Flashback Friday: Girls just wanna have fun

When the guys would leave town. Laura Beth and I would make sure to have a girls night. We would always seem to have fun and stay up late. This night in particular we died hair. Jennifer Morgan came over to my house and we died Laura Beth, Summer and Mara's hair. I can't remember if anyone else was done. This was a very memorable night.

Sassy Shoe Thursday

My Easter shoes that I bought in Texas.

Sarah Snyder, RN, BSN

I want to tell you about one of the most important people in my life. Sarah has been a wonderful friend for a long time. We met at college at Eastern Washington University. Our first semester we took a couple classes together. We really did not spend a whole lot of time together while I was there for college. We had different friends and different schedules other than classes. Once I moved to Great Falls Sarah was really supportive in what I was doing here. She kept up with me and we have just kept in contact for many years now. I would occasionally go to Spokane to visit and we would go to concerts like Audio Adrenaline and we always have to eat places like Red Robin and Tomato Street. She has had a major influence in where I am with the Lord now. She was the maid of honor in my wedding. She was a huge blessing to me in this area. Sarah has made us two beautiful quilts: one for Mike & I when we got married and one for little Sarah. She has come to visit me a few times. Last June she came and we went to Glacier Park. It was so much fun for her to see Gods beautiful creation with me. When it came to naming my daughter, Sarah, it was exciting to name her after my best friend that is so faithful, has a heart of gold, and has a contagious love for the Lord. I pray that my little Sarah would follow in her footsteps. Last month she came and saw us for a week. We made sure to treat her to her favorite restaurants: MacKenzie River Pizza, Fuddruckers, and Wheat Montana. We had a wonderful time of fun and fellowship. This is to an amazing woman of God who has completed nursing school and has now gotten a job at Sacred Heart Medical Center on the neurology floor. Welcome to the big world. Thanks for being such a wonderful friend!

CONGRATULATIONS SARAH!!!

Happy Easter!

I completely agree with Laura Beth, I think that I am going to have to plan some bigger family festivities for Easter next year. How about dying some eggs... I am sure that it will be fun with Sarah being over a year and half to have an Easter egg hunt.

Have a blessed day.... He did it for you!

Journey

It has been a while since I have written on here. Life... well... GFCC is getting ready to host a big conference so I have spent some time at the church praying for that. This past week my best friend Sarah Snyder came and visited me for the week. More to come about that fabulous time. Monday Sarah, my mom, and I are leaving for Texas for two weeks. We are going to move my grandma into a senior apartment complex. We are praying that God will help us get everything done and also sell her house soon. I am so excited for her. So if I am not around for a while that is why. I will let you know when I am back and stories about my trip.

My new calling...

Last friday I went to the hair dresser with Schelli. While we were there for 3 hours I had plenty of time for the Holy Spirit to reveal things to me. Schelli came in with blond hair and left with a light brown color. Something in me was really connected to one of the other hair dressers there and so I decided that I needed to make an appointment with her. So I Wednesday was my appointment and here is what happened. I went in with blond/brown hair and I came out with walnut/red hair. I am sure that God is doing something there but it will just take time. Pray for Kelli!

Valentine's Trip

Sarah's first swim at Fairmont Hotsprings

Katie's Kitchen

Just a couple recent recipes I have made that you should try!



Pumpkin Cake Roll
Prep: 30min Bake:12min Oven:375 Cool: 1hr Makes: 10 servings

4 eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
sifted powdered sugar
Cream Cheese Frosting (see below)

Separate eggs. Allow egg whites and egg yolks to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meawhile, grease and lightly flour a 15x10x1 jelly roll pan covered with parchment paper. In a small bowl stir together flour, baking soda, and pumpkin pie spice; set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl beat egg yolks and vanilla with an electric mixer on high speed for 5 minutes or until thick and lemon colored. (If the yolks are sufficently beaten, they will flow from the beaters in a thick stream) Gradually add the 1/3 cup granulated sugar and pumpkin, beating on high speed until sugar is almost dissolved.

Throughly was the beaters. In another bowl beat egg whites on medium speed until soft peaks form (tips curl when the beaters are lifted). Gradually add the 1/2 cup granulated sugar, beating until stiff peaks form (the peaks will stand straight up when the beaters are lifted). Fold egg yolk mixture into beaten egg whites. Sprinkle flour mixture over egg mixture; fold gently just until combined. Spread batter evenly in the prepared pan.

Bake in a 375 oven for 12-15 minutes or until cake spring back when lightly touched. Immediately loosen edges of cake from pan and turn cake out onto a towel sprinkled with powdered sugar. Roll up towel and cake into a spiral starting from one of the cake's short sides. Cool on a wire rack. Unroll cake; remove towel. Spread cake with cream cheese frosting (see below) within 1 inch of edges. Roll up cake.

Cream Cheese Frosting
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
3- 3 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar

Beat cream cheese, butter, and vanilla with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually add 2 cups of powdered sugar, beating well. Gradually beat in additional powdered sugar to reach spreading consistency.



Crusty Pizza Dough
1 package active dry yeast
1 cup warm water (105 - 115 F)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cornmeal

Dissolve yeast in warm water in mixer bowl. Add salt, olive oil, and 2 1/2 cups flour. With a dough hook, mix for about 1 minute on medium speed.

Add remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, and mix until dough clings to hook and cleans the sides of the bowl. Knead on medium speed for 2 minutes longer.

Place dough in greased bowl. Cover. Let rise in warm place, free from draft, about 1 hour, or until doubled in bulk. Punch down dough.

Brush 14-inch pizza pan with oil. Sprinkle with cornmeal. Press dough across bottom of pan, forming a collar around edge to hold toppings. Add toppings as desired. Bake at 450 for 15 to 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

Unraveled

Saturday I decided that I needed some encouragement. I was on the Church for Life web site and I decided to listen to Cindy's sermon becoming unraveled. Cindy talks about this ball of twine that is all messed up with knots and is out of order. How my life feels like that ball. But God gently entangles us. I am learning. I pray that He will continue His work until completion. Like Cindy said, "God does not give us an instruction manual in Chinese with missing pieces."Only He can see the whole picture.

Cindy: Thank you for being faithful to the Lord in teaching His people!

Potato, potato

Recently God is teaching me humility. I am experiencing the worst massage in my life. He finds the tight spots and is pressing in until that junk is out and it is more than just a few spots at one time. He is taking this hard potato that I am and making me mashed potatoes so that I can be formed to what He wants. I know that sounds like a weird analogy but just when I think that life is going to calm down the Lord wakes me up in the middle of the night to tell me something else. I am getting "boiled" in everything from my relationship with my husband, to being a better with our finances to being a good neighbor. I think that God has to wake me up in the middle of the night to get my attention some times. Last night at 3:30am (Mike is working 6pm to 6am shift this week) Sarah woke up screaming (shrieking). If you know my daughter God gave her a very good set of lungs. When I went in her room to calm her I realized that the hot tub was running and I hadn't heard it shut off. Well, Harley (our dog) ruined the cover that came with it and so Mike made a homemade one that was made out of plywood so that he could stand on it and not ruin the cover. Well, that did not work very well. So I prayed that God would provide a hot tub cover. Then I try going back to sleep. Oh no, then I am thinking about my awful looking lawn that has not been raked and thinking how horrible it looks. I live in a pretty high class neighborhood here on 4th Ave N where most people on our block pay to have their yards done. Of course I can make all of the excuses in the world of why I don't have time to rake my lawn. Like... I don't know if I can leave Sarah in the house alone, this is Mike's responsibility, its windy, its cold, I don't have time. Meanwhile the Lord is "mashing" me and telling me what a horrible neighbor I am and that I need to be a light in this dark place. But that means that in January I am going to have to go outside and rake my lawn when everyone else on the block already has it done! I have asked Him for help. He told me to get up and send a text message to the young adults and see if they would help me. Well, of course, I said that I would do it in the morning. It needed to be done NOW. I can think of a million things that need to be done inside my house but I felt like the Lord was telling me that He is working from the outside in. Just like in my life. I praise the Lord that He is guiding me into humility (even in the middle of the night). Now I just need prayer.

They're bigger now.

Do you know who these babies are?

Sarah playing cards

 

Sarah's first mess!

Most mothers would not be excited about this but I just had to share. The other night Mike and I were playing cards and we had some water. Well, Mike decided to put Sarah on the table and she thought that that blue glass looked interesting so she grabbed it. Here is the result. Not to mention daddy and Sarah both had to go change clothes. 

Phone day

I have had another one of those days that I feel that I have not really accomplished much. My goal for today was to get all of my floors swept and my little piece of a carpet vacuumed. It is now 4:00 and I have not accomplished any of that and yet I know that people are more encouraged because of it. I have had one of those days where I swear that I have talked all day with a phone on each ear. Maybe not quite that bad. Have you ever had one of those "phone days?" At the same time that I feel so overwhelmed with not getting a whole lot done God has really shown me His love and grace. Only He designs my days and I praise Him that I am available to minister to people and show them His love in this way. If you have ever had these kinds of days you understand and God bless you as you pour out more than you have for that day.

Jammer Busses

This summer we spent a long weekend with Sarah Snyder in Glacier National Park. On this trip I fell in love with the Jammer busses. I think that they are the coolest. Maybe some day we can take a tour of Glacier in one. 

Kitchen Aid

For Christmas my husband and parents bought me a Kitchen Aid mixer. The second time I used it it broke and I was very disappointed. So I called Kitchen Aid and they said that they would mail me another one (they have a year guarantee on their products). So I just got it in the mail and it was a different mixer than my original one. So I called Kitchen Aid again and asked them what the deal was. I did not want to be dishonest since I have to send my old one back. They told me that they don't make that model anymore and so I get an upgrade. Praise God! I have received God's favor.

Sarah