~Happy Birthday...Grandmother!~

When I was 3 years old my Grandmother (who always teased us each birthday that she was "29 and holding")  went sledding with some of us kids.   Her sled ran partly under a parked car and she hurt her back.
Feeling her on my heart (and knowing she had a candy bowl =) I went "calling" on my Grandmother.
I asked her why in the world she had gone sledding with us when she was an "old lady"?!
To which she very emphatically replied, "I'm NOT old!"
I then asked, "Well, if you aren't old, what are you doing with those "CRACKS IN YOUR FACE?" 
Needless to say I left her house WITHOUT any candy that day. ;-)
(But she tells me she HAD to smile about what I said after I left! =)
~This picture was taken the last time we got to be with GG...November 2010.
GG with our Kimberly (12), Sarah (9), Noah (6), Elijah (2), and Mary (7 weeks old).~
My Grandmother has always been ornery--the life of the party.  One day when I was small I was talking to my Moma and didn't say something correctly.  When My Moma corrected me she told me that we all had to use, "Proper Grammer!"    
I was confused and asked her, "Whoever heard tell of a PROPER GRANDMOTHER?!?" =D

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~Happy Birthday, Grandmother~

Today a sweet lady I call "Grandmother" by name

Turns 90, My Moma's Mother, I'm here to proclaim her "fame"! =)

Her food is always DELICIOUS--She's a GREAT cook!

She cooks from memory, not from a cookbook!

I love to go to her house and eat a ton

Beans and cornbread, green beans,...Mac and Cheese...anyone?

There is always lots of sweets and candy at her place

She's young at heart in spite of those "CRACKS in her face!" =)

When the Great Grandkids came along, she became "G.G." (Great Grandmother)

Now my kids LOVE going to her house just as much as me.

G.G. spoils us and gives us lots of treats

She's the sweetest lady you could ever meet!

GG's a Southern gal--a Belle from Tennessee

She's one of the hardest workers...she challenges me.

If you call GG and she doesn't answer her phone,

She's tending to her flowers, with them she doesn't feel "alone."

Most of what I enjoy today as a child of the King,

Came because Pop Pop and GG gave Jesus EVERYTHING!

She prays for her children, 10 G. kids, and 33 G. Grand ones by name.

Wishing her Happy Birthday from HERE feels so lame!

I miss my sweet Grandmother and wish I lived nearer

But our family would probably "LOVE HER TO DEATH"...I FEAR! =D

When I think of someone of whom I'd like to be...

It's no movie star, It's a sweet lady whom we call GG!

                                                  ~written by Heather April 29th, 2012~

I love you and miss you TONS, GG  and I hope that your day is as special as you are.  Sending you lots of (((HUGS!!!)))
 

~Fun Food Friday...Orange Julius~

~Several years ago my friend Kelly H. shared this recipe with me.  I don't know if I have shared it before, but if so, I thought it was time to share it again. =)
~Orange Julius~
Yields: 4 servings
{For my family...I make a batch, pour it into a pitcher and make another batch. }
Put in Blender:
6 oz.-8 oz. orange juice (I like to use 8 oz. [one full cup] of my freshly squeezed orange juice, cause it's more vitamin C! =)
1 cup milk
1 teas. vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/3 cup water
1 and 1/2 trays of reg. size ice cubes
Blend and serve to your family...who is sure to LOVE YOU when you hand them this drink that is so Delish! =)
And as Always...Enjoy!

~Months ago, I saw these fun flowers made out of tights on Pinterest.  I was in Argentina and didn't have a sewing machine, so had to wait until I got here to Colombia to make them.  Kimberly and I had fun making these 3 the other night...except that I got burnt and have a blister on every. other. finger. (Partly because Kimberly was running the glue gun and kept accidentally touching me, and partly because the tights/hose are so THIN that the hot glue just FINDS YOUR FINGER when you are wrapping the tights/hose around. =)  Kimberly had fun laughing each time I got another wound.  Hee! Hee!~

 ~I had fun sipping my delicious orange julius...while wearing my new fun flowers.  =)

 I trust that each of you have a blessed weekend.  May God come in a special way in each of your services on Sunday.~

~Some "Eye Candy" for me to enjoy =)~

~Sometime ago my sweet sister Laura sent me 2 wall stickers.  One I hung in our living room, and the other one I was going to take to Argentina.  Then, before we went to Argentina...we realized we'd be renting a furnished house and for not very many months, so I left the other sticker here.  When we came back to Colombia I decided that I wanted to enjoy that sticker and so we hung it up below our family picture in our room.  Our family picture was a tad old...for it was this family picture with my "Baby bump" when I was expecting Mary Grace...so it was time to change pics. ~
~When Moma was here she took this new one of us dressed in aquas and browns to match our bedroom colors.
I'm happy every time I look above our bed and see my ENCOURAGING wall sticker from Laura which says:

“With God all things are Possible”

and our new family picture!~

Like you know, I REALLY enjoy receiving my Better Homes and Gardens magazine!!! The girls or I always look through each new magazine first and rip out or draw "clothes" using a permanent marker...on some of the advertisements that lack clothing (so the men in our family can enjoy the magazine too! =).
Our BHG magazines get looked at L.O.T.S. until they are dog-eared. =) For it's something from back home, it's in English, and it's fun to see what ideas one can use out of that magazine with what you already have in your home. =)  So saying, I told my family that I wished my bookshelves in our master bedroom could look like some in BHG...but they commented, "Yea, but those only have 2 books and 3 vases on them!"  =)
You have to understand that our "Master Bedroom" also serves as: Mary's nursery, family room, the main bookshelves in our home holding the kid's keepsake books, Phillip's office (although most of his books are still packed in boxes from the moldy apt.), my scrapbooking/sewing area/craft, Noah's school room, our computer room, etc.
So, I decided that though I don't have only "2 books and 3 vases" I could arrange our shelves to be more pleasing to my eye.  =)
~So saying...Here's a picture of my scrapbook shelf.  On the right I used 2 pieces of heavy cardboard and some scrapbook paper to make some "books" in which to hide one of my many stacks of scrapbooking paper, and my extra Creative Memory S.Book pages. =) ~

 ~And I had fun making little tags for the mason jar holding my S. booking scissors, and the container holding my scrapbooking pens. =)~

 ~Here's the top 3 shelves of that particular book shelf.~

I organized the other bookshelves in our room too and I'm happy!
~I really like Phillip's Argentina MATE cup and straw beside his 2 antique "John Wesley's sermons" books (in Spanish) on this bookshelf. =) ~

 Organizing is FUN and very rewarding!  =)  What have you been organizing?

~Miracle Monday...Elijah~

A Happy Monday to you!  I know the world calls Mondays "Blue Monday" and I understand the overwhelming feeling of waking up to a bunch of laundry from the weekend, school work for the kids, meals to make, all that is facing us that week, etc.  But EVERYDAY is the day that the Lord has made and we are to rejoice in them! =)
This morning I woke up not feeling the best (due to my cold which you will read about below) but I chose to PRAISE THE LORD and depend on Him.  He's given me a great day.  I have the 5th or 6th load of laundry in my washer right now.  YEA!  (My problem is that I have no dryer, and it's pouring rain outside and now I've run out of lines to hang up my wet clothes.  =)
Several of us have a terrible cold right now.   You know what happens when Elijah gets a cold...(ever since we lived in that apt. with mold) it goes straight into asthma, and he struggles to breathe, his lips turn blue, it's heart wrenching, we give him everything in the book to drink, oils to breathe, etc., and we always PLEAD the blood that God will help him.
Yesterday was another one of those horrible days.  He grew from BAD to WORSE and Phillip grew VERY concerned!  He prayed all afternoon for him, (while I was trying to rest/take care of Mary) and finally Phillip came into our room and told me that Elijah was very bad off and that he wasn't for sure what he should do.  (Phillip is the Doctor in our family!)  After several breathing treatments Elijah wasn't getting any better! 
He then wrote and asked our 2 pastors in the USA to please PRAY FOR ELIJAH!
Shortly after he sent that email off, Elijah came up to our room, and God had touched him and he had turned a corner.  He still has a cold, which could go back into asthma, but we are trying to take good care of him.
I'm sure he has more trouble with asthma due to the carpet in our home here (it was here when we moved in so...who knows what all is in it, though we've had it cleaned and try to vacuum often!).
When he gets sick...His asthma gets worse and he gets more short of breath due to Bogota being a HIGH Altitude! (nearly 9,000 feet above sea level!)
Elijah said to me today, "I think I'm missing a part of me!"  (I think he thought that since he's always sick...there must be a part missing...Like a puzzle part comes up missing. =)
That made me smile (though it nearly broke my heart at the same time!)   I assured him that he wasn't missing any parts and that God has a special plan for his little life!
We thank the Lord for loaning us little Elijah and for continually taking care of him!
~Noah invited his little neighbor friend Nicolas to church and we were SO HAPPY that he came with us yesterday.  Here are the kids before we loaded into the taxi and headed to church.~

 ~Elijah, Noah, and Nicolas at church.  Nicolas really liked church and told Noah to tell his Mommy that he wants to go to church every Sunday with us.  =)  Please pray for Nicolas and his Mommy.  Thank you!~

 

~Fun Food Friday...Butterscotch Pie~

Thanks for all your comments on my Laundry post!  It was fun to read what everyone had to share! =)
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
One day I was talking to my sister and we were chatting about Butterscotch pie and she told me she had a good recipe for one.
(My sister got this recipe from a sweet lady named Grace Baum while on Deputation.  But, since I don't know her, I just call it "Laura's Butterscotch pie!"  We've probably made some changes, so Sis. Baum may not recognize her own recipe. =) 
~Laura shared her recipe, I made it, and our family really enjoyed it.~

~Laura's Butterscotch pie~
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar  (If using meringue on top, I'd use a TOTAL of 3/4 cup sugar or little less for it is RICH!)
4 1/2 Tablespoons Flour
1/3 teaspoon salt
Mix the flour, sugar, and salt dry in a med. pan.
ADD:
One lump of butter (walnut size)  (L.O.V.E. this measurement! =)
1/4 cup milk
Bring this to boil for 2 mins. (stirring constantly)!
Then Stir in:
1 cup of milk
Slowly add 2-3 well-beaten egg yokes (use egg whites for meringue)
Boil for 5 FULL minutes to ensure that eggs are cooked thoroughly.
Take off of heat and stir in:
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
~Meringue~
(I got this recipe from the internet)
2 lg. egg whites (room temp)
1/8 teas. cream of tartar
1/4 cup superfine sugar
1/8 teas. vinegar
1/2 teas. vanilla
1. In a mixing bowl beat egg whites on med. speed until foamy.
2. Add cream of tartar and beat until soft but definite peaks form.
3. Very gradually beat in sugar.  Beat on high until peaks are stiff and glossy but not dry.
4. Add vanilla and vinegar and beat just to mix.
5. Immediately spread the meringue over the hot pie filling, anchoring it to the edge of the crust in all points.
6. Bake 20 mins. at 350 until nice and brown on top.

 And as always...Enjoy!
~Delicious! =)~

~My poem about...IHC & ME!~

~Kimberly snapped this picture of me watching IHC on Wednesday morning this year.  The rest of my family was around me in our room.~

~Mary "Singing" along with IHC.~

~IHC & Me~
Before I can even remember I went to IHC. 

That's when we became "Best Friends"...~IHC and ME!~

My excitement would build as we grew closer to Dayton

I'd try to spot the buildings close to where my IHC was waitin'! =)

My Daddy didn't make much $ back then you see,

So, my brothers gave their lawn $ so we could go to IHC.

Moma brought all our own food and we ate in our hotel

It was delicious food...crock pot meals with a yummy smell!

Each year I'd arrive with my 2 braids, new bloomers, and shiny shoes

I would come in carrying my dolly...I was "big news". ;-)

I always LOVED going to children's church--WHAT FUN!

The best songs, stories, and teachers under the sun!

I would have rather gone to IHC than have Christmas each year.

I'd rather experience IHC than receive gifts so Dear!

 Through the year I'd plan my IHC wardrobe months before... =)

Then help pack--I couldn't WAIT to go out the door!

Getting to be with my dear family and friends...OH! What Bliss!

 IHC... the 3 BEST days of each year...I NEVER wanted to MISS!

I later came with Phillip my fiance' to IHC

And my parents announced our wedding in the Dayton Daily! =)

Later God called us to pastor out in the West!

But we got to go to IHC 2 out of 5 years...I was Blest!

Then God called us to spread His Word on the mission field.

HOW WOULD I LIVE WITHOUT MY IHC?...But my heart to God did yield!

It has been 4 years since we've been to IHC

But due to "live streaming" we still "Attend" from Colombia you see!

We still dress up, make food, and gather our family around...

To watch each IHC service--ENJOYING each and every sound!

Our family feels so BLESSED to get to hear and "BE"

With our Beloved family and friends worshiping at IHC!

We sing the songs, and worship and cry as a family!

Lord willing, we'll be in Dayton 2013 and we are H.A.P.P.Y.!!  =)
                                     ~written by Heather...during IHC 2012~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~In between IHC services we run downstairs and cook up a quick meal or snack and bring it back up to our room to see the next IHC service.  Here's Elijah yesterday with his monkey and our little snack of baked potatoes, a special baked pot. topping, and my homemade pumpkin bread.~

~Here's Elijah and Mary eating...with the white chair as their "table". =)~

The Lord is giving us a wonderful IHC 2012...our family can't wait till next year!

~Scrub-a-dub-dub...Laundry tips!~

~Several years ago a friend of mine mentioned something that she does.  She said, "I try to do a load of laundry every day."   Since that day...that has become one of my habits as well.
~Of course, having a family of 7...most days I do more than one load of laundry.  If I can, I try to do at least one dark and one light load on normal days.
~However...if I have TONS of other things to do that day, am having company over, etc. I still try to run up the 36 stairs to my washer and throw in a small load, or one of those articles of clothing that has to be washed by itself.  At least I know that I have accomplished something in my laundry room that day.
~Sometimes I like to let things soak all night in the washer, so that the next morning I can just turn on the washer...and I have a "head start" with laundry that day.
~In Argentina I had to do a lot of washing of our clothes by hand, for I had neither washer nor dryer.  During those months...I learned that a laundry brush and a good bar of stain-removing soap were my "Best Laundry Friends!" =)~

 ~Here in Colombia we don't have a dryer, so we hang all of our clothes on a line to dry.  When a lady just has a small load fresh out of the dryer to fold, it goes pretty fast.  But, here in Colombia it takes our clothes a day or two (esp. in rainy season) to dry...so that there is a BUNCH of clothes ready to fold at one time.  That can be very overwhelming to one person.  So, the kids and I gather in our room and have a "clothes folding party" while listening to an exciting story...it makes the job go faster and is more fun. =)
~Each child then puts away their own clothes, and sometimes they help put away the younger kid's clothes.
~The tip from my friend (mentioned above) has been invaluable... I rarely ever have that "THERE'S DIRTY LAUNDRY FACING ME EVERYWHERE"...feeling! =)
Do you have a laundry tip that works great for you?
(We are praying for IHC which is starting today, and plan to listen to/watch as many services as we can. =)

~Miracle Monday~

Not too long ago Phillip mentioned that occasionally on a Monday...I should post some of the neat things that God has done for our family, like answers to prayer, etc.  
Our Sarah piped up and said, "Yes, and we could call it 'Miracle Monday'!"   =)
Due to some "motherly" advice back when we were engaged, I started keeping a journal of things that God had done specifically for Phillip and I.  That way on those DARK DAYS...we could go back and see just what a wonderful God we serve!  However, due to our being missionaries, most of those prayer journals from our early years are back in the USA, and our kids can't read them right now.
So...My posting these would remind Phillip and I of the FAITHFULNESS of our God...and it could be that some of the things I write, we may have forgotten to tell our children.   Our God is so awesome...that one could talk all day...and still not remember ALL He's done for us! 
I hope that these post encourage y'all as well! 
So, here goes...Miracle Monday! =)
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I well remember when I was a freshman in college at God's Bible School.  Life as you know in college stays busy with studies, practicing music 2 hours a day, working, keeping up with laundry, etc.  I think we were also in winter revival.  Whatever the reason, this night, I only had time to read half of my chapter that I was to read in the Bible for that day!   (I was reading my way through the Bible with one of my Daddy's Bible Reading charts.)  
The next day I had received the scary news that my DEAR sister Laura, who was expecting her first baby, was in the hospital with a kidney stone and had developed a blood clot in her leg!  I can't tell you how I PRAYED that God would intervene for my sister and their unborn Natasha!  I felt so helpless and SO FAR AWAY from New York, where my sister was in the hospital!  I had been asking Jesus all day to PLEASE heal my sister and help her.  When I got back to my room that night after revival (I had PRAYED SILENTLY all during service, probably not hearing much of what was going on around me) I went to God's Word for something to encourage my heart concerning Laura and their baby! 
Remembering that I had just read the first half of the chapter the night before...I started toward that book of the Bible...then thought, "Maybe I should just read a Psalm...for WHAT will I find that's encouraging in the book of Jeremiah?"  But, for some reason I decided to go to Jeremiah first...and WOULDN'T YOU KNOW, my first verse I was too read...was Jeremiah 32:27
~"Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all Flesh, 
IS THERE ANYTHING TOO HARD FOR ME?"~
Needless to say, I claimed that verse for my sister and their baby!!
Later, I was THRILLED to learn that right at the SAME TIME that God gave me that verse in my college dorm room in Cinci, OH, God touched Laura in New York, and she and baby were fine!
WHAT AN AWESOME GOD WE SERVE!!  =)
 ~Here's a picture of our boys in their nice new red and black shirts that Bro. Alberto and Sis. Alba from Medellin made them.~

 ~My sweetheart and I!  My sweet sister just sent me this fun beige blouse/jacket-type.  You can't see much detail, but it has neat black stitching on it, and is really cute.  So, I wanted her to see me wearing and enjoying it! Thank you, Laura!~

If YOU have an answer to prayer that you want to share in my comments...please DO!! 
Answers to prayer encourage all of us! =)
Blessings!
 

~Who are our friends?~

A few days ago I was reading in my Bible for my devotions.  I wasn't really "enjoying" the chapters that I was reading...for my blood BOILS when I read II. Sam. 13 about Amnon defiling his sister Tamar.  But something stood out to me, that I later pointed out to my 3 oldest children.
Amnon knew in his heart that it wasn't right to do what he was wanting.
BUT...then in verse 3 it says, "But Amnon had a friend...and Jonadab was a very subtil man!"  I told my kids that our friends can make or break us!  Whom we chose to hang out with is a very serious thing.  We WILL BE Influenced by them!  It could have been that if Amnon wouldn't have had a friend...that we would have never even have had to hear/read this horrible story in the Bible!
Due to his "friend" Jonadab's influence...Amnon not only COMMITTED AN HORRIBLE SIN...BUT LOST HIS LIFE TOO! 
I told my children to not ever be let it said OF THEM...that,  "____________  had a friend who was very subtil and led ______________ to do wrong!
Our friends can control our DESTINY! 

~Since I've been back to Colombia I've received both my March and April Better Homes and Gardens magazines.  YEA!  That's a nice gift from parents for my birthday present...and My Best Friend Jesus got them here safely knowing how much that mean to me!  (When our apt. guard handed it to me, I squealed with delight!  Later when we left the office, my timid Noah asked me if I hadn't been embarrassed to squeal like that.  =)~

 ~Kimberly got into a baking mood last night (I wonder WHERE she gets that from?! =) And baked up 3 different desserts.  Her little brother Elijah was GLAD to help lick the spatula and bowl from her brownies!~

 ~My sister found me a super cute jean skirt at our FAVORITE kind of store (second hand stores) and sent it to me.  It was made with the front panel missing...but she knew I could add some jean.
I did add some jean this week and voila I  have a fun new jean skirt!  =)
I am enjoying it!  Thank you, Laura!~

Have a blessed Lord's day!  And for those of you getting ready for IHC...we are praying that God will come in a very SWEET way in the services!  We plan to listen to/watch every service, if we can.
 

~Fun Food Friday...Cookies and Cream Shake~

With summer fast approaching us...I decided to make a fun recipe I'd seen on Pinterest.  It was originally a "Weight Watchers" recipe, but I adapted it.  It was super fast, super easy, and super tasty!

Weight watcher's version
Blend the following in a blender...
2 cup(s) fat-free vanilla frozen yogurt
1/2 cup(s) fat-free skim milk
1/8 tsp mint extract, optional
4 item(s) cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookie(s)
Serves 4

~My Version~
Blend the following in a blender...
2 cups vanilla ice cream
1/2 cup milk
1/8 tsp. mint extract, it's optional (but we really liked the "zip" it added to the shake! =)
4 choc. Oreo cookies
(I doubled this recipe for our family...and added 12 cream-filled Choc. cookies cause I wanted a little more "cookie" to my "Cookies and Cream shake!"  =)
It was a hit with our family...and I hope it is with yours!
And as Always...Enjoy!

~Our last few days with Gramp and Gram~

Jennifer...Thank you for your question on Moma's Fun Food Friday Choc. Chess Pie Post. She left you a comment below yours and then I CORRECTED the baking temp on that pie post as well. Thank you for catching that!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~On the Wednesday before Daddy and Moma left on Friday morning, we invited all 3 of our pastors and their wives over for a snack.  Bro. Alberto and Sis. Alba from Medellin made the girls and I some more adorable jean skirts, and our boys some neat new red and black shirts.  Here's my skirt they made me.  They didn't know it,  but I was wanting one in this style!~

~I love it and think that they did a great job.~

~Kimberly and Sis. Ilce helping me cut up the onions for our creamy tacos.~

~Moma and Sis. Alba (who made our jean skirts) working on our lettuce for our creamy tacos.  Sis. Farly helped me too, but I didn't think to get a picture, for I was trying to serve the food.~

~Elijah in his new red and black shirt...trying to HELP Sis. Ilce cut up the lettuce WITH HIS SAW. =)~

~Our Christian Nation Church from the USA called during their service and had our pastors give their testimonies over the phone and Phillip translated.  It was a precious time.~

~Bro. Jimmy awaiting his turn to give his testimony.  (We were packing some of our stuff in suitcases to send back with Daddy and Moma.)~

~Bro. Alberto and Sis. Alba made this adorable blouse and jean skirt for Mary.  She thinks she's pretty special when she's wearing it.  She made us laugh.  =D ~

~Everyone eating!~

~6 more people in the kitchen.~

~Bro. Rigoberto brought along his father.  It was special having him with us too.  After we ate we had a special time of sharing, passing out "roses", shedding some tears, thanking others for giving their lives to God, passing out some gifts, singing a chorus together, and praying.  It was a very dear time together.~

~Since we were busy sewing and spending time with Gram her NEXT TO LAST day here...We just made and served a simple lemon-lime jello cake with a strawberry on top for dessert.~

~But jello cake is Bro. Jimmy's FAVORITE...so he was happy.  =)  But, then he sat on the stairs to eat it and ended up having to share with Elijah and Mary.  (The black bag had been put down for one of our kids NOT for Bro. Jimmy. =)  We gave him a second piece since he had to share his 1st.~

~Mary trying to help us "clean up the floor" after company left. =)~

~Daddy and Phillip's breakfast before they left for their last day of classes.~

~There's nothing more delicious than Gram's Biscuits and gravy for breakfast.  =)~

~Our last super together.~

~Daddy and Moma as they were heading to the airport EARLY the next morning.   We surely enjoyed every minute they were here with us!  They were a BLESSING to us and to our people as well!  We Love you, Daddy and Moma/Gramp and Gram...Hurry Back!! =) ~