Mother's Day Gift Ideas

Kelly's Korner is asking people to share
Mother's Day Gift Ideas this week on her
"Show us your Life" series.
Please go here to see many more
ideas for personalized and non-personalized
Mother's Day Gifts.
Thanks so much Kelly for allowing us to
share our businesses with your many readers.
Have a blessed weekend,
Kaye
Matthew 21:22

My heart will go on...

Here is a new cheese board I engrave with

pretty ornate handles...

and a wonderful new saying I engraved recently...

"I pray you enough"...

...but today I've been...

missing my Grandmother as she would have

celebrated her 95th birthday.

She still lives on in many hearts

and remains the most influential 'lady' in my life.

...and we lost a dear Grand Dog today which

is always difficult. Luke will be missed by many.

....but I did get in the kitchen to make some

old-fashioned iced tea cakes to take to the

Grand kids later this week

as a Valentine's Happy...

...not very pretty to look at but they do

taste like something my Grandmother once made.

...and I wanted to share another new item

recently added to the website.

The one below speaks volumes

if we will remember to.....

I lift up my eyes to the hills-
from where will my help come?
My help comes from the Lord,
who made Heaven and earth...
He will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is your keeper;
the Lord is your shade at your right hand.
Psalm 121:1-2,4-5 NRSV

Blessings today and always,

Kaye

Homemade Bread SUCCESS!

Mary Katherine and I decided we'd give Pioneer Woman's Cinnamon Rolls a try today and they did not disappoint. They are scrumptious, yummy, to die for, melt in your mouth, unbelievable....oh the ooey-gooey madness of these treats! We did in fact even use a tape measure to try to follow the recipe line by line. That was until it was time to add Maple Flavoring, and from the pictures you can tell our icing was a little bit darker than Pioneer Woman's! Our new motto: "more maple=more maddening". I will have to hold Mary Katherine accountable for saying we'd make these at least 4 times this year.

Of course, my kitchen will NEVER be the same, but that is alright, if only the smell will linger. If you haven't tried these I encourage you to do so! Your scales will vote NO don't you dare try these, but put the scales away and enjoy eating these and sharing these wonderful delicacies with friends and family!

And if you are looking for a great cookbook for yourself or to give as a gift, The Pioneer Woman Cooks is a fantastic one, with some of the most beautiful photography and the best stories, as well as some of the best recipes, ever!

I couldn't stop trying the 'breadmaking' with all of the ingredients sitting out, so I tried a Tasty Kitchen recipe for homemade rolls after Mary Katherine left. They turned out well also. They are called Heavenly Yeast Rolls and the recipe for the rolls can be found here.

The wonderful aroma of yeast at work is a special reminder of years long ago when my Grandmother would bake wonderful homemade breads, rolls and biscuits.

We didn't make a New Year's Resolution to learn to 'bake bread' this year, but I think it might just be one of ours after all. Well that and losing weight (ha!). The two just don't seem to 'fit' together, but oh well. Warm fresh breads will hopefully be a staple here and at Mary Katherine's before the end of 2010...stay tuned!

Blessings today and always,

Kaye

"People need more than bread for their life; they must feed on every word of God."

Matthew 4:4 NLT

Abundant Birthday Blessings

One of my very special aunts and uncles

sent me a quilt made by my Grandmother.

I can never express my gratitude for

their giving spirit and thoughtfulness;

to have something once again,

so very special, made by her is a 'gift'.

...and Christy was so kind to surprise me with an

announcement that she will be taking me to hear

Ron Hall, author of "Same Kind of Different as Me",

next week...

I cannot wait to hear him speak, as his was one

of my favorite books of all time...

....and I was so blessed to be given a digital frame by
Mary Katherine and her family, and to have photos
uploaded on it for me to enjoy every day...
while Tripp's family were very kind to give me a
very special tote, with one of my favorite Scriptures and
also a bracelet with the same Scripture engraved on it...
-Philippians 4:13
...and my sweet brother-in-law took the grand kids
fishing and caught this 'whopper' above
along with several others
so we had enough for all of us to enjoy
a delicious birthday dinner,
capping off a great day with
family & friends...

We were given a Kindle which Jack & I

are very excited about.

He got to read the 1st book on it

since his birthday came first!

Thanks to my sweet siblings and their families

for getting this wonderful gift for us!

Thanks for all of the very kind birthday wishes
and the very special gifts.
I feel so undeserving, but at the same time
I'm very thankful indeed.

Blessings today and always,
Kaye
Matthew 21:22

Boys will be boys!

Happy New Year!

Trying to catch up, one sticky note at a time.....

after enjoying family being here

throughout the holidays!

Tripp & Ben thoroughly

enjoyed their time together during the holidays.

It was fun watching them "play" together again

after several years of not being able to be here

at the same time....

...and it is so hard to believe the once 'little boy',

my favorite nephew:), is now 6' 5"!!!
Friends made these red and green
Christmas lights for us
using 12 Gauge Shotgun Shells!

Also shown in the picture is one of
several autographed copies of
The Pioneer Woman Cooks!
She will never know how grateful us girls
are to have our very own copy
of her great cookbook!

And if you haven't purchased yours yet,
I highly encourage you to do so.
It is a GREAT cookbook with wonderful
stories and absolutely beautiful photography...
She is so very talented (understatement of 2010),
and we thank her from the bottom of our hearts
for signing these books and sending them
back so quickly!

Have a wonderfully blessed 2010,
Kaye
Matthew 21:22

O Christmas Tree-Handprint Style

Memories of Christmas 2008
Last year Brandi at Brandi and Boys shared

one of her favorite pieces of Christmas 'artwork' on her blog

and when I saw it I knew I wanted to 'try' to get the

family involved to try doing this using our hand prints.

So last year on Christmas Eve the girls

brought enough canvasses

and paint so each of us could have our own

"Hand Prints Christmas Tree"

to treasure.

Ours started with the Grandparent's hand prints

at the bottom, then each of the kids and their

spouses hand prints, and last & least each of

the grandchildren's precious hand prints!

Thanks so very much Brandi for sharing this

wonderful idea on your blog.

I love our 'hand made' tree and will treasure it always.

Blessings today and every day,

Kaye

Matthew 21:22

Facing The Giants-Jason McLeod

Last week in Prentiss, Mississippi

Jason McLeod of

Facing the Giants and Fireproof

fame spoke at their annual Youth Rally.

My brother, his wife Stephanie and

their daughter Anna

were thrilled to spend a lot of time

with this special young man who impacted

hundreds of youth in their area.

I asked Korky to find out from Jason what Scripture

meant the most to him and we got more than that;

his autograph along with the Scripture that holds

a lot of meaning in his life.

The tile above will be shipped to him tomorrow,

along with a special thank-you for speaking

HIS truths in Prentiss and

to so many people across the Country.

I feel as though Jefferson Davis County

will never be the same after hearing this very

inspiring young man preach

and spending quality time with him.

We also discussed sending something to his

parents, so the tile above

will be sent along with his gift.

If you haven't seen these movies,

please take the time to do so.

Jason is mostly recognized for 'the death crawl'

in Facing the Giants

and was a volunteer fire fighter in Fireproof.

...and rumor has it that Jason enjoyed great

'home style' cookin' at The Country Fisherman

in Prentiss....and famous Bar-B-Q at Letha's

in Hattiesburg.

I told my brother while he

was here for the Thanksgiving holidays that if

I didn't love him so much I'd be jealous of those

two outstanding meals Jason was treated to.

Blessings today and always,

Kaye

Matthew 21:22

KK's Zucchini Casserole

Excited to join in with

Kelly's Korner "Show us your life"

Thanksgiving recipe exchange.

I try each Thanksgiving to cook things my

Mom and Grandmother once cooked for us.

For the life of me I don't know how they did what they did,

so many things to choose from for Thanksgiving Lunch,

then so many wonderful desserts.

We have a "Traditional Thanksgiving Meal"

including Turkey & Dressing, but I have learned to

start way ahead of time with casseroles and desserts

by freezing these starting in October each year.

Then on Thanksgiving Day I don't end up 'cooking'

all day but just bake and serve

and enjoy being with family.

Christy is kind to bring one of her

Dad's favorites each year,

Deviled Eggs, but other than that I try

my best to 'be like Mom & Grandma' and do the rest myself.

I am so very thankful for the traditions they started and

thankful they allowed me in the kitchen while growing up,

watching and listening to their 'tried and true' baking secrets.

So thankful for 'family' and so thankful Thanksgiving is

right around the corner so I can

see loved ones I haven't seen in a while.

Hope you enjoy the recipes shared this week at

Kelly's Korner

and hope you'll give this recipe a try, it is delicious!

Zucchini Casserole

8-10 Zucchini washed, ends removed

and quartered

Boil in water until tender and drain

In a small saucepan melt:

1 stick Margarine

8 oz. Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Remove from heat & add

8 oz. Sour Cream

Stir until well blended.

Butter Casserole Dish, place zucchini in dish.

Pour cheese mixture over zucchini.

Top with crushed Town House Crackers

Top with Salt & Pepper To Taste

Bake at 350 F 30 Minutes

Enjoy!!!

Another Thanksgiving Tradition

started by Mary Katherine

last year was her making a

"Thankful Tree" and

bringing it on Thanksgiving Day so

each of us could write on

a 'leaf' cut with Fall colored construction paper.

The Thankful Tree was a

branch cut off of a real tree and placed

in a metal pail then secured with rocks.

During the entire day of Thanksgiving when we

would think of something we were thankful for,

we'd write on a leaf and place it on the tree.

By the end of the day the tree was covered in

messages of "Thankfulness".

I saved ours and will use it again this year and

we can reflect on things we were thankful for this

special time last year.

I look forward to adding

'thankful' notes to the tree this year!

------------

"Ourselves also, which have the first fruits

of the Spirit." -Romans 8:23

But the first fruits were not the harvest,

and the works of the Spirit in us at this moment,

are not the consummation - the perfection is yet to come.

We must not boast that we have attained,

and so reckon the wave-sheaf to be all the produce

of the year: we must hunger and thirst after

righteousness, and pant for the day of

full redemption. Dear reader, this day open

your heart wide, and God will fill it.

Groan within yourself for higher

degrees of consecration,

and your Lord will grant them to you,

for He is able to do exceeding abundantly above

what we ask, or even think.

November 6 - Daily Help - Rev. Charles H. Spurgeon

-----------

.....remembering Grandmother-1987

with much love, admiration and gratitude...

-----------

Have a wonderfully blessed weekend,

Kaye

Matthew 21:22

Happy Day!

Wishing a very Happy 6th Anniversary to
Bret & Christy
and a very Happy Birthday to two
very special family members;
Happy 94th to my mother-in-law
and Happy 22nd to our nephew Ben.

Hope everyone has a wonderfully
blessed Lord's Day.
Blessings always,
Kaye
Matthew 21:22

Happy Birthday & Growing Babies!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SISSY!
She traveled yesterday with her husband
to Lewiston, Idaho, to watch her son's team (SPSU) play
in the NAIA World Series!
She is in awe of what they have seen since they've
been there, yet another beautiful area of our

Great Country.

The fast growth of Love & Truth has been a
sight to behold. Feathers everywhere and
looks as though they are almost ready to take flight!

We 'had' to add sparklers to the decorated
donuts the kids brought a few days ago
in honor of the upcoming Memorial Day Weekend.
Here is Trace posing with his donuts.

And Katie's 'pose' with hers before
blowing the sparklers out!

Trent thought he was ready for the pool
but after jumping in he decided swimming could wait.
The cool water literally took his breath away.

And Zachary said the water was 'just right' but
stayed maybe 2 minutes and was ready for
some warmth from towels.

Our little Jack IV fell wrong on their trampoline
Saturday morning and broke his leg, so I'm sad
to say we'll celebrate his 4th birthday later this week
with him wearing a cast:( Poor thing.
His sister Ali kindly kissed his hand and told him,
"I hope that makes you feel better".

He must be handling this
very well since I received a video of him hitting
baseballs yesterday while sitting on a bucket.

Love the resilience of these kids.
We're 3 for 6 on breaks with these grand kids
and praying the remaining 3 who have been
fortunate to not have any broken bones will
continue to be careful and safe and stay out of the ER!

Happy Memorial Day!

Later today I'll post the 3 winners of the giveaway
so if you've not commented to enter,
please go here where you can have up
to 3 chances to WIN!

Blessings today and always,
Kaye

Do not conform any longer
to the pattern of this world,
but be transformed by the
renewing of your mind.
Then you will be able to
rest and approve what God's will is-
his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Romans 12:2 NIV

99 & Holding

Southern Hospitality's Rhoda and her husband recently met my sweet Father-in-law at The Club in Birmingham for lunch. She tells a wonderful story of their time together, along with history of The Club and shares a wonderful sounding recipe here.
Thank you both for meeting him for lunch and for sharing this great picture of him. He thoroughly enjoyed meeting you both. Hopefully next time we're in Birmingham we can all get together!
Blessings today and always,
Kaye
Matthew 21:22

For in HIM we live and move and have our being.
Acts 17:28 NIV

Happy Anniversary!

Sweet Jack IV

And Precious Ali...

I've searched through numerous pictures trying to find one of Tripp and Holly together, since they are celebrating their 9th Wedding Anniversary today, but I failed at finding one:(

I finally decided I'd share the next best thing(s)....wonderful Grand Children as a result of their marriage.

I promise to be better prepared for posts such as these in the future.

Hope you've had a wonderfully blessed Anniversary!
Love,
Dad & KK

Weekend in Pictures

The Southern Polytechnic State University Baseball Team
WON their Regional Championship!
They will travel to Lewis & Clark State University
located in Lewiston, Idaho for the
NAIA National Championship Tournament!

Our sweet nephew Ben showing he is very happy with
his teams victory!

And my sister Kathi is one proud Mama!

Sissy loving on her 'little' boy!

The Regional Tournament was held at
William Carey University in Hattiesburg, MS,
therefore my sister, her husband David and my
little brother Korky were able to go cheer them on
to victory!
I think Ben had the largest cheering section
since the tournament
was held in Mississippi and he is from there.
His Dad, Grandparents and
one of his aunts were there to help cheer them on,
as well as the 'cheer section' photographed above.

Best of luck SPSU in the 2009 National Tournament!
Praying for safe travels for the entire
team, coaching staff and their supporters this week.

We made it to Katie's last t-ball game of the season
early Saturday afternoon.
Yeah Katie, we are VERY proud of you!

Swing batter-batter swing...

Getting signals from the coach....?

To steal, or not to steal......
Yeah Omaha/Naples Heat on a great 2009 Season!

Later Saturday afternoon we took aerial photographs
of the activities held downtown during the
2009 Mt. Pleasant Outhouse Races.
The organizers and participants
were grateful for absolutely perfect
weather throughout the day.

"Wait on the Lord: be of good courage,
and he shall strengthen thine heart:
wait, I say, on the Lord."
Psalm 27:14 KJV

Niece & Nephew Capture Titles!

Southern Polytechnic State University

captured the SSAC Tournament Title yesterday afternoon.
We are very proud of our nephew Ben
and the rest of the team.
Ben's text message immediately following the game read:
"I finally get a Championship Ring!!!"

And for some College Softball news...
Our niece Kati coaches at
Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College
and they WON this weekend also!
They leave later this week for their
National Tournament in Chicago!
Congratulations & best of luck to both teams!

Always Give Thanks & A Recipe

While talking to my sister a couple of weeks ago
on the phone, I asked her to send me a recipe and a
message of hope for a cookbook a friend of mine is
working on called, "Sally's Hope".
This cookbook will be filled with recipes and stories
solely from Cancer Survivors.

I received this from Kathi, my precious sister today
and after typing it for her,
to send in for the cookbook, I felt led to
share 'her' story and a yummy recipe
she is now required to bring to
ALL Church luncheons and dinners!

Grape Salad
For a more beautiful salad use both
red & white seedless grapes.
Wash then pull grapes off of stems.
This salad can be as big or small as needed,
just adjust amounts of ingredients as necessary.

For a large ‘grape salad’:
1 8 ounce cream cheese
1 8 ounce sour cream
Blend with mixer.
Pour over grapes, stir to cover grapes.
Then add the following:
½ to 1 cup brown sugar
1 cup roasted pecan pieces

Always Give Thanks

Several years ago I went through a horrible, sad divorce. For eight years I was alone, but during those eight years, Jesus loved me and drew me closer and closer to Him. I fell head over heels in love with my Jesus and I grew to trust Him with my life, with everything. Then He gave me the most wonderful, precious gift-David, a husband who loves Jesus more than anything and loves me like Jesus loves the Church. After we were married, David noticed a place, a mole on the back of my right shoulder that I had never and would have never noticed. He was concerned and asked me to go to a dermatologist to have it checked. I did. They took it off and sent it to be tested. They were very concerned also saying those dreaded words, “It does not look good.” The next day they called to tell me it was an extremely aggressive melanoma. They scheduled an appointment with a surgeon that day. My husband came to be with me as we met with the surgeon. When the doctor came into the room, my eyes filled with tears and I asked him, “Do you know my Jesus?” He was taken by surprise and sat down close to me, put his hand on my knee and said, “I have never been asked that question, and yes, I know Him.” “I love Him and He is my dearest friend”, he went on to tell me. While we were having our Hallelujah party, I told him I just didn’t want anyone operating on me who didn’t know Jesus. He explained what was going to take place and we prayed together. The surgery was a couple of days later.
When David and I were taken to my room, several men who love us, from our Church, were already there praying. In a little while, they came to get me and took me for the dye test, that dreaded test to check lymph nodes, etc. When they inserted that horrible needle I remember thanking Jesus for all the pain He went through to save us from our sins. Precious people took care of me. They took me back to my room to get me ready for surgery.
The room was full now with precious people praying. Then my doctor came in, took me by the hand and prayed with me and all of us. I was floating in the Holy Spirit. It was beautiful! They took me; no I floated to pre-op.
When I got there, the nurse was getting me ready and these words came out of my mouth, “You nurses must be so blessed to work with doctors who love Jesus.” All of a sudden tears began to stream from her eyes, down her face and onto the bed. She looked deep into my eyes and said, “I haven’t thought about Jesus for years.” She continued to say, “I have a two year old little boy and I have never mentioned Jesus to him. Oh, I am so sorry; my life is fixing to change! Thank you for saying His name.”
I didn’t remember anything after that. My doctor came in after surgery. He said they had gotten all of the cancer and there was no sign of any cancer in the lymph nodes.
When I went to see him the next week, he said I was completely healed and he had never seen anybody heal so quickly.
Do you believe God loves one person so much that He would allow a person to have cancer to mention His name so that one person could hear His name? I do. I believe He loves us so much and pursues us so relentlessly that He’ll do anything to draw us to Him. Every single time I see the cross, I’m reminded of that. His love for us was forever settled there and will never change!
Thank you Jesus!
Hallelujah!
Say the name, the name of Jesus, the name above all names!
“Rejoice evermore! Pray without ceasing! In everything give thanks for this is the will of God concerning you. Quench not the Spirit!”
1 Thessalonians 5:16-19

Skeet shooting..after all these years

MK and her Dad down on the range
& sporting matching hats & glasses.
Whowouldhaveeverthunkit?

Zachary, the cutest 5 year old shooter I've ever seen!

Leah taking her first lessons!
I think she liked it a lot.
She bought her first shotgun this week
and has taken more lessons.
I think this might be her new favorite sport.

Zachary was the 'proud' puller for Leah as she was learning
and he was her 'good luck' charm since each time he pushed
the button for her to release the skeet, she HIT IT!!!
Yeah Zachary and Leah, the two of you make a great team!

Zachary with his Dad as his teacher
and his Mom as his 'puller'! What a threesome.

Even though it was a terribly windy afternoon,
everyone had a great time amongst
chasing the dog, chasing Trent, teaching new shooters,
and in the middle of all of the shooting,
leaving to take a sweet man, who turned 100
last Sunday on his first ever helicopter ride.

What a jam-packed-fun-filled afternoon...whew....