Thankful Thursday/Friday Foto Friends

 
I know, I know, I haven't written a thing this week, and I haven't even been around to visit all of my blogging friends. Please forgive. It just seemed like a busy week, and I couldn't make my brain sit down and settle down and write or read. 

Sometimes you just have to give yourself a break...you know?  I know you all know because many of you have been taking some breaks here and there as well. We need to step away sometimes and give ourselves room to breathe and grow and view things from new perspectives

...or something like that.  Anyway, I am sorry to be so "distant" lately...I hope you are all still out there and haven't gone away...

So, tonight I want to start out by being thankful.  It has been a busy week, but in good ways. We've had some "things" going on, decisions being made about things, steps being taken to begin the process of "downsizing" and cleaning out extra "stuff". 

God has been very gracious...giving us wisdom when we asked for it...patience when we needed it, and hope and reassurance that He is still working on our future plans...His way, not ours.  (That's the BEST way).

(Deer pictures courtesy of my friendly neighborhood deer visiting my yard at noon today)

Let's see, what else has been happening?

Well, last weekend our son and his wife had a yard sale, and we went to help out a little bit...
(and thankfully, the sale was fairly successful...they reached the goal they hoped for and then some...and are going to have another sale THIS weekend as well!)

And one of my friends at church asked if they had a little desk for sale.  I told her no, they didn't, "but I have a little desk that I would be happy to give you".  She was so surprised that I would give it to her and offered to buy it, but I reassured her that I did not want anything for it...just that they would come pick it up.  She was more than happy to do so.  She was thrilled that this desk was exactly what she was hoping for and had actually been praying for.  God answers prayers in mysterious ways sometimes, doesn't He? 

 And then I asked her if they would mind also picking up this sewing machine in a cabinet and take it to the church, for the ladies'  "Sew and Sew" Quilting group.  I've been promising it to them for a while, but didn't have any way to get it there. She was very happy to do so.  Now, I am not telling you this to give myself a pat on the back or from you either...

But I did this for somewhat "selfish" reasons, and some not quite so selfish. 

1.  It felt good to give something away to someone else who truly needed it and appreciated it.
2. It helped me to begin the process of "downsizing" and cleaning out and getting ready for our hoped for and expected upcoming move (sometime in the future!)
3. These were items that I was not really using, and they needed to go where they would be used.
4. The "Sew and Sew" quilt group makes lap quilts for Hospice House, Ronald McDonald House, and the VA Hospital.   They can use this machine to help make the quilts. I have not been able to participate in the group since we still live too far away to make many trips back and forth during the week, but this is one way of doing my part and helping.
5. The lady who wanted the desk has the ministry of sending out get well cards, birthday cards, and sympathy cards, etc., from our church to people in the church and community. This little desk would be a way to help her with her ministry

My thoughts were as I donated these items that maybe this would be like planting a seed that will grow into opening the doors for us to finally be able to sell our house and move to the community where our church is and where we want to be able to help serve better in our church and make new friends in that community.  May God bless and honor this prayer and desire of our hearts...in His time.   

Oh, and actually...we did have an offer on our house this week...however it was an extremely LOW offer, one that we could not consider in good conscience,  so we gave a counter offer, but the person was not able to raise her offer...so we will be patient and wait for the Lord to bring someone else.

Now, after all of that excitement, I also got a little creative this week. (I started taking vitamins again, can you tell? I think it's helping...)  Anyway, in removing that sewing machine cabinet from our laundry/utility room area, it left an empty space where we had been storing our containers of soft drinks and bottled water on top of and under that cabinet.  Now I needed something to hold those items still rather than just stacking them on the floor.  I know, I got rid of something, and now I want to put something back, you are saying?!  Well, this is where I got creative.  I decided to create something out of items that we already had taking up space in our workshop/shed.

This is the iron base for an old sewing machine cabinet that I had for many years. The wooden part of the cabinet was falling apart and finally had to be removed/destroyed.  (No, this isn't the one that I have in my house that belonged to my husband's grandmother...this is another that I've had for years).

It was collecting dust in the shed, waiting to be used for something. The treadle and wheel have been gone for years, so it is basically just the "legs". So I cleaned off the dust and spray painted it with a flat black rustoleum paint.

Also, in the shed was this lovely panel of wood, already stained and varnished, which used to be the top to a bench that the bottom got broken off of, and it needed a new home...It just "happened" to fit perfectly on the top of this iron base:

 And so now here it is, the new "beverage bar" in our house...yes, that is "Fresca"...the original grapefruit flavor. My hubby loves that stuff. The coke is for those who don't love that stuff,  and the bottled water is for those who don't love our sulfur tasting well water here...

This little table will also make a great table to hold my portable sewing machine whenever I do get the urge to sew something again...

So, that was my creative project for this week!  I did this all by myself!!!  I am very thankful for the tools, miscellaneous pieces of odds and ends, and the basic skills to do these things.  I am blessed.


And this picture is of my breakfast this morning...yes, those are eggo waffles with syrup and fresh blueberries (cooked for 30 seconds in the microwave to heat them up), sausage and scrambled eggs.  It was delicious...and yes, I DO rejoice in each new day!!!

I especially enjoyed my breakfast, served on this beautiful tray, made on reclaimed wood by my son, at "Ben's Country Woodshop".  This was my one purchase from his yard sale last weekend, and I have been enjoying serving myself breakfast and lunch on this tray as I carry it into the living room where hubby and I often sit and enjoy watching the news (not really enjoying that) or some other interesting program together.  This tray was originally designed to be a laptop tray...but since I don't use a laptop (gasp! I sit at a desk and write on a desktop computer the old fashioned way! LOL), I enjoy it for my own personal dinner tray.  Doesn't take much to make this girl happy!!

Another thing to be thankful for...Ben's Country Woodshop, our son's home business with his wife Rose, along with their online Etsy shops, BRCoastalRusticDecor and Rustic Forest Studio, are really doing well.  They had some real encouragement this past week, as a result of meeting people at the yard sale, that has led to some new opportunities for sales in the local area as well as the online business!  This is a WONDERFUL blessing and answer to prayer...so I just want to give God the glory and praise for all that He is doing in our lives!!!

Life IS Better in the Woods - Updated for Friday Foto Friends

NOTE: THIS WAS ORIGINALLY POSTED ON 7/10/2015, SO "BEAR" WITH ME...SOME OF THIS INFORMATION HAS CHANGED SINCE THEN, but this has been a week that has been too hot to get out and take many new pictures, and here it is Friday Foto Friends day, and I don't have anything new to share. So, I will update this "old" post and re-share! I hope you don't mind!  Some things have not changed at all, and then again, quite a lot has changed!!

My son creates these wooden signs...you can learn more about that  on his facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/BensWoodSigns - BUT UPDATE 7/28/17: Lately he hasn't been doing signs as he has a full time job AND is now engaged and is spending most of his "free" time with his lovely fiance', planning their upcoming wedding in November!!  Once they get settled he does hope to get back into the sign business "on the side" as time permits!

What this particular sign has inspired in me is a sense of thankfulness for the fact that yes, MY life IS better in the woods!  We moved out to the forest about 3 1/2 years ago, (NOW 5 1/2 YEARS) and since then life has truly been one adventure after another.  We've discovered myriads of interesting wildlife, as well as receiving the blessing of many new friends.  (Click on the links for more about those stories).  But the greatest gift has been the peace that comes over me each afternoon as I leave my busy job in the city and enter the quiet sanctuary of the forest woods    UPDATE:  This post was originally written about four months before I retired...so now I get to live in this "quiet sanctuary" all the time!!!  And sometimes it isn't so quiet, but I still love it!

and country roads that lead me home. I really don't even mind the fact that I must drive over 30 miles each way to and from work.  The ride is a time of thankfulness as I enjoy the scenes and sights of nature surrounding my journey and listen to delightful songs of praise and worship all the way. This always helps set the tone for my day on the way to work...and again on my way home my heart is prepared for the tasks that await me.  UPDATE:  I don't miss that ride to and from work every day now that I am retired, but I do miss the times of listening to the music as I drove along...now I take rides with hubby and we talk, which is nice....and sometimes we make music together as we ride, which is especially nice.

Some people don't really understand how we could enjoy living so far from "civilization"....it is at least 20 miles to the nearest Walmart, and we currently don't have a viable grocery store in our community  (UPDATE: We now DO have a small grocery store that reopened earlier this year, and it is great for meats and necessities, but we still travel to Walmart at least once a week for the BIG stuff!)  and only a couple small restaurants in the area that serve a limited menu at limited times. We DO have a small hardware store, post office, Dollar General and a gas station/handy store. We also have a wonderful Saturday flea market where my son sells his signs each week to the weekend visitors and locals.   (UPDATE: See earlier note about this...he's not selling his signs at the Flea Market right now, but may do so in the fall again as time & fiance' permits!  Ha ha!)

 We also have several excellent small churches, including our own home Bible Fellowship that meets in our home every Sunday morning for worship and study of God's Word.  UPDATE: Our Home Bible Fellowship is now meeting on Wednesday mornings due to changes in everyone's schedules. 

And so wonderfully, we have God's great outdoors and many opportunities for enjoying nature via hiking, boating,

fishing, hunting or simply watching the birds,

deer,

Bears,

Hummingbirds

and butterflies.

Wildflowers,

trees, berries and interesting insects

of every kind abound.

There are so many places to explore...(if only it wasn't so hot right now...but fall is on its way)

I find myself longing to strike out on my own in search of adventure...but I am reminded that there ARE bears

in the woods, (and right in front of my house!)   and I need to be safe.

Anyway, I want to pause and give thanks to the Lord for His goodness to us in providing such a place of refuge for our family.  There was a time when we didn't know how we were ever going to find an affordable home to help us ease into retirement...but God truly surprised us when He opened THIS window of opportunity.  He proved to us that not only was HE able to provide for us, but that He had prepared special people to be kind and generous and willing to take a chance on us until we could stand on our own again. And now He has enabled us to do just that, and we want to say thank you. (No names needed, God knows).

"O Lord, YOU are the portion of 

my inheritance and my cup;

You maintain my lot.

The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;

Yes, I have a good inheritance.

I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel;

My heart also instructs me 

in the night seasons.

I have set the Lord always before me;

Because He is at my right hand

I shall not be moved.

Therefore my heart is glad,

and my glory rejoices;

My flesh also will rest in hope.

For You will not leave my soul in Sheol,

Nor will You allow Your

Holy One to see corruption.

You will show me the path of life;

In Your Presence is fullness of joy;

At Your right hand 

are pleasures forevermore."

Psalm 16:5-11

I suppose there may be some who will say that this is all well and good for you, but what about me? When is God going to show ME some pleasant places and a refuge from the world?  I cannot answer for God, but I can only say that when we put our trust in Him, He promises in His Word to show us the "path of life", and that "in (His) presence is fullness of joy".  For you it may not be in the woods, but it might be in a different neighborhood, or job, or place of worship.  It could be a new friendship or relationship that brings joy and fulfillment after a long wait.  It could even be finding that place of contentment right where you are when you realize that God is with you and that He will never leave your side.

I read a verse in my morning devotions a couple of days ago that stood out to me and also caught my husband's attention, so much so that he asked me to find it again the next morning and read it again.
The verse is found in Psalm 17:15 ~

"As for me, I will see Your Face in righteousness;

I shall be satisfied when I 

awake in Your likeness."

This is complete contentment and peace...to be satisfied when we awake one day in heaven, and to find that we shall be like HIM.  Knowing that helps us to endure our trials here. That, and the knowledge that "in Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore."

Thank you, Lord, for Your Presence here and now...

and forevermore!

Amen.

UPDATE:  I hope you managed to read through all of the "strike-through's" as I attempted to update this post and bring it up to date. I guess I didn't realize just how much has changed since I originally wrote this two years ago! So much can change in such a short amount of time...so we need to live each day as if it could be our last...and give God the glory and praise He is so worthy of every single day!

Now, let's hop on over to Bev's place at Breathing In Grace  and see what our other friends are posting today for Friday Foto Friends.

Why Wait for Dreams to Come True?

Click on this link to a previous story about my "dream cabin"    and then please come back here to finish this story.  No, I don't have the 'dream cabin' yet.  But the dream is still there in my heart, perhaps even more so than before.

And possibly in some ways we are actually getting closer to the reality of what this "dream cabin" was intended to do even without the cabin. It just may be that the cabin isn't really the important instrument necessary to practice the kind of hospitality we long to provide for those in need of some encouragement, fellowship, friendship, or comfort.  Maybe it isn't even the "country porch" that I desire that is required      "to have the kind of place where people love to sit a spell and visit...you know what I mean...a rocking chair and a swing on the porch...just sit back, relax, watch the birds, bears, and lizards...and ENJOY being together...like the good old days."  

Signs created by Ben's Country Woodshop

 I think what I am coming to realize is that it doesn't take a special building, porch, or even the perfect location to create a place where people can feel loved, cherished, nourished, comforted, encouraged, and appreciated.  What it takes is opening our doors and welcoming people in, regardless of what our house looks like, or whether or not we live in the woods, or by a lake, or in the city or in an apartment building. What it takes is to have open hearts and open homes...and the desire to put aside our own problems and inadequacies and be present in the lives of others who may be searching, lonely, or broken-hearted.  To open our doors when someone knocks who may be hungry, thirsty, or a stranger in need of someone to care. (See Matthew 25:35-46)  

To remember what it says in Hebrews 13:1-2 ~ 

"Let brotherly love continue.  Do not forget to entertain strangers,

for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels."

And in Romans 12:10-13: 

"Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;

not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord;

rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer,

distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality."

I guess what I am trying to say is "Why Wait for Dreams to Come True" to practice hospitality, encouragement, and brotherly love? Isn't that something we should be doing all the time anyway? After all, why should I expect God to make all my dreams come true when I'm not even doing the things I say I will do once my dreams do come true? I need to live in the present...and practice those things that I know are right and good and acceptable to God now, "which is your reasonable service..."  (Romans 12:1)   I have not been promised tomorrow anyway...so I'd best be proving what is "that good and acceptable and perfect will of God" today.  (Romans 12:2)

No, I haven't given up on the dream to one day have the kind of place I have described before, but I'm not going to wait for my dream to come true to be doing what I know I ought to be doing anyway.  All I ask is that the Lord give me discernment to know when He is sending people my way, and that He will help me to be available in mind, spirit, and heart...and to be present to the need that is presented. Sometimes I'm a bit blind and preoccupied with my own problems and I may miss the blessing of being there for someone else. I don't want to miss God's blessing because I am waiting for everything to be in order and perfect before I will open my heart to help someone else. I don't want to wait for dreams to come true...I want to be a part of the living dream that is already happening if I'd just open my eyes.

How about you? What dreams are you waiting on to come true? Could it be that the dream is already a reality, but perhaps not exactly the way you thought it should be?  Ask God to open your eyes to see what He wants you to see right now. You may be surprised to see that your dreams are not that far from reality too! 

Have a blessed night my friend, and "sweet dreams."

A Link To What I've Been Doing Lately

Hi Friends!  While many of you are stuck in snow, ice, and winter gridlock, here's what I've been doing in my spare time down here in Florida.  Don't worry...there are no pictures of sunny beaches, palm trees or me in my bikini (never had one...and you should be thankful!)... Just some "quality" time spent working on a project with my carpenter son Benton from "Ben's Country Woodshop".  This time the project was something for me to enjoy, even if I did have to work for it!  Click on this link to Ben's Country Woodshop and check it out!  Then fix yourself a hot cup of tea or coffee or cocoa and wrap up in an extra blanket or sweater and make the best of your day!  Blessings to all...Love, Pam


http://benscountrywoodshop.blogspot.com/2014/01/kitchen-cabinet-redo-or-making-mom-happy.html

From My Kitchen to Yours, With Love

Blessings from "My Three Sons" and "Santa's Workshop and Bakeshop"

This year Santa's elves have been quite busy here at the Steiner house...while one son was in the kitchen baking Sand Tarts from the old family recipe, another son was in the garage building a special shelf for our living room, to finish off the earlier project of a shelf unit that he built to house the components for the new flat screen TV that was also a Christmas gift to the family. 

My son Benton, in "Ben's Country Woodshop", making a special gift for us this Christmas too!





The antique door knobs came from my Dad's workshop, and
also the bookends with the gun handles were built by my Dad
quite a few years ago as a Christmas gift to my husband, who
was a State Trooper at the time.  The china plate in the
middle is one of our wedding gifts, the owl represents my
"Barred Owls" in our backyard and was a gift from my sister
Doris last year.  The ducks were gifts from a friend, and
I forget where the quail came from, but it finishes out
the collection of birds and special things....



 The thing that makes this shelf so special is not only the fact that our son made it himself, but he used special tools that he got from my Dad (his Grandpa's) workshop after Grandpa passed on to be with the Lord earlier this year. To finish off the shelf he attached three antique china doorknobs that also came from Grandpa's workshop.    

Our son Matthew (r) and his wife Nicole and our Grandson, Noah

I am blessed beyond measure...the gift from our other son, who lives in Maine and could not be here for this Christmas with us, is the fact that God has granted him another year of precious life.  He has been battling a rare cancer for the past almost two years, and every day that God gives him is a gift.  He recently had a biopsy of a growth that was giving great cause for concern for fear that the cancer was spreading to other parts of the body...and the wonderful, marvelous news this week was that there was NO sign of cancer in that growth.  Although the cancer is not completely gone from his body, it is not showing any signs of growth, and so we give God praise for this wonderful gift.

Myriads of "Heavenly Hosts" of angels...Praising God and Singing Hallelujah!!!

Grandma Mursch’s Sand Tarts

(Elva Hill Mursch )

(My Paternal Grandmother)
December 27, 1896-December 16, 1984

My Grandma Mursch always made these Sand Tart cookies for Christmas. They are from a wonderful old German recipe. In 1980 Grandma passed this recipe on to me so I could make it for my family. The first Christmas I made them, I wasn’t sure how many the whole recipe would make, and I needed a good cookie for the church cookie swap. My mother-in-law, Vivian Steiner, helped me roll and cut and bake the doubled - whole recipe, and we soon found out that it made about 18 dozen cookies! That was quite a task! I only needed 13 dozen for the cookie swap, and I was chagrined to discover that I was the only one who had gone to the trouble of baking a rolled and cut cookie for this event!

From then on, I usually only baked the Half Recipe, and it made more than enough cookies for our family and to share with others! As the years went on, I eventually taught our son, Scott, how to make these cookies so that he could continue the tradition. For the past few years he has baked these cookies as his Christmas gift to the family!  HERE IS A PICTURE OF SCOTT, WHO CAME BACK HOME THIS YEAR, AND IS BACK TO MAKING THE SAND TARTS FOR THE FAMILY AGAIN FOR CHRISTMAS!  THANK YOU SCOTT!!!!!

The secret to a good Sand Tart is to be sure to roll the dough real thin before cutting the cookies. The thinner cookies are crispier and tastier. Just be sure not to burn them! Also, for the brushed on glaze of egg wash, you need two egg yolks and about a tablespoon of milk mixed together to cover the ½ recipe. I buy the pre-sliced almonds to put on top. Use about two tablespoons of white sugar to one teaspoon of cinnamon mixed together in a shaker (I use a salt shaker) to sprinkle on the tops.

This recipe is a keeper…and should be passed down from generation to generation!

Sand Tarts

(Yield 8-9 dozen) (This is the Half Recipe)

Mix Together:

• 1 ¼ lb. Butter
• 3 eggs
• 2 lbs. Brown Sugar

Then add 2 lb. Flour

Roll real thin and cut with cookie cutters. Brush tops with yolk of egg beaten with a little milk. Put a sliced almond on top and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Bake at 350 degrees for 6-8 minutes.

My Son Scott carrying on the family tradition of making Sand Tarts at Christmas (2011)

Enjoy!

THESE ARE JUST A FEW OF MY CHRISTMAS BLESSINGS THIS YEAR.  I THANK THE LORD FOR ANSWERED PRAYER IN SO MANY WAYS....BEHIND THE SCENES OF THESE PICTURES THERE ARE BIGGER AND BETTER STORIES TO BE TOLD...AND I GIVE GOD PRAISE.

HAVE YOU STOPPED TO THANK GOD FOR YOUR CHRISTMAS BLESSINGS THIS YEAR?

The BEST GIFT OF ALL!!!