Banana Pineapple Bread

Recipe Name:
Banana Pineapple Bread
Picture:
Description:
A soft, moist homemade quick bread with banana and pineapple
Yield:
2 loaves
Ingredients:
3 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon salt

3 eggs

2 cups sugar

1 cup oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups mashed bananas (about 4 medium bananas)

1 cup crushed pineapple (with the excess liquid drained; this is almost the amount in a 15-ounce can of pineapple)
Instructions:
1. In large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
2. In another mixing bowl, beat together the eggs and sugar. Add remaining ingredients, beating until well mixed.
3. Pour wet ingredients into bowl of dry ingredients and stir until moistened. Don't over-beat.
4. Pour batter into two greased and floured loaf pans (use smaller loaf pans -- 6x3-inch, or use several mini loaf pans). Bake at 350 degrees for 60 minutes or until loaves test done.
Preparation Time:
20 minutes
Cooking Time:
60+ minutes
Tammy's Review:
This is a wonderful banana bread recipe. The pineapple and banana flavors go perfectly together, and it makes a moist, spicy loaf. We like to freeze the loaf and then later, thaw and slice. It still tastes delicious! This is an easy recipe and is complimented by guests. My rating: 10/10

Source: http://tammysrecipes.com/banana_pineapple_bread

Another spider

I have been told that this is an ordinary garden variety spider that eats lots of mosquito's. It was huge. A friend said that if the spider weaves a pretty "Charlotte's web" type of web that they generally are not poisonous. However if they weave messy webs they may be poisonous. How interesting.

Easy ice cream cake

Ice Cream Cake
1 bag oreo cookies crushed (I use off brand)
Pour 1 stick of melted butter into the oreos and mix.
Press into a 9X13 pan.
Thinly slice one cardboard container of vanilla ice cream and lay pieces over the cookie mixture. Freeze.
Drizzle hot fudge over top of each piece before serving.

Recipe courtesy of my daughter Kaleena Porter

Chicken tacos in the crock pot

‎4 frozen chicken breast (I will use my home canned chicken)
one can of favorite salsa (strain so it's not watery).
The kind with corn makes it a little heartier.
Leave in crock all day, then shred, add a pint of sour cream and serve with refried beans, tortilla chips, tortillas, whatever. Sooo good.

Crock pot pizza

First prep the crock pot with non-stick spray.
Layer these ingredients in a similar way as you would as a lasagna:
Pre-cooked spiral noodles,
pizza sauce (spaghetti sauce works in a pinch),
pepperoni,
mushrooms,
shredded mozzarella cheese.
My crock pot lets me layer these things twice, but a larger one might do three layers.

You can also modify the ingredients to whatever your family likes.

Cook until the cheese is bubbling (about 2 hours is plenty). Enjoy!

Crock pot chicken taco dinner

Chicken Taco Dinner
3 or 4 frozen chicken breast peices ( I will be using my home canned chicken so I wont cook it as long as the recipe suggests)
2 cans of rotel (I use mexican)
2 packets of Taco seasoning
Cook all day. Before serving shred in crockpot.
Can use hard or soft tacos and add whatever you like for taco fixings

Shopping yesterday and today

Wal Mart price match trip.
Before price match about 250.00 after price match $133.86
after coupons $76.11.
Total saved about $157.75 or thereabouts.
Add that to yesterday's shopping........

I just love going into Wal Mart and telling them what things cost. Today I did a little shopping and got $116.71 before price matching,
after price matching $75.31

and then after coupons $33.76
Total savings was $72.95.

Total both days before price matching $366.71
Total after price matching $209.17
total both days after coupons.........$109.87

total savings from both days $256.84

I think I have enough shampoo, conditioner, razors, dish soap, salad dressings, toothbrushes, toothpaste, pain reliever, ramen noodles, peanut butter, jelly, toilet paper, paper towels and such to last several weeks. I am not going to buy any more of these items unless they are free or almost free.

We don't buy air fresheners because of all the chemicals in them. I use essential oils and make my own. I did however buy some febreeze plug in things because I made .53 on each one. I will give those away and I used the money I made to buy some of the other things on my list.

I've been there

I have been to a lot of places, but I've never been in Cahoots.

Apparently you can't go alone. You have to be in Cahoots with someone.

I've also never been in Cognito, either.

I hear no one recognizes you there.

I have, however, been in Sane.... They don't have an airport; you have to be driven there.

I have made several trips, thanks to my friends and family.

I would like to go to Conclusions, but you have to jump and I'm not much on physical activity....

Edited at add: I have been driven to drink and my kids bought the gas.

Oh, and I will meet you in a state of confusion.

Better coupon organization

I accidentally loaded the pictures backwards so I will start last to first.

Currently I have a list of all the coupons from each Sundays coupon inserts. I then have a zip lock bag with the corresponding cut coupons.

The coupons in zip lock bags fit better into my container and are not always threatening to fall out.


This is the way my coupons were organized. The envelopes were open at the top and I was always a bit worried about them tipping over and falling out. They were crammed in this way. For the picture I had taken almost half of them out so you can imagine how they looked before. The picture above this one has all of my coupons not just half. Putting them in zip lock bags and turning the container allowed for a lot more coupons.

missionary update

Subject: Bush Bunny Brenda Blog,
Aug. 28, 2011
A TYPICAL SUNDAY?
Well….???

Ministry is much more than most imagine.When you pioneer churches in little villages where no one has been before, you never know what will greet you on each visit. Here’s what happened today.

Arriving at the little grass roofed mud hut that hosts the Pequaria church about 6 miles (12 km) from our base, I was met by the pastor and 3 very upset church members.The woman they trusted to safeguard the offering had stolen it, including the offering basket! (All $4 was lost, a lot of money to these people).

The church members voted to safeguard their future offerings at our mission station in Balama. A few minutes before church started, a man dressed in rags comes up to me and lays at my feet a small Mozambican coin worth 20 Cents U.S.

(We taught on tithing last week so great to see he had understood it.)

He says: “I can’t stay for church, because I have to sell Nipa (corn whisky) so I can buy grass to roof my mud hut.” We explained that this is not the way of Jesus. He ducked his head and said, “ I know, but I’m an old man, and I have no other way to make any money.”

I told him if he would dump his Nipa and honor God by coming to church, I would personally give him the U.S. $5 he needed to roof his house. He was so happy he briskly walked to his hut (we could see his hut from the church), dumped his corn whisky, and returned in his cleanest cloths!

So now he’s part of the brick making team for the church. The church service consisted of 5 adults and 20 kids. We were thrilled to finally gain the trust of the children as they had refused to step inside the church the last 3 Sundays.

Someone had told them we would capture and sell them. Might sound farfetched to you, but it is common practice in many parts of Africa.

Got home and was doing e-mails. Two of my pastors from our Balama service drove up on a motorbike. I went over to open the door for Pastor Fred but he ran right past me!I thought the man had lost his marbles!

While I was typing in the office, a 3 foot snake has parked himself on the step right outside my office door. The snake saw Pastor Fred running towards it and took off like greased lightning! Nothing like God’s timing to save your life!

Then Pastor Alberto drives in on his motorbike to report that the 3 church members who were supposed to build the Kwe Kwe church are in jail for the next 4 months. The church members made the bricks, and now the church has no brick layers.

“Why are they in jail,” I asked? They poached an elephant so the church could have a feast to celebrate the new building!I almost fell off my chair!

ONLY in Africa would something like this happen.

A master brick layer from Kwe Kwe has offered to build it for a fee of $226 which includes the services of 3 of his friends.

We have a roof donated for this church. Would anyone like to help them build the walls? As you can see, a normal day doesn’t exist around here.My days are not always this crazy, but I do have to resolve some pretty crazy problems at times.

FYI: Our orphanage registration documents will be in Pemba tomorrow to be “checked for acceptability” by the State Level Social Services group.This will hopefully catch any mistakes before we submit them to the Maputo office for our national credentials. Capena, our office manager, did a great job of getting it all written up in 7 long days of work.

Thanks to C.A.R.E, Int. he was trained to do just this kind of work. It’s wonderful to see how God gives each of us the right kind of preparation to meet the unseen challenges. Eric and I did our part by getting all the blue prints together for all our buildings.It may be months before we hear the outcome, so I’ll let you know when we hear something.

Blessings,Bush Bunny Brenda

Happy Birthday Hannah

Today is Hannah's 15th birthday. My youngest daughter is now 15, I can hardly believe it.

She wanted to go to Carino's for lunch so that's what we did. It was really good. I love you Hannah. Happy Birthday.

Look what Hannah found

We are switching places with the girls, camper wise and Hannah moved the spare tire from under the 5th wheel and both the snake skeleton and the live black widow were on the underside. I am so glad she did not get bit. Look at the two huge egg sacks by the skeleton. Ick. Millions of baby black widows would be in there.


I blew this up so it would be closer but of course its blurry now but look how big her bottom is. Do you think its full of eggs? I am glad we caught these in time before we were infested. There seem to be many more spiders here in south Texas than where we came from.

Dr. Conservative

Take along snack ideas

For more cute take along snack ideas visit this blog: http://ediblecrafts.craftgossip.com/snacks-for-travelin/2011/08/01/

No bake energy bites

No-Bake Energy Bites -
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup peanut butter (or other nut butter)
1/3 cup honey
1 cup coconut flakes
1/2 cup ground flaxseed
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla
Mix everything above in a medium bowl until thoroughly incorporated. Let chill in the refrigerator for half an hour. Once chilled, roll into balls and enjoy! Store in an airtight container and keep refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Recipe source: http://smashedpeasandcarrots.blogspot.com/2011/08/no-bake-energy-bites-recipe.html

Kombucha and shopping

A facebook friend and I traded some of my milk kefir for a kombucha scooby. The scooby arrived today in the mail. I am excited beause I have not had kombucha for about a year or more. My tea is cooling now and then in a few days I can drink it.

Now for my shopping trip.
At HEB I bought 12 single cups of Dannon yogurt, they ranged in price from $1.00 each to#1.78 each. With coupons they were all free. I also purchased a $100.00 gift card because the HEB's in my area are letting you use the gift cards and get 11 cents a gallon off of gas. That's a good savings. The offer is only good through Dec. 31, 2011. After that its regular price. I always buy a gift card and use it for the gas because HEB usually has the cheapest gas anyway and then I save another 11 cents. Today I got gas for $3.36 a gallon.

Then I went to Wal Mart where I picked a few more grocery items up. My total before coupons was $52.60 and after it was $28.75

So for grocery items I spent $28.75 , saved $48.61, and got $72.46 worth of groceries. That's more than half so I consider it to have done well. My goal is to always save at least half.

Welcome new blog readers

If you are new to my blog please leave a comment and be sure to book mark this site so you can read often.

Thank you for visiting and have a great day.

I love to can

Happy Birthday Mollie

This is Mollie and Hannah yesterday on Hannah's first day of high school. Mollie is 17 today. Happy Birthday Mollie.


Joy, Hannah and Mollie on Hannah's first day of high school. She said it went well and she liked it.

Hannah on her first day of high school.

Also today my oldest daughter Brooke Swaney is having surgery. She will be getting her gall bladder removed and something done with her cervix, not exactly sure. She had pre-cancer in it. Please pray with me that she does well and they are able to eradicate her pain and suffering.

On another topic. I can tell my daughters are growing up. Even though today is Mollie's birthday she was up and outside bright and early getting her laundry done. I got her cake baked and I think Joy is going to frost and decorate it. Jeff said she gets to pick the restaurant tonight for her birthday celebration.

A dear friend has a birthday today as well. Happy birthday Stephanie. Love you.

I hope that all of you have a great day today. May God bless and keep you all.

1929 repair letter

Click on picture for larger view.

Are you afraid?

One of my friends posted on facebook that her daughter was afraid and needed prayer. I encouraged her to have her daughter rebuke the spirits who were bothering her. She was at an ancient Indian burial ground and 10 of the kids felt oppressed there. It reminded me that the scriptures give us proof after proof that God is with us and we should not be afraid. Here a the scriptures I gave her for comfort.

Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.1 John 4:4(KJV)

Psa 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Isa 54:14 In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.

Psa 1:3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

Gal 1:4 Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:

Psa 91:10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.

Psa 91:11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.

Pro 12:28 In the way of righteousness is life; and in the pathway thereof there is no death.

Jas 1:25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

Eph 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

Gal 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

Rev 12:11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

Jas 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Isa 54:13 And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD; and great shall be the peace of thy children.

Busy Monday

Today is Hannah's first day of high school. She decided she wanted to try public school for high school. She went at the end of the school year in May and took the TAKS tests and found she is ready for high school. She is a bit nervous because she has not been to public school for several years and never to school where they moved from class to class each hour. In grade school they moved to the music room and gym but other than that they pretty much stayed in the same room all day. I think its been about four years since she attended public school.

Mollie on the other hand is a senior this year and has no desire to attend public school. She is my longest home schooled girl. She wants to get a job and save money and do her school work on the off time. That's fine with me as long as she does get her school work done. I am sure she will so I am not worried about that. She is taking chemistry this year for the first time so that will be a bit of a challenge but I know she can do it. Her 17th birthday is tomorrow so I better get busy and make a cake.

Joy is looking for a job too. She is going to wait until next semester to go to college and just work this semester. She and Mollie are out job hunting right now. I think she is going to take a home school refresher course in math so that she wont feel like she lost her math skills. In bible college they only studied the bible and ministry type of things.

I have a load of bread going in my bread maker and two trays of okra in the dehydrator. Here in a bit I need to make Mollie's birthday cake and get the peaches put up. I just have to decide if I am going to make more jam, canned peaches or dehydrate them.

4 ingredient granola bars

My kids love the chewy granola bars we get in the stores, but I hate their price. A $2-$3 box only includes about 8 itty-bitty bars that are gone in two bites. I’ve been experimenting with making homemade granola bars, and the recipe I’ve landed on is pretty good. These would be great for after-school snacks. The best part is that it only requires four ingredients and takes just a few minutes to make!

Easy Four-Ingredient Home
made Granola Bars

2 C.quick oats
1 /2 C. honey
1/2 C. brown sugar
1 stick butter or margarine, softened

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Combine all the ingredients above and mix thoroughly.

If desired, add nuts or chocolate chips. Grease a 9×13 jelly roll pan. Press the oats mixture down in greased pan and bake 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Allow to cool and break into pieces.

If you prefer bars, it’s best to gently cut a little bit before the bars have cooled, then once cool cut the rest of the way.
Thanks to my friend Amy for sharing her recipe!

recipe source: http://www.mommysavers.com/2011/08/kid-friendly-recipe-easy-four-ingredient-homemade-granola-bars/

12 people + 2 campers = lots of fun

Sammy looks like he enjoyed his pancakes.


Looks a little crowded doesnt it?

Mollie and Elijah.

A friend on facebook made rainbow pancakes for her grandkids so I did too.

They looked cool but were hard to turn over so I ended up making art instead of rainbows for the most part. I didnt hear any complaints.

Mollie is feeding Elijah some pancakes. He sure likes food. I think he is going to be a big boy.

After breakfast we packed a lunch and went to the beach. Left to right is Hannah, Mollie holding Sammy, Me in the back, Alaina, Kaitlyn on the board, Joy and Courtney on the end.

We met a lady who asked Bill to talk to her son who ended up getting saved. Praise God.

God and the lawn

God and Lawn Care
God said: "Frank, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there on the planet?

What happened to the dandelions, violets, milkweeds and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect no-maintenance garden plan.

Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honeybees, and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But, all I see are these green rectangles.

"St. Francis: It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers 'weeds' and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.

God: Grass? But, it's so boring. It's not colorful. It doesn't attract butterflies, birds and bees; only grubs and sod worms. It's sensitive to temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?

St. Francis: Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.

God: The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy.

St. Francis: Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it - sometimes twice a week.

God: They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?

St. Francis: Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.

God: They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?

St. Francis: No, Sir, just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.

God: Now, let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And, when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?

St. Francis: Yes, Sir.God: These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.

St. Francis: You aren't going to believe this, Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it, so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.

God: What nonsense. At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn, they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. It's a natural cycle of life.

St. Francis: You better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.

God: No!? What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter to keep the soil moist and loose?

St. Francis: After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.

God: And where do they get this mulch?

St. Francis: They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.

God: Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore.

St. Catherine, you're in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?

St. Catherine: It's called 'Dumb and Dumber,' Lord. It's a story about...

od: Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis.

This is funny but I know that God already knows everything that is going on and does not need to be told by St. Francis or anyone else. I just posted this because it highlights how stupid we are with the provisions that God gave us.

Cleaning and crafting today

I am making these adorable coin purses today. I had the zippers and a friend saved the juice pouches for me. Easy and fun.
I am also sewing embellished diaper burp cloths.
This morning I have been cleaning because we are expecting company tomorrow. We are hoping to go tubing on a river but it might be too dry. If it is we will go to the beach. Joy has not been to this beach so she will enjoy it.
Mollie has a birthday coming up and so does Hannah. The 23rd and 28th. They will be 17 and 15. Time sure flies when you are living and loving life.

coin purse tutorial : http://obsessivelystitching.blogspot.com/search/label/recycle?updated-max=2009-12-07T22%3A53%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=20

A tater tale

Well,A Girl Potato and Boy Potato had eyes for each other,

And finally they got married, and had a little sweet potato, which they called'Yam.

'Of course, they wanted the best for Yam.

When it was time, they told her about the factsof life.

They warned her about goingout and gettinghalf-baked,

so she wouldn't get accidentally mashed, and get a bad

Name for herself like 'Hot Potato,' and

end up with a bunch ofTater Tots

Yam said not to worry, no Spud would gether into the sack and Make a rotten potato out of her!


But on the other hand sheWouldn't stay home

and become a Couch Potato either.

She would get

Plenty of exercise so as not to be skinny like her Shoestring Cousins.When she went off toEurope ,

Mr. And Mrs. Potato told Yam

To watch outfor the hard-boiled guys from Ireland .

And theGreasy guys from France called the French Fries.

And when she went out West, To watch out for the Indians so she wouldn't get scalloped..

Yam said she would stay on the straight and

narrow and wouldn't associate withthose high class Yukon Golds,

or the ones from the other side of the tracks who advertise their trade on all the trucks that say,

'Frito Lay

.'Mr. AndMrs. Potato sent Yam to Idaho P.U.
(that's Potato University )


so that when she graduated she'd really Be in the Chips.

But in spite of all they did forher, one-day Yam came homeAnd announced she was

going to marry Tom Brokaw.

Tom Brokaw!

Mr. and Mrs. Potato were very upset.

They toldYam she couldn't possibly marry

Tom BrokawBecause he's just.......

Are youready for this?

Are you sure

?OK!Here it is!*

A COMMONTATER

Going bank shopping today

When we moved to Texas we had to get a new bank. We asked around but its not easy when you dont really know anyone. We settled on the bank that was family owned because growing up that is the kind of bank we used. Personal service and all that.
That home town bank is not at all what I thought any bank would be like. They are rude, (the bank president)and they give you a hard time when you are trying to make a deposit. I thought putting the money into the bank was suppose to be the easy part. They for some reason dont believe that my daughters are my kids and want proof. What? They wont let them open savings accounts. I am appauled at the way they treat us. You would think we bounced checks or tried to pass fake ones or something. The list goes on and on so today I am bank shopping.

In this small town I have at least three other choices and I am going to stop in to at least two of them and see what they offer and how they treat me. We like to have online banking but I am willing to give it up to have a bank that doesnt act like I am some kind of criminal when I walk in the door.

I have never had this kind of trouble before. My husband's boss was not happy either and wrote a letter to the bank board about their treatment of me and then got into an argument with one of the board members who is a friend of his. I also wrote to the bank board but have not gotten a response.

Aparently the bank president married into the position and its quite apatent he has NO people sklls and zero banking education. He is the most condensending hateful man I have ever met.

No bake cookies

Ingredients
2 cups sugar
4 tablespoons cocoa
1 stick butter
1/2 cup milk
1 cup peanut butter
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 cups oatmeal
Waxed paper
Directions
In a heavy saucepan bring to a boil, the sugar, cocoa, butter and milk. Let boil for 1 minute then add peanut butter, vanilla and oatmeal. On a sheet of waxed paper, drop mixture by the teaspoonfuls, until cooled and hardened.

recipe source: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/cooking-live/chocolate-peanut-butter-no-bake-cookies-recipe/index.html

Easy tuna casserole

2 cans tuna
1 can corn
1 can cream of mushroom soup
box of noodles of your choice.
Boil noodles then mix all ingredients together after draining. Cover with your favorite cheese, then put in the oven tat 350 until it's melted!

Variation~~~mix the shredded cheese in with the rest of the ingredients and top with crushed plain potatoe chips.

A lady posted this on facebook and I wanted to get it put down on here before I forgot it. Look and sounds easy.

Think on this

Weekend with family

Elijah is plumb worn out. Sleeping in papa's arms.


Singing praises. Jeff, Hannah, Alaina, and Bill.

Jeff tuning a guitar.

Sometmes you just gotta take a nap.

Eating together. Bill sure can cook. We had bar-b-que ribs, fillets, bacon wrapped shrimp with jalapeno and cheese, deep fried zucchini and fingerling potatoes.

Edited to add: I thought I would introduce you all to this part of my family. Starting at the bottom with the man in the green shirt, Bill, Jeff, me, Hannah, Elijah in the high chair, Sammy, Courtney, Kaitlyn, Alaina, Joy and Mollie. Christina is taking the picture from high up on a chair.

Quotes

Todays shopping trip

Shopping trip August 12, 2011~WalMart
4~Bar S franks
7~50 oz. Purex laundry soap
5~Spenda essentials 80 ct.
8~hanburger helper
14~Keebler cookies
4~Expo markers 2pk.
6~Skippy peanut butter
9~TreSemme stylers
7~Herbal essence shampoo/conditioner
24~Progressive soup
4~Kraft Shredded cheese
9~Lance cracker creations
2~Lance cracker mini sandwich cookies
14~Degree deodorant
4~Huggies wipes refill 176 ct.
12~Activia yogurt selects
5~French’s mustard
7~Ban deodorant
10~Pillsbury brownie mix
1~gallon milk
2~lunch meat
1~large box pop ice
Total price 350.20
Total after price matching 279.00
Total after coupons 126.15
Travis and Rosie at the Victoria Texas Wal-Mart are the BEST

Sympathy

One of the blogs I love to read is Tammy's dehydrating site. I learned so much from her about how to dehydrate. Her site is called Dehydrate 2 Store.
A few weeks ago Tammy's husband suffered a massive heart attack and was suppose to get open heart surgery. I just learned this morning that he passed away. My sympathy's to Tammy and her family.
I know what its like to lose someone you love.
Here is her site: http://www.dehydrate2store.com/

My boring life~ I love it this way

I live a pretty boring life compared to most people and especially to those in Hollywood and I like it that way. I was sitting here resting and cooling off after doing a load of laundry and trying to think of something new to post. Jeff told me yesterday that I am not posting very often lately.

While we were in Kansas for the funeral and then the baby shower I realized that I like my plain simple boring life. I don't care for drama and such. I enjoyed my stay but I like my simple life.

I get stressed when there is too much on my plate. I like simple.

When I begin to worry or wish I had something else I just pray for contentment and then I am fine again. I have a great life here. I have a roof over my head. A roof over the girls head. A garden. Clean clothes and a way to keep them that way. Freedom to worship God. Food to eat. My husband has a job to provide for us with. I have a way to connect with family and friends, Internet, phone and even old fashioned letters.

After all, this is only our temporary home. Our eternal home is with God and we will live with him and be able to worship him for eternity. It makes this life seem like a vapor.

Thank you Lord for all the blessing you give to me, your mercies are new each morning.

Lucky dog

This dogs owners dumped their cooler in the driveway and he took advantage of it. He looks so cool doesnt he?

Couponing and price matching

Over the last year or so I have been learning to use coupons to save money for my family. I feel like I have done a good job with that. Now on to the next level.

Price matching. Wal Mart has an ad campaign going about how easy it is to price match at their store. On face book I have a small coupon group and one of the ladies is very knowledgeable about not only couponing but price matching as well.

What you do is this. When you get the Sunday paper save the coupons and sort those and also save a set of the sales ads. Go through the sales ads and using a spread sheet write down prices of items you want to buy and have coupons for, the place they are on sale at, size, etc. Then when you go to WalMart you just tell them the price such and such a store has that item for and they override their price with the other stores sale price. Then you use coupons and save even more.

I went to WalMart the other day and here is what I did.
I got 4 packages of Expo markers. WalMart price was 3.97, HEB had them on sale for 2.00 each so I got 4 packages of Expo markers for 8.00, I then had 2 coupons that were 2.00 on 2 so I ended up paying 4.00 for 4 packages.

You don't even have to bring the sales ad with you, just know, what store, price, size, etc. It was very easy.

Cream cheese & herb cucumber bites

What You Need
1 carrot, shredded (about 1/2 cup), divided
1/2 cup PHILADELPHIA Chive & Onion 1/3 Less Fat than Cream Cheese
2 cucumbers, cut lengthwise in half, seeded
Make It
RESERVE 2 Tbsp. carrots. Mix remaining carrots with cream cheese; spoon into cucumber shells. Top with reserved carrots.
CUT each cucumber half into 5 pieces to serve.

This looks cool to eat. I would just use homemade cream cheese and add my own herbs.

recipe source: http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/cream-cheese-n-herb-56995.aspx?cm_mmc=eml-_-rbe-_-20110809-_-1091&cm_lm=C64CD0C42AB336B1A2C394EFA27DCB02

My girls

My girls said I picked out the worst picture to put on my blog. Maybe this one is better.
These are my five daughters, I have no sons, no brothers and no grandsons (yet).

missionary update

From: "Brenda Lange"Subject:
Blog, Aug. 6, 2011

MICHIGAN TEAM LEAVES MORE THAN FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND

The 6 member Michigan team did a marvellous job of reaching out to the locals using teachings that were culturally sensitive. Team leaders Dale and Sally brought many object lessons to illustrate Bible lessons, leaving the people with a clear image of why Jesus came to earth.

While Dale taught 2 days in our Bush Bible Schools; Sally, Beverly, Tanya, Judy, and Jenna worked at painting our office and children’s warehouse, held a game day for our 112 orphans, and assisting in 2 food distributions.The entire team assisted Eric in showing the Jesus film in a village where we just planted our 6th bush church (Pequaria).

Dale’s Michigan church, Coopersville Reformed, is sponsoring the pastor for Pequaria, and donating the tin roof for the church that is being built there.THANK YOU to this “GO TEAM”, as they are called, for going to one of the “ends of the earth” to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. TRADITIONAL WATER WELLS GONE DRY IN BALAMA

The new National Highway that destroyed several of our orphan homes last year, has taken another toll on our area.Rocks are an essential part of the road base, so the company has been BLASTING the rock from a small mountain just 1 mile from our mission station. They work 24 hours a day with a loud rock crusher, loading huge boulders into dump trucks, making it hard for anyone in our area to sleep.

Thirty days ago, my workers told me our church well wasn’t putting out as much water as usual. I started checking the traditional hand dug wells all over our area (we have 12 on our 40 acres used for irrigation of our Jatropha plants). Our 12 foot WELLS WERE ALL DRY! These wells never went dry last year, providing adequate water for our Jatropha irrigation project even through November, the end of the dry season.

I have no proof, but it looks like the intense blasting, which shakes our brick homes, and has cracked some of the walls of the brick buildings on our base, HAS CAUSED THE UNDERGROUND WATER TO RECEED! I contacted the Drilling company to see if they would be drilling in Balama county this year.

The CEO of the company said they were booked for the next 3 months, with NO drilling scheduled for Balama county this year, but they had ONE WEEK open, July 25 to 30th. They needed an immediate answer as their trucks were only 30 miles away. Using emergency funds together with July’s water well drilling funds, we made the decision to drill immediately to avert a possible disaster if we lost our present wells.

Our church well is only 26 meters (85 ft.) deep and provides ALL THE WATER for our 112 Village of HOPE kids as well as many other homes. The decision was made to sink 2 deep wells immediately to provide additional water for our kids and emergency back-up for our base well which is only 60 feet deep.Last week the Babajil company drilled on property I bought last year for the Village of Hope.

The geologist discovered ABUNDANT water on this land. (God always supplies even before we know of the need.) The second well was drilled in Rovuma village where over 5,000 people are depending on 2 wells that went dry last year. Both wells are already showing signs of drying up very soon. We have a large church of 200 members in Rovuma and it is the home of our new goat project for the orphans. BOTH NEW WELLS have abundant water and are each 37 meters deep. (120 ft.)The geologists says the rock formation holding the water for each of these 2 wells is like a huge funnel and should not go dry.

PRAISE THE LORD FOR PROVIDING THE FUNDS AND SHOWING US THE PROBLEM IN HIS PERFECT TIMING when He knew the solution was just down the road. Blessings and MUCH THANKS to all of you who provided the funds for these 2 wells.

Bush Bunny Brenda and the Balama Team

P.S. Eric is in South Africa for a 6 week break and massive shopping trip to bring back supplies we can’t get in Mozambique.Don, Rebecca, and Micki, the last of my 90 day wonders will be leaving this Friday for the USA leaving Linda Stanley and me to “hold down the fort”.

Keep us all in your prayers as we travel this week. Bush Beat newsletter with lots of photos coming out middle of August. J

Ducks Quack, Eagles Soar

Ducks Quack, Eagles Soar
No one can make you serve customers well.....that's because great service is a choice.

Harvey Mackay, tells a wonderful story about a cab driver that proved this point.He was waiting in line for a ride at the airport. When a cab pulled up, the first thing Harvey noticed was that the taxi was polished to a bright shine. Smartly dressed in a white shirt, black tie, and freshly pressed black slacks, the cab driver jumped out and rounded the car to open the back passenger door for Harvey ..

He handed my friend a laminated card and said: 'I'm Wally, your driver. While I'm loading your bags in the trunk I'd like you to read my mission statement.'Taken aback, Harvey read the card.. It said: Wally's Mission Statement: To get my customers to their destination in the quickest, safest and cheapest way possible in a friendly environment...

This blew Harvey away. Especially when he noticed that the inside of the cab matched the outside. Spotlessly clean!
As he slid behind the wheel, Wally said, 'Would you like a cup of coffee? I have a thermos of regular and one of decaf.' My friend said jokingly, 'No, I'd prefer a soft drink.' Wally smiled and said, 'No problem I have a cooler up front with regular and Diet Coke, water and orange juice..'

Almost stuttering, Harvey said, 'I'll take a Diet Coke.'Handing him his drink, Wally said, 'If you'd like something to read, I have The Wall Street Journal, Time, Sports Illustrated and USA Today.'As they were pulling away, Wally handed my friend another laminated card, These are the stations I get and the music they play, if you'd like to listen to the radio.'And as if that weren't enough, Wally told Harvey that he had the air conditioning on and asked if the temperature was comfortable for him.

Then he advised Harvey of the best route to his destination for that time of day. He also let him know that he'd be happy to chat and tell him about some of the sights or, if Harvey preferred, to leave him with his own thoughts.'Tell me, Wally,' my amazed friend asked the driver, 'have you always served customers like this?'

Wally smiled into the rear view mirror. 'No, not always.. In fact, it's only been in the last two years. My first five years driving, I spent most of my time complaining like all the rest of the cabbies do. Then I heard the personal growth guru, Wayne Dyer, on the radio one day.He had just written a book called You'll See It When You Believe It.

Dyer said that if you get up in the morning expecting to have a bad day, you'll rarely disappoint yourself. He said, 'Stop complaining! Differentiate yourself from your competition. Don't be a duck. Be an eagle. Ducks quack and complain. Eagles soar above the crowd..

''That hit me right between the eyes,' said Wally. 'Dyer was really talking about me. I was always quacking and complaining, so I decided to change my attitude and become an eagle. I looked around at the other cabs and their drivers.

The cabs were dirty, the drivers were unfriendly, and the customers were unhappy. So I decided to make some changes. I put in a few at a time. When my customers responded well, I did more.''I take it that has paid off for you,' Harvey said.'It sure has,' Wally replied.

'My first year as an eagle, I doubled my income from the previous year. This year I'll probably quadruple it.You were lucky to get me today. I don't sit at cabstands anymore. My customers call me for appointments on my cell phone or leave a message on my answering machine.

If I can't pick them up myself, I get a reliable cabbie friend to do it and I take a piece of the action.'Wally was phenomenal. He was running a limo service out of a Yellow Cab. I've probably told that story to more than fifty cab drivers over the years, and only two took the idea and ran with it. Whenever I go to their cities, I give them a call. The rest of the drivers quacked like ducks and told me all the reasons they couldn't do any of what I was suggesting..

Wally the Cab Driver made a different choice. He decided to stop quacking like ducks and start soaring like eagles.

How about us? Smile, and the whole world smiles with you...

The ball is in our hands! A man reaps what he sows.

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up... let us do good to all people.

Ducks Quack, Eagles Soar! Have a nice day, unless you already have other plans. SORROW looks back, WORRY looks around, and FAITH looks UP... "Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass. It's about learning to dance in the rain." And while in the storm, give it to God and let him handle it.

Bacon and cabbage

How easy is this? Cook your bacon until almost done. Add in chopped or thinly sliced cabbage and cook until done. Sounds yummy. I can use my canned bacon in this.
recipe source: http://lgmattson.blogspot.com/2011/07/bacon-and-cabbage.html

Washing clothes in the summer heat

Washing clothes in our wringer washer outside is a sweaty adventure. The sun beats down on you until you are so sweaty and stinky you have to shower when you get done washing. I have been asking for a canopy for a while but we are waiting on the price to go down.

While I was in Kansas, I mentioned something about that to my sister and she had one they had only used once and they gave it to me. What a blessing. I am washing clothes this morning and I can stay out there longer before I am rolling in sweat. Thanks sister.

Reuben burgers

Reuben Burgers
Most of the classic Reuben ingredients are in this delicious sandwich – sauerkraut, Swiss cheese – but we substitute zesty ground beef for the traditional corned beef.
Prep Time: 0 hrs 0 mins
Cook Time: 0 hrs 10 mins
Serves: 4
Ingredients
1 lb. lean ground beef
1/2 cup Heinz® Tomato
1/4 cup Sour cream
8 slices Rye bread
4 slices swiss cheese
1/2 cup sauerkraut
Preparation- In medium skillet, brown beef until completely cooked through; drain excess fat.
- Stir in Ketchup and sour cream. Heat 2 to 3 minutes, stirring.

- Spoon meat mixture evenly on 4 slices of rye bread. Top with cheese slices and 2 tablespoons of sauerkraut per sandwich. Top with slice of rye bread.

Branson Pink Monkey Display

This is the Pink Monkey Soap display my son in law set up at the place he works in Branson Mo.

If you ever go to Branson stop in and tell him that Debbie his mother in law sent you. He can hook you up with some good deals on show tickets.

Branson 2 For 1 Tickets

1100 W Hwy 76
Branson, MO 65616

* No Timeshare Tours
* No Vacation Club
* No Gimmics
* NO BULL!!!

417-336-0241
www.branson2for1tickets.com

Homemade granola

Homemade Granola

Prep time: 5 minutes

Bake time: 20-25 minutes

Cool time: 10-15 minutes

Ingredients

2 cups

/3 cup honey

1/3 cup vegetable oil

pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

1-2 T brown sugar (optional - if you like it sweeter)

Preheat oven to 350 °F.

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix until all the oats are somewhat wet. The whole mixture should be a bit clumpy and wet.

If you like clusters, you can add a tiny splash of water (like 1-2 tsp) to help some of the oats stick together.Spread out the mixture on a pan and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Halfway through baking, you can stir the granola around.

It will smell wonderful as the honey begins to slowly caramelize. The longer you bake the granola, the darker in color it will become. If you like your granola relatively lightly golden brown, remove it after 20 minutes. It may still seem kind of wet, but don't worry! It will harden as it cools. Definitely take it out before the honey burns (i.e. when "golden brown" has turned into "black").

I learned this the hard way! After 30 minutes in the oven a portion of my oats had turned brown/black! [Although, to be perfectly honest, I really like slightly burnt food, and I actually loved the slightly burnt sugar flavor in these oats.

source:http://www.tinyurbankitchen.com/2010/04/homemade-granola.html

More photo's from Kaleena's shower and my new great niece

Tah'daija Sa'brae Moore!

7 lbs. 14 oz.

19 1/2 inches long

With big sister J'thiya or J'tihya, I am still working on the spelling of this little doll.

All five of my daughters together for the first time in a while. L to R. Joy18, Kaleena 28, Mollie17, Hannah 14 and Brooke 32.

Getting ready to go home

Today is the last day for a while that we will be in Kansas. My niece is having her baby at noon today and we wanted to be here to see her. We will pack up today and be ready to leave early tomorrow am. I want to head out as early as possible. We will be on the road for a min. of 12 hours.

I have enjoyed our visit but I am ready to go home. I miss my husband.