Seasons of our Home

Spring Blossoms

Petals blowing on the breeze,

O how sweet it is to see.

Lovely pink, softly cream

Are the petals on the breeze.

Caress my face, O petals, please,

Fall from the sky and rain on me.

Just close your eyes, be at ease,

They'll sail on by, upon the breeze.

Snow in Spring, they seem to be

As I sit resting beneath the tree.

They dance a waltz unto the breeze,

The wind does sing its song to me.

The petals drift toward my feet,

Still I dance to the song of the breeze.

As the petals blowing free,

I shall keep skipping, just for Thee.

                                   ~ Kaitlin Rose (March 2009)

(The beautiful photography is credited to our very own Vanessa Elaine)

Moving On

Grandma Jan has ventured out to find a place of her own and is no longer living with us.  We will miss her daily presence, but are grateful that she is not far away.

Snowy Sunday

"...The rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater..." (Isaiah 55:10)

Grillin' Out

Our wonderful Man of the Family

Our onlookers and fans!

Taking a slide break...

...in her brand new Spring dress.

Happy Spring, everyone!

From the Kitchen

I have been been trying out some new recipes of late, keeping me "kitchen-occupied".  Of course, those who know me best understand that I do not just get Kitchen Fever for no good reason (usually I would define kitchen fever as "needing a long, extended, permanent break from all duties applied to setting foot in the kitchen", well that is unless it's time to eat :).  No, actually my inspiration has come from the fact that Mom has to go gluten-free...and I'm the chef!  But, in all honesty, I've had a blast researching types of flours to use, the different substitutes of wheat, how to make bread that doesn't turn hard and crumbly, and the list goes on.  Below are some of the items I've made with yummy outcomes. 

Homemade Butter

Good Morning Granola

This jar was full to the top just last week...a sign that it's a hit around here

This has oats, raisins, honey, coconut oil, sunflower seeds, shredded coconut, ground flax seeds, and sliced almonds...yummm!

Blueberry Muffins

I was initially very skeptical about these, seeing as the only sweetener was honey, however they were really delicious and moist!

I made Buttermilk Yeast Bread  using the buttermilk that I'd separated from the butter fat.  One loaf I made as directed and the other I tried making gluten-free...with rolled oats.  Hmmm...so I'll have to work on my substituting... :).  Anyhow, I didn't get any pics of the buttermilk breads (not like I was going to post a crumbly oatmeal loaf or anything).  There were three dough loaves of plain Amish bread (one of the dough loaves I froze into rolls, the other two I froze as is),

baked a Cinnamon Roll loaf of Amish bread (which was delicious, besides the fact that it wasn't cooked completely through and had WAY too much cinnamon! :), and finally made an edible gluten-free bread for Mom, using arrowroot powder, blanched almond flour, apple cider vinegar, ground flax seeds, agave nectar, salt, baking soda, and eggs.

Gluten-Free Bread

I've just done some research on Potato Bread...we'll see what comes of it. ha!  Also, I'm going to redeem myself with the gluten-free buttermilk bread (aka dry, crumbly oatmeal bread).  Mom said the taste was delicious, so she wants to see what we can do to the recipe to soften it.

Another new yummy we just discovered are Green Chia Shakes, made with spinach leaves, strawberries, bananas, honey, and chia seeds.  The seeds are great because you can't taste them! 

They add a great power booster to our morning and energizer to the rest of the day.  I could go on and on about the nutritiousness they carry, but shall let you do the research yourself.

Does anyone have any suggestions for recipes or healthy substitutions for me?  I'm definitely open for ideas!  Have a fabulous rest of the day... ~ Proverbs 31 Woman-in-Training :)

Spring Fever Randomness

Hello, everyone!  We're still here!  I'm so sorry it's been such a long time since I've posted a word; life has been keeping us busy (per usual) and I must admit that the blogosphere has not been one of my top priorities of late.  Another excuse ("excuses, excuses, now every has excuses"; yes, I know...lol) is that it seems we have become quite lax in the photo shooting business (we could use you, Kimberly...ha!).  Whenever there was anything exciting, or at least "blog material", happening, the camera wasn't around, or in use elsewhere, or, well...okay, I simply forgot to take the pictures. :)

In conclusion of this, my pathetic apology to you, my dear friends, I shall leave you with some of our latest pictures for your enjoyment.  Happy Spring!

Johanna & Grandma June playing "dolly"

A Tale of Pink Laptops

Our lovely nurse practitioner & helpful nurse's assistant :)

We love you, Mrs. Elli!

We celebrated Johanna memorizing Psalm 23 with Mom's delectable ice cream cake (made with Johanna's favorite ice cream...mint chocolate chip!)

Daddy and Johanna working hard.  When us older girls were younger, we went to work with Dad; we made our own little woodwork creations (and let's not forget those sawdust cakes!).  Now Johanna gets to have her turn!

Mrs. Linda, Johanna, & Mr. Vic having a grand time together

The Lord blessed us with a gorgeous day here and we spent a lovely time getting our sunshine and fresh air.

I love you, a bushel and a peck!

Ah, yes...the amazon forest in our backyard!  We did some much needed plant cleaning...spring fever, anyone?

Well, that's it for today.  I assure you I shall be more diligent in my observance of the blogosphere. :) lol...
So long for now, folks!