Flying a kite - Army style

I saw this short clip over at Mike and Airman Mom's blog. Take a minute to watch it and be amazed! I can't imagine how much practice it takes to accomplish something like this!

I love you!

I got the following message in an e-mail. You may have seen it before too, but it's a great message!

Eight year old, Kyle, decided one Saturday morning to fix his father pancakes. He found a big bowl and spoon, pulled a chair to the counter, opened the cupboard and pulled out the heavy flour canister, spilling it on the floor.

He scooped some of the flour into the bowl with his hands, mixed in most of a cup of milk and added some sugar, leaving a floury trail on the floor which by now had a few tracks left by his puppy.

Kyle was covered with flour and getting frustrated. He wanted this to be something very good for Dad, but it was getting very bad

He didn't know what to do next, whether to put it all into the oven or on the stove and he didn't know how the stove worked. Suddenly he saw his puppy licking from the bowl of mix and reached to push her away, knocking the egg carton to the floor. Frantically he tried to clean up this monumental mess but slipped on the eggs, getting his pajamas white and sticky.

And just then he saw Dad standing at the door. Big crocodile tears welled up in Kyle's eyes. All he'd wanted to do was something good, but he'd made a terrible mess. He was sure a scolding was coming, maybe even a spanking. But his father just watched him.

Then, walking through the mess, he picked up his crying son, hugged him and loved him, getting his own pajamas white and sticky in the process.

That's how God deals with us. We try to do something good in life, but it turns into a mess. Our marriage gets all sticky or we insult a friend, or we can't stand our job, or our health goes sour.

Sometimes we just stand there in tears because we can't think of anything else to do. That's when God picks us up and loves us and forgives us, even though some of our mess gets all over Him.

But just because we might mess up, we can't stop trying to 'make pancakes' for God or for others. Sooner or later we'll get it right, and then they'll be glad we tried...

I was thinking and I wondered if I had any wounds needing to be healed, friendships that need rekindling or three words needing to be said. Sometimes 'I love you' can heal & bless. Remind every one of your friends that you love them. Even if you think they don't love back, you would be amazed at what those three little words, a smile, and a reminder like this can do.

Just in case I haven't told you lately... I LOVE YA!!!
suppose one morning you were called to God; do all your friends know you love them?

... never stop 'making pancakes.'

Slow Cooking Thursday

If you are like us, you sometimes have breakfast for supper. Here's a recipe that makes a great supper!

Loaded Hash Browns
1 pound bulk sausage
1/2 cup chopped onion
5 cups frozen, diced hash brown potatoes
4 ounces Monterey Jack cheese
1 small red sweet pepper, chopped
1 4 ounce can sliced mushroom, drained
1 can (10.75 oz) fiesta nacho cheese soup
1/4 cup water
shredded Monterey Jack cheese(optional)
thinly sliced jalapeno pepper (optional)
In a large skillet, cook sausage and onion until sausage in brown. Drain fat.
Spray 4 quart slow cooker with non stick cooking spray. In slow cooker, combine sausage mix, hash browns, 1 cup cheese, pepper and mushrooms. In small bowl combine soup and water. Pour over hash brown mix in slow cooker and stir to combine.
Cover and cook on low for 8 to 9 hours. Before serving stir to combine. If desired, top with more cheese and the jalapenos.

For more Slow cooker recipes, visit Sandra at Diary of a SAHM.

Works for me Wednesday

A few weeks ago I did a Slow Cooking Thursday Post where the recipe had instructions to use a Slow Cooker Liner. Several people asked about them, so I thought I would share them here.
These Slow Cooker liners are made by Reynolds and can be found in the grocery store with the paper products. You just put them in the Slow Cooker, then do your recipe as usual. When you are done, the liner can be thrown away and there is no clean up.
I don't use them often, but for things that make a mess or stick to the crock they are great. They also work well when camping, when doing dishes is more difficult.


These liners are made to fit a 3 to 6.5 quart Slow Cooker. They cost about $2.50 for a package of four.

For more tips and hints, visit Kristen at We are THAT Family.

Heritage Park and Garden

We were at our township park the other night and had a chance to wander around and enjoy some of the unique things there.
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We have a memorial section, where there are statues commemorating the sacrifice made by the servicemen in each war. They stand in a circle around the flag. Here is one of them.

On one corner of the park is a house that was built by one of the early settlers of our town. The historical society maintains a heritage garden on the grounds.

Here is a collage of many of the flowers we saw.
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Here are a few more pictures of the grounds. This last flower is called a moon lily. It opens up at night.
Sometimes we take for granted the things that are in our area and don't pay too much attention to them. It was nice to look around and appreciate the work that has been done here.

Where do you live?

I live in Southwest Michigan. If you look on the map above, you can see the County I live in. It's the little green county next to Lake Michigan - Ottawa county to be exact!
Last week, Joanne from Blessed did a post where she asked where her readers lived. I thought this was a fun idea and decided to do this too. So - I know where a lot of you live, but if you are reading this, take a minute and share it anyway. You don't need to give a specific city if that makes you uncomfortable, just a country or state. Where do you live?

Growing old

"Growing old is inevitable, growing up is optional!"