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Song: Good Good Father by Chris Tomlin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBwXHpKVS5I
I am thankful for my Dad, my husband who is a wonderful Daddy to our girls, and many other Father figures in my life from Grandparents to friends and more, but there is one perfect Father. Our earthly Father’s will stumble, God never will. We can be grateful for the Father’s God has chosen to give us, however, our focus should be on our Heavenly Father.
I’ve heard a thousand stories of what they think you’re like
But I’ve heard tender whispers of love in the dead of night
And you tell me that you’re pleased
And that I’m never aloneYou’re a Good, Good Father
It’s who you are, it’s who you are, it’s who you are
And I’m loved by you
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I amI’ve seen many searching for answers far and wide
But I know we’re all searching
For answers only you can provide
Cause you know just what we need
Before we, we say a wordSong: From The Day by I Am They
We were rescued the day He saved our soul from the bonds gripping it. There is so much to be thankful for in our lives. Our eyes have been opened and we have the opportunity to make a positive impact for him during our lifetime.
When You found me, I was so blind
My sin was before me, I was swallowed by pride
But out of the darkness, You brought me to Your light
You showed me new mercy and opened up my eyesFrom the day You saved my soul
‘Til the very moment when I come home
I’ll sing, I’ll dance, my heart will overflow
From the day You saved my soulWhere brilliant light is all around
And endless joy is the only sound
Oh, rest my heart forever now
Oh, in Your arms I’ll always be foundMy love is Yours
My heart is Yours
My life is Yours
ForeverSong: Worthy of It All by David Brymer
He deserves our glory and praise. By Him all things were created. We like to take credit and ownership for our gifts and talents when in reality they are really from Him.
All the saints and angels bow before Your throne
All the elders cast their crowns before the Lamb of God and singYou are worthy of it all, You are worthy of it all
For from You are all things, and to You are all things, You deserve the glorySong: Thank You Lord by Don Moen
There are so many reasons to be thankful today. The blessings in my life are numerous. God has richly blessed my life beyond what I deserve. I am grateful for the multitude of ways His demonstrates His love and care in my life each day.
I come before You today
And there’s just one thing that I want to say
Thank You LordFor all You’ve given to me
For all the blessings I can not see
Thank You LordWith a grateful heart
With a song of praise
With an outstretched arm
I will bless Your nameThank You Lord
I just wanna thank You LordFor all You’ve done in my life
You took my darkness and gave me Your light
Thank You LordYou took my sin and my shame
You took my sickness and healed all my pain
Thank You LordSong: Beautiful Things by Gungor
A few weeks ago as I was driving back from an event with my family when I heard this song for the first time (or at least really paid attention to it) and it hit home. It is God alone who transforms us into something beautiful. We all enjoy beautiful things around us from flowers, people, art, music, and so much more.
He can take my brokenness, failures, struggles, and transform them into something beautiful. He can use those pieces of my life and allow me to make an impact on the lives of others. With His help we CAN change and become something that is truly beautiful from the inside out.
God can take something as simple as dirt and turn it into something wonderfully beautiful. Isn’t it encouraging to know that he can make us beautiful! I really enjoy this song and especially love the simple reminder of the transformation that takes place in our hearts and lives when Christ is in the center.
All this pain
I wonder if I’ll ever find my way
I wonder if my life could really change at allAll this earth
Could all that is lost ever be found
Could a garden come up from this ground at allYou make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of the dust
You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of usAll around,
Hope is springing up from this old ground
Out of chaos life is being found in YouYou make beautiful things out of the dust
You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of usYou make me new, You are making me new
Recipes: Auntie Anne’s Apple Cinnamon Pretzels
Delicious Auntie Anne’s Apple Cinnamon Pretzel ready to be eaten!
We had the opportunity to try these Auntie Anne’s Apple Cinnamon Pretzels and they were delicious! It wasn’t completely homemade, but it was fun putting them together. The girls had a blast rolling out the dough, putting into different shapes, and sprinkling on the cinnamon and sugar mixture.
Pretzel dough rolled and shaped into cool designs!
Apple pretzels are baked, now on to the next step!
They have been sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar!
Anyone ready for a special treat?!
If you are looking for a fun and delicious treat! Try Auntie Anne’s Apple Cinnamon Pretzels.
Travel & Vacation: State License Plate Game
2 State License Plate Game Boards
Our family enjoys going on road trips. We’ve had 40 plus hour road trips before so we are always looking for fun ways to stay busy while in the car. We play games, listen to audio books, read, watch a movie, rest, and more. One of our road trip rules is the only time the kids are allowed to watch a movie is if the trip is over 5 hours long. We found these printable State License Plate Game templates on The Dating Divas website just in time for our last road trip (which was only 19 hours long). The kids have always traveled well and actually look forward to our road trip adventures.
We printed out two of The Dating Divas State License Plate Game sheets, one for each kid. After printing out the sheets we laminated them so we can re-use them for all our road trips. Once they are laminated you can use dry erase markers OR crayons to mark off each license plate as you see it. The only one we have never seen (so far) has been Hawaii. We’ve seen Alaska a few times, but Hawaii is a hard one to locate. On one trip we got 40 plus of the license plates.
You can do variations of this game as well. If you want try to play bingo, see what different shapes you create, four corners, and more. You only get to mark them off if you actually see them and one other person must see them as well to confirm it. So if you spot a few while your sibling is resting or playing a different game you may have an advantage. This is just one of the many fun games we play on our road trips. The kids enjoy it and it keeps them looking out the window and paying attention to the many sights we are passing along the way. Thank you The Dating Divas for this awesome template! We love it!
License plates for all 50 states
Whose ready for a road trip!?
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family, ways we relax, and tips on how to make trips more enjoyable. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Organized Chaos: Picnic & Travel Supplies
Our Picnic and Travel Supplies Organized
Our family loves to be outside and travel! We keep some of the travel supplies we use regularly on hand for these occasions so that we are prepared. We don’t always need all these items for each trip or when we go outside, but when it is necessary it is easy to locate so we can use them.
These small containers with lids that we used for the picnic and travel supplies, you can find for a $1 at Dollar Tree, have been useful in helping our family get and stay organized! Once the items are placed in containers, we put the lid on, and labeled them. We picked up the shelving a long time ago at Sam’s Club, but you can find it at a number of stores including Walmart, Target, Home Depot, and more.
Picnic & Travel Supply label ideas to get you started:
- Sunblock
- Bug Repellent Bands
- Hand Sanitizer / Wet Wipes
- Disposable Forks
- Disposable Spoons
- Disposable Knives
- Disposable Utensil Sets
- Decorative Tape
- Candy Gifts
Most of these items probably make sense to you, except maybe the Decorative Tape and the Candy Gifts. Well, let me explain why those are in this section as well and on the shelf with the other travel items. The decorative tape is used usually before we travel to make or decorate a special surprise for the kids (especially if it is a long trip). Sometimes we have actually brought a roll with us as we travel for various fun activities during the travel. We do use the decorative tape for other occasions as well, but for the most part it used before traveling adventures. The candy gifts are in the travel section because when we go on long road trips, usually 5 hours or longer, we try to pack special treats for the kids to enjoy along the way. This helps break up the trip for them. I usually get the treats a various times throughout the year as I find great deals and put them into the container. As we prepare to leave for an upcoming trip I pull out a couple items and we are good to go.
Disposable utensils, decorative tape, and candy gifts! Ready for the next road trip adventure!
The Picnic & Travel Supplies are organized on the middle shelf in this picture!
Recipes: Cheesy Bacon Potatoes Bites
Cheesy Bacon Potato Bites
I try to keep potatoes on hand for a variety of family recipes. It is fun to try out some new recipes with the potatoes too. The Cheesy Bacon Potato Bites is one we tried a few months ago and our family liked it so much we have added several variations to this recipe. If we need to use up some potatoes or a simple side dish this is a good one for family meals.
Part of this recipe is with regular dairy cheese and the another part using soy cheese (dairy free cheese). If you have someone in your family that has a dairy allergy you could use this recipe to do the whole pan dairy free or part of it like we did for our family (depending on the intensity of the dairy reaction). It is a simple recipe that you can alter to suit your family.
Cheesy Baked Potatoes:
- 4 Potatoes (we used red potatoes this time)
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 tablespoon Garlic Salt (we like Lawry’s)
- 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 cup Shredded Cheese (we used Colby Jack and the orange cheese the right of the picture is actually Soy Cheese)
- 1/4 cup of Bacon Bits
1. Rinse the potatoes.
2. Slice the potatoes into 1/2 inch slices.
3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
4. Spray the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish.
5. Place the potatoes in a single layer in your 9×13 dish. Brush each potato with olive oil.
6. Sprinkle the tops of the potatoes with garlic salt and black pepper. Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes.
7. Pull the potatoes out of the oven. Add the cheese and bacon to the tops of the potatoes. Bake for an additional 5 minutes.
Potatoes sliced, oiled, seasoned, and ready to go into the oven
Potatoes after being baked for 25 minutes. Time to add the toppings – cheese & bacon!
Cheese has been added and already melting because the potatoes are so hot! Next comes a layer of bacon, five more minutes in the oven, and it’s ready! As you can see from the picture you could make this a “dairy free” recipe if you use dairy free cheese such as soy.
Recipes: Pickled Green Beans
Making Pickled Green Beans
Our family loves green beans. Fresh garden green beans are so tasty too! We always planted a lot of green beans whenever we had a garden. We typically had several varieties of beans from foot long beans to different types of green beans to purple beans and more.
Whenever we had extra green beans we would look for a variety of ways to store, eat, and enjoy them. I recently came across our Pickled Green Bean recipe. Since it is Spring I thought it would be a good time to share it. These pickled green beans are crunchy and tasty!
Pickled Green Beans Recipe:
- 2 pounds fresh Green Beans (rinsed)
- 2 1/2 cups White Distilled Vinegar
- 2 1/2 cups Water
- 1/4 cup Salt
- 4 Garlic Cloves (peeled)
- 1 large bunch fresh Dill Weed
- 2 teaspoons Mustard Seeds
- 1 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
- 6 Jars (1/2 pint each) with Rings and Lids
1. Locate your jars and sterilize them.
2. Trim both ends off the rinsed fresh green beans. Make sure the green beans fit into your jars if not cut them in half.
3. In a large saucepan put the vinegar, water, and salt. Bring the mixture into a rolling boil over high heat.
4. In each jar place 1 garlic clove, 1 sprig of dill, 1/8 teaspoon of Red Pepper Flakes, and 1/4 teaspoon of Mustard Seeds.
5. Pack the green beans into the jars, standing them up vertically.
6. Ladle boiling mixture into the jars until it is 1/4 inch from the top.
7. Put the lids on the jars and allow the jars and contents to cool to room temperature before placing them into the refrigerator. Let the pickles ferment for 2 to 3 weeks before eating the pickled green beans.
Makes 6 pint sized jars of Pickled Green Beans.
Green Beans being pickled
Everything added now need to put on the lids!
Jars ready to be stored for later treats!
