Moments of Awareness

"So much of life we all pass by
With heedless ear, and careless eye.
Bent with our care we plod along,
Blind to the beauty, deaf to the song.

But moments there are when we pause to rest
And turn our eyes from the goal's far crest.
We become aware of the wayside flowers,
And sense God's hand in this world of ours.

We hear a refrain, see a rainbow's end,
Or we look into the heart of a friend.
We feel at one with mankind. We share
His griefs and glories, joy and care.

The sun flecks gold thru the sheltering trees,
And we shoulder our burdens with twice the ease.
Peace and content and a world that sings
The moment of true awareness brings."

~Helen Lowrie Marshall

illustration courtesy of www.allposters.com
"Autumn Afternoon" by Tin Yan

Decorating with Thankfulness

It's time to hang our thankful chain and add more links this year!

I love to look back at what the children were thankful for when they were small and I look forward to what they will add as they grow older. I keep red, orange, yellow, and brown strips of paper handy.

Look what Kelli does at her house - a thanksgiving tree!

What a great idea! I would love to make one, wouldn't you? :-)

This World Is Not My Home...

one of my favorites from our songbook

This World Is Not My Home

This world is not my home, I'm just a passing through.

My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue.

The angels beckon me from Heaven's open door

And I can't feel at home in this world anymore.

O Lord you know I have no friend like you.

If Heaven's not my home then Lord what will I do?

The angels beckon me from Heaven's open door

And I can't feel at home in this world anymore.

They're all expecting me and that's one thing I know.

My savior pardoned me and now I onward go.

I know He'll take me through though I am weak and poor

And I can't feel at home in this world anymore.

O Lord you know I have no friend like you.

If Heaven's not my home then Lord what will I do?

The angels beckon me from Heaven's open door

And I can't feel at home in this world anymore.

Just up in Glory Land we'll live eternally.

The saints on every hand are shouting victory.

Their song of sweetest praise drifts back from Heaven's shore

And I can't feel at home in this world anymore.

O Lord you know I have no friend like you.

If Heaven's not my home then Lord what will I do?

The angels beckon me from Heaven's open door

And I can't feel at home in this world anymore.

Watching and Waiting...

"If my people, which are called by my name,

shall humble themselves, and pray,

and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways;

then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin,

and will heal their land."

II Chronicles 7:14

Baked Apples

Baked Apples

4 servings

1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup water
4 tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
4 large baking apples

4 tablespoon chopped walnuts

In a saucepan, bring brown sugar, water, butter, and spices to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Core apples and place in an ungreased baking dish; fill with walnuts. Pour sugar mixture over and around apples. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 35 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Braised Autumn Pork Chops

Braised Autumn Pork Chops
4 servings

2 boneless butterflied pork loin chops
salt
pepper
1 tablespoon oil
1/4 onion, thinly sliced
1 celery rib, thinly chopped
1/2 cup apple cider
2 teaspoons cider vinegar
1 teaspoon rubbed sage

Season pork with salt and pepper. In a skillet, cook pork in oil on each side until browned; drain. Remove; keep warm. In same skillet, cook onion and celery until tender. Stir in the apple cider, vinegar and sage. Return pork chops to skillet. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Serve pork with onions and celery on top and enjoy!

This was delicious! The most well received new recipe I've tried in a long time. The whole family gobbled it up!

Pumpkin Oat Muffins

Pumpkin Oat Muffins
12 servings

1 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup oil
1 cup oats
for topping
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon oats
1 tablespoon butter

Combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, pie spice, salt, and baking soda. Combine egg, pumpkin, milk and oil. Add to dry ingredients and stir just until moistened. Stir in oats. Fill greased or paper lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Combine brown sugar, flour and oats, cut in butter. Sprinkle over muffins. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes. Enjoy!

"For each new morning with its light,

For rest and shelter of the night,

For health and food, for love and friends,

For everything Thy goodness sends."

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

My Thanksgiving Friends :-)

They're back.

I love them.

I would keep them out all year long -

but my family would frown.

So, for this month,

I will enjoy them...a lot!

Supper Menus
November 3rd-8th

Monday
braised autumn pork chops, oven roasted potatoes, green beans, biscuits, baked apples
Tuesday
tortilla soup
Wednesday
hamburgers, baked beans, spicy potato wedges
Thursday
out for sub sandwiches
Friday
Aunt J's spicy spaghetti, green salad, garlic bread, apple dumplings
Saturday
supper at the ranch

Month of Gold

There’s a ting-a-linging feeling
In the air this golden day,
And the month is glad November
As the sunbeams softly play.

There’s a sky that’s strewn with cloud puffs,
There are wild geese flying high;
I can hear their distant honking
As I sigh an autumn sigh.

Leaves are changing colorations,
Gold and red for shades of green;
And the mountainsides are livelier
Than I have ever seen.

All the corn is shocked and standing
In the fields, mute and at ease;
Morning frost is lying queenly;
I think everyone agrees

That this month of gold November
Holds a very special charm,
As we sprightly walk its pathways
Leaning on glad autumn’s arm.

~by Georgia B. Adams

from Ideals magazine

illustration courtesy of www.allposters.com

"November North" by Walt Johnston

Boo!

A Perpetual Shopping List

If you think about it, most of the things we buy at the store, we buy over and over again. After awhile, I got tired of writing basically the same lists for the grocery and wal-mart every week. So, I made a master list on the computer. But after awhile, I got tired of printing the same list every week to check things off on. ;-) One day, I decided to put my list in a sheet protector, use a dry erase marker and now I am a happy girl. You can do this, too!

All you need are sheet protectors, scissors, a glue stick or super glue, clothes pins, magnets, a dry erase marker and a paper clip. After today, you will never have to write out a grocery list again!

The first thing you need to do is take some time to make a list of things you routinely buy at the store. Leave some extra space to add items each week that you only buy occasionally or seasonally. Print your lists out on a sheet of paper with little boxes for check marks if you like.

Slide your list into a sheet protector and as you run out of items during the week and when you make your weekly menu plans, simply check of the items you need with a dry erase marker.

I have four sheets total - one for wal-mart/drugstore items and three for the grocery. It is nice if you organize your grocery list by category and then list your categories according to your store's layout. My list includes - bakery, produce, pantry items, canned goods, refrigerator and freezer.

Make your self some little clips to hang your lists on the fridge. Glue a magnet to a clothes pin and you're all set.

When you are ready to make your weekly trip to the store, add any extra items you might need, paper clip your sheets together and off you go!

And guess what? As you put items in your grocery cart, you can wipe the check mark off! :-)

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!

Crock Pot Savory Beef Sandwiches

Savory Beef Sandwiches
8 servings

1 boneless chuck roast (3 to 4 pounds)

1 tablespoon dried minced onion
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 sandwich rolls

Trim fat from roast. Combine seasonings; rub over roast. Place in slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until meat is tender. Shred with a fork. Serve on rolls.

I got home a little bit before everyone else did tonight. I shredded the beef, filled the sandwich rolls, wrapped the sandwiches in foil, and put them in a 250° oven to stay warm until the rest of the family arrived. They hit the spot! :-)

It's Caramel Apple Time!

Caramel apples are one of our favorite fall traditions. There is something so right about the taste of sweet juicy apples together with caramel! I did a little research this year, to see if I could have better luck keeping my caramel on my apple. This is what you are supposed to do -

• scrub apples with soap and rinse thoroughly (this is to get the waxy coating off and help the caramel to adhere better)
• make sure apples are completely dry
• after coating apples, hold them upside down, then right side up, then upside down, etc. until caramel starts to set
• sit apples on buttered wax paper
• put finished apples immediately in the fridge

Okay, I did all of this! I spent several minutes babying each apple, turning it up and down and keeping lots of caramel on each one. After I finished each one, I put it right in the fridge...

The caramel still ran off! ;-)

Oh well! :-) That sure doesn't stop them from tasting wonderfully!

Our Favorite Popcorn Balls
1 dozen

1 cup popcorn, popped (or 2 bags microwave popcorn, popped)
1 cup white sugar
1 cup corn syrup
1 small box orange jell-O

Place popcorn in a large bowl. In a saucepan, mix corn syrup, sugar and jell-O; bring to a rolling boil. Pour over popcorn. Carefully stir to mix well and when cool enough to handle, form into balls with well buttered hands.

These are fun for other holidays, too! Use green jello at Christmas, red for Valentine's Day...

Autumn Cinnamon Ornaments

Instructions for making these wonderful ornaments

can be found at Martha Stewart Living.

Thank you to Emma at Charming the Birds from the Trees

for the lovely idea of using autumn cooking cutters!

Homestyle Chicken Fried Steak

Chicken Fried Steak
4 servings

1 1/4 cups flour, divided
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon each salt, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder and pepper
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 2/3 cups buttermilk, divided
4 beef cube steaks (1 pound)
oil for frying
1 1/2 cups milk

In a shallow bowl, combine 1 cup flour, baking powder and seasonings. In another shallow bowl, combine egg and 1 cup buttermilk. Dip each cube steak in buttermilk mixture, then coat in flour mixture. Let stand for 5 minutes. In a large skillet, heat 1/2 inch of oil on medium-high. Fry steaks for 5 to 7 minutes. Turn carefully; cook 5 minutes longer or until coating is crisp and meat is no longer pink. Remove steaks and keep warm. Drain, reserving 1/3 cup drippings; stir remaining flour into drippings until smooth. Cook and stir over medium heat for 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk and remaining buttermilk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve over steaks and enjoy!

Linked to Gooseberry Patch Recipe Roundup, Cast Party