Decorating the Guest Room

My wonderful sister came over last week and helped me wallpaper our spare room. We moved into this house years ago and every time we had guests I was embarrassed of our guest room. The previous owners used it as a little boys room and it had grey, brown and beige stripped wallpaper on the top and a cream, grey and brown plaid on the bottom with horse head border in between with blue valances on the windows. It was actually very charming as a boy's room but not suited to an adult guest room and honestly I found the horse heads a bit creepy!I wish now that I had taken a before picture to show you, but I do have pictures of the way it looks now. I am thrilled and can't wait to have company! It is pretty and grown up. I do love for things to be pretty and that could be because I am out numbered here - even the cat is a boy!

The very best part about the redecorating is that the wallpaper was given to me several years ago and I just found the border at a second hand store for 50 cents a roll and it matches like I bought it all together! There was one small glitch in things and that is that we ran out of the top wall paper with just a 2 foot by three foot patch to go....Since the wallpaper was given to me so long ago I had no idea how to get more. I tried several places and no one had anything that matched on hand at one store they told they may be able to order something for $30 a single roll and it should be here in a few WEEKS. I said no thank you and ended up at another store where they had a small remnant which is almost a perfect match and I paid $1.50 for it. So my entire room cost $3.00 and I still have a roll of border left over. The valances I had saved from my son's room when he had a change in there. The quilt was from our room, my Mum made the needlepoint picture and the other flowered ones I had collected to go in this room one day from second hand stores - I am just so pleased with the low cost and how pretty it is!

Here are a few pictures...





Blessings,
Liisa

Church Picnic

What could be more fun than a church picnic? A church picnic held at a beautiful historic site!

Yesterday our church had it's annual picnic. What fun we had. We were invited to hold it at the former home of the founder of a nearby town. We had our service there as well. It rained early on in the day so we had the service and lunch in an outbuilding which was so cute. For lunch we enjoyed shepherd's pie which we made from leftovers from our banquet last month and froze. I had wondered how shepherd's pie would freeze but it was just fine! Everyone then brought a cold side dish or dessert to go with it. I brought a noodle salad which I made with rotini noodles, mayonnaise, tuna, chopped hard boiled eggs, diced green pepper, onion, pepper and paprika. I usually like to lay slices of egg on top of the salad and then sprinkle on the paprika as it looks pretty that way but my eggs were fresh from the farm and they do not peel well so it was best to chop them and stir them into the salad. I also brought some slices of watermelon. Watermelons have been on sale around here lately so I bought a big one and we have really been enjoying it here the last couple of days. When I serve watermelon I like to chop it into cubes as it makes for less drips and mess to eat it that way but for a picnic it has to be sliced! Is there anything better than icy cold watermelon on a hot day?


By the time the meal was over the sun was out and the games commenced! The children took part in several games, tug of war, a scavenger hunt, memory games etc. etc. They had so much fun. Some of the adults were able to tour the house. It is so beautiful and has such incredible history. My friend and I just loved the kitchen with it's huge fireplace for cooking. I also saw a reflector oven for the first time - a very cool little invention that was placed near the fire and used for baking. The basement was a little creepy as it still had a part of the jail cell that was built in down there since the owner was a magistrate and often had people locked up down there until they could be transported to the jail. The floor though was all brick which I thought was pretty neat - I have never seen that before. The whole house and the grounds were just so lovely - how I wish I had brought my camera!

It was a wonderful day of worship, fun and fellowship - God is good!


Blessings,
Liisa

Snowbirds

Last evening I was especially happy to head to a nearby town and watch the Snowbirds perform. They are so talented, it is thrilling to watch them fly.

To spite a little rain as we drove there it was a beautiful evening. The show was at the water front so we picked a spot out on some very large rocks to sit and watch. It couldn't have been better as we were right at the center. They flew right over us several times. It brought back so many memories for me. We have seen them several times when we lived in a small town south of here and they had an annual air show. My son was just a little boy then and he loved it almost as much as my hubby!

I went with my sister and her children since unfortunately my hubby had to work. We were worried our boys wouldn't make it home in time to come either as they were out all day working for a friend of ours who is a farmer picking rocks, but we prayed for them to make it and they did - just barely.

I packed us a supper we ate on route and it was just such a fun evening. It was a little sad too as I realized that time is growing short having my son home with us. He is already 17 and time goes by far too quickly. Last night I could have sworn it was just yesterday he was the little boy on his Daddy's shoulders yelling "Look at the planes Mommy!" ~sniff~ Happy memories.




Blessings,
Liisa

Just Because....

Everybody loves a chubby cat!


This is my baby Timothy. Very chubby but so cute!

Blessings,
Liisa

Works For Me Wednesday - Stitch in Time

What has worked for me this week is to do my mending when I iron. When I am ironing I see little tears, missing buttons etc. It saves me alot of time and trouble later on to have my sewing basket and buttons right there so when I see something in need of repair I can do it right then and be done with it.

A stitch in time saves nine!

For more ideas please visit Rocks in my Dryer.

Blessings,
Liisa

You really can find anything on the internet! I couldn't believe there was a definition for "a stitch in time saves nine".

Here it is....

Idiom Definition
Meaning:
A stitch in time saves nine means that if a job needs doing it is better to do it now, because it will only get worse, like a hole in clothes that requires stitching.

Answered Prayers

I am praising God for answering prayers even more abundantly than I could have hoped! I was facing a summer without work at a time when it is uncertain if my hubby will be on strike this summer. I had said when I found out that I would pray about it and trust God because I know that He works all things together for the good of those who love Him. However I kept worrying and planning and generally not doing what I said. I kept trying to work things out in my own power. I realized what I was doing when one of my favorite pastors was a guest speaker at church a week ago and asked the congregation if we REALLY trusted God. I had to admit that I hadn't been. Right then I gave all my concerns and worries to the Lord and left them there trusting Him fully. The next day the Mommy of my two newest monkeys came and asked if I could watch them for two weeks in July and two days a week in August. I was praising the Lord for this added income! Today - one week later she came back and said that she now needs me for the entire summer except for the one week we were hoping to go up north! Isn't God just so very good? He knows what we need before we even ask and we just need to trust in Him and He will provide for those who love Him.

Matthew 6:25-34

Do Not Worry
"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Blessings,
Liisa

Weekend Blessings

This past weekend was just wonderful! It actually started on Friday morning when I found two pretty and very long valances at the second hand store. They were very well made and so lovely, I just couldn't pass them up. I have had just sheers on our livingroom and diningroom windows for quite sometime and they just really needed something to make them look finished. I couldn't afford to buy anything new and hadn't found anything second hand as our livingroom and dining room run into each other and I wanted all the window treatments to match. That meant I needed to find one really wide window treatment that matched three smaller ones....not an easy task.
Until Friday! The smaller of the two valances fit our big livingroom window perfectly and I couldn't believe it when I measured it in the store but the biiger valances was exactly the perfect width to make three valances for the remaining three windows! I spent sometime that afternoon doing a bit of cutting and sewing and by supper time we had pretty new windows treatments! I just love the way they look. My hubby even likes them to spite the fact he says they are quite flowery ~smile~ The very best part though was that they only cost $2. God is so good! I find if I am patient then I will come across exactly what I need for a price I can afford.

Sorry that was quite a ramble about valances but I was just so happy about it! Here is a piture of one in the diningroom. Notice Timothy in the window? That is one of his favorite squirrel watching spots!




Saturday my sister and my friend Nancy and I went to several Mennonite farms in our area and picked up eggs and cabbage at one, a pie at another and best of all strawberries at another! I had been told they would be late this year and still had a couple of weeks to go but they were there and are wonderful! They taste like summer!



I really enjoy going to these farms and chatting with the ladies there. They are so sweet and friendly. They really inspire me as well. My goodness they are so hardworking and their homes, yards and gardens really reflect that. So perfectly clean and tidy....even there gardens are in precise rows and weed free. It is always a peaceful time driving in the country admiring the tidy farms and beautiful scenery and visiting along the way. We also went into a nearby town and had lunch and did some shopping and my sister posted some flyers for an upcoming concert she is presenting to raise funds for Blood Water Mission. For more on that please visit her site Cellar Events She has a real heart to help others.

Then my weekend was topped off by a fantstic sermon on end times at church and a leisurely afternoon spent reading a Beverly Lewis book I borrowed from a friend and hadn't read yet (I just love her books and had thought I read them all so it was a nice surprise!)and watching an old movie on tv.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend too!

Blessings,
Liisa

Titus Women - Pie Baking

What fun we had! We made apple pies, dyson rhubarb and dutch apple. For many of the ladies this was the first time they have ever made a pie and they were thrilled with their new skill! I learned a pretty new way to vent a pie and pinch the crust and we had a new lady out who is now looking forward to other meetings. It is my hope that she will attend our church services one day as well. We had a devotional about giving God the whole pie and not just a slice which I really enjoyed. God does need our whole lives and not just our worship on Sunday mornings. All in all a wonderful evening spent in fellowship with other women.~smile~

Here are few pictures of our time together......







When you are in charge of the camera you don't end up in any pictures! *wink*

Happy Friday!

Blessings,
Liisa

More Banana Bread!

My hubby and son were so disappointed to discover that the banana bread I made the other day was not for them. It didn't matter that there was 3/4 of a blueberry cake left or that they had just polished off a batch of oatmeal cookies! So I made two more last night. ~smile~ One for now and one to put away in the freezer for another time. I am trying to take advantage of our cool weather this week and stock up the freezer with baking for the hotter days to come.

A valuable lesson - never bake something for someone else without baking the same thing for your family!

Blessings,
Liisa

Titus Women Tonight

Our Titus Women meetings took a break for May as we had our dedication service and banquet and the ladies needed to focus on making that happen but we are back at it this month!

Tonight we will be baking pies together. It is truly amazing how some ladies are almost afraid to bake a pie. We hope to show them tonight that it really is not so scary or hard and it is worth the effort! We have our largest group to date coming out for this so it should be a wonderful time of fellowship and fun!

As usual we will open with prayer then we'll get right into baking. While the pies are in the ovens we will have coffee and tea along with a Dyson rhubarb pie and a dutch apple one while we hear a devotional. After that we will have an open time of discussion where we will invite the ladies to ask any questions they may have about baking, cooking, children,faith or life in general and all of us we will free to answer. Each lady will take home the pie she baked to share with her family - I know some hubbies who are quite happy about this!

For upcoming Titus Women meetings we are planning a car maintenance evening in which a sweet man from our congregation will be teaching us how to maintain our vehicles. In August I will sharing how to make homemade salsa and spaghetti sauce, in September we will be learning flower arranging and in October our theme is apples , apples, apples - however we may change that to pumpkins, pumpkins, pumpkins!
So good things are in store!

If I remember to take some pictures *wink* (I am pretty famous for forgetting to take the pictures as I get so caught up in what is going on!) I will post them tomorrow so you can see what fun we had!

Blessings,
Liisa

Works For Me Wednesday - Table on the Porch

O.k. this is a really basic idea but it really does work for me. We have a covered porch on the front of our house and I have a small square kitchen table set up there with a few chairs and a pretty vinyl tablecloth that goes well with the colors of the brick and the porch posts. This is small enough to be out of the way but still provides a really nice spot for three or four to enjoy a meal together. It has also proved very valuable on rainy days or very hot ones. On those days I take the little monkeys out there and we paint or do play dough or any other messy craft or activity. Clean up is so easy and we are able to get outside no matter the weather and do something fun! As I said a basic idea but it really works for me. For more ideas please visit Rocks in my Dryer.

Blessings,
Liisa

In Appreciation

I wanted to let two special people at my son's school know how much I appreciate the time and effort they have put in to making his year a success. Since we are cutting back our expenses I needed something low cost but still nice. This is what I came up with.....




Banana Bread! I was at the grocery store yesterday and Mondays are the days produce gets marked down so the bananas that were 59 cents a pound on Sunday were all 19 cents a pound! I made up two loaves and then wrapped them using bows and paper I had on hand. It is hard to tell in the piture but the pink one is wrapped in hand made paper and has little flowers and leaves in it. The burgundy one is gift wrap with a piece cut out of a paper bag to go around the middle. I hope that they enjoy them!

What kind of things do you give for end of the year gifts?

Blessings,
Liisa

Crafty Storage Baskets

On Saturday my sister and I were out for some shopping and came across some really cute storage baskets in a department store. Upon closer inspection we discovered that they were made with rolled up newspaper adhered to a cardboard box with a fabric liner. That got us thinking that perhaps we could make these at home. I just used a shoebox, flyers and scrap material I had in my stash. I think it will look better when I use newspaper instead of flyers as the rolls will be more uniform then.

Here a few pictures of my first attempt.






Blessings,
Liisa

To Sleep Perchance to Dream

Last night we were blessed with tickets to see Hamlet. It was an incredible experience. This was the first time I have seen one of Shakespeare's plays though I have been hoping to for some time. The acting was just amazing - such incredible talent.

The one thing that amazed me the most about the experience was how with very limited props and clever lighting they were able to transport you from location to location. It really was something to see. The emotion - well I was completely pulled into the story.

My hubby really enjoyed the play as well though our balcony seats were awfully small for him so he was quite uncomfortable. He is not a small man at 6'3 and the leg room was small even for me! However he came out of it talking about what a wonderful experience it was - this is no small thing for a man who is more into outdoorsy kind of pursuits. ~smile~

All in all it was a wonderful evening out. I was treated to supper out as well. We went with another couple and met another friend there. Just a really nice time spent with friends.

Due to the late night though I am quite sleepy this morning. I hope my little monkeys don't get the better of me today!

Blessings,
Liisa

Works For Me Wednesday - Email Bible Study

A few friends and I used to gather here for a Bible study once a week. We'd read a chapter of the Bible and discuss it, read occasional commentaries on it, and share life experiences and generally uplift and encourage one another.

The group eventually broke up due to lack of time and the generally very busy lives of the ladies that used to come. There is now a study and prayer time for ladies at the church but many of us are unable to go to that one - I have my little monkeys so I can't but I was REALLY missing the time to study God's Word with others. I then got the idea to do it via email. Each morning I post a chapter of the Bible along with any commentary that may be relevant, and my thoughts and comments. I send this out to the other ladies who then email back with questions, thoughts or comments. This works out really well as we can all do it as we find time through out the day and still get feed back from others. We are also reading through the Bible much quicker! We study 5 chapters a week now instead of only 1 and we take weekends off.

It isn't quite the same as getting together in person but it works for me. For more Works For Me Wednesday ideas please visit Rocks in My Dryer.

Blessings,
Liisa

BibleMan

Several of the children in our congregation just love BibleMan and after having the opportunity to watch one of the DVD's this weekend I can see why the parents are so happy about this!

Bibleman teaches many valuable lessons with humour and action while quoting scripture throughout. It is amazing. I also appreciate that he gives a salvation message at the end of the episode and at the end of each of their live performances. Such a blessing to have a Christian alternative to the violent superheros so many little ones get obsessed with.

For more information about BibleMan and some activities and coloring pages please visit their site.

Blessings,
Liisa

Oh,What A Savior - Ernie Haase and Signature Sound

I just had to share this with you. If you are unfamiliar with this group please check out some of the other videos and visit their website www.erniesigsound.com

Blessings,
Liisa

Hot! Hot! Hot!

It looks like summer has decided to show up all at once! Today we are expecting temperatures in the 30's and in fact it will be that hot all weekend. I am not much of a summer person. I love all three of the other seasons but do not like to be hot. However this is the day the Lord has made and I will rejoice and be glad in it!

Today I plan to take my little monkeys out for a walk and then when we get back we'll have water play. I have already set out big bowls of water on the porch with some big spoons and various other kitchen utensils so they can play and splash and get just soaking wet and cooled off! ~smile~ I find this so easy and they really love it. The older ones pretend they are making wonderful and tasty soups and the little ones just splash and splash- what fun!

The porch is ideal for this as it provides shade and we are up off the ground and dirt and grass and I can just enjoy swinging on the porch swing while I keep an eye on the little ones and provide musical accompaniment by singing every silly song we know!

I had best get my chores done before the heat sets in and then I will be free to enjoy the day.

Blessings,
Liisa

Baking Bread

Well things have calmed down considerably around here - Praise the Lord! It has been so nice to just be at home and look after things here. One of the things I have been doing today is baking bread.

I am shocked by how much flour has gone up in price in the last month or so and even more shocked by how much bread costs. How much more I appreciate my bread maker now. Rye bread is now nearly $4 a loaf here and white bread (just plain old white bread) is nearing the two dollar a loaf point! I make both of these at home for a mere fraction of the cost even with the increase in the cost of flour.

My bread maker actually bit the dust this week! I am so glad that I kept the receipt in the booklet that came with it and the box stashed away in the basement. It was so simple to just gather it all up and take it back to the store where we purchased it. It had a one year warranty so I was able to walk right out of the store with a new one. They didn't even ask any questions! So now I have a brand new bread maker again - what a blessing!

As I type this I have a loaf of rye bread baking. My hubby tells me it is his very favorite bread. ~smile~

Here is the recipe I use....

Crusty Rye Bread

1 3/4 cup water (80-90 degrees)
3 tbsp. oil
3 tbsp. nonfat milk powder
3 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tsp. salt
2 1/2 cups flour
2 1/4 tsp. wheat gluten
1 1/2 cups rye flour
2 tbsp. rye flour
2 tsp. yeast

- Add to bread machine in order, placing yeast in a small well in flour.
- Process on whole wheat cycle - 2 lb. loaf

I love this bread toasted in the mornings with raspberry jam or with the yummy pomegranate jelly my sweet hubby bought for me.

Blessings,
Liisa

Much Much Too Busy To Blog!

Well these last two weeks have been a whirl wind of activity! We had our banquet at church so I was busy with decorations, food, serving and clean up. Then just a week later we catered a Ladies Breakfast for 70! Fortunately we were able to just leave up the tables from the banquet and reuse the decorations, tablecloths and chair covers we made for that. But my goodness what a hectic time. I was starting to feel like I lived at the church! Unfortunately my hubby and son were also starting to wonder if I did! It was a good time of working side by side with some wonderful women and teenagers....so many blessed us with their time and energy! Not to mention the men who put up with us being away from home and also helped by moving furniture around and many other endless tasks.

Here are some pictures from the banquet......






We had a swag of tulle over the door way beside the menu board that was tied up with three bows that matched the one on the menu board. On each table we had two mason jar candles (the inspiration for which came from Homespun Heart - Thanks Monica!)
with gold and clear glass stones in the bottom and a wired gold ribbon bow around the top. Each table also had a vase with a white carnation and greenery. We were so blessed by the lady at the flower counter at a nearby grocery store. We had plans to put lily of the valley in the vases but when we went to pick them they weren't blooming yet. I don't known why but even before we discovered that I called the store and spoke with a wonderful lady who asked what the flowers were for and when I told her they were for a church dedication banquet she said that she does the flowers for her church and told us what she thought we should do is to buy a bunch of flowers for $9.99 rather than pay the price per stem. We were able to purchase 20 white carnations for this price! That was enough to do the tables and side tables plus a bouquet for a larger vase on the counter with the coffee. God is so good and does know everything even before we ask! We believe He set all that in motion right down to the right lady being at the store! She refused to let us by the greenery and told us to go out and pick our own and what would look good! The carnations were beautiful and lasted to decorate the tables for the ladies breakfast as well! Isn't God good? My friend Nancy and I had the added bonus of two really fun (honestly - really fun!) trips to the woods to pick ferns and other greens for the vases!

I believe I mentioned that the tablecloths and chair back covers came from bolts of fabric found in our church and so they didn't cost us anything but the time to sew them. It all looked so pretty when it came together. The napkin rings were made by wrapping ribbon around pieces of paper towel tubes and securing it with hot glue.
The picture with the wooden table and chairs is just a pretty seating area my friend Nancy set up just outside the main room.

I think you can read what we had for dinner on the menu board for the banquet. We had A LOT of mashed potatoes and beef left over as well as veggies so we made several large shepherd's pies and froze them for a fellowship meal at a later date and then used the potatoes to create potato balls for the Ladies Breakfast. They were so easy and so yummy! We also had a lot of fun together making them! We were able to get 160 balls out of our leftovers. All you do is take a little chunk of cheese and shape leftover mashed potatoes around it into a ball then you coat in beaten egg and roll in Italian bread crumbs. Then you pop then into the oven at 350 until they are browned. Easy!

For the breakfast we also served Strata or Wife Saver as my family calls it. Sausage rolls, fruit kabobs and fruit dip, biscuits and homemade strawberry jam.

So that about sums up what I have been doing for the last two weeks and now I am relieved that things are getting back to normal!

Blessings,
Liisa