growing and learning

It will soon be green bean season here

My green beans are blooming so you know what that means I will soon be up to my elbows in green beans! Nothing tastes like fresh green beans straight from the garden to the table in the same day.  One of our family favorites is to cook fresh green bens in a pot with a piece of ham and some new potatoes, serve it up with a hot pan of cornbread and a fresh green salad and you have one of our favorite meals. Another way we use fresh green beans is by cooking them with fennel and feta cheese;

 1 pound fresh green beans

1 fennel bulb, cut into thin slices

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

Fill a saucepan half full with water and bring to a boil. Add the green beans and fennel slices; cook until just beginning to become tender, about 4 minutes. Pour into a colander to drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking process.

Return the empty pan to the stove and set heat to medium. Pour in the olive oil and let it heat for a minute. Return the green beans and fennel to the pan. Season with basil, salt, and pepper; cook and stir until coated and warm, and toss with feta cheese.

 Does anyone have any other green bean recipes they would care to share?

Preparedness, when properly pursued, is a way of life, not a sudden, spectacular program. -- Spencer W. Kimball, 1976

The Original Comb-over

Happy Birthday America!

  Happy Birthday America!  Today I am especially grateful for the wonderful freedoms we enjoy.  The freedom to worship, the freedom to praise God, the freedom to own our own property and live and work as we wish. For all these freedoms and more I very thankful for!

I pray each one of you enjoys a blessed & wonderful day!

Gloria

Praying for the Sun to Make an Appearance Today!!!

Happy Birthday America!!!!  Let's all cheer for the Red, White and Blue!!!  I love the Fourth of July, and the cookouts, family gatherings, and fireworks.  But this year, we aren't sure if there is going to be much fireworks.  We might be able to still arrange the cookout, and just eat indoors.  But is is difficult to celebrate with fireworks when it is raining!!  UGH!  The weather reports aren't sure if the rain will stop before sunset and the big firework displays or not.  DARN IT! 

Matthew took off earlier this morning with our Noah, 3 years old, to pick out some fireworks.  We always wait until the 4th to buy ours because of the wonderful sales they hold the day of.  He alsos picked up some sausage and milk on the way home for our breakfast....sausage gravy and biscuits!!  YUMMY!  He even made breakfast for us.  Matthew never cooked (except for Hamburger Helper) until he met me.  LOL  Now he is the breakfast expert and won't let me in the kitchen when he is making pancakes or his specialty of biscuits and gravy. 

The rest of the day we are going to hang out, relax (finish putting away laundry, do a few dishes) and just enjoy having daddy home!   Tonight we are going to my brother's house for a cookout (possibly cook in...depending on the whether), and then back to town for the city wide fireworks display.  I am looking forward to seeing my family today.  We are all so busy, and it seems working schedules conflict that we don't get together more often.  Looking forward to seeing how big my neice Megan is getting with her first pregnancy.  She is due in October, and I am sure she isn't much bigger than her little frame was before, but maybe a tiny bit. 

Matthew's family is all scattered this weekend.  We made a comment last night that if everyone wasn't gone, we would have loved to get them all together at our house this weekend.  Oh well.  His parents church is having a 3 day meeting, his sister lives in Washington,DC area and unable to come home, and his other sister, her hubby and 5 year old daughter just started their 5 day trek back to Missouri from California and today.  They visited Sea World, Disney, etc. and had lots of fun.  I can't wait to hear about their trip!

Happy Fourth of July!!!!!!

Happy Fourth of July to everyone, I hope all of your plans for picnics and get together’s go well today and that you take just a few moments to ponder the freedoms we enjoy here in the country and say a prayer of thanks to all the brave men and women that have served our country in the past and present.

Friday, July 3rd

Greetings! We've had a productive day, doing various tasks around the house. My dishwasher was installed today; what a blessing that I certainly don't take for granted after 3 years of washing dishes by hand. I'm very thankful to the LORD and Hubby!

A Prayer for Fourth of July

Fourth of July Plans & Menu

                              I have been planning our weekend.  Tomorrow we will enjoy a quiet day at home.. just family ( all 12 of us!).  We always enjoy a special meal on America's B-day.. so this year I will be making grilled steaks ( a rare treat) , baked potatoes, homemade baked beans, watermelon & homemade apple pie! It's not the fourth w/ out homemade apple pie! 

      Sunday our Church is holding an evening meeting and then a potluck meal. I'll be brining watermelon, lemon meringue pies and spinach salad. The girls are making cookies & cupcakes.  We are also going to bring a pinata & water balloons!  It should be a fun evening!

      Fourth of July is one of our favorite holidays!  We sure enjoy celebrating and taking time to remember how blessed we are in this land of the brave and home of the free!  I am also thankful for the freedom and perfect law of liberty thru Christ our Lord ! Jesus died so ALL men could be set free!  How grateful  I am for that!  We are no longer under the bondage of the law -- but are free thru the grace and liberty in Christ! Thank you Jesus for your precious blood shed on calvary so all men can be free!

  Hope you all enjoy a blessed Holiday!

Gloria

Asking for a few prayers, its been along week

Good Evening, it’s been another long week here and I for one am glad to see the week draw to a close and the holiday to be upon us. We have spent the last few days getting the hay baled, it is done but we only had the two of us my husband and I to do it all. Usually our son in law helps us but his father passed away on Monday night very suddenly and most unexpectedly. He was on 57 years old had a heart attack as he was sitting down to dinner. My daughter and son in law have been busy helping his mother get through the arrangements and all so my husband and I have been taking care of little Noah and trying to support all of them, while trying to beat the rain and get the hay done. They say god never gives us more than we can handle at one time, I guess that is  true but I hope our family has time to catch our breath collectively after this past week before the next thing comes along.

Preparedness, when properly pursued, is a way of life, not a sudden, spectacular program. -- Spencer W. Kimball, 1976

Cute Children and pets pictures

My Mom sends me some cute e-mails.  I love these one and had to share with you all.

Who is walking who?

I look like you or is it you look like me?

Ah, can I keep him?  (the dog is asking):

Um mom, why am I wearing clothes and his is not??

Look Mom at what I learned :

Just one little bite that's all:

Are you sure they taste like chicken??

Are you sure they are in here???

That's all for now, Blessings,Mj