God's Butterflies

These beautiful green moths come to our shed every year during the summertime.  When my daughter was a very little girl she would say, "Look Mom, God's butterflies are here."  To this day, we call these moths God's butterflies, and we wait every year for their arrival.  Sometimes there will be only one or two; sometimes there will be several.  This year there were several smaller brown moths sharing the space with them.

Spaghetti Towers

Several of our new Sixth Grade Science standards deal with the concept of Engineering.  This is a new topic for me to teach, and I have been searching for a way to reinforce this concept.

So, last Friday I decided to try a project that I had used years ago when teaching the Youth Group at my church.  I challenged groups of four students to build a tower using only gumdrops, mini marshmallows, and pieces of spaghetti.

 The goal was to design and engineer the tallest tower in the class.  They had 20 minutes to build this tower, and they had to communicate in some way other than talking.

Albert would have been proud.  The groups worked together so well, with no one getting upset or angry at mistakes that were made or towers that fell.  I do believe these kids learned a lot about the design process, as well as, the importance of working together. 

Oh,...and the winning tower was 26 inches tall.

Church

Do you go to church???

We do.  Right now, we have a new pastor.  He is doing a wonderful job.  I leave church on Sundays feeling refreshed and challenged to go through my week.  His sermons leave me thinking...which is a good thing.  I am inviting everyone I see to come and visit our church.  If you live close to us...I invite you, too.

Do you go to church???

I have always gone to church.  When I was a child, my Dad insisted we go to church every Sunday.  There was no excuse to miss.  I don't even remember missing because I was sick.  On Sunday morning, we got dressed and went to church.

Do you go to church???

As he got older, even my Dad began to miss church occasionally.  My husband and I will sometimes declare a family day, and venture away for a day.  Lots of folks miss church for sports events or family reunions that are scheduled on Sundays.  I think it is somehow sad that most of us no longer adhere to the idea of not missing church for any reason.

Do you go to church???

I do believe it is possible to be a Christian without attending "church".  But I do worry about children who are not raised in a church.  They are sent to the best schools, purchased the best clothes, signed up for baseball teams or cheer camp, but never taken to church to learn about Jesus.  Somehow this is a lot of time wasted on things that really don't matter at all.

Do you go to church???

I encourage you all to try it.  You don't have to attend my church, you don't have to attend a church of my denomination, but do at least try to find a place where you are comfortable and can become closer to God.  You might even find yourself committing to not miss a Sunday.

Do you go to church???

Blue Tablecloth

Not far from our home is a little country store called

The Green Valley General Store.

We pass by the store often, but I have not stopped there

in years.

My Sewing Sister recently told me that the store had been featured on Tennessee Crossroads.  The store has several specialties, one of which is fried pies.  I decided to stop today to purchase a couple of fried pies...which I did...one was apple and the other chocolate.  They were absolutely delicious.  I cannot believe that this store is only 3-4 minutes from my house, and I have not been shopping with them.

I also purchased this tablecloth while I was there.  I have been needing

something to cover my dining room table for a while...and this tablecloth

works very well.

Green Valley General Store

They also sell:

• 
  
  ice cold lemonade
• 
  
  baked goods
• 
  
  candies
• 
  
  jellies
• 
  
  quilts
• 
  
  antiques
• 
  
  glassware
• 
  
  soups
• 
  
  sandwiches
• 
  
  and much more

Lynchburg, Tennessee

Just a few outdoor pictures from my Lynchburg Sister's home.

Ice Cream in a Baggie

My daughter has a couple of school friends who have come home with us to spend the night.  They are having great fun.

We decided it would be fun to have a special treat and make ice cream in a baggie for our dessert after our meal.  It has been a long time since I have made this special treat.

To make this ice cream you will need:
     1 Tablespoon sugar
     1/2 cup milk
     1/4 teaspoon vanilla
     6 Tablespoons salt
     ice
     1 quart freezer bag
     1 gallon freezer bag

First, fill the gallon bag half full with ice...

then add the 6 tablespoons of salt.

Set aside.

Next, add the following ingredients to the quart baggie...

sugar, milk, and vanilla.

Close the small baggie and shake to mix the ingredients.

Next, place the quart baggie inside the gallon baggie.

Check to be sure both baggies are closed securely.

You'll need some gloves (or in our case socks) to keep your hands warm.

Shake for 5 minutes.

        Shake
  Shake
Shake

Shake

                                                     Shake

                                                                Shake

And finally, it is ready.

After 5 minutes remove the quart baggie and wipe it down good with a wet cloth.

Open the baggie and enjoy!!!

Caramel Frosting

This is one of my all time favorite cake icing recipes. 

It is an old fashioned family favorite.

To make this icing, you will need

-1/2 cup butter

-1 cup brown sugar firmly packed

-1 3/4 to 2 cups sifted confectioners sugar

-1/4 cup milk

 Melt the butter over low heat on the stove.

Add the brown sugar and cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

 Add milk and continue stirring until mixture comes to a boil.

Remove from heat and cool.

Add confectioners sugar until consistency to spread.

Use to ice a 9x12 cake or cupcakes.

This is a delicious sweet, sweet icing.

It makes a thicker icing that serves nicely

when cake pieces are cut for serving. 

I usually use this icing with yellow cakes.

Enjoy!!