ABOUT US

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Kansas, United States
This started out as a blog about our domestic adoption. So all of the older posts are about that journey. It was an interesting one, and it led us to our son, Jacob. My dream since I was a little girl was typical of most little girls. I wanted to get married, and have children and be a stay at home Mom. Although, not a very popular choice for a profession now a day, I find it very rewarding. As a matter of fact, every day is an adventure! I've been told personally that the stay at home Mom profession isn't 'work', but spend a day with me and you'll see just how much 'work' it is!!! It's blessed work!

Friday, January 27, 2012

Albino Rattlesnake Chili & Cheddar Garlic Biscuits

Tonight was cold & rainy. Hubby has had a rough week. Two good reasons to make his favorite (well, one of his favorite, anyhow) meals-Albino Rattlesnake Chili & Cheddar Garlic Biscuits. Don't let the name fool you, it's not rattlesnake, that's the clever award-winning name that Hubby came up with. It's really white chicken chili. It's a creamy and rich chili. If you've never had it before, give it a try! It's perfect for a cold winters night like this!





  • Albino Rattlesnake Chili

  • 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1" pieces
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
  • 2 cans (15 oz. each) great northern beans, rinsed
  • 1 can (14 oz.) chicken broth
  • 2 cans (4 oz. each) chopped green chilies *see note
  • 1 tsp. each salt, ground cumin, dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp. pepper
  • 1 Cup (8 oz.) sour cream
  • 1/2 Cup heavy whipping cream
In a large saucepan, saute chicken, onion, and garlic powder in oil until chicken is no longer

pink. Add beans, broth, chilies, and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Remove from heat;
stir in sour cream and whipping cream. Serve immediately. (Serve with cheddar garlic biscuits for a great cold weather meal!)
*For milder chili use 2 cans of green chilies; for a spicer chili use one can green chilies and one can chopped jalapenos. 

This makes enough for Hubby and I with not much leftover. The garlic biscuits you can buy now from bisquick. 

But I also like to make it from the bisquick mix, sometimes. After they are done baking, I like to brush them with a melted butter/garlic power mix right before serving. 

Teaching Jake about Church

Jacob is a good boy...usually. He LOVES people & is very social. He walks into Church & starts shaking hands with everyone. Although he doesn't go to everyone, sometimes he puts his hand out & makes people come to him. We bring our the little New Testament & we bring our offering every Sunday & we put it in our little Church offering 'box'. Anyway, he's learning! He IS a good boy, but you keep him upstairs with you in 'big' church and after the song service the Devil gets him wiggling & he starts getting noisy and into everything. I know 16 months is a little young to be expecting him to sit through a Church service, but we are 'training' him. So I found this cute little toddler size pew at the local antique store for $10 & I bought it and brought it home & set it up in the living room. He loves to sit in it. I'll turn on his Sunday School Song DVD and he sits there & watches it, & dances some, & claps his hands. We will soon add some quick Bible stories to the mix and we'll work on sitting good. I have a picture of Jesus and a Bible that I printed off & put on the wall. Throughout the day, I say, "Where's Jesus?" He points to the picture. "Jesus loves you!" Jake smiles. He says, "BBBBB" when I say, "Where's the Bible?" & he likes to pat my Bible on the desk. I like what Michelle Duggar said about training your children. "If they won't listen to our voice, how will they ever listen to GOD when He speaks to them!" I want Jacob to have a blessed life, so I will train him to listen to my voice, but especially GOD's voice. I'm working on a 'quiet' book for church as well. We are blanket training & Jacob is very receptive to it. He loves sitting on a blanket & getting to play with some toys he doesn't usually get to play with. We make it fun! A friend just got the New Testament cricut cartridge & I'm borrowing the Noah cricut cartridge. I want to make some Bible stories to go over. We are also starting to go over the Bible verse, "God is love." It's so much fun to teach him about God, and Church. We pray every day (sometimes several times a day), that as soon as he understands about salvation that he will ask Jesus into his heart & always be sensitive to the Holy Spirit! We are trying to be an example of this as well. Thank you, LORD, for allowing us to live in a country where we can do this! 

Courageous

My first Sherwood experience was "Fireproof". I LOVED that movie! Then I got to watch "Facing the Giants" and "Flywheel". I really enjoyed those as well. When I heard the next movie was coming out, I got so excited!
I followed the production on Facebook, heard it was out in the theaters and waited and waited until it came out on DVD. Then it came out last week on DVD on Tuesday. We had winter revival Wednesday-Sunday at our Church so watching it would have to wait. We finally got it on Netflix yesterday. I emailed Hubby and told him that tonight was Family Movie Night!!!! He got home from teaching banjo lessons at 7:30 and I immediately put it on! What an AWESOME movie! I cried. I laughed. I reflected. God spoke to my heart. If families could get this movie...families would be changed, if they let God speak to them. I felt the same way about 'Fireproof'. I knew people who got it that said their marriages were completely changed by watching that movie...unfortunately, I knew other people who watched it and still wound up in divorce later that year. We still have a free will though, and if we don't allow God to work, He won't! John commented about how the Sherwood Films have such a way of explaining salvation! They use word pictures and they are very powerful! This movie is a must see!!!!

This movie made me reflect on my own experience. I grew up in a single parent home with a Father who abandoned us. Fortunately, some door-knockers from Twin Ports Baptist Church knocked on our door when I was a year old, and invited us to Church. What a difference God made in our lives! We started going and my family got saved. We started going to the Christian School. The Preacher took a special interest in my family (as he did in a lot of families) and tried to be the Father figure that we needed. God showed me later in life when I was feeling sorry for myself for the way my biological Father was, that I could of had him or I could of had the Church full of people who really loved me and cared about me. I'm SO glad God intervened and gave me my Church. Later, I went to Bible College where I met and married John. He came from a "Norman Rockwell" type of family with an awesome Dad. God gave me such a great life. He can turn a home without a Father into a home that glorifies Him! My Husband is an awesome Father, and my Father-in-Law is an awesome Father, Father-in-Law, and Papa! I'm so thankful to God for changing my future into something for Him. Now we have a little adopted fellow, and God is using us to change his story too! Isn't God good!?!? We aren't perfect parents, but we are trying our very best to raise Him for the LORD. The part of the movie where the guy stood at his Father's grave and told him that he forgave him, and that he hoped that he called on the LORD before he died...that spoke to me. I hope my Father did as well. The situations of each man portrayed in the movie, I think will fit many of the situations that families find themselves in today.

If you watch only one movie this year, make it Courageous! You won't be sorry!

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

My version of "Chipotle"

This is one of our favorite meals! I had forgotten how much I enjoy it and just how easy it is.






Cilantro Lime Rice

2 Cups Rice, cooked
1/2 Cup butter (not margarine)
2 TBSP cilantro, finely chopped
juice of 1 lime
salt to taste

Mix together. Serve warm.

Chipotle Tortilla Chips

8 corn tortillas, each sliced into 8 wedges
1 lime
coarse sea salt

Fry up the wedges. When you take them out immediately sprinkle with salt, and squirt with juice. 

Monday, January 23, 2012

Decorating the Church

I had the privilege of decorating our Church. The Church had just replaced the old stained glass windows with some more modern, energy efficient ones. After the Christmas decorations came down, there was nothing up and it needed some color. I found some wall sconces I liked and then some candles. Would you believe that I got it all 30%-50% off too? 







Revival

This past week our Church had revival. It was a wonderful time! I'm sad that the services are over at Church although I know revival shouldn't be over. It's the hard preaching...the one that makes you say, "ouch" that is good for the soul. Bro. John Aldrich is a fantastic Preacher and I believe he is God's Man. He preached on Joshua 24-Judges 2 and the Parable of two chairs. The first chair was the chair where the person says, "As for me and my house we will serve the LORD". The second chair (Judges 2:7) are the elders who were around after Joshua's death, who had seen the miracles and blessings of GOD but were complacent in their own faith, the third chair (Judges 2:10) are the next (or third) generation who knew not God or the works that He had done for Israel. What a terrible thing to think that Joshua's Grandchildren didn't know GOD or the things that GOD had done for them! This was a great message! How important for me to make sure that I'm a first chair Christian, wife and mother, and to teach my children to be the same. The first Preacher, Bro. Noffsinger, preached out of Job 1:6-7 about Satan being the uninvited guest in our lives, churches and homes. He preached about how to defeat Satan and how we cannot afford to be ignorant of his devices. The first and most important point of defeating Satan is to have humility in your life. Bro. Aldrich, also, preached out of Job 1:6-7. He also, preached about not being ignorant of Satan's devices. Bro. Aldrich wasn't present when Bro. Noffsinger preached his sermon. God worked through it all and is really working in our Church. Praise GOD for His continued work in our life and for showing His Hand in our Church!

Monday, January 16, 2012

Billy Vanilly

OMGoodness!!!! This place is AWESOME!!! If you are ever in Lawrence, KS on Mass. St. you HAVE got to go visit Billy Vanilly. They have really good cupcakes! They've been open for just a few short months, but the place was packed when we were there and people kept coming in! Jacob sure did like his German Chocolate Cupcake (so did his Momma!) 







Sunday, January 15, 2012

This is not a food blog, although I LOVE to cook and try new recipes. This one is a tried and true sweet treat. I received this recipe from a co-worker years ago, but it quickly became a favorite!  I made this tonight for an after service Fellowship at Church. The bowl was practically empty when it was time to go home. 









  • BANANA PUDDING

  • 1 large pkg Jell-o Vanilla INSTANT pudding
  • 1 small pkg Jell-o Vanilla INSTANT pudding
  • 1 3/4 C. Milk,
  • 1 can Eagle Brand Milk
  • 1 box vanilla wafers
  • 1 large tub (12-16 oz) Cool Whip, thawed
  • 5 large bananas, sliced

Mix together large and small pkg of pudding with milk. Mix well. Add whole can of Eagle Brand milk.
Mix well. Fold in whole tub of the cool whip until well blended. The pudding should be well set. Set aside. Layer wafers and then bananas in your dish. top with pudding then another layer of wafers and bananas. Garnish with additional cool whip and wafers, if desired. Store left overs in frig.
Note: I like it better when it has overnight to set in the refrigerator. 

Recipe Makeover =)

Saturday nights are always very busy with preparing for Church the next day. We have recently started attending a new Church much closer to home, so the preparations have gotten a little easier. I have to make sure the baby is bathed, his clothes laid out, and diaper bag packed. I also like to plan out what we are eating for lunch and try to get as much completed the night before as possible. Well, last night, I decided to make my friend, Shannon's Swiss Steak recipe...it's superb! 
  • 1 lb. Ground Beef
  • 2 Tbsp. Ketchup
  • 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 Tbsp. Water
  • 1/2 Cup Bread Crumbs or Ritz crackers crushed
  • 1 can Cream of Mushroom Garlic
Combine first 5 ingredients. Make into 4 or 5 patties. Cover the patties in flour. In a skillet, melt butter. Add patties and cook on high until well browned.
Mix together cream of mushroom garlic soup and 1 can of water. Pour over patties. Cover and cook on low heat for 45-60 minutes turning often. Serve.
So I printed off the recipe, and brought it into the kitchen. Laid out all the ingredients, and started throwing them together. I haven't made it for awhile, but it didn't have many ingredients. After I got them made into patties, I realized that I poured the soup into the venison burger instead of saving it to pour over the patties. What a dunder head!!!!! Oh, well, I added more bread crumbs until the venison held together nicely and decided to just pour another can of regular cream of mushroom soup over the top of the patties. I started cooking it like it says in the recipe, but the patties were mushy and breaking apart. Before it was over it looked more like a sausage gravy then anything else. I tasted it and it tasted just like the swiss steak should. So I poured it into the crockpot and refrigerated it. Before we left for Church, I put in on low and left. When we returned home, I made some mashed potatoes and served the "Creamed Swiss Steak" over the potatoes. Hubby tasted it, and said, "MMM, this tastes like hash!" I smiled. I had already told him what I had done. He's used to my 'creations'. John said, "Creamed Swiss Steak" sounded like nursing home food, and that we should just call it, "Creamed Steak". He had two helpings and the baby even liked it. I won't post a picture on here because it really doesn't look very appetizing. It really was very good! I'm sure my friend will be pleased when she find out how I've madeover her recipe! LOL 

This has been a rough week with cooking....I hope next week goes better! 

Friday, January 13, 2012

Revisiting Recent Papercrafting Projects




If you know me at all, you know I LOVE to do papercrafting! I like to scrapbook and come up with cool pages, but I LIVE to papercraft. I also love to re-purpose things. If I can re-cover something and use it again in a new creative way....bring it on! The above is a project I did quite a while ago. I took a drink holder from our local Sonic restaurant and measured all the exposed sides and then I cute some coordinating paper, distressed the ends and then glue dotted them on, then decorated. I made two for baby showers filling them with necessary baby supplies. I made one for 'harvest' once too and filled it with decorated jars of candy, and cocoa. You can also do this for a friend who is ill (fill it with chicken noodle soup, crackers, a magazine, cocoa or coffee, ect) or as a housewarming gift, a thinking of you gift. I also made it once as a centerpiece for a banquet we were having in the spring and filled it with some greenery and flowers, some raffia, ect. It's a nice easy project that has a nice WOW factor!

These are just covered paint cans (I buy them new at a scrapbook store or at Home Depot in various sizes). These ones I made for a back to school gift for a teacher filled with supplies, and for recipe cards (the rectangle one). Again, a simple project with some neat flair! 



This next one is a brown paper bag brag book. Again, something simple. These are made out of brown paper lunch sacks. I detest wasting a lot of time getting the groundwork done on a project. I like to get to the fun part--the embellishing and storytelling! This is so simple! You take however many lunchsacks you want for pages...alternate them, fold them and staple them. Whalla! You can get down to the storytelling and embellishing. Also, in the opening of the lunch bags you can stick a little card with a ribbon for a pull for added real-estate! SOOO fun! 



This next brag book is a squash book. It's called that because they fold up and tie and you have to squash them together! These are a bit time consuming and a little harder to make. But they are SO fun! I liked making them for gifts for Christmas and for special events like new grandbabies and such! They are purse size so people LOVE to carry them around and show off pictures of the babies!