God writes the gospel not in the Bible alone, but on trees and flowers and clouds and stars. ~Author unknown, commonly attributed to Martin Luther

Man's heart away from nature becomes hard. ~Standing Bear

Real Life and Dreaming~

After a week of sickness, headaches,pain and stress for my little family I am really hoping for a good day today!
My man went to the dentist and after x-rays they said he must have a very high tolerance for pain because about 1/4Th of his teeth have rotted into his gums and he hadn't gone in for pain treatment. I know he's a tough guy but I sure wish I could fix it for him! Now they want to pull a bunch out or do expensive surgery ASAP..decisions decisions.
Crazy how one day you can have everything going along pretty nicely and then BOOM everything changes. Life is certainly real. I've been reading about the homeless lately and am very grateful that we have a house and vehicles, even if they do bleed us dry most of the time. I think owning land would be the most secure thing one can do for their family in these times; the only way to be sure that you don't end up homeless. While cities go up all around us,it's the farms and ranches that will last.
Owning something in the country is our dream and goal. I think it will happen some day but admit that I get impatient with the waiting.
Even a large yard can be a big help to a family. This year I planted a small garden at my in-laws and some more plants across the front of our home. If I had the wood or bricks and soil, I'd put raised beds around the yard as well. Growing healthy vegetables really helps a budget and is a satisfying venture. I would love to garden in every free and sunny spot if it were possible! City life is such drudgery! A garden helps to keep me sane. :)
So today, I am going to make banana bread, listen to music, pray and hope that my toughie of a man can get that second job that he's applied for.
With God, all things are possible.~

Some days really aren't worth waking up for. Ugh...

Psalm 107: 28-31

Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven. Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men.

God's Messengers

Colossians 3,16
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God."
I am so glad that God is faithful to teach us specifics in life! To listen to the thousands of human opinions you'd think that God only gave us a a starting hint as to how we should live.
God is better than that. He not only tells us to love Him but how to love him. He not only tells us to be good wives and husbands but how to do it.
Our purpose, our roles and our goals are plainly laid out in His Word. It's not until human beings decide that the plainly given truths are not good enough and start seeking alternate meanings that chaos and deception come into play. Remember Satan's first lies to Eve? He didn't deny what God had said, just cast doubt on what it meant.
Yes, we are supposed to teach one another, through example and words whether in person or written. Older women are to teach the younger exactly what God says to teach them.Titus 2 Men are to teach men, exactly what God says to teach them. Titus 2 We are all to share the gospel, exactly as God says it. Mat 28:19, 1Ti 4:11,Mar 7:7,Col 1:28 Books are important! After all,The Bible is a collection of books, written by men, inspired by God.
God is still inspiring his people with ways to teach His already laid out plan for His people. This is not as a substitute for His Holy Word but it is where admonishing each other comes in. This is where wonderful, God inspired books, that admonish us to obey his word are needed. The important thing is that God's word also tells each of us exactly what to teach and to whom. If a book is actually of God it should encourage us to believe the Bible as accurate, not just a starting point.
God is good, he still has messengers and we still need to accept His word for what it says.
Exd 4:12 Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.
There won't be a different revelation given to each of us that gives us a personal/unique meaning to Gods word. God is better than that,His word is true, as it is for everyone! He is better than the maybes, confusion and pride that comes with excessive 'personal revelation'. He will reveal the truth to everyone willing to read it and believe.
John 14:6 "Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me."
Proverbs 19,20
20. Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise.

Psalm 65:5-13

By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance, O God of our salvation; you are the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas. By your strength you established the mountains; you are girded with might.

You silence the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples. Those who live at earth's farthest bounds are awed by your signs; you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.

You visit the earth and water it, you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide the people with grain, for so you have prepared it. You water its furrows abundantly, settling its ridges, softening it with showers, and blessing its growth.


You crown the year with your bounty; your wagon tracks overflow with richness. The pastures of the wilderness overflow, the hills gird themselves with joy, the meadows clothe themselves with flocks, the valleys deck themselves with grain, they shout and sing together for joy.

Psalm 24:1-2 The earth is the LORD's and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it; for God has founded it on the seas, and established it on the rivers.

Job 38:25-27 "Who has cut a channel for the torrents of rain, and a way for the thunderbolt, to bring rain on a land where no one lives, on the desert, which is empty of human life, to satisfy the waste and desolate land, and to make the ground put forth grass?"

“The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the word of our God will stand forever.”
—Isaiah 40:8

Trying this today~

from:
http://www.passionatehomemaking.com/2008/01/kitchen-tip-tuesday-homemade-bread.html

Homemade Whole Grain Soaked Bread
Learn more about the benefits of soaking here.

11 cups of ground whole wheat flour (you can replace 1 or 2 cups with unbleached white flour for a lighter end result)
1 cup acid medium (kefir, cultured buttermilk, or whey; for dairy intolerant you can substitute with 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar or lemon juice and 3/4 cup water)
3 cups of warm filtered water
2 cups oats
1 cup honey
3/4 cup coconut oil, or butter melted
1/4 cup raw millet, optional
1/4 cup flax seed, optional
1/2 cup water
1 tsp honey
2 1/2 Tbsp active dry yeast
1 1/2 Tbsp sea salt
2-4 Tbsp dough enhancer (I highly recommend this dough enhancer, as it works very well, but you can also replace with any combination of the following: 3 table spoons vital wheat gluten, 1/2 tea spoon soy lecithin, a pinch of citric acid (use sparingly!), and a sprinkling of ginger)
1 cup unbleached white flour or sprouted flour, if necessary
Sunflower seeds, if desired

Directions:


1.Combine the flour, acid medium, oats, honey, melted oil, millet and flax seeds, and 3 cups of filtered water. Cover and soak at room temperature for 12-24 hours.
2.After soaking, in a separate small bowl, combine yeast, 1 tsp of honey, and 1/2 cup warm filtered water. Let sit for 5 minutes or so, until fully proofed.
3.Combine the yeast mixture, soaked flour mixture, and all the rest of the ingredients in your mixer. You may need to add an additional 1-2 cups of flour. Dough should clean the sides of the mixer.
4.Knead the dough for 10 minutes until the gluten is fully developed.
5.Remove to a greased bowl and cover with a towel. Let sit until doubled, about 1 1/2 hours.
6.Punch down, turn dough over, and allow to rise until doubled again, about 45 minutes. (OPTIONAL, but preferred for best results)
7.Punch down dough and divide into 4 loaves. Roll out with a rolling pin into a rectangle and roll up into a loaf (this makes the perfectly shaped loaves).
8.Place in greased bread bans and rise again until doubled, about 30-45 minutes minutes (the best place is the oven! Just turn it on low 150-170 degrees till heated and then turn it off, prior to putting the loaves in).
9.Turn the oven on to 350 degrees and bake for 30-45 minutes. Bread is done when it is fully browned on all sides! Remove from oven, rest in pans for 10 minutes before removing from pans.
Yield: 4 loaves.

No Excuses For Killing

The topic of abortion has weighed heavily on my heart lately. Largely because we have a family member who went from protesting infant murder to excusing it.
I have thought about the people that I know who have tortured and killed their babies and people that I know who haven't. I think of the many reasons given and how there is no reason good enough.
For today, I want to speak of someone who did not kill her babies. My mother in law.
She had every reason (excuse) possible. Extremely abused by various people, lived in poverty, no education. A teen mom and alone through most of her pregnancies, She didn't have a support system or an easy answer. The answer for today's Liberal would have been to rip her tiny sons to pieces and throw them in a bucket like trash. Pro- choicer would have patted her on the back for making a selfish and evil 'choice'.
If my sad and lonely mother in law had been pro choice I would not have my wonderful husband or children. If she had been pro death she would have no children or grandchildren to love or to love her.
Every person excusing the choice to murder innocent infants should look in a mirror and then be glad they weren't just a "choice" to throw away.
I thank my mother in law and God that she was not "pro-choice".

A Penny Saved

This is a picture of 23.00 worth of food that I got for free, thanks to coupons! It takes time and organization but if a penny saved is a penny earned, I earned 92.00 by combining coupons with sales on my last trip to the grocery store. I love it when the cashier admits surprise at my savings!:)

My Babies Are Beautiful!

I enjoy my children so much! Like walking through the park and enjoying the flowers and birds, I enjoy watching my children live. God is a wonderful God and all life is precious and beautiful!

Laura Ingalls Doughnuts

Doughnuts, from The Little House Cookbook by Barbara M. Walker (Harper Collins, 1989)

Recipe:
For 2 dozen doughnuts you will need:

2 pounds lard (or shortening)
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream
2¼ cups of unbleached all-purpose flour (we used whole wheat, which is healthy but has a grainy texture)
a shaker full of powdered sugar (or some yummy chocolate frosting!)

quart kettle (heavy pan)
quart bowl
rolling pin
candy thermometer

Melt the lard in kettle over low heat. Beat egg, baking soda, and salt into the sour cream in the bowl. Beat in 1 cup of flour until well mixed. Continue to work in flour, ¼ cup at a time, until you have a dough that can be rolled. Roll the dough in a strip about 4 by 16 by ¼ inches. With a floured knife cut into inch strips about five eighth inch wide.

Heat the lard to 375 degrees F. Twist a strip like a corkscrew (it will stretch as you do); bring ends together and pinch them. Drop twisted dough in hot fat. In 2 minutes the dough should be brown on both sides, crisp and cooked through. If browning takes more than 3 minutes, the fat is not hot enough; if browning takes less time, the fat is too hot.

Remove cooked doughnut to brown paper to drain and coat it with powdered sugar. Continue twisting and cooking the remaining dough strips. Serve the doughnuts immediately.

Big Boy Haircut

Playing with and getting sleepy with Cousins!

My Homeschool Expectations Are Not Hypothetical

I know that I shouldn't let it get to me but sometimes it really annoys me when people question my choice to home educate my children, especially when their doubts are based on assumptions and hypothetical scenarios. Supposed promise of rebellious, angry kids or frightened little mice that won't be able to function in the 'real' world.Complete strangers seem to think that I need to hear their opinions about educating my children. Interestingly, I have NEVER been questioned based on the educational merits of home schooling; it's always the social issues. "what about socializing???" Why do you shelter them? What about 'reality'. What they are really asking is why I won't allow my children to be bombarded with temptations to dress in trashy/immodest clothing,drink,lie,steal, sleep around and just generally reject Christ, on a daily basis, so that they will become callous to sin. Supposedly being used to sin makes us strong? No, sorry, that has never been true. We all become like those we spend the most time with-PERIOD.
The first thing that I always want to say to self appointed questioners(but refrain from saying) is why in the world would I want my children to socialize with THIS world and people that act like,well.. public school kids? Secondly, I'd like to know how socializing is helping your child understand algebra, write proper essays or achieve anything considered valuable to education?
So, since educational value isn't usually the point of questioning, I will address the social/moral aspect of why I homeschool.
Unlike most of the very opinionated people that insult home education, my opinions about the merits of home schooling are not based on paranoia, assumptions, ignorance or socialistic brain washing. I was a home schooled child.
Unlike most of my friends and acquaintances, I never 'did' drugs,drank,cursed, hated authority or adults in general,dated every guy I thought was nice or wasted my weekends 'hanging out' in the mall.My husband is the only man that I have had sex with. These sins were not even tempting to me as a teen because there wasn't constantly someone around tempting me into thinking that selfishness,pride, laziness and any and all sin is completely 'normal'. Yes, I was quiet but I was also strong minded. I know plenty of shy government educated children and plenty of out-going homeschooled kids! And Even if I didn't,I would gladly trade worldly boldness for a holy mind-set.
As a teen, I entered the work force and was consistently around worldly people and their way of thinking. Everyone around me considered dating, cursing,trying to fit in with and be liked by everyone else, focusing on the approval of peers and immediate gratification as the acceptable norm, but because I was already trained differently, this was not 'normal' for me and it still was not the lifestyle that I wanted. I was 'hit on', and offered various opportunities to participate with the crowd but always refused, even without a parent around to watch me. I was not born less inclined to sin than any other child. I am not bragging, just stating the truth. The things we readily accept as 'normal' teen behavior are not truly normal at all, just typical.
I don't want my children to 'fit in' with a typical public school,secular mentality. I don't want a cheer leader, jock, Goth or other type cast child. I don't want my 11 year old sitting around depressed for days because his 'girlfriend' dumped him. I am around the neighborhood kids every day and, no, I do not want my children to think or act like any of them. I know that will offend many and I know there are rare exceptions. I also know many typical public school kids.I have no desire to see my daughter in the mall every week buying clothes so she won't be an outcast at school or feeling stupid because she's the only girl that doesn't wear shorts and halter tops. I have no interest in having kids that sneak around behind my back doing everything that I taught them not to do; the all -too common youth group kid that knows the words to all the worship songs but is foul mouthed and rude outside of the church.
"Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame."
1 Corinthians 15:33-34
Why am I confident that my kids can be raised and trained at home without rebelling against morality?
Because I didn't rebel, and I know a lot of other 'unsocialized' kids that didn't either. Because I encourage my children to know why we love Jesus and hate sin. Because I believe the Word of God and His promises.
Proverbs 22:6"Train up a child in the way he should go,
Even when he is old he will not depart from it."

Do I think that homeschooling is an automatic guarantee that my kids will avoid all evil and do only what's right in the eyes of God? Of course not,they still have free will. I do know that they are a whole lot more likely to follow Christ if they spend their days on His path and not one bent on leading them into the opposite direction.It is not just the absence of bad influence that keeps a child going in the right direction. A child must be consistently taught why we do, or do not do, certain things. They must be taught to love Jesus and His ways.
"You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise."
(Deuteronomy 6:7)
My choices for home educating my children are not based on books, popular opinion or hypotheticals, they are based on my own experience.

Happiness~

By Kimberly Williams

"Take a journey back in time to the America of a few generations ago. How easy it would be to offend a person 30,40 or 50 years ago? The majority of people would not only be offended to hear a crude word spoken, but would not even tolerate it. Not too many years ago, people would be offended to see open sin paraded around in public. At one time, people would be offended to see children speaking disrespectfully to an elder. Not long ago, our country and flag were greatly honored, and to show disrespect to either was offensive. And the thought of someone openly condemning Christianity in America was unthinkable.

The generations past were easily offended by insulting behaviors, filthy language, open immorality,ant-patriotism, and blatant disregard for spiritual matters. Oh, how the times have changed! Today, it seems as though deliberate decay of our culture is not only tolerated but joyfully embraced.

And yet, through the eyes of the world, there are still plenty of offenses which must not be tolerated: Christianity, absolute truth,holy living, the name of Jesus Christ, submission to authority, and of course, the homeschool movement."

This excerpt is from the article Homeschooling: Offensive Lifestyle, from Homeschool Enrichment Magazine.