30 Days of Thanks

Once again, I have accepted the challenge of the 3rd Annual 30 Days of Thankfulness.  SO!  Here's my first installment of something I'm thankful for:

Today, I am thankful for doctors, nurses, surgeons and specialists, especially the ones who performed the surgery on my mother-in-law today.  She came through with flying colors (no cancer) and will be coming home earlier than expected tomorrow!

Goulash

I cook.  A LOT.  I really like it.  But the way I cook is to either look at a cookbook and close it while I'm cooking or just whip something together from memory.  I rarely follow a recipe which means my dishes turn out differently each time I make them.  We NEVER have the same thing more than once.  It all depends on how I feel that day!

My husband claims that one entree I create comes out pretty tasty each and every time even if it tastes different each time.  Goulash.  Funny about this one:  I usually make it with whatever I have on hand.  First, I start with ground beef or turkey browned with onions, celery and lots and lots of fresh garlic.  I like to throw in some great northern beans for extra protein, home-grown corn and my own stewed tomatoes.  That's what gives it such great taste:  home-grown tomatoes stewed with additional onions, peppers and usually some shredded zucchini tossed in!  Seasonings?  Whatever I see that looks good to me.  Usually oregano, additional garlic powder, Italian seasonings, salt and pepper.  Noodles?  Yeah, whatever I may have on hand at the time.  This time I had a huge bag of second noodles that I bought at a discount shop in Shipsewanna, Indiana.  (Honestly, how a noodle can be considered a "second" is beyond me...they all look the same width and length but hey...I found a 4 pound bag for $1.92!) They're small, fine egg noodles usually used in chicken noodle soup.  They also work great in goulash!  

Like any good cook on t.v. does, before I serve my dishes, I taste it to make sure it tastes good.  It was missing something this time, a little more than just salt.  When there's a lack of flavor as well as sodium, I will add a teaspoon or two of bouillon, but not just any bouillon.  I only use Better Than Bouillon because I love it's rich, natural, robust flavor.  AND I can buy an organic version that's fat-free, GMO free, non-irradiated and 95% organic.  I always make sure I have the chicken, beef and vegetable variety on hand at all times for all cooking purposes.  Love it!!

Once I added the beef bouillon and let it simmer for a few minutes, it was so unbelievably delicious that my husband couldn't stop eating it!  I had to admit I had a little more than I should have, too.  I can do goulash.  Yeah, I sure can!  Toot toot!

Funerals and LOTS of Them!

My Mom has been a funeral luncheon coordinator at her church for many years now.  It's kind of funny...I remember after my Grandma passed away how touching the funeral luncheon was, seeing all the ladies working so very hard to make our luncheon so wonderful.  I made a point of getting involved in funeral luncheons so I would be able to offer the same love and support we received.  I was the one who asked my Mom to go to a meeting with me at church!  And that's how she ended up in funeral luncheons.

Since October 1st, we have had 6 funerals.  I'm praying that no one else passes away between now and October 31st because quite frankly, we need a break.  You see, I personally don't work at every one of them because I work at other jobs.  But when I AM available I do work.  Initially my job is to call for all the donated salads and desserts a couple days before.  Sounds easy, no?  Well, it's not rocket science so in that sense, it's easy.  But the difficulty arises when I sit down with the list of people who signed up to donate dishes and make 18 calls to find that only 2 people will answer their phones!  It's a lot of time on the phone and sometimes I even get yelled at by these people.  Christians.  Go figure.  At least I didn't get yelled at this time.  My sister, Sherry, did!  =)  

Today was a long day but one filled with many blessings.  We see families who come in after burying their loved ones in the cemetery, often times with tears still in their eyes, and we offer them food made from the heart and served from the heart, too.  They're surrounded by their close friends and family and by the time the luncheon is over, the family is laughing and talking and reminiscing about the good times and it's beautiful.  It's a beautiful ministry and I'm so glad to be a part of it.

I'm SO Blessed!

Today I celebrated my birthday and it was better than I could have ever imagined!  I slept in until 9:00 a.m. and when I awoke, Jon was up.  I made us some breakfast and we had such a nice time talking.  Then Maddie and Chris awoke at 10:00 and it hit me:  ROAD TRIP!

I asked if the family wanted to go to B & G Discount in Schoolcraft, Michigan.  Chris decided to stay home with the puppy so my son and daughter went with me.  The ride takes an hour and 10 minutes and we had such a good time talking, laughing, listening to music and just sharing our thoughts freely with one another.  

Then the shopping!  SO fun to shop at a store like that with them.  There's no rhyme or reason to what they have at the shop (it's more like an unclaimed freight store) and shoppers literally need to pick in the boxes and go up and down every aisle to see what's offered. 

Jonathan found some amazing tools, knives, winter caps and hunting gear.  Maddie found "girly" items likes fuzzy socks, writing journals, coloring books, jewelry and winter hats.  

Me?  I found a couple of items (like the amazing deal of a dozen fuzzy gloves for $8.00!).  But more importantly, I was able to spend the morning with my sweet children and see the joy and excitement on their faces.  These are days in which the blessings abound and I thank God daily for my amazing family.  

After shopping?  Straight to back-to-back basketball games and youth group.  And now, it's time to tuck everyone in and happily fall asleep to dreams of a beautiful day.  

It's Over

Today was bitter sweet.  It was the last day of my son's rocket football...forever.  It's been five years of Rocket Football and it's done.  =(  But, now we're looking forward to 78ers and then right into Freshman football after that so it's not as though football is done for good.  Just this chapter is closing.

Today was also my daughter's last day of Rocket cheerleading!  And the worst part?  I was decorating a cake and didn't get to go!  Chris said she did a great job and was there to yell and cheer and support her on my behalf.  

We may have many more years of cheerleading, so I'm not terribly sad she's done.  It'll be nice to have no practices and having to be at football fields every Saturday, rain or shine, warm or cold.  It'll be nice to sleep in and spend some quality family time together.  Ahhh, life IS good!

I Messed This Up

I'm trying to learn new things, one being how to decorate the blog.  It's not working out so well for me, and I'm terribly sorry it looks the way it does!  

I will do my best to learn more and get this cleaned up.  I just wanted a seasonal theme and it's not working so well at this time.  Bear with me and I'll get it - I promise!  =)

19 Years...

19 years ago today I married my husband.  It was a beautiful fall day with sun shining and a crisp, chill in the air.  The weather couldn't have been more perfect.  And what a beautiful celebration that brought our families together for the wedding ceremony (which was at 1:00) and then get-togethers at my Mom and Dad's house for my relatives and a get-together at Chris' Grandma and Grandpa's house for their family.  Reception at 6:00 so there was a lot of time in between to entertain!

I can't believe it's been 19 years.  SO much has happened in these years:  deaths of family and friends, births of our children and nephews, nieces, cousins and friends' kids, lots of moving and experiencing different parts of our amazing country, making friends in all the places we lived, traveling all over the U.S. and even a trip to Germany, many different jobs, hardships, illnesses, surgeries, many college classes, lots of churches we worshipped in, lots of laughter, lots of love, lots of tears and so much in between.  It's been quite a ride!  And one that I would choose over and over and over again.  Would I change some things?  Well, I might be tempted to say yes, such as avoiding unemployment, but when I reflect back on those hardships, it made us stronger, more resilient and increased our faith.  How could we trade that?

Happy Anniversary to my husband, Chris.  It's been a great life and I'm looking forward to many more years!