Then I Thought of Home

When the kids were young and they would get something wrong, or give up to quick, Mark would say, "You gotta think, life is a thinking process." Now when and if my kids read this they are going to have  a negative feeling shoot through them. They hated it when he said that, they still hate it. Mark wasn't quick to help the kids when they were trying to do something, I on the other hand was to quick. But Mark left them to figure it out. Looking back, we know he did that to much, it can provoke and discourage a child but thankfully it can also make them strong and determined. I was to quick to accept whatever they did and that can lead to shoddy work. You can see how both could lead to problems. As with so many of our parenting mistakes, God steps in and fixes up what we mess up. Because of his great grace and mercy and because of his promises he takes what could have been not so good and he brings good from it. We have to decide to let him do that, we h...

We've all heard the saying, "One thing leads to another." Well, that must be true because one blog post or one story in a book, is leading to another one. A new blog post about toys. Now granted, I'm an old mom, I'm such an old mom that I'm a grandmom. The good thing is, kids are pretty much made up in the very same way they were made up when I was a young mom. The blood work or DNA of my kids would be the same of a kid today. So what's changed? We have changed? We've changed. Some of it is for the better and I think we need to embrace that. Ezra will get my tablet and he knows how to slide his finger across it so he can see the pictures.  That's great, I enjoy that. He knows all about phones and that's okay too. Like it or not it's where we live and they need to know those things. They need to be comfortable with them. So by all means get them some computerized, stuff at an early age. It's important. A...

I wish I was the kind of wife that got excited when her husband got a deer, or a squirrel or a mess of fish. I wish I was the kind that got all proud and excited about what ,my man had done. But I don't. I want to. I would even like to be the kind of wife that wanted to hunt or fish with him....but I don't. So each night when he brings fish into the condo to clean them, inside I hate it. Oh I look at them and say how nice it is but inside I'm thinking.....really? I mean here we are at the ocean...we have a seafood restaurant  on every corner and  yet he has to catch fish, There are fish markets everywhere, places where you go buy the fish....you do that so your wife doesn't look in the sink and find fish heads in it, But...I'm not that kind of wife.. I like my fish with no bones and I like someone else to fry it. Or bake it or broil it and most importantly, I want the fish heads to be in someone else's  sink. But...that's not to be, so...

Apple Pie is another one of those fall desserts we all love. I had my Grandma Marshall's Apple Pie Recipe and my Aunt Daisy Marshall's Apple Pie recipe so I took them and sort of put them together and came up with this Kelly Gray Apple Pie recipe and I've been making it for years. It's very simple, nothing fancy but when you have something as good as apples, cinnamon and sugar who needs fancy? I shred my apples, that's the way my family likes it, but you can slice the apples real thinly if you like that better. This is Lucas' favorite pie and what he asks for on his birthday. So let's get started. You're going to need: 6 Granny Smith Apples or any good tart apple 2 Tbsp. All Purpose Flour pinch of salt 1/2 tsp. cinnamon 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup white sugar 2 Tbsp. butter, (I always use real butter, sweet cream, salted real butter) 3 Tbsp. cream or half and half will do Peel and shred or slice the apples and put them in a bowl ...

I've decided grandchildren are the best thing in the world to teach us about the grace of God. Or maybe they are just what I needed to learn the grace of God. Everyone tells you, "Oh you just can't know until you have one of your own." Well.....they are right. When I became a mother, I mean I became a mother. I was all in, and I love my kids like a don't even know how to tell you. I said, I never even knew what love was until I had them. That all consuming, die in an instant without question for them kind of love. Along with that love came a responsibility. I can remember lying there in the hospital bed after Heidi was born and they placed her in my arms and I had two thoughts. First, I thought, oh no she is a girl and that means she is going to have to do this one day. I guess I thought that because the experience was still so fresh. Next I looked down at her and thought, "I've got to be everything to her my mom was to me." ...

October is Pastor Appreciation Month so if you have a pastor, be sure and let him know you appreciate him. While you're at it let his whole family know what they mean to you. No one knows how hard it is to pastor until you do it. I remember when I used to think they worked only on Sunday. They work more hours than you will ever know. They have someone on their heart all the time. They teach and train. They  love, encourage and rebuke. People will come to the church because they preach there, and people will leave the church because they preach there. Sometimes they call and check on an absent member and the member is touched and feels cared about. Sometimes they call and the member may feel like they are being hounded. Sometimes he won't call for fear they will feel hounded and then they are mad and say no one cares. He knows more about the congregation than he even knows what to do with. He can never tell what he knows so he carries it with him. He ...