Independence Day

As I’m preparing the menu for guests this weekend, watching the Cubs verses White Sox on TV, thinking about the firework display tonight, tomorrow night and even Monday July 4^th;  I caught a glimpse of the neighbors American flag. My mind starting thinking, what are we celebrating? For some it has just become another paid day off or a week’s factory shut down/vacation as it is for my husband. 

Wikipedia explains it this way, “Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. Independence Day is commonly associated with fireworks, parades, barbecues, carnivals, fairs, picnics, concerts, baseball games, family reunions, political speeches and ceremonies, and various other public and private events celebrating the history, government, and traditions of the United States. Independence Day is the national day of the United States.”

Where is God in all of this? Didn’t he help us form our nation? This is what Dave Meyer has to say, “TAKE A STAND, Now more than ever, believers need to take a stand for what is right—we need to voice our disapproval of ungodliness in a loving way. I believe most of us would agree that the world we live in is in desperate need of God’s restoration. From governmental legislation and indecent displays in public places to television programming and the movie industry, immorality has taken center stage while our Christian heritage has fallen by the wayside. We believe if enough people will let their voices be heard, those in government will listen, and change will take place. So be sure to check out the other links on this page and let your voice be heard! Thank you for helping to keep America a free and godly nation.”

So why you are celebrating your freedom in whatever manner you choose. Give God his due praise and thanks.

Flowering Prickly Pear Cactus

  

I’m betting that most people are like me and assume cactus only grow in the desert. However I know differently now and this is how Wikipedia explains it, “Like all true cactus species, prickly pears are native only to the Western hemisphere; however, they have been introduced to other parts of the globe. Prickly pear species are found in abundance in Mexico, especially in the central and western regions. They are also found in the Western United States, in arid regions in the Northwest, throughout the mid and lower elevations of the Rocky Mountains such as in Colorado, where species such as Opuntia phaeacantha, Opuntia polyacantha and others become dominant, and especially in the desert Southwest. Prickly pears are also the only types of cactus found to grow natively far east of the Great Plains states; O. humifusa is widespread throughout southern New England and Long Island, where it can be found in Northport, as well as throughout the northern Great Lakes states and southern Ontario, Canada. O. humifusa is also a prominent feature of the flora at Illinois Beach State Park, in Winthrop Harbor, Illinois, north of Chicago, and of Indiana Dunes State Park southeast of Chicago.”

This prickly pear is in Northern Indiana and gets larger and larger every season. It is hard weeding the cactus as the larger spikes hurt but the little hairy fibers stick even in the gloves and hurt even worse. I do love the beautiful flowers of the prickly pear cactus.

This post linked to Macro Flower Saturday

Back in the USA

 

Andy with baby sister Zeely

The adventure of Andy and Tucker took them to South Africa to help with the love of gardening, people and children. They left in August 2010 and returned 10 months later in June 2011.  

Jasmine and Dave

  

My son-n-law and daughter had a going away fund raising party for them and a celebration for their safe return. 

 It was a fun filled weekend of food, family and fun.

Saturday morning trampoline fun, food and picture show of Africa.

Andy with brothers Noah and Matthew

Andy with Uncle Chuck and Aunt Petey

                                  Saturday Evening we took the kids to a firework show.

Cool Firework Show

Duck Eggs

After we returned home, Terry was walking our property to see if everything was OK and a duck flew out at him. That bird has a nest with 11 eggs in it on our fence row. 

We are hoping to see little ducks emerge someday and hope they can find water as we don’t have any here. What a Great weekend of Food, Family and Fun.

Lily

 

 

I have at least 3 different varieties of Lily’s growing in my yard. This particular variety I dug up from my mom and dad’s property after mom passed away. I do not know the variety; if anyone could help me out with this information, I would appreciate it.

According to Wikipedia, “Lilium is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs. Most species are native to the temperate northern hemisphere. They comprise a genus of about 110 species in the lily family (Liliaceae). They are important as large showy flowering garden plants. Additionally, they are important culturally and in literature in much of the world. Some species are sometimes grown or harvested for the edible bulbs. The species in this genus are the true lilies. Many other plants exist with "lily" in the common English name, some of which are quite unrelated to the true lilies.”

Flowers are a gift from God, please take time to enjoy them.
This post linked to Macro Flower Saturday

How to Make a NO-Bake Strawberry Cheesecake

If you love cheesecake of all kinds Then you will love this recipe for no-bake strawberry cheesecake. This would be great for a birthday cake, Easter, Mother's or Father’s Day, Memorial Day, the 4th of July or any meal you simply want to please your family.
My sister's favorite cheesecake is the jell-o cheesecake our mom made and requested it for her birthdays. Growing organic strawberries, the combination just sounded great to me. I used low-fat cottage cheese and cream cheese along with sugar-free jell-o to reduce the calories and combined the great taste of strawberries and cheesecake. I hope you enjoy it too.

For the recipe go to Seekyt 
This post linked to Foodie Friday 

Clematis the Beautiful Spring Flower

 Clematis and all the springtime flowers God created are so beautiful however come and go far too quickly. We need to literally stop and smell the roses while we have them and can enjoy them.  

Song of Solomon 2:11-13; NKJV, “For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth; The time of singing has come, And the voice of the turtledove Is heard in our land. The fig tree puts forth her green figs, And the vines with the tender grapes Give a good smell. Rise up, my love, my fair one, And come away!”

 

The garden history of the clematis according to Wikipedia is, “The wild Clematis species native to China made their way into Japanese gardens by the 17th century. Japanese garden selections were the first exotic clematises to reach European gardens, in the 18th century, long before the Chinese species were identified in their native haunts at the end of the 19th century.^” They also explain, “The timing and location of flowers varies; spring-blooming clematis flower on side shoots of the previous year's stems, summer/fall blooming clematis bloom only on the ends of new stems, and twice-flowering clematis do both”

Let's stop to enjoy  the flowers.

This post linked to: Macro Flower Saturday

Strawberries Dipped in White Chocolate

Its strawberry season and ours are looking so good. I am using them any way I can while they are fresh.
At our daughter's wedding, they had chocolate dipped strawberries but by the time the bridal party and parents got there, the chocolate dipped strawberries were gone. Not to let that stop me from ever tasting this good treat I decided to make my own.
I'll show you how I made my strawberries dipped in white chocolate.

 To Read Full Article on Seekyt
This post linked to Foodie Friday , Friday Potluck  and Sweets for a Saturday

How to Make Hobo Dinners

During family camp 2012

It's officially hobo dinner and camping season. Have you ever made a hobo dinner at your camp-outs? Well our family does, and has many times. It has been an annual meal for our camp-outs followed with smores for dessert. Over the camping years, your size and age may change however, something's never change and that is a hobo dinner.

 When the Sister 6 is on their annual camping trip we make hobo dinners and it is usually based on what diet the girls are on, however, even with the gluten issue making a hobo dinner is easy. Our hobo dinners typically have chicken breast or ground turkey, potatoes, carrots, onions, green peppers, green beans; basically the vegetables that are fresh and coming out of our gardens. At times we may corn, zucchini and or basil/oregano. There is NO rule of thumb, design them for your family.
 

1. Since we are camping, wash all the veggies, take them outside set at the picnic table and slice and dice the veggies and meat in bite sized pieces. Maybe a veggie per paper plate.
2.  Evenly divide the mixture between the extra large sheets of heavy aluminum foil,  roll up the edges tightly. If your foil is cheap you may choose to wrap each packet again as you do not want it to fall apart in the hot fire.
3. Cook in the hot coals of a campfire until the chicken is opaque and the potatoes are tender, around 40 minutes. 
4. Remove from the fire, being very careful, unfold and top with cheese. 

Hobo dinners are easy to make, to clean up and delicious.  If you have never made a hobo dinner, at your camp-out, this is the time to start.

                                 

Jewel of Tibet or Allium Flower

Have you ever driven down the road and seen these long stemmed purple balls and wondered what they are? The allium flower or Jewel of Tibet are flower bulbs in the onion family. However, they smell sweeter and look so much prettier than onions.According to alliumflower.net, “Prized for its beauty and non-onion aroma fragrance, the allium flower isused in many perfumes and cosmetics products throughout the world. The ancient native Indians of Peru use this flower for medicinal as well as religious purposes and it was seen as one of the most import plant species of the Mayan culture.”

My father-n-law had a strange sense of humor and fooled many people in our town. After the pretty purple of the petals would fade, he took spray paint and painted them. He would use whatever paint he had on hand, colors like orange, red, yellow or even lime green.  People would think the Jewel of Tibet grew purple and changed its color. He then in the fall, when they dug the bulbs, up would stick those painted dead stems back in the ground. Try fooling your neighbors; paint your Jewel of Tibet your favorite color.

This post linked to Macro  Flower Saturday

Homemade Pizza Roll Recipe

Are you a pizza lover? What about pizza rolls? My little ones love those frozen pizza rolls from the grocery store. I personally have never eaten one of the frozen ones; however, I do love homemade pizza so when I saw this recipe for homemade pizza rolls I knew I had to try them.
As many other recipes I did modify it a bit, as the original recipe called for pre-made crescent rolls, the kind you buy in the refrigerated section in your grocery store. I wanted mine to be homemade, made from scratch.

Read full article on Seekyt 
This post linked to:Foodie Friday
and Friday Potluck