The other night, I was unable to sleep. I had finished the last of the stack of library books that sit on the night table beside my bed. I was laying there wide awake, when I realized that I had my1946 edition of Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book under the bed. I know… Strange place for it. I put there until I could get some of the round ring stickers for the pages that were torn. Any way, I pulled the book out and began to read. Of all the cookbooks that I have, I have never actually read any of the “information” in the books.
I found some really neat things other than some new recipes that I am planning on trying in the near future. Those of you who make a weekly, bi-weekly or even monthly meal menu for your family, you’ll enjoy this…
MEAL – PLANNING IS A GAME that’s fun if you play it with imagination and zest. If you play it well, you will win satisfaction for yourself and cheers of enthusiasm from your family. It’s important to plan well-balanced means, but it’s equally important to make those meals appetizing and attractive, with plenty of variety.
When I read this, I thought how neat! Wives and Mothers way back then were into menu planning for their families. I know that we’ve seen old t.v. shows and movies that talked about “Meatloaf Monday.” Many of the wives that created a menu plan stuck with it for everyday of the week. This was a good way for the family to know what is for dinner each day of the week. And I’m sure it also kept down the hassle of knowing what to buy at the grocery store.
To many, menu planning is a new thing; when actually it is something that has been going on for years. How neat is that!
I am Thankful for God’s Grace.
When life seems to have hit rock bottom of the barrel and there is nothing there.
God always has a little meal to be found.
I Thankful that God has shed His Grace on me and my family.
I have several all time favorite cookbooks that I use when I’m in the kitchen. This is not my favorite, but it comes in second place. I’m sure you are probably wondering about all the papers hanging out of it. Well, let me explain. When I come across a recipe on the internet, in a magazine or when someone gives me one, I usually stick it in this particular book. The dust jacket hides all the mess!
I realized the other day, that this book is full of extra pages stored in it. So now, I have a job set before me. I have to go through each of the recipes and try and remember if they worked, if they were a hit, or if it was a failure. This is something that I have to do maybe two times a year ~ if I’m having a good year on collecting recipes. Then the successful recipes will be written on cards and placed in my recipe box for further use.
There is something that I want to do. I’ve read about something like this in the Recipes and Wooden Spoons by Judy Baer. I want to take the recipes that I cook for family and friends and place them in a book along with personal notes about each recipes.
I think this would be neat to be able to pass down to Monkey when he is older. I want to leave with him a little something special from the kitchen.
Most of you know that I taught school for 10 years. I taught all elementary grades except for fourth and sixth grades. My first year teaching, I taught in the preschool in the mornings and substituted in the high school in the afternoons.I think about some of the students that I taught and wonder where they are and what they have done with their lives.
Over the ten years of teaching, I had somewhere between 150 – 180 students to sit under my teaching. That is a lot of boys and girls that entered my classroom doors. When I look back on those years, I can’t help but think about Kaycee, Chris, Michael, Patrick,April, Erica, Zack, Brianna, Marcus, Thomas and Morgan. All of these except for two have already graduated high school and moved on with their lives. One is getting ready to graduate this year and the other is in middle school. The one graduating and the middle schooler, I hear about often or talk to on Facebook. The others are just a few that tugged at my heart while they were in my class.
When I think about all of those hearts and minds, I can’t help but wonder what ever came of them. I know that there are a couple of Missionaries that are on the mission field ( I never would have guessed that they would be missionaries), Pastors working in churches ( the ones that I know of, REALLY and TRULY I never would have guessed them to be pastors), teachers teaching in a Christian school and others who have gone on to serve the Lord.
Sadly, there are more that have strayed from their Christian teachings than those that stayed. This is something that really breaks my heart. When I think about some of these ~ I never would have guessed that they would have made the decisions that they did. But I was not their mother. I was not the one who was raising them. I was only part of the leadership that they encountered in their young lives. Do I regret putting 10 years into the lives of these young people? Absolutely not! It was a joy.
I was able to teach in two really good schools. I had the opportunity to teach the Bible and teach these children about Salvation. I was able to lead several students to the Lord ~ what a blessing for me. I know that I can’t go back and try and teach more Bible and say not to get into this or that. But there is one thing that I can do today ~ I can pray for a class as a group and ask the Lord, to help them to remember something that I taught them.
I found this on a forum where I am a member. I just loved it and had to share…
A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds ,
‘What does love mean?’
The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined
See what you think:
‘When my grandmother got arthritis , she couldn’t bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time , even when his hands got arthritis too. That’s love.’
Rebecca- age 8
‘When someone loves you , the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.’
Billy – age 4
‘Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.’
Karl – age 5
‘Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.’
Chrissy – age 6
‘Love is what makes you smile when you’re tired.’
Terri – age 4
‘Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him , to make sure the taste is OK.’
Danny – age 7
‘Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing , you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that.
They look gross when they kiss’
Emily – age 8
‘Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents
and listen.’
Bobby – age 7 (Wow!)
‘If you want to learn to love better , you should start with a friend who you hate , ‘
Nikka – age 6
(we need a few million more Nikka’s on this planet)
‘Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt , then he wears it everyday.’
Noelle – age 7
‘Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well..’
Tommy – age 6
‘During my piano recital , I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling….
He was the only one doing that. I wasn’t scared anymore.’
Cindy – age 8
‘My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don’t see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.’
Clare – age 6
‘Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.’
Elaine-age 5
‘Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford ..’
Chris – age 7
‘Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.’
Mary Ann – age 4
‘I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.’
Lauren – age 4
‘When you love somebody , your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.’ (what an image)
Karen – age 7
‘Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn’t think it’s gross.’
Mark – age 6
‘You really shouldn’t say ‘I love you’ unless you mean it. But if you mean it , you should say it a lot. People forget.’
Jessica – age 8
And the final one
The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.
Upon seeing the man cry , the little boy went into the old gentleman’s yard , climbed onto his lap , and just sat there.
When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor , the little boy said , ‘Nothing , I just helped him cry.”
