Blue and White

Esther 1:6
" The garden had hangings of white and blue linen, fastened with cords of white linen and purple material to silver rings on marble pillars. There were couches pf gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of- pearl, and other costly stones. "


Sounds like my backyard! LOL!!!  Ah, to live in a palace.  One day I will, when my Father calls me home. And the beauty of it can not even be described  (I'm pretty sure my wing will be near the beach though).  Well, for now, I don't live in a palace.  I live in a modest townhome in a middle-class area in Maryland.  We are in an excellent school district and my children have plenty of friends nearby to play with.  Not too shabby.

My house is currently decorated in warm earthtones. Colors I have loved for years. But of course now I want to change it all.  My poor husband! My absolute favorite color is blue, but I rarely use it in my home, Another color I rarely use is white. Mu childhood home had antique white walls pretty much in every room of the house, My father believed the neutral white would help with the resale of our home.  Twenty years or so after we bought it, we did sell it pretty quickly so maybe he was right. Needless to say, not a white wall can be found in my house.  Never say never. Here are a few great ideas I've found on Pinterest that I can't wait to try out in my own home.

This room is actually Bill & Jen's form The Little Couple. there is nothing I don't like about their home. 

I love this color palette. The style is a bit more modern then my taste.
I would definitely need a gray or darker colored sofa with my family.
(pinned by homebunch.com)

This is so "my style". I actually found this pic on Beneath My Heart.  Traci and her husband have transformed 2 homes in this terrific blog. I definitely found my decorating "soul mate". Lol!

I love this cozy kitchen corner. So clean and crisp, but also cozy.
(pinned by blessedbeyondmeasure,blogspot.com)

And these are just the tip of the iceberg. Have you recently updated your home or completely changed your decorating scheme? Let me know. I'd love to hear from you. 

Have a blessed Tuesday!

It's Greek to me

Daniel  11: 2
" 'Now then, I will tell you the truth: Three more kings will also arise in Persia, and then a fourth, who will be far richer than all the others. When he has gained power by his wealth, he will stir up everyone against the kingdom of Greece.'  "


I'm glad Daniel did not interpret my dreams for me. Not that he always told of doom and gloom, some things are just better not knowing. I'll put my trust in the Lord, thank you! My future (at least) is secure.  I'm going to keep today short and sweet.  I'm running late with my post today.  I'll be sharing more about my afternoon at the Greek Festival later in the week. Today, I'll talk about food: Greek food.

Oh my goodness, Greek food is amazing! My husband and my 3 youngest went to a local Greek Festival yesterday. What fun!  We sampled a bit of popular Greek cuisine.  We had Gyro, Spanakopita (spinach pie), Dolmades (stuffed grape leaves), Greek coffee and Baklava.  We also shared a Greek Salad. What could be easier to make than a great Greek Salad. So here you go. (Recipe found on about food)

INGREDIENTS

• 4-5 large, ripe, tomatoes
• 1 large red onion
• 1 cucumber
• 1 green bell pepper
• 1/4 pound (113.5g) of Greek feta cheese, sliced or cumbled
• dried Greek oregano (rigani)
• sea salt
• top quality extra virgin olive oil
• 1 dozen Greek olives (Kalamata, green Cretan olives, etc.)
• pickled pepperoncini hot peppers (garnish)
• 1 tablespoon of water (optional)

PREPARATION

Wash and dry the tomatoes, cucumber, and green pepper. Clean off the outer skin from the onion, wash, and dry.

Cut the tomatoes into bite-sized irregularly shaped chunks, removing the core. Salt lightly. Slice the cucumber into 1/4-inch slices, cutting slices in half (whether or not you peel the cucumber is a personal choice). Salt lightly. Slice the pepper into rings,removing the stem and seeds. Salt lightly.

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Slice the onion into thin rings.

Combine the tomatoes, cucumbers, green pepper and onion in a large salad bowl. Sprinkle with oregano, pour olive oil over the salad, and toss. Just before serving,place the feta on top of the salad, either as a slice or crumbled (as in photo), and toss in some olives. Sprinkle the cheese with oregano (and pepper if desired), mix the oil and water and drizzle over the top, and serve, garnished with hot peppers.

Yield: Serves 4-6

I looked through several recipes on-line and this was by far the most similar to the salad we had yesterday. We enjoyed another nice salad and some crusty bread with olive oil for dipping, later in the evening at home. What a simple and healthy meal. 

Enjoy your day!

Comforting

Psalm 119: 50
" My comfort in my suffering in this: Your promise preserves my life. "


Sometimes my life isn't very "comfortable".Sometimes it's downright hard.  Sometimes, sadly, it's downright devastating. I want to cry out to God, why, Lord?  Why? This, however, is not one of God's promises to me. He does not promise me a life of comfort, free of hardship and free of sadness. The Christian walk is not a on a road without bumps, curves, detours, and even collisions. What we are promised is that we are forgiven, we are loved and we are held. We are His eternally. That doesn't make me "comfortable", but it certainly gives me comfort. Thank you, Lord for your comfort.

Now, from the serious to the benign.  I like to wear comfortable things. Today, I'm in my running clothes. Not because I'm going to run anytime soon, but because I am not going anywhere on this chilly, drizzly morning and, doggonit, I want to be comfortable!  Fortunately, this season, comfortable footbed sandals (like Birkenstock) are back in style. I haven't owned a pair of them since the 90's.  Yesterday I took a leap of faith and ordered some cute knock-offs from Target.

My comfy running clothes. I purchased the tee at Kohl's (similar style here) in April.
The words on the shirt are absolutely true!

Here are my latest and greatest from Target- The Patrice footbed sandal.
 I had a a little money on a gift card so I got them for under $20! Sandals are on sale this week so they were also 20% off .

I pray your weekend is full of comfort and joy!

The cheeky one

Mark 7: 28
"  'Lord', she replied, ' even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs.'  "


I was looking on-line to find if Jesus had a sense of humor (cheeky or otherwise). He seems to certainly appreciate a quick thinker. In this chapter of Mark, a Greek woman (a Gentile), comes to Jesus and asks him to heal her little daughter who is possessed by an impure spirit. His reply to her is ' "First let the children (the Jewish people) eat all they want", he told her, "It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to the dogs." '(vs.27).  Sounds a bit harsh, right? In verse 29 He lets her know, that because of her response, her daughter was healed.  He had a plan all along. This verse is important because verses like this and some previous verses in this chapter make following Jesus less about being a devout rule follower and more about being a pure heart follower. Thus, He saves us all. Thank you, Lord, for measuring the condition of my heart and not keeping tally of my many sins.

While I certainly wouldn't call my Savior "cheeky", today's post title is about Thomas the Tank Engine. He's " the cheeky one"! On Mother's Day, my family and I went to the B&O Railroad Museum to see Thomas. We had tickets for "Day out With Thomas" (an annual event at the museum) the week before, however due to the Baltimore riots, it was postponed.  I'm so glad we were able to go. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon and my 2 yr old was beside herself with happiness. There were lots of activities in addition to an actual ride on a train. And of course, the tickets gave us access to the entire B&O museum. If you're looking for a fun outing with your family, I highly recommend it. Below are a few of my favorite pics from the day.

There's Thomas!

My beautiful children after our ride on Thomas (the youngest children received a certificate).

This is inside of the "Roundhouse".  This is President Lincoln's funeral train.
One of several interesting trains in the museum.

On the train with my "babies".

My "cheeky" girl and her daddy, riding in Thomas. 

I hope you enjoyed our family pics. We certainly enjoyed our day. We can't wait until next year when Thomas visits again.  I pray your day is blessed!

100!

Psalm 100: 1
" Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. "


I can't believe it, I'm publishing my 100th post today! Shout for joy! Or, like in my house this morning, just shout.  Oh my goodness!! Yes, I don't live in a house of peace and harmony.  If I've led you to believe that, I am truly sorry.  I live with a teenager, a tweenager, an almost 9yr old and a toddler (and a husband, but that's a story for another day!),  there is a lot of shouting in the house.  And I'd love to tell you it's just the children...it's not.  Guilty as charged.  Even with my faith,  and a strong sense of right from wrong.  I continue to sin. I know better, why do I keep doing it? Well, the main reason is that I am human. No getting around that.  And as a human, I was born into sin.  It's not fair! I hadn't even done anything yet, and already at birth I was doomed! But fear not, God has taken care of that for me. Through His son, Jesus Christ, through His death and resurrection I am saved. Because of Him I get another chance: a new beginning.  Even if, every morning (mid-morning, afternoon, evening...), I still need to ask for forgiveness, He forgives.  Now that's something to shout about!!

I think even the best of us get aggravated with the people we care about, or situations we find ourselves in, from time to time.  There are a lot of factors that can contribute to our lack of self control (being separated from Christ with our humanness notwithstanding!).  It could be lack of sleep, stress, an unresolved illness, worry, anxiety, pressure from work,  being overworked, even depression.  Certainly (and first), contact you doctor if things are getting unmanageable.  There are also things you can do on your own to help relieve some stress: get some rest, eat better, exercise, yoga, do something fun, get a hobby, take a walk, journal, read, get a massage, listen to music, take some time off.  And for heaven's sake, pray, read your bible, meditate and worship. (I personally would add shopping to the first part of the list, but that might not be a good way to relieve my husband's stress, Lol!).  I am also going to try some essential oils.  I spoke with a friend about a few good blends from doTERRA to add to my daily regimen of diet and exercise. If something as simple as lavender diffuser will help me sleep, I'm there!

I found this pic on Pinterest, pinned by my friend Lori. Click on this link for more info (ancestral-nutrition.com)

What kinds of things do you do to make it through those tough times? I'd love to hear from you. Sharing is caring!! Please comment below.

I pray your day is full of shouts of joy!!

A nursery for Frankie

Luke 2: 7
" and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son.  She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. "


In no way am I suggesting that my daughter is the second coming. I know this birth in Luke, is about the fulfillment of the prophecy of the humble beginnings of our Lord.  But I have to chuckle because, being the mom of 7, you just don't always have room available for your babies.  My 3 oldest children no longer live in my home, so that makes it a little less complicated, but we still do not have a designated nursery for our youngest. She's actually now grown out of the "nursery" stage and into toddlerhood. They grow up so quickly! But I am dreaming of a day, not too long from now (Lord are you reading this?) when she has a little girl room of her own.

Here are some very cute ideas that I have gotten from Pinterest (love Pinterest!).

My first thought for a nursery was this color scheme of grey and yellow.
I love the bright touches of yellow in this more modern nursery.
(pic pinned from Pinterest via Some Like it Southern blogspot)

I could even go nautical with this color scheme.
(pic from Pinterest via etsy.com)

I love this color combination too, adding in the pretty aqua color.
(pic on Pinterest via fitmommydiaries)

Or...I could forget the yellow all together and put in touches of navy and hot pink (still nautical).
(pic found on Pinterest via hellobee.com)

Here's another cute pic of a room for a little girl that uses the same pink and blue (and a touch of nautical),
and it transitions nicely as she grows.
(pic found on Pinterest via projectnursery)

These are just of few of the precious pins I've found. I can't wait until she finally has a room of her own (or at least can share with one of her big sisters and not her mom and dad!). I pray you have a good day! 

Breakfast for dinner

Exodus 16: 4
" Then the Lord said to Moses, ' I will rain down bread from heaven for you . The people are going to go out each day and gather enough for that day.  In this way I will test them and see if they will follow my instructions. ' "


Manna from heaven. This verse in Exodus comes after the Israelites have been out of Egypt for over two months and are now wandering in the desert.  A journey that should have taken them anywhere from a week to a month (depending on what theologian you're referencing), but it took them 40 years! There were definitely some things God wanted the Israelites to work out before they entered the promised land. Only 2 of the original 2 million or so did enter.  Do you feel that you are wandering in the desert? I think we all feel lost from time to time.  Know that God is acting in your life. It may not be your timing, it may not even be in your time, perhaps it will be a generation or two (or more!) from now. But God is always present; always constant. God is always. Believe, trust and hope. The work that God is doing in your life is meant for His good.  His plan is greater than we could ever imagine. So, sit back and "set a spell" and know that He is God.

God provides. I know that from experience. In the morning, I look in the pantry and am convinced that we have absolutely nothing in the house for dinner. Miraculously, by dinner time, my family is sitting down to a respectable meal.  Sometimes we have breakfast for dinner.  Some of my favorite dinners are breakfast foods.  A nice omelet, a quiche, a french toast casserole: so simple and easy to do.

Here is one of my favorite breakfast casserole recipes from Southern Living.

Ingredients

1 (16-ounce) Hawaiian bread loaf, cut into 3/4-inch cubes

2 cups (8 ounces) finely shredded Mexican four-cheese blend 

1/2 pound bacon, cooked and crumbled (8 slices) 

8 large eggs 

2 1/2 cups milk 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon dried mustard 

1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Salsa or sliced fresh tomatoes 

Preparation

Arrange bread cubes in a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Sprinkle with shredded cheese and crumbled bacon.

Whisk together eggs, milk, salt, pepper, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce. Pour over prepared dish; press down bread cubes with a spoon to allow bread to soak up liquid. Cover and chill 8 hours. Let stand 30 minutes before baking.

Bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until set and golden. Serve with salsa or sliced fresh tomatoes.

Note: Hawaiian bread may be found in the deli section of supermarket. Ten to 12 white bread slices, cubed, may be substituted for Hawaiian bread.

Southern Living

JULY 2003

                                                        Enjoy your breakfast!