Annie

2014-05-08T19:35:00.001-07:00

Little Girl in a Big Hat

This is the Veil that my middle daughter wore over 20 years ago at her wedding. Now my little 4 year old daughter is having a ball, trying to get it to fit her tiny head.

Riding with Dad through a tunnel

Looking for A Puppy

2013-07-22T20:45:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone, especially my readers from Spain! I wanted to share a picture with you of our little girl's first fishing trip. What a perfect day we had seeing the excitement on her beaming face!

Blessings.

We found the puppy and he is a dandy! Our little girl has a very best puppy friend

It happened! We finalized the adoption, and now we are the happy parents of a 3 year old daughter.

Adopting a small child was not something that we went looking for and never dreamed about happening. We are grandparents and great grandparents. Then we were handed a baby one day, and our lives changed forever! We are very, very happy and feel blessed.

It is a very long story, and I wish I could sit down with you over a cup of coffee and tell you the miracles that happened along the journey. My confidence in God has grown even greater than ever. When God speaks, mountains move.

Now about that dog I mentioned in the heading? We are looking for just the right furry little forever friend for our little blessing. As the pictures above shows, we keep finding everything but the puppy. I know there is one out there that needs a little friend as much as we need one.

Blessings!

2013-05-24T18:50:00.003-07:00

A Hot Dog Weekend

Monday is memorial day weekend. Let's all remember those who paid the greatest sacrifice for our freedom. We owe them our appreciation.

Do something for someone and make the best of your circumstances. Good times and bad times all come and go!

Blessings

2013-05-22T13:39:00.001-07:00

Take a moment and think about your money. Do you know where most of it goes?

We have taught our family and extended family that a certain portion of our earnings should go to support the Lord's work.That was brought to our attention in a funny way yesterday in Sunday service.

We have a little three year old girl that shares our hearts and our home. My husband was doing his Sunday School Superintendent duties, which at this particular moment was receiving the morning offering.

A happy little voice on the front seat spoke up "hey daddy, I have money for the offering. Just a minute and let me get it out of my back pack!"

Her voice was proud and her eyes were shinning with joy. She had so willingly given her M&M candy money into the offering.

The Lord loves it when we give to His work with a willing and happy heart.

Blessings!

My Brother The Preacher

2013-04-04T12:46:00.000-07:00

A view of the world from flat on my back

My brother is a preacher. He is so funny sometimes. He called the other day to check on us.

He is the oldest child in our family. Since he was the oldest he has always been a very grownup person. He has always felt a lot of responsibility toward people.

He also had lots of perks growing up because he was oldest. When we siblings went horseback riding, he actually rode a horse, while the rest of us rode Dad's mules. He always got to ride in the front seat with Dad and Mom. He rode next to the window, with Mom snuggled in between Dad and him. I can still see his black hair blowing in the wind, and his arm propped against the open window frame. I thought that was just about the coolest things that could happen to a person, riding shot gun! To this day, I claim my spot in the front seat, as an earned priviledge.

Mom enjoyed telling funny stories about him. When he was a small child, she bought him a pair of new overalls and boots. I guess Mom meant for them to last awhile, because they were too big for him. His pants kept sliding down his hips, so he stood up to to pull them up. When he would sit down, his boots would come off. Finally he spoke up a in small, frustrated voice. "When I stand up, my pants slide down, and when I sit down my boots come off!" He was pretty cute.

He enjoys telling stories about all of us.

He is the historian in our family. Every once in awhile he will call to tell me a little story about something that happened over forty years ago.

When I look at him, it is almost like I am seeing someone that is just a shadow of him. His black hair has turned white and his shoulders are a little stooped. I am reminded that we are all just passing through this world and will only be here for a short while. What a sobering thought that is.

I took the picture of the tree lying flat on my back on the trapoline in my back yard. I feel like my life is in that kind of perspective because I have entered the senior stage. My friends look different, I think and feel different in lots of ways, and some things that I was once so interested in, just don't drive me anymore.

After June, I will have a very amazing personal story that is unfolding in mine and my husbands life. One that makes me want to live a very long time!

2012-12-21T06:11:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE

A lot of people say "Merry Christmas" so many times, they forget what it really means.
Some people have more than enough, and fail to appreciate it, while others shiver in a cold room, and feel really bad about not being able to provide the things they need for their families.

I want to take this time to publicly thank my God for all of His blessings. I also want to share an email from my youngest daughter. I enjoyed this very much as she talks about the real meaning of Christmas.

I hope that each one of you who read my blog have a wonderful year.
****************************************************

Tim put up our Christmas lights outside last night. A very scaled down
version. We have been gone or had company or something every night of
December it seems like and there has just simply not been time for him to
do it. The babies kept asking him when he was going to put them up, so in
the dark last night he strung lights across the front of the house. I put
up the tree last week. Kaleb spend the night with us last night so he
could help papa put up the lights. Yesterday morning he asked me when papa
was going to put up the lights and I just casually said I think tonight. Well........when it was time for his mama to take him home yesterday he
absolutely refused to go. Big tears running down his face..he was going to
stay and help papa. So cute and so sad..I begged for him to stay. And he
had soooo much fun. I took him to Wal-Mart to get him some pajamas to
sleep in and some clean socks. He ran up and down the ladder after Tim
saying "alright! I'm going up! Who's with me." So blooming cute.
AND.... for the first time EVER here I sit so smug! I bought everything
online the first of December and had it delivered to my house. I have
intended to try this for years and oh my goodness I will never go shopping
for Christmas again. It is so much easier to browse Wal-Mart.com online,
oldnavy.com, etc. You never have to walk down the aisle exhausted and feet
aching, Tim griping "aren't you done yet?? just get that!" Just click on
the size, color and wait on it to arrive. If one place don't have what you
want you just click on another site instead of driving to another store.
Just sat at my desk sipping coffee. Everyone had free shipping for
Christmas. It is wonderful!
I do have to take it out of the boxes and wrap it. Wish they would send it
wrapped and I would really be happy! LOL!!
Stephanie and Marcie said at Thanksgiving that they would like to do a
"Dirty Santa" type gift exchange for Christmas - everyone bring a $10
gift (just the adults). Do you want to? If so we need to make sure
everyone knows about it.
We plan to be at dad and mom's around 5 p.m. Christmas Eve. We are meeting
Jackson at 11 a.m. at Western Sizzlin and then to his house, but we should
be done buy 4:30ish.
Looking forward to fun times!!

2012-11-20T19:47:00.000-08:00

It is an awesome thing when someone cares enough about you to want to comfort you or make you happy.

"Comfort food" is a term that we Southern cooks get tagged with a lot.

At Thanksgiving, I want to share a technique for biscuit making that is good, and the bread is not heavy with oils and butters. Make a big plate and set them next to your mashed potatoes. It will bring a big "yum!"

In my kitchen I start with WR Flour when ever that is possible. I have proven this flour to be great to make really good biscuits. I recommend it to anyone to try for yourself.

I pour 2 cups of self rising WR Flour in a big bowl.

Then I fill a cup with buttermilk and just before the cup is full I pour a little Canola oil into the milk.

Pour the milk in the flour and quickly add enough more sweet milk (about 1/2 cup or more) to make the batter smooth.

Stir with all your might! Mix it all very good. The batter is best when it is a little shinny. It will no be those flaky biscuits. They will be smooth, firm and just right to pour gravy over.

I always cook biscuits in a cast iron skillet that has oil in the bottom. Dip the tops of your bread in the grease and turn them over, oily side on top.

Turn those biscuits onto a big plate while they are smoking and watch them go.

Now that is comfort food!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING ALL

bread, bisucits, comfort food

2012-11-20T18:58:00.000-08:00

Caught my husband in a thoughtful moment. He has been one of the most faithful people I have known. He plays the role of husband, dad, grandparent, and friend to all! He is a rock of strength and a great mentor to our family who is steadily growing into a clan.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE

Received this email from my daughter this week. Can't believe she is talking about them aging! Not my children getting old. That is a reflection on my age.
***********************************************************

Katelyn ran out of contact solution this morning, so hubby said he would stop at Wal-Mart and get her some, and one more thing on the list, Toilet Paper.......

OK - Keith comes in, totally forgot what he went to Wal-Mart for, didn't come home with Toilet Paper OR contact solution.

But, he was so proud....... he came home with 3 pairs of reading glasses for $8.00, chocolate Turtles and Starburst, dental floss, razors and shaving cream that he had been thinking he could do without because we have soap, and for the first time in years finally broke down and bought some Probiotics for his stomach that will be greatly effected by the Chocolate Turtles..... He he he, it stinks to get older!

Well.... he just shook his head when he walked in and noticed the note for contact solution and TP........ But we did have a really good laugh.

Hope everyone is feeling better today! Love ya family!

2012-09-02T14:09:00.000-07:00

God bless everyone of you who reads my blog. I hope you are at peace with God and with yourself. It is a great feeling! I have been in both places, at peace and not at peace. When I get away from where I should be, I always try to find my way back to God's honey bowl of obedience.

I caught this little guy in the picture above, stealing nectar from my husband's flowers. Everything was so sunny and bright around him, he almost didn't show up in the picture. I have had days like that. Things were going so good that it seemed like nothing bad could ever happen again. Those times in our lives just don't last long enough.

The family that I grew up in had some unusual ways. Things were always tough and times were usually hard, but we laughed about the silly things. Like the day when we were kids and my momma broke my dad's horse, Smoky.

Smoky needed breaking, but Dad had not been able to stick with him long enough to get the job done. It took most of Dad's time to feed a houseful of kids. Mom didn't mean to take on the job, she did it quite by accident.

Smoky was standing close to the barn trying to avoid the cold wind blowing, when Mom decided to go get some dried peas that she had stored in a big barrel in the barn. Dressed in a heavy coat and head scarf, she made a wide circle around Smokey to avoid his sharp hooves. She made her way to the pea barrel in the corner. When she bent over to scoop up a pan of dried peas, she fell into the barrel.

Only Old Smoky knows how Mom looked as she came rolling out the barn door with the pea barrel rattling behind her. Her scarf and coat flying in the cold wind, and the barrel and trail of peas, scared that horse out of his wits. My brothers tell how Smoky ran and bucked and kicked until he just plain wore his meanness out. After that (according to my brothers) he was broke to ride.

Last week my siblings and I had an unusual day. We all drove over one hundred miles to have lunch together, before my oldest brother had a very somber appointment with the kind of doctor we call a specialist. We all sat together at a long table and ate while we laughed about things we remembered from long years ago. Dad and Mom have been gone for years, but they would have enjoyed the bittersweet day that we shared. Mom would have even laughed with us about her barrel of peas experience.

After lunch we still had a smile on our faces as 6 of us trooped into the doctors office and waited while our brother went through lots of test. Laughter doesn't make bad news better, it just softens the blows that life deals us sometimes.

Some months back a small child came to stay with us for awhile. She was a tiny child and worried about her family, especially a younger sibling. I overheard her tell someone, "that is Nana. She laughs alot." She was talking about me and that made my heart swell. She was having a very difficult day at one point. She looked at me with worry in her eyes, and said, "laugh Nana."

Proverbs 17:22 "A merry heart does good like a medicine." Smile every time you can, you never know who needs a lift.

2012-08-23T07:07:00.000-07:00

Leaving the Nest
Roberta Quall's pictures says it best!

Time slips away so fast. It seems as if you wake up one morning worried about how your child will handle preschool, and then before you realize it, they are graduating from high school.
School has just started again for another year and I received this email from my daughter. Her younger child is just going into sixth grade and is worried about how grown up she should be.

AHHHHHH - - HOW PRECIOUS! I sure miss that sweet little girl! I bought her tennis shoes for school and had to get a size 7 - - That is the size that I wear now! Started into the 6th grade on Monday!!!!

Sweetest story! Katelyn has always hung onto me and INSISTED that I walk her in, even to Sunday School the week before I STILL have to walk upstairs and walk her to her class - she is pretty shy going into situations. But a few days before she told me, now Mom I won't need you to walk me in the class - how embarrassing would that be your Mom walk you to 6th grade, all the kids will think I'm a baby and I haven't seen some of those kids since the schools split up when I was in the 3rd grade.

Sheesh, big lump in my throat, "Katelyn are you sure you don't need me to just help you find your first period class homeroom since you've never been here before". No, I'll find it, I AM in the 6th grade!

Driving to school, Keith insists he is going in to help her find her class. No Daddy, I can do it. Nobody else's Daddy will have to walk them to class!

Welll........ we pull up to school, cars everywhere, different school, a little peppy voice in the back is "Daddy you can walk me to class". Guess it helped she saw some of her friends Momma's walking them to class too - LOL!

BTW....... we took Alyssa to Preschool at North Main where Travis and Ashley started, and as we get out of the car, she hugged my legs and said "Mommy, you can walk ME to class!" - How sweet is that. Sure wish I had had my camera as she is skipping along holding Keith's hand in front of me talking 100 miles an hour!

2012-08-18T20:35:00.000-07:00

Another week has passed and gone forever. I can never bring it back. If God gives me another tomorrow, in the morning will be Sunday. My family will rise up early and make preparations to drive the usual 100 mile trip to attend Sunday services in the church that we have been a part of for many years.

Do yourself and your fellow man a service and make your way to a house of worship. Lots of important things happen when we attend church expecting things to happens and needs to be met.

Harmony in the Meadow

2012-06-05T20:47:00.001-07:00

The world around us seems to be in a lot of trouble right now. The stock market is up and down, things that were once reliable are now shaky and crumbling. In the middle of it all, God is still working His wonders. The world is on the brink of a great change. It is time to hold to God's unchanging hand, and get ready for a great meeting in heaven.

Roberta Qualls has caught some very contented animals in her valley. It is a hot summer day, and a perfect time and place to "get together."

Joy in the Morning

Just a good visit can make a good day happen

Lean on me when your're not strong

Running From A Rooster

2012-03-16T13:35:00.000-07:00

My mom loved bantam chickens, her younguns, our dad, and her kitchen curtains. I am not for sure if that is in the right order or not.

Mom used to gripe to Dad about his, always hungry, fox hounds.

"My chickens never have chance," she would complain. "The dogs gets every biscuit that I throw out, before it hits the ground!"

Those little chickens were always under foot, as they ran around the yard looking for food. Some of the roosters could get quite cocky about who was allowed in their space. If you have never run from a mad rooster, don't underestimate their scaring powers. It is quite humbling to be bluffed by one of them.

A platter of their scrambled eggs was really good. Mom cooked those eggs in a large cast iron skillet with medium hot lard. She did not use her home made butter for eggs. She would drop them in the oil and not stir them until they became a little firm. Then she gently stirred with a fork. Mom never beat her eggs until they lost all color except yellow. When you ate her eggs, you enjoyed the texture and color of partly fried and partly scrambled. Sometimes when I am in the mood I cook them like that.

Mom raised our large family with food cooked the old fashioned way. I think years ago, someone decided to call it 'comfort food.' That is a good way to describe it.

When she made her large pan of biscuits, she pulled out her big medal bowl that always had flour in in it. She made a well in the flour and poured her milk into it. She poured with one hand and worked in flour with the other. It was an art, and I still remember watching her pull the flour from the sides of the bowl as she worked her dough into a soft ball. I never remember seeing Mom look through a cook book. Her recipes were in her head.

When Mom was a young wife she made her some curtains from some of the flour sacks that she had emptied. They were blue and white, with a white ruffle around them. We were frequently moving from one place to another. Mom would carefully pack those curtains, so she could put them up in her next kitchen.

Proverbs 31:10 Who can find a virtuous woman? Her price is far about rubies.

You better believe her children will rise up and called her blessed!

Have You Picked Your Beans Today?

2012-03-05T13:26:00.001-08:00

I was standing at my stove stirring a pot of beans awhile ago, and memories overwhelmed me. I wondered if it would be possible to count the women who have stirred the pot of beans that they were preparing for their families. Every tongue, generation, state and country would make for a lot of pinto beans.

A minister came to our church years ago and was almost brought to tears by a pot of beans that an elderly lady in the church had prepared for him. Tears stung his eyes as he talked about his boyhood. He said he was quite sure he had eaten enough pinto beans in his youth to pave a country road. Now that's a lot of beans! I may have eaten that many myself.

In church yesterday, a sixth generation friend of mine, offered to bring a bag of beans for a benefit supper that had 'already been picked.'

Do you know what picked beans are? I wish I could ask that question in person and see how many hands went up. When I was a kid at home, Mom would take a bag of pinto beans and a big bowl and find a good chair to sit in. Then she would pick the beans.

She would carefully pick and sort and search for small rocks that used to come with the beans. Along with the dangerous little rocks that could crack a tooth, there was tiny clods of dirt. All of these would be picked out of the bowl of hard, dry pinto beans and placed in a little saucer to be thrown away.

My Aunt Fannie always seemed to have a big, cast iron pot of pinto beans on the back of her old wood cook stove. She had a big family of her own to feed, but there was always room along her home made table for nieces and nephews. One side of her table had a long bench that ran all the way down the side to wall of her kitchen. That's where the kids always lined up for her tasty food. The sisters-in-laws would help out by peeling a huge bowl of potatoes. How in the world they ever peeled enough potatoes to feed that hungry crowd is a mystery to me. Potato peeling is one of my dreaded chores, and it takes me a long time to get enough peeled to feed my family.

When I see the aisles of canned vegetables in the grocery stores, I remember the jars of tomatoes, corn, and other veggies in the back room where Mom had canned food for the winter months when there was no garden to eat from. It is also a fact that Mom's are working at jobs to help bring in enough income to support their families. The times that it takes to cook dried beans is something they don't have the time to do.

I have a cast iron pot of beans simmering on the stove as I write this.

So ago ahead. Pick your beans and fry your tators for your family. Believe me, your kids grow up and fly away before you hardly have time to enjoy them!

My Daughter, The Preacher's Wife

2012-01-27T21:26:00.000-08:00

Take a look at those friendly faces

My daughter grew up here in this peaceful setting. When she and her sister were very small, my husband and I built a new home right in the middle of her grandparents pasture. There was a little lane that ambled up from highway 71 to the top of this beautiful knoll. We decided that was where we wanted to live out our lifetime. It took some doing to accomplish that task, but in time we got our home built.The one thing we didn't do that we had planned, was too live our life time there. With our kids and grand kids gone it wasn't the same, so we eventually moved closer to all of them.

You can't see the house because I took the picture from our fenced yard. Yes, we had a chain link fence that kept the kids in, but never kept the cows out.

Our girls have lots of memories of growing up on this one hundred acre playground. They rode four wheelers, motor cycles, bicycles, and what ever else they found with wheels on it. They walked the fields with their friends, planned their futures sitting on the back porch in the swing, and left it all when they married. The one thing that they didn't leave behind was the values that became a part of them.

This country church was where we worshiped

When a missionary came to one of our services, he said there was someone in the audience that had a special calling to work for God. When I heard my young daughter softly crying in the seat behind me,

I knew who he was talking about. Sure enough, she married a young minister and they have been busy in church ministry ever since.

Valerie is a musician, pastor's wife, Mom, has three grands, and did I mention she is a vegetarian? Take a good look at those friendly faces in the pond at the top, and it might be easier to understand why some people find it just too hard to eat animals.

She is also a great cook. The last two times I have called her on the phone, she has been in the kitchen cooking for company. She mentioned that over the years there is no telling how many times she has prepared this dish over the period of years that she has been cooking.

Try this really dandy pot roast from the kitchen of a dedicated vegetarian!

1 roast

Carrots, potatoes, onions

1 can of mushroom soup

1 package of onion mix

Salt and pepper

Rub the roast with salt and pepper and brown in a little oil. With the roast in the center of the pan place your vegetables around the roast starting with the carrots on the bottom, the potatoes and then the carrots. Pour about 1/4 cup of water over the vegetables.

Mix the cream of mushroom soup with the package of onion soup and place on top of the roast.

Cook for 4 hours at 300 degrees. Take out of the oven and let the roast set covered for about 30 minutes while the juices mix and make a savory gravy.

Enjoy.

Freedom

2012-01-23T16:06:00.000-08:00

Roberta's Picture

Isaiah 40:31

They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strenght; they shall mount up on wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint.

Let this be the day that you let it go!

Resentment, anger, grudges, hurt, prejudice, a non forgiving attitude and any other emotion that is holding you down.

How do you do that? Take a long, hard look at the people or the situations that are an agitation to you. You may not be able to go back far enough into their background to find the difficulties that are gouging them.

Everyone has had to climb up long, hard roads to reach they place they are in today. Most people have baggage they are carrying from their past.

Sometimes we are like a big bunch of fish caught in a net and tangled up together. Thrashing, tugging and pulling, fighting and hating for reasons that don’t even make sense.

Trashing treasure
Years ago as I passed our living room window, a brilliant sparkle of light caught my eye on the far side of the pond by the side of our house. It kept winking and flashing so much that I sent my young daughter to go check it our while I kept my eye on it from the window. I carefully guided her to the object. When she reached it, she picked it up.

“Is this it?” she called. “Why this is just an old rock!”

She tossed it into the water and I watched as it twinkled out of sight. What in the world was making that rock sparkle and flash so? It had something hidden underneath the crusty, brown outside that she didn't take the time to discover.

Sometimes that is the way we do each other. That can be our loss.

I Got It From My Family

2012-01-03T09:48:00.000-08:00

What Being Family Means

Why am I so hard to understand that I can't always understand myself? Why do I enjoy or not enjoy certain things? It is because of these people!
Most of those people in this picture are blood kin to me. That means that they have left their little DNA tracks all across my genetic fields. Eyes like Mom, hands like dad, ears like my uncle, I think like my grandma and talk like my grandpa.

I have family on my dad's side, and family on my mom's side. Watch out for me I am merging and spreading and here I come!

Most of the people in this picture are not living anymore, some died before I was born. Make no mistake, I know them so well from family stories.

There are some real characters with amazing stories in that picture. My dad is on the bottom row, second from left and holding my oldest brother. Dad was the youngest in a large family. He became an alcoholic in his youth, and struggled for many years before he found Christ and overcame his addiction. After his conversion, he became a minister who touched many people.

Mother, sitting to the right of dad, lost her parents when she was young and was an orphan. She lived in different homes until she married. She didn't talk much about those years, but one time she told us how hard it was to always feel like a guest and not a family member. Mom and all of her siblings but one, were able to live fairly close to each other growing up and remained very close to each other. One small brother was adopted as a baby and they lost contact with him. Mom would talk about him and wish that she could see him.

Family is one of the greatest gifts from God. My children grew into wonderful adults, and added more personalities to the gene pool. Grand kids proved to be just as much fun as our kids were.

What about your family? Have you done anything for them today? There is no perfect bunch of people, and sure not in a large family. Every family has its tainted and stained, but they are still family.

Foster and adopted children usually always struggle with the loss of biological family. There is so much that you can do to make them feel a part of family. I just can't stress that enough! What you do for someone today can make such a difference in their life.

People Need Animals

2011-12-21T09:09:00.000-08:00

A Time For Friendship
My World Pictures

It is an awesome to have an animal in your life that cares about you. Animals are the most loyal creatures on earth.

Studies show that 62% of American households have pets. Studies have also shown that having pets can lower blood pressure, help heart problems, and lessen stress.

One of the first pets that I remember is a little dog that dad brought home to our family one day. He left him in the car so he could surprise all of us. My brother and I were playing outside when we heard a small whimper coming from the car. Dad came out of the house with a big grin on his face, as he opened the car door and lifted out a tiny, spotted puppy. We named him Bimbo, after a little song that we would hear on the radio. We argued so much over whose turn it was to hold him, that Mom had to set the alarm. Every five minutes he changed laps until we finally decided he needed down to play.

I know that people can become lonely and depressed during holiday seasons, or at stressful time in their lives. Just think what a pet could do to help with feelings of sadness and forlornness.

Roberta's horses in the top photo are both trying to get the sucker in her hand. Some of my most popular post are their animals. I took the shot of my sisters two little Yorkies years ago. They were so courious about me and my camera.

This picture of Dwayne and his horse is a real favorite. That horse has a real look of devotion on his face, as he looks in the window at his master.

I would love to see a picture of your animal friend and share it with my readers.

Thanksgiving Vegetarian Dressing. Yum Good!

2011-11-17T13:17:00.001-08:00

                    NO TURKEY IN THOSE WOODS
              Click on the caption to read more

It is Thanksgiving and friends and family are together for the occasion. Placing the perfectly cooked turkey in the center of the table is usually the signal for dinner to begin. Hold on a moment. Don't forget the thousands of people in today's society who do not eat turkey, or any other kind of meat. Dinner is not ready until the vegetarian entrees are on the table. People vary in their interpretation of being a vegetarian. Vegans are the very strictest. They not only abstain from meat, but from any animal product such as eggs, butter and cheese. Vegetarians will eat eggs and dairy products, but refrain from eating any part of a slaughtered animal. Then, there are those who classify themselves as vegetarians, but who will occasionally eat fish or chicken. Judging from the number of vegetarian restaurants across the country, and the vegetarian associations, the trend toward this life style is becoming more and more appealing to a large number of our society. While planning my meal, I visualize the dinner plates of my vegetarian guest. I want to make sure they will have at least 5 selections.

Next, I determine if my guest are vegans or vegetarians. If they are vegans, I omit the eggs, butter, cheese and any other animal product. When preparing my vegan dishes, I use olive oil instead of butter or you can try one of the vegan margarines that are on the market. Vegan dishes can taste rather bland if they are lacking in oil and seasonings.

Corn Bread dressing with cranberry sauce is necessary for a Southern Thanksgiving. In this part of the country most of us would feel deprived if it wasn't on the table. Here is a Vegan Corn Bread Dressing recipe so good you just might not miss the turkey.

Vegan Corn Bread Dressing

1 package of imitation chicken strips

4 cups of crumbled corn bread

3 to 4 cups of Vegetable broth

1 can cream of celery soup

½ cup of chopped onions

1 stalk of chopped celery

½ tablespoon of ground sage

1 teaspoon of Parsley Flakes

4 tablespoons of olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Put crumbled corn bread in a large bowl. Mix in the vegetable broth, cream of celery soup, sage, parsley flakes, salt and pepper. Use as much liquid as needed to make your dressing the right consistency, which should be juicy.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet. Cube 3 pieces of the imitation chicken strips and add to the oil. Add the chopped onions, celery, and sauté until tender, but not overcooked. Mix with your bowl of dressing, making sure you get all of the oil from the pan. The oil will give your dressing richness and flavor.

Place several chicken strips on top of your dressing.

Bake in a 400-degree oven until firm and a little brown on top.

For vegetarians add 3 chopped boiled eggs, and use margarine to sauté.

Hearty Whole Green Beans with Bacon Bits is delicious with vegan dressing.

Hearty Green Beans with Bacon Bits

Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large saucepan. Add 4 cups of whole, frozen green beans. Do not add any water. Add to taste, pepper, salt, powdered garlic, minced onions and artificially flavored bacon bits. A dash of soy sauce is optional. Stir well to mix the beans with the oil and seasonings.

Cover and cook over low heat until tender, but not overcooked.

That Time That We Laughed

2011-11-09T22:35:00.000-08:00

Hello Ladies

Pictures by Roberta
Clink on the link at bottom of article for more

Hello friends. I am flattered, amazed, surprised and humbled that you are reading my blog. Thank you! Bless you readers from other countries. Imagine that.

The clock is not too far from striking that fateful hour of midnight, and I am the only one in the house not sleeping.
I tried to sleep. I need to sleep. I couldn't sleep. I have been sick for over a week, my mind is filled with fretful and worried thoughts. Several major things are going on in my world. We are facing some situations that will be hard. On top of all of that, some people who mean the world to me are also facing difficulties.

Since worry never makes things better, I close my eyes and concentrate on all of the many good things God has given me. I remember God's faithful care and concern for me. I don't doubt His promises or His existence, because I have proven in my own life that He is very real. The times I am afraid or sad, I trust Him, and move on to a positive mind set that comes from faith in God.

If you don't believe that God wants us to be happy, just try listening to a yard full of birds all whistling and singing at the same time.

So go ahead and enjoy the world around you. Remember your Creator did not make a mistake when he created you! All things work together for good to those who love God. It says so in Romans 8:28. Check it out for yourself.

Take a look at our good friend, Dwayne, as he enjoys a really fine day on his farm.
I hope it makes you grin really big! It did me.

I am going to tuck this following bible verse in my head (along with some others) and head back to bed. Tomorrow is supposed to be a really busy day.

Proverbs 17:20 A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.

Even Ringo Gets a kick out of that!

htpp://roberta-myworldpictures.blogspot.com/

A Day In Roberta's World

2011-11-07T19:51:00.000-08:00

When I was a child, my dad would gather his brood around him and tell us scary stories. He called them, Irishman tales. Dad started his stories with, "once upon a time."
That is the way this post starts out.

Once upon a crisp, fall day, Roberta was out with her camera, (as usual) when she caught some rare snapshots. Watch what happens, when she comes upon this beautiful, agile deer that was probably grazing in her valley. Something has obviously frightened this guy, and it runs for a refuge. There is safety in those woods, but that highway must be crossed first. Have you ever found yourself in a pickle like that? I have.

These pictures reminds me of how I run to God for refuge when I get head over heels in trouble.
Maybe that is why one of my very favorite bible verses is found in Psalms.

Psalm 46:1 God is my refuge and strength, a very present help in time of trouble.

Here we go. Watch as she begins taking pictures.
Click here to go on over and find out more about Roberta's Life Pictures

When the going gets tough, the tough get going

We can make it over life's hurdle's

In the road and cars are coming

Whew!! All is well again

Jethro Finds Love

2011-10-25T16:40:00.000-07:00

A Dog Named Jethro Finds Mercy

After being gone from home for several days, I ran into my computer room to catch up on my emails and different projects that I am working on. My two daughters and I try to keep an email going around with family news in it. The dog in the picture above is one lucky guy. My daughter, Teresa, and her son Travis, were driving along a country road recently. They came upon two young dogs, that had been abandoned by the side of a dirt road. One was too far gone by starvation to save. This one looked like it could make it, so my grandson went back and coaxed it into his vehicle. Here is the note that his mom sent to her sister and me.

The chickens and goats sound SO good and self-sufficient! The kids love

animals and I think it is good for them to experience country life! We have

an old stray doggie that was starving, I attached a picture above - we don't

know what kind of dog he is, or where he came from. Keith told Travis to just

bring him over to the house so he could roam around where there were lots of houses

that he could get some food and not starve - WELL, he isn't leaving - he gets in

the dog house early so the labs will let him in - if he is already in there

they just get in with him, but if he is last they won't let him in - LOL!

Actually, the kids love him and we don't mind him being around. He LOVES my

scrapes, even more than the dog food.

Thanks, Teresa for a great big heart. Jethro would say thanks if he could speak your language! Don't be surpised if he pays you back in a great big way someday.

How to Make Good Biscuits

2011-10-17T19:46:00.000-07:00

Thanks friends for your comments! And Sara I would love to share recipes with you. That would be great.
Enjoy the pleasure of watching your family gobble up your biscuits tonight at dinner, compliments of Mom. It is simple, satisfying, fun, and thrifty. Who doesn’t need to practice thrift in today’s economy?

If you think that you can’t make bread or that it is too time consuming and difficult, then, welcome to my bread making technique's. With just a few tips and some effort, you can create, eat and enjoy. By making your own bread you control just how healthful the food that you prepare for your family is. It is quite simple and not as time consuming as you might think.

Growing up in the hard times of an earlier century, it was a necessity to know how to make bread for the big families that were common then. My mother was a master bread maker. Every morning she pulled her big granite biscuit bowl from the cabinet and began the main staple of our breakfast. Biscuits and gravy. If the hens were laying eggs and not setting, we added eggs to the biscuits and gravy and salt meat menu. There was also a gallon jug of milk from our cow,a bowl of cow butter and a bottle of syrup.

I used to watch Mom form her biscuits by rolling them between the palms of her hands. I felt that every biscuit Mom rolled out was hand kissed. Once her dough was rolled into a ball, she dipped the top of it in the melted lard in her skillet, turned it over, and placed the biscuits side by side until her pan was filled with enough bread to feed her big family.

Mom used the fat rendered from the hogs that dad slaughtered for meat. Since 1 cup of lard has up to 1849 calories and 2059 fat grams, I never use it. Using lard increases the chances for heart problems. If you have never become used to the delectable taste of bread made with lard, then you will not miss it. You will enjoy the health benefits of using butter, margarine, or my choice, canola oil.

Arm yourself with a big bowl, flour, oil and a cast iron skillet. Here are some facts that will help you become a pro.

Your dough should be firm enough to pick up in your hands and roll into a ball, and no excess flour in the bowl. If your mixture is too thin, add small amounts of flour until it is firm enough to work with. Have some oil in your skillet to rub the tops of your biscuits in before placing them in the skillet. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, mix 1 teaspoon of vinegar with 1 cup of milk. This is a pretty good substitute for buttermilk.

One of my favorite biscuit recipes is made with butter milk and just a bit of Canola oil. That is it! If you prefer a flaky biscuit, use a fork to cut in 4 or 5 tablespoons of shortening. I like Crisco. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand use milk or the buttermilk substitute. If you substitute the buttermilk, then the liquid measurements will change.

Try this very tasty biscuit recipe. I recommend using the WR flour brand, because it is just the very best that I have found. I have been using it ever since an elderly lady in our church group introduced it to me a long time ago. This recipe will make a good sized pan of biscuits. Whatever is left over, tastes just as good heated in the microwave the next day. Be sure and store left over bread in a zip lock bag.

2 cups of WR self rising flour

1/½ cup of ice cold buttermilk

¼ cup of canola oil

Have your cast iron skillet ready with a little canola oil in the bottom of the pan to dip the tops of your dough your in.
Cook your bread in a hot oven at 425 degrees.

Place your flour in a big bowl. Pour the buttermilk and canola oil in a large measuring cup and pour it all into the flour at once. Stir quickly, scraping the sides of the bowl until there is no dry flour. Your dough should be firm enough to pinch off balls of dough to roll in your hands to form the biscuits. Once you get your ball of dough rolled out, rub the top of it in the oil in the skillet, turn it over and place biscuits side by side in the pan.

If you want your bread to rise up tall, place the biscuits very close together. That way, there will be no way but up.

Remember by following some of the suggestions in the article you can create the perfect biscuit to suit your family’s unique taste preference.

Keep it healthy.

　

　

　

When God Made Me A Musician

2011-10-10T20:06:00.000-07:00

One very old and retired accordian

Laura, this one is for you. Make it talk Girl!

Times were pretty hard growing up in 50’s. Dad raised most of our food and mom put it in jars for the winters. Dad hunted for meat and worked whatever jobs he could find to support our large family. In the cotton season we would all pile into Dad’s big pug nosed truck and head from Arkansas to Oklahoma, to make extra money for the winter. Incidentally, don’t feel sorry for us. We loved it. The work was hard, but it only lasted for a few weeks. It was an opportunity for two or three families of kinfolks to share one home. We called it bunking. There was lots of guitar strumming and conversations in the evenings after work, and plenty of cousins to play with. We grew up considerably free, happy and laid back. It was during this time in my childhood that an incredible miracle happened in my life. A story I read in the bible this morning brought it all back to me. I wish I had the right words to show you how God did something for me that was so incredible even though I was so very young and with no one to help me.

Picture the prophet Elisha and two kings, sin and failure and an impending war. Things are bad, and the king needs to get in touch with someone who can get in touch with God. Kind of like what we need today. When I read what Elisha did when the king ask him to find out what God had to say, I was impressed with Elisha’s answer.

“Bring me someone to play music, please,” putting it in my words. Bible version follows.

2 King 3:15 But now bring me a minstrel. And it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the LORD came upon him.
The musician actually played and helped the prophet hear from God. That made me think about what influence music has on the world we live in good and bad. I also remembered how years ago, God made me a musician. There was no magic wand involved. God didn't smack me with a bolt, and bang, I knew everything I needed to know. God did give me desire, courage, encouragement, inspiration and most important, knowledge to learn.

At a very young age, I had an overwhelming desire to play the accordion and piano. To take lessons at that time was not an option because there was no extra money. However, there was another teacher that I could go to, and that was the God that I had found as a small child. I became acquainted with him at a very young age.

You would not find any type of keyboard in our home in the early fifties. Mandolins, guitars, banjos, even harmonics, but no keyboard. Yet the keyboard was the one instrument that I yearned to play. I remember my dad make a statement one day that I found very aggravating and frustrating. “If I knew my girls could play a piano, I would try to find them one. “ Now how was I ever going to learn to play if I did not have a piano!

I had such a strong desire to touch a keyboard, that I would have the same dream about it over and over. I would be almost close enough to touch those beautiful ivory keys and then the instrument would disappear into thin air, or something would happen to keep me at arms length.

One day that dream really happened. A neighboring family was selling their home furnishings and moving away. Siblings, cousins, parents, the whole lot of us went to see what they had for sale. Ah! Right in the corner of the old house was an old upright piano. There was also a line of siblings and cousins ahead of me, waiting to bang on those ivory keys. Hey, I can wait just as long as I get a turn. Just before I got the chance
Dad yelled that it was time to go. My feet felt as heavy as lead when I walked away leaving my chance to touch the keys behind in that old ramshackle house.

When God designs something, it will happen. I know that a higher power destined for me to be a musician. Sometime later, I walked beside my mother into a little second hand shop, on a side street in a city in Oklahoma. While browsing Mom found a book about how to learn to play the accordion. She tucked it under her arm. When we got ready to purchase our things, a woman standing close by saw the book and remarked that she had an accordion that she never played. One thing led to another until I found myself walking beside my dad up a steep stairway. My little rusty, brown feet sank down in the deep red carpet and took my breath away. Finally, at the top, the lady opened a door to us and there was more red carpet inside. There to my hungry eyes was a sight that looked like apples of gold in pictures of silver.

An accordion case was opened exposing a huge, man sized, ivory colored accordion. To this day, I cannot recall ever seeing anything more beautiful and appealing
I was always a skinny little kid, and it took a big part of my life for my body to catch up with my arms and legs. Mama said I was a sight trying to see over that big oversized instrument. Until I had more growth on me, all you could see was my elbows and arms waving in an out, and the top of my fuzzy hair.

There are still more barriers between this dream and me. I had worked very hard in the cotton fields and I had twenty-five dollars of hard-earned money, tucked inside my dad’s shirt pocket. That is the amount I had made and that was the amount the woman with blonde hair told my mom she would sell for.

“How much are you asking,?” Dad said.

This was one savvy, lady packed full of shrewdness and knowledge. She looked at me quickly. “What did I say I would take? Wasn’t it thirty five dollars?”

My heart sank! I knew exactly how much money was in Dad’s pocket, and I felt sure that he would pay an extra ten dollars over what I had earned. I also knew that Dad was a trader. He offered the amount of money in his shirt pocket, and my feet were very light on that plush, red carpet as we left, Dad carrying my dream in his big hand.

How hard I worked to learn to play. That old accordion lesson book was in tatters by the time God and I finished with it. Even though it was written in English, I do believe that some parts of it were explained in Greek. At least it was Greek to me. When I came upon those difficult lessons, there was a small out building that I carried book and instrument to. That is where I took my questions to my heavenly Father, and that is where He answered me. I never did anything in a calm, cool way. I am sure that everyone with hearing distance, heard my hearty petitions, as I called out to God for help on my road to musical wonder.

In the beginning, I played for anyone who would listen or anyone who pretended to listen. (Bless those people.) I played anywhere I had the opportunity, and I played before I learned how to play. (Bless those people again.)

Over the years that have passed, I have come to realize what a wonderful call and gift that God gave me. Sometimes I see it in the faces of people I am privileged to play for.

Thank God for everything that I experienced on my way. I will never forget it, and I wish that I were able to tell you about it in a way that would cause you to realize you have a special talent and potential that you may not have developed or plugged into.

That Pesky Little Horse

2011-10-07T20:40:00.000-07:00

Hello and thanks to everyone for visiting my blog. You make me happy! This is for all of you who like to see the little gal that lives on Dwayne and Roberta's farm. She has a long story behind her. Her parents were not supposed to be able to produce offspring. Then one surprising day she is born on their farm. I love to watch her romp around as she lays claim as new owner of everything in the pasture. She seems to enjoy being caught on candid camera.
Roberta sent an little note about this little gal. Here is her own words.

Don't know if I told you the story about the colts name. We named her Savannah, but it didn't seem to fit, so one day Dwayne walked in and said she is Dynomite! So I said ok her name is dynomite and we will call her Dyna. But Trace kept saying her name is Umbrella, so Umbrella it is. I love your story on the blog. I like the one about the boy on the school bus too. I have similar stories, to relate to it. Its always good to see the bully go down.

Very Proud

A Friend is someone you can be comfortable with

Roberta's Pictures