Frugal Friday and other....

Got some good deals at Walgreens this week including 10 packs of 10-snack Reese's for 99c (not each, in total after coupons - they were supposed to be for Halloween but I think they'll be gone before then!), 4 free packs of gum, 4 Clorox supplies and bleach for $1.40 total and 2 gallons of $3 milk. Use Store coupons and manufacturer's on the same item and viola - free (or almost!).

We had another Field Trip this week where we learned about tree identification at a Nature Park and the kids really enjoyed it and are now telling me tree names! Perfect timing since we study trees and wood starting next week for the next 3 weeks. We will definitely have to go back to that park and explore more of their walking trails when it cools down a little and maybe as the leaves are changing. Wanna meet us there??

Pecan Orchard - I am ravenously reading everything on the web and any book I can find about pecans. We go to visit another orchard Saturday morning and it will be interesting to compare that with the one we saw last weekend. In the meantime, we also need to do soil samples and get them back to the Coop extension office, determine what varieties we want, chose a supplier and place our order in the next few weeks. Scary thought when there are so many varieties (over 400!!) and so many suppliers (over 40 commercial ones) and it's the biggest decision we will make (as far as money goes) about the orchard. Everyone we talk to gives us different information about both tree and supplier..... ughh.... pray we will make good decisions because quite frankly we can't afford to replant 500 trees if we make the wrong decisions!

That's a few of the things happening... this weekend's orchard trip, BIL's Birthday bash, Nursery duty Sunday am, a friend's baby shower Sunday afternoon, a family Ice Cream Social Sunday afternoon, my grown children visiting at different points throughout and still lots to be done in the house, flower garden, fruit orchard and yard... WHY am I sitting here blogging??? gotta go - have a great weekend!
-F

Asian Chicken

Now I rarely post recipes. For those who have had the courage privilege of eating at my home you know why. I would love to be a good cook but then again I don't find it as interesting or rewarding as, say, setting up new spreadsheets or blogging or finding a new solution to any problem. So there, I admit it. I dream of being a good cook (somehow I thought by becoming a stay-at-home Mom the power of being a world-renowned chef was supposed to magically descend upon me) but in reality without the interest and willingness to put in a lot of effort it just "ain't gonna happen". So imagine my surprise last night when my hubby said the meal was "absolutely one of the best" he had ever had, and it was a really easy, very quick and healthy recipe!! So for those who might be the least bit interested, this must be one of those "Recipes for Dummies" - easy enough even for me! I took a recipe I got by email from Kraft and changed it a little.

Asian Chicken
1/2 box Angel Hair Pasta (we like whole wheat or whole grain)
About 4 heads broccoli (yeah, we like broccoli so you can cut back on this if you want)
About 4 large handfuls of spinach leaves (my children thought they were broccoli leaves and since they "don't like spinach" I just didn't correct them!)
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken
1/2 cup Asian Sesame Salad Dressing (we prefer Kraft but Ken's is pretty good, too. BTW - since I had bought this dressing for salads that's what led me to try this recipe last night)
1/2 tsp. of ginger, garlic and crushed red pepper
[The recipe also calls for frozen carrots but I left those out since I don't usually keep anything but fresh raw ones. ]

Start pasta cooking. In the meantime chop chicken and broccoli into coin-sized pieces while non-stick pan is heating on Med-High with cooking spray. Add chicken into pan (and broccoli if you like it well done, I hold off a few minutes so it will have a little crisp crunch left), add dressing, spices and spinach until done. Drain noodles, mix noodles and chicken and enjoy within 15-20 minutes of start time!

Gotta run cook another quick supper tonight (too many field trips lately!!).
-F

Missionary Monday

"Some men brought to him a paralytic, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven." At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, "This fellow is blaspheming!" Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, "Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? Which is easier:
to say, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up and walk'? But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins...." Then he said to the paralytic, "Get up, take your mat and go home." And the man got up and went home. When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe; and they praised God, who had given such authority to men." Matthew 9:2-8

Which is easier.... which is easier.... which is more visible.... which is totally invisible and nobody can confirm or deny? Hmmmm..... yesterday in Bible Study and again in Worship service I kept hearing this theme. And I thought of my blog. No, really, I did! I thought of the verse about "Go Home and Tell" and how hard that was for me. I wanted to be more "visible" than a stay-at-home homeschooling Mom. And sometimes it's easier to imagine that we would be great missionaries in China or Bangladesh or Iran or..... but we're just not being honest - or at least I'm not. If I can't do the invisible, unseen things, the things that are harder, the things that no one else can verify or confirm, the things that aren't "important" in the world's eyes, how do I think I could do the task of witnessing anywhere in the world, especially under great hardships? It's the things I need to change in my heart that really show whether I am genuine in my faith. The things no rabbi or neighbor or even family member might ever know. But it's those things Jesus came to die for me for. Not so I could be honored as an outstanding humanitarian or even a good Christian worker or parent or anything else others see. It's the forgiveness of the awful darkness that fills the depths of my heart - that's the miracle more amazing than making a lame man walk - that's the miracle that's worth telling everyone about. That's the miracle worth me changing bad habits and selfish ways for. That's the miracle available to every man, woman and child on the face of this earth. Forgiveness of sins, no matter how many, how often, how unseen. May I never forget that miracle as I meet the dreariness, the hopelessness, the hurt and pain in other's hearts. Never. Wherever. Whenever. HE is there with that miracle waiting to touch that heart like He did (and does) mine. Amazing, unseen, lovely miracle - forgiveness.

The Nut Farm

Tomorrow after church we're headed out on a brief trek across the way to a Pecan Orchard. Not a grove. I just recently learned the difference and lots of other things like Pawnee versus Stuart variety, what pecan weevils are, when to prune pecans, why so many don't produce properly, etc. So in case you haven't guessed - we have decided that our tree farm will be .... ta dah... a pecan farm. Clearing the land should be finished by the end of next week (Lord willing) and then we will burn the piles and piles and piles and piles.... of stumps which we can now finally do thanks to the wonderful rains during the past week. Then we will race against time to try to get some winter ground cover planted and growing in time to be well established before tree planting time in January. My hubby and I have never been so excited and at peace about what to do with the land as we are now so after long and hard prayers we really feel like this is the best use of the land. Normally I don't like to learn scientific names and horticulural details but for some reason I really enjoy it when it comes to pecans. Weird, huh? Maybe it's just because I'm already so nutty? Anyway, tomorrow we head down near Spivey's corner, world famous for its Hog Hollerin' Contest (they just call it the Hollerin' contest now - no kidding!) and check out a great Orchard. We're taking pictures of our farm so we can have some "before" and "after" pictures as well as pictures from our visit tomorrow. I'll holler over to you in a few days and let you know how tasty those pecans are!!

Church Signs

I enjoy reading Dr. Black and his recent post about "Who is Head of Your Church" echoed some conversations we have been having with family members. When on our trip in the mountains we were driving through a small (well not-so-small for the mountains but small compared to many places in the US) town with a "First Baptist Church" sign. It could have been "Main Street Methodist" or "First Presbyterian" but the point was so obvious - the size of letters of the church and the street address were less than half the size of the letters of the pastor's name (which ironically was a paste-on and not painted directly onto the wood :) - so much for permanence!). Anyway, we laughed at the sight but unfortunately it is often only an obvious outward expression of the truth. And then a few days after returning we were in a discussion with some extended family members about two churches we were members of in ages past. Both have suffered severely because of leaders (pastor in one and deacons in the other) who were totally unwilling to confront blatant grievous sin by leaders in their congregation. They called the church "their" church. They told people that they had been there for xxx years and had ancestors in the graveyard and had authority. Ohhh... how my heart aches to think of what they will have to answer to when the real head of the church returns. Beware - any church where you hear it referred to as anything, yes anything, other than Christ's church, be it "so-and-so's church" or "such-and-such denomination" or "the best music church" is a fair warning to watch out. Just a lesson hard learned by this family that we try to share with anyone who will listen. There are churches out there which try to honor Christ alone and above all things - but they are becoming rarer. Look for the signs. All of them. Literal and figurative. The best ones will be invisible except for the Cross, the glory of Christ, the love of neighbors and the humility of all leaders. Hard signs to put up, harder to see but well worth the looking.

Mother

So many of you have sent me such sweet emails about my parents anniversary - thank you! And in response to a few comments from those who knew them I wanted to post these pictures of my Mom on her birthday. First as a toddler with 2 of her brothers:



and then after her success battling polio (from age 14 - 20) she finished high school and became a licensed photographer:



and finally as a young woman engaged to marry my Dad:


Happy Birthday Mama!

Wedding Anniversary

Today is my parent's anniversary. I must ashamedly admit that there have been a few years in my life when I forgot it. On their 40th anniversary my sister lovingly planned an Anniversary party for them which falls near the Family Reunion each year (my parents married on my Mom's parents' anniversary which is when we have the reunion). They thought everyone was coming for the Reunion but didn't know that it was also an Anniversary Party. It was such a beautiful time that day (thanks for all your hard work Joye!). Little did we know that it would be their last anniversary together. Less than 3 months after the anniversary party I gave birth to my parent's first granddaughter. They were so thrilled to see her and hold her. But 4 months later my Mom was diagnosed with breast cancer and 3 months after that she passed away. She was so excited to know she had another grandchild on the way (my niece) and little did she know that she would have a total of 7 grandchildren live to know about her and hear stories about her. Today would have been my parents' 59th Anniversary and tomorrow would have been my Mom's 92nd Birthday. Love and miss you both very much ---

Handy hands....

Like crafts? Here are some of my friends' craft sites:
Jewelry - from Lindsey

Crochet - from Lea

These are some talented ladies!!

Family Reunion

We just got back from a quick trip to the mountains for my family reunion. In typical fashion, I had planned out our route and activities (with a list :) !) but when we arrived at our first destination Thursday morning they told us they were closed (contrary to their website information) until the following day. No problem. We would just "reverse" our activities and do Friday's stuff on Thursday - Plan B. We went on over to Oconaluftee Village and enjoyed the heritage and history. [OT: Over the weekend I found out that I have Cherokee ancestry on both sides of my family, although I had known for years that I had it on one side. As you can imagine, many families in the mountains had Cherokee blood that didn't talk much about it because many of the marriages happened in the early and mid-1800s when the Cherokee were being forced onto the "Trail of Tears".] So after a day of enjoying Cherokee, we checked into our hotel and looked forward to the fun rides the next day (we had planned to take the little ones to the newly re-opened Ghost Town). Friday dawned cooler and .... wet, very, very wet! For the first time in weeks the mountains were getting rain which they needed but now I needed to go to "Plan C" (which was nonexistent!). We drove across a few mountains, stopped and got some great local produce including the absolute best muscadine grapes EVER (we've saved the seeds in hopes of growing them - anybody know if they need to be stratified or any particular soil needs for them?? I need advice!). As we drove into Bryson City my 5yo said "I thought we were going to a city. Where's the city?". Big laugh from all of us (along with a little sigh from me as I realized how little my own children know about the area where I grew up)! Since it was Railfest Weekend (unbeknowdest to me earlier but now designated as "Plan C"!) we arrived just in time to take a special 30-minute train ride
and then the kids had a blast doing a scavenger hunt in the Train Museum. The rain almost stopped during the train ride and started back heavy while we were inside the museum so who could complain?! After eating at "Na-Ber's Drive-In" (I am NOT making that up!!), stopping to take a picture of the crushed cars used to reinforce the bank of the Tuckaseegee River (gotta be there), and double-checking our map, we moseyed on down the road past Sylva, driving by it's "almost famous hillside courthouse",
past Western Carolina University (my sister's alma mater which has grown a lot since I was last there!),
and Lake Glenville where I have many, many memories of camping as a child, we arrived near Cashiers. Since it was a little earlier than planned and the rain was only a "spit", we drove a few miles up Hwy 64 to two of my favorite waterfalls - Bridal Veil

and Dry Falls (where on this heavy rainfall day we did NOT stay dry walking behind the falls - which made it even more fun for the children!). Saturday was the reunion with lots of big hugs, shared memories, new babies, sadness at the loss of loved ones, great food, and my children's favorite - BINGO! A family tradition for sure! Unfortunately many cousins were sick or couldn't come and no one brought the horseshoes (the other family tradition) but a new one was started by my 8yo - Ring Around the Rosie for all ages! The oldest family member (my Uncle Bill - age 86) was in the circle with some of the youngest ones and I know my "Pop" would have been right there laughing and playing with them if he was still here. There's nothing so good as family and I pray that my children and cousins and generations to come will hear stories of their grandparents and great-grandparents who prayed for them long before they were even born. May that blessing never be forgotten or halted - that's the Master Plan.

Field TRIP!!!

What a blast we had today at Yates Mill Park. Our tour guide was a professor from NCSU and was so great answering the children's questions and getting them to think about life in earlier times. The mill was built in the 1740's and it is amazing to think about standing in a building that was used before our country was even formed. The wife of the original owner wrote about what a terrible time they had with bears, cougars and wild animals to the point of barely keeping their livestock alive. Amazing to think about as you stand there with cars whizzing past about 20 feet away and knowing 1 million people are now living within 50 miles of that spot! Anyway, enough history lesson - here's some pics!!

Remember Setpember 11th

September 11, 2001. My 8yo doesn't remember the day. My 5yo wasn't even born. But my oldest 3 children will live with that date burned into their memories and my youngest ones will hear about from us and from history books. For some of us our hearts burned with the same feeling as when we heard about JFK's assassination. For older Americans it rang like the words over the radio from FDR "a day that will live in infamy". Actions of a few who affected the lives of so many. Actions from misguided fanatics who had no real hope in life. Who did not value the lives of others. But actions from a few who love as strongly as those hated can change the world, too. It's just not as dramatic or advertised. It won't be on the front page. But those who love and live for others and spread the truth and the true hope have more impact than those planes. Impact for good. Impact for eternity. Today let's remember those who daily put their lives and livelihoods on the line to carry Hope to a hopeless world. To carry the message of Love to a world filled with hate. To carry the Light of the World into the darkness. To do what is right and good even when no one notices.

Missionary Monday

Here's a slide show by friends of Brian and Mandy's.


Pray for Macedonia. Simple request for something that means an eternal difference to many.

Brown recluse??

My dh walked a very heavily wooded lot with a potential homeowner a few weeks ago on a Friday afternoon. By the following day his legs from the knee down were covered with "red bug" (or "chigger") bites and so were the legs of his associate builder. Itchy. Irritating. Painful. He kept them coated with anti-itch hydrocortisone but one place had just gotten worse and worse and this weekend it -- well, it wasn't pretty. Something you'd see on a medical show from a third world country. Yuck. I will not post pictures!! Tomorrow a.m. he's off to the doctor to determine if that spot was actually a brown recluse spider bite or not (a friend thinks it may well be). I've learned more about those and how so many things get mis-diagnosed as brown recluse bites even in states where there are no known brown recluse spiders. An education I could've enjoyed doing without. Anyway, we'll see..... in the meantime, keep those bug sprays handy!! Ugghh... makes me itch to think about!!!

Frugal Friday (yea, I know it's Saturday!)

This week I was very, very frugal. I didn't buy anything at the grocery or department stores and I think the only thing I bought anywhere were some 39c chips and a bottle of water for my children on the way home from Awanas. Labor Day Monday we ate free at the local pool cookout where we took some cookies I already had in the pantry. There just weren't any good deals on anything I needed so we just ate out of the pantry and freezer. My hubby did pick up a head of lettuce on the way home one night to have with the tomatoes still coming off my last potted vine. I really like these weeks. It's weeks like this that I really feel the "payback" from other weeks when I try to stock up on those "free or nearly free" deals, spend hours poring over coupons and ads to stock my pantry and when I see some of the many benefits of picking and canning veggies in the heat of the summer. So no "deals" to let you in on - just the best one - eat what you have! (And think of the gas I saved by not going anywhere!). Have a great weekend!

Beach trip photos

Finally got around to processing the photos from our trip to the beach. We had a blast on the beach the first day and on my BIL's boat the next day. Here's a few "thousand words" --

Thanks Lea!!

.... this award is for those bloggers who are nice people; good blog friends & those who inspire good feelings and inspiration. Also for those who are a positive influence on our blogging world. Once you've been awarded please pass it on to 7 others who you feel are deserving of this award.

Lea over at "End of the Road" has brightened my day many a time through her blogs and her smile and now she brightened my day by including me with the "Nice Matters" award. Thanks Lea!

There are lots of others that I think deserve this award but since the rules are 7 I will split them between my blogger and homeschooler blogger friends. I would've included Beth and Shelley but Lea beat me to the punch so here are 7 others that I think deserve the award:

Angela - for blessing me with a window into the joys and trials of lots of little ones, making me remember the times with peanut butter smeared walls and lots of pushing to see who gets Mommy's lap next. Thanks for making me stop and be thankful for each moment with each child.

Julie - for reminding me that every small thing as well as the big things show the love and creation of the Lord. Thanks for showing me your heart of love through your words.

Eileen - friend, sister in Christ, and so full of love the Lord keeps blessing her with more children who will glue on her walls! Thanks for letting us share in your joy of adoption.

Katy - for being such a joy to know and such a wonderful friend to my son. I enjoy getting to know more about you through your blog.

Brian and Mandy - for having such a heart for Christ and letting others be a part of their mission through their blog.

Cynthia Robin - for having such a heart for the military and having such wonderful devotions.

JenIg - for making me laugh till I hurt and smile at life and "stuff" !

Which theologian are you?

Jimmy took a quiz and passed it on to several others of us so I tried it. At first it took me to the quiz "Are you a clutz"? Well, no need for me to take a quiz to know the answer to that one (and no, I am not posting the results here because my bruised shins already tell the story!). Anyway, I got to the theologian quiz through Lea's blog and here are the results. Just try it !!

You scored as John Calvin, Much of what is now called Calvinism had more to do with his followers than Calvin himself, and so you may or may not be committed to TULIP, though God's sovereignty is all important. John Calvin 87% Anselm 87% Karl Barth 80% Jonathan Edwards 73% Charles Finney 67% Martin Luther 53% Friedrich Schleiermacher 40% Jürgen Moltmann 40% Augustine 33% Paul Tillich 20% Which theologian are you? created with QuizFarm.com

My alma mater!!!!

My dad was a football fanatic. He followed every college and pro team he ever saw on tv. He routed for Appalachian just because it was my alma mater. He routed for teams where he knew football players and where he didn't. He would've loved to see a good ole "mountain" team making it in the "big time"! So since he's gone, I'll just cheer a little louder for both of us!! WAY TO GO MOUNTAINEERS!!!!!