Christmas Memories, Shishito Peppers and Coleslaw

good morning lovely  friends!!!!        I hope your morning is going well.        we just got in from our walk this morning.          it's a nice brisk morning and it felt good to get out in the day.       we try to walk 3 or 4 times a week and I usually get 2 or more miles, but this morning, we both have a lot on our agendas, so I just got a little over a mile and  a half.       I'm pleased with that, since I know I'll have a pretty full day.        I hope y'all can get some exercise in  too, it's just seems right and good.       hahaha

I hope to have some pictures to share with y'all of what has been on my dehydrator and there will be many more to come.    I think I had told y'all  that I had oranges and cranberries on my dehydrators and hopefully this first batch will come off soon this morning.         I look forward to having more of both in my dehydratedstash  cabinet.        if feels getting more stuff put away.        I hope y'all are figuring ways to save money and save more food for your families.         dehydrating is a fun and easy way for me to do just that.

one of the things I've been doing with the cranberries and oranges is to make powder from them with a little bit of monkfruit sugar blended in with the powder.        I add that to my breakfast jars when I'm making them.        it is so wonderful.       for my breakfast jars, I'll add: 

a ***scoop of chia seeds, 

same scoop of ground flax seeds, 

same scoop of monkfruit powder, 

same scoop of peanut butter powder, 

same scoop of cran-orange powder, 

1/4 cup of old fashioned oats 

almond milk up to the bottom of the jar just before the ring starts.    

stir that real good, put lid on and sit in fridge till next morning.        take the lid off and add  1 tablespoon of coconut milk and stir that really well and enjoy!!!

I make 6 of these at a time.          so I have breakfast for 6 mornings and it is so delicious!!!

at some point in time, I'll share with you what I make for my husband for his breakfast.

***the scoop I use is a little less than a tablespoon but more than half of a tablespoon.        I got it years ago in so protein powder.         it's black,  has a  little long handle and the scoop comes to a rounded point on the bottom.        you may have some just like it.  

*********************************

with Christmas being less than a month away, I thought I would share this.        it may be a reshare, but it's always a good read for me to go back to every once in a while.         I hope it sparks some good memories for you.           it always does my heart good to see how I have been blessed and think about some of the Christmas gifts from Christmas past.        I wrote this several years ago and I still have a lot of the presents mentioned.         I think I wrote this back in 2014, I'm not quite sure.

Good evening y'all.          It's been kind of a gloomy day today and that does not help at all with lifting my spirits.            It seems every year around this time and earlier that some of the sadness of life creeps in.            No matter how hard I try, it just does.           I know that some of y'all know exactly what I'm talking about.              Life events, over the course of my life and the lives of others seem to come to the forefront with the gloomy days of winter.             Oh, don't get me wrong, not every day is gloomy, but some are and that's what this post is about.           Just to prove to myself that not every day is gloomy.

Do you remember a special present that you may have gotten at some point in your life?            I'll bet everybody can name several special gifts they have received at Christmas.           I too, could name off several very easily without even thinking about it.              One of my special gifts was the last present that I got from my Grandmother Susie Anderson before she went home to be with the Lord.         The Christmas of 1968, she got me a doll.             This wasn't just any doll, this doll was me!!!        She was a little girl with a long blond pony tail, pudgy cheeks, a red gingham check shirt and a pair of overalls.   This little doll was as country as country could be.          She also had her hands made into fists, like she was gonna punch someone.          Maw said it reminded her of me, because I had so many older brothers and was always ready to fight if necessary.           I remember her laughing one of her beautiful, wonderful and glorious laughs.         Oh, to hear that again, and I will someday.          I think of that doll often and I see it every day, because I still have it.

Another gift I remember getting was a gift from Momma and Daddy.        It was a coloring book.   Almost an inch thick and it was Christmas themed.         Along with the coloring book came a big box, you know what I'm talking about, the big box of 64 crayons!!!          I loved that gift so much.        Give me a coloring book today and I'm in my happy place.         I savored each page of that coloring book.    I cherished each crayon.        I was probably 12 years old when I got this gift and I had for many years after I was a married woman.         We had moved to TN and I gave both the coloring book and what was left of the crayons to someone that used them for classes in an after school program.        The kids that got to color the pictures were tickled pink and I was tickled pink too.        I think of the coloring book and box of crayons often.

The year was 1970 and another gift that I think of often is a gift that I got in 4th grade from the person that drew my name in the gift exchange.         It was a puzzle.        I always loved puzzles.       Still do.   I got this puzzle put together and I loved it.        I named the puzzle "Alley Cat".          It was a pretty good sized puzzle.             We didn't frame the puzzle.           We had a big living room right off the kitchen.           It had a beautiful hard wood floor.           It was before the days of wall to wall carpeting and Mom and Dad had gotten a big area rug to put in the center of the living room.          The way all the furniture was placed in the room, there was only one of the corners of the rug that was not held down by a piece of furniture.            We looked and looked for somewhere to put my puzzle.         We finally settled on that corner of the rug.            We raised that corner up and slid that puzzle under there and that's where Alley Cat lived for many many years. 

From time to time, I would check on Alley Cat.           If I went missing, I could usually be found in the living room with the corner of the rug raised looking at that puzzle.        Every once in a while, I would take someone and show them our little Alley Cat.          It would be a good surprise for whom ever I showed it to.          When I got married, Momma wanted to know when I was gonna get my puzzle.       I kept saying some day I would bring Alley Cat home.          Daddy passed away in January of 2012 and Momma sold the home place that fall and that's when I finally brought Alley Cat home.

I take Alley Cat out every once in a while and look at her and then put her back up.         I really need to put her in a frame and hang her up somewhere.          But, I just don't know if I could bare to look at it on a daily basis.         Alley Cat has a special place in my heart and I'll never get rid of her, but she's a sad little thing.         When I got her out a little while ago to take a picture of her, I cried.        I don't know why.          I just know that every time I think of Alley Cat, I cry.

I guess that adds to some of gloominess around this time of the year.           It also adds to the joy that I have all year around.           Having something from the past that has been shared with a lot of people over the years and remembering the looks on peoples faces when they got to see Alley Cat has been fun to think about.          Seeing smiles come across faces and maybe the look of surprise in their eyes.   And then telling a quick story about how it came to be there.         Alley Cat lived there for 42 years and I think everyone actually enjoyed having that cat in the house. 

She has been in my home for 9 years now and I got her out and looked at her and the memories came rushing back along with a few tears.          Memories of putting her together, and putting her in her living place for all those years, then bringing her home.        I took a picture of my little Alley Cat.       I put her back up, I don't know when I'll take her out again, but she's here and I can take her out whenever I need to and then put her back up.          While time has rushed on since I got her as a Christmas present in the 4th grade, she hasn't aged a bit in 51 years.         When I take her out and look at her, I am right back there as that 4th grader putting her together and then reality comes rushing back in and I realize all the changes and all the loss that has taken place during those 51 years.       And I know more changes and loss will take place in the coming years, but Alley Cat will forever be that sweet, sad, big eyed kitten with wonder and hope in her sad eyes.  

Blessings y'all.

Alley Cat is now 53 years old and hasn't changed a bit in all those years.         when I look at her I feel as though I haven't changed either.         because she still makes me cry.        it seems with each passing Christmas, she gets sadder and sadder with all the changes and I guess I do too.         I know I have a lot to be thankful for and I surely am, but I hope that God will someday let me know why this particular puzzle touches me so.     

*************************************

ok, let's do another "2 minutes in the kitchen with me" segment this today.       how about that!!     these are Shishito Peppers.           they are mild in flavor.           only about 1 out of 10 are hot.         you never know which one is gonna be hot.             they are about the size of jalapeno peppers.          the wall of the pepper is not as thick, by any means, as a jalapeno pepper, but they are close in overall length.    they are delicious raw .         but they are especially delicious blistered.        blistering them enhances the flavor and makes them kinda nutty flavored.           it's really hard to describe how delicious they are.          the second picture is how I blistered them.        this time I used about a half tablespoon of real butter.      (I let mine get a little darker than what you see in the pan and I also blotted off some of the butter)  next time I will try avocado oil.      they are delicious on sandwiches, breakfast sandwiches also.          they are also good to just eat as a side.           the long stem on them is the perfect handle.  hehehe            if you see these anywhere, I would encourage you to try a few, they just may end up being a favorite of yours too.        if you get some, be sure and save some seeds.       and you may be able to grow some for yourself.          

these are very delicious and I would definitely encourage you to try them.         they have a flavor profile that can't be beat.         I dehydrated most of what I grew this summer just because I love to make powder and add it to a lot of dishes.        if you find any, be sure and try them.        better yet, get some seeds and grow some.        

**************************************

I have gone thru some of my older journaling.           Journaling that I do for myself, but sometimes do share.            I love to see how the Lord has helped me grow over the years and how He has spoken to me thru His written Word.          This is my personal journals, that's all it is.         I have shared them in other formats, but decided to share some here too.         Maybe, just maybe, others will be blessed by the sharing of these ever once in a while.  

 

Philippians 4:11  "Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content."

Paul was writing to his Christian brothers and sisters in Philippi and he had been thanking them for helping him.         But Paul had some very valuable lessons that he passed on to this congregation and he is still passing this on to congregations today.         He had learned to make do with he had.    Whether a little or a lot, what ever the situation, he had learned to be content.

Have we learned to be content?         Some people think contentment is a bad thing.       For me, I think contentment is one of the best things that can happen in  a persons life circumstances.        Some times, contentment can refer to the financial side of life.          If you happen to know how to stretch a little food to make a lot of food, you can have more contentment.          If you happen to know how to repair a rip in a piece of clothing or sew a button back on, there is more contentment.         If you can do home repairs yourself, there is more contentment.            If on the other side of that, you are always trying to keep up with your neighbors and all that they do, you may never experience contentment.

Are we content in our relationship with the Lord?       One of the things that I have always tried to apply to my life is this; "I do as I know to do, when I learn to do better, I do better."          I want the Lord to be my teacher.        I want the Lord to teach me to do better.         I do not want, ever, to be chasing after the next great idea or to be chasing after something that God isn't telling me to go for.       Some say, do you want to be satisfied with mediocre?           I say, if God has me at mediocre, then I know He knows what He's doing.          I know He is at work in me getting me ready for better than mediocre.        But, I don't want anything that He hasn't already planned for me.         I really feel that sometimes in our search, we are searching after stuff that He hasn't commissioned us to search for, therefore we have even more discontentment in our lives.

Sometimes we need to stop and take a breath.         then look at our circumstances and ask God what He has in store for us.       until He takes us to the next level, we really should ask Him to help us be content with where we are.         Whether we have a little or a lot, be content and keep on doing the work that God has before you and praise Him through it.         I am not saying we should ever stop trying to achieve what God has put before us.          My life won't look like yours and yours won't look like mine.          But discontentment will make both our lives look miserable thru the eyes of the onlooker.         God will bless us right where we are, in every situation, if we ask Him to do so.

Philippians 4:13 says "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

Those don't sound like words from a discontented Paul.          Whether he had meals fit for a king or bread and water, whether he was behind bars or a free man, he was content.          His contentment came from Christ!         Yours can too.          I pray that if you don't have that contentment in your life that you will ask God for it.          Contentment will only come during the hardships of life.        Contentment comes through the struggle.         When we have come to the end of who we are, and realize we can't do it on our own, Christ is ready to strengthen you.         When Christ is your strength, when Christ is your everything, then Christ is all you need.          With Christ comes contentment. (7-7-2014, pjg)

*********************************

let's do another "2 minutes in the kitchen with me", so I was working on getting supper going and I thought this would be something good to share with y'all.         we like coleslaw, but it gets weepy after a bit.  plus the coleslaw mix will get bad pretty quickly if you don't use it.      so, there's the dilemma.    I usually end up tossing at least a half of a batch of coleslaw.         and y'all know me, I don't like waste, I can't stand waste.        have I ever told y'all that I abhor waste.       well, now ya know.       hahaha  

the last batch of coleslaw mix I got, this is what I done.        once I opened the bag of mix, I took a new vac seal ziplock bag and put the opened bag of coleslaw mix in it and vacuumed all the air till it was flat and no air.         next time I made coleslaw I done the same thing.         that bag was over 2 weeks old and still as fresh as it was the day I bought it.          I just emptied that bag and opened another new bag of coleslaw mix and I done the same thing.          I flattened what was left of the coleslaw mix out in it's bag and stuck it down in the vac seal ziplock bag and vacuumed it flat and it will be good for 2 weeks or until I use it up and "no more waste".        those are 3 of my favorite words.      "no more waste".    yes and amen!!

so I have  some pics to show.  I make 2 batches of coleslaw, one for me and one for he.  (he being my hubby, hehehe) mine is fewer in calories and doesn't taste as good as his.      hahahaha       and that's what you see in one of the pictures.         anyway, this works like a charm for me, and "no more waste".  and that's a win all day long!!!!       yay!!! 

I hope you'll give this a try.       it really does save my coleslaw mix.        it stays so fresh till the bag is empty.

*************************************

I hope and pray you seen something here today that spparked some memories of Christmas past and maybe helped you remember some of the people in you life that blessed with a heart touching gift.      I hope you seen something that will help you in the kitchen at some time or another.        I also hope that you may have learned a little bit about contentment.         I try to be content with all my situations, because I try to remember that God is always with me.        I hope you know that He wants to love you and He made a wa way for you to be in right relationship with Him thru the shed blood of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savor!!!!         blessings, hugs and love to you all, patty

More Dehydrating and................

good morning y'all.        we had a really cool night last night in my neck of the woods.         got down to 19* F.          we're supposed to have a pretty nice warm up today though.           I hope so.         not a real big fan of the cold, but I'll have to take what I get and be satisfied with it.        it seems to be pretty quiet here in my neighborhood.          I just hear some rumblings of a truck, maybe a leaf truck a couple of streets over.          the occasional train will go by.          with the dropping of the leaves, the trains sound like they're right inside with us when they go by.          but we quickly get used to it.         the tracks are about a half mile or less as the crow flies from us.         in the summer time, we hardly ever hear it, because of all the leaves.      

*********************************    

So this is what I'm working right at the moment.         I got some covers to go on my 4 raised bed planters that I put all my garlic in yesterday.         so when it warms up, I'll be out putting those covers on.         hopefully, it will keep my garlic from freezing.         it would have been nice to have them earlier and I had them ordered way earlier, but got the wrong size and returnedd those and ordered the right size.         so, I'll get that job done today.         also need to make some bread.          I'll see how industrious I get today.         monday, I done laundry all day and yesterday, I got both of my dehydrators loaded up.          my largest one has almost 3 lbs of orange slices on it and the small one has one tray of orrange slices that I couldn't get on the other one and also 3 trays of sliced cranberries.          so let's talk about my process for a little bit.

I slice my oranges about an 1/8th of an inch thick.          these were navel oranges so the peel is a little thicker, but that's fine.          I set my dehydrator on 110* F and set the time as high as it goes and walk away.           

for the cranberries, I slice each one in half.          it takes a bit of time on the front end, but I also know that my hands have touched every cranberry and if there is a bad one, I can toss it.        I put these on my trays and set at 110* F also and set the timer as high as it goes.        I walk away.        if I need to reset the times, easy peasy.          they both stay on the dehydrator until they are "cracker crisp, rock hard or bone dry".          that is my 3 criteria for knowing when something is ready to come off the dehydrator.

a lot of people will dehydrate something for a little while and take it off and put it in jars and then have to put it back on and wonder what they done wrong.

personally, I don't take anything off the dehydrator until one of my 3 criteria has been met.        if it's completely dry "WHEN" I remove it from my dehydrator, then I know it's not gonna sweat and release moisture in the jar.        bone dry is very important or you risk mold.        

so if you'll get in the habit of making sure your produce is as dry as you can get BEFORE removing it rom the dehydrator, then more than likely, you won't have to put it back on.

bone dry and rock hard are just that.         if you take a hammer to something, it should shatter when you hit it.        if it just smashes down in the middle, it's not rock hard or bone dry.         if you're dicing sommething, make sure your dices are no larger that 1/2 inch thick.         you can make longer pieces, but nothing any  thicker.           for my cubed potatoes, carrots, winter squashes, I have one of those hand dicers that you put a slice in and it makes perfect cubes.        so I'll make 1/2 inch slices and then dice with the dicer.         worth ever penny, which it actually didn't cost much.        so you might want to check into one of those.          it also make quick work of dicing onions.

cracker crisp is when you have thin slices of whatever and you take a slice and break it like breaking a fresh saltine or some other kind of crispy fresh cracker.           my orange slices will be cracker crisp before I take them from my dehydrators.        also with citrus, if you can squeeze a slice between your fingers and juice or any stickiness comes from the little citrus pockets that make up the citrus, then you know it's not dry.        so when I quit getting any moisture or stickiness form squeezing, then I'll start trying to break them.         if they bend, they're not ready.          it's only when they break like a crispy cracker, that's when they will be ready to remove the dehydrator.

as for the sliced cranberries, they just need to be really dry.         I split them so that they will dry much quicker.          if you dump a bag of cranberries on a dehydrator try, it will take forever for them to dehydrate.         slice them and they will dry completely in a pretty reasonable amt of time.        I have 4 more bags to go when this one is dry.

once the oranges and cranberries are dry, I'll jar them up.        I can use them in many different ways.     I'll ttry to remember and take pics of them when they come from the dehydrator.        I love to blenderize the 2 together with a little bit of monkfruit sweetener in  them.         it is so wonderful to use in tea, I use it in my chia seed pudding for my breakfast, in yogurt and the list goes on.

I hope you find this semi tutorial helpful.         I will have pictures later on, so be on the watch for those.

************************************

let's have a "2 minutes in the kitchen with me" segment this morning.       little slow getting started, but I'm making cornbread swirls with a twist this morning.          I dehydrate just about any and all produce.  I can't stand waste, so it goes on the dehydrator.           you can usually hear mine running most of the time.           as I'm working on this post right now, I have 2 dehydrators going.

when I get little bits of something dehydrated, I'll jar it up till I get enough little bits to make a jar of what I call "Master Mix".          I got jar my #1 of master mix out (yes there is a #2 and working on a #3) and put a couple tablespoons of that in my cornbread swirl mix.          if you could only smell this stuff!!!         it is wonderful!!!           if I knew how to make perfume, I would use this stuff, it smells that good.         maybe it's just my smeller though. 😂🤣 anyway,  the jars are showing the mix I used, what's in the master mix, and then  the  doughball as it came together.        it has to finish up mixing then I'll shape and cut it, bake it and then a taste test.         yay!!!  

the jar that I used had for this batch of  cornbread swirls  had 19 different veggies blended into it.      what I'll do is watch my jars as they start running low.        then I'll pull out those jars and get my nutribullet out and start blending them together.         I don't know what all is in the jars.         I do have a jar that has hot pepper in it too.          I keep them separated.         hahaha

there are all kinds of bell peppers, tomatoes, greens, radishes, 3 or 4 different squash, cucumbers, jerusalem artichoke, carrots, celery, mushrooms, cabbage and the list goes on.           I don't throw anything away.          I'll dehydrate it and put it in one of these mixes.          this particular jar was started back in early 2021.         I have another one just like it, but it has hot pepper in it.  

this is good to put in just about anything that you want to bump the flavor profile up.        it's so unique and yours will be even different from mine.          there are no measurements for what goes in it, just scraps in the bottom of jars.       

I've used this in bread, soups, mac and cheese, meatloaf, chili, sour cream for a dip, sprinkle on top of salads,  and the list goes on.         it's very versatile.         make some with your kibbles and bits, you won't be disappointed.          I call this my "Master Mix".         hahaha

*********************************

I think this will be it for today.          got a lot ahead of me today and I guess I need to get started.        I hope and pray that you all have wonderful and productive days today.          I pray that you will make room for God in your day today.          ask Him to bless it and be a part of it today and see how peaceful and calm your can be.        even if it's not peaceful and calm, you'll know that you weren't in the mix.   I rarely have peaceful and calm days, but I know if I laugh about something, then I know God laughed a little bit too.        and if I grieve over smoething, I know He felt it also.        my point is this, we're never alone.        He's always with us.         that makes me wanna shout!!!      blessings, hugs and love to you all as you go about your day.          come back real soon.       patty

Previously shared stuff, maybe

good morning from my very cool neck of the woods.           the coolest I seen this morning was 27*, but I believe it got a little cooler than that.         I'll have to see what  the cold has done to the rest of my garden.          I have some bed covers ordered for my 4 large raised beds that have garlic in them.         I hope they get here soon.          the cold weather is not supposed to hurt them, but I will feel better if I have some protection on them.         I hope where ever y'all are today that you get to enjoy some of the great outdoors, even if it is cool.          we'll go for a walk in  alittle while and then we'll get our day started.      it won't be but just a few more walks till the month of Nov will give way to Dec.        I hope I can finish Nov strong and start Dec with a lot of energy.        I still don't know where this year has gone.         I can say that I'm truly thankful for getting this far into the year without any major events, for both myself and my husband.        lots of set backs with arthritis, back issues and other aches and pains, but I'm so thankful it's no worse than it is.      I try to praise God thru it all.         blessings on us  all as we go thru the blank canvas of this day.       may we let God paint a beautiful picture with our lives.

**********************************

I don't know if I've shared this one or not.         if I have, please forgive me.

hey y'all, let's do another "2 minutes in the kitchen with me".        it's this time of year that I start looking forward to later on in the growing season.           after the garden is planted, I start checking my tomatoes.          not necessarily for ripe ones, but the good sized green ones.            we love fried green tomatoes.        well, I should say that we love "air fryed" green tomatoes.         last year I put up several pks of ready to air fry green toamtoes and we have enjoyed them every so often.        this may have been my last pkg.        boohoo            anyway, the pictures tell the story.  

when I package them for the freezer, I take 1 good sized tomato and slice it in about 1/4 inch slices.  then dip in egg wash and then into cornmeal seasoned with a salt and pepper.       I tear off a portion of freezer paper and lay out 3 slices, make a roll then put 2 or 3 more slices and then make one more roll and put the rest of the slices on top and then roll and fold and tuck all the edges and tape the bundle and pop in the freezer.             when I take the little bundle out, I unwrap it and they aren't stuck together or covered in frost, which can and has happened in the past.            wrapping the coated green tomatoes with a layer of freezer paper between each layer assures me easy unwrapping.           when I get them unwrapped, I leave them on the freezer paper for a minute while I spray all the pieces with just a dab of avocado oil, then I flip the pieces and spray the other side.        this is what helps with browning.       I put them in the air fryer set at 400* for 12 minutes.         when it goes off, I gently turn the tomatoes and set for another 8 minutes.            20 minutes and these are about as close to perfect as I would hope for.   they were delicious.           this is what we look forward to in the coming months.           more green tomatoes.          now, air fryer green tomatoes, get in my tummy!!        hahaha

don't these look yummy!!!          this really is the best way I've found to make fried green tomatoes.      they had gotten to where we both couldn't tolerate the skillet fried ones, just because of all the grease.   these have no greasy taste at all.        just crunchy and crispy and delicious.

******************************************

today is a day of sharing some of the stuff that God showed me early on.      when I came across all of this, I started not to share it.       but I believe in being honest about how I relate in this world.       it's obvious I don't relate to well to the events of the last few years.         I try to look at things thru the lens of how God looks at these events and that's not popular.      I started to ditch all of these posts that I had previously made on facebook,  but I didn't want to lose all the ways that God shown me His will and His ways.       so I thought I would go ahead and share them, real, raw, and as honest as I know how.

the next few sections below are from 2020.          each one had a particular event or happening that made me write down my take on them.        this is all it is, my take on the situations, as I try to view the world thru the lens of how God views the world.        so read on, or not.       

**************************************************

###This particular message came about in the early days of covid and all the uproar of people wearing masks.       at some point in time, I'll tell y'all my real experience with wearing a mask.###

This is a long read.  read it or not, makes no difference to me, I'll never know either way.        This is just where my heart led me on this particular morning.

-Philippians 2:4 ESV   Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

-Philippians 2:3 ESV   Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.

-John 13:34-35   A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

-Romans 12:2 ESV   Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

-Romans 8:5 ESV   For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.

I have a lot freedoms when it comes to this life I live.        I have the freedom that comes from being an American.         I understand that things are not as grandiose as they used to be, but we still have it pretty dog gone good.           I am proud of the freedoms that I have being an American.        I have family members that helped fight for those freedoms and I don't take that lightly.         I can get up as I please.         I can go anywhere I please.        I can attain any level of accomplishment in my life that I desire.           I even have the freedom to kill babies and be in good standing with the government!         What more could anyone want?

The freedom I am most pleased and excited about is the freedom I have in Christ.         Christ alone, bled and died for those freedoms.          My greatest freedom in Christ is too love others.          Is that easy?            Sometimes it is, and sometimes it isn't.           There are a lot of things that I can do in my freedom as a Christ follower and be in right relationship with my Lord.   

The scriptures above is just a SMALL sampling of how we, as Christ followers, are to actually live in the world in which we do live.          We are going thru some hard times.            People are having to find new norms and it's difficult.         I admit and confess to my Lord right now, that I am struggling.    I also know that I am not the only who is struggling.          But Christ died for me and He knows what I'm struggling with.

When I read all the scriptures above and MANY more, this is where I am finding how, as a Christ follower, I should be carrying myself.

At one time, some people in KY were complaining about seeing TN license plates in KY WalMart and saying the state line should be closed  and blah blah blah!!!!            At any given time, in Springfield, you see about as many KY license plates as you do TN.  Why is that, because people from KY work in TN and people from TN work in KY.           So, before you gripe about seeing TN cars in WalMart, think about that, please.          It's easy to say that, if all your family is near by.           When I hear those statements or read them, I know that there is no compassion behind them.   

So, if and when you see me, I "WILL" have a mask on.          At least for the foreseeable future.       I will be wearing it to protect those around me from possible sickness.          I will also be wearing it to protect me from those around me that are sick and not wearing a mask and don't have symptoms yet and don't care.           I will be wearing it because I am compassionate and I do care about the people around me.              Even if I don't know your name, you're my neighbor and I try to be compassionate. 

One of the things that blows my mind is that one day you will see people thumbing their noses at wearing masks.          vowing and declaring they will not wear a mask and the very next day those same people are encouraging and asking people to wear masks to support certain businesses.         Some even said they would leave and not support a business if expected to wear a mask.        the next day they are asking people to wear masks to support the struggling businesses of their friends.        if it wasn't for their friends, they would be leaving and not supporting other businesses that ask for people to wear masks.       It's more mind boggling than what comes from the DC area.        Do we or don't we?          For some or for all?           Who knows, I'm sure by tomorrow those standards will have changed.        I think the term is a "flip flopper".          and obviously, it all depends on who their friends are.

So,  if you see me in a mask,  just know that I am not under  duress from the government to wear it, yet.          I'm not being forced to wear it, yet.         I wear it because I have compassion for my  neighbor.          I'll wear to help keep you and me safe.          There are other ways to thumb our noses at the governments interference in our lives besides putting people we love and cherish in harms way and possible death.           but evan at that, we called by God to live as peaceably with our neighbors as we can, especially when that peace depends on us as Christians.      

Now would be a good time to hone up on the Bible that those of us who are Christ followers say we live by and put them into practice.       just some of my ramblings on that particular day.

***********************************

###this goes along the same vein in which the above was written.      it was about the same time in 2020.###

this is what's on my mind this evening and thought I would jot down my thoughts.       these are just my thoughts, that's all.         but my thoughts can be dangerous for me sometimes and these were.       kinda made me take a second look at me.  the images are everywhere.          oh, you may not even pay any attention to them now, we've seen them so much here lately.          but when I see the images, I see something I don't like.         what are the images?          if you have read this far, you may be curious.  the images of the "upraised clenched fist".         when I see them, it almost makes me sick to my stomach.         and I seen an image this afternoon and it just stuck.          I knew I would have to knuckle down and make sense out of why it just makes me sick.         like I said earlier, this is my assessment and I'm not asking for anyone's approval of my thoughts or comments either.

a little digging and this is what I learned about the upraised clenched fist.      it signifies threat, rejection, arrogance, exclusion, refusal, ready to fight, anger and violence.       I think we've seen a lot of all of these traits in the last few weeks.         we've seen the clenched fists out in the streets committing heinous crimes.        I don't know about anyone else, but it has just about made me sick.  sometimes, I would like to know how people could have so much hate on the inside of them.       then, I remember that at one point in time, I had just as much hate on the inside of me as the people we've seen of late, still have on the inside of them.

then a little more digging also showed me what the open hand means.     it means friendship, help, peace, sharing, humility, communication and connection.        to be honest, that's something we've not seen a lot of these days.        that's what's missing these days.       it's not missing because the church doors have been shut due to the pandemic.        the church is not the building.       the church is each of us who claim to know Him.       where I am, there is the church.      where you are, there is the church.  that is only true if you know Him.  

when I think of an open hand, I actually think of 2 open hands.        the 2 open hands of my Savior that was nailed to the cross for my sins.       all of the sudden, that's when I realized why the clenched fist makes me sick.        go back up and read the traits of the clenched fist again.       they have nothing in common with the open hands.         other than that fact that all open hands, were indeed clenched fists until they had an encounter with Him. 

the open hands of my Savior had all the traits and so many more as described by the open hands.      I am so thankful for His open hands on my behalf.         if He would have had a clenched fist, life for all of us would be so different.        the truth of the matter, my Savior had the choice to make; clenched fist or open hands.        after all, He was fully human and capable of making a decision opposite of what He made.       He had a choice.        He chose me.        He chose you.

so, I have a choice to make and I have chosen Him.       does that make me perfect?       laughably, absolutely not.        it makes me a sinner saved by the grace of open hands.         we all have a choice to make.          it's not easy being open handed all the time because people think you are weak and beat down among other things.          but at this point in my life, I could care less what people think about me and just pray that people start thinking more about Him.         when we take our eyes off the open and nail scarred hands of our Savior, it's easy to start to getting clench fisted and full of hate again.          my hearts desire for myself is that in all my activities from this moment on in my life, I pray that my Savior sees me living my life with open hands.          that is the choice that I make, and I will fully rely on Him.         we all have a choice to make.        I can only make my choice. 

********************************

###this is just something that came about as I was doing my bible study one morning and I'm so thankful that God showed me what He has shown me thru this ordeal.###

back on March 20th, 2020, when I was having time with the Lord, He impressed upon me a series of questions.          3 questions, as a matter of fact.           I wrote those questions down and have tried to be real with myself and answer those questions at least 3 times since the world changed.        here are the 3 questions:

Thoughts for the day   March 20th, 2020

1. What will be your greatest lesson learned from this ordeal? 

2. What will be your greatest sacrifice through this ordeal? 

3. What will be your greatest blessing on the other side of this ordeal?

those have been some powerful questions for me and really hard to answer at times.        these questions run thru my mind almost constantly.        I haven't been able to get them out of my mind.        He put those questions there for me for a reason.        as I struggle to answer them as honestly as I possibly can, I must say that it is hard!!!

for #1,  I have to say that learning peoples true nature has been the hardest for me to deal with.      there have been many wolves in sheep's clothing exposed.        the expression "fake it till you make it" doesn't work with entering the kingdom of God.

for #2,  I've always said that in all honesty, I know nothing of sacrifice.        I grew up in a time of abundance and luxury, face it, most of us did.         no, I've never had the best of anything, but that's not sacrifice, that's being petty.  

I've never had to go off to war for my country knowing that I may come home in a body bag like millions have.  that's sacrifice!!!          I've never got up and put on a uniform and walked out the door knowing that there's people on the streets that I'm charged to protect that value my life less than that of a sick stray dog.        that's sacrifice!!!         I've never walked into the hospital knowing that today may be the day that I walk out with the disease that will kill me like it has so many other drs and nurses, but it's my job and I have to do it.        that's sacrifice!!!        I've never gotten behind the wheel of a big truck hauling food and meds to other places across the country and wondering if today is the day that someone kills me because they are evil people with evil intentions doing evil things.     that's sacrifice!!!  

I could go on and on, but I won't.       most people I know are just like me, they haven't sacrificed much for this country.       and for those that have, "thank you for your sacrifice" you have my utmost respect!!  

so I guess the greatest sacrifice that has been asked of me up to this point in my life has been to wear mask to help protect other people.        I haven't made excuses.      I haven't beat my chest like a war drum screaming about my rights.        I haven't been disrupting the lives of others.         I haven't been claiming it's all a hoax.          I have been trying to do as the Lord has asked of me, to live as peaceably as I can with others, when it depends on me.         when I'm out, I wear my mask.         I haven't done a whole lot of shaming others for not wearing their masks.           I certainly could have done a whole lot more than I have, but I haven't.  

those that have been complying with being asked to wear a mask have been called sheep.        and that my friend, is one of the highest compliments that could ever be said about me.         Jesus knows His followers and His followers know Him.        what about the wolves in sheep's clothing?  well.......................what about them???

for #3,   my biggest blessing thru this and on the other side has been and will continue to be my constant.            that has been knowing that God has been in control.         God is still in control.      God will continue to be in control.           for that, I can wake up each day, knowing that no matter what my day brings, God has ushered it in for me and has allowed me to be a part of His creation for another day.          I am of the mindset that God IS our only way thru this life.        He will make a way in a barren desert.           He will make a way thru the raging river.         He will provide shelter when mountains are falling down around us.         The "I Am" will provide and make a way!!

God IS, All IS Well!!!!

***********************************

This is something I decided I would reshare with y'all.  With all the trouble in the world, I thought I'd share a short story that I wrote back in 2012.       It is based on an actual dream I had when I was 13 years old.       I don't write with proper English, I write like I talk and that ain't proper.       hahaha     So, I hope you enjoy this little short story.

The Best Day of My Life

This day started off like the life of any new day.       Just getting up and getting the day started was the first goal of the day.        For any thirteen year old, that was easy enough.      The hard part was containing the excitement that was building within.        This day had been marked in red on my calendar since the beginning of the year.       As each and every day came and went, it was marked off with a black marker.

I had first marked off days, then with the days came weeks which led into months.      The first five months of the year had come and gone with great anticipation for the month of June.      Then the days started being marked off, then very soon two whole weeks was gone.      There was one day left to mark off, and then all of the sudden, what do you know, that BIG red-letter day!        It was my birthday! Along with that event came the pleasure of doing absolutely anything I wanted to do, within reason, of course.         The first day of the year I had said I wanted to spend the day with Maw.        She was my mother's mother.        If you was a child and knew her, she made you feel like the icing on her cake.  Just imagine how she made me feel, her own granddaughter!

The time came for me to go to my grandmothers house.       I do not even remember how I got there, I just got there.        She had been cooking all morning for my special lunch with her.      Just the two of us.        You don't even know how hard that is to accomplish.       Because everyone wants to be with Maw!        But, today was my day to be with Maw!

Well, she made the biggest fuss you ever did see, and guess what, I loved every second of it!       Maw knew I loved her meat loaf, so that was the main course, yummy!         also had butter beans, mashed potatoes, and homemade yeast rolls.        She could make the best bread of all time!       My favorite dessert is "Vinegar Pie", so she made that with a candle on the side for me to blow out and make my wish.        I told her my wish was being lived out as we spoke.       I told her also that today was already marked in my diary titled "The Best Day of MY Life".       She asked me how I knew it would be that.   I told her that simply spending the day with her made it so!

After we ate lunch and got the kitchen cleaned up, we went to the bedroom where she had her special trunk.         She said she had not gone thru it in a while and asked me if I wanted to see what all was in it.        That had been a dream of mine for as long as I could remember, just to get to take a peek inside that trunk.       Now I was getting, not only to see what was in it, I was getting to touch some of it also! Another goal accomplished!         As she took out bits and pieces of materials, laces, buttons, photos, and pieces of paper you could see the sentimental value of all these little treasures all over her face. Each and every item had a wonderful story behind it.       As she sat telling me story after story, I kept wanting more.        Some of the stories were sad and you could see the sadness in her beautiful face.  But some of the stories were just down right funny, and those were the best!       Anything that made Maw laugh was what I wanted to hear.         But even if I could see a tear rise to the corner of her eye, I still wanted to hear her voice, simply because I knew my time with her would be short, even if it was a whole day, it just would not be enough!          She told me how I reminded her of my mom when she was my age.       Always wanting more stories and to see the treasures in the treasure chest.       She said my mom couldn't get enough of that, and I can't either.

She told me stories of her brothers and sisters, back in the "olden days", that was what I called it, anyway.        They had a really hard life, she said, but "I wouldn't take nothing for it.       Those days made me the person I am today. Just knowing that God was the sustaining factor in our lives, made every day worth living to the fullest, even if it was hard."         She told of her love of cooking, and sewing, and reading, and working in the garden, of rearing her children to the best of her ability.        She also threw in that she loved Paw a whole bushel and a peck, and laughed one of those laughs that I loved to hear.          I was laughing right along with her, just as loud as she was laughing, and suddenly, in the distance came an oh so familiar sound, the sound of an alarm clock!

NO! I don't want to say good bye!       The alarm clock was unrelenting and it was time to get up.      That awful clock ruined everything.        It brought me back to reality and awaken me from the sweetest dream of a lifetime!           But, one thing for sure, that dream put a smile on my heart that had not been there in such a long time.         As a matter of fact, my heart had not smiled since she went home to be with the Lord five years earlier.         I look so forward to having more of those sweet dreams of being with my grandmother and hearing that wonderful laugh and having another day with her that I can call "The Best Day of MY Life!" (written by:pjg-2012)

I hope you enjoyed this story and maybe, just maybe, it helped you remember your grandmother, or another loved one, who has since left this life and gone home to be with the Lord.        Sometimes remembering is painful, other times, it is just the thing that can cheer ones heart.        Go ahead, let yourself explore some of those memories and dreams of days gone by.       Ask God to be a part of all of it and, more than likely, it will end up being a blessing to you and those you share it with.

*****************************************

this  happened a few years ago when we had to have the HVAC man come and look at our air unit.

Wanna see something fun?         Well, the ac/heat guy was at the house this afternoon just doing a tune up and he went under the house and came out with this!!!!         I went out on the deck as he was talking to my husband, and the ac/heat guy told me I wasn't supposed to see it.         I said "too late Ethel, I'd already been incensed!!"         He just about cracked up.         I said "you come out from under there with just the skin, you get yourself back up under there and don't come back out unless you have the snake in tow!!"          He didn't know whether to run or laugh!!         But hey, I was kinda serious.         I don't like the idea of a snake under my house.         Better under than in it though.           But I am wondering if I will find one in the house now!!!           If it was built the way my Dad and brothers used to build houses, you wouldn't find anything like that under a house, much less in a house.        But the way builders do today, it wouldn't surprise me to find anything in or under a house.         Anyway, if you are squeamish, "don't look Ethel"!!         Notice that the skin is as long as regular length broom!  EEK!!!

yup, that was a pretty terrifying event.          and I still think he should have went back under there and got that snake out from there.       hehehehe

********************************************

ok, that's just about it for the day.        I hope there wasn't too many repeats in this blog post.        I'm trying to share some of the stuff I took from facebook and didn't want lose.        so, if it seems I've shared some of it before, I do apologize.        but I hope there is some useful info in and amongst all of this.        maybe a funny or two here and there.        I hope you know how much you are loved by the Lord, if you belong to Him.          He loves you enough to want you to be in right relationship with Him.       now would be a wonderful time to get to know Him.      especially as the time that we celebrate His birth is rapidly approaching.        knowing Christ gives a whole new meaning to life, eternity and everything in between.   blessing, hugs and love to you all, patty

Dehydrating and AirFrying and more

Good Monday morning!!!!            Did that sound all chipper and upbeat?            Well, I tried.         Look at the second word, that answers it all.          Yes it's Monday!!!           And I am really trying to type this in as chipper and upbeat manner as I can and I do hope it comes across as such.       hahaha

I have learned that one of the best things I can say about Monday's is this, "Praise God I lived to see another Monday"!           Monday's make me feel like a weary soldier climbing another mountain, getting ready for another long battle.            And you know what, if you love  and serve the Lord, that is exactly what we are doing.            Every day is one more day that we are in the battle of our lives.    Trying to stay alert and aware of the snares and traps that the enemy sets for us.      

Scripture says the enemy is like a roaring lion.         I believe it!!!         But, scripture also says that the enemy is like a wolf in sheep's clothing.          I believe that too!!        When we see the roaring lions, we know to beware.            But, when we see the wolves in sheep's clothing, most of the time we don't think about the possible danger we could be in, till it's too late.         

So, even tho it's Monday, and even tho we are pushing into an uphill battle, let us not grow weary in our minds.          Let us stay alert, on point and seriously question everything.         Especially the things that give us just a bit of a twinge that maybe, just maybe, something is not quite right.        More than likely, that is the Holy Spirit warning you to steer clear.          Just some food thought as we go into this new week.         May we keep our eyes open and be alert at all times.

***************************

let's do a quick "2 minutes in the kitchen with me", ok.     This is what I made for lunch here back, air fryer salmon cakes. 

1 can of salmon drained, 

about 1/2 cup of cornmeal, 

1 egg, 

1/4 cup diced onion, 

1/4 cup mayo( preferably low fat), 

and a healthy dash of Mrs. Dash onion and herb. 

Mix well and put a little cornmeal in a saucer so you can dredge your salmon patties.         Preheat air fryer on 400 while mixing your ingredients and making the patties.         just before I put them in the air fryer, I'll spray them on both sides with avocado oil.          I just put 4 in at a time.     (while the first four was cooking, I put the other four in the freezer for a few mins)        Cook for about 8 min and flip and cooked for another 7-8 mins.          My batch made 8, so we have several meals outta these.        They are SSSOOOO good!!!          My husband said you can taste the country in 'em.         I said "well, you can take me outta the country but you can't take the country outta me!" 

don't they look so good!!

********************************************************

Who's in your boat?

Are you troubled about something that may be causing unrest in your days and nights?         Do you feel as though the load you are carrying is too heavy for you to pack any longer?            Do you feel as though the harder you use the bucket to bail water from your boat, its gonna sink anyway?

I pray for you to have a peace that passes all understanding!!!        You are in the middle of a storm at the present.        But, if you know Jesus, He's in your boat.

I was reading about the passage of scripture where Jesus calms the storm.       The disciples thought they were going to die and Jesus was asleep during the storm.        The disciples woke Him up and asked Him if He cared they were about to die.         Jesus spoke to the storm and it ceased.         All my life, I thought Jesus may have raised His voice, yelling at the storm.         kinda like a parent raising a voice to a child.           but this writer, having extensive knowledge in the original text, and the particular words used, said that Jesus spoke to the storm like a mother trying to calm a crying child.        you don't yell at a child in order to soothe that child.         In a very hushed and low voice, Jesus said, "Peace, Be still", like a mother would say, "ssshhhhhhhh" to a crying baby.        So I ask Jesus to calm the storm in your life right now, so that you too, can rest through it.       "Peace, Be still", my friend.   

************************************************

let's do this again, another segment of "2 minutes in the kitchen with me".         over the course of time, as I learn more and more, I have lowered my dehydrating temps.         most manuals will give some kind of list of temps for produce.           my experience over the last few years has proven to me that those temps are too high.         in my experimenting, I have finally lowered my temps to 110* F or 115* F.         that's as high as I go for any produce, ever.          manufacturers want to sell machines at all costs.         so they actually give unrealistic times and too high temps.           I don't even discuss times, because time in hours means nothing.              makes no difference how many hours a manual says, whatever you're dehydrating will not be dehydrated until it is cracker crisp.            "bone dry, cracker crisp, and hard as a rock" are the 3 criteria I go by.           it has to be as dry as we can get it or will mold in the jars.         if there is enough moisture left in something that you can feel it when you pinch it, it's not fully dehydrated.         if it's sticky to the touch, it's not fully dehydrated.            if you want to keep it in the fridge for a couple of weeks, that's ok.           but if your goal is long term storage, it's not dehydrated enough.         it's up to us to learn how to use the machines as efficiently as possible with the best possible outcome.         when you search on amazon for dehydrating books, all of those are like the manuals that come with the machines.            the writers want to sell books at all costs too.          and we buy into it and then wonder why we aren't having success, when in reality, it's their fault.

what we have to do is find what works for us.           and that's what this is about.        my experimenting over the last few years has brought me to this day.          sharing what little I do know based on my own experiences.             I have been sharing past dehydrating episodes and doing some explanation on what I do.          one of those was about potatoes.        how I get pristine beautiful color potatoes.          that requires a lot of soaking and rinsing, up until the moment you put them on the dehydrator.   

well, on to what was on the dehydrator this week.          the first picture is of all of the goods that was on it.          garlic, garlic scapes, fermented purple onions and celery leaves.         as you can see there is quite a bit of shrinkage from the moisture removal.         notice how the garlic cracked, that is exactly what you want it to do.          then I broke up the sheet of garlic and stored it in the jar.          it will be easy to make powder from it.          the garlic scapes are as hard as a rock and that's what you want.      if you're dehydrating something that is pretty firm to begin with, splitting whatever it is down the middle is the way to prevent case hardening.          case hardening is where something dries on the outside, but remains wet on the inside.           I've seen a lot of people lose a lot of product due to case hardening.           so setting ourselves up for success is what we have to do.          the larger portions of asparagus is another veg that could stand being cut down the middle to prevent case hardening.       and even green beans would need to be split down the middle if kept in the hull.        I try to make sure that everything I dehydrate is 1/4 inch in thickness or less.         that is my rule of thumb.  

the fermented purple onions dehydrated up quite nicely.          there was a quart jar full and it dehydrated down to just about a cup.         that is expected.        they are so good and crunchy.  little crunchy snacks.         and the celery leaves dehydrated nicely as well.         they are easily crumbled with your fingers and they are soooooo good.           parsley and cilantro has a new sheriff in town and that's celery leaves.   hahahaha

one final thing before we go.         dehydrating is not the same as cooking.         any raw produce will still be raw when it's dehydrated.         it's just had the moisture removed.            so it will have to be rehydrated and cooked.           a lot of what I dehydrate can be used as snacks.         so it doesn't have to be rehydrated, just drink plenty of water as you enjoy an occasional snack.         the potatoes for instance, will have to be rehydrated to use them.            there is no way that these can be eaten as snacks.           no matter how thin you slice them, once dehydrated, they will be like shards of glass if you bite one.            they are inedible and they must be rehydrated and fully cooked.       when you think about the potatoes, think of the boxes of scalloped potatoes in a box.         if you've ever gotten a box of those, then you know what I'm talking about.         other really dense veg are the same way, too dense to eat as a snack.  

at some point in time, I'll try to go in depth on how to use some of this lovely dehydrated food.        we have it dehydrated, now what?          well, we'll go there soon. 

I hope if you haven't tried any or some of these, that you would give them a try.          it's really easy to dehydrate.           just set your temp low and let the dehydrator run till it's completely dry.        reset the time if you have to.        I have reset my time all the time.        "low and slow".        just keep the temps low and and the times slow and you'll be successful.

****************************************

I had lunch with some friends a couple of years ago or so, and we was talking about how God is the potter and we are the clay.         Just that morning in a devotional that came to my in box, the writer was talking about basically the same thing.         The process that the Potter goes thru to wake the clay up.    Slamming it down on the wheel, and kneading it and scraping it up and smashing it back down on the wheel, getting it ready to be turned in to a work of art.           As someone who has never done pottery, I just have to take other people's experiences at face value when it comes to this.          But I know I can always trust God.            It was a great article for sure.             One of the things that this article brought out is the fact that a lot times when a piece of pottery is broken, we think there is no longer any value in that piece of pottery.             With God as the Potter and I, myself, as the vessel, I have to say that this vessel is a broken mess!!!          Just sayin'!!           But, when I kept reading the article, I found that in Japanese culture, when a piece of pottery is broken, they put it back together with GOLD!!!          The act of putting the pottery back together with gold makes the value of that broken and repaired piece go up!!!            So, I have to say that God has taken the broken mess of me and put me back together with gold, thru the blood of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior and He sees tremendous value in me now.   Not because of anything I done, but because of what He done for me.            So, if you are like me and you know your vessel leaves a lot to be desired, let God put some GOLD in those broken places thru the blood of Christ!!!           Then your broken vessel will become a thing of beauty, a masterpiece!     

I love this so much and I hope you do too.            I hope and pray that you let the Jesus heal all your broken mess of a vessel.           He will do it!!!         

***********************************

well, that's just about it for this moring.          I pray that you have a great day and that something you seen something here that just might help it to be a little better too.        let us stay thankful to God for all He's done for us.        I'm thankful that you made the choice to spend a little bit of your time with me today.         bountiful blessings on all.       hugs and love, patty

I got "Taters" Y'all!!!!

good morning on this cool and dreary sunday morning.          one thing about it, the sun may not be shining outside, but the Son is always shining on the inside if you know Him as you're Lord and Savior!!   we may get a little shourting going up in here!!!        we all have so much so much to be thankful for and I hope we all feel blessed by our Lord and Savior.           I sure do.        every day I open my eyes is a day to be cherished and explored, with Him.       let's continue to praise Him and thank Him for all He does for us.        we recognize a lot that He does for us very easily, parise Him for that.          but there are ways that He protects us that we're not even aware of.        let's thank Him for those too.        

this month is just about done with, but it's been a good month.         I don't know where it has gone to in such a hurry, but to the best of recollection, I've enjoyed it.        hahahaha          if you see any of my days that slipped past me, please send them home, I'd like them back.        hahaha         I feel like I missed about half the days of november so far.       but that's ok.        I may not have enjoyed those anyway.         hahaha        ok, enough silliness, right?          right!

I think I had told y'all about my tater growing experiment.         well, yesterday was harvest day.      read on to see what the results were.

************************************************

I had some beautiful potato plants going on.          my husband kept saying that they were making potatoes.         I didn't know if they were or not, but i just knew that they were looking really nice.

the above picrure was taken on Oct 30, 2023.      that's 4 pots of potatoes sitting on top of 4 upturned pots to give them elevation so it wouldn't be so hard for me to water them.     it turned off cold after this pic and I took my taters to the garage to keep them from freezing and they was out for about another week and half and then back to the garage they had to go and they've been there till saturday morning, nov 25th, 2023.

this above picture has what came from from each individual potato plant.          well, it's not enough to feed the community, but it's enough to make me very happy!!!!    each one had about the same number of potatoes.

this is all my taters together.     it was just about 2 lbs.      one more little bitty tater would have pushed it over the 2 pound mark.        hahahaha           again, not enough to feed the community, but just enough to make me very happy.      especially since this was just an experiment that started on Sept. 13th, 2023 and I dug on Nov. 25th, 2023.         right when most of us was wrapping up our gardens and putting them to bed, I stuck 4 potatoes in pots to see what would happen.

now, I'll tell you rest of the story.      whenever someone asks a question about trying something, the trolls and haters come out of the woodwork telling them "THAT CAN'T BE DONE"!!!!!         well, some people had told someone that they couldn't grow potatoes from store bought potatoes!!!!!   who knew????       right!!!!        when you start seeing people get bristled up over something like that, that's when I gotta do something.        no, I don't care anything about getting into an online brawl, but that's when I'll set out to prove the trolls and haters that they have no idea what they are mouthing about.        my philosophy of telling me "you can't do that", is this; "here, hold my ensure, WATCH THIS!!!!" and then I set out to do whatever it is that they say can't be done!!!       I've done it over and over and will keep doing until I'm planted in the soil myself.

someone had asked if potatoes could be grown from store bought potatoes.       my train of thought is this: store bought potatoes get eyes on them.       those eyes will sprout.         if something sprouts, it's got the potential to grow.       so when someone says that you're better off tossing them in the garbage, I'll toss them in the compost, once my experiment is done.         that's all the encouragement I need to see if they'll grow.   

ok, to be fair, I knew they would grow, because I've grown potatoes just like this, 2 or 3 times in past.    and I had seen a person that asked the question if she could grow potatoes from store bought potatoes get beat up pretty good by the trolls and haters.       I encouraged her that she could grow them, and that she needs to do it and don't listen to "can't", because "can't never did do anything".    

what I was mostly interested in, was seeing if I could get some potatoes this late in the fall.      I didn't have this on my radar as something that I was going to do.        I was fixing supper and the last 4 red potatoes I had, had sprouts on them.         so, I had seen this exchange take place on facebook, so I said to myself, "self, you just found yourself an experiment!!"       it was perfect timing, so my experiment to see if can grow potatoes this late in the fall, was a 100% success, for my neck of the woods.

if you can't be an encourager to someone, just keep your mouth shut.         that's my rule of thumb.   and there's no doubt in my mind that all the naysayers and trolls don't even know how to stick a seed in the soil, much less stick a potato in the soil.     

the people that I would love to have them see this  post, will never see it.       that's what I'm mostly sad about.         because I would love to tell them to go eat some taters they grew, while I eat the ones I grew.      hahaha      yeah, I know that's not nice.         but I don't take too well to others beating someone up just for asking a simple question and wanting to learn.       encourage them to find out if it will work.       encourage them to plant a potato, stick a seed in the ground, try to grow something.         it's in those experiments that we all learn and grow the most.        and it's in these experiments, whether a success or a failure that we see just how much of a failure it really is.          even if it doesn't do what we want it to do, learning is never a failure.         anytime we can share with others what the results are, that's always a success.       there is always a potential for us all to learn when we experiment.

in our successes and failures we teach other.         thru what others have done, we can learn and either do the same thing or do something different.         but we come back together and share the next set of experiences with the next experiment.        and also, what may be a failure this time, may be a total success next time.        there are always unknown variables.         so I will encourage you to keep trying.        don't give up.        don't listen to the haters and trolls.        let their "can't" be the very thing that makes it "can" for you.      

*************************************** 

I have mentioned several times about using my bread machine and have shared pictures of bread that I've made.         I couldn't make my bread anymore without a bread machine.          so I'm very thankful for it.          I had started having some issues with mine.        it's had a good long life.           it's worked double time for many years.            I can't complain at all, other than to say that I was sad that I can't get that machine anymore.  

if you have a bread machine or are considering getting one in the future, let me give you one piece of advice that may allow you to get almost 16 years from yours.            the bread pan that comes out is dishwasher safe.            but, I'm telling you now that if you want your machine to last a good long time DO NOT even consider putting it in the dishwasher or in the a sink of soapy water.        why?       well, when you turn the bread pan over and look at it there is a mechanism on the bottom of the pan that fits into its counterpart on the bread machine itself.            

that mechanism on the bottom of the bread pan insert is factory packed with a heavy grease that should last the lifetime of the machine.          the manufacturers know this.           but they still tell you that the bread pan is dishwasher safe.            why?              because they know if you wash it in the dishwasher or even in the sink with hot soapy water, it will start the grease dissolving and it won't be but a couple years till you'll be having to get another one. 

 I have a couple pictures to show what I'm talking about.  the first picture is the bottom of the bread pan and the second picture is the mechanism on the bottom of the bread machine itself, that the bread pan locks into.           the bottom of the bread pan insert is where the grease is.            

so to clean the bread pan insert, I have always washed it inside and out with hot soapy water without getting that area wet.             I actually hold the pan itself by that end with a dry hand and get no water in that area.              so I've tried to take care of mine and have gotten almost 16 years of good service.                 

having said all this, I had to get a new bread machine, because after all this time, all the grease has finally worn out of mine and the whole mechanism on the bottom of the pan is loose and about to fall out.            from baking bread, not from washing in the dishwasher.        it really breaks my heart too.  as I was thinking about it, I thought I would share this bit of info just in case anyone has a bread machine or is considering getting one.          the one thing I would suggest NOT to ever do, even though the manufacturers say it's ok, is put the bread pan in the sink or dishwasher, because it will shorten the life of your machine.           mine still works, but I know it's gonna tear up on me, and I do have a replacement now.         but, if you take care of it you'll have it a good long time, just like my first one. 

 I wish I knew how many loaves of bread I've baked in it and how many rolls I have made with it over the last almost 16 years.  

and just a little bit more info if you're getting a new bread machine.            have a black permenant marker handy when you remove the pan for the first time.          take notice of how the pan comes from the machine.           have the marker ready, and make a very small arrow, pointing towards the front of the pan.        I make my arrows right underneath where the handle is attached on either side of the pan.         put a small arrow pointing to the front on both sides.        then when you start making bread, you'll know what way to put the pan back in.         there shouldn't be a difference in how it goes in, but there is.         and the manufacturers know there is a difference.         that difference also helps wear out the bread machine long before it's time.         those 2 tips should help you get many years of life from your bread machine.         ok, now go bake some bread.          hahaha

******************************************

let's do a little "2 Minute Cooking With Me", I want to share one of the quick, easy and decadent desserts that I made earlier today in my electric pressure cooker.  And this is what I used the pump spray avocado idea on this morning.  I used it yesterday too when I was cooking a batch of quinoa.

Rice Pudding  (my own recipe)

1 cup of rinsed and drained white rice (gonna try it with black rice next time)

1 1/2 cups plain unsweetened almond milk

pinch of salt

dash of cinnamon

dash of ground cloves 

splash of real vanilla extract

2 mini boxes of raisins (it's the only size I had)

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

Put everything but the sweetened condensed milk in the epc and stir.

Take some pump spray oil, (NOT the pressurized can of non stick spray) mine was avocado oil and spray around the inside of the pot, just above the rice mixture, till you can see it on the wall of the liner a little.  

Put your lid on, with the release valve in the sealing position and if your epc has a rice setting, punch that, if not set the epc manually for 12 minutes and let it do a natural release or you can do a quick release, with no foam spewing forth because you oiled the sides of the pot.

Once you have the lid off, open the sweetened condensed milk and pour into the rice and stir, stir, stir.  When it sets for a bit, it will thicken up a bit.

In all honesty, next time I make this, I will double the rice and milk and raisins and cook as usual, but just use the single can of sweetened condensed milk.   I will also make it with black rice.  

Use whatever spices in yours, that tickles your fancy.   Cinnamon and ground cloves is delicious.   My husband has never enjoyed Rice Pudding, but I'm here to tell you, he thought this stuff was the "bees knees"!!!  I did too.

Anyway, just wanted to share this concoction with y'all.

This picture is when I first got the sweetened condensed milk stirred into it.

this is really delicious, try it.

*************************************************

 another quick "2 minutes in the kitchen with me".           lets make some homemade air fried cod poppers, baked potatoes and Savannah hush puppies.       delicious.       oh yeah, I had some onion too.  🤣  for the cod poppers I took a 3 filets and cut them down the middle and then cut those strips into bite sized pieces.           dredged them in seasoned flour, then in beaten egg and then in seasoned cornmeal.            sprayed them lightly with avocado oil and popped them in the air fryer on 400F for 8 minutes and flipped the poppers and done another 6 or 7 minutes.         these are really good and really easy and really quick!!!           really, they are.         really!           hahaha    enough with the "really" already, really!!!!          sorry, sometimes I just don't know when to stop.        really!!

ya just gotta try this!!!        I get my cod fish at aldi.      it's good.

*************************************

blessing to you all.       I hope you seen something here this morning that inspires you to encourage others.       I hope you seen something that made you smile or grin, just a little.      I hope you'll come back soon and spend more time in the kitchen with me or in the garden or just sitting and chatting.  what ever we do, I hope you know you are loved and welcome here any time.       hugs, patty