Friday

 

 Katya has "The" touch. Every time I go over to her house I am inspired. It's hard to explain other than that she and I are kindred spirits in our decorating (and in just about everything else actually). We think so alike it's almost creepy,  but in a good way, I assure you. 

{I just realized that we have the same background for our blogs! See!! What did I tell you?!}

  Good thing she's my sister-in-law! :) 

Oh, and this little girly that has stolen my heart, she likes to pose for pictures.  Yea, it's a good thing she's my niece!! :)

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To end this little post, here is a good song! I hope you all have a *great* weekend!

::~How Deep the Father's Love~::

Stuart Townend

How deep the Father's love for us,
How vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure

How great the pain of searing loss,
The Father turns His face away
As wounds which mar the chosen One,
Bring many sons to glory

Behold the Man upon a cross,
My sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed I hear my mocking voice,
Call out among the scoffers

It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life
I know that it is finished

I will not boast in anything
No gifts, no power, no wisdom
But I will boast in Jesus Christ
His death and resurrection

Why should I gain from His reward?
I cannot give an answer
But this I know with all my heart
His wounds have paid my ransom

and the sun came out...

Victory

O Divine Redeemer,

Great was thy goodness

in undertaking my redemption,

in consenting to be made sin for me,

in conquering all my foes;

Great was thy strength

in enduring the extremities of divine wrath,

in taking away the load of my iniquities;

Great was thy love

in manifesting thyself alive,

in showing thy sacred wounds,

that ever fear might vanish,

and every doubt be removed;

Great was thy mercy

in ascending to heaven

in being crowned and enthroned

there to intercede for me,

there to succour me in temptation

there to open the eternal book,

there to receive me finally to thyself;

Great was thy wisdom

in devising this means of salvation;

Bathe my soul in rich consolations

of thy resurrection life;

Great was thy grace

in commanding me to come hand in hand

with thee to the Father,

to be knit to him eternally,

to discover in him my rest,

to find in him my peace,

to behold his glory,

to honour him who is alone worthy;

in giving me the Spirit as a teacher, guide,

power,

that I may live repenting of sin,

conquer Satan,

find victory in life.

When thou art absent all sorrows are here,

When thou art present all blessings are mine.

--From Valley of Vision--


**Happy Resurrection Sunday Everyone!!**

British Accents

They spend half their days drinking tea, and the other half ignoring them....  :)

~Chambers~

Photo by: Steven Morris from AllPosters.com

"The joy of the Lord is your strength." Where do the saints get their joy from? If we did not know some saints, we would say-- "Oh, he, or she, has nothing to bear." Lift the veil. The fact that the peace and the light and the joy of God are there is proof that the burden is there too. The burden God places squeezes the grapes and out comes the wine; most of us see the wine only.

--My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers--

--April 14th--

Libera-

I could listen to these little boys all day!

 

Listen to the Josh in the beginning! Such a SWEETIE!  

If you scroll to the VERY BOTTOM of my page you can pause my music so you can listen to their beautiful music.  :) 

70°

I told myself that I wouldn't take off my shoes and go barefoot until May.  I told myself it was a wise choice 'cause I didn't want to get sick. 

I was doing it for my health... right? :)

But, when I woke up Tuesday morning and it was 70° outside, what was I suppose to do? The sprinkler was running, the birds were chirping, the sun was shining... the shoes HAD to come off. 

They did, and it felt SO good!!!! :)

~*Lemon*~

Have I ever told you that I *love* lemons?! Not only their taste, but their vibrant color!!! :)

Pretzels

I made these yesterday and they were SO good!! :)

Makes 16 pretzels:

1 package active dry yeast

1½  cups warm water

2 Tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon salt

4 ¼ to 4 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

1 egg, beaten

Coarse salt

1. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water.  Add the sugar and the 1 teaspoon salt.  Gradually stir in the 4 cups of the flour to make a dough; add additional flour if the dough is too sticky.
2. Turn our the dough onto a lightly floured surface.  Knead in enough of the remaining flour to make a moderately soft dough that is smooth and elastic (3 to 5 minutes total).  Shape the dough into a ball.  Place the ball in a greased bowl; turn once to grease the surface of the dough.  Cover the bowl and let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size (about 45 minutes). 
3. Punch down the dough.  Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface.   Cover the dough and let it rest  for 10 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 350°.  Roll the dough into a 12x8- inch rectangle.  Cut the dough rectangle into sixteen 12x 1/2 inch strips.  Gently pull each dough strip into a rope about 16 inches long.
5. On a greased baking sheet, shape each dough rope into a pretzel by crossing 1 end over the other to form a circle, leaving about 4 inches at each end.
6. Take 1 3nd of the dough in each hand and twist once at the point where the dough overlaps.  Carefully life each end across to the opposite edge of the circle; tuck the ends under to make a pretzel shape.  Moisten the ends with water and press to seal them in place.  Brush the tops of the pretzels with the beaten egg.  Sprinkle with the coarse salt.
7. Bake in the 350° oven about 18 minutes or until the pretzels are lightly browned.  Transfer the pretzels to a wire rack to cool.

Moistening the ends of the shaped pretzels with water before sealing them will help keep them in place so that they don't pop up.

If you prefer, you can sprinkle the pretzels with poppy seed or sesame seed (or even cinnamon and sugar!) instead of the coarse salt in this recipe.

Store any leftover pretzels in an airtight bag or a covered container.

--From Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook--

*Ana*

~*is lovely*~

Pioneer Woman

I just recently discovered this wonderful blog.  It's much more than just photography... GO check it out!!! :) 

Pioneer Woman Photography

"Little" Brother :)

Little Bits of Spring

Click here to see more pictures....

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::~The sun came out the other day and it poured brilliantly into our little abode.  I just couldn't keep myself from taking a picture of this little music box being warmed by the spring sun.  :)