Weekly Photo Challenge: Thankful

More than anything, I am thankful for the birth of the Christ.

I am thankful and grateful for his great sacrifice and words of truth that have led millions to salvation and grace. I am thankful to God who showed His love by the sacrifice of His Son in the great hopes that people would listen and follow the commandment to love one another, the only hope for our world. Jesus was humble and lived a simple life. He lived to teach and help others, and taught us that a life spent in accumulating wealth and possessions was not just foolish, but wrong. He taught us to spend our lives in the service of others. He taught that true love is not a warm fuzzy feeling, but an act of great sacrifice, which explains why most marriages never work. He taught us to love and pray for our enemies, which does not mean to go give them a big hug, but to stop vengeful acts that bring you down to their level or below. He told us to forgive those that don’t deserve it and this does not mean you allow someone to do wrong, but if they truly repent, you allow them back into your life or society without reproach.

I am thankful that when I feel alone or unloved Jesus told me to remember that when the world hated you that it hated him first. The knowledge that I am indeed in good company, comforts me greatly. Thank you God, in the name of Jesus, for another day.

green20122010springflowersspring2010flowers 286

green20122009miscflowersjune2009garden 127

green20122009miscflowersjune2009garden 106

green20122007Christmas&ArtShowChristmas2007Sean&Sina 007

green20122007Christmas&ArtShowBackyardSummer07 017

acorn dragonfly green nature plants turkey weekly photo challege

Weekly Photo Challenge: Green

double hung windows photos renewal Renewal by Anderson seedlings sunrise weekly photo challenge

Weekly Photo Challenge: Renewal

renewalseedlings20122012brdofmanyflvrsSeedSprouts 032 — When I think of renewal I think of the earliest seedlings breaking through the soil in spring.

renewalsunrisej — Each sunrise is renewal of everything!

DOUBLEHUNG WINDOWSj — Not the Renewal by Anderson double hung windows.

cooking creatively food food preperation prepared produce produce vinegar washing produce

Miscellaneous Cooking Tips

Please replace all or part of the flour in any recipe with whole wheat instead of bleached or unbleached regular flour.You do not have to use all the ingredients in specific recipes. Sometimes it effects the flavor, other times it may actually improve the dish to leave something out or add additional seasoning or ingredients. Just experiment with common sense. You cannot make Chicken and Dumplings without the Chicken.

Learn to cook without the need for measuring ingredients, except for baking. Don’t ever cook without any seasoning or salt, much too blah!

Use Vinegar to rinse fresh fruits and vegetables. I have seen washes specific for cleaning produce that are expensive and I have even heard of some who use detergent to wash off the various pesticides. Watered down vinegar solutions are great for washing fruits and vegetables, much better than just water, safer than soap and much cheaper than store bought products.

Be careful using pre-washed and bagged leaf vegetables and baby carrots. You don’t really know how clean they are and they may put various additives to preserve and prevent browning. Fresh is best. Use a large clean bin or kitchen sink to clean all the leaves in water with slight amount of vinegar. Then drain and rinse with plain water. You do not have to bother with vinager if you know the products were grown organically, such as the produce you take from your yard, depending on how polluted the area you live in is.

Miscellaneous tips from pogirlshines.com.