Huckleberries

I've never seen or thought about huckleberries before until I moved out here to western Canada. But I think that, that has got to be one of the best names for a berry! I saw an ad in the paper for a Huckleberry Festival and liked the way it sounded and so off we went on a two hour drive to this ski resort that was hosting the festival. It didn't look like the nicest day but checking the weather before hand I decided we would be ok with light sweaters and shorts and I even chose to wear sandals. When we arrived at the mountainous location it was six degrees. And everyone had on hiking boots, pants and lots of layers. But I was bound and determined to make the best of our huckleberry excursion. We got lift tickets some buckets and slowly, slowly got lifted to the top of the hill. The slow progression on the lift made it all the more cold while I endured all kinds of comments about the choice of my attire. Yes, thank you, I realize I made a bad decision with the sandals and shorts, I want to say as I smile, and gritting my teeth! 

 At the top we take a few steps and my husband says to me so what do they look like, and I say I read that they look like a blueberry (what a boring name for a berry) so we look a bit and I found a little bush with burgundy leaves that had deep purply blue berries and I pick one. I eat it and fake a dramatic choke and then say well they are safe, these must be it. So we start picking tiny berries from soaking wet bushes on top of a mountain that must have been 3 degrees (IN AUGUST!!) ! And also I should mention they are pretty sparse little bushes.

 I'd say we endured about 15 min. only because our hands stopped functioning at around that point, and collected half a cup of berries. Good times, good times. 
 On the way down, as it was on the way up the lift we spotted deer walking by and this time they were walking even right beneath our chair! That was cool. The sights were awesome. The experience was....an experience. And hey, I got to make some Huckleberry muffins after!

2 cups flour  1/2 tsp. salt  1 tb. baking powder  1 cup sugar
Sift these ingredients together. Stir in 1/2 cup huckleberries (or more if you could gather more:) or just plain old blueberries)
In a separate bowl mix
2 eggs  3/4 cup oil  1 1/4 cup greek yogurt  1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
Gently stir this into the dry ingredients with 1/2 cup white chips
Plop into greased 12 cup muffin tin and bake in preheated 400 degree oven for 20 min.

 

 If its a typical August day sit outside and enjoy the fruits of your labor!
 So from all this I guess I should learn, always be prepared and don't have to many expectations!

Quiet in Gods Presence

 

Though I have felt stressed to the max lately with all that needs to be done with the upcoming move, I have seen how the Lord has been using this stressful time to have an outcome of growth, already. Also reaffirming what I know to be true. And we haven't yet moved!

:: I reluctantly admit that for me, its hard to be nice when I am overwhelmed and stressed.

::Don't rely on self confidence. Have confidence in the Lord!

::Trials test your faith. When faith withstands those trials, growth is inevitable.

::Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He with make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5,6

This verse keeps coming to me lately.

 

 

I come back to again realising how a quiet moment, between just me and God, is what truly brings me relaxation, peace, and clarity. NOTHING beats that. I went for a walk when the sun was getting low. I was confronted with this truth: I need time alone quietly in Gods presence.

What book is all About Ckicken?

  Hencyclopedia! (groan) The kids told this one and it made me think about this yummy meal I made the other day called  Lemon-Dill Chicken Popover. It was so delicious and not a bad idea to make for a warm summer day. You only use the oven for about 25 min. and you microwave the rest.
  For the popover:
3 tb. butter, melted and divided.
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
6 eggs
1 cup milk

For the filling:
2 cups frozen mix carrots, broccoli florets, cauliflower
1 med. onion, chopped
1 tb. butter
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 med. red pepper, diced
1 tb. lemon juice
1 tsp dill weed
 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese


Brush the bottom of a deep dish pie plate with 1 tb butter, set aside. In a bowl combine the flour and salt, mix in the eggs, milk and remaining butter until smooth. Pour into prepared pie plate.
Bake at 400 degrees for 20 min. Reduce heat to 350; bake 5-10 min. longer or until golden brow and centre is set.
In a microwave safe bowl, combine veggies, onions, and butter, cover and microwave 5-10 min. Add the remaining ingredients except cheese and microwave another 4 min. Stir in cheese.
Spoon the mixture onto the top of the popover, cut into wedges and serve immediately. (This does reheat well too)

It was so nice to sit on the veranda this evening while we ate. It made me slow down the pace. Taking the time to take the meal outside, I was able to hear the birds chirp, feel the breeze, and I could smell the flowers that are blooming all around. Taking the time to be in the moment and enjoy it, has been difficult lately. You see, my family and I had decided to make a big move, some 3,300 km away in another province. This has brought on a lot of work in preparation with big time purging. To be honest I would definitely call us "pack-rats". And having a house that is much too big for our family of 5 has made it more than easy to fill it up. "You never know when you might need it" - has always been our motto.
And here is another one that I followed with out wanting to admit it:

Found this in the window of a store, last month!

"A bargain is something you can't use at a price you can't resist."  -Franklin P. Jones. That would be the blame of all my books. I had shelves lining every wall in my upstairs hall.  About 3 book shelves as well, with not enough time to read them all. Too many cook books, not enough time to make every meal. Too many clothes with only one body to wear them on. Cd's that I knew I didn't want to listen to. More mugs than I would ever need to drink out of. All this and it doesn't even get to my husbands tool hoarding issues. When we had to face all this clutter it made me think -  O Lord, are you leading us to move, in part, that we would deal with this over crowding of stuff? I keep telling myself - LEARN FROM THIS... We can have a fresh start. I now truly realise that this is an issue, and here is the perfect chance to deal with it. But I can't fool myself. I can foresee that its probably like dropping a bunch of weight. It's not the hardest thing to loose the weight its keeping it off.

Savoring the last days of Summer

These here are Phil and Susan, the resident frogs here at this near by island. ;)

Violet let them go, so that Phil could finish collecting dinner for Susan.

Lake was having a heck of a time whacking down the biggest and toughest weed I have ever seen.

Holly was having fun running around with Buttercup.

MacMurray looking handsome.

Buttercup is doing pretty much what I did the whole afternoon we were on the island. Stared. I quietly enjoyed the weather, the sights and loving doing nothing but enjoying my family. 

Why do we (I) ever try to clutter up life with unnecessary things that $$ buys when there is such an abundance that the Lord has blessed us with?

I'm sorry if this is boring but for me (and maybe for you to), I'm gunna list off the free blessings I had on this day before me to acknowledge the fact that no unnecessary $$ needed to be spent. Here is what there was to freely enjoy:

Gods gift of eternal life, my husband, my children, our health, a free country to live in, a warm sunny day, a place to kayak to, kayaks, our puppies, food to eat on our picnic, the sand between my toes, clean water to swim in, places to explore, animals to find and watch, sunglasses and swimsuits. I could find others...

With that I want to end this off with stating that our family is going to go on a spending fast. My husband heard of this womans blog on the radio and how she got out of debt going on a spending fast. That for us, I believe will help us get a good perspective on how we view money and possessions. Pay off debt and appreciate the simple pleasures in life, leaving behind the belief that one needs to spend money to enjoy life. We still have some decisions to make regarding the "rules" but we basically want to follow most of the ones on the blog. 
Hebrews 13:5
Keep your life free from the love of money, and be content with what you have.

Proverbs 22:7The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower becomes the lender’s slave. 

Times Spent Going to the Beach

Here is what we saw these past few weeks going to the beach.

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. Explore. Dream. Discover. -Mark Twain

Bubbles

Found a neat idea on this blog to make homemade bubble wands and bubbles. We loved the fun of it all.

Super Slippery Fun

"Buttercup", our new addition is doing very well. She has grown and it is still hard to believe she even weighs about 3 lbs.! Holly is doing an awesome job being her mummy.

Another cucumber idea. Its something of a cold cucumber tea. I adapted it from the prevention's flat belly diet. To 8 cups of water add a large sliced cucumber, tsp of ground ginger (I would have used fresh if I had it, but this tasted fine) a couple tablespoons of dried peppermint (again with the woulda used fresh if I had it) And half a lemons juice. Toss the pieces in with the rest ( but of course I only had bottled juice) Let sit overnight or so and the water is so tasty and refreshing. Its ugh hum.....spa water. ;)

This is a great idea for kids (sorry I should not limit this to just childs play), or anyone, on a hot summer day. 

You stick the kids in the trampoline, and just add soap and water!!

Ever seen a soap angel before!?

Its handy too for when they are looking a little dull, and crusty. They clean up real well with this fun. :D

Super Slippery Fun

Cukes- Coming out of my ears!

I was looking on line for ideas to use up all my cucumbers, and I found the popular recipe for creamy cucumbers and altered it to my liking. Here is how it turned out: 1/2 cup of Light Miracle Whip, 1/2 cup light sour cream, 1/3 cup vinegar, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 cup thinly sliced onion. Mix and add, 4 cups of peeled, sliced cucumbers, or however much you can. In my opinion it has just the right amount of sour and sweet, and so refreshingly tasty.

SNAP!

 What do we have here? Three cute children eating-- homemade ice cream?!!

 I never would have thought that it could be so easy to make! I saw the light in a recent article in a Woman's Day mag.
In a large mixing bowl, beat on high until stiff peaks form,
2 cups of heavy cream----------------->

Can of sweetened condensed milk----->

And a tablespoon of the vanilla   >
Freeze for at least 4 hours. YUMMY!

 So why am I posting a picture of an old ugly patio table?

 Because I'm too cheap to get rid of it just because it was ugly. And so I added a bunch of magazine pictures, that I glued on the washed surface. A lot of varnish (probably 15 coats) and some blue paint for plastic to make the border on the top and cover the legs of the table. Now I have a unique patio table that will disguise future stains when they happen. And they will happen. It took me about 2 months to get around to completing the whole project. I did bits here and there, but at least I am able to use it this summer, yay!

This cute shirt that my littlest outgrew was too cute to not think of a new purpose for it. I came up with:

 turning it into a purse.

 Its a keeper.