..for carrying on Family Traditions

Last night, we tried our hand at an old family tradition passed to me from my father. I do not know any history beyond my own...however, I do remember it was always something we looked forward to as kids. My father's parents are from the Mediterranean...I believe Mersien, Syria and Tarsus, Turkey. Along with some great main course dishes, we learned some fantastic recipes for desserts.

One of these was (and forgive the spelling...lol) Halehweh Dijibon. First, you have to make some lemon syrup. Add one-cup water to two-cups sugar. Mom always used regular old white sugar, but we use cane crystals and it tastes just as good. IT's just a bit darker in color. Okay, so bring the sugar water to boil and let it boil for 1 minute. Turn heat down to low. Add 3 or 4 thin lemon slices. If you want it more lemony - add more lemon.

Now you are ready to make the Halehweh Dijibon. This is made with a double-boiler. Melt one stick butter in top of double boiler then stir in one-cup of farina. Once this is incorporated, add in 1 lb. mozarella cheese...the real stuff. Stir this well (Dad always did this) until the cheese is melted and it is all combined.

Next, put a small pool of syrup on the counter and put a golf-ball sized blob of the farina/cheese mixture on it. Turn it over in the syrup to coat. Then, using a wooden rolling pin, roll it out paper thin. Now comes the fun part... EAT!

This stuff is fantastic. I have to say, too, after making it and tasting it last night (for the first time since making it with Dad)...it tasted just as I remembered. My whole family enjoyed it. We'll be making this again, I'm sure!

Not quite there...

...getting closer!

Coat it...

Roll it....

EAT it!!!!

If you give it a try at your house...let us know!!! Better yet, send us some pictures to post!

...for fellowship

The last week and a half was full of fun and fellowship. We have been truly blessed with great friends and family. First, we had Grandpa Ron and Grandma Sweetie over to color eggs. Then, for Easter weekend, we did something a bit different this year. We went to a family camp at Peniel Ranch. We had a great time fellowshipping with other like-minded families. There were plenty of activities for all of us to enjoy.

Upon returning home Sunday, we headed over to Grandma Sweetie and Grandpa Ron's for a wonderful dinner. Then, we braved the very chilly, slightly rainy evening for two different egg hunts – one at their house, one at ours. The Lord has truly, truly blessed us by bringing this wonderful couple into our lives! While we were at family camp, they were busy hiding eggs! Marlee and David (and the rest of us) were thrilled!!

Mid-week had us at the play 'Treasure Island'. Marlee and David have been rehearsing since February for this production. Grandma Karen visited Troy before the show. She and Grandma Sweetie were at the afternoon show. GK visited with us after the play. For the evening play, Grandpa Jack and Grandma Julie visited. Dinner was a quick fare of deli-sandwiches with some deviled eggs (of course), a cabbage salad, and peach pie for dessert. Victoria and I had to be at the school early with the little ones because we were helping with make-up. Grandpa Ron tagged along for the evening performance.

Have I said how incredibly blessed we are?? If not, we truly are…and as we read in Philemon how thankful Paul was for the believers, we are also thankful for those the Lord has placed in our lives, and we do lift them up to the throne always.

Enjoy the pictures!!

Coloring eggs

Headin' to the Fishing Hole

Baitin' the Hook

Fishin'

Archery Fun!

Something hidden for everyone!

Treats!

The making of Pigaloos

Enemies beware!

After the show - just us (minus Jacob) and then with Grandpa Jack and Grandma Julie.

...for focus

There are some seasons, I have learned that are ongoing. Such is the season of our walk with the Lord Jesus Christ. While every day our hearts and minds should be focused on the Lord...I know there are times of growth, times of reflection, times of rebellion (to a degree), times of peace, and times of trials. These are just a few of the ways the season may seem a bit different, but still be ongoing.

This week is Holy Week. This time of year, every year, we are given the opportunity to spend more time focusing on the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

I am no theologian, nor will I be writing tomes. I am just a simple, every day kind of person that has tasted, felt, and seen the mighty wonders of our Father and His Son. I have been washed in the blood. I have been made righteous. I am now a daughter of the King. I am imperfect and a wretched sinner, but by the grace of God, through the work of Christ, I am clean. I am holy. I am a saint.

Do you know this truth for yourself? Have you, like the Psalmist, tasted and seen that the Lord is good? Are you blessed by trusting in Him?

Every day is a gift. He alone knows when our days will be no more. What are you doing with this precious gift? Are you using it for His glory or your own?

This should be a time of great celebration, with no end. Every day, every year should be a celebration that we have been redeemed! If our celebration lacks luster, if we get caught up in the day-to-day trials, if we for a second forget that He is Lord, may this time of year rejuvenate us. May we make the adjustments necessary so that once again our vision is clear, and we are focused on our Lord.

Blessings.

...for favorite sweaters

Posted by: Victoria

Hi Everyone~

Today, March 20th, is Mr. Rogers Day! If he were still alive this would be his 80th birthday. I don't know about you but I grew up watching this show and loved it for many years!

This summer my family got to travel to the east coast and as you can guess, I HAD to get a picture with the famous sweater that Mr. Rogers wore! This picture shows the only reason why I went...not for the JT400, not to see the famous buidlings, not to meet new people, not even to go to the ocean! (oh...I forgot, I also had to be there to carry all the bags! ;) ;))



In order to celebrate, the famous 'they' are asking us to wear our favorite sweater!

Won't you be my neighbor?

...for music

Today at church we got into a discussion about the lyrics of the music on the Christian radio stations. Essentially, our friend was saying that today's Christian music does not mention Jesus directly. The song that was used as an example was 'Dead Man' by Jars of Clay. The point being made was, if you are not a Christian, what would that song mean to you because while it does talk about the need/want to be a 'new man', how would a person who doesn't have Christ know what that means? It seems that the majority of Christian Rock has a 'feel good' sense to it without directly mentioning Jesus's name. On the other hand, as Christian Hip-Hop has developed and spread, it is obvious that these artists truly are willing vessels to be ambassadors for Christ. They are more afraid of leaving out Christ's name, which will lead to the listeners confusion, than using His name and having less popularity. For us - well, our daughter - this is the reason why she has chosen this genre.

Now, I know some people feel that the music - not just the lyrics - make the song, and whether or not it is edifying to the Lord. My personal belief is that ALL music can be used to glorify the Lord - and it is the LYRIC portion that matters most. (No egg tossing, please *smile* - however, I do welcome your comments, that have been seasoned with grace).

Okay - so, to my music widget (which you can turn off if you like), I added two songs and an interlude from a couple of our daughter's CDs. Here are the lyrics, which I think send an AWESOME message - to EVERYONE - and they are very clear, in my opinion, on who our lives are all about.

Commercial - Flame
(to be added later)

Context - Flame

Verse1: The first task of the interpreter is called exegesis/(extra Jesus)/ naw I said exegesis man/ it’s a Latin word don’t be scared/ matter of fact I laughed when I first heard it too/ its spelled e-x-e-g-e-s-i-s/ guarantee you learn this process and you’ll be blessed/ exegesis is the careful systematic/ study of scripture for the Christian this should be a habit/ but to discover the original intended meaning/ of the author to his audience is exegeting/ but to do this man you need some tools/ so let me recommend a couple of things you should use/ aight cool/ first man you need this book/it’s called a commentary and it helps you to further look/ into some essential things you need to check/ in order for you to properly interpret the text

Hook: With this skill this should keep you from heresy/ and keep you from going through theological therapy/, the words of God will change your life/ if you Keep the text in its context/ with this skill/ this should keep you from heresy/ and keep you from going through theological therapy/ the words of God will change your life/ if you keep the text in its context

Verse 2: You need some more books I know its gettin’ scary/ but you need some definitions get a bible dictionary/to go without these tools you can’t afford it/ that’s why you need this book called a concordance/ and every time you start to think this is too much to do/ I recommend you reflect on 2 Timothy 2/and 15/and you’ll see what I mean/ simply because the serpent is lurking to glean/ those who don’t read/ and those who don’t study/ to keep a lock on this treasure/ from unlocking the pleasure/ cause God’s word is lovely/ that’s why we hold it as precious as pearls/ to let our exegetical work reflect to the world/ in accuracy/ hoping that you happy to see/ the very words God breathe handle accurately/ yeah so many take text out of context/ and come up with mess and more nonsense

Hook

Verse 3: What you don’t wanna do is called eisegesis/(I see Jesus)/ naw I said eisegesis man/ you a silly dude its Latin too/ and that’s just the act of when your adding to/ or the process of reading one’s own meaning/ into the text and that’s just eisegeting/ don’t fret I know these words are new/ and phrases to/ but it’s cool to go back to school/ its spell ei-se-gesis/ guarantee you learn this process and God’ll be vexed/ a text can never mean what it never meant before/ to its original reader or author/ so if you run into a difficult passage and you know the Bible never contradicts itself/ then turn the pages to a parallel passage and just let the scriptures interpret itself

Hook

Unashamed - by Lecrae (featuring Tedashii)

A yo man let that beat drop on em
Yea, oh you know I'm liking that right there
Whats good yall
It's yo boy Lecrae
Some call me crezy
I'm here with my 116 clique representing to you
We just want to put it down for the Lord Jesus Christ
City to city and state to state, we keep running into more 116 clique members
People who are unashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ
Let me tell you where we're from dog...

[verse 1:]
New Jerusalem, that's my home
Let me put it in a song, so you'll never get it wrong
No shame in the message, that's the reason I live (reason I live)
Christ up in every song, He's the reason I'm here
All they rhyme about is guns, money, sex and drugs
Eighty percent of these dudes is fictional thugs
We don't kill nobody, we don't rob no stores
We don't trap, we ain't strapped, we don't smoke that dro
We ain't pimpin', we ain't trippin, if we tippin' on some fours
den you'll probaly hear dat Jesus music comin' out our doors (comin out our doors)
we ain't ashamed, you can call us lame,
but everybody gotta die and stand in front of the King

[chorus:]
We unashamed, unashamed
Unashamed, unashamed
Unashamed, unashamed
We unashamed

[verse 2:]
Watch this so you can really know what time it is
God is resurrected and I'm here to glorify Him
Ma Jesus, Jesus, ma Jesus might make a great tune
But we gotta leave them dipsets in the weight room
I gotta date soon, but it ain't soon enough
Father keep pruning us, cause its proven we known for screwing up
I can't front cause the pressure is still thick
And when sin in looks like the pressure, I'm havin' to turn quick
A sins sick, so merk it like John Owen
You know when Jesus the Christ you cant pay him, but still owe him
We shoulda died and been buried for our wrong acts
Instead Christ died and carried them on his own back (What?)
This is a known fact, but some say that its fiction
This is our lifestyle, no its not a religion
See I survived death back in 2002,
And religion is not at all what got your boy through
Yea your boy crayola, I don't do payola
No flows full of baking soda, just Jehovah
I get played to the left more than I get paid to write
So I aint worried about eating dog, tryin to display the Christ

[chorus]

[verse 3:]
You see me on the block, the ave the Vard or the lane
We look the same, but we different
We bring God to this thang
While being vocal about the Lord and not a piece or a chain
But don't get it twisted, its reasons these boys unashamed
How bout 39 lashes of beatings, they laughing and teasing
These blasphemous heathens reject the passion of Jesus
He fasted from speaking even with nails bashed in His feet, and the cross,
He gasping and wheezing, His lungs collect as He's breathing
The chief priest stone in the corner thats chief
The Prince of Peace minus the pipe who bought my grief so no more chiefin
But like the rims that hit the curb (curb) we call em shoulder blades
We got out crosses on our back like our shoulder blade
This is death and resurrection that turned about my direction
Stepping toward perfection had nothing to do with me (do with me)
But the gospel is the power and empowering men to bow out
We pounding in the pavement takin the message to the streets

[chorus]

lyrics taken from Cross Movement Records and Reach Records

...for knife throwing

...for pickin' piggies to go to the Fair!

It's that time, once again, for preparing for the County Fair. Marlee and Jacob will once again bring pigs to the fair. Today was the day for playing eenie, meenie, minie, moe and choosing their pigs for the fair. They will come home in about 2.5 weeks.

Here are the little cuties, as yet unnamed. If you have some suggestions for a name, why not leave us a comment?

Marlee's Piggie Number 1

Marlee's Piggie Number 2 (black and white one)

Jacob's Piggie Number 1

Jacob's Piggie Number 2

We'll update throughout the raising and training, and of course, with fair pictures once the time rolls round!

...for spending time with people we love

We were treated by a visit from Grandpa (Troy's father) recently. The girls did not get to spend as much time with him as the boys...we had shopping to do for a wedding, but David reported that he had a fine time. The girls arrived home just as dinner was being finished up, and after, we enjoyed several games. Times like these are cherished.

David and Grandpa enjoying one another:



...and back in January we went for a visit to Grandpa and Grandma's house for some fun and music:

Pickin' and Grinnin'

Hugs and Smiles

Fireworks!!

Cousins!

...and my favorite pic of the day...en garde!

...PineWood Derby Racing

Yes, there is a season for PineWood Derby Racing! Our season was just a few weeks ago with Marlee and David's Awana Club. I'm not sure who had the most fun...the kids or Dad!

Here is Doo putting the finishing touches on the paint job for his car:



Sadly, this is the only picture I captured during the making of their hot rods. Yes, yes, I know...shame on me!

Here are the finished products...Marlee had a Sleek Sled, Troy's (I told you Dad was just as excited as the kids!) is in the middle, and David's Bullet is on the left:



...and it's off to the races. This year, there were a lot of kids in the race:




...and the WINNER is?!?!? Well, our kids didn't come in first, and they didn't come in second...however, much to their delight they took 3rd and 4th place overall. Marlee's Sleek Sled also won the honor of 'Coolest Car'!




The kids had a blast, as always, spending time with Dad building their cars and then seeing the fruits of their labor in action. Overall it was a very fun day of spending time together as a family and rooting on the three racers! Three?, you say. Yes, three. This year some of the dads had their own competition. The winner was best 2 out of 3 races (I think), but I know Troy's car came in first overall for the men. No, we didn't get a picture of him, and no, there was no cool prize, but it was fun nonetheless!

...for green ipods??

To celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on March 17th, iMommies is giving away two green 1GB iPod Shuffles!

Here are the rules as posted on iMommies:

Entries will be reviewed in two categories, and one winner selected from each. You may enter one, or both, of the categories below.

Category 1 (Website/Blog Post)
To enter the Category 1 giveaway, write a post about the iMommies St. iPodtrick’s Day giveaway and link back to this post. The article should include an Irish fact from history, Irish tradition, Irish limerick, or anything else related to St. Patrick’s Day!

Category 2 (iMommies Comment)

To enter the Category 2 giveaway, leave a comment to this post. The comment should again include an Irish fact from history, Irish tradition, Irish limerick, or anything else related to St. Patrick’s Day!


****Remember, you are to link to and make comments at iMommies, not here...lol...although, I always appreciate your comments *smile*, but for the contest make sure your links and comments are at iMommies!

Head on over to iMommies and enter today!!!


And here is a little Irish Blessing that I came across for our homes:

Bless This House

Bless this house O Lord we pray; Make it safe by night and day;
Bless these walls so firm and stout, Keeping want and trouble out:
Bless the roof and chimneys tall, Let thy peace lie over all;
Bless this door, that it may prove ever open to joy and love.

Bless these windows shining bright, Letting in God's heav'nly light;
Bless the hearth a'blazing there, with smoke ascending like a prayer;
Bless the folk who dwell within, keep them pure and free from sin;
Bless us all that we may be Fit O Lord to dwell with thee;
Bless us all that one day we May dwell O Lord with thee.

Helen Taylor, a poet, wrote the original words and titled it "Bless The House." Her friend, Mary Brahe, composed stirring, devotional music to accompany the lyrics. A few years after its publication, the song caught the attention of John McCormack who immediately recognized its potential greatness, changed the title to "Bless This House," made some minor revisions in the lyrics and included the song as a highlight of his repertoire. It became one of his best selling recordings.

...for making your voice heard

It is time to take a stand.

Please read the following post made by Stacy McDonald on her blog, Your Sacred Calling:

I am livid.

When I was flying to visit my daughter this past week we were visually assaulted by huge displays of the most recent Sports Illustrated “swimsuit” issue. Funny thing is the poor dear seemed to have lost her swimsuit. There was a wall of magazines, facing the walkway for everyone to see, filled with images of a topless woman, arms behind her head, and wearing nothing but a string bikini bottom and necklaces.

Thankfully I didn't have my son or my little ones with me (or my husband for that matter!). But I had a long talk with my 17-year-old daughter who was accompanying me.

Then, a few days ago, I saw the same soft porn filth at Sam's Club—again, in full view of children and anyone else walking the main aisle! When I complained, the manager told me she completely agreed with me, but she couldn't do anything about it. It was the decision of the "corporate office" and that was who stocked the shelves.

Not sure I completely buy that. So what is it they need a manager for anyway? Either way, maybe the "corporate office" needs to hear from all the large families and churches who buy large quantities of food and furniture from Sam's Club. In addition to that, we verified that Costco and Wal-Mart are both carrying the magazine as well.

Recently, we discussed on my blog the difficulties some women face regarding intimacy in marriage. The results were alarming. Our poll, private emails to me, and our discussion, revealed that pornography played a huge part in harming marriages - and families. Women felt insecure, compared, rejected, and devalued. And why not? Pornography not only harms women and the way they view their bodies, it desensitizes men and fills them with an insatiable lust that can’t be quenched by godly intimacy. What do you think happens to the children?

Pornography, even the sugar coated kind, attacks marriage. And in the process, it devastates families. Ultimately, it gets to the core—it destroys godly seed. Children are either themselves harmed by abuse or the damaged marriage of their parents; or they never come to be—a destroyed marriage means no (more) children born from that union.

When we visited Alabama last year, I went into a Publix grocery store and they had plastic magazine covers over all of their questionable magazines - even those that most shoppers wouldn't consider totally obscene (People, Star, National Enquirer). I took a picture of their display with my cell phone, but I couldn’t figure out how to get it off my phone. :-) But, the photo above gives you the general idea; and it at least shows a Cosmo covered up.

I am truly getting tired of this. Aren’t you? James and I have put together a sample letter in the form of a downloadable Word document that you can personalize yourselves. You can put it on your blogs, your websites, print it out and give it to friends at church, or whatever other ideas you may have - feel free!

Since it's a Word document everyone can plug in the name of their own grocery stores, Sam's club, Barnes and Noble, whatever...and demand that they remove the filth from the view of our families. Don’t forget to complain to a manager in person, but let’s also bombard them with mail. ARE YOU WITH US?

Send THIS LETTER to your local Sam's Club, Costco, Walmart - or anyone else carrying the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.

Sam's Club
Attention: Doug McMillan, CEO
608 Southwest 8th St.
Bentonville, AR 72716
888-746-7726
EMAIL

Costco
Attention: James D. Sinegal, CEO
999 Lake Dr
Issaquah, WA 98027-8990
(425) 313-8100
800-955-2292
EMAIL

Walmart
Attention: Lee Scott, CEO
702 SW Eighth Street
Bentonville, AR 72716
(479) 273-4000
800-925-6278
EMAIL

Send THIS LETTER to your local grocery store, if they are displaying obscene or inappropriate magazines in their check out lines. Be sure so personalize it and don't forget to complain in person - you can do it! Remember it's for your children!

Click here to read what the American Decency Association has to say about the SI Issue. And my husband, James, had a few thoughts too.

Here's what I sent to Sam's:

Dear [Supervisor's name],

My husband and I, along with our children, live in Central Illinois; and aside from this one troubling issue, we have always been happy shopping at your ... store. In addition, our church has a Sam’s account; and we frequently purchase supplies from you for our weekly fellowship meals, as well as electronics and various other equipment needed for our church.

I have to say, I was absolutely appalled to see in your store, in full view of my children, a large display of magazines featuring a topless woman in a string bikini. Sports Illustrated is nothing more than soft pornography and I am outraged that families are subjected to this smut while innocently shopping in your stores.

The American Decency Association has this to say about the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue:

Starting with the topless woman on the cover, SI gets to the real purpose of the issue – the pornographic exhibition of women for the pleasure of men. Page after page reveals erotically displayed young women in, at the most, barely there bikinis. Each lust-producing pornographic pose reinforces the message to ogling men and boys that women are nothing more than sexual objects to be used…

In addition to the nearly bare models, are dozens of photos of topless or completely nude women. There are also a number of pullout pinups… This outrageous display is basically no different than a Playboy…”

By carrying this magazine you are helping to promote a product that degrades women, harms families, and contributes to the moral decay of society. There are many others like me who don't appreciate companies that promote illicit sex and neglect the moral safety of families (and children) who shop in their stores. I plead with you to pull this offensive product from your shelves immediately.

Please know that my readers, as well as Christians in our local community, will be actively participating in a campaign to purge this, and magazines like it, from the stores we frequent. At the very least, we insist that you cover the offensive magazines from view. For those stores that refuse to hear our pleas, we will be forced to boycott them; and we will actively push for others to take a stand and shop elsewhere.

I have always considered Sam’s a family-friendly store. Please, for the good of American families and society, please stop selling pornography.

Sincerely,

Stacy D. McDonald

Editor-in-Chief
Family Reformation® Ministries

Also, remember that even the models in these magazines can't live up to the standard of "beauty" the world presents. Check out this demonstration of how the images we see in magazines and on billboards are "doctored".

...for more contests!!

Run on over to QuiverfullFamily Blog to join in on a give-away.

Up for grabs is a copy of "100 Important Things Your Boys Need to Know: A Homeschooler’s Guide to Boys & Manners", a toolkit of 8 resources for helping you train up those boys. This is an e-book package.

If this is a resource you would like to add to your library, and if you don't win the contest, you can purchase the package at
The Little Homeschool Library.

Also from the same folks at The Little Homeschool Library is their fantastic once-a-week free audio download of great stories and old radio shows. Our kids have absolutely loved these!! Head on over to Homeschool Radio Shows and check it out!

...for Lapbooking!!!

We have enjoyed lapbooking so much since first introduced to the concept. In the next couple of weeks, we will be putting together a Lapbook on Easter from In The Hands of a Child (an awesome site for all of your Lapbooking needs).

I am very excited about this lapbooking project as it will cover the true reason for our observance of Easter, the resurrection of Christ Jesus!!

The Easter Project has 15 different activities which will be included in the final project. There are timelines, vocabulary words, and a more in-depth look at the Easter Story...from Jesus' entering the city on a donkey through what happened at Pentecost. All of the templates are ready for printing, and this time around we will be trying their new 'Type It In' feature! What an awesome way to get the kids going on their keyboarding skills!! Instead of the kids having to write all the information onto their booklets, they can first type in the answer and then print it out. So many skills are covered when we do lapbooking! There are even some foreign language skills introduced. The kids will be learning the name of Passover in variety of languages! We will also be discussing the different ways other countries celebrate Easter, which leads us to the only drawback, in my opinion, of this project. The last activity deals with common Easter symbols (in America), including bunnies, baskets, and eggs. We may talk about why Easter is typically observed this way in our day, but we probably will not spend the extra time making the booklet.

In the Hands of a Child has always done a bang up job, in my humble opinion, putting their resources together. They tell you exactly what to do, give you some background information on each step, and even include links to other resources/web pages for a more thorough investigation of the topic.

...and right now, they are having a 'Buy Two Get One Free' sale over on their site!! How exciting is that?!?!?! Head on over to In the Hands of a Child, and learn more about Lap Booking. Also, if you sign up for their newsletter, they have a quarterly freebie.

Stay tuned as we post pictures going through the lapbook process...and of the final product!!! Marlee and David have really enjoyed our lapbooking times and In the Hands of a Child has made the job quite easy for me!!!