Hallmark channel is playing Christmas movies 24/7 right now. Though most of them are a bit sappy and very predictable, they are wholesome and good, and it’s kind of fun to watch them and get myself ready for the upcoming holiday season. While watching one of the movies this week, I heard a line that grabbed me because it’s really true. In the movie, “The Christmas Ornament” the leading guy said,

I bought 1/2 yard of burlap and some Chevron fabric.  I couldn’t find a monogram stencil large enough, so this was how I improvised…

A bowl and a plate served as my guide to make my “C.”  The larger bowl served as the outside of the letter and the small plate took care of the inside of the C.  Here was the next part in the process…

I cut the burlap to 16 inches long and about 12 inches wide.  I raveled the edges about 1/2 ” in, then ran a straight stitch on my machine to keep it from raveling any further.  I turned down the top a couple of inches to make the pocket for the flag pole.

First I basted the letter onto the burlap so it would stay in place, then I did an applique stitch (a tiny zig zag) all the way around the C.

For the bottom edge, I simply made strips 2″ wide and sewed them on with the applique stitch.

The burlap bow I added is attached with a giant safety pin and attached underneath the opening of where the flag pole is inserted.  That way when Thanksgiving is over, I can simply replace the orange bow with a festive red.  I’ll attach some greenery to the flag pole, and it will be all dressed for Christmas without having to make another flag!

This was a really simple project that took about an hour to complete.  Are you inspired?  I hope you’ll make one!  Get creative!  You don’t have to do a monogram – trace patterns of holly leaves, a Christmas tree or stocking from simple coloring book pictures.You could also ruffle the bottom fabric.  These are so inexpensive.  I’ll hope you’ll try it!

From my country porch,

In this lovely autumn season, have you looked at the setting around you and wondered, “If this earth is this beautiful, how beautiful will heaven be?!”  In all its splendor, it is tainted with sin.  There is coming a Day, however, when its beauty will be diminished, in comparison to the glory we will witness in heaven.  One author put it this way,

“C.S. Lewis once observed that his life is only “shadow lands” compared with the glory to come.  Even life at its best is but a shadow of heaven…We experience the joy of marriage, knowing it is the foretaste of an even greater joy; the heavenly marriage feast of the Lamb (Revelation 19:9).  We enjoy the beauty of God’s creation, knowing it is the foretaste of an even greater beauty; the beauty of glory of heaven (Revelation 21:23).  Take delight in the good things God gives you.  Don’t be too preoccupied to “smell the roses”!…Every one of His good gifts should remind us of the glory to come!”  The wonder of creation will be even better!

On the other hand, we should also remember that the difficulty and trials we face here are as bad as our future in eternity will be.  It will be gone forever, without even a remembrance of its pain.  This is as bad as it’s going to get for the believer!  Sickness, death, hurts, pain, disease, grief…it will be gone.  Forever.  In heaven all wrongs will be made right.  It will only get better.

The other good news is that Jesus could come TODAY.  At that moment, the good gets better and the bad is annihilated for those that have trusted Christ as their Savior.  With that assurance, you can face today!  Listen for the shout!

Does that news encourage you? 

With love,

Some meals include those wonderful blow-out recipes.  The meal includes a special menu that calls for special ingredients.  Then some days, when you’ve been really busy and just need a good wholesome meal, you peek into the freezer and pantry and make a meal with what you have!  Enter yesterday’s Sunday dinner.

I had spent most of Saturday doing some cookie baking and then making my homemade pizza

Homemade Herbed Cheese Pizza

for our Saturday night meal. (This is a great recipe!) After supper we had the awesome privilege of heading out the door to join friends for the Johnson City Symphony.  Such fun!  When I returned home Saturday night the last thing I wanted to do was get back into the kitchen and make a big Sunday dinner.  Sooooooo, I concocted a simpler menu in my mind and took care of it Sunday morning!  This is real life, folks.  It’s where we all live.  So, rather than not post about my pretty ordinary meal, I decided to share it, in the event that you, too, will need a simple go-to menu for a busy day!

I found some great little pork chops on sale at Ingles last week.  The nice thing about them is that they don’t require much cooking time.  I popped them into the crock pot on low.  I seasoned them with salt and pepper, then covered them with apple butter.  I added about a cup and a half of water to the crock pot to keep them moist.

After I got home from church I cooked up some apple slices with a  little water, sugar and cinnamon. Then I topped my pork chops with them.  Yum!  I love pork and apples together.

Pork Chops and Cooked Apples

Green beans are a staple vegetable and soo easy to prepare.  Add the can of beans to a skillet, undrained.  Add a couple tablespoons of butter or margarine.  Cook until the liquid evaporates.  Season with salt.  I added a couple tablespoons of almonds.

The baked potatoes have that nice, crispy skin.  I accomplish that by spraying them with cooking spray after piercing them with a knife.  I add coarse salt to the outside and bake them on my timed oven feature for one hour at 400 degrees.  The oven turned off five minutes after we walked in from church!  Hot, crispy potatoes.  Such a great, easy Sunday vegetable!

This is simple, but just proof that a home-cooked meal is doable – even on busy days.  Use what you have, be creative, and serve it in style.  Your family will be thankful, as well as full.  =)

With love from my country kitchen,

Yesterday I posted about planning ahead for Thanksgiving by making a list weeks away and moving up to the day.  A dear friend of mine, Kim Ledford, has  recently discovered another great way to work ahead.  By packaging up the ingredients for baked goods and then adding the fresh ingredients when it’s time to make it she saves time and energy!

 First let me introduce you to Kim.

This lovely young woman is a stay-at-home mom. She believes this is the place where she can best serve the Lord and her family.  She and her husband, James, have a one year old, Hadley, who keeps them on their toes!  A baby boy is on the way to add his joy to their home! Her laugh is infectious, her personality bubbly and her desire to grow evident.   Kim loves the Lord and is hungry to be the woman God would want her to be.

Out of her  desire for fellowship and Christian friendship, Kim joined a MOPS group.  It was there that she learned more homemaking skills, such as prepping for this Apple Pie.  Let’s take a look at the process and the results!

Here’s the whole recipe:

Apple Streusel Crumb Pie
Ingredients:
·         (1) unbaked 9” pie shell
·         (3) large granny smith apples, peeled cored, and thinly sliced
·         ½ cup sugar
·         ¼ teaspoon salt
·         ½ teaspoon cinnamon
·         ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
·         1 tablespoon flour

Topping Ingredients:
·         1 Cup flour
·         1 teaspoon cinnamon
·         ½ cup packed light brown sugar
·         3 tablespoons of oats
·         ½ cup butter, softened

Directions:
1.       Preheat oven at 375 degrees with a cookie sheet on the center rack. Mix peeled and sliced apples in a large bowl with sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and flour.
2.       Pour apple mixture into pie crust
3.       Make the streusel crumb topping by mixing together with a fork in a medium bowl the flour, cinnamon, and light brown sugar. Then mix in the softened butter with a fork, stirring and blending until the mixture resembles crumbs.
4.       Top the pie with the crumb topping, place on cookie sheet in the preheated oven and bake for 40-45 minutes until the crust is a deep golden brown and the filling bubbles!

A note from Kim:

 My MOPS group prepackaged the filling and topping ingredients in zip-lock bags. Then, all we had to do was peel, core, & chop the apples, mix with the filling mixture, add butter to the topping mixture, and put it in the pie in the oven and bake! SUPER SIMPLE & FAST if you prepare the mixtures beforehand! Then when you need to bake a pie quickly, you can!  

Thanks for sharing this with us, Kim!

You can do this same kind of procedure for muffins, biscuits, pie crust, cakes, brownies or cookies.  Simple separate the dry ingredients that are added in, put  them in a Ziploc bag, label the bag and then store until you need it!  I will also write on the Ziploc the cookbook and the page number where I’ll find the rest of the recipe.

Freshen up your preparations by prepping ahead!

Be refreshed,