack on a cookie sheet lined with paper towels.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Lift chicken from buttermilk, letting excess liquid drain back into the bowl, then dip into panko and turn to coat on all sides.

Carefully place chicken in oil and cook until they are golden and crispy and cooked through, about for 5 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to the rack to cool. Place in sealed container. Pack in a lunch box with their favorite veggies and ranch, honey mustard or barbecue sauce for dipping.

As I said earlier, this would make a great recipe for dinner, but it also makes great leftovers for lunch! 

Sooo, tell me, what have you done this week to be a good thing to your husband?

With love from my country kitchen,

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Home Landscaping

There’s a Great Sale Happening!

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Just a simple thought today that may save you some $$$$$!  Do I have your attention now? =)

Yesterday I mentioned adding some winter flowers to my flower boxes.  What I didn’t tell you is that right now is a great time to stop at Lowe’s Garden area and find plants, bushes, trees, and even perennial flowers on sale.  I got my Pansies half off this week!  I also bought a Dwarf Burning Bush – one of these:

at half price!  Mine can get up to 6 feet by 4 feet, if I let it, but for now it’s very small and I loved the price of only $4!

So think ahead, and if there’s a perennial plant, a tree or bush you’re wanting for your yard, don’t wait until spring fever hits in March and you have to pay full price!  Get it now and you can get twice as many!  Also, since the Pansies are marked down, why not add some flowers at your walkway or doorstep (if you live in an area where it would survive the winter – sorry my Canadian friends!)?

Refresh your yard, but don’t forget your heart!  😉

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Christian Life

The Work of Gardening Our Hearts

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Last year when my dad suggested we add flower boxes to the front of our house, I knew it was just the addition we needed to set our house off beautifully.  With five front-facing windows, the foliage of flowers and greenery would add a pop of color and life!  A friend at church hung the boxes for me, then I proceeded to fill them with dirt, flowers, ivy and a spike plant.  All summer long, I nurtured and cared for those plants.

Because four of the windows are on the second floor of our house, I would

  1. Open the window
  2. Pop the lower glass inside
  3. Lift the screen
  4. Water, prune and dead head the flowers
  5. Pop the screen back into place
  6. Lower the window
  7. Lock it back into place

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I did this nearly every single day – sometimes twice a day when it was really hot.  The result?  Full, vibrant blooms and lots of beauty.  Neighbors and guests commented on the growth and the addition of the boxes.  I beamed.

When fall came the blooms began yellowing, so I added some fall plants – mums and a few pansies.  Mums don’t last long,so I just recently removed them at the root, and replaced it with more pansies of other colors.

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It’s been a bit messy at times, and a good deal of work, but I’m definitely glad we added the boxes. The addition it’s been to the house and the joy it brings my own heart has been well worth the effort!

Yesterday as I was adding Round #2 of the Pansies, I couldn’t help but think how often times we just assume that the growth and change in our spiritual lives will just “happen.”  That if we attend church, and maybe read a little Scriptural devotional from time to time and “say our prayers,” some kind of spiritual metamorphosis  will be the result.  If we know that it takes diligence and effort for a garden to flourish, why can we not apply that same type of energy to our spiritual growth?  It will require daily watering, weed pulling, fertilizing, changing, and yanking out some roots, but the end result will be worth all the effort.

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While some gardens, like mine, are visual from the front, and everyone can see it, there are others that are hidden, but still give joy to the person who lives there.  In other words, it doesn’t matter if your life is in the public eye or you’re in a place where no one sees, God knows each of our hearts, and longs to have fellowship with us, teaching us His Word and of Himself every single day.

When winter comes, I’m hoping my flower boxes will still stand out because of the efforts I’m putting into them right now.  So too, when “winter” comes to our lives – hard times or the cold winds of trial, if we’ve put in the effort in our spiritual lives, we’ll be a lovely Christian woman, for God’s glory!

What have you done today to care for the garden of your spiritual heart?

With love,

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