Clothed in Strength and Dignity

You are beautiful!

Love is patient...

Pickles...the old-fashioned way!

Never in my life have I "pickled" anything.  I've only canned once before...9 years ago.  I am not an expert by any means.  Almost two months ago my husband and I decided to try our hands at making homemade sauerkraut.  In order to do this we needed a Harsch Crock, which is a German crock-pot.  We decided it would be best if we did some research, so we watched some videos on You Tube.  If you're familiar with You Tube (which I'm sure most of you are) you know that off to the right-hand-side of the screen are "suggested" videos for you to watch that are similar.  We found this video:

 

 Did you watch the video?  At first I was a little skeptical.  Could pickling really be this easy?  I have been toying with taking on this project ever since I first saw the video...two months ago.  I finally decided to get together everything I was going to need...today.  There was no way I could put this off any longer.  We already had the canning jars...so, why not?

I am very happy to say that I have officially canned my first pickles.  I only purchased enough pickling cukes to make 4 quart-size jars...since I am still learning (and I have no idea if these are going to turn out or not).  This way, if they don't turn out...no big deal.  I pray that these turn out as delicious and crunchy as they did in the video.

My pickles!  Don't they look delicious?

Healthy Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

These are SO GOOD!  I actually found this recipe on Pinterest, which was originally posted on The Skinny Fork.  These cookies contain NO FLOUR, NO ADDED SUGAR, and NO EGGS.  I do not feel guilty about these...AT ALL!

Ingredients:

2 ripe bananas, mashed
1/3 cup peanut butter
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
Dash of ground cloves
Dash of ground nutmeg
1 1/2 cups quick or old-fashioned oats
1/4 cup nuts (I didn't use any, but the original recipe called for unsalted peanuts)
1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut (I didn't use any...I didn't want to go to the store)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 350* F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.  Mix together the bananas, peanut butter, applesauce, vanilla, and spices.  Add in the oats, nuts, chocolate chips, and coconut; stir until well combined.

Spoon about 1 Tbsp. of the cookie mixture onto the lined baking sheet, leaving an inch or two between each cookie.  Bake for 20 - 30 minutes (it only took 18 minutes for mine to bake...my oven bakes fast) and allow to cool slightly.

For I Know The Plans I Have For You...

You Homeschool???

Yes, yes I do.  Our youngest son and our daughter are homeschooled.  There are a number of reasons behind our decision to school at home, which I won't go into right now.  I know there people in my life who wonder what we do all day.  I can tell you that our days are quite different from what a child experiences in a public school classroom.  Some of the things we work on are:  Math, History/Geography, Language Arts (this includes Reading, Spelling, and Grammar), Good Citizenship, Bible (and more Bible), Science, Life Skills (to include cleaning, cooking, baking, etc...), just to name a few.  We go on field trips.  We meet with other homeschooled kids on occasion for parties and the like.  We are involved in a local 4H group for homeschooled kids.  Our son and daughter are socialized.  They have friends that they hang out with after the public school day is done, and on the weekends.  We "school" in our pajamas...hey, that's how we're comfortable.  Their learning never ends.  Just because the clock strikes 3pm, does not mean our learning for the day is done.  Learning occurs ALL THE TIME.  There is something to be learned in every aspect of life.  You just have to open up your heart, mind, and spirit to see it.

 My husband working on his Algebra.  

Our daughter is learning with him and cheering him on.

 The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

 Pretzel log cabins in honor of Abraham Lincoln's birthday.

 Grammar.

 The beautiful "Learning Station" that my husband and his 

friend built for the kids.

 Learning fractions with Skittles.

 The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann Wyss.

 A mask our daughter made...just because...complete

with a runny nose and a hand reaching up

to wipe away the boogers.

 

 Making charms out of clay.

 He loves this Bible!

 "Cozy Math" on the floor...wrapped up in blankies.

 "Fractions are FUN!"

 More "Cozy Math".

 Working on a model airplane.

 Paint by number.

Easter Fractions with jelly beans.

Deliciousness, Beauty and Blessings Abound

 A bouquet of wildflowers picked by my daughter.

 Onions.

 Tomatoes.

 A ladybug sunning on the lemon tree.

 In a few months, this lemon will be sliced 
and added to some sweet tea.

 Satsuma oranges.

 Delicious cookies I baked today.  
Never fear...I will post the recipe later.

 Our Royal Empress tree...that we had to cut down...again.

 Blackberries.

 Orange Mint.

 Grapefruit Mint.

 My daughter's Bachelor's Buttons.

 My son's pomegranate tree...brought inside due to the wind.

Another wildflower bouquet.

Welcome!

I want to welcome you to my new blog.  I've been blogging for a few years.  I started out with a blog about my family, then I moved on to blogging about food.  This blog will be a combination of the two.  I pray that it will also be a blessing and a source of encouragement for those who visit.

For those of you who are "new" to my life, I'll give you a very brief history.  I have been married to my husband / best friend for 13 years.  We have 5 children...3 of them are my step-sons, 2 of them are a creation of my husband and I.  We have moved around the country MANY times.  We have finally laid down our roots, living in the same city for the past 6 years.  For those of you who know us, you know that this is HUGE!  I have been a stay-at-home-mom (SAHM, for future reference) for the past 12 years.  There have been times in the past where I thought the grass was greener on the other side...wanting to work outside the home.  After attending Massage Therapy school for a period of 8 months (3 days a week, 7 hours a day) I quickly realized that the grass was plenty green on MY side of the fence.  This is when I finally realized how blessed I was...as a wife, as a mother, and as a woman.  I can proudly say that I am perfectly content with my life...ecstatic, even!  God has blessed my family in ways too numerous and awesome to even begin to describe in writing.

Again, it is my prayer that you may find encouragement and inspiration in my "little corner of the world".  I pray that you may be blessed by my stories and recipes (yes, RECIPES).  Have a beautiful and blessed day.