The Faces a Kid Can Make!

Yummy White Bread

2 cups warms water
2/3 cup honey
1 1/2 Tbsp active dry yeast
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 coconut oil, melted
6 cups white flour

In a large bowl, dissolve the honey, water and yeast. Allow to proof.

Then mix in the remaining ingredients in order. I use my stand mixer with a dough hook and knead until smooth and elastic. (You could also do this by hand.)

Put into a well oiled bowl.

Allow to rise in a warm but not hot oven. (About 180 degrees) until double in size.

Punch down the dough and divide between two oiled pans. Allow to rise a second time for about 30 minutes.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 25 minutes or until done.

Delicious!

Who's Been Using Momma's Lipstick??????

Making a Melody...

Today during my quiet time, I read this verse :

Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.

Ephesians 5:19 (KJV)

Make a melody in your heart to the Lord today!

My Noah is four years old and expressed an interest in learning to read. So we are using Bob Books. We have used Bob Books with our two older children as well. It is truly a cost effective, no frills, phonetically sound way to teach your kiddos to read. Pair it with www.starfall.com and you truly have a great reading program.

We spend 2-3 days on a book for Noah. (He already knows his letter sounds.) We review the phonics in the front cover. Then we read the book. Noah sounds out the words. Then I write his new words on his slate. He reads them for me. Then he writes out the words that I sound out to him. This works beautifully!

Just a note: I don't believe that four is necessarily the "magic" reading age. Hannah began at three. Jonah didn't show interest until five and a half. Noah has shown interest at four. All of my sweeties are different! That's just the wonderful way that God made them!

Digital Scrapbooking

I made the switch to digital scrapbooking back in November and I absolutely love it! I am using Scrapbook Max software and it has been easy to learn. It is much for efficient to sit at the computer and scrap. I can always put it away and finish later. (No mess to clean up!!) I am still learning but it has been very enjoyable. You can see scrapbook max software at www.scrapbookmax.com. There is even a free demo. I used to free demo and had some pages printed before I made the purchase. This is the easy way for mothers of young chidren to scrap!

The Swing

How do you like to go up in a swing,
Up in the air so blue?
Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing
Ever a child can do!

Up in the air and over the wall,
Till I can see so wide,
Rivers and trees and cattle and all
Over the countryside -

Till I look down on the garden green,
Down on the roof so brown -
Up in the air I go flying again,
Up in the air and down!

By Robert Louis Stevenson

Ice Cream "Sunday"

In the late 19th century Evanston, Illinois, nicknamed 'Heavenston' by Frances Willard, was a Methodist-minded town, so pious that the town fathers, resenting the dissipating influence of the soda fountain, passed an ordinance forbidding the sale of ice cream sodas on Sunday. Some ingenious confectioners, obeying the law, served ice cream with syrup but no soda. This sodaless soda was the Sunday soda, and became so popular that orders for 'Sundays' crossed the counter everyday of the week. When objection was raised to christening the dish after the Sabbath, the spelling was changed to Sundae, and so developed one of America's most characteristic dishes.

William Lyon Phelps"

Look at my little cowboys!!

Aren't they just precious! This painting was a Christmas gift. My mother-in-love painted it for me. The picture was taken at a family friend's horse pen. Samuel and Noah think that they must wear their boots and cowboy hats when they go visiting there.

I cannot tell you how surprised I was when I saw this beautiful and precious gift. She painted another one of Mary-Faith playing in the mud for Jeremy. I will post it another day

My mother-in-love has a website: www.simplysouthwestart.com

Can you guess what I have been doing?

I have tried bulk cooking or freezer cooking several times. I never truly felt successful. The problem? The recipes from the bulk cooking cookbooks didn't reflect my family's tastes. It was hard work to put away meals that we really weren't happy with later on.

So this time, I tried something different. I went to the store on Thursday morning. Thursday evening, I pre-cooked the meat. The ground hamburger was browned. The chicken breasts were put in the oven to bake. A whole chicken was placed in the crockpot.

The next morning, after breakfast, I began assembling meals. These were things that I know we will like: beef stroganoff, lasagna, tortilla soup, etc. I put away sixteen meals and was finished before noon. I will definitely try this again.

Jeremy's Delicious Smoothie

My husband has been making the most delicious, frozen, fruit smoothies for us. Besides being good, they are very good for you! Here is his recipe:

2 cups orange juice

2 1/2 cups of various frozen fruit

3 T. of coconut oil, melted but not hot

2 whole bananas

2 packets of Emergen-C vitamin supplement

Blend together in a blender and enjoy. Serves four.

This is my first blog!

I am so excited to begin journaling what is going on in my life. Of course, my life isn't exactly glamourous or interesting, just very busy with five children all under the age of ten. Our family of seven lives in rural east Texas. We think our modest home on a few acres is the perfect place for our children to roam, play and grow. I hope you'll stop by often to see what's new in our household and to discuss all things that I love. God Bless!!!