On My Mind Today

We have all been told at one time or another in our lives to stop and smell the roses. Unfortunately, we tend to ignore this advice and as time passes we lose out on so much. Life is precious, and often times too short. Every time we rush through our day we miss the opportunity to savor the special moments that are put before us. How often have we heard our children say, “look at me; look at what I can do!”, only to tell them that we are busy? That one thing that they can finally do, that they are proud of, and we don’t have time. These are moments we will never get back. We need to ask ourselves, “What are we waiting for”? Putting off all the things we should stop and savor can lead to a life with few memories. When we get closer to the end than the beginning, there will be too many things that we will never have the opportunity to experience again. Close your eyes and listen carefully to the sounds that swirl around you without notice as you rush through your day. Breathe in th

It is always nice to add homemade sweet bread to your brunch menu. When I want something quick and easy I turn to my Betty Crocker cookbook for a tried and true recipe. This pumpkin bread actually calls for raisins, but I substitute mini chocolate chips for added flavor and sweetness. Since it makes two loaves, I can freeze one to enjoy another time. Pumpkin Bread with Walnuts and Mini Chocolate Chips 2/3 cup shortening 2 - 2/3 cups sugar 4 eggs 1 can (16 ounces) pumpkin 2/3 cup water 3 - 1/3 cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking soda 1-1/2 teaspoons salt 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon ground cloves 2/3 cup coarsely chopped walnuts 2/3 cup mini chocolate chips Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the bottoms only of 2 loaf pans, 9x5x3. Mix shortening and sugar in large bowl. Add eggs, pumpkin and water. Blend in flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, cinnamon and cloves. Stir in nuts and mini chocolate chips. Pour into pans. Bake until wooden pick

You cannot tell a child, “do as I say, not as I do”, and expect these words to make a lasting impression. What will make an impression and form their behaviors are the things you do and say in their presence. How you treat your children, family, friends, and acquaintances will be the basis of how they learn to interact with others. The foundation that is laid out before them at a very young age will determine what kind of adolescent, and adult, they will turn out to be. If a child is bullied at home it will have a ripple effect. This behavior will eventually be mirrored as they interact with their peers in the classroom or on the playground. Having no power at home, they will exert their aggression on others as it has been done to them. This conduct can come in the form of physical or emotional abuse. At a minimum it will be name calling or mocking someone to show their “dominance”; trying to induce others to do the same. Worst case scenario is using physical abuse against a clas

On the wings of warmer spring days planting season has once again arrived. Although it seemed like it might never get here, almost overnight we turned the corner. This year he dug out the old soil in the raised bed garden, and then we spent hours refilling and spreading new garden mix. In the midst of this back breaking job, I let him know that next time he thinks of doing this…please forget about it. We are getting older and old soil will work just fine. In a small garden we have to be selective as to what we really want to plant. After many years we have come down to our favorites; tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, green beans, peppers, eggplant, lettuce, potatoes and of course the herbs. We have tried corn and carrots, but there was not a big enough harvest to plant them again. Plus, a big wind storm wiped out half of our corn stalks. For the most part, I am left to plant the vegetable garden in peace. I have my audience of one who occasionally speaks up to tell me that I am plan

Not long ago I had this meal at a restaurant and was so impressed that I recreated it at home. I purchased the Korean BBQ Sauce, but if you wanted you could make your own. The aroma while everything is cooking will have your mouth watering, and the amazing seasonings are like a flavor explosion in your mouth! Next time we have guests I will enjoy sharing this meal with them. General Instructions: Make the sweet chili cream sauce and set aside in the refrigerator (remove from fridge about ½ hour before serving). Get the potatoes ready and cook to make the mashed potatoes. Next prepare the green beans and put in the oven. The last step will be the pan seared scallops. Sweet Chili Cream Sauce – from https://petersfoodadventures.com This creamy sweet chili sauce recipe is extremely easy to make. A great seafood sauce, salad dressing, fry sauce or dip. 1 cup mayo ½ cup sweet chili Juice of a lime Small handful cilantro finely chopped Using a whisk, combine ingredients to

When the time comes for you to meet your maker, what will you have to say? Will you be able to say that you always strived to do what is right and noble; that you tried to leave the world a better place than you found it? Have you treated others with kindness, compassion and understanding? Were you quick to criticize, or did you keep in mind not to judge others when you have not walked in their shoes? Did you find ways to help those less fortunate than you? Did you give more than you took? Did you share when you had more than you needed? Were you generous with praise for the good others did? Were you humble about the things that you did; never bragging or saying, “look at me”? Did you do good deeds when the opportunity arose to do so? Did you offer assistance when you saw others struggle without looking for anything in return? Were you a contributing member of your community? Did you strive to right wrongs even when it may have been difficult to do so? Did you stand up to t

In recognition of Mother’s Day, I am once again sharing this blog written back in 2014. Although mothers should be recognized every day, they truly do deserve a special day every year. Mother's Day – A celebration honoring mothers and motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated in many parts of the world, most commonly in the spring. First a little history from Wikipedia: The modern American holiday of Mother's Day was first celebrated in 1908, when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother in Grafton, West Virginia. Her campaign to make "Mother's Day" a recognized holiday in the United States began in 1905, the year her beloved mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, died. Anna’s mission was to honor her own mother by continuing work she had started and to set aside a day to honor mothers, "the person who has done more for you than anyone in the world." Anna's mother, Ann Jarvis, was a peace activist who had cared

If you are looking for a quick dessert, it does not get any easier than this! From Taste of Home contributor, Keri Sparks of Little Elm, Texas, it is one of the best dump cakes I have had. I brought it to dinner with friends and received rave reviews from everyone. Since I did not have enough sliced almonds I mixed in chopped pecans. One piece will leave you wanting more. It says to serve warm, but it's just as good cold. Add whipped cream or vanilla ice cream for the perfect dessert. Prep Time: 10 minutes; Bake: 35 minutes; Yield 15 servings Ingredients 2 cans (15 ounces each) sliced peaches in extra-light syrup 2 tablespoons brown sugar 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 package yellow cake mix (regular size) 3/4 cup sliced almonds 1/2 cup cold butter Directions 1. Preheat oven to 350°. Pour 1 can of undrained peaches into a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Drain remaining can of peaches and add to baking dish; sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle with cake mix and almonds. 2.

Procrastination...we all tend to do this when it comes to the bigger projects that loom over us. There is always some reason that it cannot be done; most likely it is because we do not want to, or there is something much more enjoyable we want to do. At times, keeping up with the normal routine chores can overwhelm us when we have a busy schedule with work, family, and other commitments. To try and take on a project in the midst of the daily chaos can be a gargantuan task. We know that many of these larger undertakings must be completed once they are started. There is no doing one part now and leaving the rest until later. If it is out of sight, then it is out of mind. However, some things stare us in the face every day, and eventually they must be tackled. The hard part is making the decision to start and taking the first step. If we can turn everything else off and dive in, then the daunting task does not seem as monumental as we imagined. We tackled one of our bigger projects