Living as a Victorious Christian Woman

In our house, we have the best birthday tradition. Danny does the planning for my birthday surprise, and I just have to go along for the ride. It is the most fun I've ever had because he always picks something different and interesting. This year he took me to Boone, Iowa, to go on Rail Explorers, and it was amazing. The Boone & Scenic Valley Railroad is one of the great Iowa tourism destinations, and they've added these pedal-assist railcars to their arsenal of fun. As soon as we pulled up to the parking lot, I knew by the logo where we were. Designed for two or four people, the seat on the right runs the motor while the passenger twirls the pedals and makes it look like she's helping. I'm very good at that part. The looking like she's helping part. Large groups of people can go at once, leaving three railroad cars' length between each car. Most of the time it felt like we were the only ones on the tracks, which was a cool feeling. The track they use is bea...

Ice cream has been an almost daily part of my day all my life. Dress it up, eat it plain, turn anything you want into a la mode. It's one of those versatile foods that makes me smile no matter how it's served. Since tomorrow is my birthday and ice cream is one of my favorite things, here are just a few fun, sweet treats you can make to help me celebrate. Click the link for all the details. Breakfast Cereal Ice Cream Frosted Animal Cookie Ice Cream and Cookies Homemade Blackberry Ice Cream Ice Cream Sundae Sauce Mini Ice Cream Sandwiches Peaches and Cream Milkshakes Apple Enchiladas and Ice Cream Enjoy!

As a bibliophile and lover of the written word, antique books do my heart good. We had racks of Cool Old Stuff at our last book sale, and it was emptied so quickly that I know there are others who feel the same way. That's why this book of children's poetry from 1930, reprinted in 1938, is such a treasure. Even more so with my grandmother's maiden name on the bookplate. She was born in 1921, so this would have been hers as a teenager. That puts in perspective, doesn't it? It's full of classic works by Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, Joyce Kilmer, and Rudyard Kipling, but also by many poets I'm not familiar with. Two women painted all the silhouettes for the book, which are their own works of art alongside the poetry. These were the days when culture was taught at an early age, which is such a beautiful thing. She had several tiny slips of paper marking her place, making me wonder why she chose those pages. Was the girl from Iowa fascinated by the thought of whale...

We've both walked right through this spider web several times. Every day I take it down, and by the evening it's already been rebuilt. I've not seen the spider itself, otherwise I would relocate her to a better spot. Way away from the front door. My industrious friend reminds me of a great book  I'm reading  about the importance of gathering, in-person events, and making connections. At one conference, the host started by putting everyone in a circle and throwing a ball of yarn. Each participant threw it to someone else, and soon there was a giant spider web of yarn between them. Then the host said, "You are now woven together into this beautiful web. Let's keep that spirit for the remainder of our time together." What kind of web are you weaving today? Is it the annoying one that's just in everyone's way? Or is it a beautiful connection with the people in your sphere? Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto ...

When I was asked to be part of the 4H Expo's celebrity livestock show, I was a little nervous. I'd never done anything like this before, but I can't say that anymore! It didn't hurt that the bottle baby goat I was showing was the sweetest thing ever. Look at her pose for pictures. We had the option to dress up ourselves, the animal, or both, so of course I wanted to do both! There was a rumor going around that costumes and bribes actually did get you somewhere. That's why my sweet Brownie is wearing a sunflower collar in this picture. And posing again. Pause. While bonding with my show goat, I had to step next door and cuddle the 8-day-old twin goats. Mama actually let me pick them up and love on them, which absolutely made my day. Look at them! Mama was a sweetheart, too. To coordinate with my goat's flower costume, I dressed up like the gardener who chose the prettiest flower in the whole garden. The two boys helping me in the show ring had treats and a flower...

 

On Danny's days off, I'm happy to let him take over the kitchen. He is the most amazing cook, and he loves to come up with his own recipes and flavor combinations. It's truly a gift - one that I will gladly enjoy! My contribution to the menu last week was this delicious pecan slab pie. A slab pie is simply the ingredients for a traditional, round pie, but they're increased to make a larger batch. Then you can cut it into larger or smaller squares depending on how many people you're serving. If you love traditional pecan pie, you'll love this even more. Ingredients: 1 box refrigerated pie crusts (2 per box) 2 1/2 cups light corn syrup 2 1/2 cups brown sugar, packed 1/2 cup butter, melted 2 Tbsp vanilla 6 eggs 2 cups pecans, coarsely chopped 2 cups pecan halves 1. Remove crusts from box and allow them to come to room temperature, 1-2 hours. 2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly spray a 13x9-inch baking dish with nonstick spray. 3. In a large bowl, combine corn s...

Words are one of the most important ways we can communicate with other people. Conversations build relationships, answer questions, share information, and contain encouragement. In our words is the power of life and death, as Solomon wrote in Proverbs 18:21. These same conversations, when we have them with God through prayer, move to a whole other level. A relationship with God brings salvation. Questions are answered by the only One who knows all the answers. We are continually learning and continually receiving encouragement from the Lord Himself. This is why Psalm 99 is so fascinating. The writer goes back and forth between instructing the people and praising the Lord. He speaks to the Israelites, then turns to speak one-on-one with God. Then he turns again and speaks to the people.   The LORD reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be moved. The LORD is  great in Zion; and he is  high above all the people. In the first two ver...

Have you ever found something strange in a weird place? While looking for a certain package of decorator paper that I need for my travel scrapbook, I found a box full of sandpaper. Now, I've used a small piece of sandpaper to distress the edges of card stock for a weathered look, but this is way beyond that. And I don't remember collecting this much sandpaper all in one place. I pulled it all out just to make sure that was the only treasure in the box, and it was. But my discovery made me smile, too. For Shark Week, we taught two youth group lessons on sharks with the theme that Jesus is the greatest King of all! We played videos of sharks swimming on the big screen, matched up pairs of the deadliest - and friendliest - of sharks, and wore matching shark bracelets for a week. And one of the coolest facts we learned is that a shark's skin feels much like a piece of fine-grit sandpaper. We passed around a sandpaper block to give them an idea of what it would feel like to hug ...

This past week we had to say goodbye to our little bit. Callie had a herniated disc in her back that cut off the nerve to her back end, and she lost all function of her legs and her systems. We made the difficult decision to let her go, and we are heartbroken. I'll just leave these here.