Oil Pie Crust

If you are one of those people who buy refrigerated pie crust, then this post is for you.  And if you're one of those people who make your own pie crust, but dread it because it's so hard, then this post is for you, too.

I got this recipe from the mother of a friend of mine.  And I love sharing it with other cooks.  Cooks who thought they couldn't make a good pie crust but who now, have seen the light.  Cooks who have joined the ranks of those proud people walking in to a basket dinner or family get together carrying a pie with a homemade crust.   The ranks of cooks who will never buy refrigerated pie crust again.  The ranks of . . . O.K.  I'm being a little dramatic.  Let's make some pie crust shall we??

Her are the ingredients:  flour, salt, vegetable oil.  O.K. I left out a picture of the water.  But how do you take a picture of water? 

Sift 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 1/2 cups of flour into a mixing bowl. 

Then add 1/3 cup of oil.  Vegetable oil, that is (name that TV show).

Then mix to combine. 

Then, add 3 tablespoons of water and mix until a ball of dough is formed.  See, isn't this easy??

Here's another little tip to make rolling out the dough, and clean up, a BREEZE!  I'm all about the BREEZE!  Place a few drops of water on your countertop and put a sheet of wax paper over that.  The water will keep it from moving around when you're rolling it out.  Sprinkle a little flour on the waxed paper, put the dough ball on the flour and turn it over to get flour on both sides of the dough.

Then put another sheet of waxed paper on top of the dough and you're ready to roll.  No really, you're ready to roll out the dough. 

All you do is roll your dough out evenly until it is about the size of the wax paper. 

Peel off the top layer of wax paper, place your pie pan upside down on top of the dough, flip it over and voila!  There you have it, a pie! 

Ingredients:  

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup vegetable oil

3 tablespoons water

Well, it's not really a pie yet, but it will be.  Whatever kind of pie you want it to be.  On this particular day I made my favorite pie.  Pecan pie.  I use the Pioneer Woman's pecan pie recipe.  You can find that HERE.  PW's pecan pie is delicious and if you haven't tried it, this is a great time of year to make one.  But really, the world is your oyster, I mean pie.  You can make apple, cherry, blackberry.  Use your imagination.  And remember, all you have to do is throw away the waxed paper and your countertop is CLEAN! 

Don't fear the pie crust.  It really is very simple, very easy to make, and it is delicious!!  Everyone will brag on your pie crust and only you will know how EASY it was!  So go on and give it a try.  You really won't ever buy refrigerated pie crust again.  And you will be the HERO of family dinners and pie suppers!  ENJOY! 



Whew!!!!!

Can you believe that Thanksgiving is OVER?    I mean, you plan, you clean, you cook, and cook, and cook, and then all of a sudden it's behind you.  And you're exhausted.  I will have to go to work today to rest!

We had a great weekend.  We ate turkey.  We talked.  We ate turkey.  We laughed.  We ate turkey.  We played cards.  And we ate turkey.

Now it's time to gear up for Christmas.  If you're like me, you do a lot of baking for Christmas.  So come back tomorrow and I'll share my recipe for the easiest pie crust you've ever made.  And not to give it away, but, I will tell you this . . . . .  it is made with oil.  Really.

Trust me.  You will never buy refrigerated pie crust again.

So rest up today, 'cause tomorrow we'll be baking pie at Down On The Farm!!!

Count Your Blessings Name Them One By One

We used to go to church with an elderly gentleman, a retired preacher.  His wife played the piano and he sang.   A couple of times a year they would come up and sing and he almost always sang the old hymn, "Count Your Blessings."  Although I have to tell you that they sang a version that is a little different than what you're thinking.  He always started by singing, very slowly, this old chorus:

"There's a roof up above me, I've a good place to sleep.

There's food on my table, and shoes on my feet.

You gave me Your love, Lord, and a fine family.

Thank you, Lord, for Your blessings on me."

And then his wife would cut loose on that piano and he would start singing a very fast version of Count Your Blessings!  Then, when he was really wound up, he would sit down at the piano beside her and play the "high notes" while she played the melody.  I can tell you that by the end of the song the entire congregation was on their feet singing and clapping.  (If you're not familiar with standing and clapping at church while you sing, you should come to church with ME!)   He went home to be with our Lord several years ago but to this day, I can close my eyes and I can see and hear him and his wife sing that song. 

This old preacher man, and his wife, had experienced many hardships in life.  They were preachers back before there were nice parsonages and fancy churches.  He was a traveling preacher and they drove from town to town.  They had buried a son.  They had truly given their lives for the Lord's work, and never once did I ever hear him complain, or see him when he didn't have a smile on his face.  Even those last few times he came to church before he was called home to heaven he was a blessing to others.  And every time he sang that old song "Count Your Blessings" I know that he meant every word of it from the bottom of his heart. 

Today I have so much to be thankful for that it hurts.  Tears are pouring down my cheeks as I type this while trying to wrap my mind around all the things our Lord has given me that I am so unworthy of.  He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on a cross knowing every sin I would ever commit, and yet He did it anyway.  Because He loves me in a way that cannot be understood by my earthly mind.  Thank you Jesus, I love You.

He has given me a wonderful husband and a son and a daughter that I thank Him for every day.  My husband is a hard worker who loves me and will stick with me thru sickness and in health, for better or for worse.  No matter what I can always count on him.  My children -- my children are smart and beautiful and handsome and funny and everything any mother could ever ask for in a son and daughter.  My prayer is that they will always, always live their lives with ONE PURPOSE, and that is that one day heaven will be their home for eternity.  My parents are alive, and healthy and together after almost 48 years.  Thank you mom and dad, for everything.  I didn't realize until I became the parent, just how much you have done for me and I love you for it.  My sisters and their families (Rhonda and Renda, I love you), and my husbands mom, and sisters and their families -- I was blessed to not only be born into a wonderful family, but God allowed me to marry into a wonderful family as well. Next to my Savior, my family is the most important thing in my life.  I have wonderful aunts and uncles on both sides of my family.  Cousins, well, I couldn't even begin to list all my first cousins, and second cousins, and third and fourth cousins that I have been blessed to know and actually have them be a part of my life.

I have a job.  I've worked at the same place, well, let's see, I started here 17 years ago yesterday.  I have a home that is warm and dry and full of love, and peace.  I have never not had enough food to eat.  Other than giving birth to my two babies, I've never spent a night in the hospital, never had a broken bone, never had a serious illness.   

And friends.  Let me tell you about my friends.  I am a blessed lady 'cause I have the best friends anyone could ever ask for.  Friends that are really THERE for you and I mean there when it isn't all fun and games.  Friends that encourage me as I try to live this life for God's glory.  And I can only hope that they consider ME as much of a friend as I consider them to be.  My life has been so much richer for the friends God has allowed to be a part of my life.  They bless me.

So today, as I prepare for another Thanksgiving Day, I'm counting my blessings, and I am humbled.  As King David said in the 23rd Psalm, "my cup runneth over." 

"There's a roof up above me, I've a good place to sleep, there's food on my table, and shoes on my feet.  You gave me Your love Lord, and a fine family.  Thank you Lord, for your blessings on me." 

Amen and amen

Popcorn the Old Fashioned Way

The other night after supper Cole asked me if we had any popcorn.  I told him we did, and asked if he wanted some.  Then, I remembered I had popped the last bag of microwave popcorn a couple of weeks ago.  So I told him that while I didn't have any microwave popcorn, I could pop him some in a pan.  The look he gave me told me that he had absolutely no idea what I was talking about.   My husband and I spent the next 10 minutes trying to explain to the kids that "back in the olden days," before microwave ovens (yes, I am THAT old), we popped corn in oil in a pan, shaking the pan while it was cooking to stir up the kernels.  Then we started laughing when we remembered "Jiffy Pop" popcorn.  Do you remember that?  In the little aluminum pan with the foil top that grew and grew as the popcorn popped? 

We didn't have that cool Jiffy Pop popcorn at our house very often, and my husband didn't either.  Our moms thought it was too expensive and wouldn't buy it.  But once in awhile we could get them to buy one of those cool pans and we would stand there mesmerized by that foil lid growing bigger and bigger with each POP!  

I can't believe that my children had no concept of popcorn, other than coming from the microwave.  I mean, it hasn't been THAT long ago has it?????  Ahhh, the good old days! 

"Easiest And Best Bread Ever"

First of all I have to share with all of my out-of-state readers that here in Missouri it was 66 degrees this morning at 5:00 a.m.  It is supposed to reach 70 degrees by this afternoon.  That is very warm for this time of year.  But we'll take it.  Every single second of it, even though the wind is about to blow us away!!  If it makes you feel any better it's going to be in the 40's by Thanksgiving Day.  Winter is headed our way.

And on a cold winter day nothing is better than a big ol' slice of homemade bread with butter.   But for all my trying, I have never had good luck making homemade bread or rolls.  My mom even bought me a bread machine several years ago (thanks mom) but I have to admit that the bread I have made in it never got past being "O.K."  I've tried countless bread recipes.  I've mixed, I've kneaded, but none of these ever resulted in a loaf of bread I was proud of . . . until now.

Some time ago I was checking out my friend Julie Harward's blog "The Harwards" and came across an older post entitled "Easiest and Best Bread Ever."  Well, coming from a lady who does as much cooking as Julie, I knew it had to be good.  So last night I made Julie's recipe.  I should say I made HALF of Julie's recipe as her recipe makes 4 loaves of bread and I thought 2 loaves of bread would be plenty for us.  I can tell you that I wish I'd made the entire recipe . . . but, I'm getting ahead of myself! 

Here are the ingredients:

2 1/2 cups hot water

1 T salt

1/3 c honey

1/3 c oil

2 T yeast (room temperature)

1 egg (room temperature)

6 cups bread flour

See, you have all of that on hand don't you??  I won't go into the step-by-step as Julie did it much better than I ever could.  If you are interested in step-by-step instructions, then please check out Julie's post at http://circlecliffviews.blogspot.com/2009_09_01_archive.html.  She has an awesome post showing bread making from start to finish with lots of pictures, and she gives details on making wheat bread as well.

All I did is put the ingredients in my Kitchen-Aid stand mixer fitted with the dough hook.  Once everything was completely mixed, which took just a minute, I put it on speed "2" and let it "knead" for 10 minutes.  Honestly the dough looked fairly moist after 10 minutes, and I almost took it out and added some flour and kneaded it a little.  Then I reminded myself of all my past failures at bread making and decided to STICK TO THE RECIPE OF A MORE EXPERIENCED COOK.  So I did what Julie did, I poured oil on my counter, dumped the dough out and just rolled it in the oil a little bit to coat it.  I divided it into two halves and roughly shaped each half into a loaf shape and put it into a Pam-sprayed loaf pan and covered it with a clean towel.  I let the bread raise about 45 minutes, then baked it at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. 

Ladies, this is the best homemade bread I have ever made, and ranks right up there with some of the best homemade bread I've ever EATEN.  AND IT WAS SO EASY.  No sore arms from kneading.  No letting the dough raise two times.  I think from start to finish this took just over an hour and a half.  I could do that after getting home from work (hey, we eat late).  We ate one loaf last night for supper and I have another loaf just waiting for us to devour, I mean eat, tonight.  My husband and kids LOVED it and agreed that it was the best bread I have ever made!!  They wanted to slice the second loaf but I wouldn't let them.  I wanted homemade bread tonight too!

So please, if you love homemade bread like I love homemade bread give this recipe a whirl.  And check out Julie's blog, "The Harwards".  You will love reading about her life in Utah and all her beautiful children and grandchildren.  She is always sharing stores and recipes that I know will bless you like they have blessed me.  So THANK YOU JULIE for sharing your Easiest and Best Bread Ever recipe.  I'll be thinking of you tonight as we enjoy another loaf of your delicious homemade bread. 

Christmas Cards from Shutterfly

I love sending out Christmas cards.  And I love getting them.  I am always so excited the first night I get home and find a Christmas card in the mail.  Once upon a time, I just bought some Christmas cards, signed our names to them, addressed the envelopes, stuck on the stamps and mailed them.  That was pretty easy, but fairly boring.  Then a few years ago I discovered that you could take a digital picture, go online and make your Christmas cards, pick them up at the store and, voila, personalized Christmas cards.  That was pretty cool and I enjoyed getting to send pictures of our family to friends and family who don't live nearby.  I hate to admit it, but, last year I didn't even send out any Christmas cards.  I didn't have any really good pictures of the kids, or our family.  And, I wasn't pleased with the selection of online cards that the largest retailer in America provided.  All the cards just looked so blah and unoriginal.   Plus, the time just got away from me.  Hey, Christmas is a busy time!!!

But this year . . . this year I have discovered SHUTTERFLY.  If you aren't familiar with Shutterfly you really should check out their website.  Their selection of Christmas cards is incredible.  All of the cards are beautiful and there really is something for everyone.  And the price is RIGHT.  (Name that game show!)  Here are some of the incredible things Shutterfly has to offer:

· holiday cards  http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/holiday-cards 

· Christmas photo cards http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery 

· wall calendars  http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars/wall-calendars

· Hanukkah  http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/hanukkah-cards 

· upload pictures  http://www.shutterfly.com/upload-pictures  

· personalized mugs http://www.shutterfly.com/photo-gifts/photo-mugs  

I haven't decided on the cards I am going to send yet because there are so may to choose from.  Some are very classy looking, some are very fun looking.  Lots of religious cards, which are my personal favorites.  So, if you haven't already decided on your Christmas cards this year check out http://www.shutterfly.com/.  You'll be very glad you did!!  It's not too early, so go to Shutterfly.com TODAY!!!  Now, if I can just figure out what picture to put on the cards . . . . . . . . . .

Disclaimer:  Shutterfly is giving me 50 free Christmas cards for posting about them on my blog.  But please know that every word of my post is true.  I am ordering my Christmas cards from Shutterfly this year.  Their card selection is much better than where I was ordering them in the past (a humongous retail store that shall remain nameless but there's one in every town in America).  Just wanted to be totally honest with you all.   

Mornings

I am not a morning person.  Yes, I get up every morning about 4:40 a.m. to go walk three miles, BUT I DON'T ENJOY IT.  Don't misunderstand, I love walking the three miles, I just wish I could do it a little later in the day.  I could sleep in every day.  But sometimes, when I really stop to LOOK in the mornings, I realize just how beautiful "MORNING" can be.

I took these pictures Sunday morning.  It was chilly.  If you look closely you can see steam rising from the pond in front of our house. 

The frost was heavy.   It almost looked like a light dusting of snow.

Every morning is the start of a new day for us.  Every morning we have a choice.  Will we trust God for today?  Or will we decide we know better than He does?  Will we be obedient today?  Or will we grow weary in doing good?  Will we be a giver, or a taker?  Will we bless others, or only look for ways to serve our own interests?  Will we be thankful for what we have been given?  Or will we grumble over what others have? 

Lamentations 3:22-23 says:  "Through the LORD’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness."  Just think about that.  Because of God's mercy we are not consumed.  No matter what is going on in your life God is enough.  He is more than enough.  Your trials, your fears, your circumstances can't consume you.  THEY CAN'T.  Because God's compassions don't fail.  GOD'S LOVE DOES NOT FAIL.  It is new every single morning of your life.  Every single morning throughout eternity His compassions are new.

Is your compassion new every morning?  No, it isn't.  Sometimes we wake up day after day after day in the same situation.  With the same thing going on in our lives.  With the same unsaved loved ones.  With the same fears and worries.  Anybody with me on this??  The Word says HIS mercies keep us from being consumed.  HIS compassions don't fail, they are new every morning.

Is there something in your life you haven't given over to Him?  A loved one, a fear or worry, something in your past??  You can be set free from all fear and all worry every single morning if you will only trust Him.  He is more than enough.  And He is able to do more than you can imagine.  Please don't limit God.  Don't confine Him to what you think He can do.  Trust that the One who said "Let there be light" is big enough to move in every situation in your life.  So today, this morning, ask Him to make your crooked places straight, and to pour out His mercies on you afresh and anew.  Come on, it's a new day, and He is waiting to pour out His mercy and compassions on you.  He loves you so.

Old King Cole

You know how your kids can just make you SO PROUD you feel like all the buttons on your shirt are going to pop off any minute???  Well that's how this mama is feeling today!  A week or so ago Cole and Alex were each nominated as King and Queen Candidates for the Eldon FFA Barnwarming.  You remember Eldon FFA???  THE NATIONAL CHAMPION PARLIAMENTARY PROCEDURE ELDON FFA???  Well every fall they have a big dance or "Barnwarming."   The freshman and sophomore classes each pick one boy and one girl to represent them as a King or Queen Candidate for Barnwarming.  The junior and senior classes each pick two boys and two girls to represent them as a King or Queen Candidate.  This past Saturday evening was the night of the big dance.  And when the votes were tallied Cole was selected as Barnwarming King!!!!!.  The Queen was Kelsi Mueller.  Here's a picture of the King and Queen! 

Now for those of you with a sharp eye, you will remember that this is the same pair that were selected as Eldon's Homecoming King and Queen. And while it would have been awesome for Alex to win . . . at Eldon's Barnwarming it is nearly always the seniors who win. Hopefully Alex will have another chance to be Queen her senior year.

 

And here's the "Barnwarming Court."  Yep, that's Alex, second from the right on the front row.  Ain't she purty???

Just in case you're wondering, Cole has been declared King of everything at Eldon High School he can be "King" of!  He can't even be nominated for King again and I think that is great.  Spreading the "kingship" around is a GOOD THING!!

So thanks for letting this proud mama brag.  I promise not to brag again  . . . for awhile!!!

What's For Dinner??

As you all surely know by now, I live on a farm.  On our farm we raise cattle.  For you city slickers, beef comes from cattle.  So, we eat a lot of beef at our house.  We love beef.  We grill it.  We fry it.  Beef, it's what's for dinner.  Sorry, I stole that line from the Beef Industry Council.  Don't you just love Sam Elliott?  That voice that does the "Beef, It's What's For Dinner" commercials.  Wow.  And if you haven't seen him play Tell Sackett in the Louis L'Amour book-turned-movie well, you're missing out. 

Wait a minute?  How did I get from living on a farm to Tell Sackett???

Anyway, back to dinner tonight.  Every morning I get up, get ready, and head out the door to drive 30 minutes to work.  Some mornings I take just a couple extra minutes to think about what we're going to have for dinner that night.  Some mornings I don't, and those are the nights we have bacon and eggs for breakfast. Not that I'm knocking having bacon and eggs for breakfast, it's delicious!  But again, back to dinner tonight. 

This morning was one of those "good" mornings where I went to the freezer, took out a chuck roast, and put it in the crock pot.  I know some people brown their roasts before they cook them and that's O.K.  Unfortunately, it's hard to "brown" a frozen roast.  Plus, it's just another pan I have to wash.  And just in case you need reassurance, IT IS ABSOLUTELY O.K. TO COOK A FROZEN ROAST.  I do it all the time.

This is a chuck roast. 

I put the roast in my slow cooker on high.  I poured a 32 oz box of Great Value Beef Broth over it.  I sprinkled Lawry's Seasoning Salt over that.  Come to mention it, I sprinkle Lawryr's Seasoning Salt on everything.  (And just as a side comment, I use "Great Value" beef broth and think it tastes great.  I have used the more expensive brand and can't tell any difference.  However, I have tried cheaper brands of "seasoning salt" and find that they don't have the same flavor as the Lawry's.  So, I save money with the Great Value Beef Broth, and spend a little more to get the Lawry's, but that's just me).  We think Lawry's makes everything taste better.  Then I took a small onion, sliced it, and placed some of the rings on top of the roast, and some of the rings down in the broth.   Then I remembered I couldn't stand around all day cooking, I had to work today, so I put the lid on and jumped into the shower. 

About an hour later, just before I walked out the door on my way to work, I switched the slow cooker to "low."  You can't believe how wonderful my house smelled with the roast just cooking a little over an hour.  And tonight, when I get home, my house will smell even better.  And I will be so glad that I took just a few minutes to plan for dinner tonight.  My family will be glad too.  They get tired of bacon and eggs.

The roast will be tender and juicy, having slow cooked all day long, soaking up that delicious beef broth and the onion flavor.  I didn't add potatoes and carrots to the roast this morning, although sometimes I do.  Tonight I think we will have green beans and a salad with our roast.  That's what's for dinner at my house.  What are you having?

Godly Guidance

Tomorrow night I am having dinner with a friend of mine.  A friend I haven't seen in almost a year and a half.  She called me today.  It was the first time I have spoken with her in two months, and only the second time I have talked to her in almost a year and a half. 

You see this friend of mine has made some choices in the last year and a half that were not God's will for her life.  I don't say that in judgment.  But when we do things that don't line up with the Bible, then what we've done can't be God's will.  She has made choices that have separated her from God.  Don't misunderstand me, He did not give up on her, she turned away from Him.  And, she made the choice to not include me in her life.  But in the last year and a half I have not stopped loving her, I have not stopped missing our friendship, and I have not stopped praying for God to reach her.

Today, in a pit of despair, she reached out to me.  We spoke for a few minutes and we are having dinner tomorrow night.  As I said, it will be the first time I have seen her in nearly a year and a half.

Please pray for me.  Pray that God will give me discernment in this situation.  Pray that God will guard my heart and mind, and that He will guide my mouth so that I will know when to speak, and when to just listen to her. Pray that the Holy Spirit can use me to remind her that no matter what she has done God's grace and mercy is sufficient, and that God loves her beyond all her failures.  And pray for her, that she will continue to reach out to me, and to others who will speak God's truth in love.

Thank you so much for praying.

Expedient

Do you know what expedient means?  Well, when I checked the definition online this is what it said:  "conducive to advantage or interest, as opposed to right."

I Corinthians 6:12 tells us this:  "All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any."  This is the Apostle Paul talking.  Oh how I love Paul.  I can't wait to meet him in heaven.  I want to sit and listen to him tell the story of his conversion.  I want him to tell me about his speech before King Agrippa.  I want to hear him tell me about his little disagreement with Peter.

Paul tells Christians that while all things are lawful, it doesn't mean it is the BEST way of doing things.  Before Jesus, the Jews lived under the law of Moses.  Blood sacrifices were required.  Many food items were considered "unclean" and therefore couldn't be eaten.  Their lives were full of rituals and restrictions.  But when Jesus came He fulfilled the law.  He brought a more expedient way of doing things.  Jesus said it doesn't matter what you eat, all things are clean.  Matthew 15:11 says "Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man."  So there it was, they could eat anything they wanted.  No food was "unclean" for them, or for us.  But does that make it expedient to eat four Hershey bars at one time?

We don't have to wear certain clothes and, as women, keep our heads covered anymore.  But does that make it expedient to dress immodestly?

Is it wrong to drink wine or beer?  I can't find one scripture that unequivocally says it is.  The Bible says:  "be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit."  Ephesians 5:8.  But I will tell you this.  The only reference in the New Testament to drinking wine that isn't a warning to not drink too much, is in I Timothy 5:23 where it says "drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities."  For me, I believe living a life completely alcohol free is expedient.  For me, I believe it makes my witness to others stronger.

I believe we should strive to bring glory and honor to Jesus in absolutely everything that we do.  Not try to figure out just how close to the "line" we can walk and still slip into heaven.  I think we need to be mindful of what we watch on television and listen to on the radio.  Does it bring glory to God?  Does it build up your faith?  If not, then maybe we should find another channel or program.

Do your friends provide you with accountability and encouragement?  Or are they constantly pulling you away from God?   Placing you in situations or circumstances that make the Holy Spirit in you uncomfortable?  If so, then perhaps you need to reconsider who you spend your time with.

Most churches today try to be relevant.  That is the buzz word these days.  And I think relevant can be good.  But if we are so relevant that there is no difference between "us" and "them" then we have failed.  If relevant means we water down the message of the gospel that says there is a heaven and there is a hell and only those who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior will make heaven, then the blood of all those we have mislead will be on our hands.  JESUS IS THE WAY.  The ONLY way.  There is no other. 

So today, I ask myself.  Is my life expedient?  Am I choosing the better, higher way each and every day?  Not just some of the time, but ALL of the time?

I challege you to do as I am doing.  Ask God to show you if there is any place in your life that you haven't given completely over to Him.  When we ask God to speak to us, He does.  But we have to listen and we have to hear.  And sometimes what we hear isn't what we want.  But it is expedient.   So today I reexamine my life.  Even the little things that maybe don't seem to matter much.  Because others are watching us.  Our spouses, our children, fellow Christians, and non-Christians.  I want NOTHING in my life that could cause someone else to stumble in their walk with Jesus.  

I want my life to be expedient for Christ.  I want others to see Him in me.  I want my life to bring glory to Him.  He deserves my very best. That is my prayer today. 

VOTE! VOTE! VOTE!!!!!

If you haven't already voted today, PLEASE make arrangements to get to your local polling place before the polls close and exercise your right to vote!  It is so important that we, as Americans, stand up for what we believe in! 

On a personal note to my Missouri blogging friends, I urge you to vote NO on Proposition B.  This proposition purports to help puppies by putting further restrictions on "puppy mills."  Ladies and gentleman, there are already laws to regulate puppy mills.  The puppy mill owners who don't abide by these rules, won't abide by new laws either.  All this does is increase governmental control on law abiding citizens.  The first step is puppy mills, the next step is increased governmental control on all agricultural businesses.  I am against increased governmental control in my life!  What's that old joke. . . I'm from the government and I'm here to help you??  Proposition B doesn't help ANYBODY!!!

So please, take just a few minutes out of your day today and vote.  It is your right, and I believe your responsibility!  GO VOTE!!!!!!!

Beef With Snow Peas

Photo Courtesy of The PioneerWoman.Com

Do you ever feel like you fix your family the same meals over and over and over?  And over and over and over?  That's how I've been feeling lately.  Like if we eat spaghetti, or round steak one more night for supper it will be the end of the world.

Well last week the Pioneer Woman had an awesome recipe for Beef With Snow Peas.  While Down On The Farm is a MUCH smaller farming operation than the Drummond's spread in Oklahoma, we eat a lot of beef too and I'm always looking for something new to do with my freezer full of beef.

I won't show you the recipe or the steps as you can check it out HERE.  She does a much better job of photographing and explaining the recipe than I do so for the skinny on the recipe, check out the link.

What I can tell you is that IT WAS DELICIOUS!!!  I loved it, my kids loved it (well Cole wouldn't eat the snow peas) but it is definitely a recipe I will add to our "rotation" of evening meals.  It did take a little time to prepare but it was well worth it.

So if you're looking for something new to fix for supper, check out Pioneer Woman's "Beef With Snow Peas."  I hope you like it as much as we did!