The Simple Woman’s Daybook ~ July 28

Well, I tried to post this yesterday, but the rain knocked out our internet, so I have tweaked it a bit and am posting it today. Here is my Daybook entry for today, Tuesday, July 28 ~

Outside my window. . .Slightly overcast skies with a peek of sunshine every now and then, following yesterday’s rainy weather.
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I am thinking. . .about school plans and VBS tonight.
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From the learning room. . .still working on plans for next year. We visited an old Pioneer Homestead last Friday, and learned a lot about life in the 1800′s and early 1900′s. Pictures coming soon!
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I am thankful for. . .a break from the hot weather.
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From the kitchen. . .dinner will be provided at church each night this week before VBS, so the kitchen will be quiet here at dinnertime – a welcome break for Mom – and you know how good it always tastes when someone else does the cooking – we get to enjoy that all week!
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I am wearing. . .pink shirt and denim shorts.
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I am creating. . .a plan for our new school year ~ not much else right now!
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I am going. . .to be watching for the mailman all week ~ eagerly waiting for some new Science books that I bought on Ebay to arrive.
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I am reading. . .“Planning Your Charlotte Mason Education” by Sonya Shafer.
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I am hoping. . .to figure out how to upload pictures from my new camera soon, so I can share some of our recent outings.
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I am hearing. . .dishes rattling in the kitchen, Tommy and Sarah working on Bible verses for VBS, Rugrats video on the television.
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Around the house. . .ten million (well, it seems like it anyway!) coloring sheets that have been printed off the internet, colored, and then stacked on the table or thrown on the floor; Laura’s first tanning project (a baby bear) is in process up in her bathroom; half-done bookshelf projects in a couple of rooms where I started organizing and moving books around (yes, again), and didn’t get finished.
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One of my favorite things. . .VBS week! We have so much fun each year, and this year’s hiker theme promises to be another great one!
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A few plans for the rest of the week. . .Vacation Bible School all week, which pretty much takes over the whole week. In between, we will be resting up and piddling around the house.
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Here is a picture thought I am sharing. . .

Anna peeking from behind her sunflower.

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Thanks to Peggy at The Simple Woman’s Daybook for this wonderful meme.

Have a lovely day!

Blessings,
Nancy

A Finished Project!

I started this project many months ago. I did half of it and just never was able to get around to the other half. What is the project, you ask? Wallpapering my kitchen backsplash with this lovely gingham wallpaper. I had been thinking about doing it ever since we moved here 4 years ago, but wasn’t sure whether it would be too busy with my cabinets. I finally decided to go ahead and I am so pleased with the results – especially now that the job is finally completed. Here are a few more pictures -

(sorry for the blur!)

And yes, I do realize that I have a snowman picture hanging over my cooktop. I originally hung it there at Christmastime (which gives you a clue how long ago I started this project) and I liked the size and frame, so I decided that I would stamp a new picture for the inside so that it could hang there all year – maybe even stamp a picture for each season that I could change out all year round. Well, obviously it hasn’t happened yet – but I have hope. If I can finish one project – I can finish another! And maybe even someday I’ll make some progress on that infinite list of projects that I have in my head to get done!

Blessings,
Nancy

Chicken Stuffing Casserole #2 of 3

Here is the 2nd installment in the Chicken Stuffing Casserole series ~ the first can be found here. Around my kitchen this second recipe is referred to as “Jeina’s Chicken Stuffing Casserole”, due to the fact that I received the recipe from my sister-in-law Jeina. I have had this recipe the longest of the three and have made it so many times that I can do it by memory – which is good because I seem to have misplaced the actual recipe card. I have made this for my family many times, but have also made it many times to take to families with new babies, etc. It is simple to make and satifying to eat. Here we go ~

Ingredients

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cut up into small chunks
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1 can Cream of Chicken soup
1 soup can milk
4 oz. sour cream (1/2 of a small tub)
pepper to taste
1 stick butter, melted
1 small package Pepperidge Farm Stuffing

Cook chicken breasts (I boil mine) and cut up into small chunks. I double this recipe for my family so this picture shows twice the amount of chicken you will need -

Mix together soups, milk, sour cream, chicken and pepper until well blended -

Melt butter in microwave -

Stir butter together with stuffing until moistened. I usually use the Herb Seasoned stuffing, but had the Cornbread stuffing on hand, so I tried it and it was really good, as well -

Place half of the stuffing mixture in the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish -

Pour chicken mixture over the stuffing in the dish –

Top with remaining stuffing mixture -

Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes -

Uncover and bake 10 more minutes or until golden and bubbly -

I served this with green beans and Hawaiian rolls, yummy! -

And chocolate cake for dessert, double yummy! -

Enjoy!

I will post my third and final Chicken Stuffing Casserole recipe when I get around to making it again.

Blessings,
Nancy

The Simple Woman’s Daybook ~ July 20

Good Morning! Here is my Daybook entry for today ~

Outside my window. . .Cloudy with cooler temperatures than we’ve had lately – only in the low 90′s today with a chance of rain later on. There are onions drying on the picnic table that were pulled from the garden, and the okra and pepper plants are tall and flourishing in the patio garden.
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I am thinking. . .about my Dad.
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From the learning room. . .lots of research and planning going on for next year – this is always lots of fun for me.
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I am thankful for. . .the prayers, cards, and thoughts from so many kind people.
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From the kitchen. . .Polish sausage with Bbq sauce, rice and green beans for dinner tonight.
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I am wearing. . .White t-shirt and capris.
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I am creating. . .more workspace in the craft room to stamp and sew – I bought a new desk for the computer, so that I could have back my white farmhouse table to use for crafting.
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I am going. . .to be studying up on VBS materials this week – next week is our VBS at church and I am leading the Pre-K class.
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I am reading. . .my Bible and “Summer with the Moodys” (Sarah Maxwell) with the kids.
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I am hoping. . .our printer ink comes quickly in the mail – we are out and I have lots of lists and charts I want to print out for my school planning.
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I am hearing. . .the kids are watching an old recorded video of our family at Christmas some years back, children talking, ceiling fan running.
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Around the house. . .laundry, dishes, lots of paper and markers out on the table where children have been drawing, a big box containing the new desk leaned up against the wall waiting to be put together.
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One of my favorite things. . .my Mom’s homemade strawberry preserves.
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A few plans for the rest of the week. . .working on some items on my current master to-do list that I wrote out last week, orthodontist apptmt., bridal shower to attend, and out to dinner for my birthday!
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Here is a picture thought I am sharing. . .

Wooly sheep at our friends’ home.

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Thanks to Peggy at The Simple Woman’s Daybook for this wonderful meme.

Have a lovely day ~

Blessings,
Nancy

John 14:1-3

Photo courtesy of Corbis

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in Me. In My Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am.”

It makes my heart smile to think of my Dad dwelling with his Savior.

Thank you for all of your thoughtful comments and prayers! I’ll be back to posting as soon as I am able.

Blessings,
Nancy

Thank you for your prayers

Thank you for all of your prayers for my Dad. Saturday night he took a turn for the worse and we were all called to the hospital Sunday morning. He went home to be with the Lord around noon. I thank God for my Dad – for his life, his faith, and his great love for his family. Please pray for our family, especially my Mom, as we work through our grief and all of the details that are to come. I will be taking a break from the blog for a bit.

Blessings,
Nancy

Happy 4th of July!

Photo courtesy of Corbis

We have been busy working on our 4th of July lapbooks this morning. It is good to remember why we are celebrating today! I will be hitting the kitchen soon to bake some brownies and start chilling the homemade ice cream. I am even going to try my hand at fresh squeezed lemonade if I have time.

It will just be our immediate family for the 4th this year with my Dad “relaxing” in the hospital (Hi Dad!) and my siblings off with other plans. Ryan will be coming over later, and we will be swimming in the pool, cooking out hot dogs, shooting off some fireworks and lighting some sparklers, eating ice cream, and – when it gets dark – heading out to watch the local fireworks display.

I hope you all have a wonderful 4th, whatever your plans may be!

Blessings,
Nancy

Anna’s First Dentist Visit

Anna had her first visit to the dentist yesterday. She was so excited to be old enough to go, that she was counting the days down for a week before the appointment. She had been with me to a number of appointments for her siblings, so she knew what to expect. She had x-rays taken and then it was time to clean her teeth -

She watched “Little Bill” cartoons on the tv while her teeth were being cleaned and handled it all like a pro. A little while later, she had sparkling clean, gleaming teeth to show off -

Her favorite parts of visiting the dentist were going up and down in the chair, being given a goody bag complete with princess toothbrush and toothpaste, and picking a prize from the treasure box – she picked bubbles.

Alas, they did discover one cavity in her little mouth, so we will be making another trip back to have it repaired. When she heard this, her eyes lit up and she has asked me at least ten times in the last 24 hours when she will get to go back – let the countdown commence again!

Blessings,
Nancy

Please pray for my Dad

My Dad has been in the hospital since Tuesday morning. He has pulmonary fibrosis and has been on oxygen for a number of months now. Tuesday morning he was having a lot of trouble breathing and my Mom called the paramedics. They are giving him antibiotics and oxygen to try to fight whatever is causing the problem – possibly pneumonia. Please pray for him and for his doctors.

Update – Dad is still in the hospital. While the doctors are still unsure about the source of the problem, they are treating him for all possibilities. An oxygen mask is keeping his oxygen level good, and his heart rate has improved while he has been there. Thank you so much for your continued prayers for him!

Thanks so much!

Blessings,
Nancy