Thanksgiving was such a blessing!  We got to travel to Kentucky to be with my family.  The third generation hosted the meal ~ a first!  It was so nice; they did a great job making us all feel welcome and at home.  We enjoyed a delicious meal, intense, belly-aching laughter, sweet fellowship and “Puff Moments.”  Puff moments are the times we always take to give God thanks for things from the past year.  They are called that because, invariably, tears come, and the Puff box is passed around!  It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without that time!

Here is a little peek at our time together…

We got a lovely snowfall early in the morning. This was our view as we traveled. The roads were clear and the sights heavenly!

One of the tables of guests at dinner time!

He’s always in on the laughter, and usually the instigator!

Desserts!  Mom’s Buttermilk Coconut Pie was the hit of the day! It’s Laura Bush’s recipe and you can find it here.

They had a photo booth!  It was so much fun. My parents are such good sports!  I love this shot!

The fall decorations and the turkey platters are tucked away for another year, but thankfulness will live in our hearts for the past holiday we just shared with those that we love so much!

With love from my country porch,

How about getting a little creative with a comfort food favorite or two?  Taste of Home combined two great winter foods ~ Chili and Pot Pie ~ and came up with this delicious spin…

It’s hearty, but it’s a light version of both the chili and the pot pie topping.  For a dinner entree it comes in at about 350 calories, which is a good healthy choice!  I served it with a salad and it was a perfect cold night meal!  You need to try this!

Chili Pot Pie
Directions
In a large saucepan, saute onion and green pepper in oil until tender. Stir in the tomatoes, beans, tomato sauce, chili powder, brown sugar and cumin. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; heat, uncovered, while preparing crust.
In a small bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Stir in butter and enough milk to form a ball. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a 12-in. circle. Using an inverted 10-oz. baking dish as a guide, score four circles. Cut out circles. Cut a small circle in the center of each pastry (discard or reroll cutouts and use as decoration).
Coat four 10-oz. baking dishes with cooking spray. Fill with chili; top each with a dough circle. Tuck in edges of dough to seal. Bake at 375° for 13-17 minutes or until edges of crust are lightly browned. Yield: 4 servings.

What comfort foods have you served on these cool days?

With love from my country kitchen,

This Tuesday I had my weekly After School Bible Club with my two little cutie neighbor children (my favorite part of the week!).  I decided I’d tell them the reason I have so much to be thankful for and would share  my personal salvation testimony with them.  I did so using flannelgraph (a first!). 

“There was a little girl named Denise who went to church every Sunday with her parents and sisters.  One Sunday night she heard the preacher talk about Jesus dying on the cross to save us from eternity in hell.  He described hell as a place of darkness and punishment for all those that had not accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior.  

When Denise walked out of the church that night, it was dark.  She thought about the pastor saying that hell was dark.  She knew in her heart that she needed Jesus as her Savior, but for some reason, she didn’t ask Him into her life that night, but she thought a lot about what she had heard.

Some time later, on her 7th birthday, Denise went to Sunday school and church as she always did on Sunday.  That morning, her Sunday school teacher asked if there was any girl in class who hadn’t received Jesus as her Savior but would like to do that today.  Denise’s heart beat faster – she knew she must make that decision today! She knew she was a sinner, and that she deserved hell.  But she remembered that Jesus had taken her punishment on the cross! Though it meant staying behind in class while her twin sister went to join their parents for the morning service, Denise waited to talk with the teacher.  As the teacher opened her Bible, she reminded Denise from God’s Word that God loved her so much that He sent His only begotten Son to die for her!  If she would believe on Him, she could have eternal life in heaven!  John 3:16  That day, Denise bowed her head and asked Jesus to forgive her sins and become her Savior!  It was the happiest day of her life!

Ever since then, Denise has had a relationship with Jesus.  Every day she talks to Him and learns more about Him in the Bible that she reads.  Oh, how she loves Him!  How thankful she is to have her sins forgiven, and to know that One Day she will go to heaven to be with Him forever!  She’ll get to tell Jesus Thank you face to face!  But for now, she can tell Him in her prayers, and she does.  

And on this Thanksgiving Day, she’s also telling you, so you can know how to go to heaven too!”

If you have a child near you, why not read this simple story to them?  It’s on their level and ability to understand what Jesus has done for them!  Every discipline issue you have with your child is an opportunity to share the Gospel – it’s a reminder that their sin is why Jesus came!

I’m so thankful to the Lord that I have a salvation testimony – that I know Him as my Savior.  I pray you know Him, too!  It’s simple enough for a child to understand, and it’s deep enough that we’ll never fully comprehend all that we have in Christ!

Do you have a testimony of salvation?  If not, what’s keeping you from bowing your head right now and receiving Him into your heart and life?  

Like many other households in America, we are prepping for Thanksgiving!  I’m not hosting the event as I did last year.  I really loved having everyone here and having my house smell so wonderfully of the turkey dinner and its accompanying sides, but the next generation of family is hosting, and we’re excited about getting to join at their house and give thanks to the Lord for His innumerable blessings!

Last year’s decor at my house

I have to admit that it’s kind of nice not to have the stress of hosting the meal, but I think I’ve learned to chill a little more about everything.  It’s come through many years of unexpected events.  I really have a lot of unplanned Thanksgiving disasters memories.  It’s kind of funny.  For instance,

• One year we all got the flu.  First the girls got it, then my husband and I got sick.  We got take out from the local grocery store deli when we were fit enough to get out!
• One year I was hosting and had prepared for about 12-15.  Snow came in Indiana and only three of our family were able to make it in.  Talk about leftovers!
• Another year my husband got the flu en route.  While the rest of the family celebrated, he sat in the recliner in the corner, covered with a blanket and looking green and PA-THETIC!  Poor guy.
• Last year my lovely rolls were rising on the counter, covered and warm underneath clean dish towels.  A couple of the guys brought in crock pots with side dishes in them and seeing “just a towel lying on the counter, plopped placed their wife’s contribution on top of the towels!  It wasn’t just one who did this – it was two guys.  We did let them rise again (a friend suggested we now call them resurrection rolls since they had to rise again!), and then they were baked.  They had kind of funny shapes, but they tasted the same!

So if you’re hosting Thanksgiving, don’t let the “smashed rolls” ruin the meal.  It’s just food.  It’s just a spotted tablecloth.  It’s just lumpy potatoes.  The meal will still go on.  The family can still rejoice.  And then you’ll have a good memory to look back on and laugh about when the crumbs have been swept up, the leftovers are safely in the fridge, and the last load of dishes have been washed.

Count your blessings ~ even in the midst of the disasters that will undoubtedly occur!

With love,