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Monday, October 14, 2013

General Cat O'Neill's Favorite Cat Food #shop #ShebaCat #cbias

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias and their client. All opinions are honest and are my own.


Our cat, O'Neill, doesn't show his emotions much, but I'll bet he's just thrilled with the costume we gave him this morning. On second thought, I think he's pretty embarrassed with his outfit; but, he is thrilled about his Sheba cat food treats I bought him!

We live just a few blocks from our city's main downtown area---a place that gets lots of traffic on Halloween. Local businesses stay open later that evening to provide a safe place for little kids to show off their costumes and snag some great candy. This year, I imagined O'Neill sitting out on the porch, watching the kids go by, and wishing he had his own great costume. 


I felt sort of sorry for the poor guy so I thought I'd make him something that would show off his personality. O'Neill is named for our favorite Stargate SG-1 character, Brigadier General Jack O'Neill. Like his namesake, our O'Neill is a strong and fierce warrior and is brave in the face of danger.

While I was at Walmart, grabbing him a few tasty treats, I picked up a child-sized camo t-shirt to make him a fitting costume. I just cut off the arms and slid his front paws through the holes. The rest of the shirt was just long enough to cover his body, and I made a little do-rag with part of a sleeve.


One way we help keep O'Neill in great shape is by making sure he's got lots of tasty MREs on hand. This week, Walmart has Sheba cat food on rollback for 50 cents each and you can even find a coupon on Sheba's website! I used mine to buy 6 and get 1 free. One thing I like about the way these cans are designed is the easy-to-open tab on top. This makes it simple for my kids to feed him without help.

O'Neill thinks the varieties with gravy are the best and I appreciate the affordable price Walmart offers for this high-quality brand. He's enjoyed every flavor he's tried and, at less than a dollar a can, I love to treat him often. He's a full-grown cat, so the serving size is just the right amount to give him in the afternoon. He's always polite to leave his empty can on the porch when he's done.


Ok, so I don't think he's interested in wearing this camo uniform and do-rag on a regular basis---but I think he'll agree his reward was worth a few minutes of humiliation!

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Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cinnamon Sprinkle for the Homemaking Party



Thanks so much for joining me for the Homemaking Party! Here's a yummy fall recipe that I first debuted last spring! Now that it's actually pumpkin time, I thought I'd put it up again!  Hope you all are having a great week!

Pumpkin Cupcakes
6 eggs
3 c. sugar
3 c. pumpkin
1 1/2 c. oil
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
3 1/4 c. flour
1 Tb. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. salt

Mix eggs, sugar, pumpkin, oil, and vanilla.  Mix in dry ingredients and spoon into cupcake pans. Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes or until done.  Frost with cream cheese frosting and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar

Cream Cheese Frosting
8 oz. softened cream cheese
1-2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Mix cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add vanilla and then mix in powdered sugar and milk until it reaches the consistency you're wanting.

Linking with:
Craft-o-Maniac Monday  
Motivate Me Monday 
Modest Monday @ The Modest Mom 
Living Proverbs 31
Make the Scene Monday @ Alderberry Hill 
Inspire Me Monday @ Create With Joy 
Masterpiece Monday @ BoogieBoard Cottage 
A Round Tuit @ Creating My Way to Success 
Monday Funday @ C.R.A.F.T. 
Marriage Monday
Manic Monday @ Cupcake-n-Bake
Making Your Home Sing Monday
Inspire Mondays
A Return to Loveliness @ A Delightsome Life
Cottage Style Party @ Lavender Garden Cottage 
Teach Me Tuesday @ Growing Home
Tutorial Tuesdays with Hope Studios
Character Corner
Women Helping Women @ Teaching What Is Good 
Domestically Divine @ Far Above Rubies
(Titus 2)s Days @ Time Warp Wife

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Make Bake Create Party #28: Creativity in England



  
Welcome to this week's Make Bake Create Party! 5 hosts...5 blogs---SWEET! Meet your hosts:

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This week, I thought I'd show off some of the creativity I encountered on my trip to England a couple weeks ago.


Here is a Celtic brooch that was found at the bottom of the Roman spa at Bath. It was likely tossed in there as an offering back when we figured years in hundreds instead of thousands.


Dressmakers used to make miniature examples of their work to give customers an idea of their skill. These little outfits really intrigued me. I found this one at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.


I bet you'd never imagine that some of the best stories in history were penned at this tiny table. This is Jane Austen's writing desk---displayed at her house in Chawton Village, Hampshire.


What do you imagine this is?  That's right---it's King Arthur's Round Table. I had the opportunity to tour The Great Hall at Winchester. It was totally unplanned and ended up being my favorite part of the trip!

From the website:  "According to legend, the Round Table which hangs in the Great Hall of Winchester Castle is the table around which King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table met, and it has been famous for centuries for its associations with the legendary 'Once and Future King'. Although we now know that it originated many centuries later, the table’s mystique still remains.
It was probably created in about 1290, for a tournament near Winchester to celebrate the betrothal of one of Edward I’s daughters. When the table was taken down from the wall and investigated by a team of scientists in 1976, tree ring evidence and carbon dating placed it in the 13th or early 14th century which supports that idea."
What an awesome experience---I'm already planning next year's tour!

Follow our Make Bake Create Party Pin Board where we will be pinning the projects linked up here!  


* Be sure to include The Make Bake Create button or text link to in your linked post!


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Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Make Bake Create #27



  
Welcome to this week's Make Bake Create Party! 5 hosts...5 blogs---SWEET! Meet your hosts:

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Follow our Make Bake Create Party Pin Board where we will be pinning the projects linked up here!  


* Be sure to include The Make Bake Create button or text link to in your linked post; this is recommended in order to be featured!


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Sunday, September 29, 2013

All Together In One Accord---Fellowship at Bath Abbey

"These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer" ~Acts 1:14

One of the most memorable days during my England tour was the Sunday morning I spent worshipping with those who attend The Abbey Church of St. Peter and St. Paul at Bath.


I'd been looking forward to this since I first found out we had free time on the first Sunday morning of our tour---there was just no way that I wasn't going to take time to thank God for allowing me to have this awesome England experience.


Having attended mainly Pentecostal and Baptist churches, I'd never experienced an Anglican service before and had never participated in the kind of liturgy and communion that took place that day.  


What an amazing experience to fellowship with other Christians on a site that has been devoted to Christian worship since 757 AD! 


What was really neat is the fact that this site at Bath was originally part of a complex dedicated to pagan gods as early as 600 BC.  


I love this timeline that explains the history of the site. What a great way to remind us how God took something bad and turned it around for good.  While some would say the pagan past should be forgotten, the Christians visiting the site would not be able to make that connection without a reminder of the history of the place.


Another amazing part of the service was the sweet boys choir.  It was so awesome to see them in their green and white robes, making their way up the aisle, singing all the way.


"For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread." ~1 Corinthians 10:17


I am so thrilled to have been given the chance to worship and receive communion with the other believers at Bath Abbey. God is alive and doing good things in England!

Linking with:
Living Proverbs 31

Friday, September 27, 2013

Pink England for Pink Saturday: Part One

It's hard to believe that just one week ago to the minute, I was enjoying lunch in the beautiful Orangery of Kensington Palace in London.  Now that I'm back at home and back into my wife/mommy/homemaking routine, England feels a million miles away!

I'm hoping to do lots of photo and story sharing over the next few weeks---I've got thousands of great pictures and countless memorable experiences to pass on.  Today I thought I'd do a mini-round up of fun things from our first couple days.  I'll be sharing this at Beverly's Pink Saturday, so when you're finished here, be sure to stop by her blog at How Sweet the Sound and see what other great pinks are there today!


My wonderful chauffeur...guarding my luggage while I roam around the airport.  It was my first flight anywhere. I was so nervous before I got on the plane but once I got on, I loved every minute of it!


Me and a few friends after the Jane Austen Festival Costumed Promenade in Bath.  What an excellent day! (Check out the video I linked...I'm in it!)


After the promenade, we headed to the Jane Austen Centre Tea Room for sandwiches and scones.  I had the most wonderful tea: The Empress of Peking.  It was delicious!


Some of our ladies at the Assembly Rooms in Bath, waiting for the Regency Costume Ball to begin! These are the same rooms where balls were held in Jane Austen's day and the ones she references in her books!

Do you have any great travel memories to share? I'd love to hear about them.  Be sure to leave a comment and visit the other pinkies at Beverly's Pink Saturday!

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Home from England--The Homemaking Party

Hello Everyone---I'm home from England! It was a truly amazing and memorable trip.  There's so much I want to share with you all so I'm hoping to throughout the next few weeks!

Thanks for stopping by The Homemaking Party.  I'll begin special features again next week so be sure to link up all your best stuff and please add my button or a text link to your posts!

Blessings!


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Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Make Bake Create #26


  
Welcome to this week's Make Bake Create Party! 5 hosts...5 blogs---SWEET! Meet your hosts:

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Follow our Make Bake Create Party Pin Board where we will be pinning the projects linked up here!  


* Be sure to include The Make Bake Create button or text link to in your linked post; this is recommended in order to be featured! (I apologize there are no features today as I'm in England!)

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Friday, September 20, 2013

5 Things To Do When Struggling With Discontent In A Marriage -- Guest Post from Nan at Mom's The Word ( I Love To Hear)

Image courtesy of nuttakit at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Thanks so much to Nan at Mom's The Word (I Love To Hear) for guest posting today!

Sometimes we can be annoyed or angry with our husbands over something that they CAN or CANNOT help.  In our annoyance, we may say things that belittle our husbands or make them look bad in our children's eyes, in the eyes of others, as well as in our own eyes.

Said to our child: "Sorry, sweetie, we can't go to the zoo today because daddy doesn't want us to have any fun."'
Said to our friend: "No, I can't go to the movie with you because my husband is mean and stingy and has a rotten job that no one in their right mind would want."

Said to our family: "So what if he works hard?  So do I!  But you don't see ME sleeping in on Saturday morning.  I have to get up with the kids.   I wish I could relax over the weekend!  He's just a big wimp."

Said to our husband: "I don't understand why I can't buy that new dress.  What kind of a husband and provider are you????"

When we are struggling with discontentment with what our husband has provided for us or where God has placed us, when we are struggling with anger against our husband and wanting our friends or family to validate that WE were "right," and not our spouse; when we are struggling with the little annoyances that living with one another can bring, we need to take a closer look at ourselves.

What are we filling ourselves up with?


How are we spending our "free" time?  Are we watching t.v. shows that make us discontent in our homes and in our marriage?

Who are we hanging out with?  Do we have friends who are encouraging us and validating us in our own poor and negative attitudes when they should be pointing us to Christ?

What are we reading?  Are we reading books that fill us with a false sense of what love and romance really is?

What are we living and modeling?  Are we modeling unconditional love to our spouse, to our children, and to others or are we modeling conditional love? ("If he takes out the garbage, I will make him dinner.  If he says 'I'm sorry' first, I will say that I am sorry.  I will start speaking to him again when he stops playing on the computer.  I am not doing his laundry because he forgot to put gas in my car.")

What are we saying about our husband to our children?  Are we encouraging them in their love and respect for their daddy or are we consciously or unconsciously encouraging them to join us in our anger and discontent? ("Daddy is not being fair. Daddy is mean.  Daddy doesn't want you to have that new toy.  Daddy would rather watch t.v. than play Monopoly with us.")

Image courtesy of noppasinw at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

What am I saying about my husband to others?  Our husbands deserve to know that their heart and reputation is safe with us, and not put on display for a cheap joke or an angry shot at their expense.

If we KNOW that we struggle with being content, then we need to avoid the things, if possible, that will automatically make us discontent.  If we can't avoid them, then we must change how we think about them.

The thoughts that we dwell on become the thoughts that begin to control our words, and drive our actions and our behavior.

It is easy to become discontent within our marriages if we allow ourselves to.  It is easy to look at all the things that our husbands don't do and build up quite a case against them in our own minds.


Suddenly, we are discontent.  We are unappreciated. We are unhappy.

We made dinner and hubby didn't even say thank you.  We did the laundry and hubby STILL hasn't put his clothes away.  We mowed the lawn and yet it never occurred to hubby to do the dinner dishes in return.

I'll bet you could sit down right now and make a list of several things that your husband doesn't do that you'd like him to do.

But can you make a list of several things that your husband DOES do?  Instead of dwelling on the things that your husband doesn't do, do you appreciate the things that he DOES do?  Do you let him know it?

If your husband brings you home a single rose, are you pleased or do you wish it were a whole bouquet of roses? If he takes you out to dinner are you unhappy because you didn't get to go to a movie too?

1.  Pray for your husband every day.  Pray for your marriage.  We want to build our marriages, not tear them down.

"By wisdom a house is built,
    and through understanding it is established;
through knowledge its rooms are filled    with rare and beautiful treasures."  (Proverbs 24: 3,4, NIV)


2.  Take control over your thought life.  Are we dwelling on what hubby is not doing or focusing on what hubby IS doing?  Are we setting him up to fail by expecting him to respond in a certain way or expecting him to read our mind?  Are we expecting him to obey us as if he were our child and not our husband?  Are we building our marriages or breaking  them down?

"The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down." 
(Proverbs 14:1, NIV)


3.  Be thankful.  Are you thankful for your husband?  Are you thankful for his provision for you?  Do you accept that God is providing for you through your husband, and if you're not happy with your husband's provision for you, then you aren't happy with how the Lord is providing for you?

When you're struggling with discontent in your marriage, write down three things that day that you can be thankful for about your husband, and then thank the Lord for them!  Remember, you don't have to feel thankful to BE thankful.

4.  Remember that love is an action, not a feeling.  When you do the action, the feeling will come.  Don't let your feelings lead you.  Lead in love.

5.  Don't compare your husband to someone else's.  You'd love to have your husband do beautiful landscaping like your friend's husband or do the dishes every night like your sister's husband.  But remember to focus on what your husband IS doing.  Maybe he reads to the kids every night before bed, or repairs an appliance the minute you ask, or mows the lawn faithfully, or goes to work each day without complaining.

We're not going to be content in our marriages if we keep looking at what everyone else has.  We're not going to be content in our marriages if we keep looking at what we don't have.  We're not going to be content in our marriages when we do not have a thankful heart.

Contentment lies in our ability to be happy where we are, with whom we are, and where God has placed us. It lies in being happy with what God has given us, and not being unhappy because we can't have more.

Ultimately, our contentment lies in our ability to trust in God's faithfulness to us.


Fortunately, we have a big God who is able to help us in our desire to build our marriages and to control our tongues, to learn contentment and to be thankful.  Thank Him today for what you have!

Nan is a pastor's wife who is blessed to be married to her best friend, and the mother of two wonderful sons. She blogs over at Mom's The Word (I Love To Hear), and talks about her loving Savior, her precious family, marriage, parenting, clutter and organization, humor, frugality, homemaking, hairy legs and acrylic nails.  Nan has a love for Jesus, a heart for women, and a craving for chocolate.

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Not Your Typical Watergate Salad --- Guest Post from Audra Silva

watergate salad
I'm so excited to join you on Hope In Every Season while my dear friend is on holiday--in England! I can't wait to hear all about Sarah's trip. In the meantime, I want to share a favorite recipe from my childhood. Growing up, I always looked forward to when we had Enchiladas, but not because of those delicious wrapped goodies. No, it was the Watergate Salad we served on the side that I loved the most. Oh so yummy! Out of curiosity, I googled Watergate Salad. The recipes I found are nothing like ours, hence the title. So without further ado, here is...


Photo1

Not Your Typical Watergate Salad 

2 small packages of Pistachio pudding 
1 large can of pineapple chunks 
1 large can of peach slices 
1 carton of sour cream 

Drain cans of fruit, saving the juice. Cut the peach slices into chunks, roughly the size of the pineapple chunks. Whisk the two packages of pudding in with the reserved juice. Once completely mixed, add in the sour cream. Stir until well combined, then gently fold in the fruit. Chill before serving. Tips: The sour cream amount varies depending on how creamy you want your Watergate Salad. Less sour cream will make it thinner, whereas more sour cream will make it thick and creamy. The size we used (in the photo) created a creamy texture. I've had it both ways, and find both yummy.


watergate salad
This is such a simple recipe with only four ingredients, and takes about five minutes to make. Pop it in your fridge to chill a bit, and then enjoy!


Audra Silva can best be summed up by her tagline: sometimes quirky, sometimes serious, always real. She's a lover of Jesus, wife, mom, photography lover, artist, and writer trying to quiet the voices in her head. She blogs at Simply Audra Marie about faith, family, homemaking, health, fitness, beauty, and more. You can also find her on FacebookTwitter, and Pinterest.      
                      

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

The Homemaking Party

Time for the Homemaking Party!  I'm still in England and having a GREAT time!  Hope you've all been enjoying the awesome guest bloggers that have been keeping the blog going while I'm away!

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