Country Apple Turnovers

* Country Apple Turnovers *

Today is a perfect day to bake. The weather outside is dreary and cold. The warmth of the oven cheers up the day.
I promised to post my apple turnover recipe and here it is! You can use a good homemade crust or even a refrigerated premade crust if you are at a loss for time.
1 pie crustWhite from 1 large egg, slightly beaten2 medium tart baking apples1/4 cup sugar2 tsp flour1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Coat your cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray or cover with parchment paper.
Peel, core, and chop apples into 1/4-inch pieces. In medium bowl, combine apples, sugar, flour, and cinnamon, tossing gently. Set aside.
Roll your pie dough into a nice 8 - 9 inch circle. Cut the crust into 4 equal parts (wedges). Brush all edges with egg white.
Put 1/4 cup of apple mixture slightly to one side of each wedge. Fold other side over filling; seal edges with tines of a fork. Put on baking sheet. Brush with egg white; sprinkle with sugar, if desired. Cut 3 slits in top of each.
Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden (edges may open a little). Immediately transfer to a wire rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature.
*You can also use canned cherries or fresh/frozen blueberries.
Enjoy!

I found this Recipe through Kelli--this is her picture of the finished product. Hop on over and check out her site--you'll love it!

I've never made these, but I'm going to try them!

View of our world through Bri's lens

What Things Look Like In My Little Corner Of the World

Grape Hyacinths raising their brave little heads

Right next to them is a sleeping cat

Don't you just love feasting your eyes on this new green grass!?

These dear little Chives wintered over for me!

Who Maketh The Grass To Grow
Psalm 147 Selections
Praise ye the LORD: for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely.
Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.
Sing unto the LORD with thanksgiving; sing praise upon the harp unto our God:
Who covereth the heaven with clouds, who prepareth rain for the earth, who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains.
He giveth to the beast his food, and to the young ravens which cry.
He giveth snow like wool: he scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes.
He casteth forth his ice like morsels: who can stand before his cold?
He sendeth out his word, and melteth them: he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow.
Praise ye the LORD.

The slothful man...

Proverbs 26:13-16
The slothful man saith, There is a lion in the way; a lion is in the streets.
As the door turneth upon his hinges, so doth the slothful upon his bed.
The slothful hideth his hand in his bosom; it grieveth him to bring it again to his mouth.
The sluggard is wiser in his own conceit than seven men that can render a reason.

My husband did this Proverb for our family Bible study tonight, and one of the study parts in our Bible had this phrase:

"To keep your excuses from making you useless, stop making useless excuses."

I thought it was really good--don't you?

Now, can you say that three times fast? :)

Being Prepared

There's lots of talk lately about being prepared in case of an emergency. I mean, really prepared!

I ran across this great site, and thought if you wanted to know more about being prepared, this is one site you don't want to miss!

We're Gettin' There!

Jonquil

Lilac Bush

Slowly but surely Spring is starting to show itself! Daffodils

Rose Bush (one that I've had to baby--I was afraid it had died!)

All of these pictures are from my yard today. The flowers are a noticable sign of Spring. You have to look harder at the budding bushes and trees to see their signs. :)

Rose Bush


Hyacinth


Weeping Willow


A Prayer in Spring
Robert Frost (1915)
Oh, give us pleasure in the flowers to-day;
And give us not to think so far away As the uncertain harvest;
keep us here
All simply in the springing of the year.


Oh, give us pleasure in the orchard white,
Like nothing else by day, like ghosts by night;
And make us happy in the happy bees,
The swarm dilating round the perfect trees.

And make us happy in the darting bird
That suddenly above the bees is heard,
The meteor that thrusts in with needle bill,
And off a blossom in mid air stands still.

For this is love and nothing else is love,
The which it is reserved for God above
To sanctify to what far ends He will,
But which it only needs that we fulfil.

Crocus

Primrose

Apple Tree Branch

Strawberry plants.

Isn't it amazing how God revives us from the dormant Winter with the new life of Spring?

Always reminds me of our hope in His Son when He rose from the grave!

Vision Forum's True Beauty Review

I am so excited to be doing a review on Vision Forum's- True Beauty CD-set! The title reads: True Beauty Cultivating Christ-Centered Father-Daughter Relationships. These were recorded from the Father-Daughter retreat of 2008, featuring speakers: Doug Phillips, Scott Brown, Geoffrey Botkin and daughters Anna Sophia and Elizabeth Botkin.

As the mother of an 18 year old daughter, I was delighted to listen to this CD set. However, it wasn't just me that was excited--my whole family joined me every evening and we listened to it together! It was a very special time.

The tone of the CD's is set by Doug Phillips when he talks about the Foundational Vision for Father's and Daughter's. This was a real message of hope for fathers and daughters both. And, there was a great challenge for father's to redeem the time with his daughters! It also covered how to be a wise Dad, and for the girls, how to be a noble daughter.

Scott Brown focuses on the Proverbs 31 woman on CD 2. I've heard this addressed many times, but really liked the way he covered this. He talked about how she's not worried that she's wasting her life--she's not listening to the world... it was very good!

He also spoke on the 12 Pillars of Womanhood.

This was a good challenge for the young ladies to aspire to! You don't hear challenges like this anymore--it was very inspiring! He defines biblical womanhood for the ladies.
(Mom's can benefit too!)

The Botkin Sisters do a beautiful job talking about the Transitions from Beautiful Girlhood, to Noble Womanhood. This was particularly nice for my daugher who is a young lady now. They kind of walk daughter's through some of the things to expect, and how to handle them. They encourage the daughter's to have a vision and a mission field! Even some helps on how to minister to their younger siblings. Kind of coming alongside the girls and encouraging them! (When's the last time you heard a message like that!?)

Doug Phillips had another message called Beauty-What Is It? that I found to be excellent! He talks about how beauty is an objective, it is a reflection of the attributes of God. He really does a good job of stating what true beauty is...not Hollywood, or media influenced view of it. I found this very, very good! (He even talks about holiness! That's almost unheard of these days!)

Scott Brown really speaks to the Dad's in his message How Father's Can Protect Their Daughter's In A Defiling Age about being the protector of their daughter's. I believe this is a much-needed message in the world in which we live today. He really stresses the importance of it!

Geoff Botkin also speaks to the Dad's on How To Prepare Your Daughter for Marriage. It is a very straightforward message to the dad's on what to do, and how to do it. However, he also addresses the girls as well on how to do/or not to do it. It is very informative! He talks about what kind of man your daughter should seek out, and so my teenaged son found this one particularly applicable to him as well.

Also on the CD's, they had a lovely Q&A time where members of the audience asked the above speaker's questions, and they provided answers. This was very informative, you get a little less formal of a message, and alot of real life scenarios. Very good.

We truly enjoyed listening to these CD's. They were a real encouragement to our whole family. It is hard to find solid teaching like this anymore. I consider these essential to equip both Fathers and Daughters. They were a real blessing!

Great Giveaway over at Marci's!

Hop on over to her site to win this lovely bag (made by her dear friend) and other goodies!

Just click on the button above to go there!
Marci has other bags for sale in her store with different colors, styles and sizes too! Use the button to the right to go directly to her store...

Use the button at the top of my post to find out more about the giveaway!

(You don't have to have a blog to enter!)

A Nice Day!

Above is a find from Goodwill that I got today. I love white enamelware! I may sell this one though. It's a BIG coffee pot! There is a strainer in the spout. Cute isn't it?

AND, my dear hubby and sweet son bought me these very fragrant hyacinths today! Aren't they lovely? It was a nice surprise! And, I can plant them outside and perhaps see them bloom again. And, to top it all off, purple is my very favorite color!

Red Envelope Day--Fight Abortion!

Here's what you do for Red Envelope Day!
Get a red envelope.
You can buy them at Kinkos, at party supply stores, or maybe you have some amongst your Christmas card boxes.
On the front, address it to:
President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington , D.C. 20500

Ok, this is important! On the back, write the following message:

'This envelope represents one child who died because of an abortion.
It is empty because the life that was taken is now unable to be a part of our world.'

We will mail the envelopes out March 31st, 2009.

You can send several!!! Forward this event to every one of your friends who you think would send one too.
I wish we could send 50 million red envelopes, one for every child who died [in the U.S.] before having a chance to live.It may seem that those who believe abortion is wrong are in a minority. It may seem like we have no voice and it's shameful to even bring it up. Let us show our President and the world that the voices of those of us who do not believe abortion is acceptable are not silent and must be heard.
Barack Obama spoke at a Planned Parenthood Action Fund event, uttering the now infamous line, "Well, the first thing I'd do as president is, is sign the Freedom of Choice Act. [Applause.] That's the first thing that I'd do."
An empty red envelope will send a message to President Barack Obama that there is moral outrage in this country over this issue [The Freedom of Choice Act, which will essentially undo every law currently in place to limit abortion in the U.S... (i.e., parental consent laws, parental notification, waiting periods, prohibition of transporting a minor girl across state lines to obtain an abortion, etc.)]. It is a quiet, but clear message of protest.
I'm getting my red envelopes ready. How about you?
(If you have children, but no red envelopes--have them color a white one red!)
If you are not familiar with this, you can read more about The Freedom of Choice Act here:http://www.lifenews.com/nat4359.html
http://www.barackobama.com/2008/01/22/obama_statement_on_35th_annive.php

We must do SOMETHING!

Fun Contest from Franklin Springs!

Dear Friends of Franklin Springs:

Franklin Springs Family Media has just announced a fun and entertaining new contest.

Here's how you can enter! Submit a video or photo slideshow of you with your family, or by yourself, making a recipe featured on one or more of the Homestead Blessings DVDs:

The Art of Breadmaking, The Art of Soap Making, or The Art of Candle Making.

If you do not have the DVDs, they can be rented from NETFLIX.com, or ordered with free shipping from Franklin Springs (www.franklinsprings.com). Use free shipping promotion code: westcontest02354

A winner for each category will be selected from all entries received by the following deadlines:

The Art of Breadmaking—Deadline for submission: April 10th
The Art of Soap Making—Deadline for submission: April 17th
The Art of Candle Making—Deadline for submission: April 24th

A Best of Contest prize of $100 will also be awarded to the best submission judged by our panel.

Whether this will be your first time making one of these projects, or you are a seasoned professional, we would love to see you have fun and enjoy these good old-fashioned skills.

All video submissions should be no longer than 3 minutes. Language and attire must be appropriate for our family audience.

Franklin Springs reserves the right to disqualify any submission from the contest. By entering this contest, and unless requested otherwise, all entrants grant permission for their entry to be posted on the Friends of Franklin Springs Family Media website.

Three Ways to Enter
1. Send entry via email to contests@franklinsprings.com
2. Upload your video to Facebook, YouTube, Google Video, or any other site and send us the link.
3. Join the Contest Group at the Friends website (http://community.franklinsprings.com/) and upload your video to your profile.

Please include your name and address, and be sure to tell us how you heard about the CONTEST! We look forward to seeing your entry!

Please tell them you found out about it through my blog! :)

(then I get to win something too!)

This would be a great homeschool project!

you can get to their site by clicking the button on the right.

Friday Night Fun!

Well, our night didn't end with our free Rita's water ice...we went to Mommom's house for dinner and game night too! Her delightful daffodils greeted us at the walk way. :) They're mini's!

And then, her sweet little Easter Egg wreath welcomed us at the door. (cute!)

After the delicious meal (and I do mean delicious!) we started our game night! We started out with SkipBo

Then we got serious with "Pass The Pigs"!

That's right--you heard me--PIGS! You roll them instead of dice.

And, you get points according to the positions that they land in! Simple.

The first one to score 100 points wins!

I mean, are we crazy or what?

But, it sure was fun!

Is There Such A Thing As A Free Lunch?

Maybe not...but there is such a thing as Free Water Ice at Rita's!Every year on the first day of Spring, Rita's gives away free water ice all day! And we've made it a family tradition of sorts. :)
This is a guy serving all of us standing in line free samples! Yum!
You can see that we had quite a line!




But that's ok! It gave us some time to pick out the flavors we wanted!




Phil and Bri with their choices (and Bri is holding mine for me)--don't they look happy!?

And, Brad is certainly enjoying his!

Happy Spring!

Yet Another Photographer...

I'm always sharing my pictures, and my daughter's too....now, here are some of my son's!