Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Stories

This has been a busy week ... I'm getting ready to head down to Myrtle Beach for a month, leaving early Friday morning. I am armed with your telephone number, Sara, so hopefully I'll be visiting!! I was telling John Lenihan Sunday night that I was going and hopefully to see you and he wants to come too! He only gets cuter and cuter!! As usual, I have procrastinated and am now rushing around trying to get everything done from finishing up my Retirees' Club stuff to getting my summer tires on to paying bills and getting banking done to maybe packing by Thursday!! I have to go to my oldest grandson's birthday tomorrow ... Brandon will be 14 tomorrow ... I can't believe it!! One little note of joy as well as disappointment ... Natalie, Brandon and Brittany are all getting baptized on April 29th and I am going to miss it!! How cruel is that?? I have been waiting so long and now will miss it!! No fair!!! I will have a whole month of "blogging" to catch up on when I get back ... see you all then!!

Here is another little "story" that I received and thought it was well worth passing on.

One day, one friend asked another, "How is it that you are always so happy? You have so much energy, and you never seem to get down" With her eyes smiling, she said, "I know the Secret!" "What secret is that?" To which she replied, "I'll tell you all about it, but you have to promise to share the Secret with others." "The Secret is this: I have learned there is little I can do in my life that will make me truly happy. I must depend on God to make me happy and to meet my needs. When a need arises in my life, I have to trust God to supply according to HIS riches. I have learned most of the time I don't need half of what I think I do. He has never let me down. Since I learned that 'Secret', I am happy." The questioner's first thought was, "That's too simple!" But upon reflecting over her own life she recalled how she thought a bigger house would make her happy, but it didn't! She thought a better paying job would make her happy, but it hadn't. When did she realize her greatest happiness? Sitting on the floor with her grandchildren, playing games, eating pizza or reading a story, a simple gift from God. Now you know it too! We can't depend on people to make us happy. Only GOD in His infinite wisdom can do that. Trust HIM! And now I pass the Secret on to you! So once you get it, what will you do? YOU have to tell someone the Secret, too! That GOD in His wisdom will take care of YOU! But it's not really a secret... We just have to believe it and do it... Really trust God!

Tuesday, April 3, 2007

Recipe

I just read Sara's recipe for Creamed Corn and how great it sounded! I will be trying it soon as corn is one of my favorite veggies, right after squash! I have been into the Spaghetti Squash thing lately ... Lynn and I love it just baked in the oven and then filled with home made spaghetti sauce, topped with some shredded cheese of your choice and put under the broiler until it is melted. Yum!!

Here are recipes I am instructed to make for all our family meals ... that is so Lynn and Natalie can take home the leftovers ... It is a steady stream out of here with all the leftovers after dinner. I have to make the Veggie Casserole for the girls, a broccoli and cauliflower dish casserole and Sweet Potato Casserole along with my French Apple Pie for Clay and Brandon. Guess what I'll be doing this weekend!! I have some great recipes so I'll be sharing some of them on days when I seem to have nothing else to say ... can you just imagine that!!

Veggie Casserole
Can Cream of Celery Soup
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped celery
Small chopped onion
Small chopped green pepper
2 oz. jar sliced pimentos (I leave out if I don't have it)
17 oz. can green beans, drained (I have used frozen)
16 oz. can corn, drained (I have used frozen)
3/4 cup cheese flavored cracker crumbs
2 T. melted butter
Combine soup, cheese, sour cream, celery, onion, green pepper and pimentos. Stir in beans and corn; pour into buttered 2 qt. casserole and bake, uncovered, at 325 for 25-30 minutes. Combine crumbs and butter, sprinkle over veggies and cook 10 minutes longer.

Sweet Potato Casserole
3 cups cooked and mashed sweet potatoes
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup soft butter or margarine
1 cup milk
1/2 cup coconut
1/2 t. nutmeg
1/2 t. cinnamon
Beat above ingredients until smooth; pour into a greased 9x13 baking dish. Combine 3 cups crushed cornflakes, 1/2 cup melted butter or margarine and 1 cup brown sugar. Sprinkle on top of casserole and bake for 1 hour at 350. (I usually half this recipe, depending on how many are coming.)

French Apple Pie
9" pie crush
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 t. nutmeg
1/4 t. cinnamon
Pinch salt
6 cups thinly sliced apples (aro. 6) ... I used a mixture of different types of apples for great flavor.
Preheat oven to 350. Mix sugar, cornstarch and spices; stir in apples and pour into crust. Top with crumb topping (Mix 1 cup flour with 1/2 cup brown sugar and cut in 1/2 cup butter or margarine). Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 30 minutes.
(I pat the topping gently down over the apples ... mine always seems to boil over ... maybe I used too many apples!! ... so I have learned to put a pan under the pie plate!) This is a big favorite and everyone always want the recipe once they've tasted it!)

Quote for today:
Dear Lord:
Keep your arm around my shoulder and your hand over my mouth!
Amen