To my husband--Garry

This post is a tribute to my husband. We met more than 30 years ago and have been married for a little over 29 of those years. I'd love to say that we've had the most perfect, fairly tale marriage for all of those years. But that would not be true. What is true is:

We've stuck it out through thick and thin
We still love each other
We are committed to the "til death do us part" part of our wedding vows
We have been blessed beyond imagination with 3 wonderful sons.
We continue to need each other and we simply are not complete without the other
The Bible says that when we marry we are to become one. I think we've done that.

So here are some things that I really love about the man I'm married to:

His even temperament--he's always level and consistent
His care and concern for other people
His ability to make me laugh
His helpfulness around the house
His gift of encouragement
His dedication to God
His creativity

His determination
His musical abilities
His discernment

So Garry--here's to you!!

You are my soul-mate, my hero, my knight in shining army, and my inspiration!
I love you!!

Welcome to this World

Dishes stacked high, the scent of fried fish lingers in the air for longer than anyone anticipated. Sonny Boy (that's what we always called him) and his wife, Elizabeth had the best of intentions and their efforts to welcome the newborn were greatly appreciated. Who knew the water and electricity would be off for days beginning with that day in early March when Algie and Ruth Knight brought their youngest child, a baby girl, home to the small house in Upshur County. The little one weighed in at 6 pounds 10 1/2 ounces near 6:00 A.M. on February 27, 1960 at the small hospital in Pittsburg, Texas. The unpredictable east Texas weather dumped ice and snow in the area the day mother and child were released from the hospital causing the massive power outage that welcomed this wee one home. The duties of the new mother included watching after James only 2 years and 8 months old. Jean, the oldest child was already 12 years and 5 months old at the time. She would be a help in these busy days.

Many years have raced by since that scene of dirty dishes, no water, and cold weather. I've never been fond of seafood of any kind or cold weather. Could it be that those conditions which only live in my memory because the story was repeated to me as a child, have influenced my tastes and temperature tolerance?

My Rock!

2 Samuel 22:1-3 (Contemporary English Version)

Our LORD and our God, you are my mighty rock, my fortress, my protector. You are the rock where I am safe. You are my shield, my powerful weapon, and my place of shelter. You rescue me and keep me from being hurt.
So much in our world today is not safe. Our economy is in a mess, many people that I know and love are facing serious health issues, I know several people with relationship problems, and crime is rampant. People will betray you or hurt you even when they don't mean to. But when we come to God we find safety. He is sure and trustworthy. He ALWAYS welcomes us and loves us and reminds us of the security we have in Him. So my money, my health, my stuff, my relationships, my secrets, and even my existence may not be SAFE, but my FAITH is SAFE!!

Philly Corn

Here is another family favorite side dish.

Philly Corn

3 cans of whole kernel corn, drained
2 Tbsp margerine
8 oz package cream cheese (reduced fat works great)
black pepper to taste (optional)

Pour corn in mixing bowl, add margarine, pepper, and cream cheese in chunks. Heat in microwave until cheese is soft. Stir until cream cheese is melted and mixed evenly with corn. Transfer to a casserole dish and bake until bubbly.

Sour Cream Potato Casserole

This is the original recipe I got from a family cookbook several years ago. Read below to see my personal touches.

Sour Cream Potato Casserole

2 lbs cooked potatoes

1tsp salt

½ tsp. Pepper

2 cups grated cheese

2 cups sour cream

½ cup melted butter

1 can cream of chicken soup (you can use cream of mushroom soup instead)

Mix all ingredients together and pour into a casserole dish. Mix 2 cups of corn flakes with ½ cup melted butter and put on top of potato mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Karen’s version: I top with grated cheddar cheese instead of the cornflake mixture.

This recipe is probably the most requested dish from everyone in my family. It is served at every special dinner such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, or special occasion meal.

I don't really measure my ingredients, but always cook a big pot of potatoes and then usually use one can of cream of mushroom and one can of cream of chicken soup and a pint of sour cream and just cheese til it looks right.

My daughter-in-law just hates it that most of my recipes include some phrase like "until it looks right." I really don't do a lot of measuring for anything other than desserts. I just put in the ingredients.

BBQ Pork Loin Recipe

This is a recipe that I tried a while back and my family all loved it. Now I use it when I want to cook something really good that doesn't take much effort. It's a crock pot recipe so you have to start it early in the day.

Buy a pork loin roast. I watch for them to go on sale and buy a couple.

Cut it into slices about 3/4 inch thick. Place a few slices in the crock pot, cover with bottled BBQ Sauce. Add more slices and more sauce until you are out of meat and sauce. Cook on low for 6 to 10 hours. If you need to speed it up, cook on high for at least 4 hours.

You can add some veggies and serve as a main dish.

Or you can shred the cooked meat and mix in with the BBQ sauce and serve on buns as BBQ sandwiches.

Many times I serve this as a main dish the first time and then use up leftovers as sandwiches in a day or two.

Crock Pot hint: Buy the crock pot liners and put one in before cooking and clean up is a breeze.

QUOTE

Someone made this statement to me in conversation recently, and I just can't get it out of my head.

"It all works out in the END, IF it ever ENDS!"

I just keep thinking about that and how true it is. Things do all eventually work out just fine. The problems are that so many issues in life just seem to keep building and building and not ENDING. So now, I need to look at situations in my life and look for ways to get to the END and then start a NEW thing.

Photo Challenge--Changing Seasons

It's time for the Brenda's Photo Challenge again! Thanks to Amanda of Penny N Pounds for hosting this challenge theme. So here are my entries for "Changing Seasons."

FALL--Took this picture on a fall trip to Arkansas a few years back.

WINTER--Took this picture this last February outside my office after a snow/ice storm. Went to work and the trees were so sparkly, I just had to go outside with my camera and take some pictures!!

SPRING--These flowers come up in my yard in late February or early March and seem to be the very first sign of spring each year. I took this particular picture during a dark time in our family. We were facing some heavy challenges as a family and one day I noticed the beautiful flowers blooming when all else seemed dead. I often refer to that February as the "month I cried." At the time, I felt like God sent those flowers to give me hope that things would improve. This picture reminds me of God's presence and hope for brighter days no matter what the struggle of the day may be.

SUMMER--Our backyard garden!

Be sure to check out the other participants' pictures by going to the Brenda's Photo Challenge Blog.

I'll be around to see everyone's pictures later tonight. Have a great Saturday!!

Ramblings

Another picture from my recent travels.

It's been a while since I've posted. This last week or so has been extra busy. My life tends to revolve around various deadlines--mostly dictated from the IRS.

I worked a lot of hours last week trying to meet yesterday's final deadline for corporation tax returns. I managed to squeeze in a little of my school work and some sleep.

I'm so very thankful that I enjoy my job. Late Saturday afternoon with a few of us at work trying to complete those final returns, I noticed the laughter--primarily between myself and a co-worker. We were working together on a project and seemed to repeat a pattern of thinking we had it all done and then finding something not quite right, changing it and starting the pattern again. We were both so tired and had really worked long, focused hours for several days straight, but we were still laughing and light-hearted. The situation was one where we could easily justified being crabby, stressed, and grumpy; but we were laughing. I was so thankful for His grace and joy and allowing me to work in such a positive atmosphere.

So I stayed late on Saturday to get everything "in my court" in good position and have Sunday off. I realized just how tired I was on Sunday. After church, lunch, and a stop by Wal-Mart for a few groceries; I took a nap! I worked on laundry and some school assignments later in the day.

Yesterday, I worked a short day and cooked supper for my family. On a whim, I checked with my daughter-in-law and son and they stopped by to eat with us. It was good to see them again.

So I feel like I got recharged and now I'm ready to focus on the tax returns with Oct 15 as their deadline. Checking my online class assignments, I need to put forth a lot of attention on that class over the next couple of weeks as well.

Guess I better get going!!

San Antonio

Since the wedding was near San Antonio and we had a few hours of free time, we took a short stroll down the River Walk, stopped by the Alamo, and visited the Market Square. We ate a wonderful Mexican meal at Mi Tiara's. Here are a few pictures.

I'll try to post some more later this week.

Photo Challenge--Wings

I'm heading out of town for the weekend to a friend's wedding. I knew this girl before she was born. But wanted to post some "Wings" pictures before leaving. Hope to find some time tonight to at the motel to check out everyone's pictures. Be sure to check out the other partcipants in the edition of Brenda's Photo Challenge and thanks to Shannon for a fun theme.

Oh, and I could not decide on only 3 pictures for this theme. I think you'll understand why later.

The first 2 pictures were some I took this summer when I took a walk at a little park near my office. I posted some of the other pictures from that day a while back. I really enjoyed that day and took some very nice scenery pictures.

These next ones are just a few of the model airplanes that my son made and has displayed hanging from his ceiling. He put about 8 planes in different positions all around his room a couple years ago. He hopes to combine his love of airplanes/helicopters with his medical interest and hopes to someday be an RN working on a care flight helicopter.

And finally, Mr. Jim's has WINGS for sale!!

Quick Update

I'm really enjoying my fall college classes so far. I struggled a bit with the technology side of things getting started on them. College has changed so much over the last twenty-something years!!! I'm really pretty computer savvy but there were some frustrating times working through some of the set up issues and just figuring out how the online homework managers work.

I am very glad that I took the basic accounting class at the community college this summer. Although it was easy for me, it helped get me caught up with some concepts that I am using now.

I have one online graduate class and one undergraduate class that meets at a college about an hour from my house one night a week. I have to leave work early on that day. I was able to get a little bit ahead on the online class and work through the challenges of figuring out how the online assignment work and what will be expected for the most part over the weekend.

I have gone to the other class twice now. I really like the teacher. She is an older woman who loves what she is doing. She knows her "stuff" and demonstrates a genuine desire for students to learn. I've connected with a few of the other students in the class too. One of our requirements is to pick a company and analyze their financial statements as we study the various concepts. I have a friend that is CFO of a medium sized public corporation so I've chosen this company to write my paper about. I'm really looking forward to it and I've spoken with my friend who promises to answer any questions I have.

Work has been very hectic lately. I enjoy all of the responsibilities that I have there, but I am so tired by the end of the day. We have a new employee that I am responsible to train in addition to answering questions from 4 other staff preparers. Then I have a few projects that I'm supposed to complete myself. Add in the review of some of the work done by 5 other people and questions from clients and then coordination of computer problems and by the end of the day, I'm exhausted!!!

But I still manage to check in on many of my blog friends at night when I'm vegging or in the morning when I'm trying to get awake. I'm not leaving many comments lately, but I'm reading most of your posts if you are on my side bar.

So happy Thursday!!