What's New?!

Good Morning!  I am sitting in the quiet of my living room looking out on a rainy morning with a cup of Earl Gray tea.  I love this time of quiet.  It is so unusual that both of my children would be asleep at 9:00am!  Usually we have already completed a class for school by now, but I couldn't bring myself to wake them up!  Actually, my daughter has been up, but cuddled up in my bed with the Kindle and is now drifting in and out of sleep.  My daughter, Grace, gets up, fixes her own breakfast, reads her Bible and prays, usually before my eyes open!  She is 8 years old and very indepedent!  She cleaned the kitchen last night for me.  I love that!  This morning, I was up before anyone, so I made pancakes with fresh peach syrup.  I have all of these peaches, so I grabbed a few, peeled them, put them in a pot, added a little bit of water, some honey, cinnamon and 2 glucomannan capsules to thicken it. Then I cooked it until bubbly.  Yummy!!  The Glucomannan is used to thicken sauces, puddings, etc.  This is a Trim Healthy Mama ingredient!

What is new in my shop?  LOTS!  I have added headbands made from my wire yarn, mostly.  These are so cute!  I love them.  My daughter, Grace, was my model and she kept saying, "Don't list this one.  I want it."  to about all of them!  It is a great use of the wire yarn.  I have a customer who said she was going to use the wire yarn she purchased for hat toppers instead of pom poms.  I had a gentleman buy some from me last year at a craft show I did.  I wondered what he was going to do with it!  Something creative, I bet.  Anyway, the headbands were listed with the hope of bringing a little fun into your hair!  

I also added a monthly Fiber Box Club.  You will get a box of mixed types of fiber each month for however long your subscription is - 1, 3, 6 or 12 months.  There is a minimum of 4 oz. in each box.  It will be a mix of wool and exotics and maybe a little bit of sparkle!  Gift wrapping is available!  I am trying to come up with some fresh ideas.  My shop is doing well, but just want to take it to the next level.  Any ideas are being accepted!  What would you like to see?

School is going great!  I think I have hit upon a winner for curriculum!  Finally!  Ben is enjoying school and so is Grace.  I am using Tapestry of Grace with Ben and Rod and Staff with Grace.  Ben is using Singapore Math and Apologia science.  It is great to see happy faces every day!  (well nearly every day! lol).  In the summer, we are finishing up right after lunch, then head to the lake for swimming and fun!  It is a great incentive to focus and get the lessons done.  

Take care and God bless you!

Kim

God Is So Good!!

Well, let's see....
My son no longer has Chrone's Disease.
After forever - I no longer snore.
Toothache gone and tooth is in the process of being restored.
My other son healed from the beginning stages of MS.
A friend has been healed from Parkinson's Disease.
Another friend healed from head numbness.
Another friend received healing on her sprained ankle.

And, I am not talking about waiting for this - these healings happened immediately upon receipt.

God is pouring out His healing and miracles in these last days!!  Praise God!  He is alive and well in 2015 and still in control!

Everything else pales in comparison, news wise, but still going to share!

I am in the process of spinning my first ever sock yarn.  I hope to finish this week while on a break from school.  I also have 2 Ashland Bay rovings to spin - Merino and silk!  Yummy!

I am still working on the Messenger Bag and the quilt.  More on the bag than the quilt.  I am going to start my dad's yarn for his sweater this week.  I also hope to have it on needles by Saturday! 

I want to leave you with a recipe for a very simple cobbler.  I thought everyone knew this recipe, but I served it at our life group and several had not heard of it, so here it is!

1 cup of sugar ( I used one cup of xylitol and a pinch of stevia)
1 cup of self-rising flour ( If you don't have self-rising, use regular flour with 1 1/2 t. of baking powder and 1/2 t. salt.)
3/4 cup of juice from fruit or milk

Melt 1 stick of butter in your casserole dish.  When butter is melted, all fruit of choice.  I used frozen peaches on my last one.  Then pour the above mixture over the fruit.  bake for 30 minutes or until done.  Serve with ice cream or sweetened condensed milk drizzled over the top.

Enjoy!

Plans and Projects

“Spring is the time of plans and projects.” 
― Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

Where to start!  The last freeze has ended and my yard is alive!  We have not lived here during spring, so I am waiting with anticipation as all the green wakes up in my flower beds.  I know there is one Iris and some lilies.  My maple tree is happily full of leaves.  The birds are singing.  But none have decided to make our birdhouse their home - yet!  I planted tomatoes and some Iris bulbs that I had forgotten about.  They had started sprouting in a bag on my porch.  So, I put them around the edge of the lake.  I have a box of heirloom seeds in the freezer.  My goal this next week is to plant them in pots and put them on the side of our home that gets sun.  Pots will allow me to move them around to the sunniest spot.  Not sure where that will be as we live in the woods!  But, our new neighbor has cut down a lot of trees, so hopefully that will help.  I will post pictures!  It is nighttime, or I would include some pics now!  Anyway...

We have been enjoying our meals on the screened in porch.  We have also had school out there.  The kids love it.  This afternoon, I was working on spinning my first sock yarn on the porch.  My plan is that it will be self-striping.  The trick will be to match up the colorways on the plys.

I have been watching a great knitting/craft  podcast - MandoCrafts.  She is into all kinds of crafts and her podcast is very organized.  She has different segments - What I Have Learned, Finished Projects, Works In Progress, Upcoming Events, etc.  And she has such a wonderful attitude.  She , Amanda Manus, has inspired me to work on projects for myself and family.  I have had such a hard time working on my projects.  I tend to spend that time on my ETSY shop.  Anyway, I have pulled out cross stitch, a quilting project, I finished my daughter's sweater, working on a messenger bag which has been on the needles awhile, and I have cast on a hat for my new niece, Viola, who will arrive in September.  I owe her a big thank you, so thank you, Amanda (MandoBug)!  Now to tackle my dad's Irish clan sweater!!  That will really be something.  Over 3 years!!  It is the monkey on my back!  I must restart it!  Here is MandoBug's Blog - http://mandobugcrafts.blogspot.com/.  Check it out.  You will love it!

Grace's Sweater
My niece's hat and a sweater will be in this same colorway.  I was about 10 yards short of enough yarn so I bought another skein.  I found the one I knew I had purchased with the original, so now I have plenty of this colorway!  What is this colorway?  It is Universal Yarns Classic Shades in Cool Blazes Colorway.

My Messenger Bag.  This was a free pattern from Craft Passion.  I goofed this up, but I think I can still make it work!  No way was I ripping out all of this work!

My Quilt Project - This is a set of 12 blocks called Butterfly Garden by Black Cat Creations.  I was in this block of the month club at a local quilting shop.  This was our first block.  The others are still neatly tucked in their packages, waiting to be colored!  You color each one with crayon.  Then set it with an iron.  Then you embroider around the pictures.  It will be beautiful when I finish.  I had intended to to this for my sister, Karen, who loved, loved loved flowers.  Unfortunately, she is with Jesus now and never even knew about this quilt.  It is hard to work on for that reason, but Amanda has inspired me to get it out again.

So, it is night and I have to help Ben finish a paper for composition.  Until next time, may God bless you richly!

Kim

Beautiful Day!!

It is absolutely beautiful outside.  The temp is around 70 and the sun is shining brightly. 

 I was sitting on my porch, working on my ETSY shop, thinking how blessed I am to have such a beautiful home.  My 8 year old little girl was asking me this morning if everyone had a shower.  I said, no, not everyone has a shower.  We are very blessed to have one.  We don't think about this often, if ever, but most of the world probably does not have an indoor shower with hot water and the turn of a knob.  We are very blessed here.  I told her that we should never take anything for granted. 

Now, on the eating front!  Several people at church this morning remarked about my weight loss.  It is all from the lack of sugar and wheat in my diet!  I am still trying to stick with the Trim Healthy Mama plan - mostly S plan - because of my sugars being so out of whack.  I baked the Chocolate Chip Cookies the other night and they were a big hit.  I believe I have posted the recipe in a previous blogpost.  If not, I will post it in the next one.  Last night, we had Big Mac's THM style.  It is called Big Mac In A Bowl!  It is a bowl of lettuce, hamburger with cheese, tomato, onion, pickle (I left this out) topped with Thousand Island Dressing!  It was really good.  Grace and I were the only ones who had it in a bowl.  Gene and Ben ate theirs on a bun. 

In shop news, I have a new goal of 211 views/day.  I did a numbers analysis on my shop, because, as I learned in sales, numbers never lie.  It is true, but you have to have accurate numbers!  So, after 4 years of my shop, I have some pretty accurate numbers to deal with.  Anyway, to reach my goal of $1500/month in sales, I need 211 views.  If you are interested in the formula, you can email me for the details.  So, on to the task of increasing views!  How?  More frequent social networking!  I am actually toying with the idea of a regular podcast. 

I have taken a few classes on spinning different types of yarns from Ashley @ Neauveau Fiber Arts.  She has a lot of YouTube videos, but she also has an ETSY shop where she sells various video courses.  I have bought just about all of them!   So, I have spun 3 different types of yarn as you can see below.  The blue one is a mohair wrapped wool yarn.  The red/green one is a supercoil, which I learned from Jace Boggs' book, Spin Art.  And the funky green/orange one is called Root Yarn Spinning.  It reminds me of Jamaican hair! 

My next yarn is going to be a fabric yarn spun out of this bunch of strips!

I can't wait to spin this.  I believe it will be something I love or hate the process of spinning it.  Hoping for love!  So many ways to spin yarn!  Love learning the new techniques.  I am so glad I invested in the Ashford Country Spinner.  It makes all of this possible! 

Until next time...
God Bless You!
Kim

 

Surviving the Storm

We have had quite the adventure on the Cumberland Plateau in the last couple of weeks.  We still have folks without power.  For those who don't know, we had a tremendous ice storm Friday before last.  I have never heard such scary sounds in my life.  The wind was blowing and you could hear the branches cracking and then breaking under the weight of the ice.  Then, BANG, they would hit the roof.  I lay awake all night praying for protection.  I love the snow, but hate the ice.   We were without power for almost a complete week.  It went out Saturday morning and was restored last Friday evening.  We drove to Knoxville on Sunday to get one of the few generators available anywhere!  My hubby hooked it up to our fuse box somehow and we had power.  Everything worked but the stove, the dryer and the hot water.  To get those to work he needed a different cord - a 220 or something like that.  Finally, on Friday, he was able to get one from Lowes.  But the power came on!  Praise the Lord!  Our friends had a gas hot water heater, so we were able to take a hot shower.  The hot water is what we missed most of all. 

There was some fun! Our lake froze!  This is not an every year occurrence for us.

Apparently, we are in for another round tomorrow and Thursday.  I felt kinda sick when I saw the alert on Facebook.  My husband went out last night and bought more gas cans and a tank we can use to heat water and have a hot shower.  One of us will have to stand outside the shower and pour it out from above, but that will be ok.  Teamwork!  Family!  A time of growing closer.  We are blessed with a gas fireplace and a gas grill, so we did have heat and a way to cook.  This time, we should be ok.  I just pray that all branches that were going to fall, have fallen!  No more trees down! 

In shop news, I am selling lots of Ashford products!!  Happy about that!  I have some yarns to post and my hubby is working on weaving some purses.  Can't wait for that! 

On the subject of cooking - I am using ground turkey in place of ground beef.  It is better for you and a lot cheaper than ground beef.  I have made hamburgers and tacos with it and my family loves it.  Even my 10 year old son loves it.  I am doing well following the THM S plan and keeping my sugar down.  I feel so much better!  I am going to host a THM get together soon and I will have some great recipes to share from that event!  Everyone will bring a THM dish that they really like along with the recipe.  That way, we can try different things and share ideas.  Great fun!!

Until next time, stay warm and may God bless you!
Kim

Good Eats!!

Ok, I am enjoying the Trim Healthy Mama S plan!  I really am.  I am still challenged in the baking dept., but I have found some really yummy recipes!  I am going to share 1 original and 1 from the files on the THM Mennonite Facebook page.

Blackberry Crisp - Really more like Blackberry Soggy.  I made this as an experiment for our small group on Friday nights.  I melted a stick of butter in a casserole dish - a 9x13.  I then added my blackberries to the melted butter.  Now for the topping.  I used coconut flour, almond flour - 1/2 cup of each.  Then I put in about 1/4 t. salt and 1 cup of xylitol with a 1/4 t. Stevia.  I cut up about 1/2 stick of butter and made the mixture into a crumble.  I then sprinkled it over the top of the blackberries and baked it for about 40 minutes at 350.  It never did get crisp, and I almost didn't serve it, but I had nothing else.  My hubby went out and bought some cookies from the store, but I hated not to have something homemade.  So, I put it out with some homemade whipped cream (Heaving Whipping Cream and a sprinkle of xylitol whipped up in the mixer).  It was almost gone!  Some even had seconds.  The taste was great but the texture - ugh.  But apparently not so bad to everyone else.  Some remarked that it was like a pudding.  Even my picky son loved it!  So, it is worth a try!  Experiment and make improvements!  Let me know how it works!  Remember to be THM - no flour and no sugar! 

This next one is great! 

Satisfying Low-Carb Pancakes
4 eggs
1 c. ricotta - I used 1 c. of cottage cheese
1/2 c. flax seed meal
2 t. baking powder
1/8 t. salt
sweetener to taste (8-12 dashes of Stevia Extract)  I used stevia powder
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1T. Cinnamon

Mix this all together and cook on a griddle.  It makes 12 4" pancakes.  I served them with real maple syrup, but you could also use Greek yogurt with berries.    This is considered an S breakfast.  Serve with Sausage or bacon.

I wish I had taken pics, but I didn't.  The recipe I followed had the cinnamon as optional, but I can't see leaving it out.  It really gave it a great flavor.

So, since I don't have any food pics, I will share a couple of yarns I posted to my shop last night!

I now am over 200 items in my shop!  I am at 201!  lol  More coming!  The Lord has renewed my motivation! 

Grab a cup of coffee, a good book and a blanket.  Snuggle in the arm of the couch and enjoy your day!  You have my permission!! 

God Bless You!
Kim

A Cold, Misty Morning

A misty, cold morning on the Cumberland Plateau! 

Yesterday, I got my 400th sale on ETSY!!!  A milestone that took 4 years!  My goal is to make 500 by the end of this year.  Can I do it??  Yes, I can!  With God all things are possible!  I also hit 200 items in my shop, another goal!  Well, it is now 199, as I sold something yesterday ( my 400th)!  So, not complaining.  I am going to dye some wool today and spin away.  I also have some cashmere, mohair and angora I could create with!  Hmmmm. 

I am running an idea around in my head - Yarn Home Parties.  I don't know exactly what that would entail, but with some creativity - who knows??  Any ideas from my readers???

I am still doing the THM S plan.  Last night, I had spaghetti squash with tomato sauce (which isn't really on plan).  But, the good news is, my family loved it!  I am so happy about this!  So, for lunch today, I am going to have spaghetti squash with a white sauce and salmon.  It sounds good, so I will let you know!  Also, after about 2 weeks of just using Stevia, I am developing a taste for it.  Yea!!!!

I am still participating in the Good Morning Girls reading the Bible through in 3 years!  Today, we read Exodus 28.  I want to share my SOAK with you today.  Remember SOAK is Scripture, Observation, Application and Kneeling in prayer.

 S: v.35 "Aaron will wear this robe wheneer he ministers before the Lord, and the bells will tinkle as he goes in and out of the Lord's presence in the Holy Place. If he wears it, he will not die." O: When the God tells us to do something, He means business! We, too, need to heed God's commands and obey. I think we have lost the reverence we should have for God. We, as a Christian society, have dumbed Him down to our level. To think that you can appraoch God in any way but in fear and trembling is a lie from Satan. God has not changed. The God that killed Aaron's sons, is the same God we worship today. He is Holy, Holy, Holy!! Just because we do not approach Him in that manner, does not change the fact that He commands our respect. In Mal. 1:6 God says "A son honors his father, and a servant respects his master. If I am your father and master, where are the honor and respect I deserve?" Do you know everytime we use God's name flippantly, it is blasphemy? There is a whole marketing campaign, complete with products, using OMG. This is the way the devil works. It it socially acceptable to say "Oh my God" and not give God a thought. Christians do this all the time. I do it! I caught myself yesterday doing it, but thankfully, the Holy Spirit gave me a huge whack upside my head and I immediately repented out loud in front of my children. God is Holy. Do we really want anything less? Rev. 4's picture of God is tremendous. This is the God we serve. There is so much comfort in knowing that He is in control. A: I am praying daily, that I have a Holy reverence for God. I have the Holy Spirit in me and I can talk to Him and just be the messed up me. The Holly Spirit is God's Spirit, but it is not God Himself. God Himself sits on the throne in Heaven and is worshipped by angels who cannot even look at Him He is so Holy. Wow! And this God - this Holy, Holy, Holy God - loves me! He knows my name! He knows my thoughts. He knows me through and through and He desires a relationship with me! Unbelievable! Yet, through Jesus' sacrifice, I can approach His Throne. But I must have a reverential fear and respect. He is Holy. I must never think less. K: Father God, may I never, ever use Your Name in a flippant manner again. I want to always, always remember Your Holiness and treat you with respect and awe. I thank You that I can approach Your throne and that the veil was torn that seperated me from You, but that did not make You less Holy. You are the same yesterday, today and forever. I find great comfort in that. Thank You for Your Word, thank You for loving me and caring about the smallest details of my life, and for giving me the Holy Spirit to guide and direct my every step. In Jesus ' Name!

Well, time to dress, get my son up and begin a great day of school, fiber and food! 

Until next time!
Kim

Blood Sugar Adventures!

I am seriously doing Trim Healthy Mama - S plans - to get my blood sugar under control!  I have ignored this for too long!  Right now, all systems are working but I have got to take responsibility and do my part in regulating.  Cake and doughnuts for breakfast have got to come to an end.  So, that being said, I made some great cookies last night that were on plan.  Want the recipe??!!

Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies

1 stick  butter, softened

1 Egg

1 T. coconut oil, melted

1/3 c. Truvia ( I used Erythitol)

1 t. Vanilla

1 t. Baking Powder

Pinch of Sea Salt

4 T. Unsweetened, Vanilla Protein Powder

¼ c. Coconut Flour

¾  c. Almond Flour

Suger-Free Chocolate Chips to taste (I used Carob Chips)

Mix together softened butter, coconut oil, and egg.  Add baking powder, salt, vanilla, Truvia and protein powder.  Stir well by hand.  (I used a mixer).  When ingredients are well-combined, add coconut and almond flours.  Stir.  As the final step, add desired amount of sugar free chocolate chips to batter.  Mix until combined through.  Drop by spoonful onto cookie sheet.  Optional:  you may choose to gently press the cookie batter down with a fork, but I like them to have the nice dome-shape to them!  Bake 350 for approximately 8-10 minutes.  These are a really soft cookie, so let them sit on the sheet for a bit prior to transferring to a cooling rack.  Enjoy!! 

I didn’t flatten  the cookies.  They definitely don’t flatten themselves.  They brown on top a lot. 

 

They spent the night in hiding in my oven - unfortunately, my family loved them!  No, I am glad they liked them, but they, like me, have a hard time denying themselves cookies! 

Also, if you are watching sugar in your diet, be sure to check out the ingredients in what you purchase at the grocery store.  Everything, just about, has sugar in some form, as an ingredient!  It is amazing! 

And!!  I have finally developed a taste for Stevia!  Now it just tastes sweet!  Love this, because Stevia is supposed to lower blood sugar.  I am also back to drinking my vinegar/turmeric/cinnamon, cayenne pepper/stevia water - sometimes lemon added.  This, too, is a developed taste.  But hang in there, and you will soon crave it!  Yes, it is true!!  I like mine iced, but some like it as a hot beverage.  I use Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar and put about 2 T in a cup.  Then I do about 3 shakes of turmeric, a couple of pinches of cinnamon, 1 pinch of cayenne pepper, 1 pinch of stevia and then fill with water .  I give it a good stir and add ice.  It helps to give the glass a good swirl before each drink so you stir up all the spices that have fallen to the bottom. 

Anyway, this is what is going on in my life today!  What about yours???

Loving This Winter!!

The view from my back porch this morning was stunningly beautiful!  I praise the Lord for the winter wonderland He provided.  They sun is out now and the temp. is going up,  but I am thankful for the sight, if just for awhile

.

I have been busy spinning, dyeing, and carding fiber!  I am trying to get 200 items listed in my shop.  Apparently when you get 200 listings, you get more traffic directed to your shop.  Each time I get past 160, I have big sales and it goes back down.  I AM NOT COMPLAINING!!!  I rejoice in each and every sale.  I just need to up production to keep up!  My son, Ben, made a rolag last night on the Ashford Blending Board.  He loves fiber and I love that he loves fiber!

I believe this is the perfect morning for a Maple Steamer.  My daughter, Jessica, and I were in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan at exactly this time last year.  We were caught in a blizzard in the middle of nowhere - Chatham.  We were in a 4 room motel and there was a bar & grill, a general store (a real general store - they had everything) , an organic little restaurant, and a post office.  It was literally a stones throw away from the motel.  We went to the organic restaurant and I discovered the Maple Steamer!  It was great!  It is nothing more than maple syrup - about 2 tablespoons in a large mug and steamed milk.  I don't know if it is the taste or the bringing back of a close, shared time with my daughter, but I love this drink.  Definitely a comfort drink for me. 

Have a wonderful Saturday!!
Kim

Good Monday Morning!

Good Morning!!  The sun is shining and the temperature is perfect for a woman of many hot flashes!!  I am loving winter this year.  I have never truly embraced winter.  It has always been the prelude to one of my favorite seasons, Spring!  However, this year, I am really enjoying snuggling with my family by the fire, hot cocoa, sweaters, and the occasional dusting of snow.  I pray for more snow, but it is not up to me!  So, I am just enjoying the cold! 

I have been busy getting my shop rejuvenated!  I updated my Twitter, Ravelry, Facebook, this blog, Stumble Upon and have joined Tumblr.  Not even sure what Tumblr is, but I am part of it!! 
I have some fabulous art batts in the making and 1 really cool one ready to be listed today.  I carded some Romney wool with bamboo and then put it in my dyepot!  The plan was for the bamboo to not take up any of the dye and stay white.  It worked beautifully! 

I am really tempted to spin this.  I have some really great ribbons I could add as well as some sparkle. 



This morning's Good Morning Girls Bible Study has us in Exodus Chapter 11.  Here is my SOAK!

S: v.3. "Now the Lord had caused the Egyptians to look favorably on the people of Israel."

O: The Israelites needed to collect their wages of silver and gold from the Egyptians for work they had done. It seems.unlikely in the flesh, that the Egyptians would just hand over silver and gold to their slaves, but they did. Why? Because God gave the Israelites favor with the Egyptian people. I have experienced God's favor and it is definitely a "wow" moment. And the best thing is - we can walk there!

A: If I abide in the shelter of His wings, then I will walk in the favor of God. I put the caveat of abiding under His wings, because if I am indeed covered and abiding, then that means I am totally trusting God with everything. I am seeking Him for the everyday of my life. I am in obedience to Him. There are many rewards to living under His wings - not the least of which is protection from deadly disease, no evil will conquer me, no plague will come near my home, protection wherever I go - I won't even hurt my foot on a stone! I will be rescued from trouble! Talk about favor!! Check out Psalm 91! So my goal is to purpose to abide in the shelter of His wings for the next hour. Then I will, with the Holy Spirit's help, I will abide for another hour. I may have to repurpose every 30 minutes, or even 15! But I am feeling pretty good right now , before my day starts, with an hour.

K: Lord, thank You for this beautiful day! Father, let me praise You without ceasing for you are worthy of such praise. I want to abide in the shelter of Your wings all day long. I want to bring my children with me. Hold onto me tightly and give me a swat when I start to be restless and pull away. I do not want to leave you. I love You so much. Without You, I am nothing. Thank You in advance for giving us a glorious day! In Jesus' Name..

Have a wonderful day!

 

Busyness of Life

Good Morning!!  Good Cold Morning!!  I love the winter time!  Snuggling, hot cocoa, snow, and a definite quick fix to the hot flashes!  Gotta love it!

                                                                       
Speaking of winter, we have a rewards chart we use for discipline issues.  If, for instance, my kids are not unkind to each other, they get a reward.  My son's reward is a coffee drink.  So, I have looked up some coffee recipes and this one for Caramel Macchiato is great!

In our Good Morning Girls devotional today, we read Exodus 10.  Here is my SOAK!
S: v. 1...."I have made him and his officials stubborn so I can display my miraculous signs among them. 2. I've also done it so you can tell your children and grandchildren about how I made a mockery of the Egyptians and about the signs I displayed among them- and so you will know that I am the Lord."
O: This answers the question that has been bothering us -"Why did God harden Pharoah's heart?" The sad thing is, the immediate generation, with the exception of Joshua and Caleb, did not respect God or His power. 
It is also interesting that the plague of locusts was related to the defeat, in the Egyptians mind of Osiris, the god of fertility and crops and the darkness was to show God's power of the sun god, Ra. 

A: God had a plan then and he has a plan now. In the midst of this chaotic mess of a world we live in, God is in control. Nothing that is happening is news to Him. We have to spend time in the Word and in developing a close, deep relationship with the Holy Spirit. We must put that first. The busyness of the day gets in the way of our developing that relationship. It is like "I will get with You in a little while. Have a seat." And we never show up! He has sat there all day and we never show up! Why is this so important? Because if we don't hear from the Holy Spirit, we are going to be seriously handicapped in this time of tribulation and persecution. Where do we go? Where does God need you today? Who does God have for you to witness to today? Do we stay where we are if we face persecution or do we sneak away? The Holy Spirit will direct our every move, but we cannot leave Him sitting in the chair all day! I challenge myself in this also. I cannot let the busyness of the day come between me and my Lord. He has to come first. The 15 minute praise breaks I posted about a few days ago have really helped to keep God at the forefront all day long. Everything goes better. My head is clearer, my day is brighter, my children are happier. 

K: My Lord! How I do love You. Today, create in me a pure hear and a clear mind. Fill me to overflow with Your Holy Spirit. May I be obedient to Your every word and may I not do or say anything that You do not tell me to do or say. Help me to be a blessing to You today and not a discipline problem child. I adore You! You, alone, are worthy of my praise and adoration. In Jesus' Name.

May God Bless You Richly Today!

Where is Your Quiet Place?

Good Morning!!  Today, in our Good Morning Girls devotion, we read Exodus 8.  Below are my SOAK thoughts:

S & O: In today's reading, one verse really stuck out to me and that is v. 10 - "Do it tomorrow..." This was in response to Moses' question to the Pharoah, "When do you want me to pray for you, your officials, and your people? Then you and your houses will be rid of the frogs". TOMORROW?? Really?? Why not right now? Crazy! Then when God sent the flies, Pharoah told Moses to "Hurry and pray for me." (v.28). I wonder why he didn't want rid of the frogs right now. Hmmmm. Verse 27 was a verse I can pick to apply to my life. "We must take a 3 day trip into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God, just as He has commanded us."  

A: Today, we think we can live in the world and pray in the world. We need to get away and spend some quality time with God. Jesus would often go away and pray. He left all the people and the disciples and went away to pray to His Father. It's hard to have a good visit with anyone when there is chaos all around. We can't concentrate, or listen to what God has to say when we are in the midst of noise and cares of this world. We are in the world but we are not of the world. Get away, in the quiet, all alone, and let God minister to you. That is what I am going to do today! Now where will that place be?? Usually it is the shower for me. That is the place where I can hear from God the best. If I get so frustrated, I head to the showers. When I need desperately to reconnect to God, I head to the shower. I am a very clean person! lol  

K. Father God, I am so appreciative of Your patience! You love me and never give up working on me. Lord, help me to get away and visit with You, even when there are no problems in my life. Help me to come to You - just as desperately as I do in the bad times - in the good times. Bless the Good Morning Girls today as we go through our day. Speak loudly to us and pull as away to just spend time with You. I love You so much! In Jesus' Name.

Remember: S stands for Scripture, O stands for Observation, A stands for Application, and K stands for kneeling in prayer.

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Last night I finally got my Dye It Yourself Yarn Kit posted in my ETSY Shop!!! I love dyeing fiber and creating new and unique colorways. It is interesting sometimes to see how the colors bleed into each other, creating an altogether new color. Sometimes it is frustrating when they bleed together to make a new color! lol But when I spin it into yarn, it totally changes into a new and beautiful creation - well usually. I once spun some yarn from a beautiful roving. I loved the colors in the roving. Well, the yarn, I thought was horrible. It was the ugliest yarn ever. I don't have a pic to show you, but take my word for it. Well, I needed to make a baby gift, so I used this yarn to make a baby hat. Let me tell you, there has never been a more beautiful baby hat color wise. That ugly yarn knitted into a self striping fantastic hat! I could not believe it! Anyway, lesson being, looks can be deceiving - in people and yarn!

I am going to post an art batt I created last night. I will give you a sneak preview:

Until next time, have a blessed day!

Am I Really Like The Hebrews In Exodus????

Isn't it awesome that God's mercy is new every morning!?   Great is His faithfulness!!  This morning I read Exodus 7.  It is funny because the verse that stood out to me was one from the commentary - Psalm 106:7 "Our ancestors in Egypt were not impressed by the Lord's miraculous deeds.  THEY SOON FORGOT HIS MANY ACTS OF KINDNESS TO THEM."  WOW!!    You know, every time I read Exodus, I get so angry with the attitudes of these people!  What is it going to take for them to stop their complaining?  I can't believe that they could be so ridiculous when they are physically being led by a cloud during the day and fire by night!  How could they worship other gods when they have had a sea opened up and the land to be dry for them to cross??  Unreal, right?

Then....I look at my life.  What will it take for me to stop complaining?  After all the blessings God has bestowed upon my life and all of the miracles He has perforned for me, how can I ever leave the shelter of His wings?  How can I possibly put reading email and Facebook before I tell my Father good morning?  How can I??????  It goes on and on.  I have to get on my face before God and repent. I hear people say that God understands.  He understands but He does not approve!  He wants to be first in our lives.  Anything that is in that first place spot besides God is an idol.  It is true.  We don't like to look at it that way, but it is true.

Today, I will purpose to put God first in everything and praise Him all day long!  Right now, it is very quiet.  Hubby has left for work and the kids are still sleeping.  In a few minutes, I will awake my children for school and begin our day.  That is when the challenge starts.  Keep God first!  When I get frustrated, I will go to a private place and get with Him, BEFORE I express frustration to my children.  I will put Him first!  If you are like me, you will need to do recommit to this every 15 minutes.  I can't just say I will do this in the morning and expect that I will remember!  I must do this every 15 minutes.  I am going to set my timer on my oven for 15 minute intervals all day and when the bell goes off, I will praise the Lord and dedicate the next 15 minutes to Him.  I bet my day will be fantastic!  I will let you know!

The Lord Is Willing, But Am I?

Good Morning!  The sun is shining and it is, I'm guessing, single digits outside.  I love winter!!  Now, if it would only snow!

This morning, I read Exodus 6 using the color coding and SOAK method.

Scripture:  v. 12 "But Lord!" Moses objected.  "My own people won't listen to me anymore.  How can I expect Pharaoh to listen?  I'm such a clumsy speaker!"

Observation:  Once again Moses says "I can't" contrasted to verses 6-8 where the Lord says "I will" 7 times!  I will free you from your oppression;  I will rescue you from your slavery in Egypt;  I will redeem you with a powerful arm and great acts of judgment;  I will claim you as my own people;  I will be your God;  I will bring you into the land I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob;  I will give it to you as your very own possession.  I AM THE LORD!  Moses reacted from his feelings.  He was discouraged because not even his own people would listen to him.  He wanted out, but God kept persisting and the results speak for themselves.

Application:  How many times has God asked me to do something and I didn't FEEL like I could do it, or I was afraid of rejection, or what people would think.  But praise the Lord, He gave us the Holy Spirit to "twist our guts" when we even think about disobedience!  I love that!  God takes us out of our comfort zone and puts us in the power zone!  I need to not ever act on how I feel, but always rely on God to take me where I need to be.  He promises never to leave or forsake us.  We must trust Him!  I must trust Him!

Kneel in Prayer:  Father, I love you so much.  I am so sorry when I depend on my feelings and act on them instead of trusting you and listening and obeying what You tell me to do.  Mold me and make me into a vessel You can use.  Create in me a pure heart and mind - one that is always in tune with You.  Help me to only say and do what You tell me to say and do.  May I be a reflection of You while I am on this earth and none of me!  Empty me today of all the uck and fill me with Your Holy Spirit to the overflow!  In Jesus' name.

I would encourage all my readers to try this method with any chapter.  It is very rewarding.  After all, we must be doers of the Word and not hearers only, right?

Off to fix breakfast for my hungry family.  The cupboards are bare, so it is going to be an oatmeal morning - organic, of course!  Did you know if you put the oatmeal in the water at the beginning, it will be very creamy.  Just add butter and a little brown sugar and you have a very delicious, satisfying somewhat healthy breakfast!  I am trying to get away from sugar, but stevia just doesn't quite cut it in oatmeal - not like brown sugar!  Yum!

Take care and God Bless!
Kim

Autumn is Officially Here and So Are All Things Apple and Pumpkin!

I cannot stress enough how much I love the Fall!!  Especially for one suffering from hot flashes, the cool, crisp air is a blessing from my precious Lord!  On that note, I am enjoying a cuppa of my homemade pumpkin coffee.  Yummy!  I simply put my favorite coffee, Chock Full Of Nuts, into my brewing basket.  To that I add about a teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/4 t. cloves, nutmeg, and ginger, with just a pinch of allspice.  I mix that around and voila!  Pumpkin Coffee!  Once that is poured into my favorite mug, I will often add sweetened condensed milk.  Wow!  So delicious!  This is to be savored sitting in a comfy chair, curled up under an afghan, with a good book in the peace and quiet.  Nice!

I have been busy dyeing roving and knitting swatches of my yarns for my shop.  Getting ready for the fall/winter selling season.  You never know what a yarn will look like when it's knit or crocheted.  Hopefully this will help.

Last evening, I discovered, what I think, is a wonderful Science website, Physics4kids .  They also have Geography4kids, Biology4kids, Chemistry4kids, and a link to a really good math site - Rader's NUMBERNUT.  My sweet hubby wants me to start teaching some serious science to our 4th grader, Ben.  So, we are going to start Physics.  Just a basic class - nothing too involved, but he wants Ben to have a general knowledge of motion, matter, speed of light, etc.  I am pretty convinced , right now, that I am definitely am going to go for DVD courses in science when he gets older.  I was pretty good in Biology, Earth Science and basic Physics, but to get an in depth education in Chemistry and Physics will require DVD teaching!

As far a our organic, healthy way of eating, it's coming along.  The trouble is leaving home.  When we go to anyone's home or church for meals, it's tough, mentally, to stay the course!  However, we are doing much better than we were a year ago.  Now,I am going to be forced to stick within my $60.00/week budget!  I will post my menu for this coming week, along with my grocery list.  Then, I'll let you know how I did staying in my budget.  I love the challenge!

I LOVE FALL!!

I love the fall!  I mean, I really LOVE it!  The coolness of it.  The art of it - all the beautiful colors!  The smell of it!  All of it!  I feel so much better inside and out in the cooler weather.  Although, praise the Lord, our summer was super mild!  I don't think we ever got into the 90's.  Whoo Hoo!

So, we are still trying to eat healthy, although I have not abstained from sugary desserts like I had intended.  I need to pray about getting control of this area.  However, I am doing much better than I have been doing.  Still trying to get the hang of the Trim Healthy Mama way of eating.  It isn't that hard, once you get the concepts of carbs, fats and how they interact with your body.

I have not been using my Wonder Washer that much either!  I need to go to my original plan of having the kids do their own laundry and then all I have left are my and my husband's clothes and towels.  It does work great, though.  Only 2 minutes for a large load and 30 seconds for the rinse!  WOW!

I am working on my ETSY shop a lot!  I have kinda slacked off a bit this summer, but our bank account is screaming - "Get back to work!".  I am expanding my line of roving quite a bit.  I'm also going to start on my first digital instructional video!  I am excited about that.  I'm going to do a basic spinning class, I think.  It would be a great gift combo with a spinning wheel!  We will see.  Ben, my now 9 year old, has agreed to film me.  We will see about that, too!  LOL.  I don't know if he will have a steady enough hand.  Anyway, I am grateful for his willingness.

I have completed 2 baby blankets this summer.  And, on the urging of my family and friends, I have added custom baby blankets/wall hangings to my shop.  I am not sure if this will work, but we will see!  I did enjoy creating each blanket a lot. 

 

I have discovered, through Stacy Makes Cents, a great meal planning site.  In the past, I would do a menu for the week, but I would forget where the recipes were - book or computer,;  which book;  which website?!  This site does away with that!  Your meal plan, recipes and shopping list are all in one spot!  And it is super easy to import recipes as you stumble across them on the internet.  Just one click!  The site is Plan To Eat.  Check it out!  There is a 30 day free trial, then it is just $4.99/month.  Well worth it, I think.

I am going to sign off and enjoy a cup of Creamy Pumpkin Pie tea before homeschool starts!  This is wonderful with cream and honey!  Yum!!  And the aroma is fantastic!  I highly recommend this organic blend by Shoshanna at the Bulk Herb Store!

TTFN (as Tigger would say - Ta Ta For Now)

Life Au Natural

I am finding and creating dishes that my family is liking this past week, praise the Lord!  I was beginning to think that my 8 year old son was going to have to get a feeding tube if he didn't start eating soon!  Smoothies saved the day!  His favorite contained everything but the kitchen sink!  It had Kale, wheat germ, flax seed, coconut, blueberries, strawberries, mango, vanilla yogurt, oj aconcentrate, and a breakfast blend all natural juice - oh, and some egg shell water ice.  What is that?  Well, I saw it on this YouTube.  It's good for bone health.  Anyway, he loved the smoothie!

I promised I would tell about my chili!  It was awesome!  I cooked some organic kidney beans in a pressure cooker with some sea salt.  I then put 1 tomato, 1 onion, some basil and oregano, banana pepper, and a hot pepper in the food processor.  I added that to my beans - water and all.  I also browned 1 pound of organic hamburger and added that.  It was still a little on the thin side,so I added a little cornstarch.  I'm going to order some arrowroot, which can be used to thicken and won't contain the carbs.  It was delicious!

I am in the process of reading Trim Healthy Mama at the recommendation of a friend.  It is really eye opening!  I love it!  I will share some of the wisdom as I read on!

I made 4 quarts of homemade vanilla yogurt this morning along with a pint of sour cream.  I haven't tasted the yogurt, but it smells fantastic!  My little girl had a little of the sour cream on a bean burrito we had for lunch.  It wasn't really ready, but there was a little bit of firmness on the top, so she got a little of that.

Oh, and the big news is I got my Wonder Washer yesterday!  We have done about 6 loads in it and it has worked great!  Drying the clothes is a challenge in this rain, so I'm having to use my dryer.  My goal is to try and take us off grid as much as possible. I have a pic of it on my  Facebook page.  Just click the link.  I posted it yesterday, so it should be pretty close to the top of my page.

I am stir frying this evening for supper.  No meat - just veges.  I have some whole grain rice.  According to Trim Healthy Mama, I should have a protein with this, but life goes on!  I just took some granola out of the oven that I made to go over my vanilla yogurt for dessert!  It has nuts in it, so there is a little protein!

Take care and Happy Living!!

Challenges

Ther are some challenges with going chemical/hormone free in your eating - namely cost and taste.  Yes, cost is what keeps a lot of families from going natural.  However, if you overcome cost, you are still left wanting in the area of taste-at least for a newbie.  I have 3 goals for my new c/h free lifestyle.  The first is to eat c/h free on a budget of $60.00 a week for a family of 4.  Secondly, I want to be able to prepare breakfast, lunch, dinner, desserts and snacks that my family will love.  Lastly, I want to share it all with my dear readers.  I want to eventually post menus with recipes and costs.  

For now, my success and failures in the past 2 days.  Homemade pineapple ice cream - UCK!  Ok, I followed a recipe for this one.  The recipe called for 2 tablespoons of liquid Stevia.  I thought that was a lot, but, hey, it's a recipe that someone has tried and liked!  I did use coconut milk in the place of evaporated milk, bot the aftertaste of the stevia was terrible!  It was not edible.  That was Monday evening.  This morning, I made an oatmeal casserole for breakfast.  Success!!!!  This was a winner.  Even my picky eater ate it! Here is the recipe:

1 organic apple cored and sliced

1 c. raisins

1/2stick of butter

2 eggs

1/2 c of maple syrup

2 T. wheat germ

2T. Flax seed or flour

3 c. oatmeal

2 t. baking soda

1t. sea salt

1 c. Vanilla Almond Milk

2 t. cinnamon

Grease a shallow casserole dish.  Layer the apples and raisins in the bottom.  Mix the rest of the ingredients together in a mixer.  Pour this mixture over the fruit.  Bake at 350° for 30 minutes. 

The apple, raisins, butter, eggs, wheat germ, oatmeal, and Almond Milk were organic.  Kroger has an organic brand that is relatively inexpensive.  I buy a lot of my groceries from Kroger.  They also have c/h free meat.  

This afternoon, I gave the ice cream another try.  This time I used honey instead of stevia.  I didn't add any fruit. I used vanilla almond milk in place of evaporated milk.  It was a lot beter, but not much taste.  We added some leftover breakfast casserole as a topping and it was really quite tasty.  Next time, I will add a little more honey and another teaspon of vanilla.  

As soon as I perfect the ice cream, I will share the recipe!  Coming tomorrow - Awesome Organic Chili!  

Going Natural!

Hello everyone!  Well, it's been 5 months since I last posted.  That seems to be a recurrent theme!  Let's see...

We started our new homeschooling year using the Charlotte Mason method.  We began our new school year the first of June and my kids are loving it so far!  So do I.  It is so exciting to see them anxious to do school.  We are using living books for science, history, literature and grammar. Ben and Grace are remembering things much better using the living books.  Message me if you want details about what we are doing.  I'm happy to share but don't want to bore those who have no interest!  We also started French using a YouTube course with 72 lessons!  My children have taken Spanish for 3 years and I thought I would let them experience French for 2 or 3 years and see what they like.  We have school at the park, at home, outside under a tree - really nice to break it up.

My yarn shop, Simply Homespun, is doing great!  I am introducing mini skeins this month.  I didn't even know they were in demand!  People are using them to make "hexipuffs" that are then joined into a Beekeepers Quilt.


So, I decided to take the mini skeins and do a little twist (no pun intended) - I made them energized!  These should make quite a show in a quilt.  Look for more of these coming soon!

The Hines family has also gone all natural!  We haven't had sugar in the house in about 2 months - well, there is a little bit left in the canister, but it is about 3 months old.   We are using honey and stevia in place of sugar.  I still haven't mastered making a cake with stevia, but I'm working on it.  I did make some lemon lavendar muffins and they did rise, so that was a major victory!  I used yougart as a bulking agent in place of the sugar.  When you use stevia, you have to replace the bulk that the sugar would have given you as it only takes 1/4 t. Stevia to every 1 cup of sugar!  Sugar really contributes a lot to a recipe - sweetness as well as texture and bulkiness!  It is fun experimenting though.  I am using Stevita.  It doesn't have any after taste.  It is expensive, but using so little of it, it is probably going to wind up being less than sugar per serving.  I am trying really hard to use only food without chemicals or hormones.  It is really expensive - about double our $50.00/week grocery budget, but it is worth it.  My little 6 year old was starting to develop early thanks to the hormones added in meat and milk!  That was my motivation in switching our life style to an all natural one.  I made my own laundry detergent, am making our own bread from chemical free flour, and have gone back to raw milk from hormone free cows!  We are making our own butter from the milk so that has helped us save on butter as well as cutting down our usage of butter significantly.  All in all it has been fun, but I'm going to have to be more diligent in sticking to a budget and planning a detailed meal plan each week.  I will be posting our menus here so that anyone interested can take advantage.  Also, I will put the food cost up for you.  I wish I had this now from an experienced "naturalist"!

We are getting ready to go to our small group Bible study this evening!  So, until next time...

May God bless you and yours!
Kim

Autumn Reflections

Ok, I have to admit  -  I believe that Autumn is the best time of year.  I absolutely love it!  I don't know if it is because I can't stand the heat of summer and the coolness of the air just brings new energy to me, or what, but I love it!  Right now, I have my doors and windows open and the fresh air just permeates my home.  The little ones are snuggled under their covers still sleeping and our home is quiet.  I'm sipping on some Apple Spice Coffee (I just ground up some apple pie spice with my coffee beans and voila!) waiting on my bread to rise!  A day of homeschool, concert at the library, settling disputes between Ben and Grace, teaching a class tonight at church all await me, but for this moment - peace and stillness.  What a wonderful gift from my Creator!

One of the most wonderful things about fall are the smells - cinnamon, pumpkin, all spice, nutmeg, cloves, leaves burning, fires in the fireplace...then we have the foods - apples (pie, butter, fried, pancakes, etc), apple cider, pumpkin pie, sweet potatoes...yum!  Then the pinnacle of meals - Thanksgiving Day!  Time with family and friends.  What is not to love about Autumn??!!!!

I have recently started exploring do it myself flavored coffees.  I ground up my coffee, put it in the filter, then added sliced (very thinly) bananas with a little cocoa and a tad bit, and I do mean a tad bit of baking soda.  It is fantastic!  The baking soda takes away the bitterness of the cocoa.  Then I added frozen peaches yesterday.  It didn't give me the peachy taste I was hoping for.  I'm going to mash them up next time and see if that isn't better.  Today, it's Apple Spice.  Tomorrow, I'm going to add Pumpkin Spice.  It's fun to explore!