Lemon Crinkle Cookies

So, Becke' gives me these 5 star recipes with rave reviews, I cook 'em and eat to many of 'em and write about 'em.  These cookies did not dissappoint.  They are award winners.

Blue Ribbon.

So light and fluffy and wonderful.  The best part?   You are probably only 1 fresh lemon away from having a plate of these little wonderful clouds of goodness in your hands.

Want the recipe? I thought you'd never ask! Here ya' go.

1/2 cups butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 whole egg
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 T. fresh lemon juice

1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup powdered sugar (for rolling dough balls in before baking)

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease pans with Pam. Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Whip in vanilla, egg, lemon zest, lemon juice. Scrape sides and mix again.

Stir in dry ingredients slowly until just combined, excluding powdered sugar. Scrape sides of bowl down and briefly mix again. Pour powdered sugar in a cereal bowl. Roll a heaping tsp. of dough into a ball and roll in powdered sugar.

Place on baking sheet and bake 9-11 minutes or until bottoms barely brown and cookies look matte (not melty or shiny).

Remove from oven and let cool on pan about 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack. * If using a non-stick darker baking tray, reduce baking time by about 2 minutes.

Spiderman Smoothies

This is a guest post from my boys. They wanted to share with you their recipe for the best Spiderman Smoothie you ever put in your mouth. (this picture was taken probably 5 years ago!!)

1 cup frozen strawberries
1 cup frozen blueberries
1 cup vanilla yogurt
1 cup orange pineapple juice
2 tsp. sugar
6 ice cubes

Blend well and serve with a straw.

Chicken Tacos

6-8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
16 oz jar salsa
1 can cream of chicken (or mushroom)
1 packet taco seasoning

Mix salsa, cream of chicken and taco seasoning together.  Spray crock-pot with Pam and add chicken.  Pour sauce over frozen chicken and cook on low 8 hours.  Shred with two forks and serve with soft tortillas, cheese, lettuce, and tomato.

These left-overs are great, which is why I add LOTS of chicken.  For reheating, heat the chicken in the microwave and layer over tortilla chips placed on a cookie sheet.  Top with cheddar and broil for a few minutes to melt the cheese.  Oh, it is good.

My friend Becke' gave me this recipe and I've already made it twice.  It's a crowd-pleaser and so fast, easy and packed with great flavor!

28 Minutes

Last night, 28 minutes before our friends were coming over, I got mad at the Mr.

T minus twenty eight and I'm in the bathroom huffing.  Behind 3 closed doors, my bedroom, then the bathroom, then the throne room.  As I sat there on the toilet, with the lid down, praying, I was frustrated at the situation.

There were still candles to be lit, lamps to be turned on, and a floor to be vacuumed and there I was in the bathroom hashing it out in prayer with the Lord.

Trying to remember the words I had read earlier.  It was something about giving grace to those who don't deserve it and speaking words that give life to those who hear.  It sounded better in my chair this morning while I was alone.  But having to apply it twenty eight minutes before the party was not my idea of fun.

That's the trouble with character building.  With allowing God to establish holiness in your life.  It doesn't come in a pretty package with a bow.  It doesn't happen sitting prettily in Bible Study with a finished lesson.

It happens twenty eight minutes before company comes while you're sitting in the toilet room deciding which road to take.

Within an hour my heart had softened and I extended forgiveness and grace and the boys killed us in cards.  Thanks, Lord.  I obeyed you and you still let me get stomped?  (haha) In the early days, it would have taken me days to forgive.

Wasted days, time and energy spent stewing, and letting the bitterness and anger grow.

Giving grace would have been nowhere on my radar.

The very nature of grace is that someone gets what they don't deserve.  Following Christ's example requires that we forgive those that don't deserve it.  It requires that we love back when we've been hurt.  It's not easy but it is possible. 

When God gives you a command on how to react, He will equip you through the power of the Holy Spirit to carry it out.   So here's the marching orders.

Watch the words that come out of your mouth.  Speak encouraging words that build people up, according to the need of the moment.  Let your words give grace to those that hear.

Ephesians 4:29

A Riveting Read

Shane is back from an 8 day trip. 

Today he was off.  We were both worn out.  Me, I think from 8 days of chasing boys, and him from leading a trip which was great he said. 

Do you know that feeling when you're looking a wide open day in the face?  Should we be total bums or should we be productive?  Well, we did both.  Divided and conquered.  He tackled the garage and I tackled the boys room.

Around 2:30pm we all hit a wall.  And crawled in our beds.  For 3 hours.  Then it took another good 30 minutes to fully wake up.  That.  Is.  What.  I'm.  Talkin'.  About.

That bedroom of the boys has been staring me in the face for awhile.  I just never could muster up the gumption to tackle it, ya know?

And tomorrow.  Well, we worked hard today so tomorrow we are swimming, reading, and having dinner with our friends who had birthdays last week.  Then we're gonna come home and play cards. 

Do you play Spades?  It's our favorite even though the boys count cards cheat.

Tonight I went on a walk and the neighborhood smelled like fabric softener.  I like that.

See, I told you this was going to be a riveting read.

Gotcha.

Outdoor Lighting

Lighting is the easiest way to create ambiance-whether you are inside or on the patio.

Right now, Targe' has globe string lights for less than $6.00 a box.  (the Phillips brand).  They add such a fun feel to your back yard.

And how about Mason jars filled with sand and a small candle-these are from Pottery Barn and can be hung from the trees.

Sometimes it's the smallest touches that make the biggest impact!

The Gift of Service

He came into my room crying because he got punched in the face.

My natural response would be to say toughen up.  If you wrestle with your brother we've told you there's a good chance you are going to get hurt.  Something clicked inside of me though.  What about a different approach.  One tinted with a little compassion.

It was his eye that took the hit.  Come here, I said.  I turned my bed covers down and let him crawl under.  After putting a cool washcloth on his eye and covering him up, I turned a movie on.  As he laid there in my cool, dark room with a cloth on his eye he said Thanks Mom.  I think it's starting to feel better.

A little compassion and love goes a long way.  It's part of my ministry and how my view of my role has changed over the course of the last 5 weeks.

Every day there is another opportunity to serve.  To try to be the hands and feet of Jesus.  To be his voice in my realm, the giver of life-giving words.

Yesterday afternoon I sat down in my chair.  It was around 4:30pm.  My body was worn out from a long day of physical work.  Just a few minutes to sit, read and catch my breath is all I needed.  They'll be getting hungry soon I thought, but it feels so good to sit here with my feet up.  I remembered what I read in Part V about teaching my children the Gift Of Service.  How Jesus ministered with a heart of love and willing hands.  He gave Himself for the poor.  It was rarely convenient.  My work may not seem important, but in God's hands it is valuable, especially when done unto Him.

All standard mothering tasks can seem depressingly mundane.  Yet when I study the ministry of Christ, I see that he responded in compassion to whatever need was presented to him, not just those that seemed "worthy" or important.  p183 Ministry of Motherhood

So, I got up, made the Taco Salads and ministered to my boys.

Teaching your children to serve is about modeling it to them.  It's also about giving them opportunity to serve.  Even when they don't want to, gently make them.  It is about letting them see you serve and serving as a family.

One neat thing we have done this year is in regard to support letters.  We get quite a few letters from various people raising funds for ministries and trips.  We've started reading the letters to our kids and talking about it.  It has been neat to include our children in the giving process. 

It is my prayer that my children will leave our home being aware that God has a plan to use them.  There is a lost, dying world beyond the comfort of our home, and if we're willing, we can be used to minister. 

 It will start with ministering right where you find yourself today.